AL West

With their thrilling 4-3 victory over the A's in Oakland on Saturday, the Texas Rangers have finally made their long-awaited return to baseball's promised land, earning their first postseason berth since 1999.

Not many pitchers with a 12-12 record would ever make a compelling case to win a Cy Young Award. But Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners not only has a legitimate case, he is the most deserving to win in the American League.

A California jury returned a guilty verdict today on three counts of second-degree murder in the death of Los Angeles Angels rookie pitcher, Nick Adenhart and two others in April, 2009.

Gallo was charged and convicted of the more serious second-degree murder charges rather than manslaughter because he has a previous DUI conviction and was known to understand the specific dangers of drinking and driving from his own experience.

The Texas Rangers clinched the first division title in 11 years, and eagerly await the chance to gain more respect while competing against the beasts of the AL East.

Given the inexperience of the young Rangers and the health of Josh Hamilton, Texas could again find itself staring at an early exit from the postseason.

Here’s a look at why the AL West champions won’t be hanging around for too long this year.

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The list of things that went right with the 2010 Seattle Mariners season starts and ends with Felix Hernandez.

King Felix should be the favorite for the Cy Young after a stellar season that includes a 2.31 ERA (second in baseball), a 1.06 WHIP (tied for fourth in baseball), and 227 strikeouts (second in baseball). 

Ichiro Suzuki is pretty good too, recording his 10th straight 200-hit season early last week.

After that, however, the Mariners roster is a collection of misfits, underachievers, over-the-hill veterans, and colossal busts. 

Sunday afternoon's game between the Los Angeles Angels and the Chicago White Sox may have had no bearing on the playoffs, but it was certainly historic in nature.

It took the Texas Rangers 11 years, but they are back in the playoffs.

With their 4-3 victory over the Oakland A’s on Saturday, the Rangers clinched their first division title since 1999 and now will have a chance to do something they have never done before—win the World Series.

Of course, the keys for the Rangers as they head to the postseason:

A. Health

B. The starting rotation

When I say health, I really mean Josh Hamilton.

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have gone through a season in which could best be described as abysmal. Missing the playoffs for the first time since 2006, they will be embarking on a sport in October that has been unfamiliar to them: golf.

The Angels will be celebrating their 50th birthday next season, and owner Arte Moreno and general manager Tony Reagins will undoubtedly be looking to put together a team in 2011 that will showcase their year-long celebration.

There is this beautiful song out on the country radio charts. In fact, it is now ranked at No. 2 for this week, and it is called, "The Boys of Fall," and its artist is Kenny Chesney.

It talks of high school football and wearing the jerseys, digging in the cleats, and roughing up the shoulder pads. It is an emotional song that still manages to stay away from the label of "cheesy" label.

Down where I live in Texas, it fits the culture like a glove because Texas is all about football.

New York Yankees fans have been wanting ace C.C. Sabathia to win this year's Cy Young Award. After every single okay start, there were articles stating that C.C. had locked-up the most prestigious pitching award in Major League Baseball.

Well, there's a phenom that has been pitching one of the best pitching seasons over the past couple of years, and it's Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners.