A Look Ahead at the MLB Standings

AL East
Preseason Favorite: New York Yankees
Current Leader: New York Yankees
Contenders: New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays, Boston Red Sox

The Yankees have been the easy favorite in the competitive AL East going into the season, and they have not disappointed. Their lineup stays as deadly as ever, and it’s not helping the competition that Cano is having another breakout season, perhaps establishing himself as the top second baseman this year. Phil Hughes has been a dominant starter, joining an already strong rotation featuring Sabathia, Pettite, and Vazquez. It’s a pretty safe bet to assume they’ll come out of the AL East on top.

It’s not over for the rest of the AL East, however. The winner of the wild card will surely come from this division, considering the Rays and the Red Sox have better or equal records to the rest of the AL. The Red Sox has had an injury ridden first half, having injuries to significant players including Beckett, Martinez, and Pedroia. They will return in the second half, but nobody can discount the Rays. Even though they’ve been through a rough June, they still own the second best record in the AL, and their lineup stays ever dangerous with all stars Longoria and Crawford. All five starters in their rotation can win a ballgame by themselves, and it’s helped that Price has had a revelation of a season. The Jays have had a surprisingly start, but they’ve fallen way back with a horrid June, and Baltimore hasn’t been in the race since April.

Prediction: Yankees win the AL East, Rays advance through the Wild Card

AL Central
Preseason Favorite: Minnesota Twins
Current Leader: Detroit Tigers
Contenders: Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox, Minnesota Twins

The AL Central has been a difficult division to predict, considering that no one team is truly dominant over its competition. Still, the Tigers have had some success and has a slim lead over the White Sox and the Twins. It has mostly been their offense, with Miguel Cabrera vying for the Triple Crown and Ordonez recovering his old form, which also has a good chance of continuing its success. They’ve found a solid closer in Valverde, and he has been one of the top closers in the league with a sub 1 ERA and WHIP. Verlander has anchored the rotation, with Scherzer coming back from the minors with a vengeance.

Nevertheless, the White Sox has had an amazing month of June, and the Twins have stayed close in the standings. The White Sox has had a revelation in Konerko and Rios, both having monster seasons offensively. They could definitely use some help, however, as many other of the White Sox starters have underperformed. They’ve got a solid rotation with Danks, Buerhle, and Floyd, but they’ve just experienced a huge hit to their pitching depth losing Peavy for the rest of the season. The Twins haven’t really found their stride yet, with their hitters not really hot, yet not cold, and their pitchers haven’t been consistent at all. Morneau has had a few injury problems, and Mauer just hasn’t found his power stroke. While Liriano has been great against everyone except the Tigers and Pavano has been a revelation, Slowey and Baker has not gotten the job done. Perhaps it’s the move to Target Field, but it just feels as though the Twins still have some room to improve. Kansas City has had a few breakthrough seasons from their team, but they haven’t put it all together to have a consistently winning team. Cleveland has been a basement dweller for a while now, and doesn’t seem to be getting out of their funk anytime this season.

Prediction: Twins win the AL Central, but it will be very close with at least two of the three listed contenders.

AL West
Preseason Favorite: Seattle Mariners
Current Leader: Texas Rangers
Contenders: Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Angels

It’s a bit difficult to imagine how ahead the Rangers are right now. The AL West was never really considered the toughest division out there, and the current standings proves that point. While the Rangers pitching has not been outstanding by any means, it’s done a good enough job for the offense to carry the team. Lewis and Wilson should continue to have a solid if unspectacular season, and with the addition of Cliff Lee, the Rangers should now be the obvious favorite the win the division. It’ll help increase their run differential of about 80, which is otherworldly considering the rest of the division have negative run differentials.

Los Angeles is really the only other team that can even fathom challenging the Rangers. However, with an inconsistent rotation save for Weaver and the loss of Kendry Morales, I just can’t see the Angels as anything but a second place team in the AL West. Oakland continues to ‘rebuild’, and the most we might hear from them in the second half is a few players going out of Oakland through trades. Finally, what on Earth happened to the Mariners? With the addition of Bradley, Figgins, and Lee, the Mariners finally looked ready to advance to the playoffs for the first time in years and actually compete. Unfortunately, they got off to an atrocious start and never seemed to get back on track. It’s a shame, and Seattle may be easing back into a rebuilding mode again with the leaving of Lee.

Prediction: Rangers win the AL West, and by far.

NL East
Preseason Favorite: Philadelphia Phillies
Current Leader: Atlanta Braves
Contenders: Atlanta Braves, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies

The thing is, I don’t trust Atlanta’s offense. Yes, Heyward will return soon all healthy, but something just bugs me about McCann and Glaus. Those two and Jones are supposed to be the heart of the lineup for the Braves, and they’ve slowed down quite a bit this season. Even with a healthy Heyward and a stellar Prado, I don’t think the Braves offense will hold up enough to win the NL East. That said, their pitching has been, and probably will continue to be, excellent with Hanson, Hudson, and Wagner leading the way.

To catch up and win, the Mets and Phillies have a fair bit of work to do. The Mets can probably accomplish this, as their pitching rotation has been great. Not only has Santana been good (not Cy Young good, but good enough for wins), but Pelfrey has also shown flashes of greatness. Niese and Dickey haven’t been too shabby either. Put this with an improving offense and a great bullpen, and you should have a team bound for the playoffs. Now, this is no knock on the Phillies. They still have a great team in the grand scheme of things, but I just don’t see them getting past their injuries (and their current deficit in the standings). Utley is a huge piece of their lineup to lose, and I just can’t see Moyer and everyone past Hamels and Halladay continue to have success. Their offense will still prove to be a scare to other pitching staffs, but I think this is the year that the Phillies miss the playoffs. Florida and Washington are both long shots to make the playoffs, and it’s a shame since both teams have such great players. Josh Johnson has been Cy Young quality this first half and Ramirez has been hot for the Marlins. Obviously, I’m sure you’ve heard of a pitcher named Strasburg for the Nationals. Enough said.

Prediction: Mets win NL East

NL Central
Preseason Favorite: St. Louis Cardinals
Current Leader: Cincinnati Reds
Contenders: Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals

Votto seemed to be the catalyst for the Cincinnati Reds, as they’ve finally begun to experience success for the first time in a few years. Their pitching rotation welcome back Volquez in the near future, and Cueto and Leake have pitched admirably for the Reds. Still, it has been the offense that has carried this team, and will have to continue to be amongst the league leaders in offense to make the playoffs.

Really speaking, the NL Central is a mess save for the Reds and the Cards. Every other team is more than ten games back, and probably won’t have a chance in advancing to the playoffs. Speaking of the Cardinals, they seem to be finally hitting their stride. Their lineup is apparently stabilizing, with Pujols, Holliday, and even Rasmus beginning to hit consistently with one another. Pitching has been phenomenal for the Cardinals, with Cy Young candidate Wainwright, possible rookie of the year in Garcia, and Carpenter. The Cardinals will be a tough team to bet against making the playoffs.

Prediction: Cardinals win the NL Central

NL West
Preseason Favorite: Los Angeles Dodgers
Current Leader: San Diego Padres
Contenders: San Diego Padres, Colorado Rockies, Los Angeles Dodgers

Raise your hand if you thought the Padres would be leading the NL West over halfway through the season. I didn’t think so. With only Gonzalez, and maybe Headley, to anchor their offense, it seemed as though the Padres would sink to the bottom of the NL West yet again. Somehow, their pitching has been spectacular, especially with the All-Star snub Latos pitching out of his mind. Personally, I think the Padres can’t possibly keep this up without a steady offense (they rank around 25th or worse for all offensive stats), as their pitchers’ arms will undoubtedly tire as the season wears on.

The Dodgers and Rockies are close behind the Padres in the NL West, and I think these two teams have a better chance of winning it than the Padres. The Rockies have found their ace in Jimenez, who until recently, has looked completely untouchable. Obviously, their offense continues to roll, even without their star shortstop in Tulowitzki. They have a solid bullpen, headed by the fully healed (hopefully) Street. As for the Dodgers, they too have a strong offense. Even without Ramirez, who is currently injured, Kemp has stepped up and Ethier appears to be coming out of a cold streak. Loney is still hitting at a high clip, and the LA offense appears to be on the rise. The Dodgers may need to beef up their pitching depth however, as they have to somehow lower the amount of runs they allow to remain competitive. Still, Kershaw has been wonderful and Broxton has still been, mostly, lights out as their closer. San Francisco isn’t completely out of the race, but they’ll need a great stretch of games to come back. I can’t see them leapfrogging both Colorado and Los Angeles, however. Arizona has had a disaster of a season, with their pitching and offense both somewhat mediocre. Reynolds and Upton have both been wildly inconsistent, and Haren has not had his usual first half success. Their experiment with Edwin Jackson, save for his no hitter, has not gone as planned, and their bullpen is in shambles.

Prediction: Rockies win the NL West, Dodgers will win the Wild Card