The Boston Red Sox have been the class of the AL in the first half of 2009, while other surprises and disappointments have dotted the baseball landscape.
The Monday before the All-Star Game sits vacant on the summer sports calendar. No scores, no new stats to interpret, no jumps in the standings.
But it's appropriate to look at where things stand in the American League at this traditional halfway mark. Some teams are riding momentum, while others Sunday afternoon were like Michael Scott in The Office, ready to head off to Sandals in Jamaica. All-inclusive, of course.
AL East: It's the Red Sox and Yankees
- Boston (54-34): Fresh off taking three games over the weekend from the increasingly inept Royals, the Red Sox were the beneficiary of the Angels' sweep of the Yankees in Anaheim. Josh Beckett joined teammate (and 57-year-old) Tim Wakefield as the only 11-game winners in the American League.
- N.Y. Yankees (51-37): Scoring runs in bunches as usual, but allowing 29 runs to a strapped Angel lineup over three games was emblematic of their inconsistencies on the mound. Yankee fans were up in arms early, especially after the 22-4 fiasco at home against Cleveland and zero wins to date against Boston. But they're not moving anywhere.
- Tampa Bay (48-41): The Rays are on a serious roll. They were languishing at 25-28 as May turned into June. Then came the perfect tonic: the Royals. After sweeping Kansas City, Tampa Bay returned to contender status. Even with the series loss to Oakland, they're 23-13 since June 2.
- Toronto (44-46): Talk about a precipitous fall. The Blue Jays were riding high at 27-14 and in first place in the division at one point. And now look at them. Roy Halladay notwithstanding, this team is falling apart, and they're not in the right division to climb out of the abyss.
- Baltimore (40-48): It's another losing season for the Orioles, but it's not all bleak. Luke Scott and Adam Jones are each .300 hitters. Brad Bergesen rose from the AAA ashes to provide a reliable arm that a team with an ERA hugging 5.00 urgently needs.
AL Central: Tigers Trying to Break Away
- Detroit (48-39): Most baseball insiders projected the same last-place finish for the Tigers as in 2008. It's not happening, especially in a division as flimsy as this one. Justin Verlander is rounding back into form, but Edwin Jackson is startling everyone with his 2.52 ERA. He just needs run support: In his four losses, three have been by a 4-3 score and the other was 6-1.
- Chicago White Sox (45-43): It took them a while to get going, but the Good Guys are playing markedly better baseball since Oakland shut them out in three of four games in early June. Jermaine Dye and Paul Konerko are covering well for the injured Carlos Quentin.
- Minnesota (45-44): The Twins and White Sox have largely been inseparable from fighting for second place in the division for weeks now. How much more can be asked of Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau? And yet Minnesota sits one game above .500. Mystifying.
- Kansas City (37-51): Can't hit for average, can't hit for power and can't hit situationally. The defense is so cataclysmically bad that a simple ground ball turns into a grand adventure. And they just traded for Yuniesky Betancourt. Other than that, the Royals are turning the corner, right?
- Cleveland (35-54): As Michael Caine said in Noises Off, "Nothing could have prepared us for the final horror: Cleveland." It takes some effort to be 2 1/2 games worse than the Royals at this point. But congratulations to the Indians, which allow 10+ runs routinely with a horrific pitching staff and have suffered through a Grady Sizemore injury that isn't entirely responsible for this indignity.
AL West: An Unexpected Three-team Race
- LA Angels (49-37): Without Torii Hunter and Vladimir Guerrero, the Angels swept the Yankees to finish up the first half. Juan Rivera is on pace for his best season as an Angel, while Kendry Morales is putting up career numbers himself.
- Texas (48-39): A seven-game winning streak in May put the Rangers in position for a pennant, and they really haven't wavered. Their team ERA is a full run less than last year's 79-83 team. Will Texas fold like a cheap road map in characteristic Ranger fashion?
- Seattle (46-42): Don Wakamatsu deserves AL Manager of the Year consideration so far for rescuing this team from a dreadful 101-loss campaign in 2008. This is the surprise of the American League, and it's not even close. Ken Griffey Jr. isn't doing much of anything, but it just feels right that he's in Seattle again.
- Oakland (37-49): Sputtering collectively at the plate, the A's will probably dance alone in the AL West the rest of the season. Jack Cust is another Rob Deer for this generation, a home run hitter with a nothing average and a proclivity for striking out more than once a game.
Final MLB Post-season Predictions
It's not exactly going out on a limb, but the three division leaders look solid for the playoffs, with Tampa Bay, Texas and the Yankees tussling for the wild card. How the Angels handle the injuries is a wild card in itself. And watch for the Mariners as a dark horse. All signs indicate a photo finish in the AL West.
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