Friday's News 'N Notes

• The Twins will begin a series against the Chicago White Sox tonight. Here are the pitching matchups:

Game 1: LHP Mark Buehrle (9-9, 3.55) vs. LHP Johan Santana (15-12, 3.14)
Game 2: RHP Javier Vazquez (13-8, 3.83) vs. RHP Scott Baker (9-8, 4.15)
Game 3: RHP Gavin Flloyd (1-4, 5.65) vs. RHP Kevin Slowey (3-0, 5.00)

• Unfortunately, Ken Griffey Jr. couldn't stay healthy for an entire season. On Wednesday, Griffey came up lame while in right field and suffered a strained groin. Hopefully, he won't have any lingering effects from it next season and he can come back strong.
• Checking the standings last night, I wanted to give my thoughts and opinions on the division races:

AL West: The Angels have it locked. The Mariners came on strong and gave them a run for their money, but they fell behind and will most likely miss the playoffs.

AL Central: Again, the Tribe has it locked. I would like to see the Tigers give them a strong run, but too little too late.

AL East: From the looks of things, both the Red Sox and the Yankees will make the playoffs. The question is who will win the division? The Yankees were "out of it" in July and now have found themselves just 1.5 games behind the Red Sox. This is definitely one for the ages. I will predict that the Yankees will win the Division on one of the last days of the season.

NL West: The "Baby 'backs" are in first place by just 1/2 a game over the San Diego Padres. The Rockies are also in the mix just 5 games back, but with just 9 games back and the fact that the Padres and Diamonbacks are both playing great baseball right now, the Rockies look to be on the outs.

NL Central: The Milwaukee Brewers and the Chicago Cubs are giving fans one of the greatest races in a long time. Both teams have had their ups and downs but continue to stay strong down the stretch. As great as the Brewers season has been, I can't say I wouldn't mind seeing the Cubs in the playoffs.

NL East: This is somewhat hard for me. I like a lot of the Mets players which makes me a little bit of a Mets fan, but I have to say I would like to see the Phillies make the playoffs. The Mets have really struggled as of late while the Phil's have come on very strong. Should be a good race as well.

AL Wild Card: The Yankees/Red Sox are going to win the Wild Card, both just have been too strong for a team like the Mariners to actually contend at this point.

NL Wild Card: The Padres, Rockies and Phillies look to be the most realistic to win the last playoff spot. I am predicting the Padres/Diamondbacks will be the team to ultimately come out on top.

• Some good news coming from the doctors of Kevin Everett. It looks like the Bills Tight End could "walk within days or weeks". It's amazing since he was thought to be permanently paralyzed at one point. Great news.
• It turns out that Floyd Landis will have to forfeit his 2006 Tour de France title after he was found guilty of doping. The title will be awarded to Oscar Pereiro the "official winner" of the 2006 title. My reaction? Thank god! Can we move on please?
• La Velle E. Neal III gives a good update on Twins 1st-round draft pick, Ben Revere. Definitely nice to hear his take on the Twins young outfielder.
  
• Seth Stohs at SethSpeaks continues to make great posts. On Wednesday, he gave us his Top 10 Prospects. Although it's a bit different than my own, it's always fun to speculate. And yesterday, he gave us a great Q&A with outfielder, Garrett Guzman. He was also featured in SBG's "Better Know A Citizen" feature. Definitely check both of them out if you haven't already.