Flipping the script on Comedy Central

For the first decade or so of 3-division play, the AL Central was dubbed "comedy central".

The 5-team division swas only capable of fielding one competitive team a season (first the Indians, then the Twins) and was the last division to field a Wild Card Entry.

But with the White Sox winning it all in '05, and the Tigers reaching the Series last year, times have changed.

This season, the AL Central has 4 playoff-caliber teams - the Tigers look more polished than they did last year, the Indians are even more talented than their 27-17 record indicates, the White Sox offense is a sleeping giant, and the Twins always find a way to get it together.

Even the Royals are slouching towards a reasonable approximation of the classic Saberhagen-Brett KC teams. The restoration won't happen this year, but Drayton Moore is not going to be the next Chuck LaMar.

On the other side of the coin, we have the NL Central, which has inexplicably imploded. Yes, the Brewers are a genuinely good team this year, but what's everyone else's excuse?

Tony LaRussa finally won a ring in St. Louis (take that, Sparky Anderson!), and it seems like he did it just in time. This year's Cardinals look like just another average team with a few big names. The Cubs' offseason spending spree has thus far netted them a 20-24 record. The predictability is yawn-worthy. After a decade and a half of the killer B's (Bagwell and Biggio tearing it up during the season, lying down in the postseason), the Astros lack an identity and punch - the Rocket has been the story of the team the last few seasons. No Rocket, no story.

As for the Reds and the Pirates... well, hell, you know who they are. I keep waiting for them to get it together, but as the teams stand now (Homer Bailey and Jason Bay may have to settle for being big stars elsewhere), those teams will be dueling for basement rights in the NL Central for years to come.

This is how fast things can change in the MLB - in only a few years, the AL Central has gone from presenting a lid-on-the-trashcan team while the NL Central has at least 3 teams in the mix, to the Brewers' being the only contender in the NL while the AL has 4 teams everyone else has to take seriously.