Cue every good team in the AL: "I can't believe we're losing to these guys."

"Today, the Orioles consider themselves... the luckiest team... on the face of the earth."

Okay, but seriously: is there a single non-Yankees baseball fan on the planet who isn't rooting for an Orioles sweep here? I mean, it's THE BALTIMORE ORIOLES, FOR CHRISSAKES. It was improbable enough when we were saying "oh hey gee, the O's are still hanging around in the hunt for a WC spot in August."

The previous five months excepted, luck didn't have anything to do with this one. That was a whuppin', plain and simple.

Angel fans are rooting for the Yankees.

They are loving the o's here in ATL. Well, that and chicks in DragonCon costumes, but mostly the O's. OK, actually, mostly chicks in DragonCon outfits. But the O's too.

Crap, I'm starting to believe in them. This does not bode well for their chances.

Team of Destiny!

Esoteric, yes, now that my Red Sox are done, I'm indeed rooting for the O's.

Look, either Miguel Gonzalez and Chris Tillman are actually this good or they are not. If they are, and if Hammel comes back healthy, then the Orioles are playing the last month of the season with four starters between a 3 and 3.8 ERA, and your fifth starts being given to Zach Britton or Steve Johnson, who have at times been awfully good too.

If they're not, it's a different story. But both of these guys have now faced down several potent lineups without buckling. I mean, Gonzalez and Tillman both beat the Yankees in New York *less than a month ago*.

Nobody even mentions the whooping the A's put on the Red Sox tonight? 20-2 will definitely make their run difference look a whole helluvalot better.

Detroit wins, Oakland wins, Baltimore wins, and Tampa Bay loses. Looks more and more like TB is going to fall by the wayside.

"Angel fans are rooting for the Yankees."

Not me. I'm holding out hope that somebody can beat the A's and I can watch an Angels -Orioles playin game.

The previous five months excepted, luck didn't have anything to do with this one. That was a whuppin', plain and simple.

Total ass kicking.

The Yanks haven't hit a HR since Monday. And they've been home all week. They are in trouble, and I'm not sure the return of the injured players will help that much.

Detroit wins, Oakland wins, Baltimore wins, and Tampa Bay loses. Looks more and more like TB is going to fall by the wayside.

Which is crazy, I figured Tampa, with Longoria back, had the best chance of all of those teams before their recent slump.

luck didn't have anything to do with this one

Actually, luck has a lot to do with most wins in baseball.

The Yanks haven't hit a HR since Monday.

Granderson hit one last night.

The Yankees' shakiness has extended from their rotation to the everyday lineup, the Rangers are very good but seem to have sort of fatal flaw which will be exposed in October (what, we don't know yet), you really can't take the White Sox seriously, the Tigers have not shown enough consistency to earn your trust (the same can be said of the Rays and Angels), and the Athletics and Orioles are still perceived as unknown factors.

That uncertainty can be seen from the Nationals and Reds in the NL (though Cincinnati at least has a sprinkling of postseason experience from 2010), not to mention whomever wins the West -- the Dodgers should reap full benefits of last weekend's megatrade in 2013, and may not even make the playoffs this year -- as well as the Braves, Cards and Bucs.

In other words, gang, beginning Oct. 4, we'll have a crapshoot. The six division winners should have an edge, but no one is a lead-pipe cinch to hold the trophy at the end. That balance may not translate into super TV ratings, especially if lower-profile teams dominate, but it should be a roller-coaster ride for baseball aficionados.

showalter's got a chance to win his 3rd manager of the year award, dusty baker has a chance for his 4th. bobby cox has 3 times, larussa 4.

showalter got ripped off in '99 though.

In other words, gang, beginning Oct. 4, we'll have a crapshoot. The six division winners should have an edge, but no one is a lead-pipe cinch to hold the trophy at the end.

So it'll be like every other year, then?

showalter's got a chance to win his 3rd manager of the year award

Oh, I would say he's already the odds-on favorite at this point. He has a team with a -1,000,000,000 run differential (my numbers are approximate) and a recent history of being a sad punching-bag threatening for first place, against the Yankees, in the toughest division in baseball, in September. And furthermore, the WAY in which the Orioles have won suggests either statistically insane amounts of "luck" (and luck has definitely played a role) or, more likely, smart adaptations in the composition of their roster and excellent bullpen management.

Who else in the American League would deserve it more than Showalter? Even if the O's lose the next 30 games he'd STILL probably deserve the award.

I find it hilarious that, even as the Nats are an unexpected 1st-place powerhouse who are (w/reasonable certainty) playoff-bound for the first point in their history, I'm getting nearly as excited about what's going on up I-95. Maybe it's because -- and if you told me I'd be writing the following words in March I'd have thought you insane -- the Nationals just seem like a juggernaut at this point, whereas the Orioles are obviously scrappy underdogs. But then I've also always thought Showalter was underrated as a manager and Adam Jones has been a favorite of mine since his days as a Mariners prospect.

Today's Starting Pitchers

Baltimore: Chen (12-7, 3.78 ERA)
New York: Phelps (3-4, 2.96 ERA)

The O's have won the last 13 one run games and are something like 24 and 6 for the year.
Luck; yes.
Great bullpen pitching; you bet!

At this point the AL west is the best division in baseball, and it's not particularly close. Seattle has been playing well and is not far below .500. Next year the East will probably be better, as the Astros are pretty much subtraction by addition.

At this point the AL west is the best division in baseball, and it's not particularly close. Seattle has been playing well and is not far below .500. Next year the East will probably be better, as the Astros are pretty much subtraction by addition.

I can't wait, I'm tired of the NL Central being considered the worse division because of the bottom quality teams.

You can't wait to no longer get to face the worst team in the league 18 times?

Who else in the American League would deserve it more than Showalter? Even if the O's lose the next 30 games he'd STILL probably deserve the award.

I'd probably vote for Showalter but I think a case can be made for Ventura and Melvin. Ventura has done a great job getting big years from veterans AND getting some young pitchers into key roles and Melvin I think deserves a lot of credit for juggling a pretty motley bunch. In a different year I'd give Girardi some credit for getting the Yankees over some hiccups but the AL has had some real good seasons from its managers.

Melvin I think deserves a lot of credit for juggling a pretty motley bunch.

Absolutely. The A's players seem to looooooove Melvin, and trust his every move. Which has worked out pretty well, so far.

Yankees radio broadcasts reach must-listen status when they are stumbling and bumbling.

As Wieters HRd today for a 3-0 Orioles lead, John Sterling voice combines an attempt at blase with a thinly-veiled undercurrent of disgust. Suzym Waldman, meanwhile - who was part-way thru her mind-numbing rundown of the out-of-town games and pitching matchups - went right back to them without skipping a beat, though I could swear I could "hear" the eye-roll on the radio, lol.

Huh, I get the opposite reaction to teams like this year's Orioles. They give me a sense of cognitive dissonance. And so I typically want them to fall apart. And in this specific case, that's what I want to see happen.

I can't wait, I'm tired of the NL Central being considered the worse division because of the bottom quality teams.

Most of the top teams don't exactly seem like world beaters either. I mean, look at the hat dance number the Nationals have done all over St. Louis the last couple of nights.

Most of the top teams don't exactly seem like world beaters either. I mean, look at the hat dance number the Nationals have done all over St. Louis the last couple of nights.

Because one series is evidence of anything.

You can't wait to no longer get to face the worst team in the league 18 times?

Teams often struggle against even the poor teams in their own division (familiarity). I just hate that because of the 6 team division, that the central is constantly considered to be weak, just because of the number of poor teams they have. The Central constantly puts teams in the world series, in the wild card spot, etc. but are constantly berated as the weakest division in baseball. Getting rid of that disparity is going to lead to a more honest assessment of the division.

I am not a Yankee fan, but to be fair...they have had a LOT of injuries to key people. i'll be able to root for the Orioles more when Peter Angelos is gone to that place in the beyond, with the harps and angels and where everyone he meets is a potential asbestos claimant. Will not forget his role in keeping baseball out of DC.

Bout ####### time!

I just hate that because of the 6 team division, that the central is constantly considered to be weak, just because of the number of poor teams they have.

That extra team should be just as likely to be a good one as a bad one. That hasn't been the case, because the teams, the Cardinals excepted, have been a combination of poor and poorly run to a greater extent than the teams in other divisions.

But make no mistake. It's the teams that have made the Central a consistently weak division, not the other way around. Similarly, having two extra teams is not the reason the NL has been the weaker league for much of the past decade.

Most of the top teams don't exactly seem like world beaters either. I mean, look at the hat dance number the Nationals have done all over St. Louis the last couple of nights.

Because one series is evidence of anything.

The Nationals are 21-9 against the NL Central.