With a week to go in the regular season, only the Twins and Yankees have clinched playoff spots in the American League. If the season ended today, they would be joined as division winners by Oakland, with the Red Sox as wild card- in other words, the same four playoff teams as last year in the AL.
The Red Sox could conceivably overtake the Yankees in the AL East- after the latest Kevin Brown meltdown, anything’s possible- while Oakland is only a game or two ahead of Anaheim and Texas in the West. But if current positions hold, we’ll be looking at Twins-Red Sox and Yankees-A’s in the first round, with the Twins and Yanks each maintaining home-field advantage in the best-of-five series.
Twins fans are divided on whether they’d prefer to face the Yankees or Red Sox- the Yanks are conceded to be the better team, but their pitching is a mess, and with the unbeaten-since-the-All-Star-break Johan Santana going twice in a five-game series, I’d rather see Estaban Loaiza or Jon Leiber or El Duque on the opposite side, as opposed to Schilling or Martinez. All I know is, everyone on earth will be expecting another Yanks-Sox ALCS, but I’m not sure how likely that is with Johan as an obstacle to either team.
Anyway, there’s a possible playoff preview starting tomorrow, when the Twins visit Yankee Stadium for three games. I’ll be in the bleachers Tuesday night.
Posted by Stephen Silver at September 27, 2004 10:53 PMThe mathematics of it are a bit complicated, but the Red Sox did clinch a playoff spot with Monday's win. The Soxaholix explains it without even getting into differential calculus.
I'd prefer the Sox to play the A's, but also wouldn't mind a change of scenery at least once this post season.
Posted by: brian at September 28, 2004 01:50 PMYanks win again and again...you go root for your twins...they will need it!!!
Posted by: A at September 29, 2004 10:05 PM