A couple of months ago I posted the MLB standings after 54 games. Each team has just completed 108 games and it's mildly interesting to see how things have changed.
What is most notable is how most teams are quite consistent. Only the Chicago White Sox had a difference of more than 10 games, improving from 23-31 in the first third of the season to 39-15 in the second for a 16-game jump that propelled them into first. The biggest drop in wins was just 6, with Toronto (of course), Pittsburgh, and the Dodgers all falling off their early pace by that amount.
All of the divisions except one have a good two-team pennant race with the second-place team two games or less behind the leader. Only Texas is dominating the AL West with a 9-game lead over Oakland and the Angels. The closest third-place team is Boston, 6 games back.
Essentially the second 54 games are where the good teams leave the weaker squads behind. It is tough for any of the third-place teams to make a run with less than two months to play and two teams ahead of them.
The standings below show the 108 game records for all teams as well as their records over the last 54 games and the difference in wins between the first 54 and second 54 games. I'm not sure how useful this is, but the most interesting team is the Giants who have moved within a game of the San Diego in the NL West. If you extrapolate their 4-game improvement, they might be the favourites in the race. Whatever the case, the NL is much more intriguing with the Wild Card also up for grabs; the East loser will likely take the WC spot in the junior circuit.
54W 54L Win
AL East W L GB Diff
New York 67 41 33 21 -1
Tampa Bay 67 41 31 23 -5
Boston 61 47 6 30 24 -1
Toronto 56 52 11 25 29 -6
Baltimore 35 73 32 20 34 5
54W 54L Win
AL Central W L GB Diff
Chicago 62 46 39 15 16
Minnesota 60 48 2 29 25 -2
Detroit 53 55 9 25 29 -3
Cleveland 46 62 16 25 29 4
Kansas City 46 62 16 24 30 2
54W 54L Win
AL West W L GB Diff
Texas 63 45 34 20 5
Los Angeles 54 54 9 28 26 2
Oakland 54 54 9 26 28 -2
Seattle 40 68 23 18 36 -4
54W 54L Win
NL East W L GB Diff
Atlanta 62 46 30 24 -2
Philadelphia 60 48 2 30 24 0
New York 54 54 8 27 27 0
Florida 53 55 9 26 28 -1
Washington 48 60 14 22 32 -4
54W 54L Win
NL Central W L GB Diff
Cincinnati 60 48 29 25 -2
St. Louis 60 48 29 25 -2
Milwaukee 50 58 10 28 26 6
Houston 47 61 13 27 27 7
Chicago 47 61 13 23 31 -1
Pittsburgh 38 70 22 16 38 -6
54W 54L Win
NL West W L GB Diff
San Diego 63 45 31 23 -1
San Francisco 62 46 1 33 21 4
Colorado 56 52 7 28 26 0
Los Angeles 56 52 7 25 29 -6
Arizona 40 68 23 20 34 0
Sean
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