1 night, 6 teams, 2 wild card spots...
By the time August rolls around and September is on its way, most sports fans have turned their attention to NCAAF or the NFL. The small minority of fans who keep an eye on the MLB are the fans that have a rooting interest in a potential playoff candidate. Being a Cub fan, I knew our season was over the minute we let Ryne Sandberg get away... last November. So my interest in the playoff picture was, at best, remote. I was aware of the contenders and as far as I could see, the playoff picture was pretty clear to me at the end of August.
NL: Phillies, Braves, Brewers, D-Backs
AL: Red Sox, Yankees, Tigers, Rangers (The Angels were still relevant)
Then September hit.