Top 10 quarter-point storylines to watch

A year ago, the Rangers passed the quarter post of the season just looking to survive.

However, they put that 17-23 start behind them, and then, in the final days of the regular season, they overtook the Astros to claim the American League West.

The message? The late and great Yogi Berra delivered it so well.

“It ain’t over `til it’s over.”

They don’t, after all, hand out nicknames like the 1914 Miracle Braves lightly. Those Braves were in last place on July 4, 15 games out of first.

And the late Gene Mauch’s managerial brilliance will always be jaded by his Phillies having a 6 1/2-game lead with 12 games remaining in the 1964 season, only to go on a 10-game losing streak and end the season looking up at the National League champion Cardinals.

So while the first quarter of the 2016 season has created some interesting debates, there are still plenty of questions to be answered by the surprises and the disappointments.

Here are the top 10 storylines to consider at the quarter point of the season:

1. The White Sox received an early lift from Mat Latos, who won his first five decisions and combined with Chris Sale and Jose Quintana to allow the Sox to take the early lead in the AL Central. Now the White Sox, however, know they need to find a way to reinforce that rotation. Latos has a 7.06 ERA in his past four starts, and John Danks (0-4, 7.25 ERA) was designated for assignment.

2. The Giants know the feeling. They are sitting atop the NL West thanks to the strong-armed efforts of the starting trio of Madison Bumgarner, Jeff Samardzija and Johnny Cueto. San Francisco, though, now has to get improvement out of the final two spots. Matt Cain and Jake Peavy are both 1-5, Cain with a 5.37 ERA and Peavy with an 8.21 ERA. Cain has, however, given indications of providing the Giants with a needed fourth, as he allowed four earned runs in 21 innings in his past three starts.

3. The Orioles …

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