My top five AL pitchers

Let me get this out of the way before I reveal my top five American League pitchers at the halfway point:

Surprisingly, Justin Verlander did not
make this list.
Courtesy of athlonsports.com

Justin Verlander is not on this list. Even though he just tossed seven innings of three-hit ball against the Toronto Blue Jays Thursday night, he hasn't been consistent enough to crack into my top five. That may change if he continues to pitch like he did Thursday, but this is my list for the whole 2013 season to date. He's not on it. Let's move on.

1. Yu Darvish (Texas) -- It was between Darvish and his countryman, Hisashi Iwakuma, for the top spot. Both pitchers give up few hits, especially with runners in scoring position. Iwakuma has allowed fewer walks (18) than Darvish (37), but Darvish is a strikeout machine with a major league-leading total of 151 K's. When considering who the top pitcher is, in my book it's the one who causes the most consternation to opposing batters. Darvish is my pick.

2. Hisashi Iwakuma (Seattle) -- Obviously, Iwakuma is my No. 2 pick. The man simply does not give up hits, especially when runners are in scoring position (opposing batters are hitting .154 against him). Oddly, Iwakuma is susceptible to allowing solo home runs (14).

3. Feliz Hernandez (Seattle) -- "King Felix" is well on his way to another stellar season on one of the worst teams in the league. His first half stats (8-4 record, 2.69 ERA, 130 strikeouts, 24 walks) put him well on his way to his fifth straight season of 10+ wins and more than 200 K's. And like Iwakuma, Hernandez gets stingier when runners are in scoring position, as opponents are batting only .126.

4. Max Scherzer (Detroit) -- There is a lot to like about Scherzer from his glistening 13-0 record to his 139 strikeouts and 81 hits allowed. But, the reason he isn't higher on my list is he has a more difficult time working out of jams than my top three (opponents are batting .248 with runners on base, as opposed to a .174 average with no one on base). Scherzer is very good, but he has some work to do.

5. Chris Sale (Chicago) -- Even through his current personal five-game losing streak, Sale is pitching well for the White Sox. He's struck out 10 or more batters in three of his last four starts, and he's allowed three or fewer runs in 10 of his last 12 outings. The only reason his record sits at 5-7 is because he plays for the last-place Sox, who (along with the Cubs) are helping to turn Chi-town into a year-round hockey town.