AL West Preview
Sacramento Athletics - They signed one player who will see meaningful playing time this offseason. I don’t understand why such a cheap franchise wants to move to Vegas, where cash is king; it just doesn’t make any sense at all.
Projected Healthy Lineup -
- Lawrence Butler
- Brent Rooker
- JJ Bleday
- Shea Langeliers
- Tyler Soderstrom
- Gio Urshela
- Seth Brown
- Jacob Wilson
- Max Muncy
Rotation -
- Luis Severino
- Jeffrey Springs
- Osvaldo Bido
- JP Sears
- Joey Estes
Closer - Mason Miller
Projected Win Total: 71.5
This is another one of those fun young teams who are athletic—no pun intended. Jacob Wilson is one of the names to watch for them over the course of this upcoming season.
Houston Astros - The Astros are starting to move away from the core that earned them multiple championships in the last decade by parting ways with cornerstone players like Alex Bregman and trading away Kyle Tucker.
Projected Healthy Lineup -
- José Altuve
- Isaac Paredes
- Yordan Álvarez
- Christian Walker
- Yainer Díaz
- Jeremy Peña
- Cam Smith
- Mauricio Dubón
- Jake Meyers
Rotation -
- Framber Valdez
- Hunter Brown
- JP France
- Lance McCullers Jr.
- Luis García
Closer - Josh Hader
Projected Win Total: 86.5
The Astros made a few roster cuts this offseason, so I think it’s reasonable to assume they will regress without two of their best players on the roster. The Christian Walker signing was a good move, but he will not replace Kyle Tucker or Alex Bregman.
Los Angeles Angels - This offseason, they signed a few former White Sox players from their successful run a few years back, including Yoan Moncada and Tim Anderson, who are now on the squad this season.
Projected Healthy Lineup -
- Taylor Ward
- Nolan Schanuel
- Mike Trout
- Jorge Soler
- Anthony Rendon
- Yoan Moncada
- Logan Ohop
- Jo Adell
- Kevin Newman
Rotation -
- Yusei Kikuchi
- José Soriano
- Tyler Anderson
- Kyle Hendricks
- Jack Kochanowicz
Closer - Kenley Jansen
Projected Win Total: 72.5
Mike Trout returns this season healthy and focused on winning. This team will more than likely finish third behind the Rangers and the Mariners in the division this year, but I will take the over for them simply because they have one of the best players on the planet returning to form.
Seattle Mariners - They keep swinging at names at the top of the free agent market and have been striking out in recent years, forcing them to sign costly prizes like Rowdy Tellez.
Projected Healthy Lineup -
- Victor Robles
- Julio Rodríguez
- Cal Raleigh
- Randy Arozarena
- Luke Talley
- Jorge Polanco
- Rowdy Tellez
- Ryan Bliss
- JP Crawford
Rotation -
- Luis Castillo
- Logan Gilbert
- Bryce Miller
- Bryan Woo
- George Kirby
Closer - Andrés Muñoz
Projected Win Total: 85.5
The battle for first place this year will be between them and the Rangers. Seattle's pitching staff is one of the best in all of baseball, with pitchers who can go seven innings deep on most nights at every spot in the rotation. Their pitching alone should give them around 70 wins this year, and the offense will need to show up for about 15 additional games if they want to hit the over.
Texas Rangers -
This offseason was relatively quiet for them compared to recent offseasons. They added two power bats in Jake Burger and Joc Pederson, whose only job on this team is to hit home runs.
Projected Healthy Lineup -
- Marcus Semien
- Corey Seager
- Wyatt Langford
- Joc Pederson
- Adolis García
- Josh Jung
- Leody Taveras
- Jake Burger
- Jonah Heim
Rotation -
- Jacob DeGrom
- Nathan Eovaldi
- Jack Leiter
- Cody Bradford
- Kumar Rocker
Closer - Chris Martin
Projected Win Total: 86.5
I would say this team should be the odds-on favorite to win the division this year. They have a deep rotation, and the top of their lineup is just as good as anyone’s, except for the Dodgers. If they stay healthy, I would estimate they should be closer to 100 wins than 80 wins.
