Spring is here and so is baseball. The season opened with the LA Dodgers sweeping the Chicago Cubs in the Tokyo Series. The Dodgers spent the most money a year ago and they walked away with a World Series crown. Much of the same happened this past offseason, but baseball is a funny sport. Having the best team in baseball doesn’t mean you are guaranteed to win the title. That’s more important than ever to remember as we enter a new year with exciting new rosters and a bounty of young talent rising to the top. Here is our 2025 AL Central preview.
What Happened in 2024:
Stephen Vogt took over the reins in Cleveland and immediately had the Guardians playing at a high level. They were one of the best teams in the American League for most of the season and ended with 92 wins in his first season as manager. We saw elevated play out of the entire division after having a few years of mediocrity. The Royals and Tigers took massive steps forward. This division has a new legit star in Bobby Witt Jr. and it looks like the A.J. Hinch era in Detroit is going as successful as we would have thought it would given all the success he had in Houston. Minnesota took the biggest step back, finishing fourth after failing to find themselves at the plate. The White Sox were certainly entertaining, but for all the wrong reasons. The Sox were the worst team in the history of baseball and put together a 21-game losing streak to leave no doubt about failings.
Best Players to Watch:
White Sox – Andrew Vaughn – It can be tough to even pick someone off this roster, but I’ll go with Vaughn who hit more than 19 home runs last year and will likely be a trade chip this summer.
Twins – Matt Wallner – He will be the everyday right fielder. He has had a red-hot spring so far and showing off newfound power.
Guardians – Kyle Manzardo – Cleveland got rid of Josh Naylor because they are ready for Manzardo to take over full-time at first base and hope he is their new star.
Royals – Bobby Witt Jr. – .332, 32 home runs. What more can you want? Witt Jr. was the batting champ and could’ve been the MVP.
Tigers – Tarik Skubal – I called Skubal being a Cy Young candidate at this time last year and he delivered on that, taking home the hardware with a 6.3 WAR.
Biggest Addition and Subtraction:
Addition – The Tigers went out and got Gleyber Torres and I thought it was a great move. Torres has put up great numbers for the Yankees over the last few years but never saw eye-to-eye with Aaron Boone. A new situation and new manager could untap some serious talent.
Subtraction – The Royals sent Brady Singer to the Reds as part of a trade that got them Jonathan India. Singer was supposed to be the Royals ace for many years when he was drafted but he never quite lived up to the hype.
Division Winner
Detroit Tigers: 90-72 – I am acting like it’s the mid-2010s and I am predicting the Detroit Tigers to get the AL Central Crown this season. I like A.J. Hinch, I like the young roster that they’ve built, and I think they best the Guardians.