State of the AL Central

My next “State Of” piece, on the state of each ball club in each division, is on the AL Central.

1. Detroit Tigers: This squad has it all. Excellent pitching in Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer and some impressive play from Anibal Sanchez and Rick Porcello. In addition the hitting ability of Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez (when healthy) and the reemergence of Ian Kinsler here in his first season in Detroit. They looked to be running away from their opponents early on. So why has a squad with the tools for a World Series run, been sliding to 33-25 ever since they hit 27-12? The pitching has struggled (their opponents are averaging just over 6 runs a game). They struggled to find the lineup they wanted as they have moved things around at shortstop and in the outfield. If they can settle down and become comfortable in their own skin, they should be able to cruise to the division crown again.
2. Cleveland Indians: Last year’s wild card losers have been off to a very up and down start. However, recently they have begun establishing themselves as the second best team in this division. They swept the Colorado Rockies, Boston Red Sox and now have split the first two games on the road at the Texas Rangers. This road stretch is important because they have been one of the worst in baseball on the road. If Justin Masterson can continue to show the big time pitching that made him the ace of the squad last year, Corey Kluber can continue his nice start (6-3 on the year, 3.23 ERA), and they can continue to get the offense that has brought them back to second place, they may still get the wild card.
3. Chicago White Sox: One of the biggest things going for the White Sox is the return of rookie sensation Jose Abreu. He has been great since he returned going .263 with 2 HR’s and 5 RBI’s in 5 games. The issue for the White Sox however, is who is going to give Abreu some help? Alexei Ramirez has been very good as well but everyone else has been just average. Chris Sale is doing everything he can (5-0, 2.06 ERA), but Chicago could fix their issues by acquiring a pitcher at the trade deadline, as the rest of their staff continues to struggle. This may become a perennial playoff team in the future but for right now they have some work to do.
4. Minnesota Twins: While the Twins are locked in a battle with the other three teams not named the Tigers in this tough AL Central, they appear to be on a better path than the Kansas City Royals. The post New York Yankees career revival has been very real not only for Joba Chamberlin in Detroit but also Phil Hughes in Minnesota. Hughes is 6-2 with a 3.46 ERA. He most recently fell in a underrated pitching matchup vs. Dallas Keuchel of Houston who is rising quickly. The Twins are going to need some offensive help. They are 15th in runs scored and 22nd in batting average. With the signing of Kendrys Morales, they could get an offensive spark they desperately need to contend here.
5. Kansas City Royals: There isn’t much separation between teams in this division but the Kansas City Royals take the bottom of my power rankings. Their offense is anemic; they rank 22nd in runs scored and 25th in on base percentage. Alex Gordon has been good but they expected much more from top young players like Mike Moustakas who has been very bad this year (batting .148). The pitching for this club has been solid as Yordano Ventura has broken out, while James Shields and Jason Vargas have shown some life. Greg Holland has also been pretty good at the closer position. They are still very much alive, but need some more offense quickly or we can start closing the book on this season.

Tune in for my next “State Of” article, as I profile the AL West. Later this week I will go into the National League!