Race for No. 2

[Brutus]

San Fransciso (88-68)
San Diego (87-68)
Cincinnati (87-69)
Atlanta (87-69)

The Braves aren't likely to win the division, so they're essentially out for the No. 2 seed. It's become a 3-team race.

Schedules:

Cincinnati: vs. HOU (3 games); vs. MIL (3 games)
San Fran: vs. ARI (3 games); vs. SD (3 games)
San Diego: vs. CHI (4 games); @ SF (3 games)
Atlanta: vs. FLA (3 games); vs. PHI (3 games)

The Phillies cannot play the Braves in the first round and the Giants could not play the Padres.

That San Francisco and San Diego play each other this weekend could help the Reds get the second-best record, assuming neither get a sweep. That's of course provided the Reds take care of business.

If the wildcard comes out of the West, Philadelphia will play that team (which could still be Colorado, though their chances really took a hit this weekend). If it's the Braves, Philadelphia will play the third division winner.

Will be an interesting week. If the Reds win their last six games, they have an excellent shot at opening the playoffs hosting games. If they lose one, they're still in OK shape. Losing two or more might send them to Philadelphia, unless the wildcard comes out of the West.

[Phhhl]

The club should rest some players after clinching the division. I know the tendancy is to want to go all out and try to gain a seeding advantage. But, who is to say a few fresh players replacing some fatigued "starters" wouldn't give them a better chance to win out anyway? I wouldn't want to see three straight days in which over half the lineup is populated with bench players. But, there should be an opportunity to rest one or two a night for the next week and still put a good enough lineup together to win.

[Griffey012]

The club should rest some players after clinching the division. I know the tendancy is to want to go all out and try to gain a seeding advantage. But, who is to say a few fresh players replacing some fatigued "starters" wouldn't give them a better chance to win out anyway? I wouldn't want to see three straight days in which over half the lineup is populated with bench players. But, there should be an opportunity to rest one or two a night for the next week and still put a good enough lineup together to win.

You also have to remember we have an off-day tomorrow, and have 2 or 3 days of rest between the last game of the season (Sunday) and the 1st game of the playoffs. That's 4 days off in the next week and a half...seems to be enough off days for a majority of the guys. Rolen should get some extra rest, Phillips should also if he is nursing an injury, and anyone else nicked up. The rest of the guys shouldn't need any extra rest.

[reds44]

You also have to remember we have an off-day tomorrow, and have 2 or 3 days of rest between the last game of the season (Sunday) and the 1st game of the playoffs. That's 4 days off in the next week and a half...seems to be enough off days for a majority of the guys. Rolen should get some extra rest, Phillips should also if he is nursing an injury, and anyone else nicked up. The rest of the guys shouldn't need any extra rest.

Agreed, there's a fine line between rest and rust.

However, as soon as the Reds clinch they need to try to lineup their rotation for the first round.

[Redsfan320]

But, who is to say a few fresh players replacing some fatigued "starters" wouldn't give them a better chance to win out anyway? I wouldn't want to see three straight days in which over half the lineup is populated with bench players. But, there should be an opportunity to rest one or two a night for the next week and still put a good enough lineup together to win.

With guys like Cairo and Valaika on the bench, this should work!

320

[OldXOhio]

A little rest would be nice for some (Rolen, Cabrera), but this team hasn't played the best brand of baseball this month. If nothing else, I think Dusty has to keep a few of the regulars (BP, Gomes) in there every day as they try and find their stroke.

[GriffeyFan]

The first round goes 2-2-1 with the home team getting games #1, 2 and 5 at home, right?

[Boss-Hog]

The first round goes 2-2-1 with the home team getting games #1, 2 and 5 at home, right?

Correct

[traderumor]

Here's my chance for this rant.

It makes no sense to penalize other division winners with the potential of playing the #1 seed because the WC happened to come out of the same division. Basically, baseball said that its more important to not have teams from the same division play in the first round of the playoffs than for division winners to get priority, which is wrong. Sounds like a rule to make sure that the Yankees and Red Sox don't meet before the ALCS.