3 reasons the Astros can actually hang on to win the AL West, 2 why they can't

The AL West race has been pure chaos over the last few weeks and the Houston Astros have been right in the middle of it. The Seattle Mariners got nuclear hot for a while there while the Texas Rangers seemingly forgot how to play baseball. Fortunately, the Astros have emerged from this latest stretch of anarchy with a 1.5 game lead in the race for the AL West title.

Sweeping the collapsing Rangers was a big step in the right direction and while the team has had its ups and downs lately, it is clear that this Astros team is more than capable of beating any team on any given night. The question right now is whether or not they have what it takes to close this season out and actually win the division.

Here are 3 reasons the Astros can hang on to win the AL West, 2 why they can't

There are a lot of moving parts to playoff races and the Astros only have control over some of them. Sometimes another team just goes on a hot streak and there is nothing that can be done about that. However, there are a few reasons why Astros fans should be bullish about their chances of winning the AL West yet again and a couple that should be cause for concern.

Let's take a look at the Astros' chances of hanging on to win the AL West in 2023 and why it may not happen.