Wild weekend ahead

Updated: October 1, 2005, 2:47 AM ET
By Rob Neyer | ESPN Insider
There seems to be a great deal of confusion about the American League Central race. "How could the White Sox already have clinched," people ask me, "when they've got a three-game lead and three games to play?"

Let me try to explain this with some brevity: The short answer is that the White Sox won via a tiebreaker. The White Sox have not clinched the division's best record, but they have clinched the division title. Still confused? If the Indians manage to sweep the White Sox this weekend, both teams will finish the season with 96-66 records, leaving them tied atop the standings. But with both teams guaranteed a postseason berth -- either the Yankees or the Red Sox will necessarily finish with fewer than 96 -- who wins the Central is relevant only when it comes to postseason seeding.

I caught the following discussion of the Central leaders while watching the Twins-Royals game Thursday night:


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