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Posted by: David Bunch

The baseball world is a-buzz over this weekend's Major League action. A lot is riding on who wins what, including at least one division title and several playoff spots. Because I am both a neophyte and amateur baseball fan, I asked Brad to explain to me exactly what all the hubbub was about.

Help me understand this weekend's baseball drama. Are Boston and Yankees playing for the title or for a playoff spot, or both? What I'm reading in the sports seems to indicate both, so does that mean you have to win a title to go to the playoffs?

(For those of you who are professional fans of the sport, I beg your pardon for asking what could be construed as a rookie question).

There are three divisions in each league (American League and National League). The playoffs take the three division winners and a wild card team, so there are four teams in the playoffs in each league. The wild card team is simply the team with the best record that didn't win their division.

The Yankees and Red Sox are both in the AL East, so whichever team wins that division is guaranteed a playoff spot. If the Yankees win, Boston could still make the playoffs with the wild card bid, but they have the same record as Cleveland right now, so that's still up for grabs, too. Over in the National League, the division winners have already been determined, but the wild card is still undecided. my 'Stros are hanging on to a 2 game lead over the Phillies, so if Houston wins 2 out of 3 this weekend, they are in no matter what Philly does.

For those of you who would like to see this in visual format, check out espn.com.