AL Central

As Minnesota Twins fans eagerly checked Twitter to see if general manager Terry Ryan would make a move at the Major League Baseball trade deadline, one had to wonder what would happen if this scene was set in the film Major League II.

It’s official.

Minus the minuscule Francisco Liriano deal, in which Minnesota acquired two fringe prospects, the Twins waved hello to the trade deadline and quickly waved goodbye without making a follow-up move.

In some respects, this should be taken as a positive. The Twins could have made a move merely for the sake of making a move and done something foolish.

When your favorite team stinks, it leads to a heated discussion over who should be the "best of the worst" and be the representative for the Major League Baseball All-Star Game.

The rule requiring that one player from every team must be in the event has lead to healthy debate and getting somebody like Ron Coomer to rub elbows with people who deserve to be there.

For the Minnesota Twins, things are stating to look up. With their win over the Cubs on Saturday, they won their fourth consecutive series—an impressive feat considering they have only one seven-series all season.

Justin Verlander of the Detroit Tigers is the best pitcher in Major League Baseball, but that doesn't mean he's a complete player.

Yes, Verlander has a filthy menu of pitches that consistently makes opposing hitters look foolish, but it's the mental aspect that continuously gets the best of him. 

For a while at least, Matt LaPorta is back playing for the Cleveland Indians.

He was called up from Columbus when Johnny Damon went on paternity leave. So the question is: will LaPorta stay with the team when Damon returns?  With the team struggling against left-handed pitchers, wouldn't his bat be a big help in the lineup?

When people talk about the minor league prospects in the Cleveland Indians organization, they mostly discuss a small number of players. Names such as Francisco Lindor, LeVon Washington and Chen Lee are the some of the most usual suspects.

While those names are exciting to talk about, there are just as many intriguing prospects that are very rarely mentioned.

Forget for just a moment that the Chicago White Sox hit .271 as a team and went 18-8 in the month of May.

Forget that the Sox had 39 dingers and scored 156 runs for the month for an average of 5.38 runs per game.

The Cleveland Indians acquired Ubaldo Jimenez at the trade deadline last season, trading away Drew Pomeranz, Alex White, Joseph Gardner and Matt McBride for the Rockies ace. Jimenez picked up a lot of attention by winning 15 games in 2009 and striking out nearly 200 batters that season, only to have his notoriety taken to a whole new level in 2010.

The Chicago White Sox have two opening day starters who are looking ready to come off the disabled list this weekend. My advice to the club: don't be so quick to get them back in the lineup.