Chasing HFA

    Despite my somewhat irrational fears of the Ghost of 2011, the Red Sox clinched the AL East crown last Friday night.  They took 2 out of 3 from Toronto and they now boast a 95-62 record, which is the best in MLB.  More importantly, it is the best in the American League, which has playoff implications that could, should they stay on top over their last 5 games, give them several advantages in the division series.    The team that is standing in their way, only 1.5 games behind, is the team that reminds me the most of the Red Sox in spirit, composition, and even facial hair:  The Oakland A's (93-63).   It seems like half of that team played for the Red Sox at some point.    The Tigers aren't too far behind in the home field advantage chase either, at 91-65.  

    What is at stake for the team with the best record in the AL?    Home field advantage, for one.   The Red Sox (53-28) post the best home record in the league, though Detroit, Oakland, and Tampa Bay aren't far behind.   Perhaps an even bigger edge for the top seed going into the ALDS is that they get to play the winner of the Wild Card play-in game.  The two Wild Card teams will be at a disadvantage, having to use one of their best pitchers just to get the chance to play in the division series.  They will get less rest than the division winners and they won't get the chance to set up their rotation.   That by no means guarantees the team who plays the Wild Card winner a ticket to the league championship series (see last year's Washington Nationals, who had the best record in baseball, but who got bested by the Wild Card Cardinals in the NLDS).   However, the advantages the top seed gets are worth playing for in the last two series of the regular season.  

     On a somewhat unrelated note, thoughts go out to Manny Machado, who had to be carted off the field after a pretty scary looking knee injury this afternoon during the O's game against the Rays.   While the O's have been a huge thorn in the side of the Red Sox for the past couple of years, you hate to see any player get hurt like that and be in so much pain, especially such a talented and exciting young player like Machado.