Stephen King - Faithful

Last night the Angels humbled the A’s 10–0 at home, and today they come back late against setup guy Ricardo Rincon and new closer Octavio Dotel to win the West. Chokeland has done it again. Billy Beane, you are not a genius. With no defense, no smallball and no pen, and ace Mark Mulder denying an obvious hip problem, the A’s went into a September-longs woon that their fans will taste for the entire off-season. The Angels, missing Adam Kennedy with a knee injury, and suspending Jose Guillen for throwing his helmet and dissing manager Mike Scioscia, overcame everything to beat their rivals at the wire.

The Cubs, who had a two-game lead in the NL wild card a week ago, eliminate themselves by losing their sixth in seven games (including three blown saves by high-priced free-agent closer LaTroy Hawkins and crucial home losses to cellar dwellers the Mets and the Reds).

On the home front, the Sox sweep a meaningless doubleheader from the O’s—something we could never do when the games really counted. Mr. Kim picks up a garbage win. Ellis Burks plays in his 2,000th and most likely last game, adding a single to his career stats.

Afterward, Terry Francona announces that Arroyo and Wake will start in the playoffs and that Lowe won’t. Lowe leaves the clubhouse without a comment, and in the postgame, Eck says, “Will Derek Lowe be back next year? Who cares?”

And we still don’t know who we’re playing in the division series.

I continue to believe that it was our play against Baltimore—identified in my game notes from July on as the LEBs [64] Loathsome El Birdos. —that cost us the AL East. Now that that little matter has been decided, we’re doing all right against the LEBs, having already guaranteed ourselves at least a split in the season’s final, meaningless four-game series (please note that they has once again become we , and will now likely stay that way, for better or worse, until the season ends).

On the West Coast, the Athletics have suddenly—and rather shockingly—come unglued. Anaheim beat them last night, 10–0, and came from behind to beat them again today, 5–4. So the Angels win the West, and all the AL postseason teams are now decided. The only remaining question is who the Red Sox will draw in the first round—the Angels or the Twins. Today’s game between Minnesota and Cleveland would have settled that issue if Cleveland had won, but the game was suspended in the eleventh with the score tied, 5–5, so the groundskeepers could prepare the field for a University of Minnesota football game.

Say what?

SK:Regular season’s most surreal touch: Minnesota-Cleveland game, which would have nailed down the final playoff locale, suspended for a college football game.

Beautiful.

SO:Go Golden Gophers! Shades of last year’s All-Star Game. Imagine if you were in the crowd at the Metrodome. Come back tomorrow? Hell no.

It’s the last day of the regular season, and in the majors, the last few games are being played out by the subs, scrubs, and—in a few cases—the stars of tomorrow.

In Chicago, disconsolate Cubs fans are telling each other—without much real hope—that next season may be better (on the South Side, the ChiSox fans gave up on this season long ago).

In Tampa, Lou Piniella has packed away his horrible snot-green pullover for another season and bid his hapless Devil Rays adieu .

In Baltimore, the baseball writers have already begun beating the MVP tom-tom on behalf of Miguel Tejada, but given what Gary Sheffield’s done for the Yankees and what Manny Ramirez has done for the Red Sox, I don’t give them much of a chance.

In Texas, the plotting has already begun to turn this year’s AL West dark horse into next year’s favorite.

In Oakland, wunderkind Billy Beane may, like Lucy Arnaz, have some ’splainin’ to do.

In Toronto, the wunderkind disciples of Billy Beane have probably left their offices for the year only after dropping their cell phones into their shredders.

And in Minnesota, the last playoff question was answered late this afternoon, when the Indians came up with two insurance runs in the top of the ninth and beat the Twins, 5–2. Thus it’s Minnesota opening against New York on the East Coast and Boston opening against Anaheim on the West,both the day after tomorrow. I’ll be at Fenway for the third game of the Sox-Angels series, and for the fourth, if needed (it probably will be). My heart beats a little faster, just writing that. At this point everything gets magnified, because when the second season ends, it does so either with shocking suddenness or—could it be?—with the sort of success of which Red Sox fans hardly dare dream.

The Twins win the resumption of their suspended game, but then lose to the Indians, making the last Angels-A’s game meaningless (though no less painful to those A’s fans who bothered to show up).

We lose our last game to the O’s (McCarty throws two scoreless, striking out three) and finish 98-64, our best record since 1978. Manny wins the home run and slugging crowns, Schilling has the best won-loss, though it appears the MVP will now go to Vladimir Guerrero for his big September, while Santana should take the Cy Young. Ichiro breaks George Sisler’s all-time record for hits in a season, but, coming for a last-place club, and most of them being singles, it doesn’t wow serious fans; he’s just the new Rod Carew. And the Astros win their final game, snatching the NL wild card from Barry Bonds and the Giants. It’s still possible we’ll see Roger Clemens in the World Series.

SO:So we’ve got Anaheim, and the Twins get their wish. I really think they orchestrated the last week (tanking all three to the Yanks, losing to Cleveland today) to get a rematch with the Yanks in the short series, figuring it’s easier to get them here than in the ALCS. Gardenhire’s no dummy. [65] NAH—it’s just a common sports malady: choking disease. SK

SK:If we can get past the Angels, I think the world (series) may be ours.

SO:I’m having the same grandiose, bubbles-in-the-blood thoughts, and rightfully: it’s a whole new season. Hope springs eternal.

So who’s going to be left off the playoff roster? It’s like spring training—all these guys vying for the very last spots. For the pitchers, I’d take Mendoza over Leskanic, Williamson and Adams; he’s been more consistent, Leskanic can get wild, Williamson’s not 100% and Adams stinks. And who gets the nod for the last position player, McCarty or Mientkiewicz? I’m for McCarty: more pop, just as good a glove, and he’s got the arm to play the outfield in a pinch. I think we’ve got to keep Kapler, Roberts and Pokey for D and speed, and Youk for a stick off the bench, but management might surprise me.

As a Rock Cats fan, I want to believe in the Twins. I like that they’re going right after them, but if the Yanks can beat Santana just once (or closer Joe Nathan in one of those starts), they’re cooked. My hope is they split in the Stadium, then turn on that Metrodome jet-stream air-conditioning and let thermodynamics do the rest.

SK:I’m for Mientkiewicz, mostly because I’ve finally learned how to spell his name (actually because he’s just gotten hot at the plate). I like Curtis “The Mechanic” because I think he’s clutch and I don’t think Mendoza is…and in the end, in the pen, it’s gonna come down to the tragickal Mr. Lowe. I hope we don’t have to depend on him too much! The guy I really want to see on that roster—but may not—is the Greek God of Walks.