Thoughts About AL West Lineups

I've decided to start with the AL West, not because my unabashed favorite team plays there, but because the Non-Roster Invitee dropdown menu starts with three teams from the division. Going in order of last year's standings, here's my projected lineup (with 2013 stats and pre-2014 rankings) for a team I've spent a lot of the off-season thinking about: the Oakland Athletics:

Coco Crisp just signed a decent extension, which at his age might lay the groundwork for him ending his career as an Athletic, which I for one would thrilled to see, given the energy he's provided at the top of their lineup these last four years. I know the prevailing statistical theory is to bat your best hitter in the 2 hole, and last year that was definitely Josh Donaldson, but I'm not so sure some regression towards the mean isn't in his future. Plus, I think Donaldson plays with a lot of emotion, and I think he gets a mental boost out of being the guy in the prototypical power spot. I think it's for the opposite side of that same reason (i.e. keeping the pressure off) that Bob Melvin keeps Yoenis Cespedes out of the cleanup spot. That and the splitting up lefties and righties, and the fact that Brandon Moss is no slouch himself, what with the 30 HR and .337 average last year.

You like to see John Jaso at catcher rather than DH to optimize his bat, but even if you completely disregard positional scarcity, Jaso is a very talented hitter who gets on base prolifically. Also if Tommy Milone indeed fails to make the rotation, having Derek Norris play regularly is the only way to justify the 2011 trade for Gio Gonzalez. I would personally have the offensively minded Alberto Callaspo spend most of the time at 2B with Eric Sogard serving as a frequent defensive replacement, but I have a feeling we're going to see more of a straight platoon.

With Ron Washington's penchant for putting power in the leadoff spot (cf. Ian Kinsler until he was traded this off-season) I don't think there's much chance new acquisition #1 Shin-Soo Choo moves from the top of the order. But however the Rangers organize their 1-5, this is an extremely formidable lineup. Then again, I thought the same thing when it was A-Rod, Rafael Palmeiro, Andres Galarraga, and Ken Caminiti instead of Adrian Beltre, Prince Fielder (new acquisition #2) and Alex Rios. 2001 taught us that you can't win without pitching, and without a healthy Derek Holland and possibly Matt Harrison to start the year, there might be a lot of spot starts for Nick Tepesch and Tommy Hanson. I guess it's not too late for Texas to sign Ervin Santana, but I hope it doesn't come to that...

Where's this year's splashy free agent signing from the Angels? Joe Smith is a very capable bullpen arm and Raul Ibanez might hit the occasional home run, but they're no Josh Hamilton, Albert Pujols, or C.J. Wilson. Maybe Los Angeles (or is it Anaheim?) are taking the smarter, more subtle approach. They certainly are with Mike Trout's placement in the order, assuming he stays at #2 like he did last year. The MLB.com player preview certainly believes Pujols can stay healthy enough to play 1B, which would give relative unknown Kole Calhoun the chance to start in the outfield, since they pegged him with a ridiculously high ranking (in my opinion) for a player with just 247 MLB at-bats. Some people have also made some noise about Calhoun batting leadoff, but he would have to have an incredible spring for Mike Scioscia to trust him with that responsibility.

Seattle has one big new face and two rookies in high positions. Robinson Cano's monster 10-year free agent deal was undoubtedly the roster move news of the winter, but as I asked of the Rangers, do the Mariners have enough pitching to support their $240 million man? James Paxton and Taijuan Walker are two of the biggest names in pitching prospect-dom, and they performed very well in limited action last year. (Plus their buddy Danny Hultzen might join them in at some point in 2015 after he recovers from shoulder surgery.) But with Hisashi Iwakuma facing some injury issues (in addition to the dreaded regression towards the mean) and the built-in uncertainty with rookie pitchers, King Felix might have to rule a kingdom of one. Health is also a question for this team's next two big offensive acquisitions, Cory Hart and Logan Morrison. Both of whom are recovering from knee injuries, and with Franklin Gutierrez out for the year, one of them will be asked to play the outfield regularly.

The Astros have the hardest lineup to figure, but in a sense, they're also the team for which it matters the least. Moving unknowns like Robbie Grossman or spare parts like Jesus Guzman up or down in the batting order won't make the difference between 90 or 100 losses. The upside is that before too long we might see such talented prospects as George Springer (OF) and/or Jonathan Singleton (1B) take over and contribute before long. Going by the rankings on the pitching side, I must be missing something, because MLB has Dallas Keuchel (490, 20.8 ppg last year) ranked way above Jarred Cosart (624, 47.9 ppg and with more upside)... Unless the thing I'm missing is that Houston wants to keep the bigger prospect from hitting early arbitration by letting other folks start meaningless major league games. If so, then I am missing it no longer.


There you have it! Next time I will switch leagues but stay in the same geographical area for the NL West.