Baseball at the Halfway Pole

The Mid-Summer Classic, the MLB All-Star Game, traditionally marks the halfway pole of the long season along with Independence Day. With the season now past the midway point, one can draw sure conclusions about which teams will continue to thrive and be playing for the championshhip in the postseason.

In the American League, it would appear the four postseason participants are already likely in place: Boston, Detroit, Anaheim, and Cleveland. But Minnesota, Seattle, Oakland, and maybe even New York will make a run to be able to participate but should come up short.

In the AL East, the Redsox have had a double digit lead for weeks now and a solid pitching staff anchored by Beckett, a bullpen led by Pappelbon, and a steady starting lineup including Ortiz, Youklis, Pedroia, Ramirez, Varitek, and Lowell have Boston poised to win their first division title in over 15 years. The disappointing Yankees have been beset by injuries and evident underachievement throughout their roster and have yet to show any real stretch of consistency thus far. It appears NY will miss the postseason for the first time since '93. Toronto has been wracked with injuries as Halladay and Ryan most notably have been injured. Baltimore is a big disappointment as the inept Angelos ownership continues to bungle and err with this club that had a lot of tradition before he took over. Things are so bad the manager has already been dumped and an interim field boss is still running the show weeks later. Brian Roberts is the only Oriole having a good year. Tampa Bay has a young and exciting everyday lineup, but their pitching is just plain horrendous as they are on pace to give up over 1000 runs and their defense is uncomparably woeful.

In the AL Central, Detroit and Cleveland have been staging a good pennant race between them so far as both teams sport solid offenses and pitching staffs. The Tigers with all their sparking young pitching and solid everyday players like Monroe, Granderson, Guillen, Ordonez, Sheffeild, and Polanco seem to have a slight edge over the Indians which will carry the Motor City Kitties to the division title, relegating the Tribe to the wild card slot. Minnesota is a good team but clearly is a step back with their pitching but their offense is potent enough to be able to carry the Twins to perhaps as many as 88 wins but no postseason bid this season. Chicago has all but collapsed in less than a year and a half after winning it all, and their pitching is near the bottom of the league with a sputtering offense. They will probably finish last in the division as they will be unable to hold off the steadily improving Kansas City Royals, whom have made strides this season and resemble the Brewers of two-three years ago. KC may be a Milwaukee or Detroit in the making and be a contender next year or '09.

Out in the AL West, the league's best club, Anaheim, are headed for a division title and a slot in the ALCS. The Angels are solid throughout their roster and have the look of a potential champion. Seattle may keep things interesting but they lack the depth, experience, and talent to win the division. The Mariners should win around 86 games. Oakland has been crippled by injuries and has struggled to stay above .500 but this club has a history of playing superbly in the second half so they cannot be written off. The A's may challenge the Angels yet. Texas, on the other hand, is DOA and is certain to finish last with probably the worst record in the league.

The National League picture is not as clear, but there are some favorites that have positioned themselves well so far and some contenders who may have enough to overcome them and be surprise participants in the postseason.

The NL East should be won by New York, but the Mets are inconsistent and their pitching leaves a lot to be desired. These shortcomings may be enough for young Atlanta and veteran Philadelphia to have a good chance to overcome the Mets, but the Braves and Phillies both have pitching woes and noticeable holes in their lineups that will be a challenge in of themselves to overcome. Florida is competitive but does not have enough to overcome all these other three teams. Washington has played better than expected but the Nationals are still going to lose over 90 games and finish last.

In the NL Central, Milwaukee has strived as I expected, but needs to demonstrate greater consistency particularly in road games. The Brewers should win the division and hold off the Cubs and Cardinals who both will make a run at Milwaukee but come up short. Chicago has noticeable holes in their offense and their pitching leaves a lot to be desired. St Louis has basically been a one man team as Pujols is the only Cardinal playing well and with any consistency. The Cardinals' pitching will inevitably be their undoing. Young Pittsburgh is improved and could finish .500 but a 15th straight losing season is more likely. Houston has a lot of holes and will have their worst season after a good run of competitiveness. Cincinnati is the worst team in the National League and will finish last with over 95 losses. There are some rumors that St Louis GM Walt Jocketty and Mgr Tony LaRussa and their staffs are going to be headed to head the Reds after this season which would be a tremendous development for the fans of this traditional organization who have seem many struggles in recent seasons.

The NL West promises to have a barnburner of a race down the stretch involving three, perhaps even four teams. San Diego has baseball's best pitching by far and that should be enough to carry the Padres to the division title in spite of their offensive shortcomings. The Dodgers have good solid pitching, but their offense is lacking and they have an atrocious defense but may yet take the wild card. Young Arizona has surprisingly stayed at or near the top of the division race all season and may have enough yet to win. Even younger Colorado got off to a poor start but has come back strongly to be on the edge of the race and continued solid performances by this team's players will have the Rockies in the race into September although their pitching is still a step back of SD and LA. San Francisco is hosting this week's All-Star Game and, with one other exception, will have little else to cheer for and get excited about for this season as the Giants are headed for a last place finish and around 90 losses. There is, however, that little record being pursued by Barry Bonds that will keep the crowds coming and the fans engaged in the Bay Area and elsewhere as he is but 5 home runs away from surpassing Aaron and his record of 755. Look for the record to fall in the last week or so of August as Bonds is showing his age (43) this season in spite of being in good health and 775 and probably 765 are out of the question for this aging controversial slugger.

We have already seen some tremendous milestone accomplishments achieved this season with Trevor Hoffman getting his 500th save; Roger Clemens getting his 350th win; Greg Maddox getting his 340th win; Craig Biggio collecting his 3000th hit on the way to a five-hit night; Ken Griffey Jr moving to 6th on the all time HR list behind Aaron, Bonds, Ruth, Mays, and Sammy Sosa, who hit his 600 career HR; and Frank Thomas hitting his 500th home run. Tom Glavine will win his 300th game in the coming weeks and if Randy Johnson gets healthy he will get his 290th win. Alex Rodriguez will hit his 500th HR before July ends.

I will go with NY, MLW, SD, & LA as the NL postseason participants, but cannot rule out PHIL, ATL, CHIC, STL, ARIZ, and COLO surprising and sneaking in.

As Usual, The Answer for the Future is Found in the Past

The United States and its citizens face tremendous challenges in the coming years, and I am talking about in the next 5-10 years. Whether or not we are up for these challenges remains to be seen, but a blueprint for possible success in circumstances that were considered to be as dire and threatening was successfully executed not too long, during World War II in the late 1930's and early to mid 1940's by people who were of the same age as our grandparents and parents in some cases. Following this course and plan in a similar way may be the only road to survival for us, and particularly for the children of today.

http://www.alternet.org/environment/55925/


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