Revealing Cleveland Guardians Biggest Threat To Win AL Central

The 2026 baseball season is fast approaching.

The Cleveland Guardians are looking to win their third straight AL Central division title, but the division has improved this winter.

Let us dive in to see which division rival has the best chance to dethrone the Guardians.

DETROIT TIGERS

Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal celebrates striking out Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh I the sixth inning of ALDS Game 5 at T-Mobile Park in Seattle on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025 | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Detroit Tigers probably should have won the AL Central in 2025. They had a massive lead late in the season and blew it with historic proportions. Fortunately, the Guardians were the main beneficiaries of that collapse. Now, the Tigers are refueled and ready to go for 2026, looking for season-long revenge.

Sure, the Tigers beat the Guardians in the postseason last year. That does not make up for their embarrassing collapse in the division.

The Tigers will come out hungrier than ever this year. Two-time AL Cy Young Award winner, Tarik Skubal, is fighting an unprecedented arbitration battle and is looking to prove all of the haters wrong.

Add in the powerful lineup of Riley Greene, Gleyber Torres, Javier Baez, and Spencer Torkelson, and you have a team built for a long season. A great pitching staff led by a workhorse ace and a balanced offensive attack that can hit for average and power.

If anyone can run away with the AL Central, it is this team. They almost ran away with it last year. It took a historic collapse for them to lose in the final series of the regular season.

KANSAS CITY ROYALS

Aug 30, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (7) rounds the bases during the eighth inning after hitting a home run against the Detroit Tigers at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | William Purnell-Imagn Images

The Kansas City Royals had a down year last season. Bobby Witt Jr. finished second in AL MVP voting in 2024 and regressed mightily last season.

Vinny Pasquantino started to find his stride late in the season. Maikel Garcia emerged as an All-Star caliber player. Their pitching rotation fought a plethora of injuries all season long. This team was fighting for a playoff spot the last couple of weeks of the season.

Now, Kauffman Stadium has moved its fences in, and Cole Ragans is back and healthy. They added former Guardian, Lane Thomas, and Hector Neris. Jac Caglione has a year of experience under his belt.

This Royals team could surprise people. If Vinny takes advantage of the shorter fences, he can hit over 30 home runs. If Bobby Witt Jr. can go back to hitting .315 or better with 20+ home runs and 30+ stolen bases, he will be right back in the AL MVP conversation. Cole Ragans also has AL Cy Young potential if he can stay healthy.

The Royals may not seem like much, but they are a real threat in the AL Central.

MINNESOTA TWINS

Sep 20, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Joe Ryan (41) reacts to Cleveland Guardians catcher Bo Naylor’s (23) solo home run during the second inning of game one of a double header at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

The Twins were a bad baseball team last season. They had a fire sale at the trade deadline, losing most of their main contributors at the Major League level. This offseason, they did not do much to improve that.

They signed Josh Bell, Victor Caratini, and Taylor Rogers. Those are good contributors to winning teams, but lackluster pieces on losing teams. Maybe they have someone from their farm system come up and start with a bang. Maybe Royce Lewis lives up to expectations, stays healthy, and mashes 40 home runs this season.

Those things are highly unlikely, and there is a reason no one talks about this team. They are unexciting and have been well below average for several years.

Not to mention, they just fired their President of Baseball and Business Operations, Derek Falvey. And they fired long-time manager Rocco Baldelli at the end of the season. A lot of question marks will hang around this team for the foreseeable future.

CHICAGO WHITE SOX

Dec 22, 2025; Chicago, Il, USA; New Chicago White Sox player Munetaka Murakami gives a thumbs up after a press conference where he was introduced at Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images | Matt Marton-Imagn Images

The Chicago White Sox have arguably been the most talked about team this offseason in the AL Central. They hit the jackpot by signing international superstar Munetaka Murakami from Japan. They signed Sean Newcomb and Seranthony Dominguez to deals. They just acquired Jordan Hicks in a trade. Probably most importantly, they traded away Luis Robert Jr.

Trading Robert Jr. was an addition by subtraction. Robert Jr. was a player who had moments of carelessness and was not the best example for the slew of young talent on the roster.

Colson Montgomery, Edgar Quero, Chase Meidroth, and Shane Smith all had breakout moments in 2025, and that should expand into this year. This is not a team that will win the division, but do not expect them to be pushovers like they have been the past handful of years. Heck, they may not even be the worst team in this division.