45

In this case, two outta three was bad. I'm referring to my fearless predictions for the Sox-Twins series, nailing the last two games, but getting the opener wrong. Who knew that Freddy Garcia and the Sox wouldn't be able to beat rookie pitcher Boof Bonser? (They're not saying "boo," they're saying "Boof.") Jon Garland held up his end of the bargain in the second game, pitching brilliantly. Unfortunately, our old buddy Javier Vazquez was on the mound for the rubber match. While he lost as expected, he did it in an unexpected way: He didn't wait until the third time through the lineup to self-destruct, instead giving up four runs in the third inning -- enough for the Twins to win.

There is some good news though. The Tigers are in a tailspin of their own, having lost nine of their last twelve. After the weekend's action, the Sox are 5.5 games behind Detroit for the Central Division lead and the Magic Number is down to 45. Plus, we face the Tigers four games in a row (without Vazquez starting) at Comerica. A sweep will reduce the lead to 1.5 games and Magic Number to 37. Three out of four means 3.5 games behind and a MN of 39. A split leaves us at 5.5 games and cuts the MN to 41. I'm not going to entertain any other possible outcomes, but you do the math. Meanwhile, the Twins, who are only a game behind the Sox for the Wild Card berth, get to play the O's. At least, the series is in Baltimore. The O's are .500 at home; the Twins are three games under .500 on the road. Not the best records for Sox fans, but it's a hell of a lot better than those two teams meeting in Minnesota, where the Twins are 24 games to the good and would be facing an Orioles team that is 14 games underwater on the road. Go Sox!