2023 AMERICAN LEAGUE PREVIEW

The American League is home to the defending World Series Champions (Astros), the AL Single Season Home Run Champion (Aaron Judge), a Rookie Phenom (Julio Rodriguez) and a global duel threat phenom (Shohei Ohtani). This league has star power on an individual basis, but is there a team or 2 that can challenge the Astros? The balanced schedule will really help a team like the Orioles, but could hurt teams in the Central and West.

Let’s talk a journey through the American League and cap it off with some predictions….

NEW FACES IN NEW PLACES:

• JACOB DeGROM SIGNED WITH THE TEXAS RANGERS
• CARLOS RONDON SIGNED WITH THE YANKEES
• JOSH BELL SIGNED WITH THE CLEVELAND GUARDIANS
• TEOSCAR HERNANDEZ WAS TRADED FROM TORONTO TO THE SEATTLE MARINERS
• JOSE ABREU LEFT THE WHITE SOX AND SIGNED WITH THE ASTROS
• ANDREW BEININTENDI SIGNED A 5 YEAR DEAL WITH THE WHITE SOX
• JUSTIN TURNER AND KENLEY JANSEN REUNITE IN BEANTOWN. THEY ARE JOINED BY MASATAKA YOSHIDA FROM JAPAN.

TOP 5 BALLPARKS IN THE AMERICAN LEAGUE:

1.). FENWAY PARK

2.). KAUFFMAN STADIUM

3.). CAMDEN YARDS

4.). YANKEE STADIUM

5.). T-MOBILE PARK

TOP 20 PLAYERS IN THE AMERICAN LEAGUE:

1.). SHOHEI OHTANI

2.). AARON JUDGE

3.). MIKE TROUT

4.). YORDAN ALVAREZ

5.). RAFAEL DEVERS

6.). JOSE RAMIREZ

7.). JULIO RODRIGUEZ

8.). VLAD GUERRERO JR

9.). KYLE TUCKER

10.). CARLOS CORREA

11.). GERRIT COLE

12.). MARCUS SEMIEN

13.). COREY SEAGER

14.). JACOB DeGROM

15.). SHANE BIEBER

16.). JOSE ABREU

17.). ALEX BREGMAN

18.). BO BICHETTE

19.). ELOY JIMENEZ

20.). GEORGE SPRINGER

3 BOLD PREDICTIONS FOR THE 2023 SEASON:

• SHOHEI OHTANI WILL WIN THE AL MVP AND AL CY YOUNG AWARD
• THE ORIOLES WILL ACQUIRE CORBIN BURNES FROM THE BREWERS IN A BLOCKBUSTER TRADE.
• JULIO RODRIGUEZ WILL PRODUCE A 40 HOME RUN / 40 STOLEN BASE SEASON.

TOP STORYLINES IN THE AMERICAN LEAGUE:

• ARE THE YANKEES READY TO RETURN TO THE WORLD SERIES?
• WHAT WILL AARON JUDGE DO AS AN ENCORE?
• CAN THE TORONTO BLUE JAYS TAKE THE NEXT STEP AND WIN A PLAYOFF SERIES?
• ARE THE GUARDIANS FOR REAL?
• ARE THE ORIOLES AND WHITE SOX READY FOR THE PLAYOFFS?
• CAN SHOHEI AND TROUT FINALLY LEAD THE ANGELS TO THE PLAYOFFS?

AMERICAN LEAGUE STANDING PREDICTIONS:

AL EAST:

1.). NEW YORK YANKEES

2.). TORONTO BLUE JAYS

3.). BALTIMORE ORIOLES

4.). TAMPA BAY RAYS

5.). BOSTON RED SOX

AL CENTRAL:

1.). CHICAGO WHITE SOX

2.). CLEVELAND GUARDIANS

3.). MINNESOTA TWINS

4.). DETROIT TIGERS

5.). KANSAS CITY ROYALS

AL WEST:

1.). HOUSTON ASTROS

2.). SEATTLE MARINERS

3.). LA ANGELS

4.). TEXAS RANGERS

5.). OAKLAND A’S

WILD CARD TEAMS:

• TORONTO BLUE JAYS
• SEATTLE MARINERS
• LA ANGELS

AMERICAN LEAGUE CHAMPION: NEW YORK YANKEES

AMERICAN LEAGUE MVP: SHOHEI OHTANI. (ANGELS)

AMERICAN LEAGUE CY YOUNG: SHANE McCLANAHAN (RAYS)

AMERICAN LEAGUE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: GUNNAR HENDERSON (ORIOLES)

The American League should prove to be amazing theater all season long. I truly hope the Angels make the playoffs for the s benefit of baseball. The stars of the game are plentiful and their skills and personalities will drive the game higher. My National League Preview will be released shortly. If you’re interested in the rule changes coming to Major League Baseball, check out our article on Spinnable Sports.