The dust has settled on the 2024 MLB season for the Cleveland Goalies and world series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. It’s never too early to start looking ahead to the 2025 season and see how current teams stack up against each other.

ESPN released its Way-Too-Warly 2025 power rankingsand the Guardians are ranked as the fifth-best team in baseball heading into the season. This obviously makes them the favorites to win the American League Central, and the Baltimore Orioles barely beat them at number four.

Here’s what ESPN’s David Schoenfield has to say about the Guardians heading into next year:

“The Guardians of 2025 are going to look like the team that made it to the ALCS: the bullpen, the defense and Jose Ramirez. As always, they’re going to try to pack a 90-win team into a 70-win payroll. Resigned Matthew Boyd would be a relatively cheap option for rotation, but Josh Naylor could be trade bait entering his final season before free agency. The bullpen likely gives the Guardians an 80-win floor, although it will be difficult to repeat the 2024 regular season performance. If top prospects Travis Bazzana and Chase DeLauter click, they could make an impact in the second period, and with Cleveland having the youngest group of position players in the majors, you can anticipate general improvement across the roster.

As Schoenfield details, Cleveland certainly has the potential to become a top-five team in MLB next season. However, it’s not as simple as saying that Cleveland can expect the development of its young core to fuel another playoff run next year and for Boyd to re-sign with the team.

The Guardians still have huge questions about their starting rotation and field position group, and the offense could use another upgrade with a proven big league bat.

Cleveland could be a top-two seed in the AL next season, but they still need to make moves this offseason to solidify that position.