Manny, Others on the Spot in September

As Manny Ramirez goes through September in his new White Sox uniform, the eyes of the baseball world will be upon him. It won't just be the normal slow-down-to-gawk-at-the-car-wreck curiosity with which we normally watch Manny. We are going to be eager to see if the old Manny, the one who was a dominant offensive force, can return, and carry the White Sox into the playoffs.

"If he hits, we'll be better," White Sox GM Kenny Williams said. "If he doesn't, we won't be better."

The White Sox trail the Twins by four games, and their offense could use a boost, which is why Ramirez is one of the guys who will be in a spotlight in the season's final month. He's not the only one. Not even on his own team.

With September upon us, here are the players who are going to be counted on the most heavily if their teams are to get where they want to be. These are players who have underperformed, but have a month to make everyone forget about what's gone wrong lately.

Josh Beckett and John Lackey, Red Sox

Can't separate these guys, because they have been a duo of disappointment for the Red Sox. Lackey has a 4.60 ERA. If he had just been at his career ERA coming into this year of 3.81, he'd have allowed 15 fewer runs. Beckett's ERA is 6.21. If he had been at his career 3.79 ERA, he'd have allowed 26 fewer runs. (And that's just in the 95 2/3 innings he's pitched. We won't hold him responsible for the time he was on the disabled list.) Take away 41 runs allowed and the Red Sox would be right there with the Yankees and Rays. As it is now, they are on the fringe of the race. They'll need to get pretty hot in September, especially against the Yankees and Rays, and they'll need Beckett and Lackey to pick it up.

Bobby Jenks, White Sox

When Williams was discussing the Ramirez impact on Monday, he added the disclaimer that the White Sox, even with their new bat, aren't going anywhere unless the bullpen gets itself straightened out, and Jenks is the key. There had been signs of improvement from Jenks over the past few weeks, but then he gave up three runs and blew a save on Monday night. Overall, the White Sox bullpen had a 4.88 ERA and seven losses in August. Jenks had a 4.15 ERA in August, and that was actually an improvement over his 7.56 mark in July.

Tim Lincecum, Giants

The two-time defending Cy Young winner has pretty much fallen apart, resulting in nothing short of full-blown panic, if you judge by the talk radio and television analysts in the Bay Area. Over his past five starts, Lincecum is 0-5 with a 7.82 ERA. There are a myriad of theories for what's gone wrong -- everything from poor conditioning to poor mental preparation to pitch-tipping – but one thing is almost certain. If Lincecum doesn't get right, the Giants aren't going to the playoffs.

Javier Vazquez and A.J. Burnett, Yankees

Truth be told, the Yankees can still get into the playoffs even if these guys don't get it going, but we all know the Yankees' goal is not simply to make the playoffs. Unless CC Sabathia is going do his Jennie Finch and just start every game, the Yankees are going to need some other starters to step up if they are going to make it deep in October. Phil Hughes is going to be an unknown quantity as he pushes into uncharted water in terms of innings pitched, and Andy Pettitte is a question mark because of his injury. He's still at least two weeks away from pitching in a game. That leaves Vazquez (5.91 ERA since July 31) and Burnett (6.82 since June 16). At least one of them must start to pitch well, soon.



Chase Utley and Ryan Howard, Phillies

On paper, the Phillies are the best team in the National League. Although they currently sit atop the wild card standings, lately they've been prone to some offensive outages -- getting swept by the Astros last week, getting one-hit by the Dodgers on Monday -- that leave you wondering. Both players came off the disabled list in August, and since returning Utley is hitting .208 and Howard is hitting .125. If they can find their normal swings, the Phillies have a good shot to reel in the Braves and win the division. If not, they may have trouble holding on to the wild card.

Derrek Lee, Braves

When Chipper Jones went down for the year, the Braves were desperate for a corner infielder to put in the middle of their lineup. The best fit was Lee, but he wasn't having a great year in Chicago. Lee was well below his career averages with the Cubs, and since coming to the Braves he's hit .243. Fortunately for the Braves, the guys around Lee (Omar Infante, Jason Heyward, Martin Prado, Brian McCann) have been carrying him lately. Still, they'd sure love to see Lee get hot -- and he started to show signs of doing so by going 5-for-8 the last two days of August. It wouldn't hurt Lee's bank account either, since he's going to be a free agent.