Sadness in Panama

What is it about the Yankees? The most storied franchise in baseball history, winner of 27 World championships. But, in recent years, there seems to be a pall of gloom and sadness over the team entering the post-season. Whether it's Joe Torre thinking about his brother getting a long-awaited heart transplant on the eve of the World Series in 1996 to Mel Stottlemyer's cancer to Joe O'Neil's father's death just prior to the 2001 series, there always seems to be some reminder for the team and its fans that there is real life and tragedy outside the business of winning and losing games.

This year our thoughts go out to Mariano Rivera and his family. Just as he was about to celebrate closing out the wild comeback against the Twins on Saturday, he learned of a weird accident in which two cousins are electrocuted in his pool back in his home town of Puero Caimito, Panama.

Rivera's agent says he'll be ready for the game tomorrow, but Joe Torre sounded less sure of that. He knows from family, tragedy, and the responsibilities those families and tragedies call for.