Predictions by Division: AL West

I began posting my 2018 MLB predictions by division a little over a week ago by starting with the AL East. Since then, I've done 2 of the 6 divisions in baseball and will be covering the AL West, the last of the AL divisions today.

The AL West is one of the more interesting divisions in baseball. You have the World Champion Houston Astros, a couple of teams on the verge of becoming playoff contenders, and a couple of teams who have been stumbling year after year. I've played it relatively safe with the first 2 divisions, but a couple of choices I made here definitely go against what a lot of people think.

1st Place: Houston Astros

It has been and still is very hard for a team to repeat as division champions, no matter how good the competition in the division is. Every team in the division will be watching the Astros this year and will be looking to take them down. Still, with a lack of a powerhouse team to threaten the Astros in the West, it seems likely they will repeat as division champs. Carlos Correa, Jose Altuve, and George Springer are some of the most talented young players in baseball, and there's plenty more talent where that came from in Houston. The Astros were able to keep their team together and add a nice piece when they traded for Gerrit Cole. The competition is not strong enough to take down Houston, at least not yet, so I have no real doubts that they will repeat as AL West champions.

2nd Place: Seattle Mariners

There's my bold prediction: the Mariners will finish ahead of the Angels, here's why. I'll talk about what's setting the Angels back when I get to them, but here's what Seattle is doing right. They have many very good players that have worked well together over the last few seasons and brought Seattle close to the playoffs time after time. Robinson Cano is leading the team back into the playoff race for the 5th straight year and has more help than ever to truly contend in 2018. Jean Segura, Kyle Seager, and Nelson Cruz are all returning with the hope of grabbing at least a wild-card spot this year. And with offseason acquiries like Ryon Healy, Dee Gordon, and the return of the beloved Ichiro, the Mariners have certainly built a strong team that should work very well together. It's going to be a close one, but I believe the Mariners will take the 2nd place spot in the division.

3rd Place: Los Angeles Angels

The Angels may have the best player in baseball in Mike Trout, but the rest of their team isn't as reliable as one may think. Obviously, Shohei Ohtani was the biggest free-agent signing in all of baseball, and he decided to team up with Trout and join the Angels. However, there's still no guarantee that Ohtani is going to make it big like people think he will. Justin Upton, Ian Kinsler, and Zack Cozart were all added recently either last year or over the offseason, but each player comes with their own risks. Upton was signed to a 5-year $100 million dollar contract that could definitely come back to haunt LA considering Upton is 30 years old. Kinsler is also getting up there in age, and the Angels plan to play Cozart at 3rd base, not at shortstop. Not to mention a regressing Albert Pujols is also on this team. The tables could easily turn and the Angels could very well surpass the Mariners, but on paper, this team is very risky and I'm not sure those risks will pay off. 

4th Place: Texas Rangers

The Rangers were AL West champions and had an ALCS appearance in 2016. 2 years later, this team is showing what it truly lacks, pitching and consistent hitters. Star player Joey Gallo hit 41 homers last year, but all that power is no good when you hit .209. Rougned Odor and Nomar Mazara also struggled to his very well with Odor hitting .204 and Mazara hitting .253. However, those 3 players are still very young and have enough time to turn it around and still hit around 30 dingers, but also drastically improve their batting average. Adrian Beltre reached 3,000 hits last year and while he's going to be 39 in April, he's still hitting pretty well. Still, Texas lacks consistent hitting and pitching altogether, and until they get that, it will be a while until they reach the ALCS again.

5th Place: Oakland Athletics

5 years ago, the Oakland A's won 96 games. The year after that, they continued their winning ways by winning 88 games. Flash forward to 2018, and the A's are an absolute mess praying for that one young player to save their franchise, and that's pretty sad given that I actually like Oakland a lot. Last year, Topps hyped up many A's rookies like Jharel Cotton, Franklin Barreto, Bruce Maxwell, and Matt Olson. Now I may not follow the A's super closely, but I don't think many of those players lived up to expectations. They still have Khris Davis, but he has the same problems that Gallo and Odor have. He may be able to hit 45 homers, but hitting .250 isn't helping the A's get back to their 90-win seasons. So, until a player who can hit consistently and well, they won't move very far up in the division.