Taking stock of the AL Central: Tigers, Royals, Guardians and Twins all look like contenders in 2025
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Quick Summary:
- Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Guardians were all in the 2024 postseason. All three teams won at least one series in the American League Central. Minnesota Twins have won 10 straight after Wednesday’s doubleheader vs. Baltimore. Could the AL Central have three teams reach the postseason for the second year in a row? The Twins are playing their best baseball in a decade, while the Tigers are one of the best teams in baseball. The Royals have been able to duplicate their recipe for success so far this year, and the Guardians have gotten themselves back near the top of the division standings. The Twins’ outlook seems to hinge on the health of its stars, and with shortstop Carlos Correa, center fielder Byron Buxton and third baseman Royce Lewis all healthy, it looks like the team will have a chance to swing its way back into relevancy. The Tigers rank third in MLB in runs scored, fourth in starter ERA, third in bullpen ERA and seventh in defensive runs saved. The Guardians have managed to go 10-3 against their Central foes, but to this point, their 25-3 record against their rivals is an unsustainable trajectory, but they’re still playing good baseball. They’ve won
- Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Guardians all won at least one series in 2024. The Minnesota Twins have won 10 straight games. The AL Central appears to be the home of the best team in the American League. The Twins are playing their best baseball of the season so far, while the Royals are second in the division. The Tigers are the most complete team in baseball; the Royals and Guardians are the best in their respective divisions, as well as the National League and the National Leagues. The Royals have been able to duplicate their success from a year ago, while Cleveland has had a slow start. The Guardians have managed to go 10-3 against their AL Central foes so far this season, but that’s not sustainable and they’ll need to win more games to have a chance to make it to the postseason in 2025. The Indians have won just one of their last 11 games, and the Twins have gone 10-2 in their last 12 games against the Red Sox and Red Sox. The Rangers have won their last two games, but they’ve lost their last three games in a row in the AL Central, including a doubleheader against the Yankees on Tuesday. The Red Sox have won three of their past four
- The MLB staff has put together our 2025 season predictions. The Red Sox are the division’s most improved team thanks to Garrett Crochet and Alex Bregman. The Yankees lost Gerrit Cole for the year, Luis Gil for at least two months and Giancarlo Stanton for who knows how long. The White Sox feel like the only team “locked” into their “neck and neck” spot, Mike Axisa says. The Twins have the widest winning bars where the top four teams are also tough to discern, R.J. Anderson says.”I think this is the strongest division in baseball, top to bottom,” Matt Snyder says. “I don’t know what to do with this division,” says Dayn Perry. “The Blue Jays, while they aren’t necessarily a bad team, are the weakest in the division,” he says. ‘I think the Red Sox have the most balanced roster and increasing levels of upside,’ says Kate Feldman. ‘The Yankees could very well win the division, too, but its hard to bet against New York with the club’s proven track record and ability to put together such great regular seasons,’ says Julian McWilliams. “You could tell me that basically any combination of these teams make the
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Original Coverage
Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Guardians were all in the 2024 postseason. All three teams won at least one series in the American League Central. Minnesota Twins have won 10 straight after Wednesday’s doubleheader vs. Baltimore. Could the AL Central have three teams reach the postseason for the second year in a row? The Twins are playing their best baseball in a decade, while the Tigers are one of the best teams in baseball. The Royals have been able to duplicate their recipe for success so far this year, and the Guardians have gotten themselves back near the top of the division standings. The Twins’ outlook seems to hinge on the health of its stars, and with shortstop Carlos Correa, center fielder Byron Buxton and third baseman Royce Lewis all healthy, it looks like the team will have a chance to swing its way back into relevancy. The Tigers rank third in MLB in runs scored, fourth in starter ERA, third in bullpen ERA and seventh in defensive runs saved. The Guardians have managed to go 10-3 against their Central foes, but to this point, their 25-3 record against their rivals is an unsustainable trajectory, but they’re still playing good baseball. They’ve won Read full article
Taking stock of the AL Central: Tigers, Royals, Guardians and Twins all look like contenders in 2025
Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Guardians all won at least one series in 2024. The Minnesota Twins have won 10 straight games. The AL Central appears to be the home of the best team in the American League. The Twins are playing their best baseball of the season so far, while the Royals are second in the division. The Tigers are the most complete team in baseball; the Royals and Guardians are the best in their respective divisions, as well as the National League and the National Leagues. The Royals have been able to duplicate their success from a year ago, while Cleveland has had a slow start. The Guardians have managed to go 10-3 against their AL Central foes so far this season, but that’s not sustainable and they’ll need to win more games to have a chance to make it to the postseason in 2025. The Indians have won just one of their last 11 games, and the Twins have gone 10-2 in their last 12 games against the Red Sox and Red Sox. The Rangers have won their last two games, but they’ve lost their last three games in a row in the AL Central, including a doubleheader against the Yankees on Tuesday. The Red Sox have won three of their past four Read full article
2025 MLB standings predictions: Expert picks for every division, full projections as baseball season begins
The MLB staff has put together our 2025 season predictions. The Red Sox are the division’s most improved team thanks to Garrett Crochet and Alex Bregman. The Yankees lost Gerrit Cole for the year, Luis Gil for at least two months and Giancarlo Stanton for who knows how long. The White Sox feel like the only team “locked” into their “neck and neck” spot, Mike Axisa says. The Twins have the widest winning bars where the top four teams are also tough to discern, R.J. Anderson says.”I think this is the strongest division in baseball, top to bottom,” Matt Snyder says. “I don’t know what to do with this division,” says Dayn Perry. “The Blue Jays, while they aren’t necessarily a bad team, are the weakest in the division,” he says. ‘I think the Red Sox have the most balanced roster and increasing levels of upside,’ says Kate Feldman. ‘The Yankees could very well win the division, too, but its hard to bet against New York with the club’s proven track record and ability to put together such great regular seasons,’ says Julian McWilliams. “You could tell me that basically any combination of these teams make the Read full article
Keith Law’s predictions, projections and wild guesses for the 2025 MLB season
This is an annual tradition: My column explaining why I think your favorite team isn’t going to win as many games as you think they are. I’ve done this for at least 15 years now, and the reactions are always the same — people look for what I said about their favorite teams and then yell at me about it. So, here are my projections for the 2025 season, including playoff results and post-season awards. Disagree all you like, as long as you enjoy. I got one division winner right last year, and for the second year in a row a team I picked to finish in fourth place in their division won the pennant (the Yankees). This should be an annual favorite column for people who like to tell me I don’t know what I’m talking about. I’m late to the party, predicting the Red Sox to win their division (and, in this case, to have the best record in the league). They did more to upgrade their roster this winter than any other team in the American League. The Orioles were perfectly situated to make a big move with the Yankees losing Juan Soto, but they made a lot of small moves that don’t seem to add up to the Read full article
2025 MLB predictions: Playoffs, World Series, MVPs and more
MLB’s regular season gets underway tomorrow with Opening Day baseball. We put 28 of ESPN’s MLB writers, analysts and editors on the spot to predict what will happen in baseball this year. Did they hit the nail on the head or were they way off their mark? Only time can tell — and we’ll be circling back to these predictions come October to see how well — or poorly — we did.Jump to:AL picks | NL picks | WS picks | AL awards | NL awards. For each category, we’ve asked a number of our voters to explain their picks. For the AL East, we picked the Boston Red Sox (13 votes) and the Baltimore Orioles (10) For the NL Central, we chose the Kansas City Royals (12 votes) And for the NL West, we selected the Detroit Tigers (11 votes) … and the Cleveland Guardians (1) … For the World Series, we pick the Los Angeles Dodgers (14 votes) — and the New York Yankees (3) … for the Dodgers again (20 votes) for their World Series win in 2025 (20 years from now). For the National League Championship Series, the Chicago Cubs (15 votes) are our pick. For. the NL Championship Series Read full article
2025 AL Central preview: Top storylines to watch for Guardians, Tigers, Twins, Royals
The 2024 American League Central featured three young playoff teams who all beat expectations. The Twins just missed out on playoff baseball after a September collapse. All four return in 2025 as division contenders, separated by next to nothing. The Chicago White Sox are just hoping to be slightly less stomach-churning in 2025. The Detroit Tigers, Minnesota Twins and Kansas City Royals all have questions to answer after a winter mostly devoid of free agent spending across the board. The Minnesota Twins have become the broken-down-car of the baseball world, constantly spinning their tires and struggling through a series of setbacks. The Tigers, with Tarik Skubal’s awakening as the AL’s Cy Young award winner, have one of the game’s best bullpens and a gritty lineup. The Royals have virtually the same roster along with a few veteran additions to help out a young, still-improving roster. The White Sox have gone from mid-season obscurity to four wins away from the World Series in just a few years. The Angels have virtually all of the same players back along with some veteran additions, including Gleyber Torres, Alex Cobb and Alex Cobb, still a round or two away from a World Series appearance. The Yankees have the same Read full article
AL Central season preview: Can the Guardians stay on top? Will the Tigers and Royals make it back to the playoffs?
The AL Central was one of the worst divisions in MLB history in 2024. It produced three playoff teams in Cleveland, Kansas City and Detroit. Four of the Central’s five teams can make a legitimate case to claim the crown in 2025. Will this subset of teams regress back to its longstanding status as a division that sends just one team to the postseason? Let’s take a look at the five teams in the AL Central for the 2025 season. The Cleveland Guardians won the division and reached the ALCS last year. The Kansas City Royals surged to a 30-win improvement and a playoff berth. The Detroit Tigers made a stunning improvement and garnered a first-round bye last year, albeit without the help of the Twins. The Minnesota Twins bounced back to make the playoffs for the first time in their history in 2023, but they’re not the same team they were in the 1990s. The Chicago Cubs made their first playoff appearance since 1998 and won their first division title in 2000. The Oakland Athletics won the World Series for the second time in a row in 2000, their first since 1993. The New York Yankees won their second division crown in 2000 and their first in three years in 2002, their third in four years Read full article
Global Perspectives Summary:
Global media portray this story through varied cultural, economic, and political filters. While some focus on geopolitical ramifications, others highlight local impacts and human stories. Some nations frame the story around diplomatic tensions and international relations, while others examine domestic implications, public sentiment, or humanitarian concerns. This diversity of coverage reflects how national perspectives, media freedom, and journalistic priorities influence what the public learns about global events.
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Sources:
- Original Article
- Taking stock of the AL Central: Tigers, Royals, Guardians and Twins all look like contenders in 2025
- 2025 MLB standings predictions: Expert picks for every division, full projections as baseball season begins
- Keith Law’s predictions, projections and wild guesses for the 2025 MLB season
- 2025 MLB predictions: Playoffs, World Series, MVPs and more
- 2025 AL Central preview: Top storylines to watch for Guardians, Tigers, Twins, Royals
- AL Central season preview: Can the Guardians stay on top? Will the Tigers and Royals make it back to the playoffs?
Source: https://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/article/taking-stock-of-the-al-central-tigers-royals-guardians-and-twins-all-look-like-contenders-in-2025-213011970.html