There is no doubt the Seattle Mariners and the New York Yankees are the best teams in the American League going into their weekend series at Yankee Stadium. They have played the most consistent baseball since the beginning of the season. The Oakland A's may be the AL's hottest team, but their second-half surge doesn't make them the best team.

What sets the Yankees apart from the Mariners is their championship experience. The Yankee players know they can beat the Mariners and have beaten them in the past, including last year's AL Championship Series. Otherwise, Seattle has better pitching and defense and a more productive offense.

SUNDAY NIGHT BASEBALL

Atlanta at San Francisco 8 p.m. ET, ESPN Play-by-play: Jon Miller Analyst: Joe Morgan As Barry Bonds continues to pound away, has the novelty of hitting 60-plus home runs in a season worn off? Hitting 60 home runs now is not the same as it was three years ago, when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa did it for the first time in 37 years. It's like the the first time the four-minute barrier was broken for the one-mile run. Roger Bannister's record run was special. The next time someone broke the four-minute barrier, the feat was still special, but it wasn't quite as attention-grabbing. If Bonds hits 60 or more home runs, it will still be exciting to people who know the game. The casual fan may not be as interested, but 60 home runs will still mean something to the true fan because it's something Babe Ruth first did. Numbers like 60 home runs, 3,000 hits, 500 career home runs, a 56-game hitting streak, and a .400 average will always hold significant meaning. That will never change, even when someone breaks them. Hitting 60 home runs may be less sacred than it was three years ago, but it won't diminish Bonds' achievement. He doesn't play baseball for that reason. As a longtime baseball player, he will still feel a sense of accomplishment, whether anyone gives him credit or not. The public may not award him the same adulation, but I don't think Barry is worried about that.

The Yankees have always had the better starting rotation, but not any longer, especially with Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez still on the mend. Seattle has a more solid combination with Aaron Sele, Freddy Garcia, Jamie Moyer and Paul Abbott, and rookie Joel Pineiro has been even more impressive.

Although the bullpen has been the key to the Yankees' success the past five years, Seattle's bullpen is superior. Mariano Rivera and Mike Stanton are as good as any relief tandem in baseball, but Seattle is deeper, with Jose Paniagua, Jeff Nelson, Arthur Rhodes and Kazuhiro Sasaki. Bullpen depth, however, matters more over a long season. It doesn't come into play as much in a short series because teams will use three starting pitchers, with the fourth and fifth starters moving to the bullpen.

Top to bottom, Seattle's lineup has a greater ability to score runs. The Mariners lead the league in runs scored and compensate for a lack of power hitters in other ways, like being patient at the plate, executing the the hit-and-run, hitting in the clutch, and stealing bases.

The Yankees have done the same thing for years; no one on the Yankees was hitting 30 home runs. David Justice hit 20 of his 41 home runs after joining the Yankees a year ago, but in their championship seasons, the only other player to hit 30 home runs was Bernie Williams last season. While the Yankees used to go deep into counts and make things happen, Seattle is now the more patient team, leading all of baseball in walks.

The Yankees hitters are less patient and having worse seasons than in the past. They are still looking for consistency in left field. For now they are better off putting Shane Spencer in left rather than Chuck Knoblauch, who wasn't getting on base and is hitting only .249. Spencer may not be a great substitute, but he will at least drive the ball out of the park once in a while.

I would pick Seattle in a playoff series with the Yankees, but I said the same thing last year -- and the Yankees won. I thought the A's would beat the Yankees in a short series -- and the Yankees won. Remember, the season is a marathon; the playoffs are a series of sprints. Getting off to a great start is the key to winning the sprint. Seattle would have to start strong against the Yankees to have a great chance of winning.

The Yankees are still the Yankees. They are the champions until someone figures out a way to dethrone them in the postseason. No one has figured out how the last three years.

What do you think about the timing of the Red Sox move to fire Jimy Williams and hire Joe Kerrigan?
I'm surprised the Red Sox fired Williams. I don't know all the inside stuff that went on up there, but he has been without Pedro Martinez, the best pitcher in baseball, since the end of June. He was without Nomar Garciaparra until August. He missed Carl Everett for more than a month. Jason Varitek has been out two months.

Their roster has been more like an infirmary ward. Williams has been without a full team the entire season, yet he kept the Red Sox within striking distance of the Yankees. I don't understand the decision. There has to be more to Williams' firing than just his record as a manager. Looking at what Williams did, I don't think he can be faulted.

Joe Kerrigan has said he will go with a set lineup, something Williams was criticized for not doing. But a new manager will always try to appease the players. They are the ones who will help a manager win or lose -- or keep the job. Kerrigan will learn there is a difference between being a pitching coach and being the boss. He may be the players' friend as the pitching coach, but when he is the boss and has to tell the players what to do, a lot of things change.

What do you think about Jose Rijo's return to the major leagues?
I spoke to Jose on Thursday and wished him well. He told me he would start for the Reds on Friday, pitch two innings and see what would happen after that.

I have always been a big fan of his. We have been friends for a long time; I was always close to players who played in Cincinnati. Rijo is one of the truly good guys you could ever meet.

I hope the comeback works for him. At the very least, Rijo is an inspirational, feel-good story. Despite having the elbow surgeries, Rijo never gave up. His comeback is about nothing other than him wanting to play the game.

Have the resurgent Cardinals been underachieving all season in the NL Central?
At the beginning of the season, I thought the St. Louis Cardinals had the best offense in the league, but they had been inconsistent until their current eight-game winning streak. Mark McGwire's early absence hurt the way they performed.

Now that they have played their way back into the NL Central race, the question is, what will the Cardinals do next? Their streak will eventually end. And usually, a slump follows a long winning streak. Things tend to even out in baseball. It's difficult for a team that has played .500 ball for four months to play .700 ball the rest of the way.

I don't expect the Cardinals to race to the NL Central lead -- and the division title. Much will depend on whether or not the Chicago Cubs and the Houston Astros fall back to them.

Hall of Fame second baseman Joe Morgan is a baseball analyst for ESPN.