Regular Season Standings:
AL

x1. 1991 Twins 2-1 (Tiebreaker)
x2. 2004 Red Sox 2-1
3. 1911 Athletics 1-2 (Tiebreaker)
4. 1927 Yankees 1-2

NL
x1. 1965 Dodgers (Tiebreaker) 2-1
x2. 1975 Reds (Tiebreaker) 2-1
3. 1936 Cardinals 2-1
2. 1954 Giants 2-1
5. 1986 Mets 1-2
6. 1908 Chicago Cubs 0-3

The last couple games of the RBI season were in the NL, where all three games mattered HUGELY for the playoffs, as every team but the Cubs was alive in the hunt (pretty accurate... sorry, Cubs fans, I feel your pain- I'm a Mets fan...)

First- Chicago DID hang in and have an early lead on STL, but the Cards rallied and Three Finger Brown couldn't hold it together late... the Cubs went 0-3, and the Cardinals stayed alive in the hunt, needing the Giants to lose to have a good shot.

The Giants and Mets went at it next, and the Giants came out SWINGING! Everyone (except for Say Hey Willie who, aside from one hit, had a rare bad day, striking out three or four times) came to Meet and Beat the Mets, and Dr. K, Dwight Gooden, was overmatched... Hernandez, Carter, and Straw tried to rally late, and got the ball rolling, but it just was too little too late, and the Mets lost, ending not only their playoff dreams, but those of the 1936 Cards.

So it came down to 1975 Reds-1965 Dodgers... a win for the Reds would push them to 3-0 and give them homefield (they already had a playoff spot locked up) and would open the door for the 1954 Giants. But Sandy Koufax, starting his second straight game given the must-win circumstance, came through strong, and the Big Red Machine was big... but not big enough... the Dodgers won, took homefield for THEMSELVES on the tiebreaker vs. the Reds, and knocked their foes the Giants out of the playoff hunt.

So- ALCS is '91 Twins vs. '04 Red Sox, NLCS is '75 Reds vs. '65 Dodgers.

What does that say?

Well, it's pretty even... the Reds have the biggest strength/weakness gap, as the offense is crushing but the pitching a line of OK starters that, if rocked, turn a game against the Reds into a shootout.

The Reds are really like George Foreman- pin you in the corner, then crush you with one huge crushing blow.

The Dodgers are sort of the anti-Reds, with weak-yet-timely hitting and possibly the best pitching staff in Koufax-Drysdale-Olsteen-Podres... very fast, light team...

Sort of the Sugar Ray Robinson of the event.

The Twins are an odd team... they really are a hodge-podge of some hitting, some power, some defense, some pitching... nothing the BEST in any area, but good in all areas, no real weaknesses, just... good.

The Evander Holyfield here.

Finally, the team with the legacy, the spunk, the huge underdogs that could, hitting, speed, timing, pitching, power- all there in doses... and a LOT of attitude and grit, a team that could be down 4 in the 9th and still claws its way back.

The Muhammad Ali of the teams present.

So- 1991 Twins, 2004 Red Sox, 1975 Reds, 1965 Dodgers... who wins?