But I disagree with your contention that it will only have one playoff team – precisely because Houston is so awful. The other teams will rack up wins against the Astros. Similarly, I think two of the AL Central teams could get in by beating up on Minnesota.

Talent-wise, the AL East probably has the most legitimate contenders, but they may all beat each other up all season and therefore might only get the division champ into October.

Lots of depth in the pen, so the early season loss of Madsen shouldn’t prove costly. Nothing is ever certain, but the Trout, Hamilton, and Pujols troika is about as much of a lock as run producers as any team, and if they get help from Trumbo, plenty of runs can be counted on.

Not sure about Iannetta behind the plate, but the former catcher Scioscia, usually sorts out that position.

Hard to see how the Rangers score as many runs as they did in 2011-12. And I am not convinced the A’s can reproduce last year’s magic, too many swing and miss guys. The Mariners are improved, but not enough to challenge, and Houston is awful. This division could be the one with only one play-off team, unless the Central and Eastern contenders beat each other up, which is possible.

The Al West is probably the weakest in the Junior Circuit, and the Angels look to be the class of the division, but not a team that can beat the likes of the Tigers, Rays, or Toronto, and they may not be better than Kansas City or Cleveland.