This year’s MLB regular season is turning out to be an interesting one. Who would have thought that the Baltimore Orioles would be within a game of the New York Yankees for the division title with only 15 games left? All three divisions in the American League have second place teams within three games of their respective division leaders. Teams are being forced to play their best baseball until the last game of the regular season, and this can only help ratings. Major League Baseball is definitely going to finish with a memorable regular season this year.
With the Red Sox tanking this year, most experts thought that the Yankees would breeze to an easy AL East Title, especially because of the way that they were playing, having a lead of 10 games with 50 to go. The Orioles had other plans. They waited for the Yankees to lose urgency and were able to strike, now forcing the Yankees to treat every game like a playoff game. The Orioles are currently one game behind the Yankees and continue to win and put pressure on the Yankees, who will finish the season facing all of their division rivals.
In the AL Central, the Chicago White Sox have played great baseball as of late, winning seven out of their last ten games, as they try to hold off the Detroit Tigers, who are three games back in the division. A similar scene is shown in the AL West, where the Texas Rangers have a three-game lead over the Oakland A’s.
Needless to say, the AL is going to be tight until the very end. Even when playoff time arrives, I believe that every series will be a close one, because no team has shown real dominance, with every division leader having about the same record. This will make it easier for whoever emerges as the NL Champion because the AL Champion will most likely be drained by the time that they reach the World Series.
On the other hand, the National League is pretty much wrapped up. The Nationals, Reds and Giants all have comfortable leads in their divisions, and unless they lose every game until the playoffs, this will not change. The Wild Card race is tight with the Braves, Cardinals and Dodgers all fighting for the final spot. I believe that this year’s World Series will be won by a team from the National League. If I had to pick a team, I would choose the Nationals. They have the best chance because their youth will allow them to last longer if a series was to go to five or seven games. I also think that they have been the most dominant team this year, and will probably be for many years to come.
Major League Baseball has to be happy about how this season is wrapping up. Tight races are making more people watch and are keeping people interested. I enjoy following the races, and this will be a great playoff year to watch. If you haven’t been following it, I definitely recommend that you start now, because no other season has been quite like this one.
