Fred Bowen's "The Score" column,
August 17, 2007, Washington Post

The Race Is On!

The next few weeks are my favorite time of the Major League Baseball season. Teams are battling for division championships and spots in the playoffs. Fans will be checking the scores and standings every day to see if their favorite team is moving up or falling apart.

The six division winners are guaranteed a place in the playoffs and a chance to advance to the World Series. Two wild-card spots will go to the teams -- one each from the American League and the National League -- with the best runner-up records.

All six divisions have races that could go down to the wire. Let's look at the teams that might come out on top.

AL East: Just a few weeks ago, my Boston Red Sox were way ahead of the New York Yankees. Now the Yanks are red hot and moving up fast. Can the Sox hold on? Boston still has sluggers Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz as well as solid starting pitching. So I'm thinking -- make that hoping and praying -- that the Sox can stay ahead of the Yanks and win the division.

AL Central: At last month's all-star break, the Detroit Tigers looked like the best team in baseball. But they have cooled off and are in a tight race with the Cleveland Indians. Detroit's young pitchers, Jeremy Bonderman and Justin Verlander, might be tired, and the team's bullpen is a mess. So my guess is that the Indians will win this division.

AL West: The Seattle Mariners, led by hitting machine Ichiro Suzuki and former Washington National Jose Guillen, have been a surprise this season. But the Los Angeles Angels have better hitting and pitching. I predict that the Mariners will fade in September, and the Angels will win the West going away.

NL East: The New York Mets, the Philadelphia Phillies and the Atlanta Braves all have a chance -- and the winner might be decided by our own Washington Nationals. The Nats have 22 games remaining with the East's top three teams. I think the Nats will beat the Mets and the Braves enough times that the Phils will win the title.

NL Central: Lots of people are rooting for the Chicago Cubs because the poor Cubbies haven't won a World Series for 99 years. Chicago should win this weak division. But the Milwaukee Brewers, who have terrific young players Prince Fielder, J.J. Hardy and Corey Hart, just won't quit. I think Milwaukee will win, making it an even 100 years of frustration for Cubs fans.

NL West: Here's a weird statistic -- the Arizona Diamondbacks entered last night's game with a record of 68 wins and 53 losses even though they have given up 27 more runs than they have scored this season. That almost never happens to winning teams. I don't think the D'backs will stay lucky. The San Diego Padres, led by super pitcher Jake Peavy, should win the West.

Whether your team turns out to be a winner or loser this season, it's always fun to follow the division races.

Fred Bowen writes KidsPost's sports opinion column and is an author of sports novels for kids.

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