Major League Baseball - Week In Review

Is there any doubt the Minnesota Twins are the hottest team in Major League Baseball?
They own the best record (34-16) in the league and are threatening to run away with the American League Central, currently leading the second place Cleveland Indians by eight games.
The Twins pounded the visiting Chicago White Sox, 11-4 on Friday night as they slugged three more home runs, giving them 101 dingers through the first 50 games. Minnesota is on pace to obliterate the record for most home runs by a team in a single season, which was set just last year by the New York Yankees.
Like the Minnesota Twins, the Houston Astros have been solid as well through the first one-third of the season, racking up a 34-18 record and a seven game lead in the A.L. West division. The Astros have had two 10-game winning streaks already this year, becoming just the third team ever in MLB history to do that in the first 50 games of a season. The Texas Rangers and Oakland A's, winners of seven straight games, are battling it out for second place in the division race. 
In the A.L. East, the New York Yankees have been doing it with a lot of replacements as they have managed to build the third best record in the majors in spite of several starting players and pitchers going on the injury list. The Yanks just swept a four-game series in Baltimore, led by Gleyber Torres, who slugged four home runs in the series to help lead the way.
Over in the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers continue to roll along, leading the west division by six games and they pounded the Pittsburgh Pirates, 10-2 on Friday. Outfielder/first baseman Cody Bellinger leads the league in batting with a .389 average to go with 18 home runs and 46 RBI.
The only player with more home runs than Bellinger is Milwaukee Brewers OF Christian Yelich, who became the first MLB player this season to get to 20 home runs with a shot on May 24 in a 6-4 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies.
The Phillies lead the N.L. East by a game-and-a-half over the Atlanta Braves while the Brewers remain in second place in the N.L. Central race, trailing the Chicago Cubs by 1 1/2 games. The Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds follow up, separated by just three games.



AL STANDINGS (through May 24)                                   NL STANDINGS (through May 24)
East                                                                                      East
NY Yankees 32-17                                                               Philadelphia 30-21            
Tampa Bay 29-19                                                                 Atlanta 29-23
Boston 27-24                                                                        NY Mets 24-26
Toronto 20-31                                                                      Washington 20-31
Baltimore 15-36                                                                   Miami 16-32


Central                                                                                Central
Minnesota 34-16                                                                  Chicago 29-20
Cleveland 26-24                                                                   Milwaukee 29-23
Chicago 23-27                                                                      Pittsburgh 25-23
Detroit 19-29                                                                        St. Louis 25-25
Kansas City 17-32                                                                Cincinnati 23-27
                                                                                                                                 

West                                                                                     West
Houston 34-18                                                                      LA Dodgers 33-18
Texas 25-23                                                                          San Diego 27-24
Oakland 26-25                                                                      Arizona 26-25
LA Angels 22-28                                                                  Colorado 23-26
Seattle 23-30                                                                         San Francisco 21-29 

Major League Baseball - Week In Review

The American League East division has a new leader as the New York Yankees took over first place from the Tampa Bay Rays (half game lead) following their come from behind 4-3 victory on Friday night at Yankee Stadium.
The Bronx Bombers rallied for three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning against Rays closer Jose Alvarado, which included a mammoth home run by first baseman Luke Voit to spark the rally. The Rays had been in first place since the opening of the season.
The Houston Astros won their ninth consecutive game, a 3-1 decision at Fenway Park on May 17 as they beat the host Boston Red Sox to increase their AL West division lead to 8 1/2 games. The rest of the division has four teams within a game of each other.
In the American League Central race, the Minnesota Twins remain hot and continue to increase their lead over the second place Cleveland Indians, now at 5 1/2 games after they defeated the Seattle Mariners, 7-1. The Tribe lost 5-1 to the visiting Baltimore Orioles. The Twins have the third best overall record in the majors.
Over in the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers won their fourth game in a row as pitcher Rich Hill struck out ten batters in a 7-0 shutout victory at Cincinnati. The Dodgers (30-16) have the best record in the National League and own a 4 1/2 game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The Chicago Cubs bounced back after dropping two of three games to the Cincinnati Reds as they blasted the host Washington Nationals, 14-6. Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant smashed three home runs in successive at bats to lead the rout. The Cubs have a 1 1/2 game edge over second place Milwaukee.
The Brewers lost 12-8 in Atlanta against a hot Braves team that won their third game in a row to stay just a game-and-a-half behind the first place Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East division. Milwaukee outfielder Christian Yelich leads all of baseball with 18 home runs.





AL STANDINGS (through May 17)                                   NL STANDINGS (through May 17)
East                                                                                      East
NY Yankees 27-16                                                               Philadelphia 25-19            
Tampa Bay 26-16                                                                 Atlanta 24-21
Boston 23-21                                                                        NY Mets 20-23
Toronto 18-26                                                                      Washington 18-26
Baltimore 15-29                                                                   Miami 11-31


Central                                                                                Central
Minnesota 29-15                                                                  Chicago 26-16
Cleveland 23-20                                                                   Milwaukee 27-20
Chicago 20-23                                                                      Pittsburgh 22-20
Detroit 18-25                                                                        St. Louis 23-22
Kansas City 15-30                                                                Cincinnati 20-25
                                                                                                                                 

West                                                                                     West
Houston 30-15                                                                      LA Dodgers 30-16
LA Angels 21-23                                                                  Arizona 25-20
Texas 20-22                                                                          San Diego 23-22
Seattle 22-25                                                                         Colorado 20-23
Oakland 21-25                                                                      San Francisco 18-25

Holy Cow ! Ten Years Ago Already

Has it been ten years already?
Yep.
This site called Heftyinfo launched ten years ago today with a post titled "shut up," which was ripping former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney for all of his babbling on and denigrating of the new U.S. President named Barack Obama.
From there, it has been an interesting ride these last ten years, with a lot of sports coverage (especially pro football) as well as a myriad of fun topics and of course, politics.
Politically speaking, this site slants left and is not enjoying the way the current POTUS (or as I like to call him, the "poser" president) is conducting business in this country we call the United States of America.
However, the feeling coming along is the republicans are in for another rude awakening come the 2020 elections.
The people of this country sent a resounding message to Trump and company in the 2018 congressional (mid-term) elections as the U.S. House majority went back to the Democratic party for the first time in ten years. Will the U.S. Senate flip as well in 2020? Will Trump lose his bid for re-election?
Stay tuned.
As far as sports coverage is concerned, that is the first love of this blog site (as stated in the creed in the upper right hand corner) and will continue to be as well. In fact, the weekly post for Major League Baseball - Weekly Review will be a staple this summer and then of course the wall-to-wall coverage of the NFL season, including team previews for all 32 NFL franchises.
It has been a great run so far and as possible retirement looms closer and closer, there will be more time to concentrate on blogging in the future which could mean more politics.
Maybe.
On a sad note, actress Peggy Lipton passed away this weekend. She was known for her roles on "The Mod Squad" (late 1960's and early 1970's cop show) and the bizarre "Twin Peaks" show that aired in the early 1990's.
Just today, Doris Day passed away as well. She was 97 years old and was a famous singer/actress who really shined from the late 1950's until the early to mid 1970's. Her biggest song was "Que Sera Sera" and she was a favorite of my late mother. Yesterday having been Mother's Day, let's dedicate the video of the song by Doris Day on this post to her and all of her fans.
Because after all, the future is not ours to see, and whatever will be, will be . . .  Que Sera Sera. 

Until next time, hope you enjoy this site and as always, feel free to comment.

Major League Baseball - Week In Review

The big showdowns this weekend in Major League Baseball are the series between the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs (at Wrigley Field) and the New York Yankees at the Tampa Bay Rays as they battle for first place in their divisional races.
The Brewers hammered the Cubs, 7-0 on Friday afternoon as Ryan Braun slugged a home run and the Milwaukee pitchers held the Cubs scoreless to forge a first-place tie in the National League Central race. The two teams have been the hottest in the majors as Milwaukee now has a seven game winning streak while the Cubs have won ten of their last twelve games. The St. Louis Cardinals are only 1 1/2 games back, having lost seven of their last ten games.
Over in the American League East, the Yankees held off the host Rays, 4-3 as closing pitcher Aroldis Chapman struck out the side in the ninth inning. The win allowed the Bronx Bombers to get to within one-half game of the first place Rays. Lurking close are the Boston Red Sox (just four games back after a horrendous start this season) as they won for the eighth time in ten games, beating down the struggling Seattle Mariners, 14-1 as they built a ten run lead while slugging three home runs.
The team with the best record in baseball is the Minnesota Twins, who shut out the Detroit Tigers, 6-0 behind stellar pitching by Jake Odorizzi and timely hitting. Minnesota leads the AL Central by 4 1/2 games over the second place Cleveland Indians. Odorizzi ran his scoreless innings streak to 20 in the winning effort.
The Houston Astros are a hot team as well, winning seven of ten and increasing their AL West division lead to five full games over the Seattle Mariners, who are just 7-19 after a 13-2 start this season. The Astros shut out in state rival Texas Rangers, 3-0 on May 10 as pitcher Justin Verlander allowed only one hit over seven innings while also striking out eight batters.
Back in the National League, the Philadelphia Phillies are starting to build up a solid hold of first place in the East division as they have won six of ten. The Atlanta Braves are three games back in the race while the New York Mets are 3 1/2 games behind.
Over in the NL West, the Los Angeles Dodgers own a three game edge over the Arizona Diamondbacks while the San Diego Padres are four games out. The Dodgers lead the National League in runs scored (219) and are second overall in the league, trailing only Seattle, which has scored 223 runs through games played to May 11.




AL STANDINGS (through May 10)                                   NL STANDINGS (through May 10)
East                                                                                     East
Tampa Bay 23-14                                                                Philadelphia 21-16              
NY Yankees 23-15                                                              Atlanta 19-20
Boston 20-19                                                                       NY Mets 18-20
Toronto 16-22                                                                     Washington 15-23
Baltimore 13-25                                                                  Miami 10-28


Central                                                                                Central
Minnesota 24-12                                                                  Chicago 22-14
Cleveland 20-17                                                                   Milwaukee 24-16
Detroit 16-19                                                                        St. Louis 22-17
Chicago 16-21                                                                      Pittsburgh 18-17
Kansas City 14-25                                                                Cincinnati 17-22
                                                                                                                                 


West                                                                                     West
Houston 24-15                                                                      LA Dodgers 26-15
Seattle 20-21                                                                        Arizona 22-17
LA Angels 18-20                                                                 San Diego 21-18
Texas 17-19                                                                         Colorado 18-20
Oakland 18-22                                                                     San Francisco 16-22   

Major League Baseball - Week In Review

The Chicago Cubs are surging in the National League Central division standings, having won five in a row after a 4-0 shutout of the visiting St. Louis Cardinals on May 3. Pitcher Kyle Hendricks twirled a complete game gem as the Cubs closed to within a game and a half of first place. Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo slugged his eighth home run to spark the offense. St. Louis had a five game win streak as well in the past week and have the best record in the National League.
Jean Segura and Rhys Hoskins hit home runs to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 4-2 win against the Washington Nationals on Friday and they opened up a 2 1/2 game lead on the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets in the NL East.
Over in the NL West, the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres are going at it this weekend in a three-game series in San Diego. The Dodgers, Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks are separated by just 1 1/2 games in the division race. On Friday night, the Dodgers held off the Padres, 4-3 as Kenley Jansen earned the save. The D-Backs stayed within a game of the Dodgers, beating the Colorado Rockies, 10-9 for their third consecutive victory.
The three divisional races in the American League are bunched up as well as the New York Yankees cooled off the Minnesota Twins (they had the best record in baseball entering the three-game set in The Bronx) to keep pace with the Tampa Bay Rays, who currently have the best record in the majors. Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez hit a pair of homers to lead the way in the 6-3 win. The Rays pounded the hapless Baltimore Orioles, 7-0 on Friday night.
The Cleveland Indians lost pitcher Corey Kluber to a fractured right arm earlier this week as a line drive nailed him. The Tribe nipped the slumping Seattle Mariners, 2-1 on May 3, sending the M's to their fifth consecutive defeat. After a 13-2 start, Seattle has lost 14 of their last 19 games. In spite of their latest loss, the Mariners are only one game back of the first-place Houston Astros in the American League West division. The Indians are two games behind the Twins in the AL Central.
As for individual accomplishments, the home run leaders in the American League are Eddie Rosario (Twins) and Joey Gallo (Texas Rangers), who each have 11 home runs. Leading the National League are Cody Bellinger (Dodgers) and Christian Yelich (Milwaukee Brewers), who have slugged 14 dingers as of May 3. Currently, Major League Baseball is on pace to break the record for most home runs in a single season, which was set just two years ago.




AL STANDINGS (through May 3)                                   NL STANDINGS (through May 3)
East                                                                                     East
Tampa Bay 21-11                                                                Philadelphia 18-13              
NY Yankees 18-13                                                              Atlanta 16-16
Toronto 15-17                                                                     NY Mets 16-16
Boston 15-18                                                                      Washington 13-18
Baltimore 11-22                                                                  Miami 9-22


Central                                                                                Central
Minnesota 19-11                                                                  St. Louis 20-12
Cleveland 17-13                                                                   Chicago 17-12
Detroit 14-15                                                                        Milwaukee 18-16
Chicago 14-16                                                                      Pittsburgh 14-15
Kansas City 11-22                                                                Cincinnati 13-19
                                                                                                                                 


West                                                                                     West
Houston 18-14                                                                      LA Dodgers 21-13
Seattle 18-16                                                                        Arizona 19-13
LA Angels 15-17                                                                 San Diego 18-15
Texas 14-16                                                                         Colorado 15-18
Oakland 15-19                                                                     San Francisco 14-18