The division which introduced the term ?Arms Race? to baseball now is a three-headed monster with the addition of the Toronto Blue Jays to the ol' boys crowd of the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees. The Jays will make the division race more interesting this season, but depth is still the main issue of the American League East. Here are the projected finishes for each team in the division: 1. Boston Red Sox: There is no question the talent is there in Boston to make another run at a World Series. The offense is once again lethal behind designated hitter David Ortiz and outfielder Manny Ramirez, but the addition of outfielder J.D. Drew to both the middle of the line-up and the outfield defense is the x-factor for the Red Sox in 2007. The rotation is very good at the top with Curt Schilling, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Josh Beckett and with the recent move of Jonathan Papelbon to closer; the back end of games also looks good too. This team appears to be on a mission early and with manager Terry Francona more experienced to handle a high-maintenance group, the Red Sox are the team to beat heading for opening day. 2. New York Yankees: The best offense in baseball resides in the Bronx. Having outfielder Bobby Abreu for a full season and a huge bounce back year on tap for third baseman Alex Rodriguez makes the Yankees almost impossible to shut down for any length of time. Starting pitching though will be the question mark as the Yankees will have to wait and see if the success of Chien-Ming Wang in 2006 can carry over after he starts the season on the DL and if Andy Pettittee and Carl Pavano can overcome injury-plagued seasons to be productive members of the staff. A certain right-hander from Texas could decide to move back to New York, and if he does, the Yankees will supplant the Red Sox in both the division and baseball pecking orders. 3. Toronto Blue Jays: The Blue Jays are number three by default, but they shouldn't be discounted. Their offense is very talented with outfielder Vernon Wells, designated hitter Frank Thomas and outfielder Alex Rios coming back from illness, but besides Wells, they might struggle on defense. This could hurt sinker-ball artist Roy Halladay, but his talent will prevail in another all-star season. However, the Blue Jays will have to deal with the loss of pitcher Ted Lilly and hope for more consistency from starter A.J. Burnett. The Blue Jays will be in the hunt for the wild card and division come September, but a lack of arms after Halladay and closer B.J. Ryan will be their eventual downfall. 4. Baltimore Orioles: Pitching coach Leo Mazzone was expected to transform the Orioles last season, but it was anything but and 2007 doesn?t look much better. With starter Kris Benson out for the year with the injury, the rotation is now even worse for wear and will have to lean on unproven, rising stars like Erik Bedard. The offense will help keep the Orioles in games, but the team lacks punch after third baseman Miguel Tejada and third baseman Melvin Mora. The Orioles will struggle once again this season, but for those looking for a slimmer of light, see outfielder Nick Markakis, who is one of the best young player in all of baseball and could be an eventual cornerstone for this franchise. 5. Tampa Bay Devil Rays: Everything they try just doesn?t seem to work and it appears to be the same this season for the Devil Rays. They have a nice crop of young players in outfielders Delmon Young and Carl Crawford, the best player nobody has heard of, to go with pitching star Scott Kazmir, who should be expected to win multiple Cy Young?s before he is done. However, the organization doesn?t have the infrastructure of players to surround their core group with and when you are without sufficient talent in this division; it means another 100 loss season in Tampa Bay. Be sure to let us know which team you think will win the AL East in our daily poll. Douglas Benton can be reached at [email protected]