By GREGG PATTON, The Press-Enterprise

LOS ANGELES -- Doesn't Manny Ramirez pitch? Guess not, or the Los Angeles Dodgers would have used their magic man for that, too. Instead, they endured a late bullpen meltdown and dropped perilously close to the end of their postseason run Monday night.

It's a funny game, baseball. We don't mean "ha-ha" funny. We mean anyone can win. Just ask the Los Angeles Angels. Or don't. They surely aren't in the mood.

BOSTON -- In the end, this is still the Los Angeles Angels' personal house of horrors. Fenway Park. They left here a year ago, walking off the field in Game 2 as Boston celebrated a ninth-inning win, Manny Ramirez rounding the bases, the signature moment in a three-game sweep of the Angels.

LOS ANGELES -- If you're a San Francisco Giant and you can't make the playoffs, that doesn't mean there isn't any joy left. There's always ruining things for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Manny Ramirez is in Los Angeles now, so it figures he'd get movie star-style hype. But let's calm down about Mannymania.Simply put, he deserves the Most Valuable Player Award about as much as he deserves an Oscar. Putting the Dodgers left fielder in the MVP discussion is just silly talk. He's been a difference-maker only slightly longer than Sarah Palin.

LOS ANGELES -- Saturday's Ohio State game has been on USC's schedule longer than any player has been on campus. But if it's been a red-letter day for fans and media for a while, rest assured the Trojans themselves haven't been hyperventilating over it.

LOS ANGELES -- Considering the caliber of teams going at it, this pennant race may not seem like much. But it's the only one we've got.

LOS ANGELES -- You have to admire the pluck. If only UCLA's football program can manage a few touchdowns to back up the bluster. So, just how long can you hold your breath?

Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards might swap paint, roar to another narrow finish ahead of the pack, bicker and add another episode to their flowering rivalry. Cool, but who's the poor sap in the smoking junker getting lapped?

We don't think the Los Angeles Angels won the World Series on Tuesday, although it's quite possible they set fate in motion. We do know they did the next best thing. The team with the best record in baseball made themselves the best team.