In a weekly post, we'll take a look around the AL West — what's happened so far, and what's on tap in the coming days.
1. Seattle Mariners (28-18) — After a disappointing season in 2015, the Mariners are finally living up to what was expected of them last year. Their charge has been led by a couple of former Rangers in Nelson Cruz and surprisingly Leonys Martin, who's been on a tear and already has a career-high total for home runs. Next up: Friday, 9:10 p.m., vs. Minnesota Twins.
2. Texas Rangers (27-20) — The Rangers offense went wild on Wednesday and put up 15 runs in a rout of the Angels to win yet another series. Rougned Odor is about to sit for a week but they get a huge reinforcement in the form of a Cy Young race mainstay named Yu. The Rangers seem to have more staying power than Seattle, but it's going to be a fun race between these two teams. Next up: Friday, 7:05 p.m., vs. Pittsburgh Pirates.
3. Los Angeles Angels (21-26) — This is where the dropoff in the division begins. The Angels have a few stars, but they have a lot more spares. They also have been dealt some massive blows in the injury department, namely to ace Garrett Richards, and that's too big a hole for a team without much depth. Next up: Friday, 9:05 p.m., vs. Houston Astros.
4. Oakland Athletics (20-28) — There isn't a whole lot to say here except for the fact that Khris Davis continues to mash the baseball. It's pretty remarkable this team swept the Rangers just a week ago. Next up: Friday, 9:05 p.m., vs. Detroit Tigers.
5. Houston Astros (19-28) — The team everyone expected to push the Rangers, if not win the West, has gotten off to a bad start and signs point to a rough year ahead thanks to the continued struggles of reigning AL Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel. Next up: Tonight, 7:10 p.m., vs. Baltimore Orioles.
