In 162 games, all baseball teams will identify the things that are going right and the things that are going wrong. Some teams have few to celebrate and some have few to complain about. The Detroit Tigers have shown that they are capable of making the World Series but in their division, there is at least one team giving them a reason to sweat. The Cleveland Indians are not far from taking the AL Central title from the favored Tigers. The Kansas City Royals are on a middle ground trying to make their offseason acquisition of James Shields work out. Meanwhile, the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins are marketing their players, looking to see what they can get to help them in the future. Here is the good and bad of the AL Central.
(Statistics as of games on July 13 via baseballreference.com)
AL Central
Chicago White Sox
Good
Chris Sale
The win-loss record disguises a great season by the young left-hander. How many other pitchers can throw a complete game with 14 strikeouts and no earned runs and still lose? This one can and against the Houston Astros too. The 24-year-old left-hander has received, on average, just fewer than three runs of support in his starts. The White Sox five-year, $32.5 million investment looks to be paying off and the offense needs to find a way to support their present and future ace.
Jesse Crain
The 31-year-old Crain has always been a quality arm but this year he is exceeding expectations. Entering this season, Crain had a career ERA of 3.22 and has been increasing his K/9 with each passing year. This year, he may be the best reliever in baseball. With a 0.74 ERA, Crain has allowed three earned runs in 36.2 innings this year and has not allowed a home run. His K/9 has maintained at 11.3 but he has cut his BB/9 from 4.3 to 2.7. Crain certainly deserves a spot at the midsummer classic.
Bad
Offense
With 345 runs this season, the Chicago White Sox have scored the least runs in the American League. Players like Gordon Beckham got hurt early and was only able to get 13 RBI in 44 games. Catcher Tyler Flowers is skating along the Mendoza line, hitting .205 with eight home runs and 22 RBI. The lack of runs is hurting the young left-hander Chris Sale who has a 6-8 record despite a 2.85 ERA.
Cleveland Indians
Good
Justin Masterson
With a league-best three shutouts, Justin Masterson is beginning to develop into a dependable ace of the Indians’ rotation. In all but two starts, Masterson has gone at least six innings and shows that he is a workhorse that will shoulder the majority of the game with the intent of giving his team the best chance to win.
Jason Kipnis
When you think of the best second basemen in the American League, Red Sox' Dustin Pedroia and Yankees’ Robinson Cano are the first to come to mind. However, Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis should now come into consideration. Who is second of American League second basemen in home runs? Jason Kipnis is with 13 home runs. Who is second of American League second basemen in RBI? Jason Kipnis is with 57 RBI. He is a first-time all-star this year but if I was a betting man, I wouldn’t bet against him making it to many more midsummer classics in his career.
Bad
Scott Kazmir
The feel good story of Scott Kazmir has run its course. He had some good starts, going seven innings and allowing just one run in three starts. But his ERA is still worst of the rotation at 4.60 and his record is just one over .500. He had a slight delay to his start of the season but this is a small downside to the Indians’ season as the expectations of the 29-year-old left hander could not have been very high.
Chris Perez
In 2010, Chris Perez may have been one of the best closers in the game. Slowly, that faded away. Now in 2013, Perez has a 3.16 ERA and has blown three saves. In all of last season, he blew four saves. For the Indians to keep up with the Tigers in the Central division, the once dominant bullpen must find it again with Perez leading the charge.
Detroit Tigers
Good
Miguel Cabrera
After getting the 2012 Triple Crown award with a .330 average, 44 home runs and 139 RBI, can you believe that Miguel Cabrera may actually be better?
Believe it.
The reigning AL Most Valuable Player is hitting .367 going into the All-Star break and he’s got 30 home runs (second in the league) and has brought in a league-best 95 RBI. The 30-year-old third baseman is making a good run to be a consecutive Triple Crown winner and with the way he has been playing, it’s hard to bet against him achieving it.
Max Scherzer
Entering the All-Star break with a 13-1 record and 152 strikeouts over 129.2 innings, this Tigers’ pitcher is arguably the best pitcher in the American League. By the way, his name is not Justin Verlander.
The 28-year-old Max Scherzer is tied for the league-lead in wins with 13. He started the season with 13 consecutive wins before suffering his first loss on his last start before the break. If he continues this pace, he will be in high consideration for the Cy Young award as he leads this Tigers’ pitching staff to possible historic strikeout numbers.
Bad
Bullpen/closer
The Tigers will be searching for a closer at the trade deadline. Bruce Rondon, a 22-year-old prospect was expected to be the closer. By the all-star break, Rondon has a 6.00 ERA and was unable to get any saves. So the Tigers turned to the closer they let go, Jose Valverde.
Jose Valverde will not be the Tigers’ closer for the foreseeable future. With a 5.59 ERA, the 35-year-old closer was demoted. In 12 opportunities, Valverde has blown three of them. While Drew Smyly (1.91) and Joaquin Benoit (1.64) have been solid bullpen arms, there are also pitchers like Phil Coke (5.83), Darin Downs (5.18) and Al Alburquerque (5.18) who have made finishing games a very stressful event. A potent offense and outstanding starting pitching can all disappear in one inning; a closer is valuable on a championship team.
Kansas City Royals
Good
Greg Holland
With an amazing 15.4 K/9, Greg Holland is having an outstanding season as the Royals closer. He struggled out of the gate (4.00 ERA in April) but is now sporting a 1.80 ERA with 21 saves. This fireball pitching closer is very important with the subpar offense. He anchors a bullpen that features other power arms like Tim Collins, Aaron Crow and Kelvin Herrera. All of these pitchers are 27 or younger and will be around for the present and likely the future. Success could be in the future of this closer if he continues to pitch like this.
Salvador Perez
Hitting a team-best .288, young Salvador Perez seems to have settled into the majors. He is rewarded with a spot on this year’s All-Star roster. With just four home runs, Perez is not a slugging catcher but he is an outstanding hitter. With runners in scoring position, Perez is hitting .371. At age 23, Salvador Perez clearly looks to be the man behind the plate for years to come.
Bad
Billy Butler
After hitting .313 with 29 home runs and 107 RBI, the Royals’ 27-year-old designated hitter is off to a slow start going into the All-Star break. Hitting a career-low .266, he is walking more (50 in 91 games, averages 61 a season) but his home run totals have dipped to just eight for the season while driving in 49. A designated hitter should be hitting so the Royals are hoping he picks up the pace and becomes the offensive threat that they have lovably named “Country Breakfast.”
Mike Moustakas
Manning the hot corner, 24-year-old Mike Moustakas continues to struggle. He has yet to live up to the hype that came with him and first baseman Eric Hosmer. Under the tutelage of new hitting coach George Brett, Hosmer has gotten things figured out. Hitting .218 with six home runs and 17 RBI, Moustakas still has not figured out how to reach his potential. The team around him is slowly finding their identity; if he wants to be a part of the future, he needs to start producing more in the present.
Minnesota Twins
Good
Joe Mauer
The Minnesota-born, Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer continues to be a consistent offensive force. With his .321 average, the 30-year-old catcher is third in the American League in batting. He’s still having a bit of a power drought in his home park (three of his eight home runs are at home) but he’s a dependable bat that always seems to get a good swing on the ball and will get on base. He can’t win games all by himself so hopefully the future has a strong team around him so he can be in the postseason again.
Glen Perkins
With a 1.82 ERA and 21 saves in 23 opportunities, Glen Perkins is establishing himself as a dependable closing option for the Twins. How long he stays with the Twins is another story. With the Twins likely not contending this season or in the next few seasons, Perkins’ value could be as a trade chip to build towards the future. If the Twins don’t trade him, he’s still going to be the first-time, All-Star that he is this year.
Bad
Starting Pitching
Of the nine Twins starting pitchers to have made at least one start, the highest K/9 is Kevin Correia and P.J. Walters with 5.0. That’s not good. As a team, the Twins’ starting pitchers have an average K/9 of 4.7. Strikeouts are critical to stopping momentum and getting outs without the risk of error playing a factor. A strikeout starting pitcher is a comfort to a team. The Twins still need one.
Aaron Hicks
While his defense has been jaw-dropping, from home run robbing grabs to throws from the warning track to third base, his offensive numbers have been dreadful. The 23-year-old outfielder got the starting job from Opening Day and is hitting .197 at the All-Star break. The Twins do not have expectations to contend for the division or the wild card so there isn’t much harm in letting this young outfielder take in the full major league experience and iron out the issues he has now so he will be an offensive threat during their contending years.
