Houston Astros Might Still Be Team To Beat in American League West

After a wild offseason for the Houston Astros, the team has been able to get off to a decent start to the year with a good month in April overall.

To begin the campaign, it was looking bleak for the Astros. The team wasn’t hitting at all with only Jose Altuve remotely being productive at the plate.

However, they were able to weather a bit of an early storm and find themselves right around the .500 mark with some reason to be optimistic about the outlook for the rest of the season.

Even though the lineup is still struggling, this is a unit that should improve significantly. Yordan Alvarez has yet to get going this campaign, and a player of his caliber is going to likely turn it around soon.

Furthermore, Christian Walker has also been off to a slow start, and while age as a first baseman is a concern, he can be a 30-home run hitter.

With April finished, there have been some ups and downs, but it could be Houston who might be the team to beat in their division.

David Schoenfield of ESPN (subscription required) recently graded the first month of the season for the Astros and gave them a solid grade of a “B-“. He highlights despite a lot of key members struggling, that the team still might be the one to beat the in AL West.

“The Astros haven't had a losing record in a full season since 2014, and it wouldn't be surprising to see them capture an eighth straight non-COVID-season AL West title.”

The AL West race is shaping up to be a tight one if April is any indication. The Seattle Mariners have finally started to find some offense, which cost them immensely last year.

Their rotation can go toe-to-toe with anyone, but consistent run production can be an issue.

Furthermore, the Athletics have been a nice surprise. After a strong winter, the team invested quite a bit into free agency to improve and support some of their young talent.

These decisions have paid off, and they are poised to see a nice jump in their win total.

Perhaps the sleeping giant in the division is the Texas Rangers. The Rangers have dealt with a lot of injuries once again, but this was a team that won a World Series in 2023 with much of the same core intact.

The offense has been dreadful for Texas early on, but there is far too much talent in their batting to think that it will continue.

Even though it wasn’t a perfect month for the Astros, this is a team that might be better than many would have expected after notable losses this winter.