Playoffs?

With just over a week remaining in the regular season, things are getting pretty interesting. At this point, three teams have clinched a playoff spot. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Washington Nationals, and the Baltimore Orioles each won their respective divisions this week, with Orioles and Nationals clinching on Tuesday and the Angels clinching on Wednesday.  The Nationals are one of two franchise to never have played in a World Series, the other being the Seattle Mariners.

The Orioles have been a team to beat since their sudden insurgence in 2012. It almost seemed like fate would match up the two teams nobody saw coming in the ALCS, but both Baltimore and the Athletics were eliminated in game fives of the ALDS. Last year, many expected them to build on their success from 2012, but the Boston Red Sox fed on the energy of the Boston bombing, carrying the city on their back all the way to World Series champions. I’m excited to see what Baltimore can do in the post season this year, especially without Manny Machado, and recently suspended slugger, Chris Davis. The post season, however, is different than the regular season. You’re facing the best teams, and anything can happen. Tuesday was the Orioles first time winning the American League East division since the 1997 season, when they were eliminated in six games in the ALCS.  The Orioles last World Series appearance was in in 1983, which they won in five games.

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, you sneaky bastards. I have to give the Angels props for capitalizing on the A’s woes, and not only surging from 6 games back to claim the lead in the division, but to move a whopping 11 games ahead. The Angels have played well, and got hot at the perfect time. The A’s, well, they have gotten frigidly cold at the worst possible time. After leading the division all season, the second half, which has always been the A’s strong suit, has been disappointing. Everybody is quick to blame the Cespedes trade for the woes, but that can’t be all of it. Players aren’t hitting, and with the closer, Sean Doolittle hurt, the bullpen all but collapsed, much like the season. Last night, the A’s were eliminated from back-to-back-to-back AL West Champions. The Angels are last week were winners of ten straight, which helped them pad their division lead while the A’s had won 14 of their last 33 games.

Staying in the AL West, the Seattle Mariners are surprising everybody this year. With the GM dropping money like it was hot this past off-season, the M’s have put together a good team that’s hanging tough for a shot at one of the wild card spots. Saturday night, the A’s and M’s faced off in Seattle with the first ever night court with their king on the mound, looking to leap frog the A’s in the standings. With the Royals winning, their first win against Boston this season (I guess you could say I was good luck), they were in a virtual tie with the A’s for the first wild card spot. Now, the A’s, along with every other team, have struggled against Felix Hernandez, and have yet to record a win in games he starts. Until Saturday. The sellout crowd in Seattle was looking to capitalize on the A’s struggles, and with King Felix pitching, they by all means should have won. After 12 innings, the Mariners lost 3-2, with Fernando Rodney walking in the winning run; a scene A’s fans saw themselves the weekend before. Sunday’s game was huge, as the two face off for the last time in the regular season. It would be extremely interesting if the two teams win the wild card spots and are forced to play a one game playoff for the final spot in the playoffs.

The Kansas City Royals would much rather the Mariners watch the playoffs at home and claim a wild card spot from them. After years of being the worst team in baseball, the Royals stock piled on draft picks and are making their move. Loaded with young talent, the Royals are a major threat to not only the wild card, but the AL Central. I would personally love to see the Royals beat out the Tigers for the division, and for the Tigers miss the playoffs all together, but that could be the bitter hatred I have for them after having to watch them beat us in game five at home two years in a row. Just maybe.  The Royals and Tigers face off for the final time during the regular season in Kansas City.  These three games are going to be a big piece in the playoff picture.  At the moment, the Royals are sitting just half a game behind the Tigers for first place in the division and half a game in front of the A’s for the first Wild Card spot.  The Tigers have Justin Verlander going tomorrow night, and this will be important for the Tigers to see how he performs in a playoff type game.  With all the talk around Verlander’s arm this year, the best thing he can do is go out and silence them by pitching like we all know he is capable of.  However, if he struggles, the Tigers could be in trouble.  It’s going to be rocking in KC this weekend!

To the Yankees fans, I’m sorry.  It would have been nice to see Derek Jeter go out with once last playoff appearance, but it is looking like the Yankees will miss the playoffs for the second straight year.  Congratulations to the Washington Nationals and their fans on clinching the National League East this week as well.  It’s going to be an intense next week of baseball, and I can’t wait!

Wild Card Friday

It’s finally here!  TGIF, but this Friday is TFIWCF.  I’m so excited for the games today, and I’m even more excited that my Oakland A’s don’t have to play today.

Today marks the first ever wild card playoff games, with the St. Louis Cardinals at the Atlanta Braves at the early game and the Baltimore Orioles at the Texas Rangers as the night game.  I’m not a fan of how the wild card playoff game works, with a one game winner take all format, but should make for some intense games.

The Atlanta Braves are my winner for their game against the Cardinals today.  The Cardinals are a good team, and the defending World Champions, but the Braves are a better team.  If it wasn’t for the Washington Nationals having the amazing season they had, the Braves more than likely would have taken the NL East.  The Braves come into the game with a regular season record of 94-68, six games better than the St. Louis Cardinals.  You can argue that the NL East wasn’t nearly as strong of a division as the NL Central was, which is true.  Aside from the Houston Astros and the Chicago Cubs (which was surprising how bad they did this season), the NL Central was a fairly strong division.  As of right now, the score is 0-0 in the top half of the 2nd inning.  I’m looking to get home soon to watch the end of the game.

For the night game, I’m going with the Baltimore Orioles.  The Texas Rangers are good, but considering how horrible they have played down the stretch here, and that they weren’t excepting to play today, I don’t see things going well for them.  The Orioles have been the other huge surprise this season, and made the New York Yankees work hard for the AL East division.  The O’s are in it to win it, and have played well enough to take on the Rangers.  Something the Rangers have going for them is anger.  The anger from them choking down the stretch, for losing the AL West championship title, and that they are playing today when they thought they’d be playing the winner of this game.  These are two extremely talented teams that are trying to prove they’re the best.  The Orioles are trying to prove that they deserve to be there, and that they’re serious, while the Rangers are trying to get back to the World Series for the win after losing in their last two trips to the fall classic.

I’m slightly annoyed that the games are being played today since I’m missing the National League game because I’m at work, and I’ll miss most of the second game because I’m going to a concert tonight.  I guess I’ll just have to be that annoying person at a concert that’s checking their phone every 5 minutes.  No matter who wins, it’s going to be great.  I love playoff baseball!

Home of the Brave(s)

I had a great time in Atlanta tonight at the Braves game.  The Braves beat the New York Mets 2-0, and with that win prevented the Nationals from clinching the NL East.  The Nationals, who beat the Cardinals in extra innings, have a magic number one and the Braves are trying to make them work for that.

The Braves are having fan appreciation weekend, as well as a farewell to Chipper Jones weekend.  This series is the final regular season home stand, and this weekend is drawing record crowds (Friday’s game was the second most in attendance in Turner Field history).  I met a few people who also traveled to come see Chipper Jones final home stand, and with good reason.  It’s the end of an era in a sense.

Well I’m off to bed, early flight back home after flying all day.  Enjoy the rest of your weekend!!

September Baseball

After Christmas and April 25th (my birthday is a holiday in my opinion), September is my favorite time of the year. There is so much going on and excitement is never far. It seems that every weekend this month has had at least 2 huge playoff push games, and this weekend is no exception. Tonight is the start of four huge match-ups, as well as other big series.

With the addition of the second wild card this year, very few teams are actually out of the race just yet, which is adding extra excitement to the end of the season. A huge match up that I’m so bummed to be missing- the Baltimore Orioles at Oakland Athletics. I am a huge A’s fan, and love going to games, especially big games like this series is going to be. However, I am off to Houston in the morning to check out the newest member of the American League West in 2013, the Astros. The game in Oakland is going to be a huge playoff game changer for a couple of reasons. Currently, the A’s are three back in the AL West, and lead the AL wild card by one game over the Orioles. The Orioles, are tied with the New York Yankees, and have been playing far better than anybody could have thought. We’re all shocked at how good the Orioles have been playing this year, but honestly, they have a lot of the same guys from last year, but this year, their pitching hasn’t been in the toilet like in years past. Offense is good, but you need pitching to win games. Either way, this series is going to be a big one, and I will be glued to MLB Network Saturday night in my hotel room watching highlights after the game.

Since I’m on the topic of the Houston Astros, I’m actually really excited to see them this weekend. This year has clearly been a horrible year for them, no doubt about it, but they’ve had a lot to deal with. News came before the season started that they not only had new ownership, but that this would be their final year in the National League, after 50 years. The Astros are playing the Philadelphia Phillies this weekend, and a couple of weeks ago I would have written this game off as a battle of two teams in the toilet, but the Phillies are trying to mount a comeback. The Phillies have won eight of their last ten, and are 4 games out of the final wild card spot, which is still going to be extremely difficult to get, but not impossible. On the flip side, we have the Astros, currently owners of the worst record in baseball, with no shot in hell of making it to the postseason. The only bright spot in the Astros season, is not even that bright. Roger Clemens, former Astros pitcher (and several other teams), has been pitching in the Independence League for the last month almost, and is in talks of rejoining his former team this season. Astros ownership claims this is not a publicity stunt, but honestly, what the heck would you call it? If they were in the hunt, I could understand bringing in a former lights-out pitcher to help you out, but sitting in last place, with little fan attendance, screams publicity stunt. Plus, Clemens has stated that if he does come back, he wants to pitch against a team that’s a contender to try to prevent them from going to the playoffs. I should also mention that Clemens has been out of baseball for 5 years, and if he comes back to play in Houston against a contender, he’s going to be making most likely, only one start. Something to also keep in mind is the Hall of Fame, which you have to be retired for five years before you can appear on the ballot. If Clemens does come back this year, he’ll have to wait another five years to be eligible.

Another big series this weekend, Clemens old team, the New York Yankees are taking on the Tampa Bay Rays. The Yankees have been having a rough September to say the least, and if it continues, there is a chance that the Yankees will be watching the post season from their couches. Currently tied with the Orioles, the Yankees need to stop the bleeding and find ways to win games. Many teams when they get down in games, or have been losing a lot, try to do too much, which makes things worse. I think the injury to Mark Teixeira has been huge for the Yankees, but it shouldn’t be. They are stocked with too many great players on that team to be losing this much because one guy is down. The Rays always seem to play well against the Yankees, and I personally am looking forward to this series. Right now, Tampa is four games out in the division, and the wild card, but all that can change this weekend. This series and the one in Oakland are going to be big game changers for the AL East and AL wild card because it is the top four teams in the wild card all duking it out. I expect that this series is going to have a playoff vibe to it- win or go home, because with the season starting to wrap up, you need to win now if you want to keep playing.

The drama in the American League is pretty intense compared to the Nation League right now, but there is still plenty of it to go around over there as well. A big series going on is the Washington Nationals at the Atlanta Braves. The Nationals, owners of the best record in baseball, are leading the Braves by 8.5 games in the NL East, but the Braves are currently the leaders of the NL wild card by five games over the St. Louis Cardinals. The Braves, who I will be seeing at the end of the month, are always a great team. They busted out that comeback against the Nationals earlier this year in their game in D.C. on July 20th, when the Braves came back from being down by nine runs to win the game in extras (Are You Kidding Me?!). While both of these teams are almost guaranteed playoff spots, this series should be fun to watch as a possible post season preview.

Speaking of the NL wild card and St. Louis Cardinals, they’re taking on they Los Angeles Dodgers this weekend. This series is only big for one reason, the final wild card position. Unless the Braves pull a Red Sox via 2011 season, they’re going to the playoffs, meaning that there is only one wild card spot left. The Dodgers are currently two games behind the Cardinals for that last spot, and both are a little too far out of their own divisions to try to take the top spot. If I had to pick between those two teams, I’d say the Cards are going to the playoffs on that wild card. They are a scrappy team and find ways to win- look at what they did last year. Even under new management, Mike Mathney, they are still playing like the Cardinals of old. The Dodgers, while a good team, are proving to be a good team on paper, not the field. Right now, the Dodgers have too much going on and too many new players coming in all the time to be effective.

The only day game, which is strange for a Friday, is out in Chicago. Right now, the Chicago Cubs are beating the Pittsburgh Pirates. I’d like to say I’m shocked, but the Pirates lately have been playing like the way we all expect the Pirates to play. It’s disappointing since they were playing such good baseball earlier this season and now it’s just painful. At this point, they are going to need a miracle to make the playoffs, as they are slipping fast, losing six in a row en route to seven.

If the 2011 Boston Red Sox team taught us anything, it’s that anything can happen in September, and you can go from a playoff team to sitting at home very quickly.

Mounting a Comeback

The Philadelphia Phillies are trying to mount a comeback, winning six in a row, and 14 of their last 18.  However, they are currently 17 games out of the NL East and are tied with the Milwaukee Brewers at 4.5 games out of the wild card.  That would have to be one heck of a comeback for the Phillies to get to the post season.  It’s not impossible, look at the 2002 A’s winning 20 games in a row to get them to the playoffs, but somewhat unlikely.

Getting hot and streaks are all about timing.  It’s nice to start the season hot, but at the same time, there’s a lot of baseball left at that point.  Getting hot in August/September and you’re putting yourself in a great position.  It’s no secret that the National League is the weaker of the two leagues, and the standings are all of the proof you need.  At .500, the Phillies are tied for 5th in the wild card with the Brewers right now.  Remember a few years ago with the San Diego Padres won the NL West with a record of 82-80?  It’s times like that when you want to just take the top four teams, rather than winners of the division.

This year, with the additional wild card, things are going to be interesting in the first round of the playoffs.  That one game playoff for the wild card is going to one hell of a game.  Right now, if the Phillies keep winning and do get one of the wild cards, I would take the Phillies over anybody.  The San Francisco Giants, when they won the World Series, got hot at the right time of year- just like the Cardinals last year, and maybe like the Phillies this year.

Since I’m on the topic of the Phillies, something has been bothering me for most of the season.  What the heck is going on with Cliff Lee?!  I like Cliff Lee, especially since he’s not with Texas anymore, so it’s hard to see him struggle like he has this season.  Lee didn’t get his first win of the season until July 4th, going win-less in his first 13 starts.  That seems that Lee’s struggles go hand-in-hand with the Phillies struggles this season.  If one of your ace pitchers can’t get any wins, you know you have a problem.

I hope that the Phillies keep hot and can make the last couple weeks of the season interesting for the rest of us, plus keep the other teams ahead of them on their toes.