Five Up, Five Down

I. Angels' potential three-man rotation: Last summer, Major League Baseball announced that there would be four additional off-days in the postseason under a new television agreement starting in 2007. Many folks lamented the fact that Game 7 of the World Series would be scheduled in November, but Dodgers catcher Mike Lieberthal didn't mind: "What's four or five more days," Lieberthal said to the Associated Press. "If it increases revenue, more power to it."

What Lieberthal failed to realize was that this schedule tweak could have a far broader impact. With the four extra off-days, it's been largely speculated that managers will be able to revert to a three-man rotation throughout the playoffs. And this is something that could largely benefit the Angels, who pretty much locked up the division title by sweeping the Mariners in Seattle earlier this week.

Los Angeles' potential three-man rotation includes John Lackey, Kelvim Escobar and Jered Weaver. That 1-2 punch at the top is unparalleled in the American League this season. Lackey has developed into a true ace in his second year as Los Angeles' No. 1. The durable right-hander is tied for the major league lead with 16 wins -- which is already a career high -- and owns a 3.18 ERA. With those numbers, Lackey's a bona fide Cy Young candidate, but currently, he may not even be the most qualified hurler on his own roster.

Teammate Kelvim Escobar is in the midst of a huge breakout season. The 31-year-old right-hander boasts a 15-6 mark and the American League's second-lowest ERA (2.77), thanks in large part to a nasty splitter that simply keeps the ball in the yard. He and Lackey could accumulate a combined 40 wins by the end of the regular season.

After the Big Two, Mike Scioscia will fill the third spot with Weaver. Following a fabulous rookie campaign in '06, Weaver struggled at times this season, but he still owns a 3.79 ERA and has given up two or fewer runs in four of this last five starts. It remains to be seen how the 24-year-old will perform on the big stage in October, but we all saw what his normally erratic brother did last October.

Even if Weaver were to falter, the Angels have tough-minded southpaw Joe Saunders, who has been a pleasant surprise at the back end of the rotation. Saunders could also be used in that third spot against a lefty-heavy lineup.

One month from today, the playoffs will be set. And it's hard to imagine any AL team having a better three-man playoff rotation than Lackey-Escobar-Weaver. Although it may ruffle some feathers in Beantown and the Bronx, I'd take L.A.'s trio over Beckett-Matsuzaka-Schilling and Pettitte-Wang-Clemens for this postseason.

II. That other Phillies infielder: Prior to breaking his hand in July, Phillies second baseman Chase Utley was a leading candidate for NL MVP. Since Utley's injury, Philadelphia first baseman Ryan Howard has emerged as a frontrunner for the vaunted piece of hardware. But, there's a chance that neither player is even the most valuable Phillie. That title may belong to Jimmy Rollins.

Rollins, who has started all 133 games this season, is enjoying the best all-around year of any shortstop in baseball (sorry, Hanley, but I'm counting defense, too). At the plate, Rollins leads the National League in runs (115), triples (15) and total bases (305), and he's hitting .293 with 24 homers, 33 doubles, 75 RBIs and 27 steals in 32 attempts.

Defensively, Rollins is as sound as ever and could finally earn the Gold Glove that has somehow evaded him during his seven-year career. J-Roll is constantly overshadowed by his Philadelphia infieldmates and fellow shortstops (Ramirez, Jose Reyes, Derek Jeter, etc.), but this year he's arguably better than all of the above.