Wild Card Race
3.5 back of Tampa Bay for second Wild Card. Oakland leads Tampa Bay by 2.5 games, Texas leads Oakland by 1 game.
The Rangers and A’s face off with the West Division lead on the line. Holland, Darvish, Colon and Parker are all scheduled for the series. Meanwhile, the Angels are hot, having won 8 of 9. A dangerous week on the road for Texas.
A’s: 3 vs Texas, 4 vs Houston
After taking 3 of 4 in Detroit and sweeping the Rays, the A’s face Holland and Darvish. Then the Astros come to town. Don’t be surprised to see the A’s on top of the West by the end of the week.
Rays: 4 @ Angels, 3 @ Mariners
The Rays continue without a day off. The Angels are streaking and took 2 of 3 from Tampa Bay last week. The Rays will face Weaver, but miss Wilson. Mariners will send Iwakuma and Hernandez against them over the weekend. Let’s hope the Rays road struggles continue.
Orioles: 3 @ Indians, 4 vs White Sox
The Orioles stay on the road to face the Indians. Justin Masterson pitches Monday. Chris Tillman is on the mound on Tuesday. The Orioles finish the week with Chris Sale on Sunday.
Indians: 3 vs Orioles, 3 vs Mets
After they host the Orioles, the Indians will only play teams behind them in the standings. They do face Wheeler on Friday.
Royals: 4 vs Mariners, 3 vs Tigers
The Royals had a great week to keep them on the fringe of the race. They miss Iwakuma and Scherzer, but face Hernandez, Sanchez and Verlander. After winning Sunday, Shields only throws once this week.
Division Race, Yankees 9 back of the Red Sox and 3.5 back of the Rays
Red Sox: 3 vs Tigers, 4 @ Yankees
The Red Sox are pulling away; hitting Rodriguez seems to have sparked them more than the Yankees. The Red Sox finally catch an ace, facing Scherzer on Tuesday. Dempster is scheduled to miss the Yankees series. Nova faces Peavy Thursday. The Yankees are right back in the thick of this race if they win out this week.