Let’s take the pulse of where each MLB team stands as we enter the home stretch of the season.
30. Detroit Tigers, 39-92, last in the AL Central (ranked 30th last week)
So it’s been another rough week for Detroit, losing eight of their last 10 games, and with the injuries starting to pile up it’s hard to find any bright spots on the roster at the moment. Starter Matthew Boyd continues to trade good and bad starts, with his most recent being a stinker, allowing seven runs and two home runs to the Twins after holding the Rays to one run over seven innings of work.
Offensively, 1B Brandon Dixon leads the team with 14 home runs and was hitting over .300 in July. However, the 27-year-old cooled off in August, batting .226 on the month with only five extra-base hit and no home runs.
29. Kansas City Royals, 47-88, 4th in the AL Central (ranked 28th last week)
The Royals are just trying to navigate their way through the final month of the season without losing another core piece. Kansas City added starter Danny Duffy to the IL earlier this month, but the veteran lefty is expected to return to the mound this weekend.
SS Adalberto Mondesi is on the 10-IL dealing with a shoulder subluxation that should keep him out until mid-August and of course, C Salvador Perez is out for the season recovering from Tommy John surgery. OF/DH Jorge Soler continues to mash baseballs, hitting 36 home runs this season, but his .878 OPS and power numbers are welcome in a KC lineup that doesn’t have much pop elsewhere.