Roy Halladay

The advent of sabermetrics has changed the way we look at "clutch."

"Situational hitting" is luck. "Inducing weak contact" is luck. "Performing under pressure" is luck. It's all been proven with math and logic and regression analysis.

But screw that, because it's a pennant race, and even the most logical stathead has subjective ideas about who he'd most want to see step to the plate with his favorite team's season on the line.

Important Notes: The stats were last updated on September 20, 2010.  Sorry about that pitcher getting cut off.

Keep in mind, this will be in an order of the teams I think that made the cut.

Each week or two I will evaluate the top four things (two from the AL and two from the NL) coming into October ball.  This week I'll be talking about the top-four teams with the top 1-2-3 punch that will give them the best chance to win the World Series.

The Philadelphia Phillies have made another late-season surge in order to pass the Atlanta Braves in the National League East standings, stretching their own lead to three games.

The Phillies are preparing for another deep playoff run, but first they need to fend off the Braves for the division crown. It’s a big series as Atlanta comes to Citizens Bank Park for three games, hoping to cut into the lead and in a best case scenario make it all even once more.

C'mon Philadelphia, please put down the Michael Vick Kool-Aid...just for a second. We're talkin' baseball right now.

For years, the Phillies have relied heavily on their “Big Three” to win games; the “Big Three,” of course, being the trio of homegrown studs (Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, and Ryan Howard) the Phillies have featured in their daily lineup for the past several years .

Much can be said about a team that makes things happen amidst a pennant race, and a lot can be said about those who don’t. What can we say about the difference between the Philadelphia Phillies and their competition? Well, there are still 15 games left to be played out.

With the 2010 baseball season nearly coming to a close, it's time to take a look at the National League Cy Young candidates.

Six days left until the biggest series of the year in the National League.

The Phillies official website reports that the Phillies pitching coach, Rich Dubee, may be looking to deliver a knock out blow next week when facing the Atlanta Braves. Given the recent awakening of the Phillies' bats, that doesn't sound like too bad an idea.

Sports Irreverence and More from The Other Tip of the Goldberg

Maybe it’s because of the rain that fell this morning—I haven’t seen any rain for about eight years, and it has me a little confused.

The rain also washed away my pickup softball game this morning, giving me a little more time on my hands to think about the pressing issues of the day.

The Philadelphia Phillies obstacle course of a season currently finds them one game up in the National League Eastern Division. The club's 2010 campaign has been akin to a season of The Amazing Race in terms of duration, complexity, and challenge. 

It's been 66 years since the National League has seen a three time National League champion.

The year was 1944 when the mighty St. Louis Cardinals won their third straight pennant after finishing first in the NL with a 105 win season.