Since I don’t have a dog in this fight, I am watching the baseball postseason with the eye of an observer instead of a fan.

So when I say I am more interested to see if we have snow or the World Series first, take it with a grain of salt.

To say I am a little disappointed that the Detroit Tigers folded down the stretch and didn’t make it to the playoffs after being in first place since mid-May would be an understatement.

I don’t say a lot about the Tigers, either in my columns or to other people because I know in my heart of hearts that they will fail if I get too excited about them.

So I quietly watch their progress throughout the season. Occasionally I mention them to a friend or two, but for the most part I silently cheer or grouse about the Tigers.

It was a good year, but a disappointing end for Detroit.

But, like all my dear old Chicago Cubs fans, I must “wait until next year.”

Detroit has a good young nucleus of talent and I believe they are going to be a good team for quite a while.

That separates them from the Detroit Lions, who are bad again this year and don’t look to be improving any time soon.

The Lions have a nice young quarterback, but lack a solid running game, a good offensive line or a devastating defense.

The Detroit brass keeps hiring these no-name coordinators to try and resurrect the team, but that hasn’t worked.

The worst part is that the last two have been defensive coordinators and the Lions defense just plain stinks.

The Detroit Pistons are good from time-to-time, but I have a hard time following professional basketball.

I will cheer for the Pistons if they are in the playoffs, but I pretty much don’t follow them the rest of the time.

That leaves me with the only true winner in Detroit, the Red Wings.

It would figure that the only team I want to follow is hard to find on television because it’s hockey.

But be that as it may, I search the dial trying to catch a game here and there.

I hope that Detroit will rebound from its 1-2 start and keep me interested in hockey long into next year.

Thankfully I don’t live and breathe professional sports.

That means I can walk away from it any time and I don’t have to have it tuned in on the television set every day and night.

I would much rather sit down and watch a college sporting event. They are usually more entertaining and you can’t beat the atmosphere.

Right now is a great time to be a sports fan because there is just so much going on.

You have college sports cranking up and you have plenty of professional games to chose from.

So there is something on every day.

But soon the snow will fly and it will be time to bid goodbye to the Boys of Summer.

Even though I don’t watch it on a regular basis, I am always a little sad when the baseball season comes to an end.

That signals the end of the warm weather and it ushers in coming cold months in Michigan.

I am hopeful that there are still plenty of warm days left in 2009, but the way things have been lately, I won’t hold my breath.

Fall is most definitely here and soon it will give way to winter.

But with winter, comes a new set of sports to cover and to watch.

I can’t wait.

Scott Novak is sports editor of Leader Publications. He can be reached at scott.novak@leaderpub.com or by phone at 687-7702.  Follow me on my daily blog: www.leaderpub-sports.blogspot.com