The All-Star Game took place a week later than usual, which means that even with the slight extension of the season due to the blockade, most teams have already overcome the mark of the 90 matches.
Some relevant stories at the moment are no surprise: the Yankees and Astros are good, possibly historically, and the Dodgers are, once again, a giant, fleeing with the NL West.
But there are some fun articles to follow that we may not have expected. Like the Mariners with a streak of 14 straight wins in and out of the All-Star break, after achieving few results for much of the first half. Four weeks ago, Seattle had 10 games under .500. Since then, the club has won 22 of 25 and ranks second in the Wild Card in the American League.
And improvement: the Mariners play seven of their next 10 games against the top-ranked Astros, including three at home this weekend to start the second half. Houston is well ahead in the division (nine games), but two weeks ago it looked like it could beat AL West by 20 games. This seems to be no longer the case.
The biggest jump: the Mariners jumped six places, from 13 to 7. Stay tuned to emerging superstar Julio Rodriguez, runner-up in the Home Run Derby, who is on his way to another decade of appearances in the All Star.
Biggest drop: The Red Sox dropped eight places, from 8 to 16. There’s not much to analyze here: they’re 5-12 in July and have four straight series against the contenders: Toronto, Cleveland, Milwaukee and Houston.
1) Yankees (64-28; last week: 1) DraftKings World Series odds: 4-1The Yankees, who beat the Red Sox 27-3 in the last two games of their seven-game weekend three towards rest, they are on their way. pace of 113 victories. The fashion story going into the break was about Matt Carpenter and his recent exploits. The DH / infielder has 19 of 43 (.442) with seven homers and 21 RBIs in his last 13 games.
2) Dodgers (60-30; last week: 3) DraftKings World Series Odds: 3.8-1 Many things have happened since the Dodgers last played: the Draft, the All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium , Mookie Betts leading the crowd at the (unofficial) largest “Happy Birthday” proclamation in history: perhaps here it deserves a re-establishment. The Dodgers have hit a 13-2 mark this month, are 10 games ahead in a competitive NL West and are receiving contributions from every inch of the roster. They open the second half with a set of four games with the Giants, creating an immediate intrigue at the end of the break.
3) Astros (59-32; last week: 2) DraftKings World Series odds: 5-1. Despite the Mariners’ 14-game winning streak, they haven’t been able to reduce their deficit at AL West much, thanks to the Astros keeping pace, for the most part, for the past nearly three weeks. Houston has won 14 of its last 19 games and has outscored opponents 94-57 during that stretch.
4) Mets (58-35; last week: 4) DraftKings World Series odds: 7-1 The Mets lost Sunday to the Cubs, and were left with one win to match their highest total win before the All-Star pause of his story. They are 58-35, a shy of the ’86 Mets, who were 59-25 (.702) on the road to a 108-win World Series championship season. Meanwhile, Pete Alonso has set a Mets record with 78 drives at the All-Star break. The only National League player with the most RBI at the break in the last decade was Josh Bell, who had 84 in 2019.
5) Braves (56-38; last week: 5) DraftKings World Series Odds: 8-1 The Braves ’slow start is barely a memory now that they’ve been rolling for most of six weeks. The NL East race is shaping up as a mob between the Mets, who have had a strength in the first place since the beginning, and the Braves, who have been slowly but deliberately winning them since early June. . Austin Riley is a great piece of the Atlanta renaissance: during his current streak of 13 consecutive hits, he batted .407 (22 of 54) with seven homers and 13 RBIs. He has six homers in his last nine games.
The rest of the field of 30
Voters: Alyson Footer, Anthony Castrovince, Paul Casella, Mark Feinsand, Nathalie Alonso, Mike Petriello, Sarah Langs, Andrew Simon, David Venn, Brett Blueweiss.