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RED SOX – ORIOLES SERIES PREVIEW

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The Red Sox took care of business against the Toronto Blue Jays. A hiccup in game two of the series cost them a series sweep. Now the Red Sox travel to Baltimore for a three-game series in which they will want to keep up the momentum. That momentum is crucial heading into 14 games against their biggest rivals for the division: the Rays and Yankees.

7/19 David Price vs. John Means (L) 7:05 pm NESN

7/20 Rick Porcello vs. Tom Eshelman (R) 7:05 pm NESN

7/21 Andrew Cashner vs. Asher Wojciechowski (R) 1:05 pm ESPN

NOTABLE NUMBERS

PITCHERS

Cashner will return to the place where he has had plenty of success this season. The right-handed pitcher has a 3.49 ERA in six starts and 36 1/3 innings. In addition, he is 4-0 in those six starts at Camden Yards, and will be looking to add to that for his new team in this series.

John Means has been absolutely incredible this season, with a 2.94 ERA. His performances at home have been slightly better than on the road. In Camden Yards he has a 2.50 ERA, a 0.99 WHIP and 44 strikeouts in 50 1/3 innings. He had a rough time last time out against the Rays, allowing six earned runs, with three home runs. That was as many home runs in one start as he had allowed in the 44 1/3 innings he had pitched at home. Getting a win against Means is not going to be easy.

Both Eshelman and Wojciechowski come into their starts with a relative lack of major league experience this season. Eshelman will be making just his third start, having allowed six earned runs across 10 2/3 innings in two starts against the Rays. After succeeding at Triple-A for the Phillies (2.77 ERA) he has struggled at the same level with the Orioles (4.44 ERA). Wojciechowski will be making the 14th start of his career, with those spread across three major league seasons stretching back to 2015. His 6.49 ERA suggests the Red Sox should be able to have success.

HITTERS

The Orioles have not been great with the bat this season, but their numbers have been slightly better at home. They have scored 12 more runs, have a .009 better batting average, a .031 better ISO, and a wRC+ that is 12 points higher at home than on the road. The numbers are still not incredible, but they are better, and the Red Sox need to be wary that this team can be frisky at home.

We have mentioned the struggles of Andrew Benintendi at times this season, but he has been incredible in one area with the bat. With runners in scoring position, Benintendi has a .342 batting average, with 32 RBI. If we look at clutch situations, such as bases loaded and RISP with two outs, things get even better. In bases-loaded situations he is hitting .625 with 12 RBI in nine PA. With RISP and two outs, he has a .395 batting average and 22 RBI. For a player who is not firing on all cylinders, it is fantastic to see that in clutch situations he is coming up big.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR

Pitching: So Cashner’s first start as a Red Sox did not go to plan, allowing five earned runs in five innings against the Blue Jays. The Red Sox will be hoping that a return to his old stomping ground can get him firing on all cylinders. They will also be hoping to get Rick Porcello‘s form turned around, as they will need their two right-handed starters firing in the second half.

Hitting: The game with Means on the mound will be tough, but the Red Sox will be hoping to cash in in games two and three. I have highlighted their numbers against right-handed pitchers numerous times this season, and they will need to perform to full expectations against them, as what they might get out of Porcello and Cashner is an unknown at this point.

EXPECTATIONS

The Blue Jays series victory has ensured the Red Sox remain within 10 games of the Yankees, but with no slowing up in New York, they need to keep the pedal to the floor. With 14 games coming up against their biggest rivals in the AL East they need a big series to ensure momentum is behind them.

If the Orioles cause major problems for the Red Sox then they probably do not deserve to be remaining in contention. The Red Sox will be hoping to give Means more headaches in the first game of the series, before going hard after the two righties in the last two games. Hopefully, this can be a series sweep for the Red Sox.

Red Sox

RED SOX – ORIOLES PREVIEW

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The Red Sox are 5-1 in May and now head to Baltimore hoping to take advantage of the 12-22 Orioles.

5/6 Josh Smith vs. John Means (L) 7:05pm NESN

5/7 Ryan Weber vs. David Hess (R) 7:05pm NESN

5/8 Chris Sale vs. Andrew Cashner (R) 7:05pm NESN

NOTABLE NUMBERS

Josh Smith will be making his first start of the season, and just the 10th of his career in the first game of the series. In three Triple-A starts this season he has a 3.78 ERA and has struck out 23 hitters in 16 2/3 innings. However, in his career as a major league starter, he has a 6.10 ERA and just 31 strikeouts in 38 1/3 innings.

Ryan Weber has been called up from Triple-A to take the spot of the injured David Price, who was placed on the disabled list on Monday. Weber has made eight major leagues starts in his career, with a 5.01 ERA. Additionally, in five starts at Triple-A, Weber has a 5.04 ERA this season.

John Means comes into this series with an impressive 2.81 ERA this season. However, as a starter his ERA is 3.70 compared to 1.15 as a reliever. In his last start against the Chicago White Sox he gave up four earned runs in just five innings. Additionally, he has struggled to strike hitters out as a starter, with just 12 strikeouts in 18 innings.

The Red Sox have faced both David Hess and Andrew Cashner earlier in this season. They have a 1-1 record, scoring three earned runs against each starter. The Red Sox hit one home run against each starter in that series. Andrew Benintendi took Hess deep, before Christian Vazquez did the same to Cashner.

In the month of May the Red Sox have scored a whopping 46 runs, averaging 7.67 runs per game. By contrast, in the first 29 games of the season they averaged just 4.46 runs per game.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR

The Rotation: With Nathan Eovaldi on the shelf for a while longer after elbow surgery, the Red Sox need someone to step up. With David Price being the only regular starter with an ERA under 4.00, the Red Sox desperately need Smith to provide them a solid fifth option. That is especially the case now that Price is on the 10-day IL with elbow inflammation. They do not need him to be great, but they need solid performances.

Hitting: May has been a strong month for the Red Sox, but there is potentially still more to come. J.D. Martinez has just four home runs this season, all off left-handed pitchers. They will also be hoping that Michael Chavis can stay hot, as he has six home runs and 12 walks in 61 plate appearances.

EXPECTATIONS

The Red Sox have battled their way back to a 17-18 record entering this series. They are now just five games behind the Rays and are showing the form that we came to expect from them last season. Against a terrible Orioles team they have a great chance to keep their foot on the accelerator.

The Orioles pitching ranks last in both ERA and batting average against this season. Therefore, the Red Sox can hopefully hit their way past having to use two inexperienced pitchers to open this series. All eyes will then turn to Chris Sale, who has given up just four earned runs in his last three starts. There is a great opportunity here to get out of Camden Yards with another three wins.

Red Sox Break Franchise Record For Wins In A Season

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Move over Tris Speaker and Smokey Joe Wood, there’s a new Sox sheriff in town.

Boston won its 106th game Monday night, defeating the hapless Orioles 6-2 at Fenway Park. With the win, the 2018 Sox have now won more regular season games than any other team in the franchise’s history. That’s a pretty incredible feat, considering the Red Sox have been around for 118 seasons.

As if breaking a century-plus old record wasn’t enough, the Red Sox also clinched the best record in baseball. Home field advantage: actually good.

Mookie Betts: Award Tour

As has been the case for nearly all of 2018, Boston’s victory was spearheaded by the AL MVP favorite. Betts was electrifying once again, going 2-5 with a 2-run homer and a stolen base.

The dinger was an absolute rocket, and capped off a four-run 2nd inning for the Sox. Orioles starter Dylan Bundy hung a 1-0 breaking ball over the dead-center of the plate, and Betts went windshield-hunting on the Mass Pike:

Getting taken deep is nothing new for Bundy; he’s allowed an MLB-worst 39 big flies this season. As for Betts, he’s certifiably on fire again. He has 10 hits in his last 20 ABs, with 3 HR and 8 doubles. He’s also only one steal away from a 30-30 season. Betts has all but locked up the MVP award with an absolutely stellar year. He leads the majors in batting average and bWAR, and has been the most consistently excellent all-around player in baseball. Betts’ 2018 season is also the best individual Red Sox season (per bWAR) since Pedro Martinez in 2000, and best by a position player since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967. In short, it’s been a historic year, on a historic team.

Eovaldi Makes His Case

The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported on Saturday that Nathan Eovaldi had a chance to supplant Eduardo Rodriguez in the playoff rotation. Eovaldi certainly made his case for the 4th spot on Monday night. He allowed only 1 run (while striking out 10 Orioles) over 5 innings of work.

Rodriguez made his first appearance out of the bullpen, as well. He followed up Eovaldi’s start with two shutout innings of his own.

Manager Alex Cora has said who starts Game 4 of the ALDS will be matchup dependent. At this point it makes sense that Eovaldi has closed the gap on Rodriguez. E-Rod has been inconsistent in four starts this month after missing half of July and all of August on the disabled list. He’s posted a 5.79 ERA in his September starts, mixing a pair of solid outings against sub-.500 teams with a pair of poor efforts vs. playoff-bound Houston and New York.

Of course, who is actually slated to start that game could be a moot point. Should the Red Sox sweep (or get swept), or fall into a 2-1 series deficit, we might not see a 4th starter in the ALDS, anyway. Still, it’s a key theme to keep an eye on over the final week of the season.

The Red Sox have made history, and checked all of the boxes that they’ve needed to check this season. They can effectively plan for the postseason, having secured their place at the top of Major League Baseball and as the best regular season Red Sox team in franchise history.

Time will tell whether or not this has any bearing in October, when the records are reset to 0-0 and chaos reigns supreme.

Boston Red Sox vs Baltimore Orioles Recap

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A four game series versus the Orioles will take place Thursday through Sunday. The Orioles are in last place in the AL East, and the Sox are tied for first place with the New York Yankees. This weekend will also mark the showdown of Mookie Betts and Manny Machado, the top two leaders in the home run race for the MLB. Dustin Pedroia, Austin Maddox, and Tyler Thornburg will all play in Rochester this weekend with minor league affiliate Pawtucket Red Sox. The Red Sox look to keep their lead and overrule the Yankees to be sole leader of the AL East. David Price will be up first on the mound Thursday night. Then Pomeranz, Porcello, and Rodriguez will follow.

Price vs. Gausman – a Full Game for Price

David Price had himself quite the night. He pitched nine innings in under 100 pitches, and came out with a win. Price struck out eight batters and let up only five hits. J.D. Martinez hit a two run homer in the first, and Xander Bogaerts hit a three run homer in the fifth, providing Price with plenty of run support. Showalter didn’t hesitate to wait for Bogaerts to finish rounding the bases before speed walking to take Gausman out. The Orioles skipper was so in the moment he did not even realize that Bogaerts hadn’t even made it home. Kevin Gausman pitched a little under five innings, letting up six runs and eight hits, striking out six and walking two. Boston won their second straight game after beating the Oakland Athletics 6-4 on Wednesday to avoid a three game sweep. Baltimore was 5-7 coming in.

“They’re a free-swinging team,” said Price, who threw just 95 pitches. “You can go out there and do that or you can go out there for three innings and give up a bunch of runs.”

”We just got into some sticky situations where we just had to dig ourselves out of a hole and we just couldn’t,” Susac said.

“He was amazing,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “He was outstanding. You saw it. Bad swings, up, down, in and out, change up, cutter, sinkers … that was fun to watch.”

Pomeranz vs. Cobb – Cobb Takes His First Win in an Orioles Jersey

The Orioles beat the Red Sox 7-4, ending Baltimore’s 13-game road losing streak. Cobb held the Red Sox to three runs and ten hits over six innings. It was Alex Cobb’s first game as an Orioles pitcher, he previously spent the past 11 seasons with the Tampa Bay Rays. Drew Pomeranz only lasted four innings, getting pulled after the Orioles scored four in the fourth. Pomeranz let up seven hits and walked three. He struck out a season-low of two. Mookie Betts doubled twice and hit his 14th homer this season. One day after Machado took the AL lead with his 14th homer, Betts tied him with his solo shot in the third and his three-hit night raised his American League leading batting average to .371.

 

“He’s a dangerous combination right now,” Cobb said of Betts. “Betts is just locked in. He’s where every ballplayer strives to get to.”

“I can’t remember the last time we won a game on a road,” said Machado after the Orioles win.

“It’s just pretty frustrating,” Pomeranz said. “You put so much time and effort into it and you want to throw a good game for your team, especially the way our offense is. Just trying to keep us in the game, and I didn’t do that tonight.”

Porcello vs. Bundy – Mookie Betts Is Still the Best in the MLB

Betts hit a two run homer before Andrew Benintendi followed with a homer of his own in the fifth inning, and the Red Sox beat the Orioles 6-3 on Saturday night. The rain was not enough to stop Mookie from having himself a night. Mookie is hitting a major-league best .368 with 15 homers and 32 RBI’s out of the lead off spot for the Sox. Rick Porcello gave up three runs over six innings, with nine strikeouts, and three walks. Alvarez’s two run homer got it to 4-3 in the sixth, but Benintendi’s single made it 6-3 in the seventh. Craig Kimbrel captured his 13th save of the season. Eduardo Rodriguez is set to start against his former team on Sunday.

“It’s incredible. It’s a lot of fun to watch. I don’t know what to say,” pitcher Rick Porcello said. “When he gets his pitch, he’s not missing it. When he doesn’t get his pitch, he’s not missing it.”

“He’s in a groove right now. But, it’s not like he’s hot-hot,” Benintendi said. “It feels like he can get hotter.”

Rodriguez vs. Hess – the Sox Take the Series Win over Orioles

Eduardo Rodriguez held the Orioles scoreless over almost six innings to earn the win. Rodriguez let up nine hits with no walks and seven strikeouts, improving his record to 4-1 and lowering his ERA to 4.13. J.D. Martinez recorded his eighth career multi-homer game and first with the Red Sox. He led off the second inning with a first-pitch homer to left then added a two-run shot in the fifth to tie Mookie Betts for the Major League lead in home runs with 15. Mitch Moreland doubled before Martinez hit his second homer of the day. His first came in the second inning. Andrew Benintendi hit his fifth home run of the season to bring both himself and another runner in to score. The Sox got the win 5-0 to end the series and this home stand.

Up Next

Second baseman Dustin Pedroia went zero for three in a rehab start for Triple-A Pawtucket on Saturday and he will play at some point in the next week.  Alex Cora said he’d like to see Pedroia play consecutive games before coming back to the majors. The Sox are 31-15 and hold first place in the AL East. The Red Sox will travel to Tampa Bay for a three game series versus the Rays, and then return home for a weekend series against the Atlanta Braves.

Sources

MLB

ESPN

NESN

Red Sox Twitter

Statcast

 

On This Day in Red Sox History: April 8, 1969

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On April 8, 1969, the Red Sox opened their season down at Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium. With the new season returned a beloved face to the Red Sox lineup, as Tony Conigliaro began his comeback from the beaning in August of 1967. With his return to a lineup already including Carl Yastrzemski, Reggie Smith, Rico Petrocelli and George Scott, there was plenty of optimism for the Sox.

Opening Matchup

The Red Sox would send Jim Lonborg to the mound for the opener. They hoped for a return to his 1967 form where Lonborg won the Cy Young Award. His 1968 season had been marred by injury and disappointment. He was opposed by the Orioles 1968 breakout star, Dave McNally. McNally had won 22 games the previous season while posting a minuscule 1.95 ERA and 0.84 WHIP. The Orioles lineup featured sluggers Frank Robinson and Boog Powell. They also had glove wizards Brooks Robinson, Mark Belanger and Paul Blair, who would win 32 Gold Gloves between them.

The Red Sox would lead off Reggie Smith, bat Carl Yastrzemski third, and in his return to the lineup, Tony Conigliaro batted fifth. Rico Petrocelli, who would break out that year with 40 home runs, an American League shortstop record at the time, batted seventh.

Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium

The Early Innings

The Red Sox didn’t take long to get on the board for the season. Carl Yastrzemski followed a Reggie Smith walk and Mike Andrews single with an RBI double. The Sox quickly squandered an opportunity for a big inning though. Hawk Harrelson popped out to the catcher, bringing up Tony Conigliaro for his first at-bat back, two men in scoring position. Conigliaro struck out. George Scott then popped out and the threat was over.

The Red Sox would add another run in the third, but again wasted a prime opportunity for more runs. A Hawk Harrelson single scored Yastrzemski to give the Red Sox a 2-0 lead. After back-to-back walks to Conigliaro and George Scott, the Red Sox had the bases loaded with one out. Earl Weaver pulled his ace for Dave Leonhard, and Leonhard got out of the jam with no more harm done.

After cruising through the first two innings, Lonborg allowed a home run to the light-hitting Mark Belanger. Belanger was a wizard in the field, but only hit 20 career home runs. Lonborg then departed the game after walking Don Buford with 2 outs. This was not a good sign for a pitcher who had missed time with injury the previous season. Lonborg wouldn’t pitch again for 17 days, after which he missed another month.

Bullpens Hold Serve

With both teams into their bullpens early, they actually traded zeroes for a while. Both teams were held scoreless in each of the next four innings to enter the eighth with the Red Sox ahead 2-1. Dave Leonhard had pitched 2.2 shutout innings for Baltimore. In the top of the eighth, Dick Hall set the Red Sox down 1-2-3 for his third consecutive shutout inning.

For the Red Sox, Lee Stange had been holding down the fort since Jim Lonborg was replaced. Going into his fifth inning of work though, the Orioles finally got to him for a run to tie the game. Stange ran into a bit more trouble in the bottom of the ninth, but Sparky Lyle came on to induce an inning ending double play and send the game to extras.

Lee Stange allowed just 1 run over 5.2 innings of relief.

Extra Innings

With the game headed to extra frames, Tony Conigliaro had the chance to be an extra-inning hero in his return. He came up against Pete Richert with a man on base thanks to an error to begin the 10th. The local boy and fan favorite did not miss this opportunity.

Conigliaro’s home run in his remarkable return put the Red Sox ahead by two in the tenth. However, the Orioles were not ready to admit defeat.

Red Sox left-handed relief ace Sparky Lyle had gotten the Red Sox out of trouble in the ninth, but he ran into his own problems in the tenth. With two outs, he faced Frank Robinson with a man on thanks to a Don Buford walk. Frank Robinson was coming off a down year and was hitless on the day, but this was a man who had 418 career home runs to that point in his career. Robinson took Lyle deep to left-center and out of the stadium to tie the game, ruining the chance for Conigliaro to have a game-winning home run in his return.

Conigliaro the Hero in His Return

After trading zeroes in the 11th, Tony Conigliaro was the leadoff batter in the 12th for the Red Sox. He worked a walk to get his way on base. George Scott followed with a single and Rico Petrocelli drew another walk to load the bases. With a man out, the Red Sox sent up Dalton Jones to pinch-hit for the pitcher. Jones hit a fly ball to right deep enough for Conigliaro to tag and score the go-ahead run.

With the 5-4 lead, the Red Sox sent Juan Pizarro to the mound to try and close out the victory. He had to face Frank Robinson with another chance to tie it, but got him to fly out. He set the Orioles down in order to preserve the Red Sox 5-4 victory. Tony Conigliaro was the hero in his return, reaching base four times, hitting a 2-run home run in the 10th and scoring the game-winning run in the 12th.

Tony Conigliaro Joe Lahoud, Russ Gibson and Ed Popowski of the Boston Red Sox leave the field following their defeat of the Baltimore Orioles on Apr. 8, 1969 (Photo by Frank O’Brien/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

 

Featured image from the Lowell Sun.

Panic At the Citgo

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2016/ 2017 parallel collapse?

In 2016 the Red Sox were one of the best teams in baseball down the stretch. From August 31st- September 25th, they put together an impressive stretch of winning going 19-5. Amidst this stretch was an 11-game win streak in which all the wins came against division rivals. However, the Sox fell off at the absolute worst time possible. They barely stumbled through the finish line, losing five of their last six, and had a hot date in the ALDS vs the Indians who won 10 of their last 15 games. The Sox were promptly swept by the Indians in three ugly games.

Image result for red sox 2016 alds

 

Well, here we are again. The Sox put together a terrific end to the season, going 18-9 from August 28th- September 24th. Unfortunately, the Red Sox have seem to lost all momentum in the first two games of the Blue Jays series. Boston has dropped back to back games 6-4 and 9-4. “…So what? they lost two games, what is the big deal?”  Typically a short two-game skid is nothing to sweat over, but these two losses have been particularly concerning. Boston has been outscored by last- place Toronto 15-8 despite throwing their best pitching options (Sale and Pomeranz). Sale surrendered five earned runs, eight hits and four home runs in just five innings of work. Pomeranz was no better as he lasted just two innings while giving up five earned runs and seven hits. Certainly not what #RedSoxNation wants to see from their aces heading into the playoffs. It feels as though one can sense the fear lingering in Boston as fans are afraid this may be the beginning of a collapse similar to last year.

Panic Time?

No. It is too early to panic. It would be panic time if we were battling for a wildcard spot and our playoff hopes were in jeopardy. Fortunately, we still hold a three- game lead over the Yankees in the AL East. While it is possible that New York catches us, it is very unlikely. Three games is an enormous amount of ground to cover with just five games remaining on the season. Also, the Sox have responded very well to slumps this year.

Thinking back on the season, two significant slumps come to mind. The first was a stretch lasting from July 5th-July 30th in which Boston lost 14 of 22 games. They bounced back from this rough stretch in a dramatic way, winning 16 of their next 20 games. Then, In late August, Boston lost four straight, one game against Cleveland and a three-game sweep delivered by Baltimore. During this four game skid, the Red Sox were outscored 36-10. This was a tremendously concerning time. Yet again, the team responded positively to the situation, winning 18 of the next 25 games. *This hot stretch actually brought them to the start of the current series vs the Blue Jays* So yes, it has been a very ugly two games for Boston, but lets not overreact. This team has bounced back from slumps multiple times this season, and we can certainly do it again. As I close out this article, Bogaerts just hit a three-run home run to blow the game wide open. Big sigh of relief for Red Sox Nation. Prepare yourself, October.  Here come the Sox.

 

Image result for Xander bogaerts home run vs blue jays

*Follow me on twitter @MLBfromNH (Kevin Civiello)* *Stats up to date as of 9/27/17*P

American League Wild Card Race (Part 2 of 2)

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AL Wild Card Race Heats Up as September Commences

Let’s look at the AL wild card playoff race (as of 9/4/17). In the previous part of this article I broke down the current situation for the Yankees, Twins, Angels and Mariners. In Part 2,  I’ll analyze Baltimore, Kansas City, Tampa Bay and Texas.

Wild Card Teams W L PCT WCGB WCE # L10 STRK
NY Yankees 73 63 .537 +2.0 – 5-5 W2
Minnesota 71 65 .522 – – 6-4 L1
Baltimore 70 67 .511 1.5 25 8-2 W1
LA Angels 70 67 .511 1.5 25 5-5 L1
Seattle 69 68 .504 2.5 24 5-5 W3
Texas 68 68 .500 3.0 24 5-5 W1
Kansas City 67 68 .496 3.5 24 3-7 W1
Tampa Bay 68 70 .493 4.0 22 6-4 L2

Baltimore Orioles (70-67, 1.5 GB)

It has been a season of streaks for the Orioles. At various points, it has seemed nearly impossible for the Orioles to win. At other times, it has been seemingly impossible to contain their offense. A little consistency could go a long way for Baltimore. But they just can’t seem to find any.

Their struggles have stemmed from horrendous starting pitching. As a team, Baltimore owns a 4.81 ERA which ranks 14th in the AL. Dylan Bundy is the only Oriole starter with an ERA under 4. He owns a 3.94 ERA, certainly respectable, but also modest for an ace. Aside from Bundy, the O’s rotation has been brutal. Kevin Gausman and Wade Miley both have ERA’s close to 5 (4.79 and 4.91). They both rank in the bottom 10 in the category among qualifiers. Even worse, Ubaldo Jiminez has an ERA of 6.85 and former ace Chris Tillman’s ERA stands at 7.85.

Luckily for the Orioles, they have one of the most intimidating offensive lineups in the league. They are the only team in the MLB that has six players with at least 20 home runs. Jonathan Schoop has had a breakout season and has carried the load, batting .309 (6th in AL) with 30 homers (10th in AL) and 101 RBI (2nd in AL). The Orioles struggled mightily in May, June and July with a combined record of 36-46. However since the start of August they are 19-13, winning eight of their last 10.

Their recent success has come from monstrous second halves by aforementioned Jonathan Schoop as well as young superstar Manny Machado. The starting pitching has also improved lately.  But pitching has to improve if the Orioles want to become a legitimate contender. In order for the O’s to make a serious playoff run, their offense will have to remain red hot and carry their atrocious pitching staff. Also, Chris Tillman and Ubaldo Jimenez, as veteran pitchers, must step up for their team if they want to play in October.

Texas Rangers (68-68, 3 GB)

The Texas Rangers represent the epitome of a team that lives and dies by the home run. Thus far this strategy has been mildly successful as they sit at .500 on the season. Oddly, the Rangers rank 11th in the AL in batting average (.247) but still have scored the third highest number of runs (693). The plethora of runs scored this season stems from their tremendous power. Texas leads the AL in home runs with 212.

Three players on the Rangers standout as typical sluggers who hit for low average but provide power to help their team. They are Rougned Odor (.211, 27 HR), Mike Napoli ( .194, 28 HR) and Joey Gallo (.211, 37 HR). Elvis Andrus has had a breakout offensive season, batting .301 with 18 homers. Also, Adrian Beltre is still producing in his 20th MLB season but has recently found himself back on the DL.

Mediocre starting pitching holds back the Rangers from becoming a legitimate contender. Cole Hamels has been decent but not as effective as in the past. Andrew Cashner has been the bright spot of their pitching staff with a 3.30 ERA. Nick Martinez, AJ Griffin and Martin Perez are all having poor seasons. If Cole Hamels can pitch to his potential, then I like the Rangers’ odds of snatching one of the wild card spots.

Kansas City Royals (67-68, 3.5 GB)

The Royals had a brutal start to the season,  ending April with a record of 7-16. While their pitching was not so bad their offense was terrible. However, the Royals did manage to turn it around. They were actually one of the best teams in baseball from May to July posting a W/L of 48-33 in that span.

It looked like they would battle with the Indians and Twins for the AL Central, crown but the Indians have pulled away and the Royals have fallen off. Kansas City owns a record of 12-19 since the beginning of August, losing seven 7 of their last 10. Kansas City now sits one game under .500, barely staying alive in the playoff picture.

Mike Moustakas, with a .277 average and 36 home runs and Eric Hosmer, with a .318 average and 23 home runs have tried to carry the load offensively.  But it just has not been quite enough, as the Royals rank 14th in runs scored in the AL with 581. The main reason for the Royals second-half struggles has been the disappearance of Jason Vargas. Vargas was an AL Cy Young contender in the first half with a ERA of 2.62. But after this dominant first half, Vargas has fallen off brutally in the second half with an ERA since the All Star Break of 6.80.

Without Vargas pitching the way he did early in the season, I do not think that the Royals have a shot at claiming a wild card spot. Kansas City does not have a playoff-worthy offense or pitching staff, yet I can’t count them out yet because of their roster, full of experienced veterans who have playoff and late-season experience.

Tampa Bay Rays (68-70, 4 GB)

At this point, I do not think the Rays have any shot at making the playoffs. Sure, they are only four games out, but their offense has been wildly inconsistent all year. Tampa Bay hits a decent amount of home runs (fifth most in AL with 195) but they don’t score runs at a high rate, ranking 12th in the AL with 594. The Rays do rank towards the top of the AL in ERA at 4.03, but they seem to always have an injured pitcher on the DL. They only have three pitchers who have started more than 20 games (Odorizzi, Archer and Cobb). I don’t count them out yet, but I don’t think this team has a legitimate chance at making the playoffs due to their sub par offense and often-injured pitching staff.

*All statistics as of 9/4/17*