2020 AL simulation: The surprising Cleveland Indians
By Bill Felber
AL East: The streaking Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox ran off 14 consecutive victories just prior to the All-Star break to jump from third place to their present four and one-half game advantage. Boston is led by Xavier Bogaerts, the American League’s leading hitter at .367. Bogaerts also leads in on base average (.436).
Bogaerts and Rafael Devers share the team lead in home runs (28), and Devers is setting the team pace in RBIs with 82.
Collin McHugh, signed in March as a free agent, has been a pitching find. McHugh is 12-4 with a 3.07 ERA in 19 starts.
The New York Yankees have remained in the race through a first half filled with injuries to key players including Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Gary Sanchez. That’s one reason why Gerrit Cole, the high-cost free agent, is only 7-8 despite a 3.24 ERA and 152 strikeouts in 125 innings.
Despite Cole, New York’s pitching has at best been average. The team ERA is 4.50, 10th in the AL.
The Toronto Blue Jays’ drive to contention has been powered by the development of Vlad Guerrero Jr. He’s batting .307 at the break, although the power numbers – six home runs and 33 RBIs – aren’t there. Lourdes Gurriel and Randall Grichuk have stepped up; Gurriel has 22 home runs, and Grichuk has driven in 73 runs.
One game below .500, the Tampa Bay Rays are on the fringes of both the division and wild card races. They’re six and one-half games behind the Red Sox in the AL East, and four and one-half behind Oakland in the wild card battle.
The Baltimore Orioles, entrenched in player development mode, only hope to avoid a 100-loss season.
W-L Pct GB
Boston Red Sox 54-42 .563 —
New York Yankees 50-47 .515 4.5
Toronto Blue Jays 50-47 .515 4.5
Tampa Bay Rays 48-49 .495 6.5
Baltimore Orioles 37-62 .374 18.5