It's Looking Like a Quiet September

Well, it’s only September 14, and the pennant races look all but over.  The closest races right now are for the AL wild-card, where the Red Sox lead Texas by four games with 20 to play for each team, and the NL West, where the Rockies have a chance of catching the Dodgers, and the Giants, despite my dire prognostications on Sunday, still have a chance of catching the Rockies for the wild-card.

While the Rangers and Giants still have a chance, I don’t see either team doing it.  Anything is possible, that’s why they play the games, rather than just award the Yankees the World Series Trophy after they get their roster finalized around the beginning of Spring Training.  However, I don’t see the Red Sox folding, and the Giants still don’t have the hitting to win seven or eight in a row to get themselves back in the thick of it.

As for the play-offs, anything can happen in a short series, so I’m not one for trying to predict who’s going to win each round.  The Tigers obviously look like the Yankees should rip them a new one, but what if Jackson, Verlander and Porcello all get hot at the right time?

If I had to guess, I’d say the Yankees will beat the Sox for the AL pennant in six games, just because it feels like the year when the Yankees will finally make it back to the World Series after a long (for the Bombers) six year drought.  However, I’d only be surprised if the Tigers end up winning the pennant.

In the NL, I think I like the Cardinals to win the pennant, because they seem the most balanced in terms of hitting and pitching.  I won’t be surprised if any of the four teams make it to the World Series, as the weakest team, the Rockies, went to the World Series with what looks like an even weaker team in 2007.

In the World Series, I’m going to say the Cardinals upset the Yankees in seven games due to Tony LaRussa’s great managing and Albert Pujols’ big hitting.

I have a feeling I won’t even be close to right on these picks, but it’s worth a shot, if only for giggles.