Zinno's 6-4-3: MLB Round-Up
Trade deadline has passed. The playoff push has begun and if teams are going to make a run, the time is now to start. Still plenty of surprises left in this MLB season! Let's do this!
Top 6 -
1. Pirates - Wow. Just wow. In years past they already have started their fade. Now they are just 14 wins away from their first winning season in two decades.
2. Red Sox - Jake Peavy makes an already strong team stronger. Questions still remain in the bullpen. But they are headed to October.
3. Rays - They just won't go away. They are tough to beat at home. And their pitching may be the best in the game. Oh yeah, don't forget Joe Maddon.
4. Braves - they lose Tim Hudson to a vicious broken ankle. So all they do is win 10 in a row. Yup! That'll do it!
5. Cardinals - a seven-game losing streak put a dent in their armor and their lead in the NL Central is gone.
6. Tigers - quietly the have won eight in a row and that's with Justin Verlander struggling.
4 Stats -
1. Chris Davis and Manny Machado struggled mightily in July. Davis batted .211 with 41 strikeouts. Machado was worse batting .196 with just one double the entire month.
2. Mike Trout is quietly having another outstanding season. The Angels are struggling, but Trout continues to rake and is headed towards another 20-20 season with an OPS over 1.000.
3. Guess who leads the AL in team ERA and fewest runs allowed. Tampa Bay? No. Detroit? Nope. Boston? Not even close. It's the Kansas City Royals. That's right, the Royals. 3.58 ERA and just 416 runs given up.
4. For those who hate the "win" stat for pitchers, this is for you. Clayton Kershaw - 1.87 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and 161 K's. Matt Harvey - 2.21 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 172 K's. In 55 combined starts they have a combined 18 wins. 10 for Kershaw and eight for Harvey.
Bottom 3 -
1. Astros - In the month of July they took two of three from both AL East contenders the Rays and Orioles. I guess that's something.
2. White Sox - losers of 10 in a row, they must really be wanting that top draft pick next year.
3. Marlins - they continue to own the Mets. 10 of their 43 wins have come against the Metropolitans.
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