Baseball Fanatic

Despite the fact that the Yankees have made the playoffs for eleven consecutive years under Joe Torre, their recent 3-10 playoff record (over their last 13 postseason games) has "compelled" Steinbrenner to supposedly fire and replace him with Lou Pinella.

Without question, this will be among one of the many offseason changes in New York.

If you were Steinbrenner or Cashman, what changes would you make this winter? (Be reasonable!)

Include as many or as few details as you wish, so long as you play out every round and include the length of each series. Please make the best arguement you can for your predictions.

The Yankees' probable opponents in the postseason would be:

Oakland Athletics (6-3 vs. NYY; 6 home games, all before July)

Detroit Tigers (2-5 vs. NYY; 4 home games)

Minnesota Twins (3-3 vs. NYY)

The Mets' probable opponents in the postseason would be:

St. Louis Cardinals (2-4 vs. NYM)

Los Angeles Dodgers (3-4 vs. NYM; 3 home games)

San Diego Padres (2-5 vs. NYM; 3 home games)

Let's face it, neither team is truly threatened by the playoff picture, but, as they say, anything can happen in October.

All fan bias aside, do the odds favor another Subway Series this year?

Outside of the Yankees, Tigers, Twins, Athletics, Mets, Cardinals, Dodgers and Padres (assuming the other teams don't make the postseason), which non-playoff team had the best or most productive 2006 season?

Matsui's impressive debut tonight after his wrist injury in early May served as a reminder to Yankee fans just how cluttered their outfield is. Whether a blessing or a curse, New York has already signed Hideki Matsui, Johnny Damon, and Bobby Abreu to extended contracts, leaving star rookie Melky Cabrera and fan favorite Bernie Williams out of the loop.

Joe Torre has already hinted that the left-field position (at least for the remainder of the season) belongs to Cabrera by intending for Matsui to DH, leaving Bernie out in the cold.

If you were in Joe Torre's position, what would you do? Why?

Up until about mid-summer, the Toronto Blue Jays were probably the most under-rated ball club in the Major Leagues. Even though they had that deflating 2-8 road trip that virtually put them out of playoff contention, they're only two games back of the collapsing Red Sox.

If Toronto finishes in second place for the American League Eastern Division race, would you take them any more seriously next season?

AL East: Yankees lead by 9.

AL Central: Tigers lead by 5.

AL West: Athletics lead by 6.5.

NL East: Mets lead by 15.

NL Central: Cardinals lead by 6.

The only three playoff spots seemingly up-for-grabs are the NL West and the two wild cards (what a surprise). Will any of these three become a definite by mid-September or will these races go all the way down the stretch?

Today will mark the second time in two weeks that the New York Yankees have played a day game, a night game, and a day game in one 27-hour span; one set against the Red Sox and one against the Tigers.

I was just curious as to how many other times a single team has played two day-night-day "triple-headers" within the same two-week span in recent history. Could anyone dig up those numbers for me?

Thanks to going 3-7 over their last 10 games, the Detroit's lead in the American League Central is down to a slim four games, with the Minnesota Twins hot on their heels.

Interestingly enough, both teams come into New York to play the Yankees over the next week.

Could this be the turning point of the division? Who will end up on top? How will this shape the A.L. Wild Card race?

Personally, I haven't been paying too much attention to the National League (being a fan of American League play), and I've noticed that the wild card race is still tight.

Who do you think will win the N.L. Wild Card and why? I'm just interested in hearing your opinions.

For the majority of the season, the New York Metropolitans seemed to be the lone bright spot of the National League, the only exception being the Dodgers' run after the trading deadline. With Pedro and Glavine, the Mets' two best starters, succumbing to injruy late in the season, the N.L. Championship is seemingly up for grabs.

Whoever wins the title, the American League's dominance this year has been more than apparent. Their interleague record is staggering. Powerhouses such as the Detroit Tigers, the New York Yankees, the Chicago White Sox and the Boston Red Sox are enormous postseason threats to any team the National League can dish out.

When it comes to the end of October, will the National League even stand a chance in the World Series?

After all of the injuries to the Yankees early on, neither the Blue Jays nor the Red Sox were able to pull away from them. Now that Toronto has fallen off, Boston has lost their last four games (including two to the Royals) and the Yankees are finally starting to get healthy again with a three game lead in the division, will they be able to do what the Red Sox couldn't and finally break away from the pack?

With four teams within 5 games, the Yankees, White Sox, Twins and Blue Jays are all valid contenders for the playoffs (assuming the division-leading Red Sox and Tigers don't lose ground). Which of the four teams do you see going to the 2006 postseason and why?

He has won four World Championships in his first five years, is among the top five active players for highest career batting average, and has the most hits in the Major Leagues since coming up in 1996.

If Derek Jeter is overrated, show me a player who isn't.

Yesterday was the first time in almost 28 years with all MLB teams playing that none were able to produce a save. How long do you think it will be before this happens again? Why?

With eighteen teams leading or within 6.0 games of their respective divisions, there may be a lot of new faces in the 2006 playoffs.

Who do you see making the most surprising run of the season in the second half and why?

After his MVP season last year and winning MLB Player of the Month of May, Alex Rodriguez was booed after failing to get a hit in his first at-bat after his 2-run walk-off homerun in the bottom of the 12th inning on Wednesday.

Steve Phillips from ESPN commented on this, saying that A-Rod will not be able to reach his full potential with the fans jumping on his back and suggested that he be moved during the offseason.

I'm not asking whether or not A-Rod DESERVES to be treated as he is now, but do you think he can reach his full potential in pinstripes? Do you think he should be dealt before next season? Can the Yankees contend for the Division if it continues?

I don't know what the problem is, at least not among level-headed fans. Personally, I follow the Yankees, but I enjoy watching and occasionally cheering for the Mets. I just don't see anything wrong with that...

If humans suddenly lost the ability to lie to others and to themselves, which of the two would win out?

--- A secure sense of honesty throughout the world.

--- A vast hatred of others' true feelings and thoughts.

And why?

Which player do you think contributed most to his team through May and why?