2019 MLB Pre-Season Power Rankings

The Major League Baseball season is finally here, after a long winter of waiting for more home runs and hustle plays. And with the 2019 season comes a new list of favorites who are looking to claim a championship. While there aren’t many things separating the teams at the top of Major League Baseball in 2019, these teams will be able to decide who is the best on the field.

Boston Red Sox

Fresh off of their 2018 World Series win, the Boston Red Sox are back among the top teams for the 2019 season. They have one of the most potent offenses in the sport, and are led by perhaps the best player in the league in Mookie Betts, which should make them a formidable opponent regardless of any other issues that pop up throughout the season.

According to World Series MLB odds on bet365, the Red Sox are tied with the other two teams on this list at +600 odds to lift the World Series trophy. But they did lose closer Craig Kimbrel during the offseason and are dealing with some injury concerns in Spring Training for last year’s World Series MVP Steve Pearce. They are still in great shape to get back to the playoffs this year, but there are some underlying concerns that will need to be addressed to repeat.

Houston Astros

The Houston Astros won the World Series in 2017, and could very well do so again this year as they have largely the same team that they did when they won it all. They are able to bludgeon teams with their offense, that has a great combination of speed, power, and everything in between to put runs on the board.

Among their key contributors will be Jose Altuve, who will be a candidate to win the league’s MVP award in 2019. He hits for power, but is also one of the fastest players in the American League to make the most of his contact that doesn’t leave the yard. And with a pitching staff that has remained largely the same, there is no reason that the Astros can’t get back to the top of the league this year.

New York Yankees

There isn’t a team in Major League Baseball that is scarier than the New York Yankees on offense, as they are likely to set all kinds of home run hitting records again this season. But the Yankees will have to worry about their starting pitching, which is the lone flaw in a team that could otherwise cruise to the World Series.

Making those pitching concerns worse is the fact that the Yankees will be without ace Luis Severino for a while. Despite having a bullpen that only got stronger with the addition of Adam Ottavino, the Yankees may have some trouble getting the game into the late innings to take advantage of that edge. If they can’t score runs in bunches, they may find themselves behind in games to where that bullpen won’t have a chance to shine.