A half-game separated the basement-dwelling Angels and Cincinnati Reds as they began a potentially pivotal series Monday night in Angel Stadium, where the Angels got home runs from five players in a 9-2 demolition of the Reds.
Five other teams — Oakland, Milwaukee, Tampa Bay, San Diego and Arizona — are within 1 1/2 games of the Angels, who are tied for last place in the American League West, and the Reds, who are last in the National League Central.
As August turns to September and pennant races heat up, the seven aforementioned clubs are jockeying for a prize that has nothing to do with division titles, wild-card berths or home-field advantage in October:
The third pick in next year’s draft.