Down The Stretch

Tom Johnson, the famed track announcer said it best "Down the stretch they come!" The pennant races are as airtight as one could hope. The Wild cards are still very much up in the air and the White Sux...er Sox are trying their best to hold on to their once commanding lead in the AL Central and hold off the hard charging Indians who now lead the wild card. A dream scenario would have the Indians winning the AL Central, the Red Sox winning the AL East and the Yankees snaring the wild card. The AL West won't produce the wild card as the Angels are pulling away from the A's who went into an ill-timed slump. In the NL the Cards need to go 3-2 to win repeat their 100 win feat of last year, though they look a lot less fearsome than they did when the won 105 last year. The Braves are closing in on their mind boggling 14th straight division title. You can cite a watered down league, but not even the fabled Yankees ever made the postseason 14 straight times. Even when the fabled murderers row in the 20's and 30's were at their heyday, with Joe D in the 40, the M&M boys in the 50s and early 60s Reggie Jax in the late 70s. And even the current Yankee machine didn't win 14 divisions in a row. (They won the wild card behind the Orioles in 97). Knock the Braves for being postseason underacheivers (No WS since they were swept in '99) but they are still one of the tougher teams in the NL. The Pads may win the West with an abysmal sub .500 record, and have the quickest postseason exit. They have the pitching to win a short series, but their bats...ewww. I feel good for Joe Randa though. Never been in the postseason, and still waiting to be on his first winning team. My beloved Michigan is out of the AP top 25 for the first time since '98. They took a tough loss on the road to a better than advertised Wisconsin team. They'll be okay and they will beat an overrated Ohio State team in November. You read it here first. The Vikes win...yay!!! Pep looked like Pep of old. Mewelde Moore proved what I have said all along, give him the carries and he can carry the offensive load. They will have all sorts of trouble with a mobile Michael Vick next week though. Yes, the Bengals are for real (about time) With a big play ball hawking, roughneck defense that isn't the pushover of old. Marvin Lewis has made believers of many a skeptic. JT the Brick should shut his mouth about Lewis getting out of Cincinnati and going to a team that will pay him. Many teams had a shot at Lewis and passed. The Bengals took him and Lewis should stay where he is nothing short of an icon. The Bucs are unbeaten and are doing it behind a legit running back in Cadillac Williams, he's the lock for rookie of the year.