Talking Baseball

The White Sox win the American League Central division title and will face the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday in game one of the division series in Tampa.

Jim Thome hit a solo homerun in the bottom of the seventh for the lone run of the game. It was Thome’s 541st homerun of his career.

The White Sox win 1-0 behind eight shutout innings from starter John Danks and a 1,2,3 save from Bobby Jenks. Danks allowed only two hits and struck out four en route to his 12th win of the season (12-9).

It was Jenks’ 30th save of the season.

Center fielder Brian Anderson, in as a defensive replacement for veteran Ken Griffey Jr., made a diving catch of a ball off the bat of Alexi Casilla to end the game.

Anderson originally entered the game in the bottom of the seventh as a pinch runner for Junior after Junior hit a double.

This was the lowest scoring tie breaking game in Major League Baseball history. It also had the lowest total of hits in a tie breaking game between the two teams with seven.

This is the first time since 2005, the year the White Sox won the World Series, that the ChiSox are back in the playoffs.

Major League Baseball announced on Tuesday that Cliff Lee of the Cleveland Indians was named the 2008 American League Comeback Player of the Year.

Lee was a 22 game winner in 2008 for the Indians after having a horrific 2007 season. He finished the year with a 22-3 mark for the struggling Indians.

Lee was the Indians’ first 20 game winner since 1974.

He finished with the league lead in wins and ERA. His 2008 ERA was 2.54. His 2007 season was marred with injury and a stint in the Minor Leagues.

From 2004-06 Lee tallied 46 total wins and showed incredible promise as a young pitcher for the Indians. That span included an 18-5 season in 2005.

The Milwaukee Brewers are the 2008 National League Wild Card champions.

C.C. Sabathia started on three days’ rest for the third straight time, throwing a complete game, and catapulting the Brewers into the playoffs for the first time since 1982.

They needed help along the way though. Their game ended roughly 30 minutes before the Mets and Marlins finished the season at Shea.

Florida’s Wes Helms and Dan Uggla went back to back off of relievers Scott Schoeneweis and Luis Ayala in the 8th inning to notch a 4-2 win and eliminate the Mets from playoff contention for the second straight season on the final day.

Sabathia allowed one unearned run in the win, a 3-1 victory for the Brewers. Ryan Braun provided all the offense Sabathia would need when he hit a tie breaking two run homerun in the bottom of the eighth inning.

Milwaukee will take on the Philadelphia Phillies, winners of the NL East title for two consecutive seasons, beginning on Wednesday in the best of five NLDS.

The Dodgers will take on the Cubs in the other NLDS series, also beginning on Wednesday.

Cole Hamels will get the ball in game one of the series, which sees the Phillies hosting the first two games of the series for the second straight year, against an undetermined opponent.

Interim Manager Dale Sveum has a lot of decisions to make regarding how the Brewers’ rotation will be set up for the NLDS.