Robinson Cano might not be the biggest individual disappointment in major league baseball this year, but he has to rank among the top five failures. In Wednesday afternoon’s loss to the Twins, Cano went hitless at the plate and committed three mental mistakes in the field as the Yankees fell, 4-2, to close out a 3-and-7 road trip. Without those mistakes, the Yankees might have played the Twins to a tie, setting the stage for a second straight day of extra innings.

The Yankees envisioned Cano having a breakout season in 2008, hitting .315-plus with power and playing Gold Glove defense at second base. Instead, they’ve watched Cano sink to his lowest major league levels, as he struggles to hit .265, shows no additional patience at the plate, and waltzes around the infield, playing the position without passion or hustle. The regression is so stunning that I have to believe Cano misses the influence of Larry Bowa, the Yankees’ former third base and infield coach. Bowa, with his relentlessly aggressive style, had a way of lighting a fuse under Cano; without Bowa, Cano plays too often as if he is sleepwalking.

In 2008, the Yankees have shown many deficiences–a lack of hitting, no bench, inconsistent starting pitching, and age. They’ll need to fix at least some of those areas over the winter. They’ll also need to address the mindset of Cano. If he continues to play more and more like Horace Clarke, and less like Rod Carew, the Yankees will again find themselves in third place–or worse–in 2009…

With the Yankees on the verge of falling completely out of the playoff picture, the Rays and Red Sox can breathe easier. Or can they? There’s no guarantee that the American League wildcard will come out of the East, so the Rays and Sox will need to stay ahead of the pace set by the Twins and/or the White Sox. That mission became a bit more difficult this week. The Red Sox had to place Mike Lowell and Tim Wakefield on the disabled list, weakening the middle of their lineup and the back end of their rotation. Thankfully, the Red Sox have depth. They can move Kevin Youkilis to third base, and slide Sean Casey in at first base. They also made a wise move in picking up the durable Paul Byrd, who has pitched well since the All-Star break and should be a short-term improvement over the enigmatic Clay Buchholz.

In the meantime, the Rays will have to operate without the ailing Evan Longoria and Carl Crawford, both out with hand injuries. Longoria’s injury is especially cruel; he had become the league’s second best third baseman, right behind Alex Rodriguez. Crawford, while having a down year, remains one of the league’s most intimidating baserunners, an outright blazer who can steal bases and distract pitchers almost at will. The Rays simply aren’t as deep as the Red Sox, a factor that may force the front office to become more serious in its pursuit of Gary Sheffield. Baltimore’s Melvin Mora and Seattle’s Adrian Beltre could become targets, too, depending on the length of Longoria’s stay on the disabled list…

It appears that the Reds will receive Micah Owings from the Diamondbacks as one of the players to be named later in the Adam Dunn deal. I’d like to see the Reds get creative with Owings and use him in a pitcher/player utility role, ala Brooks Kieschnick a few years back with the Brewers. Owings has had little success as a major league pitcher, but has shown legitimate hitting talent, whether it’s starting the game or pinch-hitting. The Reds could platoon Owings with Joey Votto at first base, giving him regular duty against left-handed pitching. On the other days, Owings would be available to pinch-hit, or log some innings out of the bullpen, especially in games that have degraded into blowouts. In this day and age of 12-man pitching staffs, a versatile player/pitcher like Owings would give the Reds an extra bat and an extra arm.