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Yesterday we looked at which Eastern Conference teams who missed out on a top-seven spot last season might be able to break into that group in 2024. Beyond Inter Miami, we struggled to pick out a surefire bet to break through at the top of a conference that seems to be (on paper) as good as any we’ve seen in MLS. The West, however… it's a little different in the West. Still, it can’t hurt to take a look, right? Even if we should probably start with the assumption that every team in the West has a timeline where they win the conference. Well, most of them.
Sporting KC
It’s been a relatively quiet offseason from SKC. They have an open DP spot after Gadi Kinda’s departure, but it feels like they might wait until the summer to make a move. Good thing a slow start has never been a problem for them. I respect SKC’s commitment to letting Future SKC take care of SKC’s issues.
Ok, fine, even without a DP No. 10, they seem to be a safe bet to make the playoffs this year. There’s zero chance they have the same historically bad start that we saw in 2023 and they seem to be as healthy as ever heading into the season. A healthy SKC side last year, as St. Louis found out in Round One, is a lot to handle. If they get that summer DP signing right, they could be genuinely scary by the end of the year.
Then again, the injury issues could pop up again and they could be back to square one. For now, we’ll assume all is well and that last year’s second-half performance didn’t happen by accident. They should have more than enough firepower to avoid the Wild Card this year. The big question is which of last year’s playoff teams will fall behind them. It seems like it could be any of them (except Seattle). It also seems like most everyone in last year’s top seven has either stayed the same or gotten a little better… except LAFC. It seems like they’ll have something to say about that shortly, though. The West is going to be a bloodbath. It’s 49-point caliber teams all the way down.
San Jose Earthquakes
The Quakes were the anti-Sporting last year. They looked so solid to start the year and then the wheels fell off and then the engine exploded and then they got struck by lightning. It went so poorly down the stretch that it felt like a shock when they stumbled over the finish line on Decision Day and earned a Wild Card spot. From July onward, the Quakes earned 1.21 points per game over their final 14 games. Only Austin and Colorado posted worse marks in the West.
Honestly, it kind of bummed me out. They seemed to have solved a lot of problems early in the year with the addition of center back Jonathan Mensah and midfielder Carlos Gruezo. But it feels like the “Cristian Espinoza’s down there somewhere” tactic in attack ran out of steam.
They’ve been relatively quiet so far this offseason, but that doesn’t mean they’re totally out of time to steady the ship. They have an open DP spot and need a winger and a No. 10. If they get those moves right, they should be able to improve on a year that didn’t end as planned.
Portland Timbers
The Timbers added proven MLS center back Kamal Miller and proven MLS goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau this offseason. It feels like having those two guys last season would have been enough to push them over the line. But, in theory, the Timbers may not be done there. They have two open DP spots to support their DP No. 10, Evander, in attack. They don’t seem all that far away from returning to the kind of form we’ve come to expect from Portland. Then again, it does tend to feel like little disasters are always on the way for this team as of late.
Minnesota United
Me and the Loons are still fighting. I’m not mad about last season, I’m just disappointed. And mad.
Their underlying numbers were great. Bongokuhle Hlongwane was great. But they couldn’t do the only thing that every single MLS team does. Minnesota put up an inexplicably Spoon-level performance at home in 2023. They won four times at home, the second-worst mark in the league. Four. Four home wins. That’s tied with Toronto and only one better than Colorado.
Basically all they have to do to be in a playoff spot this year is not that. That should be harder said than done. However, there are a ton of questions around this team right now. They’re on their second interim head coach of the offseason and it doesn’t seem like anyone has been in much of a hurry to solve some clear problems with the roster. If the Loons stumble out of the gate and struggle at home again, they won’t have anyone to blame but themselves.
Austin FC
I’ve been generally optimistic about everyone’s chances in the West so far. Here’s where that stops. There’s no way around it. As of now, Austin feel like a Spoon-level roster. New sporting director Rodolfo Borrell could, theoretically, have a couple of moves up his sleeve, but it’s starting to get a bit late in the game. The Verde & Black were pretty horrific down the stretch last year and it’s hard to see them improving this year just because a lot of folks hope they’re going to improve this year. Without some upgrades, this might be the only team in the West you can’t talk yourself into. Laminate it.*
*please… please do not do that.
LA Galaxy
It’s the offseason. Naturally, that means a lot of folks are about to talk themselves into the Galaxy as a playoff side. It’s an MLS tradition.
There’s a better reason to believe this year than years past, though. New GM Will Kuntz had an excellent track record at LAFC and has been busy this offseason. Their biggest moves — DP winger Gabriel Pec and another DP attacker — are still on the way. But with Riqui Puig pulling the strings, an elite attack is never far away. That could be more than enough to jump back into a playoff spot. I’ll understand if you’re a bit skeptical of LA hitting on their newest signings in attack. They haven’t earned your trust in a while.
Colorado Rapids
The offseason champs (hang the banner) are far better off than they were at the end of last season. Just to review real quick, they’ve added DP attacker Djordje Mihailovic, goalkeeper Zack Steffen and left back Sam Vines into the mix. That won’t solve all their problems — there were a lot of problems — but it could easily take a team that finished with totally fine underlying numbers last year and push them into a playoff spot in this conference. They’re still on the fringe right now. But, to be fair, it feels like every other team in the West is there, too.
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