Opinion

Sorry, Phat Albert. 

My sincere apologies, Prince. 

It has to be said. It just has to. So, here it goes. You ready? This'll feel a whole lot better once I get this off my chest. 

Tim Lincecum could (or should) be the 2009 National League MVP. 

OK, alright, fire away. Shoot. Let's have it. Let's hear it. 

Yeah, I hear you. I do. I know Pujols is an irreparable machine of terror. I realize that he has less chinks in his armor than Vader himself. 

I get it, everyone does. 

So, as a few of you might know, I have a Mariners blog called Sodo Mojo.

Anyway, we're having a raffle, in which the grand prize is a $100 gift certificate to sportsmemorabilia.com. It's a nice site that sells memorabilia from pretty much every sport, and lots of it. Everything from autographed baseballs to boxing board games.

All of the money raised will go either toward future improvements to our blog, or more raffles in the future.

September baseball can often feel like October playoffs. Monday night, Mike Scioscia managed his squad like it was the last game of the World Series.

On the cusp of what could be the most important week of the season for his Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Scioscia took over the one-game make-up contest against the New York Yankees as if his whole season was riding on it.

He pinch ran, pinch hit, and defensively substituted players all over the field. In every way, Scioscia outfoxed and out-managed his counterpart in the Yankee dugout.

Under normal circumstances, winning a Sept. 14 game against the Baltimore Orioles would be a big one.

Under normal circumstances, David Price's seven strong innings or Reid Brignac's 4-for-4 night would be a cause for elation.

But under normal circumstances, the Tampa Bay Rays wouldn't be just getting over an 11-game losing streak.

What is there to get excited about any more this year?

Even a win reminds us that this team was only a few games out of the American League Wild Card spot less than two weeks ago.  

Now that the baseball season is winding to a close and the races are essentially over, it's time to look back and evaluate what went on in 2009.

The Sox were picked to finish in third place by most publications and that is exactly where they are right now. Though they were in the race for the division most of the year, they never built enough momentum to take a lead and fell out of the race in late August.

It's like a splinter you just can't get out.

For whatever reason, the Detroit News' beat writer Lynn Henning just keeps picking at Curtis Granderson relentlessly. Henning just cannot get over the fact the fan favorite and All-Star center fielder is allowed to have an off-year. And by off-year I mean, he's only the second-most productive position player on the team.

In 2008, as the Chicago Cubs were well on their way to winning 97 games and being declared the best team in the National League, something suddenly happened. The team started struggling and completely laid an egg in the playoffs.

We now know that something was pressure.

The weight and burden of expectations from media, fans, and management for a team that hadn't been to the World Series since 1945 was just too much to bear. They collectively looked like deer in the headlights come October.

They CHOKED.

It is clear the National League is behind the American League when it comes to overall power and hitting numbers, but they equal the playing field because they have better pitching and defense, both of which are major concerns for Cincinnati.

The Reds have proven at times this year that your pitching does not have to be spectacular to win games (although it helps), but you can't win games when you give opposing teams additional opportunities.

It had been 11 days since Tim Lincecum toed the rubber for the beloved orange and black.

Those 11 long days have seen the San Francisco Giants get back into, fall out of, and now kind of get back into the National League Wild Card race with the Colorado Rockies.

So with the Rockies opening a three-game set in San Francisco on Monday, it only made sense that Lincecum made his triumphant return to the Giants' rotation after his back spasms caused Madison Bumgarner to make a unexpected debut.

In Tuesday's edition of the Chicago Tribune, Paul Sullivan has an extended piece on the Cubs' 2-0 victory over the Brewers Monday, and their upcoming game against Milwaukee.

The starter in tonight's second game of a four-game set is Carlos Zambrano, the Cubs' erstwhile ace, whose attitude, maturity, work ethic, and general competence have come under question more than once over the last three years.