Baseball

The criticism has been shot with impunity, mostly because everyone with an Internet connection has done it, and the targets have been easy to hit.

As August comes to a close and September draws near, playoff baseball is just on the horizon.

The dog days of August have separated contenders from the pack, obliterated the pretenders back to earth and created some interesting playoff races. 

Anything can happen once a team makes the playoffs, so this article will be encouragement to fans as to why their team can do the distance this season. They'll have renewed and justified hope that their team can win the World Series in 2015.

NEW YORK — The best team ever didn't win.

No, that's not right. By definition, the best team ever is one that won.

However, the "BEST TEAM EVER!" didn't.

It was the 2011 Boston Red Sox, and we know it now as the team that collapsed in a mess of beer and fried chicken. But the day before Opening Day, we knew it as the team the Boston Herald called the "BEST TEAM EVER!"

Coors Field might be notoriously hitter-friendly, but there is no earthly explanation for Michael Taylor's 493-foot home run blast Thursday night.

The Washington Nationals center fielder crushed Colorado Rockies pitcher Yohan Flande's first offering in the seventh inning at-bat to left-center, evening the score at 2-2.

Marlon Byrd has value. 

It is tangible. It’s not like saying he brings leadership or veteran experience to a clubhouse. Those things can’t be measured. And who knows if they actually help? Especially when a team already possesses such qualities across its rows of lockers.

Two American League teams that sit atop the wild-card standings will battle for playoff positioning when the Toronto Blue Jays start a three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels on Friday in Anaheim.

The San Francisco Giants announced via their Twitter account on Thursday that they acquired outfielder Marlon Byrd and cash from the Cincinnati Reds for Double-A pitcher Stephen Johnson. 

Texas Rangers left fielder Josh Hamilton hasn't been able to work his way into a consistent rhythm during the 2015 season because of a string of injuries, and left knee inflammation will hinder him this time around, as it landed him on the 15-day disabled list on Aug. 20.

Continue for updates. 

It's around middle to late August when the games start to truly matter. There are about 40 to 45 games left in each MLB team's regular season, and this weekend has a few games that might clear the playoff picture a little bit.

"Playoffs? Don't talk about playoffs. Are you kidding me, playoffs?"

No Jim Mora, we're not kidding. We're going to talk about the playoffs.

A casual baseball fan I know said the other day that this is a good season, because there are so many good teams.

Meanwhile, a favorite topic among those who follow the game a lot closer is that there just aren't many great teams.

Either way, we should be headed for some real fun over the next six-and-a-half weeks. Even with the two Central Division races basically decided, that still leaves four division crowns and four wild-card spots up for grabs. It leaves the possibility of surprise teams getting in and of big-money powerhouses getting left out.