After yesterday's 6-2 win over the Rangers, it looked like the Yankees had at last managed to dig themselves out of the ditch they've been buried in for the past month and cross into the exciting frontier of a .500 record. Just a few short hours later though, and they're back on that losing side of the spectrum after crumbling under Texas's crushing offense (that is sarcastic; to be honest, the fact that the Yankees collective pitching allowed them to score 14 times is just as embarrassing as their sub-.500 record) this afternoon.

Even though their record is once again hovering below a solid "C" average, we have seen marked improvement from the Yankees in recent weeks. It has been a long journey just to get to this point, and with their record no longer screaming "dear god please help us we cannot pitch to save our lives", I feel I can at last enjoy a moment of optimism. The team actually has a lot of good things going for them, regardless of the injury count or the 8-game lead the Red Sox have right now (ouch). Help is on the way in the pitching department, with the Clemens machine working out already, and Matt DeSalvo (left, holding what appears to be my 3-year-old nephew's glove) pitched very well last weekend - if he does well again on Saturday against the Mariners, he could become a long-term fill in the rotation. Darrell Rasner also looked great yesterday, although he seems to tucker out after about 5 innings. At the very least, Rasner and DeSalvo can't fare worse than Kei Igawa (right...I'm sorry.), who has been shipped off to Class-A Tampa and is probably currently being trained to serve as shoe-shiner to Roger Clemens. Offensively, Jeter, A-Rod, and Posada are tearing things up, and dear Mientkicantspellhisname has really picked up the pace himself. Damon, Cano, and Abreu have not even come close to doing what they are capable of thus far, but rather than worry me, I choose to take their current poor performances as evidence that they will all start hitting like crazy any day now (don't ruin my dream).

Greener pastures are on their way to the Bronx, and with a smidge of patience while they battle through this month of May we should be seeing that gap between the Yanks and Sox inching closer every day. Remember: every day that passes brings us one day closer to Clemens' debut, the return of Hughes, and the thrill of Pavano's Tommy John surgery!