They?ve reached the 90-win mark, taken over the division lead, and now seem primed to spin more of their familiar post-season magic. The ride began a little scary, but the Yankees finally broke from their early season daze. All is right with the world again ? at least the baseball world. With a 5-0 victory by Shawn Chacon over Toronto, (and where would the Yankees be without him and Aaron Small) the win streak reached five before the Blue Jays halted it on Saturday. If not for those pesky Devil Rays, Boston would have a much larger mountain ahead. For now, it?s only 1/2 game, but even that may be too much. The Red Sox are liable to get bunched as second bananas once again. Next weekend?s series at Fenway could very well explode with its anticipated fury, built from the usual tension of this long and ugly rivalry. Or maybe New York will have it wrapped up by then, and the mob will find themselves in a battle of the yawns. Either way, we won?t have long to find out. You can bet the team that George bought will be anxious to atone for last year?s bizarre meltdown, when they blew a 3-0 series lead to Boston in the playoffs. That kind of thing festers and stays with you, for sure. And should it start to wane, old George will come calling with his typical friendly reminders. Count on it. Having been to the post-season for ten straight years, the Yankees have become a cozy tradition. For non-Yankee fans, there is comfort in knowing there will always be one team you absolutely get to hate ? one team to absorb the brunt of your pent-up hostilities. Screaming vile profanities at the set just wouldn?t be the same without the Yankees. They bring so much pleasure to so many. Mike Mussina?s return to the rotation gives the Yankees a big lift. In his first game since August 29th after recovering from an elbow injury, Mussina (13-8) allowed only one unearned run in six strong innings of a 7-6 victory over Baltimore. Alex Rodriguez continues his quest for the MVP. He now has 46 home runs, 124 RBIs, and a .319 batting average. The rest of the cast is falling in line. Two hundred million dollars is a paltry payroll for a chance to capture his 7th World Championship and 11th pennant. It?s only money, and ?The Boss? has plenty of it. Besides, nobody likes a loser. ?Winning is the most important thing in my life, after breathing,? Steinbrenner once said. ?Breathing first, winning next.? And he may have gotten the order mixed up. Having his bid to buy the Cleveland Indians in the early seventies rebuffed was probably the best thing that could have happened to him. He needed a much grander stage for his infamous theatrics, and they don?t get any grander than New York. He?s hardly missed a lick. The Yankees are the second American League team to draw 4 million fans in a season, next to Toronto. Colorado has performed the feat also. And at least 3 million have been to the park for seven consecutive years. That?s a lot of beer, hot dogs and swearing. ?It?s an incredible achievement, particularly when I remember that when I bought the Yankees, we had trouble drawing one million to the Stadium,? Steinbrenner said. ?New York's a hot spot,? Derek Jeter said. ?It?s always the hot restaurant, hot club, hot play, and Yankee Stadium?s been a hot spot now for a few years.? With a Majors-best record of 79-45 since stumbling out of the gate, the Yankees have once again shown what money can buy. It may not be happiness, but it?s not far off. And for George Steinbrenner, those early-season sleepless nights have melted away. But be careful, George. They can always come back.