AL West Futures: Rangers, Astros Battling it Out

The AL West continues to be a dogfight, with a plethora of teams battling it out for the crown. But, it’s seemingly down to the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros, with the aforementioned holding a two-game advantage at the moment in first place over the defending World Series champions after dropping two out of three to the ‘Stros earlier this week.

It’s been seven years since the Rangers won the division, therefore it’s a long time coming. Below, we’ll preview a few different ball clubs and dive into their chances of finishing in first place in the AL West futures.

Texas Rangers

When you think of the Rangers, offense is the first thing that comes to mind. They went out and spent a boatload of money on Marcus Semien and Corey Seager a couple of offseasons to help them become a contender again and while it didn’t happen last year, 2023 appears to be a different story.

Texas ranks first in runs, hits, and average while sitting second in slugging and OBP. From Seager to Semien to Adolis Garcia, there are countless guys who can rake in this lineup. Although Seager is currently hurt, the Rangers are still a very good team. We’ll see if their pitching can hold up, though.

They lost Jacob deGrom to a season-ending injury a couple of months ago, their marquee signing from last winter. Texas is a -125 favorite at 888sport to win the AL West.

Houston Astros

The injury bug has bitten the Astros hard in 2023, with both Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez missing extensive time, two of their best players. However, we’re talking about the defending champs.

They know how to win. 58-46 isn’t the best record in the world, but Dusty Baker’s group continues to battle. Pitching is a clear bright spot for Houston, running fourth in the big leagues with a 3.81 ERA.

Not bad considering Justin Verlander left in free agency. JP France and Framber Valdez have emerged as the aces. France has really stepped up with Luis Garcia on the shelf. Houston has won the AL West in five of the last six years.

Los Angeles Angels

After a ton of Shohei Ohtani trade buzz, the Angels made it clear this week they plan to keep their two-way superstar and try to contend. And while the Wild Card remains a more realistic shot at making the postseason, the Angels are only six games out of first place in the division.

Los Angeles has already improved their roster ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline, acquiring Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez from the White Sox. Ohtani is having another historic campaign and looks to be on pace for Aaron Judge’s 61 homers, smacking 39 long balls before the beginning of August.

He also just threw a complete game shutout against the Tigers. Mike Trout meanwhile isn’t too far off a return, which should help the Angels make a run. The Halos have six more games against the Angels and three versus Houston. Those will all be crucial in their pursuit of first place. Despite being an underdog in the AL West futures at MLB betting sites, don’t count them out.