Our baseball autumn just keeps getting worse.

It's one thing to deal with Boston's quick exit from the postseason party, but it's been a very tough nine days since Jonathan Papelbon gave up three runs in the ninth as the Angels completed a stunning sweep in the American League division series.

Remember the days we thought hell would freeze over before Papelbon gave up a run in the playoffs? Well, Joe Cupo hasn't given us the forecast for Hades yet, but an October Nor'easter Sunday put us on a time warp to winter. Watching the Patriots dismantle the Titans in snowy Foxborough made it feel like spring training must be just a few weeks away.

No such luck. We won't see the boys of summer in uniform for more than four months.

Instead, we get to watch the Yankees roll over the Angels like it's a split-squad game against a college team in Tampa. The group from Anaheim that outpitched, outhit and outfielded the Red Sox hardly provided any healthy competition for the Bronx Bombers in the first two games of the ALCS. And, as if that wasn't enough

• Alex Rodriguez has become the new Mr. October. A-Rod has always come up short in the postseason, but not this year. He ended Monday's extra-inning loss to the Angels in Game 3 hitting .348 in the playoffs and led the Yankees in playoff home runs (four) and RBI (nine). His clutch homer in the 11th inning tied Game 2 and helped the Yankees to a 13-inning win.

• New York's new free agents are getting it done. The Yankees always outspend the competition, but they don't always spend it wisely. That was the old credo of non-Yankees baseball fans. This year, CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett have given up a combined three earned runs in 141/3 innings in the ALCS. They have proven to be big-money pitchers. And Mark Teixeira? Despite slumping in this series, he's been worth every penny. Having him in a Red Sox uniform could've made a big difference against the Angels.

• The Yankees have baseball's best bullpen. All season long, we've said the best relievers in the game were in the Red Sox bullpen. Not right now. The Yankees' relievers had given up just five runs in 212/3 innings in the playoffs heading into Monday's game. The Yankees won two extra-innings games in large part because their relievers shut down the opposition with the game on the line. This does not bode well for Yankees' opponents next season.

• Mariano Rivera is the best closer in baseball, and his heir apparent is back in the bullpen. Joba Chamberlain may never start another game, and that's more bad news for Yankee opponents. If he's the setup man for Rivera next season, it'll be a lock-down back end of the bullpen that will rival anyone's.

• Johnny Damon is back on top. He was hitting .313 in the ALCS after Monday night's game and is in for another big payday. Playing in the final year of his four-year contract), Damon tied a career high with 24 homers. He'll turn 36 next month, but he's played 140 or more games in 14 straight seasons.

It adds up to a miserable October for Red Sox Nation. After a cold, damp weekend, we can't fire up the hot stove and look ahead to 2010 fast enough.

Tom Caron is the studio host for Red Sox broadcasts on the New England Sports Network. His column appears in the Press Herald on Tuesdays.