Opinion

Roy Halladay is known as perhaps the greatest pitcher to ever pull on a Blue Jays uniform; some would say that it is without a doubt that he is.

That could be quite intimidating for a young pitcher in the rotation with him.

Part 4 of 7 Phillies Championship Advantages

As they say, timing is everything. After a highly challenging 2010 season wrought with unending obstacles, that little bit of wisdom might particularly ring true for the Philadelphia Phillies. 

The San Diego Padres have been a thorn in the Giants side all year.

With the exception of the Giants winning three out of four against the Padres in San Diego last month, the Padres have an 8-2 record against the Giants in the other 10 games.

That's why it's not enough to just win the division and sit back while Atlanta drops three straight to the Phillies; letting the Padres sneak in as a wild card against a resting Giants.

Though the 2010 season in Major League Baseball has not quite ended, most fans have an idea of who they think deserves awards to symbolize their excellence this year.

Some votes should be extremely close, while others may not be as close as expected.

Here are my predictions for the 2010 MLB Postseason Awards for debate and perhaps even ridicule by all the experts out there.

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The Pirates are concluding yet another terrible season with only two games left in the 2010 schedule. They are going to pick first overall in next year's draft and have over 100 losses.

This seems pretty dim and honestly it is hard to get excited over much, but the Pirates have their young core finally and have reinforcements on the way.

With any luck they will be just a little bit better in 2011 and will make huge strides in 2012. No need to look that far ahead as you will need a reason to get tickets for next year.

It feels the same way every time the local teams capture a playoff spot, your instantly transported back to your childhood and the feelings that those teams evoked.  The Phillies evoked those emotions on Monday night, clinching their fourth straight division title and securing home field advantage throughout the playoffs. 

On August 25, the San Diego Padres were the class of the National League. They were 76-50 and had a six game lead over the San Francisco Giants. The Padres were the surprise team of baseball, picked by most experts to finish in fourth in the NL West. 

Led by young starting pitching and a reliable closer in Heath Bell, the Padres had led the division a majority of the season. Manager Bud Black had done a phenomenal job with the club and was the front-runner to win NL Manager of the Year. 

Even though last night's Orioles game against the Detroit Tigers was washed out by the blanketing rain that flooded much of the Mid-Atlantic, the sun was still shining at Camden Yards. That sun stands for the feeling that the Orioles have created around Baltimore.

This season marks the 13th consecutive losing season for the O's, but the team's recent resurgence under manager Buck Showalter has the city feeling that it might not have to endure a 14th.

According to reports, manager Jerry Manuel and GM Omar Minaya will not be returning to those roles next season. Jon Heyman of SI.com released the news.

This should not be a surprise of anyone around baseball as the two men have been under fire last past two seasons. With yesterday’s loss to the Milwaukee Brewers, the Mets are assured a second straight losing season.

With three games remaining in the regular season, the New York Yankees likely need to sweep the Boston Red Sox in order to win the American League East. That’s not officially the case, it just seems like it will be needed.