Thanks for the post,

and, Thank You Bernie!

The fans said good-bye to Bernie, and the Yankees initiated Cano and Wang by making them dress up as cheerleaders:

//Then they found some flamboyant attire at their lockers for the start of the final trip, a rookie hazing ritual.

As Donna Summer’s “Last Dance” played over the sound system in the clubhouse, Cano and Wang put on navy cheerleader outfits, with Yankees written on the fronts and “Robbie” and “Wanger” on the backs. They giggled as they wore metallic headbands, carried silver pompoms and posed for photos in manager Joe Torre’s office. Then they went upstairs to sign autographs for fans before boarding buses. //

Photos:

http://makeashorterlink.com/?Z27C35CDB

http://makeashorterlink.com/?C1AC32CDB

Did they do that to Bernie, 14 years ago?

Looks like the Chargers are spanking the Giants. I kind of figured that would happen, what with the Manning thing and all.

From the AP account of today’s game:

—

Williams went 1-for-4 with an infield single. When the Yankees began the bottom of the eighth, fans chanted his name, reminiscent of their tribute to Paul O’Neill during Game 5 of the 2001 World Series. Sitting in the dugout, Williams wasn’t sure what to do and turned to Torre for advice before walking up the steps for a curtain call.

“I was trying to make sure I was within protocol within the team, and trying not to disturb anybody,” Williams said. “They were not going to stop, so I sort of looked at Joe and said, `Can I do this?’ and he said, `Yes.’ It was a great moment, and I appreciate it a lot.”

—

I dunno what will transpire over the next week and ensuing off-season, but I hope we can find a way to have him back for one more run. Tino, too, for that matter. If we can upgrade the pitching, we should be able to find a role both of them. But first things first — let’s win this division — and make sure we haven’t seen the last of Bernie in ’05!

http://makeashorterlink.com/?T10952CDB

Among them:

“What if, in a highly unlikely event, all three losers wound up with the same record?

That would set up the dreaded two-tier Wild Card playoff. The loser with the total of the best head-to-head records against the other two would have the choice of sitting out the first game or having home-field advantage in both games. The winner of the first game would then play the team with the bye to determine the AL Wild Card winner.”

Gawd, I hope we can win the division outright.

“If three teams finish with the same winning percentage and one team will be a division champion and another will be the wild-card holder, the two teams tied for the division lead first play a one-game tiebreaker to decide the champion. Then the loser would square off with the team from the other division in one game to decide the wild card.”

Anyone know how to post an external link?

Obviously, this was a more common situation when there was no wild card, but the drama of the last few weeks has been just amazing. Actually, any race that is so dramatic that it would compel me to listen to the KC Royals radio team is pretty amazing.

Now Cleveland gets to feel our pain…losing one game after an amazing run of wins, and feeling like you’re thisclose to blowing it all and watching the playoffs at home.

For a slight ray of hope, Toronto leads the season series with Boston 9-5, but most of those before the break when the Jays were a little more competitive.

Tomorrow is an off day for the Tribe, so we’ll be rid of that 1/2 game…

Forget quitting smoking until this Yankee season is over…

I said something like this a week ago, and we’re still in the same place going down to the bitter end.

Cleveland comes back and ties it in the top of the ninth.

The only surprise is the Tribe didn’t win it outright already.

The only thing more pathetic than this KC/Cleveland series is the fact that KC swept.

I didn’t think the Tribe could beat KC 11 straight, but KC’s doing everything they can to make it happen. I still think the best we can do is 3 out of 4 against the Os.