The Yankees are fighting to make the postseason…

THE Yankees have a two-way problem with their set-up crew. They don't trust it, and they may not be able to trade it.
The largest contingent of scouts to visit the Stadium this year are here for this Blue Jay-Yankee series, a reflection that the July 31 deadline is two weeks away, but also that GM Brian Cashman has told teams he is willing to move any reliever whose last name is not Rivera.
Cashman wants to upgrade at backup catcher, first base, utilityman and a righty bat off the bench. He hopes to use the veterans in his pen to do that, and then fill in by summoning such Triple A arms as Chris Britton and Sean Henn. But he probably needs to upgrade in set-up men, too, because the baseball world does not find what he is offering overly appealing. The Dodgers, looking for a bullpen arm, have so far, for example, rejected the Yanks' overtures for utilityman Wilson Betemit because they do not want Kyle Farnsworth or Scott Proctor or anybody from this group.
Right now, the Yankees are carrying Mariano Rivera and seven relievers, and to the scouts' eyes that is Mo Rivera and the Seven Dwarfs. Before last night's game, one scout summed up the Yankee set-up brigade as "bad deliveries, bad production and straight fastballs." In the case of Farnsworth, he could have added, "bad mojo."
Just the announcement of his name brought boos and a feeling of imminent dread, then Farnsworth demonstrated why there is such bile for Kyle. His fastball was again hot, but totally lacking in mystery. He once more heaved away a pick-off attempt. He gave up a tie-breaking, eighth-inning run that put Toronto up 2-1. But, right now, the Yanks have the kind of overall good vibe to overcome even Farnsworth. They tied the score in the ninth on a run-scoring balk and won in the 10th, 3-2, on Robinson Cano's RBI single.
Still, even in victory, the Yanks must make one trade now: Farnsworth from main set-up to irrelevant mop-up. Torre said he is not ready to do that.
"We need to get [Farnsworth] straightened out," Torre said. "He's very important for us."
But at a moment, when every game is so precious, are the Yanks really positioned to become the latest to work futilely on Farnsworth's career-long issues with a low pitching IQ and inability to tame what should be exquisite stuff?
Torre is right when he says, "I don't think Farnsworth is alone in this." It is not as if Torre has a smorgasbord of appetizing choices. But Luis Vizcaino, the winner last night, has pitched well for more than a month now, and Torre might as well rely on Vizcaino's durable arm until proven otherwise.
Maybe Cashman is going to have to do something unorthodox, like the 2002 Angels did when late in the year they moved the untested Francisco Rodriguez into a vital role and ended up winning a championship. It is risky, because the Yanks are trying to be cautious with their long-term pitching, but Joba Chamberlain is dominating as a starter at Double-A and just might have the fastball/slider repertoire that can make him electric in the majors.
For now, Farnsworth's fastball/slider duo is as effective as Johnny Damon at the plate. Which is to say not much? He allowed a single, a double, two line drive outs and threw a wild pick-off throw that made the run unearned. But that is just bookkeeping. The run was Farnsworth's fault.
Despite a great arm, Farnsworth has managed to register just four 1-2-3 innings in 41 appearances. That would be fine if he had the fortitude to escape difficulty like, say, Andy Pettitte, the man he relieved yesterday. But Farnsworth does not.
Pettitte matched Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay with seven one-run innings. But he needed 116 pitches. So the Yanks needed a set-up crew that is mainly responsible for an AL-high 15 blown saves. Just consider the Red Sox have just three, and you can see a key reasons there is such a gap in the AL East.
The Yanks are beginning to eat away at that gap. But every time they ask Farnsworth to do an important job their long-shot chances become less realistic.