Earlier in the year, the Yankees lost both Matsui and Sheffield to injuries. Sheffield came back, and Matsui is on the mend. Now it seems to be the Red Sox' turn - and it's pretty bad luck for them to lose Wakefield and Varitek at this point, down the stretch.

Varitek in particular is a huge loss - he is to the Red Sox what Jeter is for the Yankees. Ramirez and Ortiz may hit bigger, but Varitek always seems to be part of action in the big games. However, things are more interesting all around than they were a month ago. The White Sox have fallen well off the pace the Tigers are setting (and boy, doesn't that sound weird to say!) - which puts the wild card back in play as part of the mix in the AL East. We could easily end up with another Yankees/Red Sox duel in the playoffs.

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