The Yankees won the title this past Wednesday night, so the media has been less inclined to criticize or ignore baseball than usual of late. They’re also more likely to wrap the season up for 48 or 72 hours (instead of 24 or fewer) before moving 100% into football, instead of the 95% coverage the NFL has enjoyed since September.

But during the MLB playoffs, I did hear, nationally and locally, on TV, radio, and the blogs, that the postseason “lacked.” While it’s true no series went the distance, close to half of the 30 total games played went down the last  inning or even the final batter. The media’s consensus could not be more incorrect; this was a GREAT postseason overall.

Let’s take a look at the best games, in no particular order:

Game 3 ALDS: Anaheim at Boston

The Angels finally overcome a two-decade nightmare versus Boston by sweeping them in comeback fashion at Fenway: with three runs after two were out in the 9th, off a closer who’d never blown a postseason save.

Game 2 ALDS: Minnesota at New York

A-rod finally “gains his stripes” with a two run homer off Joe Nathan to tie the game in the 9th, then Mark Teixeira, in one of his few big hits during a subpar postseason, hits a walk-off to left in the 11th.

Game 4 NLDS: Philadelphia at Colorado

The Phillies close out the series with three in the 9th off Rockies’ closer Houston Street. This after the maligned bullpen blows a 2-1 8th inning lead, and the series looks destined to return to Philadelphia for a deciding fifth game.

Game 2 NLDS: Saint Louis at Los Angeles

Favored Cardinals are one out from tying the series on its way back to Saint Louis when Matt Holliday drops a fairly-routine fly ball, paving the way for an improbable Dodger rally off closer Ryan Franklin, capped by a walk-off single by seldom-used veteran Mark Loretta.

Game 4 NLCS: Los Angeles at Philadelphia

Dodgers are one out from a 2-2 series tie with pivotal game five on the horizon. However, Jimmy Rollins — who had a terrible postseason otherwise and was cocky to boot — splits the right centerfield gap to score two runs, giving the Phils a 3-1 series lead. They cruise in Game 5 to the pennant.

Games 2, 3 and 5 ALCS: Anaheim vs. New York

Game 2 saw Anaheim boot the ball all over the park, and blow an 11th inning lead, eventually losing in the 13th on an error in judgment by their second baseman. Rodriguez again hits a game-tying homerun to save the day for New York, this time in the 11th with two outs. Anaheim avoids pitching to him the rest of the series in close games.

In Game 3, Anaheim comes back from desperation down 3-0, ties the game, then after some questionable managerial moves by Joe Girardi, wins it on an 11th inning walk-off by their hot-hitting back-up catcher. (.533 in the playoffs)

Game 5 witnesses an early 4-0 Angels lead, then a six-run Yankee 7th as the Pinstripers move to within nine outs of the AL pennant. But Anaheim pieces together three clutch runs in the bottom of the frame, then holds on through a bases loaded, two out, full count at bat in the ninth. A spectacular game.

Game 4 World Series: New York at Philadelphia

A series changer. Phils comeback with a run in the 7th and 8th to tie Yanks, then Brad Lidge gets two quick outs in the 9th as Philadelphia looks toward the bottom of the 9th and a potential 2-2 series. Yet, down to his last strike, Johnny Damon singles, then Alex Rodriguez and Jorge Posada get back-to-back run-scoring doubles. New York puts a 3-1 stranglehold on the series as they move toward their 27th world title.

Honorable mention: Games 2 and 3 Philadelphia vs. Colorado; Game 2 Philadelphia at Los Angeles; Game 5 New York at Philadelphia.

And the best game, of course, was not a playoff game, but rather the “play-in” game on October 6 between Detroit and Minnesota. A classic if I ever saw one.

A post that we made here on Friday afternoon regarding Sammy Sosa’s shockingly white appearance (hat tip again to Jimmy Traina) kicked off a flurry of activity around the web (for example: here, here, and here) and rightfully so.

The pictures are jarring.

It’s been a while since Sammy Sosa has been in the public eye, and we all remember a much darker version of him than what we are seeing in this current pictures. (Not to mention, as Big League Stew pointed out earlier this evening, when did Sammy start wearing green contacts?)

The obvious question in the immediate aftermath of these pictures making their way around the web is, what might be the root cause of Sammy’s paleness?

I decided to do a little digging — admittedly with a hypothesis that steroid use might have something to do with it — and found some interesting information.

Note 11/9: There has been a lot of traffic to this post and some very insightful and informed comments posted. Make sure you read the comments and take into account the fact that I’m not a doctor, but just an interested observer looking for explanations and trying to address the questions/comments I’m getting and reading.

Notice that I am not saying definitively that steroid use by Sammy caused whatever issue he’s going through now. And no one knows if it’s vitiligo, “skin rejuvenation”, etc. I just decided to search for some connection on the steroids angle and open up a forum for discussion since that was a lot of people’s first instinct.

Sammy Sosa with his wife at at a Person of the Year ceremony in honor of Juan Gabriel at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas on Nov. 4. (Getty Images)

Hypothesizing that vitiligo might be the root cause of Sammy’s white appearance was a pretty obvious initial direction, and pretty much everyone who has posted about this has mentioned vitiligo (a skin disorder that claims Michael Jackson as its most famous victim).

However, I always assumed that contracting vitiligo was all based on genetics and hereditary issues. The truth, as I’ve come to learn while researching tonight, is that scientists and doctors are still unsure exactly what causes vitiligo.

The prevailing hypothesis seems to be that genetics play a major role in one’s chances of experiencing vitiligo symptoms, but there is also plenty of empirical evidence to suggest that single events and/or lifestyle choices can contribute as well.

Furthermore, there appears to be at least some evidence suggesting that steroid use could be one of the lifestyle choices that increases a person’s likelihood of becoming symptomatic with vitiligo.

Quick aside: I am obviously not a doctor, nor have I done anything more detailed than sift through various Google searches looking for a possible connection between steroids and vitiligo. I am not posting this as an explicit endorsement of the idea, but rather because I found it interesting and thought you might too. I trust you to take the information and make up your own mind.

Steroid.com, as you might expect, purports itself to be “the world’s most visited anabolic website”.  According to Quantcast, Steroid.com get around 125K visitors per month. Not too shabby, especially when the discussions center around activities that are, for the most part, illegal.

I found two forum discussions in particular that seem to suggest a possible connection:

Posted in Anabolic Steroids Q&A: White Blotches / Skin Pigmentation

Initial post: I have just finished my third cycle, after the last 2 cycles blothces on my skin, mainly my face and head have appeared, almost like loss of pigment on my skin. It begins approx 3-4 weeks after I have finished my cycle. When my face goes red from exercise or whatever these blothces are increasingly more noticeable. Does anyone have an idea what is causing this? Or can anyone recommend anything to combat it?

Forum poster response: Fluctuating hormones as the cause would be my guess. Do some google searches on vitiligo and hormones, testosterone, thyroid, etc. You’ll find some info out there.

Posted in Member’s Cycle Results: Melanotan and vitiligo

Initial post: Hi all i have a mate with vitiligo he has white hair eye brows and facial hair and white patches all over his skin. This started about 5 years ago and he has had a hard time with it!

The website Mesomorphosis.com also has a steroid forum where the topic of vitiligo has come up, in this case with a guy asking specifically about white splotches on his penis. Here is one of the responses:

in addition to the other comments here, i’d consider getting your estradiol and test levels checked, ur hormones can effect ur pheomelanin and eumelanin levels. and check if ur diet might be high in phytoestrogens or other endocrine disruptors.

Obviously I do not frequent these forums so I cannot vouch for the historical accuracy of the posters I am excerpting here. And a couple of discussions about vitiligo in a couple of steroid forums does not draw a direct line between steroid use, vitiligo, and Sammy Sosa’s apparent Michael Jackson starter kit.

However, here are a few more things that we do know about vitiligo:

From Medicine.net (and echoed numerous places elsewhere) regarding the use of anabolic steroids:

Notify your doctor if you develop: vomiting, skin color changes, swelling of the feet or ankles.

From WebMD.com regarding the prevalence of vitiligo, which is far more prevalent than I thought:

Vitiligo affects up to 2% of the population, and it is estimated that two to five million Americans have the condition. In most cases, vitiligo develops early in life, between the ages of ten and 30 years. Ninety-five per cent of those affected will develop the disorder before age 40.

For the record, Sammy Sosa turns 41 on November 12th of this year.

And finally, from MayoClinic.com regarding one of the common treatments of vitiligo, which will sound familiar to many Michael Jackson fans:

Depigmentation may be an option for you if you have vitiligo that covers more than half of your skin. Depigmentation therapy lightens the unaffected parts of your skin to match the areas that have already turned white. For this treatment, you apply a medication called monobenzene ether of hydroquinone twice a day to the areas of your skin that still have pigment. Treatment continues until the darker areas of your skin match the already-depigmented areas.

Ultimately, the only conclusion I can make is that there really is no definite conclusion to make. All we have are pictures to go off of. And while they may say 1,000 words, they aren’t telling us specifically what is going on with Sammy’s skin color.

Certainly the general consensus of the sports blogosphere is that Sammy is dealing with vitiligo or something like it, but we’re sports bloggers…not doctors.

I’ve tried my best to do some learning tonight so that I can at least discuss the topic in an informed manner, which I feel an obligation to do since I helped to give the story some momentum earlier this afternoon.

For me, the most intriguing question is if we will find out anything regarding whether Sammy’s confirmed steroid use might have contributed to whatever he is dealing with now.  Something tells me we won’t, and that this story will fade as we move into the weekend and get distracted by football.

However, if there is a connection, can you imagine how powerful of a statement to young athletes Sammy Sosa could make without even saying a word?

If the road this story ultimately travels manifests some connection between steroids and vitiligo (or skin pigmentation changes in general), it will just add one more layer in the case that can be made to young people imploring them to stay away from PEDs.

There is a certain level of vanity required for someone to make the decision to use steroids. No one with any semblance of vanity can look at these pictures of Sammy Sosa and not be both shocked and a little horrified.

Then again, maybe Sammy had dressed up as a vampire for Halloween the weekend before these pictures were taken and just hadn’t showered yet. For his sake, I hope so.

I just doubt it strongly, along with everyone else I’ve seen post about this tonight.

Update 9/9: The Chicago Tribune got ahold of a former Cubs employee who is still in contact with Sosa and says that Sammy is “not trying to be Michael Jackson.” Rather, he is supposedly going through a skin rejuvenation process that “women have…all of the time.”

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* – Sammy Sosa photo credit: Getty Images via Big League Stew

After reading this tweet and following the link supplied by Jimmy Traina, I had to quickly post this.

Does anyone know what is going on with Sammy Sosa?

As Traina’s tweet wonders, did Sosa get a facelift? Botox? Is he possibly dealing with vitiligo (the disease Michael Jackson suffered from that causes splotches of pigment-less skin)?

I am wondering if any of our readers knows of an explanation for Sosa’s drastically altered appearance.

Update: here is a link to our subsequent post on this topic, exploring a hypothesis that Sammy’s new pale look could be the result of vitiligo-like symptoms caused by steroid use.

This is clearly not a lighting issue or anything of that nature. Sosa looks completely different, and you can see him here and here at the same event in different light.

Despite the fact that I hate the Cubs and never was a Sosa fan, I’m not posting this to poke fun at Sammy. It just completely took me aback when I saw the pictures and I wanted to share. I imagine post people’s reaction will be similar and I’m hoping someone can shed some light on the reasoning or explanation behind it.

I don’t really know what else to say.

Quick update: Just sent this post over to my co-worker and his first reaction was to say, “that’s not Sammy Sosa! It must be photoshopped.” I thought so too at first, expect that the links supplied above show Sosa looking the same in pictures taken by many different photographers.

Here is a bigger version of the thumbnail picture above:

Another quick update. Here is a picture that was just sent to me of Sammy Sosa from May of 2009. He’s obviously a little more plump than we remember him (which is to be suspected), but you can see the obvious difference in his skin pigmentation:

One possible explanation posited by a number of readers: a really bad makeup job. I suppose that is possible, although if you look at this picture in particular, his hand is same color as his face. Why would he get makeup on his hand? Not sure the makeup explanation really flies.

Update 9/9: The Chicago Tribune got ahold of a former Cubs employee who is still in contact with Sosa and says that Sammy is “not trying to be Michael Jackson.” Rather, he is supposedly going through a skin rejuvenation process that “women have…all of the time.”

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* – Sammy Sosa looking white photo credit: PRN / PR Photos via Exposay.com

* – Sammy Sosa in May photo credit: Reuters via DayLife

I need not recap the past five games too much, since TV ratings, as expected, have been extraordinary.

I think any baseball fan (not of the Yankees, I suppose) is happy we’ll see a World Series Game Six for the first time since 2003, due primarily to AJ Burnett’s ineffectiveness on three days rest, and of course, the magical bat of one Chase Utley.

I picked the Phillies in five, especially after they split in New York, and was wrong.

I find it amazing that, especially coming into the late innings of Game Four, three of the Yanks best players — Teixeira, Cano, Rodriguez — were all hitting under .100 in the series, and yet the Yanks were on their way to a 3-1 lead.

I guess that means New York has outpitched Philly, recorded the outs when needed, caught the balls when necessary, had the key choppers and flares find holes or drop (especially Damon, Posada and Jeter, sans Monday night in the 9th), and that Ryan Howard, MVP of the NLCS, has done nothing offensively — other than tie the World Series record for strikeouts in just five games.

Considering this background, I think Philadelphia will lose the series, because:

1. Their bullpen simply won’t be able to hold late leads on the road. They were awful much of the season, decent in the first two rounds, but reverted backwards in Games Four and Five. If Madson, Lidge and others struggled in front of a supportive crowd, how will they fare in a hostile Bronx versus a delirious crowd hungering for their first world title in a decade? Not well, my friends.

2. Charlie Manuel, who, in 48 hours has gone from genius to moron, then back to genius, won’t bruise Ryan Howard’s ego and rightly hit him 5th or 6th Wednesday night. The big first baseman clearly won’t touch Andy Pettitte or C.C. Sabathia; meanwhile, Jayson Werth hit two homeruns off Pettitte in Game Three, and therefore should hit 4th. Otherwise, Howard will be a liability and extend his record for Ks in a world series/postseason. He has 21 punchouts in 45 lifetime World Series at bats. That’s really, really bad.

Throwing Pedro Martinez in Game Six, considering his mostly-solid work in Game Two, is a no-brainer, as is throwing Andy Pettitte, who won Game Six for New York vs. Anaheim.

But what about Game Seven?

The Yanks will turn to Sabathia, which is hard to argue, but for Philly? Cole Hamels is an emotional wreck, and J.A. Happ has 28 career big league starts.

As for the Yankee bullpen, Damaso Marte will be used as much as possible, plus Mariano Rivera, who, overall, has been his usual self. The rest of the Yankee pen has been underwhelming.

Yanks in…seven.

I think Pettitte loses Game Six, or does not get a decision. Two of his four starts this postseason has been substandard, and three days rest will be difficult for the 37 year old Louisianan. But Sabathia gives New York enough on Thursday night — especially with the impending indecision on Philly’s starter – to give the Yankees their 27th world championship.

Johnny Damon — six hits in the last two games — will keep chugging along, and is named MVP. (Though, naturally, this morning on ESPN radio, Buster Olney and Mike Greenberg mused that if Chase Utley homers tonight — thereby breaking Reggie Jackson’s record for dingers in a Fall Classic — he should get strong consideration for MVP, especially if no one on the Yanks has a big night, and Rivera gets an easy save in a 6-2 or 5-1 victory. I disagree for reasons I need not enumerate.)

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* – Charlie Manuel photo credit: Chris Gardner/Getty Images via About.com

Have you been paying attention to the Major League Baseball Playoffs? If so, and you’re a present or former Cleveland Indians Fan, you have noticed the ridiculous amount of former Indians playing outstanding baseball.

Meanwhile, Cleveland Indians owner Larry Dolan can’t figure out why the Indians’ attendance has plummeted since the Dick Jacobs days.

Here is a hint Larry: you have only paid Grady Sizemore, and that is it.

The Indians produce a mediocre team year in and year out, and the fans day by day miss Dick Jacobs more and more.

The title, “If You Pay Them, They Will Come” means that if you pay the players you let go, your fans would appear in groves to Progressive Field. With the talent you let go and that is currently stretched across the eight teams that made this year’s playoffs, you too would be contending for a World Series title.

Think about the revenue that you would be raking in having playoff games at the Jake, sorry, Progressive Field. It would be insane. Look back at the mid-90s numbers that the Jake was bringing in.

The numbers are staggering.

From 1995 through 2001, the Cleveland Indians averaged over 41,000 in attendance per game.  From 2002 through 2008 your average game attendance plummeted to a dismal 22,800, nearly a 50% reduction!

Game one of the 2009 World Series appears headed for a matchup of Cliff Lee versus C.C. Sabathia. Does that not make you sick!?

Your back-to-back Cy Young award winners that you let waltz out the door.

It is no coincidence that these two aces helped carry their respective teams to the playoffs and beyond, and you had them both!!!

Click here for the remainder of the Cleveland Indians currently playing in the playoffs and sound off your frustrations!!

Kurt Fraschetti / ProFootballinsight.net
Kurt@ProFootballinsight.net

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* – C.C. Sabathia photo credit: AP via Newsday

* – Cliff Lee photo credit: The Zo Zone

[Writers's Note: As someone raised in southern California who attended dozens of Angels games during his college years, including two playoff games in 2002, I will refer to the Angels' city as Anaheim, not Los Angeles nor "Los Angeles of Anaheim."]

No doubt we have the two best teams in the AL — perhaps in baseball — playing for the American League pennant.

The New York Yankees surpassed 100 wins this season and reclaimed the AL East as their own. The Anaheim Angels continued their dominance of the AL West with another 90+ win season and division title.

Fans should be ecstatic to see this quality matchup.

It also presents many story lines.

[Editor's note: Before we get to the storylines, listen to AJ's appearance on the MSF podcast previewing the ALCS and NLCS. Below you will also find info regarding how the Yankees and Angels fared this season, plus the TV schedule, and probable pitching matchups.]

Midwest Sports Talk Podcast: ALCS & NLCS Preview

2009 ALCS: New York Yankees v Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

• Yankees-Angels season series: 5-5
• Regular season records: Yankees 103-59 | Angels 97-65
• Regular season run differential: Yankees +162 | Angels +122
• Official Websites: New York Yankees | Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
• StubHub: Yankees-Angels ALCS Tickets as low as $102 (for games in New York)
• RazorGator: Yankees-Angels ALCS Tickets
• TickCo: Yankees-Angels ALCS Tickets Save $10 on Orders of $150 or More at TickCo (code = Minus10)

Yankees-Angels ALCS TV Schedule and Pitching Matchups

Yankees-Angels ALCS Preview and Analysis

In the Division Series, both teams exorcised demons of various kinds. It’s well-known that the Angels had never beaten the Red Sox in the postseason, and had seen their season end at Boston’s hands the past two Octobers and three of the last five. That Anaheim took Boston in sweeping fashion, in come-from-behind-style at Fenway for the clincher, after dominating in California, was perfect.

The Yankees had owned the Twins in postseason play this decade. However, in terms of a hurdle somewhat akin to Anaheim’s, you’d never know with all the media praise and accolades, that New York had not won a postseason series since 2004 before Sunday’s win.

That was their hurdle, folks. And it just might be a stat worth nothing, but ESPN, TBS and MLB.com passed, at least as far as I heard.

In any event, nearly half of baseball (14 of 30 teams, by my count — so much for lack of parity;  see one-third of the 2009 NFL teams being awful for that) had won a postseason series since the Yanks last did, versus Minnesota five years ago, nonetheless.

I’m not discounting the triumph, New  York’s good starting pitching, or A-rod’s recrudescence, but the Yanks have not won a postseason series from someone other than the Twins since the 2003 miracle versus Boston. The Angels are not the Twins. While Minnesota is arguably the 6th or 7th best team in the stacked AL, Anaheim is at worst second best to NY this year, better in the minds of many.

Minnesota, thanks to bullpen implosions, base-running blunders and one horrible umpiring call in the left field corner, gave the Yanks Game Two and conceivably lost a winnable Game Three due to similar mishaps. While the Yanks starting pitching was better than expected, they fell behind in all three games against a team whose lineup is full of guys making less than a million bucks that few outside of baseball know (and a batting champ).

Additionally, New York needed late homers to tie Games Two and Three; so, since no one else is telling the truth, the Yankees did little to impress (me) aside from AJ Burnett, Andy Pettitte and Rodriguez. C.C. Sabathia, who will pitch Game One Friday night in the Bronx, was good, but this workhorse also could not get through the 7th. The team hit just .225. The usually tough NYC media hardly noticed, ebullient in praise and platitudes, as if this were a Barack Obama speech.

Will C.C. survive against his next, much tougher foe? Considering the love he’s receiving (nearly 65% agree he should start Games 1, 4 and 7), I am apparently insane, but his eight hits allowed over 6.2 laborious innings versus a team that was half-asleep did not impress me.

Now New York is, at time of this publication, toying with the idea of using the big guy (along with Burnett and Pettitte) in a three-man rotation. While heavy rain and cold may make this moot, there are historic pros and cons to such a move.

Again, I’d add, since no one else will, that Sabathia has allowed 16 hits in his last 9.1 innings pitched, with 11 runs allowed, six earned. Statistically, he’s not exactly hitting his stride, but local observers, ignore this, and feel he’s at his peak?

Factually, Sabathia was 0-2 with an ERA over six against the Angels this season. His career ERA vs. Anaheim is close to five and he’s lost seven of 12 decisions.

{A local talk host here in Indianapolis, who hails from the northeast and is a confessed Yankee fan was quite honest Tuesday afternoon. He claimed ESPN, which thankfully is not televising playoff games anymore, is so biased, so pathetically pro-Boston and New York, that it will be “unbearable” to watch their pro-Yankee analysis the next week or two. Just a heads up.}

The crux of the matter heading into Friday, for me, is this:

Rarely, if ever, in my 25 years watching baseball have I witnessed a team facing an easier postseason matchup than the Yanks in Round One.

Minnesota was a .500 team through mid-September; they were playing without their second best player (the 2006 AL MVP), and their top starter did not pitch at all since they used him during last Tuesday’s play-in marathon. The Twins had to play that five hour thriller just to get into the playoffs, then, due to a scheduling quirk, fly to New York, arriving about 12 hours before Game One with a rookie pitcher going.

Yet, Minnesota still somehow managed to take a 2-0 lead in that tilt, then fatigue set in, during the only game they lost semi-convincingly. The Yanks, hungry and rested, took on a team they regularly handle (and did so seven times in 2009), while the Twins’ franchise had lost four (now five) playoff series in a row and now eight straight playoff home games.

Most startlingly, the Yanks trailed in every game, and needed last at bat heroics, poor Twin base running, bullpen implosions and an all-time terrible umpiring call to eke out Game Two at home, and in many ways, needed some of the same in Game Three. Were the Twins just happy to be in? Perhaps, but the Yankees could not have had a worse prep for the powerful Angels.

While playing the Twinkies gave New York no favors, playing Boston primed the Angels. I surmise Yankee Nation was so desperate to finally win a playoff series that they overlooked how simple this first task should’ve been in 2009.

The Angels stellar offense features high-priced talent, patient hitters like motivated ex-Yankee Bobby Abreu and other veteran leadership. Anaheim also has top notch managing, camaraderie, clutch players, and much else. They will be more than formidable. The Angels were vulnerable in April and May, reeling from the loss of a young teammate, three major starting pitching injuries and a hot Texas Ranger team. They stymied that, and succeeded, as good teams do. Down to their last strike versus Boston, this very complete, mostly homegrown team, could’ve packed it in and awaited Game 4; they did not.

In terms of nuts and bolts, both teams are very deep hitting-wise. The Yanks have more power, while the Halos showcase more reliable guys who can put the ball in play and set the table for the power men and especially steal bases, which will be key. The Yanks have three guys who pitched solidly in round one, but that was against the Twins crew, not Anaheim’s lineup of .300 hitters.

Though the Yanks fancy a three-man rotation, I should still note that New York’s fourth starter is a major question mark. Joba Chamberlain looked passable in brief work, while Phil Hughes was awful in two of three appearances. Mariano Rivera was ultimately Mariano Rivera success-wise, yet allowed four hits in three innings pitched. Surely he’s  superior to Angel closer Brain Fuentes, though Brian sailed through the division series, especially at Fenway when he was needed most.

The Angels might be concerned with the ineffectiveness of Scott Kazmir , while Joe Saunders, winner of 16 games in 2009 and scheduled to pitch Game Four in Boston, will now go in Game Two on the road. Both could factor in positively against the left-handed-dominated Yankee lineup. Anaheim is wise to one lefty Saunders at New York to neutralize the Yanks’ left-handed power at the lefty-friendly Yankee Stadium.

Jered Weaver and John Lackey are obviously a tremendous one-two punch no matter where they throw. Lackey is experienced, clutch and confident. The big Texan will oppose Sabathia in the opener Friday night; Weaver will throw in Game Three back home, with Kazmir to follow. Anaheim has serious starting pitching depth.

I confess looking to prior series in order to analyze the upcoming one can be futile, especially when baseball is the most unpredictable of all sports, therefore one must look at how the Yanks won 103 games this season and the Angels 97. Both teams are very, very good. There are numerous storylines, of course, but consider these stats:

The teams split ten games in the regular season, though the Yanks won three of the last four.

New York is 63-73 vs. Angels since 1996, playing especially poor in Orange County. The Yankee team ERA is five during that stretch.

And while it’s well-known that the Yanks were eliminated in 2002 and 2005 by Anaheim, some forget they beat the Angels in the opening game during both of those five-game series.  The Angels won’t fear playing or falling behind on New York’s big stage, as they tied the Phillies for most road wins in 2009, with 48 triumphs in 81 tries.

So far, as the sheltered NY media is wont to do, they have paid lip service to Anaheim’s dominance of the Pinstripers. Aside from a short Thursday morning assessment in the Daily News, even when they try to make serious lists of why the Yanks will take the series, they come off cliché and silly. (To be fair, so have the Angels writers.)They do so at their own (team’s) ”peril.”

I prefer not to make predictions, but as you can see, I have a hunch here about one “special” team. And though I’m disinclined to guess how grown men will perform on an athletic field, especially baseball, as you can see last week, unlike most in the east/midwest, I was confident in the Halos handling Boston. If the Angels perform to their potential, a Freeway Series may indeed beckon in 2009.  Heck, John Wooden hopes so. Can’t go wrong with the birthday boy.

What can you say about this year’s L.A. Dodgers?

They dominated their division and most of their league all season, yet were overlooked, as many (wrongly) felt they played in a weak division. (See the NL Wild Card winner two of the past three seasons.) They then closed the regular campaign by scuffling during the season’s final fortnight and received intense criticism.

Most, including local writers, therefore picked Los Angeles to lose to the potent St. Louis Cardinals in the Division Series. Instead, now that they’ve swept a stellar NL central champ for the second year in a row, the Dodgers are set to host the Philadelphia Phillies Thursday night in a rematch of the 2008 NLCS.

[Editor's note: Before we get to the storylines, listen to AJ's appearance on the MSF podcast previewing the ALCS and NLCS. Below you will also find info regarding how the Phillies and Dodgers fared this season, plus the TV schedule, and probable pitching matchups.]

Midwest Sports Talk Podcast: ALCS & NLCS Preview

2009 NLCS: Philadelphia Phillies vs. Los Angeles Dodgers

• Phillies-Dodgers season series: 4-3 Dodgers
• Regular season records: Phillies 93-69 | Dodgers 95-67
• Regular season run differential: Phillies +111 | Dodgers +169
• Official Websites: Philadelphia Phillies | Los Angeles Dodgers
• StubHub: Dodgers-Phillies NLCS tickets (games in LA)
• StubHub: Dodgers-Phillies NLCS tickets (games in Philly)
• RazorGator: Phillies-Dodgers NLCS Tickets
• TickCo: Phillies-Dodgers NLCS tickets Save $10 on Orders of $150 or More at TickCo (code = Minus10)

Phillies-Dodgers NLCS TV Schedule and Pitching Matchups

Phillies-Dodgers NLCS Preview and Analysis

Revenge is no doubt on their mind as Charlie Manuel’s crew upended L.A. on their way to the 2008 World Championship.

Unlike last season, the 2009 Dodgers have home field and momentum it seems, and no doubt their crowd is also ready. But the Phillies tied the Angels for most road wins in 2009, with 48 triumphs in 81 tries. They won both in Denver earlier this week to make it 50 of 83 this season.

The overused cliché is that “pitching wins championships.” And while, like defense in football and basketball, this is mostly true, hitting also helps.

The Dodgers and Phillies have BY FAR the best lineups in the NL, thereby aiding their cause through October last year and so far in 2009.

An upgrade over 2008, however, L.A. now has a staff full of lefty starters, and Philly’s power, for the most part, comes from the left-hand side in Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, a resurgent Jimmy Rollins and newcomer Raul Ibanez.

Howard, he of the near 200 punch outs each season, is particularly woeful vs. lefties. On the other hand, Utley and Ibanez, apt to contact like most other Philly hitters, are equally effective hitters no matter the pitcher.

Negatively, the first four hitters in Philly’s lineup all hit under .200 against LA in 2009. Ryan Howard hit .107. Philadelphia, though they hit over .300 in the Colorado series, only hit .258 as a team this year, eighth in the NL.

That notwithstanding, there’s hardly a team in baseball with more power, hitting versatility, and depth than the squad from the City of Brotherly Love. The Phillies are also confident, as any defending champ would be.

The Dodgers power is equally distributed, with Matt Kemp and the mercurial Manny Ramirez from the right and Andre Ethier and James Loney on the left. (Ethier, unlike Loney, struggles mightily against left-handers, hitting under .200 for the season.) Switch-hitting sparkplug Rafael Furcal, catcher Russell Martin, and veteran Casey Blake aren’t slouches either.  But they’ll have to face mostly lefties too, especially the gutsy Cliff Lee, who was remarkable last round against the Rockies, throwing a complete game his first time out, and allowing just three hits after the game’s first two batters his second turn.

Removing the workhouse from Arkansas, who will rest up for Game Three Sunday, after 105 pitches with one out in the seventh Monday night, may have been Charlie Manuel’s only questionable decision this series, as overall, he was great. Only one intrepid reporter I read asked why Scott Eyre (four hits and a run in just one total inning pitched this week) and Ryan Madson (blown saves back to back nights) were used in such situations Monday evening. Winning and celebrating like children tend to dissipate the media’s ire.

Which leads us to more on the bullpens:

The Dodgers bullpen is so talented and deep that blessed Joe Torre can afford to be impatient and pull starters early, as he did with Randy Wolf against Saint Louis and very well may again. At game’s end, with big Jonathan Broxton and veteran George Sherrill appearing to be a lock-down stoppers for L.A., the biggest question in this series will again be the Philadelphia bullpen.

A Philly friend of mine mocked me Monday morning for my mid-September pronouncement that Brad Lidge was psychologically “done.” I may have been guilty of hyperbole then, as I’d just seen him look awful in blowing a save to Florida, but a shaky save in Game Three for Lidge – two walks, some hard hit balls — did little to quell the nerves of Philly Nation, I’d assume…until perhaps Game Four. Then again, with Manuel choosing to apply Bullpen by Committee in that game’s 9th inning,  it could be suggested he only trusted Lidge to throw sliders to get one out against a right-hander. Nonetheless, the man who was perfect in 2008 had to augment the confidence of Philadelphia significantly over 24 hours in the cold of Denver, as the team moves west to the warmth of Los Angeles.

I personally am not someone who puts a huge deal of stock in the “magical closer” come October. As a Yankee fan-friend noted via email to me late Monday night:

“Nathan, Papelbon, and now Street — proving my point that the “closer” is the most over-rated position in sports. Most Yankee fans would say “except for Mariano,” but not me — he’s blown it big time before and can do it again.”

For the starters, Cole Hamels and J.A. Happ were not good against Colorado, yet Philly, due to their immense power and clutch hitting, took three of four. (2008 World Series MVP Hamels will toe the rubber Thursday night.) If these two lefties, combined with the amazing Lee, are on, the Dodgers will be in some trouble. The “Wild Card” for the Phillies is now future Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez, who starts Game Two.

L.A.’s starters are not necessarily as good on paper as Philadelphia’s, as who knows if NLCS Game Two starter Vicente Padilla and Game 4 starter Wolf can be consistent, or if Chad Billingsley is in shape to start or even be in the bullpen. However, playoff veteran John Garland and/or Hiroki Kuroda, back from injury, who beat the Phillies in last year’s playoffs, are also in the Dodgers’ deep starting pitching mix. Kuroda is slated to start Game 3 in Pennsylvania. Twenty-one year-old Texan Clayton Kershaw, the “X Factor,” who handcuffed the Cards last week, will throw in the opener.

There are many other noteworthy storylines and theories to ponder. Like in the AL, weather could also affect pitching rotations. (I’d love to link some of the analysis from ESPN.com, but since they’re the only website/network that charges to access material, this won’t occur. You can read some of Page 2’s lunacy for free. Let me know if you compehend the gobbledygook, because I do not.)

With the first “Freeway Series” now a distinct possibility, the Dodgers seem to exude confidence, especially in a year where revenge seems to be a popular theme across both leagues. The Phils have more starpower, but Los Angeles has a better relief corps and, like the Angels, seems to be on an unstoppable role.

Either way, like the ALCS, this series should be “epic,” and that’s good for baseball.

Separate tidbits:

I love baseball, often blindly so, but despite playoff ratings being way up this October, I need to make some recommendations/gripes for 2009:

1. The postseason umpiring, for a rare time, has been atrocious, to put it mildly.

I need not enumerate all the instances, but anyone watching has seen it. I don’t recall ever seeing so many blatantly poor calls, and many other very questionable ones — not to mention inconsistent strike zones aplenty. Many of us are just now realizing that Major League Baseball does NOT utilize a merit system for selecting playoff umpires, but rather a generic rotation.

That might need to change.

Implementing replay for fair and foul ball calls — not balls/strikes, nor outs at bases — is a decent start after a blown call basically cost Minnesota a game in New York Friday night. That way you won’t have the league’s worst umpire, CB Bucknor, calling crucial games, with fans already bracing for his ineptness.

2. The playoff format needs amending.  No, not shortening the postseason due to normal October weather patterns, but rather, the first round must be best of seven, even if that means shortening the regular season back to 154 games. These three game sweeps/short series are ludicrous and robs fans of seeing “the best” teams for more than an extremely short period. Ask the Athletics of 2000-2003, Twins of 2003-2004, 2006 and 2009, Angels of 2004 and 2007-2008, Cubs of 2007-2008, Yanks of 2002 and 2005-2007, the Red Sox of 2005 and 2009 or the Cardinals of 2009.

3. These preset long layoffs between series are annoying. Start the League Championship Series and World Series within 48 hours of the matchup being set, as the long layoffs really hurt teams’ momentum. See the Rockies of 2007 for the best example, but there are many others recently. Fans who can afford tickets can adjust their plans. It also wastes gas — see Anaheim and Philly this year doing three cross-country flights this past week. I think Al Gore would agree too.

The crisp fall air, the drama of a one-on-one matchup between hitter and pitcher — ahhh, you have to love it.

Time to preview the National League Championship Series, which features a rematch of last year’s NLCS between the Phillies and Dodgers.

[Editor's note: Before we get to the pertinent betting info, listen to AJ Kaufman's appearance on the MSF podcast previewing the ALCS and NLCS.]

Midwest Sports Talk Podcast: ALCS & NLCS Preview

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES VS LOS ANGELES DODGERS

Best-of-seven series starts Thursday, October 15, 8:07 p.m. ET

Sportsbook odds: Phillies +105, Dodgers -125

The Phillies may have baseball’s deepest roster in every regard.

Amazingly, Ryan Howard, Raul Ibanez, Jayson Werth and Jimmy Rollins gave the City of Brotherly love four of the NL’s top 15 home-run leaders this year. There are simply no easy outs in the lineup and, as Werth and Howard showed the Colorado Rockies, almost every batter is a game-changing hit waiting to happen.

Worse yet for the opposition, speedy Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino are usually on base when the big guys connect on a fastball.

The Phillies also have virtually unparalleled rotation depth. Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels give them a potent one-two punch but J.A. Happ and Joe Blanton are no slouches. If Philly needs a fifth starter, they have some guy named Pedro.

The Dodgers counter with a ragtag group.

Clayton Kershaw is outstanding but Randy Wolf is due to lay an egg after a remarkably consistent season. How much fairy dust does Vicente Padilla have left? He seemed finished before the Dodgers snagged him from the depths of hell in the summer and he hasn’t lost since. Whereas the Dodgers have to hope their overachievers will keep overachieving, the Phillies have reliable arms.

Offensively, the Dodgers’ lineup is nothing to sneeze at either; Andre Ethier and Manny Ramirez have a knack for clutch hits and Matt Kemp was a legit MVP candidate this season. Still, as good as the Dodger bats are, they can’t quite match the Phillies’ potent group.

The bullpen was a concern for the Phillies in the regular season, with Brad Lidge sporting an astronomical ERA and looking nothing like his champion self of a year ago. He quieted concerns with a two-save performance in the NLDS, so the Phillies may be OK in that regard, but they can’t hold a candle to the Dodgers’ pen. Los Angeles has strikeout machine Jonathan Broxton and reliable setup man George Sherrill anchoring what was baseball’s best group of relievers this season.

While betting services experts are leaning toward the Dodgers, I’d be careful if I were you.

Think about it; they should’ve been tied 1-1 with St. Louis but Matt Holliday dropped the final out. They would’ve faced Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright again in Games 4 and 5 and easily could’ve lost the series. They’re a good team, but they got some luck in the NLDS and they’re depending on a shaky rotation. In a best-of-seven series, the deeper team should persevere.

MLB pick: Phillies

Apparently, this series was inevitable.

Neither the New York Yankees nor the Angels had any trouble disposing of their first round foes, the Twins and Red Sox, respectively.

It sets up a meeting between the AL’s two most consistent teams in 2009, and one that should be far more interesting than the ho-hum ALDS series that we just witnessed.

Here is your quick preview of the Yankees-Angels ALCS, with the TV schedule, pitching matchups, and some other resources for you:

2009 ALCS: New York Yankees v Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

• Yankees-Angels season series: 5-5
• Regular season records: Yankees 103-59 | Angels 97-65
• Regular season run differential: Yankees +162 | Angels +122
• Official Websites: New York Yankees | Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
• StubHub: Yankees-Angels ALCS Tickets as low as $102 (for games in New York)
• RazorGator: Yankees-Angels ALCS Tickets
• TickCo: Yankees-Angels ALCS Tickets Save $10 on Orders of $150 or More at TickCo (code = Minus10)

Yankees-Angels ALCS TV Schedule and Pitching Matchups

On Wednesday afternoon, the postseason finally gets underway just as crisp weather spreads through the Midwest. After a semi-lackluster September ended another memorable campaign, the final few days were intense, especially in the AL Central, where we enjoyed a four and a half hour Tuesday night “play-in” classic that had everything a sports fan could desire.

To me, 2009 does not give a clear favorite for the title.

No, the Yankees, despite their 103  wins, are not a shoo-in. They have not won a playoff series since 2004; therefore, no matter their lineup, they need to prove it in October 2009.

I should elaborate that NO ONE can predict baseball, especially at playoff time, and that’s the beauty. History has proven that anything can happen, and unlike other sports with crooked, homecooked officiating (NBA, NHL), umpires RARELY decide a baseball playoff game.

Also dissimilar to the NBA, where the team with the most superstars usually wins, between pitching, the mental aspects of the game, and other variables, we have no idea what will occur in the coming weeks. Often the teams playing the worst coming in, succeed in the end. Momentum can mean very little. Just look at Octobers past.

Therefore, these are previews, sans prognostications.

Football is on hiatus for a few days, so turn your sports attention to October baseball. If Tuesday night’s four hour festivities were any indication, it’ll be magical as always.

I will return with LCS previews on the 14th but for now, LDS previews, which will be coming one-by-one this evening and linked below as posted:

• Cardinals-Dodgers LDS Preview, TV Schedule, and Pitching Matchups
• Rockies-Phillies LDS Preview, TV Schedule, and Pitching Matchups
• Red Sox-Angels LDS Preview, TV Schedule, and Pitching Matchups
• Twins-Yankees LDS Preview, TV Schedule, and Pitching Matchups

 Now, related but not germane to the preview, some ancillary points worth noting:

1. Yes, the playoffs will undoubtedly run into November this year, so be ready for baseball-hating pundits to note this (and other misleading claims) angrily. Then remember that baseball has the shortest postseason of the four major sports, with round one being just a paltry three out of five. Ask the Yankees (2002, 2005-2007), the Angels (2004, 2007-2008) and the Cubs of 2007-2008 about how quick October can end. I say make it best of seven, and if necessary, shorten the season back to 154 games.

1a. The bulk of playoff games will start BEFORE 8pm, all of them once we hit the LCS and World Series. That’s good for those of us in the eastern time zone. Major League Baseball has even been sagacious enough to start the west coast LDS games by 9:30pm eastern time, rather than 10 or 10:30pm. All NFL primetime games start AFTER 8:30pm, yet no one complains.

2. Despite what the “competitive balance” pundits say, baseball has had 14 different teams in the World Series this decade, while pro football has had 13, pro basketball just ten. (Only the Red Sox (2), Cardinals (2) and Yankees (3) have played in multiple Fall Classics this decade. The “greedy” Yankees have not been there in six seasons. Small market Tampa and Colorado have. Miniscule payroll Minnesota has won (or tied) their division title SIX times this decade!) The last four World Series have seen eight different teams participate in them.

So, while cries of “what about Pittsburgh and Kansas City” may reign from your baseball-hating friends stuck in 1994 or from ESPN, there’s not much weight behind it anymore in terms of those stats…though I will confess that fans in Philadelphia, New York, Boston and both Los Angeles clubs should realize their teams’ annual playoff appearances are aided by their immense payrolls.

Let’s also acknowledge that over a mentally grueling 162 games, the cream should rise to the crop. The NBA has some really, really bad teams each season in just half that amount of games. But no, in 2007, baseball had NO teams play below .400 ball; and no one played .600 ball. That is remarkable. In 2008, just two teams played .600 ball, with just three playing under .400 ball. And in 2009, since the Orioles used some old “Magic,” ONLY the Nationals, who by the way won their final seven contests, lost 100 games, while only the Yanks won 100. One team played .600 ball and just three played under .400 ball (two barely). And heck, the Nats also took two of three from the Yankees in New York back in mid-June. The Pirates, second worst in the NL, took three of four from the Dodgers (best in NL) just last week. This does not happen in other sports.

Recall the NFL, as of now in 2009, has seven or eight REALLY BAD teams. How many does baseball have? Three or four max.

3. Despite all this, baseball is still very popular. Consider all the negative attention (steroids, competitive balance, lack of coverage in comparison to football or basketball) and the variables against it (long season, weather, tenor of game in age of impatience, climax of season during NFL opening, etc), one might be amazed to know baseball broke attendance records each season from 2004 through 2007. 

With the Detroit Tigers reeling and its months-long grip on first place quickly dwindling, you would think that the Tigers’ players would be extra focused. 

More video work, more work in the cage, extra stretching…whatever each player needs to play at his best.

Certainly, as a fan or if I were a manager, I’d at least expect my team’s players to be well rested and, you know, not hungover and in jail until 8:00 on the morning of a huge game.

Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers, it seems, would not agree.

You may have seen the pictures of Miguel Cabrera’s scratched face, and you may have heard the rumors about Cabrera being out late drinking, then getting into a fight with his wife early on Saturday morning, and ending up in jail.

Turns out that Cabrera’s explanation for the scratches (”my dog did it!”) doesn’t quite jive with reality.

From the Detroit Free-Press:

Miguel Cabrera might be the Tigers’ first baseman on the field. But off the field early Saturday morning, he was one of the boys out too late with his buddies, according to the Birmingham Police.

The buddies were players from the Chicago White Sox, who Cabrera was partying with after Friday night’s game at Birmingham’s Townsend Hotel, Birmingham Police Chief Richard Patterson said.

But when he got home, his wife wasn’t happy he’d been out drinking so late, Patterson said. Roseann Cabrera called 911 at 6:05 a.m. to report the two were fighting, according to reports.

For some reason, the fact that Cabrera was out with White Sox players makes me laugh.

We’ve always known that Ozzie Guillen loves and admires the Twins; who knew that he’d send his players out for a late night carousing session with the Tigers’ best hitter on the even of their biggest games of the season!?

(For the record, because you never know how people will take things, don’t read the above statement too literally, as I’m sure Ozzie had nothing to do with it.)

But hey, at least Cabrera came through in the clutch for the Tigers this weekend. Needing to win two games to avoid having to play in a one-game playoff against the Twins, Cabrera led to the Tigers to just one victory with his sterling 0-11 performance.

Well done Miguel.

Your team is counting on its best hitter to have a good series, and your reeling city is counting on its sports teams to give it some sort of positive diversion. You decide to go out drinking, wind up in jail, and go 0-11.

If you’re going to be a clown, at least be one who gets a few hits and drives in a few runs.

Your teammates and city, I’m sure, are greatly appreciative of your efforts.

Update: For some good perspective on this story, our buddy J. Ellet Lambie over at Eye of the Tigers has an excellent post on the subject.

Update: The audio of the 911 call has been released (hat tip to The Big Lead). Keep in mind, Cabrera reportedly blew a .26 on a breathalyzer, the woman on the line is Cabrera’s wife, and this is at 6:00 am on the morning of one of the Tigers’ most important games since Cabrera signed his $100+ million contract. Jason at The Big Lead is right. This is sad. Miguel Cabrera may have more than just a weight problem.

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* – Miguel Cabrera photo credit: Julian H. Gonzalez – Detroit Free Press

Just made my morning jaunt over to Deadspin and caught a fascinating video that shows Joe Mauer blatantly tipping pitches to Jason Kubel during the Twins-Tigers series.

Mauer is on second base with Justin Verlander pitching. The cat and mouse game, exquisitely captioned by whoever created the video, is a rare glimpse into the game-within-the-game that can be so often overlooked when watching a baseball game.

For some reason, all I can think about right now is how much I would love to hear Hawk Harrelson announcing this sequence.

Video after the jump.

The video (hat tip to Deadspin) is taken from the game two nights ago on September 29th when the Tigers, led by a strong start from Verlander, beat the Twins 6-5. It shows how the Twins got their second run of the game, in the 6th inning, on a sacrifice fly from Kubel.

Mauer finished 1-5 for on the night with a double and an RBI, and as the video captions describe, he probably should have been credited with 1.5 RBIs for his work at second base.

Watch how the catcher keeps calling for new signs or calling time after Mauer motions towards his head with his head (tapping earhole for a curveball, the front of his face for a fastball). The frustration on the faces of Justin Verlander and Jim Leyland is obvious.

No wonder Ozzie Guillen loves the Twins so much.

Enjoy:

Video: Joe Mauer Tipping Pitching to Jason Kubel

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* – Joe Mauer photo credit: Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images North America via Zimbio

When you came to the site just now you might have noticed something a little bit different about our logo and navigation bar. 

The nav bar is pink and the logo features a pink ribbon. Why the change? It’s not permanent, but there is certainly a good and noble reason.

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Midwest Sports Fans is following the lead of the NFL in promoting and supporting the world’s fight against breast cancer.

Throughout the month of October, we are accepting donations in support of breast cancer awareness and research, with all of the donations going directly to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Use the button below to donate securely through PayPal.

There is a very good chance that every person who visits this site has had or will have their lives affected by breast cancer, which is the second most common form of cancer afflicting women.

Here is more background from the official website for National Breast Cancer Awareness Month:

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the United States, aside from skin cancer. According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), an estimated 192,370 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed among women in the United States this year. An estimated 40,170 women are expected to die from the disease in 2009 alone. Today, there are about 2.5 million breast cancer survivors living in the United States.

I know that the many of the eyes reading this post belong to men. Guys, while the women in our lives are more at risk for contracting breast cancer than we are, the disease does also afflict men:

Breast cancer occurs primarily in women, but men can also develop breast cancer. Although men have less breast tissue than women, they do have breast cells that can undergo cancerous changes. Male breast cancer makes up less than 1 percent of all cases of breast cancer, and is usually detected in men between 60 and 70 years of age.

The NFL is taking a major step this weekend in showing its support of breast cancer awareness by encouraging players and coaches to wear pink. When you settle into your recliners or bar stools this weekend to take in your usual Sunday docket of games, you will notice pink gloves, pink cleats, pink wristbands, pink towels, and other pink items everywhere you look.

Even fans are being asked to get into the act, with the NFL encouraging them to wave pink rally towels during the Sunday and Monday night games.

The NFL’s actions follow in the footsteps of Major League Baseball, which encouraged its players to use pink bats and wear pink wristbands on Mother’s Day.

I figured the least we could do here at Midwest Sports Fans is add one more voice projecting awareness for this most worthy of causes. So you will see the new logo, pink nav bar, and this post in the headline section for at least this entire weekend (and probably longer).

My hope is that everyone who comes here looking for Midwest sports and fantasy football news will be inspired to check out some of the resources I’ve linked to below.

We are all in this fight together, but together we can help push towards a cure.

What can you do to help? I’m glad you asked:

• Forward this post to a friend or family member to help spread awareness.
• Participate in the NFL’s “Crucial Catch” Auction this weekend and help support breast cancer prevention and treatment research through the American Cancer Society.
• Donate to the Susan G. Komen Foundation, which is helping to lead the charge toward a cure.
• Learn more about breast cancer and the steps you or your loved ones need to take to stay ahead of the disease.
• Eat chocolate! Seriously. And save a little money doing it. Spread hope with MY M&M’S Promise Blend benefiting Susan G. Komen. Get 12% OFF!

Readers, please use the comment section to link to additional resources that promote breast cancer awareness and that will further educate other visitors to this post. 

The Bengals’ Chad Ochocinco already has something extra special planned for this weekend. How about you?

Let’s all join the MLB, the NFL, and the millions of other people across the country taking time this month to support the fight against breast cancer.

Update: Kudos to our buddy Robert Littal at Black Sports Online who has joined what I hope will be a large group of sports blogs supporting breast cancer awareness. Those links are bright!

And be on the lookout for something special from America’s White Boy…might have to change the name to America’s Pink Boy this month, eh?

Update: And here is that something special from AWB. He is wearing a pink shirt for the entire month of October. In conjunction, he is accepting donations that will given to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. We helped him get things started with a donation from MSF.

Update: Our friends at Not Qualified to Comment prove that they are, in fact, qualified to comment by taking up the cause and decking their site out in pink.  Well done Stormin’ Norman!

Update: College Game Balls has joined the cause as well.

Update: Sports Crackle Pop steps up to the plate.

Update: Dallas Sports Fans goes pink.

Update: And Spewf.com too.

Courtesy of the good folks at the Dugout Sports Show (@DugoutSportsShow) and Waiting For Next Year, we can inform you that the Cleveland Indians have scheduled a 1:30 press conference, presumably to announce the firing of manager Eric Wedge.

According to Scott from Waiting For Next Year, the entire staff will finish out the year and then be replaced.

Our own AJ Kaufman has been a vocal proponent of a manager change in Cleveland, and it appears that his wishes will now come true.

The Indians, predicted by many to win the AL Central this year — and certainly to compete — are 64-92, 19.5 games out of first place.

In this week’s edition of I’ll Tell You This, we feature a new segment at the end of the article. Check it out and give me your feedback! Here we go….

1 – NFL Injuries

Three weeks are now in the books in this young NFL season, and injuries have already began to raise its ugly head.

First of all, and likely worst of all, The Miami Dolphins received news today that Chad Pennington’s shoulder injury, which occurred during Miami’s loss to San Diego, is likely to end Pennington’s season. Pennington tore a capsule in his throwing shoulder, and will likely be replaced for the season by back up QB Chad Henne.

The upstart 49ers took what could be a devastating hit to their offense as Frank Gore went down on his first rushing attempt. X-rays were negative as to any broken bones, although Gore underwent an MRI late on Monday evening. The 49ers are claiming that this injury is not related in any way to Gore’s ankle sprain last week in his 207 destruction of the Seattle Seahawks.

In the third quarter of the Colts’ handling of the Arizona Cardinals, pro-bowl DE Dwight Freeney was taken to the locker room with what was said to be a quad injury. Freeney said when he was held by a member of the Cardinal’s OL, he felt a pop in his quad. Freeney was also scheduled to have an MRI on Monday night.

On Bill Polian’s radio show, Polian gave little information, but did go on record saying:

“The docs will report to us later this evening, so we’ll know something then, but I don’t think there will be anything definitive for quite a while… The positive side is that he basically said, ‘I can walk, I can play.’  The good news is I don’t have any bad news.”

I’ll Tell You This: All three of these injuries are devastating to their respective teams.

Miami is 0-3 and cannot afford to lose another game. Unfortunately for them, their star QB is now gone for the season. Chad Henne is unproven, and things could go from bad to worse for the Phins.

I don’t think the Frank Gore’s injury is really worth worrying about. With no broken bones, at worst, Gore may be out a couple of weeks. In a weak division, San Fran already has a 2-1 record.

The Colts have got to be worried about losing Freeney. Who knows when Bob Sanders will come back, and the last thing that this defense wants to see is their leader, and best player, on the sidelines for any large amount of time.

2 – The Colts

Speaking of the Indianapolis Colts, they displayed quite an impressive game in a blowout win of Arizona.

The game started stale for both teams, and the Cardinals struck blood first with a field goal. But the Colts would outscore the Cards 31-7 throughout the remained of the game.

Impressive outings from Pierre Garcon, Reggie Wayne, and the entire defense locked up possibly the best showing by the Indianapolis Colts in a very long time, which included a whopping 505 yards of total offense.

I’ll Tell You This: Wow.

As a die-hard Colts fan, this may have been the most impressive game I have seen in a long time.

First of all, major props to Colts’ defense coordinator, Larry Coyer. Everyone said, “They’ll be tired from the Miami Game, a short week, and traveling all the way to Arizona? There is no way they’ll win.” Well, the defense came out stout and pressured Kurt Warner all night, forcing him into bad passes and turnovers.

The Colts looked good on all sides of the ball, even special teams. If this is a sign of things to come, watch out.

The only bad news from the night was the injury to Dwight Freeney.

Freeney’s status is uncertain at this point, but the Colts will face the 1-2 Seahawks, and the 0-3 Titans, followed by a bye week. Hopefully Freeney (and Sanders) will be back by then.

3 – The Clinchers (MLB)

The Yankees have clinched home field throughout the playoffs after winning their 100^th game.

Other division clinchers include: the St. Louis Cardinals and the L.A. Dodgers. Boston’s magic number to clinch the AL Wild Card is at two..

I’ll Tell You This: I preface this by saying, I love baseball, and I don’t say this just because my Cubs suck but…..

Who Cares?

The division races, outside of Detroit-Minnesota, were essentially decided over 6 weeks ago, and the wild card races have been boring and benign.

That, combined with the excitement of the NFL this year, reflects that baseball’s postseason may be in trouble.

I hate the Yankees, and I hate the Cardinals even more, but that will be your World Series. Spoiler alert: Yankees win it all this year.

Again, who cares?

4 – Detroit’s Big Day

The Streak is finally over!

For the first time since December of 2007, the Detroit Lions have notched a game in the win column.

Rookie Matthew Stafford was 21-36 for 241 yards, and RB Kevin Smith would put up 101 yards on 16 carries.

I’ll Tell You This: Congrats to the Lions and their fans.

It’s good to see them win, because I wouldn’t wish the past year and a half of any fan (except for maybe the Patriots).

However, don’t knight them yet. This team has definitely improved, but their win was over a very bad Redskins team.

They will be better, but let’s not talk about the playoffs just yet; let’s see them get win number two first.

Watch out Tampa, you’re next. Better win one.

5 – The New Segment of I’ll Tell You This:

This is the debut of a new segment that will be featured in each week’s  “I’ll Tell You This”

In this segment I will pose a question to all of you, and I want to hear your response through comments on this page.

You Tell Me This:

Below I have listed the six teams in the NFL that are 0-3.

Tampa Bay Bucs, St. Louis Rams, Miami Dolphins, Cleveland Browns, Tennessee Titans, Kansas City Chiefs

Who is the biggest surprise at 0-3?

Which team will be the last to win a game?

Will a team go 0-16 this year too?

Let me know what you think!

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Stay tuned for the next edition of the MSF Podcast, available on iTunes and posted to every Monday Night Football preview, where JRod and Big MB host their “Monday Night Argument” as well as divulge their NFL Locks against the spread. Don’t miss it!

Until next week kids!

* – Matt Stafford photo credit: AP Photo/Paul Sancya via ESPN.com