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Truth: They’re in for a fight in the AL West
Even as the notoriously slow starting Astros begin to pick up steam, they are in for a fight down the stretch this season. The rest of the AL West is markedly better than years’ prior.
The Texas Rangers currently lead the division at 9-6, and if their rotation stays healthy, they aren’t going away. The hundreds of millions they’ve spent in free agency the last two offseason will continue to pay dividends.
The Mariners are second at 8-8, and are improved from the scrappy bunch that played Houston harder than any postseason opponent. As Julio Rodriguez gets going, watch out in Seattle.
And the Angels are no longer to be ignored. They’re now much more than just Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout.
Houston can no longer expect to just waltz over their divisional foes and win the West by 15 games. I still think Houston comes out on top, but it will be much, much harder than it has been the last six seasons.