The Oakland Athletics, the Toronto Blue Jays, and the Cleveland Indians are among the most underrated teams in MLB for the 2021 season.
Everybody knows that the New York Yankees, the Houston Astros, the Minnesota Twins, the New York Mets, the Atlanta Braves, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the San Diego Padres will be very good.
However, the A’s, Jays, and the tribe don’t get enough credit, and we will explain why they are good.
The Top 3 Most Underrated Clubs For The 2021 Season
Oakland Athletics
People tend to count them out because they couldn’t eliminate the decimated Houston Astros in the 2020 Division Series.
However, it’s fair to remember that over the course of a 60-game season, the Oakland Athletics finished seven games ahead of the Astros.
Yes, Oakland lost top reliever Liam Hendriks when he signed a multi-year deal with the Chicago White Sox, and also shortstop Marcus Semien to the Toronto Blue Jays.
However, that doesn’t mean that the A’s are bad: quite the opposite, actually.
In a division that seems up for grabs once again given that the Astros lost Justin Verlander to injury and George Springer to free agency. Oakland has the goods to come out on top once again.
Matt Chapman and Matt Olson are all-around stalwarts at the infield corners, while Mark Canha is an on-base machine.
Catcher Sean Murphy could be about to break out, Ramon Laureano (.213/.338/.366 in 2020) is primed for a rebound season.
What do @CBSScottWhite and @Roto_Frank have in common⁉️
They're both expecting a breakout season from Sean Murphy 🔥💪
Find out why ⤵️
— Fantasy Baseball Today (@FBTpod) February 9, 2021
On the pitching side of things, the team is hoping for more progress from their young starters Jesus Luzardo and AJ Puk.
Chris Bassit (2.29 ERA in 2020) is a highly durable and effective arm, while a return to form by Frankie Montas (5.60 ERA last season) will be beneficial for the A’s.
Cleveland Indians
While it’s true that the Cleveland Indians are trying to shed payroll, that doesn’t necessarily mean that they are a bad team like many fans are assuming.
They traded star shortstop Francisco Lindor because he is a year away from free agency and they, as a small market team, can’t afford him and wanted something in return.
Carlos Carrasco was included in that deal with the Mets, as well, and he was under control for two more years at an affordable rate with a vesting option for 2023.
However, Cleveland received to very good young shortstops with potential in Amed Rosario and Andres Gimenez.
Gimenez impressed at times in 2020 even though he was clearly rushed to the majors.
Rosario, meanwhile, was among the game’s best prospects as recently as 2017.
The Indians got two additional prospects in the deal, and while they are a worse team in 2021 as a result, they are far from bad.
Even though the offense is not their strongest unit, they still have the MVP runner-up in Jose Ramirez, who hit .292/.386/.607 with 17 homers and 10 steals in an amazing 2020.
They have the Cy Young award winner in Shane Bieber, who had a minuscule 1.63 ERA and a ridiculous 41.1 K% in 77.1 frames.
And they have young, controllable, and talented starters like Zach Plesac, Triston McKenzie, Aaron Civale, and Cal Quantrill.
They currently employ star reliever James Karinchak, who will help replace the void that Brad Hand left after signing with Washington.
Cleveland also brought heavy-hitting outfielder Eddie Rosario to help pick up the offensive slack.
The Indians may not be the best team in the NL Central division anymore, but they can compete even with limited financial resources.
Toronto Blue Jays
Everybody assumes that the Toronto Blue Jays don’t have the pitching to make things interesting in the AL East in 2021.
However, that’s not necessarily true.
Hyun-Jin Ryu is a perfectly good ace (2.69 ERA and 3.01 FIP in 2020), while Nate Pearson has ace potential as a young power pitcher.
Robbie Ray and Ross Stripling have been successful in the past, and Steven Matz and Tanner Roark are useful depth.
Additionally, Jake Odorizzi is still available as a free agent, and he makes a lot of sense for Toronto.
Even if they fail to sign Odorizzi or add an impact starter via trade, Toronto has one of the best, most underrated lineups in the league.
"I think the young core is very, very impressive… the way that the front office has gotten behind their guys."
George Springer talks about what attracted him to Toronto and to sign with the @BlueJays. #BlueJaysOnSN pic.twitter.com/LdRxRl7Sih
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) January 27, 2021
Vladimir Guerrero jr., Cavan Biggio, Teoscar Hernandez, and Bo Bichette is a fearsome foursome.
Additionally, Rowdy Tellez, Randal Grichuk, Danny Jansen, and Lourdes Gurriel are very competent hitters.
But the prize of the Blue Jays’ offseason was George Springer.
The former Astros outfielder is an impact contributor on offense and defense, with championship pedigree and lots of postseason experience.
That, and the addition of Marcus Semien to play second base, make Toronto’s offense a formidable unit.
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