Yankees-Red Sox: The Bombers Take Another Beating from the Boys Up North

This game was definitely one to forget for the Yankees, as they took an 11-3 loss to the Boston Red Sox. Up until the fourth inning, things looked hopeful; the two rivals were tied with two runs apiece. Then, in the fifth, Boston answered with another two runs, one of them being walked in by Sidney Ponson (4.2 IP, 7H, 4ER, 3K, 4BB).

The Yankees never got those runs back. For the second night in a row, a Yankees starting pitcher failed to make it past the fifth inning. Ponson wasn't at his best, and his poor outing was reflected in the Yankees' bats.

The Bombers put up one run in the first and one in the fourth, and the bats were silent until the top of the ninth when Jason Giambi went yard with a solo homer. The Red Sox bats really came alive in the top of the eighth.

Heading into the inning with a 4-2 lead, they tacked on another seven runs including a Jason Bay RBI triple and a Dustin Pedroia grand slam. Paul Byrd was solid for the Sox, going six strong innings with five strikeouts and two earned runs.

The Yankees surely hear the boos, the critics, the talk of not making it to the postseason for the first time in 13 years. Unless they could somehow pull off another stint like the 1995 Yankees did, their season is over.

Their postseason hopes are not looking good, and they will need to play every game with the intensity and knowledge that at any moment, they could be done. Leave it to Hank Steinbrenner to put his disgust right out there:

"All I can think about is this game at this point," Steinbrenner said when asked if his team's playoff hopes were finished. "We'll see what happens (today), but the bottom line is they sucked."

There is, however, the tiniest shred of hope; the Yanks are still mathematically in the race, and the season is not over until there is an "x" next to their name.

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