We are now inside of one week until the start of college football season. One week later, the NFL regular season kicks off.
Which means baseball will take a back seat. So Talking Points offers three reasons to pay attention to baseball down the home stretch:
A Triple Crown?
It hasn’t happened since 1967, when Carl Yastrzemski of the Red Sox led the AL in home runs (44), RBI (121) and batting average (.326). It hasn’t happened in the National League since 1937, when the Cardinals’ Joe Medwick hit .374 with 31 home runs and 154 RBI.
But with five weeks left in the season three players — Albert Pujols of St. Louis, Joey Votto of Cincinnati, and Carlos Gonzalez of Colorado — are within striking distance of the NL triple crown.
Felix Hernandez.
While the Mariners have been off the radar most of this season, Hernandez continues to be worth watching.
On Wednesday, the 24-year-old became the third-youngest pitcher since 1952 to reach 1,000 strikeouts.
The Mariners might not be relevant this season, but King Felix is the kind of player that fans can get excited about — and a guy who figures to play a leading role if the M’s become relevant again in 2011.
Oakland A’s pitching.
In the year of the pitcher, the A’s have put together an impressive recent string of success. Entering Thursday’s game, Oakland starters had not allowed more than three runs in 17 consecutive games, longest by the franchise since the 1927 Philadelphia Athletics did it 18 times in a row.
