There is no denying the pain the Yankees put us through over the course of the first half of the season, but I feel it is time that we put that behind us and look forward to better times in the coming months. It is true that they finished the first half under .500 (42-43) and with no fewer than 7 players on the DL (technically 8 if you count Mr. Pavano, which I do not because he is not actually a “player” in the strict sense of the word), but there are plenty of reasons to believe that all hope is not (yet) lost. They went into the All-Star break on a positive note, winning the 4-game series against the Twins and then taking 2 out of 3 from their mortal enemies the Angels, and both Hughes and Karstens are slowly but surely pulling themselves out from the depths of the seemingly bottomless DL-pit. Better still is the Yanks’ summer schedule, which looks significantly less intimidating than their grueling first half: they play just one more 3-game series against the Angels and 6 more games against the Red Sox (they faced them 12 times in the first half). Instead, they will have a chance to make up some ground with some "easier" games when they play 10 against the Royals, 14 against the last-place Devil Rays, and face the floundering Orioles 12 times.

Of course, even with a lightened load on the schedule front and the prospect of Hughes and Karstens rejoining the team to shoulder some of the burden, there still remains quite a hurdle between the Yanks and the post-season. After the Red Sox fell victim to the broom of the Rockies (what is truly sad here is the fact that the Yankees were also swept in Colorado and therefore I really have no business mocking Boston for their failure; if there is anything sadder than not being able to jest at Boston's expense, I am not aware of it) and the Yanks won 2 against the Angels the gap between the two still stands at 10 games, and they are 8.5 games out in the wildcard hunt. In my professional Baseball-Analyzer-and-Mathematician opinion, the odds of knocking the Red Sox out and winning the division are significantly brighter than the chances of them hopscotching Cleveland, Oakland, Seattle, Minnesota and Toronto to win the wildcard spot. 10 games is a considerable margin, sure, but insurmountable? It doesn't have to be. This team has not played to its potential for longer than a few innings all season - much to the collective chagrin of Big Stein, the Cash Man, Torre, you, and the Yankees Chick - but from the glimpses we have seen and the track records of the boys, they could certainly play better than the Sox if they were so inclined. It seems oversimplistic and a tad absurd in light of all the hardships the Yanks have endured this year, but I still wholeheartedly believe that the Yankees could and would be in first place if they just had a different attitude. Perhaps the combination of an easier schedule and the return of our wounded soldiers will be enough to spark some passion into that lackluster clubhouse.