Rising in the East

Once again, the situation in the AL East has boiled down to the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry. Everyone else has sort of stepped back, saying 'you guys can have this one.'

Right now the Sox are ahead, and it's assumed they're gonna stay ahead for the next week or so. They have enough momentum to have the division all-but locked up, and to already start gearing for the series against the Astros. This has been a great year for them, overcoming shenanigans and all 50 injuries Dustin Pedroia's had to stay on top. The pitching has been stellar, with Drew Pomeranz and Eduardo Rodriguez stepping in to make sure Chris Sale doesn't have to be amazing alone this year. Breakout stars like Rafael Devers and Andrew Benintendi have been lifting the vets even further, towards the postseason.

Still, you have the Yankees creeping up from below, fighting for the Wild Card spot, but also fighting to be relevant this postseason. And it's got to be tough for the Sox, as they spent the whole year trying to establish superiority, and have to combat this crap again. The Yankees might have an equally awesome team, too, with similar strengths/weaknesses. So it might have to be only one of the two that gets the glory this postseason.

I'd obviously like the Yankees to end up advancing a bit more, but the Sox have a not-so-hateable team this year, and I'd be fine with them making a leap forward. Still...we've got a week or so left. Interesting to see how the rivalry strengthens.

Coming Tomorrow- A pitcher for a doomed-but-impressive NL East team.