AL East

Despite the loss of All-Star catcher Matt Wieters and a starting rotation full of underachievers, Baltimore finds itself in the thick of the American League playoff picture, sitting within a game of first place in the AL East and 1.5 back of the two available wild-card berths as of June 31.

Those expecting the New York Yankees to sit back and wait for the nearly $500 million that they spent in free-agent additions over the winter to begin paying off simply haven't been paying attention to how things work in the Bronx.

If the price is right, one of the game's most dominant left-handed power arms could be on the move well before Major League Baseball's July 31 trade deadline. But what's the right price for a division rival to scoop him up? And what if that rival is the Evil Empire, the New York Yankees?

The White Sox defeat the Blue Jays after a seventh-inning bomb from Dayan Viciedo.

Chicago improves to 38-44 on the season, while the Blue Jays fall to 45-38 and remain just one game ahead of the Orioles for the lead in the AL East.

Seventh in an 11-part series examining the vagaries of awards voting.

You could probably find at least one undeserved Gold Glove awarded every season. The vast majority of Gold Glove recipients are repeat winners, sort of making the award like a concussion—once a player gets one, it becomes progressively easier to get more.

The 2014 season has reached its midway point, meaning Derek Jeter's farewell tour, age-40 season and goodbye to the game of baseball has reached the same juncture. When assessing Jeter's play thus far, context is critical.

The Baltimore Orioles have been a pleasant surprise in the American League East thus far, but the club will have to replace one of its more dependable starting pitchers with Bud Norris hitting the disabled list. 

According to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun, Norris tweaked his groin during a bullpen session Wednesday. 

Dioner Navarro made a gutsy call during Thursday night’s game against the Chicago White Sox and attempted to run all the bases in one fell swoop. 

It did not end well.

The Toronto Blue Jays catcher hit a ball deep into left field in the bottom of the fifth and ran like mad after a muffed grab by White Sox outfielder Dayan Viciedo.

When Brock Holt does a pushup, he isn't lifting himself up: He's pushing the earth down.

Brock Holt doesn't call the wrong number. You answer the wrong phone.

Brock Holt does not sleep. He waits.

Sure, all these "facts" may originally have been attributed to Chuck Norris. But after an absurd start to the 2014 season, Holt is becoming a legend in his own right, serving as one of the lone bright spots for the Boston Red Sox this year.

The Tampa Bay Rays are likely going to trade David Price in July. And when they do, they're likely going to get some really good stuff in return.

But here's a warning for all interested parties: Be careful on this one, man. Price is still a very good pitcher, but neither his present nor his future is as bright as his past.