NEW YORK — Is the AL Central any good?

The AL Central is good.

Yes, you read that right. Contrary to the expectations of many around the game, the group is one of the best and most consistent divisions in the game. It is currently the only division in the American League that would have three teams reach the postseason if they started today.

Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt was one of the few who saw this coming.

“I think the teams in our division are a lot better than what the media has been reporting,” Vogt said on May 6. “Everybody’s gotten better and I think, for us, I try not to look at the standings. I try not to look and see, but you see you have four teams that are doing really well, and that doesn’t surprise me. This is a good division. It’s a tough division and everybody’s playing well right now.”

At the time, the first-year manager’s take on the division seemed premature. But with just five weeks left in the season, he couldn’t have been more right. His Guardians are 73-53 going into Thursday’s game, while the Royals and Twins are both 71-56.

What did Vogt see that others didn’t? Why was he so sure?

“I don’t know too much about it, but when I did my homework when I got the job, I see that they’re playing good baseball in the Central. Everybody,” Vogt told Yahoo Sports. “It’s fundamental. It’s not sitting back and waiting for the three-run home run. You make things happen, you know?

“The Twins have been good for years and the Royals are up and coming and they’ve made some good, important additions. … So it’s just good division baseball and they play good, clean baseball. You never know what’s going to happen in these types of games. So it comes down to the last minute. We know that because these are really good teams that are going to fight.”

The Guardians have led the division for most of the year, and while they still hold a 2.5-game lead, they’ve been in a bit of a slump since the All-Star break. Their offense, which carried them in the first half, has ranked in the bottom half of the league in that span. And while the bullpen has continued to flourish, their starters have an ERA of nearly 5.

And while the Guardians haven’t exactly been terrible, the Royals have hit their stride at the right time, with Kansas City going 19-11 since the break. Minnesota has been fairly steady, going 16-14 in that span.

We’ve seen teams like the Mariners spiral downward when teams behind them in the standings get hot. But Cleveland isn’t going to panic during this tough time. The Guardians have made a habit of reaching the postseason in recent years, and this year, the expectations are the same despite increased pressure from KC and Minnesota.

“Today is the only day that matters,” catcher Austin Hedges told Yahoo Sports. “We’ve got to go out there and win today. It’s distracting when you feel like you’re playing really great baseball, and then you’ve got a couple other teams that are out there. But at the same time, we’d like to win the division, but our goal is not to win the division.

“I was on a World Series team (in Texas) last year that didn’t win the division. You could even argue that a first-round bye isn’t an advantage because you’re about to play a team that just won a playoff series. And there’s no momentum like winning a playoff series and then playing another team that just had a week of practice. That’s tough to do.”

There appears to be no panic in the Guardians’ locker room, even with two teams breathing down their necks in the AL Central. And Cleveland has a chance to get its own house in order, too, with seven games against Kansas City and four against Minnesota in September.

The AL Central hasn’t seen such a close race for the top spot since 2014. With five weeks to go until the end of the season, all three teams appear poised for a photo finish.