The AL Central sent two teams to the playoffs last year, and they could add another to the postseason this year when things are said and done.
Last year's race ended in thrilling fashion when the Cleveland Guardians overcame a 15.5 game deficit to the Detroit Tigers for the division lead, storming back late the in the season to claim their sixth title in ten years.
Below are the odds for the AL Central Outright Winner, where the Detroit Tigers are favored to win their first division championship since 2014.
Detroit Tigers | +125 |
Kansas City Royals | +220 |
Cleveland Guardians | +300 |
Minnesota Twins | +1000 |
Chicago White Sox | +4000 |
The Detroit Tigers (+125) have made some noise in free agency recently, adding premier starter Framber Valdez to join their stable that includes back-to-back AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.
Of course, Detroit also signed 43-year-old Justin Verlander to reunite him with the club he played with during his first 13 seasons in the league. 15 years ago he won the AL Cy Young award with the Tigers.
The Tigers still have the main bulk of hitters that led them to a top-10 offense last year, including Riley Greene, Spencer Torkelson, Kerry Carpenter and more.
The Royals (+220) are looking to win their first division crown since their 2015 World Series championship season.
Led by Bobby Witt Jr., the Royals have a sound mix of hitting, pitching, and defense. Kansas City was 27th in runs scored last season, but they have a group of young hitters looking to make their mark this year.
Combined with the Kauffmann Stadium walls moving in a bit, the offense could finally get to a league-average level. If that becomes true, their pitching staff and defense can help carry the way to a division title.
The Guardians are +300 to win their third straight AL Central trophy. They signed their star Jose Ramirez to a seven-year contract extension, hoping he can help lead up-and coming hitters such as Chase DeLauter, CJ Kayfus, and others.
The starting pitching rotation consisting of Gavin Williams, Tanner Bibee, Parker Messick and more should be solid, while the bullpen always seems to be good.
The Twins (+1000) and White Sox (+3000) have an outside chance at winning the division, but in baseball, anyone could break out at any second.
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All odds written in this article were correct at the time of writing and are subject to change.
