AHHH, THERE'S GOOD NEWS TONIGHT!

***GOOD COMEBACK***
Sounds phony after the fact, but it was one of those games that you just KNEW the Yanks would come back. Need proof? Well, a 9-4 deficit in the 7th inning, usually sends Picasner to bed muttering obscenities like an out-of-work stevedore. Last night, there I was till the bitter (for the A's) end. With nothing but a rag arm and a huge heart, Pettitte hung in till the 6th when Girardi finally called on the "Gasoline Gang." True to form, they proceeded to hand the game back to the A's with everything but a ribbon. Apparently, the A's weren't aware of a Yankee lineup that has started to perform like their press clippings. With that youngster, Pena, hitting like A-rod without the steroids, it's interesting that the one weak spot in the lineup is their biggest bopper, Teixeira. Flying in the face of baseball logic, Girardi chooses to bat HIS defensive specialist, third. But, a win is a win, thank you, Jorge, among others.

***THE NEWEST PHENOM?***
Melancon does not impress me. This is supposedly the Mariano Rivera succcessor. I don't think so. His pitching form puts a lot of stress on his shoulder, a lot like Ted Lilly used to. When I first saw Lilly, it was my impression that he was headed for shoulder problems, because of his motion. Step-and-throw, all arm, no wrist and no legs. Sure enough, after he was traded, he spent time on the DL. When he came back, he had adjusted his form to get his body into his delivery and now he's fine. Let's see if history repeats itself.

***PICKOFF MOVE... OR BALK MOVE?***
Every time I see a pickoff, I bore the "other" fan in the house, with the same comment. "The rules say 'You cannot deceive the runner,' but isn't the runner deceived EVERY time he's picked off?" Stupid rule, rarely enforced. It was nice to hear the Yankee announncers finally bring that out in the light. Thank you, Michael. Just for that, no snide comments today.

***HAD TO DO SOMETHING BETWEEN GAMES***
Seattle's top draft pick, Aaron Curry, explaining a weight increase from 194 lbs to 254 lbs while at Wake Forest: "Countless hours in the weight room...countless hours in the cafeteria." It seems we forgot about classes, didn't we Aaron?

***HAVING A WONDERFUL TIME. WHERE AM I?***
No truth to the rumor that the new Dale Earnhardt Jr GPS unit CANNOT find the winners circle. ("Recalculating...")

***PRO FOOTBALL'S EASIEST JOB?***
Mitch Albom, of the Detroit Free Press, was asked to rate the Lions draft picks. "How could you go wrong? They need help everywhere, the offensive line, the defensive line, at running back, linebackers, quarterback...everywhere. They could probably use a new caterer in the clubhouse too, but they ran out of draft picks."

***KENTUCKY DERBY TIME***
Because Picasner's favorite racing tout, Windy (The Jud's mate), is under the weather, I'm on my own. I like Fresian Fire, but don't bet the house on it. At least Windy will have a good laugh.