AL West

The search among colleges for athletes has grown more complicated and increasingly competitive, especially during the past 10 years. There are countless components that require attention in developing and executing a successful plan of action, along with several key "players" who make up the team that run the offense.

Parents can play a significant role in the recruiting process and, in my opinion, they should make an active commitment to enthusiastically assist their children from start to finish in what will be a very important life decision.

It’s no secret that Carlos Silva has been absolutely terrible since signing with the Mariners last year. He had a good first month, back in April of 2008, but since then he’s been worth somewhere around -1 wins.

I’d even go so far as to say that there’s a petty good chance the Carlos Silva signing will go down as one of the worst in Mariners history.

Since the Yankees swept that early-August series against the Red Sox, they have had a very comfortable lead in the AL East that has allowed manager Joe Girardi to run the team with comfort most managers wish they had.

Maybe their lead is comfortable in the east, but the race for the best record in the American League is on. Even with a five-game lead over the Angels, there's a lot at stake here because the Angels own the Yankees, 6-19 since 2005, in their home ball park.

The Los Angeles Angels are currently in 1st place in the AL West and could represent the American League in the World Series.

The Angels are not out of the woods yet in the West as the Texas Rangers are playing well and still making a charge. The Angels are in good position to make the playoffs as a division winner or wild card with the regular season getting shorter everyday.

Let the Matt Holliday free agent speculation begin. From Buster Olney:

"But I'll venture a guess (and it's nothing more at this point): Holliday winds up signing with the Angels, effectively replacing Vladimir Guerrero within their salary structure."

Now comes the obvious question: could it actually happen?

The Mariners made a necessary move this week sending struggling pitcher Brandon Morrow down to AAA Tacoma after his disappointing start in the 6-4 loss to the Texas Rangers.