BASEBALL'S HOME STRETCH - MY PREDICTIONS

The AL's All Star Catcher, Tiger's Alex Avila blasts a 2-run homer

Major League Baseball heads into its home stretch this week.  Most teams have 27-28 games left to capture their spot in post-season play.  My beloved Tigers made a surge in the last two weeks (including a sweep of the Indians) and hold a 5 game lead in the American League's Central Division.  It will be a close race becasue both White Sox and Indians have double-digit elimination numbers (13 and 13.5).  Texas has a slimmer lead against the Angels - 3 1/2 games and an elimination number of 24.  The Red Sox and Yankees go neck and neck (and brushback pitch vs. brushback) very much down to the wire.  They will both likely make the playoffs because on the Tampa Bay Rays in their division still has a wild card chance, and that is almost gone.

In the National League, the Phillies have the best record in baseball and a 7 1/2 game lead over Atlanta.  Only a collapse of that awesome Phillies pitching staff give the Braves a prayer, but they appear to have the wild card wrapped up.  The Brewers are putting the Cardinals in their rear view mirror.  My childhood favorite Reds are pretty much gone from the race.  Arizona is surprisingly in front of the Giants after going 8-2 in their last ten starts.

So here's my prediction one month from the end of the regular season: AL East - Red Sox AL Central - Tigers AL West - Rangers Wold Card - Yankees; NL East - Phillies NL Central - Brewers NL West - Diamondbacks Wild Card - Braves.

The Phillie's Cy Young Pitcher Roy Halladay

I confess, I am holding my breath on the Tigers.  Verlander cannot win it alone and the team with the most .300 plus hitters - Cabrera, Martinez, Peralta, Avila - need to hit when the other starters are in action.  If they don't, the White Sox could slide past them.  The Giants could still pull past Arizona but the D-Backs have an awesome defense and Kirk Gibson is an inspired manager (ex-Tiger, by the way).  I don't think it will happen.

So let's have a little fun - what are your predictions?  I will have a prize for the one who first posts the correct six.

While we're at it - my 18-4 Landisville Sluggers in Fantasy Baseball are one game away from clinching their division title, which will be the second year in a row one of my teams ran away with their division). My other teams won't finish above 3rd.