…and I think this is the best I’ve seen the Tribe play this late in the season with the playoffs on the line…ever. With only 21 games left to play, who has the tougher schedule?

As of today, The Yankees have 22 games left. The good news is that NY plays Boston 5 times, ending with 3 at Fenway. The bad news is that NY plays Baltimore 8 (!) times, Toronto 6 times, and Tampa Bay 3 times. Looks like an easy ride to me.

Oakland has 22 games left as well, which looks a lot tougher, against 4 contending teams. They have a 3 game series here in Cleveland, a 4 game series at Boston, a 3 game home series vs. the Twins, and a 4 game home series at home against the Angels. The rest are 5 vs. Texas and 3 vs. Seattle.

The Tribe’s remaining schedule? Ten of the last 21 are against KC and Tamba Bay. That’s good news. The bad news is that we’ve got 6 games vs. the White Sox, 2 more vs. the Twins, and that 3 game Oakland series at home.

Bottom line? Yankees look like they have the clearest shot. The key is that Tribe/Oakland series next week. If Oakland loses that series they are probably out of it, given the toughness of their remaining schedule. It’ll come down to the Tribe and the Yankees, and we’ll probably be rooting for the Red Sox that last weekend….unless we keep winning like we are now, in which case none of this will matter one iota.

A quick reminder…Teddy Ginn, Jr. is on the cover of this week’s Sports Illustrated. Bill Livingston writes Saturday…

Before you say: “Yikes! Jinx!” with visions of Cory Snyder and Joe Carter on the cover of the 1987 baseball preview issue, note that neither Maurice Clarett nor Craig Krenzel were waylaid by cover appearances for OSU.

I don’t know, man. Neither of those guys were from Cleveland, and the Cleveland sports jinx is cancerous, spreads far and wide like some bubonic plauge, and Ginn is from Cleveland, and then….and then……ok, I’ll stop hyperventilating.