Five questions to ponder as baseball’s second half unfolds
The second half of the baseball season begins Friday and more than half the teams still have legitimate postseason hopes.
Ten teams in the American League and eight in the National League — some hanging by a thread — could be in the hunt in September if July, August and September go their way.
The Rangers (54-36), with the best record in the AL, are looking to snap out of a funk after losing nine of 12 before the All-Star break. The San Francisco Giants (57-33) have the best record in the majors and seemed poised to carry on their tradition of winning the World Series in even-numbered years, as in 2010, 2012 and 2014. Here are five questions as the second half unfolds:
1. Another Texas trade?
You can bet that Rangers general manager Jon Daniels and his staff are scouring the league for another starting pitcher and reliever. Perhaps it won’t come with the same cache as the Cole Hamels trade a year ago, but the club has never been shy about pulling the trigger on a move, especially when it feels most of the pieces are already here to win a title.
The injuries to Colby Lewis and Derek Holland and, to some degree, the reliability question of Yu Darvish have put the rotation at the fore of needs. Padres left-hander Drew Pomeranz has been reported to be of interest to the Rangers. He’s had a great first half with a 2.47 ERA in 102 innings. Other possible trade options include Rays lefty Matt Moore, Rays righty Jake Odorizzi, and Twins right-hander Ervin Santana.
There has been speculation about the Rangers’ interest in Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy. But at this point, catching shouldn’t even be on their to-do list. Simply put: If the Rangers don’t turn it around in the rotation this magical first half will disappear faster than you can say abracadabra.
Sources: #Rangers interested in #Padres All-Star Pomeranz, have done background work on him. TEX has checked on most of available pitching.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 12, 2016
2. Do the Astros have it in them?
A year ago at the break, the Astros were a half-game behind the Angels in the AL West and 5 1/2 in front of the Rangers, who were 42-46 and seemingly treading water. Texas finished 46-28 while Houston finished 37-34 as the Rangers snagged the division title.
Is there a reversal of fortune at work here? Do the Astros have what it takes to overtake the Rangers? Texas has already won nine of the first 10 meetings between the two. The Astros host three in Houston in early August and the Rangers host three in early September before the season series concludes with three in Houston on Sept. 12-14. The Astros have also struggled with starting pitching. Reigning Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel is 6-9 with a 4.80 ERA.
3. Will the Cubs break the curse?
The North Side was hopping in April and May as the Cubs jumped out to a historically strong start. Since going up 12 1/2 games on June 19, the Cubs have come back to earth a bit, finishing the first half losers of 15 of their past 21. Still, they start the second half with a seven-game lead on the second-place St. Louis Cardinals in the NL Central. Is it time to panic? Hardly. The Cubs are still stacked and play 14 of their first 19 games of the second half at the friendly confines of Wrigley Field, starting with a three-game series (perhaps a World Series preview?) with the Rangers on Friday.
4. Is this even-year Giants thing legit?
It’s hard to argue against them at this point. They have a 6 1/2 -game lead on the Dodgers and the best record in the majors. Their starters have the second-lowest WHIP (behind the Cubs) at 1.16 and their bullpen has thrown the third fewest innings (251) in the majors.
The Giants have been able to build their lead without right-fielder and former Arlington High and UT Arlington star Hunter Pence, who has been out of action since a hamstring injury June 1. Pence is expected back in late July. The Giants had home-field advantage in the the World Series in 2010 and ’12 but not in ’14 when they beat the Royals in Kansas City in Game 7 for their third title in five seasons. If they’re to make it four in seven, they’ll have to do it without home-field advantage after the AL won Tuesday’s All-Star Game. The team with home-field advantage has won nine of the 13 World Series since the result of the All-Star Game began determining home-field advantage.
5. Is the Royals’ era over?
The defending champs are only seven games back in the AL Central. Trouble is, they’ve got three teams ahead of them, with the surprise Indians leading the Detroit Tigers by 6 1/2 and the Chicago White Sox by seven. The Royals still have a nasty bullpen with an AL-best 2.95 ERA, second only to the Dodgers’ 2.83. Their rotation, sans Johnny Cueto (who, surprise, is pitching for the Giants this year), is near the bottom of the majors with a 4.99 ERA and has been charged with 37 losses, tied for fourth-most in the AL. A dominant bullpen won’t amount to much if your starters are rarely handing over games with a lead. Edinson Volquez, Yordano Ventura, Chris Young and Ian Kennedy are all sitting with ERAs 3.97 or higher.
Stefan Stevenson: 817-390-7760, @StevensonFWST
Players to watch
David Ortiz, Red Sox: He said he’s retiring, but why? He’s having one of his best seasons and needs just seven doubles to move ahead of Hank Aaron and into seventh place all-time in doubles, 12 homers to move into 17th all-time ahead of Mickey Mantle and 20 RBIs to move into 22nd all-time ahead of Honus Wagner.
Prince Fielder, Rangers: It’s been the worst first half of his career. If the Rangers are to hold onto their lead and make a run in the postseason, Fielder will need to improve his .215 batting average, .347 slugging percentage, .649 OPS, and eight home runs, all of which are near the bottom of the league for designated hitters.
Andrew Miller, Aroldis Chapman, Yankees: Are the Yankees in sell mode? If so, hard-throwing relievers Miller and Chapman could fetch some top young talent. The Yankees have told Miller that he’s being shopped if the right offer came their way and he’s fine with it. Chapman, with his off-the-field issues, may be tougher to sell. But contending teams such as the Rangers would love to add another quality arm to their bullpen.
Clayton Kershaw, Dodgers: He’s been on the disabled list with a lower back injury but threw his first bullpen session recently. He is 11-2 with a league-leading 1.79 ERA, and will be integral to the Dodgers’ hopes of catching the Giants.
Max Scherzer, Nationals: He’s on pace to finish with a career-high 283 strikeouts, which would be second only to Kershaw’s 301 in 2015 in the past 10 seasons. He’s second only to Kershaw for the league’s lowest WHIP at 0.96.
This story was originally published July 13, 2016 at 4:00 PM with the headline "Five questions to ponder as baseball’s second half unfolds."