Say what you mean to say.

"First, however, they have to get to the postseason, and Wednesday’s 8-5 loss to the last-place Blue Jays, in which CC Sabathia was battered for nine hits and five runs in seven innings, the Yankees committed three errors and went 3-for-17 with runners in scoring position, was further evidence of their first-place standing not being indicative of the type of team they are right now. The truth? They’re a .500 team – 16-16 – since July 25, the day Alex Rodriguez had his hand broken by a pitch."

Baltimore and Tampa are in the same division as the Yankees -- and since each league now has two wild cards -- the only way the Yankees will miss the postseason is if they are passed in the standings by Baltimore, Tampa, and Oakland.

Are you really saying the Yankees won't even win the wild card?

Because you seem to think "making the playoffs" and "winning the division" are precisely the same thing.

Not bad for Xavier Nady's backup.

" 'Every team needs a guy like Swisher,' one American League executive told me recently. 'You watch him play every day and you can see how much he cares. I wish every player cared that much.'

Swisher has been the Yankees’ hottest hitter over the past three weeks, batting .342 with six home runs and 20 RBI since being moved into the No. 2 spot in the lineup on Aug. 8.

The Yankees have made it clear that they plan to be beneath the $189 million luxury-tax threshold by 2014, a task that may prove difficult if they plan to re-sign both Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson, who will be free agents at the end of next season.

That’s why bringing Swisher back makes perfect sense."

I agree. I just hope he starts hitting in the playoffs. As for the $189 million, forget about that.

I predict no team will win the World Series.

I will be correct 29 times:

"Quick, name the current Baltimore rotation. … If you guessed Saunders, Wei-Yin Chen, Chris Tillman, Zach Britton and Miguel Gonzalez, then your name must be Buck Showalter.

The Yankees’ rotation is better — but not by a wide margin. With Ivan Nova joining Pettitte on the disabled list, manager Joe Girardi has CC Sabathia (two DL stints this year), Hiroki Kuroda (godsend), Phil Hughes (good since the All-Star break), Freddy Garcia (4.90 ERA) and rookie David Phelps (better out of the bullpen).

Are they good enough for the Yankees to win the division? Yes. Is that a World Series-winning rotation? Probably not — especially for a team that’s limping toward Labor Day."

The Yankees are 20 games over .500. Fourth-best record in baseball, fourth in the league in ERA, third in the league in runs per game.

The playoff rotation would be Sabathia, Kuroda, Pettitte(?), and Hughes(?).

They're a good team, not a great team. I take some comfort in the fact that mediocre teams always seem to win the World Series lately.

But betting against the 2012 Yankees isn't daring, it's chalk.

Rub some dirt on it.

The Yankees can't survive without your clutch bat.

Am I the person paying attention to the fact ...

... that Mark Teixeira is 6-for-53 with RISP and 2 outs?

That's .113. That's the batting average of a pitcher.

Today's game, runner on second with two outs, Yankees up by 2, 7th inning. Cano intentionally walked. Infield shift is on. Teixeira strikes out.

How frustrating is it to have a .100 batting average with 2 outs and RISP?

Quick followup: How frustrating is it to have monetary success in your profession, but, at the same time, possess the knowledge, deep down, your performance on the field is criminally fraudulent when compared to your high salary?

AL MVP for a player with 43 runs batted in.

"Shortstop leads all of baseball in hits and third in AL with .324 batting average and is playing some of the best ball of his career, so why not Jeter for American League MVP?"

Since you asked, I'll give you three quick reasons:

1) "Number of hits" is not a particularly important stat.

2) Mike Trout.

3) Miguel Cabrera.

To offer some perspective, decrepit Alex Rodriguez has 170 fewer at-bats, but Alex Rodriguez has more homeruns, more runs batted in, and the same slugging percentage.

Also, the Yankees seemingly can't win without Alex Rodriguez.

Therefore, Alex Rodriguez for AL MVP.


Jeter sounds sensible speaking for himself:

"When that season is brought up now, Jeter tries to brush it off, but it’s clear that the perception that he had a terrible season bothers him.

'I hit .270, man. You know? Sorry,' Jeter said. 'One time I hit .270 and it’s like it was the end of my career. I think every player probably at some point in their careers had a year where they weren’t satisfied. I had a lot more than just one that I haven’t been satisfied with. I know that year has gotten a lot of attention, but you still have to have confidence that you can play.' "


I guess the human brain is attracted to extremes. Jeter has been a great player for a long time, but he's not the "greatest player ever." Jeter had a subpar year, but it wasn't that bad. When he rebounds in 2012 and hits over .300, it doesn't mean he's the AL MVP.

Player with 13 whole HRs accused of steroid use.

Intangibles are things.

I think both the Astros and Clemens have things to lose.

Let's all go to the ballpark.

Let's all go to the ballpark.
Let's all go to the ballpark.
And watch a 50-year-old fat guy pitch the ball.

Free Melky.

"In a bizarre attempt to avoid a 50-game drug suspension, San Francisco Giants star Melky Cabrera created a fictitious website and a nonexistent product designed to prove he inadvertently took the banned substance that caused a positive test under Major League Baseball’s drug program.

But instead of exonerating Cabrera of steroid use, the Internet stunt trapped him in a web of lies. Amid the information-gathering phase of his doping case last month, his cover story unraveled quickly, and what might have been a simple suspension has attracted further attention from federal investigators and MLB, the Daily News has learned."

Big deal.

Is it really any worse than the Daily News creating a fake reporter named Mike Lupica and, in the middle of August, writing a phony column in which the "author" claims that Terry Collins and Bobby Valentine are doing excellent jobs managing their under-.500 teams?

You can't fool me, Daily News.

Felz Stats of the Day.

• Mark Teixeira with RISP and 2 outs: 49 AB, 6 H, .122 BA, .246 OB%, .265 slugging%.
  

I am just happy the no-hitter tired him out for the Yankees.

"That night of that no-hitter, in a frozen moment at the center of the jumping and screaming, one teammate did ask Johan Santana the real question: What if those 134 pitches hurt your arm?

As the friend remembered it, Santana looked directly at him and said, 'It would still be worth it.'

He was right. What other moment could transcend that one, during this flawed marriage between erstwhile ace and team — a union that grew more troubled during Friday night’s pounding in Washington, a 6-4 loss?

Santana, whose tenure in Queens includes a burdensome contract, no playoff games, a sexual assault accusation that did not result in a charge and major shoulder surgery, was not going to fly higher than the first no-hitter in franchise history. June 1 was his best possible night as a Met, and he went for it."

Of course it wasn't worth it.

Sorry, Joba.

You can't use this coupon when the opposing team scores a lot of runs. Sorry for the misunderstanding. Nice try, though.

Update: Those peanuts were spiked.

Millionaires don't like their boss.

Why not shut him down in April ...

... and save him for October?

"B.J. Upton's 2 HRs lift Blue Jays"

"B.J. Upton hit two home runs, Matt Joyce also homered, and David Price earned his 15th victory as the Tampa Bay Rays stretched their winning streak to five by beating the Twins, 4-2, Saturday night in Minneapolis."

It's an easy mistake to make.

The "R" in "Rays" is obscured, so it could be "Jays."

Yankee Stirring Comeback Falls Short ... or The Grandyman Can't

"The concern should be real because the Yankees have dropped 12 of 18. And with the Orioles comeback win over the Mariners last night, the Yankees AL East lead is down to 4 1/2 games. That's the smallest lead they have had since June 29 when they were four games up."

Look at the bright side.

This game proved, once again, that the Yankees are perfectly capable of losing to mediocre pitchers and not just aces.

Nobody can hit good pitching. If the batters could hit good pitching, then the pitching wouldn't be good.

"Monday night’s loss to Justin Verlander and the Tigers highlighted a big issue for New York, that it cannot hit against first-rate pitching. Verlander baffled the Yankees’ bats over eight innings, allowing two runs (unearned) while striking out 14.

Verlander’s performance comes just two days after the Yankees were shutout by Seattle ace Felix Hernandez, who held the Yankees to two hits in a complete game on Saturday."

The Yankee offense has been bad the past two weeks or so against everybody.


"If you look at the Yankees’ record against those who I consider to be legitimate aces in the American League (Verlander, Hernandez, Jered Weaver, David Price), they are 3-6 and are hitting .287 against them, a number skewed by a .414 batting average against Jered Weaver."

I say the two-hitter is an outlier.

The Yankee hit .414 against Jered Weaver -- described later in the article as the "best pitcher in the American League, hands down" -- and the point of the article is that the Yankee lineup struggles against good pitchers.

"As the playoffs approach, the Yankees will not only be facing the best teams, but also the best pitching. The Yankees dodged Verlander once in the ALDS last year due to a rain delay, but still lost to the Tigers’ ace in Game 3 en route to an eventual series loss.

The Yankees may not be as lucky this time around and will need to figure out how to hit great pitching if they want to make a deep playoff run."

I know the Yankees pounded Verlander earlier in the year. They pounded Dickey. They pounded Santana.

There are other examples of the Yankees beating good pitchers. I thought they handled Price pretty well.

But, you know ... the Yankees might lose in the playoffs. They might lose to a Cy Young candidate and they might lose to an unheralded jerk who throws a bunch of changeups.

You can buy A.J. Burnett Yankee jerseys at a steep discount.

A.J. Burnett is 14-3 for a playoff team.

The Yankees are paying most of his salary.

Which is fine. Most would agree that Burnett could not handle New York. For the Yankees, getting rid of Burnett was addition by subtraction.


But, still ...

If the Yankees pay his salary ...

And the Pirates actually end up in the World Series vs. the Yankees ...

Can't the Yankees, like ... well, I don't know ... can't the Yankees at least get a refund?


Is it impossible for Burnett to come back and beat the Yankees in the playoffs? It's an unlikely nightmare scenario for sure, but don't forget that Kenny Rogers did it in 2006.

Felz Stat of the Day.

• In 44 plate appearances with the Yankees, Ichiro has 0 strikeouts and 0 walks.
  

Interesting article about HBP.

Yankee game of August 1, 2012.

A player with a .188 batting average is batting 6th.

A baseball game is like a boxing match.

That's why this game was so inspiring. The Yankees showed they can take a punch, get up from the mat, and fight back.

Felz Stat of the Day.

• Derek Jeter had 4 RBIs in July.