We're Halfway There
With something like 93 games in the books, we are officially past the halfway point of the MLB season. The "official" number is something like 81 games given a standard 162 game regular season schedule. If you didn't know all that, don't feel too bad, I had to Google it myself to see where we are at.
I actually got lucky enough to see a Detroit Tigers game the other day while I was working out on the treadmill. They were replaying the game against Tampa from the night before and I was able to catch just about half an inning before my time was up. Pretty sad right?
The fact that Detroit is doing so well lately makes me even more annoyed that YouTube TV removed the regional Fox Sports channels from their lineup. Of course, there is probably plenty of blame to be handed out on both sides. All they needed to do was reach an agreement, but they didn't, and now here we are.
That means I need to rely on the Internet and the box score or standings to tell me how the Tigers are doing in comparison to everyone else. It's a bit nostalgic to be honest, kind of like how you used to have to get your news from the newspaper, often the day after the events actually took place.
Back to the point...
The Tigers have 93 games in the books and the are still sitting at the top of the American League. In fact, they are a full four games ahead of the Houston Astros who are leading the AL West with 55 wins. The really good news is, the closest team to the Tigers in the AL Central are the Kansas City Royals who only have 45 wins. That's a massive 14 game lead for the Tigers and while I don't want to jinx it, things are looking pretty good for them to make it to the post season.
Meanwhile in the AL East, our neighbors to the northeast Toronto are holding the top spot in that division. They currently have 54 wins, but the Yankees are right behind them with 50 wins and then Tampa Bay a close third with 49 wins. Actually, the AL East is looking pretty tight overall. Similar to what we are seeing in the National League and not nearly as skewed as the other American League divisions.
As of right now, Vegas seems to think the odds of the Tigers winning the World Series are somewhere around +650 which is actually a bit better than it has been in the past. For the longest time they were still giving the Yankees better odds.
Over in the National League the race has gotten a bit tighter. The Dodgers are still the team to beat, but with only 56 wins, they have fallen three games behind the Tigers for the top spot in the MLB. The Giants are a bit behind the Dodgers in the NL West with 51 wins.
Meanwhile, over in the NL Central, we have the Cubs at the top with 54 wins and Milwaukee close behidn them with 52 wins. Finally, in the NL East, the New York Mets are tied for the top spot with Philadelphia at 53 wins.
Sadly, the Colorado Rockies (where the photo above was taken), are still sitting in a miserable spot with only 21 wins on the season and 71 losses, it's gotta be a hard year to be a Rockies fan...
As far as odds go, Vegas (or the powers that be) still have the Dodgers favored to win it all again. They are sitting at +220 with everyone else in the National League well behind them. I've gotta be honest, I wouldn't be mad at a Tigers/Dodgers World Series this year...
My Sports Account - @bozz.sports
Every time I read your baseball blog I am reminded of growing up next door to Paul Hodgson who played for the Blue Jays. He was signed up at 17 in 1977. A lot of water under the bridge since then. I probably mentioned this before. lol
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I think so yes, but that is still cool! My brother in law pitched against Derek Jeter in high school, but that is about my only famous person story. Oh yeah, I stood in a stairwell with Craig Monroe one time...
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@fjworld(7/20) tipped @bozz.sports
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