MLB: Day One Hundred and Fifty-Three

On Friday the leads in the American League Central and the AL West got bigger. Meanwhile the lead in the National League Central got even smaller.

Who what have thought two weeks ago that the Cleveland Indians’ lead atop the AL Central and the Anaheim Angels’ lead atop the AL West would be larger than the Boston Red Sox’s lead in the AL East? Yet here we are with the Indians five and half games up on the Tigers, the Angels Six game up on the Mariners, and the Red Sox just five games up on the Yankees.

On Friday the Cleveland Indians extended their lead by beating the Chicago White Sox eight to five. That win was the seventh straight for the Indians. Meanwhile the Tigers lost to the Oakland A’s in a heartbreaker, five to four. So it’s beginning to look like the battle for the AL Central is just about over.

In the AL West, things are starting to look over as well. The Angels won again and the Mariners lost again. This time it was the Angels over the Texas Rangers by a score of seven to six and the Mariners losing to the Toronto Blue Jays by a score of seven to five.

Over in the National League Central things are getting very tight. The Chicago Cubs have made a bug move in the last few weeks so that they’ve taken the lead in the division. But not the Milwaukee Brewers and the St. Louis Cardinals are starting to battle their way back.

On Friday the Chicago Cubs lost to the Houston Astros six to one. Meanwhile the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Pittsburgh Prates three to two and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Cincinnati Reds eight to five. So now the Cubs lead the Brewers by just a game and a half and the Cardinals by just two games. This division is shaping up to be a great race down the stretch.