The Athletics’ latest move spells bad news for the Astros originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Athletics are a baseball club in transition, but that hasn’t denied them the opportunity to make a splash. They’ve now officially put the rest of the AL West, and especially the Houston Astros, on notice.
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Jeff McNeil’s move to the A’s continues to show the AL West’s increasing competitiveness
McNeil, the former Met and career .284 hitter, will bolster an increasingly more talented A’s roster with players such as Nick Kurtz, Lawrence Butler, and Jacob Wilson.
This move showcases an intent to truly compete with the Mariners and Astros; Houston’s still a quality team, but it’s clear that their era of dominance is slowly coming to an end. The Texas Rangers recently won a World Series, and the Mariners are set to make deep runs into the playoffs for seasons to come.
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Although the Astros recently brought in pitcher Mike Burrows from Pittsburgh to strengthen their rotation, a lot of work still has to be done if they want to return to the top of the AL West.
It’ll be tough, but when it comes to the Astros, it feels like their success is inevitable, even if the AL West is making it as hard as possible for them.
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