The Value Is On The Guardians In The AL Central
Check Out Our In-Depth MLB AL Central Division Preview
The AL Central isn’t supposed to be the most competitive division in baseball. But as many of you know, 162-game seasons make a monster difference.
It’s hard to stay healthy for an entire season. Many starting rotations will be depleted at some point during the season, and many players will go through random slumps that hurt their ballclub.
That’s just how it goes in the MLB. It’s hard to stay consistent. That’s why it’s outstanding if a hitter can get a hit 30% of the time.
In the AL Central, it’s the Minnesota Twins’ division to lose. The Twins have the best roster heading into the season in the AL Central, and it’s not even remotely close.
Still, some teams can surprise in this division.
Here’s a look at the MLB AL Central Division preview for the 2024 MLB season.
The Divisional Odds
The Minnesota Twins already have more than a 50% chance of winning the division without playing a single game.
Check out the AL Central Divisional odds below.
| AL Central | Odds |
|---|---|
| Minnesota Twins | -120 |
| Detroit Tigers | +325 |
| Cleveland Guardians | +340 |
| Kansas City Royals | +850 |
| Chicago White Sox | +2200 |
AL Central Team-By-Team Breakdowns
Minnesota Twins (-120)
The Minnesota Twins have an exciting core of players offensively. The starting lineup would likely include five players with only three years or less experience.
Those names include Edouad Julien, Royce Lewis, Matt Wallner, Ryan Jeffers, and Alex Kirillof.
Meanwhile, the Twins are hoping for a bounce-back performance from Byron Buxton, who even acknowledged to the media that he expects to swipe at least 30 bases this season. Buxton has never done that in any season with the Twins, even before his injuries.
The Twins also have Carlos Correa, who might be injury-prone. However, he put together a solid campaign last season and will likely have Carlos Santana bat behind him for protection.
Meanwhile, the bench got deeper with the addition of Manuel Margot in a trade with the Dodgers earlier in the week.
On the other hand, the starting rotation will likely begin with Pablo Lopez. He’ll be one of five starters, including Joe Ryan, Bailey Ober, Chris Paddack, and Anthony DeSclafani.
The starting rotation could be an issue at the No. 4 and No. 5 spots. But if it comes to that, the Twins could always trade for another starter at the deadline to ensure the rotation.
Finally, the Twins have one of the best bullpens in baseball. Jhoan Duran is one of the best closers in the game. It’ll be him in the 9th inning and the reliable Griffin Jax as the setup man.
Detroit Tigers (+325)
The Tigers are projected to finish the season below .500 but still finish second in the AL Central.
That’s how poor the division will be this season.
The Detroit Tigers would need Spencer Torkelson and Riley Green to lead the way offensively. The first four batters in their lineup are extremely young players between Parker Meadows, Greene, Torkelson, and Kerry Carpenter.
Those four batters can surprise and put together massive numbers. There’s a lot of potential there, but we haven’t seen a full season with that core just yet.
Still, the starting rotation is pretty deep. It’ll start with Tarik Skubal and continue with Jack Flaherty, Kenta Maeda, Matt Manning, and Reese Olson. That’s not a bad bunch. However, the bullpen doesn’t have many exciting arms outside of Alex Lange, who will be the closer.
The Tigers might blow many games down the stretch.
Cleveland Guardians (+340)
We believe Cleveland has a better chance of winning the division than the Tigers.
The odds don’t agree, but here’s what we’re thinking.
The Guardians will get offense from the top of the lineup between Steven Kwan, Andres Gimenez, Jose Ramirez, and Josh Naylor.
They ultimately added Ramon Laureano and will likely run with unknown rookies like Kyle Manzardo and Brayan Rocchio. There are more unknowns when it comes to the depth of Cleveland.
Still, the Cleveland Guardians starting rotation have Shane Bieber, Triston McKenzie, Tanner Bibee, Logan Allen, and Gavin Williams. That rotation could put up the best numbers in the division. The offense won’t need to score much if the pitching staff can deliver.
The Guardians have one of the best closers in the game in Emmanuel Clase, and many bullpen arms that have experience in the Guardians’ bullpen from last year.
With these MLB betting odds, there’s more value in Cleveland than in Detroit.
Kansas City Royals (+850)
The Royals are still in a rebuilding phase. The projected starting lineup will have seven players with no more than 2.043 years of MLB service time.
There are plenty of young assets between MJ Melendez, Bobby Witt Jr., and Vinnie Pasquantino.
However, the offense will need to have big games based on how the starting rotation looks.
Cole Ragans is already the rotation’s ace after just one year in the majors last season. Then they’ve got Michael Wacha, Seth Lugo, and Jordan Lyles, who each have at least seven years in the MLB.
The rotation ends with an inconsistent Brady Singer.
Don’t ride the Royals.
Chicago White Sox (+2200)
Chicago is just a place where all the misfits went.
Don’t forget that Luis Robert Jr., Yoan Moncada, and Eloy Jimenez are still on the team. But nobody in the lineup even projects to hit MLB stats better than .278 this season.
Meanwhile, the starting rotation is very suspect. Dylan Cease is still with the club. However, Erick Fedde, who left the MLB last season, has returned after a solid showing in Korea last year. Now he’s the No. 2 starter on the club, despite his struggles with the Nationals earlier in his career.
We’ve got no faith in the White Sox to be any of our MLB picks in our MLB AL Central Division preview.
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