American League – first half grades and awards
With it being the All-Star break, what better time to write a first half report? Some teams have been truly awful, while some teams, and indeed players, have surprised us beyond belief. So, here’s my grades and awards for the first half of the season.
MVP – Josh Hamilton : The Texas outfielder leads the American League in home runs and RBIs, while he’s batting a healthy .308. He is by no means way ahead of the pack in this pick but the fact that his Rangers are a game behind to the Yankees for the A.L lead at the All-Star break gives him the edge over the likes of Miggy Cabrera, Austin Jackson and David Ortiz who are all having impressive seasons on sub-par teams.
Cy Young – Jered Weaver : Again, it would be unfair to the likes of Justin Verlander and Chris Sale to suggest the Weaver is a clear-cut choice, but his second in the league in wins (10) and is the only A.L pitcher with a sub 2.00 ERA (1.96). Had some time off with injury, but that hasn’t affected his stuff at all. Has thrown a no-hitter this season too.
Rookie of the Year – Mike Trout : There really is only one option here. He didn’t particularly shine last year in 40 games (which is few enough games to still qualify him as a rookie this year) hitting just .220. At the All-Star break, Trout leads the A.L with a .341 batting average and has displayed plenty of power too, with 12 home runs. Called up to the All-Star game.
Comeback Player of the Year – Jake Peavy : Well, without wanting to brag too much, I called this one before the season. It’s a close call with White Sox teammate Adam Dunn, but the return of Peavy has arguably been more spectacular. He ranks sixth with a 2.85 ERA, having recorded 4.63 and 4.92 ERAs in the last two injury curtailed seasons.
And now for the team grades….
Baltimore Orioles – A : Despite slumping somewhat leading up to the All-Star break, it’s fair to say that the Orioles have been the major surprise in the A.L this season. In a very competitive A.L East, they find themselves with a 45-40 record and in second place despite suffering key injuries to key players. So many, in fact, that only four players have played in 75 or more games. They aren’t scoring a barrel load of runs, but consistently strong pitching performances from the likes of Chen and Hammel, along with a lights out bullpen, is keeping them in games. Cause for concern, however, is that since 18th June they are 6-14.
Boston Red Sox – D : They are just about floating around .500, they’ve traded away a cornerstone of the franchise in Kevin Youkilis and the players and media don’t seem to like Bobby V too much. All in all, a very unsatisfactory first half of the season. Positives are the continued age defying dominance of David Ortiz and the emergence of Will Middlebrooks, but no regular starter has a sub 4.40 ERA, while major bullpen signings Aceves and Melancon have been far from stellar. They have the talent to turn it around, but with mediocre pitching in such a competitive division, it wouldn’t be too far a stretch to say they may finish the season as cellar dwellers.
Chicago White Sox – B+ : The White Sox have greatly impressed, but perhaps not as unexpectedly so as the Orioles. Both Adam Dunn and Jake Peavy are partying like it’s 2006, which is a major factor behind the White Sox leading the division at the All-Star break. Chris Sale has also dominated in his transition from reliever to starter (unlike Daniel Bard in Boston). They have the sixth ranked defence and seventh ranked offence, suggesting that both aspects of their roster are in decent nick. Health has been a massive factor too, with seven players practically being written in the line-up every day.
Cleveland Indians – B : They are proving that last season was no fluke, but even so, one almost doesn’t expect the Indians to be this good. Their starting pitching has let them down greatly, with Justin Masterton being the best of a very mediocre bunch with a 4.40 ERA. The bullpen has performed fairly well, although should either Chris Perez, Vinnie Pestano or Joe Smith suffer a serious injury it could derail any post-season hopes. Choo is back to his best, while the middle infield pair of Cabrera and Kipnis lead the way with eleven homers each.
Detroit Tigers – C : To say that the Tigers have been a disappointment would be a massive understatement. At the break, they sit in third place having just crept above .500 for the first time in weeks thanks to a five game win streak. Take Justin Verlander out of the equation and the starters are combining for a 4.81 ERA. While, offensively, take Fielder and Cabrera out of the equation and the runs aren’t exactly flowing. The two sluggers have driven in nearly 40% of the teams runs. That being said, Austin Jackson is having a mammoth season from the lead-off spot. If they can get their pitching up to scratch, they will still win the division, but at the halfway point they have been far from impressive.
Kansas City Royals – C- : The only reason they have a better grade than the Tigers, despite being fully six games behind them is that, well, we all kind of expect the Royals to be poor. At the break, the Royals are coming off a 2-8 run and are ten games under .500. As always, too many things haven’t worked out despite cautious optimism prior to the season. They rank 12th in runs scored, despite being 5th in batting average, and 11th in ERA. Not a great combination of statistics. Billy Butler is having a decent season, while the injury to Salvador Perez was crucial. Pitching wise, Mijares and Broxton have been solid in the bullpen, while Paulino holds a 1.67 ERA in seven starts but injury has cost him. The fact that they have already used 22 pitchers says all you need to know about both health and performances.
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim – B : They haven’t been the force we expected, but they haven’t exactly been poor either, possibly helped by being in a division with Oakland and Seattle. At the break they are 48-38. Pujols took an age to get going, but outfielders Trout and Trumbo are on another planet right now. The young duo have combined for 34 HRs, 97 RBIs and a .322 AVG. Those two aside, the offense has been largely respectable but not potent. Pitching wise, however, they have been outstanding. The Angels have the second best ERA in the A.L. Downs, Hawkins and Frieri have given up four earned runs in 76.1 innings (0.47 ERA). Talk about a solid bullpen.
Minnesota Twins – C- : Offensively they have been decent enough. Mauer is back to being an All-Star, free agent signing Josh Willingham is tearing it up and Trevor Plouffe is hitting a home run every 12 at-bats. Pitching wise, however, the team has been woeful. They are improving, but still are some way behind the rest of the pack. Liriano is the only projected starter prior to the season who is currently in the rotation, and even then, he got relegated to the bullpen for a spell. While Diamond and DeVries have gone 9-4 (2.61 ERA) in 17 starts, the rest have combined for a woeful 6.63 ERA.
New York Yankees – A : It feels that they’ve not quite gotten to Yankee standards yet, but they still lead their division and are 19 games above .500, so they must be doing something right. Brett Gardner and Mariano Rivera apart, they have stayed relatively healthy and that has clearly helped. They actually rank third in the East in runs scored (fourth A.L.) but the likes of Granderson, Cano and Swisher are having typical seasons. Pitching wise, there can be no real complaints. The bullpen has been outstanding with Soriano stepping up to replace Rivera, while the starters have been decent enough if not quite lights out. Should they remain injury free, they are only going to get better.
Oakland Atheltics – C: Right around where many people expected, sitting bang on .500 at the break. Young phenom Cespedes had a spell out injured but has generally been a success both on the field and in the box office. Josh Reddick, however, is the big story. In his first year as a starter, and in Oakland, he has hit 20 home runs in 83 games, having hit 10 in 143 in Boston. As has been the case for far too long, the A’s are ranked at or near the bottom of every offensive category. Their pitching staff, however, leads the A.L with a 3.38 ERA with Brandon McCarthy leading the way with a 2.54 ERA in a dozen starts.
Seattle Mariners – D : Like their division rivals, they are pretty much what we expected. Poor. They sit 15 games under .500 with a 36-51 record. The Mariners pitching, behind King Felix, Millwood and practically the entire bullpen has been solid, yet their offence has been anaemic. Even Ichiro is only batting .261, while everyday infielders Justin Smoak and Brendan Ryan are hitting .203 and .187 respectively.
Tampa Bay Rays – B- : To be honest, I expected a little bit more, but they haven’t been all that bad, merely inconsistent. They are half a game behind Baltimore with a 45-41 record, thanks mainly to their pitching staff. The main pieces in the bullpen have been outstanding, with Fernando Rodney already notching up 25 saves (along with a 0.93 ERA). Matt Moore has been a disappointment though, holding a 4.42 ERA in 17 starts. Offensively, they have been poor, though, ranked 12th in batting average and 9th in runs scored. Evan Longoria has played just 23 games.
Texas Rangers – A: The two time defending A.L. champs are exactly where we all thought they would be. Challenging at the top of the pile. Behind an offence ranked 1st in runs scored and batting average, and a pitching staff ranked 3rd in ERA, the Rangers should coast into the post-season. Joe Nathan has truly put his injury behind him and was awarded with an All-Star berth, while Adrian Beltre and Josh Hamilton have combined for 42 HRs and 129 RBIs while batting .326 and .308 respectively. Craig Gentry has been something of a surprise, hitting .329. Three-fifths of the rotation has remained injury free and are recording sub 3.60 ERAs.
Toronto Blue Jays – C: Playing .500, particularly in the tough A.L East is by no means poor, yet slightly more was expected of the Blue Jays, I feel. They have the 12th ranked pitching staff and the 10th ranked offence, so clearly all aspects of the team have been mediocre at best. Other than Brandon Morrow, no other starting pitcher has an ERA below 4.35, while Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion and Colby Rasmus are tearing it up (combined 67 HRs and 176 RBIs) the team is relying too much on the long ball and isn’t really creating runs. The bullpen has been largely disappointing too.