On January 2, Major League Baseball (MLB) and Will Leitch released their Power Rankings for the 2024 season. Power Rankings are a system that organizes teams on how they are predicted to do during the upcoming season.
While we agree with most MLB predictions, we believe there is some room for improvement and we have reordered the rankings to what we think best reflects these teams.
1.Los Angeles Dodgers
This offseason Dodgers have been making big signings in the free agent market. Adding big names including Shoei Ohtani to a 700 million dollar deal as well as Yoshinobu Yamamoto, an impressive starting pitcher from Japan. They have paid over 1 billion dollars for just these two players and over the years it’ll pay off. Dodgers have also been adding some smaller names to their line up as well, like Tyler Glasnow, Teoscar Hernández, and Manuel Margot who will all compliment this team very well. MLB put the Dodgers as their number 2 team but this team is spending a lot of money and acquiring many new great players this offseason and we believe that these new players are sure to pay off, giving them the number 1 spot.
2. Atlanta Braves
In the 2023 season, the Atlanta Braves had a disappointing run in the playoffs after coming off of an impressive 104 win season. They were clearly a crowd favorite in the playoffs but they fell short. This off-season, they have been making some moves to add to their pitching rotation including the major addition of Chris Sale. We believe that in the 2024 season, the Braves will be coming back with a vengeance to return to their former glory. In the Power Rankings Braves were number 1, but we can’t imagine they will be able to compete with the Dodgers, especially with the Dodgers seemingly never ending budget.
3. Texas Rangers
The Texas Rangers are coming off of a 2023 World Series Win and we believe that this hot streak will continue. Last year we never thought that Texas would win the World Series but they surprised everyone and we believe that they will continue to be a major competitor this year as well. The Texas Rangers are led by their veteran shortstop, Corey Seager, who had an incredible 2023 season winning the World Series MVP award. We believe that this incredible playoff will play into their success this season.
4. Baltimore Orioles
On the MLB Power Rankings, the Orioles were placed at 4 as well. We believe this is a perfect spot to rank them especially compared to their success last year. Their offense is led by the young catcher, Adley Rutchman, and an exciting rookie, Jackson Holliday. A major factor that could hinder the Orioles is their division. The Orioles are in the American League East, a competitive division full of challenging teams to beat including the Tampa Bay Rays and the New York Yankees. This could prove a challenge for the Orioles, but we believe that they will hold their ground.
5. Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies are a team that is stacked with season veterans. They are led by Bryce Harper in the outfield, Trea Turner in the infield and they have their ace Aaron Nola to help carry their pitching rotation. Aaron Nola will help the pitching staff but without a strong bullpen, their pitching rotation may struggle against strong offensive teams. A major positive for the Phillies is that they don’t have a lot of strong competition in their division. This will be a major factor in their success this upcoming season.
6. Houston Astros
In the past 6 years, the Astros have won two World Series. Also, the Astros have been consistently good for the past 8 years, staying above a 50% win percentage. We believe that this streak will continue this year. This offseason they lost some important roles in their lineup, including Micheal Brantley who retired after declaring free agency. Justin Verlander, their ace, is getting older and it is questionable if he will be able to perform at the level he used to. They still have some major stand-outs in their lineup including, Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, and Jose Abreu. This Astros team is going to continue their success and stay consistent to their past seasons.
7. New York Yankees
The Yankees have a new key player, Juan Soto. He will be a major player for the Yankees, adding another strong fielder and hitter in the outfield, joining Aaron Judge. Aaron Judge is an important player for the team; he’s coming off of a slow season, but we’re thinking that he will return to his former glory. The MLB Power Rankings rated the Yankees at 8 but we think that they will be slightly higher. One major way they may struggle is in their division. They are in a tough place, having to play the Orioles and the Rays.
8. Arizona Diamondbacks
Last year the Diamondbacks had an incredible playoff run which led them all the way to the World Series where they eventually lost to the Rangers. In the off-season so far the Diamondbacks are yet to make any big moves. Still they are likely to continue into this new season based off where they left off last season. The MLB also expects this from them placing the Diamondbacks at nine in the power rankings. Looking at the Diamondbacks roster you won’t see any names that will really stick out to you, but all in all they are a pretty good team with few flaws. They are also in the National League West where they will often play the Dodgers, but if they keep playing how they were playing at the end of the year they should be able to beat all of the other teams in their division.
9. Tampa Bay Rays
On the MLB power rankings, the MLB had placed the Rays at the number seven spot but this is not the case anymore. Their young star, Wander Franco, is currently on administrative leave this season after receiving allegations against him. This is a major issue for the team and will definitely affect their success this season. Not only that but, the team is in a challenging division being stacked up against the Orioles, Yankees, and Toronto Bluejays. One sign of hope is their outfielder, Randy Arowzerana. Arozarena is an absolute stud during the playoffs, batting over .330 in his career. If the Rays can make it to the playoffs, we believe that they can be very successful. Until then they may not be as successful as MLB predicted.
10. Seattle Mariners
The Mariners are full of young talent and this will propel them to be successful, but for them to be a World Series caliber team, they may need to wait. Julio Rodriquez is an outfielder for the Mariners. He is young and talented but without much support from his teammates it may be a struggle for the Mariners. On the MLB rankings they were put at the 11th spot on the list, just beat out by the Blue Jays, but we believe that the Mariners are going to give more of a fight this season. They have a young spirit that is going to give a hard fight this season, especially in a division that is full of talent.
