BY J.A. SCHWARTZ
The Minnesota Twins won the AL Central last year on the strength of a lineup heavy with HR hitters and a deep bullpen. Those same attributes should return for the Twins in 2021. They retained the ageless Nelson Cruz on a one-year deal to anchor the middle of their order, but they made a priority of improving their defense as well. The Twins imported Andrelton Simmons as a free agent signee from the Angels to strengthen them up-the-middle, giving them arguably the two best defensive players in the major leagues at shortstop and center field, where the fragile Byron Buxton will hope to finally stay healthy for a full season.
40 year-old Nelson Cruz had another solid season for the Twins in 2020, winning his fourth Silver Slugger award since 2015. Entering his 17th season, Cruz’ veteran leadership could go a long way towards helping Minnesota reverse their record-breaking streak of playoff futility that has seen them go winless in October since 2004.
Their rotation should benefit from a full season from Michael Pineda, who missed most of 2020 after being suspended for PED use. He’ll follow young star Jose Berrios, who will look to build on a strong 2020 campaign. Rounding out their mound corps will be free agent acquisitions J.A. Happ and Matt Shoemaker, veterans who will be expected to keep games close enough for the formidable Twins bullpen to take over. Free agent closer Alex Colome will take over ninth inning duties, but in Taylor Rogers and Tyler Duffey, the Twins have multiple options to squelch late inning rallies.
Minnesota will have to overcome the longest playoff losing streak in professional sports history to advance to this season’s Fall Classic. They’ve dropped 18 straight postseason games since their last victory in 2004 in Game 1 of the ALDS.
The Chicago White Sox intend to make it very difficult for the Twins to repeat as division champions in 2021. Their 2020 squad made the playoffs on the strength of breakout seasons from rookie Luis Robert and young slugger Eloy Jimenez, but were anchored by veterans, including 2019 batting champion Tim Anderson and 2020 American League MVP Jose Abreu. They’ve bolstered their lineup with free agent Adam Eaton, who returns to the South Side after playing in Chicago from 2014 through 2016, and also anticipate welcoming Andrew Vaughn, the third overall pick in the 2019 draft, at some point this summer, to be their DH.
White Sox slugger José Abreu put it all together last season, earning the AL MVP award while leading the south-siders to their first post-season birth since 2008. The Cuban slugger batted .317 with 19 homers and 60 RBI’s without missing a game in 2020.
The pitching will be led by Lucas Giolito, who had a 3.48 ERA in 2020, and workhorse Lance Lynn, who was acquired in a trade with Texas to work deep into games. Lefty Dallas Keuchel’s sinker gets groundballs at a 52.9% rate, among the best in the majors, which helped him post a 1.99 ERA in 2020. The White Sox bullpen lost closer Alex Colome to the Twins, but they signed arguably the best reliever in the league in Liam Hendriks, who was extricated from Oakland for a three-year, $54 million deal after three excellent seasons with the A’s. He’ll be counted on to protect the leads handed to him and help lead the White Sox back to the playoffs.
The Cleveland Indians made the playoffs as a wildcard entry in 2020, but you wouldn’t know it by the way their front office conducted business over the past two seasons. Despite having a team that had made the postseason in four of the past five years, they have traded rotation stalwart (and two time Cy Young Award winner) Corey Kluber, ace Mike Clevinger, and the steady Carlos Carrasco in separate transactions, each designed to shed payroll. They also let closer Brad Hand leave as a free agent after declining to pay his $10 million option for 2021.
Cleveland infielder José Ramírez is one of the few remaining bright spots for fans of the salary-shedding Indians. A three time All-Star in just five full seasons, Ramírez was runner-up for the AL MVP award last season after connecting for 17 homers and 46 RBI’s in only 58 games.
In addition to the pitching drain leaving the Tribe, they allowed Michael Brantley to defect to the Astros in 2018, and watched slugger Carlos Santana head to Kansas City as a free agent this offseason. The cruelest blow for Indians fans, however, was seeing young superstar and face of the franchise Francisco Lindor get shipped to the Mets in early January, a year before he’ll be a free agent. That penny pinching has led to a payroll of $40 million, the lowest figure in the major leagues. If the Indians are to continue their run of postseason appearances, it will be up to the young rotation, fronted by defending AL Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber, and a lineup light on impact hitters beyond José Ramírez. The Cleveland franchise has announced that they’ll finally do away with their offensive nickname after the 2021 season, a story line that figures to get as much attention by their loyal fans as the team on the field.
The Kansas City Royals are looking to take a step forwards in their journey to rebuild a contender in the heartland after seeing their talent base dwindle after their 2015 World Series victory. They invested in veteran contributors this offseason, adding Carlos Santana via free agency and trading to acquire Andrew Benintendi from Boston to help juice up an offense that finished 2020 13th in the AL in runs scored. Their top hitter, Whit Merrifield, survived yet another year of trade rumors and will once again be the engine that drives the Royals lineup. He’ll be joined by franchise icon Salvador Perez, back for his ninth year behind the plate, Jorge Soler, who set a franchise record with 48 HR in 2019, and Adalberto Mondesi, the dynamic infielder who is arguably their best player.
Royals slugger Jorge Soler struggled at the plate last season, but the Havana native set a franchise record with 48 home runs along with 117 RBI’s while playing in all 162 games for Kansas City in 2019.
The next Kansas City team to contend will almost certainly be built around a collection of young, talented pitchers, several of who debuted in 2020. First round draft picks Brady Singer, Jackson Kowar, Daniel Lynch and Kris Bubic all saw action with the Royals last season, and may soon be joined by the fourth overall selection in the 2020 draft, lefty Asa Lacy. To help mentor their young charges, the Royals brought back Mike Minor on a two-year, $18 million dollar free agent pact, providing some veteran leadership to the young guns who hope to be a part of the next championship Royals team.
The Detroit Tigers are following a similar path towards their next winning team. Despite the presence of future Hall-of-Famer Miguel Cabrera, the Tigers offense was abysmal in 2020, ranking 12th in the league in runs scored. Detroit was below league average at nearly every position on the field, where only Jeimer Candelario, Jacoby Jones and rookie Willi Castro had an OPS north of 800. They brought back free agent Jonathan Schoop to provide stability to their middle infield, but will seek better production from most of their lineup slots in 2021.
Detroit hasn’t come close to a winning season since 2016, but at least Tiger fans can enjoy watching Miguel Cabrera pad his future Hall of Fame resume. Cabrera enters his 19th season with 487 home runs and 2,866 hits, just short of two longtime benchmarks for induction into Cooperstown.
The Tigers future will depend upon the development of their prized pitching prospects. Lefty Tarik Skubal and former top overall pick Casey Mize both got their feet wet in the majors last year, and Matt Manning should join them in Detroit later this summer. Each of those young arms rank inside Baseball America’s top 30 overall prospects entering the 2021 season. Veteran Michael Fulmer will return from Tommy John surgery to provide a veteran perspective, but the future of the Tigers resides squarely on the shoulders of their top three pitching prospects.
