American League East: Baseball's Best Division

The American League East has been the best division in the MLB for more than a decade, mainly because of the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees rivalry. With the rise of the Tampa Bay Rays last year and the Toronto Blue Jays this year, the division has only gotten better. The Tampa Bay Rays came out of nowhere last year to win the division in a huge upset and reach the World Series, losing in five games to the Philadelphia Phillies. The Rays went from the worst team in baseball to one of the best in just one year. The Toronto Blue Jays have become strong contenders this season, opening up a six game lead at one point, but have since cooled off a bit. Four of the five teams in the division have recently contended for the AL East crown and with the Baltimore Orioles offense, every team is a strong contender in this division.

For almost a decade (1998-2006), the AL East had been dominated by the New York Yankees, with the Boston Red Sox taking the Wild Card in most of those years. That all changed in 2007 when the Red Sox finally won the division for the first time in 12 years, with the Yankees finishing in second place, and earning the AL Wild Card. That same year, the Red Sox won the World Series for the second time in four years, sweeping the Colorado Rockies in four games. In 2008, the Tampa Bay Rays won the division for the first time in the team's franchise history. The Red Sox won the AL Wild Card and the Yankees finished in third place, missing the playoffs for the first time since 1994.

Starting from 1993, this division has produced seven World Series Champions. Another fun fact is that the AL East has produced the wild-card team for the American League in 10 out of the 14 years that the wild-card has existed. For the past two years, the AL East winner represented the American League in the World Series, meaning the best teams in baseball have came from the AL East. This trend will most likely continue in the future.

Currently, three teams (New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays) are separated by only one game, with New York leading the division by a 1/2 game. The Toronto Blue Jays have been the leader in the AL East since the beginning of the season but relinquished it a couple of days ago after losing nine straight games. The Red Sox have been playing .500 baseball in the past week and that has been enough to take the lead in the division. The Yankees have been the hottest team in baseball for the past two weeks, making up a lot of ground. The Tampa Bay Rays are one game below .500 but are only five games behind the Red Sox, and the Baltimore Orioles are in last place.