Looking at Lineups - AL West
Penciling in lineups for the AL West
Jon tasked me with tackling the American League lineups. Let’s take a look at the AL West and see how they’re shaking down this year. This is going to be a really fun division to watch this season. Too bad I am an east coaster that goes to bed at 10:00 PM sharp. I get serious FOMO when I miss great West Coast games.
Seattle Mariners
Brendan Donovan 3B
Cal Raleigh C
Julio Rodriguez CF
Josh Naylor 1B
Randy Arozarena LF
Dominic Canzone / Rob Refsnyder DH
JP Crawford SS
Victor Robles RF
Cole Young 2B
The Mariners have been fairly consistent with their lineups this Spring. It tracks with their Roster Resource lineup as well. They have tried a lot of prospects and NRI guys in their 7-9 hole. I would fully expect Canzone to platoon with Refsnyder, depending on pitching matchups.
It is a similar lineup to last season, with the addition of Donovan to lead things off.
Houston Astros
Jose Altuve 2B
Jeremy Pena SS
Yordan Alvarez DH
Christian Walker 1B
Carlos Correa 3B
Joey Loperfido LF
Yainer Diaz C
Zach Cole / Cam Smith RF
Jake Meyers CF
The Astros find themselves in a pinch. Isaac Paredes has nowhere to play or even platoon! I can only think of one situation where Parades can sniff the lineup. When lefties are on the mound, Altuve goes to LF, and Paredes slots in at second base. There isn’t much left-handed help for this lineup. Plus, they’re banking on Yordan staying healthy. If something happens to him, that’s another lefty not at their disposal. Real trouble.
Recent news has come out about Jeremy Pena’s fractured finger. This buys Parades time to fill in at third while Pena recovers. At the very most, this is a 10-day IL stint and will be back as soon as he’s eligible. Latest rumblings are that he could miss two weeks. If that is the case, he still has a little time to prepare before Opening Day.
They brought Nick Allen over in the offseason. The dude can’t hit water falling out of a boat. He’s pretty much just a defensive replacement. Houston’s bench is in a tough spot. Brice Matthews is the only valuable piece, and he’s a RHB as well. Loperfido and Cole will get plenty of AB’s since they’re left-handed.
Texas Rangers
Brandon Nimmo RF
Wyatt Langford LF
Corey Seager SS
Jake Burger 1B
Joc Pederson DH
Josh Jung 3B
Josh Smith/Ezequiel Duran 2B
Danny Jansen C
Evan Carter/Andrew McCutchen CF
Another year, another injury for Josh Jung. As of right now, we don’t anticipate a trip to the IL, but it is certainly possible. In that case, Duran would slide over to third, or if they want to try to bring up Cameron Cauley to the bigs, Josh Smith can cover third. Since Cauley is a RHB and has gotten a handful of starts this Spring.
New manager Skip Schmaker has said this Spring that Nimmo would be their leadoff man despite having Evan Carter bat leadoff 6 times in Spring action. Is this their backup plan? Or maybe just getting Carter a higher chance to get another AB before getting pulled.
It looks like the newly acquired Andrew McCutchen could serve platoon roles with Evan Carter or Joc Pederson when lefties are on the mound.
Athletics
Nick Kurtz 1B
Shea Langeliers C
Tyler Soderstrom LF
Brent Rooker DH
Jacob Wilson SS
Jeff McNeil 2B
Lawrence Butler/Colby Thomas RF
Max Muncy 3B
Denzel Clarke CF
Roster Resource lists Jacob Wilson and Jeff McNeil flip-flopped in the order. I like that idea better, but as of today, this is how they have been running them out in Spring Training games.
This is a crazy lineup that can get on you in a heartbeat. I see they are taking the new age approach to bat your best guys at the top of the order, no matter what type of hitter they are. Kinda like Schwarber in Philly.
Zack Gelof is going to crack this lineup at some point, too. He’s currently on the IL but has been working out in the outfield since McNeil took his second-base job.
Los Angeles Angels
Zach Neto SS
Nolan Schanuel 1B
Mike Trout DH
Jo Adell CF
Yoan Moncada 3B
Logan O’Hoppe C
Josh Lowe RF
Jorge Soler LF
Christian Moore 2B
I could see the Angels shifting around the 5-8 spots depending on pitching matchups.
Schanuel is pretty much locked into the #2 hole. Trout has started more than Nolan in the #2 hole this Spring but last season that was Schanuel’s spot.
We have seen Soler hit in front of Adell in most games this Spring. I hope that doesn’t stick during the regular season.
Watch out for Vaughn Grissom to steal some PT from Moncada.
Honestly, I didn’t see much of the Angels play last season. Send any feedback my way!