AJ Burnett

As the New York Yankees thrust towards the playoffs, with a magic number of three as of this writing, some postseason roster decisions still loom large.

At this point, the concern for the Yankees is their pitching. Yes, CC Sabathia, Phil Hughes, and most of the bullpen will be fine. But beyond that (the other two starters) the Yankees have some issues.

The rain knocked A.J. Burnett out of the game and the Yankees B-squad bullpen let them down as they lost at home 7-2 to the Tampa Bay Rays to drop to just 1.5 games up in first place.

Here are some highlights:

We are in the home stretch of the long, arduous MLB season. The Minnesota Twins have wrapped up the AL Central, while five others (New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Philadelphia Phillies and Cincinnati Reds) are all pretty much guaranteed spots.

That leaves the quartet of the Atlanta Braves, San Francisco Giants, San Diego Padres and Colorado Rockies jockeying for the final two postseason spots: the National League West Crown and the NL Wild Card.

On the night that the New York Yankees unveiled a seven-foot tall monument of their late owner George Steinbrenner, the American League leaders won their 91st game of the season by beating the Tampa Bay Rays.

With 12 games to play, New York leads Tampa Bay by 1.5 games in the A.L. East and leads the Minnesota Twins by one game for the best record in the league. 

New York leads the league in runs scored, is third in homers, second in walks, first in OBP, and second in OPS.

Doesn't the photograph of A.J. Burnett say it all?

I think it does (Yankee fans, including myself are used to it). 

Therefore, sit back, relax and enjoy, as you read "AJ Burnett and MLB’s 10 Contending Pitchers Who Do Not Deserve a Playoff Start".

Let's play ball.

The playoffs are around the corner. 

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Yankee fans and management had been growing uneasy recently, as the state of the starting rotation heading into the final weeks of the season has helped to create as many question as it has answered.

The prospect of heading into the post-season with a starting rotation led by CC Sabathia, followed by Phil Hughes, A.J. Burnett, and Javier Vazquez or Ivan Nova was enough to shake the confidence of even the most ardent supporter of the team.

Last Monday, the Yankees visited the Rays in St. Petersburg, Fla. for one of the most anticipated series in the 2010 season.

The race has been tightly packed all season, with no team leading by more 2 1/2 games since July 26.

In the last five days, there have been three flip-flops for the division lead. With another four game set about to happen between these two teams in Yankee Stadium, you can expect the seesaw to keep on tilting.

The New York Yankees need to turn around this horrid road trip.

The usually easy wins against the Baltimore Orioles are a thing of the past, as the Bombers visit the most-improved team at Camden Yard this weekend for three games.

New York Yankees starting pitcher AJ Burnett will take the mound. Burnett has been a mess this season.

Last Night Rewind

Almost a year ago, September 13, Joe Girardi was a ticked off manager.  Even though the Yankees had the best record in the game (92-52) and a seven-game lead in the AL East over the Boston Red Sox, Girardi had been tossed out of a close game against the Orioles for arguing balls and strikes.