AL West Division
(Redirected from AL Western Division)
The American League West Division, often abbreviated AL West was created in 1969 when Major League Baseball expanded and split the National League and American League into two divisions each. The AL West was the only four-team division in MLB from 1994 to 2012; all other divisions consisted of 5 or 6 teams. That changed when the Houston Astros moved from the NL Central in 2013, creating six divisions of five teams each.
The division has had the following constructs:
1969: California Angels, Chicago White Sox, Kansas City Royals, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, and Seattle Pilots.
1970-1971: California Angels, Chicago White Sox, Kansas City Royals, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, and Oakland Athletics.
1972-1976: California Angels, Chicago White Sox, Kansas City Royals, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, and Texas Rangers.
1977-1993: California Angels, Chicago White Sox, Kansas City Royals, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers.
1994-1996: California Angels, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers
1997-2003: Anaheim Angels, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers
2004-2012: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers
2013-2016: Houston Astros, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers
2017-: Houston Astros, Los Angeles Angels, Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers
Division Champions[edit]
Notes:
- Split-season format adopted because of the 1981 strike. The Oakland Athletics won the first-half title and the Kansas City Royals won the second half title. The Athletics defeated the Royals in the Division Series to represent the AL West in the 1981 ALCS.
- The 1994 postseason was cancelled because of the 1994 strike; first season played under three-division format.
- The Seattle Mariners won a one-game playoff with the California Angels to win the Division title.
- The Oakland Athletics and Seattle Mariners finished the season with identical records, but Oakland was awarded the Division title due to its better head-to-head record against Seattle.
- Season shortened by the Coronavirus pandemic; a special Postseason format was used.
- The Houston Astros finished with the same record as the Texas Rangers but were awarded the division title on a tiebreaker.
Wild Cards[edit]
The American League Wild Card team has come from the Western Division 10 times since 1995:
- 2000 Seattle Mariners
- 2001 Oakland Athletics
- 2002 Anaheim Angels Won World Series over San Francisco Giants
- 2012 Texas Rangers
- 2014 Oakland Athletics
- 2015 Houston Astros
- 2018 Oakland Athletics
- 2019 Oakland Athletics
- 2020 Houston Astros (2nd place)
- 2022 Seattle Mariners
- 2023 Texas Rangers Won World Series over Arizona Diamondbacks
We're Social...for Statheads
Every Sports Reference Social Media Account
Site Last Updated:
Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction?
Subscribe to our Free Email Newsletter
Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREE
Your All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database
Do you have a sports website? Or write about sports? We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. Find out more.