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And DOWN THE STRETCH THEY COME! One more week till October

SteveJRogers Sep 24 2006 08:59 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Sep 24 2006 09:10 PM

Shaping up to be an intriguing week in MLB: Chasing C Notes: Detroit has stormed back and overtaken the best record in MLB at 94-62 but have a very slim margin to get to 100, granted that includes a weekend against the Royals but still. Mets and Yankees both have 93 with 7 to play. Seems having a 100 win season is very unlikely, and it will be the majors first since 2000 Going the other way we have Tampa Bay needing 5, but since they just beat the Yanks 2 in a row this weekend its possible they'll strive to stave it off. The Royals need just 3 more to ensure the Major's 5th straight season of a team losing 100 or more ballgames. Now to the races The AL is heating up on the Central, Wild Card and even jockeying for position seed wise. Tigers hold a slim 1 game lead over the Yanks for home field throughout (and won't that be an interesting time for NYC baseball with two LCS games same day) with the A's at 90 wins close behind. The AL West race is all but over. Angels staved off elimination again today, but here is how their week looks: 9/25-9/27 vs Rangers 9/28-10/1 vs Oakland The A's have 9/25-9/27 at Mariners 9/28-10/1 at Angels Magic number for A's is down to 2 I found it a bit odd that the Tigers had a champange celebration for their "playoff birth" today. They still have work to do as they have a slim 1.5 game lead over the Twinkies Tigers 94-62 9/26-9/28 vs Bluejays 9/29-10/1 vs Royals Twins 92-63 9/25-9/28 vs Royals 9/29-10/1 vs White Sox The AL Wild Card race, such as it is, is all but over. The White Sox at 87-69 have a tragic number of 2 and will face the Indians and Twins on the road this week NL: The Mets at 93-92 have wrapped up the Home Field througout the NL postseason, Padres/Dodgers are ahead of the 80-73 Cardinals (man the 1999 to 2000 Yanks didn't have THIS bad of a drop) NL Central Such as it is, the Cards magic number against the Reds 76-79 is 4 and 5 against the Astros 76-79. After tonight in Houston the Red Birds face the Padres and Brewers at home The Astros have at Philly, Pittsburgh and Atlanta left while the Reds have vs the Cubs, then at Florida and Pittsburgh NL West Padres 83-72 "opened" up a 1.5 game lead, magic number is now 6 against the Dodgers 82-74 Pads 9/25-9/27 at Cardinals 9/28-10/1 at Diamondbacks Dodgers 9/26-9/28 at Rockies 9/29-10/1 at Giants And the Wacky Wild Card is getting even more wacky Philadelphia 82-73 has a .5 game lead over the Dodgers with a 7 magic number, Houston with a tragic number of 3 and Cincy with a tragic number of 2 are fading. Giants and Marlins have a tragic number of 1 Philly has: 9/25 Makup game at CBP against the Astros 9/26-9/28 at Washington 9/29-10/1 at Florida

Yancy Street Gang Sep 24 2006 09:04 PM

The Link?

SteveJRogers Sep 24 2006 09:12 PM

Fixed. The one drawback with all the new stadiums going up is that you now have to keep track of which stadiums go with which teams! Lincoln Financial = Eagles Citizens Bank = Phillies Oi VEY!

Frayed Knot Sep 24 2006 09:55 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Sep 24 2006 10:33 PM

* As of right now, the Mets 1st round opponent is StL. They're about the only one we weren't considering but they're playing like crap these days and have been getting the crap kicked out of them by Houston this weekend. I kinda like them as our initial test - even though it means facing Pujols and that Philly wins the WC. Cards also have to face the Padres for 3 games this week who obviously need the games themselves. * Philly, meanwhile, has won 5 straight and 10 of their last 12. They're also just behind SD for the 2nd best record in the NL (so much for the weak NL East) and ahve virtually the same record as the Red Sox. * Giants got the crap kicked out of them this weekend by Milwaukee despite 2 HRs from Bonds (passed Aaron for the all-time NL record) and about 10 RBIs, plus Moises Alou's 2,000th career hit. Their pitching just died. * Dodgers took 2 of 3 and won on another walk-off HR from Nomar on Sunday. * Padres had a big weekend sweeping Pittsburgh. Trevor Hoffman tied then broke Lee Smith's all-time saves record. * Houston refuses to die even though it's probably too little, too late for them. Clemens is just now taking his bows in his annual "last ever" home game.

SteveJRogers Sep 24 2006 09:59 PM

Begs the question, would Phillies be this hot if they ended up keeping Lidle and Abreu? And so much for that being a "White Flag" deal.

metirish Sep 24 2006 10:03 PM

As remarkable as the Marlins season has been for me the Phillies has been a better story,I mean did the GM think that trading those two guys would make the team better.....amazing really.

Willets Point Sep 24 2006 11:28 PM

I like Mets v. Cards in the first round and Mets v. Phils in the NLCS. Means no late nights. Well, no late late nights.

Gwreck Sep 24 2006 11:34 PM

Willets Point wrote: I like Mets v. Cards in the first round and Mets v. Phils in the NLCS. Means no late nights. Well, no late late nights. The road games against West Coast teams would probably be day games (and certainly not later than 8:00 EDT starts) as they're on Saturday and Sunday.

Frayed Knot Sep 25 2006 10:16 AM

[u:34c09128de]Monday's Games that Matter[/u:34c09128de]: * Cubs (Miller) @ Cincy (Arroyo) {Day Game} -- the Reds are closer to the division crown than to the WC at this point * Astros (Albers?) @ Philly (Wolf) -- A one-game series (rain make-up) Houston is in same boat as Reds, though can make up grounds on both races with a win * Padres (Wells) @ St Loo (Suppan) -- One division leader loses ground while the other gains * D'Backs (Gonzalez) @ San Fran (Schmidt) -- Gints still alive in theory only * ChiSox (Garland) @ Cleveland (Lee) -- the King is dead, long live the king (unless it turns out to be the MFYs) * Royals (De La Rosa) @ Twinkies (Bonser) -- Minny is in the playoffs in one form or another unless their starter totally 'Boofs' up

MFS62 Sep 25 2006 10:19 AM

Who names their kid Boof? Yeah I know, the Bonsers Later

Frayed Knot Sep 26 2006 09:33 AM

[u:5d588c8aa2]Monday's Outcomes[/u:5d588c8aa2]: * Padres beat Cards despite Wells being scratched from his start. Cards have now lost 6 straight and their Central lead is down to 2-1/2 Pads lead the West by 2 games Jim Edmonds' first AB in a month was a PH 3R HR * Reds stay alive and are 3-1/2 out in the Central (5 out of the WC) by beating the Cubs Ken Griffey's first AB in over 3 weeks was a PH 3R HR * Houston beats the Phils in a make-up game The Astros have now [u:5d588c8aa2]won[/u:5d588c8aa2] 6 straight going from 8-1/2 out to 2-1/2 is less than a week. They're 4 out of the WC * Phils & Dodgers tied for the WC lead. * San Fran lost their 5th straight and have now been eliminated from both the NLWest & the WC * Twins in - ChiSox out Twins clinched a playoff spot by beating the Royals as the Sox were getting crushed by Cleveland (Injuns getting payback for last year). Twins are 1 game behind Detroit in the Central * Angels beats Texas to stay alive. Their tragic number is 2 - although they finish with 4 against Oakland * Oakland gives up 3 in the 9th, then 1 in the 10th to lose to Seattle [u:5d588c8aa2]Tuesday[/u:5d588c8aa2]: Philly @ Washington (Myers v Oritz) Houston @ Pittsburgh (Pettitte v Snell) Cincy @ Florida (Belisle v Willis) SD @ StL (Williams v Carpenter) Dodgers @ Colorado (Maddux v Jennings) Texas @ Anaheim (Tejada v Escobar) Oakland @ Seattle (Harden v Woods) Toronto @ Detroit (McGowen v Bonderman) KC @ Minnesota (Perez v Santana)

metirish Sep 26 2006 09:36 AM

The Cards are falling apart,I hope they make it because I would rather not have to play the Astros.

MFS62 Sep 26 2006 09:40 AM

]San Fran lost their 5th straight and have now been eliminated from both the NLWest & the WC This is going to deprive all those who care about Barry (one way or another) of the opportunity to see him in what might have been his last post season. Later

HahnSolo Sep 26 2006 11:04 AM

I predict that Florida, who already had to see the Mets celebrate on the field, will be pretty feisty against the Phillies this weekend.

Frayed Knot Sep 26 2006 11:30 PM

Tuesday's NL results are all in: * Sandy Eggo & Los Angeles both win, keeping the NLWest at the same 2-Game lead for the Spanish Fathers * But Philly loses, handing the Dojers a 1-game WC lead * In the Central, Houston wins its 7th straight while the Cards were losing their 7th! - cutting the lead down to 1-1/2 Cards not even winning when their ace Carpenter pitches. I bet "the faction" is having a field day over this collapse. * Also Cincy beats Florida, moving them to just 2-1/2 behind StL

TransMonk Sep 27 2006 01:11 AM

The AL playoff teams are set: Detroit, New York, Minneapolis and Oakland. The seeding is still a mess as everyone is technically still alive to capture the best record.

Frayed Knot Sep 27 2006 10:08 AM

[u:0cc34a104a]Wednesday[/u:0cc34a104a] Philly @ Washington -- Hamels v Astacio Houston @ Pittsburgh -- Hirsch v Chacon Cincy @ Florida -- Michalak v Sanchez SC @ StL -- Young v Reyes Dodgers @ Colorado -- Lowe v Cook

Yancy Street Gang Sep 27 2006 10:38 AM

Padres looking much less likely to be the Mets first round opponent.

MFS62 Sep 27 2006 11:08 AM

I never thought I'd be rooting for that team from LA to win. But I am, for them to win just enough to bounce both Houston and Philly from the playoffs. The prospect of facing either of those two teams scares the crap out of me. I'd rather take my chances facing either LA or the Padres. Later

TransMonk Sep 27 2006 11:40 AM

There are 10 teams still alive for playoff spots/seedings: Philadelphia, St. Louis, Houston, Cincinnati, San Diego, LA Dodgers, MFY, Oakland, Detroit and Minnesota. St. Louis plays San Diego today. Other than that game, none of these 10 teams will play one another over the next 5 days. With 72 games left on the MLB schedule for this year, 49 of them still have meaning. Usually it seems that are one or two key matchups during the last few days of a season. This year due to the schedule, everyone who has a chance to be in it is playing someone out of it over the last few days. It makes for a lot of scoreboard wathcing, but I'll miss these teams duking it out against each other.

Frayed Knot Sep 27 2006 10:22 PM

In-Progress Games: * Philly leads the Nats 5-4 in the 9th ... but closer Gordon has walked the bases-loaded with just one out (and that was a sac bunt). The final walk was intentional to Soriano in order to load the bases and face Ryan Zimmerman. And now the count is full to Zimmerman who already has one HR tonight .... AND HE WALKS HIM AND THE GAME IS TIED!!!! (anyone wanna complain about Wagner right about now?) So the winning run is on 3rd w/Robert Fick up (and a LOT of Philly fans in the stands in DC). Strike one, foul strike two, POPPED UP IN THE INFIELD!!! Now 2 outs and Austin Kearns PH-ing in his first appearance since his collision w/Nick Johnson. Kearns is Frank's last position player available. Ball one almost hits him, Ball 2, foul strike 1, foul strike 2, high Ball 3, ... AND MY CABLE SYSTEM SWITCHES TO A FUCKING COMMERCIAL?!?!?!?!? WTF?

Frayed Knot Sep 27 2006 10:27 PM

Well, the Phils got Kearns out so they're going to the 10th but I didn't see how!!! * Houston & Pitt tied headed for the 11th * Marlins 7 - Reds 2, that's a final * Padres & Cards tied at 1 in the 8th * Dodgers get 2 in the 7th and lead Colorado 5-4 in the 7th

metirish Sep 27 2006 10:28 PM

Can baseball get any better than that...seems like all the important games are close.

Frayed Knot Sep 28 2006 09:34 AM

'Twas a late night for many of these games last night: * Cards were headed for their 8th straight loss when they got a 3R-HR from Uncle Albert in the 8th to down Sandy Eggo * Houston got a run in the 9th to tie Pittsburgh before finally winning it in the 15th. Astros needed 12 IPs of 2R ball from their bullpen. * Phils took a 1 run lead into the 9th against Washington ... and then gave it back. They then took another 1 run lead in the 10th ... and then gave it back They then took a 2 run lead in the 14th before letting the Nats load the bases w/none out ... before escaping on a Sac Fly and a GiDP * Dodgers were down 4-1 to Colorado but got 2 in the 7th and 3 in the 8th to win it. So the Padres have a 1-game lead on the Dodgers in the west The Dodgers have a 1-game lead on the Phils in the WC The Cards have a 1-1/2 game lead on the Astros (and 3-1/2 on the Reds) in the Central The Astros can, at best, only tie for the WC if they fail to win the division.

Frayed Knot Sep 28 2006 09:41 AM

AL "Race" (for best record). All team have 4 games remaining. Yanx = 96 wins (1 v Balt, 3 v Tampa) Tiggers = 95 (1 v Toronto, 3 v KC) Twins = 94 (1 v KC, 3 v ChiSox) A's = 92 (4 @ LAA) Detroit owns the head-to-hed tie-breaker with the Twins, meaning they'd be the division winner and Minnesota the WC if they should tie.

Frayed Knot Sep 28 2006 01:20 PM

Thursday's Sked: Toronto @ Detroit -- Burnett v Rogers -- 1:00 - 2-0 Jays, top 1st 4:20 -- 8-6 Jays win Houston @ Pittsburgh -- Oswalt v Gorzelanny -- 1:00 - (Rain Delay) 4:20 just now in the 2nd inning after a 3+ hour delay, still scoreless 4:50 -- Scoreless w/Pitt batting in bottom 4 7:00 -- Astros get just 3 hits but win their 9th straight by shutting out Pitt 3-0 behind Oswalt & Lidge Dodgers @ Colorado -- Penny v Kim -- 3:00 4:20 -- Rox get 3 in the 1st, then LA answers with 4 in the 2nd & 4 in the 3rd 4:50 -- Rox get 5 (and counting) in the 4th tying it at 8. This has all the making of a (pre-humidor) Coors special written all over it. 7:00 -- Dodgers win 19-11 thanks in part to a franchise record 9 RBIs from James Loney (tying a 1950 Gil Hodges mark) Cincy @ Florida -- Lohse v Nolasco -- 7:00 Philly @ Washington -- Lieber v O'Connor -- 7:00 Milwaukee @ StLouis -- Davis v Marquis -- 8:00 KC @ Minnesota -- Hudson v Radke -- 8:00 San Diego @ Arizona -- Peavy v Batista -- 9:40

Yancy Street Gang Sep 28 2006 08:10 PM

Dodgers magic number for the wild card is down to 3. Raining in Washington. If the Phillies don't get that game in, I guess they'll have to play it on Monday, if necessary.

metirish Sep 28 2006 08:46 PM

Brewers leading St.Louis 4 - 0.

Edgy DC Sep 28 2006 08:49 PM

Are the Astros really looking at making up eight games in ten days in September? Amazin'.

Edgy DC Sep 28 2006 08:52 PM

Can we take Pratt with us when we leave?

Edgy DC Sep 28 2006 08:57 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Sep 28 2006 09:11 PM

Reyes knew Kranepool wore 7; he probably knows Cedeño stole 66.

Yancy Street Gang Sep 28 2006 09:00 PM

Edgy DC wrote: Reyes knew Kranepool wore 7; he probably knows Cede&#241o stole 66. Your tilde looks funny. Let me try it my way: ņ

metirish Sep 28 2006 09:12 PM

Brewers now up 8 - 0.

metirish Sep 28 2006 10:26 PM

Still raining in DC, Gary reckons they will have to wait all night to play that game, but really how long can they wait tonight?

Yancy Street Gang Sep 28 2006 10:27 PM

10:25 p.m. and they're still waiting out that rain delay in DC. The game hasn't even started yet. There are probably about 12 fans left in the ballpark. Gary says they'll have to wait it out all night if they have to. Is there any precendent for a game starting after midnight local time? I mean, I know they do it in Alaska in the middle of the summer. But in Washington DC in late September?

Edgy DC Sep 28 2006 10:38 PM

My co-worker is a guest of the Nats at the game, as one of four nominees in the "Come up with a Nationals tradition" contest.

Frayed Knot Sep 28 2006 11:38 PM

Well, they're underway in Washington Elsewhere; * Twins get a tying HR in the 9th from the AL's leading hitter Joe Mauer (but he won't be MVP because he doesn't get clutch hits like Derek Jeter) and then a walk-off hit in the 10th to win their game against the Royals and tie the Tiggers for 1st place. This actually kind of suxx because I'd rather see the Twins remain the WC and face the Yanx than the Tiggers - although I know the pitfalls of rooting for that kind of stuff. Detroit still has the edge for the division lead since they'll be facing the Royals over the final weekend while the Twins go against the White Sox, plus the Tigers hold the head-to-head tie-breaker should the two teams finish even * Reds win, Astros win, Cards lose!! The once-huge StL lead is now down to 1/2 game This would be bigger than the infamous 1964 Philly collapse. * Dodgers win, but Padres also winning big as we speak.

metirish Sep 28 2006 11:42 PM

So what's more amazin, the Astros run or the fall of the Cards?

Gwreck Sep 29 2006 12:04 AM

Fall of the Cards I think. CW says we root for LA to win the 'card and the Cards to pull it out by beating the Giants on Monday. I don't think we want to face Philly or Houston in the playoffs. Dodgers winning the 'card ensures we avoid weekday afternoon playoff games in the first round.

Nymr83 Sep 29 2006 12:33 AM

i'd personally like to avoid Roger Clemens, Roy Oswalt, and Andy Pettite. the Astros have the scariest, if not the best, rotation among NL contenders

Yancy Street Gang Sep 29 2006 07:26 AM

Phillies starting to look like a longshot: From the Associated Press: ]WASHINGTON (AP) -- The longest of nights produced the most painful of losses for the Philadelphia Phillies and dozens of their die-hard fans. The Phillies waited out a rain delay of nearly 4 1/2 hours at the start, then dropped a 3-1 decision to the Washington Nationals that left Philadelphia two games back in the NL wild-card race with only three games to play. While the Phillies were losing at Washington for the second time in three games, the Los Angeles Dodgers beat Colorado 19-11 Thursday for their fourth straight win. "I've seen stranger things. ... Our heart's still beating, but it's getting there," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. His club finishes with three games in Florida. Two out with three to play. That's where the 1985 Mets were after their memorable early October series in St. Louis.

Frayed Knot Sep 29 2006 09:03 AM

It's also where the Mets were at in '99. The difference then being that - because Houston & Cincy were tied for the Central lead/Wild Card - we only needed to make up 2 games on one team or the other. Having that 2nd team in the mix helps a lot. So while we were sweeping the Pirates, Cincy was losing 2 or 3 to Milwaukee and Houston was winning 2 of 3 to (I forget).

Yancy Street Gang Sep 29 2006 12:27 PM

From the Philadelphia Inquirer: ] Florida lefthander throws down gauntlet By Todd Zolecki Inquirer Staff Writer Them's fightin' words. Scott Olsen, a rookie lefthander for the Florida Marlins who was ejected Sunday at Citizens Bank Park for hitting Abraham Nuņez with a pitch after he surrendered three home runs and seven runs in the third inning of a 10-7 loss to the Phillies, said he had been happy to learn he wouldn't be suspended. "I want to make that start Saturday," Olsen told the Palm Beach Post on Wednesday. "I want to ruin the Phillies' season." Marlins righthander Brian Moehler is scheduled to face lefthander Jamie Moyer tonight at Dolphin Stadium, where the Phillies open their final series with the National League wild card still to be decided. Olsen will face lefthander Randy Wolf tomorrow afternoon. There were rumblings that Marlins lefthander Dontrelle Willis might not face righthander Brett Myers in Sunday's season finale because he had thrown 222 innings this year. But he is expected to pitch. There seemed to be little doubt that Willis would also like a shot at ending the Phillies' season. That appeared to be a Marlins theme. "I don't like them," reliever Taylor Tankersley told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. "I don't want to see them get in... . At this point, that's our only motivation - to not let the Phillies get in."

Frayed Knot Sep 29 2006 12:44 PM

Of course Philly could be done by tonight, rendering all this trash talking irrelevent. Seems like this Olsen guy is rapidly gaining a rep as an asshole ... even among those NOT on his team. Tonight: * Astros @ Brave -- Clemens v James * Cincy @ Pirates -- Harang v Duke * Philly @ Marlins -- Moyer v Moehler * Padres @ D'Backs -- Hensley v L. Hernandez * Dodgers @ Giants -- (Kid Pro) Kuo v Lowry [u:1b7a9d9794]Central[/u:1b7a9d9794] StL Houston .. -1/2 Cincy ...... -2-1/2 [u:1b7a9d9794]West[/u:1b7a9d9794] Padres Dodgers ... -1 [u:1b7a9d9794]Wild Card[/u:1b7a9d9794] Dodgers Philly ... -2

Johnny Dickshot Sep 29 2006 01:17 PM

Ooooh... Scott and Taylor! Will they be bringing along Josh and Cody? I'm so scared!

metirish Sep 29 2006 09:55 PM

The Astros lose, St.Louis are winning by a big score....

Johnny Dickshot Sep 29 2006 10:04 PM

]"I don't like them," reliever Taylor Tankersley told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. "I don't want to see them get in... . At this point, that's our only motivation - to not let the Phillies get in." Phils 14 16 1 Phish 1 5 1 (8th inning) Nice job, Taylor.

Edgy DC Sep 29 2006 10:34 PM

Willie said it well, something along the lines of, "Thinking of playing the spoiler is loser talk, as far as I'm concerned. Winning should be it's own motivation."

SteveJRogers Sep 29 2006 10:42 PM

Edgy DC wrote: Willie said it well, something along the lines of, "Thinking of playing the spoiler is loser talk, as far as I'm concerned. Winning should be it's own motivation." I guess helping knock the Phills out last year was just winning for the sake of winning against a divisional opponent Speaking of which... Do not get nervous when backup catcher is hitting against Billy this October...

Gwreck Sep 30 2006 01:26 AM

Giants up 3-2 heading into the 9th. Mike Stanton allows some hits to tie and a wild pitch to give the Dodgers the lead. Entering play on Saturday: St. Louis is up 1.5 games on Houston, 2.5 on Cincinatti. Magic number to eliminate Cincy is 1. Magic number to eliminate Houston (and clinch) is 2. Dodgers now have 2 game lead in the Wild Card race over Philadelphia. Magic number to eliminate Philadelphia (and clinch WC) is 2. San Diego has .5 game lead on the Dodgers in the West. San Diego clinches a playoff spot with a win or Philly loss. Magic number to win the division is 3.

Frayed Knot Sep 30 2006 08:56 AM

- Dodgers come from behind to beat the Giants - Padres lose to Snakes - Astros (Clemens) lose to Braves - Cards beat Beermakers - Phils romp all over Fishies - Reds stay alive by beating the Pyroots So in the WEST, Pades & Dodgers are tied with each other (SD holds the head-to-head tie-breaker should both teams be the Div/WC winners) and TWO GAMES clear of the Phils. Philly tragic number = 1 In the CENTRAL, the Cards are at least guaranteed of playing their (if necc) Monday rain-out make-up game with the Giants to either clinch it or stay alive. Reds' tragic number is 1, Houston's is 2 If the Reds win both their remaining games, Astros split theirs, and the Cards go 0-3 (incl makeup) ther'd be a 3-way tie. Don't ask. Today: * Phil @ Florida -- Wolf v Olsen -- 1:25 * Milw @ StL -- Sheets v Suppan -- 1:25 * LA @ SF -- Maddux v Cain -- 4:10 * SD @ Ariz -- Wells v Cruz -- 4:10 All of the above games are listed as FOX regional telecasts but I'm not sure who will see what where. I'm sure we'll get the Fils-Phish game in NYC during the early slot but who knows beyond that. * Houston @ Atlanta -- Sampson v Cormier -- 7:10 (No TBS) In the AL: - Both Detroit & Minnesota lose and remain tied with each other for the CENTRAL lead. Tiggers hold any tie-breaker so their magic number is 2. - Yanx win and clinch home field throughout since they hold all tie-breakers in case of a deadlocked record with either Det or Minn. So the Twins/Tiggers winner is playing for the right to face Oakland in the first round while the loser gets the Yanx.

Gwreck Sep 30 2006 04:18 PM

St. Louis defeats Milwaukee, 3-2. Cincinatti has been eliminated. St. Louis' magic number to clinch is down to 1.

SteveJRogers Sep 30 2006 04:21 PM

Gwreck wrote: St. Louis defeats Milwaukee, 3-2. Cincinatti has been eliminated. St. Louis' magic number to clinch is down to 1. Damn. Russo has been squaking all week about what to expect from the Giants if they end up going to St Louie to make up that game Monday. So pretty much no margin for error now for Houston and they must hope the Cards lose Sunday.

Gwreck Sep 30 2006 09:40 PM

Los Angeles and San Diego both win, clinching playoff spots. Philadelphia elminated. San Diego has the tiebreaker, so San Diego can clinch the division with a win tomorrow. Houston gets 3 unearned runs off the Braves in the top of the 9th and go head to stave off elimination for one more day. St. Louis can clinch with a win.

Frayed Knot Sep 30 2006 10:32 PM

- I was hoping for losses from LA & SD just to make 'em burn real pitchers on Sunday in order to secure a berth. I wonder if either will still use top-notch guys - Lowe was sked to go for LA f'rinstance - just to avoid the Mets in the first round. I doubt it. - The one I wanted to see gone was Houston but they hung on against Atlanta after moving Pettitte up by a day to replace the rookie who was supposed to go. They still need a win tomrrow and then some help on 2 consect days from 2 different teams (Milw & SF) just in order to force a schedule-screwing-up Tuesday play-in game. - StL was almost in serious trouble here but got a 3-RBI pinch-hit 3B in the 8th from Scott Spezio (he's been hitting well lately everytime I look) while they were down 2-0. - Minny lost but Detroit is losing so this one's still not decided. I'm rooting for Detroit to eek out the division because I think Minny will be the tougher opponent for the Skanks. I've been down on the Tiggers for a while now (even if I've been forced to eat my words on occasion) but the Twins have had a much better 2nd half and I have a lot more confidence in them even though they've not beat the NYY in post-seasons past. Different team, different year. I even have more faith in Oakland than Detroit so that'll be my rooting interest if that's the matchup.