Reality Check: JP Morgan actually made worse trade than the Yankees

Now and then, we plan to offer an IT IS HIGH REALITY CHECK, extending our minds beyond the dizzifying pseudo-chaos of celebrating Yankee victories (birth) and mourning Yankee defeats (death, or worse).

Here is our first grim observation of the Unvarnished Truth.

1. Three JP Morgan bigwigs are retiring to their naked manservants and Nantucket compounds because of hell-botched trades. (Were they dealing with Seattle?) The evil bank lost two billion dollars, which makes Cashman's Jesus-for-Venus de Milo deal look like Peter Minuit bartering with the Manhattan Indians. REALITY: Bad deals are part of baseball. Bad deals are part of life. The only person who never gets a bad deal is George Clooney. (What is it with that guy? If we were dealing on behalf of the Manhattans, the Dutch would have ended up with Rikers Island, and the Indians would have a casino on Manhattan.) We can rail about Cashman all night, but we have nobody else to run this team.

2. If the season ended today, we would face Tampa in a one-game playoff, in Tampa. Baltimore would be the AL East pennant winner. Mark Teixeira would be a defensive replacement, and the Redsocks would be looking forward to the 4th (or 5th) pick in the 2013 draft.

3. The Killer Bees (of the Traveling Wilkes Barres) are throwing beebees. Last night, Manny Baneulos threw six solid innings. The other night, Dellin Betances threw eight - perhaps the best outing of his pro career. If they continue, both are headed to NY by September. The reality: Their innings will be limited. But help may be on the way.