• While most of Major League Baseball is set on their postseason plans, the AL East and West have come down to tonight, the last scheduled day of the regular season. The AL West is a little clearer. Both the Oakland Athletics and Texas Rangers have qualified for the playoffs, but are tied for the division lead. They play tonight, and the winner will win the division while the loser will go into the new one-game playoff with….
• The AL East is a little more confusing. Currently, the New York Yankees have a one game lead over the Baltimore Orioles, thanks in large part to the late game heroics of Raul Ibanez. Ibanez came into the game last night, as a pinch hitter, in the 9th inning. Down 3-1 to the Boston Red Sox (who can't wait for the 2012 season to end) and knowing the Orioles were only a half game back of them, the Yankees had to pull out all the stops. Ibanez was able to hit a game-tying 2-run home run. Then in the 12th inning, Ibanez again came through with a single that scored backup catcher Francisco Cervelli from second base. These two clutch hits propelled the Yankees to the brink of the AL East division championship.
• Tonight, the Yankees again play the Red Sox. If the Yankees win, no matter what, they win the AL East Division. If the Baltimore Orioles lose, no matter what, the Yankees win the division. If the Yankees lose and the Orioles win, there will be a one-game playoff to see who wins the AL East. The loser of that game will then go on to play the loser of the Athletics/Rangers game in the one-game wild card playoff game, while the Detroit Tigers (and probable Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera, who we'll talk about on Friday) sit back and watch awaiting news of who they get to play. Welcome to the new playoff system in Major League Baseball!
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