A fantastic, and sometimes difficult, season. (The Closer).

Wow, what an amazing year, in so many ways. The good teams are where they are supposed to be, and the pretenders are saying, "Wait till next year."

As we look back at the year on the field, it was good, as always. In the American League, my Twins clearly are Cinderella. I hope they can dance. The Yankees are the team to beat, as usual, but you can't count out the A's. The Big Three will take them deep, and 20 in a row is 20 in a row. To win the whole thing they only need to win 11--and they don't even have to be in a row.

How about the A.L. awards this year? First, the A.L. MVP. You look at Alfonso Soriano. He was just one homer away from a 40-40 season! He has changed his position much like A-Rod did at shortstop when he came onto the scene. And how about A-Rod? That many homers from a shortstop is insane. Speaking of shortstops, how about Miguel Tejada? He won't win the MVP, but if he wasn't at short for the A's, they wouldn't go as far.

In my opinion, the Cy Young Award in the A.L. is the toughie. Three guys can win it: Barry Zito, Derek Lowe and Pedro Martinez. I'd like people to look at it differently. Look at what a person had to overcome. Last season, Lowe was booed off the mound in Boston, which can be a ruthless town. If you do good, they love you, but if you lose one game, they want to kill you. Lowe was a closer in 2000 with 42 saves. Now he's a 20-game winner. Pedro is Pedro. Heck, if you have Pedro's stuff, you better win 20. Zito is a true horse. So who will win? My heart tells me D-Lowe, but my brain tells me Zito.

In the N.L., the MVP is wrapped up. The man in San Fran is the best in the game in all facets. Barry won the batting title and bashed a boatload of homers--all while walking more than Tiger Woods playing 36 holes. Vladimir Guerrero will be runner-up, but it won't be close. ...