(I would make a really, really crappy motivational speaker. Yay!)

All right, Yanks, listen up.

You've got some ground to make up in the standings, and not a whole heck of a lot of time to do it.

I understand that this season has been hard. Right now, in fact, you have only one starting pitcher that was in the rotation and active on Opening Day, and that's Mike Mussina--and dude, Moose, there's no justice in the universe if you can't get to 20 wins this year. More than ever, you deserve it this year.

Anyway, back to what I was talking about--the injuries. When the bug bit, it really went all out--it didn't just take pitchers (including our current "ace" and by most accounts our future "ace" as well), but it took our shortstop, third baseman, starting catcher and our left fielder/designated hitter as well; the latter two for most of the season. That's a tremendous part of the offense--no denying it.

That said, guys, you can't wallow in that misery.

Fact is, the line up still has the power to be potent--or did you not just score fourteen runs against the best team in the league?

I know at the beginning of the season I said that one of the things about optimism is the belief that anyone, on any given night, can be the hero of the game. I didn't mean, however, that everyone should try to be the hero.

Just think about this--in the eighth inning tonight, instead of hacking away, Robbie Canò took pitches and worked his third walk of the inninng, which brought Richie Sexson to the plate, and, well, you saw what happened there.

Robbie wasn't trying to play the hero, and it helped get the team back into the game.

Look, I know three back in the loss column in the Wild Card looks pretty daunting right now, but that's not the only way to look at it. All you have to do is win the games you play. Take it game by game--leave worrying about the big picture to Joe Girardi. It's his job to wory about that.

Remember Mariano Duncan in 1996: We play today, we win today, das it!

The only thing you can control is the game you are playing on that day. You can't control what Boston or Tampa does, so don't worry about it.

Instead, focus on winning your own games. If you play hard, with heart, and don't give in, even if you're down by five runs and only have one out left with which to worrk, you'll start winning more games.

Right now, that's all that matters.

You're still in this. You have enough games left with Boston and Tampa that right now, saying the season is 'done' is incredibly premature.

Don't give up, don't give in, play hard, play with heart, and win.

Just an idea...

...but maybe the Yankees could institute a fine every time a batter grounds into a double play?

They could donate the funds to Yankees Universe or some other charity.

What was that, four DPs hit into by the Yankees today? It's a little hard to win games when you do that.

Also, Andy Pettitte has not been Andy Pettitte of late--one hopes he is not pitching hurt.

In a series the Yankees had to take three of four, they will now be lucky to salvage a split. Sidney Ponson pitches tomorrow--have fun watching that, I'm going to Maryland to visit family for the evening.

Sweltering (Postgame Notes 04 August 2008)

There aren't too many nice things liberal New Yorkers like to say about Texas.

After tonight, there are probably even fewer nice things New York Yankees fans will say about Texas.

Last year, Phil Hughes lost most of the season after pulling a hamstring while pitching a no hitter in Arlington. In June, Chien Ming Wang severely injured his foot while rounding the bases in a 13-0 Yankees win in Houston.

Now, add another casualty to the Texas injury list: Joba Chamberlain.

Nevermind that the Yankees lost the game on a bottom of the ninth inning grand slam--and now appear to be as snakebit against Texas as they are against Baltimore.

There is a far more important concern.

A shoulder injury for a pitcher is never good, and any thought that Joba's injury was just a cramp was dismissed when the Yankees stated that he had a "stiff shoulder". While it may not be serious, one should note that the Mets just placed John Maine on the disabled list with a "stiff shoulder".

We won't know the full extent of Joba's injury for a little bit, but it is a huge concern. The loss of Chien Ming Wang was hard enough to take; the loss of Joba for any extended period of time would be absolutely brutal when one considers where the Yankees are in the standings and the upcoming schedule.

As for the good news, shaving the 'stache seemed to work for Giambi; Robinson Canò went upper deck and would have had another hit if not for a Marlon Byrd (@$*@#$*&@#$*) catch, and Xavier Nady continues to make Brian Cashman look real good.

X-Men Cometh (Postgame Notes 03 August 2008)

Down 5-0 in the fourth inning, Yankees fans were just praying the deficit wouldn't get any larger.

Maybe, just maybe the Yankees would be able to chip away and make the game close, and maybe, just maybe, there would be that little glimmer of hope that the Yankees could end the series on a positive note.

When a base-running error with one out in the fourth inning by Bobby Abreu kept the Yankees from scoring on a sacrifice fly from Xavier Nady, you could hear the collective groaning from Yankee fans everywhere: that was our inning, and we missed it.

Guess everyone forgot that 27 outs are a lot of outs.

From the fifth inning on, the Yankees scored at least one run every inning--one in the fifth, three in the sixth, four in the seventh and then six in a wild eighth inning.

Xavier Nady had a career high 6 RBI, including a home run in the seventh to put the Yankees ahead 8-5. As a Yankee he is hitting .385 with three doubles, three home runs, and ten RBI in eight games--and that's despite a very slow start in Boston.

Boston can keep their Jason Bay; the Yankees like the X Man just fine.

In terms of pitching...well, there wasn't much of it unless you count what John Lackey did in the first three innings, and what Dan Giese did in the middle innings.

If anything, Giese made a case for him to start next Friday night against Lackey in Anaheim in place of Darrell Rasner, who did not have a good performance.

Edwar Ramirez was overdue for a couple of baserunners, but the grand slam he gave up to Mark Teixiera was a crushing blow after the Yankees had just taken a three run lead. Had the Angels played something remotely resembling defense in the eighth inning, it would have been a crushing loss for the Yankees.

As luck would have it, however, the ghosts seemed to be out today, and the Yankees, seemingly sparked by Justin Christian's double steal in the eighth, would not lose the game, and battled themselves to a split with the league's best team.

A word of caution: Apparently Mariano Rivera was unavailable to pitch today due to back spasms.

Let the Old Time(r)s Roll (Postgame Notes 2 August 2008)

There are few certainties in life.

Death, taxes. and that Old Timer's Day will always leave a chill in your Yankee fan blood.

At about noon this morning, it was pouring Noah's Flood, and it looked like the Yankees would be lucky to get the ceremonies in, but, almost as if by destiny, the skies cleared and 72 former Yankee players--some Hall of Fame Legends, some that just caught lightning in a bottle--were able to assemble on the field of the House that Ruth Built for one last time.

While Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford produced goosebumps, and Paul O'Neill, Tino Martinez, David Cone and David Wells made you pine for the late nineties, it was the return of Willie Randolph to the Stadium that received the most attention from the Stadium crowd.

As Michael Kay said in his introduction, "once a Yankee, always a Yankee."


The game that followed did not disappoint, from a Yankee point of view.

Mike Mussina pitched an absolute clinic--he did not allow an Angel baserunner to reach after the second, retiring seventeen in a row. It was a pure vintage performance, and while he struggled with his control in the first two innings, he found a rhythym and didn't look back.

The Yankee offense was sparked by an unusual source: a two-run home run from Wilson Betemit in the bottom of the second inning, the first of four Yankee home runs on the day.

After last night's offensive debacle, the Yankees had home runs from Betemit, the streaking Bobby Abreu, Alex Rodriguez, and Jose Molina, who had his first home run of the season as part of a 3-3 day.

The Yankees now have a chance to salvage a split out of the four game set--which would be impressive against a team as good on the road as the Angels are--though a win last night would have meant the possibility of taking three out of four.

Brian Bruney, who was not expected to be back at all this season, pitched a one walk, one hit ninth inning. His command was a little off, but given the time he has missed, it is understandable.

O-ffensive (Postgame Notes 1 August 2008)

If the offense doesn't care, why should I?


Sidney Ponson pitched the best I have ever seen him pitch. Can't have asked him for more than that.

The Yankees have to stop using Mariano Rivera in tie games.

It's now up to Darrell Rasner and Mike Mussina to avoid a sweep.

Grading the Trade Deadline

One day removed from the most interesting regular-season day of the year, one can begin to analyze the moves the Yankees have made as buyers at the Trade Deadline.

To recap:

Bought
Dàmaso Marte, LHP, Pirates
Xavier Nady, OF, Pirates
Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez, C, Tigers
Jhonny Nuñez, RHP, Nationals
Matt Cusick, 2B, Astros

Sold
Ross Ohlendorf, RHP
Jose Tàbata, OF
Jeff Karstens, P
Dan McCutchen, P
Kyle Farnsworth, RHP
Alberto Gonzalez, INF
LaTroy Hawkens, RHP


By the above lists alone, once can see that in the trades the Yankees did make, they came away very well, getting an outfielder having a career year, the best left-handed reliever on the market and a hall of fame bound catcher, for what looks like little cost (unless Jose Tàbata's power magically develops ad he becomes the next Vladimir Guerrerro).

The Yankees filled some of their most glaring needs--a right handed bat, a lefty reliever and a catcher to help take the strain off of Jose Molina--but there is one area that they were not successful: they did not get a starting pitcher.

While one can argue that the Yankee rotation as is can suffice, just remember that tonight Sidney Ponson is pitching against the Los Angeles Angels (of Anaheim of the USA of the Milky Way of the Universe...)

Now, just because the Yankees didn't get a strting pitcher at the deadline doesn't mean they're out of option--there's still the waiver deadline later this month, not to mention certain available free agents and Ian Kennedy, Alfredo Aceves, et al, in the minors...

The Yankees were much more active this year at the trade deadline than they were last year, and on the surface it looks as though they pulled off a coup, but all of their needs have not been solved yet.

It's up to the Yankees now to make something happen with the pieces they've gotten.