FOR THE YANKEES, THE PLAYOFFS AREN'T WAY OFF

A little while ago, we called for Alfonso Soriano to hit about a dozen homers before season’s end. As of this writing, he has already done this, with a month to go.

The Yankee offense has exploded. Fonzie has been the key. Brett Gardner and Ichiro hitting before our big guns has been lethal. The Yankees are once again the Bombers.

Curtis Granderson is heating up and the bench is stocked with the big bats of Mark Reynolds and Vernon Wells. Oh yeah, there’s this guy named Robinson Cano. He’s pretty good.

The Captain has returned, and is contributing. Nobody doubts Derek Jeter’s abilities at the plate when the chips are down.

Even ARod is showing up. These past two weeks, he is hitting .298 with 3 dingers. More importantly for Alex Rodriguez, he has kept his mouth shut for a few days.

One thing about the Yankees, it is that they know when to turn it on. Lately, they have been playing at a scorching pace. The post-season looms, and the final push is on.

The pitching has been spotty at times. CC Sabathia still hasn’t reverted to his classic form (no pun intended) but is at least battling through his issues and not giving up. Phil Hughes, however, needs to be nailed to the bench.

But it’s not all bad news on the mound. Hiroki Kuroda has had himself a mini-slump, but as he did before, he will battle back. Andy Pettitte is a battle-proven veteran. He won’t let us down when it counts. Ivan Nova is once again Super. Oh yeah, there’s this guy named Mariano Rivera. He’s pretty good.

The Yankees are playing well against a team they absolutely must beat, the Orioles. 2 out of three ain't bad. The two teams ahead of them in the standings, the Rays and the A’s, are beating the snot out of each other. When they are finished with that, each of them will face the powerful Texas Rangers in short order. That won’t be an easy road.

As for the Yankees, they get the White Sox after the Orioles. Revenge has to be fresh in their minds concerning Chicago. Then, the Boston Red Sox. Always the Red Sox. The Bombers just proved they can win against that team. And this is the time of year when the Pinstripes bring magic to New York bats.

Bats are heating up. Ranks are being replenished. You can practically hear the Bombers set their jaws in unison. They have stayed in the playoff hunt, by hook or by crook, since Day One. They were never supposed to be here remember? Joe Girardi should not need to pay for a drink in this town again. Ever.

The playoffs aren’t way off. They are in sight, and reachable.

Believe!

Read Casey's take on the Yankees, Orioles game yesterday. A different perspective in A DUMB GIRARDI GAMBLE JUST COST THE YANKS THE PLAYOFFS, although I suspect that was more "frustration" than giving up.


Chad R. MacDonald
BYB Features Writer
Facebook: New York Yankees the Home of Champions
My Blog: ChadRants


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