There are now three things you can count on every single year: Death, taxes, and annoyingly overconfident Yankee fans.
The latest example comes on the heels of the Bombers four-game massacre of the suddenly fallible Boston Red Sox this weekend. Now, the Yankees have a six-and-a-half game lead on their nemesis, and their fans are already ordering 2009 Yankees World Series DVD's, and anointing the Sox's season over.
I'll give the Pinstripes one thing: The AL East race is over. But that's it.
And upon further review, we've seen this movie starring the 2009 Yankees several times before between 2001-2007. You can concoct the witty title, but I'll give you the synopsis: Team with the best record and the best offense folds due to shaky pitching in the postseason.
The Yankees have the best record in the American League at 69-42. Just like they did in 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2006. Combined playoff record those years: 17-19, one World Series appearance, no titles.
The Yankees lead the AL in runs scored. They also crossed the plate with the most frequency in 2002, 2005, and 2006. For their offensive proficiency, the Yanks were rewarded with ALDS losses each of those years.
On the pitching front? Middle of the pack, as usual. The Yanks are 8th in the AL in ERA, behind every possible playoff team except for the Angels. Sound familiar? The last four Yankee playoff disappointments, their pitching staff ranked 8th, 7th, 9th, and 6th.
This year's pitching staff once again follows the formula: The greatest closer of all-time(Mo Rivera), a competent set-up guy(Phil Hughes), but a lack of dominance in the rotation. C.C. Sabathia may be getting paid like an ace, but he's followed up better seasons than this one with deplorable postseason results(career 7.92 ERA in the playoffs). Does A.J. Burnett(10-5, 3.68 ERA, 1.37 WHIP) distinguish himself from prior No. 2's(Randy Johnson, Mike Mussina, Kevin Brown, this decade's version of Clemens and Pettite) that haven't excelled in the playoffs? Can you trust Joba Chamberlain(8-2 yes but 1.452 WHIP) in a big spot yet?
Conversely, the Red Sox boast Josh Beckett, one of the best postseason pitchers in recent history(7-2, 2.90 ERA, 0.94 WHIP) headlining their rotation. Their No. 2 pitcher, Jon Lester, is arguably having a better campaign than anyone in the Yanks rotation. OK, the back of their rotation kind of blows. But how many playoff series boil down to the 3rd and 4th starters? I'd be comfortable trotting out Beckett/Lester 5 times in a 7-game series, or 4 times in a short series.
The Sox's bullpen deploys just as many weapons as the Yanks. The vast differences lie in the lineups. But there have been much worse offenses(see 06 Cardinals), than the Sox's Martinez/Youkilis/Pedroia/Green/Lowell/Bay/Ellsbury/Drew/Ortiz starting nine.
And as someone once coined about 100 years ago, "Pitching and defense wins championships." A robust offense only gets you to title contention. Arms get you hoisting the trophy.
I'm not convinced the Yankees have those arms. And 2002 to 2007 supports my case pretty well.
The latest example comes on the heels of the Bombers four-game massacre of the suddenly fallible Boston Red Sox this weekend. Now, the Yankees have a six-and-a-half game lead on their nemesis, and their fans are already ordering 2009 Yankees World Series DVD's, and anointing the Sox's season over.
I'll give the Pinstripes one thing: The AL East race is over. But that's it.
And upon further review, we've seen this movie starring the 2009 Yankees several times before between 2001-2007. You can concoct the witty title, but I'll give you the synopsis: Team with the best record and the best offense folds due to shaky pitching in the postseason.
The Yankees have the best record in the American League at 69-42. Just like they did in 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2006. Combined playoff record those years: 17-19, one World Series appearance, no titles.
The Yankees lead the AL in runs scored. They also crossed the plate with the most frequency in 2002, 2005, and 2006. For their offensive proficiency, the Yanks were rewarded with ALDS losses each of those years.
On the pitching front? Middle of the pack, as usual. The Yanks are 8th in the AL in ERA, behind every possible playoff team except for the Angels. Sound familiar? The last four Yankee playoff disappointments, their pitching staff ranked 8th, 7th, 9th, and 6th.
This year's pitching staff once again follows the formula: The greatest closer of all-time(Mo Rivera), a competent set-up guy(Phil Hughes), but a lack of dominance in the rotation. C.C. Sabathia may be getting paid like an ace, but he's followed up better seasons than this one with deplorable postseason results(career 7.92 ERA in the playoffs). Does A.J. Burnett(10-5, 3.68 ERA, 1.37 WHIP) distinguish himself from prior No. 2's(Randy Johnson, Mike Mussina, Kevin Brown, this decade's version of Clemens and Pettite) that haven't excelled in the playoffs? Can you trust Joba Chamberlain(8-2 yes but 1.452 WHIP) in a big spot yet?
Conversely, the Red Sox boast Josh Beckett, one of the best postseason pitchers in recent history(7-2, 2.90 ERA, 0.94 WHIP) headlining their rotation. Their No. 2 pitcher, Jon Lester, is arguably having a better campaign than anyone in the Yanks rotation. OK, the back of their rotation kind of blows. But how many playoff series boil down to the 3rd and 4th starters? I'd be comfortable trotting out Beckett/Lester 5 times in a 7-game series, or 4 times in a short series.
The Sox's bullpen deploys just as many weapons as the Yanks. The vast differences lie in the lineups. But there have been much worse offenses(see 06 Cardinals), than the Sox's Martinez/Youkilis/Pedroia/Green/Lowell/Bay/Ellsbury/Drew/Ortiz starting nine.
And as someone once coined about 100 years ago, "Pitching and defense wins championships." A robust offense only gets you to title contention. Arms get you hoisting the trophy.
I'm not convinced the Yankees have those arms. And 2002 to 2007 supports my case pretty well.
