Rays dig out of a 6-0 second inning hole and go on to win. Their Magic Number is now
1
Or zero, if fachverwirrt
With all due respect to dalej42, is it wrong and selfish of me to hope that the D-backs actually win tomorrow afternoon so I can watch the Dodgers win their way into the postseason in person tomorrow night? 
I mean, I imagine it will be a hell of a celebration anyway should the Dodgers have already clinched by game time, but it would be a lot more fun if we can sweep the Padres to earn our way in.
Of course, assuming we do make it in, it looks like we might be waiting until Sunday evening to find out where we’re playing in the first round. What a mess between the Mets/Phillies/Brewers! Good stuff on the final weekend ahead.
To shamelessly copy ShibbOleth, the Magic Number is
1
Magic number? We don’t need no stinkin’ magic number!!! 
Oh, and GOOOOO Cubs. 
Looking at things more closely, it looks like the tiebreaker scenario is indeed taken into account. The magic number is NOW actually two, but is effectively one (and listed thus). I had my math wrong yesterday.
Anyone else think it looked weird, seeing the Red Sox leaping about spraying champagne after clinching the wild card? Is that something so fantabulous (especially after winning the Series) that it needs to be celebrated like that?*
Whatever team staggers to the finish and survives in the NL to win the wild card (Brewers or Mets) would look especially silly doing a big champagne celebration. More appropriate to swig a little Gatorade, maybe spilling a bit on your uniform out of subdued exuberance.
*Have any teams put up banners in their ballpark commemorating being the wild card team in a particular season?
I’ve seen it, I am desperately trying to remember who did it.
I know that the Rays’ owner (one of them, anyway) is on record saying he wants to win the Division so that they can put up a banner and no one can take that away. So as awful as our team history is, I don’t think even we’d put up a 2008 AL Wild Card banner.
That said, the Red Sox were celebrating their chance to repeat. And who doesn’t like to spray a little champagne around? I hope we kick their ass if it comes down to it, but I don’t begrudge anyone a chance to be kind of silly every now and again. It is a game.
Well, if the Rays are determined to win their division, they could hardly ask for a better chance than a weekend series against the Tigers, who are now a game worse than the fourth-place Royals!!!
Well, the fourth-place Royals will have to beat the Twins, because the White Sox sure can’t do it.
Well, I think this is the end of the D-backs for 2008. Congrats LA, good luck in the playoffs.
Noble words, bravely spoken! Better luck next year, D-back fans. You really had us scared there for awhile.
Of course, the Dodgers will lose in the playoffs. Especially if we face the Cubs first round. How long has it been since we’ve won a playoff game?
Do you really want to know?
Lets see in 2006 they were swept by the Mets. They did win one in 2004. Then back to 1996 when the Braves swept them. The were swept in 1995 also.
So the last time the Dodgers actually won a round of playoffs was in 1988 when they won it all. This was before your students were alive, wasn’t it?
I don’t think I missed anything there, but I may have.
Really? I am far less pessimistic this year than I have been in the past. The team that scares me the most, oddly enough, is the Phillies, and we may well face them in the first round. But I don’t think anybody is going to sweep us. Maybe I’m just being delusional, but I don’t think so.
dalej42, my sincere condolences. I really did expect Arizona to win today. It has been fun jockeying with you this season, and I assume we’ll pick up right where we left off when 2009 rolls around.
Who would have thought with 3 games left in the season that the Cardinal’s home run leader is…
Ryan Ludwick?
Hopefully he’ll be able to build on this for next year and provide some much needed protection for Pujols.
And what’s this “playoffs” thing everyone is talking about? The season is over on Sunday ;)…
PLAYOFFS?! Don’t talk about-- PLAYOFFS?! Are you kidding me? PLAYOFFS?!
Sorry. Got my sports mixed up.
Rays came close but couldn’t dig out of the hole they dug. Now I have to root for the Red Sox tonight because I want the Rays to be able to celebrate tomorrow. The Magic Number remains at
1
Ah, the Tigers…
Sumbitch.
The AL Central has really been shaken up over the past few days. For weeks now, the White Sox have been mediocre, and the Twins have helped them out by being equally crap. But now, the Twins sweep the White Sox to take a half game lead.
I really don’t have too much investment in who wins the Central, as a general rule, but one can only take pleasure in every loss inflicted on Ozzie Guillen, A.J. Pierzynski, and Hawk Harrelson. I’d love to see the Twins hold their lead and take the division.
Oh, I think you might have a pretty good chance if you get the Cubs. No matter how good the team, SOMETHING will happen to break Cub fans hearts. Now that Sports Illustrated weighed in, the link below gives a history of the Cubs and the jinx:
http://homerderby.com/archives/2215
There, that’s my final dig at my Cubbie friends (this season). Good luck you guys.
Rays clinch by virtue of the Yankees win last night, so now we know where, when and almost who we are playing next week. We’ll be at the game, unfortunately high enough up none of you should see us on TV.
Question to other baseball dads out there: Should I let me kid get a Mohawk? The Rays are having a fan party in St Pete on Monday night, complete with the musical stylings of Survivor, the whole Rays squad meeting and greeting fans, plus free Mohawks.