The Royals and Tigers are rolling early
The American League Central was supposed to see a changing of the guard this season.
The Detroit Tigers, who have won the division each of the past three seasons, were ready to take a plunge. They lost Max Scherzer in the offseason and former ace Justin Verlander is on the disabled list to begin the season. Then there are the reigning American League-champion Kansas City Royals. Kansas City watched Billy Butler, Nori Aoki and James Shields leave for more money without finding suitable replacements. Most pundits have the Royals finishing fourth in the Central.
One week into the season, the Royals and Tigers are a combined 12-0 with the two best run differentials in baseball. The Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox were supposed to be the new bullies on the block, but those columns are being hastily revised. Cleveland was plastered at Progressive Field over the weekend against Detroit, being outscored by an aggregate of 25-15. Kansas City opened the season by destroying Chicago in front of a charged up crowd at Kauffman Stadium, beating up on the White Sox 21-7 over a three-game sweep.
Of course, it remains insanely early in the season. By the end of April, we could absolutely be talking about how the White Sox and Indians are firing on all cylinders while the Tigers and Royals are in the tank. In baseball, a team is never as bad as it looks during a slump, nor is it as good as it appears during a streak. Still, the results certainly show neither Detroit or Kansas City has any intention of slipping quietly into the abyss.
Cleveland needs to get quality pitching behind Corey Kluber and Carlos Carrasco to make noise. The Indians have a deep and potentially lethal lineup, but the rotation remains a serious question from spots 3-5. The White Sox are a bit deeper in the starting staff but have holes in the batting order. The White Sox also need Chris Sale to stay healthy, something which has become a concern in the past year.
With no clear favorite in the American League, it will be interesting to see if Kansas City or Detroit can build up a sizable playoff cushion at the beginning of the campaign. Only the Seattle Mariners are over .500 in the AL West, and they sit at a tenuous 4-3. In the AL East, it would be somewhat shocking to see anybody other than the division winner reach the postseason.
While the NBA and NHL begin their playoffs and the NFL gears up for the draft at the end of April, Major League Baseball fans get to watch their teams set the tone early in the marathon. So far, only Kansas City and Detroit are yet to disappoint their fans.
