The Come What Will Postseason

I'm used to October being a time of high anxiety. I'm used to dreading the prospect of the Yankees or the Braves winning the World Series, or the Red Sox suffering another crushing defeat.

(You'll note there's no mention of the Mets here; I'm not used to anything with the Mets in October.)

As I watched Wednesday night's Cubs-Dodgers and Angels-Red Sox games, I realized how different this October is.

Now sure, I have my favorites. I'd love to see the Rays make a run. The Cubbies would be a great story (but it sure looks bad right now). Two World Series titles later, I still have a soft spot for the Red Sox.

But the real change is that this time around I have no real knots in my stomach.

Granted, the idea of Philadelphia winning it all doesn't sit well. But if that's the worst outcome, I can deal with it.

Look, this isn't last year. This isn't last year when the only reason the Phillies were in the playoffs was because we choked the whole thing away, when we folded to the Phillies losing 8 straight head to head games, and 12 of our final 17 overall.

This year we simply got beat by the Phillies. It sucks, I'm not happy about it, but somehow it goes down easier for me. The Phillies played their best ball in late September, we played middling ball, and the end result was the end result.

(Still don't see it my way? Fine. But you can't tell me there's anything more nauseating than the nauseating than the idea of another Yankee tickertape parade.)

So I can stomach the worst case.

For me, the question of the best case scenario is a tale of three teams: the Red Sox, the Rays, and the Dodgers.

Another title for Boston would firmly entrench the Red Sox as the team of the decade (team of the new millennium, if you want to go there). As Sun Tzu said, and I'm paraphrasing here, the enemy of the Yankees is my friend.

The same general principle applies to the Rays, whom the Steinbrenner family has an odd fixation over.

But for me, my horse is the Dodgers. Sorry Cubs fans, I really feel for you, but this chance is just too good to pass up. If the Joe Torre-led Dodgers win, Hank Steinbrenner might combust. An offseason's worth of questions for Yankee management would ensue, followed by an endless stream of questions about Joe Girardi.

So yes, come what will, but if Joe Torre can work a little magic out there in LA, well, he might finally earn the accolade that's eluded him so long: the respect of Y2K.

- A.F.O.M.G.