Over the course of a long season, there are always surprises. Some teams excel; some teams falter. Major League Baseball's All-Star Break provides a great opportunity to review the first half (and a few games) of the season:
American League East-
I'm a long-time fan of the Toronto Blue Jays. I grew up watching the AA Knoxville Blue Jays play at the old Bill Meyer Stadium. This was supposed to the year the Blue Jays returned to the top of the AL East. Outside of an 11-game winning streak in June, Toronto has failed to meet high expectations.
The Boston Red Sox, chosen to finish last in the division by many, have basically led the AL East since day one of the season. The New York Yankees have been hit by numerous injuries (and start a bunch of players most of us have never heard of) but are in a battle with the Tampa Bay Rays and Baltimore Orioles in a mostly (minus the Blue Jays) competitive division.
American League Central-
The Detroit Tigers, as expected, are the class of the division. Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander lead a strong pitching staff and Miguel Cabrera continues the Triple Crown pace he established last year. But the Tigers need a closer.
The long-suffering Cleveland Indians are hanging close, 1.5 games back at the break, and are currently in the mix for wild-card consideration.
American League West-
The Oakland A's continue to play winning baseball, no matter their low payroll. The Texas Rangers are two games back and looking to strengthen their pitching staff for the second half. The LA Angels have been a major disappointment with Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton among others having sub-par seasons.
National League East-
The Atlanta Braves, with solid starting pitching, have led the division most of the season. If some of their bats wake up, they could run away in a surprisingly average NL East. The Washington Nationals appear to be the only team capable of catching them. The window for the Philadelphia Phillies has closed.
National League Central-
The St. Louis Cardinals have the best record in the National League. They are a model organization that is always competitive. It seems they're always formidable, even in "down" years.
The Pittsburgh Pirates are currently 19 games over .500. Although they've not had a winning season since 1992 and have faltered badly in the 2nd half the past two seasons, it appears they finally are making progress. Here's hoping this storied organization has overcome previous poor management and small market constraints to field a winner.
The Cincinnati Reds remain solidly in the hunt for the division crown at only 5 games back and are very much in the mix for a wild-card slot.
National League West-
The most wide-open division in baseball, the NL West crown is there for the taking. The LA Dodgers trailed everyone for most of the season but, after riding Yasiel Puig-mania through the month of June, sit 2.5 games back at the break. The Arizona Diamondbacks, Colorado Rockies and defending world-champion San Francisco Giants all appear capable of winning the division.
