6. St. Louis Cardinals (56-48) (LW 3) – To help get by minus star catcher Yadier Molina, the Cardinals brought in A.J. Pierzynski to fill the void and, so far, so good. He hit safely in his first two games with St. Louis, and went 3-for-4 in his debut.
7. Detroit Tigers (57-45) (LW 4) – The Tigers’ bats went quiet in their series against the Angels. In the final three games of their four-game set, Detroit managed just 13 hits and two runs, leading to three straight losses.
8. Washington Nationals (57-45) (LW 10) – Things have been going well for the Nationals, who are now in sole possession of first place. But they may be faced with life without Ryan Zimmerman for up to two months.
9. Atlanta Braves (57-48) (LW 6) – The Braves are primed for another playoff push, but are in need of a lefty reliever, as they have just Chasen Shreve and his four career games in that role. Atlanta could make a push for Boston’s Andrew Miller.
10. San Francisco Giants (57-48) (LW 7) – The Giants wanted a starter and they got one in Jake Peavy. But it cost them two top-10 prospects for a pitcher who had one win all season. He did turn in a quality start in his San Francisco debut on Sunday night, going six innings and allowing three earned runs, striking out five, and walking two.
