How Do the Oakland A’s Stack Up Against The AL West

First Base

1. OAK: Matt Olson
2. HOU: Yuli Gurriel
3. SEA: Evan White
4. TEX: Ronald Guzmán
5. LAA: Albert Pujols/Jared Walsh

I wrote about my hopes for Olson’s 2021 season earlier this spring, and I still am very optimistic about his 2021 season. Long story short, he plays good defense, he hits home runs, and he has excellent plate discipline (I’m noticing a pattern here with these Oakland A’s players.)

Despite another unanimous pick for the A’s, some players can challenge Olson for the title of the AL West’s best first baseman. Matt Olson’s two-year Gold Glove streak ended last year, with the award going division rival, Evan White, who may rise on this list if his bat develops more. Astros first baseman Yuli Gurriel had a down 2020 but has proven to be one of baseball’s premier contact hitters. Former Ray’s prospect Nate Lowe has found a new home on the Texas Rangers, and he has lit up minor league pitching at every level, making him another interesting bat to keep an eye on, but for now, I am ranking him as a DH.

One of the judges, Trevor, is a Seattle loyalist as well as a Matt Olson hater. He made sure to note that Evan White is going places and could pass Matt Olson in these power rankings this year.

Second Base

1. LAA: David Fletcher
2. HOU: José Altuve
3. SEA: Dylan Moore
4. OAK: Tony Kemp/Chad Pinder/Jed Lowrie…
5. TEX: Nick Solak

The Oakland A’s Who Do You Have winning streak ends here. In fact, second base has been one of Oakland’s most glaring deficiencies for the past few years. I wrote about the candidates earlier this spring, outlining each of the second base options this year.

Despite the Athletics not bringing much to the table, there isn’t a shortage of talented second basemen in this competition. David Fletcher is one of my favorite baseball players to watch and has a case to win the Ben Zobrist Swiss Army Man of the Year Award (to be clear, this is a fictional award). He narrowly eeks ahead of former MVP Jose Altuve for my number one spot. The other judges also had a tough time deciding between Fletcher and Altuve, and all but my contact-loving small ball friend Sven had Fletcher as the victor.

It is worth noting that the Mariners’ second baseman Dylan Moore had a sneaky breakout last season, and he can potentially snag the top spot for the Mariners by the end of the season. Still, he needs to prove he can sustain his small sample of success before entering the conversation.

Third Base

1. LAA: Anthony Rendon
2. OAK: Matt Chapman
3. HOU: Alex Bregman
4. SEA: Kyle Seager
5. TEX: Rougned Odor

I doubt there is a density of talent like this at any position in any division. Rendon, Bregman, and Chapman are all top five third basemen and MVP candidates in my eyes.

It was fun hearing each of the judges grapple with ranking these three ultra-talented players, and most judges ended up going with Rendon in the top spot. The hold out was my dad; a noted Oakland A’s optimist. His vote went to the two-time Gold Glove winner Matt Chapman.

Towards the bottom of this group, Kyle Seager proved last season that he still has some gas left in his tank. There could also be a bright spot for the Rangers. Perhaps their star Joey Gallo could see some time at the hot corner if their outfield gets too crowded.

Shortstop

1. HOU: Carlos Correa
2. LAA: José Iglesias
3. SEA: J.P. Crawford
4. TEX: Isiah Kiner-Falefa
5. OAK: Elvis Andrus

The shortstop pool in the AL West is a lot less impressive than the talent at third base. Carlos Correa’s last few seasons haven’t lived up to the lofty expectations he set for himself early in his career.

That said, it seems that his ability offensively is head and shoulders above the rest of the division’s shortstops, especially after Marcus Semien’s free-agent departure.

Second place was a real coin-flip between Jose Iglesias and J.P. Crawford. I gave the edge to Iglesias, potentially because of his recent jaw-dropping web gem. The one anti-Correa vote came from my dad, who might hate the Astros as much as he loves the Oakland A’s. He sighted his bulky frame, inconsistent offense, and help from the Crawford Boxes as reasons not to vote for him and opted to pick the youngster Crawford as his choice.

Left Field

1. HOU: Michael Brantley
2. OAK: Mark Canha/Chad Pinder
3. LAA: Justin Upton
4. TEX: David Dahl
5. SEA: Taylor Trammell

It can be tricky to assign specific positions to outfielders, specifically on a team like the Oakland A’s, where positional flexibility isn’t uncommon. Most of the other judges treated left field as Mark Canha’s position while I anticipated Canha to play each outfield position and Chad Pinder getting a decent amount of reps in left.

I love Michael Brantly. He possesses one of the sweetest swings in baseball and has become one of the more reliable bats in MLB. He is getting up there in age, but he hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down, so he owns this spot for me. Behind Canha, who has developed into a consistent, underrated player himself, there are three interesting cases to consider.

The potentially past his prime superstar Justin Upton, the injury-riddled former top prospect David Dahl, and the acclaimed yet unproven youngster Taylor Trammell. I had Upton highest because I like his track record and think he still can threaten people with his bat, but I wouldn’t be surprised if any of these outfielders discover or rediscover a little magic. The odd one out of the judges this time was Trevor, who believes the Angels will be hands down the division winners. His vote went to Justin Upton, citing that he believes in his bat to bounce back.

Center Field

1. LAA: Mike Trout
2. OAK: Ramón Laureano
3. SEA: Kyle Lewis
4. TEX: Leaody Tavares
5. HOU: Myles Straw

We’ve made it to the most boring category. Mike Trout wins. While there could be a case for the reigning AL Rookie of the Year, Kyle Lewis, to take the second spot, the rest of the judges and I were too afraid of his strikeout numbers to pick him over the outfield assist machine, Ramon Laureano.

Right Field

1. SEA: Mitch Hanniger
2. HOU: Kyle Tucker
3. TEX: Joey Gallo
4. OAK: Stephen Piscotty/Mark Canha
5. LAA: Dexter Fowler

Our first 50/50 split! I jumped on the Mariners train with Trevor and picked my first Mariner of the contest, Mitch Hanniger. In his 350 games, Haniger has proven that he can hit with power, have a sound plate approach, and play gold glove caliber defense in the outfield.

The catch? He hasn’t played in a major league baseball game in almost two years due to one of the most gruesome injuries one can get playing sports. My dad and Sven went with the Astros young and talented outfielder, Kyle Tucker. Tucker has impressed many with his play but has yet to play an entire season’s worth of games, which was enough for me not to pick him.

We also have to mention one of the more unique players that the game has to offer, Joey Gallo. Gallo hits the ball in a way that makes you question if you are actually watching a human being. He also strikes out at a clip that makes many baseball purists squirm in disgust. The other aspects of his game don’t get as much attention, but Gallo also provides great defensive value in right field and also is very talented on the basepaths.

Designated Hitter

1. HOU: Yordan Alvarez
2. LAA: Shohei Ohtani/Jared Walsh/Albert Pujols
3. OAK: Mitch Moreland
4. TEX: Nate Lowe
5. SEA: Ty France

Another even 50/50 split! While Mitch Moreland had a great year in 2020, this spot is a two-person race between the 2018 and 2019 AL Rookie of the Year winners.

Both Trevor and Sven picked Ohtani as the DH winner. They also both proclaimed that he would win MVP this year. Based on the incredible spring Ohtani is having, this might not be a horrible take.

My dad and I went with Alvarez for three reasons: Ohtani hasn’t been able to stay healthy for an entire season yet, he’ll only hit in roughly half of the Angels’ games, and Yordan Alvarez is really, really good at hitting baseballs.

The Cuban DH has demolished major league pitching in his short time in the show, and I don’t see any reason he can continue to do so. These two stars are also under 27, and it will be exciting watching these two develop to continue to shine.

Starting Rotation

1. OAK
2. HOU
3. SEA
4. LAA
5. TEX

Perhaps there is a more in-depth way of handling pitching in the Who Do You Have game, but for now, we are just going to break it down into Starting Rotation and Bullpen.

None of the AL West teams can claim to have a super-rotation, which gives me the perfect window to be a homer and say the Oakland A’s have the best starters in the division! Luzardo flashed some brilliance last season, and I expect him to smooth out some of the rookie kinks in his game and step up to another level. It might be unfair to expect Chris Bassitt to finish in the top ten in Cy Young voting, but his performance over the past few years has been integral to the A’s success, and I expect him to continue to be a valuable pitcher this year.

Both Manaea and Montas are capable major league pitchers, and both have had stretches where they look like legitimate All-Stars. Consistency has been a bit of an issue, but I think many teams would be happy to have these two as the third and fourth members of a rotation. The 5th slot has become a question with Mike Fiers sidelined, but the A’s have A.J. Puk and Daulton Jefferies, who can fill in and hold down the back end of the rotation until Fiers returns. My Dad, Trevor, and I all picked the A’s to have the best starters.

Sven, however, went with the Angels! The Angels have a very confusing collection of starting pitching. In terms of stuff, Ohtani is probably the nastiest pitcher in the division and could easily make me look silly for not picking a rotation led by him. Sadly, durability is a factor to consider, and Ohtani’s previous health history and pitching style are concerning. The arms behind Ohtani in the rotation are also tricky to evaluate. Dylan Bundy, Alex Cobb, and Jose Quintana are all veterans who have had some level of success, but the past few years have seen ups and downs with all of them.

With a healthy Justin Verlander and Framber Valdez, the Astros would probably get the top spot. Their rotation still has future Hall of Fame candidate Zack Greinke and curveball master Lance McCullers Jr. leading it. New acquisition Jake Odorizzi and up and comer Jose Urquidy are also valuable arms that can contribute. Still, the top of the rotation isn’t as electric as it once was, and their depth is shakier compared to the Oakland A’s, so I have the Astros second.

Relief Pitching

1. OAK
2. HOU
3. LAA
4. SEA
5. TEX

This category gets a big asterisk. It’s hard to get an idea of a bullpen without watching a team day in and day out. The Oakland A’s bullpen underwent some changes, most notably losing AL Reliever of the Year Liam Hendriks, but I still really like the group. The A’s bullpen was incredible last year, and many of the key pieces are returning. Jake Diekman, J.B. Wendelken, Lou Trivino, and (my favorite) Yusmeiro Petit are all back, along with savvy additions Trevor Rosenthal, Adam Kolarek, and Sergio Romo.

I do like new Angels closer Raisel Iglesias quite a bit, and Houston’s Ryan Pressley might have a claim to the best reliever in the division now that Hendricks is in Chicago. All of that said, I’m pulling another homer card and putting the Oakland A’s at the top. I feel like I talked the ears off of my fellow judges enough, and I think a few of them voted quickly due to fatigue.