This article was originally published as part of Verducci’s View, a new weekly baseball newsletter from Sports Illustrated senior writer Tom Verducci. Every Monday, Tom empties out his notebook over email and covers MLB’s hottest topics, provides in-depth analysis through both text and video breakdowns, looks forward to what’s worth watching during the week and more. If you want to be featured in his new mailbag, please email [email protected] with any questions about MLB or his decades in the sport.
Halfway through the season, the American League is a monument to mediocrity. The Yankees have a run differential of +120. Only three other teams in the league have a positive run differential, none more than the Rays’ +20. The Red Sox, a bad baseball team, are five games out of a playoff spot. The Rangers, a losing team, hold a wild-card spot.
