I fail to understand the logic of benching a slumping player in favor of someone with a career OPS of .654.

Torre is already vindicated, as Jeter led off with a single, Wilson was credited with a hit on a sac bunt misplayed by Penny, and Williams drove in the game's first run with a sac fly.

Penny deflected the bunt, then got in the way of Lee's flip to Castillo. The official scorer called it an E3 when Jeter advanced on the errant toss, but Penny caused it to go astray, either screening it or touching it again; the angle on the replay was inconclusive. The play could have been scored E1, E1 if you ask me.

Good infield defence by the Yanks to get Boomer a 1-2-3 inning on just eight pitches and preserve the 1-0 lead.

Boomer is gone after one inning, and so is David Dellucci, who pinch-hit for him. It has to be some kind of injury, perhaps his problematic back acting up. Jose Contreras has been pressed into service, and while he is a capable emergency replacement, how long can he go? We may even see Weaver again, or at least one of the lefty relievers, as the Yankees suddenly don't look very deep.

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Brad Penny just showed why we need to abolish the DH.

I know this is coming from a former junkballing righty, but to me there's nothing cooler than watching a .090 hitter surprise everyone by slapping a basehit. What's more enduring than a David vs. Goliath story?

Plus when the pitcher strikes out like he will about half the time, it shows you how really, really, hard it is to hit a baseball, even if you are a normally gifted athlete.

Mike

It has to be some kind of injury

Fresh on the heels of McCarver talking about Wells' non-workout regimen, and the pride Wells takes therein.

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Am I the only one who thinks Eric Hinske would have cleanly fielded Conine's smash down the line?

Am I the only one who thinks Eric Hinske would have cleanly fielded Conine's smash down the line?

Boone, who has ball repellent on his glove, made a half-hearted stab in the general direction of a 3-hopper. Hinske and a lot of other third basemen would have handled it.

Penny's hit went right through Wilson; a lot of second basemen -- including Soriano -- might have got a glove on that. It was obvious that Contreras wasn't mentally or physically ready to pitch the second, and after that near-meltdown, he came back stronger in the third. The splitters to Pudge were gorgeous, and after buzzing one at 97 near Cabrera's cabeza, he painted the outside corner for another K.

It appears that Penny has very little idea where the ball is going, but neither do the hitters. Wilson (in the third) and Garcia (in the fourth) are not helping matters by swinging at the first pitch.

I've been listening to Miller & Morgan on the fan590 server, and if I heard right, they suggested that the Yankees blundered by not informing the umpires of Wells' injury *before* they pinch hit for him, and therefore Contreras wasn't entitled to the warmup pitches he apparently needed. (They may have just been speculating however.)

I know it's not the optimal way to score the most runs, but a single, sacrifice and single to score the run is nice to watch.

On FOX they commented that he was allowed as many as he needed to get warm due to the injury. Though he did have a fairly significant amount of time warming up in the pen.

Marlins lead 4-1 now, after a Pierre RBI double that Karim Garcia kicked around, and Contreras, who pitched last night, is understandably faltering.

Steinbrenner looks like a vein is about to shoot out of his neck with the next Yankee misplay.

6-1 Fish

Boy, wouldn't it be nice if the stars aligned themselves for the Jays (or the Leafs) like they have for the Marlins this year? They got by the Giants on Jose Cruz dropping a ball that he, and every other RF in baseball, catch 999 of 1000 times. The Cubs series changed on Steve Bartman, and now Wells leaves after just one inning tonight and head directdly to the soft underbelly that is Yankee middle relief.

Marlins gonna go to Yankee Stadium up 3-2.

Yo, on that rundown, did Jeter fail to back Boone up because of the shoulder injury on opening day?

Interesting theory, Grimlock. But I'd have to think that Wilson just didn't give him enough time to get there.

Well well well, is that steam coming out of the ears of the "Boss"What a run down

The wheels have officially fallen off for the Yankees. Chris Hammond, the soft-tossing lefty who hasn't pitched for a month, gave up a hit up the middle to Pudge, barely kept Cabrera in the park, then was betrayed by his defence (did anyone think Wilson was the answer at 2B?) and a flare to center by Lowell makes it 6-1.

Torre and company are in disarray right now, but they have 48 hours to regroup, and I think they will. We could be in for a memorable Game Seven.

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Torre and company are in disarray right now, but they have 48 hours to regroup, and I think they will. We could be in for a memorable Game Seven.

Well, they have to. I mean, they've already bought the championship and I don't know if Selig accepts returns. :)

Mike

You know what that rundown reminds me Grimlock of? Bases Loaded II on the NES. That was the first game that me Grimlock had where the fielder had to actually BE there, otherwise the throw would go into right field or something.

How fortuitous that the Marlins break Game 5 open just as the Leafs game is starting...

The Cubs series changed on Steve Bartman

Me Coach hopes Grimlock is kidding. The out that Bartman may have caused the Cubs to lose wasn't a factor at all; Alex Gonzalez had a perfect chance to get that back and end the inning, but booted a double play bouncer. I agree that the Fish have been incredibly lucky, it's just that you're blaming the wrong guy in Chicago for helping them.

Jeter blew the play. He had time to over to third but was indecisive. Ever since he made "the play" against Oakland in 2001 we've heard about Jeter's flawless baseball instincts so often that it makes me feel like barfing.

The Yankees have scarcely hit a ball hard today - which fits in with my theory that they have trouble with hard throwing righties (Beckett, Pavano and Penny can all bring it at 97 MPH). A lot of other teams do too of course.

Hey Coach, how do like them Marlins?

Robert, if you had asked me at the beginning of the Series for odds that Brad Penny would win twice and David Wells would lose twice, I would have offered 100 to 1 without even blinking. Penny had been horrible in the NL playoffs, and Boomer had been great on the AL side. If you had suggested that Soriano and Giambi would be on the bench in Game 5 with the teams tied 2-2, I would have laughed out loud.

The Marlins are about what I thought they were, but what we are seeing tonight barely resembles the Yankees.

The out that Bartman may have caused the Cubs to lose wasn't a factor at all

Of course it was a factor. At the least a very small one that the Cubs should have easily overcome, but a factor nonetheless. The wheels did come off the Cubs bandwagon right after that play.

Unless it's Bernie Mac's 7th inning stretch...

What's up with Torre? Leaving Wilson in to hit, with Giambi and Soriano on the bench, when a 2-out long ball makes it a 6-5 game, was hard to believe. Or does he want Enrique in there for his glove?

I can't help but thinking that the 25 man roster has handicapped the Yankees a little bit. Wells lasting 1 inning was a disaster. 3 pinch-hitters have now been burned and there are 3 pitchers in the pen that Torre doesn't want to use - he trusts only Nelson and Rivera.

I thought that Giambi should have batted in the 7th instead of Sierra. With two men on base a homerun makes it 6-4.

The Cubs series changed on Steve Bartman

Me Coach hopes Grimlock is kidding. The out that Bartman may have caused the Cubs to lose wasn't a factor at all; Alex Gonzalez had a perfect chance to get that back and end the inning, but booted a double play bouncer. I agree that the Fish have been incredibly lucky, it's just that you're blaming the wrong guy in Chicago for helping them.

Me Grimlock not blaming him nor is me Grimlock absolving Baker, Gonzalez, and Prior for what happened in that fateful inning, but the 2003 NLCS did change on that play. The Marlins caught a tremendous break and ran with it, but that doesn't change the fact that they got that break in the first place.

Oh no! The Toronto1 people at YYZ! Me Grimlock hate those guys!

Pistol, Grimlock, I suppose you're right. The fan interference should not have been a factor -- Gonzo should have made the subsequent easy play to get them out of the inning -- but it may have got in the Cubs' heads as an omen, a manifestation of a curse, or some other such nonsense. They shot themselves in the foot with an imaginary bullet.

Strange move by Torre (pinchitting for Garcia with Soriano). Who's left to play rightfield?

If I were the Marlins I'd be itching to tag on Soriano's arm in RF.

There are questions about Contreras having enough time to warm up. But his act tonight was consistent with what I have seen all year. One inning Contreras looks like Randy Johnson, the next inning Mike Johnson. I cannot figure him out, he is like night and day in the space of two innings. He was like that earlier in the series too, don't remember which game.

Hey, no picking on Mike Johnson. When I was 12, he tossed me a baseball and I thank him by defending his mediocrity.

One inning Contreras looks like Randy Johnson, the next inning Mike Johnson

One inning Cy Young, one inning Anthony Young?

Gerry,

It's all command. Tonight, he went through periods where he had no command of his offspeed stuff. The hitters sit on fastball and unless he gets it up at the letters it's very hittable. When he can throw his forkball/splitter where he wants, gets ahead in the count and then he's deadly. You often see both command and lack of command in the same game from him.

Not to say that it would have happened, but imagine Gimabi hitting that homer in the 7th with 2 on.

Oh, come on! Show Jeter's dad! Would it kill FOX to show Mr. Jeter just one more time? After all, he represents the run that could bring them to within two!

Oops. Much like Happy Fun Ball, one must never taunt the Yankees.

There haven't been too many disappointing games in the entire postseason, but despite the belated ninth-inning rally, this was one of them. It isn't so much that the Marlins won, as the Yankees lost, with Boomer's back spasms as the turning point.

McCarver and Buck speculated that Willis pitching tonight means Beckett will start Game 6 and Pavano Game 7. Both would be returning on three days' rest, but I guess the theory is they have all winter to recover.

Watching the Marlins bullpen is like playing Russian Roulette. Out of 3 guys, 2 of them are going to get hit hard but you never know which ones. Urbina gave up 2 hard hit balls.

Agreed, Robert. Urbina has looked worse as the series has gone on, instead of better -- a bad omen for Florida as they travel to the Bronx.

They have Helling, Redman and Willis to patch together Game 6. If they have a lead in the late innings, they could use Beckett to finish. Otherwise, they save Beckett and Pavano for Game 7.

I'm guessing Bernie William's flyball to the warning track in the 9th is a homerun in Yankee Stadium.

Bernie's fly ball to the track is a home run in 28, mayne 29 big league parks. Including Yankee Stadium.

Pettitte and Mussina in 6 & 7 at the Stadium ... I like the Yankee chances. And hey -- that's #22 trotting out of the bullpen in Game 7, with #42 throwing darts in preparation for the ninth ...

Great Happy Fun Ball reference. "Ingredients of Happy Fun Ball include an unknown glowing substance which fell to Earth, presumably from outer space ... Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball."

Mick,

Cabrera's fly to the wall in right is a home run in probably every park but the Pro.

When the Marlins defeated the Giants in the NLDS, I realized that I had seriously underrated them. It is extremely unusual for a World Series team's cleanup hitter to be a player who was called up from the minors in mid-season. This change, plus the huge improvement when Torborg was dumped and Trader Jack arrived, mean that looking at a seasonal record for the Marlins does not do justice to their World Series chances.

Looking back, I realize that the eight teams in the playoffs were in fact in a tight knot. All were good ballclubs, but with definite weaknesses. The Twins were the weakest team of the lot, but even they had been a different team in the second half, with the emergence of Johan Santana as their #1 starter from the relief corps. Had Santana not been injured, the Twins-Yankees series even might have been a nailbiter.

You are right that the Yankees can still win. But, they may not. The Fish have two chances. They tear up lefties, and while Pettitte got them in Game 2, I'm not sure that he'll do the same in Game 6. Regardless when Beckett pitches, the way he is going, there is every possibility that he will dominate for 8 or 9 innings.

For what it's worth, I think McKeon will start Redman tomorrow night and he'll go 3 or 4 innings and be moderately succesful (giving up 2 runs say), and then on will come Pavano for 2-3 innings. In the end,it may very well be a shootout and Torre may be faced with a "Hobson's choice" regarding extended use of Rivera in Game 6.

There's predictable reaction in the Big Apple. Joel Sherman of the Post:

So aside from bad bullpen, bad offense, bad fielding, bad health and - possibly - too many bad characters, the Yanks have no problems at all as they head home trying to save the season.

Mike Lupica of the Daily News:

Soriano had a sore swing, Giambi had a sore knee, Wells had a sore back. Not one was in Game 5 in the second inning. Jose Contreras came in for Wells and had nothing. Once again you wonder why he wasn't used in relief in September to get him ready for all this. The Marlins went ahead 3-1, and then got two unearned runs later when Enrique Wilson, Soriano's replacement, threw the ball away on a simple rundown play between second and third.

Mike Vaccaro of the Post:

And the Yankees, fueled by gluttony and excess, shadowed by their staggering hubris, can run out of arms at the worst possible time, on the worst possible night. It started with David Wells, whose back started barking at him in the bullpen before biting him in the first inning, and from there, everything else was a blur: a spent Jose Contreras, had nothing. Chris Hammond, previously lost in the federal pitchers' protection program, had less.

George Vecsey of the Times (registration required):

Last night, Torre tried to drive a flivver that was shimmying and shaking, leaking oil, emitting smoke and making strange noises.

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BUT DON'T THEY UNDERSTAND THAT THE YANKEES HAVE ALREADY BOUGHT THE CHAMPIONSHIP?!?

Sorry. I'm gloating. It's what I'm good at. :)

Mike

The Yanks return home "trying to save the season". Nothing like a detached perspective from a sportswriter!

Hmph. Boy, they turn on them quick.

I liked "fueled by gluttony and excess," which I am adopting as a personal motto.

Hmph. Boy, they turn on them quick.

In fairness, today's Post headline is "DOWN BUT NOT OUT." The local print media is demanding and critical, but still fairly rah-rah -- almost like a brotherly relationship. The local TV media is nauseatingly supportive, as the Fox 5 anchorwoman who predicted the Yankees would "win in three if it were possible" said last night that the Series would be "no problem" now that they're back home.

It's not quite the same thing as the fickle Boston media, or the bash-and-cackle Damien Cox approach.

The Marlins may be a prime example of rushing some prospects working out, especially on the pitching side. Miguel Cabrera is an amazing talent and of course so is Beckett. Once they got rid of arm shredder Torborg the team's fortunes turned right around.

If McGowan, Bush, Arnold, Peterson, and Thurman give the Jays any reason to believe early in the year I think we'll see them up pretty quick despite the conservative track record of advancing prospects.

The only team to take a 3-2 lead on the road in a World Series over the last 22 years and prevail was Toronto, which beat Atlanta in six games in 1992. Seven other teams in that span failed.