FanHouse Hank Steinbrenner

NEW YORK -- On a pleasant, Doppler-free evening made for bare, brawny forearms, Alex Rodriguez continued his postseason awakening without even swinging a bat. This was in the fourth inning, when the Angels were unable to employ their desired intentional walk because the bases were loaded. So as 50,000 fans stood and shrieked and awaited magic in the new Stadium -- all except Kate Hudson, who sat like she was waiting for Matt Dillon in You, Me and Dupree -- A-Rod stepped in and sought a pitch to rip into the galaxy.

The fat one never came. Joe Saunders walked him, forcing in the Yankees' third run when it was apparent that the Angels wouldn't score more than that off two Doctor Octobers, Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera. All that awaited were the police to ring their field, and when they arrived nearly at the stroke of midnight, the Yankees were celebrating their 40th American League pennant and first World Series trip in six years, which in these parts is an eternity.

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PHILADELPHIA – Even before Tuesday night's game, Cito Gaston was calling for the designated hitter in all interleague games.

And then the Blue Jays manager got even more of a reason to push for a rule change.

Toronto closer Scott Downs suffered an injury to his left foot pushing out of the batter's box while grounding out in the top of the 10th inning. Gaston allowed Downs to hit because he had a five-run lead at that point and only his backup catcher left on the bench.

"I know that a lot of people like this interleague play," Gaston said, "I know it's great for the fans and all that, but that's what happens. My guys don't take batting practice every day. They don't run. So things like this are going to happen until somebody wakes up and says, 'Look, let's just play [with] the DH all the time or call it off.' "

NEW YORK – Joba Chamberlain on Tuesday was once again dominant in relief.

The bad news for the Yankees, though, was that it was in relief of himself.

Chamberlain's outing in a 7-3 loss to the Red Sox provided fodder for the Joba-has-to-start crowd and gave plenty of ammunition to the Joba-in-relief lobby.

(And let's not be mistaken: There are two sides to this debate.)

Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

In news that probably means a lot more to fantasy baseball players than real baseball fans -- with all due respect to the Pirates and their true fans -- Ryan Doumit is going to miss the next 8-10 weeks. He'll be undergoing wrist surgery and have some pins inserted. As fantasy owners, we must march on and look at how to replace the production of a very solid offensive catcher.

I almost feel sorry for the place. It isn't the fault of the new Yankee Stadium, with its $1.5 billion price tag and $2,625 top ticket and sizzling party scene and ThinkPad computer in every clubhouse locker, that construction was completed amid the worst economic climate since the Great Depression. In another era, we'd be hailing it as appointment architecture, the most magnificent sports facility ever built, a shiver-worthy replica of the original that whisks us forward with every possible amenity, technological advancement and concession item, including tofu, calamari, edamame (edamame?) and taralli.

"We tried to reflect a five-star hotel and put a ball field in the middle of it," said Yankees executive Lonn Trost, whose description pretty much nails it.

We at The Dugout are not finished kvetching over the Yankees' abandonment of their old stadium. Sure, building a new stadium makes long-term financial sense, but I'm not sure why that should stop me from whining. I am going to stand on a milk carton and shriek, "THE YANKEES ONLY CARE ABOUT MONEY" over and over for the rest of my days until I die friendless and alone.

Your Yankees Dugout is after the jump.

The Daily Jolt is a dose of baseball reality every weekday morning.

For a second there in the winter of 2007, it looked like the Yankees were truly reformed. They told Alex Rodriguez to get lost after he shamefully opted out of his mega-contract during the final moments of that year's World Series.

And though Hank Steinbrenner couldn't resist reversing course and welcoming Rodriguez back into the fold a month later for a jaw-dropping $275 million, they went to the Winter Meetings in Nashville and resolutely refused to deal any of their prized arms for very much available two-time Cy Young-winner Johan Santana.

In what amounts to pretty much the only interesting sports story of the day, Joe Torre has taken it upon himself to write a tell-all book dismissing his former ballclub like so much prostate cancer.

In the book, Joe reveals that Alex Rodriguez is a weird creep, Brian Cashman isn't 100 percent on the level, and George Steinbrenner cares more about the "Yankees" than he does about the people who make up the Yankees. The title of the book, if you're interested in reading it, is Things We Already Knew*.

Sunday's Dugout is after the jump.

From the Windup is FanHouse's extended look at a particular portion of America's pastime.

Salary Cap. There's not a more controversial phrase in baseball economics. The prospect of one hung over the strike of 1994 and 1995 before the owners and players managed to settle without implementing a true cap. Since then, baseball has instituted a luxury tax that acts as a sort of soft cap, but it's set high enough that it only really affects the Yankees annually, and they regard it in the same manner that a rhinoceros regards a mosquito.

For the most part, a salary cap hasn't been part of the conversation in baseball for several years. The Yankees ridiculous spending spree this winter, however, has changed things. In the days and weeks since their signings of CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira, Brewers owner Mark Attanasio and Astros owner Drayton McLane have once again begun to call for a salary cap. They're the only two owners to have spoken directly on this issue, but it's hard to think they're alone.

A salary cap in baseball is not a simple thing. In most sports, there's only one line in labor negotiations: the line between the players and the owners. In baseball, there's actually a three-way divide between the players, the "big-market" owners (for lack of a better term), and the "small-market" owners. The MLBPA isn't the only thing that stands in the way of a cap. Some of the owners (think John Henry, the Steinbrenners, naturally, the Wilpons, Frank McCourt, Arte Moreno) would likely be opposed to one as well. After the jump, we'll look at all the obstacles and problems with implementing a cap.

Nothing says "the holidays" like a feature on a blog on the Internet the day after Christmas! I missed out on posting yesterday because of "life stuff" (I had to observe a holiday) but hey, better late than never, right?

Part three of our Life on Mars epic continues. Your prerequisites are as follows:

Watchmaker, Part One
Watchmaker, Part Two
Watchmaker, Part Three (click below)