With the regular season in the books and the playoffs on deck, let's look back at the flops, the surprises and the usual suspects, and of course, let's look at who will have playoff success.

The Orioles get my vote for the biggest flops. True, no one expected them to make the playoffs and they didn't disappoint, but they were supposed to be middle of the pack and fake contention, at least for April anyway. Instead, they finish with the worst record in baseball not counting the Nationals (and most people don't.)

Just in case anyone didn't notice just how putrid they were, they added an exclamation point to the final weeks of the season when they set the mark for the longest losing streak of any team this year. But good news O's fans - management just awarded manager Dave Trembley a raise and a contract extension - yay team!

Personal Baltimore grudge aside, I'd pick the Mets for the biggest flop. This was a team that was supposed to win the division and likely go to the World Series. Instead, they finished dead last in their division (re:Washington - see above reference.) Yes, they suffered injuries to key players, but so did every other team.

I could also make a case for the Tigers being the biggest disappointment. In an added game playoff for the right to advance to the post season, Detroit lost to Minnesota. Making matters worse, they blew the lead twice, once when they had a chance to close it out after a score in the top of tenth. Yes, they made it farther then the Orioles or Mets, but which team gave its fans the biggest heartaches? Only Baltimore fans with Cub-like masochistic leanings thought they had any chance to make the playoffs, and Met fans knew their season was over at the All Star break. The Tigers were much crueler to their fans, teasing them, cat-and-mouse, only to break their hearts on the day before the post season begins.

The Phillies took the spot that Met fans and the New York sports pages claimed as theirs back in April, while in the NL Central we saw the Cardinals win again, as everyone who wasn't a realistic Cub fan figured. And in the West it was another usual suspect, Manny and the Dodgers, finishing on top with the Rockies taking the Wild Card spot.

In the AL East, surprise, surprise - the Yankees and Boston finished one-two, with the Sox garnering the wild card.
What - you were expecting lightning to strike twice in Tampa Bay?
More than any other division this is the one most often won by the "usual suspects" - Boston or New York.
Boring!
Or is that just Oriole Boy talking?
The AL West saw a token run at the title by Texas, but the Angels pulled away without much difficulty, winning the division by ten games.

But enough of the past, what of the future?

While I would love to see a series between the two "pluckiest" teams - the Twins and Rockies, there will be no victory for the smaller markets this season. Unfortunately, for all but those from the Bronx, it very much looks like another post season victory by the "best team that money can buy" - the hated Yankees. As if they didn't have enough advantages with their superstar-packed line-up, they also have the huge edge of home field advantage, thanks to the ridiculous rule that awards this all important and determining factor to the winner of a mid-season exhibition game between the AL and NL. Who had the best home record in baseball this year? The Yankees, of course, with seven more home wins than their nearest post season competitor. And as history has shown in this sport, home field looms large in a seven game series.

The Rockies are too streaky, I expect they are done in the opening series.

The Dodgers? They were fast out of the gate, then the pack caught up and they had to fight off both San Fran and Colorado down the stretch.
LA has better pitching and better defense, and in the playoffs that's what usually wins, but I'm going against the norm here and picking LaRussa to out maneuver Torre (though if this was Hollywood Joe would advance and slay his former employer Boss Steinbrenner in the series) and then beat the Phillies for the crown.

In the AL - does it really matter?
NY kicked Boston's ass in nine of their last ten meetings.
They swept the Twins in NY, winning all four games, then for good measure went to Minnesota and swept them there, too, in a three game series.
Only the Angels offered resistance, but that came in the first half of the season, before the Yankees found their unbeatable stride and swagger.

Every series has a competitive price on it but one - NY vs Minnesota.
Philly is a -160 fav over the Rockies, the Cards are -140 over LA, and Boston is -120 over the Angels. NY? The Yanks are -440 over the Twins.
They are the only team you have to lay juice on for the league championship (-150) - every other team gets you at least 2-1 dog odds.
And they are the series favorite at +165, the next closest team being Boston at better than FIVE to one.
'Nuff said.

Hate to say it, hate to see it, but all paths lead to a Damned Yankees World Series Victory.
Painful for fans of of every city, this Oriole Boy included.