American League West
1.Houston Astros
2. Oakland A’s
3. Los Angeles Angels
4. Texas Rangers
5. Seattle Mariners
Transparency of AL West: I Don’t Know How Good Oakland Will Be
That’s an admission I don’t like to relay. I don’t want to make it look like I’m uneducated and vulnerable to any particular team, but I truly don’t know how good the A’s will be. The offense will be potent. They’ll score a ton of runs. Khris Davis will hit .247. The team even acquired Kendrys Morales on the eve of Opening Day to bolster the attack eve further. With all that being said, the starting pitching is where this team will sink or swim. Last year, the A’s acquired Mike Fiers at the deadline from the Tigers. They brought in Marco Estrada this offseason. I’m still not sure how good this staff will be. Bob Melvin isn’t a total analytics guy, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see Oakland deploy the opener in phases this season, because the bullpen is the strong suit of this pitching staff. The A’s could win upwards of 90 games again this season. They also could be a .500 team and finish closer to third than first. I’m willing to admit that we need to allow the season to play out on this team.
What isn’t debatable is that the Houston Astros are primed for another deep run in October. The 2017 World Series champions have been picked by many, myself included, to win the World Series this season. (Spoilers, I know. But forget you saw this until the final playoff article) They’re loaded on offense and the lineup doesn’t appear to be going anywhere soon. The team just locked up Alex Bregman to a long-term deal to keep the core in tact. The starting pitching is still loaded, headlined by Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole. The former landed himself a fat contract this offseason as well, ensuring he’ll be paid for the next few seasons. The team added Michael Brantley this offseason in a move that will work wonders for the outfield. This team should, assuming the core remains healthy throughout the season, win this division comfortably and get back to the playoffs for the third straight season.
The bottom feeders, the Texas Rangers and Seattle Mariners, are, more or less, retooling this season. One (Seattle) has readily admitted it more than the other (Texas). Texas, however, is more talented than Seattle, and therefore will finish ahead of the Mariners this season. While the Rangers are likely more talented than Seattle this season, I’d expect Texas to be sellers at the deadline, now moreso than ever, as the rules have been changed drastically for the days surrounding the trade deadline.
Mandatory Credit: Gregory J. Fisher-USA TODAY Sports
