Perhaps the managers, Joe Girardi and Mike Scioscia could have had better judgment as to who belonged on the mound, in particular the questions about the way Girardi continues to use his bullpen, and as to how Scioscia let the Yankees briefly take control again in game 6 after lifting his starter John Lackey.

If Nick Swisher drives in a run or two Thursday night, with the bases loaded in the ninth, the Phillies would be preparing for a trip to the Bronx instead of the Angels continuing the drama.  We have had it all in the ALCS and if the weather cooperates, there certainly is more to come Saturday night in the Bronx.

And then there is the factor of these umpires, now under considerable scrutiny with their horrible decision making process.  Perhaps one or two calls go to the advantage of the Yankees and it is Phillies against the Yankees.  The controversy surrounding the umpires left no impact on the final outcome that has led us to this point.

What we are left with is opening more questions to expand the instant replay rule for post season baseball games. It certainly is worth consideration based on the events of the last few days. And give or take a few more minutes, more replay rulings wont delay the game any more than what it is now.

The guys who review and evaluate these umpires sit in a press box or behind home plate at various stadiums during the course of a 162 game season.  They, too watch the replays like we do at home.  Some evaluations are accurate, and others try not to be so critical because of friendships formed over the years.

But that is an issue that the silent commissioner of baseball, Bud Selig must review. A merit and evaluation system of umpires obviously can’t be acceptable to the managers, players, and those with a rooting interest. They all deserve better this time of year with so much on the line.

You watch this Yankees-Angels battle with fans of the Yankees. They also scrutinize every move that Girardi makes. More so after game 3 when Girardi removed David Robertson for Alfredo Aceves with two outs, which ultimately put the Angeles back in the series

They, the Yankee fans says Swisher is an abomination and should not be in the lineup  with one run batted through eight games this postseason, 3-for-29 with 10 strikeouts  Yet they forget. Girardi has faith in his player that drove in 82 runs and hit 29 homers during the season.

And tthe drama of how the Yankees have become so dependable on their ace, CC Sabathia and the revival of Alex Rodriguez and his postseason bat. They are two viable candidates for ALCS Most Valuable Player honors, if indeed these Yankees wrap this up the next few days.

Yes this has been an interesting and complex ALCS, as was expected. And sure there is every right to critique the managers and umpires from events of the past week.  But we don’t play the game like they do. We don’t make the calls on the field, and we certainly have no experience making hasty and crucial decisions from a dugout like Girardi and Scioscia.

Game 6 and possibly a game 7 on the horizon, and if there is a final and decisive game, how many Yankee fans will talk more about the 2004 Yankees 3-0 advantage that was lost to the Red Sox?

e-mail Rich Mancuso: Ring786@aol.com

The list reads like an All-Star squad for the era. Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Raphael Palmiero, Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, Jason Giambi, Alex Rodriguez and the latest, Manny Ramirez.

The Dodger leftfielder had a 50-game suspension handed down on Thursday, perfect timing for the subject of performance-enhancing drugs to be drummed up again with A-Rod making his regular season debut the next day.

It’s not as if Rodriguez was going to fly under the radar, anyway, but the topic will reach new heights over the weekend. He can deflect all the questions that he wants and say that he is only going to talk about baseball, but the media frenzy that is sure to follow him around for the rest of the season and possibly longer is not going to let up.

Some may feel that with Ramirez being suspended some of the negative attention surely awaiting Rodriguez tonight at Camden Yards in Baltimore will be offset and directed towards the Washington Heights native. While that may be somewhat true, A-Rod should not get too cozy.

It is true that Rodriguez has not been penalized and his steroid admissions, no matter how inaccurate they may seem, should be viewed as an attempt to gain some sort of compassion  and forgiveness. In Ramirez’s case, the only information we have to go by is what has been the short statement he released and what was reported by Major League Baseball.

“Recently I saw a physician for a personal health issue,” Ramirez said in the statement. “He gave me a medication, not a steroid, which he thought was OK to give me. Unfortunately, the medication was banned under our drug policy. Under the policy that mistake is now my responsibility. I have been advised not to say anything more for now. I do want to say one other thing: I’ve taken and passed about 15 drug tests over the past five seasons.”

What Ramirez was actually suspended for was human chorionic gonatropin, more commonly known as hCG. Without further information or the ingredients of the prescription Ramirez’s doctor gave him, we can only speculate why he would be ingesting it. Known as one of the more potent concoctions used as Post Cycle therapy. hCG is popular amongst steroid users following a period, or cycle, to help maintain the effects of the substances and kick-start the natural production of testosterone after ingesting the synthetic version.

What triggered all of this was Ramirez having one of his Spring Training tests come back with a high testosterone level. All of that would seem to add up and point to Ramirez using performance-enhancing drugs to the point of including PCT, something a beginner does not normally have the knowledge of doing.

It will be hard for Ramirez to lean on the “amateur hour” excuse that Rodriguez used during his admission press conference while explaining how he and his then-unnamed cousin were taking steroids.