AL East
This was pretty much without question the best division in all of baseball last season, and I think it will be tough again, but one team seems destined to distance themselves from the pack in 2017.
Boston Red Sox
Coming off a 93 win season in 2016, I think Boston is in position to be just as good in 2017, and maybe even better. Rick Porcello won the American League Cy Young award last year, and Mookie Betts and Xander Bogaerts look like up and coming superstars. As if that weren't enough, Boston added Chris Sale in the offseason, and youngsters like Andrew Benintendi and Jackie Bradley could join forces with Betts and become the best young outfield in all of baseball.
Losing David Ortiz will obviously hurt for reasons both on and off the field, but the Red Sox still have a group of veterans that can most likely make up for that. The only problem I see here is that the health of David Price is already in jeopardy, although after initially expecting to hear the terrifying words of "Tommy John surgery," I think Boston dodged that bullet. Instead, Price is probably going to miss the early part of the season, but the pitching staff can make up for his absence for the time being. The Red Sox are without question a team to be reckoned with in 2017.
Ceiling: It is pretty simple here. Fans in Boston should have their sights set on the World Series.
Floor: This team is too talented to fall off completely. If Price is unable to get healthy and some of the youngsters struggle, it will put a dent in Boston's plans, but I really think that at worst, Boston will only just miss out on a Wild Card berth.
Reality: Like I said, there is too much talent here for this team to be anything worse than above average. When October rolls around, I expect to see the Red Sox in the playoffs.
Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto is coming off of an ALCS appearance last year, and this team is still very formidable. However, Edwin Encarnacion left Toronto to sign with the Cleveland Indians, and that will be an enormous blow to what was (and still might be) one of the best offenses in the game. The lineup is still strong though, and while the pitching staff is not full of Cy Young contending names, they will not have to be throwing shutouts left and right in order to win games thanks to guys like Jose Bautista, Josh Donaldson, and Troy Tulowitzki.
Ceiling: Despite the huge loss of Encarnacion, I certainly think Toronto can still make the playoffs. Guys like Aaron Sanchez and Marco Estrada and Marcus Stroman might not be household names quite yet, but they all have the potential to win 15 games, so I think the staff can be good enough to at least earn a playoff berth.
Floor: The only way that this team will not score a lot of runs is if some of their big bats get hurt, although none of them have any sort of severe injury history. I am far more worried about the pitching staff here when it comes to failing to reach expectations. I don't think that Toronto could be abysmal, but if they don't get some breaks, they will not be playing in October.
Reality: Losing Encarnacion is a hug blow to this lineup. However, they still will score a lot of runs. Everything here will hinge on how good the pitching can be, and I think it should be at least good enough to put the team in playoff contention, but I doubt they will be able to return to the ALCS.
Baltimore Orioles
Buck Showalter will never live down his decision not to use Zach Britton in Baltimore's Wild Card game last year against Toronto after the spectacular year that Britton had, but there is nothing that can be done about that now. This team is a lot like the Blue Jays in many ways, although their lineup does not have the same explosive potential. Britton had a historically great season as the closer last year, and it is just unfair to expect him to repeat that, although he should still be one of the best in the business. The AL East is tough though, so Baltimore will be challenged throughout the season.
Ceiling: Manny Machado is an up and coming superstar, and Baltimore still has multiple guys in the middle of the order that can hit a whole lot of home runs. The rotation is made up of guys who were formerly potential aces, have not lived up to that potential yet, but are still pretty good. If Machado can play at an MVP level (which is possible), the guys in the middle of the order can offset their strikeouts with a lot of home runs, and names like Gausman, Tillman, and Bundy become known throughout the baseball world, Baltimore could potentially challenge for a Wild Card spot.
Floor: Camden Yards is a hitter friendly park, and when Chris Davis and Mark Trumbo are your big bats, that is a good thing. However, those guys are also likely to strike out a bunch. If their batting order is more bust than boom, and their young rotation does not develop, Baltimore could potentially be out of the division race by August.
Reality: The one thing that seems almost certain in Baltimore is how good Manny Machado can be. Not only can he pick it at third base, but he can hit it all over the ballpark. Aside from him though, the team is filled with solid but unspectacular names. The chances of Zach Britton equaling what he did in 2016 are pretty much zero, although he should still be a top closer. However, much of their rotation and much of their lineup is still too inconsistent for my liking. One day Chris Davis might hit three home runs and Chris Tillman might throw a shutout, but the next day Davis might strike out four times and Kevin Gausman might get lit up. Maybe Baltimore challenges for a playoff berth, but I think that is about as optimistic as their fans should be.
New York Yankees
Talk about unfamiliar territory. For pretty much the past 20 years, the Yankees have been willing to spend endless amounts of money to win at all costs. However, it seems like that trend may have finally ended. While it might not provide Yankee fans with the immediate satisfaction they have come to expect, it may be the start of a new kind of outlook for the franchise. There are still older players on the roster, but the all or nothing mentality seems to be gone, as there are a bunch of fresh faces as well. We may not see the Yankees in the playoffs this year, but their fans still should be interested in the team they will put out on the field.
Ceiling: For the first time in years and years, the Yankees are somewhat centering their fortunes around youth. Gary Sanchez was spectacular in his abridged debut in 2016, and he now has a full season to live up to the high standard that he set. Other young names like Aaron Judge and Didi Gregorious can hopefully become mainstays in New York's lineup. If this mix of young players can continue to improve, I think it is possible that the Yankees get somewhat close to a playoff berth, but the American League is just too good for that to happen yet. The Yankees need to focus on building a young core in 2017, and it will bring about a lot of optimism going into 2018.
Floor: The floor here is all about the pitching staff. C.C. Sabathia is well past his prime and Michael Pineda seems to have proven himself to be more of a wasted talent than the potential ace many once considered him to be. The back end of the rotation is full of youth but also full of question marks. The Yankees offense should be pretty good, but if their rotation is hit by injuries, inconsistency, or both, the Yankees will have no shot to compete in this division.
Reality: Sanchez is the up and coming star here, but guys like Jacoby Ellsbury, Brett Gardner, Matt Holliday, Aroldis Chapman, and Masahiro Tanaka are still on this team. While I doubt we will ever see the Yankees in full rebuilding mode like we saw the Houston Astros or the Philadelphia 76ers, this year will be pretty much as close as it gets for the Yankees. With a full season to work, I think 2017 will be a great glimpse into the future for this team. Can Gary Sanchez be a mainstay in the middle of the order? Can the guys at the back end of the rotation now eventually become solid starters? Will Dellin Betances, Aaron Judge, and Aaron Hicks become household names? This could be the year that we find out the answers to all of those questions. I highly doubt this team is in playoff contention as the season winds down.
Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays finished last year 25 games out of first place in the AL East, and they return a roster that is mostly similar to that one. Some players did under achieve in 2016 (Chris Archer lost 19 games), so maybe Tampa Bay won't find themselves 25 games out of first place, but I still don't think they will be able to come close to the top of this division.
Ceiling: Chris Archer was supposed to be their up and coming ace last year, and he ended up losing 19 games. Evan Longoria remains the mainstay in the middle of this lineup, and I do not expect that to change in 2017. He is surrounded with a cast of boom or bust types, as well as middling names that have been let go by other teams for various reasons. Just like the lineup, the pitching staff remains mostly the same, but it is time for guys like Jake Odorizzi and Alex Cobb to produce and not just be mediocre guys eating innings as part of an average rotation. I will not expect that anymore until I see it happen, and therefore I think that the best this team can hope for is to avoid the basement of the AL East and maybe get within shouting distance of third place.
Floor: Like I said, it is about time for many of the guys on this team to either put up or shut up. Logan Forsythe, Steven Souza, Kevin Kiermaier, Alex Colome, Drew Smyly, Tim Beckham, and multiple others need to either prove that they are worthy of the big leagues or the organization needs to move on without them. This team could easily finish last in the division.
Reality: Archer still has a ton of talent and despite his bad record in 2016, he still struck out a lot of guys. I doubt he will lose 19 games again this year. Longoria should be good again in the middle of the order, and they do have some other guys that can drive in some runs. However, the pitching staff still has a ton of untapped potential and a lot of these guys are running out of time to live up to expectations. I don't expect this team to be anywhere close to the top of the AL East in 2017.
Daily Rangers Update: Despite Henrik Lundqvist suffering what seems to be a minor injury, the team still has one of the best records in the Eastern Conference. With 12 games left to play, 100 points is still within reach, and 100 points means your team has had a highly successful regular season. If they can keep pace with the teams above them in the conference, this time off might be a blessing in disguise for Lundqvist, as well as for Dan Girardi, who has been out but should be back.
Daily NBA Update: As the regular season winds down, all that seems to be in question now is who will win the MVP and who will be playing in the NBA Finals. Russell Westbrook got his 33rd triple-double of the season last night, so that means he needs eight more to tie Oscar Robertson's single season record. Westbrook is also still averaging a triple-double, something that has not been done since Robertson did it decades ago. Oklahoma City currently sits in the 6th spot in the Western Conference standings, but I think that is about where most people expected them to be. It seems as though the entire team is playing for Westbrook right now, and I really do believe that he is going to finish the season averaging a triple-double, and if he does that I think it will be impossible to give the MVP award to anyone but him.
Daily Diamondbacks Update: The team has been hitting a bunch over the past couple of days, which is nice to see, but we all know that Spring Training numbers mean absolutely nothing once the regular season begins. The spots at the back end of the rotation are still up for grabs, but I do like what Taijuan Walker has shown thus far. If he can provide a boost for the rotation, that would be a huge plus.
Daily Giants Update: The draft is getting closer and closer, and in my opinion the biggest area of need is the offensive line. The team signed D.J. Fluker, who can play both guard and tackle. I like that move, but I still think it would be nice to add another piece to the line, and I would love for that piece to be Ryan Ramczyk, but I'm not sure he will be available when the Giants pick at #23. A versatile defensive lineman would also be great if Jonathan Hankins leaves, and while it does seem likely that he will be gone, the further we get into the offseason, the closer we get to him returning, so maybe the team will be fortunate enough to bring back Hankins while also shoring up the offensive line in the draft as well.
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