If you didn’t see my first article on the worst division in the league, go check it out: https://gumbosports.com/2018/12/28/mlb-2019-division-power-rankings-al-central/

I know what you are thinking. “Adam, didn’t the Astros win the World Series in 2017? What are you smoking Adam? Alex Bergman is the MVP of the league this year!” I know. I get it. The Astros are good. They are phenomenal actually. They are probably the number two or three team in the AL. Their flaws are exceeded by the insane amount of home runs, RBIs, and wins. However, the Astros are the only team in the AL West that will come close to the playoffs.

The Astros held the best record in the West in 2018 and defeated the Cleveland Indians in the first round of the playoffs. Despite the success, the team ultimately lost to the Boston Red Sox and were eliminated from the playoffs.

The AL West started the season with high hopes of going far, posting some of the best records in the league through May. Then everything began to crumble. The Angels horrid pitching staff caught up to them, the Mariners just weren’t good enough, and the Rangers…oh the Rangers. They were there as well. The only team this past season slightly worked out for was the Oakland Athletics.

They unexpectedly made the Wild Card round and faced the New York Yankees in hopes to pull off a huge upset. However, the stars couldn’t align, and the Athletics were sent home to watch the rest of the 2018 playoffs at home from their couch.

I predict that the same thing will happen in 2019 as in 2018 with only one exception. The Astros will win the division by a landslide, but this year, none of the other teams in the AL West will finish with a winning record. And just like last year, the Astros will be the only ones talked about. The other four teams will be left to trade and pray that 2020 will be different.

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