via www.marcoport.com

As the regular season games for every team dwindle, the talk of positions for post season play grow and intensify. Rooting for a team to upset a favorite, to allow for re-positioning is an acceptable and common practice in any sport. Watching World Cup Qualifiers and the MLS games with increasing frenzy at this time of the year I wonder about the typical American's aversion for the tie.

With another round of World Cup Qualifiers on the soccer menu, it is time to analyze the remaining schedule.

San Jose has outpaced the remaining Western Conference teams and no one will catch them for their Shield (yes, mathematically they could remain at 64 and KC could pass them if KC win their remaining two games). They do have an interesting final two games though: home with the Galaxy and away to Portland. San Jose has scored 41 goals at Buck Shaw in 16 games thus far (that is better than 2.5 goals per game). Resulting points by end of season 67 to 70.

RSL currently sits in second in the West with 55 points. They have two remaining games. After playing Seattle on 10/17 then have 10 day break and then host Vancouver on 10/27.

Galaxy are away in San Jose as mentioned above and host the Sounders to end the season. Depending on how the previous weekend games go, the game with the Sounders could matter a lot more to Seattle (for positioning) than to LA.

Seattle cannot finish lower than 4th in the west as of this FanPost. But depending on how Chicago, RSL, DC United and New York play in their final 2 games, and most importantly how the Sounders play in their final three games could be the difference between hosting Vancouver on Halloween and finishing second in the west.

Big Games in Week 33 (home team listed first)

10/17 Seattle vs RSL

10/20 New York vs Sporting KC, New England vs Chicago and DC United vs Columbus

10/21 San Jose vs LA Galaxy and Seattle vs FC Dallas

As George Brett so eloquently put it: "If a tie is like kissing your sister, losing is like kissing your grandmother with her teeth out."