The American League playoff picture is shaping up as October approaches. The division leaders are led by the Kansas City Royals (1 game lead in AL Central), Baltimore Orioles (10 game lead in AL East) and Los Angeles Angels (8 game lead in AL West). As far as the wild card picture six teams are within five games of the final two spots guaranteeing us a great finish for fantasy baseball including the playoffs.

Mike Trout and Nelson Cruz are two names to monitor as their names are both being mentioned for the MVP Award but more importantly to help fuel your fantasy lineup. Trout is hitting .287 with 32 home runs and a league leading 102 runs batted in. Over his last 10 games the Angels outfielder has put together a solid fantasy stat sheet with 10 hits including two doubles, two home runs and eight runs batted in.

For the Orioles Cruz continues to be one of the top fantasy hitters and we saw that on Sunday as he drove in all seven runs in an important win over the Tampa Bay Rays ball club. Cruz hit two home runs and a big triple. Cruz is hitting .264 with the MLB lead in home runs with 39 and 101 runs batted in.

Both Trout and Cruz headline top fantasy performers to watch as the 2014 MLB regular season comes to an end. Here are a few of the other top American League fantasy players we expect to perform down the stretch.

Robinson Cano, Second Baseman: The Seattle Mariners are right in the wild card picture and Cano is fourth in the AL in hitting with a .322 batting average. Cano has seen his home run totals drop but is still on pace for over 200 hits.
 

 
Steve Pearce, First Baseman: Pearce has been the Orioles unsung hero this year hitting .286 with 16 home runs and 38 runs batted in. The downside to Pearce is his ability to get extremely hot or cold so we recommend monitoring his performance before using him.

Adam Dunn, Designated Hitter/First Baseman: Dunn has great power potential but don’t expect to receive a high average. Since being acquired by the Oakland A’s, Dunn has six hits in 21 at bats including two home runs. If you are looking to add some power to your fantasy roster Dunn could be a cheap option.

Kyle Calhoun, Outfielder: The Los Angeles Angels outfielder is been red hot over his last 31 at bats picking up 11 hits including one double, one triple and one home run. On the season Calhoun has raised his average to .284 with 14 home runs and 51 runs batted in.