There may be a real reason that the Yankee ship is rocking in the water right now. The stability on the bench that was given by Don Zimmer and Willie Randolph is now gone.

Zimmer couldn't stand George and Willie's accross town now with the Mets.

Example: A telling camera shot in Kansas City of Bernie Williams discussing a poor play by him to Joe Torre. Torre is a man of few words and Bernie expressed his frustraition when Torre explained what had to happen. It was like...."wow"...according to Bernie.

Bench coach Joe Girardi is respected and has been a good baseball man, but the players still have to get comfortable with him to really get his trust...the same way Zimmer and Randolph earned it. So that buffer on Torre's bench is not really there right now.

You have to feel bad for Luis Soho, as a third base coach, he's still learning the position...Roy White, although a Yankee great has only been back in the organization for less that two years.

Bernie is now on the bench, Matsui has been in a power slump, and switching him from left, to center, and right hasn't been helping him as far as his mind-set is concerned. A-Rod is fielding terribly and Giambi isn't hitting, the fans are boing him and the endorsements are leaving him left and right. His mind is so messed up you can see him grumbling on the basebaths when he DOES get on base. Sheffield came here to get a ring, but if things start really going sour, look for him to start his usual griping to the press and finally, start losing interest defensively in the field. He said on YES NETWORK'S "CenterStage" that stats don't matter, a ring does. Well, when the ring is out of reach this season watch the talk shift to productivity on his part.

Tino has been fastastic...but he wasn't supposed to put up numbers like that...even he knows he was supposed to be a supporting player to back up Giambi.

Face it, Tony Womack wasn't supposed to be in left field. Bernie's deteriorating skills have dictated that.

Robinson Cano...a star in the making, but he's still learning on the job and his mistakes are magnified because of the pressure to win. Sanchez, Russ Johnson can only offer what subs can...

Pitching....Mussina still has an attitude, he has to adjust because his skills are changing...he can't throw like he could in earlier years...Randy Johnson's slider is flat and is being tattooed. Carl Pavano is pulling an Ed Whitson by pitching better on the road rather than at home...Jarred Wright...well...right now his father Clyde is in better shape to pitch than he is and he's been retired for what is it...20 years? And Kevin Brown...getting older by the minute and like Madonna, has had to again, re-create himself.

Bullpen...Quantrill...inconsistant....Stanton....inconsistant and the fans hate him...Groom...not bad, but a bad outing against Boston at the Stadium didn't help him...Wang...pretty good, but you are relying on a kid with a lack of English skills and a lack of MLB experience....Sturtze...can be a stud one minue...a dud another.
Gordon's got it going now, but you have to wonder if the tank in Mariano Rivera is starting to get empty...

Joe.....I feel for him....no matter what the track record, no matter what the success has been...the bottom line is George. And George has expressed strongly on 'CenterStage' that, "We must get back and win the Series...this year...THIS YEAR!"

The phone call to the powers that be in Minnesota on Friday could be the start of the slide. I really don't think that George's intention of angering the team will help as it has in the past. A big X-factor is Derek Jeter. Jeter has been loyal to Joe and George, but if the season fails and Torre has to take the fall, not matter what the spin to the media is, George will lose Jeter. And when that happens, the Yankees could take a turn where there will be a drought as what happened to them from 1982 to 1995.

Firings, trading of kids, quick fixes...you name it. And since George is getting up in his 70s, his passion to do something big before he goes will be more intense.

I hope this doesn't happen...the boys for their sake had better turn it around....pronto, Tonto!