Let The Blowouts Begin (And End)!

So the Yankees are off to a fast start this year. The A's, everyone's hot pick, got thoroughly embarrassed on their home turf. A-Schmuck came through in the clutch, but a few months too late. (Thank you, Ervin Santana) So did the Shemp. And Johnson pitched pretty well. I'm sure this game will be a Yankees Classic on YES soon enough.

Maybe it's good that the Yanks started with a bang. In '98, they had that 1-3 start and everyone was freaking out. We all know how that year turned out. Even last year, the Yanks had that awful April, but turned into the Yanks of old for the second half of the season. So maybe the Yanks start fast this year, and then fall off as the season progresses.

Besides, even if the Yankees sweep the A's, I can't get too excited. For a few years already, we've seen how the A's can be slow starters. They don't pick up the pace until June, maybe July. In fact, last year, the A's went 1-5 against the Yanks in May. The lowlight there had to be when Kevin Brown pitched 7 shutout innings against them. And in '04, the A's also went 1-5 against NY (the immortal Donovan Osbourne getting the W in a game there). Go back to '02, back when we thought Art Howe was the next Casey Stengel, and the A's went 2-4 in April/May vs. NY.

So beating the A's in April or May doesn't mean a whole lot. Especially when you've got the true Moneyball team, all $200 million worth, going up against them.