Break up the Marlins!  Donovan Solano continues to make a case for a regular position next year.  Last night, Solano’s run-scoring single in the bottom of the 11th inning was the game-winner.  The Mets erased a 3-0 in the 8th inning against the phenomenal Heath Bell, who allowed all three runs to score after he came into the game with two outs in the inning.  Jacob Turner started and allowed only three hits in 7 2/3 innings, but the bullpen cost him again.  The season mercifully ends this afternoon for the Fish.  Tom Koehler will start for the Marlins, Jeremy Hefner will toe the rubber for the Mets.  The game starts at 4:00 pm, plenty of good seats available. 

The regular season ends today, but there are still a couple of things to be determined.  The Yankees lead the Orioles by one game, and need either a win or an Oriole loss to win the AL East.  If they end up tied, they will play a tie-breaker tomorrow.  Last night, local talent Raul Ibañez tied the game with a pinch-hit, two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning, and drove in the game winner in the twelth inning with a single.  The O’s also won, beating James Shields and the Tampa Bay Rays 1-0, thanks to Chris Davis’ mammoth home run.  Hiroki Kuroda will face the Red Sox and Daisuke Matsuzaka tonight, while the Orioles will send Chris Tillman to the mound to take on Tampa Bay and Jeremy Hellickson.  A Yankee victory will also give the Bombers the best record in the AL.  Meanwhile, out west, he Oakland A’s beat the Texas Rangers again last night, and those two teams are now tied atop the AL West.  Remember that Oakland was 13 games behind Texas on July 1.  This afternoon, at 3:30, the Rangers will send Ryan Dempster to the mound against AJ Griffin and the A’s.  The only thing pending in the National league is the best record for home-field advantage.  Washington and Cincinnati are tied with identical 97-64 records going into game 162.  The Nats and the Phillies square off at 1:05 pm, Edwin Jackson vs Cliff Lee.  The Reds play the Cardinals at 8:15 pm, Homer Bailey will start for the Reds, while the Cards will counter with 21-year-old rookie Shelby Miller.

Tracking Miguel Cabrera’s quest for the Triple Crown, Miggy went 2-3 last night with a couple of RBI.  Miggy leads the AL with a .331 average, 44 homers, and 139 RBI.  Mike Trout is second in batting average, .324; Josh Hamilton is second in both home runs and RBI, 43 and 128.

Tomorrow, I will give you my fearless predictions for the playoffs and my final picks for the MLB awards.  

Today, I am proud to bring you my “Best of the Best” teams for both the AL and the NL.  I also give you the “Who are these guys, where did they come from, and where were they” best of the best list.

While I’m at it, I’ll throw in a bonus list - “The All Toilet-Bowl Team”.  (Self-explanatory)

AMERICAN LEAGUE  Best of the Best:

1B Prince Fielder Detroit Tigers

2B Robinson Cano NY Yankees

SS Derek Jeter NY Yankees

3B Miguel Cabrera Detroit Tigers

C Joe Mauer Minnesota Twins

OF Mike Trout LA Angels

OF Josh Hamilton Texas Rangers

OF Edwin Encarnacion Toronto Blue Jays

DH Billy Butler KC Royals

SP David Price Tampa Bay Rays

RP Jim Johnson Baltimore Orioles

MGR Buck Showalter Baltimore Orioles

GM Dan Duquette Baltimore Orioles

NATIONAL LEAGUE  Best of the Best

1B Joey Votto Cincinnati Reds

2B Jose Altuve Houston Astros

SS Jose Reyes Miami Marlins

3B David Wright New York Mets

C Yadier Molina St. Louis Cardinals

OF Ryan Braun Milwaukee Brewers

OF Andrew McCutchen Pittsburgh Pirates

OF Carlos Beltran St. Louis Cardinals

DH Buster Posey San Francisco Giants

SP Gio Gonzalez Washington Nationals

RP Craig Kimbrel Atlanta Braves

MGR Davey Johnson Washington Nationals

GM Mike Rizzo Washington Nationals

“WHO ARE THEY, WHERE DID THEY COME FROM, OR WHERE WERE THEY” ?

1B Allen Craig St. Louis Cardinals

2B Darwin Varney Chicago Cubs

SS Alcides Escobar Kansas City Royals

3B Chase Headley San Diego Padres

C Miguel Montero Arizona Diamondbacks

OF Jon Jay St. Louis Cardinals

OF Yoenis Cespedes Oakland A’s

OF Alex Rios Chicago White Sox

DH Chris Davis Baltimore Orioles

SP RA Dickey New York Mets

RP Addison Reed Chicago White Sox

MGR Bob Melvin Oakland A’s

GM Billy Beane Oakland A’s

ALL- TOILET TEAM  Worst of the Worst 

1B Carlos Peña Tampa Bay Rays

2B Jemile Weeks Oakland A’s

SS Yunel Escobar Toronto Blue Jays

3B Hanley Ramirez Miami Marlins / LA Dodgers

C John Buck Miami Marlins

OF Logan Morrison Miami Marlins

OF Xavier Nady Washington / SF Giants

OF Jason Bay New York Mets

DH Luke Scott Tampa Bay Rays

SP Chris Volstad Chicago Cubs

RP Heath Bell Miami Marlins

MGR Ozzie Guillen Miami Marlins

GM Larry Beinfest/Mike Hill Miami Marlins

TODAY’S TRIVIA QUESTION:   This season, the Marlins will end with no better than 70 wins, depending on what they do today.  When is the last time the Fish did not reach the 70 win plateau?  Tell you later, alligator.  

In college football this weekend, the FIU Panthers return to the field on Thursday, here at home, against the Arkansas State Red Wolves.  Game time is 7:30 pm.  The University of Miami will be in action again on saturday, when they take on the #9 team in the country, the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame, at Soldier Field in Chicago.  Game time for Miami - Notre Dame is 7:30 pm, and you can watch it on Channel 6, NBC in South Florida.  Some other games with possible national championship implications this Saturday include #3 LSU @ #10 Florida; #8 West Virginia @ #11 Texas; #5 Georgia @ #6 South Carolina, #3 Florida State @ NC State, and #23 Washington @ #2 Oregon.  The #1 team in the nation, Alabama, is off this week. 

The Miami Dolphins are busy preparing for their game this week in Cincinnati against the much-improved Bengals.  Yesterday, they finally came to terms with the reality that Legedu Naanee is the worst wide receiver in the NFL and cut him.  Joining the team is veteran wideout Jabar Gaffney.  We’ve seen some positive signs this season from the Fins, including the play of QB Ryan Tannehill and WR Brian Hartline, who leads the league in receiving yards so far this year.  Defensively, they’re #1 in the NFL against the run.  Cornerback play is inconsistent, especially Richard Marshall.  Their best offensive lineman, Jake Long, is not playing at his usual level, and kicker Dan Carpenter is showing that he is human.  Game time is 1:00 pm and the game will be televised by CBS, Channel 4 in Miami.  

Reviewing the complete schedule this week in the NFL, with the latest point spreads:

THURSDAY

Arizona Cardinals @ St. Louis Rams StL +1 8:20 pm   NFL Network

SUNDAY

Miami Dolphins @ Cincinnati Bengals CIN -3.5 1:00 pm   CBS Channel 4

Green Bay Packers @ Indianapolis Colts IND +7 1:00 pm

Baltimore Ravens @ Kansas City Chiefs KC +5 1:00 pm

Cleveland Browns @ NY Giants NYG -9.5 1:00 pm

Philadelphia Eagles @ Pittsburgh Steelers PIT -3.5 1:00 pm

Atlanta Falcons @ Washington Redskins WAS +3 1:00 pm

Seattle Seahawks @ Carolina Panthers CAR -3 4:05 pm

Chicago Bears @ Jacksonville Jaguars JAX +6 4:05 pm

Tennessee Titans @ Minnesota Vikings MIN -6 4:25 pm

Denver Broncos @ New England Patriots NE -6.5 4:25 pm

Buffalo Bills @ San Francisco 49ers SF -9.5 4:25 pm

San Diego Chargers @ New Orleans Saints NO -3.5 8:20 pm    NBC Channel 6

MONDAY

Houston Texans @ New York Jets NYJ +9 8:30 pm    ESPN

Bye week for the Dallas Cowboys, Detroit Lions, Oakland Raiders, Tampa Bay Bucs

THE ANSWER TO TODAY’S TRIVIA QUESTION:  This season, the Marlins will end with no better than 70 wins, depending on what they do today.  When is the last time the Fish did not reach the 70 win plateau?  We have to go back to the last century, 1999, when they only won 64 games.  Their worst full 162-game season was 1998, the year after they won the world series, when they tumbled to a 54-108 record.  The baseball park is really cool, though.  

The NBA Champions, the Miami Heat, tipoff the exhibition season against the Atlanta Hawks this Sunday at 2:00 pm in Atlanta.  Don’t look for either LeBron James or Dwayne Wade against the Hawks.  The team will then travel to China, for two games in Beijing against the Los Angeles Clippers.  Game times (Miami) for the China games are 7:30 am on Thursday, October 11, and 12:30 am on Sunday, October 14.  Both of those games will be televised on NBA-TV on your cable or satellite system.

Don’t miss my two “Descarga Deportiva” segments (for the Spanish-challenged, “Sports Jam Session”) every day, Monday through Friday, at 9:25 am and 12:15 pm on Radio Esperanza, 1550 AM or on the internet on www.miradioesperanza.com.  

Behave yourselves, and always remember that tomorrow will bring us a brand new day.