American League West
1. Los Angeles Angels
The Angels were swept by the Kansas City Royals in the ALDS after being World Series favorites, but they return most of their talent, including MVP Mike Trout.
First baseman Albert Pujols was able to show signs of his prime years with the St. Louis Cardinals with 28 home runs and 105 RBIs. Outfielder Josh Hamilton continued to be a bust and may be a distraction due to his relapse. The Angels lineup remains strong despite the loss of second baseman Howie Kendrick.
The bullpen will be a strength after being given a makeover last season with the trade for closer Huston Street. The starting pitching will be somewhat of a concern with Garrett Richards starting on the 15-day DL with a knee injury that forced him out last season.
Jered Weaver and Matt Shoemaker are returning though, and Hector Santiago can be a reliable fill-in until Richards becomes 100 percent again.
2. Seattle Mariners
The Mariners have become a trendy pick to win the American League. The starting rotation is headed by Felix Hernandez, who placed second in AL Cy Young voting.
Hisashi Iwakuma is an underrated No. 2 starter, and James Paxton and Taijuan Walker are young breakout candidates. The bullpen is solid for the most part, but closer Fernando Rodney is now 38 years old and has struggled at times in the past.
Despite their stacked pitching staff, the Mariners will need to prove that their hitting can be relied upon aside from third baseman Kyle Seager and second baseman Robinson Cano.
Outfielder Nelson Cruz was signed, but his power will be seriously tested in the pitcher-friendly Safeco Field. The outfield has question marks with Dustin Ackley still looking to break out, and catcher Mike Zunino and shortstop Brad Miller still need to prove themselves.
3. Texas Rangers
A bounceback season may be in the cards for the Rangers even with the season-ending Tommy John surgery for starting pitcher Yu Darvish.
The Rangers’ injury woes can’t get any worse than last season as starter Derek Holland and some of their best hitters(first baseman Prince Fielder and outfielder Shin-Soo Choo) will return. Third baseman Adrian Beltre also missed some time last season.
The offense will shine, and the pitching staff can be respectable with Yovani Gallardo and Colby Lewis, who is looking to regain his form. Despite their returning talent and bringing in Jeff Banister as their new manager, the Rangers don’t have enough talent to compete with the Angels and Mariners yet.
4. Oakland A’s
The A’s are likely to be in rebuilding mode. They have lost their best hitters in Josh Donaldson, Yoenis Cespedes and Brandon Moss. They also lost their top two pitchers in Jon Lester and Jeff Samardzija.
The lineup received designated hitter Billy Butler, first baseman Ike Davis and utility man Ben Zobrist. This will not be enough to compete with the Angels or Mariners though.
The rotation also has question marks beyond Sonny Gray and Scott Kazmir, who is looking to repeat his surprise 2014 season. Jarrod Parker and A.J. Griffin returning from Tommy John surgery will be a bonus when it happens though.
5. Houston Astros
If the Astros had a decent bullpen, they could be a sneaky contender. They did upgrade it by signing Luke Gregerson and Pat Neshek, but they still need a proven closer. The rotation has Dallas Kuechel and Collin McHugh, but there are question marks beyond that.
The lineup offers power though as outfielder George Springer has 30-home run power to go with enough speed to steal 30 bases. Designated hitter Evan Gattis and first baseman Chris Carter are also power hitters, but neither of them have proven they can hit for average yet.
Second baseman Jose Altuve has that covered though after getting a whopping 225 hits with a .341 average, and his base stealing was incredible as he totaled 56.
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