While most New Englanders aren't likely to grade the Red Sox on a curve, it's fair to say that this club won't be getting many straight A's from even the kindest fans.
Even though the third-place Sox are on the outside of the postseason looking in, the team would have been right in the thick of things in three other divisions. At 86-69, the Sox would be giving the Rangers (87-68), the Reds (87-69) and the Giants (88-68) a run for their money.
So which division is the strongest?
The AL East features the top two teams in the MLB in the Rays (93-62) and Yankees (93-63). It also happens to be the only division that features four teams with at least 80 wins.
The Twins were the first to clinch and currently jockeying with the Rays, Yankees for the best record in the AL.
The Phillies own the best record in the NL at 93-63 while the Braves are six games behind them in second place. The West features quite the race to the finish as the Giants, Padres and Rockies are all within 4 1/2 game of each other.
So which division is the strongest? Text 'SOX1' to 542542 for the AL East. Text 'SOX2' to 542542 for the NL East. Or, text 'SOX3' to 542542 for the NL West.
