With both the Kansas City Royals and their division rivals reporting to spring training next week, it's time to look at the key players added and lost for each team in the AL Central in what figures to be a tight division race.
The Royals emphasized going after veteran arms, adding Jordan Lyles, Ryan Yarbrough, and resigning Zack Greinke to the rotation. The bullpen was also bolstered with lefty arms Josh Taylor and Aroldis Chapman. On the offensive side, Matt Beaty and Johan Camargo were invited to camp with hopes of making the roster.
The Chicago White Sox lost a key hitter in Jose Abreu, and will hope that former top draft pick Andrew Vaughn can simulate his production at first base. Chicago also signed Andrew Benintendi, a solid contact hitter and defender to bolster their outfield, as well as Mike Clevinger and Jake Diekman to add depth to the pitching staff.
The Cleveland Guardians, the reigning division champions, feature one of the strongest young pitching rotations in baseball with the likes of Tristan McKenzie, Shane Bieber, and Emmanuel Clase. The Guardians also added to their offense, bringing in talented first baseman Josh Bell, as well as power hitting catcher Mike Zunino.
The Detroit Tigers had a relatively quiet offseason, with their only major additions being pitcher Michael Lorenzen and outfielder Matt Vierling. However, the Tigers still have an intruiging young core of players that has as much talent as anyone in the division, and with another year of experience under their belt, will look to take a step towards competing. Outfielders Riley Greene and Akil Baddoo, first baseman Spencer Torkelson, and pitchers Tarik Skubal and Matt Manning are all key young players to watch in Detroit.
And the Minnesota Twins had the flashiest signing in the division this offseason, resigning star shortstop Carlos Correa to a six year contract. The Twins underwent a very underrated rehaul of their roster, adding utility bat Kyle Farmer, outfielders Joey Gallo and Michael A. Taylor, catcher Christian Vazquez, and star pitcher Pablo Lopez.
These five teams all report to camp next week, with spring training games beginning two weeks from today.
