Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins in a Dead Heat in the Airtight AL Central

The calendar reads September, and the White Sox are in a first-place tie with the Minnesota Twins. As a fan, you couldn’t ask for a more exciting situation. For the first time in divisional play, the White Sox find themselves in what has been an airtight race in the Central for close to two months now.

Since taking a three-game lead over the Twins in early July, the White Sox have been unable to shake the young team from Minnesota. They have also stubbornly refused to give up their hold on first place. The furthest they have fallen in the division is a meager half-game.

In each of those occasions, the Twins have failed to hold onto their slim lead for more than a day.

The fun resumes today as the Sox take on Cleveland. Across the border, in Toronto, the Twins will try to inch back ahead in the heated AL Central.

While a lot has been said and written about the Twins' marathon, 14-game road trip, the White Sox schedule has been just as difficult. The South Siders are currently 3-5 on their own 10-game road trip. Before leaving for the trip, they had to take on the first-place Rays at home, which proved to be no easy task.

So while the Twins' trip grabbed the headlines, the White Sox have actually been playing teams with better records. Both teams have stumbled through the past two weeks, but neither team has bottomed out. The result is that little has changed in the standings over the last two weeks. 

In a race this close, a lot can change in a half a week. The Sox could come home on Friday, trailing in the division by as much as 2.5 games. At the same time, if they can grab two games in Cleveland, the Sox can come with a division lead. 

The Twins would appear to have the edge when it comes to their remaining schedule. The White Sox still play the Angels at home and the Yankees on the road. Not to mention that little series in Minnesota at the end of the month.

The Twins only truly tough series comes in Tampa Bay, where a hungry Rays team is eyeing their first-ever division title.

Aside from that tough four-game set, the Twins' other remaining opponents are all under five hundred. They do have to go to Cleveland to play a rejuvenated Indians ballclub that is playing with a lot of heart.

Sox fans can only hope the Angels' bats stay cold and that the Yankees pack it in by the time that series comes along. They also need to hope teams like the Royals, Orioles, and Tigers have enough desire to play spoiler against the Twins.

Welcome to September Sox fans. It doesn’t get any better than this.