So how much of a surprise, really, could it have been when on Rivera's first and only pitch of the game, a bleeder by Angels pest Chone Figgins found its way between Wilson Betemit, who was breaking to cover first, and Robinson Cano, who was shaded toward second, to drive in the winning run of the game?

Teams like the Yankees, who lack killer instinct, are often slain by teams like the Angels, who have a ton of it.

"It just seems like when these guys get something going, they get the job done," Andy Pettitte said of the Angels, the clear implication being that with the Yankees, the opposite is true.

The most obvious example of this came in the eighth, when Rodriguez, having hit a one-out double off the wall, decided to steal third with Xavier Nady at the plate and was cut down. A-Rod and Girardi tried to justify the episode as "a bad call" (maybe) and "a smart play" (definitely not).

It didn't show initiative, it didn't show hustle and it certainly didn't show brains. All it showed was what other, lesser teams used to show playing the Yankees: desperation.

The Yankees are one of those other, lesser teams now, and if they weren't sure of it before, the Angels drove the point home like a stake through the heart of their October dreams.