Results tagged ‘ Joba Chamberlain ’
World Series Games 3 & 4: Haya Doin’?!
‘I can feel it comin’ in the air tonight, oh Lord;
& I’ve been waiting for this moment for all my life, oh Lord… oh Lord’
Anyway, prior to game three, the series was tied at 1 apiece. After Games 3 and 4, however, our boys in blue have taken a commanding (but still not quite cemented) 3-1 lead. Game 5 is tonight, AJ Burnett on the mound against Cliff Lee. We do face a bit of a conundrum, however. Winning the game against Cliff Lee would be ever so sweet, but losing it would allow for the return to the motherland to win #27 in front of the home crowd. I’m not saying they should lose on purpose – that would be blasphemous – but I’m saying it won’t be too much of a big deal if they did lose tonight… especially since Cliff Lee is on the mound and he basically put us in our place his last time out.
Enough about tonight though, this entry is to go back over the dealings of the past two games. Halloween night, I’m at my friend’s house with a bunch of other friends. Luckily, he has a massive TV in his basement and we got to watch the glory.
Andy Pettitte went 6 innings, gave up 5 hits and 4 runs, but struck out 7. That may look like a bit of a crappy line, but we were fortunate enough to have the offense show up and contend in this game – including some from ol’ Southern Comfort himself! YOU GO ANDY! Cole Hamels was on the receiving end of most of that offense and was knocked out after only pitching 4-and-a-third. Johnny Damon is keeping himself awake in this World Series. He had himself 2 RBIs. Alex Rodriguez had 2 RBI as well, courtesy of a homer that had to be reviewed. That was definitely a huge, HUGE turning point in that game. That cut the Phillies’ lead to 3-2. The fifth inning was the biggie inning – 3 runs scored, putting us up 5-3. We never gave the lead back after that. Nick Swisher, who had a great night offense wise – had a solo shot in the 6th. Looks like that stance change was a pretty good idea. Pinch hitter Hideki Matsui got a shot as well despite playing at CBP, and hit a solo shot in the 8th. The Phillies managed another run in the 6th off Pettitte, but Joba Chamberlain and Damaso Marte stopped that from continuing. However, the Phillies did get another run in the bottom of the 9th [wtf, Phil Hughes?], but Mariano Rivera came in and shut ish down. 8-5 win, 2-1 lead.
CC Sabathia pitched last night, and was considerably better than he was in Game 1. He faced Joe Blanton, who apparently isn’t as terrible as we all thought he’d be. He pitched rather well considering his reputation. CC went 6-and-two-thirds and gave up three runs. Blanton went 6 and gave up four.
Again, the offense was in attendance and was the big contributing factor, as per the usual. We have the first five guys in the lineup to thank for that. Derek Jeter, Johnny Damon [making a complete and utter mockery of the Phillies' infield by stealing two bases in one artfully beautiful play], Mark Teixeira, and Alex Rodriguez [yeah, hit him again and see what happens, I #@$%IN' DARE YA!] each had an RBI apiece, and Jorge Posada came through with 3. Big doin’s at Citizens Bank Park last night. What a way to pump people up, let me tell you. I was shaking [partly because of how big it was, and partly because the friggin' umps were thisclose to giving me an ulcer or two, or twenty]. But no matter, all that matters is that we are ONE WIN AWAY FROM WINNING IT ALL. ONE. WIN. AWAY. FROM. #27. LET’S DO THISSSSS!!!!!
AJ is gonna be big tonight. He needs to pitch like he did the other day. NEEDS to. I will be honest though, I won’t be completely heartbroken if things don’t work out. I really like – no, love – the idea of winning a World Series [after 9 years of waiting] in New York… especially in the new Stadium. It would make the accomplishment that much sweeter. But, of course, I will take this however it wants to come. It will be completely euphoric no matter where it happens, and I cannot wait until then!
ALCS Game 6: The Hunt for #27
‘Don’t lose your grip on the dreams of the past
You must fight just to keep them alive.’
The New York Yankees are the 2009 Champions of the American League.
The New York Yankees are the 2009 Champions of the American League.
The New York Yankees are the 2009 Champions of the American League.
The New York Yankees are the 2009 Champions of the American League.
Just in case you haven’t heard it already, the New York Yankees are the 2009 Champions of the American League! They beat the Angels last night by a score of 5-2; 4 games to 2 in an epic 6-game series. Sure, Game 6 didn’t end with a dramatic walk-off like 2003 in the days of old, but sh_t, we’ll take it.
Our boys only need 4 more wins to be the 2009 World Champions. FOUR more wins against the Phillies, and “We Are the Champions” will take on a humongous persona. I’m beyond pumped for Wednesday to come and Game 1 to begin.
As far as last night goes, Andy Pettitte was superb. 1 earned run in 6-and-a-third, 7 hits and 6 K’s. Those 7 hits basically went to waste, like most of the Angels’ hits did in this series. I’m pretty confident that as a whole, they left a small island on the bases [thanks, Dad!]. All in all, they didn’t play their best baseball, and neither did the Yankees for that matter, but clearly we prevailed and therefore we played better! =D
Johnny Damon, Mark Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez. The dynamic three-o of the night. 2 RBI for J-Dames, and one apiece for Tex & A-Rod. It’s good to see that money going to good use. ;D When you have a combo like that in the lineup, it’s hard to say you’re gonna lose. Luckily, their work as well as Andy’s and Joba Chamberlain‘s and Mariano Rivera‘s led to some more celebrations of epic proportions. You can’t beat watching grown men act like they’re 13 running around like lunatics and jumping on top of each other to see who can get the most hops. It’s hilarious for one thing, and beyond that, it’s special to watch. You can really tell how appreciative these guys are to be in this situation and how much they want it all. These guys haven’t been in the Fall Classic since 2003. I think it’s high time it was their turn to go the distance once again. So, the hunt for #27 is alive and well.
ALDS Game 3: Game, Set, SWEEP
‘Let ‘em see me, hi hater; pull off easy, bye hater
You don’t like me, why hater? Won’tcha tell ‘em how mad I make ya?’
Who would’ve thought that a matchup between Carl friggin’ Pavano and Andy Pettitte would be a pitchers’ duel for a good percentage of the time? Not me, that’s for sure. I was so sure Pavano would collapse under the pressure and be carted off the field on a stretcher with another fake injury. No, on the contrary, he went ahead and said ‘suck it, NY’ to everyone who ever doubted him. Well, he did for the first 6 innings of the game, at least. =)
Andy went toe-to-toe with Pavano, matching his every move through the first 5 frames. He did give up an RBI single to Joe Mauer in the 6th, but that was all to be had for the Twinkies. He pitched to Jason Kubel in the 7th and was relieved for Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes, and Mariano Rivera, the latter two having gotten over whatever heebie-jeebies they were suffering from previously. The pitching certainly has been the story of this ALDS, all three Yankee starters only allowing 1 earned run in each of their respective starts this series. And the bullpen is, well, the bullpen. Not just any bullpen, though… THE bullpen.
When all of us out there in Yankees Universe thought Carl Pavano was actually gonna do something useful with his life, we were avenged. Alex friggin’ Rodriguez came to bat in the 7th inning and knocked a solo shot over the football seats in right field of the Metrodome [RIP]. Now you understand why the aforementioned song is his theme? Good. I’m glad we cleared that up. A couple of outs later, Jorge Posada, aka JoPo Fa-Sho-Sho, put us on top (ba dum, ch!) with another shot to left this time, barely making it over the wall and leaping try of Delmon Young. Just like that, we were up 2-1, and Pavano was in line for the loss. [celebratory dance]
Of course, all of us fans out there were looking for insurance, and we got it. Ninth inning, three straight walks from three different Twins pitchers. Joe Nathan to the mound, and… cue the fail. JoPo knocked a single and Robbie Cano followed suit, giving us another two runs. Cue Mo for the 4-out save, and FIN. Game ovah! ALDS ovah! ALCS here we [bleep]in’ come!
Speaking of Alex Rodriguez and his haters, I think they’re all fit to
be gagged after the series numbers he put up. 5-11 with 6 RBI. He
should have done as they do in Minnesota and sent the Metrodome out with some class. But hey, that’s just my opinion. Just kidding. That would’ve just been silly.
See where TPPT
™ & GoodKarma
™ get you? They get you a friggin’ Division Series Championship and some bottles to pop. Now we need them more than ever, especially with the Hellish Halos
™ coming to town on Friday. FRIDAY?! A YANKEE-LESS FOUR DAYS?! I DON’T KNOW IF I CAN TAKE THIS! But I must – WE must. I guess it’s good practice for when the season’s over… [slaps self] …sorry. We’ll not speak of such nonsense. We all know baseball season never ends! [nervous laugh] … I guess we’ll just have to live with National League doin’s until then. The Phillies are up 2-1 in their series against the Rockies – the only really competitive series. All three LCS contenders that have already been decided have become so via the sweep [cough CHOKE SOX cough]. How boring. (SIIIIIKE) Game 4 of that series is tonight at 6:00. I might just watch some of it to get my baseball fix. Until we meet again, bloggers!
ALDS Game 2: Bite My Lip & Close My Eyes
‘Johnny, rosin up your bow and play your fiddle hard,
’cause hell’s broke loose in Georgia and the devil deals the cards.’
No, really, like DAYUM.
I don’t know how much more my little 18-[but 19 in four days, wooooop!] year-old heart can take of this stress! I mean, it’s a good stress, but still. Last night’s game was thisclose to giving me a stroke. After going scoreless through 5, and then tied at one after the 6th, it seemed like the game was never gonna end. But little did I know that would be where the real stress began.
The 7th was eventless, no scoring done. Girardi enlisted Joba Chamberlain and Phil Coke to get it done, and they did. The 8th came around, and all of Yankees Universe felt even safer – Phil Hughes took the mound. But what we did not expect to see was what actually happened… he choked. He choked and we choked. Phil Hughes, after making minimal miscues during his superbly stellar season [I'm in an alliterative mood today], he gives up a run. Quickly, though Hughes did get two outs, Girardi called for the Sandman, Marino flippin’ Rivera, to stop the bleeding. But stop it he did not, at least not at first. He allowed another one of Hughes’ stranded runners to score. End frame – the score was now 3-1. Hope was nearly lost, for two of our knights in shining armor were all but thrown off their mighty steeds.
Of course, leave the dramatics to occur until the last possible second. Bottom 9, Joe Nathan, the Twins’ epic closer on the mound, Mark Teixeira on base with a single, Alex Rodriguez at the plate. After having a very good Game 1, many of us in Yankees Universe had to be thinking his playoff woes were over. He had gotten the 2-out RBI in the 6th inning to tie the game initially. Could he do it again? You’re damn right he could.
A two-run homer into the Yankees’ bullpen did the trick. Joe Nathan, not having much success against the Yankees in the first place, just hung his head in disgust. Many of us fans were undoubtedly shouting profanities – in a positive light, if that’s at all possible – and probably other things like “YEAH, THAT’S RIGHT, SUCK IT HATERS! A-ROD’S F@$#IN’ BACK!” But hey, the guy deserves the praise. Two games, 5 RBI, all of a clutch nature. How can you hate on that? By saying he’ll choke the rest of the way? Well, we still need to get past these pesky Twins, so hate all you want. He’s not going anywhere anytime soon.
Into extras we went. the 10th inning went by without any offensive action – mostly because of a quickly turned double play to end the inning. With Brett Gardner on 3rd after a Jorge Posada single and a couple of throwing errors by the Twins, Johnny Damon hit a soft liner over the glove of Jose Mijares – but into the glove of Orlando Cabrera. With Gardner off at the crack of the bat, he was easily doubled up at third. End frame.
Top 11, the Yankees, as well as the fans, catch a lucky break. Phil Cuzzi clearly missed a call on a Joe Mauer hit ball down the left field line off of Damaso Marte. What would have been a double was rendered a foul ball. Turning point? Maybe, but I consider it more of a sign from God that the Yankees were going to win this game.
Bottom 11, Jose Mijares back on the mound, Mark Teixeira leading off. After seeing three pitches, leaving him at a count of 2-1, Tex belts a shot down the left field line. Would it be fair? Would it have the height? YES, YES, YES. WALK-OFF SOLO SHOT FROM MARKY MARK. FEEL THE VIBRATIONS! [jams] Chills up and down the collective spine of fans everywhere. What a moment. And he finally got the pie.
Lost in the moment: AJ Burnett & David Robertson. AJ pitched really well in his first-ever playoff spot. He went 6 while only giving up 1 run, 3 hits, and striking out 6. The 5 walks were really the only loose screw. But hey, from a guy who’d been struggling a few starts previous to a pressure spot like this, kudos all the way. David Robertson got the win in last nights game of epic proportions, coming in and saving Damaso Marte’s a$s. Amazing stuff from the kid.
What is there not to love about Yankees baseball? Honestly, I don’t understand how people can hate this. Drama-filled games, adrenaline rushes, even the ridiculous amount of stress?! This is what baseball is all about! Even if you’re not a Yankees fan, you have to appreciate the fight these guys have. To have good feelings about a win even while you’re losing? It’s what so many fans hope for from their team. Lucky for us Yankee fans, this 2009 team has given us that and so much more. Absolutely incredible.
Game three, possibly a deciding game on our side, Andy Pettitte takes the hill against [gulp] Carl freakin’ Pavano. Sure, that name may live in infamy in the hearts of Yankee fans everywhere, but I have a good feeling that we’re gonna come out on top. After that guy’s “stint” in pinstripes, we sure as hell deserve it. I can’t wait to see the look in his face… [maniacal laugh] … but, we will just have to wait – ’til tomorrow – to see that.
ALDS Game 1: All Systems Are Go
‘Been away so long I hardly knew the place,
gee, it’s good to be back home.’
Aside from being excessively hyper and shaking to the point where I looked like I had a medical issue, I had a knot in the pit of my stomach. I could have attributed it to a number of things, like the fact that I still have some sort of bug, boy troubles, stress in general, but no. This was no ordinary knot. This was a playoff knot, through and through. How could I tell this? It was gone [for the most part] today – after the win settled in my head.
The first two innings were relatively event-less, save for a couple of jams that CC, the Boss Dawg, worked into and out of himself. Speaking of CC, he earned himself a good supply of chipotle cheesesteak sandwiches for last night’s performance. Okay, he did give up 2 runs [in the third inning, more on this soon] and 8 hits overall, but he struck out 9 and did not walk a single Twin. Sure, a good number of us wanted to string him up for letting the Twins draw first blood, but he was redeemed quite a few times over, thanks to the trusty offense.
Trusty. Would that be good enough of a word to describe these guys? Probably not, but since my brain is nearly scrambled from excitement, it’s the best I can do. =) Anyway, back to the third inning. Our boys in pinstripes drew some blood right back, with El Capitán actually pulling a pitch for a homer with the Melkster on base. It was one of those you-know-right-away homers. It was a thing of beauty, a work of art, if you will. Even Jeet knew it right off the bat (pun intended). You know all is going well when Captain Clutch is just as his namesake implies.
So, with that two-run shot by Jeet, the score was tied 2-2 after the third. Bottom four – NickySwish at bat with 2 dead… knocks a double to score Robbie from first to take – and keep – the lead. From that moment on, whatever came was just insurance. In the fifth inning, Mr. Roboto popped a 2-run shot to put our minds at ease. A-Rod had himself 2 RBIs as well. Yep, that’s right. A-ROD had TWO RBIs in a PLAYOFF game. Suck on that, haters.
Our bullpen of course deserves a moderate amount of credit as well, I mean, they kept the Twins scoreless in the entire 2-and-a-third that they were in the game. Hughesy, Cokie, Jobey, and Moey. Need I really go into details? I think the names basically scream for themselves. Our bullpen is ballin’, clearly. No two ways about it.
And now an off day for our boys. It’s not an off day for all, however. At the moment, we have the Rockies beating the Phillies 4-1 in the sixth. Later on, we’ll have the Cards and Dodgers and the [shudders] Red Sox and Angels. I’d like to see the Dodgers pull through that series, but I honestly have no idea how I feel about the Angels or Red Sox. I hate them both relatively equally. Damn them! [shakes fist at sky] But I think I’ll just relax and enjoy the view for now. Tomorrow will probably restart that lovely feeling of nausea, but I can deal with it! =)
The End? The Beginning? The Beginning of the End?
‘This is a love attack, I know it went out but it’s back.
It’s just like any fad retracts before impact.’
®. A much, much better result than the last three games – by a longshot.
It’s sad to say the 2009 regular season is over for our boys. They need only 11 wins throughout this postseason to accomplish Mission27
™ and raise a new banner in the “House That George Built.” But, on the plus side, they finished up with a record of 103-59 along with a guaranteed trip to the playoffs, the AL East title, and Home Field Advantage throughout the playoffs. Talk about a 180
°. I think it’s safe to say
2008 never even existed in Yankees history, at least, at this very moment in
time. =)
But anyway, back to the game itself. AJ got a little
redemption courtesy of his offense come the sixth inning. In the sixth inning,
which should be known as the “Middle Finger” inning, the Yankees
scored all ten of their runs, seven of which came off the bat of Alex
Rodriguez. Those 7 RBI made history today. It let Alex finish the season with a
couple of nice, round numbers – 30 HRs and 100 RBI on the season. His
second homer of the inning set a franchise-record 243 for the season. It made
him the 5th Yankee of the season to have over 25 pops, and second on the team
in RBI, following Tex. Now, I called this inning the “Middle Finger”
inning for a couple of reasons. First, the Rays basically IBBed Tex the second
time around the lineup because they didn’t want him to get ahead of Carlos Pena
for the league lead in home runs. D!ck move on their part. It was a dumb move
both for that reason and because in A-Rod’s previous at-bat of the inning, he
smoked a 3-run shot. Clearly a stupid move, even though they probably could
have cared less whether they won or lost.
The other reason I gave the sixth inning that nomer was because, well, A-Rod beasted it this season. He missed nearly a month’s worth of games [and then some with the days off] and came back to be top-10 in a few offensive categories. If you were told prior to the season that you wouldn’t be back ’til August, but still come back in May and have a season like this? I think anyone would take it. He basically showed everybody who doubted him that he can still work it, even if he’s not 100%. Now, I haven’t been a huge fan of the guy in the past, but this season, I think I’ve been converted. A good postseason may just lead to idolatry.
Sidebar: He sent his first pitch of the season over the fences, and he did just the same with his last. Now that is something.
Of course, A-Rod couldn’t have had all those RBIs without guys on base. Johnny Damon woke up a little from his recent slumber and had two doubles [both in the sixth inning]. Jeet had two hits, no surprise there. Roboto had a hit, Swish had a hit, Melkster had a hit, and even Panda had a hit (it’s about damn time). Even a good amount of the replacement guys got action: BG scored, Miranda scored, and Guzman scored. For a half inning, it sure was action-packed. And thanks to all this action, AJ, despite giving up two runs and seven hits, got himself his 13th win of the season.
Even though it was a beautiful blowout, some of the relievers had to get some work in. Girardi sent David Robertson to the mound: success. Joba? Success (more on this later). Cokie? Success. Philly “Pornstache” Phranchise? Success. Mo? Speaks for himself. No runs, no hits, no walks for all five of those relievers.
Back to Joba. On Twitter, V [over at Flair For the Dramatic] said this: “Joba is Jesus out of the bullpen.” I don’t think I could have said it better myself. The guy is golden in that spot. I really don’t get why they couldn’t just keep him there. But that’s a debate I’d rather not get into. He pitched a whole half-inning and got a K out of it. He was sssssmokin’. I like him in the bullpen for the postseason. Hopefully he gets a shot at some point.
So, with all of this said, the 2009 season has come to a close. I hate that line. At least there’s still some good baseball left to be seen. I’m hoping TPPT™ as well as GoodKarma™ (a newbie on the scene) will be present throughout these playoffs and will help get us that 27th World Series title. The wait will be long, but in the end? Absolutely worth it. Whatever the ALDS may bring, whether the team is Detroit or Minnesota, our boys will be ready with the momentum of this final win behind them. In closing, here’s a preliminary toast to all of you fellow fans out there, to a fan-freakin’-tastic ’09 regular season, and, of course, to our boys in pinstripes. And like an old friend of ours once said, “It ain’t over ’til it’s over.” [clink]
Leaving Something to Be Desired
‘This is not the Matrix, but I am the oracle
“Do you wanna get with me?” – the question is rhetorical.’
In a weird twist of events, our boys dropped the last two games – one to Kansas City and one to Tampa Bay. With these two teams not even within spitting distance of the playoffs, you’d like to think the Yankees could relax a little more. As a fan, though? You want them to be relentless, naturally. You want them to end the season with more than a bang. You want them to rip teams to shreds and show absolutely no mercy. Unfortunately, our guys were the ones ripped to shreds (well, last night at least…).
Since I haven’t posted in a couple of days, I did miss a win as well. That was a welcome sight, at least, because AJ pitched, and pitched pretty well. He got the ND, but he did get a chance to pie a newbie in the fach at the end of it. That newbie? None other than… Juan Miranda? [insert painfully obvious Miranda Rights joke here] Yup, that’s right, the Cruisin’ Cuban himself. He knocked in the game-winning run on a single, and the scene looked pretty similar to that of the Frankie Cervelli walk-off. Miranda was halfway into right field before anybody got to him. Gotta love the rookies and their coming through in the clutch this season!
After that game, that spark wasn’t to be had. The following game, Joba took the hill. After his previous start, I think most of us out in Yankees Universe expected him to be a little more snapped out of the funk, but I guess that start against the Sox was just a fluke. This time around, Joba went three-and-two-thirds while coughing up seven hits and three runs. The Yankees used seven pitchers, including Joba. Damaso Marte was the [un]lucky loser.
Last night’s game was even more nauseating – moreso because our go-to guy, the Boss Dawg himself, CC Sabathia was on the mound. Now, I’m more than sure Yankees Universe breathed a collective sigh of relief, feeling and knowing that we would no longer have to worry about the Joba loss the previous night. However, CC turned in probably his worst performance of this season. He hadn’t lost since July, so I guess it was time for this kind of game, but still… it was more than painful – even nauseating – to watch. He only managed two-and-two-thirds before being taken out. In that short [but apparently long enough for Tampa] time, CC was rocked for 9 runs, though 5 of them were earned – courtesy of some shotty defense. And to top that off, Tex almost got impaled by a David Price pitch. On purpose, you say? [cough Carlos Peña cough] You be the judge. All in all, the game was completely forgettable. In fact, I have no idea what I just typed a whole paragraph about. What day is it again? …
I understand that nearly every position worth having for the postseason has already been obtained [save for that g-damn 27th Championship], but still. These past two games may be meaningless and the next two may be just as meaningless, but I know I’m not the only one who hates sitting by their TV or listening to MLB Audio and seeing/hearing that these guys are playing like crap. It’s frustrating, clearly. I’m hoping Andy snaps out of his mini-funk and gives us a kick-a$s outing tonight. I want these two games to be friggin’ amazing. I will expect nothing less, dammit! Arrrrrggggghhhhh!
[Exhale] Okay, the anger was unnecessary, I know. It’s kind of hard to avoid sometimes when you’re a fan of the NYY. Anyway, in waiting for this game to start tonight, I need to catch up on some of my primetime shows [that I miss when the Yankees are on, how ironic]. Hopefully tonight’s game yields much, much better results. Until then… Go New York, go New York, GO! =D
The Good Enigmas
Before I frighten anybody, I just want to clarify that I’ll actually be saying GOOD things about Joba Chamberlain today. Yeah, that’s right. POSITIVE, HAPPY, NICE things. I swear, this whole week has been enigmatic at best: two wins against the Angels in Anaheim… and now Joba goes six innings and gets the win?! Where are the four horsemen and the hail and the fire and all that other Book-of-Revelation-type stuff?! Sheesh.
Joba, Joba, Joba… WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU HIBERNATING!? We’ve been looking for these type of starts from you since… well, forever! I mean, at least it’s finally coming to light [now that you're not gonna be in the rotation [rolls eyes]] but why not sooner? You could’ve saved us fans a lot of agita and headaches… Ah, well, at least this goodness came against the Sox at home in the home stretch for clinching the division. You are forgiven… for now.
As I’m sure we all saw yesterday, Joba had some really good stuff going. He kept his pitch count down throughout most of the game (86 pitches in all), and held the Sox back relatively well. He went 6, striking out 5, only walking 1 and only allowing 3 runs. That’s a big step up from allowing 7 runs in 3 innings, if you ask me. I’ve gotta say, whatever Girardi/Eiland/Posada/etc. said to this kid before the game yesterday clearly worked. More, more, more!
On the offensive side, disappointment was naturally nowhere to be found. A-Rod basically beat the Sox on his own, going 3-4 with 4 RBI – 2 of which coming from a ridiculously massive shot into the second deck in left field. Jeet went 2-4 and had a RBI, surprise, surprise. Melkster had a hit and an RBI. Tex had 2 hits and an RBI. And last, but not least, JoPo had 2 hits and 2 RBI. There were seven bases stolen – thievery at its finest. All of this lovely offense amounted to a 9-5 win in the Bronx. Sweeeeet life.
The Sox, I think, were not really in the mood to show up last night. Francona put in his B squad not too soon before the end of the game. I guess they’re not too worried about winning the division anymore… What. A. Shame. [maniacal laugh]
Final note about the game: that DP that Robbie & Jeet pulled off to make the last two outs of the 9th was just sinful. I bet Casey Kotchman wants them indicted for high crimes in “too much talent.”
This brings the Magic Number down to The Great Bambino, which means there is a possibility to clinch while the Sox are in town. That would just be icing on the proverbial cake.
One thing that gets me is how long these games are. I feel like I’ve been playing in them myself, that’s how tired I get. These two teams are exhausting as they are, but together? That’s just crazy. I went to bed at 11:30. I’m eighteen years old, what the hell am I doing going to bed at 11:30?! [sigh] They are great though, no doubt about that.
So, Boss Dawg is on the mound today against Dice-K. Not-so-bold prediction: Yankees, For. The. Win. =) And for the record, I HATE FOX BROADCASTS. K, thanks. Look for a post about this afternoon’s game tomorrow; after the game I am outskies for the night [finally]! Until then, my dudes and dudettes…
Deuces Blogland!
The Good, The Bad, and The Just Plain Annoying
It was a late night for me last night, and I sure as hell was not in any capacity to blog. Sure, it was a good night, but I was tired and my sleep cycle is set to “School,” so how I made it until 2am is beyond me. So, I am now pulling double duty.
As my title indicates, we have – over the past two games – experienced The Good:
The Bad:
and The Just Plain Annoying:
The Good. Yesterday, CC Sabathia was indeed himself, and pitched a friggin’ gem. He went seven strong innings – despite being pegged with a liner off the bat of Franklin Gutierrez [I believe] in the fifth – striking out 8, walking 2, and only allowing 4 hits. Can we say “life saver”? If this guy wasn’t on our roster, who knows where the hell we would be right now. Let me just say that I am beyond glad that he’s on our side.
The offense, naturally, didn’t want to be left out of the limelight. Mark Teixeira, better known as The Teixecutioner
™, had himself – as Kim Jones said in the post game interview – a week’s worth of work in one game. He went 4-5 with two homers, a triple, and a single. Funny though… everyone in the dugout was rooting for a double during his at-bat in the ninth, but he went ahead and knocked the crap out of the ball and sent it over the center field wall. “He don’t need no stinking cycle!” [- David Cone]. Aside from Tex, Johnny Damon quietly put together a 3-4 effort and clearly loves having days off. Mr. Roboto knocked a solo shot and is certainly making a case for his re-signing next season. Frankie Cervelli (
♥) got the start (FINALLY!) and had a 2-4 night with an RBI to show for it. All in all, a fantastic offensive performance plus a spectacular pitching performance = a 10-1 Yankee vic-to-ry!
The Bad. Today’s offense was quite obviously hungover after last night’s party. (FYI, I just put that picture of A-Rod up there to represent the offense as a whole. I couldn’t find a better one… though if I did the sentiment would’ve been the same.) The only one’s who were involved in any sort of useful offense were Mark Teixeira – naturally – and Jorge Posada, who had three days off due to suspension and therefore a sh!tload of rest. Tex managed to go 3-4 with two doubles (where were those last night?!), one of which became a run after a double by JoPo in the 6th. ‘Tis where the offense ends, unfortunately.
And now, the pièce de résistance,
The Just Plain Annoying. In this case, “just plain annoying” and “ugly” are synonymous. Joba friggin’ Chamberlain. You had to know that was coming. His performance today was painful at best. The plan was to let him go at least 5, but that was shot to hell when he gave up 7 earned through 3. I’m not gonna mention that not-so-Billboard-worthy band “The Rules” or the epic “Starter or Reliever?” debate, but I would really, REALLY like to know what the hell this kid’s problem is. I know it’s not even worth mentioning those three really good starts he had after his Homeward Bound session, but why can he not pitch like that anymore? Bad mechanics? Poor mentality? Idiocy? What is the answer and where the hell can I find it?!!?
[deep breaths]
Okay, I think I’m good now.
Well, since there’s nothing more to be done about that debacle of a game, we’ll just have to look onward to tomorrow and the [gulp] Los Angeles Angels of The Seventh Circle of Hell Anaheim. But hey, TPPT
™ should be back from its one-day, unpermitted (confound it!) vacation by then, so we’ve just gotta keep our heads up! When our boys played LAAA (wtf, acronym?) on Monday, Joba pitched well (again, wtf?) and actually managed to keep Vladdy & Co. from doing much damage. Yeah, Joba… where’d you pull that start out of? … ANYway, I’m thinking that game gives our boys the incentive and the confidence to knock the Halos tushies down a few pegs. The fact that Home Field Advantage is on the line wouldn’t hurt as inspiration, either.
So, as you can see, I had a good bit to say about a good bit, but I am finished rambling [whew!] and you good people that visit my blog can go about your Sunday evening business as usual.
Thanks for bearing with me!
Deuces!
Off Days Are Not As Fun As They Sound
So, since my excursion to the Ballpark in the Bronx, our Yanks have beaten the always-annoying Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (Whew! That’s a mouthful), lost to the Blue Jays and came to blows with them, and beaten the Blue Jays in walk-off fashion. That’s certainly a lot of activity to catch up on.
Monday: Joba Chamberlain, your favorite and mine [rolls eyes], took the hill against Jered Weaver, aka the Better Brother. And wouldn’t ya know it, Joba went 4 and only gave up a run. Weaver went 7-and-a-third and allowed 5. The oddities of baseball are astounding.
Tuesday: Oh, Ser-Ser-Sergio, how you suck so! I think someone took over and used him as a human suit when he pitched so well a couple of starts ago. He, for all intents and purposes, fails. The only thing worth watching during this game was that epic fight. It was pretty intense. If there’s one thing you must learn from watching that fight, it is this: DO NOT MESS WITH THE 13-LB. EDWAR RAMIREZ. HE WILL CUT YOU. K, thanks. JoPo is a beast, Tex is an animal, and Shelley Duncan… well, we all know he’s psycho. =)
Wednesday: For what was mostly a boring, yawn-worthy game, a good result ensued. For starters, Chad Gaudin pitched relatively well, going 5-and-two-thirds, having only given up two runs in the 3rd, but when he was taken out, a man was on, so he was charged with that run as well when it came in. Hit-deki had himself a three RBI game – always a plus. But the real story happened in the bottom of the ninth. BG (Big Gunz, not Brett Gardner) hit a single, and stole second base. Jeter got him to third on a FC. Then, Frankie Cervelli, Jose Molina’s late-inning replacement, placed a single perfectly between third base and shortstop to drive Gardner home. The kid was so elated that he ran halfway into right-center field in celebration. He is friggin’ adorable and I just wanna pinch him. He definitely deserved the pie after everything he’s done for this club in the past. Love you, Frankie! You’re pretty much awesome! =)
Now, tonight is an off night, which is sad. Our boys make their way to the west coast yet again (wtf? again?) to take on the Mariners and those ridiculous Halos. I’m sick of them, to be honest. Thankfully we still have a considerable lead on them for HFA… and still a considerable lead over the Sox in the East. I just hope the rest of September is good to this team, ’cause now is certainly not the time for them to cool off, no sirree Bob. Well, I guess we’ll just have to wait ’til tomorrow to find out, right? *Sigh* I hate waiting. Whatever shall I do? I guess I’ll practice my patience. I just love doing that. [rolls eyes with great emphasis] ‘Til we meet again!
Peace out blog scouts!
Perennial Pinstriper
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