MLS Table Talk - A Bit of Condensation

There seems to be a bit of condensation in the air--well, in the MLS table at least. The Revs join the Crew and Fire in the lead pack with a four point lead over . . . the big pileup involving 7 teams separated by just three points, though I'd extend that to include Chivas and RSL, who are only one point back of that 7-team pack but two at least two points ahead of . . . the lowly pair of DC United and expansion San Jose, still licking their wounds in the dank, dreary basement.

What about the points-per-game table? That's a bit of a different story. The Crew and the Fire are still the only sides managing 2+ points per game, with the Revs and Red Bulls midway between the two leaders and the next pair, TFC and Colorado. Beneath them are LA and KC, knotted at 1.38 per game, with Houston closing in behind. Dallas are midway between Houston and the pair sitting on exactly one point per game, Chivas and Real. And, just like in the actual table, DC and the Quakes are rock-bottom, with neither side managing over a point per game.

The goal difference machines are still Chicago, with a commanding +9 despite their loss this weekend, while DC have sunk to a league-worst -7. Offensively, it's the quicksilver Galaxy, banging them in to the tune of 2.38 per game--that are the only side averaging over two goals a game. However (and this is the quicksilver bit we're talking about here), they're also one of the three sides allowing over two goals a game, with fellow Angelinos Chivas and (yet again the league-worst) DC United.

As far as offensive ineptitude goes, it would be hard to match San Jose. The expansion side are managing a paltry 0.57 goals per game, a figure that is more than doubled by every other side in the league. When it comes to keeping them out, Chicago are almost San Jose's mirror, with an impressive 0.63 allowed per game. Honorable mention goes to the only other side managing a sub one-per-game average, the Red Bulls at 0.86.

So that's the story of the table this week. Things did seem to be starting to shake out into recognizable tiers, but we're back to a pretty massive Parity Pileup, and the Traffax Command Center doesn't indicate that it'll be clearing up anytime soon. I suppose that shouldn't come as too much of a surprise given the nature of the league and the fact that we're only a quarter of the way into the season.