Robinson Cano had a tough season last year. Flickr/Keith Allison/http://bit.ly/1Qqk4s0
Robinson Cano had a tough season last year. Flickr/Keith Allison/http://bit.ly/1Qqk4s0

The Texas Rangers proved that long-shots pay off at this time of the Major League Baseball season.

Remember how bad the Rangers were in 2014? They were 67-95 and entered the 2015 season as one of the biggest underdogs. Despite a slow start to last season, Texas turned around to win the American League West crown at 88-74. So, don’t dismiss the major underdog this season.

No matter how well Texas did last year, oddsmakers still aren’t buying the Rangers as the favorites to come out of the AL West this season. Texas is opening at +210 to win the AL West, the second-best odds entering the season. Houston, another playoff team from the AL West last season, is the favorite at +160.

The Astros utilized a solid youth movement last season to be one game away from making the American League Championship game. Houston is one year older and should be a main competitor once again.

The West should be one of the most competitive races this year. The Los Angeles Angels and Seattle Mariners are +375 and +400, respectively, while Oakland is at +1200. The A’s likely won’t be that good, but it doesn’t mean that you should completely dismiss them. Oakland has done this before where nobody thought it would be good, only to win the division.

Even with Oakland’s history, this division will likely come down to four teams. I like another team to make a major jump this season. Seattle was supposed to be a team that challenged for the West last season, only to be unable to muster much on the offensive side of the ball.

Nelson Cruz still has some pop in his bat and Robinson Cano will improve this season. They’ll combine with Kyle Seager, who should have a better season. In addition to the offense, the pitching should have a rotation with three stellar starters.

Felix Hernandez, Taijuan Walker and Hisashi Iwakuma are formidable on the mound, which should propel the Mariners to a far better record than last season. Seattle offers solid value and it has enough talent to make a run.

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