AL Mid-Season Report
The White Sox are making an argument that they are the best team in the AL. With the Red Sox and A's getting most people's attention, the other Chicago team (next to the popular Cubs) is changing all that. They finished the first half of the season on a 12-game winning streak, and they had a 10-game winning streak a month earlier in May. They currently hold a 4 1/2 game lead on Oakland. Chicago's superb pitching staff is ranked #1 in the league thanks to ace
Reb Russell's (9-2, 2.38 ERA) performance and a bounce-back season by 30-year-old
Joe Benz (10-2, 2.68 ERA). The White Sox also have the 3rd best offense in the league led by
Jack Fournier (.316, 26 HR, 66 RBI) and
Braggo Roth (.293, 15 HR, 42 RBI, 18 SB). Meanwhile, the bullpen has an incredible 1.77 ERA led by closer
Harry Suter (4-2, 25 Sv, 1.52 ERA) and setup man
Mellie Wolfgang (5-2, 1.03 ERA).
Oakland is right on Chicago's heels thanks to the #1 ranked offense that is hitting .288 as a team.
Eddie Collins (.330 AVG, .413 OBP, 56 R, 28 SB) is setting the table while
Joe Jackson (.373, 17 HR, 57 RBI, 12 SB) and
Frank Baker (.300, 20 HR, 66 RBI, 10 SB) are driving in runs. Meanwhile, the A's pitching has slumped in recent seasons but this year they have allowed the 2nd fewest runs in the league to Chicago. Ace
Chief Bender (10-3, 2.65 ERA) leads the rotation, but
Bob Shawkey (8-4, 3.03 ERA) and
Stan Coveleski (9-4, 3.17 ERA) are right behind.
Detroit, powered by their offense, is making noise.
Ty Cobb (.360, 22 HR, 69 RBI, 27 SB) and
Harry Heilmann (.322, 19 HR, 71 RBI) continue to form a mighty duo. Their pitching staff is ranked 6th in the league, but that's actually a little better than expected. 26-year-old
Hooks Dauss (8-5, 2.72 ERA) is having his best season. If the rest of the staff can show some improvement, the Tigers might have enough to give Chicago a serious challenge.
The big news this season has been the fact that Boston finds themselves just one game above .500. Their mighty offense has slumped to 4th in the AL with the two lone standouts being
Tris Speaker (.359, 19 HR, 49 RBI, 10 SB) and
Babe Ruth (.305, 38 HR, 81 RBI). The pitching staff has been disappointing up to this point, despite being ranked 3rd overall. Even the team's defense is disappointing, ranking 5th overall.
Standings
Batting Leaders
Pitching Leaders
