The NL Central is still the best division in Baseball

Time to take a quick glance at the divisional standings as we get to the end of May. I looked at this over a month ago, and not too much has changed.

The divisional records have regressed to the mean, as the Central has not been quite as good over the last month – with the Cubs losing streak being part of the drop. Of course, the Milwaukee Brewers are on another hot streak, which seems as inevitable as death and taxes. And the Cardinals, Reds and Pirates have all been able to stay above .500, keeping the NL Central well ahead of the other divisions from an overall record.

The AL East, which was presumed to be the strongest division heading into the season has been 2nd best. But the team at the top, the Tampa Bay Rays, are fairly surprising. World Series loser Toronto is a game under .500, but would still make the playoffs today due to the overall weakness of the AL. Potential playoff contenders Baltimore and Boston are a combined 14 games under .500.

The NL East have seen the resurgence of the Phillies and the continued dominance of Atlanta. The big surprises are the still-struggling Mets on the bad side, who are 10 games under .500 and the Nationals on the good side, a game above .500.

The NL West has one playoff lock and two heavy contenders, but the Giants and Rockies are dragging the division down in overall record. The Rockies crapitude was predictable, but hiring a college coach to manage the Giants is looking like a big mistake.

The AL Central has bounced back from a mediocre start, with the Guardians looking like a shoe-in to win the division again. The White Sox are shockingly above .500 and in a playoff spot, and the Twins are only 3 games under .500. The Royals, who looked like a young team on the rise 2 season ago are not doing well. But the Detroit Tigers, have continued a collapse that started in the 2nd half of last season. Tarik Skubal appears to be on the trade block once he gets back from injury.

Finally, we get to the AL West, where every team is below .500. Seattle is still the favorite to finish on top, and should be able to finish with a winning record. But team like the A’s Randers and Astros have lost an opportunity to take advantage of their mediocrity.