With just shy of a quarter of the regular season in the books, we have one league set, while the other is way off everyone’s pre-season predictions.
The five best American League teams are in fact leading their divisions. The AL East belongs to the Yankees and Red Sox. The two best teams in the AL were separated by just one game starting the week as New York has the top scoring offense in MLB. Boston is No. 2.
Despite mediocre statistics, Cleveland is perched atop the Central because none of the other teams in the division possess a winning record. The AL West is between Los Angeles and Houston. Much like the East, the West is going to be a dogfight between a very potent Angels squad and the defending World Series champs, who own the top pitching staff in baseball.
Don’t kid yourself, one of these five teams will take the pennant and represent the AL in the Fall Classic.
What if I told you in March none of the preseason NL Division favorites would be in first place after 30-plus games? How about if I told you none of them would be in second place or even third? You would have had me committed to a rubber room. Washington, Chicago, and Los Angeles each sit in fourth place. However, the Dodgers are the only forecasted division favorite to don a losing record.
Buckle yourself in because this is proving to be one of the most-exciting MLB campaigns in years.
If you are keeping score, my releases are 8-3 thus far. Here are this week’s Best Bets.
Tuesday
Take Yankees over Red Sox: Luis Severino is 5-1 with a 2.11 ERA on the campaign, dropping an April 10 start to Boston. The Red Sox are just 4-10 their L14 trips to Yankee Stadium and send Drew Pomeranz to the hill. The LH owns a 1-0, 6.14 record. The Boston lineup averages nearly one full run less per game on the road (4.74 RPG), while the Yanks are a whopping, 6.63 at home. NEW YORK
Wednesday
Take Yankees over Red Sox: David Price is 2-4 with a 5.11 mark. The LH has lost three straight and four of his L5 starts, including an April 11 defeat at the hands of Masahiro Tanaka and the Yankees. The powerful, New York lineup will jump all over Price and give Tanaka enough run support. NEW YORK