It's fun to Pretend

We all know the feeling of summer beginning to end. The back to school sales begin at clothing stores. The temperature begins to drop just a little bit. People slowly stop going to the beach every day. And the boys of summer are running out of games to play. Time may almost be up for baseball's regular season, but there is more than enough time for some teams to fight their way into the playoffs. Some of these teams are serious threats to win it all, while others are kidding themselves if they think they can make the playoffs. So let us take a look at the non division leaders who are contenders, and point out the teams that are pretenders.

We start in the AL East with the 2nd place Boston Red Sox.

The Red Sox are 74-48, and just half a game behind the idle New York Yankees for first place in the toughest division in baseball. Offensively, the Red Sox have been hitting the cover off of the ball. The Bosox rank second in the majors in runs scored, home runs, and runs batted in. They have two potential most valuable player candidates in Adrian Gonzalez and Jacoby Ellsbury. David Ortiz has produced a second good year in a row with a .300 batting average, 24 home runs and 79 runs batted in. And the bullpen has been great. The only problem that the Red Sox could face as the season wears down is their starting pitching. Yes Jon Lester has been very good again and Josh Beckett continues his career pattern of dominance in odd numbered years. But question marks surround the rest of the rotation. Which John Lackey will show up today? Can Erik Bedard contribute anything? And how much more can Boston get out of Tim Wakefield?

So are the Red Sox contenders or pretenders?

The Verdict: Contender

The Red Sox offense and bullpen has shifted the focus away from their starting pitching
problems. The Sox have enough to get into the playoffs, but if the Red Sox want to win the world series, their starting pitching needs to get better quickly.


Now we move to the 'somebody has to win this division', the AL Central with the Cleveland Indians.

The Cleveland Indians have been one of the most surprising teams in baseball. With a 61-58 record, the tribe sits two games behind the Detroit Tigers for first place in the AL Central. The Indians have gotten a great year out of shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera, who is hitting .291 average 20 homers and 72 runs batted in so far. In addition to the good offensive numbers, Cabrera should be the favorite to win the gold glove at shortstop in the American League. But a closer look at the numbers reveal a very pedestrian team that is lucky to be hanging around. The tribe ranks 17th in the Majors in earned run average, and there is no true ace to that staff. The bullpen has not been much better, for they rank 23rd in saves. Offensively, the Indians are not much better. Cleveland ranks 17th in the majors in runs scored, 17th in runs batted in, 19th in home runs, and 27th in hits. The numbers for Cleveland's offense are not surprising when you take into account the fact that they have two of the most overrated players in the game in Grady Sizemore and Travis Hafner.

So are the Cleveland Indians contenders or pretenders?

The Verdict: Pretender


Cleveland has been a nice story, but not all nice stories have happy endings. The Indians lack the offensive punch of the AL East contenders and does not have the pitching that can be found in the AL West. The biggest reason that the Indians are still even in the discussion is because they are a decent team in a weak division.

Now we journey out to the AL West where the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are fighting for a playoff spot.

Over the past decade, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have been one of the most consistent teams, and this season is no different. The Angles are the proud owners of a 65-59 record, which is good enough for second place in the American League West division. The key to the Angles success this season has been their good pitching. The Angles rank fifth in the majors with a 3.50 earned run average and tenth in the league in shutouts. Jared Weaver has emerged as a CY Young award candidate, Ervin Santana has thrown a no hitter this year, and Dan Haren is having another good season. However, the Angles offense has not been nearly as productive. LAA ranks 18th in the bigs in hits, 20th in home runs, 22nd in runs scored, and 22nd in runs batted in. And with key veterans like Torri Hunter and Bobby Abreu are having bad offensive years, it is unlikely that the Angels will catch Texas in the AL West.

With that being said, are the Angles contenders or pretenders?

The Verdict: Pretenders


The Angels can pitch with the best of them and Jared Weaver does have an outside shot at winning the AL CY Young this season. However, these angels lack the offense to keep up with the Red Sox, Yankees, and Rangers of the world. The Angles would make the playoffs in an expanded system, but they lack the pop to snag the wild card slot away from the Red Sox.

On to the National League East division where the Atlanta Braves own the NL's third best record.

The Atlanta Braves may not be on their run of 14 straight division titles anymore, but they are in good position to make the playoffs as the wild card team. Atlanta has gotten it done on the mound this season. The braves rank third in the big leagues with a 3.42 earned run average, and third in the league in saves with 41. Jair Jurrjens is quietly one of the best pitchers in the national league. Tommy Hanson has pitched well with an 11-7 record, a 3.60 earned run average and 142 strikeouts. And Tim Hudson has been the rock of Atlanta's rotation. But not every team is perfect and in addition to the questions surrounding the back end of Atlanta's rotation (that means you Derek Lowe, Atlanta's biggest problem is their offense is not as good as their pitching. The Braves may rank ninth in the majors in home runs, but they also rank 15th in runs scored, 16th in hits, and 16th in runs batted in. Part of the Braves offensive struggles come from an injury to their best player Brian McCann, but McCann is back now, and the rest of the lineup needs to pick up the slack.

So Atlanta, contender or pretender?

The Verdict: Contender


The Atlanta Braves have good enough pitching to overcome their offensive difficulties. But if Atlanta wants to win a world series for the first time since 1995, people other than Brian McCann need to start hitting on a more consistent basis.

On to the NL Central division with the Saint Louis Cardinals.

Over the past five seasons, the Saint Louis Cardinals have been one of the most consistent teams in the major leagues. However, the red birds are in danger of missing the playoffs for the second straight year. Saint Louis has been hitting the ball well in 2011. The Cardinals rank fourth in the majors in runs scored, fourth in hits, fourth in runs batted in, and eleventh in home runs. Saint Louis has received great years from Matt Holiday and Lance Berkman despite the "struggles" of Albert Pujols (though I wouldn't call a .287 batting average 30 home runs and 76 runs batted in struggling but that's just me). The red birds may have the offense to keep up with the best of them, but their pitching has been mediocre. Saint Louis ranks 16th in the big leagues with a 3.83 earned run average and 21st in the league in shutouts. Chris Carpenter has been okay this year with a 3.68 ERA and 142 strikeouts, but 8 wins is not good enough from the red birds ace. The biggest problem with Saint Louis' rotation is that their number four starter Kyle Lohse leads the rotation in wins with eleven.

So Saint Louis, Contenders or Pretenders?

The Verdict: Pretenders


The Cardinals do have a good core in the middle of a very productive offense, but their offense is not as good as their division foe the Milwaukee Brewers. Plus, the National League has too much pitching and none of it is in Saint Louis.

Finally we head out to the west coast where another California team, the San Francisco Giants, hopes to make the playoffs.

Life has not been as easy for the defending world series champions. The Giants, who are 67-57, sit two and a half games back of the surprising Arizona Diamondbacks. Like last year, the Giants have plenty of pitching to put them right in the thick of the race. San Francisco ranks second in the big leagues with a 3.14 earned run average mostly thanks to Ryan Vogelsong's great year. Vogelsong has been the Giants best pitcher with a 10-2 record, 2.47 earned run average and 102 strikeouts. Tim Lincecum has not been as good as last year as proven by his 11-9 record, but with a 2.58 earned run average and 175 strikeouts mean Lincecum should still be feared. In addition to Lincecum and Vogelsong, Matt Cain is still in the mix as well as the solid Madison Bumgarner. But also like last year, the Giants offense has been awful. The Giants rank 25th in hits, 29th in the league in runs scored, and dead last in runs batted in. Plus Carlos Beltran, the Giants splash at the deadline, has been ineffective and hurt since the deal went down.

So are the Giants contenders or pretenders?

The Verdict: Contender


Yes San Francisco has a terrible offense, but their offense was just as bad a year ago and they won the whole thing. The Giants rotation is still one of the scariest in the national league, even if Lincecum is not at his CY Young form. Plus, the Giants have felt the pressure of a pennant race, and this young group of Arizona Diamondbacks could wilt under the bright lights of the postseason chase.

The pennant race in baseball is just as exciting as any other chase for the postseason, if not more. Now, as the dog days of summer draw to a close, let us all just see who rises to the challenge, and who collapses under the pressure.