Thursday, August 14, 2003
Giants' Lead Now Single Digits
I told myself not to begin worrying unless the Giants lead, once 12.5 games, gets under 10. Well, it's nine now. I call for Casey Stengel to rise from the dead and make the Mets his own lovable losers again. I can't take it. Two straight losses to the lowly Mets. I haven't changed the magic number over on the left side there for a couple of days now. I'd trade Bonds' two New York dingers for one win out of the two games. Can Jesse Foppert be our savior today?
As For The American League: It's basically down to seven teams for four playoff spots. The Yankees are still the team to beat in the American League, and they should take their division title. Mark your calendars for the end of September and the end of the season: The White Sox and Royals will battle down the stretch head-to-head, in a couple of series that will probably be a winner-goes-on, loser-goes-home situation; neither team is good enough to be the wild card. I'll take the Sox, largely because of the presence of Esteban Loaiza and Bartolo Colon in the rotation, and because Sox fans love to run onto the field and tackle Royals. As for the West, I'd like to think Oakland has the rotation to catch up to Seattle, but Barry Zito is struggling something fierce right now. Then again, so is Freddy Garcia of the M's. I'm not thinking any changes are going to happen in the standings there, which leaves Oakland and Boston for the wild card. The winner of today's A's-Red Sox game--in progress as I write this, no score in the 2nd inning--will take a one-game lead in the wild-card standings over the other, with no other team within six games. I'll go with Oakland and assume their strong rotation will hold up down the stretch.
My projected American League playoff teams: New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, Seattle Mariners, Oakland Athletics (wild card).
As For The American League: It's basically down to seven teams for four playoff spots. The Yankees are still the team to beat in the American League, and they should take their division title. Mark your calendars for the end of September and the end of the season: The White Sox and Royals will battle down the stretch head-to-head, in a couple of series that will probably be a winner-goes-on, loser-goes-home situation; neither team is good enough to be the wild card. I'll take the Sox, largely because of the presence of Esteban Loaiza and Bartolo Colon in the rotation, and because Sox fans love to run onto the field and tackle Royals. As for the West, I'd like to think Oakland has the rotation to catch up to Seattle, but Barry Zito is struggling something fierce right now. Then again, so is Freddy Garcia of the M's. I'm not thinking any changes are going to happen in the standings there, which leaves Oakland and Boston for the wild card. The winner of today's A's-Red Sox game--in progress as I write this, no score in the 2nd inning--will take a one-game lead in the wild-card standings over the other, with no other team within six games. I'll go with Oakland and assume their strong rotation will hold up down the stretch.
My projected American League playoff teams: New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, Seattle Mariners, Oakland Athletics (wild card).
