Sweep Dreams

When you're in a pennant race, and you're playing the Baltimore Orioles you expect a sweep. It doesn't matter what time of year it is, or where the games are being played, but these are the games that you'll look back on if your team falls a few games short of reaching its goal of playing in October (or even November). The New York Yankees, now just 2 games back of first in the AL East, have done what they've had to do against the worst teams in the American League, especially on this home stand. CC Sabathia got back on track, and Alex Rodriguez and Brett Gardner provided the power as the Yankees knocked off Baltimore, 6-3.

I do have to give CC Sabathia a break. He earned his fifth victory of the season today, but he could easily have eight wins already (Andy and Phil lead the team with seven). On three different occasions, he had victories taken away from him. He tossed 4 2/3 innings at Fenway Park on May 8th before they put the tarp on the field, preventing CC from getting the final out to go five innings and earn his win. At home against Boston, CC handed a 5-1 lead over to Joba Chamberlain in the eighth inning and, well, we all know what happened there. And CC was very shaky this past Saturday, but left the game after six leading the Indians 10-5, only to have Joba and company cough it up. So instead of being 5-3, CC Sabathia could easily be 8-3 and well on his way to winning 20 games.

Everyone who played today contributed, the sign of a good team. Every batter had a hit other than Francisco Cervelli, who caught a great game and finally got on the same page as Sabathia. A-Rod showed his trademark opposite field power, Brett Gardner already has established a career high for dingers in a season, and Joba Chamberlain pitched "another" perfect eighth inning. It's painful not being a kid anymore, because these summer weekday games really interfere with your productivity at work. So instead of watching YES, I was confined to the GameCast, sweating it out as Mariano allowed the first two batters in the ninth to reach. But, Mo was Mo, and he retired the next three.

On to a slightly different topic, kudos go out to Armando Galarraga and the rest of the Detroit Tigers for the way they handled Jim Joyce's costly mistake. Thursday afternoon, as Joyce was behind the plate at Comerica, the Tigers had Galarraga bring out the lineup card and shake hands with Joyce, who was in tears. I have to give Galarraga credit for the way he handled himself in the heat of the moment, almost laughing it off when the runner was incorrectly called safe at first base. One out away from perfection, and I honestly don't know what I would have done. You get the feeling that baseball is getting closer and closer to instant replay on safe-out calls, with each team probably getting a challenge or two throughout the course of a game.

The Yanks fly north of the border for a weekend series with the Blue Jays. Toronto can hit it out, but they are coming off back-to-back brutal ninth inning losses at the hands of the Tampa Bay Rays. If not for two blown Blue Jay leads, we'd be talking about the tied-for-first New York Yankees today. You want to look for at least two out of three victories for the Bombers, who will then head to Baltimore before returning home to play the lowly Houston Astros.