Half way through April the baseball season is in full swing. Sure it is way too early to close the polls and declare a winner, but some very interesting things are happening through the first 10 or 20 games. Every division has its own story, so let’s take a look at the American League.

AL East

Nobody is surprised the New York Yankees are off to a hot start. They have equally obliterated teams at home at Yankees Stadium and on the road. Despite the Yankees hot start, The Tampa Bay Rays are in first place. This is not a huge surprise either though. I am not even shocked that Baltimore is in last place, perhaps a little shocked that the Orioles are in last place in the entire league.

The shockers are in three through four. The Blue Jays have managed to put up a good show, much like last season, and are in third. Toronto had its doubters, nay, haters, but has survived the loss of a Cy Young caliber so far. The Red Sox are struggling because of the pitching, which is a surprise. This is a team built on pitching and defense and has yet to make good on those building blocks.

AL Central

Baseball pundits must hate being required to guesstimate the winner of this topsy-turvy division every year. This season they all copped out and proclaimed an equal arms race between Minnesota, Detroit, and maybe Chicago. Heck even Cleveland and Kansas City had a shot according to the experts.

The Twins are leading the division quite handedly and the front office has to be excited that Twins tickets are actually selling well. This is a shocker because traditionally Minnesotans rarely actually show up to its sports venues, new or not (this state has issues posting sellouts when Brett Favre joined the Vikes).

The really only surprise in the division is…absolutely nothing. Every other team has a negative differential. Still, the Tigers have managed to post a winning record and the Indians are at .500.

AL West

The AL West was a truly wide open division. About two weeks into the season the biggest shocker is that the Oakland Athletics are an impressive 9-5 and actually have a relatively impressive offense. The team has a very good pitching staff so far, but there is always the chance Billy Beane will try and trade the entire rotation.

Meanwhile the Angels and Mariners are playing .500 and the Rangers are experiencing a power drought. This is not a surprise to anyone who actually followed the team this winter, but it is to casual fans who think this is the same team from three or four years ago.