Let's open with this.

An inside message to Bob in Brooklyn: WHERE ARE THE YANKEE FANS!!!! To anyone reading this, if you have Real Player, click here and click on the audio file labeled Saturday October 7th Chris Russo talks opens his show in classic fashion - basking in the joy of a Yankees loss

Oh my God! The Yankees get absolutely embarrassed by the Detroit Tigers, losing 3 games to 1. I am no Yankee hater, but I am laughing at this like nobody's business. The payroll is over 200 million dollars. A guy who finished in the top 3 in the AL batting average race bats 9th, an All-Star at every position, they finished tied for the best record in baseball, and they get eliminated in the first round! One stretch of 20 innings with no runs scored. This is a lineup with Damon, Jeter, A-Rod, Abreu, Giambi, Sheffield, Matsui, Posada, and Cano. The pitching was lousy. What happened to the days of David Cone, David Wells, and Andy Pettitte in the rotation and Nelson, Stanton, and a younger Mariano in the bullpen. They never get replaced the right way.

Joe Torre has got to go. I respect him, but he has got to take a hit now. If I'm Brian Cashman (and this is assuming his job is secure) I go after Lou Piniella right now. If I can't get him, get Joe Girardi and overhaul this roster. Even if that means an average year next year, it has to be done. The Yankees do not have much of a farm system beyond Eric Duncan and Phillip Hughes. Sheffield will be gone, Mussina will be gone, A-Rod will be traded if someone will actually take his salary, and the Yankees will have to absorb a lot of the salary as well. They need to get younger, and they need pitching. The starting pitching was hideous. Randy Johnson is done, Mike Mussina is not the pitcher he was, and only Chien-Ming Wang did his job.

And they get shut out by Kenny Rogers in Game 3 and Jeremy Bonderman takes a perfect game into the 6th inning in Game 4 on Saturday? Meanwhile, the Yankees throw Jaret Wright in Game 4, a guy who on his best day can't pitch more than 6 innings anymore. Oh my God, you cannot make this up.

I watched the whole game at the Daily Herald office. Magglio Ordonez leads off the Tigers' second with a bomb to left field off Wright. Three batters later, Craig Monroe hit a two-run homer. 3-0 and the rout was on. Third inning is where I knew it was over. After Wright gets the first two outs, Ordonez hits a grounder to A-Rod who throws the ball away. Mags is safe and then Carlos Guillen singles, and then Pudge Rodriguez singles a run home, and that was it. Cory Lidle comes in to relieve Wright, and holds the Tigers off until the fifth. Four straight hits, two more runs, Brian Bruney comes in to pitch, and Pudge hits a sac fly, it's 7-0 in the fifth inning!

Meanwhile, Bonderman is getting everybody out! Cano breaks it up in the 6th with a ground ball single up the middle, effectively removing any drama that was left in this game.

It is the Mets' time baby! They sweep Los Angeles. I'll write more about this series later and how my whole Saturday went. For right now, it's enough to say bring on Pujols, Rolen, and Carpenter. Or bring on Giles, Piazza, and Peavy. I'll take either one on.

Wednesday night, Game 1. National League Championship Series. Mets play either St. Louis or San Diego. I can't wait.

WHERE ARE THE YANKEE FANS!!!!