AL Central Weekly 4/25-5/1

1. Chicago White Sox, 18-8
   

   Jose Abreu had 11 hits this week to lead the first-place White Sox on offesne. Photo courtesy mlb.com.

The White Sox swept the Blue Jays in three games to start the week, then split two of four games against the Orioles. Jose Abreu had 11 hits in 29 at bats on the week, while driving in six RBIs. Chris Sale remained undefeated on the season by picking up two wins with a 1.35 ERA during the past seven games.

Upcoming Games: vs. Boston (3 games), vs. Minnesota (3 games)

2. Detroit Tigers, 14-10

K-Rod has been a fix for a bad Tigers’ bullpen. Photo courtesy mlb.com.

Detroit had a great week of baseball by taking three of four from the A’s and sweeping the Twins in three games. Victor Martinez has been the offensive star for the Tigers, with 14 hits in 27 at bats. He and Miguel Cabrera each had three home runs on the week, which generated a lot of offense for Detroit. Jordan Zimmerman picked up two wins and Francisco Rodriguez got three saves in three opportunities to lead the pitching staff to a memorable week.

Upcoming Games: at Cleveland (3 games), vs. Texas (3 games)

3. Kansas City Royals, 13-11

Eric Hosmer is swinging a continually hot bat for the Royals. Photo courtesy foxsports.com.

The defending World Series Champions struggled mightily this week by getting swept by the Angels, then losing two out of three to the Mariners. They remain in contention, but really need to step up there game going into the next couple of weeks. Eric Hosmer highlighted the offensive production by hitting .391 with 2 home runs, but no one got on base for him to drive in, as he had only 3 RBIs all week. Ian Kennedy won one start out of two, but the best pitcher on the staff continues to be Wade Davis, who picked up one save in his only opportunity of the week.

Upcoming Games: vs. Washington (3 games), at Cleveland (3 games)

4. Cleveland Indians, 10-12

Jose Ramirez heated up this week for the Indians. Photo courtesy of ohio.com.

Cleveland had a rough week by losing two out of three to the Twins and then getting swept by the Phillies. Losing to the Phillies three times in a row is concerning as they are not a very good team. Jose Ramirez and Tyler Naquin both hit over .400 for the week, but didn’t knock in any runs. The bullpen has been great as a whole, but the starters need to keep the Tribe in the game longer in order for the team to succeed.

Upcoming Games: vs. Detroit (3 games), vs. Kansas City (3 games)

5. Minnesota Twins, 7-18

The Twins won two out of three games from the Indians before getting swept by the red-hot Tigers. Joe Mauer had eight hits and five walks on the week to lead the Twins’ offense. Kevin Jepsen picked up two wins in relief for Minnesota. The Twins are reeling, and need to have a big week to stay within striking distance.

Upcoming Games: at Houston (3 games), at Chicago White Sox (3 games)

Player of the Week: Victor Martinez

Victor Martinez is the player of the week in the AL Central. Photo courtesy athlonsports.com.

Martinez hit over .500 and hit three home runs to get the Tigers into second place in the division.