American League power rankings by La Velle E. Neal III

1. Houston Astros (101-61 last season)

The World Series champs traded for pitcher Gerrit Cole and will have Justin Verlander for the entire season. Eek.

2. Cleveland Indians (102-60)

Still fueled by a strong rotation, Cleveland must absorb the losses of Carlos Santana, Bryan Shaw and Joe Smith to free agency.

3. New York Yankees (91-71)

The Bronx will be a launching pad this year, with NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton joining Aaron Judge and friends.

4. Boston Red Sox (93-69)

5. Minnesota Twins (85-77)

Coming off 85 victories, the Twins made a slew of late moves to deepen their roster in an attempt to catch up to Cleveland.

6. Seattle Mariners (79-83)

Injuries decimated the Mariners' starting staff last season, so if the starters rebound, they'll challenge. Dee Gordon was a nice addition.

7. Los Angeles Angels (80-82)

8. Toronto Blue Jays (76-86)

Righthander Aaron Sanchez looks ready to return to ace status after making four trips to the DL last season.

9. Texas Rangers (78-84)

The Rangers are trying to close the gap in the West ... with help from Tim Lincecum and Bartolo Colon?

10. Baltimore Orioles (75-87)

11. Oakland Athletics (75-87)

Not ready for prime time, but they have some young hitters, such as Matt Olson, worth keeping an eye on.

12. Chicago White Sox (67-95)

Beat them up now while they are down, but there's too much young talent here. They'll turn things around soon.

13. Kansas City Royals (80-82)

14. Detroit Tigers (64-98)

Ron Gardenhire's return to managing will require patience as he leads a flock of inexperienced players.

15. Tampa Bay Rays (80-82)