Ranking AL East starting rotations for 2025: Where do Rays land?

The American League East has been a daunting division with incredible pitchers like Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, and knuckleballer, R.A Dickey throughout its rich history. As pitching becomes more advanced and starters equip themselves with a variety of tools, it gets harder to rank starting rotations. However, we're going to take our best shot at arranging the AL East pitching staffs in order based on their projected 2025 production.

1) Yankees

The New York Yankees clearly grab the top spot in these rankings, especially after landing former Braves ace, Max Fried in free agency. Impressively, the lefty will most likely be slotted as the #2 starter in their rotation, as 2023 Cy Young winner, Gerrit Cole will remain the leader of this fearsome group.

To add to the talent at the top, powerful left-hander, Carlos Rodon and Rookie of the Year, Luis Gil will round out the middle of the pack. These are two more impressive pitchers that will steady the club until it rolls back around to the top.

28-year old, Clarke Schmidt will likely fill in the last spot of the rotation. The former first round pick had a solid 2024 campaign as he finished with a 2.85 ERA. The crafty righty gives the Yankees a very dependable back-end of the rotation.

2) Red Sox

Coming in at #2, the Red Sox pitching staff will be a difficult group to face throughout the 2025 season. With the addition of flamethrower, Garrett Crochet, Boston appears to be putting together one of their best rotations in recent years. Few fans expected their starting pitchers to perform as well as they did last season, and they just got significantly better with a new ace at the helm.

A season ago, Red Sox starters finished the year with a respectable 3.81 ERA, as right-handers, Tanner Houck and Brayan Bello surpassed their 2024 expectations. In fact, Houck was named to the AL All-Star team for the first time in his career and Bello won 14 games for the Boston club.

In addition, 2019 All-Star, Lucas Giolito will be returning from injury and everyone is aware his immense potential. If these pitchers transcend their abilities again, then they could be a formidable force in 2025.

3) Rays

We've decided to rank the Rays starting rotation in the #3 spot due to their fantastic depth. Tampa Bay will be loaded with young talent that still has to prove themselves, but the potential within this rotation is sky-high.

Ace left-handerd starter, Shane McClanahan is returning in 2025 to lead this staff with his electric fastball and devastating off-speed pitches. At only 27-years of age, McClanahan is actually the oldest member of this staff. The 6th starter option, Zack Littell, is a couple years older at 29, but it will be exciting to see the rest of the youthful core in a full season.

4) Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays have one of the most top-heavy rotations in the big leagues. With two-time All-Stars, Kevin Gausman and Jose Berrios at the peak of the rotation, Toronto is certainly in good hands. However, the rest of the pitching staff is either sub-par or inexperienced.

Chris Bassitt has produced much better seasons than his 2024 year, as he finished with a 4.16 ERA and a -0.1 WAR. Therefore, it's hard to imagine that the 35-year old will have a resurgent 2025 season, especially as he has passed his prime.

The remaining pitchers in the rotation still have a ton to prove. Bowden Francis showed glimpses of excellence, but it will be interesting to witness him in a full season. On the other hand, Cuban hurler, Yariel Rodriguez struggled all year as he accumulated a bleak 1-8 record, along with a 4.47 ERA.

5) Orioles

Finally, the Baltimore Orioles have a rotation that has dropped off significantly due to the injuries of Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells, but also because of the probable loss of their ace, Corbin Burnes. The 2020 Cy Young winner has yet to choose his destination, but the chances of him resigning with Baltimore dwindle with each passing day.

Therefore, the surging young club holds one of the weakest rotations in the sport as it stands today. Former Ray, Zach Eflin will be at the top of this staff for the forseeable future. As we know, Eflin is a solid contributor to any team's rotation, but he doesn't possess the same high-level weapons as most aces across the league.

Grayson Rodriguez is a notable #2 starter, as he went 13-4 last season, but he still hasn't been able to maximize his amazing potential. In 20 starts last season, the 25-year old gave up 15 home runs and was only able to accrue a 1.4 WAR.

The last three pitchers on the Orioles staff still have a lot to prove in order for them to leap-frog the Blue Jays on these rankings. 35-year old Venezuelan-born pitcher, Albert Suarez impressed in 2024 with a 9-7 record and 3.70 ERA, but it's difficult to imagine that he will able to sustain that consistency for another 162 games.

Lasty, the newly acquired Japanese ace, Tomoyuki Sugano will be a solid addition to the Orioles rotation, but it's hard to predict how he will perform in the big leagues. Therefore, we can't bank on the same excellence that he has shown in the NPB.

It will certainly be exciting to watch how the 2025 season pans out for AL East pitchers. Drop-offs, surprise players, and injuries will all play a role in each rotation's fate.