Entering this weekend’s series against the Cincinnati Reds, it looked as if the Yankees were salvaging a mediocre season. Things weren’t looking bad. But the loss of Chien-Ming Wang seemed to boding ill-fate for the Yanks. The only consolation to going down the first two games was a resurgent win on the third.

Game one was their first loss after a 7 game winning streak. It came, in part, from a controversial call by Joe Girardi. He told Mike Mussina to intentionally walk Jay Bruce. This was followed up by a Jolbert Cabrera’s double down the left field, setting the pace for a three-run inning for the Reds which culminated in a 4-2 loss.

Game two provided opportunities for the Yankees that never came to fruition, with the Reds again handing them a loss 6-0. The New York Post quotes Johnny Damon who managed to walk three times without scoring:

“It’s just a shame because we had so many opportunities to score runs and we didn’t. We didn’t find a way to put any pressure on them.”

Game three’s win owes a lot to Andy Pettitte. His time on the mound ended in the 6th inning with a rain delay. But it ended 19 straight innings without allowing a run. Additionally, he’s only allowed one run in his last three starts, all of which ended in Yankee victory.

Let’s hope that the rest of the New York Yankees season looks more like game 3, rather than game 1 and 2.

Key to the Yankees franchise selling tickets is having star players and leaders. This is exemplified in Derek Jeter.

In an interview with Steve Serby of the New York Post, he reveals that he’s ready to make the big commitment of marriage, if he finds the right girl. He discusses many other topics, from his inspirations as an athlete and aspirations of owning a ball club.

Jeter credits his mother for a lot of the guiding principles for his life. He was not allowed to use the word “can’t.” He describes her as the ultimate optimist. He was implored to outwork everyone.

Jeter describes his desire to own his own ball club. Serby tried to see if he’d be willing to own the Yankees, to which Jeter said that he’d need a big discount to be able to afford it.

He also talks about letters he gets from Iraq:

“It’s an unbelievable feeling to know that someone’s over there fighting for our country, and yet they find the time to write to me here at Yankee Stadium. It puts a lot of things in perspective, but also makes you appreciate the position you’re in, in terms of playing for this organization . . . to get a chance to provide entertainment for people.”

When all is said and done, Jeter comes across as a pretty charming guy. Who ever snags him as a husband is going to make a bigger catch than he’s ever made in his career as shortstop.