Will Anyone Gain Separation in the AL East?

The American League East has long been considered the most dangerous and loaded division in Major League Baseball. Right now, the AL West and National League West both look better with seven of the ten total teams between those two divisions posting records above .500. However, as we've seen year in and year out, the AL East is the division with the most true and battle-tested baseball titans. In April, it looked as though the New York Yankees were the favorite to win the division and that the Boston Red Sox were sorely missing their former All Star center-fielder, now Yankee, Jacoby Ellsbury. Their play in the field was lazy, their pitchers were inconsistent, and the hitting was essentially absent. They definitely looked like they had a serious case of World Series hangover. Fast forward a few weeks, and the division looks a lot different with last year's Wild Card Tampa Bay Rays sitting in last place and the Baltimore Orioles in first. What is it going to take for a team to maintain control of the East? It's simple! Health.

No different than any other division in the league, the winner will be determined by who can stay the healthiest. Toronto already lost shortstop Jose Reyes earlier in the season for an extended period, but he has since returned. Also returning to the Jays is closer Casey Janssen. Is that a big deal? Ask Sergio Santos and his three blown saves in eight chances (now himself on the disabled list).

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Sorry, Sergio. Toronto's pitching is, at best, mediocre (no offense, Buehrle, you've been great). Still, a lineup consisting of Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion, and Jose Reyes is deadly - as long as its healthy. While not as big a name as those, it looks as though Colby Rasmus might be headed to the disabled list. Or, at least according to his manager he could be.

The Baltimore Orioles and Boston Red Sox have not been immune to the injury bug either. The O's started their season without promising third basemen Manny Machado and later lost slugging first basemen Chris Davis for 15 days to a strained left oblique. The Orioles managed an 8-3 record during Davis' absence. While those injuries were tough to swallow for O's fans (both players are currently healthy and playing), the most serious loss is undoubtedly catcher Matt Wieters. Wieters is considered by many to be one of the premiere defensive catchers in the game. His recent elbow issue has some considering the possibility of the catcher requiring surgery and missing an extended period of time. The Orioles pitching staff is already in shambles. As a club, their ERA is over 4.00. Their closer, Tommy Hunter, has given up at least one earned run in his last three appearances, including a blown save his last time out against the Houston Astros. The loss of Wieters is devastating for the Orioles. His rock solid defense and game calling behind the plate has made some of the Orioles' less-appealing starters look serviceable. Without him, the staff could potentially get even worse.

The Red Sox, meanwhile, started the season without right-fielder Shane Victorino and eventually also lost third basemen Will Middlebrooks. Though Middlebrooks and Victorino may not be the scariest of names to most pitchers in the league, the Sox still felt their absences hard as the offense really slacked earlier in the season without them. Middlebrooks had to sit Sunday's game as well, though, after getting hit on the hand in Saturday night's contest against Texas.

The Tampa Bay Rays' season has gone a lot like this so far:

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Though a playoff team last year, the Rays sit at 16-23, last in the division. They lost starter Matt Moore to season-ending Tommy John surgery and starter Alex Cobb to an oblique strain. They have also been without starter Jeremy Hellickson all season since his arthroscopic surgery on his throwing elbow. Ace David Price has an ERA of 4.53 this season and the fifth of Tampa Bay's starters, Chris Archer, has been abysmal with an ERA of 5.16! With three starters sidelined with injuries and the other two pitching horribly, the Rays have really struggled in the mighty AL East with an 8-11 inter-division record. The offense has stayed relatively healthy, but that has never been the Rays' strong suit and isn't this year. Tampa Bay needs Cobb and Hellickson back as soon as possible.

Maybe Price should stop naming things and focus on getting hitters out...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3qr_IOpTEo

Finally, we have the Bronx Bombers. After a pretty hot start, the Yankees have really come down to earth thanks to, you guessed it, injuries. While newly signed Carlos Beltran (.240 BA) and Brian McCann (.214) have certainly left a lot to be desired at the plate, it has been the injuries to the pitching staff that has really decimated the men in pin stripes. Like the Rays, the Yankees are currently missing three of the top five starters on their depth chart - CC Sabathia, Michael Pineda, and Ivan Nova. Nova had season-ending elbow surgery. He was extremely terrible before that, so the loss isn't too significant, but the Yankees only have so much depth. Michael Pineda, after being suspended for cheating in a game against the Boston Red Sox, suffered a strain in his mid-section causing him a trip to the disabled list. He hasn't made a start since April 23. Lastly, CC Sabathia (who, like Nova, has been terrible) landed on the 15-day disabled list and is set to visit Dr. James Andrews to have his right knee examined. His timetable for a return is unknown.

The only way any of these teams will separate from the rest of the pack is if one stays healthy and the rest don't. It is, for obvious reasons, easier said than done. Pitchers around the league are dropping like flies to Tommy John surgery and many teams are struggling to simply send out a consistent-looking lineup. The AL East will be no different than any other division - the healthiest team will have the best chance.