Just as quickly as the Indians and Orioles pulled within 1.5 of the crowd and pulled a game away from the Yankees and Rays, the Yankees and Rays came right back within a game after turning the tables on Tuesday.

That's why winning the series is important. That's why sweeping would have been awesome. That's why you are grateful the Rays lost last night. Heck, everyone lost!

Turn around, quick noon start today, let's get that W.

ROYALS - 6 | INDIANS - 3

W: Jeremy Guthrie (14-10)

L: Zach McAllister (7-9)

S: Greg Holland (41)

[BOXSCORE]

Just needed a big hit in this one. Just needed one big hit. The Indians got that run early in the first, with two outs, which had all sorts of positive energy flowing through the game and the situation.

But as the game evolved and the team squandered chance after chance and starter Zach McAllister started to progress through the lineup for the second and third time, I got more nervous. Let's start with Z-Mac.

Z-Mac breezed through the first four innings. He had a few walks in the third, but until Alcides Escobar hit the solo shot in the fifth, he was flying through things, keeping a good efficiency with his pitches, looked like he was going to get the Indians through most of the game and give them a chance to win if they were only going to score a few runs.

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Excuse me, pardon me, dang is it crowded in here or what?

Five teams, three games... The American League Wild Card is officially a mess, as if it wasn't already. The Indians lost, the Orioles lost, the Rangers lost. The only teams that won were the teams that faced those teams, and they just happened to behind the trio of Cleveland, Baltimore, and Texas. Everyone is within three games of the wild card race.

So....... They talk about the season being a marathon and that is definitely true. But if you ever were to categorize September as the final sprint, you would definitely look at this situation and call it more than a sprint. It's going to be a mad-dash.

ROYALS - 6 | INDIANS - 2

W: James Shields (11-9)

L: Scott Kazmir (8-8)

S: Greg Holland (42)

[BOXSCORE]

Scott Kazmir is clearly a pitcher who needs rest at this point in the season. One week he's going out there and pitching like he's never pitched before, the next, well, he's only giving you four innings. He isn't pitching horribly, yes he gave up four runs off nine hits. But he's simply pitching like a pitcher who is running on fumes.

At least in my opinion. 

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Cleveland and Kansas City, Baltimore and New York. You could call it the series of separation on both accounts. The four teams are the four contenders in trying to catch current wild card leader Tampa Bay for the last spot in the MLB Playoffs.

Last night, the Indians and Orioles took huge leaps in that chase, by jumping up within a half a game more and setting both the Yankees and Royals back a little further. There's more work to be done though.

ROYALS - 3 | INDIANS - 4

W: Ubaldo Jimenez (11-9)

L: Ervin Santana (8-9)

S: Chris Perez (23)

[BOXSCORE]

PHEW!

PHEW!

Okay, PHEW!

Where do you start?

The solo home runs? The Big U? Chris Perez's Bob Wickman impression? Yanimal? 

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Despite two crippling losing streaks over the last couple of months, the Indians find themselves in the thick of the wild card chase in the month of September. Even with the awful attendance figures that imply that the fans believe this team will fall short and create another disappointment to add to the laundry list of failures in Cleveland sports, all of us would have instantly accepted contention in September back on April 2.

Sitting three games back in the wild card standings and 6.5 games back in the division has to be considered progress. Oddsmakers in Vegas pegged the Indians for 76.5 wins. With a series win this weekend, the Indians would be at 76 wins. Considering the production the team has gotten from its key offensive players and the streaky, inconsistent play all season long, this is quite an achievement.

My personal mantra has been that I simply wanted the Indians to play meaningful games in September. That’s the case, so I consider the season a success. But now, I want more. The schedule sets itself up for the Indians to have that chance, but it’s going to take a sustained run of quality play because the Indians have to jump multiple teams.

Here’s a breakdown of the remaining schedules for the teams in the wild card hunt:

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