[abell1198]

The American League 1980's Division is led by the 1988 Oakland A's at 36-21. The A's are 10th in the AL in runs scored (301) and 1st in the AL in home runs (77). The team's hitting leader is RF Jose Canseco (.321, 24 HR, 47 RBI). Canseco is currently 3rd in the AL in homers. SP Dave Stewart (7-3, 2.93 ERA) and SP Storm Davis (6-2, 2.73 ERA) lead the team's starting staff, while CL Dennis Eckersley (5-0, 1.63 ERA, 14 Saves) is leading the bullpen. Stewart made news in May with back to back shutouts. On May 14, Stewart pitched a one hitter against the 1926 New York Yankees, striking out 11 and walking two in a 1-0 win. On May 19, Stewart pitched a 4-0 win over the 1922 New York Yankees, allowing four hits while striking out 10 and walking one. CF Dave Henderson (.275, 9 HR, 33 RBI) also made news on May 29 when he went 5 for 5 in an 11-9 win over the 1991 Minnesota Twins. Henderson had four singles and a double in the game.

In second place are the 1986 Boston Red Sox at 34-23, 2 GB. The Red Sox are 3rd in the AL in runs scored with 315. 3B Wade Boggs is the leading hitter with a .335 batting average. SP Bruce Hurst (7-4, 2.80 ERA) and SP Roger Clemens (7-4, 3.54 ERA) head up the pitching staff. The Red Sox went 17-12 in May and kept pace with the division leading A's. 2B Marty Barrett (.324, 1 HR, 22 RBI) made news for the team on May 29 when he went 5 for 5 against the 2009 New York Yankees. Unfortunately, the Yankees won the game 20-10. Barrett hit three singles and two doubles in the contest. Notable series for the month include sweeps of the 1998 New York Yankees and 2007 Boston Red Sox, while the team was swept by the 1978 New York Yankees.

The preseason favorites to win the division, the 1989 Oakland A's, find themselves in third place and 4 GB with a 32-25 record. The A's have no .300 hitters, with LF Luis Polonia hitting .296 to lead the team. SP Dave Stewart (6-4, 2.79 ERA) and SP Mike Moore (5-4, 2.66 ERA) lead the starters. The bullpen is ranked 10th in the AL with their 3.02 ERA, while the A's defense is also ranked 10th in the AL. The A's fell another game behind this month, posting a 16-13 record in May. Oakland managed sweeps of the 1936 and 2000 New York Yankees, while being swept by the 1922 Yankees.

In fourth place are the 1981 New York Yankees at 30-27, 6 GB. LF Dave Winfield (.309) and 2B Willie Randolph (.303) lead the hitters, while SP Rick Reuschel (8-4, 3.30 ERA) heads up the pitching staff. The Yankees dropped four games off the pace this month with a 13-16 record. A seven game losing streak in the middle of the month helped secure the losing record. The Yankees were swept by the 1957 Yankees and 1935 Detroit Tigers in that span. The Yankees currently have a four game winning streak, sweeping the 2002 Anaheim Angels in the process.

The 1984 Detroit Tigers are in fifth place at 25-32, 11 GB. The Tigers are 101st in the AL in hitting with a .239 average. There are no .300 hitters, although C Lance Parrish (.298, 12 HR, 33 RBI) is almost there. SP Jack Morris (3-5, 4.50 ERA) made news on May 21 when he threw a 4-0 shutout win over the 1989 Oakland A's. Morris allowed two hits, struck out six and walked two.

In sixth place are the 1985 Kansas City Royals at 24-33, 12 GB. The Royals are tied for 100th in the AL in runs scored (208), 98th in the AL in average (.242) and 104th in the AL in OBP (.300). 3B George Brett (.304, 7 HR, 39 RBI) and CF Willie Wilson (.300) are doing their best to keep the team contending. SP Charlie Leibrandt (8-1, 3.10 ERA) and SP Bret Saberhagen (2-6, 2.18 ERA) are the Royals best pitchers. The Royals are trying to turn things around after their slow start in April. The team went 15-14 in May and suffered a six game losing streak to start the month. The Royals are currently on a six game winning streak, however, after sweeps of the 2011 Texas Rangers and 1990 Oakland A's.

Four teams are tied for last place in the division with a record of 23-34, 13 GB. The first team is the 1987 Minnesota Twins. CF Kirby Puckett is hitting .309 and was named AL Player of the Week on May 6 after going 20 for 31 (.645) with three home runs and eight runs batted in. SP Frank Viola (4-5, 3.18 ERA) leads a starting staff ranked last (108th) in the AL with a 6.05 ERA. Viola made news on May 8 with an 8-0 win over the 1952 New York Yankees when he allowed six hits, struck out 11 and walked one. The bullpen isn't much better, ranked 93rd in the AL with a 5.51 ERA. CL Juan Berenguer (2-0, 1.66 ERA, 15 Saves) has looked good, though. The Twins have allowed the most runs in the AL (347) and their defense is 105th in the AL. The Twins currently have a four game winning streak going after sweeping the 1905 Philadelphia Athletics. The second team in the basement is the 1982 Milwaukee Brewers. DH Paul Molitor (.338) and 2B Jim Gantner (.332) lead the team in hitting, while SP Don Sutton (4-5, 3.63 ERA) is tops in the pitching staff. The third team is the 1980 Kansas City Royals. The Royals are led by 3B George Brett (.400, 11 HR, 61 RBI). Brett is 1st in the AL in average, 2nd in RBI and 2nd in hits (90). Brett made news for the team on May 28 when he went 5 for 6 in a 13-10 win over the 1975 Boston Red Sox. Brett hit a single, a double and three home runs in the game. Two homers were solo shots and the other was a grand slam, netting him seven RBI. LF Willie Wilson (.320) is tied for 2nd in the AL in stolen bases with 22. The starting pitching for the team is 98th in the AL with a 5.33 ERA. The Royals lost their first five games of the month for a seven game losing streak, but then won their next five series. They won two of the last four series in May, but the lost series were sweeps at the hands of the 1910 Philadelphia Athletics and 1921 New York Yankees. Finally, we come to the 1983 Baltimore Orioles. Baltimore's best hitter is CF Al Bumbry (.301). SP Mike Boddicker (3-6, 2.29 ERA) leads a below average pitching staff. The Orioles lost their last three series of May.

In the National League, the preseason favorites still have the lead. The 1986 New York Mets maintained their lead with a record of 35-22. SS Kevin Mitchell (.326, 11 HR, 44 RBI) is one of four .300 hitters in the lineup. SP Ron Darling (7-1, 1.57 ERA), SP Sid Fernandez (6-1, 3.87 ERA), SP Dwight Gooden (4-3, 2.88 ERA) and SP Bob Ojeda (2-4, 2.40 ERA) are all forces to be reckoned with. CF Lenny Dykstra (.308, 1 HR, 22 RBI) is tied for 4th in the NL in triples with six. Dykstra also made news on May 14 without hitting a triple in an 8-6 win over the 2007 Colorado Rockies. Dykstra went 5 for 5 with three singles and two doubles in the game. The Mets swept the 1939 Cincinnati Reds and 1950 Philadelphia Phillies, but were swept by the 1995 Atlanta Braves and 1910 Chicago Cubs.

In second place are the 1988 Los Angeles Dodgers at 33-24, 2 GB. The Dodgers have no .300 hitters, but 1B Pedro Guerrero (.297) and 2B Steve Sax (.292) are knocking on the door. Pitching is this teams strength, as the staff is ranked 3rd in the NL with a 2.86 ERA. SP Orel Hershiser (6-2, 1.49 ERA) is 3rd in the NL in ERA. CL Jay Howell (4-2, 2.43 ERA, 18 Saves) is tied for 4th in the NL in saves. The Dodgers swept the 1984 San Diego Padres and 1961 Cincinnati Reds this month, but suffered a sweep at the hands of the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers.

The 1985 St. Louis Cardinals are in third place in the division at 31-26, 4 GB. The Cardinals are definitely playing small ball, as they are 3rd in the NL in stolen bases with 95. CF Willie McGee (.341) is 3rd in the NL in triples with seven. 2B Tom Herr (.333) had a 21 game hitting streak snapped on May 17. SP John Tudor (6-4, 1.91 ERA) and SP Danny Cox (7-3, 2.59 ERA) lead the pitching staff. Cox made news for the Cards on May 31 with a 1-0 win over the 1967 St. Louis Cardinals. Cox allowed five hits, struck out eight and walked one. The Cardinals posted a record of 19-10 in May and made up two games on the division leader. The Cards had sweeps this month of the 1933 New York Giants, 1914 Boston Braves, 1938 Chicago Cubs and 1973 New York Mets.

In fourth place are the 1980 Philadelphia Phillies at 28-29, 7 GB. LF Lonnie Smith leads the lineup with his .314 average, but the team is suffering with 3B Mike Schmidt hitting .177. SP Steve Carlton (3-5, 2.74 ERA) is the team's best pitcher. Carlton is 2nd in the NL in strikeouts with 121. Carlton made news for the team on May 25 with a 5-3 win over the 1996 Atlanta Braves. Carlton allowed five hits, struck out 17 and walked four. The Phillies managed to put together an eight game winning streak in the middle of May with sweeps of the 1964 St. Louis Cardinals and 2009 Phillies.

Two teams are tied for fifth place in the division at 26-31, 9 GB. The first is the 1982 St. Louis Cardinals. LF Lonnie Smith (.319) leads the team in hitting, while SP Joaquin Andujar (6-4, 2.87 ERA) leads the pitching staff. The second team is the 1989 San Francisco Giants. C Terry Kennedy (.295) has the team's best batting average, while 1B Will Clark (.290) is a close second. The pitching for the Giants has been average thus far this season. SP Scott Garrelts (5-6, 3.89 ERA) made news on May 19 with a 3-0 win over the 2007 Colorado Rockies. Garrelts allowed three hits, struck out six and walked two in the game.

In seventh place are the 1987 St. Louis Cardinals at 24-33, 11 GB. CF Willie McGee (.323) is the team's best hitter and is tied for 1st in the NL in doubles with 27. McGee also made news on May 5 when he went 6 for 6 in a 7-6 loss to the 1993 Philadelphia Phillies. McGee hit two singles, three doubles and a triple in the loss. The Cardinal's pitching has been below average. Their defense is ranked 101st in the NL.

The 1984 San Diego Padres find themselves in eighth place at 22-35, 13 GB. RF Tony Gwynn (.313) and C Terry Kennedy (.311) lead the lineup in hitting. The Padres starting pitching has been below average. CF Kevin McReynolds (.214, 6 HR, 23 RBI) made news for the team on May 11 when he went 5 for 5 in a 5-2 win over the 1939 Cincinnati Reds. McReynolds had four singles and a double in the contest.

The 1981 Los Angeles Dodgers are 20-37, 15 GB and are in ninth place. RF Pedro Guerrero (.290) is the team's leading hitter, while SP Fernando Valenzuela (6-4, 3.12 ERA) leads the pitchers. The Dodgers suffered through an 8-21 month to drop nine games further back of the division lead.

In last place in the division are the 1983 Philadelphia Phillies at 18-39, 17 GB. The Phillies have no .300 hitters and are ranked 106th in the NL in batting average at .231. SP Steve Carlton (2-4, 2.43 ERA) is the only starter holding his own on the staff. Strangely enough, the Phillies have the 6th ranked bullpen with a 2.63 ERA. Maybe if they start hitting, they could win a few games behind that bullpen.