AL West Preview

We’ve finally made it to the west coast in our MLB preview. In case you missed the first two previews here’s the link (previews). This is the last, but certainly not the least division in the AL. After this, we will switch sides and check out what’s cooking in the NL. But until that time let’s wrap up the AL with some west coast flavor.

Houston Astros

Perhaps no team welcomed a baseball season without fans more than the Astros. The reason of course is due to their cheating scandal which angered the baseball community. In a normal year, Houston could’ve expected heckling and disapproval from fans as well as players. But because of the pandemic they never had to deal with that. It will be interesting to see if fans will treat them the same way one year removed. As for the team they are easily the best team in this division and once again should win it.

The loss of George Springer does hurt, but this lineup still has some star power in it. Carlos Correa and Alex Bregman will look to continue knocking in runs. Jose Altuve, who was dreadful last season, is an all-star caliber player who will look to bounce back. Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez are two young hitters who project to develop into star hitters in the future.

The pitching isn’t as loaded as in past seasons, but it’s still good enough to get the job done. Zack Greinke and Lance McCullers Jr. will be tasked with keeping the rotation afloat. The bullpen is anchored by Ryan Pressly, but does have a lot of questions. In past years the bullpen has been Houston’s weakness and that doesn’t seem to be any different this season. While the bullpen could in fact cost them in the playoffs this team is just too good not to win the division.

Los Angeles Angels

Is this the year that the Angels finally get back into the playoffs and win? It seems like this question has been asked every year since 2014. I suppose that’s the burden the Angels must bear for having the best player in baseball. The fact that Mike Trout has never won a playoff game is a testament to the Angels’ inability to build a team around him. Los Angeles is hoping that this season will finally be the year to end all that talk.

No surprise here, but Mike Trout is the centerpiece in this lineup. He does however have some help now in the form of Anthony Rendon. Two-way player Shohei Ohtani will also be back in the lineup this year to add to the firepower. Although past his prime Albert Pujols would love nothing more than for one last playoff run before his hall of fame career comes to a close.

On the pitching side, the Angels are going to be hoping for the best. Obviously, the biggest name in the rotation is Shohei Ohtani as he continues to both pitch and hit. The rest of the rotation doesn’t leave much optimism as Dylan Bundy is probably the best pitcher out of the bunch. In the bullpen, the Angels will be relying on Raisel Iglesias to close down games for them. If the Angels are to make the playoffs they will need their pitching to improve. Since the Astros are most likely to win the division, Los Angeles will have their sights on one of the wildcard spots.

Oakland Athletics

The franchise best known for their revolutionary way to build a team ( shown in the movie Moneyball) will once again try to compete with a smaller budget. On several occasions over the last decade or two this team has punched above its weight. With a superior scouting system, the A’s were able to compete against teams spending way more money than them. Alas, richer teams copied their methods and have found similar success. That doesn’t mean the A’s can no longer be competitive it just doesn’t seem to be in the cards this season.

Matt Chapman is one of the best third basemen in the sport. Due to the small market he doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. He leads a lineup that relies on teamwork more than individual brilliance. The only other name that might jump out to fans would be Ramon Laureano. He had a down year last season and the A’s desperately need him to bounce back in a big way.

Pitching is a bit of a better situation for Oakland. They have embraced a youth movement when it comes to their pitching staff. Top prospect Jesus Luzardo will be the guy that everyone has their eyes on. He had mixed results in last season’s campaign but will be hoping for more consistent results this season. Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea are two pitchers that should help eat up innings. Old flamethrower Trevor Rosenthal will be tasked with closing out games. If Oakland is successful, look for him to get a lot of work in. Very few teams are involved in more close games than the A’s.

Seattle Mariners

Seattle’s campaign has already had a rocky start after their president of operations made some disparaging comments about foreign players. He has since resigned from his position, but the damage has been done. The Mariners will have to turn their attention away from off-field issues pretty quickly. This was always going to be a transitional season anyways, but this scandal certainly did them no favors. That being said there are some things to look forward to in Seattle

Kyle Seager and Mitch Haniger will continue to be the big names in the lineup. Meanwhile, Kyle Lewis represents the new wave of Seattle players who will one day take over. Speaking of Kyle Lewis this could be the season where he breaks out to casual fans. The kid is absolutely fantastic on defense and if he can improve his hitting will quickly become one of the premier players. Seattle’s top prospect Jarred Kelenic will also feature sooner rather than later.

When it comes to pitching Seattle will need a lot of things to go right. Marco Gonzales will want to build off of last season’s strong performances. If he can, he will undoubtedly become the team’s ace. James Paxton once upon a time was the ace, but staying healthy was his biggest obstacle. Justus Sheffield is a name to watch as he’s one of their prized prospects getting MLB time. As of right now, Rafael Montero is slated to be the closer, but if he struggles a closer by committee could be used. Unfortunately Seattle fans, the playoff drought will continue for yet another year. However, there are a few young players that could eventually help end the drought.

Texas Rangers

My has this decade turned on its head for baseball in the lone star state. 10 years ago Texas was the class of this division and in two straight World Series (they lost both). Houston was just an afterthought as the Rangers were clearly the team of the state. Fast forward to the present and the roles have completely reversed. As of right now, the state of Texas belongs to the Astros, but the Rangers will want to change that soon.

The youth movement is in full force with the Rangers. Youngsters such as Nate Lowe, Nick Solak, and Leody Taveras should see significant playing time as the franchise will want to see what they have. Joey Gallo and Rougned Odor are veterans tasked with showing this young lineup the ropes. Sam Huff is someone in the pipeline that should get called up soon as well.

For as much excitement one could have over the young lineup there will be equal amounts of dread looking at the pitching rotation. Kyle Gibson is probably the best pitcher of the bunch, but that doesn’t inspire much confidence. It wouldn’t be a surprise if this staff struggles to keep other teams from scoring. The bullpen isn’t much better, although Kolby Allard is a young arm to keep an eye on. The plan seems to have him in the bullpen and he’ll eventually become a starter after some seasoning. A successful season for this franchise would be to see their crop of young players take a step forward in their development. If enough guys can take that step then the franchise will have a foundation to get back to their lofty heights.