Posada Manages Yanks to Victory in Season Finale

This post is a day late and a dollar short, but they say God is in the details.

And if it is, then this write-up will fill him with white-hot rage because I watched maybe five pitches of Sunday's game.  Jorge Posada was in charge for this contest and his managerial skills led the Yanks to a 10-4 beatdown of the Orioles in Baltimore.  Alex Rodriguez picked up an RBI and finished with 156 for the season, Bobby Abreu knocked in two runs and wrapped up the year with 101 runs batted in and Chase Wright's two innings of work was enough to earn a victory.

So, the Yankees end the 2007 regular season with a 94-68 mark and a trip to the playoffs as a wild card.  But, you already knew that.  Let's fire up the time machine and see what my gut told me at the beginning of the season.  SML and Depressed Fan have already journeyed back in time and now it's my turn.

I'll start with the National League.

NL East

My picks: Phillies, Mets, Braves, Marlins, Nationals

How they finished: Phillies, Mets, Braves, Nationals, Marlins

Man, that was easy!  I was off with the Nats and Marlins, but really who cares?  And if I told you the Nationals finished in last place you would probably believe me. 

NL Central

My picks: Astros, Cardinals, Cubs, Brewers, Reds, Pirates

How they finished: Cubs, Brewers, Cardinals, Astros, Reds, Pirates

I nailed the back of the division, but really mucked up the front end.  OK, there's the first clunker.

NL West

My picks: Dodgers, Padres (wild card), Giants, Diamondbacks, Rockies

How they finished: Diamondbacks, Padres/Rockies, Dodgers, Giants

I had the Dodgers going to the Series.  Whoopsie!  The Padres still have a shot to make me look smart (even though they're down to the Rockies 6-5 as I scribble this). 

Man, that was pretty crappy.  Let's go on to the American League.

AL East

My picks: Yankees, Red Sox (wild card), Blue Jays, Orioles, Devil Rays

How they finished: Red Sox, Yankees, Blue Jays, Orioles, Devil Rays

The Yanks couldn't make it 10 straight division titles, but they qualified for the playoffs.  I nailed the MVP season for A-Rod, but Rivera wasn't the deciding factor in the Yanks making the post-season.

AL Central

My picks: Tigers, White Sox, Twins, Indians, Royals

How they finished: Indians, Tigers, Twins, White Sox, Royals

I should have followed the natural progression in the Central.  The White Sox won in 2005, the Tigers in 2006 so the obvious choice was the Indians.  Missed the boat on that one.

AL West

My picks: Angels, A's, Rangers, Mariners

How they finished: Angels, Mariners, A's, Rangers

The Angels didn't coast to the division crown, but my confidence was high with this pick.  I didn't even waste a sentence on the Mariners in my predictions.

Well, there it is.  I had the Yanks and Dodgers squaring off in the World Series.  It's not going to happen for the Dodgers, but the Bombers can make me half right.

Speaking of the Yanks, the playoff schedule came out today and I gotta tell you -- I'm not really diggin it.  Vinny from Kearny "broke" the news to me at work with an e-mail.  I thought he was kidding.  Actually, this schedule would have been perfect if I was still working overnight, but now I get home between 8 and 8:30 in the p.m.  Here's the schedule:

I'm going to place a call with Bud and see what I can do.