Astros, Mariners or Angels? Who has the best lineup in the AL West?
By Seth Carlson
The AL West, much like the NL West, (mostly) hasn’t been a contest in recent years. The Houston Astros are the defending World Series champions heading into 2023 and have secured an AL West title every year since 2017.
The last time this division had a champion not named the Astros? You’d have to go back to 2016, when the Texas Rangers took it home. But could 2023 be the year of more parity in this star-studded division? Based on the talent brought in by its various teams this winter, the possibility of a more competitive AL West certainly exists.
Last year, the Astros steamrolled their way to a division crown by winning 106 games. The second-place Mariners finally ended a two-decade long playoff drought by winning 90 games and clinching a wild card spot. Behind them? The 73-win Los Angeles Angels with two MVPs, the 68-win Rangers with a $500 million infield and the lowly 60-win Oakland Athletics.
With that context, let’s dive in for 2023.
Who has the best lineup in the AL West: Astros, Mariners or Angels?
To inform our analysis, we’ll be using FanGraphs’ Roster Resource and 2023 ZiPS projections.
Here’s how the Houston Astros projected lineup shakes out for 2023:
- Jose Altuve, 2B (139 wRC+)
- Michael Brantley, DH (124)
- Alex Bregman, 3B (147)
- Yordan Alvarez, LF (177)
- Jose Abreu, 1B (129)
- Kyle Tucker, RF (139)
- Jeremy Pena, SS (104)
- Chas McCormick, CF (102)
- Martin Maldonado, C (67)
With 100 as league average for weighted runs created-plus (wRC+), the Astros project to have eight above-average run producers in 2023, a testament to how stacked their lineup will be once again. Projected to win 90 games and the AL West, per ZiPS, Houston seems well-positioned for a title defense this season.