The Homestretch, Day 13: Winning When They Need to Win

Earlier posts of mine in this Homestretch series have detailed the efforts of teams who are winning when they are supposed to win, and when they need to win. You should look no further than Tuesday's results to find continued evidence of this phenomenon.

I'll start in the American League, where the Twins and White Sox started a monstrous series tonight. John Kruk's little circus act of sweeping the floor under Karl Ravech's feet on Baseball Tonight to make his point that the Sox needed a sweep of this series, however, may have actually hurt the Sox more then helped them. A 9-3 loss tonight (including three big strikeouts by Manny) probably puts the White Sox out of it. The Twins' magic number is down to 12, and could be as low as eight by the time this series ends; they have simply outplayed the rest of the AL Central here in the second half. They're winning when they need to win.

The Texas Rangers also won tonight, convincingly, and Oakland's loss to lowly Kansas City lowers the Ranger magic number to ten in the AL West. The Rangers had a little losing streak haunting them for a while, but since then they have played very well (especially in sweeping the Yankees this past weekend) and are clearly the kings of the division. They're winning when they need to win.

In the East, Tampa Bay and New York clashed again tonight, and the Yankees took Game 2 in another extra-inning affair. Once again, the division lead flip-flopped as a result, but both teams are doing what they have to in order to stay in contention for the division title. Neither team is falling off. They are both playing at such a high level that they can't shake one another. We can all see why the Rays and Yankees are the two best teams in baseball as we watch this race for the AL East. They're winning when they need to win.

Over in the National League, it's more of the same story. The San Diego Padres dealt the Colorado Rockies another loss tonight, and as I mentioned last night, are really flexing their muscles in the division. They're starting to score runs (even if it is Coors Field they're playing at), and Heath Bell spells doom for any opposing team in the ninth. With the Giants losing to my Dodgers tonight, despite just one hit from L.A. and a brilliant performance from Barry Zito, the Padres' division lead is a game and a half. Expect that lead to grow by the weekend. The Padres have superiority in the NL West, and it is their division to lose. They haven't lost it yet because...??? They're winning when they need to win.

As are the Phillies. Another Braves loss tonight puts the Phillies two up in the NL East. They have fought through so much adversity this season - multiple and simultaneous injuries, offensive dry spells, large late-inning deficits. And yet here they are, owners of the best record in the National League. This is a World Series team, battle-tested and red-hot as we approach October. They've made it this far because they're winning when they need to win.

The Cincinnati Reds are skating by, getting a lot of help from St. Louis losing so much, but they're not undergoing a monumental collapse. By my standards, this qualifies as winning when they need to win.

So where does that leave everyone else? In the National League, one team that is not winning when they need to is going to make the playoffs. I feel sorry for whoever that team is, whether it be the Giants, Braves, or Rockies, because they are going to get crushed in October. It doesn't even matter who they play. These teams, with all the losing they are doing in critical games, are proving they don't belong in the postseason. Other teams I'm talking about here are the Cardinals, White Sox, and A's. These teams are boys among men, lightweights, punchless and being knocked down against their will. As good as they have been at times this season, they aren't good enough right now.

Because they're not winning when they need to win.