The Subway Series had its ups and downs this weekend but that wasn't the main event in the Bronx Palace. Francisco Rodriguez and Brian Bruney nearly got into it over some recent comments the Yankee reliever made.

It’s a laid back Monday awfully quiet here in the Big Apple. Guess that’s what happens when the local baseball teams are idle and the NHL and NBA are now officially done thanks to Finals MVP Kobe Bryant and the Lakers dismantling the Magic 99-86 last night to win the franchise’s 16th NBA title.

Hard to believe all we really got left is baseball. Unless, you’re a huge tennis fan like me who can’t wait for Wimbledon to get going next week. I so want to see Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer meet once more in another epic final. But wonder if the banged up No.1 Spaniard is up to it. Only time shall tell.

There’s also the U.S. Open starting this Thursday with Tiger chasing his 15th major. But that’s if you’re an avid golf fan. I’m sure I’ll flip to it out of curiosity.

So, with the two New York ballclubs off, what better time than to discuss this past weekend’s Subway Series clash in the Bronx Palace?

-The Yankees wound up taking the series by dismantling Met ace Johan Santana for nine earned in an unpredictable 15-0 blowout Sunday.

When I flipped on WFAN yesterday and heard the score, I was wondering what happened. Santana has never been that bad since he put on the Met uniform. And it arguably was his worst career outing. The Yanks pushed four across in the second with former Baby Bomber catcher Francisco Cervelli getting it started with an RBI single- part of a three hit day for the rookie. Derek Jeter and Johnny Damon knocked in the other runs.

Unfortunately for the Amazin’s, the Bronx Bombers were far from done putting up a nine spot in the fourth as they knocked out Santana highlighted by Hideki Matsui’s 10th home run.  Before the inning was through, Brian Stokes had been tattooed with Robby Cano going yard and Melky Cabrera driving in a pair. And so, what began as a chance for Jerry Manuel’s club to continue their momentum from Saturday and win the series turned into a laugher.

Instead, A.J. Burnett lived up to his paycheck for a change escaping an early bases loaded no out jam by fanning two and getting Carlos Beltran to harmlessly lineout to Jeter. While Burnett cruised tossing seven scoreless and fanning eight in maybe his best performance in Pinstripes, his teammates tacked on a couple in garbage time to finish off the rout.

And so, what started out as a debacle for the Yanks turned out alright thanks to Luis Castillo and Santana’s stunning result. Had the Met second baseman not misjudged a routine pop Friday night, Joe Girardi’s club could’ve been looking at a six-game losing streak versus the Red Sox and Mets. Wonder if that might’ve been enough to get him canned? So much for that. Instead, the Yanks picked up a game on Boston, who fell to the Phillies 11-6. The Red Sox lead the division by two games while the Phils remain four ahead of the Mets.

There’s really not much to say in terms of this series because both teams showed flaws with Andy Pettite and the Yankee pigpen continuing to fail while lack of fundamentals killed the Mets along with the continued platoon popgun at first between struggling rookie Daniel Murphy and Fernando Tatis. Since Carlos Delgado went down, the pair have totaled only one home run. Listening to Howie Rose lament that during yesterday’s slaughter made it sound like he was criticizing the Met organization. There was a bitterness to it. Who could blame him?

The bigger news that came out of yesterday was the pregame circus between angered Met closer Francisco Rodriguez and Yankee reliever Brian Bruney. Bruney’s big mouth got him in trouble Friday when he said it couldn’t have happened to a better guy of K-Rod’s first blown save due to his antics. While it’s true that the MLB record holder can go a little overboard when he records that final out for a save, he can do whatever he wants as long as he gets the job done. It’s up to the opposing hitters. So, if he wants to point to the sky thanking God, so be it.

I’m not a big fan of that. But hey. As was pointed out on the Mets radiocast yesterday, you wonder if Bruney feels the same way about Joba Chamberlain. It is what it is. At least before anything happened when Bruney tried to apologize to a furious Rodriguez, teammates separated them. It was really childish and has no place in the game.

There is no right here. Let’s just hope as both indicated that it’s finished.

Some other MLB thoughts:

-With his complete game in a 7-1 win yesterday, Matt Cain improved to 9-1 with a 2.39 ERA. The former Giants No.1 pick is stepping out of Tim Lincecum’s shadow this season dominating hitters. With Cain and Lincecum firing on all cylinders, don’t look now but the Giants are playing some good ball entering tonight 34-28. Unfortunately, Barry Zito got knocked around by the Angels for seven runs and they trail John Lackey 8-0. Still, San Francisco has been a pleasant surprise. Just imagine if they had any kind of hitting. Another slugger could help them contend for a wildcard.

-Also pitching great yesterday was Cleveland lefty ace Cliff Lee, who took a no-hitter into the eighth before Yadier Molina broke it up with a double. Lee needed only 93 pitches to go the distance on a three-hit shutout improving to 4-6 with a 2.88 ERA. Following a sluggish start, last year’s AL Cy Young winner has really picked it up. Might he become available if the Indians continue to struggle? Stay tuned.

-The Cubs fired hitting coach Gerald Perry this weekend. Apparently, it was his fault that Alfonso Soriano doesn’t hit anything but home runs and Derrek Lee can’t get around on a fastball anymore. Was it his fault that Aramis Ramirez got hurt and the Cubs overpaid Milton Bradley? 2008 NL Rookie of The Year Geovany Soto has also struggled. Who told the Cubbies it was a good idea to trade away Mark DeRosa? Sometimes, you gotta look in the mirror first.

-When they fired Clint Hurdle, I figured it was just foolish because the Colorado roster just doesn’t spell contender. However, so far I’ve been proven wrong with the suddenly surging Rockies completing  a three-game sweep of Seattle, winning their 11th in a row to get within a game of .500 (31-32). Amazing turnaround.

-Speaking of sweeps, with an impressive three-game weekend in Toronto, are the Marlins finally ready to turn the corner or is this just another tease?

-Early returns on that Nate McClouth trade to Atlanta:

McLouth: 10 GP, 10 for 41 (.244), HR, 2 RBI, 2 SB, 7 Runs

Atlanta record: 4-6

Andrew McCutchen: 11 GP, 16 for 49 (.327), 0 HR, 7 RBI, 2 triples, 2 SB, 9 Runs

Pittsburgh record: 6-5

Keep in mind they weren’t traded for each other but McCutchen was Pittsburgh’s former 2005 first round pick (11th overall) who was waiting in the wings when McClouth was finally moved for prospects Gorkys Hernandez, Charlie Morton and Jeff Locke.

Though we won’t know the full returns on this deal for quite some time, it’s always nice to know that that self-proclaimed Baseball Tonight genius Steve Phillips is once again right on top of things just as he was with the Mets. Some things never change.

-And finally, I’m just going to echo WFAN’s Mike Francesa that the Twins will win the AL Central. They’re young but well managed by Ron Gardenhire and boast a very underrated middle of the order in Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau and Jason Kubel. Nobody really pays attention to how good those three are. When you boast the best hitting catcher, a former MVP who will seriously challenge again and a former No.1 pick who’s finally healthy fulfilling expectations, you always got a shot. Toss in young hurlers Scott Baker, Nick Blackburn and Francisco Liriano and there’s plenty to like. Plus Joe Nathan’s one of the best closers in baseball. This is a team worth tracking.