Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Angels chats with Manny Machado #13 of the San Diego Padres. (Matt Thomas/San Diego Padres/Getty Images)
Entering 2023, the American League West is intriguing. The Houston Astros are the favorites, but the Seattle Mariners and big-spending Texas Rangers loom large.
The Houston Astros enter the 2023 regular season as the favorites to win the American League West, but they have competition.
The stiffest competition figures to come from the Seattle Mariners, an emerging team last season that only got better with a midseason trade for ace Luis Castillo and offseason addition Teoscar Hernandez. The Texas Rangers, who spent $500 million on infielders Marcus Semien and Corey Seager last year, only got better with offseason additions Jacob deGrom and Nathan Eovaldi.
The division race figures to include the Los Angeles Angels, who have superstars Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani.
How will the division shake out? Here are five predictions for the AL West.