MLB First Half Stats to Consider
BY Tony George
The first half of bases is in the books as the All Star Game in my hometown is underway. More than a few surprises in the first half as always, and some heated races innumerous divisions should provide plenty of fireworks in the second half of the season. I will make this blog short and sweet and lay out some teams here who you need to keep an eye on for moneyline opportunities in the second half of the season.
Top 5 Moneyline Teams in first half
- Pittsburgh
- Baltimore
- Washington
- NY Mets
- NY Yankees
Top 5 Worst Teams against the Moneyline in first half
- Philadelphia
- Colorado
- Milwaukee
- San Diego
- Houston
Top 5 Teams on OVERS
- Philadelphia
- NY Mets
- Milwaukee
- Colorado and Houston TIE
- Boston
Top 5 Teams on UNDERS
- Oakland
- LA Angels
- Cincy – NY Yankees -TIE
- Kansas City- Detroit –TIE
Please note that the overall team stats do not always equate to wins and losses. Only 3 of the Top 5 moneyline teams lead their division. The Pirates, Yankees and Nationals. None of the teams in the Top 5 in Overs lead their division and it is more of a tale tell sign that their pitching is lacking, as evidenced by the Phillies being the worst cover team in bases.
Texas and the NY Yankees have the best records in MLB with 52 wins each, followed by Washington and Pittsburgh in win totals. NY has the biggest division lead at 7 games over second place Baltimore in all of Baseball and the Yanks, Rangers, Nats and Pirates are the top 4 teams in bases in my humble opinion. The AL Central is the weakest division in baseball right now, and to think Kansas City is 10 games from reaching .500 as a team and still only 9 games out of first place in this division is a sure sign anyone can win this division with the White Sox currently leading it.
One things you can count on is teams playing true to form in the second half. The stats do not lie and always look at the bullpens ERA’s, On Base Percentage and Slugging percentage. The bullpens determine the outcome of more games than do those of the starters. If you look at starting pitchers ERA, many times under 3, and then see their overall wins and losses, you are scratching your head. It is one of two things, no run support with a bad offense or no decent bullpen to back them up.