Since 2001, the Boss has bought players like Giambi, Mussina, Sheffield, Matsui, Damon, Pavano, and Wright. None of them under the age of 30 (well Pavano was, but by the time he pitches again he’ll be 37). Most of them have had great seasons, but in the postseason it’s been a different story. All of them with the exception of maybe Matsui have had their ups and downs to say the least. Giambi hit those two HR against Pedro in 2003, but is hitting .220 in his last 86 post-season at bats.  Sheffield is 8-45 and A-Rod, who is the poster boy for all this, is 4-41.

So the Yankees’ 4-5-6 batters are hitting .180 in their last 172 postseason AB’s. Wonderful, isn’t it? Mussina was great in game 3 of the 2001 ALDS and had a great relief outing in game 7 of the ’03 ALCS. However, he couldn’t hold a 3-1 lead on Thursday against a team he dominated back in June. He lost game 5 of last year’s ALDS, and couldn’t hold a 6-1 lead against Anaheim in 2002. In all probability, a good chunk of these players won’t be on the Yankees next year.

You can kiss Sheffield goodbye. Wright is due 7 million next year, but missed 75 days, so the Yankees can pay him 4 million and ship him out. Mussina has a 17 million dollar option that won’t be picked up. Whether he wants to stay for half of that will be up to him. The Yankees could try to shop Pavano around, but he has less value than my 11-year old brother. Giambi still has about 40 million left over two years, which means he’s going to stay.

That leaves us with A-Rod. If you have read any of my articles, you know I love him and have defended him to death. Deep down, in my heart of hearts, I don’t want to see him go. It probably would be better for both A-Rod and the Yankees, but I don’t want see it happen. Maybe now that Pinella is likely to manage next year, he can fix his head.  But who knows?

Back to postseason performances, now. The Yankees have now lost 3 consecutive postseason series. They haven’t done that since… well… they have never done that. They’re also 3-10 in their last 13 postseason games. That is their worst stretch ever. In their most recent bust, the lineup that I thought put Murderer’s Row to shame completely flopped. Since Damon’s HR in game 2, they hit .186 and went 20 innings with out scoring a damn run. In 1927, Muderer’s Row hit .280 and scored 6 runs per game. Kenny Rogers, who had been the playoffs’ all-time worst pitcher, looked like Sandy Koufax. Jeremy Bonderman, who was smacked around twice by the Yankees early in the year, looked like Bob Gibson. I’m not trying to take anything away from these two, but they’re simply not that good. Since when do two average pitchers pitch the game of their life on back-to-back days against a great lineup? Since the 2006 ALDS, I guess.

In 2005, this same group of guys, minus Damon, flopped. The best offense in the league was shut down once again. They averaged 5.5 runs per game, and in the playoffs, they scored under 5 in all but one game. A-Rod was 2-for-15 and hit into an infamous double play. Matsui was 4-20 and Sheffield was 6-21. That doesn’t sound so bad, but I remember him leaving a tiny island on the bases.

We all know about 2004, and talking about that is prohibited in my household, so let’s move on.

Keith thinks I’m a spoiled Yankee fan, and I have nothing to complain about since my team makes the playoffs every year, and won it 4 out of 5 years. Well yes, I am spoiled, but that isn’t my fault. It isn’t my fault that my team makes the playoffs every year. Even though they did it win it as recently as 2000, I never saw them win it. In case you didn’t know, I’m 17. In 2000, when they won it, I was 11 and I was asleep. So just like any other Cubs fan who is under the age of 100 or any Indians fan under the age of 65, I’ve never seen my team win it. So I think I have every damn right to complain when my team has a hall of fame player at every single position and fails. I have every right to complain when perennial All Stars under achieve when it matters most. Speaking of having All Stars at every position, that could well change.

During this off-season, tons of things probably will change. Sheffield definitely won’t be here, and Mussina could be. Johnson still will be, and Wang obviously will. That leaves two spots open. One of them could be occupied by Phillip Hughes. Hughes is the biggest pitching prospect the Yankees have had since Pettitte and Scout.com rated him as the best prospect in the country. The last spot could very well be filled by another overpaid free agent. It could be either Zito or Schmidt. If either of them come here, they’re going to be overpaid, as their best years are most likely behind them. Or, they could try out Darrell Rasner or Jeff Karstens, but that just isn’t the Yankee way. Another position that is probably going to have to be filled is first base. Giambi is going to have off-season wrist surgery and isn’t going to be able to play first as much. Another position could be third base, but only if A-Rod is traded, obviously.

Whomever the Yankees sign or trade for, I hope they realize that the blueprint for drawing 4 million people is not the same blueprint for winning a championship.