Houston Astros, Los Angeles Angels is most exciting series of April

Several teams have gotten off to hot starts as always. But in the American League West, some fans are surprised that the Los Angeles Angels currently sit atop the division. When they meet the Houston Astros in about a week, it may be the best baseball anyone has seen all year.

No one necessarily expected the Los Angeles Angels to challenge the Houston Astros for the entire 162-game season. Nevertheless, Los Angeles has looked as dominant as Houston thus far for different reasons.

While the two teams aren’t known for having a heated rivalry, that could change this season. Both clubs are much better than the other three teams in the American League West by far.

Hence, baseball fans should expect nothing less than an invigorating, competitive three-game series between the competitors April 23rd to 25th. It could be the one matchup fans beg for by the end of the season.

It’s been a while since the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Angels both had playoff implications. Los Angeles was one game shy of earning a shot at the Wild Card against Houston, but it fell short.

The last time the two teams made secured playoff spots was in 2005, back when the Houston Astros played in the National League. Since then, the Los Angeles Angels have had more success overall, though Houston has captured a title since then. Los Angeles hasn’t.

Both teams have constructed star-studded lineups, each in a different way. Los Angeles dealt for some of its key hitters, including Justin Upton, Andrelton Simmons, and Ian Kinsler. And it added free agents like Albert Pujols and Zack Cozart to further support Trout.

Nevertheless, Houston and Los Angeles have players grow through their organizations to become stars. They consist of the American Leagues two best players in Mike Trout and Jose Altuve.

Trout is doing what he does best while the reigning AL MVP is off to a slow start. As the season trudges on, both players numbers should look gaudier. For now, their teammates have received more attention.

Each head a talented squad, primarily at the plate. But there are other variables that will make this matchup so enticing.

Which offense has been better?

Houston ranked first in the MLB in runs scored last season. It ranked second in home runs, just three bombs behind the New York Yankees. The Houston Astros sported a ridiculous .479 slugging percentage, the highest of any team in a given season since the Red Sox in 2003.

Power was the critical cog in A.J. Hinch’s offensive machine. The power-filled lineup included 11 players with double-digit home runs.

When leadoff man George Springer clocked a home run on Opening Day, he indicated that the Lone Star squad will continue its dominance at the dish. Yet it hasn’t been as intimidating as a whole up to this point.

The Houston Astros rank 12th, and they haven’t demonstrated as much power. As a whole, their triple-slash line is .250/.334/.388. That adds up to a .722 OPS, good for 15th in the league.

Furthermore, strikeouts are an issue. Hinch’s squad ranks sixth in the league in whiffs. That is significantly different from last year’s trend, when the club struck out less than every other team.

While Houston’s hitting hasn’t been as sharp as it was last season, Los Angeles has completely punished about every opposing pitcher it faced. The Los Angeles Angels currently boast the most runs scored, by nearly 20 runs.

Of course, Mike Trout continues to make the sport look easy, posting a .377 on-base percentage with a team-leading six home runs and 13 RBIs. But his teammates offer plenty of backup, including Simmons and Upton. 

Then there’s Shohei Ohtani, who collected five extra-base hits and 11 RBIs in just 30 at-bats. His offensive WAR is 0.5. He may not see time against the Astros, which eliminates one of the many storylines attached to this series.

Los Angeles lineup hasn’t been this effective since 2014 when the Los Angeles Angels led the league in runs. And that was when Mike Trout racked up a career-high strikeout rate despite winning MVP.

That team was productive offensively, but this year’s corps might be even better from top to bottom. It can challenge the Houston Astros toe-to-toe at the dish, which it already has.

Can the Angels harass the Stros’ pitching?

It’s evident that Los Angeles hasn’t faced a trio of scorching hot starters yet.

It will have that opportunity against Houston, which will throw Gerrit Cole, Charlie Morton and Justin Verlander in the series, barring any unanticipated alterations. That could spell bad news for the Angels.

Teams accrued just eight earned runs against the three in a combined 57 2/3 innings. That adds up to a 1.25 ERA, which is pretty good.

What is more impressive is that they whiffed at least nine hitters in six of their nine starts. Of course, Cole has 36 strikeouts thus far through three starts, which ranks second in the MLB, which Max Scherzer ranks first but had four starts.

Houston already possessed one of the league’s best rotation prior to the offseason. General manager Jeff Luhnow then added Cole to improve it even more. Nevertheless, no one expected Cole to be this good.

But the Los Angeles Angels are in luck. What their hitters have done best this season happens to be these pitchers most significant faults thus far — home runs.

Altogether, Houston’s starters allowed 13 home runs in their first 15 games. Meanwhile, Los Angeles leads the league in bombs. That might allow the club to keep games close, even if the Houston Astros starters dominate its hitters for a majority of the series.

The Los Angeles Angels have a thin crew of starters, just like they did last year. More than a dozen different pitchers started on the bump at least one time. Only one of them pitched enough innings to qualify for any pitcher awards is Ricky Nolasco, where the journeyman boasted a dreadful 4.92 ERA.

Surprisingly, the starting rotation hasn’t pitched poorly throughout the beginning of the year. Though Matt Shoemaker hit the disabled list early, Andrew Heaney is back, and Garrett Richards looks like his old self.

And then there’s Shohei Ohtani, who has made quite a statement in his first two starts of the year. His most recent start consisted of a perfect game through six innings and 12 strikeouts. It looked like complete domination from the first pitch.

Thus, with Richards and Ohtani as the club’s one-two punch, Los Angeles should ultimately be better on the bump than last year. That is if the hurlers can avoid the disabled list.

But the front office will have to reel in a few All-Star arms to compete with the rotation in Houston.