The Oakland A's have battled injuries all year in their pitching staff, such as Huston Street, Esteban Loaiza, and Rich Harden. Fortunately, the depth and stamina of the A's bullpen has saved them...literally.

Two bullpen pitchers have already been appointed to starters (Brad Halsey, Kirk Saarloos), and the A's have a total of 9 saves. This number is definetely small on paper, but the pitching staff has taken care of business. Reliever Kirk Calero averages 10.45 strikeouts per nine innings, and has a save. Joe Kennedy has 6 strikeouts on ten innings, and Chad Guadin has only allowed 1 earned run and 4 hits. But, throughout these players, the A's bullpen relies heavily on two players: Justin Duchscherer and Huston Street. Huston Street has produced only 4 saves, but has been injured due to a strained muscle. Fortunately, he pitched an inning against the Rangers on Tuesday. Justin Duchscherer has been relied heavily upon due to Street's absence. Last year, he was the only representative of the A's in the All Star Game. He has produced 2 saves, and struck out 15 batters on 14.1 innings.

For the starters, the pitching rotation has a combined record of 11-10. This is also another reason the A's rely heavily on their bullpen. Out of the starters, the pitcher with the best record is Rich Harden (3-0). Unfortunately, he is currently injured. Now, the A's best starter is 2002 Cy Young Award winner Barry Zito (2-2). Although he doesn't have the best record of the remaining pitchers (Joe Blanton, 3-2), he is probably the most relied on. Zito has allowed 25 hits, struck out 27 batters, all on 35 innings. Joe Blanton has allowed 37 hits, struck out 19 batters, on 29.1 innings pitched.

Although the A's do not have the most experienced bullpen, they have loads of potential. In fact, the oldest active player in the A's pitching rotation is Barry Zito (27).  

The defending champions Chicago White Sox have started the year 20-8, obviously the greatest record in the league thus far. Surprisingly, the second best record in the league is held by the CIncinnati Reds (for more information about the Reds, read my other article) at 19-9.

Back to the White Sox, though. I want to point out that the White Sox started out at 23-5 after their first 28 games last year.

Are they slowing down? I think not. After 28 games last year, the White Sox's offense had scored 132 runs, whereas this season the White Sox have scored 155 runs. However, last year's White Sox only gave up only 87 runs, and this year they have given up 115 runs. 115 runs is still a great defense, though. But, as it seems I am only giving credit to this year's White Sox, I'm not quite sure that they are as dominant as last year. I am almost sure they are as good as they used to be, but teams have caught up with them, making the road to the playoffs a little foggy. Also, their division is probably the toughest division in the AL. The AL Central has a combined 70 wins, which is first in the AL, and it's not just because they all have easy schedules. The Tigers, Twins, Indians, and Royals are also in the AL Central, and the only team without 10 wins are the Royals.

In addition, the White Sox pitching staff has to be one of the best in the MLB this year. Although Mark Buerhle has contributed as much as the White Sox depended upon, the White Sox have found their new ace: Jose Contreras. He is 5-0 on the year, and the White Sox other pitchers are as follows: Freddy Garcia (4-1), Javier Vasquez (3-1), Mark Buehrle (3-2), and John Garland (2-1). If any team's Pitching Rotation is a combined 16-5, they disserve to have the league's best record come October.

The only question is whether or not the teams in the AL Central will be able to do what has been almost impossible since 2005: keep up with the Chicago White Sox.

WOW! What a surprising first few weeks of baseball it has been: Bonds hits 712, rookie Jonathan Papelbon leads the AL in saves, Grex Maddux is 5-0. But, amidst these news headlines, there are two teams that are overlooked, although, record-wise, some of the best teams in the business- the Cincinnati Reds and the Detroit Tigers.

The Cincinnati Reds have probably been the most surprising team in the leauge thus far, and they have earned themselves respect (for once). But the way they have played so far, I'm not so sure if I wouldn't pick them to beat the Cardinals and the Astros and steal the NL Central. For one thing, they lead the NL and are second in the MLB in runs scored (158), but most surprisingly their pitching and defense is finally starting to come around. In actuality, Bronson Arroyo and Adam Harang would be front-runners for the NL Cy Young Award if they continue to produce the numbers they are now. In addition, Arroyo has only given up 12 total runs this season (not to mention two homers), and Harang has only walked nine batters. These two pitchers provide 9 out the Reds' 19 wins. Defensively, Ryan Freel, Ken Griffey Jr., and Adam Kearns are all %1.000 on fielding.

The Detroit Tigers started the season flawlessly this year, but have started to slow down a little. But, give the Tigers some credit- it's kind of hard to keep the way of play that they had been producing the whole year. The Tigers have hit an amazing 43 HOME RUNS this season, and five players have produced at least five homers. As a team, the Tigers are batting .286 and only giving up a .216 batting average to opposing teams. They have also as a team hit 49 doubles. Although they do not have any outstanding pitchers on their team, Mike Maroth, Kenny Rogers, and Jeremy Bonderman have a combined 11 out of 19 wins for the team. Defensively, the lowest fielding percentage by a starter is .939 (Carlos Guillen).

For these two teams, it is been almost like a dream. But, will their cinderella story fade as the season progresses? We'll find out this October.

The Sacramento Kings have done what nobody expected: they have taken the defending champions to a game six. Being from San Antonio, I hope that they obliterate the Kings. Here's how I think it should be done:

The Spurs should work the bench early. In doing this, they can keep their starters energized and ready to keep up with Bonzi Wells. The Spurs should definetely focus on the energy and playing time of Bruce Bowen, Brent Barry, Manu Giniboli, and Michael Finley. Also, I think two of these four should be on the floor at the same time.

The Spurs' second thing they need to work on is early defensive stops. Like Game 1, if the Spurs pound the Kings on defense, then they will jump to an early lead. Unlike Game 1, they are in Sacramento, which is also a big reason they should shut down the offense of the Kings: less points, less noise from the crowd.

The final and most important thing the Spurs need to focus on is the complete manhandling they are recieving Bonzi Wells. This is also a reason they need to work the bench, because the Kings have to leave Wells in the game, and if the Spurs renew their energy every 5-10 minutes, they will able to tire Wells, forcing turnovers and easy buckets.

In conclusion, the defense and energy of the Spurs will be the deciding factor of Game Six, the series, and the whether or not they win the Finals again.

For Plan B, you must keep it plain and simple: have Rasho shove Bonzi, so that Bonzi will lay on the scorer's table. Then, us Spurs fans will hope that some Spurs fan throws their drink on him, so that he and the rest of the Kings beat up the wrong fans. Finally, they will be ejected from the game, and the Spurs will win the series. And, oh yeah, David Stern will suspend them all so that they can work on their rap albums.

Most underrated team in the NL: Colorado Rockies

The Rockies? Yeah, the Rockies. How can a team with nobody be 15-12 this year? Well, for starters, they have scored 141 runs this season, which is second in the NL (behind the Reds). In addition, Matt Holliday, Brad Hawpe, and Garrett Atkins have a combined 18 out of the team's 32 home runs. Their defense has been surprising, too: their pitching staff has given up 22 home runs, they have struck out 182 strike outs, and have given up 257 hits. Although these numbers aren't outstanding, they have definetely improved from last year's start.

Most underrated team in the AL: Cleveland Indians

Although some pick them to win their division, AL teams need to worry much more about this team then the AL Central. On offense, they have owned opposing teams, scoring 171 runs this season (leads the MLB). Switch-hitting Travis Hafner has 9 home runs out of the Indians' 32, and the team has a combined 295 hits. On the defensive side, the Indians' pitching staff has struck out 188 batters, and have given up 261 hits. Their defense isn't the best in the league, but they have arguibly the best offense in the MLB.

Most underrated player in the MLB: Nick Swisher (Oakland A's)

Although Brad Hawpe of the Colorado Rockies may never be mentioned, Nick Swisher has to be one of the best hitters in the MLB. Unfortunately, he recieves as little publicity as the WNBA. But, I don't blame you for not ever hearing of him, when you think of best outfielders, you think of Andruw Jones, Barry Bonds, Manny Ramirez, and Vladimir Guerrero. Nevertheless, Swisher has hit 10 home runs, 5 doubles, and has a batting average of .318. He also leads the A's with a .756 slugging percentage. In conclusion, I am not being bias towards Nick Swisher because he is on my favorite team, but he will shape up to be an MVP candidate at the end of this year.