The real Mariano Rivera has returned after the All Star Break for the Yankees.  In 29 games since the break, Rivera is 1-1 with 17 saves, a 2.05 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP.  Rivera has worked 30.2 innings in the 2nd half of the season and he has allowed 27 hits, walked 5 batters and whiffed 36.  Rivera’s overall numbers look pretty good now.  In 62 games this season, Rivera is 3-4 with 29 saves, a 2.98 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP.  In 66.1 innings, he has allowed 63 hits, walked 10 batters and whiffed 69.  The Yankees have won 8 of their last 10 games which has them 5 games ahead of the Tigers in the Wild Card.  But the Yankees who are now 87-64 on the season are only 2.5 games behind the Red Sox in the American League East.

The New York Yankees appear to have saved their best for last so look out!  The Yankees have won 6 games in a row putting distance between them and the Tigers (4 games) and the Mariners (6.5 games) for the Wild Card.  The Yankees are now 82-62 which has them only 5 games behind the Red Sox in the American League East.  The Yanks main goal is probably to make a run at the division as the Red Sox are banged up right now.

The New York Yankees are in good shape right now as everything seems to be coming together.  After a slow start to the season the Yanks are now 76-61 which has them 6 games behind the Red Sox in the American League East.  The Yankees to lead the Wild Card Standings as they are 2 games ahead of the Mariners and 3 games ahead of the Tigers.  The Yankees lead the major leagues in scoring with 801 runs (5.8 runs per game) because everyone has been hitting lately.  But, Alex Rodriguez (.306 avg, 123 runs, 45 homers, 129 RBIs and 21 stolen bases) and Jorge Posada (.329 avg, 16 homers and 78 RBIs) have hit all season long for the Yanks and they deserve the most credit on offense.  Andy Pettitte and Chien-Ming Wang have been the only consistent starting pitchers for the Yankees this season as they are 28-14 with a 3.80 ERA between them.  The Yanks were smart in holding onto their young players at the trade deadline as starter Ian Kennedy and reliever Joba Chamberlain will have a say in if the Yanks make the playoffs or not.  Kennedy has replaced Mike Mussina in the rotation and he worked 7 solid innings for a win in his major league debut over the weekend.  Joba Chamberlain has been awesome as he’s working his way into the set-up role in front of Mariano Rivera.  He has done it with a blazing fastball as he has not allowed an earned run in 11.1 innings for the Yanks and he has whiffed a stunning 17 batters.

The Yankees are 9-4 the last two weeks as they’ve outscored their opponents 88-62.  The Yankees are really hitting the ball well and that’s made up for their sub par pitching of the last couple of weeks.  The Yankees enter this week with a 30-31 record which has them in 2nd place in the American League East, 9.5 games behind the Red Sox.

The Yankees were 2-4 last week as they were outscored 29-27  by their opponents.  The Yankees got poor pitching and their bats still have not started to heat up yet.  The Yankees entered this week with a 21-27 record which had them in 4th place in the American League East, 12.5 games behind the Red Sox.