The American League had an odd season. Last year, the Angels, Tigers, and Orioles all made the playoffs -- none of them made it this year. In 2013, the Red Sox became the last team from the Junior Circuit to win the World Series -- they had a losing record this year. For most of 2014, the Athletics were one of the best teams in the AL -- this year, they had the worst record in the League. And with the Yankees losing in last night's coin flip, I mean Wild-Card game, the Yankees will be joining the Red Sox, Angels, Tigers, and Athletics on the sidelines. Instead, we get:
1. The Kansas City Royals, who shocked everyone last year, but played even better this year.
2. The Toronto Blue Jays, who haven't been to the playoffs since 1993.
3. The Texas Rangers, who were terrible last year, but who got really hot at the end of this season.
4. The Houston Astros, who are really a National League club.
Together, these four clubs have won a total of three World Series titles in history.
I'm rooting for a ALCS between Kansas City and Toronto, because 1985 was one of my favorite years ever.
Here are the final standings:
1. Kansas City Royals: 95-67 ---
2. Toronto Blue Jays: 93-69 2
3. Texas Rangers: 88-74 7
4. New York Yankees: 87-75 8
5. Houston Astros: 86-76 9
6. Los Angeles Angels: 85-77 10
7. Minnesota Twins: 83-79 12
8. Cleveland Indians: 81-80 13 1/2
9. Baltimore Orioles: 81-81 14
10. Tampa Bay Devil Rays: 80-82 15
11. Boston Red Sox: 78-84 17
T12. Chicago White Sox: 76-86 19
T12. Seattle Mariners: 76-86 19
14. Detroit Tigers: 74-87 20 1/2
15. Oakland Athletics: 68-94 27
Every so often, I'd play some tournament with my baseball cards that would come up with such a horrible set of teams advancing that I'd just lose interest and stop playing before a champion was determined.
ReplyDeleteMy guess is that the TV ratings will reflect that many people are taking a similar approach to the AL playoffs.
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