Cleveland Guardians Position In New Year MLB Power Rankings

The Cleveland Guardians are still considered one of MLB's top-10 teams heading into 2025.

Oct 14, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; Cleveland Guardians shortstop Brayan Rocchio (4) celebrates with outfielder Steven Kwan (38) after hitting a solo home run during the sixth inning against the New York Yankees in game one of the ALCS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The Cleveland Guardians were one of the final four teams standing in last year's postseason. They were just three wins away from the World Series but were eliminated by the New York Yankees in the ALCS.

Cleveland has yet to prove it's going all in on 2025, and it's clear they can't be finished with their offseason moves. However, with this roster, ESPN sees the Guardians as one of the top teams in the American League.

In their New Year power rankings, ESPN's MLB experts ranked the Guardians as the 10th-best team in baseball.

"Money has dictated the Guardians' winter moves as they offloaded Andres Gimenez and Josh Naylor and acquired a couple of potential starting pitchers in Luis Ortiz from Pittsburgh and Slade Cecconi from Arizona. They also re-signed Shane Bieber and brought back Carlos Santana to replace Naylor. They did need more starting pitching depth, so those moves addressed a need, but they're going to miss Gimenez's glove - and going from Naylor to a 39-year-old Santana could backfire," wrote David Schoenfield.

Oct 18, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez (11) hits an RBI sacrifice fly against the New York Yankees in the first inning during game four of the ALCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Based on how last season went for the Guardians, this is a fair position. Despite the trades and moves they made, Cleveland still had an above-average baseball offense, and their bullpen can help them win any game.

Their rotation was easily the biggest weakness, and the front office has taken steps to address that over the last few months.

For what it's worth, this position still has the Guardians as the best team in the AL Central and the fourth-best team in the American League as a whole.

The Yankees, Baltimore Orioles, and Boston Red Sox are the three AL teams ranked ahead of the Guardians. New York and Boston have been two of the most active teams this winter, and they may not be done.

Cleveland definitely still needs to make more moves to be a true World Series contender, but the roster is capable of competing with the best teams in the American League, and this power-ranking position supports that.