Last night, as the Yankees were scoring four virtually meaningless ninth-inning runs in an 8-1 victory, I found myself asking, "Where were those runs when we really needed them?"

Like in the first game of the doubleheader, which we lost by two runs. Like Sunday, when we lost 2-1 at Seattle. Like at Fenway in April, when we lost all three games by a total of four runs (one above the minimum for a three-game sweep), despite scoring at least 5 runs against each of Boston's three "aces." Like a lot of times this season.

Our run-scoring (and run-preventing) has really been poorly timed this year. Check these numbers.

One-Run Games
W   L      RS      RA     WP
2   7      37      42    .222

Blowouts (5+ Runs)

W   L      RS      RA     WP
10  3      89      46    .769

First, it's interesting to note that a sub-.500 team is playing .769 ball in blowouts. That's just not natural. You don't look back at the 1962 Mets and think, "But, man, could they put a team away!"

Maybe the 2007 Yankees haven't been so bad as they have been unlucky. Using Bill James' Pythagorean formula, which estimates a team's winning percentage based on runs scored and allowed, the Yankees should have won four more games and lost four less games, based on their 211 runs scored and 181 runs allowed, a difference of 30 runs over 38 games (not exactly the mark of a losing team.)

Thus, the Yankees should be 22-16 and on pace for 94 wins, as noted on the top of the 2007 Yankees page on baseball-reference.com.

(And finally, is it just me, or are there a lot of pictures out there of A-Rod hugging players from behind?)