The time has come to showcase the rise of Major League Baseball's forgotten division. No longer will this collection of four teams be ignored by the East coast media. All it took was back-to-back World Series appearances by the Texas Rangers, the Anaheim Angels signing of the arguably the game's best player; Albert Pujols. Not to mention the blockbuster talent swap between baseball's most understated rivalry; the Seattle Mariners and New York Yankees. And who could forget the little-team-that-could, Oakland Athletics, and their Hollywood showcase in the Oscar darling; "Moneyball"?
Yes, it was an off-season of change and raised expectations that are sure to fall short and others guaranteed to blow our minds.
Leading off...
As a franchise, Texas is hotter than a June bug on the Dallas/Ft. Worth tarmac. The Rangers are American League West division's two-time reigning champ and have won the AL Pennant the last two years. Both World Series appearances were failures, falling short to the National League twice. Regardless, the accomplishment of representing the AL is unbelievably hard to repeat. The last time a team that went back-to-back years in the World Series was the Philadelphia Phillies in 2008 and 2009, winning the former.
Power on top of more power defines the Ranger batting lineup. Their team strategy has always been to out slug their opponent. In 2011, Texas scored 5.27 runs per game while their pitching allowed an average of 4.17 runs.
Opposing pitchers beware, their dangerous lineup is still intact from last season. They lost ace starting pitcher, CJ Wilson, to Anaheim but rebounded nicely by adding Japan's most talented pitcher, Yu Darvish. The Darvish signing was all the rage earlier in the off-season because of his outlandish price tag. Texas outbid other potential suitors just for the right to negotiate a contract with his agent. The price you ask? $51.7 million dollars. That did not include a contract with the team. Fortunately for the Rangers, Darvish later agreed to a six-year $56 million dollar contract.
To neatly explain Darvish's potential worth; if he posted his 2011 numbers in Japan with Texas in 2012, he would easily win the Cy Young award for best pitcher. The defending AL champs look poised to slug their way to top once more.
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As for Anaheim, their roster has never looked better top to bottom. The Angels' lineup is the perfect combination of budding youth and veteran savvy. The starting pitching features three legitimate ace-type pitchers (Weaver, Haren, Wilson) whom, before joining forces were all their club's best pitcher. Last but most certainly not least, they signed 3-time MVP, Albert Pujols.
Scary.
The Angels went into the off-season with a goal, combine their incredible homegrown talent with free agent signings to yank back the division crown from Texas. It is safe to say that the pilfering of the Rangers best pitcher, Wilson, while adding the game's best player, Pujols, that the mission was accomplished.
The addition of Pujols cannot be understated. He is arguably the greatest first baseman of all-time. Earning nine All-Star selections, three MVPs, and two World Series rings by age 32 speaks for itself. Insert him into a lineup that already boasts some of baseball's greatest rising hitters (Trout, Bourjos, Kendrick, Trumbo) and stud veterans (Hunter, Abreu, Wells) and you've got yourself a club that can do it all.
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Seattle has not reached the playoffs since the incredible 116-win season of 2001. Since reaching the all-time win mark, the Mariners have gone a paltry, 758-862. The sharp decline can be tied to a weak farm system, the inability to keep future Hall of Fame players, steroid testing and a horrible general manager named Bill Bavasi.
If Seattle was located on the East coast or a big-time media market, the city would surely boast more sporting success than a Seattlite can imagine. Instead the Mariners lost Ken Griffey Jr., Alex Rodriguez, and Randy Johnson to larger, more desirable markets. How many once-in-a-generation players must Seattle lose before a team owner does something about it!?
But, I digress. The "management" of Bavasi between the 2003-2008 seasons achieved nothing. In fact, I would argue that Bavasi set the franchise back a solid five years. Hence, 2012 being the most optimistic year the fan base has felt in forever. However, most fans would agree the goal this year is not a playoff berth. Instead, Mariner fans are looking for a strong follow-up to last year's exciting glimpses into the future with 2013 (5 years later) being the playoff target date.
The consensus among baseball scouts is that Seattle's pitching staff could rival anyone's by 2013. Led by the incomparable, Felix Hernandez, the future rotation should fill out with the young arms of James Paxton, Taijuan Walker and Danny Hultzen. To put the club's confidence in these guys in perspective; the Mariners traded a sure-fire young ace, Michael Pineda to the Yankees for an equally talented switch-hitting catcher/DH named Jesus Montero.
Pineda made the all-star team his rookie year. More accolades are sure to follow. Yet, Seattle traded him to the much maligned Yankees for their best hitting prospect. The story is yet to be written about this 2012 team but I have a strong feeling this is the beginning of a fun ride.
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Not even Brad Pitt can make the Oakland Athletics look sexy. General manager, Billy Beane, played by Pitt, is a legend by himself. Adding Pitt into the mix put that legend into orbit. Too bad for Beane and the A's, that whole 'Moneyball' system really only worked for a couple years. And by worked, I mean they made the playoffs 2000-03 and once again in 2006. Oakland won one series out of those five appearances.
Since 2006, the A's haven't sniffed a .500 record. Beane seems to think that if you constantly trade one talent for 3 lesser talents it will all eventually lead to a winner. Unfortunately, for Oakland you need to spend money on free agents in unison with grooming a strong farm system if you want to compete with the big boys (NY, Boston).
The 2012 Athletics will continue to be average at best. Any time a Seattle fan thinks it can't get any worse, just remember Oakland and be cool.
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The American League West will be wild and as exciting as ever this season. For Anaheim and Texas the future is now. For Seattle the future is here but not there. And Oakland is once again headed back to the future.
Stay tuned for other divisional previews!
