Amazin'

Overhearing Floyd, Upton interjected, "Three and a half now."

The next day all four televisions in the Rays' clubhouse were tuned to the Red Sox-- Yankees game. After Jason Giambi singled home the game-winner for the Yankees in the bottom of the ninth, Upton raised his right fist. The lead was back to four.

The '69 Mets handled this burden by treating it as a reward. From their perspective, by the time September rolled around (they were 4 1/2 games back when the month started), their season was a success no matter how it ended. So in the final month they were able to relax and by doing so went an astounding 23--7. Since the Rays already lead the AL East, they do not need to go 23--7. They just need a few more helpings of meat loaf. That is Maddon's term for taking two out of three games, a reference to Meatloaf's 1977 hit single Two Out of Three Ain't Bad.

By keeping the strategy simple—just take two of three—the Rays are able to ignore the bigger picture, which can be a bit overwhelming. They are in position to complete one of the greatest turnarounds in baseball history, pull off one of the greatest upsets in baseball history and strike a blow for small markets everywhere. The AL East may be the toughest division in all of professional sports, and the Rays are threatening to win it with a payroll just over $40 million, with some of their best players still on the disabled list, with friends and family in the stands and often few others.

It would be amazin'.