AL West

I love baseball.

I love everything about it.  For as long as I can remember, baseball has been the one thing that I have consistently adored. 

I am a big sports fan in general, but nothing gets my blood pumping like a good baseball game.

Today’s Rangers-Blue Jays game was just such a contest.

The beginning of the game was extremely disheartening for Rangers fans. Going in with such high expectations, it was really hard to see Scott Feldman give up two home runs early, and the offense be completely absent.

Scott Kazmir, it seems, has been around forever.

Moneyball introduced the world to Kazmir, and he since has been at the head of the class.

Chosen 15th overall by the New York Mets and then signing for $2.15 million allowed Billy Beane to select Nick Swisher.

Kazmir went on to lead the resurgent Tampa Bay Rays into their lone playoff appearance as the “veteran” ace of the staff.

It appears that being the ace in your early 20s comes with its problems.

Opening Day is upon us.

The game tonight is really just a TV opportunity, and while it is a good one, the real fun gets started tomorrow.

This is without a doubt one of my favorite days of the year.  I won’t be attending any games, though I will definitely be watching, but there is just something about the start of baseball season that makes me happy.

Part of it has to be the signaling of the start of spring with sunny days, wildflowers, and the impending warm summer, but part of it is my love of baseball. 

Update

The Angels placed Kazmir on the 15-day DL yesterday. Kazmir pitched five innings against the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday, so this appears to be just a precaution.

Kazmir will use the time he will miss to build stamina in his shoulder. He will make two minor league starts and if all goes well he will rejoin the Angels for their April 13th series against the New York Yankees.

Matt Palmer will take Kazmir’s spot in the rotation.

1. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: (92-70)

The Los Angeles Angels lost several major contributors this past offseason and their streak of three consecutive division titles is clearly at stake.

Plenty of talent remains in Los Angeles, though, and some acquisitions of their own will certainly keep the Angeles in the running in the AL West.

Losing John Lackey was inevitable—the Angels didn’t want him—but also removes a clear ace from Los Angeles’ rotation.

My “Key” player series concludes today with looking at the “Key” player for each American League West team. There are a lot of question marks in this division, so let’s take a look at who the “Key” player will be for each team.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim – Scott Kazmir

Kazmir is a great talent—there is no doubt about that, but he is always hurt. He will be entering his seventh year now in the majors and he has only made 30 plus starts twice in his career.

Next up in the updated starting rotation series is the American League West. The West is a real interesting division in terms of starting rotations because there are so many young starting pitchers in this division.

This division is filled with pitchers in their mid-to-late 20s. Pitchers like Felix Hernandez, Cliff Lee, Jered Weaver, and Brett Anderson make this division a nightmare for opposing batters.

Here are the updated starting rotations for each American League West team.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

The next division up in our Starting Nine series is the American League West. This division has undergone the most change from top to bottom this offseason, so it will be interesting to see which lineup looks the best headed into the season.

Here are the updatedstarting lineups for the American League West.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

1. Erick Aybar, SS

2. Bobby Abreu, RF

3. Torii Hunter, CF

4. Kendry Morales, 1B

5. Hideki Matsui, DH

6. Howie Kendrick, 2B

7. Juan Rivera, LF

Going into the offseason following the 2009 season, the Oakland Athletics' had depth at the outfield position.

The question was what to do with Rajai Davis, Ryan Sweeney, Jerry Hairston, Travis Buck, Aaron Cunningham, Eric Patterson, and Jack Cust.

Then they started a plethora of off-season moves including the signings of Coco Crisp and Gabe Gross, and trading for Jake Fox and Michael Taylor. The question is still the same, only half the outfielders in question are new faces.

For quite some time now the Rangers' infield has been the core of the organization.  Going back to the twilight of Rafael Palmeiro and Ivan Rodriguez all the way up to Michael Young and Ian Kinsler, with a little Mark Teixeira thrown in the middle.

This year’s infield could well prove to be the best yet.

The obvious place to start is with the heart and soul of this team:

Michael Young

There are not many players in the entire league that have been more durable and reliable than Michael Young over the last decade or so.