Inside the Standings – July 28th

Biggest movers : Milwaukee Brewers ↓ 7, Atlanta Braves ↑ 6

1. Los Angeles Dodgers (62-36) NC : If the rumors about the Dodgers getting Victor Martinez and Cliff Lee materialize, every other NL team should just give up.
2. New York Yankees (60-38) ↑ 1 : How’s this for a balanced offence: the Yankees have 8 players with double digit home run numbers. They are also tied for 2nd in the MLB with a .275 team batting average.
3. Boston Red Sox (57-40) ↓ 1 : The Red Sox appear to be worrying about the Yankees pulling away with the division and are in the mix to add another hitter.
4. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (58-38) NC : The Jays and Phillies appear to be in a deadlock in the Halladay deal, which might make the Angels the favorite to acquire him.
5. Philadelphia Phillies (56-40) NC : Good move by the Phillies to decline Kyle Drabek, J.A. Happ and Dominic Brown for Halladay, that is a bit too steep.
6. Detroit Tigers (52-44) NC : The White Sox were creeping up in the AL Central until the Tigers took 3 of 4 on the weekend.
7. Texas Rangers (54-42) NC : I still think the Rangers need another pitcher if they’re going to take the division, but time is running out.
8. Tampa Bay Rays (54-45) ↑ 2 : David Price and Scott Kazmir have been lousy and the Rays are still gaining ground in the AL East.
9. Colorado Rockies (54-44) ↑ 3 : Are they for real?
10. San Francisco Giants (52-46) ↓ 1 : If they don’t make a move for a hitter at the deadline, there needs to be some serious questions asked.
11. Chicago Cubs (51-45) ↑ 4 : A second half run could be brewing, but they will need to be consistent to keep up with the new look Cardinals.
12. St Louis Cardinals (53-48) ↓ 4 : Excellent move picking up Matt Holliday to provide protection for Pujols. He came at a relatively cheap price, too.
13. Seattle Mariners (51-46) NC : Seattle’s pre-deadline mini-surge, which could turn them into buyers, may be surprising some. What shouldn’t surprise many is Eric Bedard hitting the DL and the team’s subsequent fall out of contention.
14. Chicago White Sox (50-48) ↑ 3 : All I can say is, what a catch.
15. Atlanta Braves (51-48) ↑ 6 : The offence is starting to kick into gear, and the Braves are starting to climb in the standings.
16. Florida Marlins (50-48) ↓ 2 : I’m not nearly counting them out of the Wild card hunt.
17. Houston Astros (50-48) ↑ 2 : The Astros are definitely a second-half team. In the 12 seasons since 1997, they have had a better winning percentage in the second half every year. (11 of those 12 being a winning record).
18. Milwaukee Brewers (49-49) ↓ 7 : You would think Milwaukee’s slide would coincide with major trade rumors, especially with what C.C. Sabathia did for them last year. But things have been relatively quiet around the Brew crew.
19. Minnesota Twins (49-50) ↓ 3 : Need to do something about the combined .188 average their second basemen are hitting.
20. Toronto Blue Jays (48-51) ↓ 2 : The immediate future looks grim for the Blue Jays if they deal Halladay. Don’t be surprised if they finish last in the AL East for a couple of years, at least.
21. New York Mets (46-51) ↓ 1 : The Mets haven’t been prominent in any trade rumors, it will be interesting to see if management has given up on the year.
22. Cincinnati Reds (44-53) NC : There has been word of a deal brewing that would send Edwin Encarnacion to the Blue Jays along with a prospect for Scott Rolen. Could be a good move for the Reds if they are planning for 2010.
23. Baltimore Orioles (42-55) NC : Before their 6-2 win on July 26th against the Red Sox, the Orioles had lost 11 straight games at Fenway, being outscored 80-29. Ouch.
24. Pittsburgh Pirates (43-55) ↑ 2 : Ian Snell is apparently being held hostage in AAA. He has posted a 0.56 ERA but has yet to be called up.
25. Arizona Diamondbacks (43-56) ↑ 2 : Dan Haren is having an absolutely stellar season (2.14 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, .194 BAA), but somehow has 5 losses.
26. Oakland Athletics (41-56) ↓ 2 : Billy Beane is really hoping Brett Wallace pans out.
27. Cleveland Indians (40-58) ↑ 2 : The demand for Cliff Lee is likely rising with the Blue Jays’ price on Roy Halladay being set so high.
28. Kansas City Royals (38-59) ↓ 3 : How badly do the Royals need pitching? SS Tony Pena is being converted into a pitcher.
29. San Diego Padres (38-61) ↓ 1 : The Red Sox have inquired about Adrian Gonzalez, but apparently he is untouchable. Can you imagine the Padres lineup without him?
30. Washington Nationals (30-68) NC : Elijah Dukes and Lastings Milledge have hit a grand total of 0 home runs in the minors.