Aug 287 min read

Rippin' Asphalt

Speed. Impact. Asphalt rippin' up upon every turn. The race for the playoffs is striking noise bolts all across the diamonds of the senior circuit with September set to bring a lightning storm to push things to another stratosphere. What a tail-end we have in store.

The report is in. The slate is set. Full reflection of the only important topics from the diamond as we enter the final month of regular season action. We got Wild-Card Mania runnin' wild, the wars for division crowns reaching a peak, and stats galore. Lets rock.

How about this wild month of August closing up shop? Holy smokes is the noise meter full. Anticipation at a full high for the final month of the campaign (reg). There is only two out-right division champions right now off prediction- that being the Brewers & Phillies. Atlanta may only be 6-games back in the NL East; I still feel the 'Phils will take it. Outside of the NL East and Central, the rest of the divisions are under full war conditions. Which is a straight joy for us baseball fans. Maybe less of a joy, and more an anxiety ride for direct fans of the clubs takin' bullets. Nonetheless, it's noisy all the same. Lets talk the Wild-Card races first.

Just like that, we have some major shifts and twists coming from the AL Wild-Card race. The Mariners, Rays, and Red Sox are each ridin' the rails as the AL Central makes major-major impact. Tigers are soarin' rapidly (5-game win streak) and the three fightin' for the Central crown have things in pure chaos. Here is how things look for the AL:

Royals are sure proving me wrong. KC is 15-9 thus far in August as the club wraps up it's final four games of the month. A huge 15 dubs for KC, with the most recent three being the biggest of the 15. Royals now have the top spot in the Central as they seek a 4-game sweep of the Guardians tonight. I didn't see the Royals takin' the top spot going into September (if they win tonight) with how ace Seth Lugo has declined on the bump. Michael Wacha and Cole Ragans have put the Royals' rotation on their backs.

The AL Central has the marker in their hands in terms of writing the AL Playoff Picture. Twins have lost seven of their last nine, but still sit in the final WC spot being just 2.5 games back of the Royals & Guardians for the top spot in the Central. All while the Tigers have won 12 of it's last 15 games to see the WC spotters in the distance ahead of them. Detroit will play a huge part with 3-GM sets against the Red Sox, Rays, Orioles (x2), and Royals to end the season. The AL Central race will pave the way for the WC race in September. Giddy up.

The NL race is far less entertaining as the NL West continues to dominate the senior circuit in the 2nd-Half of play (109-68). Right now, the Padres & Diamondbacks seem poised to keep their WC spots as the attention moves solely on the Braves and the final seat (that can change quickly). Here is how things look in the NL with the only changes being at the top of the bracket, the Cubs rising, and decliners in the hunt:

Atlanta has won 8 of it's last 10 outings to gain some separation from the Mets. Important separation at that with a tough early-September slate on the docket. Braves have two separate 4-GM sets looming against the Phillies & Dodgers that are bound to be difficult. Braves need every win they can get with the Mets hanging in the distance. New York is really the only hunter that I am confident can stick around in the race.

No chance those NL Central squads can find consistency. No chance. The Cubs aren't fooling anyone. Lets be real. Right now it's a race between the Braves and Mets until further notice is shown. The NL could use some more noise across the WC race. AL is takin' the script. Hopefully I am wrong. Hopefully the hunters can slam on the accelerator and click their engine to over-drive. Five to seven game cushions are nothing. A lot can happen (a lot is bound to happen); it starts with collecting wins in bunches. No more inconsistent vibes for NL WC hunters... or they can just skip to thinking about the off-season.

Unlike the current Wild-Card races, there is no shortage of noise across the divisional warfare takin' place atop the AL Central, AL East, and NL West title races. Pure electricity. I can't decide which race is most appealing! I briefed on the AL Central already; a three team bloodbath with changes occurring and looming weekly. The slugfest between the Orioles and Yankees, as well as the flame-throwing battle in the NL West has meters just as loud. It's pure beauty and we are reachin' the final laps. Expect all hell to break loose.

Ali and Frazier. Hagler and Hearns. Orioles and Yankees! This fist-fight for the AL East crown is startin' to really heat up. O's sit a game back going into tonight as the clubs ride the teeter-totter while facing tough comp around the circuit. O's are currently 12-12 in August; Yankees are 13-10. That energy will transfer over in September. The clubs only have one more series to play between the two (BAL 6-4), and each have strong September slates. Both face 7 playoff spotters, or hunters, out of their 10 remaining series. This race is lit!

So is the NL West title race. Triple threat warfare like the AL Central, but between far more consistent, and perhaps, more dangerous playoff spotters in the Dodgers, Snakes, and Pads. The triple-threat is makin' huge impact across the circuit as the three are a huge part of the NL West being 109-68 since the All-Star break:

Padres, Dodgers, and Diamondbacks have best 2nd-Half records

We have three series to take place in the final month between two of the three fighters, including a massive 4-GM set in the Desert this weekend between the Snakes and leading Dodgers. Will this war carry over the heat from August? If it does, then we are in for one helluva ride. Last season they let us down... time for redemption.

MLB's stars are taking over the record books

Stat-O-Mania is runnin' wild! Finally the big leagues have superstar talent again that is breaking decade long records and stats. Generational talent etching their names in the history books. We have Judge on a power surge unlike very few. Ohtani and Witt Jr. showing their unreal value to the game. Jarren Duran creating new clubs like Acuña did last season. Ah, and of course- we have Tarik Skubal eyeing a possible MLB Triple Crown (pitching).

We have already seen a slew of history be made this season. Judge doing so the most. The slugger became the fastest man to hit 300 career homers; doing so 132 games quicker than Ralph Kiner. Judge also became just the 5th player ever to hit 50+ homers in three different seasons, joining A-Rod, Sosa, McGwire, and Babe Ruth. Not done. Judge also tied himself (2022) for the sixth most home runs in a single season before September. If all that isn't enough, Judge has more history in his sights- he can join Sosa and McGwire as the only three players ever to hit multiple 60 home run seasons.

It's not just Judge makin' history. His intra-division rival Jarren Duran made history of his own, becoming a club creator. The Duran Club: 10 triples, 20 home runs, 30 stolen bases, and 40 doubles. First player to ever accomplish that feat. Pretty impressive. Mark that two unreal statistical clubs being created within consecutive campaigns (Acuña 40/70). Then there is the unicorn; doing more unicorn things.

Shohei Ohtani is just flat-out mythical. You take away pitching from him for the campaign? Fine. Ohtani will just take over the speed and efficiency departments to push his team to dubs. Shohei became the 6th player ever to join the 40/40 club, doing so faster than the five prior to him. Now he looks to become the first man to reach the 50/40 milestone, and perhaps even an unreal 50/50 milestone with thirty games left.

The stats we are seeing this season makes me oh so happy. I didn't mention the fact that we could see just the 12th out-right pitching Triple Crown winner in Tarik Skubal. So many unreal stats building up to keep an eye on. Seeing the players of the game break century old records is what we thrive for. Cheers to more history in September. I'll be rooting for Skubal you can believe that.

August was quite unpredictable in many shades across the diamond, forcing me to alter some of my playoff predictions, as well as my current playoff tiers. Royals are looking solid; beating some of the higher caliber teams to sit atop the Central with the Guardians. I have a little more faith in the Royals now. Here is my updated playoff bracket prediction:

The two changes being the Royals, and predicting the Phillies to take back the one seed from the Dodgers. I feel pretty comfortable with that image. The only place I lack confidence, is in the AL seeding; thanks to that damn AL Central. The Twins, Guardians, and Royals have me rethinking my predictions and tiers every few days. Not the case with the NL. I am pretty confident on these tiers:

The bad bets are easy. I'm not betting on either one of those clubs. The late-August resurgence of the Cubs means little to me right now. Safe bets? No brainers outside of Arizona. Padres are close to moving from sleeper to safe bet; joining the D-backs. I just hesitate after saying safe bet last year during this time with those two. Not much to banter. I feel good with the NL tiers. Far more predictable than the AL:

Orioles and Yankees being safe bets was easy. Astros move in the tier simply because of the inconsistency of Seattle, whom now seem to be treading water along with the Twins and Guardians. Soon the M's could join the Red Sox in the bad bet tier. I have no confidence in them right now; as I don't have confidence in any of the bad bet tier sitters. We shall see if that changes as we flip the page to September. With all the up and downs- changes are imminent. I am just along for the ride baby. Let the playoff races ROAR. Drivers rip up some asphalt!

Rippin' Asphalt

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