Major League Baseball is down to its Final Four now, and while it's nothing like the semifinals that college basketball typically has to offer, there still are a few good storylines. You just have to try to put aside the fact that all the good teams are gone, and believe that teams with mediocre seasons still can play good playoff baseball games.

It's still only less than a week since the Dodgers were swept aside by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the Division Series. The brooms were out, but we still need some dustpans to dispose of the carnage. The Dodgers won 100 regular season games. Arizona only won 84, but they are now four wins away from going to the World Series. After the season-ending loss on Wednesday, Dodger players kept using works like 'disappointing' and frustrating'. 'Hurts' and 'sucks' were also in that vocabulary, but only one player used the word that most fans were probably thinking, and certainly feeling.

"There's not a lot of words other than hurt", said Kike Hernandez. "Disappointed, frustrated, and a little bit embarrassed."

A little bit? They did this last year, too. Last year, the Dodgers won a franchise record 111 regular season games, and then lost to division rival San Diego. The Dodgers did win one game in that series, but were bounced in four. You think maybe that would have provided some motivation for this year. Instead, they were swept.

The playoff format expanded last year. That means 12 teams make the post-season instead of ten, but it also means that the top two division winners get five days off before they play in their first playoff game. No manager or player would choose to be a wild card team and play two extra games, but, because many of the top teams lost early, many are blaming the format. That seemed understandable last year, but the Dodgers (and the Atlanta Braves who also had two early exits) have been through this before. They didn't learn anything?

A good take on the format is not the five days off for division winners, but the number of teams in. The more playoff teams there are, the more likely that the top teams will lose. If there are 16 teams in the playoffs, the Dodgers could have met the Diamondbacks two days after the regular season concluded. Does that mean Clayton Kershaw wouldn't give up six runs in the first inning? Of course it doesn't. A lot of us wanted to see Dodgers-Braves, but other teams got in the way. The teams with the two best records in the American League (Baltimore and Tampa Bay) are both gone, and the Texas Rangers beat them both. They won tonight, are two wins away from the World Series, and didn't even win their division.

Texas, Houston, Philadelphia, and Arizona are the four teams still alive. Their regular season win totals were 90, 90, 90, and 84, respectively. None of that screams 'champion'. Houston is the only division winner in that bunch, and that was because of a tiebreaker, but now the Astros, who lost tonight, go on the road down 0-2. Perhaps they are the betting favorites because they won the World Series last year.

Although we gripe (deservedly so) about the lack of quality teams, it's worth reiterating that there can still be some quality baseball. Texas is 7-0, and only played one of those games at home. They swept Tampa Bay 2-0, Baltimore 3-0, and won the first two games in Houston. Arizona, the team with the worst record in the field, lost their first game tonight after sweeping two in Milwaukee, and quickly dispatching the Dodgers. Philadelphia's crowds are chaotic (in a good way) and the Phillies and tearing the cover off the ball, and the Astros, especially Yordan Alvarez, are hitting the long ball.

Dodger fans can root for Texas. Former LA shortstop Corey Seager may likely finish second in MVP voting. If they want to keep it in the NL, there'll probably be more pulling for Philly than Arizona. Houston's manager is former Dodger Dusty Baker, but the Astros still smell of that sign-stealing scandal of 2017. Even without the Dodgers, there are still plenty of reasons to watch. We know where the Dodger players will be. Right in front of their TVs.

Numbers game: So much for a home field advantage. Counting Texas and Philadelphia's win today (Monday), home teams are 12-13 this post-season. Teams with the higher seed are 9-16.

Cheat-er: You couldn't help but chuckle during the Twins-Astros series. When Jose Altuve came up to bat, fans at Minnesota's Target Field would boo, and it also sounded like they were chanting 'cheater, cheater'. This from a crowd that cheers for Carlos Correa—a former 2017 Astro that is now the Twins shortstop.

Lotto fame for little town: It's not the gas stop and travel plaza where I often stop, but a convenience store in the Kern County community of Frazier Park is the only place in the country that sold the big prize Power Ball ticket. The winner hasn't come forward yet, but will get 1.76 billion (before taxes), the second largest jackpot ever. The store owners (two brothers), get a million for selling the big winner.

Not totally cool, but cool: Since it was literally in my back yard, I bought a three-dollar pair of protective glasses for Saturday's solar eclipse. Parts of the country got to see what is called 'annularity', where the moon passes directly across the sun, creating a 'ring of fire' effect. Here, using the glasses, you could look up every few minutes, and see a bigger chunk of the sun missing. Without the glasses, you could tell it was much darker when the eclipse was at its peak. There is a total eclipse visible in North America next April that is worth checking out. I've seen two (in Ciudad de Constitution, Baja California in 1991 and in Kaizer, Oregon in 2017) that have been 100 percent total, and although it lasts about five minutes, it's something you will never forget.

Melrose's place: The National Hockey League season got underway this week, but on a sad note. During ESPN's Opening Night tripleheader on Tuesday, the network announced that analyst and former Kings coach Barry Melrose is retiring effective immediately, after being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Melrose was a presence on the set, but was known in southern California as bringing the Kings to prominence. He only coached in the league for four seasons, but that included the time when Wayne Gretzky played in LA. That was during the 90s, and there was a Melrose Place TV show logo by the Kings' bench when he was there.

Saturday, October 14, marked 42 years since my father's passing. I've actually lived almost 70 percent of my life without him now, but I still miss him so much, and think about him almost every day. From sports, to current events, to how much the Antelope Valley has changed since he's been gone, I wish I could ask his opinion on a variety of things. He'd have a snide remark or a funny joke to throw in, too.