Most weekday evenings, the Stew looks at five approaching
games worth monitoring. As they occur, feel free to discuss the night's
happenings in the comment section below.
Angels at Red Sox, 7:10 The Yankees have Joba Chamberlain(notes) as their postseason pitching question mark and the Red Sox have Daisuke Matsuzaka(notes). The latter will give greater New England a good idea of what it's in for when he makes his first start for Boston since June 19. Red Sox Nation couldn't ask for a better barometer, though. If the American League playoff situation stays as is, the two teams will be squaring off to start the division series. Yes, again.
A's at Rangers, 8:05 Look, there are ways for Texas to make up the 4.5 game gap behind Boston in the AL wild card race, but going scoreless for 19 consecutive innings against Seattle and Oakland is definitely not one of them. Look alive down there, Texas.
Rockies at Giants, 10:15 Barry Zito(notes) is never going to fully earn his $126 million contract, but he can make it just a little easier to swallow with a win over Ubaldo Jimenez(notes) and Colorado tonight in San Francisco. Doing so would draw the G-Men within 2.5 games.
Marlins at Cardinals, 8:15 With a 10-2 record and 1.62 ERA since July 1, Adam Wainwright(notes) gets another start to solidify his Cy Young case. A win makes him MLB's first 19-game winner.
Royals at Tigers, 7:05 One team has won six of its last seven and the other has dropped five of its last seven. You'll never guess which is which.
