With the regular season about to end, playoff spots are getting filled by eight of the 30 MLB teams who compete each season.
For players on the Yankees and Phillies, October is a familiar time of year but for many it will remain a mystery.
What is so crazy about baseball is an ace like the Phillies’ Roy Halladay is pitching for the first time in his career in the playoffs. There are many players, both veterans and rookies, who are virgins to October baseball, but the butterflies from the possibility of winning remain the same for anyone so lucky to partake.
There are three AL teams, which due to uncontrollable circumstances (i.e. injuries) will not be around past this Sunday. These usual suspects make the road to the World Series that much more competitive, as one team from each AL Division is represented on this list.
Which three teams am I referring too?
1. Boston Red Sox
The Red Sox couldn’t catch a break in 2010. Injury after injury, plus more injuries is the best way to describe it. Still, even with numerous All-Stars on the DL like Kevin Youkilis, Dustin Pedroia, and Jacob Ellsbury, the Sox managed to keep fighting. They challenged other teams to count them out all season, but Boston continually proved that was a bad idea. Skipper Terry Francona should be the AL Manger of the Year for the way he handled himself and this ailing group. It would have been old school to have a 2010 Yankees-Red Sox’s ALCS again. Maybe next year…
2. Los Angeles Angels
The Angels’ season ended with a walk-off. On May 29th, 2010, All-Star first baseman Kendry Morales hit a walk-off grand-slam homer in the 10th inning to win a game versus the Seattle Mariners. Running around the bases, his Halo teammates waited for him at home plate to celebrate. Instead, Morales jumped on the bag and broke his ankle. The season was over for Morales and the Angels after the grand slam heard around the world.
3. Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are not regulars out of the AL Central, like the Red Sox and the Angels are out of their respective divisions. Still, the Tigers make the Central much harder and considering the best hitter in baseball—Miguel Cabrera—is a Tiger, it would have kept the Twins on their toes. In 2009 the AL Central featured a tiebreaker between the Twins and Tigers that was incredible; surely one for the history books. It was the perfect start to an exciting postseason and the Tigers were halfway to blame for that.
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com