(Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
For years, the American League East has been widely recognized as the strongest division in MLB.
All five teams – the Baltimore Orioles, the Tampa Bay Rays, the Toronto Blue Jays, the New York Yankees, and the Boston Red Sox – have made the postseason at least once since 2021.
The division also had one 100-win team, the O’s (101-61), and one 99-win one, the Rays.
Three of its teams made the playoffs, with the Blue Jays joining that pair.
However, the postseason was disastrous for AL East squads.
And we say “was” because there are no longer any AL East teams in contention after the elimination of the Orioles at the hands of the Texas Rangers.
Teams in the division weren’t even able to win one game this year.
“Rough postseason for the AL East: Toronto Blue Jays: 0-3; Tampa Bay Rays: 0-2; Baltimore Orioles: 0-3,” MLB insider Bob Nightengale tweeted.
Rough postseason for the AL East
Toronto Blue Jays: 0-3
Tampa Bay Rays: 0-2
Baltimore Orioles: 0-3
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) October 11, 2023
The Blue Jays were actually 0-2 after being swept in the best-of-three Wild Card round by the Minnesota Twins.
The Rangers dispatched the Rays and then the Orioles, and the Yankees and Red Sox didn’t even make the playoffs.
It certainly has been a disappointing year for the division: two former heavyweights were left out of the October party, and the three emerging powerhouses were quickly ousted.
There is always next year for all the organizations involved, however, and most of them have a promising long-term outlook.
It’s safe to say that 2023 was a bitter disappointment for most of them, though, with the exception of the Orioles.
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