Wow. This one is a really good read.  Jeter is mentioned therein.  Check it out.

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Yesterday, a federal appeals court refused to reinstate a defamation lawsuit Roger Clemens filed against Brian McNamee. Via Leagle.com here’s the details on the appeal -

CLEMENS v. McNAMEE

WILLIAM ROGER CLEMENS, Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
BRIAN McNAMEE, Defendant-Appellee.

No. 09-20625.
United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.
Filed: August 12, 2010.
Before: DAVIS, SMITH, and HAYNES, Circuit Judges.

W. EUGENE DAVIS, Circuit Judge.

In this appeal, we consider whether allegedly defamatory statements made elsewhere but which caused damage to the plaintiff in the forum state are sufficient to confer personal jurisdiction over the defendant when the content and context of the statements lack any connection with the forum state. For the following reasons, we agree with the district court that the plaintiff failed to establish personal jurisdiction over the defendant and affirm.

For those into all this legal type stuff, click here to see the whole deal.

I’ll say this about Clemens…when he gets the red patootie, it doesn’t wear-away very quickly.

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When I look at the the American League standings this morning, I see the Yankees sitting on top in the A.L. East, by two games, over the Tampa Bay Bays. And, I see the Texas Rangers in first place in the West by 7 1/2 games.  Lastly, I see the White Sox and Twins fighting it out in the Central – with Minny up by one game.

Why do I care about the Rangers and the A.L. Central? Well, when you look at the overall records in the league, at this moment, it breaks down like this:

.

As you can see, in terms of the A.L. Wildcard, the only team close to the Yankees is the Rays. So, even if New York doesn’t win the A.L. East, they’re in good position to make the 2010 post-season via the ‘card.

If the Rangers win the West, which they should, then they’re out of this picture. And, either the Twins or White Sox will win the Central. So, that leaves just the Red Sox and the loser of the Twins/Chisox as possible threats to the Yankees wildcard chances – assuming that the Rays do manage to take the East. And, those teams (Boston/Minny/Chicago) are a good seven games behind the loss column (compared to the Yankees).

So, in a sense, the Yankees have something like a seven game lead, with 48 games to play, in terms of making the 2010 post-season. And, when I see this I think, with respect to the Yankees, “The post-season is in the bag.”

Or, is it?

I’m really not worried about the Twins and White Sox. Both of them would have to get really hot to get themselves into the ‘card chase – since, if only one gets hot it will push the other team out of contention and probably out of the wildcard card chase too. And, Boston? Can they go on a roll and get into the Yankees way here? It seems highly remote – given the gap, amount of games left, etc.

What about you? Do you think the Yankees have the post-season locked up, just about, already? Or, are you concerned that there’s a chance they could be left without a post-season seat when the music stops?

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Sabathia said he likes to pitch in the heat. It showed last night as he was hitting 99 on the radar gun. The big man was wonderful through 8 innings then gave up a couple of singles and was taken out after 8 and 2/3rds of solid pitching. Robertson almost spit the bit, as when he came in he allowed a double upon coming in which allowed Sabathia’s two runners to score. He did not get the job done last night, and I think I personally would have let Sabathia try to finish it out. I know it was hot, be he was one out away and had only 110 pitches (which isn’t quite Sabathia’s limit).

They talked a lot about Granderson’s new swing, but I really didn’t see that big of a difference (certainly not the same amount of change as say Swisher’s new swing). Regardless, Granderson got 2 hits last night so if he wants to chalk it up to a new stance that’s fine with me.

Speaking of Swisher, he continued his quest for a .300 season last night with 3 hits. I think he’s found a home in the 2 hole of this lineup. To think, this guy was on the bench in the beginning of last year.

Don’t look now but our washed up short stop is 33 for his last 102 with 8 XBH and and 8 multi-hit games (all while getting on base at a .378 clip). Man he stinks, bring up Nunez already.

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Via Pete Caldera –

Andy Pettitte did not pitch his simulated two innings as scheduled Thursday, at Tampa, Fla., due to stiffness in his left hip flexor. “I think there’s some concern,” said manager Joe Girardi. “When you don’t stay on schedule as a player, there’s always some concern.”

Girardi spoke by phone with Pettitte, who will attempt his simulated game today. Pettitte did play catch Thursday and felt “pretty good,” according to Girardi. Pettitte has been on the disabled list due to a strained left groin, but “I can’t tell you if it’s related or not related,” Girardi said.

Pettitte first felt the discomfort Wednesday, rising from a couch. If he gets through today OK, Pettitte, 38, would have a rehab start Wednesday.

It this is a problem for Pettitte that lingers, this could be scary. Imagine there’s no Pettitte. Then your post-season rotation is Sabathia, Hughes, and then deciding between Burnett and Vazquez on who will pitch “Game 3.” Yikes.

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Via mlb -

Commissioner Bud Selig said a few words at dinner on Wednesday night for George Steinbrenner, the late Yankees owner. And his son, Hal, was very moved by the gesture.

“It was very moving,” the younger of the two surviving Steinbrenner sons told MLB.com after the third quarterly owners meetings of the year. “Bud said, ‘We all know he did a lot for the game. He passed away between these last two meetings. Like all of us, there were good times and bad times. But he was good for the game and a good friend.’”

Hal said that a memorial is planned for his dad during the Sept. 20-23 four-game series against the Rays at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees already honored Steinbrenner and public address announcer Bob Sheppard at Yankee Stadium before a game against the Rays on July 16. Sheppard died on July 11. The family was not in attendance that day because the elder Steinbrenner’s funeral was in Tampa on July 17. Selig said he is planning on attending the September memorial.

“We’re still trying to pin it down, but I think it’s going to be before the game on Sept. 20,” Hal said.

That would be two weeks after Labor Day. First day of what might be a huge series against the Rays. Is that a good time or a bad time for something like this? What do you think?

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Have you seen the thing about the Mets K-Rod and his girl-friend’s father?

Doug Glanville talked about some of the “do’s” and ‘don’t's” of the family room in his book – and one of them was not to bring in anyone who could cause trouble for you, or another player, by their actions in front of the other family members.

It also seems like, at times, there’s always a “Queen Bee” of the team family room. I wonder who that is on the Yankees? If I had to guess…I would suspect that it’s the wife of someone who has been a wife of a “Yankee” for a while now – like Jorge Posada’s wife. Then again, maybe it’s Derek Jeter’s mother? Who knows?

I just know the Yankees do a good job at keeping what goes on in the family room out of the public eye. And, that’s probably a good thing.

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True story: I got engaged a few weeks ago and my fiancé and I started doing the whole wedding-planning bit.  So we decided last night to go out and try the food at one of the places we’re considering (a restaurant in Weehawken, NJ).  Good food, great view of the Manhattan skyline, friendly service, tremendous wine list, basically it’s all good.

As dinner is winding down I happen to notice the Yankees-Rangers game playing on the TV behind the bar, in the far corner of the restaurant.  Not wishing to be rude by excusing myself to go check the score, I pull out my Blackberry and look in on the game (best application I ever downloaded).  “ARE YOU FREAKIN’ KIDDING ME?  6-1 in the fifth inning?” I bellowed, probably a bit too loud for the ambiance in the restaurant.

Fast forward to a little while later: we’ve gotten home, brushed our teeth, gotten ready for bed, and I just have to peek once more at the game, fully prepared to come in to work this morning to write a dour recap of a game I barely followed and whose result — it was Cliff Lee on the mound after all — I figured was a foregone conclusion.  I was in luck; it was the top of the ninth, the Yanks had somehow managed to close the gap to 6-5 and the tying run was 90 feet away, courtesy of a wild pitch by Rangers closer Neftali Feliz.

“Babe, I’ll be there in a little bit, the game is almost over and the Yanks have a shot here” said I to my bride-to-be.

Wouldn’t you know it, Derek Jeter’s grounder hits the dirt in just the right way, skips under the glove of ex-Yankee prospect Christian Guzman, and the Yanks have tied the score!  Was it the best of Jeter’s career 2,879 base hits?  Not in the least.  But it did the job, as so many of his other hits have done before.

The Yanks had tied the game, managed one more run (a Marcus Thames single), and Mariano atoned for Tuesday night’s slip-up by stranding the tying run on third.  In the end, the Yanks snuck out of Texas with a 7-6 victory despite striking out an embarrasing 17 times in 38 collective AB’s against Lee and six other Rangers relievers.  A win is a win, however, and the Yanks can now go into Kansas City with the goal of winning at least three times.  Toss in the fact that Detroit finally grew a pair and beat Tampa and the Yankee lead in the division “swelled” to 1.5 games.

As for me, the win pumped me up so much that I couldn’t sleep and I’m now exhausted with a full day’s workload between me and a good night’s sleep tonight.  You know what?  I wouldn’t have it any other way.

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I remember all my life.
Damon’s slam put the game on ice.

I kicked the trash can,
A fist through a window,
Curse died that night,
The night goes into,

Six years, later, now today.

He’s back, hell, oh,
no way.

Tears in my eyes.
What a bad memory.
Now we all realize
Just how crappy you can be,
oh Javy.

Well, you’re back
and your pitchin’ still crappy
Wanna send you away, oh
Javy.

Well you kill me and
make me swear like Satan
and you still suck today, Oh,
Javy.

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Kevin Long takes his Henry Higgins stick to Granderson Doolittle.

After that, Long will make chicken salad out of chicken…

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So, I’m watching the Yankees pre-game on YES tonight and they’re talking up Jesus Montero, Austin Romine and Gary Sanchez – saying that one of these is going to follow in the footsteps of Dickey/Berra/Howard/Munson/Posada as a future Yankees All-Star catcher, yadda-yadda.

Made me think back to the start of the 1979 season, when Jerry Narron, Bruce Robinson and Brad Gulden were the next wave of great Yankees catchers – all lefty batters, no less.

Now, I’m not saying that Narron/Robinson/Gulden were Montero/Romine/Sanchez in terms of potential. But, they were highly thought of…back in the day.

And, what happened? Later that season Munson was killed (in August) and the Yankees traded for Rick Cerone three months after his death. And, that was that for the great lefty catching hopes.

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See: Bo The Bailer: Woman Hit By Foul Ball After Boyfriend Ducks Out Of The Way

No truth to the rumor that Brian Cashman offered the Astros $26 million for the rights to talk to this kid about signing a contract with the Yankees…

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Have you ever looked at Nick Johnson’s contract with the Yankees? Via Cot’s, here it is:

signed by NY Yankees as a free agent 12/18/09
1 year/$5.75M (2010), plus 2011 mutual option

10:$5.5M, 11:$5.5M mutual option ($0.25M buyout)

price of 2011 mutual option increases to
$6M with 500 PAs,
$6.5M with 550 PAs,
$7M with 600 PAs

price of 2011 buyout increases to
$0.5M with 550 PAs

performance bonuses:
$50,000 each for 400, 425 PAs;
$75,000 each for 450, 475 PAs;
$0.125M each for 500, 525, 550, 575, 600, 625 PAs

On the bright side, the Yankees won’t have to worry about those performance bonuses or option/buyout increases. But, for sure, you know that Johnson is going to take that $5.5 option for 2011.

I guess that’s five-and-a-half mill less that the Yankees will have to play with in their “budget” for 2011.

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Via the Baltimore Sun –

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Showalter is the first manager since 1924 with three walk-off wins in his first seven games with a team.

And, via ESPN –

The Orioles improved to 7-1 under Buck Showalter after their win over the Indians. Showalter is the first manager in major league history to win at least seven of his first eight games after taking over a team in midseason that was at least 20 games under .500.

The Yankees have six games with the Orioles in September. Something tells me those are not going to be as easy as the first 12 times that they faced Baltimore this season – and went 10-2 against the O’s.

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Via Wallace Matthews:

Still, there is no more important issue hanging over the final 50 games of this season than the health and durability of the Yankees’ aging core, and no player for whom that issue is more crucial than [Jorge] Posada.

Having caught three games in a row over the weekend against Boston and with the psychologically erratic Burnett on the mound, it was hardly a surprise that Posada was not in a starting lineup that was already missing Mark Teixeira (baby leave), Robinson Cano (head cold) and Curtis Granderson (all-around ineffectiveness).

But it certainly raised eyebrows when, in the eighth inning of a game that had just been tied by Alex Rodriguez’s laser of a home run to dead center field, the Yankees got a runner to third with one out and Francisco Cervelli was coming to the plate.

In that type of situation, you go to the guys who have done it for you before, and Posada was right there on the bench. But Girardi did not go to him, Cervelli got jammed and pushed a soft liner to first base for the second out. Brett Gardner grounded to short to strand the go-ahead run 90 feet from home plate.

It left you scratching your head. Until Girardi dropped the bomb after the game.

“He told me the throw he made [Monday] irritated his shoulder a little bit,” the manager said. “I don’t think it’s anything serious, but I gotta be careful. When Jorgie tells you something’s irritated, it’s usually irritated.”

Jorgie told the media nothing, because he bolted for the first team bus out of Rangers Ballpark before any reporters got into the locker room.

So until about 4:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday, we’ll have to make do with Girardi’s assessment of Posada’s fitness. “I could have used him in an emergency,” said Girardi, a description for which the eighth-inning situation presumably did not qualify.

But considering how injury-riddled Posada’s 2010 season has been so far, the real emergency may be going on in his shoulder. Already, he has spent time on the DL with a broken foot, had hamstring problems and missed several games with recurring soreness caused by a cyst behind his left knee.

Plus, he missed nearly the entire 2008 season after having surgery on the very same shoulder. So when Girardi says Posada’s shoulder is “a little cranky,” you naturally start to wonder exactly how cranky, and for how many games.

Certainly, he wasn’t available last night or Girardi would have used him.

Let the Jesus Montero chatter begin…

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Since July 17th, and including last night, the Yankees are now 12-11 in their last 23 games. And, since May 18th, the Yankees are 44-30 in their last 74 games – but, just 33-27 since May 18th in games not played against the Baltimore Orioles and Cleveland Indians.

That’s not exactly “championship caliber” play, is it? (Yes, I know that 33-27 is “90 win” pace. But, let’s not forget that within that 33-27 the Yankees went 8-2 against the Astros, D-backs and Royals. And, these Yankees are not being paid to win “just” 90 games this season.)

So, what’s wrong with the 2010 New York Yankees?

We know that, at times this season, several of their players have not played up to expectations. This includes Curtis Granderson, Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Javier Vazquez, A.J. Burnett and Joba Chamberlain. But, is that the reason why the Yankees have been playing the way that they have, over the last 74 games – which is close to a half-season’s worth of baseball – or, is it something else?

What do you think?

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Every time Mariano Rivera blows a game to a scrub, I die inside a little.  This time, David Murphy, a barely league-average bat did the “honors” against the greatest relief pitcher of our lifetime.  In so doing, he led the Rangers to a 4-3 defeat of the Yankees in 10 innings.

The Good:

• AJ Burnett (7 6 3 3 2 4) exceeded all expectations last night.  There’s just not much more I can say here; when Burnett gives up four runs or less, he’s done as well as can be expected at this point.
• Selfish phony that he is, Alex Rodriguez hit the 601st me-first home run of his career last night, this time a solo bomb in the top of the 8th inning to tie the score at 3-3 and give the Yankees new life.  I give him credit for at least running around the bases himself instead of having a clubhouse attendant do it for him.

The Bad:

• Rivera was off last night.  It happens…
• Lance Berkman was a once-great player but, to me, he has the look of Craig Wilson circa 2006.  It’s not a completely fair comparison but, for some reason, the lethargic, unproductive AB’s that Berkman takes up there remind me of Wilson.

Toronto lost to Boston.  Detroit lost to Tampa.  The Yanks lead the division by 0.5 games and I can’t help but wonder if the Tigers are the American League’s biggest bunch of (expletive deleted).  They are one game from going 0-for-the-season against the Rays.  Since the Yanks are a safe bet to lose to Cliff Lee tonight, I really hope Jim Leyland takes a few minutes between cartons of cigarettes to figure out a way to beat the Rays.  Come on Jimmy, the lung cancer can wait…we really need your help here.

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For the life of me, when I think “Texas Rangers,” I still think of Arlington Stadium, Julio Franco, Danny Darwin, Ruben Sierra, Dave Schmidt, Pete Incaviglia, Jeff Russell, Steve Buechele, Mike Smithson, Jeff Huson, Jose Guzman, Curtis Wilkerson, Bobby Witt, Larry Parrish, Edwin Correa and Jim Sundberg…

Why is that?

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Ever catch a movie on TV, one that you know nothing about, and then you end up enjoying the heck out of it? That happened for me tonight with this one.

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Have you heard about the “Donuts Burger” (also called the “Craz-E Burger” or “Krispy Kreme Burger”)? It’s a bacon cheeseburger with buttered Krispy Kreme glazed donuts as a bun. It’s been featured at a lot of State Fairs for a few years now. Also, have you heard about “Deep-fried Butter”? It’s another State Fair “fav” – 100 percent pure butter, whipped until light and fluffy, then frozen and surrounded with dough. The butter-laden dough balls are then dropped into the deep fryer. Seriously, I’m not making any of this stuff up.

And, don’t even get me started about deep-fried Oreos and Twinkies.

My goodness! How can people put this stuff inside themselves? Might as well just take a syringe full of lard and inject it directly into your heart.

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Via the St. Petersburg Times:

The bad news for the Rays on Monday was that RHPs Jeff Niemann and Wade Davis were placed on the 15-day disabled list with right shoulder strains.

But manager Joe Maddon actually felt encouraged with Monday’s MRI results, anticipating both DL stints would be minimal and precautionary. And he remained confident in their internal options stepping up, with top prospect RHP Jeremy Hellickson called up to start tonight for Davis and RHP Andy Sonnanstine potentially filling in Saturday for Niemann.

RHP Mike Ekstrom was recalled from Durham to add bullpen depth.

Niemann and Davis were sent to St. Petersburg over the weekend to be examined after feeling soreness in the back of their shoulders. To the Rays, this could have turned out worse.

“We’re really confident that both are going to be well within a short period of time,” Maddon said. “This is one of those cautious moments. I would think maybe if it was closer to the playoffs you might react differently and do something a little bit different to keep them off the disabled list. But for right now, we just thought it was the prudent thing to do to make sure. These are two valuable people to us, and we want to make sure it’s all done right, and we think we have the resources from within to get beyond this moment.”

Losing Jeff Niemann hurts the Rays more than Davis. This is sort of like if the Yankees lost Pettitte and Vazquez. You can probably get by replacing Davis/Vazquez. But, for the record, the Yankees have gone just 11-9 since Pettitte went out. Yes, hitting has been part of it for New York over these last 20 games too. But, Tampa is just as prone to having their bats disappear at times too.

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Cliff Corcoran is joining the YES Network.

Cliff always reminded me of Al Leiter. And, now that they’re both at YES, it’s going to even harder for me to tell them apart. Then again, I always mix up Manahawkin and Mantoloking too. So, maybe it’s just me?

Seriously, I’ve met Cliff at least once – maybe twice? – and he seems like a really good guy. And, it’s always nice to see nice things happen for nice people. So, of course, my congrats go out to him on the new gig!

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Via Joel Sherman today -

The Yankees drew five walks yesterday. In the previous nine games, they drew three or fewer walks in each of them. That was the longest such streak for the Yankees of three or fewer walks since 1992 when they went 12 games from April 26 through May 8. That streak came a month before the Yankees used their first-round pick, sixth overall, to select Derek Jeter. That was the Yankees’ last losing season.

Beginning in 1993 and carrying through the dynasty years and to the present, the Yanks have prided themselves on the long at-bat, forcing starters to tire quickly and getting to the soft underbelly of middle relief.

And even with the recent stretch of three or fewer walks, the Yanks still lead the majors in runs, are second in on-base percentage and third in walks.

However, in those nine games, the Yanks were 4-5 and scored 35 runs, meaning they averaged fewer than four runs a game. That streak occurred against Tampa Bay, Toronto and Boston, all teams with very good pitching staffs, particularly rotations. So maybe other teams could not exploit the Yankees similarly because they do not have the same level of talented pitching.

But it seems to me that the Yanks are not doing near the damage when they swing that they had in the past. Specifically a few older players such as Jeter, Jorge Posada and Alex Rodriguez are not quite the impact hitters of their past. It has long been the Yankee psyche – since 1993, anyway – that their offense is built around patience. Draw walks, get into favorable counts, tire pitchers, hit multi-run homers.

Now walks do not assure runs, since the Yanks collected five yesterday and managed just one run against the Red Sox. However, I would keep an eye on if pitchers the rest of the way see a few slower bats with the Yankees (add Berkman to that group) and challenge this lineup in the strike zone more than we have been used to seeing over most of the past two decades.

Lately, it does seem like, if Swisher, Teixeira or Cano doesn’t do it, then it ain’t happening for the Yankees offense. Or, is that just me? Related, is that enough – three boppers – to beat the good pitching that the Yankees will have to face in October? Well, if Swish and Tex “show-up” this October like they did last October, then the answer has to be “no.” And, it will be an ALDS and out for New York this post-season.

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Via Andrew Marchand:

Maybe the biggest reason the Yankees have not finished off Boston yet is because they traded their top outfield prospect, Austin Jackson, and let Damon walk. For Jackson and in Damon’s place, Granderson has been a colossal failure.

It has gotten to the point that the Yankees essentially gave up Jackson and Damon for a guy who is not even going to play in big playoff games. Granderson is barely a .200 hitter against lefties, so he is sitting against the David Prices, Cliff Lees and Francisco Lirianos in October. Barring injury, Kearns will be in left and Gardner in center for those games.

When Granderson struck out to lead off the ninth, he heard boos from the Yankee Stadium crowd. That happens when you are a $5.5 million platoon player. He is not expected to start Tuesday against Rangers lefty C.J. Wilson and he may not play against lefty Cliff Lee on Wednesday. He only started Monday because the Yankees are in the midst of playing four straight against lefties.

“He is not quite there,” Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long said. “He is still trying to get over the hump. I know it is getting late and we are well into August, but the consistency that he is looking for and that I’m looking for, we are still searching for it. We will stay at it and keep working and see if we can find something. It is tough at times to watch him go through the struggles here, but I know only one way to get out of stuff and that is to keep working on it.”

In the offseason, Damon’s agent Scott Boras and Yankees GM Brian Cashman could not agree on anything. It turned into a huge “he said, he said” war, but ultimately the Yankees keep the players they really want, thus decided to trade for Granderson and offer Damon a pay cut.

In effect, they chose Granderson over Damon. (If Damon had signed, the Yankees might have been worse off, because then Gardner would have spent more time on the bench.)

Damon entered Monday with an on-base percentage approaching .370. Meanwhile, Jackson has cooled some, but he began Monday with a batting average (.307) that matched Granderson’s on-base percentage.

Granderson is hitting .240 with 10 homers and 33 RBIs and many fewer at-bats in his future.

Granderson sure does look like Ruppert Jones 2.0 at this point, doesn’t he?

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Ask any Yankees fan and he or she will tell you that any loss to the Red Sox is an unwelcome result.  But a 2-1 loss when the team had more than enough chances to win the game?  That result is intolerable.  It may not have a negative impact on the standings but it chafes the soul all the same.

The Good:

• The little good one can draw from this game, I suppose, would be Mark Teixeira’s continued assault on Boston Red Sox pitching.  Even though he only went 1-for-5 (solo HR) yesterday, Big Tex’s 2010 line against Boston is .216/.310/.588 with 6 HR in 51 AB.  The AVG and OBP may be ghastly but the power display doesn’t suck, that’s for sure; and
• Yankee pitching held up its end of the bargain yesterday, allowing only nine Boston baserunners (6 H/3 BB) and giving up only two earned runs.  Phi Hughes (6 6 2 2 1 3) labored through the first two innings and, truthfully, was never dominant in this game, but nevertheless managed to silence Boston from the second inning on.  After throwing 57 pitches to record six outs, Hughes only threw another 57 pitches to record the next 12 Red Sox batters.

The Bad:

• Nick Swisher has been fantastic all season;  yesterday, however…not so much.  Going 0-for-5 with 3 K, 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position and seeing an average of three pitches per plate appearance is the fastest way to get the “goat of the game” award; and
• The 7th and 9th innings were just painful to watch.  10 plate appearances for the Yanks, two hits, one walk, one HBP, six strikeouts and one double that missed being a home run by a matter of inches.  The tying and go-ahead runs left stranded each time.  Grrr…

The Tigers must think they’re the Angels to Tampa’s Boston because, once again, they laid down like pussy cats to the Rays.  In five head-to-head games against Tampa, the Tigers are still winless.  Tampa’s win cuts our lead in the division to a mere 1.5 games.  With the Yanks facing the AL West division-leading Rangers and the always-combustible and rarely-reliable AJ Burnett on the mound, the safer play tonight is to root for the Tigers to get off the Tampa schneid.

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At this moment, the Yankees are trailing the Red Sox, 2-1, after 8 innings, at Yankee Stadium this afternoon.

Let’s say that New York comes back to win this one in the bottom of the ninth? Think A.J. Burnett’s back injury will allow him to throw a pie at the end of the game?

What’s BUPT? Why, it’s “Back-Up Pie Thrower,” of course…

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I just noticed this over at Fanhouse –

It’s no secret that Los Angeles and New York are two of the worst teams in baseball at stopping the run. They’ve combined to allow 173 stolen bases while throwing out just 44, and since the All-Star break, they’ve allowed 37 of 48 to take a base. The Yankees, in particular, have been brutal, posting the worst caught stealing rate in all the land (18%).

Tampa, the White Sox, and Texas have all been running this season. Makes me wonder if the Yankees should be concerned about this issue come October?

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I keep hearing that we may see guys like Hideki Matsui, Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez being moved soon in a trade and/or waiver type deal. So, that leads to today’s wild thought.

If one of these three becomes available, should the Yankees look to pick them up, for August/September insurance; or, at the least, to keep them away from the Rays? Or, is it not worth losing someone off the 40-man roster to get them on the team for a few weeks?

Just an add-on: I think, but am not sure, that with Nick Johnson on the D.L., maybe the Yankees could sneak one of these guys on to the post-season roster. Imagine if they had Manny Ramirez as their D.H. in the post-season?

I’m not sure how I would feel about that? But, for sure, it’s interesting and a wild thought, no?

And, for certain, I would not mind having Damon or Matsui hanging around, in September, just to add some good karma in the clubhouse, etc.

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While I was on the LIRR into NYC to go to this game, I got the text from a buddy of mine saying Burnett was scratched and Mosely would be taking his place. At that moment, two things went through my head. First, Mosely, when it’s all said and done, is probably going to have 5-6 starts. Within this past week, I would have seen 2 of them. What are the odds of that.

The second thing I thought was that this would be the game where Moseley would finally get rocked. I mean, his other two starts were against mediocre teams (although Toronto can hit) while Boston is on a completely other level. Thankfully I was wrong, and Dustin beat the Sox on my birthday.

Overall, the Yankees are on a 2 game winning streak on my birthday That does not include the 15 inning game that I attended last year, that leaked into my birthday. If you count that 15 inning game, the Yanks beat the Red Sox on my birthday twice last year.

Anyway, as far as the offense goes, I want to thank Tex, Jeter and the Big Puma for their stellar offensive nights as they pretty much wore Beckett out. Could this have been Berkman’s coming out party?

Not sure why Girardi felt the need to go to Mo with a 7-2 lead with two outs in the bottom of the 9th. Goes to show you how little confidence he has in Robertson. I would have at least let Robertson go until a run came in, it’s 1 out with a 5 run lead for Christ’s sakes. It’s not like Scutaro is Barry Bonds.

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After tonight’s game, it’s looking pretty much like Tampa Bay is the only team the Yankees will have to worry about in the A.L. East from here until October.

Give the Red Sox credit. They had a ton of injuries. And, even in today’s game, they had a chance to get into it with Big Papi batting in the 7th inning. But, they just couldn’t get done what they needed to get done in this series. Eight back in the loss column with fifty to go? That’s a lot. Let’s put it this way: The only way Boston will catch the Yankees at this point will be if the Yankees play something like .480 baseball the rest of the way this season. And, that ain’t happening.

You have a better chance of Dustin Moseley resequencing the periodic table via random selection rather than electronic charge than that happening.

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