Seems weird to see 3 divisions clinched on the same day.

Congrats to the Rangers

The Rangers will be a very tough out in the playoffs. They seem more confident than last year and stronger overall in pitching, even without Lee.

Now the battle to see who will play Boston between Detroit and Texas will rage on!

I can't get over the feeling that the Wells-Napoli trade was the reason this happened. As an Angel fan, this season was like watching someone swig an entire bottle of rat poison before Opening Day then watching him slowly die over the course of a season, one of my least favorite seasons ever. It was a minor miracle that they lasted as long as they did, but they were good enough to win it.

It turned out that they would have been good enough if they'd kept and played the right players, but did people really think that coming into the season? That's not a rhetorical question--I don't remember. But what I think I remember is people seeming to think that the Rangers were a virtual lock even before the Wells-Napoli trade.

I haven't looked at the numbers, but I would bet that Napoli/Wells, by WAR, makes up the gap between the teams.

I haven't looked at the numbers, but I would bet that Napoli/Wells, by WAR, makes up the gap between the teams.

Napoli's offense was Piazzan, and his defense graded out average, so even in just 110 games, he had about a 5 WAR season. Wells was replacement level. When you consider also that Wells cost tons of money that the Angels could have spent on, say, Adrian Beltre, I think it's pretty clear that the Wells-Napoli trade was a huge deciding factor in the AL West race. (And, of course, the Napoli-Francisco trade.)

It's been a good year for Texas, but I do have to congratulate the Angels – despite the slow-rat-poison feeling expressed in #5 – for pressing the issue the whole way against adversity. The Rangers had some injuries, but they also had one of those seasons where nobody on the club had a weak year. Five starters league-average or better, some good years in the bullpen, and 11 or 12 position players who all hit well for their position (as well as some of the best infield defense I've ever seen). Last night, looking up at the scoreboard, I saw Texas had only one guy batting below .270: Kinsler, who leads the team in HR and BB. That's some depth. And yet I still thought the Angels would find a way to win: they were that persistent.

I was at the Ballpark last night; after the win the Rangers evidently put the LA-Oakland game on the big screen and lots of people stayed till the end, whereupon the team celebrated. That was past my bedtime, but it was nice to be at a game where something was clinched (just a tie at that point). I also got to see the first inside-the-park HR I've ever seen live in a major-league game (Craig Gentry) – only the second the Rangers have ever hit at the Ballpark.

Napoli hit the snot out of the ball the last several months. It's like he unleashed all the collective fury pent up from years of being stuck in a part-time role

Good for him and lucky Rangers!

As an Angel fan, this season was like watching someone swig an entire bottle of rat poison before Opening Day then watching him slowly die over the course of a season

This is very well said.

As an Angel fan, this season was like watching someone swig an entire bottle of rat poison before Opening Day then watching him slowly die over the course of a season

Primey!

Earlier this summer, we adopted a cute little mutt with a great personality that had, unbeknownst to us, ingested rat poison hours before we got him. He lasted a week. But we made it a good week.

Apropos of the Wells trade- how on Earth does one take on on of the worst contracts in baseball and hope to come out ahead on the deal? If you don't trade for him, and he plays at an elite level for the remainder of the contract, no one blames you for not trading for him. But if you get him and he sucks, then you have hosed your organization and maybe cost yourself your job. The risk/reward ratio is just too great. Oh, and you gave up a great hitting catcher, one of the most valuable commodities in the game. Sheesh.

I hope Texas gives Alex Anthopoulos a partial playoff share for saddling the Angels with Wells, and dealing Napoli to the Rangers...

Take a look at Napoli's hitting stats for the last 2 years.

2010/2011:

Runs - 60/68
Hits - 108/113
Doubles - 24/25
HR - 26/26
RBI - 68/68
SB - 4/4
CS - 2/2
TB - 212/216

It's spooky similar, except that his stats this year were compiled in exactly 100 fewer PA.