Yankees sleepwalk through loss

NEW YORK -- The New York Yankees took a day off Monday. At least, that's how it looked.

The Yankees' drive for a playoff spot paused, with Andy Pettitte falling behind early and a smallish crowd watching Toronto rookie Jesse Litsch pitch the Blue Jays to a 4-1 victory.

"It definitely felt like a makeup game," Pettitte said.

Rescheduled from an April 25 rainout, there was hardly any energy in the ballpark. That is, until it was over.

Then, in their version of rookie hazing, the Yankees made their newcomers dress up in Wizard of Oz costumes for the bus ride to the airport and flight to Tampa Bay. There was plenty of hooting and hollering, and the rooks all posed for pictures.

Joba Chamberlain drew the Cowardly Lion, Edwar Ramirez was the Wicked Witch of the West and Ian Kennedy was Dorothy.

"I think I got the short end," Kennedy said, stepping into his sparkly, ruby red slippers.

Had things clicked right, the Yankees could have clinched a postseason berth -- they needed a win, coupled with a Detroit loss later against Minnesota. They did get the latter, a 2-0 Twins' victory.

Instead, the Yankees never quite woke up in their final home game of the regular season and fell 2 games behind idle Boston in the AL East.

Alex Rodriguez drove in the Yankees' lone run for his 147th RBI, albeit on a dribbler that barely rolled halfway down the first-base line. Many hitters swung at the first pitch as New York lost for just the fourth time in the last 18 games.

"We weren't anything offensively today," manager Joe Torre said.