Despite Injury To Jose Altuve, Houston Astros Remain AL West Favorite

Throughout March, I’ve been taking a look at the Opening Day true-talent rankings of the 30 MLB clubs on a division-by-division basis. While the rankings are based on actual 2022 batted-ball data, off-season player movement and potential impact of 2023 rookies will be addressed. We’ve already covered the AL East, NL East, AL Central and NL Central. Today, it’s the AL West.

1. Houston Astros – “Tru” Talent Record = 104-58 – Offensive Rating = 107.6 (8th), Pitching Rating = 83.7 (2nd), Defensive Rating = 96.3 (4th); IN: 1B Jose Abreu; OUT: RHP Justin Verlander, UT Aledmys Diaz, C Christian Vazquez, DH Trey Mancini

It was a pretty quiet offseason for the defending World Champions, with reigning AL Cy Young winner Verlander the primary loss and Abreu the primary addition. It remains to be seen whether the team’s overall approach to player evaluation and development will change under new GM Dana Brown.