On January 2, the MLB released their 2023 Power Rankings and as expected, 10 teams on this list were all in last seasons postseason. I agree that the teams listed below are the better teams out of the other 20 in the league, so I wanted to take a look at each team and breakdown what they did in the offseason to remain contenders for the 2023 season.
As much as people try and predict what will happen every season, they are always surprises, especially as there were in 2022 with the San Diego Padres and Philadelphia Phillies advancing to the NLCS. What’s probably more shocking is the teams that didn’t advance.
A new MLB season is once again gearing up for another amazing year of exciting baseball and the teams below, no matter where they end up in the standings, will be the ones to watch.
#1 Houston Astros
Embed from Getty Images
The reigning World Series Champs lost a few key players to Free Agency from their championship run, in Yuli Gurriel, Justin Verlander, Trey Mancini, and Christian Vazquez, but they signed longtime Chicago White Sox first baseman 1B Jose Abreu from the free agent pool back in November. Abreu had his worse home run production when he hit just 15 home runs in 2022, but still batted .304 and had 40 doubles. A great addition to an already stacked team. Losing Verlander will be a hit to their rotation, but they still have 4 of the five starters capable of winning 15 games each, and led by Framber Valdez, who won 17 games and posted a 2.82 ERA, with 194 Ks in 201.1 IP. Lance McCullers Jr./strong>. is expected to be in the rotation. He started eight games, and was 4-2, with a 2.27 ERA after returning from the DL on August 13th. The Astros are built to win again and should be #1 in the power rankings. Until someone can knock them off, this team is a Dynasty in the making.
#2 New York Mets
Embed from Getty Images
The #2 spot was given to the team that spent the most money as they brought in some major talent this off-season. Just to name a few, pitchers Justin Verlander, Jose Quintana, Kodai Senga, catcher Omar Narvaez;, resigned Edwin Diaz; and center fielder Brandon Nimmo, and still not official but have negotiated a deal with Carlos Correa. Now since the Correa deal is not yet official, would anyone have the Mets as #2? Well considering they are returning the same lineup that scored 772 runs in 2022 (tied for fifth with the Cardinals in the major leagues), batted .259 ( second in the league) and a lineup that was nearly unstoppable for most of the season, adding Correa just makes this team that much better, but even without him they have a very powerful lineup. After Jacob deGrom chose to not re-sign with the Mets and go to the Texas Rangers, the Mets added Verlander, who is a 3-time Cy Young winner, 2-time World Series Champ and who also won 18 games in 2022 with the Astros. A great replacement for deGrom, but why stop there, as Quintana is a durable lefty capable of winning 13 games and Senga, the Japanese import who by all reports has a powerhouse arm that joins 15-game winner Carlos Carrasco, 2022 early season standout Tylor Megill and of course Max Scherzer. This Mets rotation will have one of the hottest rotations in the league.
#3 Atlanta Braves
The Braves have won the NL East Division Crown for the last five years and if not for a Mets second half collapse, it may have ruined their run. They also did smart with their money by locking down their hot young talented ball players to ensure that they have winning seasons for years to come. Sean Murphy, Matt Olson, Ozzie Albies, Austin Riley, Michael Harris II, Spencer Strider, and Ronald Acuna Jr./strong>. will be in Atlanta through the 2027 season. The Braves added Murphy after subtracting catcher William Contreras. Atlanta did lose Dansby Swanson to the free agency market, but after a breakout rookie season from Vaughn Grissom last summer, the Braves are set up again to make a run at their 6th Division crown. It will be a three team battle definitely for the crown. More on the third team below.
#4 San Diego Padres
Embed from Getty Images
The Padres literally came out of no where and took down the mighty giants in the Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers in the first two rounds of last years epic postseason. Who saw that coming, well Padres fans of course. The second half didn’t seem as promising as they lost Fernando Tatis Jr.. to a suspension after testing positive for PED. But prior to the devastating news, they added Juan Soto in a trade with the Washington Nationals on August 2nd. Now additions to the roster have put them in a position to finally win their first NL West crown since 2006. They lost Josh Bell, who came over in the Soto trade, along with Jurickson Profar, Wil Myers, Brandon Drury, all to free agency, but added RHP Seth Lugo who they are considering as a starter, DH Matt Carpenter, and gave a mega contract to SS Xander Bogaerts, who will be a huge addition to the lineup and will definitely force Tatis to the outfield when he returns. Add a rotation with the oldest arm at 37 and the youngest at 24, if all comes together for the team looking to make noise in 2023, the Dodgers may not be the only team not wanting to face this powerhouse squad more then they have to in the season. 13 games between the two to be exact.
#5 New York Yankees
Embed from Getty Images
The Yankees will always make a splash when it matters the most and it happened that way when they were up against the wall and about to lose their most prized possession in Aaron Judge. What did they do, well what looked like a lost cause, they signed Judge to a mega deal to ensure that he will play in pinstripes for the rest of his career. They also went one better and named him as the 16th Yankees captain. A well earned achievement. Other then Judge, the Yanks bolstered their already potent rotation by adding free agent Carlos Rodon. Rodon found his groove the last two seasons by winning 13,14 games respectively and putting up impressive ERA’s (2.37/2.88) to go along with a combined 422 strikeouts. What better time then to take his game to the Bronx and compete for a title. The lineup also gets a boost but not from a trade or a signing, but from a healthy bat in DJ LeMahieu. There may be some drama in camp as their Top Shortstop Prospect, Anthony Volpe, will possibly have a shot to win the position outright and join the big club. Will be interesting to see. The Bronx Bombers should have no problem winning their division for a second year in a row, but the big ticket games will be if they can finally get past the mighty Astros.
#6 Philadelphia Phillies
Embed from Getty Images
What a surprising run at the end of the 2022 regular season and an amazing run through the postseason all the way to the World Series. There is always something to say when a team gets hot at the right time, then there is little doubt that a team can stop them. Imagine losing out the NL East division to two powerhouse teams that win 14 more games then you do and your team ends up in the World Series. Well that is what Cinderella teams look like and also thanks to a new MLB playoff format, that the Phillies were able to take advantage of and ran with it. Now do they have enough to get past the Mets and Braves, or does it really matter. Wild Card teams can do just as much damage as division leaders, right Phillies fans? The Phillies will return most of their starting lineup minus Jean Segura, who has a durable four seasons with Philadelphia but signed a free agent contract with the Miami Marlins. But one subtraction and a major addition as the Phillies signed Trea Turner to a mega deal to be their everyday shortstop. And now add a healthy Bryce Harper and the Phillies lineup can be just as potent as their division rivals. They may not have the best arms in their rotation, but they did add free agent Taijuan Walker, who won 12 games with the Mets in 2022, with a 3.49 ERA and 132 Ks through 157.1 innings of work. The Phillies may be that surprising team again when it counts the most, but they will have their sites set on a division crown.
#7 Los Angeles Dodgers
Embed from Getty Images
Wow who would have though that the mighty Dodgers would be so low on the power rankings, especially after winning the NL West crown nine out of the last 10 seasons. Also they won a franchise high 111 games in 2022. One major blow to this potent lineup, was watching Trea Turner elect free agency and sign with another club. Justin Turner also elected free agency, which may mark an end to nine great seasons with the Dodgers, if he does not resign. JT struggled in the first half of last season but finished strong, showing other teams that he still has some left in the tank, but at 39 years old, is that enough. With the subtractions, LA added a power bat in J.D. Martinez, RHP Noah Syndergaard, who is looking to regain some of his stature on the mound, and resigned Clayton Kershaw, who sported a 2.28 ERA through 22 starts. Is this Dodgers team enough to stay on top of their division and will the loss of the Turners play a huge role in their success, well that will depend on how the rest of the returning stars perform in 2023. With Mookie Betts, Max Muncy, Freddie Freeman, and Will Smith leading the way, and adding Martinez’s bat to the mix, it may keep them exactly where they need to be. Will be an exciting season to watch the NL West battles for the crown.
#8 Seattle Mariners
Embed from Getty Images
The Mariners who were led by 2022 Rookie of the Year, Julio Rodriguez, shocked the baseball world by knocking off the potent Toronto Blue Jays lineup in the 2022 AL West Card series, before succumbing to the Astros in the ALDS. The Mariners have lost Mitch Haniger, Carlos Santana, and Adam Frazier to free agency in this past off-season. But they traded for RF Teoscar Hernandez in November and 2B Kolten Wong in December, which should help bolster their lineup. A division crown may not be in the cards as they will have to dethrone the Astros, but even a wild card berth will guarantee a second trip back to the postseason. Expect the young Rodriguez to have another major season at the plate as the power hitting threat looks to continue to etch his name in the records books. Do the Mariners have what it takes to make a serious run at the World Series?, well the Phillies proved it just takes getting hot at the right time, so the answer is you never know, but it should be another exciting season of baseball in the upper west portion of the country.
#9 Toronto Blue Jays
Embed from Getty Images
Last season, I felt that the Blue Jays had just enough hitting to over take the Yankees and AL East Crown. Well they fell just seven games short of doing so, but their early exit from the postseason, was a bit of a disappointment for Toronto fans and the rest of baseball fans a like. From the 2022 lineup, the Blue Jays traded away Teoscar Hernandez to the Mariners for a minor leaguer and some bullpen help. To bolster their already potent lineup, they signed OF Kevin Kiermaier and traded for RF Daulton Varsho from the Arizona Diamondbacks. Of the two additions, Varsho brings a power bat capable of hitting 27 home runs as he did in 2022. The downside to Varsho is that he batted just .235, and struck out 145 times. The Blue Jays also signed RHP Chris Bassitt, who won 15 games with the Mets in 2022. For a team that lost one big bat in their lineup, but replaced it with another and possibly 15 more wins from a starter, that just might be enough to make another serious run at the AL East title and go deeper in the postseason.
#10 Tampa Bay Rays
Embed from Getty Images
The one team that every season you just want them to win and as always they fall short when it counts the most. In 2022, they finished in 3rd place in the AL East, after winning the division in 2020 and 2021. They did win a Wild Card spot but fell to the Cleveland Guardians in the Wild Card Series. Entering the 2023, they will be without Ji-Man Choi, who the Rays traded in November to the Pittsburgh Pirates for RHP Jack Hartman. The one big addition to the everyday lineup that did not involve a trade nor a signing will be the return of Brandon Lowe, who hit 39 home runs and drove in 99 runs in 2021. Lowe played in 65 games games in 2022, but lost time with stints on the DL. For the pitching staff, they sign free agent RHP Zach Eflin, an Orlando native who has been with the Phillies since 2016. Not much change in their everyday lineup and even though they are not looking like a powerhouse on paper like the other nine teams on this list, they always seem to give fits to the better teams in the league and steal away some games that most don’t expect. But expect the Rays to be around when it counts and hopefully can get over the hump and back to playing division leading baseball.
You must be logged in to post a comment.