Boston Red Sox are AL East Division Champions once again

     The Boston Red Sox have clinched the American League East division title. It is the first time they have won the division since 2007 when they won the World Series. Koji Uehara picked up the save in the 6-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.

     The Red Sox this season have been powered by their offense. They had four players in yesterday's clincher who were batting .300 or better. The Bo' Sox lead the Majors in runs, OPS, walks, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, doubles, and total bases. 

Is Max Scherzer a lock for the Cy Young award?

     That blurry picture of Scherzer doesn't seem to help his chances at all, but his 19 wins sure does. Scherzer is second in strikeouts, first in wins, first in WHIP, and sixth in ERA among American League starters. Judging by these stats alone, Scherzer is on his way to his first Cy Young award.

Atlanta extends winning streak to 10

     The Atlanta Braves are now 12 1/2 games ahead of the Nationals for first place in the National League East after beating the Phillies 4-1. The Braves are the hottest team in baseball with a 10 game winning streak.

     

     Record-wise, the Braves (67-45) are the third best team in baseball behind the Boston Red Sox (68-45) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (67-44).

MLB National League WAR Leaders - Pitching

Wins Above Replacement

1. Clayton Kershaw - 5.3
2. Adam Wainwright - 5.2
3. Matt Harvey - 4.9
4. Jorge De La Rosa - 4.0
5. Jhoulys Chacin - 4.0
6. Cliff Lee - 4.0

I've surprisingly never heard of the two Rockies on this list...

Kershaw has the Cy Young if the season ended today.

MLB American League WAR Leaders - Pitching

Wins Above Replacement

1. Felix Hernandez - 5.0
2. Chris Sale - 4.7
3. Bartolo Colon - 4.3
4. Clay Buchholz - 4.1
5. Max Scherzer - 4.0

I think Hernandez should have started the All Star Game, but Scherzer is still up there with 4 WAR.

American League wins All Star Game

   

MLB.com

     The American League won the 2013 All Star Game, 3 to 0. J.J. Hardy, Jose Bautista, and Jason Kipnis had RBI. The AL held the weak NL lineup to only 3 hits, and Yankees closer Mariano Rivera pitched a perfect eighth inning to secure the MVP award.

Koji Uehara should be an All Star

     Take a good look at this little infographic from MLB.com. Of all the relievers on the American League Final Vote ballot, Koji has the best overall stats line. In addition to being first in WHIP, Opponent AVG, and Strikeout to Walk Ratio, Uehara is second in strikeouts and his ERA is within 2 tenths of a point from Joaquin Benoit. Vote now before it's too late.

Vote here!

NL Outfield All Star Race heating up

     With Yadier Molina starting to run away with the starting catcher spot, the race for the second and third outfield spots is getting close.

Carlos Beltran, Cardinals: 5,013,806
Carlos Gonzalez, Rockies: 2,928,606
Justin Upton, Braves: 2,917,659
Bryce Harper, Nationals: 2,902,393
Matt Holliday, Cardinals: 2,697,608

     The 2-5 spots are separated by less than 250,000 votes with a few days left. The amazing thing is that Justin Upton is third. His .802  OPS is 14th in the NL among outfielders. Bryce Harper shouldn't be there stat-wise, but he has All Star talent.

2013 MLB All Star Game Projected Starters - NL

Projected Starters - National League

First Base: Joey Votto - Reds

Second Base: Brandon Phillips - Reds

Third Base: David Wright - Mets

Catcher: Yadier Molina - Cardinals

Outfield: Carlos Beltran - Cardinals

Outfield: Justin Upton - Braves

Outfield: Bryce Harper - Nationals

Starting Pitcher: Adam Wainwright

2013 MLB All Star Game Projected Starters - AL

Projected Starters - American League

First Base: Chris Davis - Orioles

Second Base: Robinson Cano - Yankees

Third Base: Miguel Cabrera - Tigers

Catcher: Joe Mauer - Twins

Designated Hitter: David Ortiz - Red Sox

Outfield: Adam Jones - Orioles

Outfield: Mike Trout - Angels

Outfield: Nick Markakis - Orioles

Starting Pitcher: Max Scherzer - Tigers

Domonic Brown's Dominant Start to the Season

    

      In the last 30 days, nobody has hit more home runs (in the National League) than Domonic Brown of the Philadelphia Phillies. The outfielder is beginning his first full season in the big leagues as a left fielder, and is already on pace to hit almost 40 homers this season. That is more than both Mike Trout and Bryce Harper in their first full seasons. The main difference is that Brown is 25 years old.

     Brown's 1.385 OPS in the past week leads the majors, as well as his 5 home runs and 8 runs batted in. The big deal about Brown is that he has more raw power than most. His home run per fly ball rate is one of the highest in the league, while only having 9 walks. If he can become more selective to get himself into better  hitting counts, Brown can easily be a perennial 30 to 40 home run hitter with a decent average and the speed to steal bases.

Angel Pagan gives Giants the Walk Off Win with Inside the Park Home Run

     Angel Pagan walked off against the Rockies yesterday in extra innings. His home run never left the park. In other words the Giants may not have ended up winning if he was any bit slower.

     The win moved the Giants into a tie for the lead in the National League West.