MLB All-Division Teams: Early Off-Season Edition
The MLB hot stove may not be burning yet, but it’s never too early to look at the best that each division has to offer. So, let’s take a crack at it.
As we enter the last month of 2019, the MLB off-season is in full swing, and actually quite active compared to previous years. Already, some big names have switched teams, an under-the-radar trade of young players between the Padres and Brewers has happened, and teams actually appear to be focused on making this off-season a fun one.
With that being said, who are the best players at each position in each division (as of now) heading into 2020?
That is the question that will be answered in this here article. Without further ado, here are my picks!
AL East
- C: Gary Sanchez, New York Yankees
- 1B: D.J. LeMahieu, New York Yankees
- 2B: Gleyber Torres, New York Yankees
- 3B: Rafael Devers, Boston Red Sox
- SS: Xander Bogaerts, Boston Red Sox
- OF: Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox
- OF: J.D. Martinez, Boston Red Sox
- OF: Aaron Judge, New York Yankees
- SP: Charlie Morton/Blake Snell, Tampa Bay Rays; Chris Sale, Boston Red Sox
- RP: Aroldis Chapman, New York Yankees
MLB All-Divisions Teams
AL Central
- C: Yasmani Grandal, Chicago White Sox
- 1B: Jose Abreu, Chicago White Sox
- 2B: Whit Merrifield, Kansas City Royals
- 3B: Jose Ramirez, Cleveland Indians
- SS: Francisco Lindor, Cleveland Indians
- OF: Eddie Rosario, Minnesota Twins
- OF: Eloy Jimenez, Chicago White Sox
- OF: Max Kepler, Minnesota Twins
- SP: Shane Bieber, Cleveland Indians; Lucas Giolito, Chicago White Sox; Jose Berrios, Minnesota Twins
- RP: Brad Hand, Cleveland Indians
AL West
- C: Omar Narvaez, Seattle Mariners
- 1B: Yuli Gurriel, Houston Astros
- 2B: Jose Altuve, Houston Astros
- 3B: Alex Bregman, Houston Astros
- SS: Marcus Semien, Oakland Athletics
- OF: Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels
- OF: George Springer, Houston Astros
- OF: Michael Brantley, Houston Astros
- SP: Gerrit Cole/Justin Verlander, Houston Astros; Lance Lynn, Texas Rangers
- RP: Roberto Osuna, Houston Astros
AL Roundup
There is certainly a lot of representation from a few MLB teams here, is there not? Yes, the Astros, Yankees, and Twins are brought up a lot here, as they should be as arguably the league’s best three teams. However, this also shows that while teams like Oakland and Cleveland are likely here to stay, there are also some (looking at you Chicago) that could be making their way up the hierarchy soon.
MLB All-Divisions Teams
NL East
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- C: J.T. Realmuto, Philadelphia Phillies
- 1B: Pete Alonso, New York Mets
- 2B: Ozzie Albies, Atlanta Braves
- 3B: Brian Anderson, Miami Marlins
- SS: Trea Turner, Washington Nationals
- OF: Juan Soto, Washington Nationals
- OF: Ronald Acuna Jr., Atlanta Braves
- OF: Bryce Harper, Philadelphia Phillies
- SP: Jacob DeGrom, New York Mets; Stephen Strasburg/Max Scherzer, Washington Nationals; Mike Soroka, Atlanta Braves
- RP: Will Smith, Atlanta Braves
NL Central
- C: Willson Contreras, Chicago Cubs
- 1B: Anthony Rizzo, Chicago Cubs
- 2B: Keston Hiura, Milwaukee Brewers
- 3B: Eugenio Suarez, Cincinnati Reds
- SS: Javier Baez, Chicago Cubs
- OF: Christian Yelich, Milwaukee Brewers
- OF: Starling Marte, Pittsburgh Pirates
- OF: Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers
- SP: Sonny Gray/Luis Castillo, Cincinnati Reds; Dakota Hudson, St. Louis Cardinals
- RP: Josh Hader, Milwaukee Brewers
NL West
- C: Will Smith, Los Angeles Dodgers
- 1B: Eric Hosmer, San Diego Padres
- 2B: Ketel Marte, Arizona Diamondbacks
- 3B: Nolan Arenado, Colorado Rockies
- SS: Trevor Story, Colorado Rockies
- OF: Charlie Blackmon, Colorado Rockies
- OF: Cody Bellinger, Los Angeles Dodgers
- OF: Kevin Pillar, San Francisco Giants
- SP: Hyun-Jin Ryu/Clayton Kershaw/Walker Buehler, Los Angeles Dodgers
- RP: Kirby Yates, San Diego Padres
NL Roundup
Same story, different league.
While the NL East is pretty varied, with each team represented at least at one position (even if 3B may have been due to free agency), the other two are not quite the same. With the Brewers and Cubs showing up a lot in the Central and the Dodgers dominating the NL West selections, this should come as little surprise to those that looked at the standings last season.
Next. The Mets missed opportunities. dark
Well, there you have it. I will also be doing an updated version of this list in a couple months as we get closer to the season’s beginning, but until then, may the stove stay forever hot and spring arrive sooner than ever.