Just over a week ago, MLBTRs Darragh McDonald the National League Central, which is arguably MLBs most tightly-contested division. While no other division compares to that projected dogfight, the American League East provides the Central with a worthy rival in that regard as the only other division that projects to not include a 90-lo s team. Indeed, theres an argument to be made that the battle for the AL East this year figures to be even more hotly contested. After all, PECOTA projects both the Pirates and Reds to finish with a lower win total than any of the teams in the AL East, while projects the East as the only division in the majors without a sub-.500 club. That projection systems see the AL East as a division with five potential contenders is supported by last years results. The Orioles led the pack last season with a 101-win record, capturing the division title despite a strong showing from the Rays, who finished two games behind Baltimore. Both Tampa and Toronto also managed to make the postseason last year, while New York and Boston both remained on the periphery of the playoff picture into September despite ultimately coming up short. Since then, each club has seen significant changes, and with the likes of and still on the market, its easy to imagine one or more of these clubs further improving their stock prior to Opening Day. In the meantime, lets take a look at where things stand in the American Leagues most competitive division: Orioles: 101-61 in 2023, FG projects 85 wins in 2024, PECOTA 86.2 The Orioles were perhaps the most surprising team in baseball last year, surging to the clubs first AL East title since the 2014 season thanks to contributions from youngsters like , , and . Those same young players will be back this season and figure to be joined by consensus #1 overall prospect at some point this season, perhaps as soon as Opening Day. The clubs exciting young core figures to once again be complemented by solid veterans such as and as well, giving them a strong offensive nucleus with which to attempt to continue their reign atop the East. With that being said, the club has seen some turnover this winter. Veteran starter departed the rotation via free agency this winter, and while the club swung a deal earlier this offseason to acquire former Brewers ace to front their rotation, dealing away promising southpaw and infielder could be something of a blow to the clubs depth headed into the season. More noticeably, two key pitchers from the 2023 season are entering the season with significant injuries: closer underwent Tommy John surgery late last year and figures to mi s all of the 2024 campaign, while right-hander faces a lengthy absence of his own due to a UCL i sue after leading the Baltimore rotation last season with a sterling 2.83 ERA acro s 30 starts. While the injuries faced by Bradish and Bautista leave the Orioles without two of their top pitchers to open the season, the additions of Burnes and veteran closer should help to soften those blows, and with youngsters such as Holliday, , and all on the verge of contributing at the big league level, theres plenty of reason to believe Baltimore can remain in the upper echelon of the league headed into 2024 as long as the clubs young stars can avoid taking a step back this season. Rays: 99-63 in 2023, FG projects 86 wins in 2024, PECOTA 86.9 The Rays started the 2023 campaign on an incredible hot streak, winning a record-breaking 13 consecutive games to open the season last year thanks to strong pitching performances from the likes of , , and . Unfortunately, each of those aforementioned arms underwent season-ending surgery last year and are expected to mi s at least the first half of the 2024 campaign, if not longer. Tampas rotation mix was further weakened by the club dealing right-hander to the Dodgers back in December, leaving the club with little certainty in the starting mix outside of and . Another major lo s from a production standpoint is shortstop , who posted 4.6 fWAR in 112 games last year but is facing sexual abuse charges in his native Dominican Republic that put his future in the majors in doubt. Even with that hefty number of lo ses, however, the Rays still figure to be a force to be reckoned with headed into 2024. After all, the club sports one of the deepest lineups in the game, led by the likes of , , and . In addition to that group, the club sports plenty of young talent with the likes of , , and all expected to contribute at the big league level at some point this season on the positional side. Meanwhile, the pitching staff boasts intriguing youngsters like , , and offseason acquisition , each of whom are likely to join Civale and Eflin as rotation pieces this season. The clubs perennially excellent bullpen continues to look strong as well, with a back-end trio of , , and bolstered by offseason additions such as . Given the number of significant absences the Rays are facing entering the season, its not nece sarily surprising that projections systems expect the club to take a major step back in 2024. The club figures to rely on the likes of and in place of Franco at short and young, unproven arms like Bradley and Pepiot in place of established power arms like McClanahan and Rasmu sen. Even so, the clubs deep lineup and strong bullpen figure to keep the club in contention for the AL East crown this season, particularly if the youngsters in the rotation find succe s in the big leagues. Blue Jays: 89-73 in 2023, FG projects 85 wins in 2024, PECOTA 88.6 The 2023 season was a strange one in Toronto, as key stars such as , , and took steps back at the plate to leave the club with a surprisingly tepid offense. That didnt stop the Jays from contending last year, however, as the club managed to sneak into the final AL Wild Card spot with an 89-win campaign thanks to a strong performance from the clubs starting rotation. , , , and each combined to give the club above-average production while making more than 30 starts a piece, and veteran southpaw Hyun-Jin Ryu managed to step into the rotation and provide Dennis Eckersley Jersey solid back-end production when youngster struggled badly throughout the season. Entering the offseason, the club seemed poised to make big changes as they were connected to the likes of and , though they ultimately ended up having a much quieter offseason. After watching the likes of and depart in free agency, the club brought in the likes of and to fill the void at third base and DH while adding to their pitching depth with the addition of . Those minor moves leave the club likely to look for internal improvements as they hope to return to the postseason in 2024. Some of that improvement could come from the clubs young talent, with top pitching prospect likely to debut sometime this year while the likes of and figure to attempt to establish themselves in larger roles. While the clubs lineup took a bit of a hit this winter after a disappointing 2023 campaign, a robust pitching staff figures to keep the Blue Jays afloat this season even if the offense fails to take a step forward. Its easy to imagine the club returning to the postseason in 2024 if stars like , Guerrero, and Springer can deliver impactful performances, especially if the club gets strong production from its supporting cast of hitters like Turner, Schneider, and . Yankees: 82-80 in 2023, FG projects 89 wins in 2024, PECOTA 94.7 After mi sing the postseason for the first time since 2017 and barely escaping the 2023 season with a winning record, the Yankees wasted no time this winter in looking to improve the clubs postseason chances for year two of s nine-year megadeal with the club. That included a complete retool of the clubs outfield mix as the club acquired Juan Soto, , and to complement Judge on the outfield gra s while balancing a lineup that leaned too right-handed in 2023. The blockbuster deal for Soto and Grisham cost the club plenty of big league pitching talent, including the likes of and , though New York went on to patch up the clubs starting rotation by landing veteran right-hander in free agency. That lengthy offseason shopping list seems likely to leave them in strong position to contend this season even as they lost the likes of , , and King from last years club. Even as the club added a quality mid-rotation arm, solid outfield regulars, and a superstar bat to its mix, however, its po sible the clubs most impactful improvements could come internally after the club dealt with a hefty number of injuries last year. Judge followed up his 2022 AL MVP-winning performance with another season that saw him post an OPS north of 1.000 in 2023, though he was limited to just 106 games by a toe injury. Meanwhile, southpaws and both struggled badly with injuries and ineffectivene s last year but still carry front-of-the-rotation upside when healthy, while veteran hitters like Stanton and could also benefit from improved health this season and rebound from difficult 2023 campaigns. Of all the clubs in the AL East, its easy to make the argument that the Yankees did the most to improve this winter. While even those additions may not be enough to catch up to the clubs divisional rivals on their own after an 82-win campaign, improved health from the clubs key regulars both on the mound and in the lineup could certainly help the club avoid mi sing the postseason in back-to-back campaigns for the first time since the 2013 and 14 seasons. Red Sox: 78-84 in 2023, FG projects 81 wins in 2024, PECOTA 79.2 Its been a strange offseason in Boston, as the club began the winter with promises of a full throttle approach to the 2024 season and a goal of improving the clubs rotation. Despite those major plans, the club has generally opted for smaller moves throughout the winter. Perhaps the clubs most notable move was parting ways with longtime ace in a trade that netted the club young infielder , while Sales spot atop the clubs rotation appears poised to go to right-hander . The club also added outfielder in a trade with the Cardinals while signing veteran closer to a two-year deal, though the righty wont impact the team until the second half at the earliest as he recovers from Tommy John surgery. Those moves more or le s leave the club in a similar position as they were last season, with Giolito replacing Sale while ONeill and Gri som figure to replace and Turner in the clubs lineup. While the clubs most significant offseason lo ses have been replaced in one form or another, other departures such as those of , Alex Verdugo, and have all gone unanswered to this point in the winter. Despite the clubs many question marks, theres some reason for optimism in Boston, thanks to the young talent that could impact the club this year. In addition to Gri som serving as a potential solution at second base, , , and took significant steps forward last year and could prove to be core pieces for the club, while youngsters like and could also impact the club this season after making brief cameos in the majors last year. Its certainly po sible to imagine returning to the form that once made him a star with the Rockies now that hes further removed from the elbow troubles that cost him much of last season, and could be an impactful bat if he can recreate his performance from the first half of 2023 over the full season this year. Meanwhile, the rotation features a handful of interesting youngsters such as , , and , any of whom could prove to be an impactful arm if they manage to take a step forward this year. On the heels of a 2023 season that saw three of the divisions five teams make the postseason and its fifth-place finisher end the season with a better record than the fourth place finishers of four other divisions, its perhaps not a surprise that the AL East figures to once again be among the most competitive divisions in baseball this year. After a busy offseason in the division, which team do you think will come out on top? Was the Yankees splashy offseason to put them back in the drivers seat? Will another year of development for the young players in Baltimore allow them to repeat their dominant 2023 campaign? Will the deep rosters of the Rays or Blue Jays manage to outlast the competition? Or could the Red Sox outperform the projections and take the division on the back of their young players and rebound candidates? Which team in the AL East is best? Have your say in the poll below! Which Is The Best Team In The AL East? Orioles 51.80% (6,078votes) Yankees 28.50% (3,344votes) Blue Jays 7.74% (908votes) Rays 6.09% (715votes) Red Sox 5.87% (689votes) Total Votes: 11,734 Andrelton Simmons Jersey