The Yankees played well down the stretch and earned their way into the playoffs. The Angels, winners of 14 of their last 16 have been even hotter. The Halos took the season series from the Bombers, 6-4. There were a couple of memorable comebacks (Vlad’s grand slam, K Rod and Shields blowing saves on consectuive days) as well as Alex Rodriguez’s big night in April. Here’s a quick rundown of the Yankee-Angels games, via the Bronx Banter archives.

Cliff’s Angels Preview

In New York

April 26: 12-4 Yankee win. Alex Rodriguez hits three home runs off of Bartolo Colon.

April 27: 5-1 Angels win. Jarod Washburn pitches a gem, Mike Mussina makes critical mistakes.

April 28: 3-1 Angels win. Yankee offense snoozes as Kevin Brown pitches a good game.

In California

Second Angels Preview

July 21: 6-5 Angels win. Vladi’s grand slam off of Flash Gordon spoils a decent performance from The Big Unit.

July 22: 6-3 Angels win. In his second outing as a Yankee, Al Leiter is roughed up by the Halos.

July 23: 8-6 Angels win. Kevin Brown gets bombed.

July 24: 4-1 Yankees win. With the Angels star relievers resting, Mike Mussina outduels Jarod Washburn.

Back in New York

July 29: 4-1 Angels win. A decent performance from Moose is not enough.

July 30: 9-7 Yankees win. A tired K Rod folds in the ninth as the Yanks rally to win it.

July 31: 8-7 Yankees win. A similarly fatigued Shields blows a late lead.

Derek Jeter drove Curt Schilling’s first offering off the green monster in the first inning yesterday. But Manny Ramirez expertly fielded the ball and threw Jeter out at second base. It was a sign that it wouldn’t be the Yankees’ day. Jeter bruised his right knee sliding into the bag and was removed from the game in the fourth inning. The Bombers actually had three hits in the first but weren’t able to score. Schilling wasn’t dazzling but he was effective enough, especially after this teammates started beating Jaret Wright and company around but good. By the middle innings the win didn’t much matter to the Home Nine after the results of the White Sox win over the Indians were posted. Toward the end of the game, there were scrubinies on the field for both sides as the Sox pounded the Yanks, 10-1 in the regular season finale.

The teams finished with identical records of 95-67. The Red Sox will travel to Chicago to take on the White Sox in the ALDS, while the Yankees are on their way to Califorina to tackle the Angels, a team who has given them fits over last several years. We’ll spend plenty of time looking at how the two teams match-up over the next day-and-a-half, but before we move on, I’d like to take a moment to give thanks to this Yankee team for reaching the playoffs once again.

Sure, with the kind of dough they spend you’d expect nothing less. Yet the most infuriating aspect of Yankee culture these days is the sense of entitlement that surrounds the team–from the owner down to many of the fans. What’s lost in being seduced by this atmosphere of high (win-or-else) expectations, is often a genuine appreciation of just how hard it is to make the playoffs year-after-year. Joe Torre was not choked up and crying for nothing on Saturday evening. However, considering how disastrous their off-season was–some contend that it was the worst in the team’s storied history–and how poorly they played to begin the season, it is some accomplishment that they are still playing in October. Virtual no-names like Chien-Ming Wang, Robinson Cano, Aaron Small and Shawn Chacon played vital roles. So did veterans did Jason Giambi and Randy Johnson and Flash Gordon. Hideki Matsui, Gary Sheffield and Derek Jeter all had the kind of All-Star seasons we’ve come to expect from them. And Mariano Rivera and Alex Rodriguez were simply brilliant.

When Rivera was hurt in 2002 I began to count the days. Who knew how much longer he’d last? How long can a stopper remain elite? Well, his last three seasons are three of the best he’s ever had in his career. After a rough first couple of games against the Red Sox, where everybody and his uncle had a theory about what was wrong with him and what he needed to do to rebound, Rivera was dominant for the rest of the summer. Rodriguez was rock-steady at third base, putting up perhaps the most impressive season at that position that anyone has seen since the days of the great Mike Schmidt and George Brett. His defense wasn’t great early in the year, but by the end of the season, he proved himself to be a Gold Glove caliber fielder. Offensively, he was outstanding, and amazingly even–look at the splits, month-by-month the guy was $ in the bank.

Yes indeed, there were many frustrating moments this year, but there is also a lot to be thankful for as well. The Yanks have made their fans proud. We are blessed to root for such a successful organization. Let’s hope they keep playing well and who knows what could happen?

Yankee fans have the luxury of kicking back this afternoon and enjoying the final game of the season. Sure, there are still things at stake, but it isn’t the do-or-die scenerio that it could well have been. If the Yankees win, they’ll most likely host the Angels Tuesday. If they lose and the Angels win, the ALDS will begin in Anahiem. The Red Sox are a pretty good bet to make the playoffs themselves. If the Indians lose, the Sox are in. If the Sox win, they are in. Should Boston lose and Cleveland win, the two teams would meet at Fenway Park tomorrow in a one-game playoff (I think that both the Indians and the Sox will win today and that’ll be that).

Jaret Wright will start against Curt Schilling today, and several Yankee starters will get some rest (I’m thinking that Sheff and Giambi will not play, but would be surprised not to see Jeter, Posada, Rodriguez and Matsui out there). Anyhow, let’s just hope that nobody gets hurt, and that a couple of guys can pad their stats a ‘lil bit.

The Bronx Bombers are headed to the playoffs again. Four months ago I wasn’t so sure that’d happen. Today is a good time to take pause and appreciate just how hard the players worked to earn this playoff berth, and for us to really take in how fortunate we’ve been to root for such a special team since Joe Torre became the manager in 1996.

Enjoy the day. Let’s Go Yan-Kees!

It was an uncommonly beautiful day in Boston yesterday. Not a single cloud could be found in the deep blue sky and the mid-day sun cast harsh shadows across the field at Fenway Park. In many ways, it was reminiscent of the afternoon 27 years ago today when Ron Guidry and Mike Torrez faced off to decide the American League’s Eastern Division, and with the temperature a crisp 64 degrees, there was more than a hint of playoff baseball in the air.

After 160 games, it had come to this. The Yankees and Red Sox were tied atop the AL East. The winner of this game would clinch a tie for first place. More significantly, a win by the Yankees and a loss by the Indians in Cleveland would hand the division to New York outright. On the mound for the two teams were a pair of veteran aces. Forty two-year-old future Hall of Famer Randy Johnson, 4-0 in five starts against the Red Sox this year was set to face 39-year-old Tim Wakefield, the pitcher who almost single-handedly defeated the Yankees in the 2003 ALCS only to, in a cruel twist of fate, surrender the series-ending home run in relief in Game Seven. Three weeks ago the two had matched up in a grueling 1-0 pitchers duel won by Johnson in the final match-up of the year between the two teams at Yankee Stadium.

On this day, things would be a little different. Wakefield’s knuckler, which in that September 11 match-up was as good as it’s ever been, resulting in a career-high twelve strikeouts for Wakefield, simply didn’t have as much movement, and the Yankees, several of whom took batting practice against a former Yankee hurler who had learned the pitch from Wakefield himself, took advantage.

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The winner of today’s game will clinch a tie for the American League East. If the White Sox win in Cleveland, the loser of today’s game will clinch a tie for the American League Wild Card.

The Yankees and Red Sox are each sending their best pitchers to the mound. At Yankee Stadium on September 11, Randy Johnson pitched seven shutout innings to defeat Tim Wakefield 1-0 on a first-inning home run by Jason Giambi off a Wakefield curve ball, with Tom Gordon and Mariano Rivera nailing down the win.

Giambi starts at DH today after making a crucial throwing error in last night’s loss. Tino Martinez gets the start at first, batting behind Robinson Cano, who hits sixth after having one of just three Yankee hits off Wakefield three weeks ago. Bernie’s in center. Flaherty’s behind the plate.

For the Red Sox, Kevin Millar’s in at first. Bill Mueller moves up to the six spot ahead of catcher Doug Mirabelli. With Gabe Kapler out for the year with an Achilles injury, Trot Nixon stays in the line-up against Johnson and drops to eighth.

Since 1904, when the embryonic Yankees lost the AL Pennant to the then Boston Pilgrims in the penultimate game of the year due to a series of infield errors and a sore-armed ace, the fortunes of the two teams had changed dramatically. The Boston club, who started calling themselves the Red Sox just a few years after their season-ending conflict with the New Yorkers, went on to become the dominant team of the next decade, winning four World Championships in the teens before owner Harry Frazee began selling off his stars, most notably a young pitcher-turned-outfielder named Babe Ruth who would go on to lead the Yankees to their first pennant in 1921, their first World Championship in 1923, and five other World Series appearances in his fifteen years in New York, four of which saw the Yankees emerge victorious.

Meanwhile, the Boston Club fell into despair, failing to produce a winning season during Ruth’s tenure as a Yankee, nine times finishing dead last in the American League. Under new owner Tom Yawkey, the Red Sox finally pulled themselves out of their almost two-decade-long funk at the end of the 1930s, a revival that was solidified by the arrival of a scrawny left-handed hitter named Ted Williams.

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Needing just one win to clinch a tie for the American League East, the Yankees went to Fenway Park last night and lost a game they could have won. The decisive play came with the bases full of Red Sox in the sixth inning, one man out, the score 3-1 in favor of Boston, and an 0-2 count on Jason Varitek. Varitek hit a weak grounder to Jason Giambi at first, who charged the ball and fired to Jorge Posada to force David Ortiz at home. But Giambi failed to set himself before making the throw, despite the fact that the lumbering Ortiz was the runner at third. His throw tailed down and to the foul side of home, bouncing short of Posada, who was unable to handle the hop. Ortiz scored safely and the Yankees failed to get an out. John Olerud, who started at first base, then flew out to Bernie Williams in center–the only one of the twenty outs Yankee starter Chein-Ming Wang recorded that came via a fly ball to the outfield. Olerud’s fly scored Manny Ramirez from third, pushing the score to 5-1. Had Giambi’s throw been on target, Olerud’s fly would have been the final out of the inning and the score would have held at 3-1, allowing Derek Jeter’s two-run homer in the seventh inning to tie the game. Instead, the Yankees lost 5-3.

That’s not to say that Giambi’s error was the only missed opportunity of the night.

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updated 7:10 pm EST

Here we go, folks. This is not a test, this is the real deal. Three games at Fenway Park to determine the outcome of the American Leage East race for 2005. The Yankees lead the Red Sox by one game and can win the division with just two more wins. One Yankee victory would clinch a tie, meaning that, at worst, the Yankees would get to play one final all-or-nothing home game to decide the division. In essence, the Yankees simply need to split the next four (potential) games against the Red Sox to win the division. The Red Sox, meanwhile, need to win two of three just to have a chance to play for the division crown at Yankee Stadium on Monday, and would have to sweep to clinch in their home park.

Meanwhile, the series between the AL Central Champion White Sox and the Cleveland Indians, who are currently tied with the Red Sox one game behind the Yankees, will determine if the losers of the New York-Boston series win the Wild Card or start emptying their lockers. Hank Waddles over at Only Baseball Matters has posted a handy chart outlining the 23 possible outcomes, which, at their most stomach-churning include a pair of one-game playoffs, one on Monday for the AL East crown and one on Tuesday between the Indians and Monday’s loser for the Wild Card. Eighteen of those 23 possible outcomes have the Yankees in the playoffs (as opposed to 14 each for the Red Sox and Indians), which would give the Yankees the edge if everything else were equal. Of course, as Waddle concludes, the problem is, “we’re not flipping coins.”

Of course, with the Yankees and Red Sox, it often seems as though we are. The two teams are 34-34 in head-to-head match-ups over the past three seasons, and each has won a seven game ALCS at the expense of the other to push their overall records to 38-38. Thus far this season, the Yankees have a 9-7 advantage over the Sox in head-to-head match-ups, including a 5-2 record against the Sox since the All-Star break and a 4-3 record at Fenway Park (this despite the Red Sox having won a full two thirds of their home games on the season while the Yankees have played mere .526 ball on the road). The Yankees are also the hotter team, having gone 14-3 since Randy Johnson beat Tim Wakefield 1-0 in the final game of the two teams’ last match-up. The Sox, meanwhile, are 10-8 over that span (both teams are 5-2 over their last seven, but the Yanks are 2-1 while the Sox are 1-2 in their last three).

Ultimately, what matters is the quality of the teams on the field this weekend, not over the past six months. So let’s take a closer look at the two rosters and tonight’s starting pitchers.

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As the Yankees head to Fenway for the final three games of the season with a mere one-game lead over the Red Sox in the AL East, it’s worth noting that this is just the third time in the 103-year history of the team that they’ve concluded a regular season by playing their Boston rivals head-to-head for a chance at the postseason. As we are about to watch the fourth such finish unfold before us over the next three days, I thought it would be fun to revisit those three seasons, one per day, as we anticipate what this year’s will bring. The hope is that the juxtaposition between these recaps and the games at Fenway will do far more than a lot of hype and mythmaking could to underscore the significance of this weekend’s series. I’ll start today with 1904.

But before I do, in addition to those head-to-head match-ups there have been just four other seasons in that 103-year period in which the two teams have finished within four games of one another (the maximum distance possible this year). It’s interesting to note, however, that three of those seven seasons have occurred since the American League was split into three divisions in 1994. Including this year, that accounts for a full third of the three-division era. In light of that, it is amazing that the schedule makers haven’t pitted the two teams against each other in the final series of a season since 1996, when the Yankees finished seven games ahead of the defending AL East Champion Red Sox.

Equally amazing, this is the first time since it was adopted in 2001 that the unbalanced schedule has resulted in season-ending Yankee-Red Sox matchup. In 1999 and 2000, when the Yankees finished 4 and 2.5 games ahead of the Red Sox respectively, the final regular season games between the two clubs were on September 11 and 12, almost three weeks before the season’s conclusion. All of which is even more stunning when you remember that the Yankees and Red Sox have finished first and second in the AL East respectively for the last seven straight seasons. Major League Baseball switched schedule makers prior to this season for the first time since 1981. Now, entering the season’s final weekend, four of the six teams that have niether clinched nor been eliminated from the postseason are playing each other, including the first scheduled season-ending series between the Yankees and Red Sox to mean something since 1949. Kudos to baseball and the Sports Scheduling Group for correcting an obvious flaw in the system.

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Jason Giambi crushed a three-run home run in the first inning and the Yankees built an early lead on their way to an 8-4 victory last night in Baltimore. Aaron Small worked out of a jam in the third inning and pitched another credible game as he upped his record to an improbable 10-0. Hideki Matsui added a two-run homer, and a fine catch (the kind he normally doesn’t make), Gary Sheffield had an RBI, and Alex Rodriguez had two hits, two stolen bases, and two runs scored. There were some unsure moments courtsey of the bullpen, but that is nothing new. When Joe Torre came out to the mound in the eighth inning to replace Taynon Sturtze he looked as like he was on the verge on a heart attack. Sensing his anxiety, Derek Jeter rubbed his shoulder to let him know that everything would be alright.

The Yanks beat the Orioles three times in the last four days and seven-of-eight times since last week. They remain one game ahead of the Red Sox who defeated the Blue Jays 5-4 last night thanks to some familiar heroics from David Ortiz, who tied the game with a solo home run and then drove in the winning run in the bottom of the ninth with a single. Ortiz has repeatedly come up big for Boston this year, but this game just might have saved their season. The Indians also won, while the White Sox clinched the AL Central. The Red Sox and the Tribe are tied for the lead in the wildcard race.

The Yankee and Red Sox begin the final series of the regular season tonight in Boston. It is downright cold this morning in New York and the weather this weekend promises to be fitting for October baseball. Amazingly, these two proud teams continue to live up to the hype of their rivalry, though at this point, much of the sensational media coverage has become not just depressing but offensive. The backpage of The Daily News reads, “Out For Blood,” the banner on the backpage of the Post, “Brawl for it All,” while the front page of El Diario goes, “Duelo A Muerte.” And that’s just in New York. It’s as if they want something vicious and violent to go down. Bloodlust, like comedy, is not pretty.

Regardless, the tension will be exquisite for Yankee and Red Sox fans alike. Here’s hoping that nothing too ill happens in the stands, that no player makes a critical error to decide a game, and that ultimately, the best team wins. Last night seemed like the most important game of the year for the Yankees. Now, we can say the same thing about tonight’s game. The Bombers need to win two-of-three, the Sox need the sweep, and both hope that the White Sox rough up the Indians.

Homina, homina, homina…Doh!

As dramatic as this weekend’s showdown in Boston will invariably be, I have the feeling that tonight could be the most pivotal game of the year for the Yankees. To be honest, part of me feels that it’d make perfect sense for the Red Sox to win–could they possibly drop three straight to the Jays?–and the Yanks to lose, and have ’em both duke it out in the best-of-three. Speaking of the Yanks and Sox, Cliff is just one of a handful of Boston and New York-based bloggers who will be interviewed tonight at Open Source radio between 7-8 pm est. Click here and here if you are interested in streaming it live.

Aaron Small gets the nod over Jaret Wright in Baltimore this evening. Small is 9-0 and I’ve been waiting for his arm to turn back into a pumpkin for over a month now. But even when he’s been roughed-up, the Yanks have managed to get him off the hook. Does he have another good outing in him? Can the Bombers put up enough runs to pull him through? Erik Bedard, the talented young lefty goes for the O’s and he could be as tough as Cabrera was last night. Baltimore also has a strong enough offense to mush bad pitching. I dunno, folks. I can’t call it. I just hope Small keeps ’em in it and that the bats don’t get completely shut down. Me, I’m just gunna sit back, say my prayers, and watch it all unfold. Oh yeah, and try to remember to breath while I’m at it.

Shawn Chacon pitched a marvelous game last night for the Yankees. He received support from his infield defense, particularly Robinson Cano and Alex Rodriguez, and stellar relief from Flash Gordon and Mariano Rivera as the Bombers eeked out a 2-1 victory in Baltimore. The Devil Rays beat the Tribe 1-0 (in a game that featured some fine defense of its own–thanks, Johnny Gomes?!?), and Ted Lily mastered the Red Sox as the Jays won at Fenway 7-2. New York is now one game ahead of Boston in the American League East. The Sox and the Indians are tied in the wildcard standings.

Chacon allowed one run–a solo homer off a 2-0 meatball to Javey Lopez–the only run he’s allowed in his last 23.2 innings. The Orioles only managed to get four hits off of the right-hander, all by Lopez (who missed another home run by a few feet and settled for a double instead) and Chris Gomez. Though he walked three, Chacon only threw 91 pitches, and once again, kept batters off balance all night, inducing plenty of soft grounders and harmless pop flys.

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So it’ll be Shawn Chacon, the guy with the sweet smile and baggy pants, squaring off against Daniel Cabrera, the dude with the scowl and the red ass tonight at Camden Yards. As Cliff mentioned to me in an e-mail this afternoon, Chacon would start a one-game playoff if it comes to that, but this may be his final start of the season. He could also wind up as the Game One starter in the ALDS if the Yanks pull this thing out without a one-game playoff. Meanwhile, the Yankee offense has to remain patient against Cabrera, who has a live arm and can be a tough customer.

Only five games left. Every ball and strike, every foul ball, every everything counts, as we sit back helplessly and watch it all unfold.

Keep the faith and let’s go Yanks!

While Curt Schilling finds himself embroiled in some bad clubhouse vibes (paging Mr. Ramirez), Alan Schwarz has a front-page article on Mike Piazza and Bernie Williams in today’s New York Times. Piazza, in particular, seems to have accepted where he is at in his career:

“I compare it to a new car,” Piazza said recently at Shea Stadium. “When you get a new car, the power windows go up quick – it’s quicker and you get more response. And then when it gets older, little things start to break. Things fall off. Our bodies are machines. You have to be pragmatic. You have to be realistic.”

…”I’m not O.K. with not producing,” Piazza said, “but you do have to go: ‘Wait a minute, let’s be real here. You are who you are. Embrace it. Maybe what I lack in pure motor response of what I had 10 years ago, I feel like I bring a lot of other different things.’ It is what it is. It’s not a bad thing. Everyone knows it, everyone times you, scouts know. It’s not a big mystery.”

…”I’m very much at peace with who I am and where I am,” he said. “I’ve caught a lot of games. Physically, it has taken a toll on me, but I still feel I can be somewhat productive. I’m actually looking forward to being a role player.”

I like the idea of Bernie Williams replacing Ruben Sierra next year as a pinch-hitter, part-time DH, spot outfielder. Perhaps Piazza would be equally as effective in that role too.

It took four hours and sixteen minutes and 398 pitches, but last night’s 17-9 Yankee loss to the Baltimore Orioles finally came to an end just before 11:30 p.m. EST last night. And in the end, it meant nothing. Yes, despite the fact that the Yankees are in a three way tie for the AL East and the Wild Card with just five games left to play in the season, last night’s loss meant nothing. That’s because the Red Sox, Indians, and White Sox all lost last night as well.

In the end, the evening was a complete wash for the American League save for the Angels clinching the West with a 4-3 win over the A’s. All that happened was that one more game came off the schedule. Thus, despite the Yankees failure to emerge with a victory last night, their Drive For Five is down to four. With four wins the Yankees will win the American League East.

For those gluttons for punishment, the bloody details of last night’s games follow the jump.

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The Red Sox won Game One of their double-header today 3-1. It was a swift, low-scoring affair that took just 2 hours and 23 minutes to play and was dominated by pitching, particularly the pitching of Tim Wakefield (7 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 6 K), who didn’t allow a hit through the first four innings. All three Red Sox runs were driven in by Boston’s Big Boys, two by David Ortiz (1 for 4, 2B, 2Ks) and one by Manny Ramirez (1 for 2, IBB, HBP, throwing error). Meanwhile, the Blue Jays wasted the solid pitching of Dave Bush and Dustin McGowan by stranding runners in scoring position in the eighth and ninth against Jon Papelbon and Mike Timlin.

And with that, the Red Sox and Yankees are again tied atop the AL East. Of course. You didn’t actually think the Yankees would get any breathing room, did you? Still, for those in a state of panic over what awaits the Yankees in the coming week, consider this: The Yankees only need to win five games to make the postseason. That’s it. Just five.

Of course, there are only six games left in the season, but if the Yankees win five of them, there is no way the Red Sox can beat them. Of course, part of the reason for that is that a minimum of two of those wins will have to come against the Sox this weekend (if the Yanks sweep the O’s they’ll enter that series no worse than tied and can win the division by taking two of three in Boston, if they drop just one game to the O’s, they can still win the division by sweeping the Sox as they’ll be no worse than a game out come Friday morning). Yes, that sounds daunting when you spell out how those five wins would have to be acquired, but when you think about it as just five wins, five of six for a team that has won 13 of their last 15, it doesn’t sound so bad.

Tonight the Yankees look to drop that quasi-magic number (their actual magic number is seven, but any Yankee win against the Sox would take two off of that as it represents any combination of Yankee wins and Red Sox loses that totals seven) to four by sending Mike Mussina back to the hill against Bruce Chen. Last Thursday, Mussina came off the unofficial disabled list to pitch six efficient innings allowing just one unearned run on four hits and no walks while striking out six men. It was the ideal outing for Moose coming off the elbow inflammation that shut him down for more than three weeks. He threw just 76 pitches, 76 percent of which were strikes, mixing in his full repertoire, getting his fastball up to 91 and a nice break on his knucklecurve.

Chen, meanwhile, cruised through the first four innings, retiring twelve straight men after a Derek Jeter lead-off single and a Bernie Castro error started the first. Jorge Posada then led off the fifth with a solo homer and capped a four-run Yankee rally in the sixth with a three-run dinger that drove Chen from the game. Still, it’s worth remembering that, prior to that start, Chen had turned in eight quality start in his nine outings since returning to the Oriole rotation after a brief tune-up in the bullpen in late July, and had posted a 1.84 ERA with a 0.92 WHIP in those nine starts combined.

Mussina reported no discomfort following his bullpen session on Saturday. Obviously, the Yankees hope he will be able to build on last week’s start, stretching out his pitch count in anticipation of Sunday’s season finale against Curt Schilling and the Red Sox. Having Mussina back at full strength would be a tremendous boon to the Yankees playoff hopes. On his career, Mussina has a 2.90 ERA in September, his best mark in any single month save his 0.95 ERA in five regular season October starts (Sunday is October 2). Separating out the past three seasons (2002-2004) that September ERA improves to 2.50. Moose also has a career 3.16 ERA in the postseason, nearly a half-run better than his career ERA during the regular season. This is his time of year, and it’s great to see him back in action. Here’s hoping I still feel that way after the last out of tonight’s game.

Eleven days have passed since I last played the assumption game to try to predict how the Yankees, Red Sox and Indians would be stacked up heading into the season’s final weekend. Thus far, the Red Sox and Indians have performed exactly as expected (though the Red Sox have done so by sweeping the Orioles and losing two of three to the Devil Rays where I expected them to take two of three from both), while the Yankees, in sweeping Baltimore last week at home, have exceeded my assumptions by one game. As a result, rather than trailing the Sox and Tribe by a game, the Yankees have pulled even with them (pending the result of Game One of today’s doubleheader in Boston, that is).

With just three games left before the division showdowns in Boston and Cleveland, let’s look at this another way. Let’s assume the Red Sox win this afternoon and that the Yanks, Red Sox, White Sox, and Tribe all win two of their remaining three games prior to this weekend. That will keep the standings where they are and send the Bosox, Indians and Yankees into the final three games with identical records, two games behind the White Sox. If that were to happen, here are the possible outcomes this weekend:

Assuming the Yanks and Sox split their series two games to one, the winner winning the AL East:

If Cleveland sweeps Chicago, the Indians win the Central, the White Sox win the Wild Card and the NY/Bos loser goes home.

If Cleveland wins two of three, the White Sox win the Central, the Indians win the Wild Card and the NY/Bos loser goes home.

If Chicago wins two of three, the White Sox win the Central, and the Indians and NY/Bos loser play a one-game playoff on Monday for the Wild Card.

If Chicago sweeps Cleveland, the White Sox win the Central, the NY/Bos loser wins the Wild Card and the Indians winner go home.

If the NY/Bos series results in a sweep here’s what changes:

If Chicago wins two of three, the White Sox win the Central, the Indians win the Wild Card and the NY/Bos loser goes home.

If Chicago sweeps Cleveland, the White Sox win the Central, and the Indians and NY/Bos loser play a one-game playoff on Monday for the Wild Card.

It seems unlikely that the standings will remain unchanged through Friday morning, but it’s fun to speculate. This can also serve as a game thread for anyone watching or otherwise keeping track of the day game in Boston.

Much like they did against in Tampa two weeks ago, the Yankees arrived in Baltimore last night and delivered a statement: they’re not fooling around this time. On a night when the Indians (due to the schedule) and the Red Sox (due to the rain) were idle, the Yankees beat up on the Orioles in Camden Yards, winning 11-3 in a game that wasn’t even that close.

Unlike the Devil Rays’ game, this one wasn’t a blowout from the start. In fact, the game almost didn’t start at all. Delayed an hour and a half by rain, the game finally got underway in a mild drizzle just after 8:30. The Yankees leapt into action, with Derek Jeter singling on Rodrigo Lopez’s second pitch, followed by an Alex Rodriguez walk, and, as the rain picked up, a Jason Giambi fly out to center that moved Jeter to third. Gary Sheffield then fouled off a pitch only to have his at-bat interrupted by a twenty-minute rain delay.

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The Yankees and Orioles were originally scheduled to play the game being made up tonight at Camden Yards on Wednesday June 29. Instead, the game was washed away by rain, which seemed very similar to what was happening to the Yankees’ season at the time. The night before, Joe Torre had brought Mike Stanton in to pitch the bottom of the tenth inning against the top of the Orioles’ order despite not yet having used Mariano Rivera in the game (Rivera had thrown just two innings over the previous week). Brian Roberts crushed Stanton’s first pitch into the left field stands to give the Orioles a 4-3 win and drop the Yankees’ June record to 12-14.

During the two days of inactivity that followed (the first due to the rain-out, the second a travel day as the team headed to Detroit to start a weekend series against the Tigers), the Yankees designated relievers Mike Stanton and Paul Quantrill for assignment. When they returned to action on Friday night in Detroit, the Tigers and their 22-year-old ace Jeremy Bonderman handed the Yankees and their 41-year-old putative ace Randy Johnson a 10-2 loss that dropped the New Yorkers’ overall record to 39-39. After stumbling out of the gate with an 11-19 (.367) record, the Yankees appeared to have righted their ship in May with a ten-game winning streak, but by the time Tino Martinez grounded out to Bonderman to complete that July 1 loss in Detroit, most of the optimism that streak had brought had dissipated.

Since then, however, the Yankees have gone 52-25 (.675), and now, with exactly one week left in the regular season, find themselves tied with the Boston Red Sox for first in the American League East with the opportunity to tie the idle Indians for the Wild Card lead with a win tonight. It’s been an absolutely stunning turn around, and now, with just seven games left in the season, it’s time for the payoff.

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“You have to be confident; if you’re not confident, you might as well go home. It was really nice of the fans,” captain Derek Jeter said pointedly, “but it won’t be Bernie’s last game here.”
(N.Y. Daily News)

The Yankees and Red Sox each have seven games remaining and appear to be on a collision course for the final three, which they’ll play against each other this coming weekend in Boston. Yesterday, the Sox completed their three-game sweep of the Orioles, while the Yankees rallied to beat the Blue Jays, 8-4. On an afternoon when Bernie Williams–possibly playing for the last time as a Yankee in the Bronx–received several ovations, Robinson Cano and Gary Sheffield provided the fireworks, as C.W. Wang had another credible outing.

Boston and New York are tied for first place–the Sox play four against the Jays this week while the Yanks play four against the Orioles. I doubt whether either team will be able to build more than a two-game cushion going into Friday night (and maybe that’s a stretch). If their rivalry has taught us anything over the past three seasons it is that things will go to the last moment, the games will be theatrical and almost unbearably tense. What both of ’em have to hope for is that the Devil Rays will give the Indians trouble (the Tribe, one-half-game ahead of both Boston and New York in the wildcard race, has the day off), and that the White Sox will pounce on Cleveland over the weekend.

Otherwise, it is simple: one week of baseball will determine whether New York or Boston moves on. If it does in fact come down to the last three, one fan base gets its dream scenerio while the other faces its worst nightmare. What could be better for Red Sox fans than to illiminate the Yankees at Fenway Park? And what could be worse than losing to them? And vice versa.

Oy and veh, peoples. Pass the pepto.