The American League East has been long-considered baseball’s premier division, a five-team battle featuring baseball’s largest baseball rivalry (New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox), plucky-and-savvy Tampa Bay Rays, ever-developing Toronto Blue Jays, and cellar-dwelling Baltimore Orioles. 

2012 featured both new and old; themes of the past continued, with the Yankees winning the division, the Rays overachieving with premier pitching and despite a small payroll, and the Blue Jays disappointing.  It featured new themes, with the Red Sox reaching an ebb in the division’s competitive balance (finishing with 90+ losses, first time since 1965), and the Orioles surprising with a Wild Card entry.

2013 will see some of these trends continue, but new are sure to emerge.  The Blue Jays have gone all-in, trading future for present while adding $40M+ payroll.  The Red Sox have added $60M+ payroll but have open questions about their star power and pitching depth. The Orioles face open questions about sustained performance that was built largely on the backs of their outstanding records in one-run games.  The Yankees have gotten older and have not added significant pieces.  However, one trend sure to continue is that the AL East features the game’s premier fantasy talents, both batters and pitchers.  We’ll review and rank the top AL East fantasy talents here, starting with the batters.

1. Robinson Cano, Second Base, New York Yankees

The game’s pre-eminent second basemen, posting 25+ HRs, 100+ runs, 100+ RBI four consecutive seasons.  Look past his poor 2012 postseason which was likely the result of poor protection around him.  He enters 2013 healthy, with a strong surrounding lineup (RBI opportunities) and in his contract year. Look for this Scott Boras client to have a monster season (projected .300 BA, 30 HR, 100 RBI, 110 R, 5 SB) before entering any long-term contract negotiations with the Yankee brass.

 

2. Evan Longoria, Third Base, Tampa Bay Rays 

He’ll enter 2013 looking for his first healthy season since 2010.  There may be durability questions, but his injuries have not been recurring, so there’s no reason to think they are systemic moving forward.  Given the dearth of quality fantasy third baseman, he ranks with Adrian Beltre as the game’s best.  2013 will be his age-28 season, so he’s just entering his prime.  Peg him for a .280 BA, 30 HR, 90 RBI, 100 R and 5 SB.

3. Jose Bautista, Third Base, Toronto Blue Jays 

Despite missing half of 2012 with wrist troubles, no one’s hit more home runs since 2009. Through early spring training, Joey Bats looks recovered from wrist surgery and has a new lineup around him.  Expect his RBI totals to explode, while he regains his grip atop the HR race.   He may not be a first-round draft pick this year, scoop him in rounds 2-3 and expect .270 BA, 35-40 HR, 130 RBI, 90 R and 6 SB.

4. Adam Jones, Outfield, Baltimore Orioles

Jones has emerged as dominant force that contributes in all five fantasy categories.  While he may experience some 2013 regression (his 4.6 BB% and 18 SO% was no different than in prior seasons) from his excellent 2012 (.287 AVG, 103 R, 32 HR, 82 RBI, 16 SB) he’s one of the premier fantasy outfielders in baseball, as he combines 20+ HR power with SBs.

5. Jose Reyes, Shortstop, Toronto Blue Jays 

2013 will be Reyes’ first g-round in the AL.  He’ll leave pitcher friendly Marlins stadium for batter-friendly Rogers Centre.  Further, as the Jays’ leadoff hitter, there are plenty of big bats that will convert his times on-base into runs-scored.  He may not steal bases like he did while running on grass, but in a shallow SS market, he’s likely the second best fantasy option behind Troy Tulowitzki.  Peg him for a .300 BA, 125 R, 12 HR, 55 RBI and 25-30 SB.

6. Ben Zobrist, Infield, Tampa Bay Rays

 Zobrist offers the flexibility of few others premier players in fantasy baseball. He has multi-position eligibility (2B, SS, OF) and generates a high BA, HRs and SBs.  He’s proven himself to be durable, netting a lot of ABs each season.  He’s the AL’s #2 fantasy 2B behind Cano because of his multi-faceted game and multi-position eligibility.

 

7. Dustin Pedroia, Second Base, Boston Red Sox 

Pedroia’s offensive stats may lead one to rank him above Zobrist as the second-best 2B in the game, but open questions about his durability and 2B-only eligibility leave him behind Zobrist.  Nonetheless, Pedroia offers premier performance in all five offensive categories.  With a newly retooled lineup around him, expect more RBIs and Runs (forecasted line: .300 BA, 15-20 HR, 90 RBI, 110 R, 20 SB).  Just hope that he remains healthy.

 

8. Matt Wieters, Catcher, Baltimore Orioles

While not the superstar once anticipated, Wieters’ game continues to improve with age.  Just 26 years old, Wieters enters 2013 as a proven, durable C (minimum 130 games annually since 2010). He easily top 20 HR and deliver 80+ RBI. There’s still a lot of upside for him and he could emerge as the games top fantasy catcher.

9. Curtis Granderson, Outfield, New York Yankees

He’s acquired a bad reputation as result of his high strikeout rate (28% in 2012) and low BA (.232 in 2012).  However, he continues to produce 40+ HRs, 100+ Runs, 100+ RBIs and double-digit SBs.  His performance has not been the result of any luck-driven BABIP (just .260 in 2012).  2013 is his contract year, so expect him to remain healthy and perform big alongside Cano.

 

10. Edwin Encarnacion, Designated Hitter, Toronto Blue Jays

2012 was EE’s break-out year and there may be open questions about his ability to sustain a similar performance level.  However, his breakout (.280 BA, 42 HR, 93 R, 110 RBI, 13 SB) goes back to 2011’s second half and his peripherals (lower O-Swing%, O-Contact%, Z-Swing% and Z-Contact%) have been remarkably consistent since the 2011 All-Star break.  He offers a high BA, HRs, RBIs, R and now has 1B eligibility.