Sport-Blog.com

September marks the end of the baseball season for most major league teams. Sure, there are still a few pennant races left and several teams are in the hunt for a wild card spot. But by and large, most seasons are already over even before the last game is played. For example, the Kansas City Royals are 31.5 games behind the wild card leaders in the American League, while the Colorado Rockies are 19.5 games behind in the National League.

So what is it that makes these teams keep trying for the last 30 games of the season? How do the games stay relatively competitive? What brings fans out to the ball park when their teams are all but mathematically eliminated? Well, there's professionalism for one thing. These athletes are being paid to play the game; it's their job. They don't get to quit just because things aren't going well. Then there's also pride. Each guy who is in the lineup has probably been a great player all his life. They've won at every level, from T-ball through Little League, high school, and now the majors. You don't just give up on winning and suddenly accept losing. Lots of these guys, even on the last place teams, are playing for pride. A third major reason that games remain competitive is that teams that are out of the playoff race usually start to call up minor leaguers to give them a tryout under actual game conditions. For most of these minor leaguers, its a dream come true to get out there on a big league field. They are going to do their best to show their managers that they deserve a spot on next year's team.

Take the Seattle Mariners, for instance. They are 18 games behind the New York Yankees in the American League wild card race, and there's clearly no way they are going to make a comeback. Their season is done. So they are giving a couple of young prospects some regular playing time. Due to an injury to regular second baseman Willie Bloomquist, 21-year-old Jose Lopez has been in the lineup and has had an opportunity to show what he can do. Lopez responded by hitting a home run in the Mariners' win over the Yankees on Thursday night.

The Mariners also made room on their roster for 19-year-old pitcher Felix Hernandez. The right-hander has been nothing short of brilliant in his 6 starts this season, despite what his 2-2 record might indicate. He has pitched 44 innings in those starts (a 7+ inning average) and has racked up 45 strikeouts and just 9 walks. He also has a stellar 1.84 ERA in those 6 games. It's no wonder that Seattle fans are excited about this guy. He has all the markings of the next big thing out there in the Pacific Northwest.

So even if your favorite team is no longer in the hunt for a playoff spot, there are still plenty of reasons to watch Major League Baseball in September. You just might be seeing the next superstar on his way up!