ALCS and NLCS Previews.

The ALCS and the NLCS gets underway this weekend and boy what an excited feeling this is for many fans in New York, Texas, Philadelphia, and San Francisco. Almost 7 months ago the 2010 baseball seasons was just beginning and now were at the point where every game, every pitch and every at bat mean something. The ALCS this year feathers the New York Yankees and the Texas Rangers, the NLCS this feathers the Philadelphia Phillies and the San Francisco Giants. One team on each side will win and meet for the 2010 World Series, which teams will that be, we’ll I don't know but I'm sure we will find out soon enough.


Now the Yankees and Rangers have a little bit of history to talk about. The Yankees have seen the Rangers in the postseason but only in the ALDS back in 1996, 1998, and 1999 and three of those times both teams saw each other in the playoffs the Yankees came out on top and beat the Rangers. This time around I think this series will go 6 or 7 games only because they match up so well together. The Yankees have a power house hitting team and the Rangers have a power house hitting team as well. The Yankees pitching might have the edge in this series only because of the Yankees have a pitcher in the name of Andy Pettitte who has been here and has done this so many times in his career. As for the Rangers they have a guy in the name of Cliff Lee who has done this before with the Phillies last year and has pitched really well in the postseason. After Cliff Lee they have C.J. Wilson who for the most part has been really good this year but after him the Rangers pitching staff adds questions. Do I think the Rangers can beat the Yankees sure but it's going to be how they beat the Yankees in playing small ball and steal runs or will their pitching hold them to win a ball game. The Yankees on the other hand will not have home field advantage until Games 3, 4, and 5 so it's important for the Yankees to win at least one game in Texas. My pick to win the ALCS it’s a tough one but I'm going to pick the Rangers in 7 games.



Now a lot of talk has been said about this pitching matchup in Game 1 of the NLCS between the Phillies and the Giants, The "DOC" vs. The "FREAK". Roy Halladay vs. Tim Lincecum a rematch of the 2009 All-Star pitching matchup but this time it's on a bigger stage. With both of these pitchers winning CY Young awards in their career's this year was their debut of pitching in the postseason and many people asked how would they both respond. Well Roy Halladay threw the second no-hitter in postseason history and Tim Lincecum threw a 2 hit complete game shutout, I think they answered everyone's questions. I mean these two pitch are the probably the two best right handed pitchers in the game as we speak. This is a match up that whoever scores first will win the ball game no question about it. It might only take 1 or 2 runs to win this game ball. Now we know that the Phillies have the best one, two, three punch in baseball but don't forget about the Giants one, two, three punch as well. I think the Phillies have a better hitting team then the Giants but if you make a mistake the Giants will make you pay for it. I think this might be one of best NLCS series' that we have seen in awhile and I think it will come down to who has the best pitching in this series. My pick to win the NLCS is the Phillies in 6 games. Then again it's so hard for me to say that because when I look at the Phillies pitching staff I say to myself "they can't lose. There just too good".



ALCS Game 1 Yankees at Texas October 15th 8:00 p.m. on TBS.
C.C Sabathia vs. C.J Wilson

ALCS Game 2 Yankees at Texas October 16th 4:00 p.m. on TBS.
Phil Hughes vs. Coby Lewis

ALCS Game 3 Rangers at New York October 18th 8:00 p.m. on TBS.
Cliff Lee vs. Andy Pettitte

ALCS Game 4 Rangers at New York October 19th 8:00 p.m. on TBS.


NLCS Game 1 Giants at Philadelphia October 16th 7:30 p.m. on FOX.
Tim Lincecum vs. Roy Halladay

NLCS Game 2 Giants at Philadelphia October 17th 8:00 p.m. om FOX.
Jonathan Sanchez vs. Cole Hamels

NLCS Game 3 Phillies at San Francisco October 19th 4:00 p.m. on FOX.
Roy Oswalt vs. Matt Cain

Rangers Win, Rangers Win!!

So the ALDS between the Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers was by far one of the best Division Series' in the postseason this year. The Texas Rangers took Games 1 and 2 in Tampa, then the Rays came back and took Games 3 and 4 in Texas. So both teams weren't able to get things done at home and that would set up a Game 5 in Tampa and a rematch of Game 1 between pitchers David Price and Cliff Lee. This game was a low scoring game that would set up for an excited finish but for only one team and that team was the Texas Rangers. The score was 3-1 Rangers heading into the top of 9th inning when Ian Kinsler would hit a 2 run home run to put the Rangers up 5-1 and that's how it would end. David Price would yet again be the losing pitcher in Game 5 going 6 innings, gave up 8 hits, 3 earn runs, 6 strikeouts, and threw 104 pitches. Cliff Lee on the other side is a whole different story being the winner in both Games 1 and 5, Lee pitched a complete game, gave up 6 hits, 1 earn run, 11 strikeouts, and threw 120 pitches. The guy is just that good and to think this is his second time in his career that he's pitching in the postseason is just not fair. Cliff Lee this year in the postseason has an ERA of 1.13, overall ERA of a 1.44. Lee has 6 wins in 7 starts, 4 wins in 5 starts with the Phillies last year, and 2 wins with the Rangers, hats off to the Tampa Bay Rays who had an outstanding year winning their second division title in three years in a tough American League East division.


So the Texas Rangers beat the American League East Champions, the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night by a score of 5-1 and won their first ever postseason series in team history. The Texas Rangers have always been a laughing team in baseball and were never really that good. They got to the postseason three times before the 2010 season and lost in the ALDS to the 96' Yankees, 98' Yankees, and 99' Yankees. All three of those Yankee teams won the World Series and this time around the Texas Rangers will move on to the ALCS for the first time and play who else the New York Yankees only this time they have number one starting pitcher who has faced them and has owned them in his career and that's Cliff Lee. The Texas Rangers got Lee during the trade deadline this year and boy he helped out this team big time helping the Rangers win their first AL West Division title since 1999. The Rangers almost remind me off the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays a team that went from worst to first and now have a name for themselves in the American League and are no longer a push over but also remember the Rangers have to get pass a team that has been there and done that. The 27 time World Series Champion New York Yankees know what it's like to play on the big stage and for the Texas Ranger well they are about to find out what it's like to play in a big stage game.


Yes the Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Rays but the Rangers still have a few more steps to go and if they get to 2010 World Series it won't get an easier playing against the San Francisco Giants or the Philadelphia Phillies. That's one match up that many sports writer would like to see Roy Halladay vs. Cliff Lee, the best right handed pitcher vs. the best left handed pitcher, Halladay the guy who replaced Lee in Philadelphia. A match up that goes above and beyond baseball, a match up that scares me when I think about it, a match up that the baseball God's would like to see. Lee coming back to Philly out on a mission to win a World Series title and to prove that you should have never gotten rid of me because I will only come back to haunt you. Roy Halladay on the other hand is on a mission like no other and that's to win a World Series title as well and I'm sure if the Phillies get there he won't worry about anything else but the problem at hand. Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee are by far the two aces you want on your team and to think that the Phillies almost had that one - two punch in Philly almost amazes me but in the end it wasn't meant to be. Instead we got the H2O combo in Philly Halladay, Hamels, and Oswalt, once again, congrats to the Texas Rangers on beating the Tampa Bay Rays and good-luck in the ALCS against the New York Yankees.

Twins: The Team to Sweep.

So on Saturday night it was a chance for the Minnesota Twins to keep their playoff hopes alive against the New York Yankees and in this game it was either win or go home. The Twins would send out young Brain Desnsing who is great pitching to lefty's as for the Yankees they would send out young Phil Hughes who was making his first postseason start and he had it working all night long. As for Desnsing well he didn’t shine that good, already down 2-0 Yankees DH Marcus Thames would hit a 2 run home run in the 4th inning to put the Yanks up 4-0. Duensing would only last 3.1 innings pitched, gave up 7 hits, 5 earn runs, 1 strikeout, and threw 58 pitches. Phil Hughes on the other hand would last 7 strong innings, gave up 4 hits, 0 earn runs, 6 strikeouts, threw 99 pitches. Later in the 7th inning Nick Swisher would add the icing to the cake and hit a solo home run to make it a 6-0 ball game and that would be it.


The Yankees would win the ALDS and sweep the Twins for the second straight year by a score of 6-1. The Yankees won this division series as the wild card team but they played this series like the division winners and they are the first team to move on the ALCS (American League Championship Series). They will either the Tampa Bay Rays or the Texas Rangers, Rangers lead that series 2-1. So this series was expected so much more and for this series to at least go 4 or 5 games but only went 3 games once again. The Yanks had another clean sweep and almost everyone thought the Twins would play the Yankees better since last year they were out in the first 3 games but it looked like history would repeat itself. Just seems like the Yankees have the Twins number and the Twins just cannot get pass the Yankees no matter how better they get.


The Twins had a great 2010 season winning the Central Division by 6 games over the White Sox with a 94-68 record. At one point of the year the Twins found themselves 3.5 games out of first but fought back and came back to win their division and what a great season they had without their star first baseman Justin Morneau and closer Joe Nathan. Also the Twins didn't have a 100% Joe Mauer and they still overcame a lot of flows. So Twins fans you'll have to wait till next year, but luck in the 2011 season.

1,2,3 Tim Lincecum.

So far in the playoffs we have seen some great performances and why should Thursday night be any different from the rest? I mean when you have the strikeout king and the 2 time CY Young award on the mound it's going to be a fun game to watch. Tim Lincecum was making his first ever postseason start in his career and he didn't disappoint at all!

Game 1 of the NLDS between the Atlanta Braves and the San Francisco Giants was the Tim Lincecum show. Pitching against Lincecum was Derek Lowe who has been in the postseason more times than he can count. In the 4th inning Cody Ross would hit an RBI single to give the Gaints a 1-0 lead and that's all they would need, the Gaints would let Lincecum take over from there. Derek Lowe would only last 5.1 innings pitched, gave up 4 hits, 1 earn run, 4 walks, 6 strikeouts, and threw 96 pitches. Those walks will kill you in a playoff game and it did. Lincecum pitched a 2 hit complete game shutout with 14 strikeouts, WOW!! If Tim Lincecum looked nervous he did not show it at all, for the 26 year old this is what he lives for, to pitch on the big stage and help his team to try to win a World Series title. The Giants would Game 1 by a score of 1-0 and now lead the series 1-0. Game 2 will be on tonight, pitching for the Giants will be Matt Cain and going for the Braves will be Tommy Hnason that game will start right after Game 2 between the Reds and Phillies game starts at 6:07 p.m. followed up by the Braves and Giants at 9:37 p.m. on TBS.

ALDS NO SWEAT!

The ALDS hasn't really been that exciting to watch as both the Texas Rangers and the New York Yankees have taken over both of their series’ with the Tampa Bay Rays and the Minnesota Twins.

We start with Game 1 between the Texas Rangers and Tampa Bay Rays and it was all Rangers in this one. Both teams had their aces pitching, for the Rangers Cliff Lee would pitch against David Price going for the Rays. Lee would work early with a 2-0 lead then Nelson Cruz would hit a solo home run in the 3rd inning and Bengie Molina would follow up with a solo home run in the 4th inning to make it a 4-0 Rangers lead. David Price would only last 6.2 innings, giving up 9 hits, 4 earn runs, 8 strikeouts, and threw 107 pitches. Cliff Lee went 7 strong innings, gave up 5 hits, 1 earn run, 10 strikeouts, threw 104 pitches and would win Game 1 by a score of 5-1. The Rangers would take a 1-0 series lead.


Game 2 pitching for the Rangers was young C.J. Wilson, pitching for the Rays was James Shields which was a questionable move thinking maybe Matt Garza or Jeff Niemann would start in Game 2. Once again in this game it was all Rangers beating up on the Rays pitching staff. In the 4th inning Ian Kinsler hit a solo home run to make it a 2-0 Rangers lead. Then in the 5th inning with 2 runners on Michael Young would go deep and now make it a 5-0 Rangers lead and that would be it for Shields who only lasted 4.1 innings pitched, gave up 4 hits, 4 earn runs, 2 strikeouts, threw 68 pitches. Meanwhile C.J. Wilson would just pick up from where Cliff Lee left off and went 6.1 innings pitched, gave up 2 hits, no earn runs, 7 strikeouts, threw 104 pitches and would win Game 2 by a score of 6-0. So the Rangers lead the series 2-0 heading back to Texas knowing one more win and they will head to the ALCS for the first time in team history. As for the Rays who had the best record in the American League will need to win 2 ball games in Texas to force a Game 5 in Tampa but if not the American League East Champs will have to pack up and hang up their jersey for the 2010 season. Game 3 between the Rangers and Rays will be on Saturday at 5:07 p.m. on TBS, pitching for the Rays will be Matt Garza to help keep the Rays playoff hopes alive and going for the Rangers will be Coby Lewis who will try to wrap things up for the Rangers.



Now to Game 1 between the Minnesota Twins and the New York Yankees, this one was a heart breaker for the Twins. Pitching for the Twins was Francisco Liriano going for the Yankees was ace C.C. Sabathia. The Twins would take an early 3-0 lead in thanks to a Michael Cuddyer 2 run home run back in the 2nd inning. That would only last in till the 6th inning when the Yankees bats would come alive; Robinson Cano would hit a RBI single to make it a 3-1 Twins lead. Jorge Posada would then hit a RBI single to make it a 3-2 ball game. Curtis Granderson the next batter would hit a 2 run RBI triple to give the Yankees a 4-3 lead and that would be all for Francisco Liriano. Liriano went 5.2 innings pitched, gave up 6 hits, 4 earn runs, 7 strikeouts, and threw 106 pitches. In the bottom of the 6th inning the Twins would tie the game up at 4 on a Danny Valencia walk and C.C.'s night would be done. Sabathia would only go 6 innings, gave up 5 hits, 3 earn runs, 5 strikeouts, and threw 111 pitches. In the very next inning the Twins would give it back to the Yankees on a Mark Teixeira 2 run home run and put the Yankees up 6-4 and that's how it would end. The Yankees would win Game 1 and take a 1-0 series lead.


Game 2 pitching for the Twins was Carl Pavano going against former teammate Andy Pettitte. We start things off in the 5th inning score tied 1-1 but that was about to change from the bat of Lance Berkman would hit a solo home run to put the Yanks in front 2-1. In the 6th inning the "O-DOG" Orlando Hudson would tie the ball game up at 2 with a solo home run. Berkman would later hit an RBI double to put the Yankees in front yet again making the score 3-2. Pavano's day would be done going only 6 innings, gave up 10 hits, 4 earn runs, 3 strikeouts, and threw 93 pitches. Andy Pettitte on the other hand went 7 strong innings, gave up 5 hits, 2 earn runs, 4 strikeouts, and threw 88 pitches. The Yankees would win Game 2 by a score of 5-2 and now lead the series 2-0. So the Twins who played so great at home lost in back to backs game and it looks like signs are pointing back to last year’s postseason where the Yanks took care of the Twins in 3 games. As for the Yankees it must feel good heading home leading the series 2-0 and just one more win and they will move on to the ALCS and play against either the Texas Rangers or the Tampa Bay Rays. Game 3 will be on Saturday night at 8:37 p.m. on TBS, pitching for the Twins to keep their postseason hopes alive will be Brain Duensing and going for the Yankees will be young pitcher Phil Hughes to wrap the series up.

DOC-TOBER!!!!

Well if you didn't think "the year of the pitcher" wasn't going to get any better, well it did on October 6th, 2010. Earlier this year on May 29th, 2010 Roy Halladay threw a perfect game and became the 20th pitcher in MLB history to throw a perfect game. Well this year we have seen a whole lot of great pitching performances; this year 5 different pitchers threw no-hitters or perfect games. We start with Ubaldo Jimenez on April 17th, 2010 (NO-HITTER), Dallas Braden on May 9th, 2010 (PERFECT GAME), Roy Halladay on May 29th, 2010 (PREFECT GAME), Edwin Jackson on June 25th, 2010 (NO-HITTER), Matt Garza on July 26th, 2010 (NO-HITTER), and now Roy Halladay again on October 6th, 2010 (NO-HITTER). What makes this no-hitter better than the rest is that he did it in the first game of his first postseason appearance. That was one of the many questions that people asked "How good will Roy Halladay be in the postseason" well he answered that pretty well. Halladay became the 2nd pitcher to throw a no-hitter in the postseason since Don Larson threw a perfect game in the 1956 World Series for the New York Yankees. Halladay also became the 5th pitcher to throw 2 no-hitters in a calender year. Welcome to the history books Mr. "DOC" Halladay.

So everyone talked about how good the Reds bats are and how they’re going to be a tough out at every at bat well on Wednesday night they looked like they had no idea what was going on, swinging and looking at balls everywhere. The last time the Reds were no-hit was back in 1971. Halladay almost had a perfect game but gave up a walk to Jay Bruce and that's really when everyone said I don't it will happen now but Halladay stayed calmed and just pitched his game the way he knew how. Also have to give a lot of created to catcher Carlos Ruiz who caught last night’s game because if it wasn't for him then he Halladay could have maybe thrown the wrong pitch. But Ruiz knew what Halladay should throw to this Reds team and got the job done. Halladay had 8 strikeouts and threw only 104 pitches. Not only did Halladay pitch wonderful but he got himself a RBI single in the 2nd inning to give the Phils a 2-0 lead with 2 outs. Then Victorino got a 2 run RBI single to make a 4-0 Phils lead. The Phillies would win but win with a no-hitter and celebrate to a Game 1 win by a score of 4-0 and now lead the series 1-0. What a statement to make in Halladay's first postseason game.

The Phillies will play Game 2 of the NLDS on Friday night, pitching for the Reds will be Bronson Arroyo and going for the Phillies will be ace number 2 in Roy Oswalt. Game time starts at 6:07 p.m. TBS.


This is beyond unbelievable, this is beyond baseball.

Playoff Break Down.

So yesterday afternoon was a crazy finish in baseball to a team that came back and won the NL West division to another team that won its second division title in 3 years. It was everything we'd expect this season. We start things off with the New York Yankees taking on the Boston Red Sox. The Yankees would get hammered 8-4, so if the Tampa Bay Rays win they will win the AL East title. Over to Tampa and they were taking on the Royals and they Rays would beat the Royals 3-2 and win their second division title in 3 years, so that also means that Rays will have home advantage throughout the postseason accept the World Series if they make it that far. As for the defending World Champions they would have to settle for the wild card spot. This is the Yankees first wild card spot since 2007 and they lost in the ALDS to the Cleveland Indians.

We move things to the National League East where the Atlanta Braves were hosting the Phillies. Now with a Braves win and Padres lost the Braves will win the NL wild card. But if a Padres win and Braves win there would be a 3 ways tie for the NL West and the NL Wild Card. Confusing I know, but back to the action the Braves would beat the Phillies 8-7 and the Braves would have to wait their destiny. Now to the National League West where both the San Diego Padres and the San Francisco Giants would have their own fate in their hands. If the Padres would beat the Giants it would cause a 1 game playoff on Monday for the NL West division title and the winner of that game would have to take on the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday for the NL Wild Card. In this case nothing like that happened and the Giants beat the Padres 3-0 and knocked off the team who had a 6 1/2 game lead in the division on August 25th will no longer have postseason dreams. The Giants will head to the postseason for the first time since 2003 and that was also the last time the Giants won their division. For the Braves the head into the postseason as the wild card team and the last time they went to the postseason was back in 2005. Also this is the first time in team history the Braves will be a wild card team in the postseason.

So this is what it looks like for the ALDS the Tampa Bay Rays will host the Texas Rangers and the Minnesota Twins will host the New York Yankees. For the NLDS the Philadelphia Phillies will host the Cincinnati Reds, this is the first time the Reds have been in the postseason since 1995 and San Francisco Giants will host the Atlanta Braves. The ALDS and NLDS is a 5 game series first team to win 3 games will head onto the ALCS and NLCS (American League Championship Series and National League Championship Series).


Wednesday October 6th.

Game 1 of the ALDS will start off with the Texas Rangers at Tampa Bay. Starting pitcher in Game 1 for the Rangers will be Cliff Lee who this year had an ERA of 3.18, 12 wins, 9 losses, and 185 strikeouts. For the Rays they will throw David Price who this year had an excellent year with a 2.72 ERA, 19 wins, 6 losses. Price is runner up for the AL CY Young. Game 1 will start at 1:37 p.m. on TBS.


Game 1 of the NLDS will start off with the Cincinnati Reds at Philadelphia. Starting for the Reds in Game 1 will be Edinson Volquez who had an ERA of 4.31, 4 wins, 3 losses, and 67 strikeouts. For the Phils they will throw ace number 1 in Roy Halladay who had a fantastic year for Phillies and first time in the NL with a 2.44 ERA, 21 wins, 10 losses, and 219 strikeouts. Halladay looks like the NL CY Young award winner. Game 1 will start at 5:07 p.m. on TBS.


Game 1 of the ALDS will be the New York Yankees at Minnesota. The Yankees will start their big dog C.C. Sabathia who had a great year with a 3.18 ERA, 21 wins, 7 losses, and 197 strikeouts, he also in the running for the AL CY Young award. For the Twins they will throw Francisco Liriano who this year had a 3.62 ERA went 14-10, with 201 strikeouts. A rematch for last year’s ALDS and be sure to expect this one to go more than 3 games. Game 1 will start at 8:37 p.m. on TBS


Thursday October 7th

Game 2 of the ALDS between the Rangers and Rays will start at 2:37 p.m. on TBS. The Rangers will start C.J. Wilson who had an ERA of 3.35, 15 wins, 8 losses, and 170 strikeouts. As for the Rays they will throw Matt Garza who went 15-10, 150 strikeouts and an ERA of 3.91.


Game 2 of the ALDS between the Yankees and Twins will start at 6:07 p.m. on TBS. The Yankees are unsure on who will start Game 2 but expect it to be A.J. Burnett or Phil Hughes. I wouldn't think they would go with Andy Pettitte because of starting lefty - lefty in both Game 1 and 2, but hey you never know. As for the Twins they will go with Carl Pavano who had a great 2010 year with an ERA of 3.75, 17 wins, 11 losses, and 117 strikeouts.


Game 1 of the NLDS the Atlanta Braves at San Francisco. The Braves will start sinker baller Derek Lowe who this year had an ERA of 4.00, 16 wins, 12 losses, and 136 strikeouts. For the Giants they start their ace and back to back CY Young award winner Tim Lincecum who had a rocky year but none the less still one of the best with an ERA of 3.43, 16 wins, 10 losses, 231 strikeouts. Game 1 will start at 9:37 p.m. on TBS.


Friday October 8th

Game 2 of the NLDS between the Reds and Phillies will start at 6:07 p.m. on TBS. The Reds will send out Bronson Arroyo to the mound who went 17-10, 121 strikeouts, and had a 3.88 ERA. For the Fightin' Philis they start ace number 2 in Roy Oswalt who has been very with the Phillies with an 2.76 ERA, 13 wins, 13 losses (7-1 with the Phillies this year), and 193 strikeouts.


Game 2 of the NLDS between the Braves and Giants will start at 9:37 p.m. on TBS. The Braves will start Tommy Hanson who this year had an ERA of 3.33, 10 wins, 11 losses, and 173 strikeouts. For the Giants they will start Matt Cain who has been very good with an ERA of 3.14, 13 wins, 10 losses, 177 strikeouts.


Saturday October 9th

Game 3 of the ALDS between the Rangers and Rays will start at 5:07 p.m. on TBS. Game 3 will take place in Texas for the first time since 1999, the Rays will throw out rookie pitcher Wade Davis who had an 4.14 ERA, 12 wins, 11 losses, 107 strikeouts. For the Rangers they will send out Coby Lewis who went 12-13, 196 strikeouts, and had an ERA of 3.72.


Game 3 of the ALDS between the Yankees and Twins will start at 8:37 p.m. on TBS.
Game 3 will take place in New York as they still don't know who will start Game 3 and if Burnett starts Game 2 expect to see Phil Hughes or Andy Pettitte. I'm 90% sure it might be Pettitte only because he has pitched in the postseason before but I wouldn’t be surprised if they start Hughes. For the Twin they will start Brain Duensing coming out of the bull pen. Not so sure this is a good move for the Twins but I guess will see what happens. Duensing had an ERA of 2.62 in the pen.


So there you have it for games 1-3 for the ALDS and games 1 and 2 for the NLDS. This is beyond the postseason, this is beyond baseball.

Final Weekend of Regular Season Baseball.

So the 2010 season is finally almost over and still some division's and wild card spots are left unknown on who will be win the division and wild card. We start with the American League East and as we know both the Rays and Yankees will be in the postseason but as in what? As the AL East division champs or the AL wild card winner. My guess is as good as yours. The Yankees will host the Red Sox in a 3 game series and the Yanks ace C.C. will not pitch anymore this year and as it looks to me like they really don't care about the AL East since their already in the playoff, but come on were talking about a division title, that has to mean something if you’re the 2009 defending World Series Champs. As for the Rays they will finish a 4 game set with the Royals that started on Thursday. Also seems like David Price will not pitch anymore this year as well. So both team looks like it might come down to the wire this weekend to win the AL East division title and if it comes to a tie the Rays will win the division because the Rays beat the Yankees 11 of 10 times this year. So that’s what The Rays are going for at this point. Both team records stand at 94-65 for home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

Now we move over to the American League Central where the Twins already won their division and are now just playing for the best record in the American League along with the Yankees and Rays. The Twins are only 1 game back behind both teams but I think the Twin don't really care about that, but they do play great at home in their new stadium Target Field so maybe they have a little something to play for as they will host the Blue Jays for the final weekend. The Twins will either play the Yankees or Rays in the ALDS.

Now to the American West where the Rangers wrapped up their division and really have nothing to play for knowing that they will have to play either the Yankees or Rays in the ALDS having the lowest record in the AL. The Rangers are just resting their pitching staff with Cliff Lee being their number one starter and C.J. Wilson being their number 2 starter in Game 2. The Rangers will wrap up a 4 game series with the Angels that started Thursday night.


Now off to the crazy National League West division that is all kind of crazy and will have excited finish this weekend. The Giants who right now lead the NL West division by 3 games over the Padres will play the Padres this weekend. Now since the Padres lost to the Cubs on Thursday they will have to sweep the Giants in order to cause a one game playoff between them and the Giants. However if the Giants win one game they will win the NL West division and at that point will most likely rest their players, mainly their pitching staff to get ready to face the Braves, Reds, or the Phillies. Now I say all three of those teams because if the Padres win the wild card the Giants will play the Reds and the Padres will play the Phillies in the NLDS. Now if the Padres win the NL West division and the Giants win the wild card they will play the Phillies and the Padres will play the Reds. Now if the Padres don't win the wild card and don't make the playoffs the Giants will play the Braves and the Phillies will play the Reds in the NLDS as it stands right now. The Padres are behind 2 games in the wild card behind the Braves.

To the National League East where the Phillies have already won their division but they do play the Braves. For the Braves this is an important series to keep their playoff hopes alive. The Braves lead the wild card by 2 games and the Braves have to win 2 games or have the Padres lose 2 games to win the wild card but if neither of that happens that could be a problem. If they Padres win 2 games and the Braves lose 2 games it would come down to one game playoff for the wild card. It most likely won't happen because the Phillies aren't throwing their 3 headed monsters at Braves like they did last time. But crazier things have happened before in this game. The Phillies right now are sitting pretty with the best record in the NL and have home advantage throughout the playoffs, but none the less still an important series with the Braves just to stay hot going into the postseason.

Now to the NL Central where the Reds already won their division and are just like the Rangers just waiting it out and as it stands right now they will play the Phillies in the NLDS. The Reds will throw their ace Bronson Arroyo in Game 1 and Johnny Cueto in Game 2 against the Phillies. If you’re the Reds you must be saying "OH NO" cause they will have to face Roy Halladay in Game 1, Roy Oswalt in Game 2, and Cole Hamels in Game 3. The Reds finish the year off by playing the Brewers in a 3 game series.

So the 2010 season has been everything we expected it to be and it was by far the year of the pitcher. In the beginning of the 2010 season I made a Top 12 list on what teams would be a maker or breaker.

American League East
I picked the Yankees to be a maker and I was right
I picked the Rays to be a maker and I was right
I picked the Red Sox to be a breaker and I was right

American League Central
I picked the Twins to be a maker and I was right

4 for 4 so far.

American League West
I picked the Rangers to be a surprise team and I was right
I picked the Mariners to be a maker and was wrong. They became a breaker.

5 for 6 so far.

National League East
I picked the Phillies to be a maker and I was right.
I picked the Braves to be a maker and as it stands right now I was right

National League Central
I picked the Cardinals to be a maker and I was wrong they became a breaker.

7 for 9 so far now.

National League West
I picked the Giants to be a maker and I was right.
I picked the Dodgers to be a breaker and I was right
I picked the Rockies to be a maker and I was wrong they became a breaker. They almost had it.

So as it turns out I was wrong about the Mariners, the Cardinals, and the Rockies. Leaving me being 9 for 12 giving me 3 wrong, which isn’t that bad considering 2 out of those 3 teams should have made the playoffs. Anyways both the ALDS and NLDS will begin on October 6th, on Fox and TBS.

Phils Still Kings of the East!!

This September was one to remember as the Phillies clichéd their 4th straight division title last night against the Washington Nationals and who better on the mound to do that for them then Roy Halladay. The guy the Phillies got last December to help them get to the postseason. Halladay won his 1st game as Phillie at Nationals Ball Park and this would be where he would win his 21st game of year as a Phillie and also win the NL East title for the Phillies. Roy Halladay has been everything the Phillies have asked him to be this year winning 21 games, 9 of them being complete games, 5 of them being shutouts, and 1 of them being a perfect game back on May 29th. Halladay would have to be the guy to win the NL CY Young Award I can't see anyone else winning it over him. Not only has Roy Halladay been very good but so has Cole Hamels who has pitched like the old Hamels of 2008. His number may not show it but he looks like he is a whole lot better than he was back in 2009 and that was the key for the Phillies if they were going to have any success down the road this year. Hamels this year is 12-11, with an ERA of 3.09, with 209 strikeouts. Some would say that both Halladay and Hamels should have at least 5 or 6 more wins on the year, but hey this is baseball and it's not always fair. Then during the trade deadline the Phillies last year went out and got Cliff Lee to help them with their postseason run, well this year they went out and brought in Roy Oswalt who has been great with the Phillies year and has really helped them out big this year. Oswalt with the Phillies this year is 7-1, with ERA of 2.80 overall and 189 strikeouts. This guy has really done great this year with the Phillies and with him in the starting pitching rotation it also might be the key for the Phils in the postseason. So hats off to those three outstanding pitchers.

Now the Phils right now stand at 94-63 the best record in the NL and in baseball and have also clinched home field advantage throughout the postseason and they will also have home field advantage in this year’s World Series if they make it that far because this year the NL won the 2010 All-Star game and at that moment during that part of the year it looked like the Phillies would be playing for nothing at that point. On July 21st the Phillies were 7 games out of first place to the Braves and it seemed like this team would not even make the postseason with so many injuries things weren't going the Phillies way but somehow someway they overcame everything and proved everyone wrong. The Phils record is the best in Phillies history since 1976 when they went 101-61, also by the Phillies winning their 4th straight division title it’s the most in Phillies history as well. For some reason this year it feels a little different than other years. In 2007 they won it on the last game of the year and surprised every sports writer and everyone in the city of Philadelphia by beating out the New York Mets. In 2008 they came back down 7 games with 17 to play and won the division again over the New York Mets and also won the World Series. In 2009 well let’s just say everyone knew they were going to the postseason, they also went back to the World Series but lost to the New York Yankees. In 2010 it was a different story with some many players being hurt and that bats not clicking at the right time it seemed like this team would no longer be "Kings of the East". But somewhere in the month of September a light came on and said WAKE UP and that's just what the Phillies did. 2010 will forever be a season to remember as the team that would never give up that's why they call them the "Fightin' Phils".

Game 1 of the NLDS (National League Division Series) the Phillies will either play the San Diego Padres or the San Francisco Giants. Now the only way the Phillies could play the Giants is if the Braves win the NL Wild Card or if the Giants win the NL Wild Card and the Padres win the NL West division. In a 5 game series with the Giants it could be a scary thing to have happen with facing 2 time back to back CY Young Award winner Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Johnathan Sanchez or Barry Zito depends which lefty they would want to start against us. Now if we were to play the Padres as it stands right now the Phillies would have to face Mat Latos, Clayton Richard, and Jon Garland. Now I would rather play the Padres only because we have pretty good number against them and their pitching staff and hey am I forgetting that any one of those teams would have to face our pitching staff with Halladay, Hamels, and Oswalt. Also one of their pitching staffs would have to pitch against our line-up, probably one of the best in the NL besides the Reds. But right now the Phillies are one of the hottest teams in baseball and if I was any team I would not want to face them. Phils win their 4th straight division title by a score of 8-0. Congrats on an outstanding year, way to go Phils!


Besides the Phillies winning their division the Twins and Rangers have also clichéd their divisions as well. Game 1 of both the NLDS and ALDS will all begin on October 6th on Fox and TBS. I'm Seth Lempert and this beyond a memorable 2010 season, this is beyond baseball.

2 Is the Magic Number for the Phils!!

Almost a month ago the Philadelphia Phillies was the team leading the wild card and now that the month of September has came around the Phillies are the best team in baseball. On July 21th, the Phillies were 7 games out of the division to the Atlanta Braves in the NL East. Two months later the Phillies lead the division 7 games over the Braves at the right time. With the Phillies beating the New York Mets on Friday night by a score of 3-2 that made their magic number 3 games to client their 4th straight division title but a lost from the Brave would push that number down to 2 games. The Braves indeed lost to the Nationals 8-3 and that means one more Phillies win and one more Braves lose the Phillies will have won their 4th division title and who better to do it in front of the New York "Mess".

In the month of September the Phils really turned it on big time with a record of 19-3 the best in baseball and have won 11 straight games the most in Phillies history since 1991. I mean to think that this team looked like they wouldn't even make the postseason due to all the injuries and not playing great baseball, they really turned on a light. You can never count this team out! Right now the Phillies have the best record in baseball (93-61) over the Twins (92-62) and the 2009 defending World Series Champs the New York Yankees (92-61). This just has to be one of the greatest seasons in Phillies history, 2 months ago everyone was talking about how the Braves this and the Braves that and now the talk is will the Braves even make the postseason? After getting swapped by the Phillies that really just put them in a hole and how things look for the Braves now, looks like they just lost all life, their pitching, their hitting, their bull pen everything.

Now the Phillies have probably the best pitching staff in baseball with Halladay, Hamels, and Oswalt. We all know that the Phillies know what their getting out of those three big time pitchers, but where does Joe Blanton fall into place on this team. Last night against the Mets he went 7 strong innings with 6 strikeouts and thrown 74 pitches. Do you use Blanton in a 7 games series as you're 4th starter or do you use him out of the bull pen or both? That's that biggest question of all? Blanton who has pitched in both the 2008 and the 2009 World Series does know what it feels like to pitch in a big spot light. Should Blanton start at least 1 game in the NLCS or WS if they make both, only time will tell what happens.

So the Phillies tonight will have a chance to win their 4th straight division title only if the Braves lose this afternoon and the Phils would have to win. Pitching for Braves today will be Derek Lowe with an ERA of 4.18, 14 wins, and 12 losses. Pitching for the Nats will be Yunesky Maya with 6.32 ERA, no wins, and 2 losses. That game will start at 1:05 p.m. Then at 7:05 the Phils will send out Kyle Kendrick to help them win the NL East if the Braves loss this afternoon. Kendrick comes in with an ERA of 4.78, 10 wins, and 9 losses. Pitching for the Mets will be Dillion Gee who has an ERA of 1.80, 1 win, and 1 loss. The Team to beat in the NL East still stands!!

Twins Win the AL Central!

The Minnesota Twin won their second division title last night on a White Sox loss to the A's 7-2. The Twins are the first team to win their division and will head to the postseason right now with the second best record in baseball behind the Yankees (91-60). So my pick in the start of the 2010 season is right as I did pick the Twins to win the Central and this team could make a good 5 game series either against the New York Yankees or the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Twin head into the postseason with a good 1 - 2 punch in their pitching staff and pretty good third starter as well. In a 5 game series in the ALDS their number one starter has to be Carl Pavano who has really turned it up in 2010 with an ERA of 3.60, 17 wins, 11 losses, and 112 strikeouts so far. Their number two start is probably going to be Francisco Liriano who at one point of this year was the ace of this pitching staff and has done really well for the Twins with an ERA of 3.44, 14 wins, 8 losses and 191 strikeouts. Now their number three starter is up for grabs between Kevin Slowey and Scott Baker. Now Slowey has done a very good job and has been one of their best pitchers on this team. His numbers don't show it but he at least gives you 6 innings in almost every outing with an ERA of 4.18, 13 wins, 6 losses and 115 strikeouts. Now Baker on the other hand just came off the DL and I'm pretty sure he will be used in the bull pen along with Nick Blackburn. I just think you have to go with those three pitchers in a 5 game series and if they make it to the ALCS then maybe you can use Baker if you have to.

The Twins bull pen this year has been pretty good with Brain Fuentes, Jesse Crain, and their new closer Matt Capps who came over in a trade with the Nationals this year. Fuentes this year has been pretty good and has 24 saves under his belt with an ERA 3.16 and has got the job done. Jesse Crain has been their step up man for Capps and pitched very well with an ERA of 2.49 and 21 HLD. Then their Capps who is one the best closers in the American League with 41 saves with an ERA of 2.52 and it's going to be interesting to see how well he handles himself in the postseason because he has never save a game in a big moment.

The Twins line-up is by far one of the best in the AL. They have speed, power, and power. We all know the leader of the ball club is catcher Joe Mauer who won the 2009 MVP Award and this year he has been off and on the DL but he's still batting .331, with 9 HR, and 74 RBI's. Then they have a really good outfielder in Delmon Young who had really turned it up this year hitting .297, 18 HR and driving in 104 RBI's. WOW! Then you have who I think should win comeback player of the year in the AL and that's big Jim Thome, man what a year he is having as the Twins DH this year. Thome is batting .280, 25 HR, and 59 RBI's. Talk about a guy who wants to win. Now over to Michael Cuddyer who has done pretty well over at first base filling in for Justin Morneau who was put on the DL this year due to a head injury. Cuddyer has hit .272, with 14 HR, and 77 RBI's, not bad at all. Then their Right Fielder Jason Kubel who has been doing pretty good and has hit for power this year batting ,253, with 19 HR, and driving in 85 RBI's.

Now last year the Twins were done in 3 games against the Yankees in the ALDS and I think this year they might be a different team winning the division with a 12 game lead over the White Sox. Where as to last year they had to have a one game playoff against the Tigers to decide the division and make the playoffs. Last year I think that didn't give them time to set up their pitching staff and what not, where to this year they will have more than enough time to get ready for the postseason. Now I'm not sure how good their pitching will be and how far it will take them but watch out for the Twins because their a new ball team and I wish them the best luck in the postseason.

Third Best Team in Baseball.

The way the Philadelphia Phillies started off this year everyone knew they were going to be the best team in baseball, but along that way they hit a lot of speed bumps and at one point this Phillies team looked dead in the water. On July 21st they were 6 or 7 games out of first place in their division and it seemed as if this season might have been a loss for words. With that being said the Phillies had over 17 players put on the disable list and for the most part the Phillies didn't even play with infield they had opening day. During the trade dead-line the Phillies traded for Roy Oswalt, the Astors number one pitcher, adding another great pitcher to this already great pitching staff between Halladay and Hamels. Even with this big trade happening things were still not going the Phillies way. It had seemed every time the Braves would lose the Phillies would lose and the Phils couldn't gene any ground on the division. After being swept by the Astors at home it seemed the Phillies would have a rough September. Everyone knows that this Phillies team is a September team and every player on this Phillies team knows what it’s like to play under the gun. The Phillies finally caught the Braves and took over first place in the NL East and have become the third best team in baseball and the first team to reach 90 wins. It’s amazing how at one point your picked to not even finish in first and make the playoffs and then be the best team in baseball.

The 3 headed monsters have had a lot to do with the Phillies success in September with Halladay leading the way with an ERA of 2.46, 19 going for his 20th win tonight against the Braves, 10 losses, and 210 strikeouts. Halladay is on the vote for NL CY Young winner. Then you have a very good and better Cole Hamels this year who everyone said need to have a bounce back year and that is what he has done this year. Hamels could easily have 17 to 18 wins this year but he had 4 no decisions and lost back to back starts by a score of 1-0 against the New York Mets. Other than that Hamels is 5-0 in his last 5 starts with an ERA of 0.49, 37 strikeouts, and 7 walks. He has been very good, and overall he has an ERA of 2.93, 12 wins, 10 losses, and 207 strikeouts a career high for Hamels. Now you have the other "ROY" in Roy Oswalt who came over from Houston who the Phillies got in a trade and Oawalt is a guy who has pitched in the postseason and has been the best pitcher in the month of September and he has had some bad luck with the team he was with before that didn't score him a lot of runs and for some of Oswalt's starts with the Phillies it seemed like that was the case too but Oswalt overcame that and is 6-1 with the Phillies this year. Overall Oswalt's ERA is a 2.90, 13 wins, 13 losses, 181 strikeouts. So the 3 headed monsters has worked out great for the Phillies and I think they have the best one, two, three punch in baseball and watch out for them in the playoffs.

Now the Phillies line-up has been their strong part of their success having Howard, Utley, Werth, and Rollins. This year it has been a different story a lot of their key players being on the DL other players have stepped up and I'm talking about guys like Carlos Ruiz who in 2008 batted .218 and is now batting .299, with 8 HR, and 50 RBIs and has been the guy who has carried this team a lot this year. As of right now he has to be the Phillies MVP. Then there’s Placido Polanco who has spent some time on the DL but has come back and has hit very well for the Phillies. A guy who doesn't strikeout a lot and plays great over at the hot corner, Polly is batting .296, with 6 HR, and 51 RBIs and that's with being on the DL. He is also playing hurt. Then there's the big man Ryan Howard who has carried this team every year in the month of September and after being on the DL, for the 5th straight year he has hit 30 or more home runs and has gone over the 100 RBI mark with 104. Yes he does strikeout a lot but face it without this guy the Phillies would have no shot to make the playoffs. Howard is batting .281 this year and will get some votes for MVP. Chances say he gets it, I don't know. On top of those 3 players you have to add Rollins who spent time on the DL, Utley who has spent time on the DL, Werth, Raul, and Victorino who has spent time on the DL and still are the best team in baseball. They have all at one point have carried this team.

The bull pen might be the only thing I worry about on this team. The bull pen in 2008 was one of the best in baseball but in the last 2 years it hasn't been that good. Last year Brad Lidge was playing through injuries and Ryan Madson's focus just wasn't there. This year the Phillies added Danys Baez, who has been on the DL but really hasn’t filled that role and has been off in his game, they also added Jose Contreras who done pretty well for the Phillies when he is need. The big issues is they dont have a good lefty in the pen. J.C. Romero has had a really bad year and the Phillies just don't know what he bring to the table. Between Lidge and Madson this year they have been pretty good. Lidge's ERA is a 3.32 with 24 saves, a lot better number then last years and Madson has been pretty good after coming off the DL with an ERA of 2.42 and 13 HLD. So the bull pen is weak but I think they still have enough weapons to get the job done.

So the Phillies in postseason look like they may have home field avenged throughout the whole 2010 postseason and after the NL won their first All-Star game since 1993 they will have games 1,2,6, and 7 at home if they make the World Series which could be huge since the Phillies play really good at home. The Phillies have really turned it on and are playing like a team that wants to win the 2nd World Series title in 3 years. Also they would be the first NL team to go back to the World Series 3 straight years since the St. Louis Cardinals did so back in 1942, 1943, and 1944. The Phillies right now are the best team in baseball even though the record doesn't show it but their pitching, hitting, and coaching has showed it.

Roy Halladay for CY Young or Triple Crown?

If you were to ask me who I would pick as the 2010 NL CY Young award winner I would have to say "The Doc" Roy Halladay! But in baseball noting comes easy and there's always a price to pay. Halladay could easily have 20 or more wins on the 2010 season but in this game sometimes things don't always go your way. The goal right now for the most part is to stay in first place in the NL East and win the Phillies 4th straight division title and head into the postseason. Halladay was brought over here last winter to help this ball club get back the World Series for 3rd straight time and be first team in the NL to back to World Series 3 times in a row since the 1940 St. Louis Cardinals did so. Right now Halladay has 17 wins under his belt and with 3 or 4 more starts he could reach 20 wins on the season. In Halladay's career he has only reached 20 or more wins twice in 2003 when he won his first ever CY Young award with the Blue Jays winning 22 games, had an ERA of 3.25, threw 204 strikeouts, and had 266.0 IP (innings pitched). The other time was back in 2008 also with the Blue Jays when he won 20 games, had an ERA of 2.78, threw 206 strikeouts, and had 246.0 IP, CY Young type numbers? Well he came up short to a former Phillie in Cliff Lee who won 22 games, had an ERA of 2.54, threw 170 strikeouts, and had 223.1 IP in 2008 for the Cleveland Indians. Needless to say Halladay has been everything the Phillies could ask for in 2010 and filling in the ace role. Halladay is also 1 of 5 pitchers to throw a no-hitter and a perfect game this year along with Ubaldo Jimenez, Dallas Braden who threw the first perfect game, Edwin Jackson, and Matt Garza. With the month of September almost coming to a close and the postseason right around the corner it will be Halladay's first ever trip to the postseason with guys like Cole Hamels and new comer Roy Oawalt added to this already great pitching rotation who have had successes before in the playoffs, Halladay should have no problem. He's a big time pitcher in a big time satiation.

As for the triple crown in pitching well it’s probably one the hardest things to do. You have to be 1st in everything, ERA, Wins, and Strikeouts. Halladay is ranked 3rd in ERA, 3rd in wins, and 3rd in strikeouts. Tim Lincecum right now is the leader in strikeouts with 199 K's, Mat Latos is the leader in ERA with a 2.21, and Adam Wainwright and Ubaldo Jimenez are both tied for wins with 18. So if Halladay wants to try to win the Triple Crown in pitching he will have to overcome all 4 of those pitchers. The last Phillies pitcher to win the Triple Crown was "Lefty" Steve Carlton back in 1972. Lefty won 27 games, had an ERA of 1.97, and had 310 strikeouts. The last National League pitcher to win the Triple Crown was Jake Peavy for the San Diego Padres back in 2007. He won 19 games, had an ERA of 2.54, and had 240 strikeouts. If I'm Halladay I think my main focus is getting into the postseason and try to get to the World Series. I mean really that should be ever pitchers focus at this point. Yeah rewards are nice, but championships priceless.

Top 5 NL CY Young cannonades

1. St. Louis Cardinals
Adam Wainwright - ERA 2.38 (4th in the NL), 18 wins (Tied for 1st in the NL), 191 strikeouts (4th in the NL), and 208.1 IP (2nd in the NL).

2. Colorado Rockies
Ubaldo Jimenez - ERA 2.79 (7th in the NL), 18 wins (Tied for 1st in the NL), 178 strikeouts (7th in the NL), and 190.1 IP (9th in the NL).

3. Philadelphia Phillies
Roy Halladay - ERA 2.36 (3rd in the NL), 17 wins (3rd in the NL), 196 strikeouts (3rd in the NL), and 221.0 IP (1st in the NL).

4. San Diego Padres
Mat Latos - ERA 2.21 (1st in the NL), 14 wins (6th in the NL), 170 strikeouts (11th in the NL), and 162.2 IP.

5. Atlanta Braves
Tim Hudson - ERA 2.41 (5th in the NL), 15 wins (4th in the NL), 117 strikeouts, and 198.0 IP (5th in the NL).

You be the judge on who should win the 2010 NL CY Young Award.

Phirst Place Phils!!!

After the Phillies had put 16-17 players on the disable list they finally say goodbye wild card and hello to first place in the NL East! What a night it was in Philadelphia as the Phils are finally back to where they belong. The Phillies played the Marlins in a game, well that wasn't all that great but the Phillies got the job done. After trailing 3-1 in the 4th inning Raul Ibanez hit a solo home run (13) to make it a 3-2 Marlins lead. Later in the 5th Victorino hit his (17) home run to tie the ball game at 3. Two batters later the big man Ryan Howard hit a solo shot (27) to but the Phillies up 4-3, then Ibanez would drive in an RBI single to put the Phils up 5-3. We go to the top of 8th inning and this is where this game really gets out of hand. The Phillies are up 7-4 at this point and up comes Mike Stanton who has been on fire in this series hits a solo shot to now make it a 7-5 Phils lead. Then Emilio Bonifacio gets a singles and a runner would score on a throwing error by right fielder Jayson Werth, Bonifacio would move up to second and the score is now 7-6. Then the Phils make a picking change and bring in J.C. Romero, he would then balk and move the runner from second to third. After one batter Romero's night would be done and then they would bring in Ryan Madson. Madson would then throw a wild pitch and Bonifacio would come in to score and tie the ball game at 7-7. So what started with a 3 run lead is now a tied game. In the bottom half of the 8th Victorino would get a bloop single and then steal second to set up a RBI single for Placido Planco to take a 8-7 lead. Heading into the 9th inning the score board watching was a big deal because the Brave had just lost to the Pirates 5-0 which meant just 3 more outs and the Phillies would be back in first in the National League East for the first time since May 20th. Madson would come back in to pitch the 9th inning and he would closed the door and yes for the first time the Phillies were back on top of the NL East and won the ball game 8-7!

So on Tuesday night the Phillies finally got back what was there's since 2007, the National League East Division. Now a lot of sports writers and broadcaster have counted this team out and one of our faithful former Phillies players John Kruk even said about 3 weeks ago on baseball tonight "that the Phillies are done and the Braves will win the division". I'm not sure what he's talking about. For the past 3 year the Phillies have been the kings of east and why would you ever doubt this team is beyond me? Yes the Phillies at one point did look dead in the water and had to overcome a lot of injures, but hey they did and this team knows how to play September baseball. The Phillies still have 22 games left and out of those 22 games they will have to see the Braves twice for 6 games. The last 3 games are at Atlanta and that could be an important series, but if the Phillies could maybe beat up the Braves a little bit when they come to Philadelphia for a 3 game series maybe it will help the Phils have some breathing room. The Phillies only have a half game lead over the Braves and they are the first NL team to reach 80 wins on the season. Who would have thought that this team would have reach 80 wins before the Padres, Red, and Braves? With all these injures this team has had it is almost hard to believe they have 80 wins and are now the best team in the National League. It feels good to be back in Phirst at last!

The end of this four game series will continue tonight as the Phillies send out their left hander Cole Hamels to try to pick up his 10th win of the year with an ERA of 3.18 and 183 strikeouts. On the other side the Marlins will send out their lefty Andrew Miller 1-0, ERA of 3.60. Phillies - Marlins tonight at 7:05 p.m.

Best Teams In the AL and NL. Postseason Theorys.

As the month of September has kicked in it is time to break down what teams in the American and National League will be contenders and what teams from both divisions will go far in the playoffs. We start off with the American League.

The New York Yankees: The deafening 2009 World Series winners are yet again in first place in their division and have the best record in the American League and in all of baseball. Their record stands at 86-50 and a PCT of .632, their 6th overall in batting average - .270, 3rd overall in home runs with 171, 1st overall in runs batted in with 702, 7th overall in hits with 1,246, and pitching ERA 9th overall with 3.85. The Yankees best hitter on this team is second baseman Robinson Cano. Cano is batting .318, 26 homeruns and 91 RBI's. He is also ranked 6th in (BA), 10th in the AL in (RBI's), 7th in the AL in (HR), and is ranked 8th in the AL in (SLG) (.549). MVP for the New York Yankees? I think so. The Yankees best pitcher we all know is the big man C.C. Sabathia with a 3.02 ERA, 19 wins, 5 losses, and has 165 strikeouts. Sabathia is ranked 1st in the AL in (W), 6th in the AL in (ERA), and 1st in the AL in (W%) (.792). For the most part he is the best pitcher on this Yankees team and is the best pitcher in the American League and in baseball at this point. He will most likely win the 2010 AL CY Young award and if he has 5 more starts in the month of September and he could easily win 23-24 games this year.

Minnesota Twins: The defending 2009 AL Central Division Champs have been pretty good considering they started off the year with a few injuring problems. The Twins record in the AL Central stands at 79-57 and a PCT of .581. The Twins are 1st overall in batting average - .278, 5th overall in runs batted in with 620, 1st overall in hits with 1,293, and 10th overall ERA with a 3.85. The main reason why the Twins have such good hitting is because the 2009 MVP winner Joe Mauer has been their best hitter yet again. Batting .325, 8 homeruns, and driving in 70 RBI's and that's pretty good considering he's been off and on the DL list this year. Mauer is ranked 3rd in the AL in (BA). The best pitcher for the Twins this year has been Carl Pavano who has an ERA of the 3.52, 15 wins, 10 losses, and 107 strikeouts. Pavano is ranked 4th in the AL in (W), 3rd in the AL in (IP) (189.0), and 2nd in the AL in (CG) (6). He's not the best pitcher but he does get the job done and helps his team win ball games.

Texas Rangers: The surprise team of the American League and the only team with the biggest lead in the American League with an 8 game lead over the Oakland A's. The Rangers record stands at 75-60 with a PCT of .556. The team is 2nd overall in batting average - .275, 9th overall in home runs with 136, 8th overall in runs batted in with 612, 2nd overall in hits with 1,273, 12th overall in ERA with a 3.89, 11th overall in strikeouts with 975, and 4th overall in saves with 40. The Rangers best player on the team is their left fielder Josh Hamilton who is having a great year batting .362, 31 homeruns, and 97 RBI's. Hamilton ranks 1st in the AL in (BA), 6th in the AL in (RBI's), 4th in the AL in (HR), and 1st in the AL in (SLG) (.638). Right now he is the best hitter in baseball and has a very good chance of winning the 2010 MVP award and maybe a shot of winning the Triple Crown award that no one has won since 1969. But Hamilton will need to step up in home runs if he wants to win that award. The Rangers best pitcher on this team has been C.J. Wilson all year long having an ERA of 2.88, 14 wins, 5 losses, and 140 strikeouts. Wilson has been a surprise pitcher for the Rangers this year ranked 7th in the AL in (W), 4th in the AL in (ERA), and ranked 3rd in the AL in (W%) (.737). Wilson is the best pitcher the Rangers has next the Cliff Lee.

The American League Wild Card Team the Tampa Bay Rays: The Rays only find themselves 2 games out off first in the American League East division behind the Yankees. They also have the second best record in baseball standing at 83-51 and PCT at .619. The Rays are 4th overall in runs batting in with 637, 5th over in ERA with a 3.66, 9th overall in strikeouts with 989, 1st overall in saves with 47, and 2nd over in WHIP with a 1.23. The Rays best hitter on this team is their All-Star third baseman Evan Longoria who is hitting .296, 9 homeruns, and has 90 RBI's. Longoria is ranked 11th in the AL in (RBI's) and is probably the best hitting third baseman in the American League along with Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez. The Rays best pitcher on this team in the man himself David Price. Price a pitcher at one time didn't know how good he would be as a starting pitcher but he has fit well in the role having an ERA of 2.92, 16 wins, 6 losses and 161 strikeouts. Price ranks 2nd in the Al in (W), 4th in the AL in (W%) (.727), and is ranked 5th in the AL in (ERA). He is also second on the list for CY Young award winner.

Now here’s what I think will happen in the American League come postseason, I think it will be a battled in the East for the American League pennant between the New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays. I don't see the Minnesota Twins beating the Rays. I think Rays will take 4 out 5 in the ALDS from the Twins and I don't see the Rangers beating the Yankees even though the Rangers have a great hitting team and a good pitching staff I just think the Yankees are a stronger team. I think the series will go to 5 games in the ALDS and the Yankees will come out on top. Now in the ALCS between the Yankees and Rays well I don't know who will win this series. If the Yankees win they will win in 6 and if the Rays win they will in 7 and one of those teams will go to the 2010 World Series, if it the Yankees they will go back to back years to the World Series to defend their title and if the Rays win they will have made a trip to the World Series 2 out 3 times to try to win their first ever World Series title. It’s going to be "The Battle of the East" this year in the ALCS.


National League we will start off in the East.

Atlanta Braves: Now it’s not a shock that the Braves are good, but it’s a shock that there in first place in the NL East over the 3 time division champ Philadelphia Phillies. Everyone knew that the Braves were going to be good but not this good. The Braves record stands at 79-57 and has a PCT of .581 and is 8th overall in runs batted in with 606, 3rd over in ERA with a 3.54, and 7th overall in strikeouts with 998. The Braves best hitter is a surprise hitter in second baseman Martin Prado who is batting .317, 16 homeruns, and has 61 RBI's. Prado is ranked 4th in the NL in (BA). He came out for nowhere and has been the Braves best hitter on the team. He’s a big reason why the Braves are doing really well. Now the Braves best pitcher on the team has been Tim Hudson who has an ERA of 2.30, 15 wins, 6 losses, and 113 strikeouts. Hudson is ranked 4th in the NL in (W), 4th in the NL in (ERA), 5th in the NL in (W%) (.714), and is ranked 5th in the NL in (IP) (191.2). He’s a big reason why the Braves pitching have been so good this year. Hudson is also in the running to win the 2010 NL CY Young award.

Cincinnati Reds: Well the Reds are a surprise team because no one really picked them to be this good and have the biggest lead in the National Lead over the St. Louis Cardinals. The Reds have a 8 games lead in the NL Central and are the best team in the National League with a record of 79-56 and a PCT of .585 and they are 4th overall in batting average - .272, 4th overall in home runs with 156, 3rd overall in runs batted in with 647, 5th overall in hits with 1,256, and 5th overall in saves with 38. Now the best hitter on this team and in the National League right now is indeed first baseman Joey Votto. Votto is batting .323, 32 homeruns, and has 97 RBI's. He ranked 1st in the NL in (RBI's), 3rd in the NL in (BB) with (77), 2nd in the NL in (SGL) (.599), 3rd in the NL in (HR), 3rd in (R's) with (91), 1st in the NL in (OBP) (.423), and is ranked 1st in the NL in (OPS) (1.021). This guy is just a beast and is the main reason why the Reds are a good team this year. He brings a lot of power and leadership to this team. I think he will most likely win the 2010 NL MVP Award. Now the Reds don't have the best pitching but their best pitcher is Bronson Arryo who has an ERA of 3.84, 14 wins, 9 losses, and 97 strikeouts. He is ranked 5th in the NL in (W) and ranked 6th in the NL in (CG) (2). I don't know how well the Reds will do in the postseason with not having great pitching.

San Diego Padres: Now the Padres are the surprise team this year in the National League. No one saw this team being that good but somehow they are still in first place in their division with a record of 76-58 and a PCT of .567. The Padres are 1st over in ERA with a 3.36, 2nd overall in strikeouts with 1,074, 5th overall in save with 38 and 1st overall in WHIP with a 1.23. The best hitter on the team is no surprise in first baseman Adrian Gonzalez who batting .303, 27 home runs, and 87 RBI's. He ranked 8th in the NL in (BA), 7th in the NL in (RBI's), and is ranked 4th in the NL in (OBP) (.393). He is the biggest weapon this team has. Now as for their pitching the reason they are ranked number one in ERA is because of Mat Latos. This kid is really good with an ERA of 2.25, 13 wins, 5 losses, and 160 strikeouts. Latos is ranked 1st in the NL in (WHIP) (0.98), 1st in the NL in (ERA), and is ranked 4th in the NL in (W%) (.722). Latos is in the running to win the CY Young Award. But as of the late the Padres have lost 9 straight games and still have a 2 1/2 game lead over the Giants in the NL West.

National League Wild Card team the Philadelphia Phillies: Well the 3 time NL East division champs find themselves leading the wild card but also find themselves 1 game back of winning their 4th straight division title over the Braves. The Phils are the 3rd best team in the National League with a record of 78-58 and a PCT of .574. The Phillies are 11th overall in home runs with 133, 8th overall in ERA with a 3.75, and 3rd overall in WHIP with 1.25. Now the Phillies have a lot of great hitters but in the month of September nobody shines better than first baseman Ryan Howard. Howard who spent some time on the DL is batting .279, 26 homeruns, and has 88 RBI's. Howard is ranked 9th in the NL in (HR) and ranked 7th in the NL in (RBI's). The Phillies know if they want to win their 4th straight division title their going need some help from Ryan Howard who has been on fire as of lately. Now coming into the 2010 season the Phillies knew that their best pitcher would be the guy they traded for Roy Halladay. Halladay has been everything you could have asked for and is by far the best pitcher in the National League with ERA of 2.36, 17 wins, 10 losses, and 196 strikeouts. Halladay is ranked 1st in the NL in (W), 1st in the NL in (IP) (221.0), 1st in the NL in (SO), 1st in the NL in (CG) (8), and ranks 6th in (ERA). Halladay has a chance to maybe win the 2010 CY Young Award and maybe win the Triple Crown in pitching with leading in Wins, ERA, and Strikeouts. Halladay will have maybe 4 or more starts and a chance to win 20 or 21 games this year with the Phillies to try to win his first division title and the Phillies 4th straight.

Now what I think in the National League postseason will be just like the American League, "The Battle of the East". I think there will be no way the Reds will beat the Braves or the Phillies in the NLDS. Either way who ever they play it will go to a 5 game series. The Braves or Phillies will take it 5. The Reds pitching isn't really that good and going against Halladay, Hamels, Oswalt, or Hudson, Lowe, or Hanson is going to pretty tough to beat. Now for the Padres I think if they play either the Phillies or Braves they will loss in 3 straight. Yes their pitching is good but their hitting isn't and they way they look I don't see them beating the Braves or Phillies in the NLDS. Now for the NLCS the battle between the Braves and Phillies I think it will go to a 7 game series and the Phillies will be the division leaders in the end, I see the Phillies beating the Braves in 7 games and if the Braves win they will beat the Phillies in 7 games and the Phillies or Braves will see the Yankees or Rays in the 2010 World Series. Either way it will be a great NLCS series.

Now for the World Series if the Phillies pay to the Rays I think it will go to a 6 games series and the Phillies will win in 6. Now if they play the Yankees I have a feeling it will go to a 7 game series and this time the Phillies will beat the Yankees in 7 games. Now if the Braves were to make it to the World Series well I think the Rays would beat the Braves in a tough 7 game series. Now if they were play the Yankees I think the Yankees would win in 5 games against the Braves and repeat as World Series Champions.

New Team Takes Over The NL Wild Card.

If I was to tell you or ask you at this point of the 2010 baseball season what team would you have picked to lead the NL wild card you would probably say the Braves, the Giants, or the Cardinals. Well how about the Phillies? The who.... the back to back National League Champs? Yes the Philadelphia Phillies lead the National League wild card by 2 games game over the Giants and Cardinals Even though the Phils lead the wild card they are still only 2 1/2 game back from the division leaders the Atlanta Braves the team that just seems like they won't loss.

The Phillies this year have been hit with the injury bug after losing Jimmy Rollins for most of the year, then losing Ryan Madson, then Chase Utley, Carlos Ruiz missed a few games, Jamie Moyer is done for the season, Shane Victorino was out for 15 games or so, and losing Ryan Howard it almost seemed as if the Phillies would be out of the race heading into the all-star break. Something happened though to this team heading into the second half of the season. It seemed as if this team was recharged and starting winning ball games and sweeping teams and winning series’. As the "Dog days of August" rolled through, the Phillies right now are one of the hottest teams in baseball. 20-5 since July 22nd this team only finds themselves 2 1/2 games out of first and they can smell the division as the Phillies have been in this spot before in 2007 and 2008 after being the chaser they became the winners of the National League East. This week the Phillies got star second baseman Chase Utley back in the line-up, but besides that the Phillies two hottest hitters have been Raul Ibanez and Carlos Ruiz. Ruiz is batting .400 with runners in scoring position and for your catcher to be doing that in the 8 hole is just amazing. Not only that but they have been winning ball games without Chase Utley and Ryan Howard in the lineup. Also Jimmy Rollins has been swinging the bat better and has been getting on base and stealing bags. It’s always nice to see your leadoff man and the leader of this team doing that and get the wheels rolling.


The Phillies this year have had 31 come from behind wins and I'm almost sure that's the most in the league. But another reason why this team is winning well their pitching has been lights out. 25 games starters have gone 6 innings or more in 20 or more games. Also the Phillies added right hander Roy Oswalt to this great pitching staff along with Halladay and Hamels. So that has been a big key for the Phillies and if they want to win the NL East for the fourth straight year their going to have do everything right. Roy Halladay this year has been everything you have asked him to be and is 3rd on list to win the NL CY Young Award; he’s also 1st in strikeouts with (175), 3rd in wins with (15), and 3rd in ERA (2.24). Now Cole Hamels this year has had some bad luck with getting run support. In his last 2 outings he has lost both games but losing both games 1-0 and going 7 or more innings and at least having 8 or more strikeouts. Just seems like the Phillies can never support him with runs. Other than that he has pitched great. Now with adding Roy Oswalt the Phillies also seemed like they couldn't get him runs. In his first game as a Phillie he didn't pitch all that well. But in his last 2 outings he has won back to back starts and has helped the Phillies win ball games, taking them deep into ball games and everything you can ask from him. Now with Kyle Kendrick and Joe Blanton both of these guys have done pretty well and have giving this team innings. But with Kendrick you don't know whether you’re going to see the good Kendrick or the bad Kendrick. With Blanton he seems to have problems giving up runs in the 1st inning and after that he's fine until the 6th or 7th inning he starts to wear down. So if the Phillies can try to work something out with those two they should be fine.

The Phillies expect to have their big power man Ryan Howard back by Monday which means rookie outfielder Domonic Brown who has been doing pretty well for the Phillies batting .244, 2 home runs, and 12 RBI's will be sent back down. The only reason they would send him down is to get him more at bats, and keep him active. It’s the time where if Howard comes back we need to start playing playoff type baseball and I'm sure Brown will be called back up come September when rosters expand. It's good to see the Phillies winning ball games with their 2 stars coming back from the DL and most of the guys are thinking division not wild card, but it is definitely nice to have that wild card spot in your back pocket. In the end I still think when it comes down to crunch time and everything is said and done the Phillies will yet again come from behind and win their fourth straight division title.


For Beyond Baseball,
I'm Seth Lempert

H - H - 2 - O.

It was one year ago that the Phillies brought over left hander Cliff Lee to help them win the NL East, the NL Pennant, and get them back to their second World Series run and as we all know the Phillies got rid of Lee who is now with the first place Texas Rangers. Well now the Phillies have a new face in town that general manager Ruben Amaro, Jr liked best and that is Houston Astros right handed pitcher Roy Oswalt. Oswalt agreed to waive his no-trade clause and the Phillies gave up left hander J.A. Happ and two of their young prospects, outfielder Anthony Gose and shortstop Jonathan Villar. However the Phillies did get $11 million dollars along with Oswalt, that will help pay for his $16 million dollar option in 2011.

So Oswalt comes over to a team that is indeed one of the best teams in the National League but the Phillies weren't the option he wanted. Oswalt asked to be traded to the St. Louis Cardinals but the Cards weren't going to give up some of their young prospects to get Oswalt, so there for the Phillies got him. Oswalt’s options weren't really that good after the Cardinals turned him down, it was either stay in Houston with a team that was going nowhere or come to Philadelphia and try to help this team win their 4th straight Division Title, their 3rd straight National League Pennant, and get them to their 3rd straight World Series. Now the good and bad thing about Oswalt is that he has pitched in the postseason in 2004 and 2005 and went to the World Series in 2005 and knows what that feeling is like. The bad part is that over the past few years Oswalt is known to have some back issues but as of this season he has been healthy and we hope he is the man for the job. Now Oswalt’s record is 6-12 with an ERA of 3.42 but remember he played with a team that did not support him with a lot of runs and the way the Phils bats are coming alive this could be the team that fits him best. Oswalt will be in a pretty good pitching rotation with Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels, Kyle Kendrick and Joe Blanton. Now if Kendrick and Blanton can really step up their game the Phillies might have the best pitching rotation in the NL considering St. Louis has a great one, two, three punch with Carpenter, Wainwright, and Garcia, then there's the Giants who have a great one, two, three punch with Lincecum, Cain, Zito, and you can even throw Jonathan Sanchez in there as a good 4th starter for the Giants. Now how good will Oswalt be for the Phillies, well I don't know yet but if I had to guess I would have to say it looks pretty good and the Phillies are only 3 games back of the Brave and maybe bringing in another good pitcher might help them get back in first place and get to the postseason as once again division winners.

So the Phillies new pitching rotation now looks like this, Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels, Roy Oswalt, Kyle Kendrick, and Joe Blanton. Roy Oswalt will make his Phillies day view tomorrow against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park. Oswalt will be pitching against Craig Stammen who has an ERA of 5.50, with 2 wins, 4 losses, and 49 strikeouts. The big match comes your way at 7:05 p.m. So the Phillies get their man and make themselves a little bit better with Halladay over to Hamels over to Oswalt to still be "The Team to Beat in the NL East".

For Beyond Baseball,
I'm Seth Lempert Goodnight Everyone.

Trade Deadline.

With the trade deadline coming to a close this Saturday there are players still on the market but two very big names are on that list, Roy Oswalt from the Houston Astros and Adam Dunn from the Washington Nationals. After seeing Mariners ace Cliff Lee go to the Rangers and Diamondbacks ace Dan Haren sent to the Angels it clear to say what teams will wrap up these two superstars?

We start Roy Oswalt who this year hasn't had one of his best years with an ERA of 3.42, 6 wins, 12 losses, and 120 strikeouts but is still one the best in the game and with a better ball club he could help a few teams to get to the postseason. The two teams that are looking at Oswalt are the St. Louis Cardinals and the Philadelphia Phillies. Now reports came in saying that the Cardinals look to be the front runners to get Oswalt and other say the Phillies are the main team to score Oswalt, also another rumor said that Oswalt doesn't want to come to Philly and others say a deal with get done by the end of the week. If either is going to get Oswalt they will have to be willing to give up top prospects or a good player in the organization. In the Phillies case rumors said that Jayson Werth could be one of those players sent packing and another rumor has it that they could keep Werth but would have to give up J.A. Happ. The Phillies could definitely use another good pitcher in their rotation after losing Jamie Moyer. But are the Phillies willing to give one of their good key players for a guy they might not be able to hold on too? As for the Cardinals they have a few players they could give up to get Oswalt but there just like the Phillies are they willing to give up players to get Oswalt? That's the biggest question of all. Then again no team could score Oswalt and he could just finish out the year as an Astros as Roy Halladay did a year ago, but you have to say to yourself if we add him he could be a big help for the Cardinals as their neck and neck with the Reds and Phillies, well their only 3 and half game back of to Braves.


Now about Adam Dunn who has been a big help for the Nats line-up this year hitting .278, 23 home runs, and driving in 63 RBI's but is on the list of the trade market. The teams looking to score him are the Texas Rangers, the Detroit Tigers, and the New York Mets. Now the Rangers could use him and really don’t need him at the same time with already having one the most powerful line-up in baseball but getting Dunn could also help them in the postseason and could be a very good DH or first baseman and would be heading to winning team. But after the Rangers just scoring Cliff Lee I’m not sure they want to give up any more young prospects to the Nationals. Then there's the Tigers who have three big injures in losing Carlos Guillen, Brandon Inge, and Magglio Ordonez. With the Tigers in the hunt to try to win the American Central division by bringing in another good power hitter could help them. Only problem is they already have a great first baseman in Miguel Cabrera but they could use Dunn in the DH role and move Johnny Damon who is doing okay for the Tigers. But the question comes in who will they have to give up for Dunn. The Tigers might be the best team to score Dunn. Now the Mets on the other hand they have had their share problems with injures being 6 and half game behind the Braves. Also we don't know if the Mets have the money to hold on to Dunn and give up prospects for him but they might be willing to give up Ike Davis or Jeff Francoeur for Dunn but then again do the Mets really want to give up a young upcoming first baseman for a power hitter they might not be able to hold on too? Then trading a power hitter for a power hitter in Francoeur wouldn't make much sense either. My guess is as good as yours.


So if any of these teams want to make a deal with either one of these players they better make it fast because July 31st is just around the corner.


I'm Seth Lempert for Beyond Baseball.

The Year Of The Pitcher.

So is there something to be said that is this the year of the pitcher? Where 5 pitchers have thrown no-hitters or perfect games, well this year a lot of history has been made and the baseball season isn't even over yet. It’s something that a lot of baseball fans haven't seen in two decades where 5 pitchers have thrown No-Hitters or Perfect Games.

First No-Hitter came back on April 17th where Ubaldo Jimenez gave up 6 walks in the game against the Braves but still threw the first no-hitter of the season, his career, and in Rookies history. At that time we said to our self's "Okay it's too early to say it’s The Year of the Pitcher and who knows when another no-hitter or perfect game would happen again". The last perfect game thrown was by White Soxs pitcher Mark Buehrle's back last year against the Tampa Bay Rays. Before that Randy Johnson was the last pitcher to throw a perfect game back in 2004, so a lot people said who knows when will see another perfect game again its one of the hardest things to do in baseball.


Second No-Hitter came back on May 9th on Mother's Day and beyond a no-hitter it was something more than just that. Dallas Braden was a pitcher who people didn't even know who he was besides the part where people knew him as the guy who told A-Rod "Get off My Mound" he is a pitcher that will go in the record books by being the 20th man in baseball history to throw a perfect game. Yes on May 9th he did the unexpected as a pitcher and threw a perfect game and against a team that has been thrown against perfection before the Tampa Bay Rays. It's something that is pretty crazy from a baseball stand point that the previous prefect game was thrown against the Tampa Bay Rays and now the first perfect game of the 2010 season came against the Rays again. Now everyone is wondering when will perfection strike again?


Third No-Hitter came almost 3 weeks later on May 29th, Phillies new ace Roy Halladay who many would have thought this guy has to have a no-hitter or perfect game in his career already. Well on May 29th it will be a day that Phillies fans will never forget as Halladay became 21st pitcher in history to throw a perfect game!! Now to think that 2 perfect games happened in the same month almost 3 weeks apart is something that has never been heard of before. Braden and Halladay would be the first 2 players to ever do that in baseball history. The team he did it against was the Marlins and in a 1-0 ball game. Now everyone must be saying to themselves this is nuts and it’s like the year of the pitcher but it only gets better.


Fourth No-Hitter came almost a month later on June 25th and pitcher Edwin Jackson started this game off as he looked to be the losing pitcher. At one point in this game he had the bases loaded with no outs and somehow got out of the inning with no hits or a run scored. Jackson in 9th inning had 140 pitches thrown with 8 walks, and still no hits. In the end Jackson became the 267 pitcher to throw a no-hitter on 8 walks and 149 pitches thrown, WOW! It's funny to say that he would have thrown a no hitter the way the game started, also another fun fact is the team he did it against was already thrown to perfection twice and it was yet again the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays have seen it all they have been on the other side of seeing 2 perfect games against them and no-hitter thrown against on their own home field. Jackson would also become the second pitcher in Diamondbacks history to throw a no-hitter. The D-Backs last pitcher to do so was Randy Johnson. Now it is clear this has to be "The Year of the Pitcher".


Fifth No-Hitter came a month and a day later on July 26th after Jackson threw his no-hitter and it all happened again on the same field. Would it be the Rays to throw a no-hitter or would they get no-hit again? Well it was a pitching matchup where both pitchers Matt Garza from the Tampa Bay Rays and Max Scherzer from the Detroit Tigers were both throwing no-hitters. In the 6th inning Scherzer would give a grand slam and his no-no would be over. But on the other hand Matt Garza had it working only giving up 1 walk back in the second. He would come in the 9th inning just needing 3 outs from throwing the 5th no-hitter this season, he became the 268 pitcher to do so and became the first pitcher in Rays history to throw a no-hitter. So the like I said before the Rays have been through it all. They have been on the side of having 2 perfect games thrown against them; having a no-hitter thrown against them, and having their pitcher throw a no-hitter. The crazy thing is it happened on the same field a month and a day later after Jackson threw his no-hitter on the same field against the Tampa Bay Rays.


Perfect Game almost thrown.

We start with Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga where is was on the verge of becoming the 22nd pitcher in history to threw a perfect and just after seeing Roy Halladay throw a perfect game Galarraga wanted a piece of the action but would be overruled by umpire Jim Joyce who got voted as one on the best umpires in the game blew the call by a long shot. Jason Donald hit a weak ground ball to first with Galarraga covering first with 2 outs Donald was called safe! When we saw the replay it was clear that he was out by a foot step. Galarraga went 8 2/3 innings with a perfect game and a no-hitter back on June 2nd.


Now we talk about Reds pitcher Travis Wood on July 10th almost threw a perfect game against the Phillies and the pitcher he was pitching against was the man who already threw a perfect game this season and that was Roy Halladay. Wood went into the bottom of the 9th inning with the score still 0-0 and not giving up a hit, a walk or a run would fade as he would give up his first hit in the game to Carlos Ruiz. Wood almost threw the 3rd perfect game this season and could have the 22nd pitcher to do so, but even if he didn't give up a hit in that inning he would still have to pitch in the 10th inning hoping his team would get him a run to get a perfect game or no-hitter.

So the year of the pitcher has some crazy facts, in the first 4 months of baseball there has been a No-Hitter or Perfect Game thrown in each month and 2 of those no-hitters have been perfect games in the same month. Also the last 3 no-hitters thrown have came days apart from each other in each month’s time. Halladay - May 29th, Jackson - June 25th, and now Garza - July 26th. It's also the first time 5 or more pitchers haven thrown no-hitters or perfect game since 1991 where 7 pitchers threw perfect games or no-hitters. But that fact is the game today is so much more different then it was in 1991 where in today's game it so hard to do that because pitch counts come in effect and teams are so much better than they were back in 1991. Today's teams have at least 3 or more superstars on their team and to have 5 pitchers throw no-hitters against today’s team is just something words cannot explain. I mean we could easily have 7 no-hitters on the year and 4 of them being perfect games. Imagine that 4 perfect in 1 year, boy it would be more than the year of the pitcher. The only question is now who will be the next pitcher to throw a no-hitter or a perfect game, only time will tell when perfection or no-hit baseball will happen again.



This is Beyond the 5 Pitchers, This is Beyond Baseball.

First Half Standings.

Earlier this year I made some predictions about what teams would be a maker and breaker to win the 2010 World Series and so far some on my predictions were right and some were wrong and some teams even became surprise teams.


The American League East Best 3 Teams.
1. New York Yankees - First Place (56-32)
2. Tampa Bay Rays - 2 Games Back (54-34)
3. Boston Red Sox - 5 Games Back (51-37)


Now in the American League I did pick the New York Yankees to win their division and to make it back to the World Series, well so far so good. In the start of the year the defending World Champions got off to a slow start and were 2nd place in their division by the Tampa Bay Rays but not anymore as the Yanks have the best record in baseball (56-32) as the Yanks look like they’re in good shape. As for the Tampa Bay Rays at point they were leading the division in the AL East but hit a few bumps along the road but they are right where their suppose to be with their record begging (54-34) only 2 back from the Yankees. The Rays still can turn things around and take over in the AL East but like I said before this year the Rays are going to be your American League Wild Card winner. For the Boston Red Sox who came in this year came into play with the best pitching staff in the American League having Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, and John Lackey well they hit a big big speed bum as 9 of their superstar players are on the DL and it has been a tough year for the Red Sox losing starting pitcher Clay Buchholz, left fielder Jacoby Ellsbury, left fielder and DH Jeremy Hermida, third baseman Mike Lowell, catcher Victor Martinez, second baseman the 2008 AL MVP winner Dustin Pedroia, set-up man in the bull pen Manny Delcarmen, and their number one starting pitcher Josh Beckett. The Red Sox hit a huge hole but still somehow find their way of only begging 5 games back with a record of (51-37) but I still think with all their injuries this season might be over, but hey you never know what can happen.



American League Central 3 Best Teams.
1. Chicago White Sox - First Place (49-38)
2. Detroit Tigers - .5 Game back (48-38)
3. Minnesota Twins - 3.5 Games Back (46-42)


Well the American League Central is probably on the tightest divisions in baseball and no one really saw the Chicago White Sox begging the team leading this division but somehow the White Sox are top with a record of (49-38) but I think when everything is said and done they won't be there in the end. As for the Detroit Tigers well they have always been a team to look out for and are a team that is always there in the end only a half game back behind the White Sox with their record begging (48-38) and with red hot Miguel Carbrera carrying this team anything can happen. For the Minnesota Twins this was the team I picked to win the division and I still think they will in the end. They are only 3.5 half games back of the White Sox and in the second half I think they will take the division but it won't come easy as the White Sox and Tigers won't go down without a fight. The Twins first half record is (46-42).


American League West Best 2 Teams.
1. Texas Rangers - First Place (50-38)
2. Los Angeles Angels 4.5 Games Back (47-44)


Well in the start of this year I said watch out for the Texas Rangers as they might be a surprise team and they have been more than a surprise team as they are leading their division for the first time since 1999 and from a little bit help from Elvis Andrus, Ian Kinsler, Michael Young, Nelson Cruz, Josh Hamilton, Vladimir Guerrero, Tommy Hunter, and C.J. Wilson. As this team has been one of the best teams and have proved it having a record of (50-38). Also the Rangers traded in the division and picked up Mariners ace Cliff Lee in a 6 man deal. Lee who got rocked in his Texas Rangers debut I think will only help this team get better and win the division by a long shot. The Los Angeles Angels who has been the King of the AL West has fell off broad trailing the Rangers by 4.5 games seems like they may not hold that crown anymore. With losing some key players in the offseason they are lucky they still have a shot at winning the division with their record begging (47-44). Now I said the 2 best team in the west but I just wanna throw the Seattle Mariners in this because before the year I said they would take the division in the West but seems this one of the biggest bust yet. They came in the year having 2 of the top best pitchers with Felix Hernandez and Cliff Lee begging their 2 go to go guys and adding Jack Wilson and Chone Figgins who is probably having one of his worst seasons of his career and haven't lived up to the hype. The Mariners are 15 games back of the division and it looks like their season is over begging (35-53).


National League East Best 3 Teams.
1. Atlanta Braves - First Place (52-36)
2. New York Mets - 4 Games Back (48-40
3. Philadelphia Phillies - 4.5 Games Back (47-40)


Well the Atlanta Braves are no surprise that they are the best team in the National League (52-36), but I didn't think they would have been this good. I picked them to be the team to win the NL Wild Card but they have taken their game to a whole different level and to think at one point they lost 9 games in row and now they are the kings of the NL East is saying something. I still think they fall off a little bit in the second half and will win the NL Wild Card, I just think in the end their pitching won't hold up when it comes to crunch time. As for the New York Mets I have no idea how they are even in the thick of things begging on 4 games back of the division it’s a surprise that their even this good, well there really not this good (48-40). I mean their best pitcher on their team isn't Johan Sanatana its Mike Pelfrey who has came out of nowhere and has helped this along with David Wright. Other than that they have nothing and I think they will fall and won't be a problem come September. As for the 3 time Division Champion, the 2 time National League Champion, and the 2008 World Series Champion the Philadelphia Phillies well they are no longer the kings of the NL East as they started off as one of the best team in the NL having the best pitcher in baseball Roy Halladay but then boom just like that they hit a cold spot and fell down to third place in the division (47-40). They lost their leader Jimmy Rollins for the most of the first half of the season, they lost left hander J.A. Happ who is on the DL but is expected back in the end of July. They lost Ryan Madson who just returned from the DL and right when Jimmy Rollins came back they lost 2 of their key player’s third baseman Placido Polanco and second baseman Chase Utley. Now Polanco is expected back after the all-star break but as for Utley well he may not be back intill the beginning or middle of September. They also have bull pen guys Antonio Batardo and Chad Durbin on the DL as well. When I think the dark clouds clear I still think this team will win their division for the 4th straight year and they will make it back to the World Series but it won't be easy because nothing comes easy in this game.


National League Central Best 2 Teams.
Cincinnati Reds - First Place (49-41)
St. Louis Cardinals - 1 Game Back (47-41)

Well in everyones mind no one really saw the Reds begging on top in the National League Central as they are one of the surprise teams in the NL. Everyone thought this would have been a one sided favorite in the St. Louis Cardinals as they have owned their division for the past 2 years and have been to the World Series twice in 6 years. But the Reds have a lot younger ball club as do the Cardinals but right now the Reds are the team to beat (49-41). The Reds have help from Scott Rolen, a possible 2010 MVP Award Winner in Joey Votto, Jay Bruce, Jonny Gomes, Laynce Nix, and Drew Stubbs. Their only problem is if their pitching can hold it together for the whole season? Thats something will just have to find out in the second half. The St. Louis Cardinals end the first half of the season 1 game back of the division (47-41) and their pitching has done everything to help them win like Adam Wainwright the second best pitcher in the NL, Chris Carpenter, and Jaime Garcia. It’s been the Cardinals line-up that has been so so this year. If they they want to win their division this year they’re going to have to have everyone start picking it up. I think the Cardinals will win their division but it might come down to 1 game to decide who will take the NL Central crown.


National League West 4 Best Teams.
1. San Diego Padres - First Place (51-37)
2. Colorado Rockies - 2 Games Back(49-39)
3. Los Angeles Dodgers - 2 Games Back (49-39)
4. San Francisco Giants - 4 Games Back(47-41)


Now coming into this year everyone knew the NL West would be a mass but no saw the Padres leading this division as their another surprise team in the NL. This team had put together some pretty good pitching and hitting (51-37) and one of the reasons why they are the second best team in the NL. The team is really led by their pitching with Matt Latos and Jon Garland. Their line-up is very strong with 3 times Gold Glover Adrian Gonzales. But I think in the end the Padres won't have enough pitching to win the division but then again every team in this division doesn't really have strong pitching, so there for anything can happen. Now over to the Rockies who were my pick to win the NL West division who are playing really good baseball (49-39) and only 2 games out of first with one of the best pitchers in the game Ubaldo Jimenez this team looks really. Also having a very strong bull pen is one of the keys of winning a division. Also they have one of the best hitting catchers in the game with Miguel Olivo who for some reason did not make the all-star team but he is the number one catchers in the NL. Then the Rockies have one the best young outfielders in Carlos Gonzalez who last year got on base every at bat in the postseason in the NLDS. So I still think the Rockies win this division and if they can pick up another pitcher they will be good to go. The Los Angeles Dodgers this year I don't know how they are keeping up in the division (49-39) and only 2 games back of San Diego, but I guess when you have a good hitting team it doesn't really always matter about pitching. In the outfield they have Andre Ethier who is a great hitter and is batting over .300 and just an outstanding star. Then in the infield their led by first baseman James Loney who is also batting over .300. But really the best pitcher they have on this team in Clay Kershaw and that's about it for the Dodgers pitching. But somehow they are keeping up in the division. I still think they won’t last long and fall in the second half. Now over to the San Francisco Giants who had one the best pitching staff in baseball with 2 back to back CY Young Award Winner Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Barry Zito, and Jonathan Sanchez. But Giants line-up has once again failed them to be a team to win the division (47-41), but still only 4 games back of San Diego. The Giants line-up is led by Aubrey Huff and rookie star Buster Posey that is it. Pablo Sandoval hasn't really done anything this year and their pitching has been off and on, sometimes it will look good and sometimes it will look really bad. In the end I think the Giants will end up right where they are right now unless their hitting can get it together.