Yesterday we looked at my preseason picks for the AL West. Today we move to the AL Central:

Tigers – They enjoyed a solid season and stayed in the wild card race for a long time, but no repeat in Detroit. Despite some tremendous individual offensive performances, there just wasn’t enough pitching to carry them back to the playoffs.
White Sox – Geez, I picked them to win the wild card? They might not finish ahead of Kansas City.
Twins – Hey, look, I got one right. Minnesota should get extra credit for remaining somewhat competitive despite the continued presence of Nick Punto …read more

Most of the pennant races became clearer over the weekend. Boston clinched a playoff spot, although whether it will be as AL East champion or AL wild card representative is yet to be determined. After winning on Sunday, the Yankees find themselves 1 1/2 games back of the Red Sox with seven to play, which is remarkable given that they’ve been as many as 14 1/2 games out of first place this year and had a losing record (42-43) as late as July 7. Since then, New York has the best record in baseball (46-22), and it’s not even close …read more

San Diego Padres outfielder Scott Hairston, who hit a walkoff homer Wednesday night against the Pirates, takes a mighty cut.
Teams are running out of time to make their move. The AL West and Central have been decided — if not mathematically, then practically speaking. The AL East is still up for grabs, but unless you’re a fan of the Red Sox or Yankees, that’s not a particularly compelling story line seeing that the runner-up almost certainly will win the wild card.
In the National League, things are a little more interesting. The Mets continue their free fall and now are just …read more