New York Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano is placing his faith in a higher power that his team will make the postseason, reports David Lennon of Newsday.

Cano talked about his team's post-season chances with Lennon, telling the reporter "We will (make the playoffs). I think God has a plan for Mo."

Long-time Yankees closer Mariano Rivera is in his final season with the club. Rivera has only missed the postseason twice since joining the team in 1995: 2008 and 2012, when Rivera was injured.

Cano and Rivera have both done their part to keep the Yankees in the playoff hunt. Cano is batting .310/.383/.516 with 27 homers and 107 RBI, while Rivera has 2.30 ERA over 60 appearances this season, recording 43 saves.

The Yankees have battled numerous injury issues this season, but enter Monday with a 79-71 record, three games behind the Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers in the AL Wild Card race. The team has an off-day Monday before starting a three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays at the Rogers Centre.

More from SB Nation MLB:

Follow @SBNationMLB

• Watch the Red Sox pay tribute to Mariano Rivera

• Rangers' rookie hazing pictures aren't pretty | #Lookit

• Hunter Pence belts 5 HRs in 4-game series

• Chris Davis hits home run No. 50 | 50 HRs, 1 GIF

• "The Sandlot" cast, 20 years later

Yesterday on Pinstriped Bible

• Yankees off night scoreboard watching open thread
• Derek Jeter is not a shortstop anymore
• Yankees weekly preview: Bouncing back
• Robinson Cano: And then there was one

Around the Internet

• NoMaas | SJK: His peripherals show that there is still hope for CC Sabathia in 2014.
• New York Post | Joel Sherman: After the seasons Slade Heathcott and Tyler Austin had, and with Manny Banuelos only starting simulated games, the Yankees' hopes for the future aren't looking good.
• It's About the Money | MJ Radolf: How much is Robinson Cano really worth?
• It's About the Money | Michael Eder: Whether Ivan Nova will ultimately succeed or fail as a starter is all dependent on his pitching repertoire.
• Fangraphs | Matt Klaassen: A look at Robinson Cano's platoon history against left-handed pitchers.
• It's About the Money | Brad Vietrogoski: The bullpen has struggled after injuries to Shawn Kelley, David Robertson, and Boone Logan forced Joe Girardi to use Preston Claiborne and Joba Chamberlain in their place.
• New York Times | David Waldstein: Joe Girardi was really angry with the team after the lack of effort he saw during Sunday's game.
• New York Post | Ken Davidoff: The Yankees' weak schedule gives them a chance at the playoffs.
• Newsday | Anthony Rieber: Where were Matt Daley, Mike Zagurski, and Brendan Ryan when they got the call that they were going to be a Yankee?
• ESPN New York: The Yankees talked about their favorite moments with Mariano Rivera, the prankster.

Quick Hits

• Jim Callis believes that Greg Bird is a legitimate prospect.
• Mariano Rivera was named a finalist for the MLBPA's Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award.
• David Robertson was named the Yankees' nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award.
• Brendan Ryan likes playing in New York and it's possible the Yankees will try to keep him in 2014.

Questions of the Day

• Will Boone Logan need Tommy John surgery?
• When will the Yankees retires Mariano Rivera's number?
• What is the best sports movie ever made?
• Have you ever dropped your phone in the toilet?

Coming Up Today

• AL Wild Card contenders' remaining schedules @ 10 am
• New York Yankees @ Toronto Blue Jays at 7:07 pm (Game Thread at 6:30 pm)

After suffering a series sweep at the hands of the Red Sox, the Yankees find themselves 4th in the AL East (guess who is the only team trailing them) and, more importantly, 2.5 back in the Wild Card race, with 4 teams to jump over to get one of those spots.

They've been hit with injury woes that rival what we've been going through with our Jays. Darn near any Yankee you can name either has been on the DL, or is on the DL at the moment.

I sent off some questions to Tanya Bondurant, managing editor of Pinstriped Bible, SB Nation's Yankee's blog.

After the series with the Red Sox, do Yankee fan feel they still have a shot at the Wild Card?

I think there's always hope until mathematical elimination. It's an enormous long shot, though, and would take a lot of good fortune that they Yankees really haven't received all season. Were it not for the Rangers' collapse, I might feel a lot differently heading into the next couple weeks.

With Derek Jeter injured again, is his time as a Yankee SS over? what do you figure his role will be next year?

His time as the Yankees shortstop should be over but Jeter isn't going to go out like that, I don't think. I expect him to at least give it a shot as the starting shortstop going into 2014 but I see little way that he lasts there all season. The goal at this point should be keeping him healthy and that can be achieved easier by making him more of a DH. Telling Jeter that is the point he's at is not a job I envy.

Roughly the same question, just slip Alex Rodriguez's name in, with the suspension hanging over him, do you expect to see him in a Yankees' uniform again?

I don't think the Steinbrenners are getting out from under A-Rod contract that easy, even if freeing up that money is a Yankee fan's dream. I don't see A-Rod being suspended for longer than the entire 2014 season, so with years and years left on his contract I expect him to be back with the team whenever that suspension is up. There's always the chance that his body responds poorly to a long break off from regular game action, but he's looked good in his return this season so there is at least some glimmer of hope for the immediate future of his stay in New York.

Who's closer next year? What will be your lasting memory of Mariano Rivera?

David Robertson will likely get the first and longest look as the next closer. He's been known to raise our blood pressure but he's also been a rather consistent reliever over the last three years. There are so many fantastic memories of Rivera to hold on to: breaking the saves record, his bases loaded walk against the Mets, his performance in the 2003 ALCS game against the Red Sox. The most lasting memory for me will be the sense of calm I've always felt when he entered a game. I doubt we'll ever experience that again.

With CC Sabathia not exactly having the best of season's, who do you see as the ace of your rotation next year? In fact who do you see in the Yankee's rotation next year?

My hope is for Sabathia to bounce back. His season has been so awful, but he did have surgery in the offseason. If he is unable to turn it around, the Yankees are in a lot of trouble. If Hiroki Kuroda returns for another season, he'd likely be the ace of the staff if CC is unable to work out his issues. Beyond that, there is really no one. The rotation is likely to be some combination of CC Sabathia, Ivan Nova, Michael Pineda, and possibly Hiroki Kuroda. The last spot could be filled by Masahiro Tanaka if the Yankees are serious in their scouting of him. Otherwise, it might be David Phelps or a random middling free agent to round out the final spot.

Alfonso Soriano has been a surprise, any chance he could keep up this level of play? Will he be a Yankees next year?

He's been amazing but I don't expect he will play at this high of a level next season. If he can provide even half of what he has done as a Yankee, I'll be pretty satisfied. The outfield picture is a bit unclear at this point, with my hope being that the Yankees won't start the year with Vernon Wells and Ichiro Suzuki flanking Brett Gardner. Soriano could help fill one of those holes, particularly because his defense hasn't been bad at all.

Anything else we should know about the Yankees?

It's been a bit of a nightmare season with all the injuries piling up one after the other. The most interesting thing to me is that the team is very likely to look extremely different next year with the retirement of Rivera, the likely free agent departures of Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain, A-Rod's probable suspension, and the possibility of losing Robinson Cano to free agency. Those have all be Yankee staples for a while, so it's kind of the end of an era for the team, which can be good, bad, or a little of both.

Prepared to be floored by this hottest of hot takes: Ichiro Suzuki and Vernon Wells are not good hitters. They have a 73 and 75 wRC+ on the season, respectively. Wells is not only a bad hitter, but also a terrible player. But with the injury to Brett Gardner and Joe Girardi not seeing Zoilo Almonte as much of an option, it's up to the D team to pick up the slack. In fact, knowing Girardi, I wouldn't be shocked to see them both in the lineup simultaneously several times over the next few days. It hurts my soul just writing it, but I think we all know it's coming. Unlike Chris Stewart and Brendan Ryan though, they have been great hitters in the past. In fact, they've both gone significant stretches in 2013 where they were good hitters! Wells had his April that he likely traded his soul for, and Ichiro is always capable of stringing multiple-hit games together.

Obviously I'm grasping at straws here, but considering the options, straws are all we have left. Both of these players badly stink right now, but such is the joy of baseball. Even terrible players can reach deep down into that well of badness and pull out a short burst of excellence (see Young, Delmon), and if there is such a thing as value in being a veteran in moments of extreme pressure, at least these two have plenty of it. Maybe the motivation to not end the season hitting like minor leaguers will inspire them to bouts of over-achievement. I sincerely doubt it, but if there was a time for it to happen, here it is.

Seeing these two get regular action serves as a constant, horrifying reminder that no matter how 2013 ends, both Ichiro and Wells will be under contract for 2014. Considering their ages, it would be a reasonable assumption that they'll be even worse in 2013. But a week and a half of solid play at the most critical juncture in the Yankees' 2013 season would almost make their absurd acquisitions palatable. Almost.

So one last chance to turn back the clocks, guys! Show us the pride and guile that surely two accomplished veterans such as yourselves possess. Vernon Wells: rediscover that April power for an at bat or two, and recognize what a slider is and why you can't hit it. Ichiro Suzuki: beat out a couple of base hits and make hell for opposing teams on the basepaths. And feel free to take a pitch or two. Dig deep and find one final push for this team that was stupid enough to believe that you had something left in the tank.

Or, in all likelihood, continue to be awful. But hey, stranger things have happened in baseball. So we've got that going for us.

More from Pinstriped Bible:

• Yankees weekly preview: Bouncing back
• Robinson Cano: And then there was one
• Yankees playoff chances: The two-week quest for October baseball
• Yankees look better without beards
• Yankees 2, Red Sox 9: More of the same

On Sunday night, before his final game at Fenway Park, a loss that shoved the Yankees' playoff hopes down a notch from long shot to dangling by a thread, the Boston Red Sox bid their farewell to longtime nemesis, Mariano Rivera. It's no surprise that Rivera, whose career has traversed a fiercely rekindled Yankee-Sox rivalry, has pitched against Boston more than any other team besides the Baltimore Orioles. It's also no surprise that vs. the Red Sox, he's met some of his greatest successes as well as a few of his most dramatic failures.

Like most of baseball before them throughout Rivera's 2013 swan song of a season, the Red Sox sent the all-time saves leader off with a pre-game ceremony and a treasure trove of gifts, ranging from the visitors' bullpen pitching rubber, to a painting of him tipping his hat to the Fenway crowd when he was sarcastically cheered on opening day, 2005, to the now-obsolete number 42 sign that was used in the Green Monster's manual scoreboard. Personally, I'd have said thanks, but no thanks to that last one. Like the rest of the ballpark, it probably smells like stale beer and pee.

Though some abominable performances by the Yankees' starting pitching and offense prevented Rivera from playing a role Sunday night, or at any point over the weekend, Boston fans sent him off with a warm reaction, in part because they seem to have it in their minds that they've owned or at least gotten the better of old 42 throughout his career. An article posted Monday on WEEI's website entitled "Top Ten Mariano Rivera Moments vs. Red Sox" actually includes just three instances of Rivera pitching well and is mostly populated by lost Yankee leads, such as the two in the 2004 ALCS that led to the standing ovation depicted in Mo's new painting. The notion that Rivera's actually struggled vs. Boston depends on an extremely loose definition of the term that could exist only in a town where grittiness and attitude are considered actual things. Sox fans should be cheering Mariano's retirement - not because he's been easy pickings for them - he hasn't - but because they'll undoubtedly fare better against whoever the next Yankee closer turns out to be.

It's true that Rivera's had more bad times against the Red Sox than most other teams. His 2.86 regular-season ERA vs. Boston and his 1.25 WHIP rank well beneath his career norms, and the .644 OPS Red Sox hitters have managed is the second best of any team Mo's faced more than ten times. David Ortiz has been a particular thorn in the great one's side, with a triple-slash line of .342/.375/.500, and the Sox have touched him up for 18 blown saves, including the playoffs. The most memorable of those, of course, were in that 2004 series which may or may not have actually happened, and came courtesy of a Dave Roberts steal and a Bill Mueller single followed the next night by a sac fly when Rivera tried to clean up Tom Gordon's first-and-third, no-out mess.

But getting beaten to a lesser degree than mostly everyone else doesn't exactly signify success. Rivera's numbers against the Red Sox are, in fact, pretty remarkable considering that they've had the best offense in the league besides the Yankees for most of his career, and that they play in a ballpark that makes most little league fields seem spacious. Mo has managed Fenway to the tune of a 2.57 ERA and he's allowed just four home runs there in 64 games. Despite Ortiz's success, he's held some of the other more prominent Red Sox he's faced to pretty paltry career lines. Manny Ramirez hit .232/.304/.319 vs. Mo and Trot Nixon batted .125/.276/.125. Dustin Pedroia, who looks very much like the New York State Lottery's "Little Bit O' Luck" hasn't had much vs. Rivera, with a .083/.250/.083 career line. Besides those 18 blown saves, there are 64 successful attempts, highlighted by an identical postseason ERA and WHIP of 0.93. In twelve playoff appearances vs. Boston, Rivera has allowed all of two earned runs.

The nature of being a closer is that the losses tend to stand out more than the wins - when a closer does his job, it always kind of looks the same. Still, there aren't many moments more milestone than Rivera's three shutout innings in game seven of the 2003 ALCS, where he cut (pun intended) down a stacked Red Sox lineup to set the stage for Aaron Boone's series-winning blast. It was his third outing of two innings or more in that series.

The Boston crowd deserves credit for lending their appreciation to one of baseball's true all-time greats. Yankee fans should absolutely do the same the next time a Red Sox player who's carried himself with the utmost class and dignity calls it a career - on the off chance that ever happens. Still, Red Sox nation needs to give up on its snide, self-satisfied idea that it's somehow maintained an upper hand on Mariano Rivera - that's simply not the case and never has been.

More from Pinstriped Bible:

• Derek Jeter is not a shortstop anymore
• Yankees weekly preview: Bouncing back
• Robinson Cano: And then there was one
• Yankees look better without beards
• Yankees playoff chances: The two-week quest for October baseball

Andy Pettitte has started three games against the Blue Jays so far this season. In those three starts, the Yankees have won every time with Pettitte going at least six innings giving up no more than six hits. In the two most recent starts in August he mainly threw four-seam fastballs, sinkers, and cut fastballs pitching to contact very effectively. In every appearance he runs his cutter off the plate and gets some ugly swings with that successful strategy as you can tell:

via www.brooksbaseball.net

It's no secret that Pettitte throws pitches in the high 80's constantly and relies on deception from the left side of the mound to record his outs. He doesn't toss in a whole lot of off-speed pitches as the graph shows below:

via www.brooksbaseball.net

Although his strikeouts are down this year, he still has the ability to make hitters look silly. This next GIF is not kind on the Blue Jays:

via oi36.tinypic.com

There's not many weaknesses to Pettitte's game and the Blue Jays will have to hope for some bad command if they want to get some hits off the left hander in their attempt to spoil the Yankees' postseason hopes.

Since I haven't had a "Find the Link" for a while, this one will be worth 2 points. It's a toughie:

Find the link between Andy Pettitte and the city that brings the letter "K" to the KWC acronym of the Tri-Cities Area southwest of Toronto.

Growing up watching the Yankees has certainly lent itself to amazing moments, and many of them have been made all the more special by the men broadcasting the game for the television audience. John Sterling and Michael Kay calls resonate with me since I associate them with great moments, even though their histrionics are a bit much at times. However, there is one other broadcaster who has been with the Yankees for the duration of my fandom, a man who I have always appreciated in the booth--Ken Singleton.

For older fans who had to watch the three-time Orioles All-Star beat up on Yankees to the tune of a .282/.369/.415 triple slash in 133 games, it might have been difficult embracing Singleton as a common voice on Yankees broadcasts. Perhaps to some, it did not matter at all, and alternatively, maybe some still don't really like it. I never knew that Ken Singleton though, so it was easy for me to become a fan of him. His professionalism, objectivity, and efficiency in the MSG and YES Network booths have always made the Yankees' television broadcasts more enjoyable.

Some fans grew up with Mel Allen and his "Ballentine blasts." Others were more fans of Kay's "SEEYA" on WABC and YES. I've always gotten a kick out of Singleton's simple "THIS ONE IS... GONE!" Jason Giambi's stunning 14th-inning walk-off grand slam in 2002 was punctuated by Singleton's call of the game, echoing the similar stunned fan reaction to the sudden change of events. (Sadly, MLB's clip of it has Sterling, not Singleton.) There's also Singleton's memorable "LOOKOUT" whenever a ball sailed in on a hitter, whether for a hit by pitch or a narrow miss, certainly situations Singleton often experienced as a player during his 15-year career.

Although Singleton is great at play-by-play, he's been superb on color commentary, where he is most often featured. As a switch-hitter, he understands both righty and lefty hitters' approaches and he's done a terrific job at explaining situations to the thousands of fans at home who could never even imagine stepping into a batter's box at the MLB level. It can be a challenge relaying these interpretations to such an inexperienced crowd, and yet Singleton communicates with aplomb.

In 1985, Singleton first became a broadcaster with one of his former teams, the Montreal Expos, a year after his playing career ended. For 11 years on TSN, he teamed with the great Dave Van Horne, a Ford C. Frick Award winner himself in 2011, and they witnessed the rise of a talented young team that featured Larry Walker, Moises Alou, and Pedro Martinez. One of Singleton's finest moments was broadcasting "El Presidente" Dennis Martinez's perfect game on July 28, 1991. Although the team was dismantled before it could reach its seemingly-destined prominence in 1994, Singleton's voice became more recognized on a national level, especially when in '96, he served as an analyst for FOX Sports in addition to his TSN duties. The next year, Singleton returned to his native New York, becoming a broadcaster for the Yankees on MSG. Singleton then called another perfect game in '98 when David Wells blanked the Twins.

The Yankees liked him enough to keep him on the regular broadcast team when they moved from MSG to their own YES Network, where he frequently served as the brilliant color commentator in broadcasts with Kay. He has now been announcing Yankees games longer than anyone other than Sterling or Kay, the only one to do the video broadcast for the duration of his tenure. Overall, he's been broadcasting baseball for 28 consecutive years, and at age 66, who knows how much longer Singleton will stay in the booth? Hopefully he will stay there with the YES Network for years to come.

Singleton's work in the broadcast booth deserves recognition, and fans can help nominate him for the 2014 Ford C. Frick Award on facebook.com/baseballhall. The current "Hide Tide Era" ballot has tons of names on there right now, so it will be awhile before it is whittled down. Yankees fans can do their part to make sure Singleton is at least considered for the Award by voting for him to make the first cut. Other good Yankee broadcaster nominees are there in the likes of Jim Kaat and Bobby Murcer, but my vote's going for Singleton.

LOOKOUT, Hall of Fame.

More from Pinstriped Bible:

• Mariano Rivera vs. the Red Sox: A retrospective
• Last chance for Wells and Ichiro to be useful
• AL Wild Card contenders' remaining schedules
• Derek Jeter is not a shortstop anymore
• Yankees weekly preview: Bouncing back

One year ago today:

• The Blue Jays released a statement on the Yunel Escobar eyeblack issue.The next day a press conference was held. I still think the Jays should have prepared Yunel better for it, that he shouldn't have said 'I have gay friends' unless, of course, he could name one.
• We found out that the Jays Triple-A team would be the Buffalo Bisons. Yay.

Two years ago today:

• New Hamshire Fisher Cats won the Eastern League Championship.
• We lost to the Yankees, after being up 6-1 after the 5th inning. The recap thread turned into a debate on whether strikeouts were such a bad thing for a batter.

Three years ago today:

• Jose Bautista set a franchise record with his 48th home run, in an 11-9 win against the Red Sox. My son and I were at the game in Boston. I really enjoyed Boston, but there were some jerks at the games.
• Vernon Wells won the 'Branch Ricky Award' for his charity work.
• The Jays announced they were partnering with the Vancouver Candians, giving us a minor league team in Canada, and ending our time with the Auburn Doubledays

Four years ago today:

• Jessef wondered if Vernon Wells could get his WAR up to 0 by the end on the season (spoiler, he didn't, Fangraphs has him at a -0.1 for the season).
• I posted the Best and Worst Seasons for Blue Jay DHes by WAR. Since then, Adam Lind's 2009 season would give him the 3rd best season for a DH and this year, if he stays at 1.7 WAR, he'd be tied for the 9th spot on the list. But then his 2010 season would put him tied for the 3rd worst season and 2011 and 2012 would also land him on the 10 worsts seasons, though the 2011 season he played mostly first base.
• The Jays announced their minor league awards. Moises Sierra was our player of the year for Dunedin. Most of the other winners are no long with the Jays.
• Jesse Carlson was suspended for three games for his part in a brawl with the Yankees. The comment thread became an argument about the value of Marco Scutaro and someone arguing that Randy Ruiz would hit 35 home runs in a season in the MLB. Yeah, someone actually thought that a guy that hit 25 home runs in Vegas, could hit 35 in the majors.

Five years ago today:

• Hugo tells us that Cito would be back to manager the Jays next season (2009) and he noted that it was very likely that this meant that J.P. Ricciardi would also be back.

Yankees 0 Blue Jays 2

R. A.  Dickey battled through the first couple of innings,  but stranded 5 batters in those two innings.  The rest of the game's 7 innings were great. Sergio Santos pitched around a Ryan Goins error for a scoreless 8th and Casey Janssen gave up a single but struck out the side for the save.

We didn't do much on offense.  Colby Rasmus and Rajai Davis each had solo homers and that was it for scoring. We did have 9 hits with 2 home runs should add up to more than 2 runs.

Sorry, I'm out tonight,  so this is a quick recap from my phone,  I'll do a  real recap  later.

Andy Pettitte did his job.  The great veteran ate up 6.2 innings, giving up only one run on a fourth-inning solo homer by Colby Rasmus.  Pettitte gave up six hits and two walks with five strikeouts on 110 pitches, and only ever got into trouble once more, in the third inning, when he faced runners on second and third, before getting fly outs from Rajai Davis and Brett Lawrie to finish the inning.

Unfortunately, R.A. Dickey did his job even better.  The Blue Jays starter finished seven shutout innings with only allowing six baserunners (four hits and two walks), and striking out eight.  It wasn't a very good day for the Yankees at the plate, as they struggled put a bat on the ball, reaching base only eight times while striking out twelve times.  The bottom three men in the lineup (Ichiro Suzuki, Brendan Ryan, and Chris Stewart- with a pinch hitting appearance from Vernon Wells) finished a combined 0-for-9, with Stewart managing to draw a walk in the second inning.

Early on, it didn't seem like the Yankees would struggle as much as they did, loading the bases in the first inning thanks to a Robinson Cano base hit and an Alfonso Soriano double down the line, but Mark Reynolds struck out to end the frame.  They managed to put two men on in the second as well, as Stewart managed a walk in his first plate appearance, and Curtis Granderson, hitting in the leadoff slot tonight, rapped a base hit to center field.  Alex Rodriguez then hit a grounder that Jose Reyes appeared to bobble, but his nagging lower-body injuries slowed him down enough for an easy out.

Dickey mostly had his way with the New York lineup after that.  He struck out the side- Cano, Soriano, and Lyle Overbay- in the third, and needed only four pitches to retire the side in the fourth, as Suzuki's double play negated a Mark Reynolds single.  The fifth, sixth, and seventh innings didn't see a single Yankee on base, as Dickey retired all nine batters, with two strikeouts.

Meanwhile, in the bottom of the seventh, Pettitte finished his stellar start by staying in the game to retire Josh Thole and Reyes, before being relieved by Shawn Kelley.  With a depleted bullpen and Pettitte's fatigue rising, it's hard to say that Joe Girardi didn't make the right decision, but Kelley immediately gave up a home run to Davis to double Toronto's lead.  After Lawrie was retired at the plate, Wells came in to pinch-hit, and was only put out because of a great diving stop by Lawrie on a hard ground ball between third base and shortstop.  A fielding error by second baseman Ryan Goins put Granderson on first, which only made Lawrie's great defensive play feel even worse.  Of course, both Rodriguez and Cano made an out to end the inning, stranding Granderson on base yet again.

In the bottom of the eighth, great defensive play from the Yankees saved another run from crossing the plate.  After David Robertson retired Moises Sierra and Rasmus, pinch-hitter Adam Lind reamed a line drive into right field.  Anthony Gose, in the game for left fielder Kevin Pillar, hit a hard shot into the left field gap that reached the warning track on a few bounces.  Soriano made a quick throw to Brendan Ryan, who relayed a perfect strike to defensive replacement JR Murphy, making a great tag on Lind at the plate.

Casey Janssen entered the game for the ninth inning, and had about as much success as Dickey did.  Soriano struck out on a fifty eight-footer, Lyle Overbay managed a base hit, Reynolds struck out on a swing that wasn't particularly close to the ball, and Suzuki was fooled throughout his entire plate appearance before also striking out swinging, leaving a feeling that the team had wasted a great start from Pettitte, knowing fully well that they could have played much better than they did.

With two games left in the series, the Yankees will look to have their revenge on J.A. Happ tomorrow before handing the ball to Hiroki Kuroda on Thursday.  Against a sub-.500 team, the Yankees need to win the series in order to have much of a chance at possibly sneaking into the playoffs, and losing the first matchup doesn't help their odds.

Yesterday on Pinstriped Bible

• Yankees 0, Blue Jays 2: A long, impassioned sigh
• Yankees lineup vs. Blue Jays; Romine scratched, Logan injury update
• Nominate Ken Singleton for the Ford C. Frick Award
• Yankees vs. Blue Jays preview: Q&A with Tom Dakers of Bluebird Banter
• Mariano Rivera vs. the Red Sox: A retrospective
• Last chance for Wells and Ichiro to be useful
• AL Wild Card contenders' remaining schedules

Yankees News

• Wall Street Journal | Daniel Barbarisi: What will Mariano Rivera do with all his gifts and which are his favorite?
• An A-Blog For A-Rod | Brad Vietrogoski:CC Sabathia will have to learn to work with his weight loss and decreased velocity to become a better pitcher.
• New York Post | George A. King III: The Yankees have decided to not retain longtime scout Ron Brand, who has been with the organization for 20 years.
• It's About the Money | EJ Fagan: Eric Jagielo, Mason Williams, Slade Heathcott, Tyler Austin, Gary Sanchez, and others are all prospects on the cusp of breaking into the top 100 prospects in baseball.
• ESPN New York | Ian O'Connor: As great as Mariano Rivera is, he's leaving his best for last as he shows his care for the people around him.
• ESPN | Jerry Crasnick: A scouting report on Jose Abreu and thoughts on where he could end up and how much he will cost.
• It's About the Money | Michael Eder: When trying to rebuild the infield in the offseason, Mark Reynolds, Brendan Ryan, and Stephen Drew could all be good fits with the team.
• New York Post | Joel Sherman: Whatever the Yankees do this season, trading for Alfonso Soriano has proven to be the best midseason trade made by anyone this season.
• Star-Ledger | Andy McCullough:Boone Logan talks about the bone spur in his elbow and how he plans to handle it going into free agency.
• It doesn't sound like Alex Rodriguez will be able to play the field any time soon.
• Listen to John Sterling mess up his job.

Questions of the Day

• Which Yankee prospect will have a break out season next year?
• Will the Yankees finish over .500?
• Do you prefer M&Ms or Skittles?
• Have you had anything pumpkin-flavored recently?

Coming Up Today

• Ichiro and Chris Stewart aren't a part of the future, so stop playing them @ 10 am
• New York Yankees @ Toronto Blue Jays at 7:07 pm (Game Thread at 6:30 pm)

I'll admit I really enjoy beating the Yankees. Especially when we can keep them from getting to the playoffs.

The first cople of innings, I thought it was going to be one of those nights.  R,A, Dickey loaded the bases in the first inning, and left two on in the second inning, you figured sooner or later some of those base runners would score. But then he was robbed on a couple of third strike calls, which, had he got the call, the innings would have gone better. I kind of feel for umpires trying to call Dickey's games. You do get a feel for if a ball is going to be a strike or not long before it reaches the plate. With knuckleballs, the ball can make a last moment move and fool you. I think it takes plate umpires a couple of innings to get into the rhythm of it.

From the 3rd to the 7th inning, R.A. faced the minimum number of batters, allowing just a Mark Reynolds single, to lead off the 4th inning, and he was quickly erased by a Ichiro Suzuki double play, turned very nicely by Ryan Goins. I thought that R.A. could have pitched the 8th, but then why push it. In total Dickey went 7 innings, 4 hits, 2 walks and 8 strikeouts. If he pitched like that more often, the season would have felt that much better.

Sergio Santos was terrific in the 8th, helped by an amazing play by Brett Lawrie. If you didn't see the play, it is here. Ryan Goins made his first MLB error, but it didn't cause Sergio much trouble.

Casey Janssen struck out the side in the 9th, around a 1-out Lyle Overbay single. Save number 31 for Casey, it is nice to see him throwing like Casey again.

We got all the offense we needed from two swings, Colby Rasmus hit his 3rd home run in 3 games since coming back from the DL. In the 7th, Rajai Davis hit his 6th home run of the season. Colby's home run was just crushed and Rajai's was hit pretty good too.

We had 9 hits in all, and with 9 hits, with 2 home runs, you'd expect more than 2 runs out of it. We almost had another run in the 8th, Adam Lind singled and tried to score and Anthony Gose double, but was tagged out on the plate on a great relay throw from Brendan Ryan. I think Ryan is a good pick up for the Yankees. He might not hit, but he'll play give the Yankees defense at short that they haven't seen in years.

Moises Sierra went 0 for 4, with 3 strikeouts, dropping his average all the way down to .306. It might be a little early to put him in the cleanup spot, but then we don't have many better choices at the moment. Colby would be a good choice against RHP.

Jays of the Day are Dickey (.468 WPA) and I'm giving one to Rasmus (.084). Honorable mention to Santos and Janssen.

No Suckage Jays, Lawrie came close to the number with a -.094, but that doesn't include the great defensive play.

We had a nice GameThread, 23 of us put up 407 comments. Kraemer_17 led the way to the win over the Evil Empire.

Boone Logan is a free agent at the end of the season and he's expressed his desire to re-sign with the Yankees, but should the Yankees be interested in bringing him back?

After coming to the Yankees in the famous "Boone Logan Trade", his career took off for the better. In his four years with the Yankees his ERA, H/9, HR/9, BB/9, and K/9 have all been better than his career average and he posted his first 100+ ERA+ seasons between 2010 through 2013. Despite the ire he has gotten from Yankees fans, he has been very valuable. He's accumulated 1.7 fWAR over 175.2 innings since 2010.

Unfortunately, he hasn't been one of the more valuable lefties in that time; he didn't even rank in the top ten lefty relievers by fWAR in a minimum of 170 innings. He ranks 13th behind Matt Thornton, Glen Perkins, Darren Oliver, Jonny Venters, Rex Brothers, Scott Downs, Antonio Bastardo, Eric O'Flaherty, Phil Coke, Javier Lopez, Craig Breslow, and Hisanori Takahashi, however, he ranked third best in K/9 (10.30) out of those players.

Downs, Lopez, O'Flaherty, and Oliver will all be hitting the open market. Matt Thornton could be a free agent, if the Red Sox decide to buy him out. Logan will be the second youngest out of the bunch, and ranks in the middle of the pack in FIP against lefties this season and the second worst over their careers. He certainly won't be the best option on the market, but he's still pretty decent. Out of these four, possibly five, alternatives to Boone Logan, Darren Oliver is Mariano Rivera-old and Eric O'Flaherty will be recovering from Tommy John surgery.

So there will be definitely two better options over Logan; Scott Downs and Javier Lopez. They made $5 million and $4 million this season, respectively, which is more than Logan's $3.1 million. He will get a pay raise in free agency, so the money will all likely be even. If the Yankees want a one-year deal, it might be worth it to look at Downs or Lopez. If they want someone for multiple years, if they think no one in the system is coming up, then it might just be worth re-signing Logan. Cesar Cabral and Francisco Rondon are really the only lefty specialist the Yankees have in the upper levels of the system and neither are a slam dunk right now.

The biggest wild card in the whole situation is that Logan will need surgery in the offseason to remove a bone spur in his pitching elbow. His ligaments are healthy, but surgery is still surgery, and there's no telling how he will pitch after routine surgery. CC Sabathia didn't have an structural damage when he had surgery, and now look at him. Requiring surgery might allow the Yankees to offer him a lower contract, but will it be worth it if he's not the same come 2014?

More from Pinstriped Bible:

• Ichiro and Chris Stewart aren't a part of the future, so stop playing them
• Nominate Ken Singleton for the Ford C. Frick Award
• Yankees vs. Blue Jays preview: Q&A with Tom Dakers of Bluebird Banter
• Mariano Rivera vs. the Red Sox: A retrospective
• Last chance for Wells and Ichiro to be useful

Yogi Berra. Bill Dickey. Thurman Munson. Elston Howard. Jorge Posada. The Yankees have a long tradition of superb catchers that has been utterly kicked to the curb this year by the majesty of Chris Stewart. A career backup thrust into the starting role, Stewart proved to be completely overmatched at the plate throughout the season and he's worn down due to overuse. He never played more than 67 games in a season at the major league level until this year.

The season started off so well behind the plate. Francisco Cervelli and Chris Stewart made the team, and though there was talk of a platoon between the two career backups, Cervelli quickly seized the position with some hot hitting (142 wRC+ in 17 games) and improved defense:

On April 26th though, Cervelli broke his hand on a foul tip and went to the disabled list. He never really recovered from the injury, and a stress reaction in his elbow during rehab combined with his 50-day Biogenesis suspension kept him from ever returning to the team. Stewart was thus thrust into the role as the Yankees' starting catcher, with Austin Romine backing him up. Although Girardi initially said he would "play it by ear" in regards to whether Romine could ascend to the starting role, an absolutely abysmal start by Romine (.321 OPS through 32 games and 71 PA) meant that Stewart stayed the starter, even through follies like this:

Sure, there were the occasional unexpected moments, like a great double play that elicited an "F YEAH!" in Boston:

Stewart even stunned himself four times by hitting a ball over the fence, an amazing sensation often alien to paper-strong players like him:

Scientists are still researching this phenomenon and cannot conclude anything other than the fact that Josh Johnson, Bartolo Colon, Hisashi Iwakuma, and Neil Wagner should all just hang up the spikes. For what it's worth, fatigue likely sapped any power that Stewart had, as after mid-May, he only hit one homer and just three balls (all before August) even near the warning track:

via Texas Leaguers

Romine began to emerge from his season-long slump though. He hit .353/.433/.529 in 19 games from mid-July through the end of August and gave fans a small reason for hope.

And yet even when Stewart did something as horrific as turning a strikeout into a two-run error...

Girardi stuck with "Stewie" as his starter. September came around, and though Romine was concussed, fans retained a slim margin of hope that perhaps catching prospect J.R. Murphy, who mashed Double-A and Triple-A pitching to roughly a 117 wRC+ in 108 games, would have an opportunity to seize the starting reins.

And yet...

That makes us sad.

Stewart will almost certainly finish the year with the third-worst season by a Yankee catcher (min. 290 PA) in their 111-year history in New York:

It's not every day that the likes of Red Kleinow get namedropped. Even playing in the Deadball Era, Kleinow managed only two fewer extra-base hits than Stewart. What say you, Stew?

Baffled? Need an expert opinion? Let's check with five-time All-Star catchers Tony Pena and Jorge Posada:

That about sums it up. Begone Stew, before somebody drops a house on you, too.

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• Ichiro and Chris Stewart aren't a part of the future, so stop playing them
• Should the Yankees re-sign Boone Logan?
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• Yankees vs. Blue Jays preview: Q&A with Tom Dakers of Bluebird Banter
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The Yankees have announced who will be reporting to instructional league in the offseason. Recent international free agent signee Leonardo Molina, Tyler Austin, Eric Jagielo, and Ian Clarkin will all be reporting to the instructional league.

The 16-year-old Molina signed out of the Dominican Republic for a $1.4 million signing bonus. He has yet to make his professional debut, so this will be his first time playing with America baseball players.

Curiously, Austin will be reporting as a first baseman. He's spent time at third base, so they could be trying to move him to a new position, or first base could be just a way to rest him for 2014 or the coming Arizona Fall League season. Austin had a disappointing 2013 when he hit .257/.344/.373 for the season at Double-A. He ended up missing most of the last two months of the season to a wrist injury, but his prospect status has taken a very big hit after exploding onto the season in 2012.

Recent first round draft picks Jagielo and Clarkin will also be included. Jagielo got off to a slow start after rehabbing from a hamstring injury, but he hit .266/.376/.451 in 218 plate appearances across 51 games with a decent walk rate of 11.9%. Clarkin got even less playing time after having to rehab from a sprained ankle. He pitched only five innings, giving up five hits, four walks, and six runs in three games. With so little playing time in 2013, both could use some extra playing time before the 2014 season.

More from Pinstriped Bible:

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• Should the Yankees re-sign Boone Logan?
• Ichiro and Chris Stewart aren't a part of the future, so stop playing them
• Nominate Ken Singleton for the Ford C. Frick Award
• Yankees vs. Blue Jays preview: Q&A with Tom Dakers of Bluebird Banter

The Yankees will try to get a win again as they face the Toronto Blue Jays, who are on the verge of mathematically being eliminated from the playoffs. Phil Hughes will try to somehow not get blown up yet again and hopefully the lineup will do better against J.A. Happ than they did against R.A. Dickey.

Break From Toronto Lineup: Granderson 8, Rodriguez DH, Cano 4, Soriano 7, Wells 9, Reynolds 3, Nunez 5, Murphy 2, Ryan 6, Hughes 1.

— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughSL) September 18, 2013

The Yankees lineup has a lot of similarities to the one they sent out last night, but there's still a few twists and turns. Curtis Granderson is still in center field and still leading off, Alex Rodriguez is still DHing, and Robinson Cano and Alfonso Soriano still make up the heart in the lineup. From there, Vernon Wells gets the start over Ichiro Suzuki against the left-handed Happ. Mark Reynolds will play first base instead of Lyle Overbay, meaning Eduardo Nunez will start at third base. From there J.R. Murphy will get another chance at starting while Austin Romine continues to recover from a concussion, and Brendan Ryan will bat last.

Murphy is getting a rare shot to prove himself, both with the bat and the glove. He looked decent behind the plate in his last start, and he made a great tag at the plate last night, but he needs to show he can hit major league hitting too. If he struggles too much he's going to get benched in favor of Chris Stewart because he's a "known quantity."

In injury news, Boone Loganthrew a bullpen and felt good. He's attempting to come back from a bone spur in his pitching elbow that he will need to have removed in the offseason. If he feels good the day after he pitches he will be cleared to return to the team and will be available on Friday.

More from Pinstriped Bible:

• Yankees announce four players for the instructional league
• Chris Stewart's season: A journey in GIFs
• Should the Yankees re-sign Boone Logan?
• Ichiro and Chris Stewart aren't a part of the future, so stop playing them
• Nominate Ken Singleton for the Ford C. Frick Award

Yankees 4 Blue Jays 3

Our bullpen has been so good, but this still hurt. Up by 3 in the 8th, we should win.

Up 3-0 in the 8th, Gibby let J.A. Happ start the inning. He gave up a Brendan Ryan ground rule double. In comes Aaron Loup, he gives up a Curtis Granderson single. Loup out, Delabar in. It looked like the right move when he struck out Alex Rodriguez. Then it went downhill in a hurry. Robinson Cano singled. Alfonso Soriano and Vernon Wells had back-to-back doubles and suddenly we were losing.

Yeah, it bugs me that Vernon Wells drove in the winning run.

Happ deserved better. He only allowed 4 hits and 3 walks in 7 inning, while getting 7 strikeouts. It was only the second time Happ threw 7 innings.

Our offense, once again, came on 2 swings of the bat. Colby Rasmus hit his 4th home run, a 2-run shot, in his 4 games since coming off the DL. And Ryan Goins hit his first MLB home run.

We tried for a comeback in the 9th. Adam Lind and Rasmus singled off Mariano Rivera. But it went bad when Munenori Kawasaki's bunt was fielded nicely by Lyle Overbay and, threw out pinch runner Kevin Pillar at third. The bunt might have been a bad idea, considering Goins and J.P. Arencibia were following. Goins made contact against Rivera, J.P. swung at 3 pitches.

Save number 44 of the season for Rivera, 652 of his career and 54 against the Jays.

We had 8 hits, Colby's two and everyone else in the lineup had one hit except for Anthony Gose (0 for 3, 3 K) and JP (0 for 4, 2 k). JP is now hitting .199.

I took a look to see where JP would fit in number of at bats in a season for a batter with a sub .200 average. If the season ended today, JP would be 16th on the bad list. Only 15 guys, since 1901, have had more at bats in a season and finished with a batting average below .200. Maybe he'll get a few hits before the end of the season and finish above .200.

Jays of the Day are Happ (.311 WPA) and Rasmus (.341).

Suckage goes to Delabar (-.558), JP (-.291), Kawasaki (-.186, just for the bunt. Really it wasn't a bad bunt, just Overbay made a really nice play) and Gose (-.100).

We had a nice GameThread, 26 of us put up 520 comments. MjwW led the way, a very gritty performance.

Yankees fans were already prepared to face 2014 without Mariano Rivera, and now they will have to add Andy Pettitte to that Core Four exodus. It feels different with Pettitte than it does with Rivera, probably because Andy has called it quits once before in 2010 before returning a year later. This time, though, it feels like this is really it for number 46. His body is no longer capable of the demands placed upon it by a professional baseball player. With the departures of Jorge Posada, Rivera, and Pettitte, as well as the uncertainty that surrounds the future of Derek Jeter, the book is closing on the Yankees that we have known for years on end.

The sense of calm associated with Andy Pettitte starting a big playoff game is only exceeded in my mind by the feeling of calm associated with Rivera being on the mound to close out a game. Andy has stepped up to the plate in big spots throughout his career and come through in them more often than not. Thinking back to the Yankees' World Series championships in my memory, there was always Pettitte, right along side Posada and Jeter and Rivera, coming up big when the team needed him to. If there is a lasting legacy to be had, it's the long history of postseason success that this group, including Pettitte, has had.

A five-time World Series champion, three-time All-Star, and a 19-game winner in the playoffs, Andy Pettitte has been one of the best Yankees pitchers that some of us have had the pleasure of watching. There was the HGH and his brief vacation with the Houston Astros, but Andy has managed to redeem himself in the eyes of most with his unfailing consistency and success. Pettitte has never had a losing season in his career, a testament to him and the great teams he has been a part of. That mark is in danger this season, particularly with the way that the team is playing, but Andy will have a couple more opportunities to go out with the third-most wins in Yankees history without ever coming up on the wrong end of a season record.

At 41 years old, Pettitte was the oldest starter in MLB this season. The injuries became more nagging and the ability to work out between starts became less of an option. Seeing our stars falter with signs of age is always tough and seeing them go out on top is always a little easier to take than the alternative. Pettitte may not be going out on the top of his game, but he isn't going to pitch until he's forced to search for a job before just fading into the background. Thankfully, Pettitte is sparing fans from seeing his brilliant career end that way instead of on his own terms.

For better or worse, the Yankees are going to have a different look next season. There will be no Andy Pettitte in the rotation, no Mariano Rivera in the bullpen, and there may be no Derek Jeter at shortstop, depending on his ankle injury. Robinson Cano may not be brought back if the Steinbrenners are serious about getting payroll below $189 million. It's the end of the era of Yankees teams we have been treated to for so long. Those dynasty teams were so special and we will likely see nothing like it ever again. Andy Pettitte may or may not be Hall of Fame material when it is all said and done, but we had the good fortune to be witnesses to a fabulous career that is deserving of the warmest of send offs.

Enjoy retirement, Andy. You've earned it.

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• Andy Pettitte likely to announce retirement this afternoon
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It looks like we will see Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettitte go out the door together.

This morning, Joel Sherman reported that he heard rumors from multiple sources about Andy Pettitte possibly planning his final retirement after two years back in the game since his first retirement:

have not confirmed 100 pct, but getting lot of buzz Andy Pettitte will announce his retirement this afternoon. Will keep u posted #Yankees

— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) September 20, 2013

It's sad news because I'm really going to miss Andy Pettitte the player, but ultimately, it's going to be best for both parties. Pettitte has been decent overall this year with a 95 ERA- and a 92 FIP- in a surprisingly mostly-healthy season for a 41-year-old. When he returned on June 3rd from his brief stint on the disabled list, he was horrible for two months, posting a 5.32 ERA in 12 starts with a .316/.344/.457 triple slash against.

Pettitte has recovered since then, and has actually pitched to a superb 2.02 ERA in eight starts since then. Rather than serving as a possible indication that Pettitte has something left in the tank, it seems that it will justifiably be viewed as a last hurrah. There's no telling how he would pitch a year older in 2014. No one likes to leave the game struggling like Ken Griffey Jr. and John Smoltz have in recent years. It seems fitting that Pettitte should retire for good the same year as his longtime closer, Mariano Rivera. Yes the stats are silly, but hopefully the tandem gets the opportunity for one more win/save combination at Yankee Stadium before it all ends.

Perhaps they will add Pettitte into Mariano's retirement ceremony in some way. He's pitching on Sunday, the day the Yankees plan on celebrating Rivera. His last start would come in Houston, home of Pettitte's only other career team.

Update

Heyman's confirming it. The Yankees' second-greatest starting pitcher of all time is all but gone. Brace yourselves, the feels are coming.

can confirm pettitte will announce his retirement. likely by early this afternoon. #yankees

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) September 20, 2013

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Andy Pettitte announced his retirement following the 2013 season. Here is his official statement:

I'm announcing my retirement prior to the conclusion of our season because I want all of our fans to know now-while I'm still wearing this uniform-how grateful I am for their support throughout my career. I want to have the opportunity to tip my cap to them during these remaining days and thank them for making my time here with the Yankees so special.

"I've reached the point where I know that I've left everything I have out there on that field. The time is right. I've exhausted myself, mentally and physically, and that's exactly how I want to leave this game.

"One of the things I struggled with in making this announcement now was doing anything to take away from Mariano's day on Sunday. It is his day. He means so much to me, and has meant so much to my career that I would just hate to somehow take the attention away from him.

Pettitte's final two starts will be at Yankee Stadium on the same day the Yankees will be honoring Mariano Rivera, and at Minute Maid Park, where he played for the Astros in the three seasons he was away from the Yankees organization.

Minor League Ball | John Sickels: A look back on Andy Pettitte's career, from prospect to potential Hall of Famer. In the article, Sickels states that Pettitte compares statistically to Hall of Famers Herb Pennock, Juan Marichal, Catfish Hunter, and Carl Hubbell as well as ex-Yankees David Wells, Kevin Brown, and Mike Mussina, another pitcher who is on the edge of the Hall. Based on WAR, his 68.1 mark is comparable to Hall of Famers Eppa Rixey and and Early Wynn, as well as Jim Kaat ad Tom Glavine. By those merits, he could have a good chance.

Fangraphs | Matt Klaassen: After weeding through Andy Pettitte's advanced metrics, it looks like he might fall just short of the Hall of Fame. His peak years with the Astros were tremendous, but it also makes the rest of his seasons look simply average. The Hall should be filled with elite players, rather than above-average players who happened to stick around a long time. What could help his case is not just his postseason success, but also that those stats are better than his regular season numbers.

New York Post | Joel Sherman: Andy Pettitte retiring confirms what everyone has been thinking for awhile now; it's the end of an era as the Core Four comes to an end. He sees that the foundation of the dynasty he helped create is on the verge of collapsing and he's decided to get out while he still can.

CBS Sports | Jon Heyman: Despite his great career, his link to PEDs could be the one blemish that keeps him out of the Hall of Fame. You can say that using HGH to recover from an injury is different than using steroids while playing, but will the voters see it that way? Pettitte doesn't get the flack that other known users have gotten over the years, and has even come out with comments about cheating during the Alex Rodriguez fiasco that made him sound like a hypocrite. No one said anything then, so perhaps no one holds it against him.

New York Post | Ken Davidoff: Andy Pettitte is set for his deposition as a witness in the ongoing court battle between Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee. He was helpful in getting the charges against Clemens lying to Congress dropped, but McNamee's defamation case against Clemens is something different. Once close friends, the relationship between Pettitte and Clemens has deteriorated to the point that they no longer speak as Clemens will be a part of the Astros' ceremony to honor Mariano Rivera.

YES Network | Zach Finkelstein: A countdown of the nine best accolades of Andy Pettitte's career.

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