102 and rising: Yanks reunite with Krazy Kyle

As the great PeteAbe leaves Yankee Universe for browner pastures in Boston, it was nice to have the not-so-great Kyle Farnsworth remind us that some things never change.

It's all about the simple pleasures as the Yankees play out the string in advance of next Wednesday's ALDS opener. Farnsworth, whose incompetence yielded the creation of the Kyle Farnsworth Terror Threat Level Indicator on this very blog a year ago, provided a nostalgic whiff of suck for Yankees fans on Tuesday.

Meaningless game or not, it was nice to be on the other side for Krazy Kyle's antics.

It was very cool to see the veterans swarm Juan Miranda after he clocked the game-winner off Farnsworth's shin. My girlfriend had been aware of the game's meaningless nature and was baffled as to why the team was celebrating so wildly. I explained that, yes, the game had no effect on the standings, but it also happened to be the best moment of young Juan's life.

It goes without saying that Robbie and Melky will salsa with Mr. Miranda well into the night. Glow sticks will be prominently involved.

The game was important for more than just seeing sweat droplets of anxiety wash over Krazy Kyle's bitchin' tribal band tattoo once again. Other positives include:

- The Yankees are heading into pretty heady airspace in terms of regular-season success. That's seven straight wins, moving New York to 46 games over .500 at 102-56. The last time a Yankee team cleared 46 games? Yup, the pesky 1998 gang.

- A.J. Burnett is back? Screw it, I'll say it with confidence. A.J. Burnett is back. The right-hander delivered his third straight solid start, allowing two runs on three hits over 6 1/3 innings. He struck out eight and walked three. Burnett has allowed just four earned runs over his last 19 innings, striking out 25. One thing to be wary of: When Burnett takes the hill for Game 3 in Detroit/Minnesota, he will be pitching on 11 days' rest. How many times can a dude watch 300 before losing his mind?

- Eric Hinske may have clinched a spot on the ALDS roster with his pinch-hit single in the ninth. He may look like Kevin James, but the Yanks want him to hit like Matt Stairs in the playoffs.

- From the bullpen department: Brian Bruney was effective for a second consecutive outing, going 1 1/3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts. I think No. 99 will have to be perfect from now until the season ends to have a shot at a roster spot. Compadre David Robertson made his return from the DL, getting two outs. Assuming he wakes up happy and healthy, he's a postseason go. Phil Coke performed like he just rolled in from a Phish concert, but we'll give him a pass.

- Mark Teixeira snuck one over the wiffleball fence in right-center for his 39th homer. He is now tied with Carlos Pena for the AL lead. This pisses Pena off especially since right now he's sitting in a recliner watching The Biggest Loser with a bunch of pins in his hand.