The Full Count: NL Wildcard race is coming down to the wire

Phils try to sneak in

1. Still up for Grabs: While the Twins or Tigers have the American League Wild Card wrapped up, the National League’s Wild Card is still wide open. San Francisco, Atlanta, and Florida are all within striking distance, but really it is down to three teams: the Padres, Dodgers, and Phillies. Two of those teams will make the playoffs, as one will win the NL West, but the other will have to go home. Yesterday the Dodgers and Padres played while the Phillies were off. The Dodgers won 5-2 over the Pirates to put the pressure on the Phils with a half-game lead. Takashi Saito, LA’s unknown closer, saved his 20th game of the season and has only blown two. With 10 games left in the season and the Phils and Dodgers virtually tied, this race will come down to the finish line.

2. You shall not pass: The Minnesota Twins could have taken the AL Central lead last night. With a Tigers loss and Johan Santana on the mound, it seemed like they might have a good chance of doing so. But the Boston Red Sox, who are out of contention, outplayed them in every way. David Ortiz hit two homers, no. 51 and 52 on the season, and went 3-3 to lead the charge. Santana just lasted five innings, allowing four runs but only two earned. The unearned runs were off of Johan’s own throwing error. He was hit with his first loss since the All Star break, but is still 18-6 with a 2.79 ERA. The Twins offense could muster nothing against Josh Beckett on the night, and the team fell 6-0.

3. Leading but not leading: The San Diego Padres are still leading their division by a half-game. But their most important player is just shy of another lead. Trevor Hoffman saved his 41st game of the season last night, putting him within one of Lee Smith’s all time saves record. He has 477 career saves and should break the record by the time the season is over. Would that make Hoffman a Hall of Famer, even though Smith isn’t? He should make it in, though he probably won’t. By the way, the rest of San Diego’s schedule looks like this: Pittsburgh at home, then St. Louis and Arizona on the road.

4. An Underrated Player: At 5.5 games out of the Wild Card race, there is little chance Houston will make the playoffs. But the accomplishments of one player are worth stating. That player is Lance Berkman, and he has received little attention despite a monstrous campaign. Yesterday he hit two homers and four RBIs to single-handedly beat the Cardinals. This is nothing new to Berkman, who has carried the Astros offense the entire season. Berk’s hitting .315, with 43 homers and 126 RBIs. His OPS of 1.049 ranks third in the league. And, due to an outrageous number of walks, he’s done this in just 498 at-bats. What an incredible player. If Berkman played for a contending team, people might realize he’s been just as good with the bat this season as Albert Pujols.

5. The Race for #30: The playoff races are interesting as always this year. But how about this: the Devil Rays and Royals are tied for the honor of worst MLB team. While Kansas City seemingly had this wrapped up months ago, the D-Rays have fallen after a 1-9 skid. The Royals have been outscored 708-900, while the D-Rays are slightly better with a 647-808 margin. Both teams stand at 58-94, and both will likely reach 100 losses. With either of these franchises ever succeed? It’s hard to imagine a turnaround, though this year’s Tigers proved that is possible.