Playoff Talk

We're not talking about the Royals -- obviously.
Random thoughts as we head toward the end of the regular season:
1. It sucks that the Tigers have not already won the AL Central. Since they are only a half game ahead of Minnesota, they will be fighting hard against the Royals in the series that starts Friday (09.22). The Royals need to go 5-5 to avoid 100 losses.
2. Big Papi (David Ortiz), left, set the Red Sox single season home run record with 51 and 52 against the Twins tonight (09.21). He surpassed Jimmie Foxx's mark of 50 in 1938. Foxx had a better average and more RBIs than Ortiz. Foxx hit .349 and drove 175 runs in the '38 campaign. This year, Ortiz is hitting .287 with 132 RBIs.

3. ESPN Baseball Tonight's Orel Hershiser made a great observation about the White Sox feeble attempt to stay in the playoff race. When he did a ChiSox game for ESPN, he noted that on the clubhouse bulletin board there was information about shipping players' vehicles to their winter home. That's not a sign of a team that believes they're going to make the postseason.