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OT: Nettles Says Wild Card Makes Yankees Comeback Easier Than 1978

By Danielle Sessa

June 1 (Bloomberg) -- Graig Nettles, who helped the 1978 New York Yankees erase a 14-game deficit to catch the Boston Red Sox, said this year's team has an easier road to a championship.

The 2007 Yankees trail the Red Sox by 13 1/2 games heading into their series at Fenway Park in Boston this weekend. They can make the playoffs as a wild card without winning the division -- a luxury Nettles's team didn't have.

``They need to realize they have four months to make it up, and not to panic,'' Nettles, 62, said while signing autographs for fans during a promotion at Bryant Park in Manhattan. ``There is always the wild card. We never had that pleasure.''

The 1978 Yankees came back to finish in a tie with the Red Sox for the American League East title. In a one-game playoff at Fenway, Bucky Dent hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning to give New York the lead in a 5-4 victory. The Yankees went on to win the American League Championship Series and beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series.

Back then, the American and National leagues were split into two divisions each, and only the first-place teams made the postseason. Now, three division champions make the playoffs in each league. Each also has a so-called wild-card berth, which goes to the second-place team with the best record.

Record Comeback

This year's Yankees need a record comeback to win the division. New York was 14 1/2 games behind on May 30, and no team has rebounded from more than 14 games back to win a division since Major League Baseball adopted a divisional format in 1969, according to Elias Sports Bureau Inc., the sport's official statistician.

The Yankees are seven games behind the Detroit Tigers for the wild card, and there are six clubs closer to the Tigers than New York. Both the 2003 Florida Marlins and 2005 Houston Astros rallied from 11 1/2 games behind in May to earn the wild card. The Yankees have been as much as 8 1/2 games back in the race and would need the fifth-biggest comeback to win it, Elias said.

The 1995 Yankees rebounded from nine games behind to win the wild card, the fourth-biggest comeback since its inception in 1994.

``Everybody is counting the Yankees out already, but I've seen too much happen in this game,'' Rich Gossage, who pitched for the 1978 team and played for 22 seasons, said in an interview.

From the start of the 1978 season to the July All-Star Game, the Yankees went 46-38 while the Red Sox went 57-26, according to Stats LLC, the Morton Grove, Illinois-based company that collects and sells sports statistics. Their fortunes reversed after the break: New York went 53-25 and Boston went 42-37.

``You can't get too down when you are going poorly,'' said Gossage, 55. ``You can't get too high like the Red Sox -- they can't get too jolly this early because there is a long way to go.''

Pitchers' Injuries

The Yankees' slow start came with a series of injuries to starting pitchers, including Chien-Ming Wang, Mike Mussina and Carl Pavano.

New York's offense has also struggled. Center fielder Johnny Damon and designated hitter Jason Giambi are batting at least 25 points below their career averages. The Yankees learned yesterday that Giambi will miss three weeks or more with a foot injury. Right fielder Bobby Abreu, a career .300 hitter, is at .228 and has been dropped from third to seventh in the lineup.

The Red Sox have won seven of their past 10 games and swept the Yankees in their first series at Fenway.

In tonight's game, Wang (3-4) pitches against Boston's Tim Wakefield (5-5). Tomorrow it's Mussina (2-3) against Curt Schilling (5-2), and Andy Pettitte (3-4) is scheduled to face Josh Beckett (8-0) in the series finale.

New York doesn't play Boston again until a three-game series at Yankee Stadium Aug. 28-30. They play their final three games against each other Sept. 14-16 at Fenway.

``I don't think the race is over yet,'' Gossage said. ``There is too much baseball to be played.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Danielle Sessa in New York at [e-mail]

Last Updated: June 1, 2007 02:55 EDT

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601079&sid=ad3oz4nHTFYE&refer=home

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