How about this? The Rockies are on fire! After yesterday's victory in San Diego, Colorado has won four in a row and 11 of their last 15. Beware, Arizona! Fourth place is not safe.

What has cued the Rockies' recent success? Well, having several guys who can hit behind Todd Helton in the lineup (Holliday, Hawpe, Atkins) doesn't hurt. Collecting tons of walks (ten yesterday) is another good sign. Aaron Cook after a shaky start is really proving worth the wait as he collected another win. Brian Fuentes continues to be as good as money in the bank.

Of course, beating $15 million man Chan Ho Park is not terribly difficult these days. And Padres catcher Miguel Olivo did his best to hand the game over with a pair of errors. Still, it's at times like this when you think maybe with a real catcher and one more starter, the Rockies could contend next year instead of in '07 or '08. If at all. One side benefit of the lopsided September schedule is that we'll leave this season with a good memory having played mostly awful fellow NL West teams down the stretch.

How about those A's storming back from a 7-3 deficit with five runs in the bottom of the ninth earlier today? And did you see David Ortiz's homer last night? Wow, there's a guy who understands the meaning of The Big Stage. With two (maybe three?) interesting division races, the American League has it all over the National right now. The Braves and the Cardinals are good but boring, the NL West is a horror show, and no one seems to want to win the wild card race. It could all change in the blink of an eye, though. That's what September's all about.

In case you're keeping track, we're rooting for the A's, Red Sox, and White Sox. All of our National League teams have been eliminated (unless Barry Bonds does something magical), but we are keeping an eye on the Brewers' quest for .500. If I had to pick a team in the wild card race, I'd put the good word in for Florida, since Dontrelle Willis is so much fun to watch. I reserve the right to change my mind whenever I feel like it, though.