You'd might as well pitch terribly, since that 2.51 ERA is just earning you hard-luck pitcher of the year.
In a comment left last post comparing the 1995 team's similar struggles through 49 games, I was asked this:
"The central has a legit chance to take the wild card and for the Yankees to win the East they not only have to do well themselves but they have to rely on Boston to do poorly. Do you think thats going to happen?"
Absolutely not, as far as the East. While the Central is looking like the strongest AL division since oh, 2001, when the Mariners were king, Angels were emerging, the A's were solid and the Rangers were a hell of a 4th-place club, the Tigers, Twins, White Sox and Indiands could still beat up on one another, dragging each other down to a low-90s win total. And despite recent contrary evidence, the Yankees should certainly be better than the Orioles and Blue Jays. That leaves a team such as the A's, who seem to be Dan Haren and nothing else right now.
But tonight was so much like the season -- trail early, don't score, don't field, and make curious relief decisions (although Torre can't be blamed, really, for Proctor missing a target by five feet on the sac fly). There's always a chance for a turnaround, but buying into the hope feels more like buying a lottery ticket than having a solid investment plan.
Labels: Yankees
