As we enter the final two serieses of the 2012 baseball season, NOT ONE of the American League playoff spots have been finalized. So while the only drama in the NL consists of the Cardinals trying to hold off the Dodgers and (surprisingly surging) Brewers for the second wild card spot, 6 of the 7 junior circuit matchups are going significantly impact the playoff race. Here's what's going on in the various divisions.
AL EAST
The Yankees have had a share of first place since mid-June, but they've watched their lead over the upstart Orioles dwindle to just 1 game going into this crucial last week's worth of games. In that last week, each of those teams has a series against the unimpressive Red Sox. But the O's have to finish the season against the red-hot Rays, only 2 games behind the A's for the second wild card spot and in the midst of an 8-game winning streak.
AL CENTRAL
Before taking on the O's, the Rays finish up their 4-game series against White Sox, a team that has been as cold as the Rays have been hot. Having lost 8 of their last 9 games, the Southsiders fell to second place in their division for the first time since July 24. The team that supplanted them - the Tigers, whom pundits everywhere had picked to win the division hands down - follows up its two serieses against the Royals and the Twins with... two more serieses against the Royals and the Twins. A favorable schedule looks like it might seal the deal for Detroit.
AL WEST
The Rangers' 4-game lead over the second wild card leading A's represents the most comfortable lead in the AL. Splitting a 4-game series against their closest competition helped maintain the status quo, but those two teams will meet up for 3 more games to close out the season. Before that happens though, the Rangers have 3 games against the surging Angels, who just had their 5-game winning streak snapped by the Mariners. Their recent success has tied them with the Rays at just 2 games back in the race for the second wild card.
I'm sure everyone in the Commissioner's Office is hoping and praying for clear leaders to emerge, because (as I linked to before) the tiebreaker scenarios built into the last-minute decision to add another team to the playoffs are absolutely nightmarish. The fans and the broadcasters, however, want everything to go down to the wire, to keep the fans as interested as possible. As for me, I'm just hoping the A's can keep their heads down and power through after a rash of freak injuries, bad luck, and bad decisions has left them to subside on a starting rotation made up entirely of rookies. I think that story would surpass even Moneyball, and perhaps spawn another Oscar-nominated film.
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