Vancouver, which entered Monday 18 points
out of a playoff spot, traded a couple of veterans before the deadline Monday afternoon.
Despite their ranking at number five in the country, the Sooners have looked like a team
deserving of a playoff spot the past few weeks.
Through Sunday, with seven weeks remaining in the season, 15 of baseball's 28 teams were either in first place or within 5-1/2
games of a playoff spot.
«I'm starting to get calls about my players every hour,» saysNationals G.M. Jim Bowden, whose club was not one of the 19 teams within
fivegames of a playoff spot at week's end.
With just three weeks to go, there are still 10 AL teams within
reach of a playoff spot, but only five of those spots to go around.
The Twins lost, so while their
clinching of a playoff spot didn't happen on their own terms, the Angels lost too which clinched a spot for Minnesota.
The
proximity of a playoff spot appeared to be lost on the Royals» front office as well, judging by the way K.C.'s brass overhauled the roster after that 2 - 1 loss to Seattle.
Behind those five were three teams from the Atlantic Division (the 76ers, Heat and Nets) and three from the Central (the Hawks, Pacers and Bucks), all within
range of playoff spots.
With Thursday's win, combined with another Columbus loss, Florida snuck within striking distance
of a playoff spot with three games in hand.
Stanton hit 25 games in a 40 - game span just after the All - Star break, and Miami climbed to three games over.500 on Aug. 27, just 4 1/2 games out
of a playoff spot.
Will teams out of contention try to play spoiler and knock teams on the bubble out
of a playoff spot or will they simply mail it in?
After a Conference Championship Weekend that saw all of those teams assure
themselves of Playoff spots and Ohio State beat Wisconsin to set up a debate over No. 4 that Bama eventually won, we're seeing significant rankings shuffles in all the top 25s.
It's normal really — as the regular season weeks go by and teams realize they have only a few chances left to grab hold
of a playoff spot — it's bound to get more intense.
Dean «on the ballot for Most Improved in 2012» Baba has been really great this Summer and I think these guys have what it takes to grab one
of those playoff spots.
Days since the Panthers were within five points
of a playoff spot.