Angels 5; Mariners 3

Nice way to finish the series. The offense finally staked Lackey to a lead that he somewhat amazingly didn't turn over. Howie was big time again, GA continues to rake, and Frankie continues to be absolutely lights out. The Angels salvaged the season series from the Mariners, ten games to nine.

Unfortunately, it wasn't enough. The A's swept the Red Sox and increased their lead to 7.5 games. They lead by more than a week, and there's only about five of those left in the season. At this point, the Angels need to really outplay the A's down the stretch in their games versus other opponents, and they need to pound the A's in their last seven head to head. I don't think it's a stretch to see that anything less than 5-2 pretty much ends the discussion, and realistically, even that likely won't be good enough.

Now it's on to Detroit to face the Tigers, who narrowly escaped a sweep in New York this evening when Craig Monroe hit a two out three run homer in the ninth to salvage a split. They've been struggling, and the Angels need to take advantage. Honestly, this is a series that won't kill me if the Angels lose. I have a friend who has suffered for the last 12 years with the Tigers, and their slide has him a bit on edge. I've been there, and I hate to see people go through that. So I'm rooting for the Angels, but if they get swept, it won't devastate me. There's a silver lining. Plus, Tiger wins are bad for the White Sox, and that's good for everyone.

Except the White Sox, of course.