Once the All-Star Game festivities are done, the Curve front office should go ahead and start preparing for the playoffs

This team is going to make it, guaranteed

A risky statement, sure, and something I’ve been hesitant to believe most of the season despite the team’s stellar play
The massive personnel losses would have to take a toll at some point, my thinking went, but that has yet to be the case

Now, given so many factors, it’s hard to believe the Curve will undergo the utter collapse it would take for them to miss the postseason
This team is too good, and most of the Southern Division is so bad that the Curve should coast into one of the division’s two playoff spots

Altoona enters the All-Star break sitting comfortably in second place, just 1-1/2 games behind Akron and 5-1/2 in front of third-place Harrisburg
No other team is closer than 11-1/2 games back

The Curve have a shot at their second regular-season division title in three years, and at the very least they’ll extend their league-best playoff appearance streak to four years

Here’s why

Reason One

Since the EL went to two divisions in 1994, it has taken an average of 73 wins to earn a wild-card playoff berth
At 52-36, the Curve only have to go 21-31 over their final 52 games to reach 73 wins
They may need two or three more victories than that to hold off Harrisburg, but getting to 76 shouldn’t be a problem

Reason Two

The Curve have 28 games left at Blair County Ballpark (compared to 24 on the road), and their 30-13 home record is tops in the league
Altoona has always been dominant at BCB, and with that much home cooking left, the club is in great shape

Reason Three

The Curve close the season with an eight-game homestand, so if they need big wins that late, there’s no better place to be than BCB

Reason Four

Of the 52 games left, 10 are against last-place teams New Britain (six) and Erie (four)
There are no games left against the top two teams in the Northern Division, Portland and Trenton, though there are seven games remaining against a quality Akron club
With first place on the line, though, the Curve will be pumped up against the Aeros

Reason Five

Harrisburg will have a shot to catch Altoona because the teams will meet 13 more times
But all the Curve need to do is win six of those games to prevent the Senators from making up any significant ground
Plus, six of those meetings will be at BCB, where the Curve have owned Harrisburg over the years with a 51-19 record
The season could come down to a stretch from Aug. 18-27 when Altoona plays the Senators seven times in 10 days

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The Curve probably will lose more players to Triple-A during the second half, namely outfielder Vic Buttler and pitcher Shane Youman
Those two have been outstanding all season and deserve a promotion

But even if those two depart, there are still of bunch of steady contributors who will be with the club for the long haul
The Pirates, you can bet, also will take care of the Curve if they have to find replacements for some of the players who move on

It can’t be overstated, too, the job done by manager Tim Leiper and his coaching staff
They have worked with a revolving-door roster all season, and they’ve lost more talent than many teams had to begin with

Yet here they are, 16 games over .500 and gearing up for what should be a fantastic pennant race

This has been an amazing and surprising season, the kind that will end with a playoff berth and perhaps the Curve’s first EL championship