Mariano didn’t have it for second outing in a row…

These are the dog days of not just August, but also Mariano Rivera.
Woof, woof, woof went the Yankees today, chasing their tails in a futile attempt to capitalize on a Red Sox defeat.
"It’s tough as a team when you get so high and then so low," Shelley Duncan said after the Yankees’ 6-3 loss to the Orioles in 10 innings at the Stadium.
Duncan had provided the high, a towering three-run homer to left field against Jamie Walker with two outs in the ninth, before Rivera added the low, allowing three runs in the 10th inning. It was the third straight rough outing for the eventual Hall-of-Fame closer.
The loss left the Yankees five games behind Boston in the AL East and wondering what it takes to beat the Orioles, who have won eight of the 12 meetings this season. The Yankees remained tied for the wild-card lead with the Mariners, who lost 6-1 to the Twins.
The more pressing problem for the Yankees is getting Rivera (3-4) back on track. He has allowed nine hits over his last 3 1/3 innings, a stretch in which he has blown a save and taken a loss. The dagger yesterday was Aubrey Huff’s two-run homer following a Miguel Tejada RBI double.
"They’re just hitting the ball, that’s all," Rivera said, shrugging off questions about his health. "That’s baseball. If you cut me I bleed."
As much as Rivera wore the goat horns, the Yankees were lethargic offensively, extending their scoreless streak to 17 innings before Duncan’s blast in the ninth. Orioles starter Erik Bedard fired seven shutout innings, but his bullpen flushed his sterling effort.
The plot now thickens for the Yanks. Tonight, they begin a four-game series against the AL-Central-leading Tigers. It’s the first meeting between the teams since last October’s Yankee humiliation in the division series.