Who said the Yankees were dead?

So, it's now mid-August which means we have a little over 40 games left in the MLB regular season. With all my travels and exploits this summer, I haven't been following the Show as carefully as I would have liked/usually do. However, that doesn't mean I don't have any thoughts to share with you on what to expect over the last 40 games. So what is worth paying attention to this Septemer?

(1) The AL East. You didn't need me to tell you this unless you listened to all the 'pundits' of the world (ahem... espn) in July when this division title was handed to the Red Sox. Somebody (ahem... me) kept saying not to count the boys in pinstripes out because that lineup was bound to get hot. Well here we are. After stumbling through summer as a sub-.500 club, the Bronx Bombers are now a mere 4 games back of the Red Sox. What does this mean for the average baseball fan? It means ESPN will bury you in AL East coverage Aug. 28-30 (BOS @ NYY) and Sept. 14-16 (NYY @ BOS).

(2) The AL West. Usually I would write off the AL East race as not that interesting because generally the loser of the divisional race ends up with the Wild Card anyway. Well, maybe not this year. Those pesky Seattle Mariners are trying to throw a wrench in that and doing a good job of it thus far. The M's and Yankees are currently tied for the Wild Card lead, so there's good reason to focus on those M's. I'd like to predict that the M's could catch the Angels out West for Choi's sake... but let's face it, the Angels are hot as hell right now and I don't see it happening. Sorry Choi.

(3) The NL Central. Watch this division for two reasons. First and foremost, Rick Ankiel. I won't go into detail about why this story is so great and reminds me of why i love this game so much, but I will say this: I was at game one of that series against the Braves in 2000... and I've never felt Busch Stadium so collectively uncomfortable. Seeing him hit that homerun and get the curtain call finally relieved all that. Welcome back rick. The second, and less fun, reason to watch this division is for the race itself. This week is a big one as the Brewers and Cubs square off for series with my Redbirds. Can the Cards seriously climb back into this thing and make up 5.5 games? Maybe, but count me in the skeptical column until they're above .500. Although the way things are going there's really nothing stopping a sub-.500 club from winning this division.

(4) The NL West. On the MLB radio preview show last spring on wvfi (wvfi.nd.edu -- tune in again this fall when Choi, Adam and I will provide you with our collective sports thoughts; time and day TBD) I picked the Diamondbacks as a sleeper to watch for -- mainly because I have a small love for Stephen Drew and Justin Upton (hey, youth is fun to watch). And here we are halfway through August and they have a 3 game lead. Although this is arguably just as much the Dodgers doing (for going 2-8 in their last 10) as it is this Diamondbacks (to their credit, they're 7-3 in that same stretch). So here's me hoping the young guys can pull this one out.

Well, that's about it. My apologies to the NL East (yeah, that New York team really has been set since May. Just in a good way.) and the AL Central (it's a good race, I just don't have anything to offer about it -- although if there is one thing really worth watching in this division it's whether the Twins and Santana can sort things out). Take care all.