In this oh-so-dull New Mexico afternoon, I will be revealing my deepest thoughts about trades an’ stuff for the Yankees. Besides fire Cashman:

Idea #1: TRADE KYLE FARNSWORTH TO THE GIANTS FOR NOAH LOWRY.

Do you really want a set up man with an ERA over 4.00? No, but the Giants could sure use him (on their active roster, they have a grand combined total of four saves, one for Steve Kline and three for Brad Hennessey). He’s big and he throws hard (and the Giants are in another league, so maybe they don’t know about his little control problem!). Lowry is expendable to the Giants because they have Matt Morris, Barry Zito, Tim Lincecum, and Matt Cain making up the rest of the rotation. New set up man: Brian Bruney and Scott Proctor platooning until Phil Hughes comes back. He’s young and already having injury problems, so if he pitches one inning each appearance, the Yankees would need a blue chipper like Lowry in the rotation in his place. Next year, Rocket would probably be gone, so it works out that Hughes would join the rotation next year.

Idea #2: RELEASE LUIS VIZCAISTINKO AND SIGN BERNIE WILLIAMS.

Of course, getting rid of a pitcher happens after getting Lowry. But does anyone in New York still want Vizcaino coming in when it counts? Imagine: Rocket has just thrown six innings of good baseball in the 7th game of the ALCS vs. the Red Sox. Yanks are up 4-2. Do you want Vizcaino coming in? Shouldn’t take much thought to reach the conclusion: **** no! Bernie would help our constantly getting hurt and coming back outfield, too. You can’t argue much with me about this.

Idea #3: TRADE JOHNNY DAMON TO THE ANGELS FOR CASEY KOTCHMAN.

It’s simple: The Angels would take Damon because of his experience, the Yankees would take Kotchman because of his talent. Hillenbrand gets moved to first by the Angels, Damon DH’s. Kotchman takes over first. Phelps and Cairo platoon DH. This trade would work, mark my words.

Idea #4: SIGN ICHIRO IN THE 2007 OFF SEASON TO PLAY CENTER FIELD. TWO YEAR CONTRACT.

What real explanation do you need?

First thing’s first: Congratulations Justin Verlander, Rookie of the Year in 2006, for retiring 27 Milwaukee Brewers for 12 strikeouts. A couple of good plays saved him from a good shutout ("only"). In New York, no no-nos, but a three run shot by Bobby is the game winning homer for the Yanks-with no one out in the 1st. Wang fantastic, as Cairo and Abreu have both been as of late. Who thought the Yankees having a .500 record could be oh so very sweet? Mo is also picking up the pace, saving his eighth. His ERA is all the way down to 3.96, and let it stay below that dreaded 4.00 mark for the rest of the season. Two no-nos! And everyone said no hitters were becoming a thing of the past. Yanks are in second place, and they haven’t lost a game in a week (knock on wood). A great day for baseball. Lastly, my question for the public: Do you think the Yankees should shoot for the wild card at this point, or try to overtake the Red Sox?

P.S. Congrats, Justin for not letting the birds on the field distract you.

My dad and I decided to do a thing where we chose our all-time coaching staffs. We took turns picking manager, bench coach, hitting coach, pitching coach, 1st base coach, and 3rd base coach. Just wanted to post this because it seems kinda interesting. So, without further ado, we will start with my all time coaching staff and move on to my father’s after that.

My coaching staff:

MANAGER: John McGraw

BENCH COACH: Miller Huggins

HITTING COACH: Ted Williams

PITCHING COACH: Johnny Sain

3RD BASE COACH: Casey Stengel

1ST BASE COACH: Jim Leyland

And my dad’s:

MANAGER: Casey Stengel (I let him bend the rules a bit)

BENCH COACH: Willie Randolph

HITTING COACH: Charlie Lau

PITCHING COACH: Mel Stottlemyre (I don’t get it. Ask him.)

3RD BASE COACH: Johnny Goryl

1ST BASE COACH: Rod Carew

If you have any questions, just ask me through a comment! If you have a question for my dad, ask through a comment and I’ll have him respond through my blog.

What’s your all time coaching staff?

I was going to post this yesterday, but the Internet connect failed, so I’m trying again! Good luck, me. Here’s my review for the last couple of days (I’m moving, so it’s tricky to get my blog into my regular schedule):

June 6: Yankees 5, White Sox 1

Wang goes the distance with his new haircut, K’ing 4. Abreu homers and Damon hits two doubles.

June 7: Yankees 10, White Sox 3

Moose gives up one in six. A-Rod grand salami in the 9th. Mo slams the door for the save (it was 4-3 when he entered).

June 8: Yankees 5, Pirates 4

Looked bad at the 7th inning stretch, 4-2 Bucs including an inside the park homer by Chris Duffy, but Yanks battle back with two runs in the bottom of the 7th. Walk-off, bases-loaded single by- who else?- Jeter wins it in the 10th.

June 9: Yankees 9, Pirates 3

Rocket relaunches in style. 6 innings, 5 hits, 3 runs, 7 strikeouts for a W. He also moved into 2nd place on the all-time strikeouts list (Randy Johnson took the lead right back the next day). Robby goes 3 for 5.

June 10: Yankees 13, Pirates 6

Clippard a bit less than solid ( 6 runs, 3 walks in 3 2/3), but ‘pen finally holds steady. Abreu 4 for 4, 4 runs and a triple. A-Rod 2 for 3 with 2 homers, 4 runs, 5 RBIs, and 2 walks. What more can you really say?

So we’ve won 6 straight now for a 30-31 with a sweep of the Pittsburghers. Monday’s off, then Tuesday at the stadium vs. the D’Backs, Webb n’ Wang. Before I go: Do you think the Yanks should make a move to rectify the first base situation, and how do you think that the Rocket’s absence in the clubhouse between starts will affect the atmosphere?

R.I.P. Clete Boyer, a truly great defensive third baseman (wasn’t too bad with the stick, either).

Sorry I haven’t been posting very often, I’m moving into a new house right now. But here’s my review:

May 31: Yankees 10, Blue Jays 5

Well, we finally took that DO NOT DISTURB sign off the bat rack. Clippard racks up a W with a solid start, Damon homers, Mo gets the save, and Giambi goes 3 for 4.

June 1: Yankees 9, Red Sox 5

6 run 4th sinks Wakefield and the Sox, Wang has a solid start, and Cano wakes up, 2 for 4, homers. A-Rod takes some verbal abuse from Sox fans.

June 2: Red Sox 11, Yankees 6

We didn’t exactly get no-hit; Melky, Posada, and Jeter homered; but the Moose really was bad, and Proctor gave up 5 runs, 2 earned. Yuck. A-Rod takes more.

June 3: Yankees 6, Red Sox 5

Yanks led 4-0 going into the bottom of the 5th, got out of it trailing 5-4. Pettitte hurt himself that inning (he’s not supposed to miss a start, thank god). But the Yanks scored a run in the 8th, and in the top of the 9th, A-Rod having taken abuse all series smashes one out off of Jon Papelbon, silencing them. Mo saves it.

June 4: White Sox 6, Yankees 4

DeSalvo gets yanked after 1 1/3 having given up only 2 earned runs. Yanks score 2 in the 9th, but fall short.

June 5: Yankees 7, White Sox 3

I’m listening to the clubhouse report as I type this. Great game, A-Rod homered, Cairo went 2 for 4 with a great play, and Clippard tossed 5 innings with 1 run given up, the win for him. Mo saves it.

Great. Let’s keep it up.

Sorry for my recent pause in posting, I went on a camping trip and have been tied up in other things lately, such as moving. But the title of this post speaks volumes about the Yankees’ play lately. Maybe someone who I know’s pessimistic view on the season so far is getting to me a little bit, but it’s not as if anyone but Andy Pettitte’s performance is helping me with that. So, I bring you the review of games since I stopped posting:

May 13: Mariners 2, Yankees 1

Pettitte hurls a gem, but Abreu, A-Rod, Giambi, Phelps, Mientkiewicz, and Cano forget their bats on the bench. Together they go 1 for 18 with 5 strikeouts.

May 16: Game 1: White Sox 5, Yankees 3

Moose crawls through 5 1/3, giving up all 5 runs and K’ing 1. Offense not at their best, but all right.

May 16: Game 2: Yankees 8, White Sox 1

Wang gives a stellar 7 inning performance, and Posada and Melky homer.

May 17: White Sox 4, Yankees 1

DeSalvo not bad, but can’t be helped by incumbent offense, led by A-Rod, who gets a third of the hits with a 2 for 3 day.

May 18: Mets 3, Yankees 2

Pettitte: another quality start. Offense: Hideki Matsui, who hit a 2 run shot in the 4th.

May 19: Mets 10, Yankees 7

Yanks lose Darrell Rasner to a fractured finger on FOX, and Myers gives up 4 in 2 coming in for Rasner. Offense wakes up a bit, with 3 homers, including one by Posada, who goes 4 for 5.

May 20: Yankees 6, Mets 2

Posada homers again, and Tyler Clippard tosses a sparkling Major League debut in Shea. Yanks win in front of the sports world on ESPN.

May 21: Yankees 6, Red Sox 2

Wang tosses a great 6 1/3, and A-Rod homers for the 18th time. Damon goes 3 for 4 vs. his old ‘mates.

May 22: Red Sox 7, Yankees 3

Moose terrible, offense hits the snooze button. 4 hits.

May 23: Yankees 8, Red Sox 3

Jeter passes Joltin’ Joe on the Yanks’ all time hit list, and Yanks’ offense wakes back up under the watchful eye of Pettitte, who goes 7, giving up 1 run. 4 times as many hits as the day before, with 16.

May 25: Angels 10, Yankees 6

Tyler Clippard goes 4, giving up 3 runs, which blatantly exposes Torre’s problem this year: He is too eager to go to the bullpen. Yanks might have won had Joe given the kid a chance. Bullpen =loss at this point. A-Rod homers, No. 19 for him.

May 26: Angels 3, Yankees 1

Yanks offense once again shoots itself down, as Wang gives a quality start over 8 innings. Escobar pitches well, granted, but wasn’t the offense the one spot the Yankees weren’t supposed to have to worry about?

May 27: Angels 4, Yankees 3

Moose great over 6 1/3, but once again the ‘pen stabs the starter in the back. WIL NIEVES is the offense, going 2 for 2. That doesn’t help much, either.

May 28: Blue Jays 7, Yankees 2

Clemens stellar in Scranton, but Yanks’ offense a completely different story in Toronto. Matsui hits monster 2 run shot off Windows restaurant in center, but that’s it. Torre once again pulls the trigger too early, yanking DeSalvo after 4 1/3, having given up merely 3 runs.

May 29: Blue Jays 2, Yankees 3

Pettitte sparkling AGAIN, and Yankees still lose. Pettitte goes 7 1/3, giving up only one earned run. A-Rod and Jeter both contribute to two unearned runs with throwing errors. Matsui homers in the 7th, but Jays take lead right back.

May 30: Yankees @ Blue Jays, 7:07 PM ET Starting Pitchers: Tyler Clippard, 1-1, 3.60 ERA vs. Jesse Litsch, 1-1, 4.24 ERA.

We’re on a five game skid and we’re tied for last place in the AL East.

Hello, turnaround central, how may I help you?

Uh, yeah, I’d like to schedule one for your nearest convenient opening.

We actually have an opening for a turnaround today. Will that work for you?

Yeah, that’d be great. Thanks! *click*

I’m going to make this quick, because I have to make breakfast for my mom for Mother’s Day. Matt DeSalvo was great yesterday, Rasner was not that good in the game before that. The Yankees won the DeSalvo game, lost Rasner. I had a dream Andy Pettitte threw a no-hitter (no, really), so I hope my dream comes true today against the Mariners’ Horacio Ramirez. Lastly, what do you think the Yanks should do about this up-down streak? Should they make a move, or stay put for now?

LET’S GO YANKEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, to anyone who reads my blog regularly, sorry for the recent drop-off in posts. I just have had a lot of things get in the way. So, a review is in order.

Tuesday: Yankees 8, Rangers 2

A-Rod gets out of his mini-homer slump with a jack, and Andy Pettitte tosses 7 innings, giving up only one run. Sean Henn closes out the win.

Wednesday: Yankees 6, Rangers 2

Moose’s second start off the DL goes 6, and he gives up two runs. The Yankees use three different pitchers to get the three outs in the 7th. And, Wil Nieves breaks out of the incredible hitless streak that dated back to 2002. His first Major League hit in five years!

Thursday: Rangers 14, Yankees 2

Wang gives up seven in 6 1/3. Vizcaistinko gives up three in one. Henn gives up four in 2/3. ‘Nuff said.

Friday: Game’ll start in 20 minutes. Rasner vs. Washburn. Boy, if Rasner could give a performance like he did his last start, that’d be GREAT.

God, not off Mo. Not after such a great debut by Matt DeSalvo. Not by a .236 hitter. This is why I was mad at the Yankees when they couldn’t execute the play with Doug don’t-try-to-spell-his-name was on third in the 7th. Kyle Farnsworth gives up the tying run, and then, SAY IT AIN’T SO, MO! And by Adrian Beltre too. This is the Yankees’ "welcome to the roster" gift to Roger Clemens?

I believe the title of this post is fairly self-explanatory for the main story of the game. ROGER CLEMENS IS BACK WITH THE YANKEES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And what a great way to announce it. No one knew he was at Yankee Stadium, but during the 7th inning stretch, he announced that HE’S BACK!!!!!!!!!!!! After the Take Me Out To The Ballgame, they asked to direct attention to the owner’s box, and he announced it on a microphone. Oh yeah, Hideki Matsui gained admission to the Japanese sort of Hall of Fame for getting his 2,000th hit with Japan and America combined, and the Yanks won, 5-0. Rasner was fantastic! Did you know Rocket helped Roy Halladay in Toronto? Imagine his effect on Phil Hughes. Once the kid gets off the DL, this is the Yanks’ rotation:

Rocket

Wang

Pettitte

Mussina

Hughes

Wow. This is the best day ever. Wait, I’m getting a vision. I see… rings… World Series rings…