Congratulations to the Tigers

Sometimes, you're just plain wrong. I honestly believed that the Tigers were vastly over-rated, having played way above their heads for the first half of the season and coming back to earth in the second-half. I thought the epic collapse that resulted in their losing the division to the Twins on the last day of the season would carry with it a hangover that would be noticeable in the series against the Yankees. The Tigers obviously didn't get the message that they were supposed to be bad.

I'm still not convinced that the lineup is that impressive; the Yankees have a far better collection of talent in their lineup. But that rotation? I'm downright impressed. The last two starts by Kenny Rogers and Jeremy Bonderman were unbelievable. Joel Zumaya is amazing. And Todd Jones . . . well, he sucks, but who cares?

I'm incredibly excited about the series between the Tigers and the A's. Obviously, I'd rather be watching the Twins face the Tigers in the ALCS, but forget about that. This is going to be a great matchup between two teams with very solid starting pitching. At this point, it's pretty hard to go against the Tigers, isn't it? And is it even going to be fair for whichever team emerges from the ALCS to face the National League champion?