With baseball season quickly approaching, I decided to take a look at all the pitching rotations in the MLB and ultimately create a top-5 list. Before I get that far, I’m going to rank each rotation by their division.

Divisions I’ve Already Ranked

Now let’s complete the series and break down the AL East:

5. Baltimore Orioles

Projected Rotation

John Means

Alex Cobb

Kohl Stewart

Asher Wojciechowski

Wade LeBlanc

No, this is not a joke. These are the guys the Orioles will throw out there to face the tough offenses their division has to offer. And they will get rocked, the Orioles will finish in last place, blah blah blah. You’ve heard the story before. There’s really not much to say about this rotation. John Means had his first full season last year, pitching 155 innings and putting together a solid year with a 3.60 ERA while collecting 12 wins. So, he may be decent, but to have him as your number one says everything. The rest of those guys will have many forgettable outings.

4. Toronto Blue Jays

Projected Rotation

Hyun-Jin Ryu

Tanner Roark

Chase Anderson

Matt Shoemaker

Shun Yamaguchi

The Blue Jays added Hyun-Jin Ryu this offseason, which is very intriguing. He had an excellent year last year and was even in the Cy Young conversation. But he’s playing with a new team for the first time in his career, so it will be interesting to see how the 32 year old adapts. If he can replicate last year, he’s a legitimate ace. But he will have to do it against much better offenses in the AL East. Including Ryu, everyone in this rotation is 32 or 33 years old, so they’re all veterans (except Yamaguchi who hasn’t pitched an MLB game). But these veterans are guys you wouldn’t mind having at the back end of your rotation, not taking up your entire rotation.

3. Boston Red Sox

Projected Rotation

Chris Sale

Eduardo Rodriguez

Nathan Eovaldi

Martin Perez

Ryan Weber

I don’t have a very good feeling about the Red Sox this season and this rotation is less than appealing. Now, they still have Chris Sale who is one of the better pitchers in the game, but he’s already dealing with injury issues and is coming off a rough year. So, we will just have to wait and see what we’ll get out of him this year. Eduardo Rodriguez should be solid and reliable, keeping the Red Sox in a lot of games. Eovaldi is coming off a very rough year last year and really isn’t someone you trust to win you games. And the last two in the rotation will just be trying to buck the trend of posting season ERA’s over 5.00. It could be a long year for the Red Sox.

2. New York Yankees

Projected Rotation

Gerrit Cole

Masahiro Tanaka

J.A. Happ

Jordan Montgomery

Jonathan Loaisiga

The good news: they have a legitimate frontline starter now in Gerrit Cole who is among the best pitchers in the game. They have guys like Tanaka and J.A. Happ, who aren’t anything special, but are veterans who generally know how to get it done. And they will most likely get James Paxton back in May. The bad news: they lost Luis Severino to Tommy John surgery. The back end of their rotation is very questionable (Loaisiga is raw, but shows potential). And Happ is getting old, which we started to see last year. It will be interesting to see how Cole adapts to a new team and division. For years the Yankees lacked starting pitching, and while they aren’t in prime shape now, they are better than they have been for a number of years.

1. Tampa Bay Rays

Projected Rotation

Blake Snell

Tyler Glasnow

Charlie Morton

Yonny Chirinos

Ryan Yarbrough

The Rays always have pitching. And from top to bottom, this group is collectively better than any other in the division. Snell is an interesting case because after winning the Cy Young, he had a rough go of things for most of last season and dealt with injuries. Will he bounce back and be one of the premier pitchers in the game again? We will find out soon enough. Either way, if healthy, he is a really good pitcher who will send a lot of hitters back to the dugout. Glasnow seemed to figure a lot of things out last year and posted great numbers in his limited season. Charlie Morton is like a fine wine and keeps getting better with age. At 36 years old, the guy quietly had one of the better seasons in baseball last year. Yonny Chirinos is very solid once he comes into the game in the 2nd inning (yes, you read that right). And even Yarbrough as the last guy in the rotation won’t hurt you. He held opponents to a .228 batting average last season. The Rays as a team always fly under the radar, but it’s time the team, and rotation, starts getting the recognition they deserve.

Garett

Ranking the Pitching Rotations in the AL East