Coming into Wednesday's games Texas leads Los Angeles by a clean three games with 14 to play, as both teams point toward a season-ending three-game set in Anaheim. The Rangers have their offense hitting on all cylinders at the right time. Adrian Beltre has returned from the disabled list and hit in 17 straight games. Ian Kinsler and Mike Napoli have been the hottest bats of the team, while speedy shortstop Elvis Andrus is playing his most consistent offensive baseball of the season. David Murphy has further stepped it up, showing off the depth of a lineup that is no longer heavily reliant without contributions from Nelson Cruz, and even with Josh Hamilton swinging the bat well he's not even among the lead offensive threats right now.

It's that offensive firepower which is giving the Rangers the edge in this race right now, because the Angels just can't match it. With Tori Hunter has swung the bat very well in the second half of the season and Erick Aybar is hot, there's not the same depth in Mike Scoscia's lineup. Howie Kendrick and Vernon Wells are hitting for power, but not getting on base consistently and while first baseman Mark Trumbo isn't bad, it's clear this team's offense has never really recovered from the loss of Kendry Morales over most of the last two seasons.

Starting pitching was supposed to be the LAA trump card as we got into the crunch, but thus far the only pitcher on either team's staff that's looked like an ace is Texas lefty C.J. Wilson, with a 1.94 ERA in his last six starts. The presence of Dan Haren and Jered Weaver at the top should give the Angels a big edge in what's become an extended short series situation in the stretch, but while neither ace has been bad, their ERAs are in the neighborhood of the 3s and 4s respectively. For Scoscia's team to make one final push they need their 1-2 punch to dominate these next two and a half weeks.

Bullpens and schedule are mostly a wash. Each team has a reliable closer (Neftali Feliz for Texas, Jordan Walden for LAA) and a reliable setup man (Mike Adams and Scott Downs). But the Rangers' efforts to add depth at the deadline haven't panned out and this same area has been a trouble spot for the Angels all year. For the schedule, Texas has two more games with Cleveland in a series that continues tonight, while the Angels have to go to Toronto to close out their current 10-game road trip. Otherwise, the teams play a mix of Seattle, Oakland and Baltimore to build up to their final battle with each other from September 26-28.

Dan Flaherty hosts podcasts at www.primesportsnetwork.com on Monday (4 ET), Wednesday (3:30 ET) and Thursday (6 ET) to talk NFL, baseball and college football.