The Yankees have been infuriating to root for this year, so I wasn’t following their ups and downs all that closely. In fact, I wasn’t following baseball all that closely, because the three AL teams I root for (in order: Yanks, Twins, Royals, due to birthright and geography) weren’t doing so hot, and the one NL team I root for (that would be the Cardinals) were so far ahead so early on that I didn’t even need to worry about them. The Yankees were frustrating, the Twins possibly even more so, and whereas last year’s record-settingly awful Royals season was somehow watchable, this year’s potentially even worse one has been beyond laughable; as far as I’m concerned, they’re not even a real baseball team.
But it’s September now, and true to form, the Yankees have pulled their thumbs out and started to play like they’d actually like to win. So I’m glued to the division race, of course. And Boston are thrashing the Orioles today (9-2, top of the sixth, right this minute according to ESPN’s online scoreboard), so I was miserable when Toronto took the lead, delighted when the Yanks took it back, terrified when things got tight again in the top of the eighth, and massively relieved when Mariano got out of trouble in that same inning. Right now it’s bottom of the eighth, two on, nobody out, edge of seat. Sheffield batting, 2-0. I hardly dare to hope for a win, so I won’t even say it’s looking good, although it is, especially with Mariano (can I just say “God bless Mariano Rivera”? Thank you) coming back in the…OOH, three-run homer, Gary Sheffield. So much for whether he should have come back this soon or not.
I love this time of year.