AL Champion Offseason Recap & Season Preview

[Chris_SFG]

AL Champion Division

Teams that left the division: BAL-
Teams that joined the division: TOR+

Toronto Blue Jays:
Offseason Recap:
Players Lost: The only notable player they lost was C Pineda and I don't think they will miss him because...
Players Acquired: C Miller - one of the biggest signings this offseason and by far the best catcher available. We will see if he is worth the contract but there isn't much not to like, can hit, can field, and is relatively young.
Season Preview:
Position Player to Watch: LF Scott - getting a healthy bounce back season from Scott will help TOR chances in a difficult division.
Pitcher to Watch: SP Hunt - Hunt has provided #4-#5 SP numbers his first 2-3 years, but they need him to break out to be the top SP his ratings indicate he is.
Expectation: This is a solid team with average to above average starters at every position. The only player they lost they actually upgraded. With Lozada & Unkle competing for rotation spots this could become a top 5 rotation in the league. This will be common theme in this post, but if TOR was in any other division they would be favorites. But even in this tough division I think they will compete for the title most of the year and settle for a WC spot with 85-95 wins.

Seattle Mariners:
Offseason Recap:
Players Lost: SEA traded CF Zabala & RP Lucas and lost Adell to FA.
Players Acquired: SEA made a big splash signing Wander Franco to a rightful superstar contract. They also signed LF McLain.
Season Preview:
Position Player to Watch: LF McLain - they struggled mightily on offense last year, ranking 2nd to last in the league. They need some offense from LF this season and McLain is their best shot of that.
Pitcher to Watch: I'm going to go with the 2 top 100 prospects that appear likely to crack the opening day rotation - Powers & Patterson. If they can pitch up to their potential, they, along with Fuller & Perez, would form a top rotation in the league.
Expectation: This team will live or die with how many runs they can put up each night. Their pitching should be solid along with their defense, but they need some of their hitters outside of Franco & Minier to step up and provide some offense. Their SP should be better than last year but I don't see much improvement in their offense. They gained Franco but lost Adell & Zabala who project better than their replacements. My guess is they end with a similar record to last year (78-84), winning between 70-80 games.

Detroit Tigers:
Offseason Recap:
Players Lost: DET traded 3B Paredes to HOU and let 1B Jordan & RP Pressley hit FA.
Players Acquired: The only player they signed to ML contract was RP Nogosek who hasn't pitched in the ML since 2026.
Season Preview:
Position Player to Watch: RF Patino - had a down year in 2028 and DET would love to see the 2026-2027 version back.
Pitcher to Watch: SP Landis - he has mid-rotation potential but has not gotten there in his career yet. But he has a 0.69 ERA in spring training, is this his year?
Expectation: This is a team that went 82-80 last year with average pitching and below average offense. They lost Paredes & Jordan without really replacing their production. This is a flawed team in a very tough division. My guess is 70-80 wins on the season.

Los Angeles Angels:
Offseason Recap:
Players Lost: They lost 2 long relievers in Keller & Graterol, starting 1B Pratto, and backup C
Players Acquired: They signed SP Dugger to be a cheap back-end SP, and C Rogers as either a top backup C or to split time with Salazar.
Season Preview:
Position Player to Watch: If 1B Guinyard plays even close to his potential, LAA won't even remember who Pratto was. He looks like a better Blaze Jordan!
Pitcher to Watch: Carlos Rodriguez. He was the closer last year. If he isn't closing this year I don't see anyone who has a proven track record of closing games out which will be something to keep an eye on along with Rodriguez's success in a SP role. If he is back to closing - then all should be right again in LAA.
Expectation: They have a lot of players that are fragile, including a lot of pitchers. While I do see health as a legit concern for LAA, they have a lot of depth across the board, especially pitching. They have a top rotation, solid bullpen, average to above average offense, and solid defense across the board. I don't see too many things that can derail this team from a 95-105 win season and competing for the division.

Kansas City Royals:
Offseason Recap:
Players Lost: SP Del Rosario was their biggest loss, although not always healthy, a dominate pitcher to FA. They also lost 1B Jung to FA and two long relievers/spot SP in Lawrence & Burns.
Players Acquired: No ML acquisitions, but certainly have some young prospects looking to make their mark.
Season Preview:
Position Player to Watch: I was going to put a C here, but I have no idea who is starting and backing up. Instead I'll go with LF Lile. He burst onto the scene in, 2028 ROTY & finished 3rd in MVP voting with a 7.0 WAR season. My scout shows some rating decrease in OOTP23, when he already seemingly overplayed what his tools would indicate with a slash of .323/.415/.472. He is someone to keep an eye on for 2029 if he can continue to play at that MVP level.
Pitcher to Watch: This one didn't require much thought. SP Bojorquez...*wipes drool from chin*...if the #1 prospect in baseball doesn't match his 2028 AA season results (7.6 WAR, 2.02 FIP) it will be a disappointment. This might be the most talented SP prospect I have ever seen. So excited to see his season play out. (side note - tank for SP Joe Sawyer might be a thing for the 2032 draft class)
Expectation: This team was 2nd in runs allowed and 2nd in runs scored in the AL last year, and I think they are even better this year. They lost a SP & 1B and are replacing them with prospects that should eclipse their production (Bojorquez & fellow top prospect 1B Fiffie). They even have injuries already to RF Armstrong (1 month) & C Alvarez (2 months), and they have replacements that should produce close to the same value. The only question mark on this team is at C where they have 5 guys who could realistically start. This team is elite, and not going anywhere for a long time...their top 7 position players from last year are all under 30. I would be very surprised if this team doesn't crack 100 wins this season, and they are my favorite to repeat as division champs. IMO, this is the best team in baseball.

Summary: As expected these teams are the crème de la crème. KC should lead the division, but any slip and LAA or TOR could swoop in and take the division. I truly feel for DET & SEA who are not bad clubs and would compete in a lesser division, but playing those 3 teams is a brutal task. But I am very excited to watch all these teams battle it out all season long.

For the GMs of the AL Champion Division:
What was your biggest perceived weakness in the offseason, and what did you do to fix it?
What is your record prediction for your team this season?
Who is the most underrated player on your club?
What needs to happen for you to consider 2029 a successful season?
Who wins the AL Champion division this year?

[Andrejs]

LAA response:
What was your biggest perceived weakness in the offseason, and what did you do to fix it?
We had some major bullpen pieces leave this offseason and we wanted to look for ways how to improve our offense.
-After the OOTP 23 migration, Carlos Rodriguez is moving into the rotation and Miguelangel Boadas is our new closer due to his low stamina rating. Boadas was a reliever in 2026 and parts of 2027 with fantastic results so we think he can be our Closer for many years to come.
-We signed Robert Dugger to help plug the gap left by Graterol. Reliever Luis Andres Ortiz had some nice ratings boost after the OOTP 23 migration and a solid Spring Training so we look forward to what he can do at the Major League level.
-In terms of offense, we signed C Jake Rogers to split time with C Jose Salazar. I'm still salty about barely missing out on C Jackson Miller. Our top prospect, 1B Kymani Guinyard (9th overall), will start the year in AAA, but he may be up sooner rather than later. And who knows, we may have a surprise or two still to come.

What is your record prediction for your team this season?
I think we'll win around 90 games, so 95-67 should be more than enough to get us into the playoffs.

Who is the most underrated player on your club?
I'm gonna have to go with 2B Royce Lewis. He's not super flashy and not going to win a bunch of awards, but he is consistently solid. Since 2024, he's put up at least 5 WAR a season, except for last season due to injury. If he can remain healthy, I have no doubt that he'll be a solid contributor to our team again this season.

What needs to happen for you to consider 2029 a successful season?
We would need another deep playoff run to consider 2029 a successful season.

Who wins the AL Champion division this year?
I think we have a shot, but Kansas City has my vote too.

Miscellaneous
Mike Trout is 37 now and can no longer play solid defense. Therefore, he's going to be our default DH entering the season!

[Alek]

TB response:
What was your biggest perceived weakness in the offseason, and what did you do to fix it?
It's always hard as a new GM I feel it is rather difficult to have a true grasp on what your biggest weakness is because it's hard to know what the value of players in one league is as they can vary from one league to another, especially in this league is the fact that there are no overall and potential ratings which makes it even more difficult.
The offense seems underwhelming but to me I think the biggest difference maker is the backend of the bullpen.

What is your record prediction for your team this season?
Around .500 tbh, anything better is wonderful.

Who is the most underrated player on your club?
Hard to know as a new GM but Chris Rivera last season put up 61IP, 1.62 ERA so i think him

What needs to happen for you to consider 2029 a successful season?
Young guys developing and old guy not dying,

Who wins the AL Champion division this year?
Tampa Bay! (Probably not but you have to pick yourself if your not tanking imo)

[Ryan - Jays]

What was your biggest perceived weakness in the offseason, and what did you do to fix it?

This is a strange answer. With my run last year I got a big boost in budget this season. I've never gotten more than like a million or two more and I had no clue what to do with it. While I was happy with my C laster year it was my weakest offensive position. I let long time starter walk as he wanted a big big raise. I spent that same money on what should be a big upgrade in Miller. Add to the fact that Michaels bats the other way and is coming into his prime years I'm pumped with my catches now.

What is your record prediction for your team this season?

I won 100+ games last year and got bumped up a division as a result. I think this team still has 90+ with season on them at this tougher level.

Who is the most underrated player on your club?

Tank. He was supposed to be a bench playing elite defensive player at more than one position. A few years ago Vladdy got hurt and he took off. Vladdy and his big as contract has now spent over two years sitting on the bench and when Tank is in the line up he is the straw that stirs the drink, the engine of this team, the captain of this ship...you get the idea.

What needs to happen for you to consider 2029 a successful season?

We need to stay healthy, yes cliche. While I have the depth to patch up for short term injuries in my SP the back end of my bullpen is held together by bandaids and tape. When the stuff holds it looks good. When it doesn't it's a God dam shit show.

Who wins the AL Champion division this year?

I know I'm new in this division, but I believe in this team and it's depth. I think I can pull this off. While I have a bone to pick with LAA, and a truck to drive over Trout, it sounds like KC is the team to beat. Soooo from a good ol Canadian hockey player.....keep your head up KC, we're coming for ya. Game on!!