While the All-Stars invade Chase Field for the Home Run Derby and All- Star game the next two days, we can’t help but think where did the first half of the season go? With a season that seemed to have started ages ago, lets look back on a very interesting beginning to the 2011 season.
Where to begin? How about the surprising surge of the Baltimore Orioles early on in the season while their counterparts the Red Sox and Rays faltered and were just trying to keep their heads above water. The Orioles started out exactly how they ended the 2010 season, hotter than a day in Sunny California. However, all good things must come to an end and they quickly saw a demise back to the back of the AL East, only to be surpassed by a season favorite Boston Red Sox and their foes the Tampa Bay Rays. The AL East has surely shown some fireworks too beyond just the Orioles great run, including the Sox and Rays battle back to the top after starting out 2-8, Jeter just hitting, hit number 3,000, Jose Bautista eclipsing 30 HR’s pre-all star game, and much more. Needless to say, for this division it has been nothing short of a battle but each team has something that they can reflect some success on! With roughly nine players representing the division in the All-Star game it goes to show how tough this division really is.
Anyone remember back in April when Kansas City and the Indians were at the top of the AL Central? Yes, that was this season, but only one team has survived the test of time and that is the Indians. They came out battling like no other and for the longest time had the best record not only in the AL but in all of the Major Leagues. To date the Indians are still playoff contenders being only a half game behind those pesky Tigers who have seen some great success as well this year. Not only do they own one of only two no-hitters this year but they also own five all-star spots. What has happened to the White Sox though? It has been a quiet year out of them so far but once this long break ends their bats and arms may light up. Then there is the Minnesota Twins who are in their second year at Target Field. My favorite to win the division pre-season well has struggled. If I remember correctly they were nearly ten games out at one point, but with the only other no-hitter coming from the arm of Francisco Liriano their still seems to be some life in this almost lifeless team.
While having a cinderella year last season, the Rangers are fighting valiantly to hold on to their first place lead. In a division where it has been very quiet, the LA Angels are looking to make some noise. The Rangers Organization is still mourning over the recent death of a fan, but in his honor the Rangers are still fighting on to honor the fallen hero and firefighter. While the entire division looks to make the media and get some news coverage, Ron Washington looks to try and bring the AL their first All-Star win in two years.
As the AL looks to bring back and All-Star win, the National League looks to show them why they lost last year. Looking at the NL East, it is not surprise to see those Philly Phanatics to be jumping up and down with great pleasure. They are setting in first place with the biggest lead at 3.5 games ahead of the Resurgent Atlanta Braves. With Bobby Cox retired, the Braves have still found renewing power and are providing the Phillies with a fight but with the pitching core of Cliff Lee, Roy Halladay, and Cole Hamels it is hard to slow them down. While a little over half of the season is over it looks to be a two team race to the finish as the Mets, Marlins, and Nationals just can’t keep up. Those three teams have had their ups and downs, but Jose Reyes is the best hitter in the game right now, Jack McKeon is making a splash in Florida, and Tyler Clippard is showing why the Nationals will someday be contenders especially when Strasburg returns.
Skipping to the NL West, this is the most unpredictable division ever. Last year you have the Padres and Rockies come out of nowhere only to have the Giants sweep in and steal the show and win it all. It is full of very good teams that no one knows what will happen next. For instance the Arizona Diamondbacks were at one point on a 15-2 trek! That is outstanding baseball! Then you have the Giants who start the season battling really hard with the Rockies and Dodgers only to see both of them just fall. The Dodgers, faltering may come from a number of things but we all know what they are and it doesn’t t need to be discussed anymore. Then the Padres who had and exciting run last year are just trying to make something of this season.
On to the NL Central which I always like to save for last because I’m a Reds fan through and through and this is the division I follow the most. With the All-Star break here it seems we have many surprising stories in this division. The biggest of these comes with the Pirates being one game out of first place! Yes, you read right the Pittsburgh Pirates are over .500 and are one game behind the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers for first place. The second big story out of the NL Central is the fact that the Cardinals have lost Adam Wainwright to Tommy John Surgery and he won’t be back until next season, however, they are still fighting ( even with Pujols not resigned yet). It comes without saying this is the tightest division in all of baseball right now. you have three teams in a one game view of first place and four teams within four games of first place.What is more is that three different scenarios starting this past Thursday could have had all four of these teams tied for first place going into the break and as we all witnessed that isn’t the case. That being said while the Pirates are within distance of first place it should be noted that the Reds have held first place as well this season and look to regain composure and have a fight to the finish. Also, to those Cubs and Astros fans that may read this don’t give up hope! They both have had rough years and just as I’m not giving up for some decisions in the Reds Clubhouse you shouldn’t give up on them because they are both really tough and really are rebuilding to explode out onto the scene in the next couple years. If the Pirates can turn things around after such a long drought of sub-par baseball the Cubs and Astros can turn it around too. They play in the biggest division in all of baseball and it is going to be a rough road for all of them but keep your heads up.
Well I hope with a bit of a recap from the first half of the season, everyone is ready for the second half to take off on Thursday/ Friday. Good Luck to all of your teams and oh yeah I must say it GO REDS AND NATIONAL LEAGUE!
MoodyBaseball89 