Got to love it folks. It's early September. The Rays are more or less out of the playoffs as they sit 14.5 games back in the division. Orioles and Jays are battling for last place. And the Sox currently 7.5 games behind the Yanks take their usual spot in 2nd place. Oh how sweet it is and after a fluke of a year in 2008 everything seems back to normal.

Yanks are on pace for roughly 103 wins, the AL East division crown and home field advantage through the playoffs. CC Sabbathia is earning every cent of that large deal he signed in the winter and putting himself in the CY Young conversation (won't win it unless he wins 20 games and is the only player to do so this year as Greinke will likely get it due to his era under 3). Teixeira is also putting up huge number to justify the millions he got this offseason and if not for Joe Mauer and his ridiculous batting average (and possibly Jeter for his resurgence at 35 years old) would be the hands down MVP in the AL. 

I smell October baseball the likes of which haven't been seen since the late 90's returning to the Bronx and can realistically say that the elusive 27th WS banner might finally be going up. What a difference a year makes.