Our weekly MLB standings rundown shows the Reds are red-hot, the Yankees and Orioles continue to jockey for first place, and the Nationals are still the best team in baseball.
Before spring training began, oddsmakers in Las Vegas and online put the Cincinnati Reds season win total at roughly 70 wins. Baseball Prospectus’ PECOTA projection system was slightly more optimistic and predicted Cincinnati would win 74 games, while Fangraphs projected 68 victories prior to Opening Day.
There’s still a long way to go but thanks to a five-game winning streak, including a weekend sweep of the San Francisco Giants, the first-place Reds are currently on pace for 89 wins.
What has gotten into the Reds? Joey Votto and Adam Duvall each have nine home runs so far this season, which isn’t completely out of the ordinary, even if Votto is a notoriously slow starter. However, few saw Scott Schebler’s nine long balls coming, or Zack Cozart hitting .351/.438/.500 or Eugenio Suarez posting a .330/.413/.613 slash with seven homers.
Also, though Cincinnati’s starting rotation has been hit hard by injuries, manager Bryan Price has utilized the bullpen brilliantly through the first five weeks of the season. Closer Raisel Iglesias has a 1.10 ERA and five saves in 16.1 innings spread across 11 appearances, while Drew Storen, Wandy Peralta, and Michael Lorenzen have also succeeded in a variety of roles.
The Yankees are off to a better start than most expected, but seeing New York or the Baltimore Orioles in the mix for a postseason spot shouldn’t be a shock to anyone. The Dodgers, Cubs, Indians, Astros and Nationals all entered the 2017 season as division favorites, and all are very much alive in the postseason race. While the Colorado Rockies are leading the NL West, the most surprising division leader is easily Cincinnati.
How do the MLB standings stack up today? We explore each division and recap the week that was.
American League East
New York Yankees (20-9, .690, – GB)
Last Week: 2-1 vs. Blue Jays, 3-0 at Cubs
- Home Record: 12-3
- Road Record: 8-6
- Runs Scored: 168
- Runs Allowed: 116
- Run Differential: +52
- Streak: Won 5
- Last 10: 8-2
Next Week: May 8-9 at Reds, May 11-14 vs. Astros
Baltimore Orioles (20-10, .667, 0.5 GB)
Last Week: 2-2 at Red Sox, 3-0 vs. White Sox
- Home Record: 11-3
- Road Record: 9-7
- Runs Scored: 132
- Runs Allowed: 121
- Run Differential: +11
- Streak: Won 4
- Last 10: 6-4
Next Week: May 8-9 vs. Nationals, May 10-11 at Nationals, May 12-14 at Royals
Boston Red Sox (17-14, .548, 4 GB)
Last Week: 2-2 vs. Orioles, 2-1 at Twins
- Home Record: 11-7
- Road Record: 6-7
- Runs Scored: 138
- Runs Allowed: 121
- Run Differential: +17
- Streak: Won 2
- Last 10: 6-4
Next Week: May 9-11 at Brewers, May 12-14 vs. Rays
Tampa Bay Rays (16-17, .485, 6 GB)
Last Week: 2-0 at Marlins, 1-1 vs. Marlins, 1-2 vs. Blue Jays
- Home Record: 11-7
- Road Record: 5-10
- Runs Scored: 140
- Runs Allowed: 134
- Run Differential: +6
- Streak: Lost 1
- Last 10: 5-5
Next Week: May 8-10 vs. Royals, May 12-14 at Red Sox
Toronto Blue Jays (11-20, .355, 10 GB)
Last Week: 1-2 at Yankees, 2-1 at Rays
- Home Record: 4-8
- Road Record: 7-12
- Runs Scored: 118
- Runs Allowed: 141
- Run Differential: -23
- Streak: Won 1
- Last 10: 5-5
Next Week: May 8-10 vs. Indians, May 11-14 vs. Mariners
Riding a four-game winning streak into a Sunday Night Baseball clash with the Cubs, the Yankees had an opportunity to earn a sweep at Wrigley Field. With Aroldis Chapman on the mound with a 4-1 lead in the bottom of the ninth, a win was all but assured. The Yankees finished the sweep, which pushed New York’s winning streak to five, but not before Chapman allowed three runs to score and the teams played nine more innings.
The Orioles split a wild four-game series in Boston to start the week before returning home for a three-game sweep of the White Sox over the weekend. Dylan Bundy earned his fifth win of the season Saturday, Chris Tillman posted five scoreless innings in his season debut Sunday, and Manny Machado launched four home runs and drove in eight runs in seven games over the course of the week.
The Red Sox followed the series split by taking two of three games against the Twins in Minnesota. Chris Sale continued his Cy Young pace with 21 strikeouts in 14 innings across two starts and now has a 1.92 ERA with 73 punch outs in 51.2 innings this season. Sandy Leon homered three times in five games, and Chris Young, Andrew Benintendi, Hanley Ramirez and Dustin Pedroia each homered twice during the week.
Tampa Bay had an opportunity to make a move in the AL East, and won three of four games against the Marlins to start the week, but dropped two of three to the last-place Blue Jays over the weekend. Former No. 1 overall draft pick led the club with seven RBI over the week and homered twice in Thursday’s 5-1 victory over Miami. Matt Andriese tossed seven scoreless frames Thursday to earn the victory, and Alex Colome picked up his eight save of the season (and third of the week) in the win.
If the Blue Jays could play the Rays every weekend, Toronto would be back in the postseason race in no time. After failing to win a single series over the first three weeks of the season, the Jays have now beaten the Rays in two of three games in back-to-back weekend sets. Kendrys Morales played a big role in the most recent series win, which began with a two-homer, five-RBI night in Friday’s 8-4 victory in St. Petersburg.