Well, the season is now basically over, and baseball is looking good. Last year was the most exciting postseason in recent memory, and this year is the most exciting regular season. Coming into today - which is to say, with two games left to play - there were still two division titles up in the air and a crazy three-way scramble for the NL wild card. The divisions are now settled, and only an act of whatever devils are responsible for Barry Bonds' super powers could shake the lock the Astros have on the NL wild card, so it's time for a roundup.

First off, the Chicago Cubs. I won't lie to you: I'm a Cubs fan. I've been with the team through bad, worse, and stupid, and I'm still waiting for my shot at "good." And an amazing, last-minute seven-game losing streak that broke an almost guaranteed lock on the NL wild card means I'm going to be waiting even longer. I'm pleased that my team could be a part of the most exciting September playoff-spot scramble in recent memory (with all apologies to the BoSox and Yankees), but it would be keen if we could remember to win one of these years. But, hey, like I said, I'm a Cubs fan. And the rallying cry of the Cubs is "there's always next year!"

Yankees and Red Sox. It was a nice fight, but forgive me if I still don't quite see the point. Both teams were more or less guaranteed playoff spots, so what does it really matter if the Sox take the division or the wild card? I guess it was more about sticking it to the Yankees than anything else. Too bad about the way it ended up, but it was a hell of a rally.

Angels, Athletics, and Rangers: Oh, my. The Texas Rangers? I really wanted them to come out on top, just because they're one of those teams everyone always picks on, and they came out of absolutely nowhere in the late season. Congratulations to the Angels on their first division title in eighteen years, though. I'm glad they won it; I wanted *something* to be different in the AL postseason this year.

Dodgers and Giants: The only possible reason this was so close was because Barry Bonds scares the living balls out of every other player in the game. Honestly, except for Bonds, the Giants may as well be AAA.

Florida Marlins: Too bad about losing Rodriguez, Lee, and Urbina - evidently the team *couldn't* do so well without them. They have some good stuff, and heaven knows McKeon is a good manager, but something needs to be done about that payroll situation. As long as the Fish can't afford to pay their good players, they'll continue to be flash-in-the-pan types.

Now for the Provisional Darien Baseball Awards. Note that these are not predictions - this is simply who I'd give the award to if I were in charge.

AL MVP: Melvin Mora (BAL) - As odd as it seems to pick someone from the underacheiving Orioles, Mora has had an incredible season. His .343 average leads the AL if you don't count Ichiro Suzuki, and, on top of that, he has 27 home runs and 104 RBIs. He can play - and has played - every position except C, and is an excellent fielder (0 errors) with enough cojones to barehand a liner if he doesn't think he'll have time to catch it properly.
Honourable Mention: Ichiro Suzuki (SEA) - Ichiro has been hot this season, and succeded in his quest to break Sissler's 85-year-old record for hits in a season. If his massive 259 hits generated more than a puny 60 RBIs and 8 HR, the Mariners may have been much more interesting, and you'd be likely to see him in the MVP spot.

NL MVP: Barry Bonds (SFO) - I love how everyone wants to pretend there's competition for this. There is not. Bonds is easily the best active player in baseball, and has a good shot at best player ever. He's hitting .364, which is nearly Ichiro-level, but he's backing it up: 45 HR and 101 RBIs are hard to argue with, especially considering that Bonds has walked a mind-boggling (not to mention record-setting) 228 times. Without Bonds, the Giants are nothing. With Bonds, the Giants very nearly made the playoffs. Name another player who has that much impact on the game.
Honourable Mention: Albert Pujols (STL) - I feel bad for Pujoles, and not just because of his name. espn.com honestly gives the pronunciation guide POO-holes, which is simply not right. But poor Albert has given his fourth straight MVP-quality season (and he's only been playing for four years), but is still stuck in Bonds' shadow. Fortunately for Pujoles, Bonds will retire relatively soon, and then the NL MVP will be available again.

AL Cy Young: Johan Santana (MIN) - A 20-6 record is hard to sneeze at. What about 265 K and a 2.61 ERA? A WHIP lower than 1? There's a reason he's been AL pitcher of the month three months consecutively now.
Honourable Mention: Curt Schilling (BOS) - His 21-6 record just edges Santana off the top in the AL, but his other numbers just aren't as impressive: 203 K and 3.26 ERA with a 1.06 WHIP. Not that any of those numbers are *bad,* mind you - they're near the best in the league. Which just goes to show how amazing Santana has been this year.

NL Cy Young: Randy Johnson (ARI) - It's not Randy Johnson's fault that he's 15-14 this season. It's because he's stuck on the stupid Diamondbacks. 282 K, a 2.65 ERA, and a tiny little .89 WHIP don't add up to 15-14 if the rest of the team can remember what the hell game this is that they're supposed to be playing. And, lest we forget, Randy Johnson pitched a perfect game this year. And that's only been done seventeen times ever.
Honourable Mention: Roger Clemens (HOU) - The Rocket is a perennial favourite, though this is his first chance to pick up an *NL* Cy Young. He's 18-4, which looks a lot better than Johnson, and his team is going to the postseason, which looks better than Johnson, but the rest of his numbers don't line up with Johnson's, and he doesn't have the perfect game. Don't feel too bad for Clemens, though; he already has six Cy Youngs.

The "Where's the Offense?" award: The Chicago Cubs - No team in baseball can boast a pitching staff as dominating as the Cubs'. But the team just doesn't produce the runs it needs to carry the games. Cubs games tend to be lost with stupidly low score - the other guys aren't getting much to work with, but the Cubs don't work with what they get. There's no excuse for Mark Prior throwing 16 K in a game and the Cubs still losing it. None at all.

The "Where's the Defense?" award: The Baltimore Orioles - On the other side of the scale, the Orioles can throw together a hell of an attack, what with Mora, Miguel Tejada, Rafael Palmeiro (he's just like Bonds, but smaller), and a host of other excellent hitters. But the pitching staff is crummy (not to beat a dead horse, but the Orioles' star pitcher - Sidney Ponson - *did* go 3-11 before the All-Star break), and the fielding is often wooden and error-prone.

The "Where's the Team?" award: The Arizona Diamondbacks - 49-111? What the hell? Why did you guys even bother showing up?

The "Where's the Stadium?" award: The Montreal Expos - Just as a tip, if your team name is "Montreal Expos", people get a little annoyed when your home games are held in Puerto Rico. Ah, you caught me - this is just me taking advantage of my last chance to make fun of the Expos.

Predictions for next year -

AL Cy Young: It's tough to say. If Santana keeps his stuff together, he could win it again. But he may have to contend with Orlando Hernandez - Duque's been red freaking hot so far, and if he pitches a full season next year, he could shake things up.

NL Cy Young: Once again, the pick is Mark Prior if he can manage not to spend two-thirds of the season on the DL. Failing that, probably either Roger Clemens or Carlos Zambrano.

AL MVP: If the team can figure out how to score, Ichiro Suzuki. If he can fix his massive fielding troubles, Miguel Tejada. Or maybe they'll just get bored and give it to A-Rod.

NL MVP: Bonds again. I don't see that changing. Unfortunately for Pujoles.