MLB Trade Rumors: Amazing Race Shaping Up in AL Central

The heart of the action leading up to the July 31st non-waiver trade deadline could very well come down to a game of chicken in the American League Central.

The division currently sports a four-team race to the top with little, if any, breathing room in between, which ultimately puts the bulk of the division firmly into the "buyers" column for the rest of the month.

First, A Quick Rundown Of The Race

The Cleveland Indians and Detroit Tigers have been switching spots atop the division seemingly all season while the Chicago White Sox and the Minnesota Twins have continued to hang around, just a few games back of the pack.

Few, if any, expected the Indians to be anywhere close to smelling distance of the postseason, though their position atop the division has grown ever more tenuous, especially now that center fielder Grady Sizemore will be out for the next four to six weeks as he recovers from a knee injury and sports hernia surgery.

The Tribe's injury troubles come at a particularly opportune time for the Twins, who are now finally getting healthy and may yet defend their AL Central division crown as most pundits anticipated they would.

Minnesota's offense, 22nd in the majors in runs and 20th in batting average, has struggled in the absence of outfielders Denard Span (concussion) and Jason Kubel (sprained left foot) and first baseman/designated hitter Justin Mourneau (strained left wrist).

Luckily for manager Ron Gardenhire, those three are due back within the next couple weeks, which should provide a boost to the team's moribund offense and take some pressure off the team's pitching staff, which ranks 25th in baseball in ERA (4.18) and 26th in batting average against (.264).

All told, it's something of a miracle that the Twins are only six games back of the lead in the division and even more of a miracle that they even have a realistic chance of making up that ground.

While Cleveland's conundrums play a big part in that, so too does the combined ineptitude of the Tigers and the White Sox.

Detroit's team ERA (4.25) is even worse than that of the Twins, though the Tigers have been buoyed by an offense that is currently top 10 in the majors in runs scored and fourth in batting average.

As for Chicago, the White Sox always seem to be one Ozzie Guillen implosion away from either vaulting to the top or tumbling down toward the Kansas City Royals.

The Pale Hose are arguably the most balanced bunch in the AL Central, with a sure-handed defense, a deep pitching staff that will soon be bolstered by the return of lefty John Danks and an offense that, while wholly inconsistent this season, can still mash at times thanks to the steady play at the plate by Paul Konerko and Alexei Ramirez.

What Will They Do At The Deadline?

Clearly, each team has a legitimate shot to win the Central as well as plenty of holes to fill to fend off the other three.

The Twins will likely wait until August to snag a bat through the waiver wire if they determine that the offense still needs some punch once Span, Kubel and Morneau get back in the swing of things.

In the meantime, general manager Bill Smith hasn't exactly been shy about his desire to shore up the middle of Minny's bullpen and may explore a number of options, including Seattle Mariners closer Brandon League and San Diego Padres setup man Mike Adams, to make the transition to Joe Nathan and Matt Capps at the back end a smooth one.

The Tigers, too, are in the market for some relief for their bullpen and may have a natural partner in the Florida Marlins with whom to make a deal.

MLB.com's Joe Frisaro reports that the Marlins have a serious interest in Detroit third baseman Brandon Inge, who was recently demoted to Triple-A due to poor performance and has become even more expendable now that Wilson Betemit is on board.

Likewise, the Tigers would like to add Marlins closer Leo Nunez to the back end of their relief corps, so perhaps a swap of some sort is in order.

The Indians will need some help in the outfield if they are to fend off challengers and critics alike over the last two and a half months of the season.

According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Tribe GM Chris Antonetti won't likely be able to hang with the big boys in pursuit of Carlos Beltran or Hunter Pence, though he could bring a familiar face or two back to Progressive/Jacobs Field, namely Ryan Ludwick or Coco Crisp.

They might also look within their own division to the Kansas City Royals to Jeff Francoeur or focus their efforts west to snag Josh Willingham from the Oakland A's.

As for the White Sox, they have been uncharacteristically and almost alarmingly quiet in recent weeks.

With the club teetering so precariously between being a contender and a pretender, GM Kenny Williams will likely take a wait-and-see approach to the deadline with six games against the Indians and the Tigers on the docket.

So Who Will Prevail?

All told, the race for the AL Central crown will likely narrow within the next week or two, if only by one team, particularly if the Pale Hose don't fare as well as they hope in their divisional tilts.

Despite being only a half-game out of first, the Indians appear to be the next likeliest team to drop out of the race, which shouldn't surprise too many given that they were the unlikeliest team in the division to even entertain thoughts of contending in the first place.

The battle for the Central's postseason berth will probably boil down to the Tigers and the Twins. Detroit holds the advantage on paper, as Jim Leyland's club is already in first place and boasts a better offense and more dominant starting pitching than the Twinkies.

However, there's just something about the fighting spirit of Ron Gardenhire's guys, having won the division last year and fought back from sizable deficits before, that puts them over the top in this one.

Of course, much of this remains contingent on each team's ability to get what it needs at the deadline.