For many major league baseball fans, this may be the sweetest post-season chase in recent memory. 

Why? 

Because the New York Yankees seem more determined to chase their own tails than to chase the front-running Tampa Bay Rays.  (Yes, I just typed the words "front-running" and "Tampa Bay" together and I wasn't referring to the Arena League!)

Given their barely over .500 performance this year, there are few things left the '08 Yankees now have to worry about.  They don't have to worry anymore about those pesky National League rules.  They don't' have to worry about the injuries that have mounted over the year.  They don't even need to worry about losing to the Red Sox in the playoffs again.  There's only one thing left for this organization to worry about over the next month.

Whether you love the Yankees or hate them, there is, of course, still reason to follow them until the end.  As you well know, Yankee Stadium will be making taking it's final curtain call this September.  In my opinion, there are no true baseball fans that can deny the historical significance of the House that Ruth built.  You don't have to love it or the team that plays in it, but you can't deny its place in history.

So given that this is really the only thing that the Yankees have left going for them this year, why haven't they planned this thing out any better?  The New York Times ran a story on Saturday wondering why there were no formal plans to honor the greats that helped to make Yankee Stadium legendary.  After reading the article, I'm wondering the same thing.  Nothing special for the Ruth family?  Nothing special for the Mantle family?  Of course, this list could go on.  But that would surely be the place to start!

Perhaps Hank Steinbrenner has been spending the season in Tampa planning out the historic send-off.  Goodness knows he hasn't been a mainstay in the stadium this year.  He must have been so busy planning out the farewell bash that he didn't even get to make it to the last important game held in the stadium - the 2008 All-Star Game.  Actually, as of the end of August, Steinbrenner has only been to the stadium twice.

I'm hoping that I can give the Yankees brass the benefit of the doubt.  Maybe they're just playing the event close to the vest - to build suspense.  That's it right?  It's so top-secret that even the families of Ruth and Mantle don't know what's going on.  It's such a guarded and grand event that they've been able to keep the probing New York press out of the loop.

Surely the league's most important franchise will know that they have to tip their caps, at least one last time in this grand stadium, to their most important members.  Surely this will not be something they can "throw together" at the last moment.  Surely Hank will find his way to the Bronx in time to make sure this is something the Yankee legends, Yankee fans, and baseball fans can be proud of.

Surely he cares.  Doesn't he?