In First Place

Now all the Yankees have to do is stay there. Their 2-1 win Wednesday combined with Boston's come-from-ahead 7-4 loss at Tampa Bay leaves New York half a game up on Boston with under two weeks to play. The Yankees' starting rotation may not look strong, but it's as strong as it's going to get. Randy Johnson pitched well enough so a Yankee fan didn't have to cringe when thinking of his contract. Mike Mussina is set to start tomorrow night, and Chien-Ming Wang, whose chances of pitching again this year had been written off, has also looked sharp.

Gothamist has long argued that little seapartes the Yankees from the Red Sox, and the standings back it up. The Yankees finish their series with Baltimore Thursday before hosting Toronto this weekend. Boston is off Thursday before playing in Baltimore and hosting Toronto next week. The Yankees visit Fenway Park for a series that could decide the AL East next weekend. Each team has its share of question marks, but the Yankees are peaking at the right time, and that could be enough to give them their division. As is said so often on election nights, its too close to call.

Photo by Julie Jacobson (AP) via Yahoo