4 Games to Go, and the AL is Still a Tossup

July 10, 2012; Kansas City, MO, USA; American League pitcher Fernando Rodney (56) of the Tampa Bay Rays throws against the National League during the eighth inning of the 2012 All Star Game at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak/USA TODAY Sports via US PRESSWIRE

I didn’t think this year could top last season’s wild single day season-settler, but the race in the American League looks every bit like it did last year.  The Rangers are looking good, and a recent slump by the Angels has kept the Orioles, Yankees, Rays, Athletics, and White Sox battling tooth and nail.

With the publicity nightmare that the replacement referees provided to the NFL, the NHL lockout, and the recent NBA lockout, it’s good for baseball to not only not have controversy and union strife, but to have three consecutive years of dramatic season finales.

Perhaps the most attractive aspect of baseball is the ability of the game to adapt to the people playing it.  What I mean is that a field of 12-year-olds feel the same rhythms and play under essentially the same rules as do the big leaguers.  I know that when I play in my geriatric league, it feels the same as it did when I was a kid. It just hurts more now.  Lots more. It’s why baseball has appealed to such a large segment of our nation’s population for so many years.

As I write this, the O’s are beating the Red Sox, and the Yanks and Blue Jays are tied. Cue the drama!