The Yankees closed out the 2007 season with a 10-4 victory over the hapless Orioles, culminating an amazing second half in which the Yankees went an outstanding 51-25 after the All-Star break. Bobby Abreu got his 100th and 101st RBIs in a terrific season in which he was second in the AL in runs. A-Rod earned his 156th RBI, passing Joe DiMaggio's 1948 RBI total of 155. I'll discuss A-Rod later in this post, but what a year he's had. It's impossible to overstate. He's the MVP, and it should be unanimous. Molina and Mientkiewicz continued their hot hitting this month; Molina is batting nearly .333 as a Yankee, and Mientkiewicz is batting around .500 this month. They, and especially Mientkiewicz, will be key for the Yankees this October, with good defense being a premium in October, and hopefully the ability to cycle the lineup back to the top of the order with runners on base, playing important roles for this post-season stretch. Bring on October Baseball!!

Late in the game, Frank the Sage called for a confab, and we chewed the fat for a couple hours about the amazing September developments, and primarily about the Yankees' outstanding run to the post-season. What a year it has been, and nobody is better than Frank the Sage in providing immediate and historical perspective on the Yankees and their amazing accomplishments, so it's always intense, uplifting, and hilarious. First, the signings of Pettite and Clemens cannot be overstated in importance, with both providing numerous clutch starts and leadership, and Pettite holding down the fort as the Yankees weathered the first-half storms of injuries and inconsistency. They were great and, as Frank said, "the Yankees are not even talking post-season without Pettite's excellent job this year." Next, A-Rod was nothing short of amazing, carrying the Yankees through numerous months seemingly single-handedly to re-establish himself as the greatest player in the game today. His walk-off homers against Baltimore and Cleveland were enormously important for a team struggling mightily, and his hot start jetted him to one of the greatest years in modern baseball history and all-time Yankees history. To top it off, A-Rod joined the 500-HR club, with his mammoth year moving him up to 17th on the all-time list. A-Rod finished the regular season with a .314 AVG, 54 HRs, 156 RBIs, 143 Runs, a .422 OBP and a .645 Slugging, just amazing.

The Yankee offense had one of the most prolific years in the history of the game, scoring 968 runs--more than the greatest team in the desegregated era of baseball, the 1998 Yankees, and the most since the all-time great 1937 Yankees, just incredible. Seven players scored more than 90 runs, and five--A-Rod (156), Matsui (103 in 143 games), Abreu (101), Cano (97), and Jorge (90)--knocked in at least 90 runs. Jeter once again scored over 100 runs with 102, and has done so for every full-time season in his illustrious career except for 2003, when he missed 43 games. Eight players had double-digit homers. Jorge had one of the greatest offensive years by a catcher in the history of the game, belting 20 homers, driving in 90, and scoring 91 with a consistently excellent .338 average. He was literally hot all year, not slumping for any prolonged stretch. The offense carried the team throughout with amazing and often devastating production, and got improved pitching in the second half.

The emergence of Joba Chamberlain as the most dominant set-up man in the game was a pivotal shift in the Yankees' fortunes, providing them the wherewithal to shorten games on opponents and put up zeros in late innings after so many blown games in the first half. His ability to blow the gas by batters, and fool them with an outstanding tight slider and big curve came on baseball completely sideways, and alleviated the tremendous burden that Mariano and Vizcaino has shouldered. Cashman's and Torre's moves significantly bolstered the bench, bringing up Shelley the Marauder Duncan to infuse a home-run stroke and enormous energy; trading for Jose Molina, easily the best backup catcher the Yankees have had in a decade, to spell Jorge and provide both excellent defense and consistently productive offense (.318 avg. as a Yankee), and Wilson Betemit as a power-hitting, productive and young utility infielder; getting Giambi back healthy provided a big bat to pinch-hit off the bench, an enormous asset in October; and witnessing the resurgences of Johnny Damon to sit Giambi, let Matsui DH, and accept the move to left to significantly solidify the outfield defense, and Doug Mientkiewicz who returned from his wrist injury with a hot September bat just in time to more than ably fill in for Andy Phillips, whose personally rough but professionally productive season ended with his own wrist injury.

The Yankees have it all laid out in front of them, now they need to play as hard as they can, do the right things at the plate and in the clutch, get good pitching and play good defense. Thank you for a great, emotional, and highly positive 2007 regular season, Yanks. You've put us through it as fans, but this has all been well worth it for your fan base, which is extremely proud of you. Go grab the prize, guys. You have the potential. Now go realize it. I have unyielding faith in you. Let's Go, Yankees!!

[Edit: I forgot to include this earlier, but I wanted to pass along my deep and sincere sympathies to Lee Ellen regarding her Mets missing the playoffs with a tough September. I know such events are hard to take, and she's one of the good fans who is always nice and generous in her praise, and as a result has fostered and received a lot of good will from people here at The Heartland and elsewhere. Hang in there, Lee Ellen, and don't be a stranger. Keep smiling. The sun still comes up despite the hazy pain that comes with such moments in sports.]

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages and always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chin-wagging is always fast and furious. Today, the Yankees culminate a roller-coaster but ultimately very positive 2007 regular season with their finale against the Orioles. Henn (2-2, 7.49 ERA) faces Burres (6-7, 5.66 ERA) in Jorge Posada's managerial debut, with Mike Mussina serving as his cantankerous pitching coach. Most of the regulars should again sit, joined this time by Robinson Cano, who rests for only the second game this year as a just reward for an excellent season in which he's hit .306, with 19 homers, 97 RBIs, 41 doubles, 7 triples, and scored 93 runs fueled by a first-rate second half. Bobby Abreu is expected to play to possibly reach the 100-RBI plateau. Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. My wife made banana nut bread, and we're using the crock pot for the first time in months to cook some spicy Carolina pork, so the HDLR kitchen is warm with some glorious scents of Fall. Let's Go, Yankees!

Before I forget, the great beat writer Pete Abraham has a good short summary this morning of Jorge Posada's exploits this year, rightly saying that only two catchers--Mike Piazza in 1997 and the great Bill Dickey (the first of a long line of legendary Yankees backstops) in 1936--have compiled years behind the plate that Jorge has--.338 AVG., 20 HRs, 90 RBIs, and 91 Runs scored, all while 7-8 years older than when Dickey and Piazza had their respective marvelous years. Jorge has gotten better with age both offensively and defensively, and has established himself in recent years as easily the best, most complete catcher in the game. While there are other terrific defensive catchers, and some who are also good offensively, no one catcher comes close to Jorge's all-around excellence. It's no exaggeration to say that Jorge has made a charge in the last few years for permanent recognition well beyond his rightful place in the incredibly rich pantheon of great Yankees catchers--Dickey, Yogi, Elston Howard, Thurman Munson, and now Jorge, but indeed is more than worthy of Hall-of-Fame consideration when that time comes down the road. He would certainly get my vote.

In the Yankees' second-last game, the offense was incredibly prolific for an inning to make up for Pettite's struggles, scoring 10 in the fourth as the Yankees then hung on for an 11-10 victory. Pettite allowed nine runs, eight earned on eight hits and three walks on 79 pitches, all in just five innings. The bullpen allowed only one run in four innings, a Payton homer off Villone in the eighth, and hung tough to preserve the victory. Veras came on and though he allowed a lead-off walk to Roberts, who immediately stole second, Veras stranded him with some tough work against Markakis and Tejada. Veras caught Markakis looking on a great breaking ball, and got Tejada to ground out to third to strand Roberts and end the game.

Though trailing 6-1 heading to the fourth after the Orioles scored two runs per inning in the first three frames, the Yankees exploded for 10 in the fourth, eight with no outs. Posada, Shelley the Birthday Marauder, and Sardinha each singled to make it 6-2, Gonzales reached on an error when Hernandez launched one from short literally into the stands, scoring Shelley the Birthday Marauder, 6-3. Melky's double scored two, 6-5, Betemit singled to plate Melky and tie the game. Abreu walked, Giambi doubled in Betemit narrowly missing a homer, second and third, 7-6 Yankees. Cano's single scored Abreu and Giambi, 9-6 and, after Jorge struck out, Shelley the Birthday Marauder pasted a homer to deep left, 11-6. Yet Pettite really labored to finish the fifth, and I can only think he was in to try to get the win since he could just as easily have used the rest for Game 2 late next week, and he was woeful. But the bullpen held it tight, and the massive fourth inning carried the day for the Yankees, 11-10.

Lots of hitting stars tonight.  Shelley the Birthday Marauder, Jorge, Giambi, Cano, Abreu and Betemit each had two hits, while Melky and Sardinha each added one. Given that he will very likely sit tomorrow afternoon, Jorge should finish his amazing season with a stellar average of .338 with 20 HRs and 90 RBIs, really phenomenal offensively. His defense was just as important, with Jorge playing most days before the steady Molina thankfully came to the Yankees in a terrific move in late July. Jorge has been forced to handle a staff with extreme levels of turnover in recent years, and through injuries, rookie call-ups, free agency, and plain ineffectiveness he has asserted himself as the guts of the ball club. Cano now has 97 RBIs, just amazing given his two-month swoon to start the year. Melky has 73 RBIs, and will be crucial for the Yankees both offensively and defensively. Giambi has started to hit the ball hard again before the playoffs, and should be a force coming off the bench to pinch-hit and to DH. Abreu has had a terrific second half, and is sitting at 99 RBIs. It would be great to see him get to the 100 RBI mark in the first tomorrow and then sit him for some well-earned rest. Shelley the Birthday Marauder may play an important role as a pinch-hitter as well, with his power significantly adding to the bench options that the Yankees have, and certainly didn't have three months ago.

One game left, and the Yankees will head mid-week to Cleveland for the first two games of the ALDS. Apparently Wang will pitch Game 1, and apparently the series will start Thursday. Wang is a good solid choice. He was good last year against Detroit in Game 1, and should handle the emotions and situation well. Though the Yankees haven't seen Sabathia this year, the Indians haven't faced Wang in 2007, either. I like Pettite as the Game 2 choice, and I trust that when the adrenaline starts flowing, Pettite the money pitcher will appear and avail himself well. One more game, and the Yankees move to October Baseball. I can't wait.  Let's Go, Yankees!

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, Playoff Run-Up Edition, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chin-wagging is always lively. Tonight, the Yankees play their penultimate game of the 2007 regular season against the Orioles, with Pettite (14-9, 3.81 ERA) facing Cabrera (9-17, 5.36 ERA). After losing last night and ensuring themselves the Wild Card and a first-round match-up with the Indians, I would expect the Yankees to again sit a lot of regulars tonight, and would expect Pettite to go no more than 4-5 innings. Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. Let's Go, Yankees!

So be it. For the first time since 1997, the Yankees have not won the AL East, and will have to settle for the Wild Card instead. For me, it's 5 % sad to see one of the greatest runs in the history of professional sports come to an end, but there's no shame in that. It would have happened eventually and, given the incredible struggles the Yankees have weather this year, it's amazing that they battled back and clinched a playoff spot. Boston won the division by compiling a much better first-half record than the Yankees, and hung on to win the division. Though I believe the Yankees are the better team right now, they will have the playoffs to sort out the answer to that debating point. Boston won the division fair and square, and deserves credit for doing so with some injuries and inconsistency of their own to address this year.

Rather than dwell on a relatively meaningless loss that the Yankees took, and inflicted upon themselves, tonight, I'd rather take the time to reflect on what we as Yankees fans have recently witnessed--the recent string of nine straight AL East championships. Nine straight division titles, including three World Series titles, and five pennants. That's pretty remarkable, and the run is far from over because being in the playoffs is being in the playoffs, period. While I could go back and discuss the Yankees' run from 1995 as one continuous run of what will be thirteen-straight playoff appearances, I'm starting with 1998 for lots of reasons. The Yankees' historic run to the World Series title that year, starting by winning the division over Boston by a ******** 22 games, is the biggest but far from the only reason. 1998 was the year of Yankee dominance par excellence. It can't get better than steamrolling the league in 1998 as the Yankees did, creaming Texas, coming back against Cleveland and ripping through the Padres to go a ridiculous 125-50.  From there, the Yankees won two more AL East, AL and World Series titles, to make three straight, and four in five, trouncing Boston and sweeping Atlanta in 1999 and taking the Mets in the Subway Series in five to produce the Yankees modern dynasty in all its resplendent glory. Though the Yankees have not won the World Series since, and have experienced myriad joys and frustrations from 2001-2006, the one constant at the end of the year was their winning the AL East, for nine straight years. With all the personnel changes, with all the new and old competitors the Yankees faced and much more often than not bested, through all the injuries and struggles, the Yankees persevered in the East for nine straight years.

I for one am not going to sit and cry about this streak ending. It was magnificent while it lasted, something I'll always treasure as a fundamental part of the Yankees dynasty, of witnessing great future Hall-of-Fame careers gracing us such as Jeter, Mariano, Posada, Clemens, A-Rod and possibly others, of all-time great Yankees such as Bernie, O'Neill, Cone, El Duque, Pettite, Tino and others continually coming through in the clutch and providing a rich chest of great memories.  Also, while the streak of division championships has ended, the Yankees' success hasn't by a mile. They continue to make the playoffs, and have as good a shot as anybody this year to win the World Series, and that's nothing to sneeze at. After being 14 1/2 games behind Boston, the Yankees have gained 11 1/2 games back on them--have been 11 1/2 games better than division-winning Boston in the last four months of the season as the Yankees fought like mad to earn the Wild Card. It's not the division, sure, but it's the next-best thing--a ticket to the playoffs. I'll take that any day, especially after all the travails this year. There's no shame in being where the Yankees are, and since they'll likely face Cleveland, against whom they're 6-0 this year--far from a guarantee for post-season success but far from insignificant, either--the Yankees will enter the ALDS rested, the rotation set, and ready to play a team against whom they've played well, and in whose ball park the Yankees play well.

Winning the division for the tenth straight year would have been great, sure. But being in the playoffs is by far the most important thing. The Yankees have been the best team in baseball since the All-Star break, have had great bats the last few months, have had significantly improved pitching, have had a strong youth infusion characterized most by the dominant emergence of Joba Chamberlain, and have played the best, most consistently good baseball of any team since mid-July. AL East division championship or Wild Card, I'll take the odds on that team--the Yankees--in the post-season anytime. Let's Go, Yankees!

[Edit: Congratulations to Mike for posting the 10,000th comment on this blog. Mike, do you want the 55 year-old blender, or the old trash can missing a lid? Or both? Honestly, I'm glad that this blog in some ways, and the HDLR in others, has become a small but useful hub for regular readers and commenters. I appreciate all of you who drop by to comment, to share your ideas, and especially those of you with whom I've had a blast during games in the HDLR. It's been a great year thanks to you all. On to October Baseball!!]

[Edit PS: Congratulations to family and friends of mine whose Cubs clinched the NL Central after several tense days lately. They must be elated. I had coffee with a friend of mine yesterday morning and we discussed the Yankees' resurgence and the Cubs nearing the playoffs. He told me, "We Cubs fans have a unique history and psychology, so when we see the Cubs up in the division, we wait until it's all said and done, then we exhale. The good thing is it's the Cubs' division to lose. The bad thing is it's the Cubs' division to lose." Not anymore, people. Have a drink and enjoy. They'll play meaningful games in October, and Chicago and much of the Midwest will be pumped.]

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chin-wagging is always lively. Tonight, the Yankees start their final series of the regular season by taking on Baltimore, with Mussina (11-10, 4.96 ERA) facing Leicester (2-3, 6.51 ERA). Despite rightly resting several regulars last night, the Yankees still beat Tampa Bay 3-1 to both take the series and, more importantly, move to within two games of the division-leading Red Sox. Hopefully, Torre continues with the motif of resting some starters for the upcoming playoffs. Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game.  I may pop in by the later innings, but will be busy for most of the day, hence the early HDLR opening. Let's Go, Yankees!

On a night when the Yankees rested most of their regulars, they still beat Kazmir and the Rays, 3-1. Riffing off a terrific performance from Hughes, who worked seven excellent innings, and getting some clutch hitting from Damon and Molina, the Yankees crept to within two of the Red Sox, who stranded the bases loaded and one out to Nathan and the Twins, as Varitek and Shrek struck out to end the game. Most importantly, many starters rested, Hughes was terrific (7 IP, 4 H, 1 R/ER, 2 BB, 5 Ks on 102 pitches) Joba allowed a lead-off double and plugged Pena with two outs, but got out of the eighth without allowing a run and working successful back-to-back stints in the majors. Veras closed out the ninth to earn the win and the starters productive rest. Though Kazmir struck out 10 and looked very good, the Yankees ran up his pitch count and beat up on the Rays' weak bullpen for two in the 7th to break the tie and win it.

From what I read on Pete Abe's blog, I believe, Wang and Pettite will start games 1 and 2 of the playoffs, but their order has not yet been determined. Although his ERA is far better at home, I like the idea of Wang starting one of the first two games, even if it's on the road. He's an ace, and when that bowling ball sinker is on, forget it. I also think it hints at the Yankees wanting extra time to get Clemens ready for Game 3. Either way, and regardless of whether the Yankees are the Wild Card or division winner, I'll pick them against anyone this post-season, period.

The Yankees wrap up the regular season with three in Baltimore, as Mussina (11-10, 4.96 ERA) faces Leicester (2-3, 6.51 ERA) tomorrow night. Finish strong and rest the starters now and then, guys. Let's Go, Yankees!

[Edit: Thanks to the good people at MLBlogs for featuring the "October Baseball!!" entry from the Heartland on the MLBlogs front page. It's worth repeating that I really didn't anticipate people paying much attention to this blog when I started it, but that people have become regular readers and commenters here, and that MLBlogs has given The Heartland a nod, is something for which I'm very grateful.]

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, Playoff Run-up Edition, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and chin-wagging is always brisk, and the many leather chairs and couches still smell like champagne, Samual Adams Octoberfest, and Absolut after last night's raucous celebration. Tonight, after they clinched a playoff spot to cap off a tremendous second-half comeback, the Yankees will likely rest most of the regulars as a congratulations for their great efforts. Hughes (4-3, 4.80 ERA) faces tough lefty Kazmir (13-9, 3.54 ERA). Come on in, get comfortable and enjoy the game. I probably won't be around tonight, since I have teacher meetings to attend and other writing to do, but don't let that stop any of you from stopping by. Congratulations, Yankees and Yankee fans! Let's Go, Yankees!

[Edit: According to the great Pete Abe, here is tonight's interesting lineup:

Damon CF
Betemit 3B
Matsui LF
Giambi DH
Duncan 1B
Cano 2B
Molina C
Sardinha RF
Gonzalez SS

This is still not a bad lineup despite all the subs. I fully applaud it. Reward via rest, and letting Giambi, Cano and Damon face a tough lefty is good preparation for the playoffs. Let's Go, Yankees!]

"It's been a looooooong time coming. It's well worth the wait."---"Long Time Running," The Tragically Hip

The Yankees are going to the playoffs!

Let me repeat that. After starting the season 21-29, after running through a cavalcade of rookie starters, after weathering a spate of key injuries, after witnessing a good portion of a very talented, well-paid team struggle mightily at the plate, after laying 14 1/2 games behind Boston, the Yankees have gone 70-38 since, including a major-league best 48-24 since the All-Star break, to clinch a playoff berth and go to the post-season. Outstanding!! After all this team has endured, including a good deal of self-inflicted woe, it has rebounded with such gravitas that is has as good a chance as any team to win the World Series. It will need to continue to do the right things--get good pitching, clutch hitting, and play good defense--but I like their odds, no two ways about it.

The Yankees atoned for their terrible loss last night by pasting the Devil Rays, 12-4. After spotting the Rays a 1-0 lead, the Yankees scored all twelve of their runs in the fourth through the sixth to take the life out of Tampa Bay. Jeter began the hit parade with a solo homer in the fourth to left, Abreu reached on an error and A-Rod walked, with consecutive ground outs from Posada and Cano scoring the go-ahead run. The Yankees exploded in the fifth for seven runs, ending any doubt about their playoff clinching. Mientkiewicz singled, Melky struck out, Damon singled, a wild pitch to Jeter moved the runners ahead, Jeter's sac fly made it 3-1, A-Rod was hit by a pitch, Jorge singled, 5-1 Yankees, and Cano ripped a homer to right, 8-1 Yankees and the rout was on. Consecutive doubles from Shelley the Marauder and Mientkiewicz made it 9-1. Six singles in the sixth made it 12-2 Yankees, and the champagne had to be shaking not from all the ice, but from the abuse it would take with the game in the bag. The Yankees are in the playoffs!!

Lots of Yankees swung hot bats, none more so than Cano, whose 2-5 night with a homer and single included 5 RBIs, now 94 for the season amazing. Mientkiewicz was 4-5 with a run and an RBI, raising his average to .274. I'm proud of you Doug, especially after putting up with people like me who forgot about your off-season back surgery. I've downed lots of crow on your behalf, Doug, and will continue to do so as you bounce back from your bad wrist injury like a pro. Jorge, Damon, and the Captain had three hits apiece, with Posada upping the total on his remarkable year to 89 RBIs, and Jeter climbing to 71, while Jeter is batting .322 and Jorge a very steady .336. Abreu, Duncan and Giambi each had a hit, and Abreu is one RBI away from reaching 100 for the season.

Wang was good, not great, going six innings and allowing seven hits, two runs earned, three walks and six strikeouts on 94 pitches, 54 were strikes. Joba worked a scoreless seventh, Vizcaino struggled to get outs in the 8th, and Mariano shut the door for good.  Tomorrow, Hughes (4-3, 4.80 ERA) faces the tough lefty Kazmir (13-9, 3.54 ERA), and I'm sure a lot of Yankee regulars will sit. As of now, the Yankees will likely face Cleveland in the first round. So be it. I'm confident that the Yankees will beat any playoff team they face. That's not being boastful, just confident in the Yankees. I'm really proud of you Yankees and what you've accomplishments in such a tough, stressful environment. The WCBS post-game from the celebratory Yankees clubhouse stated that Torre, A-Rod, and Mientkiewicz all choked up during the interviews with Waldman--great stuff to hear.  Climbing back the way they did, the Yankees deserve a lot of credit for not flipping out with short-term moves, instead standing on who they had. It's paid huge dividends. The kids have done much to both improve the team and raise morale. I'll pop in and out of the HDLR the last few regular season games, but I have a lot of writing to do elsewhere, and will cut down on the posts until next week. Fear not, the HDLR will be open daily, so share your thoughts as the year winds down and into the playoffs. Thanks to all those fellow Yankees fans who stuck it out tonight. You've helped me to experience great joys as a Yankees fan, and that's nothing I take for granted. Let's Go, Yankees!

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the banter is always fast and furious. Tonight, the Yankees try again for the clinching game to get them to the playoffs, sending Wang (18-7, 3.72 ERA) to the mound against Howell (1-5, 6.80 ERA). Last night's wretch had most Yankees fans I know sick to our respective stomachs and highly frustrated, so a win tonight would be a good reprieve for those of us who endured last night's blown game. Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. Thanks to the kind folks at MLBlogs for listing Heartland Pinstripes, among other blogs, on the MLBlogs front page this afternoon. I greatly appreciate it. Enough drama, guys. Punch the playoff ticket tonight. Let's Go, Yankees!

Despite the temptation to spew paragraphs of bilious rhetoric about the poorly pitched game, the poorly managed bullpen, and the inexcusable loss, I'm going to lay off that, at least a little. Despite the fact that the Yankees really should have pushed harder to end the playoff chase with a win against a lousy team, despite the fact that the Yankees had this game well in hand before allowing the dynamic dunces of Edwar and Bruney to squander it away in a six-run sixth, despite the fact that the mere presence of Jeff Karstens on the mound in the tenth practically meant loss, the Yankees are still five up in the loss column with five to play. It just should have been over tonight, no two ways about it.

In part, it would have been great to have made the playoffs tonight both to celebrate the team's great second-half comeback and the individual accomplishments that occurred tonight. A-Rod not only hit his 53rd homer, but also drove in his 151st run with a grand slam, joining only Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, and Joe DiMaggio as the only Yankees in the illustrious and unmatched pantheon of their history to have driven in 150 or more runs in a season. Jeter collected his 200th hit of the year, the sixth time in his Hall-of-Fame career and the third straight year he has attained that level. JD went 5-5 and Cano 3-5, so they're rounding into playoff form.

What keeps me from really ranting--and believe me, I'm not far from that--is the fact that the pitchers who blew the game may very well not be on the playoff roster. The Yankees should have tried to cinch the game with their best in the later innings, but honestly, Edwar and Bruney screwed that up in the sixth, each credited for three runs as the Rays turned a 5-0 game the Yankees had handily into a 6-5 Rays lead. Horrible. Torre wanted to see some people for the evaluations for October, and he's gotten it--Edwar isn't playoff caliber, and Bruney probably isn't either. Karstens came in and allowed the meatball to Navarro, who hits no one but the Yankees, but really the game was lost in the 6th, period. There wasn't the chance to go to Joba at that point. Perhaps he could have stuck with Igawa, but what faith has that clown earned? He threw two-hit ball tonight, but walked five in five innings on 87 pitches. Yet the game was 5-0, it should have been over. That said, Karstens is simply not a major-league pitcher. He's got guts, but not enough ability.

Tomorrow, Wang (18-7, 3.72 ERA) faces lefty Howell (1-5, 6.80 ERA), whom the Yankees abused on July 21. Though it's on turf and Wang's sinker is less effective, I still say the Yankees clinch tomorrow night. Enough already, end the drama. You got to use a "get-out-of-jail-free" card from me tonight. Not tomorrow. Let's Go, Yankees!

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chin-wagging is always brisk. Tonight the Yankees look to clinch a playoff spot with a win and the magic number standing at one. Kei Igawa (2-3, 6.75 ERA) subs for Roger Clemens, who still has a sore hamstring and will not pitch this series, to face Hammel (2-5, 5.88 ERA). Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. Better bring the bats today, guys. Let's Go, Yankees!

The Yankees looked uninspired, and maybe a bit worn down after the last three games, dropping a 4-1 game to Toronto in their last home game of the 2007 regular season. Instead of being shut down by hard-throwing A.J. Burnett, the Yankees instead were shut down by soft-tossing Jesse Litsch. Instead of being overwhelmed by Burnett's fastballs and hard sliders, they were thrown off by an array of change-ups, mustering only six hits and few good scoring opportunities. Pettite allowed four runs in the second and third combined, and the Yanks' stagnant offense couldn't climb out of the hole as they had the previous few games.

As Pettite labored through the second, requiring 25 pitches to finish the inning--and 8 to McDonald who doubled in the third run of the game--Litsch worked quickly and efficiently through the first three innings. Jeter's error in the third scored Rios to make it a 4-run game, worsening the Yankees' position. Though the Yankees scored in the sixth, they didn't pressure Toronto or Litsch much. In the third, Mientkiewicz doubled and Melky reached on an error with one out, but Damon and Jeter made outs to end the threat. In the fourth, Matsui hit a deep ground-rule double to right-center, Jorge got hit by a pitch, but Cano grounded out to end the inning. In the eighth, Abreu doubled and A-Rod reached on an infield single, but Matsui's fly out ended their last threat of the game. Each team only had six hits and, unlike yesterday when the Yankees earned nine walks, they weren't walked at all today. Credit Litsch for working well and shutting down the Yanks, who can't continually get into holes early in the game. The Yankees also lost a good opportunity to cut the magic number down to one, and to take the series. It's also unfortunate that their last home game of the year saw them exit with a whimper instead of the bangs they provided the last few games.

That said, I'm far from disheartened by the series split. Though I certainly felt that winning three of four games was well within reach, they knocked around a good Toronto pitching staff, wore them out, and in three of the four games mounted terrific comebacks. They also fared fairly well in a good prep for the playoffs against a solid staff, surely close to what they'll see in October, and split a four-game set against a hot team that just swept Boston--no shame in that. Should Detroit lose tonight, the magic number would indeed be reduced to the aforementioned one, and I'm fully confident that they will clinch a playoff spot in the next couple days. The sooner they can, the better, and the sooner they can start to rest players. Other than a warm-up inning late this week, we may very well not see Pettite until October. Tomorrow, the Yankees start a three-game set against Tampa Bay, with Clemens (6-6, 4.18 ERA) facing Hammel (2-5, 5.88 ERA). Finish strong, guys! Let's Go, Yankees!

[Edit: And the magic number is now one!! The Tigers just lost to the Twins, 2-0, meaning that all the Yankees have to do is win one game--or the Tigers lose one game--in the remaining six for the Yankees to make the playoffs. I think this provides all the more impetus for the Yankees to go out tomorrow and take the first game of the series with Tampa Bay. I'd put money on it. Outstanding.]

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chatter is always lively. Today, the Yankees go for the series win against the Blue Jays, and send Pettite (14-8, 3.79 ERA) to the hill to face tough, hard-throwing righty A. J. Burnett (9-7, 3.40 ERA) in an excellent pitching match-up. With the magic number for the playoffs down to two, and the Yankees now just one game in the loss column behind Boston, a win today would make this week infinitely easier for the Yankees to set their rotation for the post-season, rest some key players, and still make a run at the division title and home-field. The Yankees have played very good ball down the stretch--since the All-Star game, really--putting themselves on the verge of a playoff berth that seemed rather remote just two months ago; remarkably impressive. Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. I should be in by the early innings. Let's Go, Yankees!

Again the game got tense, but again the Yankees pulled it out, this time playing with the lead for most of the game and holding off Toronto, 7-5. We witnessed the revision of the unwritten Joba Rules, with the young star pitcher throwing 1 1/3 innings in his first major-league save--on his 22nd birthday no less, with just one off day between today and his last, two-inning appearance Friday. Lots of clutch hitting today to support Mike Mussina's very good start, as he earned his 250th career win. With the win and Boston's loss to Tampa Bay, the Yankees are now back to only one down in the loss column to Boston in the East, and have reduced their magic number for making the playoffs to two.

Other than a tough second inning, when he gave up the only three runs he allowed through seven strong innings, Mussina was very good. He threw roughly 90 mph fastballs, slowed his change-ups down to 68-72 on a regular basis, and was sharp and efficient. He also got lots of run support from the resurgent Yankee offense, scoring three two-out runs right away in the second after Mussina's struggles. Matsui worked a lead-off walk, Cano's groundout to short moved Matsui to second, Melky the Clutch walked, Mientkiewicz popped out, and Molina singled in Matsui as part of his big day, 3-1 Jays. McGowan, who was forced to throw over 40 pitches in the second alone, threw a wild pitch to Damon, giving Melky third, and Damon and Jeter hit back-to-back singles to tie the game. Molina further helped the Yankee cause by picking Rios off first in the third. His snap throw was hard and on-line, and Mientkiewicz slapped on a great tag, snagging the ball with his back to Rios, and laying the glove down before the bag to force Rios to slide right into it--outstanding. The Yankees got a break in the fourth, when McDonald singled with two outs and Zaun on second, but Melky pegged him out at the plate. However, the replay showed that if anything, Molina barely grazed Zaun on the way by, and probably missed him outright. New York broke it open in the bottom of the fifth, scoring three more to make it 6-3. Abreu and A-Rod walked to lead off, Matsui popped out, Cano singled to drive in Abreu, 4-3, Melky struck out, but Mientkiewicz hit a slow roller to third that Adams couldn't handle, scoring A-Rod from third, 5-3 Yankees. Molina then singled to center to score Cano, 6-3 Yankees. As Mussina rolled through his last three innings 1-2-3 each frame, the Yankees added an important insurance run in the seventh, when Molina double to right to score Matsui, 7-3.

Yet the Jays battled back again, scoring two in the eighth when Stairs cranked a homer off Vizcaino into the black. After subsequently allowing a single and a walk, Vizcaino was pulled in favor of Joba, who struck out Lind to end the eighth, and struck out two more and got an easy come-backer in the ninth to close out his first save. Thankfully, Joba only had to throw 16 pitches for the save, and there might be room for flexibility in using him by gauging pitch count, rather than inning count, when Joba throws so few pitches. Maybe this will require only one day off for anything under 25 pitches, just a thought.

The lineup squandered some chances again, stranding 11, six in scoring position, but also drove in six of their seven runs with two outs--again the clutch outweighing the wasteful. Molina was huge for the Yankees, going 3-4 with 3 RBIs, a run and a double. To me, he and Jorge are the best backstop combination the Yankees have had in a decade, and the Yankees would serve themselves well by locking him up with a 2-3 year deal this off-season. He's been great, and can easily spell Jorge every fifth day without the Yankees experiencing a defensive drop-off, and his bat's not too shabby, either. Cano was 3-5 with a run and an RBI, his 89th of a terrific year, and he's now batting .303. Jeter was 2-5 with an RBI, his 68th, to raise his average to .319. Abreu was 2-4 with a run and a walk, A-Rod was 0-2 but walked three times and scored a run, his 138th run of the year. Matsui was 0-3, but walked twice and scored twice, and Mientkiewicz and Damon each had a single and an RBI. In addition to the 12 hits, the Yankees wore out the Jays' pitchers by working nine walks, and succeeded in abusing McGowan by chasing him before the end of the fifth. Terrific all-around offense and patience.

Mussina was excellent, allowing three runs and seven hits with a walk on 97 pitches, 66 for strikes, with five Ks in seven strong innings. Other than the second, he was in control. Congratulations on notching the 250th career win, Moose! Vizcaino struggled through the eighth, but Joba finished it and the game up handily, fanning three on only 16 pitches for his first aforementioned save. Tomorrow afternoon, the Yankees go for three of four in a terrific pitching match-up, with Pettite (14-8, 3.79 ERA) facing tough righty A. J. Burnett (9-7, 3.40 ERA) in what may be Pettite's last start before the playoffs.  The Yankees are now a season-high 25 games above .500, and now are just a game back in the loss column to Boston for the AL East division crown, and six ahead of Detroit in the Wild Card loss column. Great work, guys, and great response to the exhausting games of the last two days. Thanks again to everyone stopping by the Heartland Digital Living Room. 400+ comments, and lots of fun chatter, is really amazing and a blessing. I'm very grateful. Let's Go, Yankees!

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chatter is always lively. Today, the Yankees look to continue their momentum from yesterday's big, walk-off, ten-inning win against Toronto, sending Mussina (10-10, 5.01 ERA) to the hill against hard-throwing righty Dustin McGowan (11-9, 3.84 ERA). The Yankees had the bats in full force yesterday, and will need a similar effort today against McGowan, who can be tough. Given that the Yankees have used most of their bullpen the last two games, which have gone fourteen and ten innings, respectively--even with all the September call-ups--the Yankees certainly could use a strong effort from Mussina. They also get some players back who pitched Friday night. Eight games to play, and the magic number is three. That is, the playoffs are within reach possibly in the next two days, and if need be, the Yankees can start to rest some players and set the rotation for October as they wish. In fact, I wouldn't be too surprised to see some players rest today after the last two grueling games, such as Posada, Matsui (maybe DH), and maybe A-Rod (maybe he as DH). Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game.  It's well worth mentioning just where the Yankees have come from this year--21-29 after 50 games and 14 1/2 games behind Boston, 43-43 at the All-Star break--now on the verge of yet another playoff spot, with the best second-half record in baseball at 46-22. I can't begin to describe how proud I am of this team, and thankful that they justified the faith that others (including some great HDLR regulars) and I displayed in them through their travails. Keep up the great work, guys, and fight like mad for that playoff spot that's so close. Keep winning games and series, and the rest will take care of itself. Let's Go, Yankees!

The day was filled with odd omens, whose entrails were getting harder to read as the day progressed. Naturally, as a free-flowing superstitious fan (one not overly superstitious, but one who reads into trends and chance occurrences more than is necessary, including today), I had my interpretive radar open to lots of stimuli, way too much as I passed between the game and a battery of errands that taxed my patience, compassion for fellow human beings, and eventually my peace of mind as the afternoon wore on.

I draped myself in my game t-shirt, a gray Yankees shirt that was a birthday present from my wife--which by the way is 10-1 for the Yankees, Aaron Small-like in its good tidings this year--and settled into the computer and chinwagged with Mike, lucky, level, and Vanessa from the aptly titled Flair for the Dramatic, some of the great regulars in the Heartland Digital Living Room before the start of the game--extra time since the start of the game was delayed for about an hour and a half. Frustratingly, when I opened the media player to listen to the game, I kept receiving an error message saying that there was an error through Mozilla Firefox preventing my listening to the game. Thankfully, I could circumvent the issue by opening Internet Explorer and listening to the game that way, while using Firefox for my other web browsing and HDLR chatter, but at the price of computer speed. Early in the game, soon after the Yankees took a 1-0 lead but started to squander boat loads of scoring opportunities, I had to split for trip number one to bring my wife and the kids she cares for to her workplace to pick up her work vehicle, then return home and get GLG ready for her big sleepover. This allowed me some extra time to listen to Sterling and hang in the HDLR, but I started to get the feeling that I was a bane for the Yanks' chances today, with my listening seemingly coinciding with the Yankees' struggles. A case in point--Hughes's collapse into inefficiency in the fourth, just past my return to the HDLR, in which his pitch count ballooned from 45 to 80, and he allowed the Jays three two-out runs via the Jays' particularly weak bottom of the order.  Rios led off with a double, Hughes whiffed Thomas on a fastball up and in, Hill singled, first and third one out, Russ Adams the Boston slayer popped out to Jeter, two down and hopes up for Hughes's escape. Not to be, as Adam Lind (batting all of .229 at the time of this at-bat) hit a 3-2 hanging curve for a ground-rule double down the left-field line, tie game. Hughes had him down 1-2, then missed two fastballs outside the zone before Lind's double. Curtis Thigpen (battling mightily with the cumbersome Mendoza line and holding rock steady at .200 at this point) battled back from down 0-2, worked it to 2-2, and blooped the ninth pitch of the at-bat to left to make it 3-1 Jays.

After Hughes worked a scoreless fifth, his final inning, the Yankees closed it to 3-2 in the fifth when Jeter struck out, Abreu walked, A-Rod struck out, and Matsui tripled in Abreu, 3-2. Posada walked, but Giambi struck out to end the threat. At this point, I had to take GLG to her sleepover, where I encountered one of the most egregious examples of rudeness I've ever witnessed on the road. Traveling east on a four-lane road where the speed limit is 35, I was in the passing lane doing about 40, with a car beside me on my right--clearly keeping a good pace. Lo and behold, a woman (for the sake of accuracy, with nary an intent of connecting her poor driving and worse behavior with her gender) came barreling up behind me doing about 50-55, and passed me in the middle turning lane with oncoming cars seeking to use it for its intended purpose--turning. After honking the horn at her to alert he to her brazenly dangerous and stupid driving, she proceeded to give me the finger, then play the slow-down-and-speed-up game immediately in front of me. After muttering vile threats under my breath should I ever see her again, I delivered GLG to her party and had a good confab with her friend's mother, then returned home to find the Yankees up 6-3 after scoring four two-out runs in the bottom of the sixth. Cano grounded out on the first pitch (surprise), Mientkiewicz walked, Melky grounded out to the pitcher, Jeter singled to make it first and third, Abreu walked to load the bases, and MVP A-Rod doubled to right to score Mientkiewicz and Jeter, 4-3 Yankees. Matsui then singled off lefty Scott Downs, 6-3 Yankees.

In I walk to screw things up. Jose Veras came in to relieve Ohlendorf, who pitched well to end the sixth, and Veras was all over the place as he surrendered the lead. He gave up a lead-off double to sub-Mendoza player Ray Olmedo, walked Reed Johnson, came back from 3-1 to whiff Stairs with 95-mph high heat, threw a wild pitch to Rios to move the runners to second and third but fanned Rios on a fastball, two down, and again, hopes up of getting out of the self-inflicted jam to preserve the three-run lead. Yeah, right. A passed ball by Jorge allowed Olmedo to score, 6-4 Yanks, and after having Griffin--a recent call-up--down 0-2, Veras walked him to load the bases by failing to locate his off-speed pitches while eschewing his very good fastball. Hill then singled, 6-5 Yankees. Enter Edwar, who promptly gave up a double to Adams, 7-6 Jays, the lead gone, and my feeling growing that as a fan, I brought the Yankees less than nothing today. At this point, I again had to split to meet my wife and the kids she cares for for dinner, before heading out to a big show they were in at the local University. I missed Lind's single to make it 8-6.

Naturally, I missed the Yankees' comeback in the bottom of the seventh as well. Giambi flew out, Cano worked a four-pitch walk, Mientkiewicz hit a ground-rule double to left, and Torre wisely pinch-ran for Mientkiewicz, inserting the faster Sardinha. This paid off big, when Melky's single scored them both to tie the game at 8. Jeter's ground-out to first moved Melky to second, Abreu worked a terrific walk, and the MVP A-Rod singled in Melky, 9-8 Yankees. I heard about this turn of events on my way to meet my wife and, after destroying a hearty slab of my wife's incomparable homemade chicken pot pie, found the remote and ESPN on the satellite of my wife's boss's house to check the ticker, only to find out that the Jays had scored three in the top of the eighth to make it 11-9 Jays, off Nuke no less. (I'll say this about Nuke--at least he got in there and tried despite his sore shoulder, but bad is bad is bad, and after having five good weeks, Nuke has returned to being Nuke. I really can't help but think two things--there's no way that Nuke should be on the post-season roster, and there's very likely no way that Torre and Cashman will leave him off the post-season roster. Ugh.) In a startling replay of the seventh, Olmedo the world-beater singled, Johnson walked, Stairs lined out to Betemit in at first, Rios singled in Olmedo, 9-9, Zaun pinch-hit for Griffin and singled in Johnson, 10-9 Jays. Britton entered and got Hill to fly out to right, two outs. Kei Igawa (yes, Kei Igawa) then came on and naturally allowed Luna a single to make it 11-9 Jays. After seeing the 11-9 score, I fully expected karmic helicopters to follow the vehicle on the way to the performance at the University, ala Henry Hill in "Goodfellas," ending with my night-time arrest in a driveway. All I could think was that losing this game, and burning out the B side of the bullpen as well as the A side last night, would be a real body blow to the team's morale and downright ability to cobble a plan of bullpen succession the rest of the series, which was beginning to look in dire straits. I had it tuned to ESPN 1000 on the way to the University, and was immensely buoyed by the update saying that the Yankees had tied it at 11 in the eighth with two two-out runs. As I heard the tell-tale update ditty air, I closed my eyes and crossed my fingers--really a reflex rather than any kind of superstitious habit--and finally breathed when the score was announced. When I opened my eyes, my wife, who was driving, had her hand up for a high-five, which I could give with renewed faith that the Yankees would pull this one out, would not lose two cliff-hangers in a row. Jorge singled, Giambi flew out, Cano worked another walk, Betemit grounded out to first but advanced the runners to second and third, and Melky singled them in to tie it, but Melky overran the bag too far and was caught off for the third out. But they tied it, and I was getting antsy for a TV or my computer. Yet I knew in my gut to stay away for a while, to let this play out, for I felt that I brought the Yankees only misery--at the very least that my listening coincided with Yankee struggles, and neither they nor I could afford that. I benched myself, and it was the right move.

The last I heard before heading into the performing arts center was that they went into extras. I felt that this was a distinct advantage, that the Yankees would find a way to win this. We dropped off the kids my wife watches, went for a walk around campus on a beautiful night--warm but not hot and with a nice breeze--then came back in for some cheesecake, a brownie for the little guy, and a coke and an Internet connection for me via the cell phone. I gave the Yankees a good 45 minutes before checking the score, and fully expected it to be over in the Yankees' favor when I checked it. I felt relief as much as joy to read the following:

"Blue Jays 11
Yankees 12     F"

After Melky preserved the tie in the top of the tenth by starting a good relay to Cano than nabbed Stairs at the plate, Jorge hit a ground-rule double off Josh Towers, the p!$$-pot, bean-balling loud-mouth Josh Towers, to start the inning. Damon pinch-ran for him. Giambi got an IBB, Cano's fly out sent Damon to third, Betemit struck out, two down, and Melky won it with a single to center, Blue Jays 11, Yankees 12  F.

The Yankees got great hitting today and needed all of it. Not the least of which, the top six of the Yankees' order was ridiculous, and won it for them. Melky the Clutch, Jeter, Abreu, A-Rod, Matsui, and Posada combined to go 15-32, with 7 runs, 12 RBIs, and 5 walks, just amazing. Melky broke out of his slump in a big way. In addition to the game-saving play in the 10th, he was 3-7 with a career-high 5 RBIs, giving him a terrific 70 on the year. Jeter was 2-6 with a run, Abreu was 0-3 but walked three times and scored twice giving him 114 runs for the year. A-Rod the MVP was magnificent, snapping out of his own slump by going 4-5 with 2 runs, 3 RBIs, a walk and two doubles. A-Rod now has 146 RBIs, really amazing, is batting .313, and carried the Yankees today with others with his clutch hitting. Matsui is warming up again, going 3-6 with 3 RBIs, pushing his total for the year to 102, phenomenal for one of my favorite players, Hideki Matsui. Posada continues to amaze and build his own top-three MVP case, going 3-5 with a double, a run and an RBI, his 86th, and is batting a season-long, steadily excellent .337. He's literally been hot all year.  Mientkiewicz continues to impress, going 2-2 with  a double and a walk, and is up to a more respectable .257. He's been hot since getting back from his injury, and really has become the Yankees' first baseman. His glove is just too good to shelve, and his hitting like this is too good to sit. Doug, I'm sorry I busted on you earlier this year, overlooking your off-season back surgery. My bad. I've always had the utmost respect for your glove, but your bat is starting to win me over. Keep it up, kid. Though the team stranded a ******** fourteen runners, including six in scoring position, they had nine two-out RBIs--really the clutch outweighing the wastefulness.

The pitching was horrible, scarcely meriting further attention except to say this--Mariano is The Man, pitching a scoreless ninth to preserve the tie while striking out two. Also, the Yankees need to keep tinkering with some middle-relief help and Ross Ohlendorf deserves more of a look than he's received. I know Veras has some ability, and more experience than Ohlendorf, but Ohlendorf has been steadier since coming up than Veras, and he throws just as hard. He probably should have pitched the seventh instead of Veras, and I say that not in hindsight but rather because of the exhausted state of the pen. The need to use ten pitchers is an abomination, and while somewhat due to Torre's too-quick moves, mainly attributable to the failures of key people today. Too few succeeded, and while people can curse the 40-man roster in September, it saved both the Yankees today at the end, and saved most of the relievers who pitched Friday. Lastly, injury or no, enough of Nuke already. Enough.

Tomorrow, the Yankees send Mussina (10-10, 5.01 ERA) up against Dustin McGowan (11-9, 3.84 ERA), and hopefully the Yankees get both the good Mussina of late, and 6-7 quality innings him. They surely need it. With the Yankees' win and Detroit's loss to KC, the magic number for the Yankees to officially be playoff-bound is down to 3 with eight to go--overwhelming odds for the Yankees. Keep up the good hard work, guys, and keep winning games and series. The rest will take care of itself. Great show of heart and fortitude, refusing to lose a see-saw game that would have been devastating to drop. Instead, the Yankees pulled out one of the sloppiest, most thrilling wins of the year. Thanks to everyone in the Heartland Digital Living Room for holding down the fort while I was gone, and for thoroughly trashing the place in my absence. Who superglued the chicken wings to the ceiling in an interlocking "NY?" Very creative!  Let's Go, Yankees!

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chatter is always lively. Today, the Yankees look to rebound from a disheartening extra-inning loss to the Jays last night, when they staged a magnificent four-run comeback in the ninth to tie it and spoil Halliday's gem of a start, only to lose it on a Zaun homer off Bruney in the 14th. Today, Marcum (12-6, 4.15 ERA) faces Phil Hughes (4-3, 4.75 ERA), who's filling in for Clemens, who is out with a tweaked hamstring. Hughes would serve the Yanks very well by going deep into the game, since the Yankees used most of their front-line relievers last night. Though the Jays' pitching staff is tough, the Yankees have the bats capable of putting up a nine-spot--or a reasonable facsimile--off Marcum and the Jays' pen, as they did when last in Toronto. They need to be patient, recognize and lay off his off-speed pitches diving out of the strike zone, and force Marcum to be up in the zone and make him pay when he is. Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. I'll be around sometime during the game for sure. Bring the bats to support Hughes today, guys, and bounce right back. The magic number for the playoffs is five. Time to whittle that down. Let's Go, Yankees!

Tonight, my wife was working late for her snobbish bosses, so we decided to meet out late for a good dinner. We went a good local BBQ and steak joint that hasn't disappointed us, and didn't tonight either. I had the 14-ounce prime rib nice and rare, with a salad with chunk bleu cheese and a side of rice, my wife had her diamond fillet, and the kids worked over the veggie menu (GLG) and kids' platter (my little guy, Captain Handsome). Great meal, and I got home just as the Yankees lost the lead in the top of the 7th, as Wang, and Posada's dropped ball, cost the Yankees two runs in a tightly pitched game. Edwar coughed up two more in the 8th on a blast to left by Rios, and the Yankees needed a miracle comeback just to tie.

They got it in the 9th. Damon led off with a double to left. Jeter grounded to short, one down. Abreu singled to make it first and third, one out. A-Rod singled to make it 4-1. Matsui grounded weakly to second, two outs with second and third. Posada reached on a throwing error by Hill at second, who threw low off the heel of Overbay's glove, and the ball popped straight up into the air and into Overbay's glove just after Jorge crossed first, scoring Abreu, 4-2. Cano then hit a seeing-eye single under Hill's glove at second, 4-3 Jays. Giambi then poked a single to left to tie it, and the Stadium was in a frenzy. But Melky grounded out, really the last threat the Yankees had in the 14-inning loss, for Bruney surrendered the winning homer to Zaun in the 14th, 5-4 Jays..

Halliday was masterful tonight, working efficiently and not allowing the Yankees much offense. He got into trouble in the ninth, and Gibbons finally relieved him to face lefties Cano and Giambi, and their hits backfired on Gibbons. But the Yankees struggled offensively all night.

In part, this loss hurt because the Yankees used nearly all their front-line bullpen for a home loss, thanks to Bruney's surrendering a homer to Zaun in the 14th. Joba went two, so he won't pitch until Monday. Vizcaino, Mariano, Villone, and Veras went one or less of good relief work, but the Jays countered effectively with Downs, Janssen, Accardo, Wolfe, Kennedy, and Frasor, so each team's bullpen being used up makes the starters' work tomorrow all the more important. Clemens (6-6, 4.18 ERA) gets Marcum (12-6. 4.15 ERA), whom the Yankees hit last start. The Yankees need to muster more offensive support, and earlier in the game, for Clemens than they did Wang, who tonight was very good through seven. This was a tough one to lose, for certain, but it's part of what we knew would be a tough series against a team with loads of starting pitching to spare. The bullpen use is basically even, so it will be incumbent upon Clemens to out-pitch Marcum tomorrow afternoon. The loss drops the Yankees to 2 in the loss column behind Boston in the East, and five ahead of Detroit in the loss column in the Wild Card race with 9 games left to. With the quick turnaround, the Yankees need to toughen up. Great effort tonight in the loss, guys, and great to come back after being four down to the masterful Halliday. But this was another missed opportunity, and they'll need more offense tomorrow. Let's Go, Yankees!

PS: Thanks for the gang for the many spirited, humorous comments in the HDLR tonight. Over 500 comments tonight is not just a record, but a testament to the high quality of the fans coming into the HDLR to chinwag during the games. No offense to the various commenters tonight, but if I don't get to a question, especially a non-Yankee/baseball question during the game, I'm just locked in to the game. If you wish, I can always respond to an e-mail at length to give your questions fair treatment. Thanks to everyone for coming by for spirited in-game confab.

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chin-wagging is always lively. Tonight, the Yankees start their last home series of the 2007 season against Toronto with a sterling pitching match-up. Wang (18-7, 3.82 ERA) looks to atone for his previous, subpar start against Boston against Halliday (15-7, 3.82 ERA) in what begins a series of terrific pitching match-ups. With their great run of four straight wins and twelve of the last fourteen, the Yankees have pulled to within one game of Boston in the loss column in the East, and have opened up a six-game lead in the loss column for the Wild Card against Detroit. The day off yesterday gave some much-needed rest to Posada, Jeter, A-Rod, Matsui, Mariano and the rest of the bullpen just in time for a Blue Jay team that swept Boston this week. I am in agreement with Cliff Corcoran of the Baseball Toaster: Bronx Banter blog, who rightly says that Toronto's pitching should provide the Yankees with a great test for the upcoming playoffs. Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. I'm going to dinner with the family, and should be in by the middle of the game. Keep bringing your best, winning games and series, guys. The rest will take care of itself. Let's Go, Yankees!

"We play today. We win today. That's it."--Mariano Duncan's motto during the Yankees' 1996 World Series Championship season.

Say what you will about the current standings. Rest, if you must, on the fact that if the Yankees overtake the Red Sox, Boston still has a sizable lead in the Wild Card race to make the playoffs. But there is no possible, sane, sober way to deny that what the Yankees have done in cutting the lead in the East from 14 1/2 games on May 29 to 1 1/2 games on September 19 (one in the loss column), when they beat Baltimore 2-1, is not just remarkable, but potentially cataclysmic for Boston, who got swept by Toronto and lost 6-1, as Papelbon surrendered a grand slam in the bottom of the eighth to cinch the loss. The Yankees are rolling, now having Crazy Steined the Orioles, won four straight, and twelve of the last fourteen to come within one game in the loss column of Boston. For a team left for dead by so many, including some of our own faithful, this team has shown heart, grit, fire, determination, and perseverance to come within one game of winning the AL East for the tenth straight year. It may very well happen, and it's been a privilege to have stuck with this team. With Detroit getting swept by Cleveland, the Yankees--though far closer to Boston than Detroit for a playoff spot--are six up in the loss column to Detroit. Get 50 cc of ringers lactate to Detroit, stat.

The Yankees had to win one the hard way tonight, getting another tremendous performance from Andy Pettite, who won his 200th career game, to best the Orioles. Matsui clocked his 25th homer of the year, while collecting his 99th RBI, to give the Yanks a 1-0 lead in the second off lefty Brian Burres. The Yankees scored a second run in the sixth off a wild pitch to make it 2-0, which was huge as the Orioles manufactured a run in the seventh. Roberts walked and stole second and third, with Mora singling him in to make it 2-1. But Pettite was magnificent, and turned it over to the bullpen to clinch it. Joba threw four pitches to strike out Mora, including using two nasty sliders to finish him off. Mariano was inefficient, throwing 34 pitches to escape a bases-loaded jam in the ninth to end the game for his 30th save, but preserve the vitally important win he did.

Congratulations to Pettite for notching his 200th career victory in the place where he has had so much success! He was magnificent, going 7 2/3, allowing five hits, two runs earned, three walks and seven strikeouts on 104 pitches, 65 of which were strikes. He got double-play balls in three straight innings, and was generally very efficient and tough. Tonight was a game the Yankees had to win not just for the standings, but for confidence in close games. This was huge, and that Torre used Joba for one out in the eighth, to get him work outside his comfort zone for the last month in preparation for the playoffs, was the right thing to do and illustrated good thinking ahead.

Immediately after the game, Frank the Sage called me for another chin-wag about the Yankees' success. "The Yankees can sense what's going on big-time," The Sage said as we reflected on their remarkable resurgence. "They have the sniff for the postseason, and with the way Boston's playing, the Yankees smell blood in the water. Winning the division still means a lot, and I wouldn't want to be a fan looking to freefall into a playoff spot. They're playing for the division, to be the best at something. That matters. If Boston wants to have second--AGAIN--let 'em." Frank, the best man in my wedding, doesn't mince words when he's feeling it, and Frank the Sage knows baseball like very few I know. He understands not just situational do's and dont's, but the tenor of games and situations, and he understands this one very well. The Wild Card as a contingency plan is glossing over right now a precipitous collapse from Boston, and the Yankees appear to have had their struggles and spate of injuries at the right time. More play like this, and the Yankees will have overtaken Boston for the AL East lead after being 14 1/2 games back on May 29th. They're one game behind Boston in the loss column, and are playing far better and more reliable ball right now. That still means an awful lot, especially to a team like the Yankees that has yielded nothing, and played to win every game lately. They want to win the division badly, and are playing like it. Plus, it's very difficult to turn on and off your quality of play, and what Boston has been fielding lately hasn't been of top quality, period. 29 years later, the Yankees are on the verge of doing to Boston, yet again, what seemed like a once-in-a-lifetime incident in 1978, when there was no Wild Card--coming back from 14 1/2 down to take the East. Doing it again in 2007 would be only somewhat less dramatic, with the addition of the Wild Card and the lack of a playoff game changing the utter urgency. But let's not overlook Boston's unmistakable collapse as the Yankees surge. Outstanding. Ten games left to play, one back in the loss column.

Advantage Yankees.

The Yankees have Thursday off, and commence a four-game series against Toronto at Yankee Stadium Friday night. Wang (18-7, 3.82 ERA) faces Halliday (15-7, 3.82 ERA) in a great match-up to start the series, one the Yankees would be well served to win right away. The Yanks will face several good pitchers from the Jays--Halliday, Burnett, and Marcum--but have had some success against some of them, and the Yanks are playing great baseball right now. Just keep on winning games and series, guys. Everything else will take care of itself. Let's Go, Yankees!

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chin-wagging is always lively. Tonight, the Yankees go for the Crazy Stein against the Orioles, having won the first two games of the series, and eleven of their last thirteen. Pettite (13-8, 3.89 ERA) looks to bounce back from his last subpar start against Boston, and faces lefty Brian Burres (6-5, 5.47 ERA). Last night the Yankees exploded for twelve runs, with positive contributions scattered throughout the potent Yankee lineup. New York's hot streak has pulled them to within two in the loss column of Boston in the East, and five ahead in the loss column against Detroit with eleven games to play. Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. Get the Crazy Stein, guys, and bring back the Sweeping W, Mike! Let's Go, Yankees!

No doubt about it, the Yankees got that sniff under their collective nose. They've now won 11 of the last 13, and 15 of the last 20, trouncing the hapless Orioles, 12-0 behind an outstanding performance by Mike Mussina and a ton of offensive support from the entire team. More importantly, Boston and Detroit lost again, putting the Yankees a mere two games down in the loss column in the East, and five up in the loss column to Detroit in the Wild Card. GagMe walked in the tying run, then allowed the game-winning, two-run double in the bottom of the eighth to again cough up the lead and the game. The Yankees are now appreciably closer to Boston than Detroit is to them for a playoff spot, and it's no longer wishful thinking to consider that the Yankees, after all they've been through this year, should they continue their hot streak and Boston continue to falter, are still close in the running for their tenth straight division title. Remarkable. Way to bring back another W, Mike!

The Yankees and Orioles played three scoreless innings, with Mussina and Leicester locked in a pitchers duel through the first third of the game. But after Mussina kept Baltimore on lockdown in the top half of the fourth, the Yankees opened the floodgates, scoring six to seize control. Jeter led off with a crisp single to left, Abreu smacked a double to left, and after A-Rod struck out, Matsui continued his resurgence with a double to right to score both Jeter and Abreu, 2-0 Yankees. Jorge walked and Cano's single to center scored Matsui, 3-0. Mientkiewicz then ripped a homer to deep right, continuing his terrific comeback from the wrist injury, 6-0 Yankees and the rout was on. The Yankees added a seventh run in the sixth when Jorge walked, Cano doubled to right and, after Mientkiewicz struck out, Melky hit a sac fly to center, 7-0 Yankees. They tacked on five for good measure in the seventh. Jeter doubled to center, Abreu walked, A-Rod popped out, Matsui singled in Jeter, 8-0 Yankees, Jorge walked to load the bases, Cano and Mientkiewicz hit soft bloops to center to score a run apiece, 10-0, and Melky showed signs of life, singling in to to make it 12-0.

As good as the offense was, Mussina was the story tonight. He was dazzling, allowing a mere three hits, walking one and striking out six in seven innings on 98 pitches, 65 of which were strikes. He threw 90 regularly, painted the outside corner, had bite on his off-speed pitches, and threw a sharp back-door fastball to lefty hitters that was highly impressive. Moose, please pass the gravy to me to help down the platter of crow I'll gladly eat for speculating that you might not ever pitch for the Yankees again, except in spot duty. I started to write your epitaph, and you halted the proceedings to smash my keyboard against my head. For that, I thank you. Thanks also for giving the bullpen a much-needed day of rest, between your stellar outing and the offensive explosion.

Matsui was 2-5 with two runs and three RBis, now 98 for the year, and is returning to form after a poor September to heat up at the right time. Cano was 3-4 with two runs and two RBIs, now with 87 for the year as he bumped his average back above .300 at .302. Mientkiewicz was 2-4 with four RBis, three on his majestic blast to right in the fourth. Jeter was 3-4 with two runs scored, upping his average to .319. Five more runs, and Jeter will have scored at least 100 runs for the 11th year, incredible. Melky was 1-3 with three RBis, now with 65 on the year. Abreu was 1-3 with two runs scored, now with 111 runs on the year.

This team is firing on all cylinders, really rolling offensively and with the starting pitching coming around--not lights out, but certainly good enough to win. Tomorrow night, Burres (6-5, 5.47 ERA) faces Pettite (13-8, 3.89 ERA) as the Yankees go for the Crazy Stein. Some may say that winning the East is a far-fetched notion, but to me it's far from a crazy thought to consider that the Yankees are close, really needing to have Boston lose two more games than the Yankees the rest of the way to win their tenth straight AL East title--no small feat. It's worth pursuing, and I can't be told for a second that the Yankees, fueled by the leadership of Jeter, Jorge, Mariano, Pettite, Clemens, A-Rod, and others, haven't had their sights set on that for some time. They've yielded nothing, remained focused, and been without a doubt the best team after the All-Star break. From 14 1/2 back to 2 1/2 back, now 23 games above .500 with 11 to go, the Yankees continue to keep their eyes on the prize. Hats off to you, Yanks. Again, you've justified why we as fans should believe in you. Let's Go, Yankees!

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chin-wagging is always lively. Tonight, the Yankees look to take the series against the Orioles, and win their eleventh game in the last thirteen, sending Mussina (9-10, 5.28) to the hill against righty Leicester (2-1, 6.32 ERA). The Yankees expended most of their available front-line relievers last night, making Mussina's having a quality start all the more important. Though the offense stranded a dozen runners yesterday--seven in scoring position--it also cuffed around Cabrera and worked through a significant amount of Oriole relievers with balanced contributions throughout the lineup.  The Yankees closed to within three in the loss column to Boston, and opened up a four-game lead in the loss column to Detroit in the Wild Card. Amazingly, the Yankees are not out of the running for the East or home field.  I'll pop in after a couple innings, so come in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. Bring back another W, Mike! Let's Go, Yankees!

Nice win, but it didn't have to be that close. The Yankees limped down the stretch tonight to preserve an 8-5 win. Despite being in control for most of the evening, the Yankees expended five pitches, including Mariano, in a game they had well in hand. It was shameful that Edwar Ramirez, then later Nuke LaFarnsworth, couldn't nail it down as they let Baltimore back into a game that should have been over. But the offense was quite good, working over Cabrera in 5+, adding on runs nicely as the game proceeded, and getting contributions from most of the order. Phil Hughes was good tonight, going 5 2/3 but laboring in the sixth. Most importantly, the Yankees gained ground on both Boston and Detroit, since Boston lost 6-1 in Toronto and Detroit lost 6-5 to Cleveland in 11 innings. This puts the Yankees three back in the loss column to Boston in the East, and four ahead in the loss column to Detroit in the Wild Card, a very successful day for the Yankees. Way to bring back the W, Upper-Deck Mike!

Hughes started badly in the first, giving up two runs without recording an out. But he settled in nicely after that and was very good until the sixth. The Yankees gave him plenty of offensive support, scoring two in the bottom of the second. Jorge, who had a big night, singled, and Giambi and Cano got plugged to load the bases. Mientkiewicz came through again, singling in Posada and Giambi to tie it at 2, but getting thrown out at second. Matsui's solo homer with two outs in the third gave the Yankees the lead for good, and they tacked on two more in the fourth, when Giambi walked, Cano doubled to center to score him, Mientkiewicz moved him to third on a sac bunt, and Damon singled in Cano, 5-2 Yankees. The Yankees added two more in the seventh to blow it open. Mientkiewicz and Damon led off the inning with walks, Jeter struck out, and Abreu ripped a ground-rule double to Death Valley to score Mientkiewicz, 6-2. A-Rod then got credit for a shallow sac fly to right that scored Damon, 7-2 Yankees.

But the Yankees' pitching let Baltimore hang around. Hughes loaded the bases in the sixth, and Edwar did very well to get out of the jam, striking out Mora. But Edwar himself got into trouble in the seventh, allowing three straight hits to Payton, Roberts and Redman to make it 7-3. After plunking Tejada to load the bases, Torre called on Vizcaino, who struck out Millar in a long at bat that saw Vizcaino climb back from 3-0. Jeter doubled to lead off the eighth, and Abreu earned his 98th RBI of the year, scoring Jeter on a single to make it 8-3. But things got dicey in the ninth, at Nuke's expense again. He walked Roberts to start the inning, got Redman to ground out on a brilliant play by Cano, who snagged the ball going up the middle for a hit several feet behind and to the shortstop side of second, and threw before turning--from a good ten feet to the shortstop side of second--to nab the speedy Redman, with the help of a fine stretch from Mientkiewicz, a beautiful play from Cano that was bigger in retrospect than it should have been. I was on the phone with Frank the Sage, so I was only interloping in the HDLR, and he remarked that Cano has the best arm on a second baseman that he's ever seen. I can't think of someone with a better arm at second either, honestly. But Nuke withered thereafter, throwing a wild pitch to Markakis that gave Roberts third, allowing a single to Markakis to score Roberts, 8-4 then, with two outs, allowing a single to Millar, before Torre saw enough and turned it over to Mariano. He promptly allowed a double to Huff to make it 8-5, second and third with two outs, but fanned Mora to end the game. The thing that riled me was seeing Nuke, as the team was lining up to congratulate each other on the win, turning away from Torre as Torre was patting him on the back, as if Torre owes Nuke either the latitude to finish the game that he proved he simply couldn't, or an apology for finally, after letting Nuke squander 25 pitches to record two outs and allow base runners galore, yanking him for the greatest relief pitcher in the history of the game. Here, Nuke, I'll apologize for Torre to you--sorry you stunk yet again. You're back to being Nuke for the duration of your stay with the Yankees. Your poor display as a pitcher and teammate made me punt "Cool Hand Nuke" into the corn field for good.

Lots of hitting starts tonight. Posada was 3-5 to raise his average to an outstanding .338. Abreu was 2-5 with a double and two RBIs, giving him 98 on the year. Jeter was 2-5 with a double and a run, batting .316 and seemingly out of his slump after the Boston series and tonight. Matsui's 24th homer, with 95 RBIs, was a welcome sight. A-Rod went 1-5 with his 142nd RBI on his amazing, MVP year. Mientkiewicz was 1-1 with two walks and two RBIs, really justifying his playing time and sure to earn more down the stretch. Cano was 2-4 with a run and an RBI, his 85th. Damon was 1-4 and Giambi 0-1 with two runs and three walks, really as good as singles for the most part, given he scored twice. But the Yankees stranded 12, 7 in scoring position, and playoff-caliber teams won't let them get away with that. The offense was very good, getting 13 hits and 7 walks, but they're part of the reason why this game shouldn't have been close enough to warrant using Mariano to get one out in the 9th.

Tomorrow, the Yankees send Mussina (9-10, 5.28 ERA) up against righty Jon Leicester  (2-1, 6.32 ERA) as the Yankees look to win their 11th game in their last 13. They may need the bats tomorrow as they had them tonight. Keep up the good work, guys, and keep winning games. The Yankees have pressured Boston, and have extended their Wild Card lead on Detroit, with 12 to play. Let's Go, Yankees!

[Edit: I am concerned a bit with the immediate condition of the Yankees' bullpen, at least as far as the front-line pitchers goes. Mariano should really not pitch tomorrow night under any circumstances. Nuke's unwritten rules are that he can't/won't go back-to-back games. Joba can't pitch until Wednesday under the "Joba Rules," and Vizcaino threw 29 pitches. Hopefully, Bruney can go if needed, and hopefully Mussina can give the Yankees a quality start. For it seems likely that regardless of the game circumstances, if the Yankees need relievers tomorrow, Jose Veras and Ross Ohlendorf may see action in meaningful situations. That's not the worst situation to be in at this point in the season and standings, but we shouldn't be surprised to see that unfold tomorrow night.]

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chin-wagging is always lively. Tonight, the Yankees return home to face the Orioles after a scintillating road trip, in which the Yanks won 7 of 9. Tonight, they send Phil Hughes (3-3, 4.91 ERA) to the hill against Yankee nemesis Daniel Cabrera (9-16, 5.37 ERA) looking to continue their momentum gathered on the road. The Yankees have the second-best home record in baseball, and hopefully will return to their more consistent offensive production at home against Cabrera, who has given the Yankees problems some times, and generosity other times. I'll be in sometime during the early innings so come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. I know Mike will, he'll be there somewhere in the upper deck. Bring back the W, Mike! Let's Go, Yankees!

Derek Jeter Is The Man! The Captain ripped a 2-2 pitch down and in from Schilling nearly out of the ballpark, over the monster and to the back of the grotesquely expensive monster seats to give the Yankees a 4-1 lead in the top of the eighth, and the Yankees hung on despite a late Boston rally, 4-3 to win an enormous game in Boston. Clemens and Schilling engaged in a classic pitchers duel, with Clemens providing a classic, clutch, two-hit performance in what pundits speculate might be his last regular-season game at Fenway. In a must-win game demanding a quality start, Clemens gave the Yankees all that and then some, shutting down Boston through six sterling innings, holding the game close until Jeter's dramatics in the eighth.

Yet Clemens had a rough start in the first, with a Damon error leading to Boston's first run. Ellsbury hit a fly ball that Damon appeared to lose in the lights and it hit off his glove, E7. After retiring Pedroia, Clemens was extra careful with Ortiz, walking him on five pitches on a change-up that was very close and that precipitated a brief but heated exchange between Clemens and home plate umpire Lance Barksdale. Lowell then lined a single just past a diving A-Rod, 1-0 Boston. But Clemens got some help to settle down, with Drew flying out to left deep, and Varitek ripping one to first that Mientkiewicz stopped on a great diving snag that Giambi probably never would have had, then dove to first to tag the base and beat Varitek, ending the dramatics. After that, Clemens retired the next fifteen batters, really pumping in the fastball at 93-94 mph, and snapping off sharp curves.

With the game 1-0 in the fifth, Cano crushed a 1-0 pitch from Schilling over the monster to tie the score, ripping his second huge homer in the three-game series in Boston. It also disrupted Schilling's own rhythm, for he had only allowed two hits--a lead-off single to Mientkiewicz in the third after Jeter's one-out single in the first--and no walks through four. Schilling got a break in the third. After Mientkiewicz singled, Molina laid down a good sac bunt to move him to second, and Damon beat out an infield single but was called out--wrongly--at first, making it a runner at third with two outs instead of first and third, one out. Jeter then flew out to right to end the threat. But Schilling was still dealing, matching Clemens zero for zero and pitching more efficiently. Though the Yankees hit the ball hard often, it was for the most part at people, or just not driven far enough, and Schilling was on a roll.

Thankfully, so was Clemens. As I mentioned, he retired fifteen straight between the bottom of the first and the bottom of the sixth, when he issued a one-out walk to Ortiz. Lowell then promptly singled to right, first and second. Drew then grounded into a 4-6 force, two outs first and third. Varitek hit a fly to left that Damon, atoning for his costly error in the first, made a great sliding catch coming in and to his glove side to end the threat, and perhaps Clemens's final start at Fenway in his Hall-of-Fame career. He was magnificent, allowing just two hits, an unearned run, walking three and striking out four on 87 pitches, 49 strikes. At one point between the third and fourth, Clemens struck out four straight, getting Drew looking on a curve, and Varitek on a 3-2 splitter that he came back to after missing with it on 2-2. Outstanding. Joba came in and worked a tense seventh, allowing a lead-off double to left to Hinske but stranding him at third, when Crisp sac bunted him over, Joba fanned Lugo on a fastball, and Joba got Ellsbury to ground to first to end the threat.

Mientkiewicz was a great choice to play today, both offensively and defensively, a great move by Torre in an evening when Torre also had a good night with his decisions. With one out in the eighth, Mientkiewicz singled to left for the second time and, with Molina up, Torre put in Giambi to pinch-hit, and Mr. Giambi paid big dividends, just missing a homer to left by hitting a 2-2 pitch two feet from the top of the wall and, when Ellsbury threw toward home, wisely took second on the overthrow. Sardinha pinch-ran, and Damon's 4-3 with the infield up prevented Mientkiewicz from scoring, two down. But the Captain approached the plate, and I felt confident he'd give the Yanks the lead, suspecting a single. Boy was I wrong. Jeter had a good read on Schilling for most of the at-bat, swinging at and missing the first pitch but fouling off pitches thereafter, until he got a 2-2 pitch down and in, and he positively cranked it into the enormously overpriced monster seats, 4-1 Yankees. How many scores of times has The Captain come through in the clutch? Amazing! I must defer to John Sterling's poignant call of Jeter's catch against Boston in the 12th inning at Yankee Stadium on July 1, 2004 as Jeter emerged from the stands bloodied and bruised after diving face-first running full tilt after catching Nixon's pop-up, to properly characterize the future Hall-of-Famer: "I mean what a player, Derek Jeter, what a player! You can't say enough about him! What is he? He's a winner! That's what he is, he's a flat-out winner!!"  Jeter is nothing if not a winner, and he proved that big-time tonight in a pivotal game and moment. Again, Jeter was huge, the difference in a tight game. What a privilege it is to have watched him all these years. The guy has gravitas to spare.

Joba and Mariano made things too close for comfort, but eventually held as I held my breath. Joba allowed a solo homer to Lowell in the eighth with two outs to make it 4-2, and incorporated his curve to brilliantly catch both Pedroia and Drew looking on 2-2 counts. Mariano had trouble locating the strike zone, walking Varitek to start the ninth. He then got Hinske to ground out to first, and got Crisp to ground out to second, two down. But he left one chest-high to Lugo, who hit a double to left-center, 4-3 Yankees. At this point, GLG was having a nightmare, trying in vain to locate her books she was looking for in her sleep, so I tended to her for a few minutes as she tried to explain, somnambulently to her clueless father, that she HAD to get her books. I settled her back to sleep as Mariano plugged Ellsbury, and it seemed that I was experiencing the nightmare, not GLG. These things never come at good times during baseball season but, between family and the Yankees, you have to go with family, period. Mariano then walked Pedroia on a 3-2 pitch in to load the bases, with Ortiz, no slouch in the clutch since joining the Red Sox, coming to bat. Mariano worked it to 2-2, then got Ortiz to pop up to The Captain in shallow center to end the tense game, 4-3 Yankees in a huge win.

Clemens's start cannot be overlooked, easily the best among the three Yankee starters to go this weekend. Clemens threw a little harder than he has for most of the year, probably being jazzed up to throw at Fenway, where he had so many great memories with and against Boston. It sure paid off. Clemens was vintage. So was Jeter, ripping his 11th homer of the year--and the sixth off Boston pitching--with 67 RBIs to give the Yankees the 4-1 lead. Cano's homer was really important as well, putting the Yankees into a tie with one swing and momentarily breaking up Schilling's momentum. Mientkiewicz also deserves a big nod of appreciation for his sterling defense as well as his two hits. Giambi's single was vital for the Yankees to rally in the eighth, and kudos to Torre for some good moves tonight. Hats off to Damon for settling down and making that terrific sliding catch off Varitek's bat to end the sixth-inning rally. Joba allowed his first earned run, but it was bound to happen, and when you leave up fastballs chest-high to good professional hitters, bad things can happen. Mariano wasn't sharp but nailed it down in a tense save, his 28th of the year.

The Yankees return to the friendly confines of Yankee Stadium to face Baltimore for three, with our own Mike heading to The Bronx for the series. Enjoy the series, Mike, and bring us back some W's, buddy. Hughes (3-3, 4.91 ERA) faces Cabrera (9-16, 5.37 ERA), who has struggled but has also given the Yankees problems. The win was a huge lift in its own right for the Yankees, but they needed to win to stay 2 1/2 ahead of Detroit, 3 in the loss column, and move 4 1/2 back, and four in the loss column, to Boston. No let-downs tomorrow night, guys. Stay focused, and keep winning games and series. The rest will take care of itself. Great win tonight! Let's Go, Yankees!

[Edit: Congratulations to Jim Thome for hitting his 500th homer today, a walk-off homer no less, to join the elite group. From what I understand, he's a good person as well as a terrific power hitter. Well done, Jim. Lots of milestones to recognize this year--A-Rod, Thomas, Thome, Buchholz, Buehrle--an impressive tally.]

[Edit PS: For the record, I didn't poach the title of this post from the headline with the exact same phrase on MLB.com, which I saw this morning when I signed in for my e-mail. No Ann Coulter or Doris Kearns Goodwin here. My work, warts and all, is at least my own if it's not cited.]

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the chin-wagging is always lively. Tonight, the Yankees go for the series victory against Boston. In dire need of a quality start, New York sends Clemens (6-6, 4.45 ERA) to the mound against Schilling (8-7. 3.69 ERA) in a match-up between future Hall-of-Famers. The Yankees certainly need to bounce back after yesterday's debacle, and need more offense. Matsui and Giambi are sitting, with Posada as the DH tonight, with Mientkiewicz at first and Molina catching. Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. As a pre-game note to any potential trolls, please don't troll here. Fans are welcome. Trolls are not. Let's finish up what has already been a very good road trip strong, guys. Let's Go, Yankees!

[Edit: I'll pop in and out of the HDLR tonight. Since the game is on ESPN on a Sunday night, I cannot watch it online. I'll likely drop in during the game, and certainly in the later innings. But feel free to stop in and talk amongst yourselves in my absence.]

I had a feeling that this might happen after last night's big victory, that there would be some kind of letdown. I'm also not entirely surprised that Beckett pitched well, nor by Boston playing spirited ball, which is what I though going into the series. Those factors resulted in Boston's waxing the Yankees, 10-1, turning a very good pitcher's duel into a rout in the sixth and seventh. Great comebacks like the one Friday night are special largely because they don't happen everyday, and should not be expected to occur on a daily basis, as manna dropping from Heaven. Once the Yankees got down by a few runs today, I had the distinct sense that, although I hoped for and would have loved another big comeback, it wouldn't happen.

Jeter cranked a huge homer off Beckett in the top of the first to dead center to give the Yankees the lead and unfortunately their only run of the game, 1-0, and the Yankees worked over Beckett by raising his pitch count to a ******** 30. But although A-Rod and Posada worked walks, Matsui swung at the first pitch and grounded to first to both end the threat and and the Yankees' last real threat of the game. Boston responded right away in the bottom of the first, cobbling together three singles to tie it. The game stayed deadlocked for the next few innings as Wang and Beckett each settled into a tight pitchers duel, keeping their pitch counts and the other team's hit total low. After getting two quick outs in the third, Wang walked three straight batters to load the bases, completely losing the strike zone, but got Varitek to pop out to Cano in shallow right to end the self-induced threat. Boston pushed across a run to take the lead for good in the fifth, when Wang hit Youkilis on the wrist, Ortiz singled to send pinch-runner Ellsbury to third, and Drew singled in Ellsbury, 2-1 Boston, and it was downhill from there. After Beckett put together his third straight 1-2-3 inning, Boston scored three off Wang to chase him in the sixth, then scored four in the
seventh off five different pitchers--in an interminably long frame that seemed to take two weeks to complete--to make it 9-1.

At this point, my computer froze up--very unusual considering I have high-speed internet, but was likely related to working with a few windows open nonetheless. Had this been in a tight game, I would have been more frustrated, say, when the TV telecast originally showing the game on Faux today suddenly gave out in the second inning, producing fuzz instead of the game. Unlike that early game tele-nonsense, this didn't exactly produce a fit from me. I finished some Szechuan Shrimp that I ordered after a good food conversation a few of us had in the Heartland Digital Living Room and slipped into a food-induced coma for a couple hours. When I woke up and got cracking on some work, not only was the Yankees game over at 10-1, but Detroit had also beaten Johan Santana and the Twins 4-3, shortening the Yankees' Wild Card lead to 2 1/2 games, three in the loss column, and the loss widening Boston's East lead back to 5 1/2. Thank goodness for last night's comeback even more now. Thanks also to everyone coming by in the Heartland Digital Living Room today, and my apologies for the technical difficulties that conspired to evict me late in the game.

Jeter was 2-4 with his tenth homer and 64th RBI, and Abreu and Cano each had a hit. That was it for the offense. Wang went 5 2/3, allowing five runs earned on nine hits, three walks while striking out three on 97 pitches, 59 of which were strikes. Today was a rough game, with Jorge getting bowled over at home and shaken up by Eric Hinske as he tagged Hinske out--clean, tough play. We'll see about Jorge playing tomorrow. Wang plugged Youkilis on the wrist in the fifth, and Beckett retaliated by beaning Giambi on the knee in the seventh. Given the circumstances--Boston up 5-1, two outs and no one on in the seventh, Beckett having recorded twelve straight outs--there's no question that it was intentional. I don't mind Beckett sticking up for his teammate, honestly, and it was the right circumstance in the game to do that. But to bean him on the knee--relying on Sterling and Waldman's call--c'mon now. Show some brains and don't be a goon by going after what Ken Singleton describes as one of the two no-no areas of beanings--the knee and the head. Then again, no one ever accused Beckett of being a genius, just a good pitcher. [Edit: According to the great Pete Abraham, Giambi got hit on the left elbow, significantly diminishing the seriousness of the offense to me. Again, I don't have a problem with pitchers sticking up for their players. If Beckett hit Giambi on the elbow, that's fine with me.]

Tomorrow night, Clemens (6-6, 4.45 ERA) faces Schilling (8-7, 3.69 ERA) in the rubber match of the series. I'm confident that the Yankees will respond well after getting thumped today; they usually do after such games, and they've hit Schilling well this year and before. But they could use a well-pitched game from the ailing Clemens, which they've not gotten from either Pettite or Wang, unlike either of them, and the Yankees really have only played about four good innings offensively thus far this series. Time to wake back up, guys. Let's Go, Yankees!

Hi Everyone! Welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and beverages are always free, the confines are always comfortable, and the conversation is always fast-paced. Today, the Yankees follow up on last night's amazing come-from-behind, 8-7 victory off the heart of Boston's bullpen, sending Wang (18-6, 3.69 ERA) to the hill against Beckett (also 18-6, 3.27 ERA) in a match-up of Cy Young candidates.  New York looks to build on the momentum from the big, late win last night, and to win the series today. Come on in, get comfortable, and enjoy the game. As a pre-game note to any potential trolls, please don't troll here. Fans are welcome. Trolls are not. I allowed last night's hilariously insipid trolling from jimmy, who posted the pointless information about Kerry Gaelic senior football, for sheer comedic value. Not today, which is about the greatest rivalry in North American sports. Let's Go, Yankees!

By far. BY FAR. And boy, isn't turnabout fair play! Back on April 20, the Yankees entered Boston on a Friday night and Andy Pettite pitched a whale of a game through 6 1/3, only for the bullpen to implode and allow Boston to score five in the bottom of the eighth to win the series opener 7-6, on the way to the series sweep. Tonight, 21 weeks later to the day, the Yankees earned one back for Pettite, who has been an absolute horse for the Yankees this year but who clearly wasn't sharp tonight, scoring six in the top of the eighth to overtake Boston, 8-7 in the opener of the final regular season series between the rivals.  Classic.

For much of the game, the story for the Yankees was squandered chances [12 LOB for the game, six in scoring position], which occurred right from the get-go. The Yankees had the bases loaded in the first as they worked Matsuzaka's pitch count up to 27, but failed to score when Posada and Matsui grounded out to end the threat. In the second, Boston took a 1-0 lead when Youkilis singled, Varitek walked with one out, Kielty forced Varitek at second, and Ellsbury singled to score Youkilis. In the bottom of the third, after the Yankees' quick 1-2-3 inning allowed Matsuzaka to briefly settle in, Ortiz doubled off the monster with one out, Lowell singled to center but Melky's great throw reached home on the fly to nail Ortiz, two down with Lowell taking second on the throw. But after Youkilis walked, Drew's ground ball went past Giambi (who had a terrible game) at first to score Lowell, 2-0 Red Sox. The Yankees responded in the fourth, as has been their m.o. after the All-Star break, when Jorge doubled to center and Matsui scored him with a triple to right, 2-1 Boston but no outs and Matsui on third. Yet the Yankees could not score Ma