Joba the Ace?

The Yankees have won 7 straight games. Alert the media. Is it possible that the mighty Bronx Bombers are going under the radar as they chase the Boston Red Sox and (gulp) Tampa Bay Rays?

They do still sit 5 full games behind the defending World Series champions. And they are dealing with inconsistent pitching from their young studs who they counted on excelling when they balked at a Johan Santana trade in February. Their ace, Chien-Ming Wang has injured his foot and will be out until at least September.

So how have they done it?

One word is sweeping the city so nice they named it twice: JOBA. Since Hank Steinbrenner complained that only an "idiot" would leave Chamberlain in the pen, the 22 yr old flamethrower has been stellar under treacherous conditions.

Imagine you were great at what you did for a living. Imagine you were so good and dominant that you were scheduled to replace the greatest closer of all time and no one was even sweating. Then imagine you are thrown into a completely different role and expected to resurrect the franchise. Not exactly a walk in Central Park.

So what has Joba done since his inclusion into the rotation? Limited by pitch count as they cautiously transition him to pitching every 5th day, Joba has been electric. The fear of losing significant velocity throughout a start has been non-existent. Last night he threw fastball after fastball past the San Diego Padres en route to striking out 9 over 5 and 2/3 innings.

The Yankees are about to get a tremendous momentum boost as the host the Mid-Summer Classic for the last time in the House that Ruth Built. It's true they may be on the elder side but with a young, fiery upstart skipper in Girardi and the best player on the planet in A-Rod they are on the verge of exploding. As heart-warming a story as the Rays have, it seems inevitable they will fade down the stretch. If Joba keeps on his torrent pace, he may be able to pitch the Yanks right into the World Series.

Never underestimate Cashman's ability to go out and add pitcher or another bat off the bench to try and catapult the team into a winning streak. With CC Sabathia on the market, look for those once untouchable pitchers, Hughes and Kennedy to be dangled to the Tribe for the best left-handed pitcher in the American League.