The Red Sox have made the playoffs. Yippee. This is the extent of my excitement. Everyone knew they were going to make the playoffs. I really want to see them win the AL East for the first time since 1995.

But would it be better if Boston came in second and was the wild card? The way I understand it, if Boston wins the division, they play the Cleveland Indians in the first round. If Boston is the wild card, they would play the San Diego Angels of Oakland, or whatever their stupid name is these days.

Of these two scenarios, I think the Sox match up better with the Angels, even if the Angels have home field advantage. Boston always plays well against these guys. Remember the 2004 playoffs, when the Red Sox dominated them? Or even this year, when the Sox were on the verge of a series sweep until they put in Eric Gagne. The Angels have a good team that plays hard, steals bases, and is really good defensively. They have superstars in Vlad Guerrero and Garret Anderson, and quality starting pitching. But I think they all shrink in the clutch. Their superstars don’t step up and carry their team, and their pitching has the tendency to look ordinary. I know they’ve won their division three out of the last four years and won the World Series in 2002, but if they meet the Sox in the playoffs, they are going to get their butts kicked again.

Next up: The potential Red Sox/Cleveland Indians matchup.

This weekend had such potential. Unfortunately, one bad inning on Friday and Schilling pitching to one batter too many on Sunday led to the Evil Empire taking 2 out of 3 at Fenway. The Yankees didn’t show me much. They have Jeter and A-Rod. Everyone else is just there.

The Red Sox gave these games up. They hit the ball hard last night but right at Yankee players. They had really good starting pitching all three games. Lowell, Ortiz, Ellsbury and Pedroia are all looking good.

This is just a bump in the road. I hope the Sox aren’t going to dwell on these losses too much. There is still too much baseball left to be played, and the Sox are too good to have this bring them down.

I will say this. Manny Ramirez should be left off the playoff roster. I’m glad that he can screw around in the dugout with the Pillsbury Doughboy’s hat on while his team is busting their asses. Do you think Manny’s bat could have helped in a one run game? Of course it could. But Manny is all about Manny. I’m going with Ellsbury, Crisp and Drew in the outfield for the remainder of the season. And I hope Ramirez gets shipped out in the offseason.

If you’re a true baseball fan, then this will be the most exciting weekend of the season. It really doesn’t get much better than this. This is Rocky vs. Drago, Daniel-san vs. Cobra Kai, Hatfields vs. McCoys. Boston vs. New York.

Can you remember when a game with these two teams didn’t matter for something? Earlier this season when Boston held a 14-game lead, and the Yankees were battling the Devil Rays for last place, those games mattered. They matter because you can never count either team out. The Yankees have managed to do a complete 180 this season. They’ve improved their pitching, everyone is hitting, and A-Rod is proving himself to be the best player in baseball.

Who would have thought that the Yankees would have the second best record in baseball with 15 games to go? The Red Sox would, that’s who. Boston has kept the same approach all season: solid pitching, being selective at the plate, and playing strong team defense. Even with the best record in baseball for the entire season, Red Sox players have assumed nothing. They knew New York would be back. The Yankees have way too much talent to be mired in last place.

What concerns me as a Red Sox fan is that New York is hot right now, winning seven out of the last eight and sweeping the Red Sox just a few weeks ago. But this is a different Red Sox team than the last time they faced each other. Boston is doing the little things that make champions: drawing walks, taking the extra base, clutch hitting. They are never out of a game, which is evident with their last two wins, and the Sox bullpen is as good as it’s been all season.

This has the makings of a great series. Both teams are hungry and know the AL East title is on the line.

It’s only mid-September, but the playoffs start tonight.

Everyone relax. There is nothing to be concerned about.

So what if the Red Sox were just swept by their most feared rivals? They’re still up 5 games in the AL East.

Who cares that the three best Red Sox pitchers just turned in their least-clutch performances of the year? They were due for a bad game.

Big deal that Manny Ramirez, arguably the greatest right handed hitter of all time, is out indefinitely with a strained oblique. This is precisely the reason we signed J.D. Drew. (ugh)

No problem that the Red Sox had 13 measly hits during the three game sweep. They’ll hit when it matters.

Who’s having doubts now that the Yankees are back in the wild card lead, setting up a potential first round match-up against Boston?

Um… I am.

Try to remember a few weeks back. The Red Sox weren’t scoring runs, the bullpen looked ordinary, and the New York Yankees were climbing up the standings. As Boston held to a 4 game lead, thoughts of the Red Sox epic collapse in 1978 were in the minds of all Sox fans. Well, those thoughts are history. The Sox are back.

After a dominating 4-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox, where Red Sox starting pitchers gave up 5 earned runs and the Sox bats came alive to produce 46 runs, the Red Sox now lead the AL East by 7 1/2 games with a 3 game set at Yankee Stadium starting Tuesday.

The Red Sox are peaking at the right time of the season. With 31 games left, 18 of which are at Fenway Park, it’s time to print the playoff tickets… Objects in the mirror are NOT as close as they appear.

Let me start off by saying I really like David Ortiz. He is the catalyst behind the Boston Red Sox success the past several seasons, but I am having a couple of problems with Big Papi this year.

First of all, I can appreciate Ortiz’s career high batting average of .325, and both of his steals this year have been memorable, but I miss the old David Ortiz. The David Ortiz who was Mr. Clutch in the playoffs in 2004 and mashed 54 home runs in 2006. I want to see Big Papi spitting on his gloves and smacking dingers. The sight of Ortiz’s 230 pounds stretching singles into doubles reminds me of Chris Farley doing his “Flashdance” impression in Tommy Boy.

Now I understand that Ortiz has had injury problems this year, and pitchers aren’t giving him much to hit, but the playoffs are right around the corner. The Sox don’t need another .300 hitter, they need someone to step up and get the big home run.