A few years ago the AL West was dominated by the Athletics and Angels. In 2006 it's been a different story so far. Each team is only within 4 games of each other. This could be the breakout year for the Mariners or Rangers. One thing is for sure, no team in the West is unbeatable. It could be a tight race coming down to the final month. Two players who I think will have the biggest influence on whether their team will climb to the postseason are Mark Teixeira and Ichiro Suzuki.
Ichiro is batting over .340 with 128 hits and 66 runs scored. He is the heart and soul of the M's. With an injury to Jeremy Reed after a diving catch attempt on Sunday the star outfielder must deliver more in the clutch and give his team a boost. Seattle is currently in 3rd place with a 42-45 record. The Texas first basemen is having another good season too. He's a valuable asset to the Rangers. They'd be crazy to trade him or get rid of him. Teixeira has helped Texas reach a 44-42 mark while hitting 8 homers with 47 RBIs.
It's going to be interesting to watch and see what happens in the second half. The Angels and Athletics have their share of history together and will probably duke it out down the stretch. With a healthy pitching staff and always dangerous Vladimir Guerrero the Angels will be a threat. Still I wouldn't count out the Rangers or the Mariners. They both have the offensive firepower to compete against any team in the league.
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