The American League East once again proves to be, from top to bottom, the weakest division in baseball this year.

But the division does have a legitimate World Series contender in the Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays won the division last year, but fell to the eventual world champion Minnesota Twins in the AL Championship Series.

Toronto's talent is head and shoulders above the rest of the division. Unless they pull another choke job that they have become known for, the Blue Jays should repeat as division winners.

History, though, is not in Toronto's favor. The 1980-81 New York Yankees were the last team to repeat as AL East champions. Also, since 1988 the Jays and Red Sox have been alternating as champions, with Toronto winning in odd years and Boston in even. So this being 1992 Boston should win the title, right? While history won't repeat itself this season, the Blue Jays will and will win the division.

Predicted finish : 1) Toronto, 2) Boston, 3) Detroit, 4) Baltimore, 5) Milwaukee, 6) New York, 7) Cleveland

Toronto Blue Jays -- Manager: Cito Gaston. 1991 Record: 91-71.

There is just too much talent on this team for it to lose. Yes, that's been said before about the team North of the border, but it has a leader that can stop the locker room squabbles and provide the discipline it needs. The man providing the leadership will be Dave Winfield, who Toronto acquired through free agency.

Winfield will be the designated hitter in a lineup that already includes Joe Carter, Kelly Gruber and Roberto Alomar. The Jays also have Derek Bell, the hottest young prospect in the league.

The Jays went to the free agent market again and found the pitcher they need to sure up their young staff. World Series MVP Jack Morris decided to abandon the Minnesota Twins, his hometown team, and went for the big bucks.

Boston Red Sox -- Manager: Butch Hobson. 1991 Record: 84-78.

The Sox have the league's best 1-2 punch in a pitching rotation with Roger Clemens and recently-acquired Frank Viola. The two have racked up the hardware as they have combined for four Cy Young Awards.

The Sox also have a reliable hand in the bullpen with Jeff Reardon. He needs 15 more saves to become the all-time saves leader, passing Hall-of-Famer Rollie Fingers.

The Red Sox offense, of course, is led by the hitting machine, Wade Boggs who hit .332 last season.

But for the Red Sox to become serious challengers to the Blue Jays, players such as Mike Greenwell and Ellis Burks have to return to their former selves. Greenwell had just 41 extra-base hits in 544 at-bats last season, while Burks was plagued by tendinitis in both knees and hit .251.

Detroit Tigers -- Manager: Sparky Anderson. 1991 Record: 84-78.

Cecil Fielder almost single-handedly carried this team to a division title. He belted 44 homers and knocked in 133 runs. He did all this while being the only consistent offensive threat on the team.

Were the Tigers ever without Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker? The two begin their 15th season together at shortstop and second respectively.

Free agent acquisition Dan Gladden gives more offensive help at the top of the lineup, which means more RBIs for Fielder.

The problem with the Tigers lies in the pitching staff. Bill Gullickson went 20-9 last season, but is unlikely to reach that mark this year. After Gullickson there isn't much. Detroit will rely to much on 39-year old Frank Tanana and 32-year old Walt Terrell. Mike Henneman continues to be the closer as he went 10-9 with 21 saves a year ago.

Baltimore Orioles -- Manager: Johnny Oates. 1991 Record: 67-95.

Not enough Ripkens to plug all the holes in this team. Cal, coming off an MVP season, and Bill lead a solid infield. The Orioles, however, need a healthy return from Glenn Davis to bring excitement to the new Oriole Park.

Baltimore possess one of the best young pitching staffs in the division with Ben McDonald, Mike Mussina and Bob Milacki. The additions of Rick Sutcliffe and Storm Davis could help the staff's development.

Milwaukee Brewers -- Manager: Phil Garner. 1991 Record: 83-79.

The Brewers should be able to score runs for new skipper Garner. Their offense includes Paul Molitor, B.J. Surhoff, Greg Vaughn and the recently acquired Kevin Seitzer.

But the Brew Crew doesn't have the arms to keep opponents from crossing home or to contend. Graner's rotation has Bill Wegman, Chris Bosio and Jaime Navarro. The bullpen is even worse, where the Brewers are counting on 28-year-old Doug Henry. Henry, who's career has been plagued with injuries, converted 15 of 16 save opporunities and had a 1.00 ERA.

New York Yankees -- Manager: Buck Showalter. 1991 Record: 71-91.

The Yanks spent money to get power hitter Danny Tartabull, but they didn't receive help where they needed it the most -- pitching.

With the drug suspension of Pascual Perez, the Yanks pitching woes got worse. They are looking to trade either Mel Hall or Jesse Barfield for pitching help, but until that happens the staff is its usual pitiful self. When Scott Sanderson is the ace, you know something is wrong.

Cleveland Indians -- Manager: Mike Hargrove. 1991 Record: 57-105.

The Tribe has cleaned house and will put the cheapest team on the field this season. The total salary for Cleveland is around $7 million, or one Ryne Sandberg.

The Indians are going with a youth movement to finally build this perennial loser into a contender. The offense is centered around Albert Belle and his 28 homers. The pitching rotation needs Jack Armstrong to return to his All-Star form of two years ago.

Cleveland is building for the future. If owners Dick and Dave Jacobs let Hargrove groom this team, they could have one by the time they move to their new stadium in 1994.