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MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL STANDINGS - JULY 31, 2021
AMERICAN LEAGUE NATIONAL LEAGUE
Eastern Division Eastern Division
Boston 63-41 - New York 68-37 -
Baltimore 55-50 8½ Philadelphia 62-43 6
New York 49-55 14 Florida 48-57 20
Toronto 49-55 14 Washington 45-59 22½
Tampa Bay 46-60 18 Atlanta 35-71 33½
Central Division Central Division
Chicago 66-40 - Chicago 66-39 -
Detroit 53-51 12 Cincinnati 54-51 12
Cleveland 48-57 17½ St. Louis 45-59 20½
Minnesota 47-57 18 Pittsburgh 43-63 23½
Kansas City 47-57 18 Houston 40-65 26
Milwaukee 34-71 32
Western Division
Oakland 69-36 - Western Division
Los Angeles 56-48 12½ Arizona 68-38 -
Texas 55-49 13½ Los Angeles 67-38 ½
Seattle 44-61 25 Colorado 59-45 8
San Diego 46-59 21½
San Francisco 46-61 22½
Standings Analysis: In the few weeks since the All Star break the New York Yankees had pulled themselves out of the AL East cellar and had gone from 12 to 6 games under .500 with a stretch of good play. The Toronto Blue Jays have had the exact opposite experience (until their last series against us) and have dropped from second place down to tied with the Yanks for third. Baltimore remains steady in second place while the Devil Rays’ 6-11 string since the break has dropped them into the basement. It’s shaping up to be a wild month of August in the AL East with the Yanks catching fire and the Orioles playing solid ball. All eyes are on the Boston Red Sox starting rotation as 37-year old future Hall of Famer
Zach Duke leads an aging starting staff (4 of the 5 starters are at least 35 years old). The Sox have had a long stretch of dominance with 13 playoff appearances and 3 World Series Championships in 15 years and most of those were built on Duke and a strong, young rotation around him. Some experts are predicting a “last chance” sort of season for Boston and could see them coming back to the pack next year.
In the Central division the White Sox stayed on top and gained three games on us for the best record in American League. Second-place Detroit fell back from 5½ games to 12 games behind Chicago with a 6-11 mark. At the All Star break various pundits speculated that while the Tigers had enjoyed an unusually long period of good play in the first half of the season they simply weren’t talented enough to hang onto second place for the remainder of the year. The Cleveland, Minnesota, Kansas City swamp at the bottom of the Central has room for one more member and if Detroit isn’t careful that’s exactly where they’re going to end up. Kansas City has looked very lively of late among the bottom-feeders as they continue to inject their 25-man roster with members from the AAA Omaha Royals.
Despite the fact that we were 1-5 in our last 6 games we had added two games onto our lead over the Angels in the AL West. Los Angeles are just playing dreadful, uninspired baseball at the moment but even so if the season ended today the Angels would be in the playoffs as the American League Wild Card. But they have to be careful, though. The Texas Rangers aren’t doing well because of luck or above-their-head play they are doing well because they are a talented young club on the rise. These are the very earliest days of looking at the Wild Card but everyone is saying the Rangers probably have what it takes to be there at the end. Seattle has consistently been at or near the bottom of the American League all year in terms of record but they’re going to have to work if they want to challenge the Atlanta Braves or Milwaukee Brewers for the worst in baseball. As has been mentioned previously, Seattle doesn’t seem to have much of a direction at the moment as they trade away prospects for established players in one deal and then do the exact opposite in the next.
The only real change in the National League East is that the Mets have increased their lead over the Phillies from one to six games. The defending World Series champ Metropolitans have been in first place all year and Philly’s mini-swoon just after the All Star break have raised questions about the Fightnin’s pitching staff. An injury to their star center fielder
Seiichi Takahashi hasn’t helped. Atlanta has been absolutely atrocious this season. They are the only ones who are willing to bite on a trade for
Gib Glaus but all we’d get back would be a middle reliever and a prospect and a starter for a reliever just doesn’t make good baseball sense. Sandwiched in between are Florida and Washington… Washington has been playing better baseball of late but both teams are considered non-factors for the long haul.
The Senior Circuit's Central Division is also holding form and the Cubs have recently extended their lead over the Reds to double-digits. The two times the Cubs have made it to the World Series (2009 & 2013) they’ve won it all and optimism abounds once again at Wrigley Field as they look to get back to the playoffs for the second straight year. The Reds have been playing a hair above .500 baseball for the last month straight while St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Houston, and Milwaukee just drift off away out of the picture more than 20 games out of first place. There hasn’t been any drama in the division for the last two months as the Cubs have coasted.
The top of the National League West has been superior all season long – the third place Colorado Rockies would be the Wild Card leaders if they were in the American League – while the bottom two have been near or over the 20 games out of first place mark for over a month. The Dodgers have the third-highest payroll in baseball while Arizona is fifth (Colorado, by contrast, is 25th) so it’s likely going to be a dogfight between the two down the stretch as it has been for about the last month and a half. This is the only division in Major League Baseball where the experts think it’s a toss up for the division title but with a lack of faith in Philadelphia they consistently agree that whomever finishes second will win the Wild Card. San Francisco and San Diego have been whipping boys for the Diamondbacks, Dodgers, and Rockies all season long.