Yankees: Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing

The Yankees, of late, seem bent on testing a theory. It goes something like this – if winning is contagious, then losing must also be the same.

The Yankees got my attention some time ago, and I’ve watched every inning, every game, every pitch since then. The Yankees were winning. Not only winning but by being an exciting team in the big city, winning was just part of that whole package. Then something happened.

First and foremost, the Yanks most consistent starting pitcher, C.C. Sabathia came down with a hamstring injury. At the same time, their seventh-inning specialist all of a sudden forget how to pitch. Michael Pineda has seemed to revert to his past struggles.

At first, it just appeared to be a minor slump, and they would turn it around. Then they recently lost seven in a row, and the hope suddenly dashed out the door.

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Did it dash out the door? Joe Girardi has had a heck of a job trying to field somewhat of a healthy lineup, but you can’t do much about injuries. However, by releasing Chis Carter, the Yankees were able to give the starting job over to Tyler Austin who showed promise last year in the final months of the year. Jacoby Ellsbury recently was activated from the disabled list with a concussion on Monday.

So, would it be too optimistic to think that if the Yankees win tonight (Monday) that they’ve won two out of their last three games? Or is it pessimistic to think that they’ll never have the hold over the American League East that they had earlier in the season?

We’ll have to wait to find out, but deep down, I know that they can get back to their winning ways from earlier this year.

Aaron Hicks and now Starlin Castro have been placed on the disabled list. While that’s now the news we wanted to hear, neither looks to be out for very long. To take over for Starlin, the Yankees have promoted the much-heralded prospect, Tyler Wade.

In addition to being a Ben Zobrist type of player, he’s also like the 20th guy on the roster named Tyler that has been on the roster at some point this year.

I’ll be optimistic all the while worrying which pitcher is going to need Tommy John surgery after hurting himself brushing his teeth. It hasn’t gotten that bad, and you have to remember the 1996 team endured their share of injuries.

Yankees: Five players who will help the team before the year is out

The Yankees we see today will not be the same team we see in September. Here are five players who can help the team before the season is over.

They won the World Series, mostly due to their manager Joe Torre remaining calm and pushing the right buttons. One player on that team, Joe Girardi, Torres’ successor, is trusted to do the same. I am confident that he will.