Come Back Miguel, All Is Forgiven

Kyle Farnsworth had a medium-sized meltdown yesterday, but the Yanks held on by their fingernails (or rather, by their Greatest Closer Ever, of All Time, Seriously) to win; I’ll take it, and somehow they still lead the Sox by 6.5 games. I only wish the Angels could have lost in a more painful and/or humiliating fashion. It was great to see Bernie Williams flashing some serious power -- I know, I know, he’s a defensive liability these days and miles away from the hitter he used to be, but due to over a decade of conditioning, I’m still glad to see him at the plate in a big spot, logic and reason and VORP be damned. This is apparently something that Joe Torre and I have in common.

I’d also like to take a moment to congratulate Nick “The Stick” Green on pushing his batting average over .200 yesterday… and his defensive errors are certainly keeping everyone on their toes. I’ve said many things this year I never could have imagined I’d say back in March, things like “That Johnny Damon is actually kind of attractive” and “Where would this team be without Scott Proctor?” and “No, that pitcher is still on the DL with bruised buttocks,” but here’s another one: “I miss Miguel Cairo profoundly.”

I recently heard a rumor that there are, strangely enough, a few other teams out there besides the Yankees and Red Sox and their current opponents. It seems to be true, and I’m psyched to see that the Twins are still kicking ass. They lost today, but they lead the White Sox by half a game for the Wild Card, after being 11 games back in June. Outside of the Yanks, the Twins are probably my favorite team: I like that they don’t have much money, but stay competitive and have a dedicated fan base. I’m touched by the, uh, quirky Hefty Bag outfield wall. Torii Hunter is maybe the best quote in baseball, almost as entertaining as Ozzie Guillen, but much less of an asshole. Johan Santana is barrels of fun to watch when he’s not pitching against your team, and it looks like Liriano will be too. As if all that wasn’t enough, they have a pitcher named Boof Bonser. I’m down. After this coming weekend, anyway.