AL Central

Anibal Sanchez came this close.

The Detroit Tigers right-hander was staring his second career no-hitter right in the face at Comerica Park on Friday night, making it through 8.1 innings without allowing a hit. Alas, then came Joe Mauer with a squeaky-clean single up the middle.

For the Chicago White Sox, the return of Gordon Beckham from a rehab stint with the Triple-A Charlotte Knights cannot come soon enough.

The American League Central is one of the most interesting divisions in all of baseball this season.

The Detroit Tigers once again entered the year as runaway favorites to take the division crown, and are once again struggling at the first quarter mark, trailing the Cleveland Indians by 2.5 games.

The Cleveland Indians are now roughly one quarter of the way through their 2013 season and are sitting atop the AL Central standings with a 23-17 record.

He is the quintessential jack of all trades, master of none.

Getting rid of him would be like letting nine mediocre players walk away. But he’s open-minded; he’ll try anything once—and he has.

Don Kelly has done it all on the baseball diamond. He just hasn’t done it all that well.

Ah, but what would baseball be without the Don Kelly's of the world?

Losers of two straight games, the Kansas City Royals turn to staff ace James Shields to get back on the winning track against his former team, the Tampa Bay Rays, Tuesday night at Kauffman Stadium.

The Detroit Tigers brought outfielder Torii Hunter on board for the 2013 season for two reasons: To help stabilize the top of the batting order to set up Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder and give a veteran voice in the clubhouse.

If April is any indication of what Hunter brings to the table at the plate, then the mission has been accomplished.

Friday night’s superb performance by Anibal Sanchez may have been the tonic the Detroit Tigers needed to kick start their season going forward.

Last Saturday, we saw Scott Kazmir take the mound in an MLB game for the first time since 2011. What we saw was nothing short of scary. 

For me to sit back and criticize is not right. I’ve endured brutal experiences on the mound and completely understand the feeling you get when you work so hard for something have nothing to show for it. 

After the first 19 games of the season, the Indians find themselves in a curious situation. Nobody quite knows whether the Indians are for real or whether they will falter as the season continues.

As we move closer to the trade deadline, the Indians' position in the standings will determine whether they're buyers or sellers.

If they're sellers, several players who are either in the final year of their contract or approaching their final year could find themselves leaving Cleveland.