American League Division Series Predictions: Our Experts Make Their Picks

We’ve reached the divisional round of the American League playoff marathon and one division reigns supreme: the AL Central. Much maligned in recent years and home to the worst team in MLB history, the AL Central is nevertheless the only division in the American League guaranteed to have at least one representative in the Championship Series. And if the Royals roll up their sleeves again, it will be an all-AL Central showdown for the pennant.

But first we have the Royals-Yankees and Tigers-Guardians – just as we all predicted back in March – to determine who will compete for the AL crown. Our crystal ball was definitely foggy in the wildcard round. Will we get insight into the ALDS?

Note: Playoff seed in brackets.

Kansas City Royals (5) vs. New York Yankees (1)

GO DEEPER

Yankees vs. Royals ALDS preview: predictions, pitching matchups and more

Grant Brisbee (Kansas City): I’d like to be a jerk and go with the traditional favorite, and I also appreciate a good underdog story. My only basic interest here, however, is measured by the height of the flames on social media when either team is eliminated. The Royals flames would be knee high at best. The Yankees’ flames would reach space. No contest.

Stephen Nesbitt (New York): It’s hard to beat the Royals after they just swept the Orioles on the road. But in the battle of AL MVP candidates, Aaron Judge vs. Bobby Witt Jr., I still favor the Yanks. However, the Royals certainly have the rotation and superstar to pull off a surprise. The Yankees won five of the seven games against Kansas City in the regular season.

Neither lineup is what you would call deep, but the combination of Judge and Juan Soto on the Yankees is second to none. If Gerrit Cole looks like he did at the end of September in Game 1, the Yanks will be fine.

GO DEEPER

How Aaron Judge transformed his ‘terrible’ swing into the world’s best hitter

Jen McCaffrey (Kansas City): The Yankees have a superior offense, but in terms of pitching, the Royals are behind them. The overall stats favor New York, but I’m choosing the Royals. We’ve already seen that numbers don’t always matter in the postseason.

Kaitlyn McGrath (New York): The Yankees had eight more wins than the Royals in the regular season, and they didn’t play the Chicago White Sox thirteen times. With Juan Soto and Aaron Judge at the top of the lineup, the Yankees are ready for the postseason, where home runs can be the difference between a win and a loss.

GO DEEPER

Fear the Royals, the unlikely scholars of October

C. Trent Rosecrans (Kansas City): Bobby Witt Jr. will make a difference on both sides of the ball: attack and defense. It’s time for one of the game’s brightest young stars to get the stage he deserves, and there’s no better place to do that than Yankee Stadium.

Andy McCullough (New York): The Royals did an admirable job of shutting down the Orioles’ offense. But Aaron Judge and Juan Soto present a much bigger challenge. The Yankees’ strength should carry the series.

Sahadev Sharma (Kansas City): I like KC’s starters so much that I think they can pull off the upset.

GO DEEPER

Rosenthal: With the Astros out of the picture, the Yankees need to seize their moment

Eno Sarris (New York): The Royals will lose because they can’t score.

Andrew Baggarly (Kansas City): The Yankees can’t trust their bullpen. That seems suboptimal. But mostly I’m here in case anyone else is there pine tar incident.

GO DEEPER

Pitching in big spots for Bobby Witt Jr. is a risky play — just ask the Orioles

Katie Woo (Kansas City): The Royals don’t make the postseason very often, but when they do, they almost never lose.

Melissa Lockard (New York): The Royals’ rotation is impressive, but the Yankees have a strong top three of their own and a lineup that can do more damage. That said, if it becomes a bullpen battle, the Royals are in a good position to capitalize. Yankees with a whisker.

Colt Keith (right) makes the throw over a sliding Brayan Rocchio. (Jason Miller/Getty Images)

GO DEEPER

Guardians vs. Tigers ALDS preview: predictions, pitching matchups and more

Andrew Baggarly (Cleveland): Like a fussy Michelin-starred restaurant, the Tigers and Guardians serve you a deconstructed pitching plan and then step out of the kitchen to receive applause for their creativity. Presumptive AL Cy Young award winner Tarik Skubal is the only Tigers pitcher to go more than 115 innings this season. The Guardians only have two (Ben Lively and Tanner Bibee).

Cleveland has no counter for Skubal, who might be the only guy in the series who will make a conventional start — and who has already beaten the Tigers through a best-of-3 series. But the Guardians staff has more quantity and quality to cover innings. And their lineup can beat you with both power and speed and bat control.

Sahadev Sharma (Cleveland): Tigers have the best starter, but eventually they will run out of pitching.

GO DEEPER

The Guardians path to a long-awaited World Series begins and ends with their dominant bullpen

Stephen Nesbitt (Detroit): There comes a point every postseason when a prognosticator must decide whether to choose with his brain — listening to that ball-knowing frontal cortex — or dedicate himself to the play. I have always only chosen the latter. Bit is in my last name! Tigers in four, baby. Tarik Skubal will take the ball twice, and in between, pitching chaos will descend on Cleveland.

AJ Hinch will continue to turn to platoon bats and throwers with assumed names, these hairy and faceless guys who hit game winners and hurl 100mph heaters. You can’t understand the Gritty Tigs. You can only be amazed.

Eno Sarris (Cleveland): The bullpen! Oh and all that contact the Guardians can make.

GO DEEPER

Tigers’ Andy Ibáñez kept the faith and became baseball’s latest unlikely playoff hero

Katie Woo (Detroit): Strange things happen in the postseason, which explains why Detroit’s pitching chaos has worked. The Tigers can line up their rotation so Tarik Skubal can pitch in Game 2 and Game 5 if necessary. In the meantime, they have proven that they can fill the gaps.

The Guardians have the best bullpen on the AL side of the tournament and every Cleveland pitcher will be available and well-rested. But if we’ve learned anything from the Tigers over the past two months, it’s that we can’t discount them.

C. Trent Rosecrans (Cleveland): The Guardians have been one of the best teams in baseball all year. They’re not flashy, but they just do everything right and that’s what will lead them to the ALCS.

GO DEEPER

Tanner Bibee has a fiery competitive streak. The Guardians are counting on it in Game 1

Andy McCullough (Detroit): The Guardians won the regular season series between these two clubs. Guess what? The regular season is over.

Grant Brisbee (Cleveland): I don’t mean to be a jerk, and I appreciate a good underdog story, but the Guardians are a better team, and their biggest weakness (starting pitching) seems less glaring against a team that finished the season with the fourth-worst OPS+ in the American League.

Jen McCaffrey (Detroit): Both teams are neck-and-neck in pitching and the postseason is all about pitching. Cleveland should have the edge here, but it’s too hard to pick against the Tigers at this point.

GO DEEPER

Tigers rally against Josh Hader to eliminate Astros and reach ALDS: Takeaways

Kaitlyn McGrath (Cleveland): As magical as the Tigers’ run has been, I don’t think it will continue for a longer stretch, especially given the state of their starting pitching behind Skubal. The Guardians didn’t have to rush to make the postseason, and while they aren’t necessarily winning sexy, their bullpen is elite and that’s an X-factor this time of year.

(Top photo of Bobby Witt Jr. tagging Aaron. Judge: Jim McIsaac / Getty Images)