That leaves twelve teams still in championship contention. One of those, the Boston Red Sox (this is the team that was supposed to finish with MLB�s best record � only to be heartbroken by the strike) is on life-support and will blip off the radar as soon as the Yankees dust them a couple more times. Five other teams � Atlanta, Arizona, Yankees, Oakland, Minnesota, are already on cruise control and have their post-season tickets punched. That leaves six teams playing games that really matter � fighting for three playoff spots. Seattle and Anaheim fighting for the AL wild card, Houston and St. Louis for the NL Central, and LA and San Fran in the NL wild card chase. And then there is NYY/OAK fighting for the AL�s best record while ATL/AZ do the same in the NL. Minnesota is locked into the #3 seed in the AL, as long as they can wrap things up before playing the White Sox in six of their final nine regular season games.

As far as the majority who are out of contention are concerned � September starts to seem a lot like March. They�re called regular season games, but it might as well be Spring Training II as teams continue to look towards the future. This process has already been going on for several weeks in some locales. San Diego has now employed an MLB record 36 pitchers with nearly four weeks remaining. And this is a team that does have one quality starter (Brian Lawrence) and an elite closer (Trevor Hoffman). So two spots on the pitching staff were filled. That means 34 hurlers were vying for the remaining eight spots throughout the season. Safe to say, nearly everyone in the San Diego organization from class AA up have gotten a shot at the big time. The open auditions their have been more extensive then those on American Idol.

GRACE WOULD FIT RIGHT INTO THE BREWERS ROTATION...

And then there is the shell know as the Milwaukee Brewers rotation, which now consists of someone who was pitching in A ball six weeks ago, a couple of AA pitchers, one other career minor-leaguer, someone recruited from the Wednesday night beer league, one half-way promising starter (Ben Sheets) and one semi-legitimate starter who does not know how to cover first base (could someone make Glendon Rusch watch a Tom Emansky video for crying out loud!!!!!) It�s a shame the Brewers weren�t aware of Mark Grace�s pitching prowess. Gracie would fit in perfectly in the middle of the Milwaukee rotation right about now. He throws as hard as anyone else and actually finds the strike zone once in a while. And HE�S LEFT-HANDED!!!!! Oh, and for you 3-4 Brewer fans that are left who thinks the team actually has a future , I have a good website for you that attempts to fluff up the franchise.

And people still try to wonder what�s wrong with the competitive balance of baseball???

With the afore-mentioned 19 teams out of contention � �Operation Shutdown� is now in full bloom. Leading the way (not surprisingly) is Pedro Martinez, now out with either a hip (according to team), groin (according to Pedro), or arm injury (according to NY tabloids). You choose whom to believe. Whatever the case � Pedro missed his start v. the Yankees (enough cause) for concern and �will probably miss� his scheduled Sunday start. About half of the top 250 teams in CDM�s full and second season games took the chance of starting Pedro and his scheduled two starts this week � even though word of Pedro�s hurts hit the wire over the weekend. With Boston now 6 � games out of a playoff spot at this writing � don�t be surprised if we�ve seen the last of Pedro for �02. Joining P-Mart among the list of walking wounded are the following�

Mark Prior (CHC) � First off, I don�t understand how some in the media were talking like the Cubs were running Prior out every third day or something. The Cubs stayed with a five-man rotation all year � not once skipping a starter to get to Prior, or anyone else (unlike Arizona who makes sure Schilling/Unit take the bump every fifth day). In any event, an alleged hamstring has shelved Prior for the year � as any attempt to bring him back at this point would only serve to (a) getting him hurt for real, or (b) improving his future arbitration numbers. It was on the record that Prior would be shut down in early September no matter what. Although it seemed Prior was shaky at times, his final numbers of 3.32/1.17 and most impressively 147 K�s in 116.2 IP, spell a must-have for �03.

Scott Stewart (MTL) � Closers seem to go down like flies this time of year, and this is a classic example. It took a while for this to come to light, since the Expos haven�t had many save opportunities lately � but it turns out that Stewart has bone chips in his elbow. A huge blow for those who�ve been banking on Stew�s 490 salary. In the interim, journeyman Joey Eischen closes � in case you�re real desperate. If looking for cheap CDM cap #�s � consider Danys Baez or Jorge Julio.

Alex Sanchez (MIL) � In case you have any questions about the Brewer curse, Sanchez was injured with what was reported to be a broken fibula after attempting to slide into second over the weekend. More concerning though was the fact that a plate and six screws were inserted during ensuing surgery. Sounds a little more complicated than a simple break. Obviously, plans for him getting work in winter ball are now shelved. Keep an eye on him in spring training to see how he�s doing speed wise. If needing steals and if you have a move left, LA�s Dave Roberts is now by far the best option.

Jason Isringhausen (STL) � Another reliever many have counted on who�s gone down (shoulder). Izzy is optimistic that he�ll be back in a matter of days � but talk of multiple MRI�s and cortisone shots does not sound promising. In the interim, Steve Kline and Dave Veres close.

Mariano Rivera (NYY) � The latest has Mariano working the strength back in his ailing shoulder � and hoping to be back with the Yanks come playoff time. With the team looking good in regards to the division title, Steve Karsay maybe actually be a good play for the next three weeks.

Shane Nance (MIL) � Any more questions about the Brewer curse??? This is a minor-league prospect the team was looking at, who had just pitched an uneventful eighth inning in a game the Brewers were leading 11-2. Manager Jerry Royster elects to have Nance hit for himself in the top of the ninth inning, with reportedly no intentions on pitching him in the bottom half, and a couple of spare catchers on the bench ready to pinch-hit. Sure enough, Nance manages to tear the biceps in his right (non-pitching) arm while at the plate. Sometimes, you just make your own luck.

Now for others making news�

Salomon Torres (PIT) � Ruins his Hall-of-fame eligibility by returning from a five-year layoff from MLB to pitch 8 1/3 shutout innings this week. And it wasn�t 8+ scoreless racks over anybody, it was against the Braves. For the people who don�t quite remember, Torres was a promising prospect who came up with the Giants in 1993 and pitched a critical final game of the season with the Division title in the balance, in which Torres was shelled in. Salomon did not seem the same after that, and was dealt to Seattle for Shawn Estes in 1995. Torres was dealt to the Expos in 1997 and decided to retire after struggling there that season. After that Torres was doing some coaching in the Dominican Republic and with a family on the way � decided to give playing one more try in 2000. Torres had a brief stint with a Korean team and a failed tryout with the Expos, before landing in the Pirates chain this year, going 8-5 with a 3.83 ERA. Torres never has been a strikeout pitcher but looks to have decent control, walking only one in his gem v. the Braves. Believe it or not, Torres is still only 30 years old so this may be a decent story to keep an eye on�

Josh Phelps (TOR) � Hardly anyone has him, but merits serious consideration � as he is eligible at catcher (though he is a full-time DH) at a salary of 750. Has three homers and 12 RBI in his last six games, providing as much power as anyone currently at the catching position including Piazza and Irod.

Billy Koch (OAK) � When a team wins 20 games in a row, who cannot possibly go wrong with any of it�s pitchers � including the closer. During the streak Koch has notched eight saves, and incredibly has been the winning pitcher in Wins 18, 19, and 20 � a real gold mine for those needing wins.

Mike DeJean (MIL) � 23 saves on a team that has only won 50 games is not bad. By comparison, Antonio Alfonseca � with an extra finger as well as on a team that�s won more games, has only 17 saves.

Felix Jose (AZ) � Another blast from the past!!!!! Felix has been called up by the D-Backs after hitting .383/27/102 in 85 games for a Mexican league team, no doubt winning many championships for those who play fantasy Mexican League baseball. Felix�s last MLB duty was with the Yankees in 2000, where he appeared in 20 games, before that Jose appeared in nine games with the 1995 Royals.

Two more monster issues of the KAC BASEBALL WAR SHEET remain for this year. Next week�s issue will deal with an initial rough draft in constructing your 2003 Challenge Roster. The following issue will focus on constructing your Challenge Playoff roster. And thanks to the recent labor agreement, the WAR SHEET will go on uninterrupted well into the 2007 season!!!!!

WEEK 24 PREVIEW

Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling are the Yahtzee�s of the week � both start twice, at home, one v. SD, the other v. MIL. Those could be some sick numbers right there. There are a few doubleheaders on the slate, so this is actually a pretty busy week. The Phillies have the most attractive schedule with eight home games � 1 v. NYM, 4 v. FLA, and 3 v. PIT. The Mets also have eight games. TOR, DET, ATL, AZ, PIT, and MIL only play six times, everyone else gets seven. For a second consecutive week the Yankees will be at home, along with CLE, ANH, CIN, PHI, HOU, and AZ. BAL, CWS, SEA, PIT, NYM, and LA will be on the road. Colorado has a good slate opening on the road in Houston, before getting LA at home. I don�t recommend benching Gagne for the Colorado series, the Rockies are usually pretty depleted this time of year and the Dodgers are fighting for their lives. Besides Unit and Schill, other two start candidates include Derek Lowe, Tim Hudson, and Damian Moss.