Let's Get It On!

Yes, it is the dog days of summer and football is just around the corner. But for baseball fans, it certainly is Christmas in August. MLB has some great division races going on right now. And even better for baseball, pretty much every major market team is represented.

But of course nothing beats the rivalry of the Red Sox/Yankees which is restored with a 4 game series starting in the Bronx tonight.

We all know the Sox have owned the Yanks this year, with Boston winning all 8 meetings this season. That's all fine and dandy, but it's the Bronx Bombers who have a 2 1/2 lead on the Sox. Boston has outscored the Yankees 55-31 in those 8 meetings. There were two games that New York probably should have, could have won. Imagine if the Yankees had won 2 games against Boston. The Yankees would be up 6 1/2 games. If the teams had split the 8 games, the Yanks would have a 10 1/2! game lead on Boston.

One thing Joe Torre did right was knowing the importance winning games against opponents you're next to in the standings. Torre said it best by basically saying when you win one of these games, it's a two game shift in the standings.

So now don't think these games don't matter. But at the same time, New York has yet to beat Boston once and yet here they are in August ahead of the Red Sox.

Obviously a lot has changed since these two teams last met, which was June 11. For one, Jason Bay was considered the AL MVP and batting .277. That talked has died and Bay has gone back to his Pittsburgh Pirates' roots currently batting .252. Oh, and now the Red Sox are the latest franchise to have the dark steroid cloud hovering above.

The Yankees have all the confidence and momentum going into this series. Not only are they home, but they have their 4 studs set up to start all 4 games. Joba Chamberlain starts tonight. If the Yanks can win tonight, they can probably take 3 games this weekend.

Back in the middle of June, New York dropped 2 of 3 at home to the Washington Nationals. They lost the series finale 3-0. They scored 7 total runs in three games vs. the Nats. At home! In Coors Field East!

Since that loss, the Yankees have gone 28-13.

Remember Boston's epic meltdown against Baltimore back on June 30? The Red Sox blew a 10-1 lead! to the Orioles, losing 11-10. Since that horrific loss, Boston is 15-14.

Starting tonight, the Yankees can put a choke hold on the division and leave Boston to battle for the Wild card.

News And Notes

Geez! Enough of Plax, Favre, TO, etc. The whole flatulent story is pretty funny though.

Jeremy Maclin signed a 5 year deal with the Eagles. What does this signify? We should be able to tell if Chase Daniel made Maclin or vice versa. If it's the latter, the Philadelphia Eagles could be in for another solid year. This could even be one of the more talented offenses Donavon McNabb has been around. He'll have two young stud receivers in Maclin and Desean Jackson. And if Brian Westbrook's ankle can hold up, look out for Philly.

Cincinnati pitcher Edinson Volquez is out for the year and will need Tommy John surgery. Ouch. You never want to see a young dominant pitcher go down like that. Reportedly Volquez will be out for 12 months, so we might not see him at all next season. I'm sure a trip to Alabama and Dr. James Andrews is in his near future. If Dr. James Andrews is so great, how come when his name is mentioned it's never a good thing?

Remember the Texas Rangers traded Volquez to the Reds for Josh Hamilton.

One of the biggest surprises of the MLB season has to be the San Francisco Giants. Currently at 58-48, the Giants are 1/2 back of the Wild Card behind division rival Colorado. This time last year, the Giants were 47-64. They even made a move on this year's trade deadline by acquiring Freddy Sanchez from Pittsburgh's fire sale.

Sanchez had been a solid hitter with the Pirates, even winning a batting title. Now, he finally gets to experience playing meaningful baseball in September, and August for that matter.

The reason for San Fran's resurgence is the pitching staff. Tim Lincecum might go back to back for the Cy Young. And chances are, he'll win a bunch in his career.

Lincecum and fellow starter Matt Cain are 2 and 3 overall for ERA in the National League. Lincecum's ERA is 2.18 and Cain's is 2.25. Pretty solid.

Now imagine if Randy Johnson wasn't on the DL and Barry Zito was owning up to at least half of the $18.5 million annual salary?

At one time, Kansas City's Zack Greinke was 8-1 and the biggest story of the year. After last night's loss, Greinke is now 10-7 but still has the AL's lowest ERA at 2.36.

Tainted Titles

I was wondering how ESPN would fill 45 minutes of sportscenter now that Brett Favre, at the moment, is not coming back.

Well, that didn't take long.

And honestly, was anyone really surprised? David Ortiz was nothing in Minnesota and then became Big Papi overnight in Boston. And the last couple of seasons his numbers had significantly dropped.

As a Yankees' fan, I'm very much relieved. Finally the Red Sox have been spotted under the steroid cloud. And it's hard to find two bigger stars.

When the Yankees blew the 3-0 2004 ALCS, I felt like my dog had got hit by a car. Now, it's like I woke up from a horrible dream.

Manny and Papi were the faces of the Red Sox resurgence. They were the cornerstones of the franchise. They were the biggest names in Boston this past decade. 100 years from now, when someone looks back at how the Red Sox reversed the cursed, the first two people they'll see are Manny and Papi.

So are Boston's 2 World Series' tainted? Yeah, they are.

This was the best 1-2 punch in all of sports. They were lethal together. With Bonds and A-Rod, it was about homerun records, neither of them had won a World Series. With Roger Clemens, it was a pitcher, someone who only played every 5th day. And Clemens was juicing at the end of his career. Manny and Ortiz were in their prime.

Ortiz single handily brought Boston back from the dead in the '04 ALCS. Remember those walk off homeruns? Well now we know he had a lot of help, and so did the guy batting in front of him.

Why am I so relieved? Because as a Yankees' fan I've been tormented the last couple of years about my team-"Jeter and the cheaters." The Red Sox had flown under the roid radar and were presumably clean. But come on! Remember this team was a bunch of self proclaimed idiots. Well now they're really looking like idiots. If Manny and Ortiz were juicing, what's not to make you think that whole team wasn't. Their entire lineup was having career years-Bill Mueller, Kevin Millar, Trot Nixon, Jason Varitek. And now don't you think Varitek had a roid rage moment back in '04 when he attacked A-Rod, ala Clemens/Piazza?

Are the Yankees' titles tainted? Well first we have to determine exactly when the steroid era began. It could have been back in the late '80's with the "Bash Bothers" winning with Oakland. Roger Clemens won two rings with the Yankees, in '99 and 2000. You can very much argue that Clemens was nearly as instrumental in those Yankees' titles as Manny and Ortiz were to Boston's.

When asked about Ortiz testing positive, Alex Rodriguez said,

"He's my friend and I care for David.

I have nothing else to say about it."

When A-Rod was busted last spring, well, we've heard what Ortiz had to say about baseball and steroids.

From 1997-2002 with the Twins, Ortiz hit 58 homeruns in 1477 at bats. A homerun every 25 at bats.

From 2003-2007 with the Red Sox, he hit 208 homeruns in 2738. A homerun every 13 at bats.

We've all heard the phrase, "Cheaters never win." Well, these two guys cheated and they won. They carried that team to their titles. And they were cheating.

There's still nearly 100 more names on the infamous list, but really, how much bigger names can come out. If Albert Pujols or Derek Jeter are named, I might just give up on baseball and feel like a huge part of my life has been stolen from me. That would probably be my worst nightmare.

How do you say Big cheatin liar in spanish?

The Best Player of This Decade

As we head toward the All Star break, I got to thinking about some of the greatest players this last decade. Sure, that thought matters about as much as what Ocho Cinco is tweeting right now-who cares. But you have to give some players the benefit of doubt. Right now, Albert Pujols is probably the best hitter not linked to steroids, but to some, even he remains questionable.

Other than Derek Jeter, the best overall player in this last decade who you just cannot imagine being linked to PED's-Ichiro Suzuki.

One note, I am not from Seattle. I am not a Mariners' fan. And I am not Asian.

This past decade, Ichiro's play on the field has been about as consistent as a Cincinnati Bengals' player ending up behind bars.

On and off the field, Ichiro is all business. It's rare to see a player so focused 100% of the time. At the plate, he has incredible bat speed and one of the best eyes in the batter's box. Other than Vladimir Guerrero, he's perhaps the only current player who can hit any ball thrown his way. When he swings at the ball, he's nearly halfway down the first base line, making any ground ball a close play at first, or no play at all.

In the outfield, Ichiro is just as lethal. His career (9+ seasons) fielding percentage is .993. He has 79 assists while committing a total of 18 errors!

Let's compare that to Torii Hunter.
In 13 season's, Hunter has 78 assists, a .992 fielding percentage and 28 errors.
Hunter has also won a Gold Glove ever year since 2001.

Ichiro's nearly impossible to strikeout. In 5,801 career at bats, he has only struck out 555 times. That's less than 10% of the time. Almost equal to the country's unemployment rate.

Since 2001, Ichiro's inaugural season with MLB, he has 1,928 hits. In that time frame, Derek Jeter is next with 1,629.

The stats speak for themselves:

Ichiro is a career .332 hitter.

Not only is the guy reliable, he's also durable, playing in at least 157 games every year.

He's been selected to the All Star Game every year. He was the MVP of the All Star Game in 2007.

He's won a Gold Glove every year.

In 2001, his first season in MLB, are you ready for this?-
Of course he was an All Star and won a Gold Glove
Rookie of the Year
Silver Slugger-Led the AL in batting average at .350
Led the league in stolen bases with 56
Led the league in hits with 242
And was the also the MVP

In 2004, he led the AL in batting average at .372! Nomar Garciaparra also hit .372 in 2000. Other than that, the last player to hit above .372 in the American
League was George Brett hitting .390 in 1980.

In the National League:
2000-Todd Helton-.372
1999-Larry Walker-.379
1997-Tony Gwynn-.372
1994-Tony Gwynn-.394

Yeah, Tony Gwynn was that great!

In 8 full seasons, Ichiro's led the AL in hits 5 times. In 2004, Ichiro broke the all time single season record with 262 hits!, breaking Greorge Sisler's mark of 257 set in 1920.
The most hits Pete Rose had in a single season was 230 in 1973.
Pete Rose played 24 seasons in finished with the all time hit record of 4,256.

After 8 complete seasons in MLB, Ichiro had 1,805 hits. Rose played for 24 seasons. So lets times Ichiro's hits after 8 years by 3 (which would be 24 seasons, I know you see where I'm coming, but I'm just trying to make this as blunt as possible) Ichiro would have 5,415 career hits!

As a lead off hitter!, Ichiro has been intentionally walked 138 times He led the AL in intentional walks with 27 in 2002 and 19 in 2004. His 162 game average for intentional walks is 16. To put that in perspective, Albert Pujols's 162 game average for intentional passes is 23.

He has 333 career stolen bases, been caught stealing 75 times.

2001, his only postseason appearance, all Ichiro did was bat .421.

How has this guy stayed in Seattle this long?! Could you imagine the hype for this guy if he ever went to Boston or New York?

Whoa Now! Let's Not Overdue It.

Boy, a lot of people are really getting caught up on the whole Michael Jackson death.

Even one of the best NBA players of all time.

The greatest moment of Earvin "Magic" Johnson's life was Michael Jackson ordering Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Really Magic?!

It wasn't the birth of one of your children? It wasn't the day you met or married your wife? It wasn't winning a NCAA Championship? It wasn't winning one of your five NBA Titles? It wasn't winning an Olympic Gold Medal? And really, it wasn't Michael giving you the privilege to dress up like a fool in one of his videos.

Honestly Magic, you have a lot to live for...in so many ways.

Hell, I guess some people really are hard to please.

Let's all go out and get some Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Sandman Reaches Milestone-500 Saves

Not even close.

He's one of my favorite baseball players of all time. He's been a fixture for the NY Yankees for as long as Derek Jeter. He's been the most dominant and reliable closer for the last 13 years, and at the same time, one of the more humble players ever.

On the night when Mariano Rivera got his first ever RBI, the Sandman became the second player ever to reach 500 career saves. And by the way, MO really has a nice swing.

The all time saves leader, Trevor Hoffman with 571, is still a good two seasons ahead of Rivera, but we can hardly compare the two. Hoffman pitched most of his career in the NL West. Rivera will pitch his entire career in the AL East. Rivera has kept his composure and dominance throughout his entire career while playing on the sports' biggest stage.

Of course what puts "The Great Mariano" ahead of everyone else is his career post season performance. To go along with his 4 championship rings, Rivera holds the record for most post season saves with 34. Coming in second, Dennis Eckersley with 15. His 9 World Series saves are also a record.

In his post season career, Rivera is 8-1 with a 0.77 ERA to go along with his before mentioned record of 34 saves.

In an injury bug era, we rarely encounter a player who reaches double digits in years played at the same time never showing signs of fatigue or diminishing skill. This is the same era where the closer's role was changed to pitching only the ninth. Rivera's 500th save last night was his 110th save of more than 3 outs.

Rivera has shown great durability in his 15th season while showing tremendous consistency. Since being named the Yankees' closer in 1997, Mariano has recorded at least 28 saves in each season. And yet he's done this entirely with one single pitch, the cutter, which starts out on one side of the plate and cuts across it at the last second. A total thing of beauty.

So it came as no surprise last night when manager Joe Girardi called to Rivera with 2 outs and 2 on in the 8th inning with the Yankees clinging to a one run lead. It was Joe Girardi who was behind the plate for the Yankees when Mariano recorded his first save ever on May 17, 1996.

When asked if Rivera was the greatest he has ever played with, Derek Jeter replied,

“Yes, No question,” he said without a moment of hesitation. “There has never been anybody more consistent. Mo is great in the regular season, the postseason, even spring training.”

Rivera has been a fixture for the Yankees and their fans for 15 years now. And for those 15 years, when the Yankees have the lead late in a game, MO is all everyone needs to know. I can't imagine the Yankees without him.

OK, so more recently, Rivera might be more remembered for his blown save in the 2001 World Series. Or the blown save in Game 4 at Fenway in the 2004 ALCS. But really, those are two small blemishes on a Hall of Fame career. Remember, the Yankees would not have won 4 World Series's and would not be in position to win ever year without "The Great Mariano."

The clock is ticking. He probably has at least two magical seasons left, seeing Mariano pitch in person is a sight every sports fan should experience. Try to see him at Yankee Stadium because when he comes out to "Enter Sandman," the moment is almost as breath taking as seeing Rivera pitch.

Is Mariano Rivera the best closer ever? Not even close.

Congratulations Mariano Rivera! You are one of the best players of all time.

For more on Mariano's milestone achievement check out Peter Abraham's post.

After Rivera's 500th save, ESPN had a Sunday Night Conversation with MO and Tim Kurkjian did a really nice piece of Mariano's career thus far.

The Day That Music Died, Part 2

From the "King of Pop" to "Wacko Jacko," Michael Jackson had two separate lives. Let's face it, the Michael Jackson we all fell in love with died sometime in the late '80's. Jackson ruled the music world basically from 1969 to 1984.

His name will now forever be linked with Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra. All three performers' music will played till the end of time. But Jackson's music is different. I don't anyone from my generation who owns an Elvis CD. Sinatra was pure classic. With MJ, his music is still played on the radio, bars and clubs, karaoke, wedding receptions, etc, and will be forever. I can guarantee sometime in the next 20 years my daughter will be listening to Michael Jackson and will probably have her own "Thriller" album.

Jackson was another performer who to shot to stardom at a young age only to see their career take a tremendous plunge. Michael's plunge was totally different. His extracurricular activities made him just as popular from his "Neverland Ranch", obsession with young boys, buying the bones of the "elephant man", to dangling one of his kids from a hotel balcony. This was a guy who sold a gazillion records, seemed to have more money than Wal-Mart and yet died greatly in debt.

The day Michael Jackson died will be one of those days when you'll remember exactly where you were and what you were doing. My girlfriend called me just after 5pm and asked if I was watching TV? In this era, when you get that kind of call you immediately think some horrific accident or terrorist attack. How I wasn't watching TV or on the computer is amazing itself. My daughter was watching "Mary Poppins" when I got the call. I shut it off immediately as my girlfriend said, "Michael Jackson died!"

What!? I can't say I was totally shocked or surprised. Considering Jackson's lifestyle, you're kind of surprised he lasted this long. At the same time chills raced through my body and mind. Someone who once owned the world and seemed at times "Invincible" (no pun intended), was mortal. Someone who influenced a whole generation and will influence many more to come, had left this world.

A celebrities death is always something that shocks the world. Yeah, I remember the days Tupac and Ronald Reagan died, but you don't get much bigger than Michael Jackson. You know it's huge when nearly every television station cuts to breaking coverage of Jackson's death. Even more, when every radio station is playing continuous MJ music, when you drive by a bar you can hear Billie Jean pouring out the door, it really hits you knowing that a historic icon has died.

What was great was the fact that MTV and VH-1 played Jackson videos throughout the weekend. I can't think of the last time I watched these two networks but it was outstanding to see MTV and VH-1 actually play videos! Funny cause it was Jackson who made both these stations. Watching his videos was like a trip down memory lane, making you fell like a kid again. His videos are still incredible today as they were 25 years ago. And they still will be in 25 years.

Jackson's career started well before I was born and I was merely 8 years old when he moonwalked across the stage. Honestly, that may have been one of the greatest moments of this era. The next day at school, everyone was trying to moonwalk. No one moved like Michael. No one ever will.

He was an inspiration for so many today and will continue to inspire future musicians. No other person had the type of impact on music and pop culture as Michael Jackson.

There's already jokes about MJ and his death. There's already the conspiracy that he's not really dead, he faked his death because of financial debt. I'm sure Elvis impersonators in Vegas will soon be joined by Michael Jackson.

Now a legend, Michael Jackon's legacy will continue forever and there will never be another quite like him.

RIP King of Pop

My favorite Michael Jackson videos:

Billie Jean

Thriller

Rock With You

You can never get enough of this one with Naomi Campbell.

Magic Choke Away Another One Late

Somehow the Orlando Magic find themselves done, down 3 games to 1. The Magic could easily be up 3-1. After being blown out in Game 1, Orlando has actually outplayed the Los Angeles Lakers the last 3 games.

Boy, does experience matter. Orlando was a missed layup away from winning Game 2. They had no chance in OT. And last night, they controlled the entire first half, blew the game in the third quarter, and then came back and had the game wrapped up in the 4th.

But honestly! Do basketball players not watch other basketball games? Do they not learn from experience? Do they not understand Basketball 101?

With Orlando in control in the final minute of Game 4, up 3 points, Dwight Howard bricked two crucial free throws. Howard only needed one to basically seal the deal. And even missing both shots from the charity stripe, the Magic were still up 3 with less than 10 seconds remaining.

All they had to do was defend the three point shot, something you would think Orlando knows a lot about. And if LA doesn't drive the ball for an easy two, FOUL the guy before he has a chance to shoot a 3! Like I said before, Basketball 101!

Not only did Orlando fail to foul Derek Fisher, Jameer Nelson failed to get up in Fisher's grill and contest the shot.

Did we not learn anything from Memphis and the 2008 NCAA Championship Game? No, not cheating on your SAT's.

I know you can't put the total blame on the players. A lot has to fall on Stan Van Gundy who very much played the role of the Master Of Panic last night. I don't know what he told his team on that possession, but I hoped he told them to foul once the Lakers moved the ball past half court.

By not fouling Fisher, Van Gundy gave Phil Jackson, one of the most overrated coaches in NBA history, his record 10th Finals ring. I will write an article on why Jackson is one of the most overrated coaches in all sports in some other time. Really not much explaining to do there.

Orlando should have won last night's game by double digits. The reason they lost, free throws! Larry Bird used to call them "free points." The Magic were 22-37 from the "free point" line, just under 60%.

And with the game tied 91-91 with just over a minute to go in OT, it seemed like the Lakers had the ball an eternity. How many chances did Orlando give them before Fisher hit the game clinching 3? Like the whole second half, Orlando failed to crash the boards as a team.

And Kobe got away with a huge no call on Fisher's trey. Kobe hit Jameer hard with an elbow to a face that should have been an easy offensive foul. But at the same time, what's been fun about the last few games is the fact that the refs have been letting the teams play.

Kobe Bryant is the epitome of a street baller. You know, whenever he misses a shot, his hands immediately go up in the air and he has that astonished look on his face. "What! No Foul?!" Whenever he loses the ball, the same surprised expression. Everyone's played a pick up game with a guy similar to this. And how fun is that?

We've always heard about how important experience is when it comes to the NBA Finals. There was the Piston's trying to get over the hump in the late '80s. Even Jordan had his learning experience before polishing off 6 rings.

This same Lakers' team couldn't get over the hump last year against Boston, but are now proving last year's Finals lost has been a major stepping stone. But hey, you wouldn't think that with guys like Phil Jackson, Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher would need a learning experience.

The last three games of the NBA Finals have been great with two overtime games. But you could just feel Orlando not having the magic to finish a game off. (I know, good one.) If Kobe and the Lakers hadn't struggled from the line in Game 3, this very well could have been a sweep.

And speaking of Magic, one final note (since this will probably be my final post for a couple of weeks, I'm moving and will actually be going back to work for a week.)

I miss Charles Barkley and TNT's NBA coverage. I've heard that TNT's crew is covering the Finals on the NBA Channel. That must be on the same satellite feed as Versus, I don't get it but wish I did. I can't stand ESPN's studio crew and don't care to watch it. Really no personality there. Stuart Scott is stuck in 1997 and thinks he is still cool. Was he ever? I don't even know what Barry that is on the show. And Mike Wilbon, well, since the popularity of PTI, Wilbon has grown a huge head and is so stuck on himself that he's more worried about going out and being seen at the big city clubs. Like he's some big time celebrity.

And Magic Johnson? Yeah, Magic is one of the best players to ever dribble a basketball. But last night during ESPN's halftime "show," I heard Magic say, "Like I said before the game, if Odom, Gasol, Ariza and Fisher don't shoot well, the Lakers won't win."

Really Magic!!! That's the best your basketball mind can come up with? Duh! That's like saying the team that scores the most points will win the basketball game.

What's even worse, I'm sure on the postgame show, Magic said something like this, "I told you before the game those four players need to shoot the ball for Lakers to win. And the second half they came through." Note: I have yet to see the postgame "show."

How right you are Magic.

As for Orlando, do they really want to win Game 5 and have to travel back to LA and get blown out.

Kobe Leads Lakers As Magic Disappear

When Kobe gets that look in his eye, Mamba's zoned in and there's no stopping him. Kobe single handily took over Game 1 of the NBA Finals as the Lakers routed Orlando.

LA basically only needed the 2nd and 3rd quarters to seal Game 1. Orlando actually had the lead after the first and were even up 33-28 in the second quarter when Mamba stole the show. Bryant had 30 points in a 16 minute span from the second quarter into the the third. The game was well over by the start of the 4th quarter.

In 38 minutes, Kobe had 40 points, 8 boards, 8 dimes, 2 steals and 2 blocks while hitting some ridiculous shots.

As for the Magic, call it stage fright. They just couldn't hit anything. You know the old saying, "Live by the 3, die by the 3. After putting on a 3 point clinic against Cleveland, Orlando shot just 8-23 from downtown in Game 1. The Magic shot 30% overall.

And it's not like the Lakers were playing great defense. Orlando had their shots, but they just couldn't hit anything from wide open 3's to missed layups. A lot of their shots weren't even close.

How does Dwight Howard only attempt 6 shots, making just 1! Howard did get to the line 16 times but finished with only 12 points. The Lakers outscored Orlando 56-22 in the paint.

Mickael Pietrus was the Magic's leading scorer coming off the bench with 14.

The entire starters for Orlando had a combined 46 points, shooting 11-46. That's 24%! Kobe had 40 by himself!

The good news for Orlando, it's just one game. We've seen this team catch fire and when they do, the best player on the planet can't stop them. They've dug themselves deep a couple of times in the playoffs. They were down 2-1 in the first round to Philadelphia. In the Conference Semifinals, they were blown out in Game 2 at Boston. They were down 3-2 to the Celtics.

The bad news? Phil Jackson coached teams are 43-0 when they win Game 1 of a playoff series.

One other note. The Conference Finals wrapped up last Saturday night. That's a 4 day layoff. And now Game 2 of the Finals isn't until Sunday night, at 9pm EST. That's one! playoff game in a week! What the hell are you thinking David Stern. Especially after last night's blowout Game 1, this great post season has quickly lost momentum. Why not Game 2 Saturday night prime time. Do you realize how many people will be turned off by the Game 2 late start on a Sunday night. Did you look at the World Series ratings in the last few years?

And it's between Games 1 and 2! It's not like there's travel involved between the games.

Ortiz Heats Up, Goes 1-5

How bad are things for David Ortiz? He went 1-5 last night and actually raised his batting average! Ortiz, we need to find a new nickname for this guy because "Big Papi" doesn't work anymore, came into last night's game batting .185. By going 1-5 with 3 K's, his average actually sparked up to .186!

I wish I could say I feel sorry for the guy and the Red Sox, but Nah!!!! I fucking love it! I'm not going to bring up PED's, steroids, no Manny hitting behind him, being an average player when he was with the Twins, etc. Whoops! Just did. Sorry. No, not really.

This guy is a mess. And I love it! Maybe it was a good thing that guy tried to bury an Ortiz jersey in the new Yankee Stadium. And maybe it was a good thing the Yankees spent X amount of dollars to dig up that jersey. The Yankees are in first place and everyone's hitting homeruns at the new Yankee Stadium, except Lil' Papi.

Maybe the "Mendoza Line" should now be referred to as the "Big Papi Line"?

Yankees Still Rolling, Set MLB Record

On a night where Joba Chamberlain had the best game of his career, the first place New York Yankees set a MLB record. That record? 18 straight games without an error. During that span, the Yankees are 14-4.

A big part of that record can be credited to Mark Teixeira. Not only does Teixeira bring consistency at the plate, by he also brings a gold glove to first base. The Yankees really haven't had a solid first baseman since Tino Martinez.

While exorcising the demons from the 2007 playoff "bug game" in Cleveland, Joba returned to the scene of the crime and Progressive Field was littered with birds and the infamous midges.

Chamberlain got to work right away retiring the first 11 Cleveland batters he faced. Joba also had the longest outing of his career pitching 8 innings. For the night, Joba gave up 2 runs, 4 hits, 5 K's and 2 walks. He also hit 97 mph as he approached 100 pitches.

But the biggest play of the game was Joba's defense. With runners on first and second and nobody out, Kelly Shoppach bunted a ball that popped up toward the third base line. Joba quickly jumped off the mound and made a full body dive to catch and ball and land on his stomach. Joba got back up and fired the ball to second for the double play. After the play, Joba did his signature fist pump. It was an amazing play!

Mariano Rivera came on and worked a perfect ninth for his 11th save and the Yankees have now won 15 of the last 19. The scary thing? This team is only getting better.

Derek Jeter extended his hitting streak to 15 games and has upped his average to .311. Guess he's washed up. Teixeira also extended his hit streak to 14 games.