"Walks cost Yankees in finale...Proctor issues three free passes in pivotal seventh vs. Halos" -- May 27, 2007

By Caleb Breakey / MLB.com


NEW YORK -- Fans stood, clapped and hollered as one Yankee -- a man who felt useless to his team just five days ago -- emerged from a pack of pinstripes huddled around the mound with one out in the seventh inning.

The Yankees had the lead. They had one of their most effective relievers coming in. And Mike Mussina thought he had it all -- a solid pitching performance, a win and a place in the heart of Yankees fans amid a season of turmoil.

Instead of taking a seat after his 6 1/3 innings, Mussina stuttered for a moment at the top step of the dugout, lifting his right hand and waving to the 53,508 in attendance. Then the moment slipped by, as reliever Scott Proctor walked in two runs, and the Angels went on to a 4-3 win at Yankee Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

"Some days it can really eat at you," Mussina said. "We've just been struggling so bad. You want those games to hold up."

After the game, Mussina jumbled numbers as media engulfed him. One reporter even asked if the veteran right-hander was a math major in college. The conversation? Trying to figure out how many wins the Yankees (21-27) needed to push them into the playoffs.

"You've got to get to the low 90s to give yourself a chance," Mussina said. "That would be, what, 72-73 wins from here?"

The general consensus was that the team needed to play the rest of the season 30 games over .500.

"I don't know how many we have left, but it's got to be close to that," Mussina said. "With four months to play roughly, [we need to be] 30 games over -- it's time we start playing."

In other words, Mussina wishes the team could have that seventh inning back. Proctor relieved Mussina with one out and one on. The Yankees were ahead, 2-1, at that point.

But Howie Kendrick doubled and Mike Napoli walked on a full-count pitch. That loaded the bases for pinch-hitter Erick Aybar, who walked after an 11-pitch at-bat, plating a run for the Angels. Chone Figgins took the next free pass, and Torre pulled Proctor.

"I was the reason we lost today, and that [ticks] me off even more," Proctor said. "I wasn't making pitches. It's the same thing. I couldn't put a finger on it."

Torre said Proctor may have been too pumped up, trying to overthrow his pitches. That was the explanation. But the result was another Yankees loss in a season that seems to stutter the second after it steams.

"We've had tough spells, we've had tough two weeks [and] tough months here or there, but this has been two months now," Mussina said. "We can't seem to get anything going for any length of time. We look good for three or four days, and then we struggle again."

The ninth inning sufficed his comment, as another potential Yankees rally fizzled.

Bobby Abreu led off with a walk, and pinch-hitter Jorge Posada singled to right. Johnny Damon came off the bench and advanced the runners to second and third with a pinch-hit grounder to first, and Melky Cabrera hit a sacrifice fly that scored Abreu and scooted Posada to third.

That set Derek Jeter up for another one of his trademark high-pressure situations. The Yankees couldn't have asked for a better setup: Jeter came to bat with a .609 batting average (14-for-23) with two outs and runners in scoring position.

"It was going to happen," Torre said. "No question."

And while Jeter made Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez work, the game ended when the shortstop hit a hard fly ball -- which did garner a few gasps as it searched for green grass -- that was caught by center fielder Gary Matthews Jr.

Once again, Yankees fans trudged out of the stadium, leaving the sprinklers soaking the field and attendants picking up trash. It's become a familiar scene in the Bronx, and even Torre said the team is too far into the season to say "it's still early."

"But I don't know what you do about it," Torre said. "You still have to go out there, prepare and play. It's not that now it's time to panic. Now, what do you do once you do that?"

Yankees backup catcher Wil Nieves provided the bulk of the offense, going 2-for-2 with a walk and two RBI singles, while much of the vaunted lineup remained otherwise silent.

The Yankees feel that the trend may only be a temporary annoyance, and certainly their fans hope the same. This much is sure: it hasn't added up to nearly enough victories.

"You don't want to believe it," Damon said, "but we just haven't been playing good baseball."