Playoffs

I went into a bout of baseball ennui once the Tigers started playing so poorly this month, but the pennant races are drawing me into it again.

Here are my favorite teams:

1. Tigers

2. Orioles

3. A's

4. Blue Jays

5. Twins

The Tigers and O's need no explanation, nor is any explanation required as to why baseball is depressing to me in September. But I like the A's because of Billy Beane; the stat dork in me loves that they win because of ballsy trades of veterans and by focusing on OBP, and that fact makes the fantasy GM in my think that I could do the real thing and have just as much success as Beane. As for Toronto, I'm just still happy that the Tigers beat them in 1987, and they've had a lot of my favorite players over the years - Ernie Whitt, Jack Morris, Lloyd Moseby, Rance Mullinicks, Garth Iago.

My most disliked teams:

1. Red Sox

2. White Sox

3. Yankees

4. Indians

5. Twins

I realize the disparity about the Twins. I have much dissonance about this team, dating back to their victory over the Tigers in the 1987 ALCS. I've hated them many times since that time, but bedgrudingly accept that they've done a damn good job for a lot of years without much budget. And they're fun to watch. I mean, Matt LeCroix? Jaques Jones? Johan Santana? Fun players.

I hate the Red Sox mostly because of their fans. And because of that "wacky" Johnny Damon, who never met a camera he didn't want to run to and then apply hairspray in front of. Or maybe it's Curt Schilling, that George Bush loving putz. Or the fact that the team stole Oakland's game plan in order to win.

I hate the White Sox because of Ozzy Guillen. The man is a complete moron. I hated him as a player and I hate him even more as a manager. Him, plus baseball's most irritating announcers - Hawk and Martinez. Terrible. Terrible.

The Yankees need no explanation. But I hate the Indians because when they opened their new park in the mid-1990s, they would sell out every game. Because tickets were so scarce, fans used to come up to Detroit during the Detroit/Cleveland series and take over the stadium. It brewed a healthy rivalry between the teams.

So, that long description should leave you with the conclusion that I'm rooting for the A's to pull this out this September. I hate the Red Sox and the White Sox, so I'd hate to see the ALCS come down to them. So I find myself in a strange position of rooting for the Indians, because, gosh, I'd love to see a White Sox choke so badly.