BtB Poor Man's Projected Season Standings as of July 24, 2009

We're back after a week off. Unlike Justin, I didn't get to go anywhere.  So I'm much less tan and much more disgruntled.

It's been a interesting couple of weeks. Despite quite a few teams making major moves, the divisional picture hasn't changed all that much.

The Phillies gained another five games in the win column, pushing their projected record to 92-70.  But their lead over Atlanta stayed constant at seven games.  The Braves vaulted themselves into the wild card race with their performance and find themselves just four games behind the Rockies.

I didn't think it was possible, but the Mets lost another four games and now project to win only 74 games for the season.  Washington dropped even further as well, but that just solidifies their hold on Bryce Harper.

In the AL West the Angels have opened up a four game lead over Texas.  And with Arte Moreno thinking ace pitcher, it's likely that gap will continue to widen. Seattle's had a nice run to push over .500 in the projected standings.  Overall, the four AL West teams gained 11 games in the standings in the past two weeks - by far the biggest positive change in baseball.

The AL East shows little signs of loosening up.  Despite winning seven in a row in real life, the Yankees' projection remains unchanged at 97 wins.  Boston fell a few games off the pace and into a very tight wild card race with the Rays, but this one remains way too close to be definitive about.  Next week could very well jumble the teams into a completely different order.

There's not a whole lot to say about the NL West except that the Dodgers and Rockies are really good.  San Francisco's meteoric climb was halted over the past few weeks, leaving them nine back of the Rockies for the wild card. According to Justin, San Diego has been by far the worst team in the majors this season, but all they'll win for their prize is the second pick in the draft.  They probably wouldn't have had the money to sign Harper anyway and we wouldn't want to see another Matt Bush situation, right?

I've left the Central divisons for last and for good reason.  Out of the 11 teams across both leagues, only the White Sox project for more than 85 wins.  It's a three team race in the AL with Chicago holding the lead and the momentum (for what it's worth). 

The NL Central is simply indecipherable.  Four teams have a real chance to win the division.  None of them appear to be very good, but the playoff berth is pretty much up for grabs.  It's even tighter in real life, where even the Reds and Pirates are a hot streak away from thinking they're in contention.

Full standings after the jump...

Disclaimer: These projected standings are based on Justin's Power Rankings. They do not accurately predict how the remainder of the season will actually unfold.  Things like injuries, timely hitting, teams playing each other, and just plain old chance can cause major fluctuations in these results.

AL East

AL Central

AL West

NL East

NL Central

NL West