Creative Commons: Erik Drost
Four teams are at .500 or better.
Last season, like this season, the White Sox stunk. However, last season some Sox diehards clung to hope that the Sox could do something in the AL Central because the division was so bad. This season the Sox are already toast because while they are indeed still bad, the rest of the teams in the division are better.
Here’s a brief thumbnail of each team in the AL Central:
Cleveland Guardians:
The Guardians currently lead the division by .5 games over the Twins. Generally speaking, the Guardians have a reputation of relying on pitching and defense while also being fundamentally sound. Well, this year only three AL teams have scored more runs than the Guardians. First baseman, Josh Naylor, is having a career season with 11 home runs and an OPS of .919. Naylor forms part of a potent three-prong attack that also includes LF Steven Kwan and third baseman, Jose Ramirez. For a change, the offense might have to carry the pitching with the season ending injury to Shane Bieber. The Guardians could us a little help before the trade deadline.
Minnesota Twins:
The Twins are playing .600 ball with a record of 24-16. The Twins have coupled a nice offense with a mediocre defense to get off to a nice start. Catcher/DH Ryan Jeffers is leading the way with an OPS of .988 to go with nine home runs and 30 RBIs. I doubt that’s sustainable. On the plus side, shortstop Carlos Correa has an OPS of .804 which is more in line with his career numbers than last season’s .711. Joe Ryan, Pablo Lopez and Bailey Ober have done a good job as the top three of the Twins’ rotation. They actually have been sneaky good. Currently, the Twins are given an 89.9% chance to make the playoffs and a 7.7% chance to win the World Series. Both of those numbers seem a bit high top me.
Kansas City Royals:
The Royals good start has been propelled by three players, Salvador Perez, Bobby Witt Jr. and Seth Lugo. Free agent signee, Lugo has been a revelation this season. He has a record of 6-1 with an ERA of 1.66. He’s been good and underrated in the past. His career ERA is 3.34. There will probably be some regression, but Lugo was just an excellent free agent signing. As for Perez, he’s having a great year at the age of 34. Of course, it’s easy to forget he led the AL in home runs with 48 at the age 31. At first, I thought this season was a fluke for Perez, but in looking at his past performance it’s not as much of an outlier as I thought. As for Witt, as of now, he has a WAR of 2.9. I had to double check that. The dude is that good. Royals’ fans should be in for an interesting year.
The AL Central Roars
Detroit Tigers:
The Tigers picked up a great play by play guy in Jason Benetti. While that might not help the on field play of the Tigers, it should make Tigers’ game more enjoyable for fans. The Tigers record currently stands at 20-20. The Tigers are a pitcher driven team with a weak offense. Shortstop Javier Baez is one of the worst free agent signings in recent memory. He has only one home run to go with a batting average of .172 with an OPS of .441. Outfielders Kerry Carpenter and Riley Greene each have an OPS over .800, but really need some help. First baseman, Spencer Torkelson has shown some power potential but as of now, has only one home run. Meanwhile, staff ace, Tarik Skubal, has been fantastic, compiling a record of 5-0 and an ERA of 2.02. Keep in mind, the Tigers have feasted on the early season ineptitude of the White Sox.
White Sox:
The Sox lack both talent and leadership but have recently shown a spasm of life. The Sox have tried to establish an identity of a pitching and defensively oriented team. Recently, they’ve given their fans a glimpse of what that might look like. Garrett Crochet, Erick Fedde, Chris Flexen and Mike Clevinger form the basis of a semi-decent rotation, with more help in AA. Paul DeJong leads the team with six home runs and at some point, Luis Robert Jr. should return and make the offense a bit better. The Sox have gone from an historically bad team to just a bad team.
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