When Placido Polanco gathered up Robinson Cano's weak groundball and lobbed it to Sean Casey, the New York Yankees season came to an all-too-early end. The team that was supposed to show the lowly Tigers why they didn't belong on FOX in October had been pounded into oblivion.

It has now been four weeks since the Bombers won Game 1 of the Detroit series and had every sports analyst in the country talking sweep.  Joe Torre must have listened, because he would later admit that his decision to start Jaret Wright in Game 4 was based largely on the fact that he hadn't planned on needing a Game 4 starter. Astounding shortsightedness aside, the truth is that Wright should never have been in the position of HAVING to win Game 4, and Torre should never have had to put him there. In fact, laying blame with either of those two only obscures the actual fact of the matter:

It's all Mike Mussina's fault.

In reviewing the series, it's hard to deny that the turning point was Moose's miserable Game 2 performance.  After Johnny Damon hit the upper deck in Yankee Stadium, Mussina took the mound and methodically handed the game to the Tigers: first some hits, then some runs, then the lead, then the win. En route to the loss, the veteran showed an uncanny ability to give up double after double after double — and Torre showed far too much deference in refusing to give the old guy the hook.

Now, it would be one thing if Mussina hadn't blown big postseason games in the past, or had recently put together a solid championship run with the Yankees...but that is by no means the case.  Moose came to the Yankees in 2001, the year the World Series streak came to an end.  Sure, he's 92-53 with a 3.85 ERA in six REGULAR seasons with the Yankees, and has made at least 27 starts in each of those years. His numbers in the PLAYOFFS, unfortunately, tell a different story: 5-7 with a 4.87 ERA. Not exactly the stuff of October legend.

Mussina made $19 million in 2006, the most of any pitcher on the team and the fourth-highest among all Yankees.  Ther club has an option on him for 2007, and therein lies the question:

If you're Brian Cashman, do you pick up the Moose for 2007?

The answer has got to be an emphatic NO.  Not a chance.  Mussina's postseason blunders are reason enough to let him go, but there's more than just that. Think of it like this:

Mussina will be 38 years old in December, and the last thing the Yankees need is another pitcher on the cusp of retirement.  More to the point, with the possible return of Carl Pavano, the likely emergence of Philip Hughes, and the potential availability of Barry Zito and Jason Schmidt on the free agent market, the Yankees don't need another pitcher, period — especially not one with a knack for falling flat in big games. And that's to say nothing of the possible departures of Alex Rodriguez and Gary Sheffield. At this point, Moose's $19 million in 2007 is money that would be far better spent on high-price prospects or big-name pickups.

The Yankees annual "Win At All Costs" campaign is going to be more urgent than ever this winter after the diasappointing end to 2006.  It's a safe bet that Cashman and Co. will look to throw millions at Zito, and will turn to Schmidt as a second choice if Barry goes to Queens or Boston.  More pressingly, the Yanks need to put together a team — a real team — like they had from 1996 to 2001. The money and the roster space have got to come from somewhere. As I see it, there's only one option on the table, and it doesn't belong to an over-the-hill righty.

Sorry Moose. It's time for the Bombers to cut you loose.