You can dissect the rosters as much as you want, talk about payrolls and injuries, but the real advantage the Orioles have over the Yankees is on the bench.
Buck Showalter is the odds-on favorite to win the AL Manager of the Year Award and after having Baltimore in contention all season long he deserves credit as the best baseball mind in the AL East as well.
Showalter’s brilliance should be no mystery to the Yankees, as he led them to the playoffs in 1995, his last season as manager, and helped lay the foundation for the dynasty that won four of the next five World Series titles under Joe Torre.
In similar fashion, Showalter built the Diamondbacks into a team that won the NL West in its second year and was fired before Arizona won the World Series in 2001.
Showalter has outmanaged all of his peers this season, including the quartet of Joe Girardi (Yankees), Joe Maddon (Rays), Bobby Valentine (Red Sox) and John Farrell (Blue Jays), and it shouldn’t come as any surprise considering his track record.
The players have played their way to this point, but it has all happened under Showalter’s guidance.
Games through Sept. 3
1. Reds (82-54) (Previous Ranking: 1) – The Reds should be getting Joey Votto back any day now, which with the expansion of rosters coming earlier this month, is by far the best addition any team could have made.
2. Rangers (80-54) (2) – Yu Darvish looked unhittable for six innings on Monday before getting squeezed on a call and having his perfect game bid broken up.
3. Nationals (82-52) (3) – Strasburg’s countdown is at two starts. Washington had better hope Gio Gonzalez and Jordan Zimmerman can pick up the slack.
4. Rays (74-61) (6) – Tampa Bay currently has a better chance of making the playoffs than Baltimore (according to ESPN.com) and I agree, mostly because this is now an experienced team that has pulled off more miraculous comebacks in the past.
5. Giants (77-58) (9) – Tuesday is Bruce Lee Bobblehead Doll night for the Giants. I think it’s safe to say that the winning product on the field, not the promotional giveaways is what keeps the fans coming back.
6. Braves (76-59) (8) – Kris Medlen’s stellar run since joining the rotation gives Atlanta another strong arm heading down the stretch.
7. Athletics (76-58) (11) – 15-3 over its past 18 games explains why the A’s are closer in the standings to the Rangers than the Angels are to them.
8. Orioles (75-59) (14) – It’s time to face facts; Baltimore is not going away this season.
9. Yankees (76-58) (7) – If Robinson Cano’s hip actually becomes an issue, you can all but write off the Yankees.
10. Dodgers (73-63) (4) – All the Dodgers need to do is make it to the one-game wild card playoff. I’ll take Clayton Kershaw over any NL pitcher in a one-game series.
11. White Sox (73-61) (5) – As surprising as Chicago has been this season, it’d be even more of a shock if it holds off Detroit for the AL Central crown.
12. Cardinals (73-62) (12) – There’s something about this team in September. Skip Schumaker’s first home run in nearly 14 months and a baserunning error by Andres Torres led to the Cardinals’ 5-4 win over the Mets on Monday.
13. Tigers (72-62) (10) – Miguel Cabrera is probably the favorite for AL MVP, but Max Scherzer’s emergence as a dependable No.2 behind Justin Verlander is just as important.
14. Angels (72-63) (13) – Aren’t getting as much publicity as the Red Sox, but the Angels have just as high of a payroll and big name talent but may still miss out on October baseball.
15. Pirates (70-64) (15) – Clock is close to striking midnight for the Cinderella Pirates.
16. Mets (64-71) (21) – Rumors swirled that there was a Jason Bay sighting this weekend. I still don’t believe it.
17. Phillies (65-70) (16) – Papelbon took his sixth loss of the season when he served up a three-run bomb to Chipper Jones on Sunday.
18. Mariners (60-75) (18) — Jason Vargas, not Felix Hernandez, leads the team in wins (14)
19. Diamondbacks (66-70) (19) — Unless Arizona can win its next two games against the Giants, the season is over.
20. Brewers (65-69) (22) – Ryan Braun is a darkhorse NL MVP candidate.
21. Padres (62-74) (17) — Chase Headley is poised to cash in when he becomes arbitration eligible.
22. Royals (60-74) (24) – Alex Gordon lead the league with 45 doubles.
23. Rockies (55-78) (23) — In part-time duty, Tyler Colvin has 17 homers, 63 RBI and is hitting .291.
24. Marlins (60-75) (25) — Not a single Marlins starter has a winning record.
25. Blue Jays (60-74) (26) – Toronto was almost no-hit by Baltimore’s Joe Saunders. The Blue Jays’ offense has averaged 1.8 runs over its past five games.
26. Red Sox (62-74) (20) – I agree with Ben Cherington, Red Sox baseball is “hard to watch.”
27. Twins (55-80) (27) – Joe Mauer hit a Grand Slam on Saturday and has quietly put together a strong rebound season, hitting .317 with nine home runs and 72 RBI.
28. Indians (57-78) (28) — Corey Kluber picked up his first win of his career against the dangerous Tigers lineup on Labor Day.
29. Cubs (51-83) (29) – Chicago will play a bigger role in the NL Central than they may think. The Cubs have 19 of their final 28 games against Central opponents.
30. Astros (42-93) (30) – I’m running out of ways to express how bad the Astros actually are.