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1. Chris Archer, Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays have been without staff ace Alex Cobb and Drew Smyly just made it back for his first start, but they just completed a sweep of the Blue Jays and they're 11-8, tied with the Yankees atop the AL East. One reason why has been Archer, who threw seven scoreless innings in Sunday's 5-1 win, allowing just two hits. In his past four starts, he's allowed one run -- unearned -- and twice defeated Toronto, the second-highest scoring team in the majors, allowing no runs in both starts. He threw 93 pitches on Sunday, inducing 13 swings and misses; his season swing-and-miss rate is seventh-best among qualified starters. He may be the best pitcher in the division. 2. Baltimore Orioles offense. The Orioles pounded out 20 hits in an 18-7 victory over the Boston Red Sox at Camden Yards. Chris Davis hit the only home run, but four players each had three hits, including Delmon Young, who knocked in five runs. In fact, every spot in the lineup got at least two hits, except Manny Machado, who went 0-for-4 with two walks. And Jimmy Paredes continues to work his way into the lineup; he went 4-for-5 in Saturday's 10-inning victory and 3-for-5 on Sunday. Not a bad weekend. The Orioles are 9-10; they lead the majors with 104 runs, but their 102 runs allowed is tied for most in the league. Before the season, most of mainstream media wondered about the Boston rotation; most statistical projections said the rotation was going to be OK. The Red Sox have the worst rotation ERA in the majors. 3. Alex Gordon, Kansas City Royals. Tough for the Royals, who lost Friday's suspended game to the Chicago White Sox and then Sunday's regular game, but Gordon made a sweet grab while diving into the stands. 4. Brandon Morrow, San Diego Padres. Morrow continues to pitch well as San Diego's fifth starter, allowing just one run in seven innings in a 3-1 win over the Dodgers, picking up his first victory of 2015. He's now 1-0 with a 2.67 ERA, having allowed 22 hits in 27 innings. The Dodgers were just 2-for-14 in plate appearances ending in his fastball, a good sign of the velocity and confidence he had in the pitch on Sunday. His final pitch of the game was a 3-2 fastball to Alex Guerrero clocked at 95.3 mph. Health is the big issue with Morrow, but so far the small investment in Morrow is paying nice dividends for A.J. Preller. 5. Evan Gattis, Houston Astros. The first-place Astros completed a sweep in Oakland as Gattis doubled in two runs in the top of the ninth with two outs for a stirring 7-6 victory. Nice week for Houston: Two of three in Seattle and three in Oakland.
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