We are two weeks into the 2017 baseball season and it’s been an exciting start to the season. A number of surprises have emerged early. The Twins, Brewers, Reds and Diamondbacks have all gotten off to hot starts, along with the Orioles who have the best winning percentage after two weeks. Among the other surprises are the Blue Jays, who have yet to win a series and sit at 3-12. They have the worst offense in the league, with a team batting average of just .218. Their supposed big strength, their starting rotation, has turned into a nightmare, with J.A. Happ and Aaron Sanchez both probably headed to the DL. Their star MVP candidate Josh Donaldson is on the DL with a calf injury. This season started with high hopes for the Jays, but it looks like it’s going to be a long summer north of the border. The Yankees are also a surprise hot team, going on a 7 game winning streak after starting the year slowly. I don’t know how they are doing it, but their young stars are feasting on mediocre pitching. When they get the prospects they hauled in from Chicago and Cleveland up to the big leagues next year, watch out. The Orioles are rolling along with Trey Mancini having one of the best starts to a Major League career in history. With Manny Machado slumping, Mancini has picked up the slack. The O’s are looking for Chris Tillman’s return next week to bolster their rotation. Ublado Jimenez turned in a gem last night against the tough Cincinnati Reds, shutting them out for 7+ innings. He threw strikes, kept the walks down and was extremely effective. If he can keep that up, the Orioles will be sitting pretty. Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman are emerging and Wade Miley is pitching solidly. Tonight, the O’s go for another series win (they haven’t lost a series all season so far) and look to finish a 9 game road trip with a 6-3 record. If they keep that pace up on the road, they will blow by the 79 wins the “experts” predicted for them this season.
American League East |
Team |
W |
L |
Pct. |
GB |
RS |
RA |
Diff |
Home |
Road |
East |
Cent |
West |
L10 |
Strk |
Baltimore |
9 |
4 |
.692 |
– |
58 |
52 |
6 |
4-1 |
5-3 |
8-3 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
6-4 |
W 1 |
N.Y. Yankees |
10 |
5 |
.667 |
– |
77 |
49 |
28 |
8-1 |
2-4 |
5-4 |
2-1 |
0-0 |
9-1 |
W 1 |
Boston |
10 |
6 |
.625 |
½ |
69 |
66 |
3 |
7-2 |
3-4 |
6-3 |
1-3 |
0-0 |
7-3 |
W 1 |
Tampa Bay |
9 |
8 |
.529 |
2 |
80 |
72 |
8 |
8-2 |
1-6 |
6-8 |
3-0 |
0-0 |
4-6 |
W 3 |
Toronto |
3 |
12 |
.200 |
7 |
45 |
66 |
-21 |
2-7 |
1-5 |
3-10 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
2-8 |
L 1 |
American League Central |
Team |
W |
L |
Pct. |
GB |
RS |
RA |
Diff |
Home |
Road |
East |
Cent |
West |
L10 |
Strk |
Cleveland |
8 |
7 |
.533 |
– |
75 |
72 |
3 |
2-4 |
6-3 |
0-0 |
5-4 |
3-0 |
5-5 |
W 3 |
Detroit |
8 |
7 |
.533 |
– |
63 |
84 |
-21 |
5-2 |
3-5 |
3-4 |
5-3 |
0-0 |
5-5 |
L 3 |
Chi. White Sox |
7 |
7 |
.500 |
½ |
49 |
49 |
0 |
2-3 |
5-4 |
1-2 |
6-5 |
0-0 |
5-5 |
L 1 |
Kansas City |
7 |
7 |
.500 |
½ |
41 |
46 |
-5 |
5-3 |
2-4 |
0-0 |
0-3 |
6-3 |
6-4 |
W 1 |
Minnesota |
7 |
8 |
.467 |
1 |
60 |
50 |
10 |
4-5 |
3-3 |
0-0 |
7-8 |
0-0 |
3-7 |
L 4 |
American League West |
Team |
W |
L |
Pct. |
GB |
RS |
RA |
Diff |
Home |
Road |
East |
Cent |
West |
L10 |
Strk |
Houston |
11 |
5 |
.688 |
– |
67 |
55 |
12 |
7-4 |
4-1 |
0-0 |
1-2 |
10-3 |
8-2 |
W 2 |
Oakland |
7 |
8 |
.467 |
3½ |
59 |
67 |
-8 |
4-5 |
3-3 |
0-0 |
2-1 |
5-7 |
5-5 |
W 2 |
Seattle |
7 |
9 |
.438 |
4 |
69 |
68 |
1 |
6-3 |
1-6 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
5-8 |
6-4 |
W 1 |
L.A. Angels |
7 |
10 |
.412 |
4½ |
57 |
73 |
-16 |
4-2 |
3-8 |
0-0 |
0-3 |
7-7 |
2-8 |
L 2 |
Texas |
5 |
10 |
.333 |
5½ |
72 |
73 |
-1 |
2-4 |
3-6 |
0-0 |
0-3 |
5-7 |
4-6 |
L 2 |
National League East |
Team |
W |
L |
Pct. |
GB |
RS |
RA |
Diff |
Home |
Road |
East |
Cent |
West |
L10 |
Strk |
Washington |
9 |
5 |
.643 |
– |
77 |
67 |
10 |
6-3 |
3-2 |
7-4 |
2-1 |
0-0 |
6-4 |
W 3 |
Miami |
8 |
7 |
.533 |
1½ |
70 |
63 |
7 |
4-2 |
4-5 |
7-5 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
5-5 |
L 1 |
N.Y. Mets |
8 |
7 |
.533 |
1½ |
68 |
63 |
5 |
4-4 |
4-3 |
8-7 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
6-4 |
W 1 |
Atlanta |
6 |
8 |
.429 |
3 |
55 |
69 |
-14 |
4-2 |
2-6 |
2-5 |
0-3 |
4-0 |
5-5 |
L 2 |
Philadelphia |
5 |
9 |
.357 |
4 |
66 |
66 |
0 |
2-4 |
3-5 |
4-7 |
1-2 |
0-0 |
4-6 |
L 1 |
National League Central |
Team |
W |
L |
Pct. |
GB |
RS |
RA |
Diff |
Home |
Road |
East |
Cent |
West |
L10 |
Strk |
Cincinnati |
9 |
6 |
.600 |
– |
71 |
52 |
19 |
4-5 |
5-1 |
2-1 |
6-4 |
0-0 |
6-4 |
L 1 |
Chi. Cubs |
8 |
7 |
.533 |
1 |
66 |
60 |
6 |
4-5 |
4-2 |
0-0 |
6-6 |
2-1 |
5-5 |
W 2 |
Milwaukee |
8 |
8 |
.500 |
1½ |
76 |
71 |
5 |
2-5 |
6-3 |
0-0 |
5-5 |
1-3 |
6-4 |
L 2 |
Pittsburgh |
6 |
9 |
.400 |
3 |
49 |
63 |
-14 |
3-3 |
3-6 |
3-0 |
3-6 |
0-0 |
3-7 |
L 3 |
St. Louis |
6 |
9 |
.400 |
3 |
48 |
67 |
-19 |
5-4 |
1-5 |
1-2 |
5-4 |
0-0 |
4-6 |
W 3 |
National League West |
Team |
W |
L |
Pct. |
GB |
RS |
RA |
Diff |
Home |
Road |
East |
Cent |
West |
L10 |
Strk |
Arizona |
10 |
6 |
.625 |
– |
78 |
63 |
15 |
6-1 |
4-5 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
7-6 |
5-5 |
L 1 |
Colorado |
10 |
6 |
.625 |
– |
54 |
62 |
-8 |
3-3 |
7-3 |
0-0 |
3-1 |
7-5 |
5-5 |
L 1 |
L.A. Dodgers |
8 |
8 |
.500 |
2 |
69 |
47 |
22 |
6-4 |
2-4 |
0-0 |
1-2 |
7-6 |
5-5 |
W 1 |
San Diego |
6 |
10 |
.375 |
4 |
48 |
79 |
-31 |
3-2 |
3-8 |
0-4 |
0-0 |
6-6 |
3-7 |
W 1 |
San Francisco |
6 |
10 |
.375 |
4 |
61 |
63 |
-2 |
3-4 |
3-6 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
5-9 |
5-5 |
L 1 |
After two weeks, the season is in full throttle with lots of excitement happening every night.
In Buffalo sports news, Tim Murray and Dan Bylsma were “relieved” of their duties today- why can’t we just say they were fired? I have been calling for Murray to get the axe all season and am very happy that Pegula finally pulled the trigger on that. I can’t blame Bylsma for the pathetic defense and goaltending that Murray gave him, but his inability to mesh with the Sabres young stars Eichel and Reinhart is, in the end, what got him canned. I think it’s a joke that some people think that Lindy Ruff should be brought back to coach. The new coach is the new GM’s choice, and I think that Chris Drury would be a fantastic GM for us. He knows what Sabres hockey is about and he surely can identify talent, unlike Tim Murray. Hopefully, the Sabres will un-protect Robin Lehner, and either trade him (if they could get a bag of pucks for him) or Las Vegas will select him in the expansion draft. He has no business being our goaltender going forward and he should take a hike with Tim Murray. I am not going to miss Murray’s smugness and Bylsma’s robotic-ness. It’s time for a fresh take in management of the Sabres. We have a decent offensive team. We need to upgrade the defense and find a solid starting goalie. We don’t need the next Domink Hasek; we need a guy that can go out there every night and have a close to 2.00 goals against average and keep our team in the game. Of all the sports news coming out of Buffalo recently, the firing of Murray is right up there with the best news I’ve heard. Good riddance.
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