Mariano Rivera in a non-save situation in 2008, like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Mo turns into Billy Wagner.  Granted, Damaso Marte pitching into a losing situation did not help things.

The New York Yankees had things set up for a shot at victory yet again then blew it.  Andy was solid and so was A-Rod.  Swept in California.  Ugh, now 8.5 games back in the standings.  Great.

Final
New York Yankees (63-55) 3
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (74-43) 4
WP - Rodriguez (2-2), LP - Marte (4-2)
Player of the Game - Chone Figgins; 2/5 (.279), 2 RBI (17)
Mancrush - 2/3 (.315), 2 2B (25), RBI (70), BB

Sox-enfreude
Not the White Sox (67-51) 5
Chicago White Sox (65-51) 6

What a Bronx Bummer.

Dan Giese was superb pitching against the Los Angeles Angels.  And he did so against John Lackey.  Giese went six-innings only giving up one run.  Against the Angels, with the Yankees, you would think it would spell victory.  Well, when anything can happen, anything will.  A usually solid tandem of Jose Veras and Edwar Ramirez (and David Robinson) simply choked.  They combined to give up ten runs in only two innings, eight of them in the eighth inning.  Geez.

Final
New York Yankees (63-54) 3
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (73-43) 11
WP - Shields (5-3), LP - Ramirez (3-1)
Player of the Game - Vladimir Guerrero; 2/5 (.292), HR (21), 2 RBI (67), 3 K
Mancrush - 1/3 (.312), HR (26), RBI (69), BB, K

Aside from you-know-who (blatant non-Harry Potter reference), what team is the perennial thorn in the side of the New York Yankees?  Them dang Los Angeles Anaheim California Angels of Los Angeles County of the State of California.  Ugh.

Ian Kennedy's return start was against said Angels.  What a team to comeback against.  A-Rod, who finally decided to hit on this road trip, and Xavier Nady tried igniting the supposedly inconsistently potent offense but was undone by the entity that is Mike Scioscia's Angels.  It was a 17-hit onslaught against Yankee pitching.  Ian Kennedy never had a chance.

Final
New York Yankees (63-53) 5
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (72-43) 10
WP - Weaver (10-9), LP - Kennedy (0-4)
Player of the Game - Torii Hunter; 4/5 (.289), 2B (27), HR (19), 4 RBI (65), K
Mancrush - 1/3 (.312), HR (25), RBI (68), BB, K

Sox-enfreude
Red Hue-ish Hosiery (66-50) 3
Chicago White Sox (64-50) 5

The Moose was loose, yet again -- this time in Texas.

Derek Jeter's first inning home run was all that Mike Mussina needed to win one for the New York Yankees.  A little insurance runs here and there and a Mariano Rivera super save, and you got yourself win number 15 for the Moose.

Hey, A-Rod, were just passing through?  Just sightseeing the old stomping grounds?  I didn't see you hit in the game... er... the series.  What's up, guy?

Final
New York Yankees (63-52) 3
Texas Rangers (60-56) 0
WP - Mussina (15-7), LP - Feldman (4-5), Sv - Rivera (28)
Player of the Game - Mike Mussina; W, 8 H, 0 ER, 6 K, 1 BB, 3.27 ERA
Mancrush - 0/4 (.312), 2 K

Fatty served some poetic justice to the team that released him.  Good job, fat man.

Resident porker, Sidney Ponson, proved he can pitch well, and well against his first-half team, the Texas Rangers.  Speaking of former teams, Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez took one on the chin, as David Murphy tried to plow through homeplate.  Dude, do you know Pudge?  Even with a rocked body, I-Rod held onto the ball.  Some lessons are learned the hard way.  Does it seem that Yankee victories are less interesting than losses?  That's because winning should just happen, as it did tonight.  ... And then Mo shut 'em down.
Final
New York Yankees (62-52) 5
Texas Rangers (60-55) 3
WP - Ponson (7-2), LP - Hunter (0-1), Sv - Rivera (27)
Player of the Game - Sidney Ponson; 6.1 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 4 K, 1 BB, 4.23 ERA
Mancrush - 0/4 (.315), K

The Yankees answer back with a grand slam of their own.  Unfortunately, it was too little too late.
The unsexy Richie Sexson hit his first grand slam as a New York Yankee, in the top of the eighth inning in Texas.  It was all great and dandy, but the Yankees lost the game... because they spotted the Texas Rangers eight runs in the first seven innings.  A three-inning rally fell short because the Bronx Bummers needed one more inning.  Convoluted much?  It's easy -- Andy Pettitte could not hold Josh Hamilton and the Rangers down AND neither A-Rod nor Jeter could manage a hit.  Just dandy.  Seriously, how can you not hit a guy with a 6.46 ERA?

Final
New York Yankees (61-52) 6
Texas Rangers (60-54) 8
WP - Harrison (3-2), LP - Pettitte (12-9), Sv - Guardado (3)
Player of the Game - Matt Harrison; W, 6.1 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 3 K, 3 BB, 6.46 ERA
Mancrush - 0/3 (.319)

Jobamania derailed.
Texas has now claimed two pitchers to its victims list, and not from winning baseball but rather  -- Phil Hughes last year and now Joba Chamberlain.  After giving up a fifth inning single to Marlon Byrd, Joba left with stiffness in his throwing shoulder.  Great.  Ugh.  With Joba out of the game, the Yankees likelihood of winning the game was placed into the arms of the bullpen.  Things went well, as the Yankees were able to tie the game into the ninth inning.  Unfortunately, efforts were for naught, as Damaso Marte, possibly feeling the effects of being the new guy/lefty (ONLY) specialist, gave up a walk-off grand slam to none other than Marlon Byrd.  I kinda dislike that guy, now.

Final
New York Yankees (61-51) 5
Marlon Byrd (59-53) 9
WP - Guardado (3-2), LP - Marte (4-1)
Player of the Game - Marlon Byrd; 2/4 (.254), GS (7), 4 RBI (27), BB, K
Joba Rules - ND, 4.2 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 5 K, 2 BB, 2.63 ERA

Mancrush - 0/3 (.322), BB, K

Sox-enfreude
Crumbly Clay (64-49) 3
Kansas City Royals (53-60) 4
No-hitters can really happen to anyone.

Ever watch "Angels in the Outfield," the Disney movie where a kid's prayers come true as the Angels miraculously and hilariously win the division.  One game in that movie had the Angels win a game where the opposing team racked up an ugly amount of errors.  Today's game was like the exact opposite.
Today, The Angels committed an ungodly amount of errors (four), as the Yankees pulled off the improbable victory.  Errors aside, the Yankees were powered by the likes of Xavier Nady's six runs batted in.  And dude, no K-Rod vs. A-Rod.  I wonder if a kid's prayers are being answered.

Final
Bumbling Angels in the Outfield AND Infield of Anaheim (69-42) 9
New York Yankees of New York (61-50) 14
WP - Ramirez (3-0), LP - Shields (4-3)
Player of the Game - Xavier Nady; 4/6 (.334), 2B (29), HR (16), 6 RBI (67)
Mancrush - 1/4 (.323), RBI (67), 3 R (72), BB (42), 2 K (73)

It's always nice when old faces show up for Old Timers' Day.  Even this guy showed up...
It's always sweet when the New York Yankees defeat the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

The victory came by way of Moose-power pitching and the Charlie Hustle demon finding Jose Molina, who had catching responsibilities for a resting Pudge.  The game should've been even lower scoring, had Wilson Betemit not commit his error in the second inning of the game.  Mike Mussina was able to cruise through the game, after Betemit redeemed himself with a two-run home run later in the same inning.  Jose Molina turned on the fat guy afterburners from first base to third and was able to score the lead, as Derek Jeter grounded into a double play -- very unlike his Captain Clutch namesake.  The Middle Molina even knocked a long ball out of the park.  Thankfully, the Yankees never relinquished the lead and won very easily.

Final
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (69-41) 2
New York Yankees of New York (60-50) 8
WP - Mussina (14-7), LP - Weaver (9-9)
Player of the Game - Jose Molina; 3/3 (.237), HR (1), RBI (12)
Mancrush - 2/4 (.325), HR (24), RBI (66), 2 K (71)

Mo, we have got to work on your non-save opportunities.  Ugh!
Fatty, a.k.a. Sidney Ponson, pitcher dueled against the Angeles' Erivn Santana.  It was just another night of Yankee consistency... of being inconsistent.  I refuse to believe the fat man resembled a quality pitcher.  It was more like Ervin Santana was doing his best Johan Santana impression, as the Angels offense could not place bat to ball.  And since it's bizarro baseball, Mariano Rivera took over the ninth inning in a non-save opportunity and gave up the winning RBI to Torii Hunter.  Saves are doable, wins... eh, not so much.  This set the stage for the always overly demonstrative Francisco Rodriguez save opportunity.  Although being somewhat dramatic, with the likes of Alex Rodriguez, Jason Giambi, and Robinson Cano due up in the lineup, K-Rod shut the door on any comeback by striking out A-Rod straight away and inducing subsequent weak outs.  It was a winnable game, people, a very winnable game.

Final
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (69-40) 1
New York Yankees (59-50) 0
WP - Santana (12-5), LP - Rivera (4-4), Sv - Rodriguez (45)
Player of the Game - Ervin Santana; W, 8.0 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 8 K, 2 BB, 3.38 ERA
Mancrush - 0/3 (.323), BB, 2 K.  That was very un-clutch, dude.