Tigers, Reds lead regional divisions in alternate scheme

Our regional leagues and conferences, which we propose in lieu of a radical baseball realignment that would obliterate the American and National Leagues in all but name, show some fascinating results. These aren't your father's baseball standings.

Alex Avila is batting .471 (eight-for-17) with two homers and 17 RBI in the Detroit Tigers' Northeast Conference games (GabboT/Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license).

We're looking at the Major League Baseball standings and ... try to keep your eyes open.

Over here, the Houston Astros lead the American League West by seven games. Over there, the Washington Nationals have a 7½-game lead on the Atlanta Braves in the National League East.

That's 7½ games. It's May 25. 

But, you say, look at the National League West. Torrid race there. The Dodgers, Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks all are really ripping it up with three of the seven best records in baseball. That should be a hot one. 

Except, it isn't a hot one because it doesn't really matter. Under the present playoff arrangements, all three would go to the postseason today, at no real great advantage for the division winner over one of the other two clubs. Those other two clubs would meet in a one-game playoff, one wins and the other loses, but the winner continues on about the same footing as the division champion.

It's the same problem every year. The lords keep fooling with stop watches and pitch clocks, which, at least, distract them from baseball-hating ideas like starting extra innings with a runner on second base or that ill-advised float from back when about making defensive shifts illegal. Meanwhile, one's loudest snore as a baseball fan issues from the broken connection between 162 games and the World Championship, along with insufferably boring playoff races that reduce us to seeing which clubs can nudge themselves to a couple more than 85 wins to nab that last wild card before outlasting better teams through the World Series.

When fans know that teams with brains angle to peak in October, it makes April and May feel inconsequential. With all of these wild card positions available, a good team can lose a bunch in April and May and it's still fine. Then, when October feels so disconnected from April through September, October feels inconsequential. 

The only way for a World Series game to attract television audiences that were common before expanded playoffs is to put on an event like Game 7 of the 2017 World Series between the Chicago Cubs and the Cleveland Indians, in which somebody was going to win it for the first time in more than 60 years.

Every few years, the notion of realignment is raised as a cure for what ails baseball. The proposals usually are monstrous, amounting to the abolition of the American and National Leagues in all but name, favoring regional "leagues" that would obliterate the few remaining traditions and make baseball less different than ever from pro hockey and pro basketball.

One understands the advantages of an Eastern Conference and a Western Conference. Scheduling would be much simpler, travel would be much less expensive, more games in local time zones is better for TV, etc. 

But the American and National Leagues include one feature what no other league can claim – rivalries that are well more than a century old. Ripping them apart is an unnecessary and destructive approach. Baseball by now has all but erased most of its history. Who even cares anymore about home run records and milestones?  New measurements pepper the popular imagination. Why would a game that brags about tradition eliminate that one remaining historical thread?

We have proposed, for years and in these pages, alternatives to realignment that preserve the American and National Leagues and establish regional championships. The concept is to overlay the regional schemes on top of the traditional American and National Leagues.

One such idea, proposed here, plays out three regional leagues overlaid on the two nationwide leagues. It makes some sense to follow it during those years when the interleague schedule pits AL East vs. NL East, AL Central vs. NL Central and AL West vs. NL West. That was the arrangement in 2015, so we followed those proposed leagues during that season. Here are the results in 2015 for the East League, the Central League and the West League.

We made another proposal last season to divide the big league teams into regional quadrants and use those quadrants as the basis for four regional leagues. We played that out last season. Here is a longer explanation and how it played out in 2016.

Without further prologue, how are those races looking in 2017? We begin with the quadrants, which we now will call "conferences." Through May 24, they look like this.

Working with the schedule baseball gives us, we see some imbalances here, but they can easily be corrected by scheduling. We also see some interesting standings. These conference standings account only for the games each club plays within its conference.

Notice that the Astros and Nationals aren't so dominant in the Southwest Conference. The Astros are tied on top with the Texas Rangers and barely ahead of the Dodgers and Diamondbacks, who are both one-half game down.

Where are the Nationals? Well, they're not leading the Southeast Conference by seven games. They're in fourth place. In first place, the Cincinnati Reds. Imagine that. On top of the Northeast Conference, we find the Detroit Tigers. Neither the Reds nor the Tigers are in playoff position by dint of the actual Major League standings. 

We say, get rid of wild cards and replace them with champions. Overlay regional conferences to determine those additional champions.

Of course, there's more. The Southwest Conference not only is just that, but it's also the South Division of the West League and the West Division of the South League. In the West League, for example, we take the Southwest Conference results and add the results for those teams against the Northwest quadrant, and vice versa.

Here's how the West League looks right now.

Again, rather interesting. In addition to following these races for their own sake, they also give us another perspective on how each club is performing across the big leagues. 

Look where the Dodgers sit in the West League. They have a losing record. Why are the Dodgers right there in the Southwest Conference while they're under water in the West League? Because they are 9-13 combined against the Cubs, the Rockies and the San Francisco Giants, the three clubs they have played from the Northwest Conference.

The South League is a bit of a different story.

We have a couple of real races in this configuration. In the West, it's the Astros, Dodgers and St. Louis Cardinals. In the East, it's the Reds and Nationals.

You see what's happening here. Divide the country into four regional conferences, overlay those conferences into regional leagues, and each conference is simultaneously three distinctive playoff races. So, each team is campaigning in three different competitions, in addition to its official big league playoff race. 

Quick proposal: Change the schedule so each team plays each team within its conference six times in the western conferences and seven times in the eastern conferences. Then, play each team six times against the teams that complete its two regional leagues. That gets each team to 132 games.

Next, each team plays two teams per year from its "crossover" conference twice each, home and home, and rotate those pairings over four years. The crossover conferences are the pairings that don't figure in regional leagues. That would be Southwest vs. Northeast and Northwest vs. Southeast. Notice, these are, in the extreme cases, the longest trips. Now, your clubs are taking those trips once every four years.

Now, you've got a 140-game regular season schedule, reasonably balanced, certainly no worse than the present arrangements and better in a lot of ways. You can add a couple of off days and still shorten the regular season by three weeks.

At the end of it, around September 7, begin a grand tournament with all of the champions and only the champions. Using all of the divisions proposed here, along with the traditional American and National Leagues with their divisional alignments, each club begins the season with four gates of entry. 

Inevitably, some clubs will win multiple championships. Fine. Seed those clubs on top. We now have 18 divisions (conferences included) from which to pluck champions. No need to have so many wild cards, if any. There's more to be worked out here, but this is a start.

If your goals include shortening the regular season, intensifying regional rivalries across the land, realigning while simultaneously preserving the American and National Leagues, eliminating wild cards, reducing travel, having more games in local time zones, strengthening the regular season and tightening the connection between that season and the championship, this is a good path.

Let's look at the other two regional leagues. First, the East League.

Imagine a league in which the division leaders are the Reds and the Tigers. We don't have to. We have the East League. It's not in the bag for either team, obviously.

And the North League.

Notice that the Twins both are in the same conference, the Northwest, which the Twins lead by percentage points while the Oakland Athletics are in last place. But the Twins are much better than the A's in the West League, while the A's are much better than the Twins in the North League. 

Rather likewise, the Toronto Blue Jays are last place in the AL East and terrible in the East League, but they're right there in the North League.

It's all about who you play and how well you play them. But it's also about which games count and how. By dividing up the teams as we propose, we make those matters matter more, and give more clubs more chances by doing it. All without ridding ourselves of the one traditional entity baseball has left to keep, which is the American and National Leagues.

BoSox, DBacks win Second Division bids for 2016

The Boston Red Sox rallied and the Arizona Diamondbacks held firm to finish 2015 as the top two clubs in the Third Division and win promotion for 2016. But the Colorado Rockies and Oakland Athletics are going down.

The Boston Red Sox won five of their last six games in the Third Division and rallied to the championship in 2015, overtaking the Minnesota Twins for promotion.

The Red Sox finished 16-10 in the Third Division to prevail over the Arizona Diamondbacks (21-16)  by one-half game.

The Arizona Diamondbacks finished second in the Third Division to take the second promotion to the Second Division for 2016. Ordinarily, placement is decided by winning percentage, but the Diamondbacks made it in on a rule that went into effect before the season to compensate for the inequities in baseball scheduling.

The rule says that if the third-place team by percentage finishes within one-half game of the top, plays 150 percent as many games as the second-place team by percentage, finishes ahead of that second-place percentage team in the games column and is within 20 percentage points of that second-place percentage team, then that third-place team by percentage gets second place and the promotion.

In this case, the Diamondbacks played 37 games, compared with 24 for the Twins. The DBacks finished one-half game behind the Red Sox, while the Twins finished one game behind. The Twins had the better winning percentage, .583 to .567.

The rule isn't ideal, but we have to work with what's really there. The Diamondbacks participated more fully in the Third Division than the Twins (or the Red Sox, for that matter) and won at a rate just below the Twins. We can argue with the rule, but we can't argue that the Diamondbacks don't deserve promotion.

The Twins led for much of the year, but stumbled out of a promotional spot by losing three of their last four while the Red Sox surged. The Chicago Cubs also came up fast, winning six of their last eight games.

The Cubs (12-10) and Seattle Mariners (22-20) finished in fourth, two games out.

The Colorado Rockies and Oakland Athletics were, without contest, the two lowest teams in the Third Division. Both are being relegated to the Fourth Division in 2016. Coming up from the Fourth Division are the New York Mets and the Chicago White Sox.

While the Red Sox and Diamondbacks go up to the Second Division in 2016, the Cincinnati Reds and Detroit Tigers are coming down from the Second Division to the Third Division.

Royals complete quick climb to top tier

It took the Kansas City Royals a few years to get moving in the promotion and relegation arrangement, but they finally made it all the way up to the First Division for 2016 by splitting the Second Division title with the Texas Rangers in 2015.

The Kansas City Royals were one of the original Fourth Division clubs when this accounting began in 2010, and they were the last team to escape the dungeon, advancing as the second-place team in 2013.

But when the Royals did advance, they advanced quickly. All the way to the First Division in two years, the shortest possible climb.

The Royals earned their First Division stripes for 2016 by splitting the Second Division title with the Texas Rangers in 2015. The Rangers finished 17-10 (.630) for the leading percentage, but the Royals (35-27, .565) finished one-half game up in the games behind column.

Thus, the Rangers and the Royals are the two teams gaining promotion for 2016. Replacing them in the Second Division for 2016 are the Angels and the Atlanta Braves, both of which were demoted from the First Division.

Kansas City spent 2010 through 2013 in the Fourth Division, seemingly with no chance to escape until it finished second in 2013. In 2014, the Royals rallied to finished second in the Third Division and gain another promotion, sweeping the Baltimore Orioles in a four-game American League Championship Series to secure that raise.

The Cincinnati Reds and Detroit Tigers both tumbled through the Second Division standings in the final two months of 2015 and finished in the bottom two. The Reds and Tigers are relegated to the Third Division for 2016. Rising from the Third Division to the Second Division are the Boston Red Sox and the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Long Cubs rally captures Central League crown

None of our regional leagues had more strong clubs at the top in 2015 than the Center League. The Cubs staged a furious rally from the end of July through the playoffs to capture the championship.

 

The Chicago Cubs rallied from nowhere to win the Center League in 2015, covering eight games in just more than two months and putting themselves over the top with a strong showing in the National League playoffs.

On the morning of July 31, the Cubs were 27-27 in the Center League, 7½ games off the pace set by the Kansas City Royals (37-22), who led the St. Louis Cardinals (36-23) by a game. Even the Detroit Tigers (33-27) were ahead of the Cubs.

But the Cubs mounted a fierce rally through the final two months, capping the regular season with eight consecutive wins to come up 56-40, bringing themselves to within one game of the Cardinals and Cubs, both 57-39.

The Cubs then took care of their business, given a chance during the playoffs, which gave them two Center League foes. Beating the Pittsburgh Pirates in one game, then winning three of four from the Cardinals in the National League divisional series, the Cubs surpassed the Cardinals and the Royals, who did not have Center League opposition during the playoffs.

The Cubs wound up winning the Center League, dramatically, by a one-half game over the Royals and Cardinals.

Bosox welcome Dombrowski with Aaron

The Henry Aaron Award and David Dombrowski arrived in Boston right at the same. With Dombrowski taking over as President of Baseball Operations for the Red Sox, the hub club has popped up with enough unlikely heroics to mount a second Aaron defense, and against the Kansas City Royals, even.

New Boston Red Sox baseball chief David Dombrowski doesn't have to like everything he's seeing from his club this week, but he has to be liking the wins (Cathleen Carrigan/Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license). 

As it happens, the Boston Red Sox began a defense of the Henry Aaron Award on Monday, and David Dombrowski arrived in Boston a day later. 

Not to say that prosperity comes in pairs, but the Red Sox made their first successful defense of the Aaron right as Dombrowski took the reigns as their President of Baseball Operations. Coincidence? You decide. (Hint: it is.)

Coincidence or not, it's still the high point of a disappointing Red Sox season. By the accounts, Ben Cherrington did everything as well as he could and as right as he could as the club's general manager before stepping down right after the Dombrowski hire. However, bringing Hanley Ramirez as the left fielder and Pablo Sandoval as the third baseman to a team playing half of its games in Fenway Park looked like a bad fit on paper, and it looks even worse on the field.

Even worse than that, though, is the Red Sox pitching staff. The Red Sox have one pitcher on the roster right now with any kind of achievement this season, reliever Koji Uehara. As a staff, the Red Sox entered Friday's games with a 4.59 ERA, nearly two-thirds of a run higher than the American League ERA of 3.94.

In their 121 games entering Friday, the Red Sox allowed 592 runs. If they had just a league average pitching staff/defense, they would have allowed 508 runs in those games and the team's Pythagorean expectation would be 63-58 instead of 56-65 (the Red Sox actually were 55-66). At 63-58, the Red Sox would be tied with the Angels for the second American League wildcard.

So, pitching has killed the Red Sox, and we can be sure that having Sandoval and Ramirez defend the left side against the opposing right-handed lineups recommended by Fenway Park hasn't helped. 

And it might even get worse for the Red Sox. Now, they don't have Clay Buchholz for the rest of the year, and he was pretty good (7-7, 3.26 ERA in 18 starts).

It's anybody's guess what Dombrowski will do now with the Red Sox, though upgrades for the pitching and defense are pretty clear priorities. Then again, it's anybody's guess why Detroit Tigers owner Mike Illitch let Dombrowski go less than three weeks ago, making Dombrowski available to the Red Sox. 

The Tigers won the American League Central four consecutive times before this season. This year, three circumstances overtook them. 

First, the Kansas City Royals. Second, the Tigers, in effect, and by various causes, lost big-time starting pitchers Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander this year, and replaced them with only one, David Price, acquired at the trade deadline last year. So, the Tigers needed to replace a 10-games-over-.500 starting pitcher. If all you've got in replacement is a 10-games-under-.500 pitcher, that's costing your club 20 games. If all you've got is a .500 pitcher, that's still 10 games. So (and third), the Tigers were looking for that top pitcher at the trade deadline and, when they saw what the Royals gave for Johnny Cueto, they knew they couldn't play in that market.

Dombrowski then recommended the sensible course to Illitch. Punt. You can't expect to score a touchdown every time you have the ball. When you have that bad year, you have to salvage it. And the Tigers did, particularly in their subsequent trade of Price to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Everyone knows Illitch wants to win the World Series before he dies, and he's 86, so he doesn't have forever. But it does seem that showing Dombrowski the door for this one poor season is a tad impulsive. Illitch might complain that when you look at the Royals doing what they're doing with a $113.6 million payroll, then the Tigers have plenty enough resources to win with their payroll of $173.8 million. But would an 86-year-old Illitch put up with the losing Kansas City has endured to develop its less expensive contender?

Anyway, Dombrowski never particularly had to worry about money with the Tigers, and that's not going to be a problem for him in Boston, either. 

Right now, his problem is pitching. And left-side defense.

But those problems haven't slowed the Red Sox on this present run with the Henry Aaron Award, which began when they took two-of-three from the Seattle Mariners at Fenway Park Aug. 14-16 to capture the prize.

The Red Sox put the Aaron on the line against the visiting Cleveland Indians in a three-game set that started Monday with a 8-2 loss. The next day, though, the Red Sox introduced Dombrowski, the immortals Mookie Betts, Brock Holt and Blake Swihart each drove in two or more runs and Eduardo Rodriguez pitched an uncharacteristic good game (eight innings, one run) in a 9-1 victory. Then, the Red Sox won the rubber game on Wednesday, 6-4. The key was a four-run fourth inning featuring a three-run homer by Jackie Bradley, Jr., and a solo blast by Ryan Hanigan.

If you don't see the Red Sox' future in all of those names, you're probably not alone. Then again, they were playing the Indians.

But now the Red Sox have won the first two of a four-game series in Fenway against the Royals, enough to defend it once again.

Thursday, the Red Sox took the opener from the Royals, 4-1. The six, seven and eight hitters (Travis Shaw, Hanigan and Bradley) drove in all the runs and Lefty Wade Miley horsed up with 7 1/3 innings, allowing only one run. 

The Red Sox won again Friday, 7-2, roughing up Cueto with 13 hits in six innings. The bottom four Red Sox hitters (Rusney Castillo, Shaw, Swihart and Josh Rutledge) scored all the runs and drove in four of them.

In the last two days, then, the Red Sox won when their mediocre pitchers put up good games and their low-order hitters beat up Corey Kluber and Cueto. Probably not the formula the Red Sox can count upon long-term, but it's good for now, and it is bringing the Red Sox their best moments of this season.

Assuming the Red Sox hang on in this title defense, that will bring them up to two defenses and assure them of more than 10 games holding the title.

Can they make a run with it and challenge the Dodgers on top of the standings?

At this point, they've got nothing better to do.

Henry Aaron Award
Standings through games of August 21
	W	L	P	T	G	D	A
DODGERS	15	10	8	1	22	6	7
San Francisco	15	15	8	1	17	4	6
ANGELS	14	5	6	1	16	4	5
Texas	12	10	7	2	16	3	5
San Diego	10	7	5	1	13	3	4
Boston	9	9	6	2	8	1	2
Baltimore	7	6	4	1	7	1	1
Pittsburgh	6	3	3	1	6	1	2
Seattle	7	6	4	1	6	1	2
Milwaukee	5	7	4	1	6	1	2
Kansas City	5	4	4	1	5	1	2
Washington	2	2	1	0	0	0	0
Colorado	6	10	5	0	0	0	0
Arizona	2	7	3	0	0	0	0
New York (AL)	2	2	1	0	0	0	0
Chicago (NL)	1	2	1	0	0	0	0
Miami	1	2	1	0	0	0	0
Minnesota	1	2	1	0	0	0	0
Atlanta	3	4	2	0	0	0	0
Cleveland	1	5	2	0	0	0	0
Houston	0	3	1	0	0	0	0

Numbers in bold indicate league leaders.

W — Wins. L — Losses. P — Times played for title. T — Titles won. G — Number of games that team held title after winning it. D — Title defenses. A — Title defense attempts. Standings are given in order of games holding the title.

2015 Henry Aaron Award results 
(There is no tiebreaker for the Aaron. The champion keeps it unless the challenger wins outright. However, the runs are given for series ending in ties).

San Francisco 2, Arizona 1 — April 6-8 at Arizona.
San Diego 3, San Francisco 1 — April 10-12 at San Diego.
San Diego 2, Arizona 1 — April 13-15 at San Diego.
San Diego 2, Chicago (NL) 1 — April 17-19 at Chicago.
San Diego 2, Colorado 2 — April 20-23 at Denver (San Diego, 26-16).
DODGERS 2, San Diego 1 — April 24-26 at San Diego.
DODGERS 2, San Francisco 1 — April 27-29 at Los Angeles.
DODGERS 3, Arizona 0 — May 1-3 at Los Angeles.
DODGERS 2, Milwaukee 2 — May 4-7 at Milwaukee (DODGERS, 28-16).
DODGERS 2, Colorado 0 — May 8-10 at Colorado.
DODGERS 2, Miami 1 — May 11-13 at Los Angeles.
DODGERS 2, Colorado 2 — May 14-17 (Colorado, 16-12).
San Francisco 3, DODGERS 0 — May 19-21 at San Francisco.
San Francisco 2, Colorado 2 — May 22-24 at Denver (Colorado, 31-26).
San Francisco 3, Milwaukee 0 — May 25-27 at Milwaukee.
San Francisco 2, Atlanta 2 — May 28-31 at San Francisco (Atlanta, 17-16).
Pittsburgh 3, San Francisco 0 — June 1-3 at San Francisco.
Pittsburgh 2, Atlanta 1 — June 5-7 at Atlanta.
Milwaukee 2, Pittsburgh 1 — June 8-10 at Pittsburgh.
Milwaukee 2, Washington 2 — June 11-14 at Milwaukee (Washington, 20-16).
Kansas City 2, Milwaukee 0 — June 15-16 at Milwaukee.
Kansas City 2, Milwaukee 0 — June 17-18 at Kansas City.
Boston 2, Kansas City 1 — June 19-21 at Kansas City.
Baltimore 2, Boston 1 — June 23-25 at Boston.
Baltimore 3, Cleveland 0 — June 26-28 at Baltimore.
Texas 3, Baltimore 1 — June 29-July 2 at Baltimore.
ANGELS 3, Texas 0 — July 3-5 at Arlington.
ANGELS 2, Colorado 0 — July 7-8 at Denver.
ANGELS 2, Seattle 2 — July 9-12 at Seattle (Angels, 20-19).
ANGELS 4, Boston 0 — July 17-20 at Anaheim.
ANGELS 2, Minnesota 1 — July 21-23 at Anaheim.
Texas 2, ANGELS 1 — July 24-26 at Anaheim.
Texas 2, New York (AL) 2 — July 27-30 at Arlington (New York, 35-19).
Texas 2, San Francisco 1 — July 31-August 2 at Arlington.
Texas 3, Houston 0 — August 3-5 at Arlington.
Seattle 2, Texas 1 — August 7-9 at Seattle.
Seattle 2, Baltimore 1 — August 10-12 at Seattle.
Boston 2, Seattle 1 — August 14-16 at Boston.
Boston 2, Cleveland 1 — August 17-19,at Boston.
Boston 2, Kansas City 0 — August 20-21, at Boston, continuing.

Second Division: Reds remain in running

By nearly every measure, the Cincinnati Reds are having a difficult season. But they remain strong in the running for promotion to the First Division in 2016 after a walk-off win in the 13th inning Wednesday night against the Detroit Tigers.

Cincinnati Reds third baseman Todd Frazier says he belongs in the All-Star Game, and it's hard to argue with him (NewJack984/Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license).

By BILL PETERSON

Big Leagues in Los Angeles

The last year hasn't been an especially gratifying experience for fans of the Cincinnati Reds, who have seen their favorites fall from contender at the 2014 All-Star break to dismal also-ran under the leadership of manager Bryan Price.

Price has supplied most of the drama for the Reds this year through meltdowns, which have included a profane tirade born of complete ignorance concerning the beat reporter's responsibilities, wandered through a bizarre episode in which the umpires threw him out one day during the exchange of lineups, and stumbled here and there through odd decisions about player utilization.

Only the All-Star performance of third baseman Todd Frazier and the jaw-dropping inadequacy of the Milwaukee Brewers have saved the Reds from the National League Central basement. 

At the All-Star break last season, the Reds were 51-44, 1½ games out of first place in the NL Central. And they had injuries, sure, but they also rolled over in the second half, going 25-42 for the balance of the season. That dive earned the Reds a demotion from the First Division to the Second Division for 2015. When a team rolls over like that, you have to look at the manager.

But the Reds didn't, and now they're 30-35, 13 games out of first place in the NL Central division, and that's after a dramatic, 8-4 win in 13 innings at home against the Detroit Tigers Wednesday night, combined with a loss by the St. Louis Cardinals in Minnesota.

Since the 2014 All-Star break, they are 55-77, a .417 winning percentage that prorates to 68 wins over a 162-game season. That's a last-place team.

But there is hope for the Reds. As badly as this season has gone, they are in the thick of it for promotion to the First Division in 2016 with their competitive performance this season in the Second Division.

The Texas Rangers (10-6) and Kansas City Royals (19-15) lead the Second Division in the games behind column, but the Reds (12-9) are only one-half game behind. By percentage points, the Reds are in second place at .571, trailing Texas (.625), but ahead of Kansas City (.558). The Tigers (15-14) and New York Yankees (7-6) both are one game behind the Reds.

The top two Second Division teams win promotion for next year. The percentage column usually makes that determination, but if one team wins by percentage and the other wins by the games behind column, then those are the two clubs to be promoted.

The Reds have plenty of time left to earn their promotion, as the Second Division includes two other clubs — the Pittsburgh Pirates and Milwaukee Brewers — that are with them in the National League Central division.

Frazier's walk-off grand slam in the 13th inning Wednesday night gave the Reds their huge victory to keep them in the thick of the Second Division race. For the season, Frazier is batting .294 with 19 doubles, 22 homers, a .639 slugging percentage and a 1.000 OPS. On the Reds postgame television interview, Frazier said he deserves to be on the National League All-Star team. There was no cockiness about it. No coyness, either. Nor should there be.

Center League: Cards cruise to top of loop

The St. Louis Cardinals burned up the last two weeks and overtook the Detroit Tigers for the Center League lead. The crucial moment was three straight one-run, extra-inning wins against the Pittsburgh Pirates, which has marked the early going for both teams.

St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny has his club off to the best start in the Major Leagues (djprybyl/Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license).

By BILL PETERSON
Big Leagues in Los Angeles

The St. Louis Cardinals are winning everything else in sight these days, and the Center League is no different.

The Cardinals were 8-3 in the Center League from April 27 through May 12, moving from 1½ games behind the Detroit Tigers to first place, one game ahead of the Tigers. The Kansas City Royals also made a nice move during those two weeks, going 8-5, but they only cut their deficit by one-half game to three games.

The Detroit Tigers have had an especially tough time in May, during which they have yet to win a series. The Tigers split four games with the Royals in Kansas City before losing two of three to the Chicago White Sox on the road and losing two of three at home to the Royals. With all that, the Tigers were 7-8 during the two week period, falling to a game back of first place after being in first by 1½ games.

The Minnesota Twins also made a big move, winning seven of 11 in the Center League during the last two weeks. The Twins climbed from eighth place to fourth place and reduced their deficit by a game, so they now are 5½ games out. The Twins now are even closer in the North Division, where they are in second place, 4½ games behind the Tigers.

The most unfortunate team in the Center League during the last two weeks is the Pittsburgh Pirates, who lost three straight extra-inning, one-run games in St. Louis, then lost two straight at home to the Cincinnati Reds. The Pirates lost six of eight games before finally rallying to win two straight against the Cardinals at home this last weekend. But the Pirates have paid for their problems, dropping from 4½ games out of first place two weeks ago to 7½ games out today.

Games of April 27
Kansas City 6, at Cleveland 2.
Detroit 5, at Minnesota 4.
at Chicago (NL) 4, Pittsburgh 0.
at Cincinnati 9, Milwaukee 6.

Games of April 28
Kansas City 11, at Cleveland 5.
at Minnesota 3, Detroit 2.
at Chicago (NL) 6, Pittsburgh 2.
at Cincinnati 4, Milwaukee 2.

Games of April 29
at Cleveland 7, Kansas City 5.
Detroit 10, at Minnesota 7.
Pittsburgh 8, at Chicago (NL) 1
Milwaukee 8, at Cincinnati 3.

Games of April 30
at Kansas City 8, Detroit 1.
at Minnesota 12, Chicago (AL) 2.

Games of May 1
at Kansas City 4, Detroit 1.
at Minnesota 1, Chicago (AL) 0.
at Chicago (NL) 1, Milwaukee 0.
at St. Louis 2, Pittsburgh 1, 10 innings.

Games of May 2
Detroit 2, at Kansas City 1.
at Minnesota 5, Chicago (AL) 3.
Milwaukee 6, at Chicago (NL) 1.
at St. Louis 2, Pittsburgh 1, 11 innings.

Games of May 3
Detroit 6, at Kansas City 4.
at Minnesota 13, Chicago (AL) 3.
Milwaukee 5, at Chicago (NL) 3.
at St. Louis 4, Pittsburgh 3, 14 innings.

Games of May 4
at St. Louis 10, Chicago (NL) 9.

Games of May 5
at Chicago (AL) 5, Detroit 2.
at Kansas City 5, Cleveland 3.
Cincinnati 7, at Pittsburgh 1.
at St. Louis 7, Chicago (NL) 4.

Games of May 6
at Chicago (AL) 7, Detroit 6.
Cleveland 10, at Kansas City 3.
Cincinnati 3, at Pittsburgh 0.
Chicago (NL) 6, at St. Louis 5.

Games of May 7
Detroit 4, at Chicago (AL) 1.
at Kansas City 7, Cleveland 4.
at Pittsburgh 7, Cincinnati 2.
at St. Louis 5, Chicago (NL) 1.

Games of May 8
Minnesota 9, at Cleveland 3.
at Detroit 6, Kansas City 5.
Chicago (NL) 7, Milwaukee 6.
St. Louis 8, Pittsburgh 5.

Games of May 9
Kansas City 6, at Detroit 2.
Cincinnati 10, at Chicago (AL) 4.
at Chicago (AL) 8, Cincinnati 2.
at Milwaukee 12, Chicago (NL) 4.
at Pittsburgh 7, St. Louis 5.
Minnesota 7, at Cleveland 4.

Games of May 10
at Chicago (AL) 4, Cincinnati 3.
at Cleveland 8, Minnesota 2.
Kansas City 2, at Detroit 1.
at Milwaukee 3, Chicago (NL) 2.
at Pittsburgh 4, St. Louis 3.

Games of May 11
at Milwaukee 10, Chicago (AL) 7.

Games of May 12
St. Louis 8, at Cleveland 2.
at Detroit 2, Minnesota 1.
Chicago (AL) 4, at Milwaukee 2.

Center League: Royals struggle against Twins, White Sox

The Kansas City Royals are down a bit in the Center League because they have built their 12-6 overall record with a 5-1 mark against the American League West. This weekend, however, they will get a crack at the Detroit Tigers, who still lead the Center League.

Detroit Tigers manager Brad Ausmus has his club leading the Center League (Gabbo T/Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license).


By BILL PETERSON
Big Leagues in Los Angeles

Looking at the regular Major League standings right now, the Kansas City Royals are right there with the Detroit Tigers, only one-half game down in the American League Central.

Looking at the Central League, the Royals are barely above water, 7-5, putting them 3 1/2 games behind the Tigers.

The difference is that the Royals have played about one-third of their games against the American League West, going 5-1 combined against the Angels and Oakland Athletics. But those aren't Central League games, so they don't help the Royals here.

It also doesn't help the Royals that they get into more fights than they can handle. Nor are they handling the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins, neither of which has given even the impression of being a contender for the last three years.

The Royals swept the White Sox in three at home during the first weekend of the season, as the club and its fans celebrated an apparent rebirth. Since then, though, the Royals have only matched the Twins, splitting their six games. And the Royals lost two of three just now to the White Sox in Chicago, the two losses being counted on April 26.

So, the Royals are nowhere to be found at the top of the Central League standings. Instead, we find the Tigers and the St. Louis Cardinals. Both of those teams began the week outside of the league, then came back later to each win two of three against a league cellar dwellar — the Tigers taking the Cleveland Indians at home and the Cardinals handling the Milwaukee Brewers on the road.

But a lot could change in these standings (or not) during the back part of the coming week — Tigers at Royals, four games, Thursday through Sunday in Kansas City.

Games of April 20

Chicago (NL) 5, at Pittsburgh 2.

Cincinnati 6, at Milwaukee 1.

at Chicago (AL) 4, Cleveland 3.

at Kansas City 7, Minnesota 1.

Games of April 21

Chicago (NL) 9, at Pittsburgh 8.

Cincinnati 16, at Milwaukee 10.

Cleveland 6, at Chicago (AL) 2.

at Kansas City 6, Minnesota 5.

Games of April 22

at Chicago (AL) 6, Cleveland 0.

Minnesota 3, at Kansas City 0.

Cincinnati 2, at Milwaukee 1.

at Pittsburgh 4, Chicago (NL) 3.

Games of April 23

Kansas City 3, at Chicago (AL) 2.

at Milwaukee 4, Cincinnati 2.

at Pittsburgh 5, Chicago (NL) 4.

Games of April 24

Cleveland 13, at Detroit 1.

Chicago (NL) 7, at Cincinnati 3.

St. Louis 3, at Milwaukee 0.

Games of April 25

at Detroit 4, Cleveland 1.

St. Louis 5, at Milwaukee 3.

Games of April 26

at Detroit 8, Cleveland 6.

Chicago (NL) 5, at Cincinnati 2.

at Chicago (AL) 3, Kansas City 2.

at Chicago (AL) 5, Kansas City 3.

at Milwaukee 6, St. Louis 3.

2011 Third Division standings and summary

After getting thumped out of the Second Division in 2010, the Detroit Tigers dominated the Third Division in 2011 and they will go back to the second tier in 2012. Joining them in promotion will be the Arizona Diamondbacks, even though they barely broke better than even in this group.

By BILL PETERSON
Big Leagues in Los Angeles

The Detroit Tigers won their first of four straight American League Central titles in 2011. Let's see how fast they rise through these ranks.

For now, they won promotion back to the Second Division for 2012, winning the 2011 Third Division with a 25-15 record. Joining the Tigers in their rise to the Second Division will be the Arizona Diamondbacks, by a nose.

The Diamondbacks (16-14, .533) got the nod by percentage points over the Florida Marlins (24-22, .522). The New York Mets, fresh to the Third Division, finished just a game behind Arizona and Florida, while the Toronto Blue Jays again just missed rising a level after finishing 1 1/2 games behind the Diamondbacks and Marlins.

The Oakland Athletics and Chicago White Sox each had light Third Division schedules in 2010, which might have helped them escape relegation. In 2011, both teams had heavy Third Division schedules, and both did poorly enough to earn Fourth Division relegation for the 2012 season.

2010 Second Division standings and summary

The four clubs in this group that went to the Major League playoffs in 2010 also composed the top half of the Second Division standings. In the end, the World Series, a 4-1 victory for the San Francisco Giants over the Texas Rangers, earned the Giants a First Division promotion for 2011 and denied that advance to the Rangers.

By BILL PETERSON
Big Leagues in Los Angeles

As the eight clubs going to the 2009 playoffs were assigned to the First Division for 2010, this Second Division group that didn't make the 2009 playoffs might have been ticketed for greater things to come.

In fact, four of these clubs — the Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants, Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers — reached the Major League playoffs. The Giants and Rangers went to the World Series, with the Giants winning.

Riding a 7-2 playoff record against Second Division clubs, the Giants were the clear Second Division winner, and that playoff run did it. In the end, the Rays, Braves and Rangers all finished within two games of the Giants, but there's only room to promote the Giants and Rays to the First Division for 2011.

The Seattle Mariners, whose 61-101 regular season record was the worst in the Major Leagues, barely escaped relegation. The two relegants for 2011 are the Florida Marlins (80-82) and the Detroit Tigers (81-81).

The Tigers are instructive about how a season looks different when we consider only certain opponents. They only played against Atlanta, Seattle, Tampa Bay and Texas within the Second Division, finishing 8-19. Which means they were 73-62 against all other clubs, which doesn't really matter here.

2014 Henry Aaron Award standings and results

The San Francisco Giants did the Henry Aaron Award in style in 2014, setting all-time records in wins, title defenses and games holding the title. They already were going to be the Team of the Year by the end of August, and their postseason run made them the team of all time. So far.

By BILL PETERSON
Big Leagues in Los Angeles

The San Francisco Giants already were going to be the Henry Aaron Award Team of the Year in 2014 before the end of August.

By the end of October, they were breaking new ground with the prize.

The Giants, 41-18, set the all-time record in Aaron wins, also setting all-time Aaron records in title defenses (10) and defense opportunities (13). They also held the Aaron for 48 games (and counting!), another Aaron record. And the Giants didn't even need help from a new rule, effective in 2013, saying that the champion couldn't lose the Aaron in a break-even series (the other traveling competitions use tiebreakers). The Giants won every title defense cleanly.

The Giants enjoyed runs of two, three and four title defenses off their four title captures.

The big run came at the end. The Giants took the Aaron with three-of-four against the San Diego Padres in San Francisco during the last series of the regular season, then held it for four defenses through their seven-game victory against the Kansas City Royals in the World Series.

Despite interleague play taking place throughout the season, the Aaron stayed in one league for long stretches of time.

It began with the Toronto Blue Jays carrying it from the end of 2013 and stayed in the American League until April 27, when the Giants took it from the Cleveland Indians with a three-game sweep in San Francisco. The Aaron stayed in the NL until July 2, when the Indians took it from the Dodgers in a two-of-three win at Dodger Stadium ending on July 2.

The NL took it back when the Giants won two of three from the Detroit Tigers in Detroit, ending on Sept. 7, and it stayed in the NL for the rest of the season.

2014 Henry Aaron Award results

Total run tiebreakers, though they do not count, are given at the end of the results for reference.


Toronto 2, Tampa Bay 2 — March 30-April 3 at Toronto (Tampa Bay, 18-11).
New York (AL) 2, Toronto 1 — April 4-6 at New York.
Baltimore 2, New York (AL) 1 — April 7-9 at New York.
Toronto 2, Baltimore 1 — April 11-13 at Baltimore.
Minnesota 2, Toronto 1 — April 15-17 at Minneapolis.
Kansas City 2, Minnesota 1 — April 18-20 at Kansas City.
Cleveland 3, Kansas City 1 — April 21-24 at Cleveland.
San Francisco 3, Cleveland 0 — April 25-27 at San Francisco.
San Francisco 2, San Diego 1 — April 26-28 at San Francisco.
San Francisco 3, Atlanta 0 — May 2-4 at Atlanta.
Pittsburgh 2, San Francisco 1 — May 5-7 at Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh 2, St. Louis 1 — May 9-11 at Pittsburgh.
Milwaukee 2, Pittsburgh 1 — May 13-15 at Milwaukee.
Chicago (NL) 2, Milwaukee 1 — May 16-18 at Chicago.
Chicago (NL) 1, New York (AL) 1 — May 20-21 at Chicago (Chicago, 8-5).
Chicago (NL) 2, San Diego 2 — May 22-25 at San Diego (San Diego, 18-12).
San Francisco 2, Chicago (NL) 1 — May 26-28 at San Francisco.
San Francisco 3, St. Louis 1 — May 29-June 1 at St. Louis.
San Francisco 2, Cincinnati 1 — June 3-5 at Cincinnati.
San Francisco 3, New York (NL) 0 — June 6-8 at San Francisco.
Washington 3, San Francisco 0 — June 9-11 at San Francisco.
St. Louis 3, Washington 0 — June 13-15 at St. Louis.
St. Louis 2, New York (NL) 0 — June 17-18 at St. Louis.
St. Louis 2, Philadelphia 2 — June 19-22 at St. Louis (Philadelphia, 13-11).
St. Louis 2, Colorado 1 — June 23-25 at Denver.
Los Angeles 3, St. Louis 1 — June 26-29 at Los Angeles.
Cleveland 2, DODGERS 1 — June 30-July 2 at Los Angeles.
Cleveland 2, Kansas City 1 — July 4-6 at Cleveland.
Cleveland 2, New York (AL) 2 — July 7-10 at Cleveland (Cleveland, 21-16).
Cleveland 2, Chicago (AL) 1 — July 11-13 at Cleveland.
Cleveland 2, Detroit 1 — July 18-20 at Detroit.
Minnesota 2, Cleveland 1 — July 21-23 at Minneapolis.
Chicago (AL) 3, Minnesota 1 — July 24-27 at Minneapolis.
Chicago (AL) 2, Detroit 1 — July 27-29 at Detroit.
Minnesota 2, Chicago (AL) 1 — August 1-3 at Chicago.
Minnesota 1, San Diego 1 — August 5-6 at Minneapolis (Minnesota, 7-6).
Oakland 3, Minnesota 1 — August 7-10 at Oakland.
Kansas City 3, Oakland 1 — August 11-14 at Kansas City.
Kansas City 3, Minnesota 1 — August 15-18 at Minneapolis.
Kansas City 1, Colorado 1 — August 19-20 at Denver.
Kansas City 2, Texas 1 — August 22-24 at Arlington.
New York 1, Kansas City 0 — August 25 at Kansas City.
Detroit 2, New York 1 — August 26-28 at Detroit.
Detroit 2, Chicago (AL) 2 — August 29-31 at Chicago (Detroit, 21-17).
Detroit 3, Cleveland 1 — September 1-4 at Cleveland.
San Francisco 2, Detroit 1 — September 5-7 at Detroit.
San Francisco 3, Arizona 0 — September 9-11 at San Francisco.
Los Angeles 2, San Francisco 1 — September 12-14 at Los Angeles.
Colorado 2, Los Angeles 1 — September 15-17 at Denver.
Colorado 3, Arizona 1 — September 18-21 at Denver.
San Diego 2, Colorado 1 — September 22-24 at San Diego.
San Francisco 3, San Diego 1 — September 25-28 at San Francisco.
San Francisco 1, Pittsburgh 0 — October 1 at Pittsburgh.
San Francisco 3, Washington 1 — October 3-7 at Washington and San Francisco.
San Francisco 4, St. Louis 1 — October 11-16 at St. Louis and San Francisco.
San Francisco 4, Kansas City 3 — October 21-29 at Kansas City and San Francisco.

2014 Harmon Killebrew Award standings and results

It might have been special for the Minnesota Twins to win the Harmon Killebrew Award Team of the Year in 2014, but they would have won it with a losing record in the competition, which isn't special. In the end, the Kansas City Royals emerged as a strong champion.

By BILL PETERSON

Big Leagues in Los Angeles

The 2014 season was looking pretty lackluster for the Harmon Killebrew Award until the middle of September.

Then, along came the Kansas City Royals.

When the Royals went to Cleveland to face the Cleveland Indians on Sept. 22, the Minnesota Twins were making a nice bid for Killebrew Team of the Year, despite a losing record in Killebrew games. Even with that, the Twins (21-22) led all American League teams in Killebrew wins (21), titles, (five) and days with the crown (24). The Twins were a low-percentage Killebrew team, playing for it 13 times, more than any other team, but defending it only twice in seven tries.

The Detroit Tigers were looking like the winners through the first half of September, taking the Killebrew with a two-of-three triumph against the New York Yankees in Detroit (Aug. 26-28), then holding it for four defenses.

But the Twins snagged it from Detroit with a two-of-three victory in Minneapolis Sept. 15-17 and, although they immediately lost it to the Indians (two-of-three in Minneapolis, September 19-21), that short tenure gave the Twins enough weight in the numbers to move in front.

The Royals changed all of that. In addition to winning two of three from the Indians, they held it through four games against the Chicago White Sox in Chicago, then, of course, went on that eight-game winning streak in the American League playoffs to retire the prize for the year in their possession.

Thus, the Royals led all Killebrew teams in wins at 27-16, they ended with six title defenses and they held it for 27 days, most of any team. It was, for the Royals, a finish for the ages, in more ways than one.

2014 Harmon Killebrew Award results 

Total run tiebreakers, if applicable, are given at the end of the results.

Tampa Bay 3, Texas 1 — April 3-6 at St. Petersburg.

Kansas City 2, Tampa Bay 1 — April 7-9 at Kansas City.

Minnesota 3, Kansas City 0 - April 12-14 at Minneapolis.

Minnesota 2, Toronto 1 — April 15-17 at Minneapolis.

Kansas City 2, Minnesota 1 — April 18-20 at Kansas City.

Cleveland 3, Kansas City 1 — April 21-24 at Cleveland.

ANGELS 3, Cleveland 0 — April 28-30 at Anaheim.

Texas 2, ANGELS 1 — May 2-4 at Anaheim.

Boston 2, Texas 1 — May 9-11 at Arlington.

Minnesota 2, Boston 1 — May 13-15 at Minneapolis.

Minnesota 2, Seattle 1 — May 16-18 at Minneapolis.

Texas 3, Minnesota 1 — May 26-29 at Minneapolis.

Baltimore 2, Texas 1 — June 3-5 at Arlington.

Oakland 2, Baltimore 1 — June 6-8 at Baltimore.

ANGELS 2, Oakland 1 — June 9-11 at Los Angeles.

Cleveland 2, ANGELS 1 — June 16-18 at Cleveland.

Detroit 3, Cleveland 0 — June 20-22 at Cleveland.

Detroit 3, Texas 0 — June 24-26 at Arlington.

Houston 2, Detroit 1 — June 27-29 at Houston.

Seattle 3, Houston 0 — June 30-July 2 at Houston.

Chicago (AL) 2, Seattle 1 — July 4-6 at Chicago.

Chicago 2, Boston 2 — July 7-10 at Boston (Chicago, 19-12).

Cleveland 2, Chicago 1 — July 11-13 at Cleveland.

Cleveland 2, Detroit 1 — July 18-20 at Detroit.

Minnesota 2, Cleveland 1 — July 21-23 at Minneapolis.

Chicago 3, Minnesota 1 — July 24-27 at Minneapolis.

Chicago 2, Detroit 1 — July 29-31 at Detroit.

Minnesota 2, Chicago 1 — August 1-3 at Chicago.

Oakland 3, Minnesota 1 — August 7-10 at Oakland.

Kansas City 3, Oakland 1 — August 11-14 at Kansas City.

Kansas City 3, Minnesota 1 — August 15-18 at Minneapolis.

Kansas City 2, Texas 1 — August 22-24 at Arlington.

New York 1, Kansas City 0 — August 25 at Kansas City.

Detroit 2, New York 1 — August 26-28 at Detroit.

Detroit 2, Chicago 2 — August 29-31 at Chicago (Detroit, 20-17).

Detroit 3, Cleveland 1 — September 1-4 at Cleveland.

Detroit 2, Kansas City 1 — September 8-10 at Detroit.

Detroit 3, Cleveland 0 — September 12-14 at Detroit.

Minnesota 2, Detroit 1 — September 15-17 at Minneapolis.

Cleveland 2, Minnesota 1 — September 19-21 at Minneapolis.

Kansas City 2, Cleveland 1 — September 22-24 at Cleveland.

Kansas City 3, Chicago 1 — September 25-28 at Chicago

Kansas City 1, Oakland 0 — September 30 at Kansas City.

Kansas City 3, ANGELS 0 — October 2-5 at Anaheim and Kansas City.

Kansas City 4, Baltimore 0 — 10-15 at Baltimore and Kansas City.

Center League: Tigers take again it to AL Central

As history predicted, the Detroit Tigers are once more roughing up on their American League Central opponents, and they've also gotten a lick in already against the National League Central. So, they lead the Center League early, but the St. Louis Cardinals and Kansas City Royals are hanging tough.

Miguel Cabrera is raking again for the Detroit Tigers, running a 1.150 OPS through games of April 19. (Cbl62/Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license).

By BILL PETERSON

Big Leagues in Los Angeles

The Detroit Tigers have won the American League Central the last four years, and they've done it by cleaning up their opponents within the division.

From 2011 through 2014, the Tigers were 183-113 within the AL Central and 183-169 against all other clubs. The Tigers' winning percentage of .618 within the division during the last four years works out to 100 wins per 162 games, and they've never won more than 95 in any of these four seasons that each produced a division title.

So, it's no surprise that the Tigers are off to such a roaring start in whatever version of standings that we want to count. They're 10-2 already, producing in all aspects of the game. Through games of April 19, the Tigers are second across the Major Leagues in team OPS (.855), second in staff ERA (2.61) and second in defensive efficiency rating (.747). Everyone in the Tigers' starting lineup is OPS-plussing 110 or better, led by Miguel Cabrera at 261.

In their first 12 games, the Tigers (10-2) have scored seven or more runs in six of them, allowed one run or fewer in seven of them, and done both in three of them.

The Tigers will take a break from the central league early this week as the New York Yankees visit them in Detroit Monday through Thursday. The St. Louis Cardinals (8-3), right behind the Tigers in the Center League, also will take a respite early this week against the Washington Nationals.

Perhaps, then, the early part of this week is time for the Kansas City Royals to make a move. The Royals are 9-3 overall this year, but only 4-2 in the Center League, as the schedulers have pitted them in several early contests against the American League West (against which they are 5-1). Starting with three at home Monday through Wednesday against the Minnesota Twins, though, the Royals will stay in the AL Central for 20 consecutive games through May 10. Of those 20 games, six will be against the Tigers, with three in each club's home park.

Games of April 5

St. Louis 3, at Chicago (NL) 0.

Games of April 6

at Cincinnati 5, Pittsburgh 2.

at Detroit 4, Minnesota 0.

at Kansas City 10, Chicago (AL) 1.

Games of April 7

St. Louis at Chicago (NL), ppd.

Games of April 8

at Chicago (NL) 2, St. Louis 0.

at Detroit 11, Minnesota 0.

at Cincinnati 5, Pittsburgh 2 (11 innings).

at Kansas City 7, Chicago (AL) 5.

Games of April 9

at Cincinnati 3, Pittsburgh 2.

at Detroit 7, Minnesota 1.

at Kansas City 4, Chicago (AL) 1.

Games of April 10

Detroit 8, at Cleveland 4

Minnesota 6, at Chicago (AL) 0.

at Cincinnati 5, St. Louis 4.

Pittsburgh 6, at Milwaukee 2.

Games of April 11

St. Louis 4, at Cincinnati 1.

at Chicago (AL) 5, Minnesota 4.

Detroit 9, at Cleveland 6.

at Milwaukee 6, Pittsburgh 0.

Games of April 12

Detroit 8, at Cleveland 5.

St. Louis 7, at Cincinnati 5 (12 innings).

at Chicago (AL) 6, Minnesota 2.

Pittsburgh 10, at Milwaukee 2.

Games of April 13

at Chicago (NL) 7, Cincinnati 6.

at Pittsburgh 5, Detroit 4.

Milwaukee 5, at St. Louis 4.

Kansas City 12, at Minnesota 3.

Games of April 14

Detroit 2, at Pittsburgh 0.

Chicago (AL) 4, at Cleveland 1.

Cincinnati 3, at Chicago (NL) 2.

Games of April 15

at Cleveland 4, Chicago (AL) 2.

Detroit 1, at Pittsburgh 0.

at Chicago (NL) 5, Cincinnati 0.

at Minnesota 3, Kansas City 1.

at St. Louis 4, Milwaukee 2.

Games of April 16

at St. Louis 4, Milwaukee 0.

at Minnesota 8, Kansas City 5.

Games of April 17

at Detroit 2, Chicago (AL) 1.

at Pittsburgh 6, Milwaukee 3.

at Minnesota 3, Cleveland 2.

at St. Louis 6, Cincinnati 1.

Games of April 18

Chicago (AL) 12, at Detroit 3.

Cleveland 4, at Minnesota 2.

at St. Louis 5, Cincinnati 2.

at Pittsburgh 6, Milwaukee 2.

Games of April 19

at Detroit 9, Chicago (AL) 1.

at Pittsburgh 5, Milwaukee 2.

at Minnesota 7, Cleveland 2.

at St. Louis 2, Cincinnati 1.

2012 Center League standings and summary

A tight race in the Center League ended with the Detroit Tigers holding off the Cincinnati Reds. The Reds prevailed, though, in the South Division, though by a much smaller margin than they held over the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Central.

By BILL PETERSON
Big Leagues in Los Angeles

The Detroit Tigers held off a September rally from the Cincinnati Reds to capture the Central League title in 2012.

Entering the final month, it still was crowded near the top. The Tigers led the St. Louis Cardinals by two games, the Reds by 2 1/2, and the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago White Sox by 3 1/2 games each. But the Reds won six straight during the next street, while the other clubs tread water. When the Tigers lost both games of a double-header to the Minnesota Twins at home on September 23, the Reds pulled into a tie with 10 days left in the season.

At that point, the Reds had already clinched the National League Central, while the Tigers were in a tight battle with the Chicago White Sox in the American League Central, actually standing a game behind the Chicago White Sox.

The Tigers had another wind, though, and won six of their next seven to take a 1 1/2-game lead in the Central League entering the final series of the season for all teams. The suspense ran out quickly, as the Reds dropped a 4-2 decision at St. Louis and the Tigers took a 6-3 win at Kansas City on Oct. 1 for a 2 1/2-game lead with two games remaining. With that same victory, the Tigers also clinched the American League Central.

Reds fans subjected manager Dusty Baker to blistering criticism, alleging that he tanked the Central League race because he was too satisfied with already clinching the NL Central.

However, the Reds also were in a tight struggle with the Cardinals in the Central League South Division. Though the Cardinals trailed the Reds by 10 games and already were clinched out of the running in the NL Central through September 23, they were only 1 1/2 behind the Reds in the Central League South.

But while the Cardinals were idle in the Central League for the next week, the Reds won two of three each from the Milwaukee Brewers and the Pittsburgh Pirates, extending their lead in the South Division to 2 1/2 games entering the final series of the season, a three-gamer in St. Louis. With their Oct. 1 victory, the Cards pulled within 1 1/2 games with two remaining.

On Oct. 2, though, the Reds scored two in the sixth against St. Louis starter Chris Carpenter, thanks to RBI singles by Jay Bruce and Dioner Navarro, to take a 3-1 lead. Facing the Cardinals' three, four and five hitters in the bottom of the sixth, Baker controversially pulled right-hander Mat Latos to save him for the National League playoffs.

Reliever Sam LeCure picked his manager up by retiring the Cards in order in the sixth. However, the Cards put two on with one out against LeCure in the seventh. With the tying run on base, it appeared the Reds could be choking away the South Division. Then reliever Sean Marshall defused the situation by retiring the next two hitters. Marshall breezed through the eighth and Aroldis Chapman took down all three St. Louis hitters in the ninth, giving the Reds a 3-1 win to clinch the division.