Pirates 13, Mets 1: Oliver Perez didn't get help from his defense, but he didn't help himself. The inconsistent lefty was hurt by a Luis Castillo error and Jose Reyes' failure to cover second base in a rundown in the second, but he was probably hurt more by issuing as many walks -- five -- as he got outs. Perez allowed seven runs in 1 2/3 innings as his Mets split a rain-shortened two-game series......

Photograph of Johan Santana giving the ball to manager Willie Randolph by Ed Betz/AP Brewers 5, Mets 3: Mets fans that had waited two months -- or even longer -- to see Johan Santana make his Mets Shea Stadium debut left disappointed. Santana gave up five runs (four earned) and took his second loss of the year in three starts. Three home runs proved to be his undoing Saturday. He didn't get much help......

Photograph of the Rangers' Ryan Callahan putting a puck pasting Devils goalie Martin Brodeur by Bill Kostroun/AP Rangers 4 Devils 1: Don’t let the score fool you, this was a close game for about 57 minutes. New York got on the board first thanks to Brendan Shanahan, but New Jersey answered with a power play goal from Paul Martin. The game remained tied until the 7:23 mark of the third period when the Devils......

Photo of Yankee Stadium during the Canadian national anthem by AP/Kathy Willens It may have come a day later than many people wanted, but the Yankees opened the final season of the Stadium on a high note, winning a close and well-pitched game 3-2. Chien-Ming Wang went seven innings allowing only two runs and Joba and Mo closed the game out with a scoreless inning each. Melky Cabrera was the offensive and defensive hero with......

Photo of Joe Girardi and Brian Cashman before an exhibition game against the Florida Marlins by AP/Luis M. Alvarez Joe Girardi made the goal clear from his introductory press conference donning the number 27 to represent the quest for a 27th title. But, despite their tremendous resources and talent, this Yankees’ team is further away from winning a title than any in recent memory because of the question surrounding the starting pitching. It is......

Entering Spring Training the Yankees had three big questions to answer. The biggest and most obvious was the role that Joba Chamberlain would play. Hank proclaimed that he wanted Joba to start and Joe Girardi’s insisted that Joba’s future is as a starter, but in the end the Yankees put him in the bullpen for at least the start of 2008. And it makes sense because while they won’t admit it publicly, the Yankees are......

That didn't take long. Opening Day is still 2 1/2 weeks away, and the Yankees have already engaged in a bench-clearing brawl with the Devil Rays. The blood began to boil Saturday, when Tampa Bay's Elliot Johnson ran over Yankees minor-league catcher Franciso Cervelli in a collision at home plate. Cervelli got the worst of it and suffered a broken wrist. Both managers -- Joe Girardi for the Yankees and Joe Maddon for the Rays......

Photograph of Joe Torre and Willie Randolph greeting each other before a game in Port St. Lucie, FL, by Nati Harnik/AP Okay, Mets manager Willie Randolph hasn't been in pinstripes for a while, but this photograph of him saying hi to new Dodgers manager Joe Torre just seems like something from the bizarro world - not that there's anything wrong with that! Randolph, who was a Yankees coach under Torre, said, "It was a......

A Historic Collapse: The Mets held a seven-game lead with 17 to play and were caught looking ahead to the playoffs. What followed was among the worst collapses in history and one that revealed the weaknesses of the players, the manager and the general manager. Jose Reyes and his questionable -- and downright poor -- play summed up the the performance on the field. Manager Willie Randolph's mismanagement of the bullpen came to light......

Joe Girardi made his first appearance in Yankee pinstripes as the new manager today. He chose the number 27 for his jersey, referring to more World Series wins in the Yankees' - and his, he hopes - future as the Yankees have 26 World Series championships. The former Yankees catcher said, "The team's expectation is always going to be to win the World Series. It's not going to change." He also mentioned that he......

Well, it didn't take long for Joe Torre to find a new job (not that it should have). He's trading The Bronx for Chavez Ravine and "fans" like Rudy Giuliani for Posh Spice. The Post is reporting that the former Yankees manager has agreed in principle to a three-year $14.5 million deal (hopefully there are no performance incentives) to be the next manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He would be replacing Grady Little, who......

Stating that “this is about being a New York Yankee again today,” and proclaiming, “I expect to be in the Fall Classic next October,” Joe Girardi met the media as the next manager of the New York Yankees today. Girardi sought to differentiate himself from his predecessor saying, “I am going to be myself. There are expectations on me and my coaching staff, the same that were on Joe Torre when he came in......

The Yankees have offered Joe Girardi the job of manager, further emphasizing the fact that the Steinbrenner boys, and not their father, are now in control. According to reports, Girardi has been offered a three-year deal worth approximately $2-million a season. Negotiations are described as “ongoing” currently. As a side note, Don Mattingly has apparently turned down an offer to coach on his staff. Assuming Girardi accepts the offer, he will take control of a......

Assuming MLB gives them permission, the Yankees will probably announce their next manager tomorrow. The team has conducted three interviews and according to Hank “Liitle Stein” Steinbrenner, that’s all they plan on doing. So, let’s take a look at the three candidates. First up there is the long shot, Tony Pena. Pena joined the Yankees two seasons ago as Joe Torre’s first base coach, but his biggest impact was on Jorge Posada. Under Pena’s tutelage,......

While the Joe Torre situation drags on and on and on, at least one candidate apparently doesn’t want the job. According to a friend of Mattingly’s “he does not feel ready for the manager's job and is uncomfortable with replacing Joe Torre.” Furthermore, he has told a member of the Steinbrenner family his feelings. While Don's agent denies the report, Mattingly is absolutely right to be wary of taking this job. He is easily the......

Welcome to the first day of the Yankees’ offseason, buckle your seatbelts this is going to be a wild ride. While it is 99.9% certain that the Yankees are going to have a new manager for 2008, his identity remains a mystery. Joe Girardi, Don Mattingly and Tony LaRussa are the top names you hear, but remember in 1995 the Yankees shocked a lot of people when they chose Torre, so don’t be surprised if......

The reports of George Steinbrenner’s demise may have been exaggerated. In an interview with Ian O'Connor, Steinbrenner showed the fire that longtime fans of the Yankees are used to. While it wasn’t punching out someone in an elevator, this was a classic motivational ploy from the Steinbrenner textbook - win or the manager is gone. Of course all of this ignores the fact that the Yankees are lucky to have even made the playoffs. Teams......

The first release numbers for All-Star Game balloting was released yesterday for the National League and four Mets are leading in the yearly popularity contest. Jose Reyes, David Wright, Paul Lo Duca, and Carlos Beltran lead at their respective positions, with Beltran as the leading vote-getter in the National League across all positions. Reyes and Wright made their first appearances at the "Midsummer Classic" last season, while Lo Duca is a four-time All Star and......

-Reds 6 Mets 5: Jose Reyes recorded the first cycle in the majors this year, but Billy Wagner blew the save and the Mets lost. Wagner got the first two outs of the ninth, but then walked Austin Kearns and David Ross and gave up back-to-back singles to Rich Aurilia and Brandon Phillips. Carlos Beltran led off the bottom of the ninth with a walk, but Carlos Delgado flied out and David Wright grounded into......

Most fans believed that the best remedy for the Yankee losing streak was a series with the Royals. After all, Kansas City was twenty-four games under .500 and possessed the worst record in baseball. Things were so bad that their manager had quit one month into the season. Unfortunately for the Yankees, the Royals got a new manager on Tuesday and he skippered his team to a 5-3 victory. Not to be outdone, the Yankees......