The Most Important Player on Each Team in the AL East for the Remainder of the 2020 Season
by Alexander Wolfe
Last time, I took a look at the most important players in the NL East. This time, we turn our focus to the American League.
Now that the 2020 MLB season has mostly played out and a vast majority of teams have at least 50 games under their belt, we should have a pretty decent understanding of where each team should be going from here. Some teams are looking to the 2021 season, others are making a run at a wildcard spot this season, or even taking aim at a possible 2020 World Championship. In this week’s division, the top- heavy American League East, we will be taking a look at the most important player on each team’s roster moving forward
Boston Red Sox: Alex Verdugo
2020: 19-34 record (as of 9/20)
This season has been abysmal for Boston. Seeing fan-favorite Mookie Betts leave in the offseason via a trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers hurt in more ways than one; the product on the field, the locker room, and the hearts of Boston fans around the world.In trading him, Boston lost their 27 year-old face of the franchise, but they held onto hopes of resigning him in the 2021 offseason. That plan didn’t work out too well when Betts inked a new 12-year, $365 million contract. So, what now?
Well, in the deal Boston acquired the young, promising 24 year-old Alex Verdugo from LA. Verdugo will be a very important piece in determining whether the Red Sox will build yet another World Series contending roster, or plummet into a full rebuild. In 2020, Verdugo has proved his worth to the team boasting a .328 batting average with a 2.2 WAR and .894 OPS in this 60 game season.While he isn’t a MVP candidate like the aforementioned Betts, Verdugo is definitely a great building block for Boston in the future and will hopefully assist in keeping them relevant in the 2021 season.
Baltimore Orioles: Ryan Mountcastle
2020: 22-31 (as of 9/20)
Although the O’s haven’t had the greatest of season’s record wise, they were a lot better than they’ve been in previous years and exceeded a lot of expectations. However, with just over a week left for them in the 2020 season, it seems as if Baltimore’s hopes of sneaking into the 8th seed, pending a hot streak combined with a catastrophic week from Toronto, are little to none.
Although the O’s have had an overall horrendous pitching staff (minus an impressive Tanner Scott in the bullpen and resurgent John Means), the bats have been promising this season. None more promising than a 23 year-old future star first baseman Ryan Mountcastle whom Baltimore can build around along with former first-overall pick Adley Rutschman.Mountcastle hasn’t been with the Big League all season, but after his call-up he has proven his worth with a .337 BA in 105 plate appearances with a .954 OPS.
He has also hit 5 doubles and 5 homeruns. If the O’s can get such production from Mountcastle to build around in 2021, they can hope to be competitive in a division with two heavyweights, the Yankees and Rays, and a young, surprising squad in Toronto, into the future.
Toronto Blue Jays: Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
2020: 26-26 (as of 9/20)
The 21-year old top prospect Guerrero hasn’t lived up the hype since his call-up back in April of 2019. Before the call-up, he was a consensus future superstar just like his father, Vladimir Guerrero, but just hasn’t been anything but average. Back in 2019, Guerrero had a decent rookie year but has fallen off a bit in 2020 with a .243 average, 7 homeruns, 25 RBI, and a .737 OPS in 210 plate appearances.
The rest of the Jays, like Teoscar Hernandez, Bo Bichette, Randall Grichuk, and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. have combined with the average Guerrero in boosting the team into a potential playoff spot earlier than most expected. If Vladdy can pick it up a bit in the postseason Toronto could be a very scary draw.
New York Yankees: Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton
2020: 31-21 (as of 9/20)
This has been an odd year for the Evil Empire. A Yankees team with an injury plagued/underperforming roster found themselves going 2-12 over a stretch from August 18th up until they got their swagger back on September 9th and then rattled off 10 straight.
Big contributors throughout the year have been breakout star Luke Voit, Gio Urshela, newcomer Kyle Higashioka, and stud second baseman DJ LeMahieu. If it wasn’t for the key players listed above, the Bronx Bombers would have succumbed to the lack of production from often injured Stanton and Judge, as well as surprise underperformers Gleyber Torres and Gary Sanchez. With everyone back and a solid rotation headed by Gerrit Cole, the Yanks look to be the favorite to represent the AL that everyone thought they would be.
Tampa Bay Rays: Blake Snell and the rest of the pitching staff
2020: 35-18 (as of 9/20)
The MLB’s third lowest payroll (according to Spotrac) and current first place team in the AL has shown the world that you don’t need to spend money on big time free agents in order to be competitive.Unless you are a Rays fan, it would be a safe bet that a majority of people wouldn’t know 5 players on the roster. That is just how things are run in Tampa, and it seems to treat them well every year as they are always competitive.
Pitching is always a focal point for this team, and it keeps them in almost every game that they play. This year is no different.A rotation headed by the 4-1 Snell, followed by an up-and-down Charlie Morton, Tyler Glasnow, and a solid bullpen have proved to be the bread and butter again this shortened season. If Snell can keep his pace, plus a little more consistency from the rest of the starters and some more run support from the bats, the Rays will be a force to be reckoned with this postseason and beyond.Snell currently has a 3.05 ERA in 44.1 innings pitched and seems poised to help lead the Rays to the promise land.
