Time to Sniff Out the MLB's Current Frauds

There's plenty unusual suspects that are sitting at the top, or near the top of the standing right now. Most of the time these surprise teams get exposed for the frauds they are early in the playoffs, if not during August.

Here's a few surprise teams and whether they are frauds or legit.

1. Padres (58-39, 1st in NL West): The Padres have been playing good baseball all year long, but it's really hard to figure out why. They rank outside of the top 20 in all the major hitting categories, including 25th in batting average. But then again, their pitching has been spectacular as they lead the MLB in ERA at 3.27. Pitching is so important come playoff time and that will make them very dangerous in the wide open National League. Verdict: Legit
2. Reds (55-45, Tied for 1st in NL Central): It was just recently that the Reds lost 1st place to the Cardinals. This team has a lot of talent in the batter's box anchored by Joey Votto. However, this team has been streaky as of late losing to teams like the Astros and the Nationals. They're somewhat thin at the starting pitching rotation with Johnny Cueto being the most viable option. Verdict: Fraud
3. White Sox (53-44, 1st in AL Central): It's been a while since the White Sox have been relevant in the AL Central. The AL Central will go right down to the last day of the season just like last season with the Tigers and the Twins still in the picture behind the White Sox. One of the selling points of the White Sox is the fact that they're not horrible at anything, but then again they're not reall all that great at anything either. They rank somewhere in the middle in most of the major statisitical categories. In the end I see the Twins winning this division and the White Sox being nowhere near the top of the AL wildcard standing. Sorry sox fans, it was fun while it lasted. Verdict: Fraud
4. Giants (56-43, 2nd in NL West): Here's another team that at one time was relevant every year in the playoff race, but of recent time has been pretty much a cellar dwellar. The Giants finally have some hitting to back up that solid pitching rotation. Buster Posey has proven to be one of the best hitters on this team (he's hitting .479 in July and .371 overall). Aubrey Huff and Juan Uribe have also been dependable this season. No team will want to play them in the playoffs with their pitching rotation. With that said, they'll sneak in as the NL wildcard team. Verdict: Legit