2014 AL West Predictions

AL West

1. Texas Rangers- The Rangers have been riddled by injuries more than any other team in Spring Training, but they still have a strong team, and most of the injured players are not out for the season. The offense will be anchored by offseason acquisitions Shin-Soo Choo and Prince Fielder. They will join returning players Elvis Andrus, Alex Rios, Adrian Beltre, and young outfielder Leonys Martin to form an excellent lineup. The rotation will be short handed at the outset of the season, but ace Yu Darvish and Matt Harrison both figure to be back from injury by mid-April. Derek Holland plans to join the rotation in June after offseason surgery. The bullpen was one of the best in the American League a year ago, and there's no reason why it can't be once again in 2014, as solid relievers Neal Cotts and Joakim Soria will return. If the Rangers can survive the first few weeks of the season with all their injuries, they should be considered the favorites to take the AL West when they do get healthy.

2. Los Angeles Angels- If the offseason acquisitions of years past had panned out as planned for the Angels, we might be talking about the best team in baseball here. Unfortunately for the Halos, Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton have not played up to their huge contracts so far. On a positive note, they can't get too much worse than they've been so far, and the emergence of the best young player in baseball in Mike Trout has been a huge boost. The lineup should be good, and if Pujols and Hamilton can regain their old pop, it could be one of the best in baseball. When they are clicking, Trout, Pujols, and Hamilton form the most dangerous 2-3-4 punch in the MLB. The rotation is led by Jered Weaver and CJ Wilson, but behind them, it could be shaky. The bullpen is not one of the league's best, to say the least, but Ernesto Frieri could be a bright spot in the closer's role. The Angels could pose a threat to the Rangers atop the division, but have been too inconsistent in years past to capture a division title. Look for there to be a heated battle between the Angels and Royals for the final spot in the Wild Card play-in game.

3. Oakland Athletics- The Athletics don't have any superstars on this team, but then again, they rarely do. The franchise most well known as the home of Billy Beane and "Moneyball" doesn't play on the same field as the Dodgers and Yankees. Their payroll this year is 27th in the league, and they do not have a player making over 8.5 million dollars in 2014. However, they should still be able to field a respectable team this year, as Billy Beane usually does. The cornerstone of the offense will be cleanup hitter and 2013 Home Run Derby sensation Yoenis Cespedes, but he has some good bats surrounding him. Players like leadoff hitter Coco Crisp, Jed Lowrie, Josh Donaldson, and Brandon Moss will all have to provide consistent production for the A's to have a shot at making a run at the playoffs. The rotation is strong this year, led by one of the best young pitchers in the game, Sonny Gray, and veteran Scott Kazmir. The bullpen is one of the best in baseball, and it will return a solid core from last season that includes Sean Doolittle, Ryan Cook, Dan Otero, and Jim Johnson. The A's don't have a lot of superstars, but look for this team to have a solid season. If everything goes right, they could challenge their crosstown rivals for second place in the division.

4. Seattle Mariners- The Mariners made offseason headlines by signing former New York Yankee second baseman Robinson Cano to a monstrous 10 year, 240 million dollar contract. Cano is the best second baseman in the game, but many question whether he is worth that type of contract. Only time will tell who got the better end of the deal, but regardless of what happens in the long run, Cano becomes the face of the franchise and the cornerstone of the team this year. The only problem is, Cano IS the team. He will get little help in the lineup, so expect to see teams pitch around him a good bit to minimize his effectiveness. Felix Hernandez is one of the best starting pitchers in baseball, but outside of him, the rotation is average. The bullpen isn't great, but the offseason addition of Fernando Rodney through free agency should help, even though he has been disappointing so far in Spring Training. Seattle has plenty of star power and will likely sell plenty of tickets as a result, but they won't be able to compete on the field due to their lack of depth on their roster. No team can expect to win when half of their payroll is devoted to two players, and the Mariners will be no exception.

5. Houston Astros- To put it simply, the Astros are the worst team in baseball. The lineup is the worst in baseball. The rotation is the worst in baseball. The bullpen, you guessed it, is the worst in baseball. In 2013, they finished a mind-boggling 45 games behind the first place Athletics and only won 51 games. Obviously, the Astros aren't trying to win now. The franchise is now focused on bulking up the farm system and developing players at the Major League level. The offseason acquisition of Dexter Fowler to occupy the leadoff spot in the order is helpful, but behind him, it gets ugly. Jose Altuve and Chris Carter have both shown signs of becoming good players down the road, but both are still very raw and inexperienced. The rotation is really, really bad, but Scott Feldman, their Opening Day starter, could put forward a decent effort every five days. If one had to pick a strength, it would be the bullpen. Veterans Jesse Crain and Matt Albers will look to set things up for closer Chad Qualls. As bad as this team is now, the organization has plenty of talent at the minor league level, and if development continues as they hope, the 'Stros should be back to competing in a few years.