It isn't chilly this morning in New York: it's cold. But the skies are blue and it should be an absolutely beautiful day for playoff baseball. I'm going to be stuck at work, so I'll miss the damn thing. But if I have to miss one game, I suppose Game 1 is a safe bet.

The Yankees have been playing well and so has Minnie. New York isn't overly confident, and the Twins aren't cowed. Mike Mussina has owned the Twinkies during the course of his career, and Johan Santana is a devastating young pitcher who seems to be unfazed by the pressure he faces this afternoon. All the makings of a good game, right?

The local papers are filled with special sections today. Most of them aren't telling you anything you probably don't already know, but if you are interested, head over to BaseballNewsstand.com and check it out.

Peter Gammons gives the Bombers "props"---heh heh---in his latest column. He also hits the nail on the head when he writes about the great expectations facing this year's squad:

The greatest barrier facing the Yankees is that they have to win. In George Steinbrenner's world, losing is not an alternative. If they win, they did their job, like a GM assembly worker, or a toll taker on the Garden State Parkway. If they lose, Phinneas T. Boss will ...

... be quoted a lot.