Postseason Ahead...

The 8, ohh, um...9(?) teams for the 2009 postseason are all finalized. The National League will see division champions Philadelphia, St. Louis and Los Angeles, as well as Wild Card winner Colorado fighting it out for a trip to the World Series. The American League has Wild Card winner Boston joining division winners New York and Anaheim, while Detroit and Minnesota still must play a one game play-in to clinch the AL Central.

This postseason should be great for MLB. There are lots of big market teams in the Yankees, the Dodgers, the Angels and the Phillies to draw TV ratings. There is that team with the national following, in the Red Sox, to appeal to the masses. There are also regional favorites like the Cardinals to draw viewers, as well as smaller market Cinderella squads like the Rockies and whoever the AL Central winner turns out to be, that should interest news sources and other fans.

I am definitely looking forward to all the match ups this postseason. It's truly tough to pick a favorite out of this group.

The Phillies have great offense (five '09 all stars) and a couple veteran Cy Young Award winners as well as a World Series MVP on their pitching staff, but that closer situation is shaky.

The Yankees certainly don't have to worry about their closer spot, as Mariano Rivera has had that spot sewn up for over a decade. The Yankees' MLB best record 103-59 is impressive, but there have been times the best record got bounced right out of the playoffs...just ask the 2001 Mariners who won 116 regular season games.

The Dodgers have added some pieces, like Vicente Padilla, Jon Garland, George Sherrill and Jim Thome to help with the stretch drive. Padilla is 4-0 as a starter for LA. Garland went 3-2 with a 2.72 ERA with the Dodgers. Sherrill had a 0.65 ERA in 30 appearances with the Dodgers. Thome was just 4-for-17 for the Dodgers, with no extra base hits, but he is the 12th all time leader in homeruns, so that's valuable.

The Cardinal have a long history, with 10 World Series titles. Manager Tony LaRussa has won a couple of those things too. Albert Pujols is a marquee name who has had another MVP calibre season with 47 homers, 135 RBI and a .327 avg.

Colorado stormed over the Phillies with a first round sweep two years ago, on their way to the World Series. Can Todd Helton and Ubaldo Jimenez do it again?

The Red Sox have all star Jason Bay who set career highs in HR and RBI this season, in his first full year in Boston. They've also got their new franchise leader in saves, Jonathan Papelbon. The Red Sox have won 2 of the past 5 World Series championships and hope to add to it.

The Angels have been riding the tribute vibe all season, as they've been in control on the AL West for months and seem to have been doing it all for teammate Nick Adenhart, who was killed by a drunk driver in April. Their 97 wins were second best in the Majors.

And then there is the Twins or the Tigers. Minnesota won a coin toss weeks ago, to decide home field advantage for this game, if it was necessary. The game would have been played on Monday, but Metrodome plays host to NFL Monday Night Football, so the single game play-in will happen on Tuesday. If the Twins get in, they will be riding momentum, as they won 7 of their past 10 to catch the Tigers. If Detroit advances, they'll be riding high after fighting their way into the second season. The Twins lost a play-in game on the road last year to the White Sox. Head to head this season, the Tigers won 7, the Twins won 11.

No matter who you root for, or against, Autumn baseball is here and we'll all enjoy it. Here's to another memorable second season.

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Former Phillie Mitch Williams began a new radio gig, this past Saturday. Airing weekly on Saturday for the remainder of the year on Sirius/XM's MLB Home Plate, Mitch and former ML infielder Rico Petrocelli have teamed up to host Remember When. This adds to Mitch's duties as a studio analyst on the MLB Network. The new show will feature varied talk about the vast history of baseball. The show is call in format and will feature weekly guests. Check it out on MLB Home Plate.

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Chris Truby Speaks on Santana & Other BlueClaws Matters

On Monday, it was announced that the Astros selected outfielder Domingo Santana as the player to be named later in the late July trade that sent Hunter Pence to the Phillies. Santana, a Dominican born slugger, posted a .269 average with 7 HR and 32 RBI in 96 games with the Class A Lakewood BlueClaws. The 19-year-old is regarded as a five tool talent and has been ranked among the Phillies' top ten prospects by multiple national outlets. I had the opportunity to speak with Lakewood manager Chris Truby about Santana, the PTBNL list of five Phillies prospects that the Astros had to choose from, as well as other matters pertaining to the BlueClaws, as they enter the final few weeks of their regular season. Check out the media player below to hear the full interview. ______________________________________________ You can follow PhoulBallz on Twitter by clicking HERE . You can also connect with PhoulBallz on Facebook by clicking HERE .

2017 Phillies Prospects Countdown: #4 OF Mickey Moniak

Mickey Moniak, image- Joe Wombough Taken with the top overall selection in last year's MLB amateur draft, outfielder Mickey Moniak has garnered a lot of attention as a highly promising talent in the Phillies' developmental ranks. After signing out of La Costa Canyon High School for a reported $6.1 million, the lefty batting Moniak had a very good professional debut. In 46 games with the Phillies' Gulf Coast League team, Moniak posted a .284 batting average with 11 doubles, four triples, a home run and 28 RBI. Additionally, he showed some speed, swiping 10 bases in 14 opportunities. Following the regular season, Moniak participated in the Florida Instructional League and spent time at the Phillies' training facility in Clearwater, where he worked to add strength and muscle to his six-foot-two 185-pound frame. At the plate, Moniak, who was committed to play at UCLA prior to the 2016 draft, makes steady, hard contact. He is touted as a line drive hitter tha...

Catching prospect O'Hoppe tabbed to join Phillies

Logan O'Hoppe, image- Jay Floyd Please consider supporting my work and via my Patreon page . For a small monthly fee, your patronage will get you exclusive interviews and other prospect related material as well as early access to all of my other content such as this feature. Thank you. On Friday, the Phillies added a pair of catchers to their 2020 player pool. Minor leaguers Logan O'Hoppe (pronounced Oh-HOP-ee) and Henri Lartigue arrived in Philadelphia to help catch bullpen sessions for the team's collection of approximately 30 pitchers. The call to O'Hoppe was extremely welcome as the 20-year-old had been staying as active as he possibly could, working out with other players that have been been waiting out quarantine due to the current pandemic at his home on Long Island. However, he had been very eager to step back onto an actual baseball field. "I just hope I can play soon. Where ever that is or whatever form that is, that'd be aw...

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