Cash Refund

I'm actually not so up in arms about Randy Johnson's continued bedwetting. He can't get anyone out, and he looks completely washed up. Still, I feel he's going to be better. Not great, but better. Anytime the Yankees give him the lead, he gives it back. Anytime it looks like he's about to cruise to a 1-2-3 inning, he coughs it up. How long can that continue?

I notice that Brian Cashman bought The Big Unit at Wal Mart, which was probably a smart way to shop, looking for "Always Low Prices". At two cents, how can you argue? The thing is, a lot of the cheap prices at Wal Mart come from low wage manufacturing in Southeast Asia, and the only good thing that the Yankees have imported from there is Chien Ming Wang. It seems Cashman got burned on quality, looking for the bargain. It seems the Yankees got burned by Wal Mart: The High Cost of Low Price. (If only he was that cheap.)

The offense continues to play well, even with regulars dropping like flies. I wondered during this ballgame if Posada left because Johnson was crap and complained about throwing to him. I hope he's not hurt. Even without our big guns in the second half of the lineup, I think we will score plenty. We need pitching. Chacon seems hurt. Johnson seems bad. Pavano is stealing money from us. Wright is okay, but I still don't trust him. That leaves Wang and Mussina. If anything else goes wrong, we may see Ramiro Mendoza get some spot starts, as he's been performing well in the starter's role at Columbus recently. That worries me, but seeing either Mendoza or Aaron Small for more than a spot start or two would worry me even more. I think Cashman's shopping again, but I hope he's on 5th Avenue this time. Let them pour you an espresso and assign you a personal shopper.

Scott Proctor continues to impress, when he's not being overused. His pitches have a lot of action and movement. The Mets looked overmatched with Proctor's movement, after seeing flat pitches from The Big Obit. The Yankees looked overmatched against virtually everyone the Mets threw out there after Gonzales. That includes Billy Wagner, who won the first battle of "Enter Sandman". Mariano Rivera can't find strike three this year, despite being ahead in the count on every hitter. He's in a funk, and it's costing the Yankees in important ball games. You can't trust him right now, but he's Mariano so you have to. Just keep giving him the ball. If he can't do the job, this team has absolutely no chance at anything. Get 'em Mo.

One final note. This is something that has bothered me since the first time I heard it, and burns me to this day. People at Shea are embarrassing themselves perhaps without even knowing it. Whenever Kazuo Matsui comes to the plate they play this tinny Chinese music complete with Bruce Lee vocalizations. They should serve wonton soup and fried rice at the concessions stands too, while they're at it. Kazuo Matsui is from Japan, and Japan is about as far from China culturally as Sweden is to Iran. Would the Yankees play an Irish jig when Giambi comes to the plate? How about a polka for Carlos Delgado? Please, for the love of God, stop.