On the Yankees beat

There's no shame in losing to Roy Halladay. The unfortunate thing for the Yankees is, at this stage in the season, they can't afford any losses. Especially not to lose two out of three in both the last two series. Andy Pettitte said after last Sunday's game in Baltimore that he didn't think they could really afford to lose any more series. Now here they are 0-for-2 in winning series since then.
The deficit is really too big now to realistically think this team can make up the ground. It's not like they've done all this with Alex Rodriguez, Mariano Rivera and Mike Mussina on the disabled list and all three will be back tomorrow. Yes they've had injuries, but aside from Joba Chamberlain, none of those injured players (i.e. Jorge Posada, Chien-Ming Wang) is returning to action anytime soon.
This team just has not shown it's good enough to be in the postseason. At this point, it would take almost a miracle for that to change.

Good afternoon Yankees enthusiasts, I'm Chris Mascaro and I'll be bringing you all of today's live game action, as the Yankees (72-63) take on the Blue Jays (69-66) in the rubber game of a three-game set.

Yesterday's performance by the Yankees was dreadful. They squandered a 6-2 lead going into the seventh inning, with Robinson Cano's team-leading 12th error mainly to blame. On what should have been a double-play grounder by Lyle Overbay, Cano flicked the ball out of Derek Jeter's reach, putting the game (and the season) in serious trouble.

The Yankees are 11.5 behind the Rays in the AL East, and 7 behind the Red Sox in the wild card. Bottom line: the Yankees have a 1.6% chance of making the playoffs, and their elimination number is down to 17.

And as if that wasn't enough to worry about, the Yankees must face Roy Halladay (16-9, 2.69 ERA) this afternoon. He is 3-1 with a 2.48 ERA against the Yankees this year, including a two-hit shutout on July 11. Look for Halladay to go deep into today's contest, as he has eight complete games this season and 39 in his career. Here are the Yankees' numbers against the righty, a collective .272 average.

Andy Pettitte (13-10, 4.37) takes the hill for the Yankees hoping to bounce back from a 10-hit, six-run barrage he endured against the Red Sox on Tuesday. In his last six starts, Pettitte is 1-3 with a 6.75 ERA. Against the Blue Jays, he is 1-1 with a 3.46 ERA in two starts spanning 13 innings.

*Here are two quick notes courtesy of ESPN ... the Yankees are 14-18 in their last 32 games with a 5.63 ERA, and Alex Rodriguez is 4-for-21 with six strikeouts and four double plays in his last five games.

And finally, here are this afternoon's lineups:

Toronto
1. Scutaro, 2B
2. Eckstein, DH
3. Rios, RF
4. Wells, CF
5. Barajas, C
6. Lind, LF
7. Bautista, 1B
8. Rolen, 3B
9. McDonald, SS
Halladay, RHP

Yankees
1. Damon, CF
2. Jeter, SS
3. Abreu, RF
4. A. Rodriguez, 3B
5. Giambi, 1B
6. Nady, LF
7. Matsui, DH
8. Cano, 2B
9. Molina, C
Pettitte, LHP

Okay, much more to touch on throughout the afternoon, so let's get the comments going in the chat box below. And be sure to vote on the poll questions! I'll be updating ya'll on the game after each half-inning.

Okay, we're about 15 minutes from baseball on YES!

Top of the 1st: Eckstein sacrificed Scutaro to second after he had walked to lead off the game. Rios singled to left to put runners on first and third for Wells, who had an RBI single to right to give the Blue Jays an early 1-0 lead.

Barajas then lifted a high fly ball to left, which Nady didn't see off the bat. He took a few steps in before changing direction and sprinting towards the wall. But he was too late, and the ball dropped in for a two-run double, giving the Jays a 3-0 advantage.

Lind and Bautista struck out swinging to end the inning.

Bottom of the 1st: Damon struck out swinging and Jeter flied to right before Abreu singled. But A-Rod lined to short to end the inning.

Top of the 2nd: Rolen led off the inning with a solo home run to left (his eighth of the season and 269th of his career) to put the Jays up 4-0.

McDonald grounded out to short, Scutaro flew to right and Eckstein grounded to first (nice job covering by Pettitte, who just beat Eckstein to the bag) to end the inning.

Bottom of the 2nd: After Giambi flew out to center, Nady laced a double to the left-center field wall. But Matsui grounded back to the pitcher and Cano did the same to second to end the inning. Halladay has thrown 25 pitches.

Top of the 3rd: Rios flew out to the warning track in right before Wells singled for the second time today. But Barajas grounded into a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning. Pettitte has thrown 58 pitches through three innings.

Bottom of the 3rd: Molina grounded to third, but then Damon reached on an infield single (on the 12th pitch of the at-bat). However, the Yankees couldn't move him along, as Jeter hit a force to second and Abreu grounded to first.

Top of the 4th: Lind grounded back to the mound before Bautista doubled down the left-field line. But Rolen struck out looking (Pettitte's third K) and McDonald flew out to right. Pettitte is up to 77 pitches.

Bottom of the 4th: A-Rod led off the inning with a solo homer to center (his first in 59 career ABs against Halladay) to cut the Jays lead to 4-1. He has 547 career homers, one behind Mike Schmidt for 12th all time, and 29 on the season. It was his 202nd homer as a Yankee, tying him with Bill Dickey.

Giambi flied out to right before Nady singled to left (his second hit of the afternoon) and Matsui did the same to right.

Then a strange play, as Cano swung and missed for strike three, but the ball hit his heel and went to the backstop. So Cano was out, but the runners advanced to second and third. No matter though, because Molina floated one to first (on the first pitch he saw) for the final out.

Top of the 5th: After Scutaro struck out to lead off the inning, Eckstein singled to left. He moved to second on a Rios ground out to short, but Wells flew to right to end the inning.

Pettitte has settled down after a shaky start, with three straight scoreless frames.

Bottom of the 5th: Damon singled to left (his second hit of the afternoon and 40th multi-hit game of the season). Jeter dribbled one back to the mound when the hit-and-run was on, so Damon moved to second but Jeter was thrown out.

But Abreu popped to shallow left (on a 3-and-1 pitch) and A-Rod grounded to third to end the inning.

Top of the 6th: A 1-2-3 inning for Pettitte, utilizing stellar defense by ... Robinson Cano? Well, yes. Barajas flied to center, Lind lined to second (a nice grab by Cano) and McDonald grounded to second (a nice sliding stop and throw by Cano).

McDonald grounded out on Pettitte's 100th pitch of the afternoon.

Bottom of the 6th: Giambi lined a homer to right on the 10th pitch of his at-bat for his 28th dinger of the season, cutting the Jays' lead to 4-2. He has 205 homers as a Yankee, tying Dave Winfield for 10th place in team history.

Then Nady grounded out to second, Matsui popped out to short and Cano grounded to second to end the inning.

Top of the 7th: After Rolen popped out to short, McDonald singled and Scutaro doubled down the right-field line.

Then Eckstein's RBI single made it 5-2 Jays, and it ended Pettitte's day. He went 6 1/3 innings, allowing six runs on 10 hits with a walk and four strikeouts. He threw 112 pitches.

Jose Veras (4-2, 3.54) came on and threw a wild pitch to Rios, allowing Scutaro to score, making it a 6-2 Blue Jays lead. Rios inevitably struck out looking.

Veras intentionally walked Wells in front of Barajas, who struck out swinging to end the long inning.

Bottom of the 7th: A 1-2-3 inning for Halladay (on just seven pitches), as Molina struck out swinging, Damon grounded to second and Jeter grounded to third. Halladay has 101 pitches.

Top of the 8th: Righty Alfredo Aceves came on in relief of Veras and pitched a 1-2-3 inning, getting Lind to fly out to left, Overbay (pinch-hitting for Bautista) to strike out swinging and Rolen to fly out to center to end the inning.

Bottom of the 8th: Lefty Scott Downs came on in relief of Halladay, who threw seven innings of two-run ball. He gave up eight hits, struck out three and didn't walk a batter. He tossed 101 pitches.

Abreu grounded out to first against Downs, then A-Rod and Giambi were hit by pitches. But Nady grounded into a force at third and Matsui stranded the runners with a grounder to second.

Top of the 9th: Another 1-2-3 inning for Aceves, who got McDonald to foul out on a pop up behind the plate, Scutaro to strike out swinging and Eckstein to strike out looking (on a real nice curve). Nice job by the 25-year old.

Bottom of the 9th: Righty Brandon League (1-2, 2.16) came on in relief of Downs, who pitched a scoreless eighth.

League had a 1-2-3 inning, as Cano flew out to the warning track in dead center, Wilson Betemit (pinch-hitting for Molina for his first at-bat in 10 days) grounded out to second and Damon lined out to left.

That's the ballgame folks, Yankees lose 6-2.
Yankees: 72-64
Blue Jays: 70-66

WP--Halladay (17-9) ... his fourth win over the Yanks this year
LP--Pettitte (13-11)

HR: Blue Jays 1 (Rolen, 8)
Yankees 2 (A. Rodriguez, 29; Giambi, 28)

The Yankees went 13-15 in August and have lost four of their last six.

Three stars:
1. Halladay: 7 IP, two runs on eight hits with three K's and no walks
2. Wells: 2-for-3 with a walk, run and RBI
3. Barajas: 1-for-4 with a two-run double

As always, it was my honor and pleasure to bring everyone all of today's live game action. Thanks for coming out and have a great holiday weekend. Take care!

The Yankees have found a lot of different ways to lose games this year. Yesterday, it was a key error by Robinson Cano that turned things in the wrong direction. Cano's year has been a big disappointment. His offense hasn't been as bad as one might think with the exception of a horrid, horrid April that brings everything else down. But it hasn't been outstanding either. And his defense has left something to be desired.

I'm flying to Detroit today for the makeup game tomorrow afternoon. Enjoy your Labor Day weekend. Maybe the Yankees will work magic and beat Roy Halladay.

Good afternoon everyone. Marc Jimenez here as the Yankees continue their three-game series at the Stadium with the Toronto Blue Jays. Darrell Rasner (5-9, 5.03 ERA) will be on the hill for the Yankees (72-62) and is going for his first win since July 12 when he beat Toronto. Rasner is 0-2 with a 5.14 ERA in six starts and one relief appearance since then. In his last outing, the 27-year-old right-hander surrendered five runs -- three earned -- on eight hits, including two home runs, in just 3 1/3 innings during an 8-7 win over Baltimore on Sunday.

John Parish (1-0, 4.05) is making his eighth appearance and fifth start of the season for the Blue Jays (68-66). In his last appearance for Toronto on Aug. 10 against Cleveland, Parish allowed a run on four hits in three innings of relief. Parrish is 0-4 with a 4.50 ERA against New York.

Stat of the day: The Blue Jays are 2-5 at Yankee Stadium this season and have lost three straight there.

Top 1st: It was a nice start to the game for Darrell Rasner. After getting Joe Inglett to ground out to Jason Giambi, Rasner issued a single to David Eckstein before getting Alex Rios to fly out and Vernon Wells to ground out.

Bottom 1st: The Yankees benefited from two wild pitches by Parrish to take a 2-0 lead. Derek Jeter reached on an infield single with one out, moved to second on a wild pitch and scored as Alex Rodriguez drove in his 80th run. After another wild pitch, A-Rod moved to second then Giambi slapped a run-scoring single for his 83rd RBI. ... Oh, by the way, the Yankees are 48-16 when they score first. Yankees 2, Blue Jays 0.

Top 2nd: Backed with a two-run lead, Rasner threw a five-pitch inning and retired the side in order.

Bottom 2nd: Not much for the Yankees this inning. Hideki Matsui led off and grounded out. Robinson Cano, who is 12 for his last 29, singled. But Ivan Rodriguez flied out and Johnny Damon struck out.

Top 3rd: Eight in a row retired by Rasner, who is looking very sharp.

Bottom 3rd: Bobby Abreu hit a one-out single up the middle and later stole second. But that’s all the Yankees got this inning. A-Rod flied out and Giambi struck out to end the inning.

Top 4th: Rasner gave up the lead after allowing a single to Rios and a two-run homer to Wells, who has 15 homers on the year, including five dingers in his last seven games. Yankees 2, Blue Jays 2.

Bottom 4th: The Yankees took a 4-2 lead on back-to-back jacks by Cano and Pudge. It was Cano’s 13th and Pudge’s seventh homer on the season. Yankees 4, Blue Jays 2.

Top 5th: Rasner bounced back nicely with a solid inning. He threw eight pitches and retired the side in order.

Bottom 5th: Blue Jays reliever Brian Tallet started the inning and quickly got in trouble. Jeter led off with a walk and moved to second on a bloop single by Abreu. After A-Rod flied out, Giambi walked to load the bases. Two batters later, Matsui ripped a two-run double. Yankees 6, Blue Jays 2.

Top 6th: 1-2-3 inning for Rasner on nine pitches. Rasner has set down seven in a row.

Bottom 6th: Long inning for the Yankees, but it didn’t result in any runs. Damon singled and stole second. Jeter had a nearly 10 minute at-bat before he grounded out. Blue Jays reliever Jason Frasor relieved Tallet.

Top 7th: The Blue Jays scored three runs following a costly error. Adam Lind led off with a single. Then Lyle Overbay hit into a tailor-made double play, but Cano’s shovel-throw to Jeter was wide as both runners were safe. Jose Bautista followed with an RBI single up the middle. After Gregg Zaun walked, Brian Bruney came on. He struck Travis Snider out then served up a two-run base hit to Inglett. Yankees 6, Blue Jays 5.

Bottom 7th: Jays reliever Brandon League came on and struck out A-Rod, Giambi and Nady.

Top 8th: Who would have thought, but the Blue Jays have taken the lead. Wells singled leading off. Damaso Marte came on and gave up a single to Adam Lind. Overbay dropped down a sacrifice to move the runners to second and third with one out. Edwin Ramirez entered and allowed a tying single to Bautista before Zaun hit into a run-scoring fielder’s choice as the Jays took the lead. Blue Jays 7, Yankees 6.

Bottom 8th: With Scott Downs on the mound, Pudge hit a two-out single. Brett Gardner pinch ran and stole second, but Damon grounded out to end the inning.

Top 9th: Jose Veras came on with one out and kept the ‘Jays off the board. Last licks for the Yanks.

Bottom 9th: The Yankees were set to have a dramatic inning after closer B.J. Ryan gave up a single to Jeter and walked Abreu. But A-Rod hitting into a double play and Ransom flied out to end the game. Final: Blue Jays 7, Yankees 6.

Joba Chamberlain pronounced himself ready to be activated after his 35 pitches off the mound at the Stadium this morning. But Joe Girardi said, "Players always say they're ready." The manager added that it will be best to wait until tomorrow to see how Chamberlain feels. Still, he did add, "I was excited by what I saw."

Chamberlain was to throw "live" batting practice and he did have teammates Brett Gardner and Cody Ransom standing in the batters box, although they didn't take huge cuts. Mostly, they watched and occasionally bunted and once in a wihle, they hit a weak grounder. The main thing was for Chamberlain to get the feeling of being back on the Stadium mound.

When he does return, almost certainly in relievf, he will not hold back. "You let it go," he said. "When you get hurt is when you don't do that. If I'm going to get beat, I'm going to get beat with my best pitch."

--Mark Herrmann at Yankee Stadium

Today's lineup against Toronto's John Parrish:

Damon CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
A. Rodriguez 3B
Giambi 1B
Nady LF
Matsui DH
Cano 2B
I. Rodriguez C
Rasner P

I clearly am hallucinating, because I could swear that Carl Pavano allowed one run in six innings. I know that can't possibly be the case. There is no way he is 2-0, absolutely no way! Especially not when he had to outpitch A.J. Burnett, when Burnett absolutely crushes the Yankees.

OK, all jokes aside, it's very surprising to see Pavano do so well yesterday. I doubt anyone had any real expectations for him after such a long layoff.

It might be fair to be concerned about Mariano Rivera's workload of late. He hasn't looked any worse for the wear, so he's probably fine, but he's pitched more than an inning in six of his last eight outings.

Ticket prices were released for next year. There are, as previously advertised, a lot of really high-priced tickets. However, there are some reasonably priced tickets, even some $12 ones in the bleachers.

Enjoy the game.

BY ADAM RONIS

Blue Jays outfielder Travis Snider has always dreamed of playing in Yankee Stadium. It looked like that chance would never come with the close of the Stadium this season and the Blue Jays playing their final series at the Stadium this weekend before rosters expand.

The Blue Jays traded Matt Stairs to the Phillies Thursday, which opened a spot for Snider to join the Blue Jays after it appeared he wouldn't play in the majors this season. Snider, selected 14th overall two years ago, made his major league debut tonight and went 1-for-3 with a double to deep center in the sixth and scored the lone run in a 2-1 loss.

"It's unbelievable," said the 20-year old. "The timing of everything worked out. I couldn't ask for a better situation. It's been a dream of mine to play here."

Snider, who is 5-11, 245 pounds, lined out to Derek Jeter in the third inning before lacing a double over the head of Johnny Damon with one out in the sixth. He scored on a single by Marco Scutaro.

"It felt good to go out there and put the ball in play," Snider said. "It went over his head and to start your career with a double in Yankee Stadium is pretty special."

Snider came up with runners at first and second and no outs in the eighth against Edwar Ramirez and struck out looking.

"I got good pitches to hit and didn't pull the trigger," he said. "It's a good learning situation for me in my debut in front of all these fans. I take it as a lesson learned."

Snider started the season at Single-A, advanced to Double-A and was promoted to Triple-A earlier this month. He hit .344 with two home runs and 17 RBIs in 18 games for Triple-A Syracuse, which is why the Blue Jays decided to recall him. He has struck out 154 times in 487 minor league at-bats this season.

Snider played mostly rightfield in the minors, but has played leftfield the past month and has a good arm. It is expected that he and Adam Lind will rotate between leftfield and designated hitter. Lind was the designated hitter tonight.

Yankees (71-62) vs. Blue Jays (68-65)

Carl Pavano (1-0, 5.40) vs. A.J. Burnett (16-9, 4.58)

The Yankees keep their hope of a wild card birth alive with a series finale win over the Red Sox. Again the Blue Jays and its excellent pitch staff stand in the way of the Yankees gaining momentum.

Carl Pavano makes his second start of the season after making his triumphant return to the rotation on Aug. 23, after over a year hiatus from the Major Leagues. Pavano threw five innings, allowing three runs, and earned the win against the Orioles. He was a effective, but looked to lack a bit of confidence in his stuff in his first outing. Pavano will be looking to extend his outing in his next start (he only threw 90 pitches in Baltimore) as well as improve his command.

Burnett earned a no-decision against the Red Sox, though the right-hander squandered two leads in Toronto's loss last Sunday. Burnett allowed five runs on seven hits, including a pair of home runs, with seven strikeouts and three walks. Burnett raised his American League-leading strikeout total to 185, but he gave up five runs for the first time in nine starts. He is 6-2 with a 2.63 ERA in nine career games against the Yankees.

Joseph Staszewski is here to take you through all of tonight's action.

YANKEES 2, BLUE JAYS 1

Top of the Ninth: Rivera give up just a single.

Bottom of the Eighth:Yankees go 1-2-3.

Top of the Eighth: Veras comes in to pitch and gives up a lead off double to Barajas and then walks Rolan. Edwar Ramirez is brought in. He strikes out Snider. Mariano Rivera is then brought it. He gets a ground out and a strike out

Bottom of the Seventh: Yankees get just a two-out single by Cano.

Top of the Seventh: Bruney comes out get one out. Marte comes in to get the next two.

Bottom of the Sixth: Abreu singles back up the middle. A-Rod grounds into a double play and Giambi strikes out.

Top of the Sixth: Snider gets his first major league hit, a ground run double to center. Scutaro singles with two outs to bring home Snider. YANKEES 2, BLUE JAYS 1

Bottom of the Fifth: Cano doubles to the gap in right center with one out. Pudge grounds out. Damon walks and Jeter strikes out to end the inning.

Top of the Fifth: Pavano has retired 12 straight Blue Jay. Barajas drove a ball deep to left to end the inning.

Bottom of the Fourth: Damon singles off the wall in right and then steal second. Abreu doubles into the gap in left center to score Damon. A-Rod ground a ball to short, but the throw to third was not in time. Giambi hits a sac fly to left to score Abreu. YANKEES 2, BLUE JAYS 0

Top of the Fourth: Blue Jays go 1-2-3.

Bottom of the Third: Yankees again cannot get a base runner.

Top of the Third: Pavano needs just six pitches to retire the Blue Jays in order

Bottom of the Second: Yankees go down 1-2-3 with two strikeouts.

Top of the Second: Blue Jay's go in order. Pavano gets Overbay to ground into a double play for the first two outs.

Bottom of the First: Yankees go in order. Damon singled to lead off the inning, but Jeter bounced into a double play.

Top of the First: Inglett singles and is bunted to second by Scutaro,but that is all the Blue Jays get.

Joba Chamberlain's next test is to throw to hitters tomorrow, and Joe Girardi strongly intimated this afternoon that when Chamberlain is ready - which could be after tomorrow's session - he will likely be a reliever.

Well, check that. With rosters expanding Sept. 1, the Yankees could use Joba as a starter and just use him for 3 innings, or whatever his pitch count is, because they'd have more than enough arms ready to follow him. Girardi did not rule that option out.

The big question, of course, is whether this will all take place in meaningless games...

Tonight Carl Pavano makes his first home start since Opening Day of last season and he faces old friend and teammate A.J. Burnett. One year after Pavano inked his four-year, $39.95 million deal, Burnett signed an equally ridiculous contract, five years at $55 million.

After that Burnett deal was announced at the winter meetings in 2005, Burnett told Bob Klapisch without a second thought that Pavano hated New York.

And, finally, Alex Rodriguez was more than an hour late today and missed batting practice (although he did hit in the cage). Supposedly his tardiness was due to the insane traffic in New York right now, and I can attest it's bad, bad, bad out there. Took me more than two hours.

Moving on, the Yankees lineup, ladies and gentleman...

Damon, CF
Jeter, SS
Abreu, RF
A-Rod, 3B
Giambi, 1B
Nady, LF
Matsui, DH
Cano, 2B
I-Rod, C

A reader sent this to me regarding hitting with runners in scoring position. It was done by a college statistics professor. Food for thought:

"Last year, A-Rod had 54 HR and Howie Kendrick had 5. This year, A-Rod has
28 HR and Kendrick has 3. Would you bet even money that A-Rod will outhomer
Kendrick in 2009? Obviously you'd take that bet.

Last year, A-Rod hit .333 with RISP and slugged .678, while Kendrick hit
.247 with RISP and slugged .306. This year, A-Rod has hit .246 with RISP
and slugged .413, while Kendrick has hit .380 and slugged .506. How much
would you bet that Kendrick will continue to outhit A-Rod in those
situations?

Year-by-year home run totals are consistent, because they accurately
reflect the player's underlying skill -- power. Year-by-year RISP
statistics are not consistent and often do not accurately reflect the
underlying skill -- clutch hitting -- because they are inherently noisy.

Mickey Mantle, in consecutive years, had the following averages with RISP:
.444 .345 .274 .206 .274 .364
Unless you believe Mantle's actual clutch ability changed by more than a
factor of 2 and back over a six year period, I think's it's clear that
single-season RISP numbers are subject to large fluctuations and therefore
unreliable.

Obviously the ability to hit with RISP is important. But I would not put
much stock in a single season's RISP numbers."

Jason Giambi's huge day yesterday snapped a couple of trends. He has struggled with runners in scoring position this year. Yesterday's two such hits moved his average in those situations up from .200 to .213. When you get too detailed about looking at the numbers in different situations, the sample size can get pretty small.

But it's interesting to look at Giambi's numbers there, if maybe not so informative.

Leading off -- .295 avg, .960 OPS
Bases empty -- .238 avg, .918 OPS
Runner on first -- .373 avg, 1.225 OPS
Runner on second -- .176 avg, .743 OPS
RISP -- .213 avg, .690 OPS

August has not been his best month as far as getting hits period, but he does have a season-high in seven homers this month and tied his season-high with 19 RBIs.

There's a little inside-the-numbers fun for you on a Friday morning.

The series didn't go as the Yankees hoped, but they averted a complete meltdown by beating the Red Sox 3-2, courtesy of Jason Giambi and Mike Mussina. Mussina got a no-decision, allowing two earned runs in seven innings. Giambi was not in the starting lineup, but hit a game-tying pinch-hit two-run homer off Hideki Okajima. He won the game with a walkoff bases-loaded RBI single off Jonathan Papelbon.
Yankees manager Joe Girardi said of Giambi's pinch-hit home run: "You're looking for him to pop one out of the ballpark. That's what you're looking for."
Giambi himself said: "We've been stale. We needed something to jump-start us. We've got a pulse."
Alex Rodriguez said: "We're taking it one day at a time. You really don't want to think too much big-picture."

So the Yankees are six games out in the wild card race. That's a lot, but clearly not as insurmountable as eight. Still, the Red Sox weren't exactly yukking it up afterwards, given that they had just scratched Josh Beckett from his start tomorrow due to continued elbow numbness. In fact, Beckett is going to see Dr. James Andrews.

Last game between Yankees and Red Sox at the current Yankee Stadium. Will it go down as a classic? Mussina had an introspective view on that one, saying it might depend what they do down the stretch. If the Yankees get back in it and make the postseason, this game could be viewed as a jump-start. If not, it might be forgotten.

Hey everybody, welcome to today's coronation, er, live blog between the Yankees and Red Sox. To hear Johnny Damon and Joe Girardi tell it, it ain't over till it's over. Mathematically, that is true. Pragmatically speaking, a sweep of the Yankees this afternoon will buoy the Red sox closer toward the playoffs and Yankees closer to the CC Sabathia and Mark Teixiera sweepstakes. Darren here for all nine. First pitch in a few.

Top 1st -- Mike Mussina looks strong in his first inning of work, walking David Ortiz but having no trouble otherwise. In the live chat we're talking about who the MVP of the Yankees 2008 season is.

Bottom 1st -- Jon Lester struck out A-Rod with two on and one out. Lester seems to always get into trouble in the first few innings, then settles down.

Top 2nd -- Red Sox newcomer Mark Kotsay had a nice base hit too right, but Mussina seems to have his control today. Still no score.

Bottom 2nd -- Jon Lester worked a steady second inning. Cano flied out, he struck out Hideki Matsui -- hit Cody Ransom with a pitch -- and got Jose Molina to fly out.

Top 3rd -- Moose is fast becoming a bright spot. He retired the side in eight pitches: Varitek grounded out, Ellsbury struck out, and Pedroia fouled out to Molina. Still no score.

Bottom 3rd -- Johnny Damon with a rare bad strikeout. Jeter, meanwhile got another base hit, but was caught in a horrendous hit-and-run attempt. He failed to reach second when Bobby Abreu whiffed and was tagged out when trying to retreat back to first. Abreu then flies out to center for the last out of the inning.

Top 4th -- David Ortiz walked for the second time this afternoon. Kevin Youkilis popped out to Cano. Bay hit into a double play to end the inning. A terrific, tough throw from Cano to get him out. Robbie Cano, the most frustrating player in MLB history.

Bottom 4th -- Lester is looking stronger still. He struck out A-Rod and Xavier Nady, and Cano grounded out to end the inning. Our score? 0-0.

Top 5th -- Jason Varitek lined an RBI single to right field to score Jed Lowrie, making the score 1-0. Alex Cora, who was hit by a pitch, scored on a double play attempt that was induced on a groundball by lightning fast Jacoby Ellsbury. He was then caught stealing second to end the inning. A great throw by Molina. Red Sox 2, Yankees 0

Bottom 5th -- The home team goes down in order with Lester cruising. He struck out Ransom and Molina to end the fifth.

Top 6th -- Pedroia's base hit led off the sixth, but Ortiz struck out on a close call. Youkilis was hit by a pitch, and Bay grounded out. Kotsay struck out to end the inning with two on.

Bottom 6th -- Damon couldn't get out of the way of a Lester offering that hit him. Jeter singled to give the Yankees two runners on with no outs. Lester then retired the middle of the Yankees order -- Abreu, A-Rod, Nady -- to end the inning. No runs.

Top 7th -- We've likely seen the last of Mussina, and its a shame because he pitched so well for his team. They just gave him nothing to work with. Mussina stole a base hit away from Ellsbury, who hit a shot up the middle. Time to stretch.

Bottom 7th -- The dream continues for the Yankees. Cora made a fantastic defensive play on a blooper to shallow left center. Lester then struck out Matsui, but Ransom hit a double. Lester came out of the game, and was replaced by Hideki Okajima who gave up a home run to Jason Giambi to tie the game at two. Red Sox 2, Yankees 2

Top 8th -- Some interesting moves by the Yankees. Dustin Pedroia flies out to lead off the inning. The Yankees then replaced Brian Bruney with Damaso Marte who retired Ortiz. Marte was replaced by Mariano Rivera. He retired Youkilis. Boy, do these guys miss Manny. To the bottom of the inning we go.

Bottom 8th -- Justin Masterson came in the game to face A-Rod and he struck him out to end the inning. I almost feel bad for the guy. Almost.

Top 9th -- Mariano pitched a scoreless ninth even though Jeter threw him under the bus with an error to get the lead runner on. Yankees have a chance to end this game with one swing. Masterson will face Nady, Cano and Matsui. No Paplebon. Not yet.

Bottom 9th -- Here's how it went down: The lead runner, Xavier Nady, reached and was replaced by Brett Gardener, who stole second. They walked Matsui intentionally, and walked Ivan Rodriguez which loaded the bases. This is when Paplebon came in to face Giambi. Base hit. Game over. Yankees win. FINAL Yankees 3, Red Sox 2.

Jason Giambi gets the day off against Red Sox lefty Jon Lester and Cody Ransom gets his first start.

Damon CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
A-Rod 3B
Nady LF
Cano 2B
Matsui DH
Ransom 1B
Molina C
Mussina P

Pitcher Alfredo Aceves just arrived in the Yankees clubhouse.

Not sure who is being removed from the roster to make room or whether Aceves is here to start or relieve. Back with more later.

Update: Joe Girardi just said Aceves isn't here to start, just to be a fresh arm. So David Robertson or Chris Britton could be heading out soon.

And the move is . . . David Robertson has been optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Most of the Steinbrenner family was here tonight. Each of the four children were represented, with Hank here for the second time all year, Hal here and Jenny here, along with Jessica's husband Felix Lopez.
Here's Hank's sum-up: "The bottom line is, they sucked."

That's a pretty fitting description of the Yankees' 11-3 loss to the Red Sox tonight, a loss which might be the ender to their season in all reality. It was ugly, so ugly that there were largely cheers after Dustin Pedroia's eighth-inning grand slam, given that most of the people remaining at Yankee Stadium were Red Sox fans.

Sad that Yankee Stadium, a place that's hosted so many World Series, is going to end with no playoffs.

Welcome to another night on the blog Yankees fans. Marcus Henry is here to take you through the second matchup in the Yanks in this three-game set against the Red Sox.

Yankees (70-61) vs. Boston (76-55), First pitch; 7:05 p.m.

Sidney Ponson (7-4, 4.67) will start for the Yankees, while Paul Byrd (8-11, 4.61) will take the mound for Boston.

Last starts: There's no way to sugar coat Sidney Ponson's last start. Ponson was awful as he was battered for seven runs and eight hits in two innings during a 14-3 loss to Toronto on August 21. But Yankees fans shouldn't be down, Ponson was decent in his previous four starts giving up nine runs in 27 1/3 innings.

Don't let Paul Byrd's ERA (4.61) fool you, because he can be a downright pest at times. In his last start on August 22 he picked up a win against Toronto as he gave up four runs in six innings. In his last start against the Yankees on May 8, he was bombed for eight hits and five runs over 6 1/3 innings.

Analysis: It's no secret who needs to come up big for the Yankees. Alex Rodriguez has grounded into nine double plays in his last 19 games. Last night he grounded into two double plays and went 0-for-5. If the Yankees are to make the playoffs, it starts and ends with Rodriguez.

Top 1st: Jacoby Ellsbury flied out to leftfield. Dustin Pedroia singled to left centerfield. David Ortiz doubled down the rightfield line. Pedroia moved to third. Kevin Youkilis struck out for the second out. Jason Bay doubled to left centerfield past a diving Xavier Nady, scoring Pedroia and Ortiz to give the Red Sox a 2-0 lead. Jed Lowrie walked. Jason Varitek singled to right. Bay was thrown out at home by Bobby Abreu to end the inning.
Boston 2, Yankees 0

Bottom 1st: Johnny Damon struck out looking. Derek Jeter lined out to rightfield on a diving play by Ellsbury. Bobby Abreu walked. Alex Rodriguez doubled down the leftfield line scoring Abreu. Jason Giambi struck out swinging.
Boston 2, Yankees 1

Top 2nd: Alex Cora flied out to rightfield. Coco Crisp grounded out to the pitcher. Ellsbury struck out swinging. It was a 10-pitch inning for Ponson.
Boston 2, Yankees 1

Bottom 2nd: Nady lined out to centerfield. Hideki Matsui grounded out to first. Robinson Cano struck out swinging to end the inning.
Boston 2, Yankees 1

Top 3rd: Pedroia grounded out to second base. Ortiz walked. Youkilis grounded into a 5-4-3 double play to end the inning.
Boston 2, Yankees 1

Bottom 3rd: Pudge Rodriguez grounded out to shortstop. Damon popped out to second base. Jeter singled to leftfield. Abreu flied out to rightfield to end the inning.
Boston 2, Yankees 1

Top 4th: Bay grounded out to third. Lowrie doubled to right centerfield. Varitek flied out to centerfield. Cora grounded out to first to end the inning. A nine-pitch inning for Ponson.
Boston 2, Yankees 1

Bottom 4th Rodriguez doubled to left centerfield. Giambi grounded out to second. Rodriguez moved to third. Matsui walked. Nady struck out. Cano singled to right, scoring Rodriguez to tie the game at 2. Matsui moved to third. Pudge Rodriguez flied out to rightfield.
Yankees 2, Boston 2

Top 5th: Crisp struck out swinging. Ellsbury singled to rightfield. Pedroia singled to right. Ellsbury moved to third. Ortiz walked to load the bases. Youkilis walked, forcing in Ellsbury to give the Red Sox a 3-2 lead. Bay hit a sacrifice fly to deep rightfield, scoring Pedroia to give the Red Sox a 4-2 lead. Ortiz moved to third. Edwar Ramirez is in to pitch for Ponson. Lowrie grounded out to first to end the inning.
Red Sox 4, Yankees 2

Bottom 5th:Damon singled down the rightfield line. Jeter lined out to second. Abreu flied out to short leftfield. Alex Rodriguez flied out to centerfield.
Red Sox 4, Yankees 2

Top 6th: Varitek grounded out to first. Cora flied out to rightfield. Crisp grounded out to first to end the inning.
Red Sox 4, Yankees 2

Bottom 6th: Giambi grounded out to third. Nady struck out swinging. Matsui flied out to leftfield.
Red Sox 4, Yankees 2

Top 7th: Damaso Marte is in to pitch for the Yankees. Ellsbury struck out looking. Pedroia struck out swinging. Ortiz grounded out to the pitcher.
Red Sox 4, Yankees 2

Bottom 7th: Manny Delcarmen is in to pitch for the Red Sox. Cano struck out swinging. Pudge Rodriguez struck out swinging. Damon popped out to third.
Red Sox 4, Yankees 2

Top 8th: Jose Veras is pitching for the Yankees. Youkilis singled off the glove of Alex Rodriguez. Bay Tripled off the right centerfield wall, scoring Youkilis to give the Red Sox a 5-2 lead. Lowrie walked. Varitek walked to load the bases with no one out. Cora hit a sacrifice fly to centerfield, scoring Bay to give the Red Sox a 6-2 lead. Crisp singled to centerfield, scoring Lowrie to give the Red Sox a 7-2 lead. Varitek moved to second. David Robertson is in to pitch for the Yankees. Ellsbury singled to center, Varitek moved to third. Pedroia hit a grand slam to left centerfield, scoring Varitek, Crisp and Ellsbury to give the Red Sox an 11-2 lead. Ortiz singled to centerfield. Youkilis flied out to right for the second out. Bay grounded out to the pitcher to end the inning.
Red Sox 11, Yankees 2

Bottom 8th: Mike Timlin is pitching for the Red Sox. Jeter grounded out to third. Abreu grounded out to shortstop. Alex Rodriguez grounded out to third.
Red Sox 11, Yankees 2

Top 9th: Chris Britton is pitching for the Yankees. Lowrie struck out looking. Varitek struck out. Cora grounded out to first.
Red Sox 11, Yankees 2

Bottom 9th: Giambi homered to right. Nady singled to leftfield. Matsui singled to right. Nady moved to second. Cano flied out to right. Pudge Rodriguez grounded into a 4-6-3 double play to end the game.
Final score: Red Sox11, Yankees 3

Sidney Ponson (7-5) picks up the loss and Paul Byrd (9-11) get the win.
The Red Sox improve to 77-55, while the Yankees drop to 70-62.

The rubber match of this series is tomorrow night. Good night.

Is it possible that last night was a must-win and tonight is even more so? That sounds like something that really doesn't make sense. However, if it's possible, that's the case. The Yankees need this game badly to keep playoff aspirations moderately intact.

Here's the Red Sox portion of the lineup:

Ellsbury RF
Pedroia 2B
Ortiz DH
Youkilis 1B
Bay LF
Lowrie 3B
Varitek C
Cora SS
Crisp CF

Byrd RHP

Yankees lineup:

Damon CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
A. Rodriguez 3B
Giambi 1B
Nady LF
Matsui DH
Cano 2B
I. Rodriguez C

Ponson RHP

Sorry for the lack of posts today. I'll try to catch up later. It was a busy day. the NY media took on the Boston media in a baseball game at Yankee Stadium. Sadly, we lost, 9-7, and like A-Rod last night, I stunk. I struck out twice in two at-bats.

More importantly, the Yankees had a disastrous game last night.

Alex Rodriguez.

Team.

Didn't have the Red Sox lineup earlier, so here it is:

Ellsbury RF
Pedroia 2B
Ortiz DH
Youkilis 3B
Bay LF
Lowrie SS
Crisp CF
Bailey 1B
Cash C

Wakefield RHP

Alright Yankees fans, it's down to crunch time.

With 32 games remaining (including tonight's), the Yankees (70-60) find themselves five games behind the Red Sox (75-55) in the wild card.

Tonight the Bombers welcome Boston to town for the first contest of a three-game set — potentially the last three games the Red Sox will ever play in Yankee Stadium. I'm Chris Mascaro and I'll be taking you through all of the live game action this evening.

Tonight's game is the start of a six-game homestand for the Yanks, which is big because they will play just 10 games at home in the entire month of September — and because it's against the Red Sox.

Andy Pettitte (13-9, 4.17 ERA) will take the hill tonight for New York. Pettitte had a few rough starts after the All-Star break but pitched a gem in his last outing — Wednesday in Toronto, when he allowed one run on five hits in seven innings.

Pettitte is 1-1 with a 5.06 ERA in two starts against the Red Sox this season (the start he won was actually at Fenway). The current Red Sox have solid career numbers against Pettitte (.341 overall).

Old friend and knuckleballer Tim Wakefield (7-8, 3.67) will pitch for Boston tonight. For Wakefield, the longest tenured Red Sox player, it will be his first start since August 6, when he went on the 15-day disabled list with tightness in the right shoulder.

Pettitte beat Wakefield on July 26 in Boston, and the knuckleballer has stuggled against the Yankees this season. He is 0-1 with a 6.94 ERA, but was decent in his one start in Yankee Stadium (6 1/3 IP, allowing three runs on four hits). However, he is just 1-9 in his last 12 starts at the ballpark in the Bronx. Here are the Yankees' numbers against Wakefield, who they have seen plenty of over the years.

The Red Sox are in the midst of nine-game road trip (with two off days in between), on which they are 4-2. Like the Yankees, Boston also has 32 games left. But the Red Sox have 20 left at home, including 15 of 26 at Fenway in September.

The Yanks and Red Sox have split 12 games so far this season.

Finally, here are the lineups, courtesy of Yankees beat writer Kat O'Brien:

Yankees
1. Damon, CF
2. Jeter, SS
3. Abreu, RF
4. A. Rodriguez, 3B
5. Giambi, 1B
6. Nady, LF
7. Matsui, DH
8. Cano, 2B
9. Molina, C
Pettitte, LHP

Red Sox
1. Ellsbury, RF
2. Pedroia, 2B
3. Ortiz, DH
4. Youkilis, 3B
5. Bay, LF
6. Lowrie, SS
7. Crisp, CF
8. Bailey, 1B
9. Cash, C
Wakefield, RHP

*Note, no J.D. Drew tonight, who just went on the 15-day DL with a bad back.

Obviously there is plenty more to talk about, so get the conversation going in the chat box below and be sure to vote on the poll questions! I'll be updating this page after every half-inning.

Okay, we're about 15 minutes from baseball on My9!

Top of the 1st: Pettitte got ground outs by Ellsbury (to second) and Pedroia (to first) before consecutive two-out walks to Ortiz and Youkilis. But Bay flew out to right to end the inning.

Pettitte, who didn't love the strike zone (especially to Ortiz), threw 23 pitches in the frame.

Bottom of the 1st: Damon hit the 23rd leadoff home run of his career on a 1-and-2 pitch from Wakefield that stayed just fair down the right-field line to give the Yankees a 1-0 lead. It was Damon's 10th homer and 56th RBI of the season.

Jeter grounded out to third, Abreu did the same to second and A-Rod struck out looking.

*Note: The Yanks are 47-15 when scoring first this season.

Top of the 2nd: Pettitte struck Lowrie out looking and got Crisp to fly out, but then he ran into some trouble.

Bailey and Cash (the No. 8 and 9 hitters) each hit swinging bunts down the third-base line for base hits (A-Rod had no play on Bailey's; he bobbled Cash's, but he probably would have been safe regardless) and then Ellsbury drove in Bailey with a single to right to tie the game at 1.

Pedroia smoked a grounder to A-Rod, who got the force at third to end the inning.

Unlucky inning for Pettitte, who has thrown 40 pitches.

Bottom of the 2nd: Giambi grounded back to Wakefield and Nady popped out in foul ground behind first before consecutive two-out singles by Matsui, Cano and Molina.

Molina's drove in Matsui to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead. It was Molina's 15th RBI of the year.

Damon grounded out to second to end the inning. Wakefield has thrown 35 pitches thus far.

Top of the 3rd: Pettitte got off to a rough start in the third, as the first three batters reached base. Ortiz doubled to center before Youkilis did the same to left to score Ortiz and tie the game at 2.

Next was Bay, who drove in Youkilis with a single to center to give the Red Sox a 3-2 lead.

Pettitte settled down after that, getting Lowrie to ground into 4-3 double play and Crisp to strike out looking.

The 3-4-5 hitters for the Red Sox are already 3-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs.

Bottom of the 3rd: Abreu singled after Jeter popped out to second, but A-Rod grounded into a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning.

Top of the 4th: Bailey grounded out to second before Pettitte walked Cash (Andy's third free pass given tonight). Then Ellsbury struck out looking (Pettitte's third K) and Pedroia grounded to third to end the inning.

Pettitte, who again had strike-zone issues, has thrown 78 pitches.

Bottom of the 4th: The first three Yankee hitters all narrowly missed home runs. Giambi and Matsui each flew out deep to right field. Nady was in between those at-bats and flied one to left that just tailed foul. He inevitably walked, but Cano grounded to second to end the inning.

Top of the 5th: Ortiz flew out to the warning track in right for the first out, and then Youkilis grounded out to short.

But then the wheels fell off for Pettitte and the Yanks. Bay (on a ball that Pettitte almost snagged), Lowrie, Crisp and Bailey had consecutive two-out singles — the Crisp one scoring Bay to give the Red Sox a 4-2 lead.

Bailey's single was of the infield variety. He lined a shot to A-Rod, who made a diving stop and fired to first. But Bailey beat the throw, scoring Lowrie. And then Giambi held onto the ball too long (for no apparent reason) allowing Crisp (who stole second during the at-bat) to score as well, giving the Red Sox a 6-2 lead.

That was all for Pettitte, who allowed six runs on 10 hits with three walks and three K's in 4 2/3 innings. He threw 102 pitches.

Brian Bruney (1-0, 2.11) came on and threw one pitch to Cash, who lined a grounder to A-Rod. Rodriguez made the diving stop, but pulled Giambi off the bag with his throw. Yet Giambi made the swipe tag to get the out.

Bottom of the 5th: Molina flied out to center to lead off the inning, but another solo homer by Damon (his 11th of the year) closed the gap to 6-3. Jeter and Abreu singled before A-Rod and Giambi flew out to center.

Top of the 6th: Ellsbury flied out to center before walks to Pedroia, Ortiz and Youkilis loaded the bases. Bay hit a sacrifice fly to left to score Pedroia and put the Red Sox up 7-3.

Lowrie flied to center to end the inning.

Bottom of the 6th: Lefty Javier Lopez came on in relief of Wakefield, who allowed three runs on eight hits with a walk and a strikeout in five innings. He threw 80 pitches.

Lopez had a 1-2-3 inning, as Nady flew to center, Matsui grounded to second and Cano struck out swinging.

Top of the 7th: Righty David Robertson came on in relief of Bruney, who allowed one run on no hits and three walks in 1 1/3 innings.

Robertson gave up a leadoff single to Crisp, but then struck out Bailey (looking) and Cash (swinging). Crisp was thrown out trying to steal second to end the inning.

Bottom of the 7th: Righty Manny Delcarmen (a Boston native) came on in relief of Lopez, who pitched a scoreless sixth.

Delcarmen struck out Pudge (pinch-hitting for Molina), but Damon walked and Jeter singled in front of Abreu, who also walked to load the bases with one out for A-Rod.

Francona then lifted Delcarmen (who recorded just one out) for righty Justin Masterson, who got A-Rod to ground into a 6-3 double play to end the inning. It was the ninth DP he's hit into in the last 18 games.

Top of the 8th: Righty Edwar Ramirez came on in relief of Robertson, who pitched a scoreless seventh.

Ramirez got two quick outs on a pop out by Ellsbury and a ground out by Pedroia. But Ortiz hit a broken-bat double to right and then the Yanks intentionally walked Youkilis in front of Bay, who ripped a grounder to A-Rod, who one-hopped a throw that Giambi couldn't scoop. (Rodriguez was given the error, his 10th of the season). Lowrie lined out to second with the bases loaded to end the inning.

Bottom of the 8th: Giambi reached on Pedroia's fielding error and then Nady singled to center off of Masterson, prompting Francona to bring in lefty Hideki Okijima to face fellow countryman and Hideki — Mr. Matsui. Matsui struck out looking on a 3-and-2 pitch.

Cano popped out to second, and then Jonathan Papelbon came on to face Pudge, who grounded back to the mound on the first pitch.

Top of the 9th: Righty Chris Britton came on in relief of Ramirez, who pitched a scoreless eighth.

Britton allowed a leadoff single to Crisp and then got Alex Cora (pinch-hitting for Bailey) to line out to right. Cash singled to center, but Ellsbury struck out looking (for the second time tonight) and Pedroia lined out to third.

Bottom of the 9th: Papelbon struck Damon out swinging (on an awkward swing), but Jeter reached on an error by Lowrie. Abreu grounded into a force out and then A-Rod struck out swinging to end the game.

That's the ballgame, folks. Yankees lose, 7-3.
Yankees: 70-61
Red Sox: 76-55
*Red Sox lead in the wild card by 6 games.

WP--Wakefield (8-8)
LP--Pettitte (13-10)
SV--Papelbon (34)

Here are your three stars for tonight's game:
1. Ortiz: 2-for-3 with two walks and a run
2. Youkilis: 1-for-2 with three walks, an RBI and a run
3. Bay: 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run

*A bonus star, Bailey: 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run.

Damon hit two homers for the Yanks, while A-Rod went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts.

As always, it was my honor and pleasure to bring all of you tonight's live game action. I'll see everyone soon!

Goodnight.