He better, because this slump he’s been having lately isn’t helping his team one bit.

The New York Yankees Tuesday night found themselves in a place they hadn’t seen since June 13 this 2010 MLB baseball season, second place in the AL East. They found themselves there after dropping their third straight game, a miserable 8-2 loss to Toronto at Yankee Stadium, and discovering that the Rays had beaten Minnesota.

These New York Yankees reached this spot because of some poor hitting against Tampa over the weekend, and some even worse hitting Tuesday night. How do you explain Jays starter Ricky Romero giving up just two hits (one was a two-run homer to Mark Teixeira in the first) in a complete game against the Yankees lineup?

Somehow we have to figure out whether this loss to the Blue Jays had anything to do with Alex Rodriguez missing the team photo before the game. Somehow I doubt it, but the big guy is still struggling to hit No. 600. He has been stuck at 599 since July 22. That’s 12 games if you’re counting.

The Yankees were leading the division by four games since the day after this quest for 600 started. Since then they have dropped five games in the standing. Coincidence? You be the judge.

Rodriguez’s quest for No. 600 is dragging the team down. There was a time when his lack of home run production was offset by his ability to hit balls into the gaps and drive in runs. And the team was winning. Now he’s not even doing that, and Yankee hitters are following him into some kind of hitless abyss. He’s mired in a 0-for-17 slump and is 9-for-46 since hitting 599.

Like some kind of sleight-of-hand trick, A-Rod’s No. 600 quest has…

With Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui no longer part of the Yankees, can these guys return to the World Series this year?

That is the question most Yankee fans are asking themselves as we kick off the brand new 2010 MLB baseball season. Will the key additions of Javier Vasquez and Curtis Granderson be enough to fill the holes Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui left on the roster?

Without a shadow of a doubt, both Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui were keys in the Yankees’ World Series run in 2009. Hell, Matsui was the 2009 World Series MVP for crying out loud. Thankfully, the Yankees are deep enough on both offense and with pitching that they can probably afford to lose out on those key elements on their title run heading to the season.

While some will remember Vazquez’s bad first go-around with the New York Yankees, things will be drastically different in that he won’t be counted on to be the ace or even second-best pitcher on the team. He’ll be the fourth starter behind CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, and Andy Pettitte. There is no questioning Vazquez’s stuff and the second tour on duty with the Bronx Bombers should be a lot smoother.

Granderson can do a lot of things on offense, but would be so much better if he could hit lefties (.210 career batting average). Yet, in a lineup that includes Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez, Robinson Cano, Jorge Posada, and newly (re)-acquired Nick Johnson, Granderson will be alright.

And so will the Yankees as they have a great shot to…

And as always, these early picks are brought to you by those guys from SPORTSBETTING.com. (Because they really don’t have anything else to do…)

In case you haven’t noticed, the 2010 MLB baseball season is just around the corner. The last time I was mildly interested in a baseball game, the Yankees won the World Series so it’s only fitting that we kick off this one with them Yankees and their chances to go have their re-peat.

The New York Yankees are the perennial favorites to capture the American League pennant and after winning the World Series last season, it’s no surprise that they are once again favored to capture the pennant again in 2010.

However, the Yanks will have a big distraction this season. As it stands, star shortstop Derek Jeter is going into the final year of his deal with them pinstripes and you can bet it will continue to be a distraction until the situation with is resolved.

”I was a Yankees fan growing up. This is where I want to be,” Jeter told the media as he was prepping for spring training in Tampa, Florida. ”I’ve never envisioned myself playing anywhere else, and hopefully I don’t have to.”

It’s doubtful that the Yanks would allow Jeter to leave but then again, former Boston Red Sox player Johnny Damon said he would never sign with the Yankees and he did. The Bronx Bombers are currently listed as the odds-on at +150 to represent the AL in this season’s World Series but if they lose a guy like Jeter, it’ll be awfully hard to win anything.

But hey, at least they still have Alex Rodriguez right? At this point…

In case you haven’t heard, we had a rather surprising end to Thanksgiving.

Yes, and that’s all thanks to Tiger Woods who, just last Friday, was involved in a car accident that was probably caused by a martial spat between him and his wife Elin Nordegren.

The accident forced Tiger to withdraw from his own tournament that was suppose to benefit his charity foundation. However, withdrawing from his own tournament is the least of Tiger’s worries now.

Since the car accident may have been caused by a martial spat between Tiger Woods and his wife, Elin Nordegren, the clean image Tiger has been building for years are all in shambles now.

In case you didn’t know, Tiger was rumored to have been having an affair with a certain Rachel Uchitel from Los Angeles and with the incident, it certainly proves once and for all that this thing between Uchitel, Tiger and his wife is more than just speculation.

So who is this Rachel Uchitel you ask?

Well, this girl has a thing for sports athletes. You see, she has a reputation for dating married celebrities with her having been involved with the likes of Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez before. Nabbing a Tiger however, should be the biggest catch she has ever made since it has already created quite a media storm.

Authorities found Tiger Woods dazed on the ground, fading…

Two of the best all-around baseball teams collide as the New York Yankees slug it out against the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 6.

That’s right, the 2009 MLB World Series is on as the Yankees and the Phillies play in what is shaping up to be an interesting championship face-off, to say the least. With fans from New York on one side and Philly fans on the other, you can almost smell a brawl brewing.

But who has the advantage? Sure, the New York Yankees are having a terrific season considering that just a few months ago, Alex Rodriguez was in the middle of controversies involving performance enhancing drugs. But do they have enough to dethrone the defending champs?

The Philadelphia Phillies are looking to win it all again after winning the title last year. They have assembled enough talent to bring themselves back in the big dance. This time they have the Bronx Bombers from New York challenging them for the title. Can they make quick work of the Yankees like they did the Tampa Bay Rays last year?

These two teams boast two of the best hitting lineups in the game.

For the Phillies, they have some great hitters including Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, and Shane Victorino. However, the most powerful and feared bat in their lineup is the incomparable Ryan Howard…

62-game regular season. Check. American and National League divisional series. Check. AL and NL championship series. Check.

When the New York Yankees defeated the L.A. Angels 5-2 in Game 6 of the ALCS, they have not only won the AL Pennant and booked a date with the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2009 MLB World Series, they ensured that two of pro sports’ most obnoxious fans would see their teams vying for the title this year.

Online sportsbooks have set the series prices and no big surprise here, the New York Yankees are reasonably steep favorites. New York is at -190 while the Phillies, vying for back-to-back titles, are +165.

However, with the Philadelphia Phillies winning Game 1 convincingly, 6-1, we expect these lines to move dramatically in the next few days.

By virtue of the AL’s 4-3 victory in the 2009 MLB All-Star game, the New York Yankees had homefield to start off the Fall Classic, which began Wednesday. In the opener, the Yankees were a -165 favorite while Philadelphia is a +150 ‘dog with the Over/Under set at 8.

So those of you who wagered on the Phillies and on the Under are probably having a delightful evening just about now.

In the last 10 meetings overall between the Yankees and the Phillies, they have posted a mark of 2 Overs and 8 Unders. Yankee fans, however, shouldn’t fret yet. New York is still looking good to get back at the defending champs.

In the Bronx Bombers’ last 10 home games overall, they are…

In case you didn’t know, yes, Sarah Palin finally walked away as governor of Alaska, announcing the big resignation over the weekend.

But only Sarah Palin herself knows the reason behind the sudden big announcement. Did her legal troubles finally caught up to her to drive her out of office or was David Letterman’s tirade about her daughter getting knocked up by Alex Rodriguez just too much for her corporate ass to bear?

In an interview with the press, Sarah Palin’s lawyer Thomas Van Flein, explained why Palin walked away from office. And unfortunately for us, he didn’t say anything about David Letterman. (Boo!)

”She is leaving now because I think she believes that she has become the issue, rightly or wrongly, with all these ethics complaints and with the issues involving the Legislature, the combativeness they’ve been demonstrating toward her since she returned from the campaign,” Van Flein said of Palin, still widely believed to be a possible presidential candidate in 2012.

”I think she believes it’s in the best interest of the state to progress forward, for her to move on to other issues.”

Palin has become a lightning rod for partisan politics in Alaska since her return from the 2008 presidential campaign after John McCain selected her as his running mate. She has racked up an estimated $500,000 in legal bills defending the flurry of ethics complaints, including one filed a few days ago that claims she is violating ethics law by taking per diem payments when she stays in her Wasilla home instead of the governor’s mansion in Juneau.

And with all the trouble our girl has been having…

No, you can’t take Jeter.

Who is the better teammate in baseball, Manny Ramirez or Alex Rodriguez? Let’s take a look at the highlights of these players so to know who will serve as the better teammate this 2009 MLB baseball season.

First up we have Manny Ramirez, who recently signed a two-year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers worth $45 million. Ramirez needed no introduction after leading the Dodgers to the 2008 National League West title by hitting .396 with 17 homers and 53 RBIs in 53 regular-season games. In the playoffs, he batted .520 with four homers, 10 RBIs, nine runs and 11 walks in eight games.

The Los Angeles Dodgers decided to make a big fuss over his arrival and Ramirez didn’t disappoint with a performance that would have played well in a Hollywood comedy club. The Dodgers also ended up with one of baseball’s most feared sluggers, a .314 career hitter with 527 home runs, 17th on the all-time list.

Next, we have Alex Rodriquez. Although he has been in hot seat for the past months with his issues on taking steroids, he is still a force to be reckon with in baseball. Looking at his career highlights, he established career-highs with 143 runs and 156 RBI while hitting .314 (183-for-583) with 54HR and 24SB in 158 games with the Yankees in 2007 (154 starts at third base, four starts at designated hitter).

The New York Yankees third baseman led the Majors in…

In case you don’t know it yet, baseball is finally here.

That’s right, the brand new 2009 MLB baseball season is finally here. Isn’t that something?

Yes, amidst the controversy involving Alex Rodriguez and steroids, the situation between Manny Ramirez, the Dodgers and the Red Sox, and basically everything else that kept fans talking about baseball, the season is here and BetUS.com is right in the thick of it.

With the start of the brand new MLB regular season, baseball fans across the country are already speculating as to how their teams will perform. Will they win it all this year? How long until our coach gets fired? Will our clean-up hitter outperform the rest?

With this being the case, the largest most successful sportsbook on the web, (that’s according to them anyway…) BetUS.com, posted early season predictions on all things MLB to give fans some resemblance of what to expect.

”Despite the off-season turmoil that followed some of the game’s biggest stars, interest in America’s pastime is still alive and well,” stated BetUS.com spokesman Reed Richards.

”Fans are flooding our site for up to the minute predictions and prognostications. We’ve got everything from early World Series odds, to which coach will be fired first!”

Want to see these 2009 MLB baseball season betting odds they’re…

They love the guy so much that the Yankees want him pitching the season opener as well as the very first game in the new Yankee stadium.

Signed to a seven-year contract worth $161 million last December, CC Sabathia has singlehandedly given the New York Yankees a reason to be hopeful in the coming 2009 MLB baseball season.

Hell, the New York Yankees are so excited about their new acquisition that they want him pitching the season opener against the Baltimore Orioles on April 6, as well as the first home game at the new Yankee stadium, merely six days later, against the Cleveland Indians.

”I’m excited,” CC Sabathia said. ”To be able to take the ball the first one of the season and then to open the new stadium, I think it’s going to be fun. It will be a special moment. It’s cool to be able to have my family there and be part of it.”

But is having the same starter for two different games ONLY six days apart advisable? Probably not to former general manager Joe Torre, but to current Yankees GM Joe Girardi, it’s just one of the stuff he’s trying to do to change the atmosphere in New York.

In fact, Girardi is also contemplating on a change to the Yankees batting order…