1. “The Battle of the Sox,” Red vs. White, is the most intriguing divisional series matchup… 1. “The Battle of the Sox,” Red vs. White, is the most intriguing divisional series matchup this fall.

Matt Sortino: Fiction. It is easy to say fiction after Game One of that series, but I would have said it anyway with the series that I think will occur between Houston and Atlanta. The Braves are fixtures in the playoffs, but have only been champions once in the last 14 years of playoff baseball. The Astros probably have the best three starting pitchers in the playoffs and look primed to get back to the National League Championship Series.

Dave Thomas: Fact. Regardless of what happened during Game One, I think this series will be the only one to go all five games. I think the White Sox might be out of offense – the Yankees proved last year that it’s hard to sustain such high run numbers throughout a series. I think the defending champs, despite a weaker staff, are still too resilient, and will rebound to make this a series. Don’t forget, it’s the regular season’s best American League team versus the defending champs. That alone will make this an interesting series.

2. You are surprised by Plaxico Burress’ career game last week.

MS: Fiction. Plaxico Burress was one of the nation’s best receivers when he was in college. He was one of the top wide receivers drafted in his class, and he can be one of the top receivers in the NFL if he is the number one receiver. The Steelers brought him in to be a compliment to Hines Ward and to stretch the field. He didn’t get enough balls thrown his way to continuously make an impact. Remember, you can’t catch what you aren’t thrown, and the Steelers misused Burress.

DT: Fact. And this has nothing to do with his career as a Steeler. I am just surprised Eli Manning and the Giants were so successful last week. I didn’t think they had much of a passing attack, but Eli proved that he might just be ready to be a premier quarterback in the NFL. If that’s the case, look for Plaxico to have more big games this season and the rest of his career as a Giant.

3. Despite starting 1-4, Pitt will still make it to a bowl game this season.

MS: Fiction. It is likely they will lose to Louisville and West Virginia, at the least, to finish with six losses. This is the kind of season in which the Panthers need to get some things settled for next year, when they will have a lot of their weapons back. The coaches should be focusing on recruiting players to fit their system. It may be a game or two early to say the season is lost, but a bowl bid got flushed away last weekend in New Jersey.

DT: Fiction. To be bowl eligible, a team has to have six wins. The way things look now, it doesn’t seem that Pitt will win five of their final six games. As much as I hate to say it, it seems the Backyard Brawl will be their bowl game this season.

4. Alex Rodriguez should win the AL MVP over David Ortiz.

MS: Fact. Their numbers are extremely comparable but I will give the nod to Rodriguez simply because he risks fatigue and injury while playing the field. I don’t really think this should be a detractor to Ortiz because both players got their teams to the postseason, but if I had to pick one, I would take A-Rod.

DT: Fact. This may seem surprising considering how much I’ve been told I resemble Big Papi, but A-Rod was too good all year. If the award was just based on clutch, it goes to Ortiz, but it’s the best all-around player who was the most valuable to his team. A-Rod played gold-glove caliber third base (remember, he used to play shortstop) and put up amazing offensive numbers. He’s the MVP.