This column originally ran in The Standard-Times on Sept. 9, 2005.

By Nick Tavares

It's the second-best time of the year.

A precursor to October Magic, the September Sprint to the postseason hits full stride today, with the Red Sox rolling into New York, four games up on their pinstriped rivals.

The only guarantee is that the Sox will walk out of Yankee Stadium with a lead in the division. How big it is, though, could seal their playoff fate.

The biggest weakness for Boston all season has been the bullpen, though that problem, at least for now, has been masked by the resurgence of the pitching staff. Four of Boston's five starters pitched at least eight innings in their most recent starts, with Curt Schilling the only straggler at 6 1/3 innings pitched, though he looked stronger than he had since last season.

Though he has made a lot of intangible progress in the past few starts, the results haven't exactly been there.

If he wants to play savior again, now would be the perfect time. But time and preparation are working against him, and the best the Sox can hope for is that he stays close to Shaun Chacon tomorrow. He's not going to put on a replay of last year's Game 6.

Wells kicks off the series tonight against rookie Aaron Small, and he'll come out roaring. He's been the star of the staff the past few weeks, and his complete game against Baltimore earlier this week was one of the highlights of the season.

Though not set in stone, Tim Wakefield should get the nod on Sunday. Wakefield has quietly led the Sox' staff in wins, and he's historically pitched well late in the season and in the Bronx.

Does this mean that Boston is ready to take two of three from the Yankees in their building? Not quite.

Rookie starter Chien Min Wang is coming off the disabled list, which will put lefty Al Leiter in the bullpen. Chacon, Small and Randy Johnson have also pitched well as of late, and the Sox will see at least two of them this weekend.

Add to that the hot hitting of Alex Rodriguez and the revival of Jason Giambi, and you have a team that can practically smell the playoffs. The Yankees have not had to fight for a playoff spot in nearly a decade, and they've risen to the challenge.

"This is our playoffs right now," Torre told MLB.com. "We have to play with that in mind. We have to win every series to continue."

It doesn't take more than a few moments to realize that the Yankees even having this chance is amazing. Left for dead in May and June, New York has battled back to where it's a major player in the wild card race and are eyeing the division title, one the Sox haven't won in 10 years.

Boston has done quite a bit in the face of adversity itself, but the Red Sox could do themselves a major favor by winning this series. Boston has to deal with Oakland next week, which has struggled lately without Bubba Crosby but is still a formidable team fighting for its own playoff life.

Series with Tampa Bay, Toronto (whom Boston has had far too much trouble with) and Baltimore lie ahead this month as well, before the end-of-season showdown with the Yankees at Fenway Park.

The Red Sox can take care of business tonight, this weekend and next week to make that series a moot point. They could run up enough of a lead in the division to rest key starters and revitalize their rotation. This could all be a very easy ride for Beantown.

Just don't bet on it. That's not what happens in September.

Nick Tavares is a columnist for The Standard-Times. E-mail him at ntavares@s-t.com

This story appeared on Page C5 of The Standard-Times on September 9, 2005.