Teams Still In Pennant Race

 

AL East: The low point of the season for the Yankees was on May 12 when they had a 15-17 record. Since that date they have posted a 60-28 record. They are currently 75-45 and seven games ahead of the second place Red Sox in the AL East.

The Red Sox need to stay ahead in the wild card race in case they can’t pass the Yankees in the standings.

When I look at standings, I don’t pay much attention to teams that are 10 or more games out of first place, so I ordinarily wouldn’t view the Rays as contenders, but since they are three games behind in the AL wild card race, they are serious challengers.

If a team wins or loses the same day as the league leader there is no change, so 10 games is a lot of games to make up.

AL Central: The Tigers are clinging to a three game lead in the AL Central but aren’t pulling away from the rest of the pack. The second place White Sox ended a six game winning streak on July 3. Since then, they have only won three games in a row once.

The White Sox are currently three games behind the Tigers have a killer road trip that starts next Monday. They will play four games against the Red Sox, three games against the Yankees, and then travel to Minnesota for a three game set where they have struggled.

Then they make up a game against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Then, they host the Red Sox for four more games. If they are still in the race after these 15 games they could be in it 'till the end.

The Twins are 4-6 in their last ten games and six-and-a-half games behind the first place Tigers. However, no team in the AL Central has a winning record with all the other teams having 5-5 records in in their last ten games.

AL West: The Angels are 8-2 in their last 10 games and have a five-and-a-half game lead over the Rangers. It is no surprise the Rangers are falling further behind the Angels.

Besides contending with the Texas heat the Rangers don’t match up well against the Angels pitching and hitting. Their only hope for the playoffs is a wild card berth.

NL East: The NL East race has turned into a three-team race with the Phillies are four and a half games ahead of the Marlins and six-and-a-half games ahead of the Braves.

The Marlins started the season with an 11-1 record but then lost seven in a row. The Marlins were 19-25 on May 23 and since then have been 45-30. They play the Braves 10 more times and the Phillies six more times.

They play their last six games on the road against the Braves and Phillies, and finish the season in Philadelphia in a three game set.

NL Central: The Cardinals hold a six game lead over the Cubs and a nine-game lead over the Brewers. The Cardinals are 8-2 in their last 10 games while the Cubs have been 3-7. The Brewers are 4-6 in that same span.

The Cubs and Brewers both lost yesterday to last place teams for the second day in a row. The Cubs lost to the Padres while the Brewers bowed to the Pirates.

Unless the Cardinals go into a long slump they should be the NL Central champion this season.

NL West: It looked like the Dodgers were going to run away with the NL West title on June 3 when they had a nine and a half game lead over the Giants.

The Rockies were in last place and 15.5 games behind the Dodgers. Now the Rockies are in second place and only four and a half games behind the Dodgers.

The Rockies were 18-28 when Clint Hurdle was fired. Since Jim Tracy took over the reins the club has played 48-25 ball. Changing managers in the middle of the season has turned around the season for the Rockies.

The pitching of the Giants has them five and a half games back of the Dodgers and their pitching should keep them close the rest of the way.

 

AL Wild Card Race

Red Sox and Rangers lead the AL wild card race with the Rays three games back. The Mariners are next and six and a half games back while the White Sox are seven back. The White Sox have a better chance of winning the AL Central than winning the wild card since they are three back of the Tigers.

The Rangers with a 6-4 mark in their last 10 games is the only team among the 11 teams listed with a winning record in the last 10 games.

 

NL Wild Card Race

The amazing Rockies have a one game lead over the Giants in the NL wild card race. They hold a two game lead over the Marlins, a four game lead over the Braves and a five game lead over the Cubs.

The Brewers, Astros and Mets are eight, nine and ten games back respectively.

It would be unbelievable if the Rockies win the wild card after being 15.5 games behind the Dodgers earlier this season in the NL West.