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The New York Mets have snipped the interim tag off of Jerry Manuel and have signed the former American League Manager of the Year to a two-year deal worth just over $2 million. Manuel took over the managerial job following the firing of Willie Randolph on June 17th and immediately injected some energy for a team that looked downright lethargic and defeated. Although they’d eventually fall a single game short of the National League Wild Card and miss the postseason for the second consecutive season, Manuel inherited a 34-35 ball club and turned them around to finish 16 games over .500, a job more than worthy for an extension.

When the Boston Red Sox wrapped up the American League Wild Card earlier this week, each and every member of the clubhouse should have taken a moment to thank second baseman Dustin Pedroia. The fact is that as the Tampa Bay Rays meshed and the Toronto Blue Jays beckoned, the scrappy 5′9 Pedroia put the Red Sox on his back and carried them into the postseason. The American League Rookie of the Year from a season ago, Pedroia is hands-down the Most Valuable Player in the AL this season. Anyone who doubts that can take a look at the way he’s carried the Sox through the stretch. Since July 14th, Pedroia has batted an eye-popping .374 that included an August for the record books. As the summer and pennant pressure heated up, he smacked 43 base hits and scored 33 runs in only 26 games in the month of August. Considering the fact that on the season he’s smacked more extra base hits than Texas Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton or Detroit Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera while leading his team to the playoffs, Dustin Pedroia is the American League’s Most Valuable Player.

The New York Mets will look to place a band-aid to their embattled bullpen in the form of starting pitcher John Maine. Maine, who was placed on the disabled list back on August 25th with bone spurs in his right shoulder, will return to the team Thursday and may become the Mets’ closer given the loss of veteran Billy Wagner to season-ending elbow surgery. Before landing on the DL, Maine was a solid No. 2 pitcher behind Johan Santana, recording a 10-8 record despite a 4.18 earned run average in 25 starts. Even though his health may hold him back should New York roll deep into the playoffs, fixing their abysmal bullpen is the only way they’re ever going to get there. The Mets ‘pen has an MLB-leading 27 blown saves this season, 16 of them coming since the All-Star Break. In fact, if games ended after six innings as opposed to nine, the Mets would own an 11.5 game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East and not be in a tooth-and-nail battle with the Milwaukee Brewers for the NL’s Wild Card.

Hidden behind the stories of the surprising Tampa Bay Rays, the bullpen woes of the New York Mets and the closing of Yankee Stadium is the reemergence of Minnesota Twins lefty Francisco Liriano. Liriano, who started the season 0-3, was sent down to the minors on April 24th and became almost an afterthought for a Twins team desperately trying to keep pace with the Chicago White Sox. Thankfully for Minnesota fans, Liriano refused to go quietly. After putting up a 10-0 record in Triple-A, Liriano was recalled to the Majors on August 2nd and has been as good as anyone, posting a 6-0 record with a petite 2.05 ERA in 10 starts. And Liriano isn’t just working past batters, he’s dominating them. The 25-year old has allowed only 48 hits in 61.1 innings, his walks and hits per innings pitched is an AL-best 1.08 since the All-Star Break. His sixth victory of the season came against the American League East-leading Tampa Bay Rays Sunday. Liriano allowed only one run while striking outs seven in seven innings. The win moved the Twins to only two-and-a-half games behind the Central-leading White Sox. The two teams will kick off a sure-to-be dramatic division-settling series at the Metrodome Tuesday as the Sox will send Javier Vazquez to the mind against the Minnesota’s Scott Baker.

Losers of eight of their last nine games, the Milwaukee Brewers and their fans must have thought their playoff door had finally slammed shut as they watched ace Ben Sheets leave last night’s game against the Chicago Cubs with an arm injury. Sheets departed the hill after only two innings when he told pitching coach Mike Maddux he felt stiffness in his right forearm. So with their veteran ace injured and their team nine games behind the Cubs for the lead in the National League Central, I wouldn’t have been surprised if Milwaukee would have just mailed it in. Interim manager Dale Sveum needed a bigtime performance from his bullpen and he got just that. Seven Brewer relievers combined to throw seven innings of five-hit baseball, striking out six while only closer Saloman Torres allowing a Cub to cross the plate. It was the first win for interim skipper Dale Sveum and only the fourth win for the Brew Crew in the month of September. The catalyst on offense? Who other than Prince Fielder, who went 3-for-4 at the plate while driving in three runs to bring his season-total up to a team-leading 93. After six tough games on the road against the Philadelphia Phillies and the Cubs, the schedule eases up for the next week as the Brewers wrap up their road trip with a three-game set against the Cincinnati Reds before welcoming in the basement-dwelling Pittsburgh Pirates for three games at Miller Park.

With his team in the midst of a season-long six-game losing streak, Brandon Webb took the mound Friday night against the Cincinnati Reds and threw a gem for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Webb tossed eight shutout innings to earn his first victory in over three weeks, becoming the National League’s first 20-game winner and keeping Arizona three-and-a-half games behind the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West. While Cleveland Indians ace Cliff Lee has the American League Cy Young all but wrapped up, the race for the NL Cy Young is a bit more compelling. Webb, whose 20-7 record and 168 strikeouts make him a leading candidate, will likely be in the running against San Francisco Giants youngster Tim Lincecum and Milwaukee Brewers ace C.C. Sabathia. A kid who might have a closet full of awards by the time his career is over, the 23-year old Lincecum is 16-3 with a 2.54 ERA while sharing the Major League-lead for strikeouts with veteran free-agent-to-be C.C. Sabathia. A lefty fireballer acquired by the Brewers on July 7th, Sabathia is 15-8 on the year and 9-0 since being traded from Cleveland to Milwaukee for prospect Matt LaPorta.

On a night where the Boston Red Sox and their Fenway Faithful set the record for most consecutive sellouts in Major League Baseball history, lefty Jon Lester had the Tampa Bay Rays baffled, cruising to his 14th victory of the season. Playing in front of the 456th consecutive sellout at Fenway Park, Lester scattered seven hits over seven-and-two-thirds, allowing no runs and striking out nine. The Red Sox continued to storm towards first place in the AL East, winning their sixth game in seven contests while the Rays lost their sixth out of seven. As the Sox improved to 7-0 against Tampa at Fenway Park this season, they also closed to within one half-game of first place in the American League East. Boston will look to move back into first for the first time since July 17th Tuesday night when they send 16-game winner Daisuke Matsuzaka to the hill against Tampa Bay ace Scott Kazmir.

The American League East-leading Tampa Bay Rays have activated rookie third baseman Evan Longoria from the 15-day disabled list. The possible AL Rookie of the Year has been out since being hit by a J.J. Putz fastball on the wrist during a 2-1 loss against the Seattle Mariners on August 7th. Despite losing both Longoria and star outfielder Carl Crawlford early in the month, the Rays still managed to go a Major League-best 21-7 during the month of August. Longoria, batting .278 with 22 home runs on the year, will continue his stellar rookie season tomorrow afternoon when Tampa Bay plays the finale of a three-game set against the Toronto Blue Jays at Toronto’s Rogers Centre.

Despite his Detroit Tigers being some eleven games back of the Chicago White Sox in the American League Central, center fielder Curtis Granderson is now making up for time lost earlier in the season. One of the top leadoff men in the game, the speedy Granderson landed on the DL in spring training with a broken bone in his right hand but has heated up with the Michigan weather. Since June 20th, Granderson is hitting. 337 with eight home runs, eight triples and 56 runs scored, the triples and runs-scored the highest totals for any player in that span. Fittingly, the year’s two biggest underachievers square off this week as the Tigers take on former mate Ivan Rodriguez and the New York Yankees. Since being dealt from Detroit fireballer Kyle Farnesworth at the trade deadline, Rodriguez is hitting a miniscule .202 for the Bombers.

The Philadelphia Phillies acquired veteran slugger Matt Stairs from the Toronto Blue Jays Friday, filling a hole in their lineup after losing lefty Geoff Jenkins to the 15-day DL. Although Stairs is batting only .250 on the year, he does give manager Charlie Manuel a decent power option off the bench. The 40-year old Stairs has slugged 11 homers on the season and will allow outfielders Jason Werth and Pat Burrell some days off down the stretch. The Phillies enter Saturday’s game against the visiting Chicago Cubs at 73-62, trailing the National League East-leading New York Mets by two games.