For most of the first half of the season the New York Mets have been a massive disappointment.

For the amount of money they have spent, it is unacceptable for them to be as bad as they have been this season.

The Mets are 42-46 this season and find themselves 17.5 games behind the Atlanta Braves for the National League East division.

Not only are they essentially out of the divisional race, but they also are 6.5 games out of the Wild-Card race.

Mets showing signs of an upturn

With all that being said, the Mets have started to show life recently that would suggest a second half turnaround could be likely.

They have won six games in a row, most recently beating the San Diego Padres by a score of 7-5 on Friday night. Part of the reason for their recent success, is the fact that they have actually been able to score some runs.

During their six-game win streak, the Mets are averaging 6.33 runs per game. On top of their improving offense, their pitching has also improved, allowing 2.66 runs per game during the same stretch.

With improvement in both their offense and pitching, the Mets could be a team to watch in the second-half of the season.

If you believe the Mets can continue to turn their season around, you can back them to win the World Series at +5500, while they are +2800 to win the National League.

Yankees and Red Sox head in opposite directions

As we approach the All-Star Break, it is safe to say that the American League East is the best division in baseball.

The Tampa Bay Rays are the second-best team in the league, the Baltimore Orioles have over 50 wins and are leading the Wild-Card race, while the Toronto Blue Jays are the second Wild-Card and have nearly 50 wins.

Then there are the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox.

The Yankees have a record of 48-41, but find themselves one game back for the final Wild-Card spot. They have lost three games in a row and look to be seriously going downhill.

Their most recent loss came against the Chicago Cubs on Friday night, where they lost 3-0, but before that was a 6-3 loss to the Orioles on Wednesday and a 14-1 loss to Baltimore on Thursday.

From those scores alone it is clear that the Yankees’ offense is struggling to score runs consistently right now. During their three-game losing streak, they are averaged 1.33 runs per game, while allowing 7.66 runs per game.

If you trust the Yankees to make a second-half run to the playoffs and beyond, you can back them at +1600 to win the World Series.

Boston, on the other hand, are 46-43 on the season, so not a great record, but one that has been good enough to keep them in the conversation.

The Red Sox are just three games out of the final Wild-Card spot, so a big second half could propel them back into the playoffs.

Boston has won three games in a row, most recently beating the Oakland Athletics on Friday night by a score of 7-3. Their other two wins came against the American League West-leading Texas Rangers, who they beat 4-2 on Wednesday and 10-6 on Thursday.

During their three-game winning streak, the Red Sox averaged 7.0 runs per game, while allowing 3.66 runs per game.

The Red Sox are now +6600 to win the American League and +360 to make the playoffs.

Braves and Rays in heavyweight battle

On Friday night, the series everyone wanted to see began as the Atlanta Braves took on the Tampa Bay Rays.

These are the two best teams in baseball and, while the Rays had been the number one team for quite some time, they were recently overtaken by the Braves.

Game one on Friday night wasn’t exactly the high-scoring game we expected either, as the Braves beat the Rays by a final score of 2-1.

Atlanta are now 59-28 on the season and have won two games in a row with nine wins in their last 10 games.

The Rays, meanwhile, have lost six games in a row, which has to be a little concerning as their huge lead in the American East has shrunk to just three games.

Even with the Rays’ losing streak, they are a very solid team and just need to sort out their starting pitching, which has suffered some injuries recently.

The Braves are +230 to win the World Series, with the Rays +425.