King Kaufman's Sports Daily

Who said September baseball's dull? Plus: Another umpire controversy. And: NFL Week 4 picks.

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Sept. 28, 2007 | Why do you people want to talk about football all the time? Don't you know the baseball season is winding up? I mean, come on, people, the Colorado Rockies have won 11 straight!

I guess I wrote off the New York Mets' chances of blowing their National League East lead a little too quickly last week. The last bit of their lead over the Philadelphia Phillies, which was seven games with 17 to go, evaporated Thursday as they lost to the St. Louis Cardinals while the Phillies were beating the Atlanta Braves.

The Mets end the season with a three-game series at home against the last-place Florida Marlins. The Phillies get to finish at home against the Washington Nationals -- who are in fourth place but just got done sweeping the Mets. If New York manages to miss the playoffs, a distinct possibility, it would let the Phillies in via perhaps the greatest collapse since the Phillies' own swan dive in 1964.

The Rockies were still out of the playoffs Friday morning, tied with the Phillies/Mets for second in the wild-card race, one game behind the all-new, outfielderless San Diego Padres, who in turn trail the Arizona Diamondbacks by a game for the N.L. West lead. Got that? Good. Also, the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers continue to stumble toward the Central Division title, the Cubs two games up with three to play, both losers again Thursday. The Brewers are hosting San Diego for the weekend, the Cubs visiting Cincinnati.

Meanwhile, an interesting sidebar to the Milton Bradley story: Mets outfielder Marlon Anderson accused an umpire of lying. After an arbitration hearing on his appeal of a two-game suspension, Anderson said ump Dan Iassogna, who tossed him for arguing balls and strikes and flinging his helmet Sept. 15, lied in his report of the incident.

"He said I said the F-word three times," Anderson said, according to Newsday. "Anybody who knows me knows I don't do that."

I don't know if Anderson swears or not, or if Iassogna lied or not, but it's interesting that we've now had two incidents in the same week in which players have accused umpires of lying in their reports. Bradley said umpires lie a lot in their reports, and he was sure Mike Winters, the ump with whom he argued Sunday, would lie in his report of that incident.

Winters was suspended Tuesday for the rest of the season, so whether Bradley was correct about Winters' lying or not, we know at least that Major League Baseball doesn't believe Bradley was simply talking nonsense, as is his wont. With Anderson's accusation -- which, again, was only that, and it's worth noting that his two-game suspension was upheld -- coming on the heels of the Winters-Bradley fracas, it's looking like baseball has a real problem on its hands.

Are the umpires honest or not? In the aftermath of the Tim Donaghy scandal in the NBA, this is not a question to be taken lightly. Commissioner Bud Selig has to take decisive action here to address what could easily become, if it hasn't already, a serious issue for fans.

Oh my gosh, what did I just type? Bud Selig has to take decisive action? I'm sorry. I'm awake now.

Next page: Why do you people want to talk about baseball all the time? NFL Week 4 picks