All good things must come to an end.
For the first time since 1990, the Atlanta Braves will not finish atop their division come October. With the New York Mets' victory over the Florida Marlins on Wednesday morning, the Braves were statistically eliminated from a 15th straight division title.
Not only is it impossible for them to win the NL East, but only a miracle would hand Atlanta the league's wild card berth. Fans should not hold their collective breath, however; the Braves' record stands at 69-76, six-and-a-half games behind the current wild card leaders, the San Diego Padres.
So ends the Dixie Dynasty. Although they repeatedly choked after reaching the playoffs, with their only World Series title coming in 1995, the Braves' run nevertheless is one of the most impressive dynasties in recent decades.
Fourteen straight division titles under the guidance of manager Bobby Cox, after being a perennial doormat in the league, is an impressive feat. But the exit of the old heralds the coming of the new. Barring an almost mathematically impossible disaster, the Mets will win the East for the first time since 1988.
With the East so dull in September, the real races to watch are for the NL West division title and the wild card. In the West, the Los Angeles Dodgers are half a game ahead of the Padres and three up on the San Francisco Giants. Tonight marks the start of a crucial four-game set between L.A. and San Diego, one that will either end with the Dodgers pulling away and capturing the West, or with the Padres, who have won seven of their last 10, taking control. It's worth noting the Padres 5-0 record at Dodger Stadium this season.
But as the Padres and Dodgers duke it out, the Giants may yet ruin the party for both of them. After a road trip to the NL Central-leading St. Louis Cardinals, the Giants have a relatively easy stretch of 10 games against teams including Colorado, Milwaukee, and Arizona. They end their season with a three-game homestand against the Dodgers.
If the Giants, who have only dropped three of their last 10, continue to play well up, and pick up a majority of their games heading into the series against L.A., the division title might be theirs.
As for the wild card, the Padres are rightfully casting a wary eye over their shoulder. Four teams are within five games of the wildcard berth, including the Philadelphia Phillies, the Giants, the Marlins, and the Cincinnati Reds, in that order. The Phils are in the best position, but there are plenty of other piranhas in the wild card tank.
The Phillies and Marlins play each other six more times in two series before the end of the season, games that will prove important if the tight race for the wild card maintains its frenzied pace. The Marlins may have best control over their fate with an additional series against the Reds. Solid performances for the Marlins in these three series could punch their entrance tickets to October.
Meanwhile, the contest for MVP seems to have settled down to two likely candidates, both first basemen: the Phils' Ryan Howard and the Cards' Albert Pujols. Howard is batting .316 for the season, and an astronomical .525 in September, to go along with his 56 homers and 139 RBI, both of which lead the league. He is a machine at the plate, and his hot bat has put him in serious contention for this year's award.
On the other side is the defending MVP Pujols. The Cardinal has a slightly higher batting average (.321) than Howard, but his 45 homers and 120 RBIs are dwarfed by Howard's numbers.
Though neither player's team is guaranteed to make the playoffs at this juncture, these last two weeks of baseball are the time to impress the judges as the pair squares off for the league's top individual award.
