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Astros, Rangers, and Angels: 2 truths and 1 lie about the AL West

By Beau Adams |
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 07: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Angels lays down at first base on a throw from Chris Bassitt #40 of the Toronto Blue Jays during the fifth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays during the 2023 home opener at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on April 07, 2023 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 07: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Angels lays down at first base on a throw from Chris Bassitt #40 of the Toronto Blue Jays during the fifth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays during the 2023 home opener at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on April 07, 2023 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
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Baseball’s Opening Day is behind us and MLB teams are starting to show us who they really are. Divisions are shaping up, expectations are being exceeded, and some teams are already flat out disappointing.

Let’s take a look at how the AL West is shaping up with the Los Angeles Angels, Houston Astros, Oakland A’s and the Texas Rangers in our two truths and a lie.

Truth: Oakland A’s are the worst team in the AL West

The Oakland A’s are still the worst team in the league, and it’s a truth. After their abysmal season last year, not making any significant changes, and being a quick stop for other teams looking for established and talented MLB players to buy, they will be selling from the bottom of the AL West again.

With attendance at the Oakland Coliseum worse than a Savannah Bananas game, the A’s are in desperate need of a new stadium and a possible change of scenery. Rumors are swirling they will join the Raiders and move the team to Las Vegas.

The truth is the Oakland A’s are bad again. The 2023 season will mark their third consecutive season missing the playoffs. Heading into Saturday’s games, their team ERA was 29th in the league, and opposing teams were batting .279 against them. They sit at the bottom of the AL West at 2-5 and still have to finish a series against the red-hot Tampa Bay Rays. This sums up how the Oakland A’s season is going.

Apr 1, 2023; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers relief pitcher Taylor Hearn (52) and catcher Mitch Garver (18) celebrate the victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 1, 2023; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers relief pitcher Taylor Hearn (52) and catcher Mitch Garver (18) celebrate the victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /

Truth: Texas Rangers in, Houston Astros out

The following truth in our two truths and lie on the AL West is the Texas Rangers are better than the Houston Astros. That’s right, early on, the Rangers are contenders while the Astros are off to a sluggish start without Jose Altuve.

So far, the Rangers are impressive. They are currently tied with the Angels for the top of the AL West. However, the real eye-opener for the Rangers is their run differential of +12 in the first seven games of the season.

Jacob deGrom is living up to his free agency hype with 18 strikeouts in just 9.2 innings. He allowed just one earned run over six innings while striking out 11 as Texas in a 5-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.

Josh Jung entered the 2023 season as a Rookie of the Year candidate and is playing up to that hype. He has a slash line of .286/.333/.869 in 28 at-bats, and his two homers are leading the team with Mitch Garver. The Rangers are not flashy, but are playing good solid baseball and look to continue that all season.

The Houston Astros are not living up to their preseason expectations or looking like they will defend their World Series crown. Jose Altuve’s WBC injury is exposing a weakness in their lineup, and they are hitting a lackluster .235 as a team. That’s 21st in MLB heading into Saturday.

The Texas Rangers will be a Wild Card team, and the Astros will not make the playoffs. It is a hard truth to swallow, but the Astros at 3-6 are struggling to crawl out of the AL West cellar.

Sep 29, 2022; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani (17) reacts after making a play for the final out of the sixth inning against the Oakland Athletics at Angel Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 29, 2022; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani (17) reacts after making a play for the final out of the sixth inning against the Oakland Athletics at Angel Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /

Lie: The Angels will trade Shohei Ohtani

The biggest storyline of the 2023 season is Shohei Ohtani, baseball’s greatest current player. He ranks in the top five offensively with an unfathomable slash line of .320/.600/1.014 in 25 at-bats this season. Add in his two electric starts with 18 strikeouts in 12 innings, an ERA of 0.75, and his domination in Japan’s World Baseball Classic win, and it’s hard to argue against his greatness.

Watch the greatness on display in his first homer of the season.

The 29-year-old legend has a contract expiring at the end of this year, and all anticipation is his new contract will be in the half-billion-dollar range. That’s a high price for a team that missed the playoffs and failed to be .500 in the standings, especially with Angels owner Arte Moreno deciding to keep the team.

Ohtani is worth the price, even a tremendous value considering one of the top pitcher in the league (Gerrit Cole of the New York Yankees) has a contract worth $324 million. Add that to the $360 million the Yankees gave Aaron Judge this offseason and you see where an Ohtani valuation might be heading. Ohtani’s pitching and hitting statistics over the last two years are pretty similar, which should value him at $684 million. Half a billion dollars is now looking like a bargain.

Ohtani has made it clear he wants to play for a team that will compete in the World Series, so the Angels organization has to face the chance of not trading him and getting a massive haul of future superstars or losing him in free agency and getting nothing in return. Then there is option three … win the whole thing.

The lie is Angels are going to move Ohtani. The Angels are in it to win it and will be buying at the All-Star break. Mike Trout and Ohtani were invigorated by their WBC showdown. Trout, Ohtani, and the Angels are off to a great start, sit atop the AL West, and ownership pulled the team from the market. It’s a smart move considering how much more they could get for the team that could win the World Series and lock up this generation’s greatest player for the next 10 years.

dark. Next. 2 truths and a lie in the AL East

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