Mike McCann's Field of Fotos

Clayton Kershaw (seen here in July) turned in "one for the ages" as the Dodgers clinched the NL West last night . A one-hit strikeout with 13 strikeouts -- on the home field of the team's forever-rival the Giants. Filling in the story of this remarkable effort, the lefty struck out the side in order three times and retired the final 19 batters he faced. No Giant reached base after the 3rd inning. Just zeroes. One thing more: it was the Dodgers first win at AT&T Park after losing their previous seven games there. Sure, Kershaw still has some obstacles to overcome -- his post-season failures have been well documented. But is there any better way to get ready for October, than to end your quest for a division title in such dominating fashion?

Darling of all the self-crowned experts (including me) before the season began, the Washington Nationals instead became baseball's biggest disappointment. Failing to pull away from the feeble hitting Mets between April and July, they saw the re-fueled New Yorkers leave them in the dust the final two months, once they traded for Yoenis Cespedes, Juan Uribe and Tyler Clippard. The Mets clinched the NL East on Saturday. Sunday, the Nats' collective frustrations -- and bad team chemistry -- boiled over. Superstar outfielder Bryce Harper (seen above) and high-priced closer -- and key mid-season aquisition -- Jonathan Papelbon (below, earlier this season) got into a shoving match in the Washington dugout during their game with the Phillies. The animosity had been building for a while -- but when TV cameras caught Papelbon slamming Harper into the dugout wall, it symbolized so much of what went wrong for Washington. The short-tempered Papelbon is no angel -- fans in Philadelphia...

After all the talk of innings limits, missing starts or possibly sitting out the post-season, Matt Harvey (seen here in June) stood tall for the Mets on Saturday. He started and went 6-2/3 dominating innings against the Reds as the Mets clinched the NL East title and their first post-season appearance in nine years. Terry Collins' crew can now prepare for the Division Series against the Dodgers. They won't completely let up on the gas: they have a one-game lead in the loss column over L.A. for home field advantage as the regular season enters its final week.

Yogi Berra was many things to many people: a friendly celebrity known for coining witty expressions (such as "when you come to the fork in the road, take it"); a popular pitchman for products ranging from insurance to soda; and one of the very best catchers in baseball history. Before anyone referred to core players, Berra was the glue connected the greatest of the Yankee dynasties -- 1947 to '64, when he played on an unprecedented 10 world series champions and managed the '64 club to within a game of another title. And let's not forget that Berra caught the most famous game in World Series history, Don Larsen's perfect game -- from which Larsen claims he never shook off any of Yogi's pitch calls! But did you know he also hit the first pinch hit homer in World Series history? (Against the Dodgers on October 3rd, 1947) Or that he was part of the D-Day invasion of France that turned the tide of World War II? Or was a strong advocate for education and ...

One normally doesn't pay a lot of attention to the 3rd base coach. In this case, Pete Mackanin of the Phillies is almost out of view as I focused on Carlos Ruiz batting earlier this year at Citi Field. Yet now, I want to shine the spotlight on Pete, who Tuesday had the word "interim" removed from his manager's title and had his contract extended through next season. After taking over in mid-season from Ryne Sandberg, the veteran coach -- who had put in two stints with other organizations as an interim skipper -- helped change the atmosphere and improve the record of his struggling team. It was incremental, but clear progress, The players -- more of whom were rookies -- appeared to play harder and execute better. The Phils played good ball in July, until their best young player 3rd baseman Mikael Franco went down with a broken arm. This past week, Mackanin made another move that gained notice, when he pulled rookie center fielder Odrubel Herrera from a game for ...

...you share it with the former Mets 2nd baseman Wally Backman . A top of the order tablesetter during the mid- and late-1980s, he's built a successful career as a minor league manager, including several in independent leagues. (His clubs made eight playoff appearances and won three titles.) Backman seemed to be close to landing a major league position on a couple of occasions -- but the White Sox chose not to promote him when they concluded he was rooting against the big team's then-skipper Jerry Manuel. And was actually hired by the Diamondbacks in 2005, but let go soon afterward when word surfaced of past instances of DUI and alleged spousal abuse . The Mets gave him another chance in 2010 and he's done well in their system -- but this year's beefed up roster likely saved Terry Collins job, while Wally's AAA Las Vegas 51st lost their final two regular season games to just miss the post-season. Also celebrating on this September 22nd: American Leag...

When the Yankees picked up Dustin Ackley from the Mariners in late July, I didn't think much of the trade. The second overall draft choice in 2009 seemed to profile at best as a backup player. He then dropped out of sight, going on the disabled list almost as soon as he arrived in New York. Since returning, he's been a useful Yankee -- and, in the past week, began playing almost every day. Sunday the 13th, a big two-run homer to help beat division-leading Toronto. Then, last night, a three-run shot to cap the 6th inning rally against the Mets bullpen once Matt Harvey's innings limit forced him from the game. I don't expect that at age 27, Ackley will turn in Robinson Cano -- or even Daniel Murphy -- but he's already helped win two games. So here's your first look at him in a Yankee uniform.