The season has reached the halfway point, so it is time for a standings update.
Code:
National League Standings
West Division
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run
Los Angeles 48 33 .593 - 48-33 0 24-17 24-16 1-1 10-10
San Diego 46 35 .568 2 49-32 -3 23-17 23-18 4-5 11-11
San Jose 44 37 .543 4 45-36 -1 22-17 22-20 5-3 13- 5
Sacramento 41 40 .506 7 42-39 -1 21-21 20-19 2-1 7-12
Portland 34 47 .420 14 33-48 1 16-24 18-23 4-5 10-13
Phoenix 31 50 .383 17 31-50 0 12-26 19-24 1-8 7- 9
Northeast Division
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run
Pittsburgh 51 30 .630 - 51-30 0 30-10 21-20 4-2 20-14
Rochester 50 31 .617 1 45-36 5 27-15 23-16 3-3 19-12
Buffalo 37 44 .457 14 40-41 -3 20-21 17-23 5-5 15-14
New Jersey 37 44 .457 14 37-44 0 20-21 17-23 5-3 9-15
Hartford 34 47 .420 17 37-44 -3 18-24 16-23 6-4 12-17
Harrisburg 33 48 .407 18 31-50 2 13-27 20-21 3-3 8- 9
American League Standings
Southeast Division
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run
Miami 48 33 .593 - 45-36 3 25-16 23-17 3-0 10- 9
Washington 47 34 .580 1 43-38 4 23-16 24-18 5-1 12- 6
Nashville 43 38 .531 5 42-39 1 18-24 25-14 2-4 7-11
Knoxville 40 41 .494 8 42-39 -2 21-19 19-22 6-3 10- 8
Atlanta 36 45 .444 12 39-42 -3 17-22 19-23 0-3 7- 9
Charlotte 28 53 .346 20 24-57 4 15-25 13-28 3-3 14-13
Central Division
Team W L PCT GB Pyt.Rec Diff Home Away XInn 1Run
Denver 60 21 .741 - 60-21 0 30-10 30-11 3-1 9- 8
Tucson 41 40 .506 19 47-34 -6 17-24 24-16 1-5 6-11
Grand Rapids 40 41 .494 20 40-41 0 17-22 23-19 3-3 11-12
Memphis 37 44 .457 23 35-46 2 20-21 17-23 1-4 11-11
Kansas City 34 47 .420 26 34-47 0 19-22 15-25 1-1 10- 6
Green Bay 32 49 .395 28 33-48 -1 17-26 15-23 3-3 9-12
Despite there being still a half season left to play, it is hard not to assume that Denver has wrapped up the Central Division. The Broncos have rolled into the All Star break on a 12 game winning streak, and hold a commanding 19 game lead on second place Tucson. I can't even imagine all the things that would have to go wrong for that lead to disappear.
Taking a look around the league...
Green Bay's surprising attempt at contending has come to a crashing halt. Despite being in second place at the start of June, the Packers have fallen all the way into last place, and they have stumbled into the All Star break on a 13 game losing streak. They have lost 19 of their last 20 games.
With Green Bay's collapse, the second place battle appears to be between Tucson and Grand Rapids. Both teams have relatively mediocre pitching, but Tucson's offense is far superior, so they would seem to have the edge.
The NL West is shaping up to very interesting. San Diego was in first place at the beginning of June, but an early seven game losing streak, combined with a surge by Los Angeles, knocked the Padres out of first and put the Dodgers in their place. Meanwhile, San Jose, which had gotten off to a poor start, has slowly climbed back into the race. Sacramento has also manage to keep itself in the discussion so far, so that division could turn into a very wild race down the stretch.
The AL Southeast also has the potential to be interesting. Miami and Washington are the clear front-runners, but both Nashville and Knoxville have the potential to make things interesting.
The NL Northeast appears to have produced its two playoff candidates already, in Pittsburgh and Rochester. The only question to be answered now is who will win the division.