But seriously, Rivera has been diagnosed with a strained muscle and won't even begin throwing until September 1. (If you've been paying attention to strike news, you realize the possible insignificance of that news.) Rivera, like Roger Clemens earlier, will perform rehab in Tampa, and there have been whispers around the Bronx that it's possible he might not be ready to return even for October baseball -- if there is any. Since Mo hit the DL, Steve Karsay has racked up three saves, while Mike Stanton and Jeff Weaver each have one. But Joe Torre has publicly reaffirmed his plan to use Karsay, Stanton and Ramiro Mendoza as each situation warrants.

In Other News ...
The other significant Yankee injury, to young DH/1B Nick Johnson, is getting more positive play in the press, as GM Brian Cashman believe the rook could return in the first week of September. (See "possible insignificance" comment, above) ... Backup backstop Chris Widger has been a revelation; after a three-hit game Sunday, the former Expo is at .347. Given that he's actually a slight improvement defensively over All-Star Jorge Posada, and that there are no legitimate catching prospects anywhere in the minor league system, Widger could have a job in the Bronx for a few years.

E-mail Question of the Week
"Could you give me your take on Rondell White? I have a chance to claim him on waivers but am wondering if he will still have a chance to play or is Torre about to give up on him?" ... Run away. Far away. All season, the concern has been that White wouldn't stay healthy. In reality, the problem is that he HAS stayed healthy enough to play 105 games. The .241/11/49 (.648 OPS) numbers don't even match up with misbegotten Carl Everett's .227/14/46 (.701 OPS), compiled in less playing time. Now consider that White is in the midst of a 4-for-52 slump -- and is still injury prone. Even in an AL-only league, Ron-DL deserves no more than a bench slot.

Probable Starters 8/26: Hernandez vs. TEX (Rogers) 8/27: Wells @ BOS (Hermanson) 8/28: Mussina @ BOS (Martinez) 8/29: Clemens @ TOR (Walker) 8/30: Pettitte @ TOR (Loiaza)

But then, the entire Yankee OF has been in a shambles. With Shane Spencer at .238 and Raul Mondesi at .237, and with Bernie Williams seeing significant time at DH due to a mildly strained left hamstring, Torre has been starting Spencer in LF, Mondesi in CF and John VanderWal in RF; that's not exactly Maris, Mantle and Berra -- or even Jackson, Rivers and Piniella -- out there. Fortunately, the tweaked hammy hasn't affected Bernie's bat; his ridiculous offensive tear continues as his 16-game hitting streak has boosted his average to .343; it's not out of the question that Bernie Baseball could challenge for the batting title.

Pitching Matchups and Strength of Schedule
Plenty of interesting pitching matchups this week, as Roger Clemens returns to the scene of the two Cy Young Awards he won in Toronto, just one day after another Moose/Pedro showdown in Boston that would be much more compelling if Mike Mussina was pitching more like, well, Mike Mussina ... Speaking of pitching matchups, thanks to Ranger correspondent Scott Lucas who alerted ESPN.com readers that the Ranger rotation was changed (or at least contradicted the "official" line here at The Worldwide Leader), and Chan Ho Park bested Mussina Friday while Dennys Reyes was torched by Boston a day earlier.