Finally, it’s here. After watching other teams battle in the playoffs last year. After watching another team win it all. After a long offseason and what seems like an even longer pre-season of anticipation, opening day is here.
For a baseball fanatic, this is the best day of the year. Unless you’re a fan of the Angels, White Sox, Marlins, Nationals, Rockies, or Pirates, you can imagine your team having a chance at the post-season. Maybe not much of a shot, but a shot, nonetheless. And that’s really all you want. The season somehow seems successful if your team makes the playoffs.
Opening day is filled with cliches like hope, and fresh start, and clean slate, and optimism. For the Rangers, it’s a year they legitimately have a shot at a deep October run.
In 2023, that wasn’t the case on opening day. Yes, they had a strong team, having acquired Jacob deGrom after acquiring Marcus Semien and Corey Seager the year before. A World Series win seemed like a pipe dream, though.
Even having won the World Series, going into last year they weren’t as strong, having not replaced their DH and relying on two rookies—Evan Carter and Wyatt Langford—to play key roles.
But this year is different. Langford is no longer a rookie. The Rangers have a DH in Joc Pederson. They have a first baseman who can hit the fastball in Jake Burger. And they have insurance at catcher in case Jonah Heim does the first-half disappearing act he pulled last year, and his usual second-half disappearing act.
And they have a strong rotation, when healthy. Their only weakness is a bona fide closer.
This is, on paper, a stronger team going into the season than the Rangers had in 2023 and 2024. Optimism abounds. Most of the on-air talking heads on MLB Radio predict the Rangers to win the American League, and play either the Braves, Dodgers, or Phillies in the World Series.
Is this the year the Astros finally falter? They no longer have Bregman and Kyle Tucker. Jose Altuve is another year older and now playing left field, where any line drive hit six feet off the ground will be a challenge for him to jump high enough to catch it. Maybe their window of dominance is closing.
The Mariners have great pitching but no offense and will likely fall just short of the playoffs like they always do. The Sacramento Athletics improved greatly over the offseason and will play in a minor-league park. They might surprise people and be in contention in August. And then there’s the Angels. LA stands for Last Always, and there’s no reason to think otherwise this year, even with a healthy Mike Trout.
My prediction for the American League West in 2025: 1 Texas, 2 Houston, 3 Sacramento, 4 Seattle, 5 Los Angeles.
The winner of the A.L. Central will be Minnesota. In the A.L. East it will be Boston. Wildcards will be New York, Baltimore, and Houston.
Texas wins the American League.
In the National League, Los Angeles wins the West, Cincinnati the Central, and Atlanta the East. San Diego, Philadelphia, and Chicago are the Wild Cards.
Atlanta wins the National League.
Texas wins the World Series.
Let’s find out, starting today.
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