Afternoon Baseball

So Randy Johnson, just as I expected, can only beat the Yankees in the playoffs. He ran his division-series record to 0-8 since the 1995 ALDS (against the Yanks, of course). That certainly doesn't excuse the whole bullpen for being terrible, or the defense for again being terrible, but it does start with Johnson.
He had to pitch well last night, and he couldn't even give them average. Inexcusable. It goes back to my comments before his start against the Red Sox last weekend. You never know what you're going to get with Johnson in a big spot. In that regard, he's much like Roger Clemens and Greg Maddux -- the greatest pitchers of the last 30 years, but completely hit or miss when it counts.
Andy Pettitte is often like that, but he's rarely been a No. 1 starter, and when he's been bad, he's immediately bad, so you have a chance to salvage the game.

There's still hope. But the Angels are a team afire now, and too fast, too young, and too skilled defensively for the Yanks to beat -- unless New York has everything going for it. Right now, the prospect of that happening is just as hit or miss as betting on RJ in a big spot.