Opinion

The divisional race died in 1994. And the wild card killed it. 

When a second-place team can sneak into the playoffs, what does first-place matter? Sure, there's home-field advantage (and bragging rights) to consider. The idea of going all-out for the division flag, though, was buried two decades ago.

Or so the story goes.

In the immediate aftermath of Thursday evening's team-record-tying 10th straight victory, it's apparent that the Washington Nationals are finally living up to their potential and putting the rest of the National League, if not all of baseball, on notice.

We’re almost at the point in the season where rosters expand to 40 players and teams call up all sorts of minor league prospects to supplement their rosters.

Some of these September call-ups go a long way in helping their teams qualify for the playoffs. Others flame out and ride the bench until the end of the season. Either way, these prospects have the chance to make their mark while also giving a much-needed boost to weary rosters at the end of a long season.

The Baltimore Orioles (71-52) are soaring high as of late and have been on a roll in August, acquiring a record of 11-5 so far this month.

As the calendar turns, MLB rosters will expand, allowing teams to add on some depth at crucial positions and enabling for some of their star players to take a few more days off than usual.

1. Golden State will rule in October

"Don't know much about history...

"Don't know much biology..."

Dang. That time of year again, huh? Time to trade the sun block for the textbooks, the pool for the school. Already? Believe me, if I could roadblock summer's end, I would.

"Don’t know much about geography..."

Wait! I can help get you on track there. Geography? Easy. Follow the bouncing hardball west.

Twitter erupted Saturday night following news that Kris Bryant was pulled during the middle of Triple-A Iowa’s game. He didn’t appear to suffer an injury in the game, which only fueled speculation that the 22-year-old slugger was headed for The Show.

The Milwaukee Brewers might be the most surprising team overall this season after getting off to a fast start and possessing at least a share of the NL Central lead for all but three days. But the most shocking division leader in Major League Baseball at the moment actually resides in the other Central: the Kansas City Royals.

There are two ways to look at the San Francisco Giants in 2014.

No. 1: Entering play Tuesday, the Giants trail the hated Los Angeles Dodgers by just 3.5 games in the National League West, and they lead the Atlanta Braves by one game for the second wild-card slot. They're in it, in other words.

No. 2: After building a 9.5-game lead over the Dodgers on June 8, the Giants have imploded, and their chances of being a factor have diminished with each gut-wrenching defeat.

The last time the Los Angeles Angels were alone atop the American League West, Thor was No. 1 at the box office. 

OK, so May 15, 2011, wasn't that long ago. Yet it must seem like long enough to Angels fans, who watched their club limp to third-place finishes in each of the last two seasons. 

The stretch run is important for the Los Angeles Dodgers for multiple reasons: They’re preparing for the playoffs, and—with a 3.5 game lead in the NL West as of Aug. 18—the players on the roster are attempting to prove their worth.