Ready, set....Mark it down on your calendar. Tonight's the official start of the American League pennant race when the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox get down to business for 5 games in Boston. And the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins heat things up in the wild card race in Chicago.
Is it a do-or-die series for the Red Sox, who currently trail the Yankees by 1.5 games? Not really. If they lose 4 of 5, the Sox are still only 3.5 games out of first but could potentially slip even more in the wild card standings, espcailly if the White Sox sweep the Twins. That means everything because the wild card will likely not come from the AL East this year; the White Sox and Twins are just too powerful. Unless something disasterous happens to both of those teams at the same time (unlikely), then either the Yanks or Sox will be home before Columbus Day.
It's still not over for the Sox if the Yankees sweep, but it would be grim. The Yanks would take a commading 6.5 game lead and, most importantly, get a big-time momentum swing against their storied rivals heading into September.
If Boston sweeps, they would take a 3.5 game lead and get the momentum.
Make no mistake, there will be a lot of scoreboard watching in Boston. The White Sox hold just a 2 game lead over the red-hot Twinkies in the wild card, a series that could really determine the fate of both Boston (who's 2.5 games behind of the White Sox) and Minnesota. A sweep by the White Sox would quickly put the World Champs in a dominate position over the Twins. A Twins sweep would give them a one game lead; losing two of three doesn't hurt the Twins but it does put them in a hole. Winning 2 of 3, especially on the road, has really got to be the Twins realistic goal.
So put away your fantasy football draft boards for the weekend, turn on the tube, grab a couple of beers and enjoy the ride. It's gonna be a rockin' good time this weekend.
NOTE: As a highlight, it should be interesting to see if Alex Rodriguez can come through in the clutch this weekend, and put to rest some ghosts. Frankly, I'm not counting on it. And neither should Yankee fans.
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