How can a Yankee fan not be happy at this point? I mean really. At home in the freezing cold conditions, against none other than the Hellish Halos, your hopes are high but expectations? They may waver a tad. Our boys have done us good in these two games. They made the Angels look like monkeys [pun possibly intended]. It was grand.

     Game 1: CC “Boss Dawg” Sabathia took the hill for his first trip of the series. He tossed eight innings of one-run, four-hit, seven-K ball. If that’s not ballin’, I’m not sure what is. If he pitches twice more in this series, it’s gotta be in the bag. You can never have a doubt when the guy is on the mound. He’s the insurance policy. In short, he is amazing.
     Before I continue, I just want to thank Jason over at Heartland Pinstripes for always having awesome recaps of the game. If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be able to be as detailed as I want to. You freakin’ rock, Jason!
     Okay, so, Alex Rodriguez was to thank for the Yankees’ drawing first blood in game 1. LET THEM HATERS HAAATE. He’s clearly proven everybody wrong who’s doubted him. He was basically the MVP of the DS, along with CC, AJ, and Andy, of course. Anyway, he had a sac-fly to put the Yanks up 1-0 in the first, and Matsui followed with a bloop single to score Johnny Damon. WOOP.
     Fast-forward to the fifth, Hideki Matsui knocks a double to score J-Dames and make the score 3-1. A-Rod tries to do the same, but instead was called out in a pretty intense collision at home plate – more intense for Jeff Mathis, I should say. It was a good try nonetheless I suppose, although he did run through Robbie Thomson’s stop sign.
     There was one more run to be had in the sixth, thanks to a botched pickoff attempt by John Lackey & a single by Derek Jeter to score Melky Cabrera. This made the score 4-1, which ended up being the final. Angels’ miscues certainly were used to our advantage in this game. Good times.

     Game 2: It was AJ Burnett‘s turn on the mound. Through the first four, he was workin’ it. When the fifth inning came around however, he let the Halos come back and tie the game at two. He ended up going six-and-a-third, just allowing three hits and having four Ks. On any other day, this would be considered a really good outing for him, so I’m not gonna knock the guy.
     Offense, offense, offense. Robbie Cano with a triple to score Nick Swisher, who of course worked a walk, in the second. Captain Clutch then decided to tack another one on with a solo shot to right field in the third.
     Naturally, the game went into extras, and dramatics ensued. Chone Figgins, the president of the Lollipop Guild, hit a single in the 11th to score Gary Matthews Jr. and make the score 3-2 with Alfredo Aceves on the mound. Aceves did not save us. Growl. This was the point where I was near stroking in the club where I was out with friends for a birthday. Yes, I was glued to the TV. Yes, I know how stinky that sounds, LOL. But as I’ve said, I have an addiction. O=) Anywho, as my other friends were on the dance floor, I watched Alex Rodriguez put us at ease, blasting a solo shot to right field in the bottom of the inning. There were many cheers to be had by the patrons other than myself.
     Aside from Aceves, the combined efforts of Phil Coke (.1 IP, 1 BB, 1 K), Joba Chamberlain (.1 IP, 1 H, 1 K), Phil Hughes (.2 IP, 1 H, 1 K), Mariano Rivera (2.1 IP, 1 H, 2 K), Damaso Marte (.1 IP), and David Robertson (1.1 IP, 2 BB, 1 H, 1 K) yielded good results (though the lines look pretty shaky). Whatever hits these guys gave up didn’t do any damage. They cleaned themselves up rather nicely.
     To the thirteenth we go. Robbie Cano with an error in the top of the frame to let Erick Aybar aka Coolio on base. Ugh. Aybar bunted to 2nd by Figgy. Ugh. Bobby Abreu IBBed. Ugh. Torii Hunter with a groundout to DJ, but the runners move up. Ugh. At this point I was just begging to be put out of my misery. Thank God Vladimir Guerrero was having a bit of an off day. As my Dad put it “he left a small country on base last night.” Inning over, crisis averted. Whew.

     Bottom half of the thirteenth. I’m in the car on the way home from the club, wishing I was still in front of the TV. Jerry Hairston Jr., pinch-hitting, hits a single. Brett Gardner bunts him to second. Sacrifice successful. Cano gets IBBed. Melky hits a grounder to second, and Maicer Izturis makes a MAJOR faux pas and throws the ball away! JHJ scores! YANKEES WIN, THEEEEEEEEEE YANKEES WIN! Much screaming and celebrating ensued while en route to my house. Myself as well as two of my friends scared the bejesus out of our other friend in the passenger seat. Whoops. All in the name of winning, of course. =)

     So, our boys travel to Anaheim and far better weather in the west for games 3 and 4. Up 2-0 has a really, really nice ring to it. The matchup for Monday afternoon consists of Andy Pettitte vs. Jered Weaver. I’m beyond the point of being hyped/stoked/excited/etc. My blood pressure is probably through the roof. Ah, well. Two more wins and we are off to the WORLD SERIES, BABY! =D LET’S DO THIS!