The Major League Baseball Standings So Far

When I was younger and used to follow major league baseball, I was rapt up in the standings and studied them in detail every day to see how "my" teams were doing.  While still interested in the standings, my emphasis this year has been to simply enjoy games as they unfold on TV, half-inning by half-inning,  and get to know the different players on the different teams.  Yes, there is still this backdrop of the "standings", with some of the teams I follow the most doing well (like Atlanta at 21-15 and Miami at 20-18, three straight losses notwithstanding) and some on the "other" end (like Tampa Bay at 16-22 and the Chicago Cubs at 12-24).  For the most part, the teams are bunched around each other, playing around .500.  Even those who have spurted ahead of the pack in their divisions, like Detroit and Milwaukee, could well see some slippage down the line.  I can't say the same, though, about last place teams Houston (12-26), the Cubs (12-24), and Arizona (15-25) significantly changing their positions.  These don't seem to have very bright prospects for the future, at least regarding this season...although in the games I've watched them playing, they seem to be competitive.  Still, I recall that at one point early in the 2003 season, the Florida Marlins were mired in the bottom of their division with a dismal 19-29 record...only to go on a late-season tear to make the playoffs as a wild card team, eventually making it to the World Series (thanks to that Chicago Cubs fan) and beating the Yankees.  So even with these, you can never be too sure whether that elusive team chemistry might just catch on and make a major difference down the stretch of the regular season (like it did with the Pirates and Indians last year and the Orioles and A's the year before)...

Baltimore (20-15), Detroit (21-12), and Oakland (23-15) are leading their respective divisions in the American League while Atlanta (21-15), Milwaukee (24-14), and San Francisco (24-14) are on top in the National.  The biggest surprise so far has to be the Brewers, who at this point are far ahead of three teams in their own very competitive NL Central division that made the playoffs last year.  But the season is still early, and I expect at least the St. Louis Cardinals to give them a run for their money...