Rebuilds are a necessary evil in Major League Baseball. Every competitor wants to win every game they play in the MLB, but sometimes, a front office has to acknowledge that their roster is a few years away from realistic contention. And for fans, those long years of rooting for a below-.500 team can be excruciating, but it all pays off if the team emerges on the other side with a cast of young stars.
From the mid-2010s Royals to the late-2010s Astros to the modern-day Orioles, recent MLB history is littered with franchises that went from the doghouse to the penthouse after several years of futility. And there's nothing quite like that feeling of watching a group of young players come up through the organization together to experience success at the highest level, especially if that success comes perhaps a year or two ahead of schedule.
Thus, it's never too early to start thinking about who the next breakout team might be. Sure, they might be in a down period now, but a few teams are starting to build futures that look especially promising. It's time to call our shot and predict which of those teams will be championship contenders sooner than we might have previously thought.
Washington Nationals
Since their World Series title in the 2019 MLB season, the Washington Nationals have fully committed to the rebuild. They traded away Max Scherzer, Trea Turner, and Kyle Schwarber at the deadline in 2021 and then Juan Soto, still just 22 years old at the time, in 2022. The Nats have been a tough watch the past couple of seasons, suffering back-to-back last-place finishes, but the rebuild looks like it might be over in the very near future.
After a 71-91 2023 season in which they were vastly improved after the All-Star Break, the Nationals are 18-18, have league-average pitching and hitting, and are set up extremely well to contend in 2025. They made out like bandits in the Soto deal, snagging rising star shortstop CJ Abrams, talented starting pitcher Mackenzie Gore, and 6-foot-7 star outfield prospect James Wood. And they also picked up last year's collegiate player of the year Dylan Crews in the draft, who would have been the number one overall pick if his LSU teammate Paul Skenes wasn't the best pitching prospect since Stephen Strasburg.
The Nationals are going to be a problem in the NL East, if not this year then assuredly next. Their future pitching outlook isn't as sunny as that of their lineup, but they could turn that around in free agency. The Marlins are on their way to being a punching bag and even the Mets are no lock to be contenders. Washington is well on its way to being a formidable force and with all that young talent, it's not likely to be a short window for contention.
Detroit Tigers
It's no secret that the past decade has been rough for the Detroit Tigers. This year marks the 10th anniversary of their most recent MLB playoff appearance, and they've had just one winning season since while losing 95+ games four times over that span. But early returns in 2024 indicate things are looking up in the Motor City and there's more talent on the way that could soon turn this team into a very formidable foe.
The biggest issue for Detroit, especially of late, has been a lack of hitting. They were a bottom-three offense a year ago and in spite of being over .500 most of this season, they still rank 24th in team OPS in 2024. But Riley Greene appears to be breaking out, Spencer Torkelson still has promise despite a brutal start to the season, and Colt Keith, Jace Jung, and Max Clark look to be the next wave of position players that will electrify Comerica Park.
And the Tigers have a huge leg up when it comes to pitching. Tarik Skubal might well win the Cy Young this season, Jackson Jobe is one of the very best pitching prospects in the game and the Tigers still have long amounts of team control over former No. 1 overall pick Casey Mize and Reese Olson. We could see this team make the playoffs in 2024, and if not, they will be a preseason favorite to take the AL Central crown in 2025.
Boston Red Sox
It's been exasperating to be a Boston Red Sox fan these past five years. What used to be the top-spending team in MLB traded away Mookie Betts, consistently shed payroll year-over-year, and has racked up three last-place finishes in the powerhouse AL East. But even if the lack of spending is still a pain point for the fan base, the future looks a lot brighter now than it did a year ago.
It's rare to say for such a prominent, big market MLB organization, but the future here really starts with the prospects. Shortstop Marcelo Mayer, outfielder Roman Anthony, and catcher Kyle Teel are all together in AA right now and they look phenomenal. By this time next year, all three should be in the daily starting lineup at Fenway Park. Add that to prime Rafael Devers and Triston Casas and the lineup should be scary in the near future.
But the recent addition of Andrew Bailey as pitching coach has made the outlook of the pitching staff much brighter than previously anticipated. The concern was always that even if the lineup was good in 2025 and beyond, the rotation was going to lag behind if ownership didn't shell out for free agents. But if Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford and Brayan Bello are going to be long-term fixtures of a sturdy rotation, this Red Sox team can compete for titles in the latter half of this decade.
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