It was a wild and long offseason, but we are finally here. Welcome to the 2024 MLB Season and my Opening Day Power Rankings.
Best In The Business: Los Angeles Dodgers – If I was a betting man, or just Ippei Mizuhara, I would put the house on the Los Angeles Dodgers. They have three MVPs on their roster, a catcher who just signed a 10-year extension, and a solid rotation. I don’t know about you, but that sounds like the best team in baseball.
2. Atlanta Braves – The Braves are built to win. They may have the best lineup in baseball and now have a few more veterans that could push them over the top in October. Spencer Strider is coming for the Cy Young award.
3. Houston Astros – Model of consistency. The Astros have made the postseason seven years in a row and will likely make it eight. They acquired All-Star lefty closer Josh Hader, which will make them even tougher to beat.
4. Baltimore Orioles – There is young talent everywhere on this team and now they have Corbin Burnes, a Cy Young candidate. Baltimore also has good depth and should be able to cruise into the postseason.
5. New York Yankees – Juan Soto and Aaron Judge in the same lineup? Sign me up. They will be without Gerrit Cole, but with Cortes, Stroman, and Rodon, they should be fine until he gets back.
6. Philadelphia Phillies – The Phillies have what it takes to make a run once again. A great 1-2 punch with Wheeler and Nola, and a lineup that should make it tough for opposing pitching. The question is can they get off to a good start?
7. Arizona Diamondbacks – After making it to the World Series last season, the D-Backs made moves that should set them up to do it again. They signed starter Eduardo Rodriguez, 3B Eugenio Suarez, and OF Joc Pederson. Getting these guys to go with their young stars makes them dangerous.
8. Texas Rangers – This offense should once again be incredible. This could be a historically good offense. The pitching might be a little lackluster to start the season, but once they get healthy, the Rangers could be unbeatable in the postseason.
9. Toronto Blue Jays – The Jays improved in the offseason, and I believe are just a little away from making a run in the postseason. They just need some more consistency.
10. Seattle Mariners – Seattle had a lot of movement this offseason, but they still have a rock solid rotation and MVP candidate Julio Rodriguez. There is always some magic with the Mariners, and I think this team has it.
11. Tampa Bay Rays – The Rays have the pieces and always seem to have so many guys contribute. They also have the best manager in the league in my opinion. As of right now, their rotation is hurt which could be an issue. Also, Wander Franco will not be with the team for a few months.
12. San Francisco Giants – The Giants made a lot of good moves in the offseason and I think they are extremely dangerous. Blake Snell will bolster the rotation, while Matt Chapman, Jung Hoo Lee, and Jorge Soler shore up the lineup.
13. Minnesota Twins – They lost Sonny Gray, but Pablo Lopez is a Cy Young candidate. Royce Lewis is a budding star, and can lead the offense to success. I believe they once again take the AL Central.
14. San Diego Padres – They lost Juan Soto in the offseason, but this team still has stars that can take them to the promised land. Hopefully Dylan Cease can go back to his Cy Young form.
15. St. Louis Cardinals – The Cardinals have two MVP candidates in Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt, while also having a veteran rotation that can help them make the postseason.
16. Chicago Cubs – They brought in Craig Counsell to be their manager and that gives them a great edge. Cody Bellinger is back and he led a top 5 offense last season. Justin Steele could be in Cy Young contention, and if the rest of the rotation pans out, Chicago could very well be playing in October.
17. Cincinnati Reds – Headlined by Elly De La Cruz, the Reds are full of young talent. This team should be electric and I expect them to score a lot of runs in one of the most favorable ballparks. It is up to the pitching.
18. Cleveland Guardians – The Guardians have basically the same team as last season and should be right there with the Twins for the division. If Shane Bieber can get back to star form, they could be scary.
19. Milwaukee Brewers – You never think of pitching being an issue for Milwaukee, but it probably will be after losing Corbin Burnes. They signed Rhys Hoskins and top prospect Jackson Chourio will be on the squad, but will that be enough to make the postseason?
20. New York Mets – The Mets have a ton of veterans that could help contend for a postseason berth. The rotation is not expected to be great with Kodai Senga out, but maybe they will be able to make it work.
21. Miami Marlins – Will the Marlins finally be able to score some runs? With Jorge Soler gone, Jazz Chisholm will have to pick up the slack. He is the X-factor. If he can turn into the superstar we expected him to be, I could see Miami in the postseason.
22. Detroit Tigers – This team is underrated and could contend for the AL Central. Tarik Skubal is a dark horse for Cy Young. They signed some veterans to lead this young team including Mark Canha and Kenta Maeda.
23. Pittsburgh Pirates – At one point last season, the Pirates looked like they were going to win the NL Central. They added weapons to the rotation and signed slugger Rowdy Tellez. Watch out for Pittsburgh.
24. Boston Red Sox – Triston Casas is next up. I would not be surprised to see him hit 35 home runs and drive in 100 runs. Unfortunately, the pitching probably won’t be good and they play in the toughest division in baseball.
25. Kansas City Royals – You have to commend the Royals front office for actually trying to get better in the offseason. They signed many veteran guys that can make a difference. Cole Ragans is a rising star.
26. Los Angeles Angels
27. Chicago White Sox
28. Washington Nationals
29. Oakland Athletics
30. Colorado Rockies
