| RANK | TEAM | CHANGE | SCHEDULE | COMMENT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
 |
— 0 |
@ CHC vs OAK |
OHMYGOD. THEPIRATESLOSTASERIES! But they still went 4-2 for the week, and Andrew McCutchen is on fire. Pittsburgh is 20 games over .500, and have drawn crowds of 30,000+ for nine straight games. |
| 2 |
 |
— 0 |
vs HOU @ BAL |
The battle between Oakland and Texas for the AL West crown in the second half is going to be pretty incredible. |
| 3 |
 |
 +3 |
@ CLE vs CHW |
The Tigers are getting a sudden challenge in the AL Central from the Indians, and their four game set in Cleveland this weekend is going to be bigger than we initially though. |
| 4 |
 |
 -1 |
@ NYY vs TEX |
How do you follow up a sweep at Camden Yards of the Yankees? By losing two out of three to the White Sox, of course. |
| 5 |
 |
— 0 |
@ KC @ PIT |
The A's just keep on rolling along. Dan Straily looks like he'll stick in the rotation after his start on Thursday, which is a good thing. |
| 6 |
 |
-2 |
vs MIA vs HOU |
A 3-5 road trip isn't a good thing, especially with the way the Pirates have been playing. But a pair of series at Busch Stadium against the Marlins and Astros is just what the doctor ordered. |
| 7 |
 |
— 0 |
@ LAA @ SEA |
And just like that, the Red Sox have the second largest division lead in all of baseball. |
| 8 |
 |
— 0 |
vs SEA @ MIL |
Thursday's rainout pushed Homer Bailey's next start back to Monday in Milwaukee…which actually could be a good thing for his chances of getting a second straight no-hitter. |
| 9 |
 |
— 0 |
vs DET vs TOR |
Losing two out of three to the Royals shushed some of the clamor around the Tribe and their rise in the AL Central. |
| 10 |
 |
+1 |
@ PHI @ MIA |
Atlanta makes their first trip of the season to Philly on the first weekend of July. That doesn't seem right, but here we are. |
| 11 |
 |
+2 |
@ SF @ ARI |
The Dodgers could go into the All-Star Break in first or second place in the NL West. That seemed like a fantasy just a month ago. |
| 12 |
 |
-2 |
vs COL vs LAD |
Arizona is the king of the dumpster fire that is the NL West…for now. |
| 13 |
 |
+7 |
vs BOS @ CHC |
The good news: the Angels are on an 8-1 stretch. The bad news: they're still 6.5 out of a playoff spot. |
| 14 |
 |
+2 |
@ MIL @ SF |
The Mets played two of the most entertaining games of the season this week against the Diamondbacks. So, they've got that going for them…which is nice. |
| 15 |
 |
-1 |
vs SD @ PHI |
BRYCE HARPER IS BACK, AND LEADING THE NATIONALS TO A FOUR GAME SPLIT WITH THE THIRD-WORST TEAM IN BASEBALL! WATCH OUT, ATLANTA! |
| 16 |
 |
-4 |
vs MIN @ CLE |
3-8 in their last 11 after getting to two games above .500. So, there's that. |
| 17 |
 |
+4 |
vs BAL vs KC |
A trip to Minnesota is enough to ease the pain of a 1-6 stretch. Barring a collapse, New York will head into the Break in a decent position in the AL East. |
| 18 |
 |
-2 |
vs OAK @ NYY |
If Kansas City can get to .500 by the All-Star Break, they'll be contenders in the second half. And really, that's the only way. |
| 19 |
 |
+1 |
vs CHW vs MIN |
David Price is back and the Rays have an easy slate to end the first half…things are about to get interesting. |
| 20 |
 |
+4 |
@ STL |
That's four straight series wins for the Marlins, who are 18-11 since the beginning of June. It's almost a shame that they're going to blow it up once again in the coming weeks. |
| 21 |
 |
— 0 |
vs PIT @ CHW vs LAA |
The unloading has begun with Scott Feldman and Carlos Marmol finding new homes. It's not going to end any time soon. |
| 22 |
 |
-5 |
vs LAD vs NYM |
The defending champs are in the AL West's basement thanks to a 2-11 stretch that has seen them score three or more runs just three times. In a related story, water is wet. |
| 23 |
 |
-4 |
@ WAS vs COL |
Six straight losses makes that brief time around .500 a memory for the Friars. |
| 24 |
 |
-2 |
@ ARI @ SD |
7-14 since they were 35-30 last month. They're still second in the NL West. |
| 25 |
 |
+2 |
vs ATL vs WAS |
A 5-5 road trip may have been the worst thing to happen to the Phillies, as it keeps them hovering around mediocrity and gives management the impression that the team can contend in the second half. |
| 26 |
 |
-2 |
vs NYM vs CIN |
Someone named Sean Halton started at first base for Milwaukee on Thursday in Washington. Yeah, I don't know him either. |
| 27 |
 |
-2 |
@ TOR @ TB |
The Twins are closer to the White Sox for last place than the Royals for third place. And they end their first half with a ten game road trip. Good luck! |
| 28 |
 |
— 0 |
@ TEX @ STL |
Miami's hot streak has pushed the Astros to the basement of the MLB standings. We all expected that, but I don't think we expected it to happen this late in the season. |
| 29 |
 |
— 0 |
@ CIN vs BOS |
I really hope they sell off every player older than 27 this month. |
| 30 |
 |
— 0 |
@ TB vs CHC @ DET |
There is no team in baseball in a worse position than the White Sox. Bad farm system, old major league roster, not many sellable assets…yikes. |
