Operation Chaos, at a conclusion

Okay, Yankees, now you're on you're own.

I wonder: whatever happened to those people who made a living building those metal television portables, those metal carts with plastic wheels that were used to move a TV from the living room to the bedroom?

I do remember, back in the old house on Second Street, sneaking into my parents' room on a Saturday morning and quietly rolling our RCA black-and-white out to the living room to watch "Kid Power" and "Hong Kong Fooey."

As soon as people decided that it was simply more convenient to buy a TV for every room that might want one, those TV cart people were out of business.

So I thought today, as I raced between Astro Girl's and my four TVs: I've got my own Sports Bar!

Living room: Texans vs. Raiders.

Den: Flipping: Giants vs. Chiefs (Eli et al. fantasy), and Patriots vs. Ravens (game of the day, by the way--defense bails out Brady's awful fourth-quarter management).

Kitchen: Tigers stroll to victory.

Bedroom: Twins stroll to victory.

So we move to a one-game playoff, with, for the Twins and Tigers, both pitching staffs (staves?) in the bully.

It cannot set up better for the Yankees.

First, a Central team whose pitching staff is torn to tatters by so many late-season cliffhangers.

Then, past that, the winner of the glamour Division Series, the Angel-Red Sox potential war.

Then . . . who? The Dodgers don't hit, the Phillies have no bullpen, the Rockies are the Rockies, and the Cardinals . . . well, there you might have a problem.

Tony effing Doubleday. He has out-thought himself out of more World Series than he's won, and he's been the father of more good-ideas-turned-crappy than any manager in history (twenty-one years ago, Tony Doubleday deemed that Honeycutt must pitch the eighth, and Eck the ninth, and every team since then has fallen into lockstep . . .)

(. . . And I'm not saying he's wrong on principle, only does that have to rule have to be ironclad, from here to eternity? Wilcy Moore was the relief ace for the '27 Yankees (only the greatest team of all time, and featuring, beyong Ruth, Gehrig, and Lazzeri, two starting pitchers who made the Hall of Fame, and a third--Urban Shocker--who should be there); and Joe Page was the "closer" for Casey Stengel, and both of them were brought in multiple times with multiple innings to go. In a tight game, in a pennant race, Casey had no problem bringing in Page in the third or fourth. In Game Four of the ADCS, with the Yankees facing elimination, Billy Martin brought in Sparky Lyle to retire the last 15 Royals for the win, and then come in the ninth for the win the following night. The following year, in the historic 1978 Yankee-Red Sox playoff game (aka The Greatest Game Ever Played) there is serious evidence that Bob Lemon considered sending Goose Goosage out to start, hoping he'd shut the Sox down for three innings, then bring in Guidry. As it was, Lemon started Guidry, but put Goose on notice: if Guidry was knocked out of the first, Goose would be the first man out. Go with your best. That was the rule, right up until Tony Doubleday discovered Honeycutt adn Eck.)

Well, if the Yankees can't beat the winner of the Tiger-Twin cage match, I give up.