Ranking of the best MLB teams in 2021

We’ve reviewed the 10 best rotations and bullpens in Major League Baseball heading into the 2021 season. Now let’s line up the lineups.

As you know, after the universal designated hitter rule was briefly enforced in the pandemic-cut short 2020 season, we went back to the early 1900s (and, uh, 2019) by letting pitchers swing the stick in. the National League. So this has a small impact on these rankings. But as you will see, the NL still has a lot of powerful infractions, even if you factor in those almost automatic outs.

Here are my picks for the best offenses in the game right now, although there are certainly others worth fighting for.

Some of you undoubtedly look at this ranking and think: “BUT THE JUDGE AND STANTON CANNOT KEEP HEALTH!” And that’s understandable, except that the Yankees have scored the most points in MLB over the past two seasons (1,258) despite this top pair playing a combined 171 games in that span. So while their difficulty staying on the court is a real concern (and they will be without reigning MLB home run leader Luke Voit for the first month following knee surgery), we have reasons to suspect that the Yanks will be an offensive force in one way or another. .

Torres and Sánchez are clear rebound candidates, Frazier has just found his balance and LeMahieu is as stable as they come. What if Judge and Stanton to do stay healthy, then, as they say in New York, fuhgeddaboudit. Sorry, everyone, but the Yanks are going to score a ton of points, and there’s not much we can do about it.

The Dodgers were the Majors’ strongest offense in the first season of the Mookie era, and even without the designated hitter in the NL, there’s a case for putting them back in first place.

I am going to stop here only because, until others within the organization prove otherwise, the departures of Joc Pederson and Kiké Hernández weaken the flexibility of this formation a bit. But it’s scary to think of what the numbers might look like if Bellinger and Muncy could shake off their disappointing 2020 results and if Gavin Lux could live up to his prospect pedigree. For now, there is no shame in being the No.1 NL team on this list.

The children are doing well. The young and hungry Toronto roster ran a bit hot and cold, but ultimately scored the seventh most points in the MLB in 2020. And now the Blue Jays have added Springer (although he’s currently facing an oblique problem) and Semien to their reserve. “Toronto” will start the season at TD Ballpark in Dunedin, Fla. Which could lead to ridiculous totals, and the Blue Jays will be really dangerous if Guerrero puts everything in place.

Don’t sleep on Tellez, who could be an escape candidate, or backup catcher Alejandro Kirk, who sets up big at-bats. If you told me the Blue Jays will be worthy of the top spot by the end of the season, I would believe you. This is perhaps the funniest line in the game.

Machado and Tatis both got into the MVP conversation last year. But the biggest revelations were that Grisham emerged as a legitimate table setter, Cronenworth broke in the first month of the season, and perennial business candidate Myers suddenly had the best season of his career. Maybe Myers is a candidate for regression, but I legitimately wonder if his new stance and new approach could make his push last.

The Padres also impress with the way they’ve amassed depth in addition to depth, with Jurickson Profar a viable replacement in various places in the event of injury and Ha-seong Kim an intriguing import. These guys would be everyday pieces on most teams. A healthy Pham is also a very important X factor.

I crossed it out on the Braves and left them out of the top 10 heading into a 2020 season in which they ended up scoring the second most points per game in MLB. Oops.

In my defense, it was hard to know that Ozuna would be as effective a Josh Donaldson replacement as he turned out to be, or that Arnaud would hit like Mike Piazza or that Freeman would get rid of a scary fight with COVID. and would become the NL MVP. I think it’s reasonable to expect Arnaud, in particular, to come back down to earth, and the Braves could certainly use an escape from Riley to relieve Acuña Jr., Freeman, Ozuna and Albies. But no way I make the same mistake twice and leave them out of this list.

To be clear, this is not a “no Springer, no problem” situation. Losing George Springer is a big deal, as his role in the top spot was instrumental in the Astros’ explosiveness. But keeping Brantley is a big deal too, as is the return of Alvarez, who had an OPS of 1.067 in his first year before issues with both knees cost him most of 2020.

If Altuve and Correa bounce back and Tucker continues to flourish, the Astros will remain an elite offense even without Springer. The top seven players in this lineup should all be better than average offensively.

With the obvious warning that the 60-game season numbers were wacky, it’s always fun to note that the Mets team’s weighted runs created plus the mark (121) were just one point behind the Dodgers. (122) and ranked sixth all-time.

Were they really that good? No, but they added Lindor after getting a mostly league average production last year, and it’s not at all hard to imagine Alonso recovering from the second drop in his numbers in 2020. One big key will be whether McCann can deliver against the correct one. by hand after getting that unexpected big contract.

Had to drop the Sox a few spots due to the long-term loss of Eloy Jiménez, who had a .276 / .321 / .527 slash over the past two seasons and was screened by Steamer as their biggest source of offense in 2021 (128 more projected weighted executions created). It remains to be seen whether the Sox are using the override wire or the trade route to address their newly altered outfield.

But it still can and will be really fun lineup. Abreu was the 2020 AL MVP, and Anderson was part of the mix. But Moncada and Robert have the talent to become MVP contenders themselves, and the Sox have one of the two most productive catchers in the game at Grandal. In Nick Madrigal and Andrew Vaughn, they also have two rookies with advanced plate discipline.

The Bomba Squad took a big step backwards at home plate last season, turning and relying too much on a 40-year-old Cruz. The Twins have scored just 4.48 points per game. But in a more regular season – and, most importantly, with a healthy Donaldson – there is reason to suspect that they may again come back to more than 5 points per playing territory.

The Twins continued to hit the long ball last year, with the sixth-highest home run rate (1.52 per game) in MLB. Buxton will always be considered one of the most dynamic players in the league when his body cooperates, Kepler is underrated and Alex Kirilloff could be an impact rookie. You could certainly argue that this lineup, not Chicago’s, is AL Central’s best. We will see.

The presence of Trout and Rendon gives the Angels a floor high enough to deserve to be included on this list. A return to offensive form of Ohtani, whose swing mechanics this spring mirrored what we saw when he was a legitimate presence in power in 2018-19, would move the needle a lot (if it didn’t. use no throwing, course). Fletcher’s contact skills keep the line moving, Walsh showed good power and plate discipline last year and maybe Jo Adell and / or Brandon Marsh will come and make an impact this season.

Having said that, there are some substantive issues here, and the angels are very right-handed.

Honorable mention: The Nationals and Red Sox have big stars but also questions of depth that have pushed them out of the top 10 for the time being. The Cubs might deserve to be included if Kris Bryant and Javier Báez bounce back. And as usual, we are definitely snubbing someone who will be better than what I personally attribute to him. But the closest team to this list is the Phillies. After equalizing the fifth most points per game (5.10) and the ninth most weighted point created plus the mark (109) in MLB last season, they brought back JT Realmuto and Didi Gregorius to continue supporting Bryce. Harper, and they have a rising star at Alec Bohm.