AL proving dominance over NL...again

With the two-week interleague portion of the MLB schedule in full swing, the American League is once again proving itself with a 47-36 record and nearly nine units of profit so far in the 2008 season. Meanwhile the biggest news currently in the National League centers around Willie Randolph's position on the top step of the Mets' dugout. Heading out to face the Angels in Anaheim, will Randolph be on the return flight?

We’re in the middle of our second interleague stint of the 2008 MLB campaign. Quite frankly, the charms of American League vs. National League action are starting to wear a little thin.

The big selling point for interleague play is the opportunity for fans to enjoy a rivalry like we had last month when the New York Yankees and New York Mets renewed their Subway Series. We’re not getting much of that this week – only the Royals vs. the Cardinals (aka the “Show-Me Series”) has any regional gravitas to it. Otherwise, we’re left with amusing sidebars like Lou Piniella managing the Chicago Cubs against his previous employers in Tampa Bay.

Interleague play also further exposes just how dominant the American League has become. Heading into Monday’s action, the junior circuit was 47-36 for a profit of 8.83 units. Consider it a case of baseball Darwinism; since the inception of the designated hitter in 1973, AL pitchers have had to work on their actual pitching instead of their bunting skills. And any seamhead will tell you that the scrappy NL style of play, bunting and all, is not as efficient as the station-to-station baseball encouraged by the arrival of the DH.

While the All-Star Game is hardly a fair representation of the actual talent of the two major leagues, the AL has still won 15 of the last 19 meetings since the DH was allowed into the Midsummer Classic (at home venues) in 1989. The AL is also up 12-6 on the National League in the World Series during that span, including three of the last five since the winner of the All-Star Game was first awarded home-field advantage. Once again, the rich keep getting richer.


Mets at Angels
Game 1: Monday, 10:05 p.m. Eastern
NYM: Mike Pelfrey
LAA: Jered Weaver

Game 2: Tuesday, 10:05 p.m.
NYM: Johan Santana
LAA: John Lackey

Game 3: Wednesday, 10:05 p.m.
NYM: Oliver Perez
LAA: Jon Garland

The Mets have bucked the trend by winning four of their five interleague games thus far – two apiece against the Yankees and Rangers, with one game postponed in each series. But that storyline, and every other one involving the Mets, has been dumped in favor of minute-to-minute “updates” of the status of manager Willie Randolph. His team is 33-35, 6½ games behind Philadelphia in the NL East. That’s not good enough for the locals following last year’s late-season collapse.

At press time, Randolph was still in the employ of the Mets. It’s not his fault that he’s overseeing a roster of injured players, but the New York media hotbox is unforgiving – in Randolph’s own words, nobody cares about who’s hurt and who’s healthy (except for handicappers). The Angels have had major injury problems of their own, yet they’re in first place in the AL West at 42-28, good for 9.05 units of profit. L.A. manager Mike Scioscia’s job is entirely secure.

What’s the difference between these two teams? Not much. The Mets have outscored their opponents 322-316 on the season, while the Angels are up 292-291. Going 13-8 in one-run ball games seems like highway robbery on the part of Los Angeles – the Mets are 6-10 in the same situation. You can’t even credit the Angels relievers for winning all those close games; their combined ERA is 4.22, while New York’s bullpen ERA is 4.16.

Here comes the cavalry. The Mets have traded for Trot Nixon, who went 2-for-3 with two walks and a stolen base in his Big Apple debut against the Texas Rangers. All three Angels pitchers in this series are right-handers, so Nixon (a true southpaw) should be in the lineup for every game with fellow outfielders Moises Alou and Ryan Church on the DL. Los Angeles counters with Chone Figgins; he’s 2-for-6 with three walks and a steal in two games since returning to the leadoff spot.

The MLB betting odds have the Angels as -150 favorites in Game 1 with a total of 8½ runs.