Well, a 3-game sweep of the Cards and 2 out of 3 against the Astros, and there you are. Giambi is clobbering the ball. His batting average has shot up about 30 points in the past 3 weeks. The cloud around Clemens 300th is now gone. Clemens, Pettite, and Mussina all pitched well this weekend. In fact Mussina only gave up 4 hits today, and is sitting with a 2.99 ERA. Mariano Rivera is slowly picking up saves. Hopefully, Jeter can pull out of his slump. Also, I would like to see Torre give Bubba Trammell a chance since Juan Rivera is absolutely useless. ...and they seem to be still get leadoff hits or walks and not capitalizing on them. But, all in all, they got it done with 7 hits today. ...and Tampa Bay is coming to town!

Don't forget Hideki Matsui has started hitting, too. I think he's finally accepted that he's not going to hit forty homeruns, and he's started going the opposite way and driving the ball up the alleys. He's got his average close to .300 now, and is driving in runs at a pace should net him 100+ RBIs. Essentially, he's Paul O'Neill without the flying helmets.

You mean all the Yankee fans who were trashing Giambi 2 weeks ago were WRONG? How is that possible?

A number of teams could fatten up on the mediocre NL Central.

Yes, Matsui is "projected" for 107 RBI -- with a .341 OBP and .436 slugging pct, that shows how overrated that team-dependent stat is. Hitting in Matsui's slot in the Yankee order, Eric Byrnes of Oakland could drive in at least 140.

seriously you gays are a joke a freak of nature.all you gays are some weird penis sucking bastards you are joke.you gays nasty and stupid.you gays got a g-spot up your ass no you are a g-spot a garbage spot .you gays are garbage.you gays are nothing.you gays got nothing up your butt you just acting silly.every body laugh at you gays.sick bastards.you gays are like mouse .you are pest and slime.you gays don't need your dick suck you need your dick cut off then stick up your ass.you gays are trash.you gays make me sick you low lifes.faggots.perverts.you faggots are worthless scum.

This from a guy whose handle is "tulip".

HEY, everyone welcome Mr. Santorum from the great commonwealth of PA...

Well, to be fair, the thought of the Yankees being (temporarily) back on track and headed for another pennant does make a lot people angry.

I still think the (old) Yankee starting pitching does not make it deep into September. And if the Red Sox and/or Blue Jays stay on the Yanks' tail until the end of the season, then they won't be able to rest up the staff and have them aligned for October.

And the surest bet in baseball is that Ruben Sierra won't continue to hit .438, with a OBP of .500 and slugging .875. Guaranteed. Give Sierra a few weeks, the average will be back around .240 and the power will be, at best, sporadic.

[ June 16, 2003, 04:33 PM: Message edited by: Charlie in the Trees ]

This twit's profile includes a Yahoo e-mail address. The Yahoo ID for that address has a profile. His listed interests: Gay men, adult, and gay male (which is shown twice). So either this guy has serious issues or he's using someone else's e-mail address.

Ow! I think I broke a rib from laughing so hard!

What's Reggie White doing posting here?

To Tulip, I know you're upset with us gay guys. The fact we have better jobs, better social lives, and probably better taste in clothes but please, keep your vulgarity to yourself. If your girlfriend dumped you for a guy with bigger and better stuff, don't go dumping on us! And by the way, I'm glad the Yankees are back on track. It's nice to see a smile on that handsome mug of Mussina.

I swear... I was only trying to start a thread about the Yankees playing better.

"Of all the threads in all the boards in all the OutSports website, he walks into mine".

Not a bad result at Shea Stadium last night... However, I agree with Joe Torre. I am not a big fan of the interleague play, either. If I wasn't such a fan of the DH, it might be different. Also, I think too much is made out of the series with the Mets, when everyone knows that the Yankees are the far superior team every year regardless of the results. One good thing when the Yankees and Mets play, though, is the fact that most of the games are televised nationally.

Last night was a great game. My only gripe from the Yankees side was all of the opportunities they had with men left on base. The Mets are a poor team, and I had no doubts about the end result. But, I really would like to see the Yankees start knocking in more guys when they are in scoring position (Are you listening Jason Giambi, baby?). This killed them in the series against the Cubs. Still, they end the weekend 2 games up on Toronto. Boston slide is starting to occur even earlier than usual.

My God, Giambi's right on projection for another monster season ... he's in "scoring position" when he's batting. That sounds like a Broadcaster Bullshit nit to pick.

Actually, the Mets are on the low end of "mediocre," I'd say -- the Tigers are "poor." And the "result never in doubt", puh-leeze! This is NOT the NFL -- underdogs win series, or how did the Pads get past Seattle?

I just *pray* that the Yankees do pick up Armando Benitez... He'll save them some games, but against Oakland in October? walk walk boom!

[ June 23, 2003, 09:52 AM: Message edited by: Bill W ]

Yeah, I guess for a Mets fan this team would qualify as being "the lower end of mediocre" than "poor". The Mets have had plenty of teams with both types of descriptions to be able to discern between the two.

That's true.

Every Yankee fan post confirms the stereotype...

Tampa gives up 12 walks to the Yanks and they expect to compete? I was watching the Baltimore/Toronto game last night, and whom do the Jays put on the mound? Juan Acevedo. He lasted about an inning and gave up around 2 runs. Why this man is in the Major League I will never know? Yanks picked up righty, Dan Miceli, and outfielder, Karim Garcia, for that all too famous--player to be named later thing from Cleveland. I don't know much about these two, but we will see.

Who else caught Sweet Lou's rant after Ben Grieve struck out looking to end Thursday's game? He went off on a diatribe to the press looking exhausted, haggard and out of patience with these D'Rays - and it's not even July yet.

Speaking of rants: I f@#*in' detest the f@#*in' Devil Rays right now. Every time a Yankee went deep this series, a D'Ray pitcher would plunk a batter. These a##holes hit, what, four of my boys? That's not even counting that plebe who threw at Soriano's head in Game 1. They even went after Enrique Wilson last night, for god's sake. But if Lou didn't go medieval on them, they think they did the right thing. If a real team behaved this way, you know the umps would do some ejecting.

I'm glad the Yankees took "only" 3 of 4 this series. Loser bush-league punks need to learn what "class" and "professionalism" are.

There. I feel better now.

Yeah, I think that is Tampa Bay's new thing this season. They can't beat anybody so they throw at everyone. I think they did this against Boston or Toronto earlier this season. Speaking of Boston, I love it!

# of runs scored by Boston last night: 25
# of games gained by Boston on the Yankees last night: 0

I think it will be so wrong if David Wells doesn't make the All-Star team. He is by far the most consistent pitcher they have. Today could be a very fun day if the Mutts continue their drought against the Yankees.

The Yanks were down 4-3 late, and I never questioned that they wouldn't win. The batting averages of most of the guys are floating upward. Matsui is over .300. Even Weaver got a win the other day. The team has won 15 of 17 (Thank you, Houston, for no-hitting the Yankees and waking them up). They've opened up a 4 game lead on the Red Sucks. Positive things are happening.

Well, the Yanks got whipped by Halliday and the Blue Jays last night. They are 4-5 in their last 9 games, while Boston is 7-2. If they lose today, and Boston wins, it is a tie going into the All-Star break. I will accept the fact that Boston did get Detroit this weekend, but they sure took care of Toronto over last week's series. It should really get interesting after the All-Star break.

...and the fortunes reverse themselves today. The Yankees build up a 6-0 lead on Toronto, and Jeff Weaver actually pitches a great game, giving up only 4 hits. Yanks win 6-2 and take 2 of 3 from SkyDome! :cool: Boston Red Sucks get blanked by those killer Detroit Tigers today.

Now that's the way I like to win a ball game! The Yanks fall behind slightly early on and then get back into the game to tie Cleveland up 4-4. Hideki Matsui slaps it over the wall at The Stadium in the bottom of the ninth. Game over. Oh yeah, and that Boston team cannot solve Halliday and the Blue Jays. Yankees are back up by 4 over Boston!

Boy, every cheap home run ("slapped" as you say) that beats a lousy team merits a Yankee update? wink

If he likes, sure, why not?

Aren't you the same person who recently opined that all Yankee fans are obnoxious? If that's true, it would seem you have more in common with them than you think.

Given the title of the thread, you should feel free to skip it....

Lighten up, dude.

Not fair, Bill W... I did note a bad loss to Toronto on July 13. wink But, seriously though, I just enjoy keeping a positive Yankee thread going just like the Phillies fans do. If I am the only one who gives a hoot, so be it. It makes me happy.

...and the Red Sucks start their annual collapse even earlier than scheduled. As the Yankees are taking care of business (as they should) with the Indians. Boston can't beat the Blue Jays in Boston. The lead in the East opens up to 5!

Actually, it's 4. (I know you guys have trouble counting, somehow inflating the '98 Yanks' victory total to 125 from 114.)

[ July 21, 2003, 07:52 AM: Message edited by: Bill W ]

Stat geek. wink

Speaking of 4, that is also the number of games that the Yankees took from Cleveland this weekend. So, the Yankees should remain 4 , not 5 (I stand corrected) games up on Boston, whom is slamming Toronto today. They are really starting to roll, now. Now they have 2-games series, with Toronto and Baltimore, respectively, before another showdown at Boston. Here we go!

I wouldn't call beating up on my Cleveland Indian Rookies "being on a roll"

On a side note, I read where, of Roger Clemens total victories, 10% of those were against Cleveland ! That is a reason NOT to put him in the hall, what's so great about that

Last time I checked they don't look at the won/loss record against the Cleveland Indians for meriting Hall of Fame status. Because if they did, 75% of the pitchers that have played in baseball history would be potentially eligible.

oh, bill w touched a raw nerve.

OBNOXIOUS!

dead on.

What about those years where the Indians were good? Don't they count?

The Yankees are something like 5-1 since the All-Star Break. However, Boston is almost at the end of their soft part of the schedule this past week (Tigers over the weekend, Tampa Bay now). If both teams hold up tonight, the New York/Boston series starts tomorrow with the Yanks having a 2 1/2 game lead. I think this series will determine which direction more Boston will head rather than New York. We will see...

Unfortunately, the rainout in NY on Tuesday means that every Yankee pitcher gets pushed back one day in the rotation. Thus, Andy Pettitte, who historically pitches very well against Boston, pitched against the O's last night. That means he'll miss the Boston series. Instead of Pettitte on Sunday we'll have Jeff Weaver, who's had pretty much just one good outing all season.

How so? He's gotten rocked several times, but by my count he's had eight quality starts out of 18 ... or is the Yankee standard for a "good outing" giving up no runs?

While Bernie Williams had 2 hits last night, he's looked rusty since returning ... his and Nick Johnson's production will be a key to the next 60 games.

With the Yanks and Bosox winning quite regularly, it looks very possible one of them will take the wild card, creating another Monthlong Meaningless Division Race. Thank you, Beelzebud.

Bill W said:

What?! Are you suggesting the Blue Jays are OUT of the wild card race? Earlier this season, I allowed myself to believe this was a strong possibility, but (sigh) it's not likely to happen, even with 60-plus games left in the season. Nine games behind Boston at this point, and within a hair of slipping below .500. Oh well, Carlos D. and Frank C. are still a joy to watch. At least Seattle will probably be going to the playoffs, and I wouldn't rule out Oakland to take the wild card spot from Boston (assuming New York will win the AL East).

[ July 25, 2003, 07:56 AM: Message edited by: Marc ]

Actually, I would prefer if Boston (or even Toronto, for that matter) would take the Wild Card spot. That way, the Wild Card would have to play Seattle in the ALDS. The Yankees would get whomever ends up winning the AL Central (Kansas City or Chicago). Thus, a New York/Seattle ALCS matchup could potentially occur before the Yankees beat Atlanta (again!) in the World Series.

The Yankees may well beat someone in the World Series, but it won't be the Braves, because I don't think the Braves will get there.

That's okay, Joe, we don't mind beating San Francisco, either.

It was one of those strange Yankees games last night with the Red Sucks. David Wells gets 5 walks (which never happens) and is outpitched by Pedro. The Yankees cannot get hits early. Rivera blows a save? But they pull the game out very late anyway. Actually the Yankees have played mediocre the past 3 games, but have found ways to win in 2 of them. If they can split the next 2 games with Boston, they will remain 3 1/2 games up.

Even if the Yanks end up being outscored by Boston today, it was great to see the Yankees tattoo that homophobic, bastard, Todd Jones for 3 base hits. As soon as Jones went to the mound, it quickly went from Boston 4-0 to Boston 4-2. If only Enrique Wilson would have stopped at third base on Derek Jeter's double, we could have watched Jones possibly blow the entire Boston lead.

Benetiz blows his first game for the Yankees. Do Mets fans dare say we told you so? It will be interesting to see the spin the Yankee brass puts on this one.

Armando is definitely having an off year, but as I've mentioned elsewhere, he hasn't come through in "big" games consistently throughout his career. Maybe the pitching coaches can help with the control- he can be a lights out pitcher, but the adrenaline or nerves or something cause him not to have it when it's most needed. It's always fun to think of how upset George is in these situations.

RED SOX WIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

It's getting increasingly possible to envision the AL playoffs without the Pinstriped Jerks, given their nasty (and I don't mean Nasty) middle relief. Go Red Sox, A's and Seattle!

Apparently Benitez's fastball doesn't *move* at all a lot of the time, a simpler explanation than this "big game" blather. And I love it.