Different feel in AL East, where no one is dominating, everyone is flawed

This isn't the American League East we are used to seeing.

The division has gone from baseball's best to mediocre. But at least it is competitive. This year, every team in the division has flaws. Every team is trying to stay above .500. In an earlier time, a team two wins above .500 was buried.

Not this year.

No AL East champion has won fewer than 95 games in a season going back to 2001. Last year, the Orioles won 96 games to win the title. This year, the AL East champ could have the fewest wins since 2000, the year the Yankees had 87 wins on their way to a World Series title.

The AL East teams can use the 2013 Los Angeles Dodgers as inspiration. That team was 30-42 at one point and wound up taking the NL West with 92 wins.

The Orioles, who start Friday in Detroit, have the deepest and best team, but their .500 record and third-place standing aren't indicative. At last year's break, the Orioles were 52-42.

Toronto has a dangerous lineup, but no pitching depth. Tampa Bay is the opposite. The first-place Yankees are the surprise team. The Red Sox are in last place, but surging. Are they for real?

Here's a look at the storylines:

BALTIMORE: In the last few years, the Orioles' winning has exceeded expectations. This season, they are playing below expectations. They finished the first half by losing 10 of 13, failing to hit with runners in scoring position. They've been up and down with pitching, defense, baserunning - you name it. Manager Buck Showalter says the team's best baseball is yet to come. ... Of the key departures before the season, outfielder Nick Markakis is missed most: Showalter's mix-and-match in two outfield positions hasn't produced an obvious solution. ... The rotation has dropped off. Ubaldo Jimenez, who has allowed one run in his last three starts and will start Friday night, has made an impressive comeback by tightening mechanics and focusing more on pitching, not trying to overpower. Lefty Wei-Yin Chen has been fine, but Chris Tillman and Miguel Gonzalez have struggled with command and walks. How bad was Tillman? He goes into the break by pitching better and lowering his ERA to 5.40. Bud Norris, a 15-game winner in 2014, has gone to the bullpen, replaced by Kevin Gausman. Gausman didn't pitch well in last start at Minnesota, but the time has come to let him pitch regularly without having to think about losing his spot or being sent to Triple-A Norfolk. There's depth in the system with Mike Wright, Tyler Wilson and Zack Davies. ... The bullpen is excellent with All-Stars Darren O'Day setting up lefty Zach Britton and his deadly sinker. ... The worry about All-Star Manny Machado's knees is history and he's set the tone as the leadoff batter. ... The lineup looks more formidable with Jonathan Schoop back at second and Matt Wieters playing regularly at catcher. ... First baseman Chris Davis has 19 home runs and a .235 average, 21 points higher than on June 9. ... The surprise hitter is DH Jimmy Paredes, who has 10 home runs and a .299 average. Last year's explode-on-the-scene guy, Steve Pearce, has a .228 average.

BOSTON: On June 20, the last-place Red Sox, with the highest payroll in team history, were 10 games out. Now, they are 6 1/2 games out. The fact that Brock Holt, a utility player hitting .292, was their lone All-Star representative says something about the frustrations in the first half. ... Hanley Ramirez has 19 home runs, but he's not popular in the clubhouse, and the Red Sox have found that he can't play defense in left field, opening a position for former Oriole Alejandro De Aza, who has helped the defense and hit .323 in his first 31 games for Boston. ... The new third baseman, Pablo Sandoval, seems disinterested and it shows in his defense. He's hitting .265 with seven home runs. ... Mike Napoli (.193) was supposed to be the big RBI guy, but he hasn't hit all year. David Ortiz (.231) has also fallen off. ... Dustin Pedroia was hurt and will return when play resumes, his .306 average helping a weak offense. ... The bullpen has two reliable pitchers in Junichi Tazawa and Koji Uehara, but even Uehara is not the same. ... The rotation showed improvement in June, but Clay Buchholz, who has the team's best ERA at 3.26, is on the disabled list. The Red Sox are waiting for Rick Porcello and Wade Miley to pitch well consistently. Joe Kelly was bumped to the bullpen and Justin Masterson went on the disabled list. ... On the positive side, outfielder Mookie Betts, 22, and shortstop Xander Bogaerts, 23, are developing and look to be good building blocks. Bogaerts, hitting .304, should have been an All-Star. Betts is hitting .277.

NEW YORK: How do the Yankee wind up in first place? That's the most-often asked question in the AL East. ... The comebacks by DH Alex Rodriguez (PED suspension) and first baseman Mark Teixeira (injuries) are key to the offense, but will they be able to keep it up in the second half? A-Rod, now 40, coming back from a year's suspension and doing the DH duty, is hitting .278-18-51, Teixeira .240-22-62. ... The rest of the infield is a disaster: Third baseman Chase Headley and shortstop Didi Gregorius look lost defensively, and second baseman Stephen Drew struggles to hit .180, so he's been replaced at second by prospect Rob Refsnyder, who hit a home run in his first two games before the break. A decade ago, the Yankees replaced second baseman Tony Womack with a prospect named Robinson Cano, and they hope Refsnyder is as successful. ... Catcher Brian McCann (.259) isn't close to the offensive force the Yankees thought he would be. ... Jacoby Ellsbury (.399 on-base and 14 steals) and All-Star Brett Gardner (.377 on-base and 15 steals) are the dymanic duo at the top of the order, although Ellsbury is just coming back from the disabled list. ... In the rotation, CC Sabathia hasn't pitched well. Masahiro Tanaka, who has a torn ligament in his elbow, spent 41 days on the disabled list in the first half, but he's pitching Friday, so he's considered their ace with a 3.63 ERA. ... The Yankees bullpen, with Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller, is lights-out, assuming the Yankees can use them. ... Prediction: Age will catch up with the Yankees. They'll finish second and out of the wild card race.

TAMPA BAY: The Rays moved into first place in mid-June and then lost 15 of 18 games. Still, the Rays finished strong in the first half, sweeping Houston, for their first sweep of a first-place team since 2011, leaving Tampa Bay in second place in the AL East. This is the seventh time in eight seasons the Rays have been better than .500 at the break. ... As usual, the Rays are all pitching and just enough hitting. Their offense in the AL ranks 13th in runs (332), average (.240), on-base percentage (.305) and 10th in home runs (78). ... The pitching, however, has the third-best ERA (3.56) in the league and it is lead by Chris Archer, who has a wicked slider with 147 strikeouts and 30 walks. Jake Odorizzi (2.30) is back from the disabled and lefty Matt Moore made three starts at the end of the first half after coming back from Tommy John. Erasmo Ramirez and Nate Karns, the former National, have provided rotation stability. Drew Smyly is expected back in late July. ... The Rays win if they get six innings from their starter and turn it over to Kevin Jepsen and All-Star closer Brad Boxberger, who has saved 23 games. ... Offensively, the Rays' franchise player, Evan Longoria, is hitting .276 with nine home runs and 10 game-winning RBIs, but the lineup support isn't there. Desmond Jennings is on the disabled list. Logan Forsythe (.274) is having a nice year and James Loney (.276) is back from injury, so that helps. Rookie Joey Butler, 29, who has had 17 at-bats combined for St. Louis and Texas in the last two seasons, is hitting .287 with 62 strikeouts in 59 games. ... Former Nat Steven Souza Jr. has 15 home runs, but a .210 average.

TORONTO: Check out the AL team statistics leaders and the Blue Jays are at the top or near the top in every category. They are first in runs (486), slugging percentage (.441) and first on OPS (.772). They are second in on-base percentage (.331) and third in home runs (115.) The pitching is a different story: They have the 12th-best ERA in the AL (4.18), the fewest saves (14) and the third-most earned runs allowed (373). ... The Blue Jays need a relief pitcher, preferably a closer, and an experienced starter. Neither will be easy to get considering is thin on prospects given the Blue Jays have thinned their system with trades. ... Steve Delabar, who has blown three of four saves, and Roberto Osuna, a 20-year-old, share the closer's role. ... Lefty Mark Buehrle has gone at least six innings in each of his last 12 starts, including the last six where he's gone at least seven. Knuckleballer R.A. Dickey is hampered by walks, 44, most on the team. Marco Estrada (3.52) is average and Drew Hutchinson, expected to be a rotation staple, needs to shrug off a disappointing first half. Prospect Aaron Sanchez should be back soon after being on the disabled list with a lat strain. ... The additions of All-Stars Russell Martin (12 home runs, strong defense) and Josh Donaldson (.293-21-60), as well as Justin Smoak (eight home runs) have worked well. And, the Blue Jays are getting better-than-expected contributions from Danny Valencia (.299) and Chris Collabello (.325). ... One of the AL's top rookies, Devon Travis, acquired from Detroit before the season, is playing well at second and hitting .304.