THEY are the three-time defending World Series champs and yet we do not know who they are.
The 2001 Yankees are full of mastery and mystery. They could win their Division Series against Oakland in three games or lose in a sweep, and neither would shock. The A’s are much better than last year and the Yankees … well, the Yankees, we just don’t know.
They are harder to read than Beowulf in the original Old English, more difficult to decipher than the Dead Sea Scrolls. The Yankees have spent another season winning an AL East title with efficiency, but not overwhelming excellence. They have pride, poise and pedigree, yet also age, aches and adversity.
Their greatest strength entering this postseason is a championship experience that hardens and heartens them, that makes them believe they can withstand the greatest pressures and challenges. However, the A’s were not cowed last year, when they were postseason neophytes, and Oakland is savvier and superior this season.
Joe Torre yesterday called the A’s the best team in the AL going into the playoffs, and the AL playoffs contain the Mariners, who only won a record-tying 116 games, and the Yankees, who have only won four of the last five titles.
It could be considered gamesmanship, except Oakland’s 58-17 second-half record is the second-best ever. Unlike last season, when Oakland had to go to the last game to secure a playoff berth, the A’s are well-rested and set up for the best-of-five that begins tomorrow night.
The tightness of the 2000 race meant Tim Hudson and Barry Zito had to be used in the final weekend and were not available until Games 3 and 4 against the Yanks. Mark Mulder, who had a herniated disc, was not available at all.
This Division Series, that terrific trio will start four times if there are five games, which means the Yanks do not get Gil Heredia twice, like last year.
Torre also acknowledged the A’s offense is deeper and more diverse with the additions of Johnny Damon and Jermaine Dye, and the maturing of Eric Chavez and Miguel Tejada. Those four will be vital because the Yanks will do everything not to let Jason Giambi beat them.
But Oakland’s greatest ally for this series is that it will not be afraid to see pinstripes or 50,000-plus at the Stadium. This is a steely bunch, not the pushover Rangers of Yankee postseasons past. Torre called Oakland the best first-round foe in his tenure, and said it was possible the A’s were just flat-out the best opponent his Yankees have faced in the playoffs. So the indomitable Yanks of recent postseasons must show.
Torre admitted that since the magical 1998, his team has had a tendency to sleepwalk through seasons and then turn it on in the playoffs. It worked in 1999 and, especially, in 2000, when the Yanks finished the season 3-15, yet righted themselves to win a third consecutive title. These Yanks did not have the same kind of flop.
But anyone who watched the final series against Tampa recognized the problem areas. The Yanks managed eight runs in four games against the Devil Rays, and Mulder, Hudson, Zito and Cory Lidle will be better than Nick Bierbrodt, Joe Kennedy, Tanyon Sturtze and Paul Wilson. Roger Clemens lost twice to the Rays in 11 days, leaving Mike Mussina the closest to a sure thing in the renowned Yankee rotation.
Ramiro Mendoza and his weakened shoulder pitched 22/3 innings over the weekend and allowed nine hits and six runs, and suddenly we are wondering where Jeff Nelson is all over again. Due to injury and ineffectiveness, Torre still is trying to figure out how to align his corner outfield/DH roles.
They are all serious issues, but the recent Yanks have always been able to overcome serious issues when the calendar struck October. Maybe they will once more.
Maybe. Or maybe this is the postseason the Yanks step on the gas pedal and nothing happens. No one should bet against them because of who they have been. But bet on them at your own peril. Nothing lasts forever. Will this last for another year? We begin to find out answers to the following question starting tomorrow, Game 1. Who are the Yankees?