HAS ANYONE SEEN THE YANKEE BATS?

On Monday,the Yanks started a 4-game series with arguably the worst team in the American League. Two games, two runs and seven hits later, the Bombers (and I use the term loosely) are down 0-2 in the series. It's not enough to say they haven't been able to hit a curve ball, they look like they've never even SEEN a curve ball.

Who has looked good, so far? It's certainly a short list. Cano and Gardner (Gardner?) each happened to hit a ball hard. Other than that: nothing. Burnett & Nova both pitched well enough to win and Robertson continues to get big outs, but Soriano? Forget it. You can't say he'll get better when the weather warms up, either. He hit 97 MPH on the radar gun last night. The only ball that was faster was the one Konerko hit into the left field stands. It's beginning to look like Soriano was a one-year wonder and perhaps Cashman was right all along.

Chavez made a couple of very nice plays in the field, but Cano can't seem to catch throws from the catcher and swiped at a hard hit ball that he should have caught. A kindly scorer called it a hit.

You can blame other things for the loss: a home plate umpire who seemed to squeeze Yankee pitchers while being generous with the White Sox. A utility infielder shoved into right field by manager Ozzie "It's not my fault" Guillen, who made two fantastic plays to win (not save, win) the game for Chicago. It was so stunning, that Ozzie even forgot to take credit for it.

If the Yanks really are going to stay in contention because of their hitting, they better start doing it.

Yesterday was the 50th Anniversary of Roger Maris' first home run of the 1961 season. Roger went on to hit 61 that year to become baseball's all-time, single season home run hitter. I don't count the 'juiced' numbers for what is perhaps baseball's most revered statistic. At least it's not tainted anymore by the asterisk that was temporarily placed there by Ford Frick, aptly called by Charles Finley, "The Village Idiot."

***IT'S NOT SPORTS, BUT...***
From RJ Currie:
"A pharmacist in Mississippi says burglars who stole pain medication from his store are in for a surprise because the bottle was a decoy filled with kidney beans. Police expect an arrest soon as they've already picked up the thieves' scent."

From Dwight Perry:
"Duke linebacker Tyree Glover, charged with trafficking cocaine, has been kicked off the Blue Devils' football team. In other words, he chose to excel between the wrong white lines."

CP-