Top 4 AL Contenders for the World Series
Teams that have won World Series’ in recent years have proven that in this modern era of Major League Baseball, the formula to winning in October is timely hitting, steady starting pitching, and a lockdown bullpen. The trade deadline has passed, and the contenders have set themselves apart from the pretenders for the most part. With that said, it’s all about who is hot at the right time. Here are my top four contenders to take home the AL pennant.
Honorable Mentions: Baltimore Orioles, Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros, Kansas City Royals, Seattle Mariners
In the offseason, the Red Sox gave David Price the largest contract ever for a pitcher. This season he will make approximately the same amount of money as Miguel Cabrera. You know, the 11x All-Star, 2x AL MVP, 4x AL Batting Champion, and 2012 Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera. Price’s struggles have been constant over the entire season, with his ERA a full run above his career average. The Red Sox are 11–13 in games started by Price this season, and he’ll need to be dominant down the stretch to insure his team even makes it to the postseason.
How fun are Betts, Boegarts, and Bradley to watch? With Big Papi and Dustin Pedroia as the veteran anchors, this Boston lineup is must-see television. When paired with a rotation led by a dominant David Price, they have the depth to go all the way with Wright, Pomeranz, and Porcello all having nice seasons.
In response to the local Cavaliers winning the NBA Finals, Indians pitching posted an absurd 2.42 team ERA in the month of June, which seperated them from the rest of the AL Central in the standings for the time being. Although this production was obviously unsustainable, this month long period was a resounding message to the rest of the American League that when their rotation is healthy and keeping the ball in the park, they are among the best in Major League Baseball. The addition of premier left handed reliever Andrew Miller gives Terry Francona the cornerstone bullpen piece he needed to dominate those stressful late innings in October.
We’ve seen championship runs by the Giants, Cardinals, and Royals in recent years and the one common denominator between them all were stud starting pitching and athleticism on the base paths. Nobody in this year’s field has the ability to dictate a series in this way quite like the Indians can.
Bigtime production from some of the Rangers’ lesser known starting pitchers (Colby Lewis, Derek Holland, A.J. Griffin) provided more than enough support for Cole Hamels in the early stages of the season for them to build a substantial lead in the American League West. Since then, the rotation has been anything but constant, with pieces constantly rolling in and out, but Cole Hamels has been masterful and Yu Darvish, when healthy, can no-hit any lineup on any given night.
Breakout performers like centerfielder Ian Desmond and second basemen Rougned Odor have paced a potent offensive attack all year long, but recent trade deadline additions will be the pieces that put the Rangers over the top if they were to make a World Series run. With the starting pitching market being so thin at the deadline, GM Jon Daniels opted to spend the prospects on offense instead of overpaying in a shallow starting pitching pool. The veteran presence of Carlos Beltran is a solid move both for the lineup and the locker room, Jonathan Lucroy gives the Rangers elite play on both offense and defense, and Jeremy Jeffress’ skillset is a great fit alongside Sam Dyson, Jake Diekman, Matt Bush, and Tony Barnette.
John Gibbons’ ballclub is one that comes at you in waves. Two-out walks become two-run homeruns in a blink of an eye when you’re facing the three-headed monster of Donaldson-Encarnacion-Bautista in the middle of the lineup. What has held up the Blue Jays in the past is a lack of pitching when it really mattered. Sure, epic batflip homeruns make for a legendary moment and nice meme, but let’s face it; we all knew the Blue Jays wouldn’t sniff the AL pennant.
A lot has changed since then. It’s time to take this rotation seriously! J.A. Happ is 24–5 (and counting) in the past two seasons… 24–5! Aaron Sanchez has been masterful all season long (can the Jays please change their firm stance on capping his innings before the postseason) and Marco Estrada has been among the most consistent pitchers in the MLB, logging quality starts in 15 out of 21 (71%) outings this season. Although relief pitching is a slight question, Roberto Osuna is an outstanding young arm at the back end. The Blue Jays are built for October; expect them to be in the thick of things until the very end.
