I Feel Like The Yankees Are The Mets

Why do I feel like the Yankees have turned into the Mets (or at least what the Mets were the past two years)? Inabilities to do small things to win games like get runners in from third with less than two out. Complete inconsistency from a bullpen. Bad/overmanaging. Odd personnel decisions. And doing just enough to make every game close (sans that one against Cleveland), but crushing us in the end.

Are you telling me that they can leave any more men on base? That they can't get a runner home from scoring position? That with one out and Teixeira up in the bottom of the 9th, he can't lift a deep fly ball there to win the game? That Matsui can't follow and pick his teammate up with a big RBI?

You're telling me that after pitching for a week, you could only throw Mariano Rivera out there for 18 pitches? I like Phil Coke a lot, but you can't have Mo face the best guys in the Tampa order the next inning to keep the game a tie? The bullpen had been stellar all game and if you hold them there, you have a chance to win it or at least have the rain push the game as a suspension to the next day, and you can't just bring out Mo for one more freaking inning?

Speaking of that bullpen, now JA and Bugs Bunny can pitch? Really? And when they pitch great, Phil Coke sucks? Textbook definition of an inconsistent bullpen. And before all you Joba-to-the-'pen cases come out, where would you liked to have pitched him in this game? You can't pitch him in the 7th and 8th and bring him back out in the 10th...it just doesn't work like that. If they had lost this game because of runs in the 7th or 8th, I would have heard he should have been pitching there. Now I'm hearing they should have pitched him in the 10th. This is why I continue to say that this problem goes way beyond one guy in the bullpen.

Oh...and the bench/bullpen. Brett Tomko can't be in the bullpen instead of Veras? Or, if you don't want to do that, Shelly Duncan can't be on the bench as a power threat late in games instead of Veras? I actually am a huge Ramiro Pena fan (and was correct in thinking he got flat out robbed on a call late in the game when he should have been safe at first), but the guy should be lifted for pitch hitters late in close games. As should Jose Molina. A-Rod coming back helps out with that. But the team can't expect him to do everything. They still need guys to get sac flies or base hits in those big spots.

Lastly, this team has needed Mark Teixeira to come through in big ways in recent games. He had chances to win games against Boston and Tampa and has failed to get the big hit, or even sac fly, that would have won the game. I'm happy he has been getting big hits in the middle innings. But sorry Michael Kay, you don't earn your Pinstripes until you step up and start actually winning games.

So f'ing frustrating right now to be a Yankees fan. Thank God Lost was on tonight to distract me with time travel and hydrogen bomb mysteries.