Spring Training Job Battles: AL West

With spring training underway, there will be plenty of starting jobs on the line, some of which will have significant fantasy implications. I'll be covering the American League, while Erik Halterman will handle the National League. We'll break these down division by division, and this installment will look at the AL West.

Editor's note: the number in parenthesis is the player's NFBC ADP since 2/1

Houston Astros

Left Field/Second Base: Jose Altuve (53), Mauricio Dubon (558), Brendan Rodgers (625), Zach Dezenzo (629), Shay Whitcomb (715), Ben Gamel (750)

At first, it seemed as though the reported plan to give Altuve a shot in left field was merely a last-ditch attempt to lure Alex Bregman back to Houston. However, Bregman is now in Boston and Altuve has been focusing on left field this spring, to the point that, if the season started tomorrow, that's probably where he'd be playing. If the nine-time All-Star does wind up settling in out in left field, the opening here would be at second base. Dubon seems to be the perceived favorite to handle the keystone in that instance, although a large chunk of his value lies with his ability to bounce around to several positions. If Houston goes with one guy at second base, it could be Rodgers, who is in camp as a non-roster invitee. In the event Altuve remains at second base, that would seemingly be good news for Dezenzo. The 24-year-old is an infielder by trade but has played the outfield exclusively so far this spring and has an intriguing bat. Yordan Alvarez is also an option for left field, but the Astros are intent on limiting his time on defense following last year's knee issue.

Fifth Starter: Hayden Wesneski (489), Ryan Gusto (751), Colton Gordon (N/A)

The Astros acquired Houston-area native Wesneski from the Cubs this offseason in the Kyle Tucker trade and appear poised to hand him the final spot in their rotation, at least until Lance McCullers (forearm) or Luis Garcia (elbow) is ready. Wesneski has flashed some intriguing skills at times both as a starter and reliever, but the right-hander needs to find a weapon to get lefties out in order to stick as a full-time starter. Providing some competition for Wesneski are Gusto and Gordon. Neither player has pitched at the major-league level, but both are already on the 40-man roster and have shown some flashes this spring. This is Wesneski's job to lose, though.

Los Angeles Angels

Second Base/Shortstop: Luis Rengifo (143), Christian Moore (576), Tim Anderson (718), Kevin Newman (720), Scott Kingery (741), Kyren Paris (N/A)

The shortstop job will belong to Zach Neto (shoulder) when he's ready, but he's been ruled out for Opening Day and could miss the first month or so of the season. Rengifo is the only one in this group guaranteed everyday playing time, but it doesn't appear that it will come at shortstop. It could be at second base, or, perhaps more likely, all over the field in a super utility role. Also in the thick of the competition at second base is Moore, last year's first-round pick who has only 25 games of pro experience under his belt. Moore isn't a strong defender at the keystone and had a strikeout rate of nearly 30 percent at Double-A Rocket City last year, so he could probably use some more seasoning. However, the Angels are aggressive as any team in baseball in promoting their prospects, particularly when they're first-rounders out of college. Newman is as boring as they come offensively, but he offers a steady glove and looks to be in the driver's seat to handle shortstop until Neto is ready.

Fifth Starter: Reid Detmers (422), Caden Dana (688), Jack Kochanowicz (739), Chase Silseth (744), Sam Aldegheri (750)

Kochanowicz managed to put up a 3.99 ERA and 1.19 WHIP over 11 starts with the Angels last season in spite of a 9.4 percent strikeout rate that would make Carlos Silva proud. Like Silva, Kochanowicz thrives on avoiding walks (3.8 percent) and inducing groundballs (55.6 percent). It's a formula that can work, but usually only if that pitcher is good at producing weak contact, and Kochanowicz was not (44.4 percent hard-hit rate). His main competition for the fifth starter spot is Detmers, who is basically Kochanowicz's polar opposite as a lefty flyball pitcher who misses bats and whose control is below average. As much of a headache as Detmers often has been, fantasy managers are rooting for the southpaw to get a shot. Aldegheri and especially Dana would also be interesting, but both of them seem likely to head back to the minors for a while.

Sacramento Athletics

Left Field: Seth Brown (546), Esteury Ruiz (607), Miguel Andujar (708)

Brent Rooker is expected to see more reps in left field this season after being limited to designated hitter duty by a forearm injury last year, but the bulk of his playing time still figures to come at DH. That leaves the three guys listed above competing for the left field job, although Brown and Andujar would seem to have a clear leg up over Ruiz. Brown was removed from the 40-man roster last June, but he made his way back onto it with a decent second half and the A's kept him around with a raise in arbitration. Andujar batted .285 in 75 games last season, but the power he used to be known for was missing. Colby Thomas could be the guy here sooner rather than later, but he'll likely begin the season back at Triple-A Las Vegas.

Fifth Starter: Mitch Spence (656), Joey Estes (740), J.T. Ginn (745)

Only JP Sears made more starts for the Athletics last season than Estes and Spence, who both made 24 starts apiece. There looks to be room for only one of Estes or Spence (or Ginn) in the rotation heading into 2025, however, following the offseason additions of Luis Severino and Jeffrey Springs and the return of Sears and Osvaldo Bido. Both Estes and Spence pounded the strike zone, posting walk rates of 4.2 percent and 6.8 percent, respectively. Unfortunately, neither righty cracked 20 percent with their strikeout rate. Ginn barely cleared the 20 percent mark in his 34 innings, but none of the trio project to miss many bats at the big-league level. Another potential rotation candidate, Brady Basso, has more strikeout potential but was recently diagnosed with a shoulder strain.

Seattle Mariners

Designated Hitter: Mitch Garver (537), Donovan Solano (697), Mitch Haniger (698), Rowdy Tellez (744)

The Mariners don't have much up for grabs job-wise on the position-player side, which probably isn't a great thing since they were a bad offense last year and did very little to address it. One spot where at-bats are available is at designated hitter, where Garver and Haniger are back after both had dreadful 2024 campaigns. Garver led the club with 81 starts at DH last season (he had 23 more starts at catcher), while Haniger was second with 25 starts (plus 80 starts in right field). Those two appear to be in line for the bulk of the starts at DH again in 2025, but Solano will also be in the mix when he's not at first base and Tellez also offers an experienced option as a non-roster invitee.

Texas Rangers

Center Field: Evan Carter (267), Leody Taveras (567)

This battle might not be a battle at all in the early part of season if the MRI on Adolis Garcia's oblique reveals bad news, as that would probably lead to both Carter and Taveras in the lineup most days. Over the long haul, it seems as though the Rangers are planning for Carter to take the center field job and run with it, which would leave Taveras with fourth outfielder duties. Carter, of course, missed most of last season with back problems and has indicated that it's likely to be a chronic injury that he'll just have to manage. That's far from ideal, but he is still a 22-year-old with immense talent. Taveras' name popped up in trade rumors over the offseason, but with Garcia's injury and Carter's back situation, the Rangers are probably glad they hung on to him.

Fifth Starter: Kumar Rocker (290), Cody Bradford (328), Jack Leiter (628), Dane Dunning (749)

Manager Bruce Bochy has indicated that Bradford is going to be on the Opening Day roster in some form, and it's likely going to be as a member of the starting rotation. The lefty doesn't have the pedigree of Rocker or Leiter, but he was excellent last season and has tossed five scoreless frames so far this spring. Rocker, meanwhile, has been roughed up in both of his Cactus League starts and appears likely to spend some time at Triple-A Round Rock to begin the season. That's probably not the worst thing given how little he's pitched in pro ball. Leiter doesn't have much left to prove at Round Rock, but he's likely to bide his time there for a while until a rotation need arises.

Closer: Chris Martin (362), Robert Garcia (637), Marc Church (751)

I keep waiting for the Rangers to announce they've re-signed David Robertson to take over as their closer. Perhaps that still happens, but for now this looks like a two- or three-man battle. Martin is the presumptive favorite to see save chances early on. He's a 38-year-old with plenty of success in high-leverage roles over the last several years, even if none of it has really come as a full-time closer. Garcia probably isn't well known to most casual fantasy players. He's 28 and had a 4.22 ERA last season, but his xERA was 2.53 and his Statcast page is lit up like a Christmas tree. The skipper also threw Church's hat into the ring, saying that he sees the hard thrower as an eventual closer. It probably won't happen as soon as Opening Day, but Church does have swing-and-miss upside. Bochy has said that he doesn't necessarily need to name a closer before the beginning of the season, but he's usually a guy who's had a set ninth-inning man over the years and I'd expect that to eventually be the case here.