Jeter Credited for NYY’s Success, Named SI’s Sportsman of the Year

While I don’t deny that Derek Jeter is a worthy candidate for Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the Year, and that it’s an incredible accomplishment considering he is the first New York Yankee to win the award since it began in 1954, my cynical nature disagrees with the belief that he should receive the credit alone for the 2009 Championship or A-Rod’s turnaround after he admitted in Spring Training to taking steroids earlier in his career.

That being said, Jeter had a terrific 2009 season and became the oldest shortstop to ever win a World Series, his fifth ring overall and first since 2000.  Moreover, Jeter’s philanthropy has been strong during his 14-year career through his Turn 2 Foundation, which was established to give to organizations that help young people stay away from drugs and alcohol.

Congratulations, Number 2.

SI names Derek Jeter 2009 Sportsman of the Year (SI.com)

Read Full Post »

Turkey Trot

I couldn’t tell if it was the after-effects of the Turkey or this article I read on ESPN.com this morning, but I was feeling pretty good today.  While Commissioner Bud Selig has given baseball fans much to be thankful for (e.g. the Wild Card, Interleague play, the most meaningful All-Star game in pro sports), I have never liked listening to his baffoon-speak or believed much of what he has said. 

Maybe it’s the fact that I just watched Oliver Stone’s JFK (1991), but I have always felt like Selig is just a patsy for the owners and has no real authority, or at least does not recognize how to use it.  As a huge fan of the game, I’ve been disappointed/emabarrased to call him baseball’s leader compared to the commissioners of the other major sports (e.g. Roger Goodell, David Stern) and will be glad to see him finally go.

Anyway, Happy Thanksgiving Weekend everybody!

 

Read Full Post »

Oh No, He Said The “H” Word

Over the last several weeks and months, my wife and I have had to rely on the love and tolerance established during our seven years of marriage as the issue of this country’s healthcare system has come (finally) to the forefront of the political world.  While we both agree, as most Americans do, that healthcare in the United States is a growing problem in both cost and efficiency that at least needs to be reviewed and at most needs to be reformed, we do so coming from diametrically opposing political backgrounds and households.

I was raised in a very conservative-minded home, my father an accountant and my mother a homemaker (for lack of a better description), where politics wasn’t necessarily a common topic but was certainly understood at a basic level–this country was founded on freedom and free enterprise, and less government meant a greater entrepreneurial spirit.  My wife was raised in a liberal-minded home (both parents were teachers) where (according to her) being able to think for oneself with the overall group in mind was the overriding essence. 

A few weeks ago (clearly we don’t talk politics very often), we were shocked when we discovered how incredibly different our idea of a typical member of each other’s political party really is.  (Please be mindful that many of my opinions have been dramatically changed since the inauguration of President Obama, and that these extreme stereotypes are just that).  (As a matter of clarification, when I use the term “he/his/him” it is more a connotation of a human being and not gender specific).  Whenever I think of a typical Democrat, I visualize someone who is poor (both in circumstance and intellect) and has his hand extended waiting for government help.  On the other hand, I envision a Republican to be an industrious, hard-working individual who earns his wealth (both circumstance and intellect) by the sweat of his brow and leaves an indelible mark on society.  According to my wife, she thinks of a typical Republican to be an ignorant hillbilly bumpkin who wouldn’t recognize a rational idea if it hit him squarely in his uni-brow.  On the flip side, she imagines a Democrat to be a well-educated, environmentally aware individual who rises through the ranks and, when given the opportunity to become a leader, accepts it not because of the money or status but because of the loftier ideal of being able to help more people on a grander scale.  Seriously, could our stereotypes be any further apart?

Once we recognized how wide the chasm was between our political views, we could start working towards filling in the void or at least building a bridge with a meeting place somewhere in the middle.  As such, we have conjured countless examples, both positive and negative, to explain the strengths and weaknesses of each political party, and while we may maintain our political roots, we accept each other’s ideology and understand better why we believe what we believe, especially when a hot topic like healthcare is so prevalent and relevant.

In essence, the republican viewpoint (and skepticism) of health care reform is threefold (according to a Fox News poll):

• New legislation will result in higher costs and thus higher taxes at an individual level
• Reform will result in a lower quality of health care
• Most are happy with their current coverage (i.e. status quo) and are skeptical (i.e. afraid) of change (or in other words, the conservatives are just being conservative)

Because the health care initiative is a proposal coming from the democratic side of the aisle, democrats spend much of their time educating the public and dispelling the skepticism/myths.  The best resource I’ve seen yet that explains the health insurance reform is a page on whitehouse.gov called “Reality Check.”  While the facts can be mired in the minutia (a very democratic way), the following help topics are presented in video format from various politicos and individuals like you and me.  (I must make an aside that the Democrats are trying with all their might to entice dialogue about the subject while the Republicans (it seems) are simply putting their collective head in the sand until the problem just goes away–I’m talking to you W!):

• We can afford reform, we can’t afford the status quo
• Reform will expand your choices, not limit them
• Reform will eliminate insurance discrimination
• Reform will benefit small business, not burden it
• You can keep your own insurance

I think it says a lot that the Democrats have an organized, easily accessible resource that specifically addresses the many questions and concerns of health care reform while the Republicans have no such resource.  And in fact, I had to rely on a poll by Fox “News” that merely lists Americans’ opinions rather than offers any strong counterpoints.

Without getting too much into why or why not health care reform is necessary, suffice it to say that the United States is the only industrialized country in the world without universal health care.  And while I do believe that we are the greatest country overall in the world, I don’t believe we have the market cornered on superiority or that we are exempt from learning from others.

Read Full Post »

Silver and Gold…

On Tuesday, Derek Jeter and Mark Teixeira took home the gold glove awards for their respective positions, the fourth for the Captain and the third for Tex but first as a Yankee.  Said Teixeira, “I’ve always been cognizant of the fact that you’re not going to get a hit every time up.  You want to hit 1.000, but if you don’t, you can’t take it out to the field.  One strikeout in a game is not going to be the game, but one big error with men on base in the eighth inning might be the difference between a win and a loss.”  That’s certainly one way to rationalize hitting .180 in the postseason.

On Thursday, the two potential MVP candidates also picked up Silver Slugger awards after their impressive seasons at the plate.  For Jeter it was his fourth, winning it the last four straight years, and for Tex it was his third overall and first since 2005.  El Capitan had one of his best offensive seasons, hitting .334 and an OPS of .871 with 212 H and 107 R in the leadoff position.  Tex also had a great season, hitting .292 and an OPS of .948 with 122 RBI and an American League high of 39 HR and 43 2B.

Jeter, Tex take home Gold Gloves (MLB.com)
Jeter, Teixeira win Silver Slugger Awards (MLB.com)

Read Full Post »

Derek Jeter, You Just Won the World Series…

In an upcoming Will Ferrell movie, Derek Jeter plays the antitheses American–riches to rags–who finds himself as a bum after winning five World Series rings.

I’m not sure how it will play out on the big screen, but apparently Wahlberg and Ferrell won’t be doing anything more than just staring.

 

‘Aging’ Jeter playing himself in upcoming flick  (MLB.com)

Read Full Post »

2009 Regular Season Reviewed—September/October

Sep 1-2 (NYY @ BAL)—After Andy Pettitte’s near-perfect game, the Yankees looked to continue their winning ways against the Orioles in the second game of the series.  However, it looked bleak when A.J. Burnett (ND; 5.1 IP, 11 H, 6 R, 2 BB, 2K) left in the sixth after giving up the Yankees’ second two-run lead of the game.  But the resilient Yanks scored 3 R in the seventh highlighted by back-to-back HR by Nick Swisher and Eric Hinske to power New York to a 9-6 win.  Mariano Rivera pitched to the minimum in the ninth thanks to a double play turned by the infield to earn Rivera his 38 S.  In the series finale, the offense again smashed several of the Orioles’ September call-ups to support C.C. Sabathia’s (W, 16-7; 7.0 IP, 7 H, R, BB, 9 K) great performance.  Phil Hughes earned the save, relieving Phil Coke in the eighth with two outs and getting the final three outs of the ninth, after New York scored 7 R in the top half of the inning, powered by 6 1B and 2 BB, to win 10-2.  (Series 3-0; Record 85-48; AL East +7.5, 1st)

Sep 3-6 (NYY @ TOR)—Riding high, the Yankees crushed the Blue Jays in the first game 10-5 after scoring 4 R in the first.  Jorge Posada had 4 RBI and Alex Rodriguez added 2 RBI of his own.  Alfredo Aceves (W, 10-1) won his 10th of the year after relieving Chad Gaudin (ND; 3.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 2 K) in the fourth.  In the second game, the Yankee offense was completely baffled by the brilliance of Roy Halladay and lost 6-0 after going 1-2-3 in seven of the nine innings.  Thankfully Ramiro Pena got a base hit in the sixth or else the game would have been known in history for more than just a shutout by a dominant pitcher.  Joba Chamberlain (L, 8-5; 3.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R/2 ER, 2 BB, 2K) got the start, but was no match for the Blue Jays’ ace as the Yankees’ win streak was snapped at seven games.  In the third game, the Yankee offense bounced back, supporting Pettitte’s (W, 13-6; 6.0 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 5 BB, 3 K) good outing with a good outing of their own.  With an ailing Rivera on the bench, Hughes threw perfect baseball over the final four outs to earn his 3 S of the season and nail down the Yankees’ 6-4 win.  The series finale saw Sergio Mitre (L, 3-2; 4.1 IP, 11 H, 11 R/9 ER, 2 BB, 5 K) get absolutely lit up as Swisher and Melky Cabrera each had 3 RBI, which weren’t enough as the Yankees lost 14-8.  (Series 2-2; Record 87-50; AL East +7.5, 1st)

Sep 7-9 (TB @ NYY)—In the first double-header of the season for New York, the Yankees sent a post-All-Star-break surging Sabathia to the mound for the first game.  C.C. (ND; 7.0 IP, 3 H, R, 4 BB, 10 K) pitched well but was matched by Matt Garza as the game was tied 1-1 through seven and a half innings.  But in the bottom of the eighth, the Yankees scored 3 R on 2 SF and a pair of 1B and Rivera closed the game for his 39 S to preserve the Yankees’ thrilling 4-1 win.  The second game ended with a similar result but with a little less drama.  Burnett (W, 11-8; 6.0 IP, 4 R, R, 3 BB, 8 K) earned his first W against the Rays this season, and the offense, led by Teixeira’s 4 RBI, provided the rest as the Yanks won 11-1.  Going into the doubleheader, however, Derek Jeter was the main story as he was sitting on 2,718 hits in his Yankee career, which was just 3 hits shy of the all-time Yankees’ mark held by Lou Gehrig.  However, Jeter went cold, going a combined 0-8 in both games after hitting 5-8 in the final two games of the road trip.  In the third game, Jeter didn’t have any more luck, going 0-4 again, but the team sure did as the Yanks won 3-2, powered by Swisher’s walk-off HR that gave New York its thirteenth walk-off win of the season.  Gaudin (ND; 6.0 IP, 6 H, R, 2 BB, 6 K) got the start but Rivera got the win after pitching a perfect ninth.  Finally, in the fourth game of the series, the Yankees fans saw history as Jeter tied Gehrig with a clean single in the seventh, his third hit of the night.  The fans were also witness to a thrilling victory as the Yanks overcame a 2-0 deficit in the bottom of the eighth by scoring 4 R, highlighted by Posada’s pinch-hit 3-R HR to power New York to a 4-2 win.  Chamberlain got another abbreviated start per the rules outlined by the higher-ups, but Jonathan Albaladejo (W, 5-1) got the W with the comeback as the Yanks swept the four-game set against Tampa Bay.  (Series 4-0; Record 91-50; AL East +9.0, 1st)

Sep 11-13 (BAL @ NYY)—With hearts remembering the tragedy of September 11th eight years before, and with eyes on the Captain, Yankees’ fans weren’t disappointed as Derek Jeter stroked a single to right field in the third inning, passing the legendary Lou Gehrig on the all-time hits list for a Yankee player with his 2,722 hit.  The rest of the game didn’t go quite so well, however, as the Yankees blew a 4-1 lead after Pettitte (ND; 5.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 5 K) left the game in sixth and ended up losing 10-4.  It appeared that the Jeter-passing-Gehrig hangover trickled into the next game as the Yankees lost again 7-3.  Burnett (L, 11-9; 7.0 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 2 BB, 4 K) got the start, but, after giving up 6 R in the second inning, the Yankee offense couldn’t catch up as they fell to Baltimore again.  In the third and final game of the series, the Yankees woke up and crushed the Orioles 13-3 to avoid the three-game sweep.  Sabathia (W, 17-7; 7.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 4 BB, K) gave another dominant performance and the offense, led by Matsui’s 5 RBI and Cabrera’s 4 RBI, pounded out 20 H in the win.  (Series 1-2; Record 92-52; AL East +7.0, 1st)

Sep 14 (LAA @ NYY)—In a makeup game from the May 3rd rain out, the Angels rolled into town and the Yankees were ready for them.  I don’t know how many times I have said this, but both teams were tied after seven and a half innings and the Yankees scored 2 R in the bottom of the eighth, the go-ahead coming when Gardner stole third and then scored on a throwing error by the catcher Mike Napoli.  Chamberlain (ND; 4.0 IP, 4 H, R, 0 BB, 2 K) got the start but earned a no-decision; Hughes (W, 7-3) had a blown-save but got the win; Rivera pitched the ninth for his 40 S and closed out the 5-2 win.  (Series 1-0; Record 93-52; AL East +7.5, 1st)

Sep 15-16 (TOR @ NYY)—Again, the Yankees dropped a series-opener, and the tension rose after the benches cleared when Posada gave a weak fore-arm shiver to the Blue Jays reliever as he crossed home plate to score one of the Yankees’ 4 R.  However, like a broken record, Roy Halladay shut down the Yanks again on the way to beating Mitre (L, 3-3; 5.0 IP, 8 H, 7 R, BB, 2 K) and the Yankees again 10-4.  In the second game of the short two-game series, the Yankees avenged the loss the night before with more late-inning magic to win 5-4.  After Yankees’ starter Gaudin (ND; 5.2 IP, 7 H, 3 R, BB, 2 K) left in the sixth inning trailing 3-2, Bruney relieved him and gave up another run to make the deficit 4-2.  But in the bottom of the eighth, the Yankees scored two on Matsui’s 2-R HR, and in the bottom of the ninth, Francisco Cervelli scored Brett Gardner from third after Gardner led off the inning with a 1B, stole second during Jeter’s AB, and moved to third on Jeter’s ground out.  This was the Yankee’s fourteenth walk-off win of the season, the most since 1943 when they had seventeen.  (Series 1-1; Record 94-53; AL East +6.5, 1st)

Sep 18-20 (NYY @ SEA)—With its last west-coast trip of the regular season, the Yankees traveled to Seattle and had Burnett on the mound for a good road test for him.  Burnett (ND; 7.0 IP, 7 H, R, 3 BB, 6 K) pitched very well, opposite a potential Cy Young candidate in Felix Hernandez, and was in line for the win when he left after seven solid innings.  But after Hughes pitched a perfect eighth inning, Rivera had one of his few miscues all season when, after striking out the first two he faced in the ninth, he allowed a double by Mike Sweeney that almost left the park and then a game-losing 2-R HR to Ichiro Suzuki that was gone the second it left the bat, sending the Yanks to a 3-2 defeat.  Because Hernandez had pitched 9.0 solid innings in a complete-game effort, he got the win and Burnett was left with a tough no-decision.  After the crushing loss, the Yankees bounced back in the second game winning 10-1 behind their ace, Sabathia (W, 18-7; 7.0 IP, 4 H, R/0 ER, 2 BB, 8 K).  Teixeira led the offense with 5 RBI, going 4-5 with 1B, 3B, and 2 HR.  In the rubber match, Chamberlain was terrible (L, 8-6; 3.0 IP, 6 H, 7 R, 3 BB, 2 K) and raised more questions about his role on the playoff roster with his poor performance against the Mariners.  Mitre entered in relief and was great as he threw a longer outing with his 5.0 IP of one-hit, shutout ball.  However, the damage was done early as the Yanks lost 7-1.  (Series 1-2; Record 95-55; AL East +5.0, 1st)

Sep 21-23 (NYY @ LAA)—After a bad series loss in Seattle, the Yankees traveled to Anaheim to take on a potential playoff opponent in their last great test of the 2009 regular season.  Pettitte (L, 13-7; 6.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 3 K) got the start and pitched okay but took the loss when the offense couldn’t get anything going against Joe Saunders, losing 5-2.  In the second game, the Yankees looked like they were on their way to another disappointing loss against the Angels when they blew a 5-0 lead.  But they showed a lot of gut and grit late in the ball game to win 6-5 on a SF by A-Rod in the top of the ninth.  Gaudin (ND, 4.2 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 3 K) started but earned a no-decision as he couldn’t get through the required five innings.  Rivera pitched the bottom half of the ninth for his 41 S to preserve the win.  In the rubber match, Burnett (W, 12-9; 5.2 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 11 K) had another great outing on the road, and this time the bullpen held on for the win with Rivera again pitching the ninth inning for his 42 S and closing the Yankees 3-2 win.  This series was immensely important for the Yankees as it showed they could beat the Angels late in the year when it matters most.  I think this series really helped give New York the confidence they needed to beat the Angels in the playoffs as well.  (Series 2-1; Record 97-56; AL East +6.0, 1st)

Sep 25-27 (BOS @ NYY)—Returning home on the heels of a great series win in Anaheim, the Yankees faced the Red Sox with a chance to clinch the division with a sweep.  In the first game, they pitted Chamberlain against the always tough John Lester.  But surprisingly Chamberlain (W, 9-6; 6.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, BB, 5 K) was a lot a sharper, and even though Lester left the game in the third after getting hit on the knee with a line drive, he had already given up 4 R on 3 BB and 8 H.  Regardless, the Yankees won the game 9-5 powered by A-Rod’s 4 RBI including his HR in the third inning that broke the mark of most HR in a season in Yankee Stadium (old or new).  In the second game, Sabathia (W, 19-7; 7.0 IP, H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 K) showed again why he was a strong Cy Young candidate with another dominant, shutout performance as the Yankees blanked the Sox 3-0.  Damon led the offense with 2 RBI against his former club, and Rivera pitched the ninth to earn his 43 S.  In the third and final game, and with the magic number down to one, the Yankees closed out the division title, their first since 2006, and their second straight sweep of the Sox at home.  Pettitte (W, 14-7; 6.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 4 K), who else, pitched very well and was the beneficiary of another Yankee comeback victory as they won 4-2.  Trailing 2-0 in the third, Cabrera led off with a HR that cut the Sox lead in half.  Then in the sixth, after Teixeira and A-Rod got back-to-back 1B and moved to second and third on a wild pitch, Matsui drove them both in with a 2-R 1B of his own.  New York added another run in the eighth on Teixeira’s solo HR, and Rivera closed out the game and the division crown with a strong ninth inning.  With the sweep, the Yanks not only won their 100th game, but they also tied the season series with the Sox 9-9 after going 0-8 to begin the season.  (Series 3-0; Record 100-56; AL East +8.5, won)

Sep 28-30 (KC @ NYY)—After another emotionally draining series, the Yankees sent out a lineup that was mediocre, at best, to give some of their regular starters a rest.  The lineup for this first game consisted of Gardner (CF), Cabrera (LF), Cano (2B), Posada (DH), Hinske (3B), Duncan (RF), Miranda (1B), Cervelli (C), and Pena (SS).  But it didn’t seem to matter as they spanked the lowly Royals 8-2, highlighted by Cano’s 4 RBI, giving Gaudin (W, 6-10; 6.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 5 K) another W.  In the second game, most of the regulars were back and seemed a little lax as they had to come back to win 4-3, scoring twice in the bottom of the ninth off an old friend, Kyle Farnsworth, to get their fifteenth walk-off of the year.  Burnett (ND; 6.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R/ER, 3 BB, 8 K) pitched well, but Bruney (W, 5-0) got the W thanks to the late-inning magic.  With the win, the Yankees increased their streak to seven games, which was their fourth winning streak of seven or more in the second half of the season alone and sixth of the season.  In the second half, the Yankees lost consecutive games only five times, with the most consecutive losses being three.  In the series finale, Chamberlain (ND; 3.2 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 3 K) got the start but essentially pitched himself out of the postseason starting rotation with another poor outing.  The bullpen took the loss when the Royals scored in the seventh inning to take a 4-3 lead, which they would not relinquish.   The Yankees had a chance to win the game late again, but left the game-winning run on second base in the bottom of the ninth.  (Series 2-1; Record 102-57; AL East +10.5, won)

(September 19-9; Record 102-57; AL East +10.5, won)

Oct 2-4 (NYY @ TB)—For the final regular season series of the year, the Yankees traveled to Tampa Bay to take on their divisional rival Rays.  While there weren’t any team goals at stake, there were personal milestones that several of the Yankee players were trying to achieve.  And the first came in the first game of the series as Sabathia (L, 19-8; 2.2 IP, 8 H, 9 R/5 ER, 5 BB, 3 K) was on the mound to try and earn his 20th W of the year.  However, it became apparent early that he was not necessarily trying to get the W but more get command of his pitches in a tune-up for the playoffs as he and the Yankees were smacked around in a 13-4 loss.  In the second game, Pettitte (L, 14-8; 4.1 IP, 6 H, 5 R/3 ER, 4 BB, K) was attempting to earn his 15th W of the season, but he, too, was just trying to get his work in in preparation for the postseason, taking the L as the Yanks lost 5-3.  However, the third and final game of the series, and final game of the regular season, saw some incredible fireworks thanks to A-Rod.  With the Yankees trailing 2-0 going into the sixth inning, A-Rod was sitting on 93 RBI and 28 HR for the season.  After Damon and Teixeira reached based to begin the inning, Alex calmly crushed a first-pitch fastball to LF for a 3-R HR that not only gave the Yankees the lead at 3-2, but also moved him 3 RBI and HR closer to his personal goal.  Later in the same inning, A-Rod stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and hammered an 0-1 pitch to right-center field for a grand slam that capped the Yankees 10-R scoring barrage and gave him 30 HR and 100 RBI for the season.  A-Rod also set an American League record with 7 RBI in one inning.  Pretty amazing.  In that half inning, the Yankees sent 13 batters to the plate and scored 10 R, which would eventually be the winning score of 10-2.  In the game, Teixeira was also trying to get his 40 HR of the season, breaking a tie between him and Carlos Pena of the Rays for the most in the American League.  But because the Rays were still mad about the Yankees effectively ending Pena’s season in September when Sabathia hit him on an inside pitch that broke his hand, they probably thought it was unfair for Teixeira to get his 40 HR in Tampa Bay.  So they never threw him anything to hit and unintentionally/intentionally walked him twice.  But with the regular season over, it was time for the playoffs.  (Series 1-2; Record 103-59; AL East +8.0, won)

Read Full Post »

2009 Regular Season Reviewed—August

Aug 1-2 (NYY @ CWS)—After losing two straight games for the first time since before the All-Star break, the Yankees were looking to stop the streak.  However, A.J. Burnett (L, 10-5; 4.2 IP, 10 H, 7 R, 2 BB, 4 K) had one of his worst outings of the year and was only kept in the game because the bullpen had been used so much in the previous couple of games.  Phil Coke gave up 6 R and increased his ERA from 3.77 to 4.98 in only 0.1 IP.  It was a lousy day with Mark Teixeira’s 2-R 1B in the second as the only bright spot as the Yanks lost 14-4.  Needing a lift to avoid a four-game sweep at the hands of the White Sox, the Yankees turned to their ace, C.C. Sabathia (W, 11-7; 7.0 IP, 10 H, 5 R, 0 BB, 5 K), who didn’t necessarily pitch that well but gave them innings as the Yankees won 8-5.  Melky Cabrera led the offense with 4 RBI and Mariano Rivera closed the game to earn his 30 S.  (Series 1-3; Record 63-42; AL East +0.5, 1st)

Aug 4-5 (NYY @ TOR)—Coming on the heels of a lousy series in Chicago, the Yankees traveled to Toronto to face a familiar AL East opponent for a short, two-game series.  In the first game, Andy Pettitte (W, 9-6; 6.2 IP, 4 H, R, 4 BB, 6 K) out-dueled Blue-Jay-ace Roy Halladay even though Halladay went the distance in a loss.  Johnny Damon, Teixeira, and A-Rod each chipped in with an RBI and 2 H to pace the offense as Rivera got the four-out save for his 31st and preserve the 5-3 win.  In the series finale, Sergio Mitre (ND; 4.1 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 3 K) got the start and was as unproductive as in his other three, earning a no-decision as the offense bailed him out.  Damon had 3 RBI while Teixeira added another 2 RBI as Alfredo Aceves (W, 7-1) pitched well in his 2.0 IP of relief to earn the W and help the Yankees win the game 8-4.  (Series 2-0; Record 65-42; AL East +2.5, 1st)

Aug 6-9 (BOS @ NYY)—At this point in the season, the Yankees were playing really good baseball overall and were in first place in the AL East despite being 0-8 in the first eight games against their arch-rival Red Sox.  But the first game of the series was exactly what the Yanks needed to get the monkey/jinx/goat off their back and get the Sox out of their heads.  Boston took an early 3-1 lead against a wild Joba Chamberlain (W, 8-2; 5.0 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 7 BB, 5 K), but the offense picked up the slack and scored 8 R in the fourth, highlighted by 3-R HR by both Melky Cabrera and Jorge Posada, off an ineffective, future HOF-er John Smoltz.  With that outburst, the Yankees cruised to their first win of the season against the Red Sox 13-6 and really set the tone for the rest of the series.  The second game saw one of the best pitching duels these two clubs have ever had against each other.  Burnett (ND; 7.2 IP, H, 0 R, 6 BB, 6 K) got the start but was long out of the game by the time it ended. Even though the game was scoreless through fourteen and a half innings, it felt as if the Yanks were out-playing the Sox.  And in the bottom of the fifteenth, A-Rod smashed a two-out 2-1 curveball to left-center field for a 2-R HR and a 2-0 win, giving the Yanks their tenth walk-off win of the season.  In the third game, while Boston was still smarting from the previous night, the Yankees sent their ace, Sabathia (W, 12-7; 7.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 9 K), to the mound who pitched a dandy and shutout the Sox 5-0 in a dominant performance.  Derek Jeter picked up 2 RBI with a 2-R HR in the eighth to led the Yankee offense.  With the series finale on national TV, the Yankees took advantage of the big stage.  Again, the game was a shutout for both teams going into the seventh inning when A-Rod homered to give the Yanks a 1-0 lead.  But in the top of the eighth after Coke relieved Pettitte (ND; 7.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K), Victor Martinez absolutely crushed a pitch for a 2-R HR to give the Red Sox, what seemed like, a huge lift after a tough series.  However, in the bottom of the inning, Damon and Teixeira went back-to-back with solo HR of their own to retake the lead at 3-2.  While the Yankees would add two more R in the inning, the psychological damage was done and Rivera pitched the ninth for his 32 S and closed out a 5-2 Yankee win.  After starting the season 0-8 against the Sox, the Yankees finally clawed back into the rivalry and swept the four-game series to take a commanding lead in the division.  (Series 4-0; Record 69-42; AL East +6.5, 1st)

Aug 10-12 (TOR @ NYY)—After such an emotionally draining series, as most Red Sox/Yankees series are, the Yanks had a little bit of a let down when they faced the Blue Jays the next night.  Mitre (L, 1-1; 6 H, 5 R/3 ER, BB, 6 K), who was the only starter not to see action in the Yanks/Sox series, took the mound in the first game of this series, but didn’t pitch very well and earned his first decision in almost a month, albeit a loss.  Jeter, Robinson Cano, and Jerry Hairston Jr. each hit solo HR, but it wasn’t enough as the Yanks fell 5-4, which also snapped their 7-game winning streak.  In the second game, the Yankees pounded out 7 XBH, including a game-tying HR by Hideki Matsui followed by a go-ahead HR by Posada, both in the eighth inning, to pace the Yanks’ 7-5 win.  A shaky Chamberlain (ND; 6.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 5 K) pitched okay but earned the no-decision while Rivera threw an un-Mo-like ninth inning but still earned his 33 S of the season.  The rubber match saw another exciting finish.  Well after Burnett (ND; 6.0 IP, 10 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 7 K) left with the game tied at 3-3 in the seventh, the Yankees finished their eleventh walk-off win 4-3 when Cano singled home A-Rod in the bottom of the eleventh.  (Series 2-1; Record 71-43; AL East +5.5, 1st)

Aug 13-16 (NYY @ SEA)—Coming off another great home stand, including a monumental four-game sweep of the Red Sox, the Yankees headed to the left coast for a four-game set in Seattle.  For the first game of the series, the Yankees showed that they remembered to pack their bats as they crushed the Mariners 11-1.  Sabathia (W, 13-7; 8.0 IP, 3 H, R, 2 BB, 10 K) was his dominant self and Matsui led the offense with 5 RBI against the M’s and his fellow countryman, Ichiro Suzuki.  In the second game, Pettitte (ND; 6.0 IP, 2 R, B, 10 K) continued the trend of good starting pitching but earned a no-decision as the offense used a ninth-inning HR by Teixeira to win 4-2.  Rivera came in to pitch a perfect ninth inning to earn his 34 S and lower his ERA to 1.98.  After moving to 30 games above .500 for the high watermark of the season the night before, the Yankees followed it up with a win in the third game of the series.  Mitre (W, 2-1; 5.1 IP, 7 H, 2 R/1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K) led the charge with a terrific outing and Jeter and Nick Swisher chipped in 2 RBI each.  Rivera closed out the 5-2 win to earn his 35 S.  In the series finale, the Mariners didn’t get the memo and beat the Yankees 10-3, ruining Jeter’s milestone of most hits by a shortstop in baseball history after his RBI 2B in the third.  Chamberlain (L, 8-3; 5.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 2 K) didn’t pitch well, but the bullpen wasn’t much better as the Yankees used two relievers, each surrendering multiple earned runs, which broke their five-game winning streak.  (Series 3-1; Record 74-44; AL East +7.5, 1st)

Aug 17-19 (NYY @ OAK)—Continuing their west-coast trip, the A’s handed the Yankees a 3-0 shutout and their only consecutive-games losing streak of the month at two.  Burnett (L, 10-6; 8.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 5 K) was the only pitcher used, but the Yankees lost to their former teammate Brett Tomko, who was claimed off waivers by Oakland earlier in the month.  In the second game, the Yankees turned on the offensive jets as they blasted the A’s 7-2, led by Jeter who went 3-5 with R and RBI.  Sabathia (W, 14-7; 8.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, BB, 7 K) continued his post-All-Star-beak dominance and helped the Yankees become the first team in baseball to 75 wins on the season.  In the rubber match, the Yankees got shutout baseball from Chad Gaudin (ND; 4.1 IP, H, 0 R, 5 BB, 5 K) in his first start, but Aceves got the win after relieving Gaudin in the fifth and despite allowing the only 2 R of the game.  Teixeira knocked in all three Yankee runs on an RBI ground out in the first and 2-R HR in the fourth as the Yankees won 3-2.  (Series 2-1; Record 76-45; AL East +7.0, 1st)

Aug 21-23 (NYY @ BOS)—To complete their lengthy road trip, the Yankees traveled to Boston for the final big divisional test of the season.  In the first game, a slugfest ensued, and, despite giving up 7 R in only 5.0 IP, Pettitte (W, 10-6; 5.0 IP, 7 H, 7 R/5 ER, 2 BB, 4 K) earned the W when the offense erupted for their most runs of the season.  Fortunately, this outburst was against the Red Sox in Boston and helped the Yankees increase their divisional lead.  Matsui, who has been a Red Sox killer seemingly his entire career, led the Yankee onslaught with 7 RBI on 2 HR.  Teixeira added 3 RBI of his own while Jeter, Posada, and Cabrera had 2 RBI each as the Yankees won 20-11.  The second game went entirely the other way as Burnett (L, 10-7; 5.0 IP, 9 H, 9 R, 2 BB, 6 K) continued to struggle on the road and especially against the Red Sox.  The Yankees pounded out 12 H but only R while their pitching got slapped around on the way to a 14-1 loss.  In the rubber match, the Yankee offense woke up again, smashing 5 HR against Josh Beckett on their way to an 8-4 win.  Matsui had another 2 HR while Jeter, Cano, and A-Rod also hit home runs.  Sabathia (W, 15-7; 6.2 IP, 8 H, 4 R/3 ER, 0 BB, 8 K) pitched well and Phil Hughes and Rivera got the final outs to preserve the win.  (Series 2-1; Record 78-46; AL East +7.5, 1st)

Aug 25-27 (TEX @ NYY)—After such an emotionally draining series against the Red Sox, the Yankees gladly took the day off to rest up for the Rangers.  But the first game of the series didn’t go necessarily as planned as Chamberlain (L, 8-4; 4.0 IP, 9 H, 7 R, 3 BB, 5 K) was terrible, effectively ending his starting role as was presently established.  After this game, he would still start, but never with the idea of pitching enough innings to earn a win, assuming the Yankees would be leading when he left.  However, trailing 10-5 in the bottom of the ninth, the Yankees almost completed a miracle comeback after the first six Yankees reached base safely, with four scoring.  But the rally was killed when Swisher failed to bunt the tying and go-ahead runs to third and second, respectively, and Cabrera then hit into an unassisted double play to end the game with a 10-9 loss.  In the second game, Pettitte (W, 11-6; 7.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 7 K) pitched well and the Yankees won 9-2, powered by a clicking offense and Posada’s 3 RBI.  In the rubber match, Burnett (L, 10-8; 6.0 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 12 K) pitched well but the bullpen failed to keep the deficit at one, which hurt the Yankees’ chances of another comeback win and they eventually lost 7-2.  With the loss, the Yanks dropped their first series overall since they lost in Chicago earlier in the month, and they dropped their first home series since the Washington Nationals beat them in June.  (Series 1-2; Record 79-48; AL East +6.0, 1st)

Aug 28-30 (CWS @ NYY)—Whether motivated by revenge or just a desire to win, the Yankees took the first game of the series against the White Sox in dramatic fashion.  With the game tied at 2-2 in the tenth inning after Sabathia (ND; 7.0 IP, 8 H, 2 R, B, 10 K) delivered a great pitching performance, Cano hit a game-winning 3-R HR that gave the Yanks its twelfth walk-off win of the season and a 5-2 victory.  The offense really shone in the second game backed by the best outing Mitre (W, 3-1; 6.1 IP, H, 0 R, BB, 2 K) had in a Yankee uniform.  Damon, A-Rod, Cano, and Hairston, Jr. had 2 RBI each as the Yanks shutout the White Sox 10-0.  With a series sweep in view, the Yankees sent Chamberlain (ND; 3.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 B, K) to the mound in his new abbreviated starting role.  Joba pitched well, but Aceves (W, 9-1) got the W when he too threw 3.o IP.  Teixeira led the Yankee offense with 4 RBI as both he and Damon homered to give the Yankees an 8-3 win.  (Series 3-0; Record 82-48; AL East +6.0, 1st)

Aug 31 (NYY @ BAL)—After a productive month, the Yankees looked to Andy Pettitte (W, 12-6; 8.0 IP, 2 H, R, 0 BB, 8 K) to close it out strong in Baltimore.  And he almost gave them something they hadn’t seen in over a decade.  With two outs in the seventh inning, Adam Jones hit a ground ball to third baseman Hairston Jr. who misplayed it, resulting in an error and ending Pettitte’s bid at a perfect game after he retired 20 straight Oriole hitters.  Hairston probably felt awful, but Pettitte allowed the first hit to the next batter, ending his bid at a no-hitter as well, which could have been the first of his career.  With all the drama of a perfect game/no-hitter gone, the Yankees turned their attention to winning the game and scored 3 R in the top of the next inning to put it away.  After Brian Bruney allowed a few Orioles to reach base in the ninth, Rivera came in to get the final two outs for his 37 S of the season and close out the Yankees’ 5-1 win.

(August 21-7; Record 83-48; AL East +6.5, 1st)

Read Full Post »

2009 Regular Season Reviewed—July

Jul 1-2 (SEA @ NYY)—With the offense clicking on all cylinders and the pitching as consistent as it had been all year, the Yankees took the first game of the series and looked to do the same in the second game.  Andy Pettitte (W, 8-3; 7.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, BB, 5 K) pitched very well to earn the W and the Yankee offense supported his outing with a 3 HR, the clincher being a 2-R tie-breaking HR by A-Rod in sixth inning.  Mariano Rivera pitched a perfect ninth for his 20 S of the season to preserve the 4-2 win.  Looking for a series sweep, the Yankees sent their ace, C.C. Sabathia, to the mound for the finale.  However, Sabathia (L, 7-5; 5.2 IP, 10 H, 6 R, 3 BB, 8 K) pitched poorly and took the L as the Yankee offense couldn’t keep up with the power of the mighty M’s, losing 8-4.  (Series 2-1; Record 45-33; AL East -3.0, 2nd)

Jul 3-6 (TOR @ NYY)—Celebrating the 4th of July weekend and donning festive red, white, and blue hats, the Yankees, much to the delight of Yankee fans who were not traveling for the holiday weekend, started the first of four straight day games.  A.J. Burnett (W, 7-4; 7.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 7 K) matched Pettitte’s great performance from the other night and picked up the W as A-Rod led the offense with a HR for the second consecutive game.  Phil Coke and Phil Hughes were the bridges to Mo who pitched another 1-2-3 ninth inning to earn his 21 S and nail down a 4-2 Yankee win.  On Independence Day in the second game of the series, the Yankees delighted fans with another comeback victory, this time against the Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay, with Jorge Posada providing the late-inning fireworks as the Yankees walked off in the twelfth 6-5.  Chien-Ming Wang (ND, 1-6; 5.1 IP, 6 H, 4 R, BB, K) started what would be his last game of the season after encountering further shoulder issues and earned a no-decision after not pitching very well.  However, trailing 5-3 in the seventh, Johnny Damon hit a 2-R game-tying HR, the third Yankee HR of the afternoon off Halladay, which eventually propelled another extra-inning affair.  However, in the twelfth, with runners on first and second and one out, Posada hit a 1-1 pitch up the middle to score Mark Teixeira and give the Yankees their 8th walk-off win of the season.  In the third game, Joba Chamberlain (ND, 4-2; 3.2 IP, 9 H, 8 R/3 ER, BB, K), who looked like he was on his way to another win after the Yankees took a 4-0 lead after two innings, labored through the third and couldn’t get out of the fourth as he earned another no-decision.  However, the Yankees were able to comeback from an 8-4 deficit by scoring 3 R in each the fourth and fifth innings to win the game 10-8.  In the fourth and final game, the Yankees fell behind 7-1 in the seventh when an ineffective Pettitte (L, 8-4; 6.0+ IP, 5 H, 6 R, 5 BB, 3 K) couldn’t get out of the inning after allowing the first two to reach base.  However, despite eventually losing 7-6, the Yankee offense made a terrific comeback attempt and actually had the game-winning run come to plate after scoring two two-out runs in the bottom of the ninth.  (Series 3-1; Record 48-34; AL East -1.0, 2nd)

Jul 7-9 (NYY @ MIN)—Coming off a healthy 5-2 home stand, the Yankees traveled to Minnesota to take on Twins team that was battling for the AL Central division.  The first game wasn’t much of a compelling game as the Yankees destroyed Twin pitching on the way to a 10-2 victory.  Sabathia (W, 8-5; 7.0 IP, 3 H, R, BB, 3 K) shook off his last poor outing with a dominant effort, supported by 6 RBI from the Yankees’ 7-8-9 hitters, comprised of Robinson Cano, Brett Gardner, and Francisco Cervelli.  In the second game, Burnett (W, 8-4; 6.1 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 4 BB, 2 K) earned his 8 W with a good performance and upheld an early 3-0 second-inning Yankee lead, highlighted by Gardner’s 2-R 1B.  Rivera got the final four outs to earn his 22 S and preserve the Yankees’ 4-3 win.  In the third and final game, Alfredo Aceves (ND; 3.1 IP, 4 H, 4 R/3 ER, BB, 2 K), in place of the injured Wang, got his first start of the season but didn’t pitch well enough to earn a W despite being spotted another 3-0 second-inning Yankee lead.  The streaking Gardner had another 2 RBI, matching the 2 RBI from utility infielder Cody Ransom, as the Yankees won the game 6-4 and swept the three-game set with Mo picking up his 23 S.  (Series 3-0; Record 51-34; AL East 0.0, T-1st)

Jul 10-12 (NYY @ LAA)—Playing its final series before the All-Star break, the Yankees looked to build on the good chemistry and momentum they had established since the June 24th game in Atlanta.  However, despite beating up on comparatively weaker opponents, this series showed that the Yankees still weren’t a match for the upper echelon teams in the league.  In the first game of the series against the Angels, the Yankees jumped out to an early 4-0 lead.  But Chamberlain (ND; 4.1 IP, 9 H, 5 R/4 ER, BB, 4 K) and the bullpen couldn’t hold it as the team ended up losing the game 10-6.  In the second game, again the starting pitcher was staked to a 4-0 lead, but Pettitte (L, 8-5; 4.1 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 2 BB, K) looked perplexed as he gave up too many runs.  And despite the Yankees hitting 5 HR (two by A-Rod and two by Eric Hinske), they lost the game 14-8.  In the series finale, the Yankees sent Sabathia to the mound to avoid the sweep.  But like he did in the final game of the Jun 9-11 series in Boston against the Red Sox, Sabathia (L, 8-6; 6.2 IP, 5 R, 3 BB, 6 K) pitched well early but eventually succumbed to either pressure or fatigue and lost the game late 6-4.  This was also a game of missed opportunities as the Yankees had the bases loaded with nobody out in the seventh and eighth innings and failed to score more than 2 R.  After being tied for first in the AL East entering this final series, the Yankees closed the first half of the season on a sour note and 3 games behind Boston as the Red Sox swept Kansas City at home.  The Yankees also fell to 3-14 against arguably the top three teams in baseball–Red Sox, Angels, and Phillies.  This trend would obviously have to change in the second half if the Yankees were going to, first, make the playoffs and, second, go deep in them.  (Series 0-3; Record 51-37; AL East -3.0, 2nd)

Jul 14 (St. Louis)—Despite a National League venue, the American League continued its dominance and won again, improving its All-Star record to 12-0-1 since 1996, which was the last time the NL won an All-Star game.  The Yankees had two starters–Mark Teixeira (1B) and Derek Jeter (SS)–and one pitcher–Mariano Rivera.  Jeter was 0-2 with 2 R scored while Tex was 0-3.  After Curtis Granderson (DET) tripled with one out in the eighth and scored on a sac fly by Adam Jones (BAL), Rivera came closed the game with a perfect ninth to earn the S (the 4 S in his All-Star career) and preserve the AL’s 4-3 win.

Jul 17-19 (DET @ NYY)—After a disappointing end to the first half of the season, the Yankees looked to start out strong in the second half.  Burnett (ND; 6.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 5 BB, K) got the start and pitched pretty well.  However, the Yankees had to rally against the Tigers bullpen to overcome a 3-2 deficit and win 5-3 after scoring 3 R in the seventh on Teixeira’s 3-R HR.  Phil Hughes earned his first W since being placed in the bullpen following a first-half injury that put him on the DL.  Hughes pitched 2.0 IP and struck out the side in both innings he pitched to improve his record to 4-2 and hand the ball to Mo who picked up his 24 S of the season.  With another seventh inning HR, this time off the bat of A-Rod, the Yankee offense beat Justin Verlander and supported Sabathia’s (W, 9-6; 7.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K) strong start.  Rivera pitched a perfect ninth to get his 25 S and nail down the Yankees 2-1 win.  On Old-Timer’s Day, the Yankees earned another 2-1 win after Chamberlain (W, 5-2; 6.2 IP, 3 H, R, 3 BB, 8 K) pitched very well and shut down the vaunted Tigers offense.  Both A-Rod and Teixeira homered to give the Yankees its two runs, and Rivera threw another strong ninth inning to get his 26 S.  (Series 3-0; Record 54-37; AL East -1.0, 2nd)

Jul 20-22 (BAL @ NYY)—In the first game of the series, the Yankees saw their most consistent pitcher of the first half, Andy Pettitte (NP; 7.1 IP, 6 H, R, 2 BB, 8 K), go deep in the ballgame and match the opposing starter pitch for pitch.  However, tied 1-1 in the top of the eighth inning, Baltimore had its best chance to break the tie and take its first lead of the game.  But Phil Coke came in to preserve the tie, getting two critical outs at home on consecutive plays to end the inning.  With the game still tied at 1-1, and with Rivera having pitched and saved all three games against the Tigers, Joe Girardi opted for Aceves to get the final two outs of the ninth after Coke hit Adam Jones to lead off the inning and then got Aubrey Huff to line to CF.  In the bottom of the ninth, and with one out, Hideki Matsui homered to deep right center to give the Yankees their ninth walk-off win of the season, their third straight 2-1 win, and their fourth straight win overall.  Pretty exciting.  In the second game, Sergio Mitre (W, 1-0; 5.2 IP, 8 H, 4 R/3 ER, BB, 4 K) got his first Yankee start and pitched well enough to help the Yankees win 6-4.  A-Rod and Cano each had 2 RBI to lead the offense and Mariano Rivera pitched another 1-2-3, perfect ninth to get his 27 S.  With the win, the Yanks moved into first place in the division, a lead they would not relinquish the rest of the season.  A now surging Yankees team also took the third game of the series 6-4 to complete the sweep and increase their lead in the division.  Burnett (W, 9-4; 7.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 6 K) gave the Yanks another terrific outing from a starter and was supported by 2-RBI performances from both Posada and Nick Swisher.  After Brian Bruney got the first two outs of the ninth, he gave up back-to-back solo HR, which prompted Girardi to call upon Mo, who else, to come in and get the final out of the game, earning his 28 S and moving the Yankees to 20 games above .500 for the first time this season.  (Series 3-0; Record 57-37; AL East +2.0, 1st)

Jul 23-26 (OAK @ NYY)—In a makeup of the Apr 20 game that was postponed due to rain, the Yankees walked all over the A’s to increase their winning streak to seven and improve their perfect record since the All-Star break.  Sabathia (W, 10-6; 7.0 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 4 K) pitched well to earn the W and Teixeira’s 3 RBI paced the offense that came back from an early 3-0 deficit to win 6-3.  Hughes also picked up his first save of the season after pitching two perfect innings.  Behind an effective Chamberlain (W, 6-2; 7.0 IP, 2 H, R, 3 BB, 6 K), the Yankee offense easily took the second game 8-3, led by Jeter and Damon who had 5 RBI between the two.  In the third game, the winning streak was snapped when a cruising Pettitte (L, 8-6; 6.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R, BB, 7 K) ran into trouble in the seventh and wasn’t helped out by Aceves who allowed all three runners he inherited to score and gave up 2 R of his own to put the Yankees in a 6-1 hole.  However, after scoring three in the eighth on HR by both Jeter and Teixeira and after putting the tying run on base in the ninth with no outs, the Yankees’ rally was killed when Posada hit into a double play that ended the threat and sent the Yanks to a 6-4 loss.  In the fourth and final game, Mitre (ND; 5.0 IP, 9 H, 4 R, 0 BB, K) pitched okay but was robbed of a second consecutive W when the bullpen couldn’t hold the lead.  However, the Yankees were able to overcome a 5-4 deficit by scoring 3 R in the sixth, highlighted by Jeter’s 2-R 1B, and win 7-5.  Rivera was asked to get the final four outs to preserve the win for his 29 S and close out a very successful 8-1 home stand that saw the Yankees be the first AL team to 60 wins.  (Series 3-1; Record 60-38; AL East +2.5, 1st)

Jul 27-29 (NYY @ TB)—Coming off the best home stand of the year, the Yankees continued their good baseball and beat up on a struggling Rays team 11-4 in the first game of the series.  Behind the strong outing of Burnett (W, 10-4; 7.0 IP, 2 H, R/0 ER, 2 BB, 5 K), the Yankee offense slapped around Tampa Bay pitching, getting 3 RBI from each Damon & Swisher and 2 RBI from each A-Rod and Cano.  After Jonathan Albaladejo allowed the tying run to get on deck, David Robertson came in to get the final out of the eighth and pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his first career save.  In the second game, Sabathia (L, 10-7; 9 H, 6 R/5 ER, 2 BB, 6 K) couldn’t follow-up Burnett’s great outing with one of his own and the Yankee offense was shut down by Scott Kazmir, sending New York to a 6-2 loss.  But the Yanks were able to regain their winning ways in the third game when Chamberlain (W, 7-2; 8.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K) had one of his best pitching performances in his career.  Both Teixeira and Cano had 2 RBI to pace the offense, and after Bruney struggled to close out the game, Rivera came in to get the final two outs and preserve the 6-2 win.  (Series 2-1; Record 62-39; AL East +3.5, 1st)

Jul 30-31 (NYY @ CWS)—With a good road series win, the Yankees ran into some bad luck in Chicago as they faced the White Sox for the first time this season.  In the first game, Pettitte (ND; 6.1 IP, 5 H, 2 R/ER, 0 BB, 8 K) pitched well but earned the no-decision as the Yanks lost a tough one.  After Swisher (who was returning to face his old team) tied the game at 2-2 with a two-out solo HR in the top of the ninth, Coke relieved Hughes but allowed an inherited runner to score on an RBI single in the bottom half of inning that sent the Yanks to a 3-2 defeat.  The second game wasn’t much better as the Yanks jumped out to an early 3-0 lead but couldn’t hold it as an ineffective Mitre (ND; 3.0 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 2 BB, K)and suddenly bad bullpen allowed the Sox to take a big lead and send the Yanks to the 10-5 loss.

(July 18-9; Record 62-41; AL East +1.5, 1st)

Read Full Post »

2009 Regular Season Reviewed—June

Jun 1 (NYY @ CLE)—After winning the first two games and losing the third, the Yankees sent Joba Chamberlain to the mound for the four-game series win.  Chamberlain (W, 3-1; 8.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 5 K) threw very well to pick up his 3 W, and Mariano Rivera pitched a perfect ninth for his 11 S to preserve the Yankees 5-2 win.  Entering the seventh inning, the game was tied at 1-1, but the Yankees scored 4 R on 5 BB (1 IBB) and 2 H, highlighted by Nick Swisher’s 2-R 2B that broke the tie and A-Rod’s 2-R 1B.  (Series 3-1; Record 30-21; AL East +1.0, 1st)

Jun 2-4 (TEX @ NYY)—Returning home after a 5-2 road trip, the Bombers lived up to their moniker as they slapped around the Rangers in the first game of the series, winning it 12-3.  A.J. Burnett (W, 4-2; 7.0 IP, 8 H, 3 R, BB, 8 K) pitched very well to earn the W and the offense gave him plenty of run support, led by Jorge Posada’s 4 RBI and Matsui’s 3 RBI.  In the second game, Andy Pettitte (L, 5-2; 5.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 6 BB, 6 K) took the loss after giving up 3 R in the first inning, and the offense was shut down by Scott Feldman, who would prove to be a very valuable starter for Texas during the 2009 season.  The Yankees made it close, but ended up losing 4-2.  In the rubber match, Chien-Ming Wang (ND, 0-3; 4.2 IP, 7 H, 5 R, BB, 5 K) took the hill in his first start after coming off the DL and was taken off the hook after the Yankees battled back to win it 8-6.  Rivera earned his 12 S and David Robertson got the W after Melky Cabrera’s 2-R HR in the eighth broke a 6-6 tie.  Mark Teixeira also got 3 RBI on 2 2B.  (Series 2-1; Record 32-22; AL East 0.0, T-1st)

Jun 5-8 (TB @ NYY)—Jumping back into divisional action, the Yankees were playing very well and didn’t want to see the first game of this series postponed by rain.  But the defending AL champion Rays didn’t care about how often the Yankees had been destroying other AL opponents as they took the field in the second game and beat C.C. Sabathia (ND, 5-3; 8.0 IP, 5 R/4 ER, 3 BB, 5 K), blew the lead, and then beat Rivera, handing him his second L of the season and handing the Yankees a 9-7 loss.  While both of his losses were against Tampa Bay, Rivera was unable to finish the inning in this one as he gave up 4 R/3 ER in only 0.2 IP.  Trailing by 4 R, the Yankees did bring the game-tying R to the plate in the bottom of the ninth, but A-Rod, Posada, and Robinson Cano recorded the final three outs after Derek Jeter, Johnny Damon, and Teixeira began the frame with a 1B, a 2B, and a 2B.  However, the never-give-up attitude of this Yankees club was in full display at this point of the season and it showed in the final two games of the series.  The next night, Chamberlain (ND, 3-1; 6.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, BB, 4 K) pitched okay, but Aceves (W, 4-1) got the W as the Yankees overcame a 3-1 deficit by scoring 3 R in the eighth to win 4-3 after Rivera pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 13 S.  In the final game of the series, Pettitte (W, 6-2; 6.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R/2 ER, 3 BB, 7 K) earned his 6 W, as the Yankees scored 2 R late to win 5-3.  For the second straight night, Rivera pitched a perfect ninth to get his 14 S.  (Series 2-1; Record 34-23; AL East +1.0, 1st)

Jun 9-11 (NYY @ BOS)—Feeling good and playing the best baseball of the season thus far, the Yankees were completely shut down by Josh Beckett in the first game of the series losing 7-0.  Burnett (L, 4-3; 2.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R/3 ER, 5 BB, K) couldn’t get out of the third and the Yankee offense could muster only two measly hits as they looked flat and a step slow.  The second game of the series wasn’t much better as Wang (L, 0-4; 2.2 IP, 5 H, 4 R/3 ER, 3 BB, 3 K) fell to 0-4 on the season after allowing nine baserunners and recording only eight outs.  The Yankee offense tried to battle back after falling behind 6-2 against Tim Wakefield, but couldn’t complete the comeback and ended up losing 6-5.  The Yanks looked to have finally vanquished their in-season struggles against the Red Sox when A-Rod hit a huge 2-R 2B to take a 3-1 lead.  But Sabathia (L, 5-4; 7.0+ IP, 6 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 6 K), who had been pitching so well, allowed the first three batters he faced in the eighth to reach base.  All three eventually scored in that frame, and the Yankees fell again, losing their eighth straight against the Red Sox 4-3.  (Series 0-3; Record 34-26; AL East -2.0, 2nd)

Jun 12-14 (NYM @ NYY)—In the first interleague matchup of the year, and fresh off another three game sweep at the hands of the Red Sox, the Yankees were looking for any kind of spark to get back on track.  They certainly got it in the first game of this series, but in an unlikely fashion.  Long after Chamberlain (ND, 3-1; 4.0 IP, H, 2 R, 5 BB, 3 K) left the game, and after a see-saw battle with the Mets that saw the Yankees take a 1-0 lead in the 2nd, the Mets take a 2-1 lead in the 3rd, the Yanks retake the lead 3-2 in the bottom half of the 3rd, the Mets take a 6-3 lead in the 5th, the Yanks retake the lead 7-6 in the 6th, and the Mets get their third lead of the game 8-7 in the 8th, the Yankees entered the bottom of the ninth trailing by one and in desperate need of something.  When one of the Mets new prized off-season acquisitions, closer Francisco Rodriguez, entered the game having been a perfect 16-16 in save opportunities during the year, the Yankees chances looked bleak at best.  Brett Gardner popped out for the first out, and after Jeter 1B, Damon K.  With Jeter on second after a steal during Damon’s AB, the Mets decided to IBB the red-hot Teixeira to get to a somewhat struggling A-Rod.  And the strategy almost paid off.  But the Mets’ second baseman, Luis Castillo, dropped the pop-up from A-Rod in short RF, and the hustling Teixeira scored all the way from first, right behind Jeter, to give the Yanks an improbable 9-8 walk-off win.  In the second game, Pettitte (L, 6-3; 5.0 IP, 11 H, 5, BB, 3 K) was roughed up and the Yankees offense was stymied by Fernando Nieve (who picked up his first win of the year), falling 6-2.  In the series finale, the Yankee offense woke up and surprisingly handed Johan Santana (3.0+ IP, 9 H, 9 R, 2 BB, 3 K) the worst loss of his career.  Burnett (W, 5-3; 7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 8 K) pitched well and was supported by the offensive outburst, which was led by Damon & Cano who each had 3 RBI.  Jeter, Matsui, and Cabrera each added 2 RBI.  (Series 2-1; Record 36-27; AL East -2.0, 2nd)

Jun 16-18 (WAS @ NYY)—Continuing the interleague schedule, the Yankees next hosted the Washington Nationals who were generally considered to be the worst team in baseball in.  However, the pesky Nats apparently didn’t read their press clippings and weren’t aware their season was over.  In the first game, the Yanks had to again rely on some late-inning magic.  Sabathia (W, 6-4; 7.2 IP, 6 H, 3 R, BB, 2 K) pitched well and was the beneficiary of RBI 2B by both Teixeira and Cano in the seventh to overcome a 3-2 deficit.  Rivera threw a perfect ninth to earn his 15 S and preserve the 5-3 win.  The Yankees had a chance to come back in the second game but fell short, losing 3-2.  Wang (L, 0-5; 5.0 IP, 3 R, 2 BB, 4 K) pitched well, but took the loss after a Yankee rally was stalled late.  Trailing 3-1 going into the ninth, Damon led off with a HR, and with one out, Teixeira singled.  Brett Gardner replaced Tex as the pinch runner and subsequently stole second and third during A-Rod’s AB, who eventually walked to put runners at first and third with one out.  But Cano hit into a game-ending DP, squandering another terrific comeback by the Yankee offense.  The Yankees came out very flat in the third game and lost 3-0.  Incredibly, they also lost the home series to a horrible team that just happened to run into the right combination of excellent pitching and a slumping Yankee lineup.  There’s no sour grapes here, just pure shock that the eventual World Series champions could have lost at home to a team that entered the series at 17-45 and, at one point in the season, would be 50+ games under .500 and giving the 1962 Mets’ record for the worst winning percentage in the history of baseball a run for its money.  This would also be the last home series the Yanks would lose for more than two months when they dropped 2 of 3 to the AL-West contending Texas Rangers on Aug 25-27.  Despite the poor showing by the Bronx Bombers in this series, this is why I love baseball.  Anyway, Chamberlain (L, 3-2; 6.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 4 B, 6 K) started and got the L as the offense couldn’t get anything going.  Coincidentally, this would be the only home game during the regular season that didn’t feature at least one home run being hit by either team in the new stadium.  (Series 1-2; Record 37-29; AL East -3.0, 2nd)

Jun 19-21 (NYY @ FLA)—In the first interleague road series of the season, the Yankees traveled to Miami but sat the struggling A-Rod, who was returning to his hometown, for the first two games upon doctors orders to rest his ailing hip.  The Yankees also publicly revealed a plan to rest Alex at least once a week to keep his strength up for the games he did play.  So with A-Rod on the bench and a slumping offense, it came as a little bit of a surprise when the Yankees won the first game of the series 5-1 behind a solid Pettitte (W, 7-3; 7.0 IP, 3 H, R, 0 BB, 7K), who was staked to a 5-0 lead in the third and pitched well to earn his seventh W of the season.  In the second game, however, any momentum garnered from the night before was lost as the Yankee bats ran into the budding pitcher, Josh Johnson, who shut them down 2-1 to earn his seventh win of the season.  Burnett (L, 5-4; 6.1 IP, 5 H, 2 R/ER, 3 BB, 8 K) pitched well but took the L as the offense couldn’t complete the comeback when Cano grounded into another game-ending double play after Teixeira led off the ninth with a 1B and Posada popped out to SS.  In the third and final game, A-Rod returned to the lineup and delivered a 2-R 1B to break his slump, but that wasn’t necessarily the story as Sabathia (ND, 6-4; 1.1 IP, 3 H, R, BB, K) left the game in the second due to a fatigue injury after recording only four outs.  Brett Thomko took the L when another furious Yankees rally stalled in the ninth inning after scoring twice and leaving the tying run on third to lose 6-5.  (Series 1-2; Record 38-31; AL East -4.0, 2nd)

Jun 23-25 (NYY @ ATL)—A now struggling Yankee team didn’t do much with their off day as they dropped the first game of the series with the Braves 4-0.  A winless Wang (L, 0-6; 5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, BB, 4 K) didn’t pitch poorly but took the L as the Yankee offense was again shutout by another NL East team.  So, with their season seemingly at a crossroads and a Yankee offense that hadn’t scored more than five R in over a week, Yankee GM Brian Cashman decided to re-route his travel plans to Atlanta to give this Yankee club some confidence and, more importantly, remind them that they are far too talented to be playing such consistently poor baseball.  Whether his appearance meant as much at the time as it would later seem, the Yankee team responded.  However, it didn’t look good early as the Yankees were trailing 1-0 in the top of the sixth and looking like they were on their way to another disappointing loss.  But after Brett Gardner walked to begin the inning, Joe Girardi gave the team a little spark when he was ejected for arguing with the umpire when Gardner was subsequently picked off of first base.  The next batter, backup catcher Francisco Cervelli, picked up his first major league home run that tied the game at 1-1 and gave the team further energy.  Later in the inning, A-Rod hit a monumental 2-R single that gave the Yankees a 3-1 lead and propelled the Yanks to score in eight straight innings, including the final four of this game that the Yankees would win 8-4.  Chamberlain (W, 4-2; 6.1 IP, 7 H, 3 R/2 ER, 0 BB,  5K) would get the win and Rivera would get his 16 S of the season.  The Yankee offense was back at it the next night scoring in each of the first four innings to take an 8-1 lead that culminated in an 11-7 win.  Pettitte (ND, 7-3; 3.2 IP, 7 H, 6 R/3 ER, 3 BB, 4 K) ran into some trouble in the fourth and Alfredo Aceves (W, 5-1) would get the win after pitching 2.1 IP shutout innings.  Mo nailed down the last out of the game to get his 17 S.  (Series 2-1; Record 40-32; AL East -4.0, 2nd)

Jun 26-28 (NYY @ NYM)—Closing out their 2009 interleague schedule with the first Subway Series at the new Citi Field, the Yankees did not slow down their offensive prowess or good baseball.  On the back of a surging Sabathia (W, 7-4; 7.0 IP, 3 H, R, 0 BB, 8 K), the Yankees won the first game 9-1 with contributions from A-Rod and Gardner who each had 2 RBI and homered in the eighth to put it away.  Burnett (W, 6-4; 7.0 IP, H, 0 R, 3 BB, 10K) was terrific in the second game, and the offense gave him plenty of run support, highlighted by Posada’s 3 RBI amidst a 4-R sixth inning, on their way to a 5-0 win.  The series finale saw Wang (W, 1-6; 5.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 3 K) earn his first W of the season, pitching well to support a 3-R first inning from the Yankee offense.  But the main storyline of the game actually occurred late in the game.  With the Yankees ahead 3-2 in the eighth, and with an off-day the next day, Girardi decided to bring in Rivera to get the four-out save.  Mo quickly struck out Omir Santos to end the inning and went to the dugout to rest for the bottom of the ninth.  But because of a double-switch Girardi had earlier in the game, Mo was actually in the two spot, hitting behind Jeter.  However, at least three of the first five batters would have to reach base to give Mo a chance to bat.  Hoping to keep the deficit at 1, the Mets called upon their closer, Francisco Rodriguez, to do just that.  Well, Posada began the inning with a single and was forced out at second by Melky Cabrera.  Brett Gardner then walked after Cabrera stole second and Damon lined to right for the second out of the inning.  This set up one of the worst examples of the Mets’ poor leadership when, apparently unaware that the pitcher, Rivera, was on deck, the Mets’ skipper, Jerry Manuel, had K-Rod throw to Jeter.  Derek took the pitch, which was a strike on the outside corner, and quickly glanced behind him as if to say “Don’t you know who is batting next?”  Allegedly, Alex Cora, the Mets’ SS, had to tell Mauel that Mo was on deck and then the Mets decided to IBB Jeter that loaded the bases to get to Mo.  However, after allowing 3 BB in the inning, K-Rod was obviously a little wild and also walked Mo on seven pitches, forcing in Cabrera from third for the Yanks’ fourth run of the night and Mo’s first career RBI.  Teixeira then struck out to end the top of the ninth, but the damage was done.  In the bottom of the ninth, Rivera closed out the game for his 500th career save and preserved the Yankees’ 4-2 win and three-game series sweep.  (Series 3-0; Record 43-32; AL East -3.0, 2nd)

Jun 30 (SEA @ NYY)—Playing at home for the first time in almost two weeks, the Yankees won the first game of the three-game set against the Mariners.  Chamberlain (ND, 4-2; 5.1 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 4 K) pitched well but earned the no-decision as the bullpen couldn’t hold the lead.  However, the revitalized Yankee offense scored 3 R in the bottom of the eighth and Rivera threw a perfect ninth for his 19 S as the Yankees won 8-5.

(June 15-11; Record 44-32; AL East -2.5, 2nd)

Read Full Post »

2009 Regular Season Reviewed—May

May 1-3 (LAA @ NYY)—After winning the first game of the series, the Yanks also won the second game, but in untraditional fashion, especially against the Angels.  New York scored first, picking up 4 R in the first inning off of Jered Weaver.  But Andy Pettitte (ND, 2-1; 5.2 IP, 9 H, 5 R, 4 BB, 2 K) struggled in the sixth inning giving up all 5 of his ER in that frame.  Mark Melancon allowed an additional R in the sixth and Jose Veras gave up 3 more R in the seventh to give the Angels a 9-4 lead.  But the character of this Yankee team was beginning to take shape as they battled back by scoring 4 R in the eighth and another 2 in the ninth when Jorge Posada hit a walk-off 2-R 1B off the Angels new closer, Brian Fuentes, to win the game 10-9.  The third game turned out to be the series finale as the next game would be postponed by rain.  Sabathia was shaky again (L, 1-3; 6.2 IP, 8 H, 5 R/4 ER, 1 BB, 5 K) and fell to 1-3 on the season as the Yankees lost 8-4.  The Yanks scored 3 R in the bottom of the ninth, but it was certainly a case of too little, too late.  (Series 2-1; Record 13-11; AL East -3.5, 3rd)

May 4-5 (BOS @ NYY)—In a short, two-game series against their arch rivals, the Yankees couldn’t bounce back after losing the series finale to the Angels and dropped their fourth straight game against Boston 6-4.  Phil Hughes (L, 1-1; 4.0 IP, 7 H, 4 R/3 ER, 4 BB, 2 K) took the loss while Mark Teixeira’s 2 HR weren’t enough to carry a sluggish Yankee offense.  The second and final game of the series was much of the same as the Yankees fell behind early 4-0 in the first inning due to some poor pitching by Joba Chamberlain (L, 1-1; 5.2 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 12 K).  Unfortunately, the offense couldn’t ever recover and ended up losing the game 7-3, even though Chamberlain picked up a career-high 12 K.  (Series 0-2; Record 13-13; AL East -4.5, 3rd)

May 6-7 (TB @ NYY)—In another short series against another division rival, the Yankees struggles continued as they dropped the first game to the Rays 4-3.  A.J. Burnett pitched okay (ND, 2-0; 6.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 8 K) but took another no-decision as the Yankees, who fell behind 3-0 and then tied the game in the eighth with a 3-R 2B by Mark Teixeira, couldn’t muster enough offense to take a lead.  Phil Coke then gave up the go-ahead HR to Carlos Pena in the top of the tenth for the loss.  The second game was much of the same as the Yankees fell behind by four in the third, tied it in the fifth, fell behind by two in the seventh, tied it in the eighth, fell behind by two in the ninth, and then lost it 8-6.  Pettitte (ND, 2-1; 6.0 IP, 9 H, 5 R, BB, 5 K) got another no-decision while the bullpen took another loss.  The fact that the Yanks lost their fifth straight at home wasn’t all that surprising because of the way they had been playing.  But how they lost it was.  With the game tied at 6 going into the top of the ninth, Mariano Rivera gave up back-to-back home runs to Carl Crawford and Evan Longoria, which proved to be too much for the Yanks to overcome.  (Series 0-2; Record 13-15; AL East -5.5, 4th)

May 8-10 (NYY @ BAL)—Reeling and moving in the opposite direction, having lost five straight, the Yankees found themselves in an almost parallel scenario as when the season began on Apr 6—C.C. Sabathia was starting for New York on the road in Baltimore against Jeremy Guthrie.  But this time the Yankees had one major difference–Alex Rodriguez was back in the lineup after completing his rehab.  If there were ever a moment in the season that could be labeled as a turning point, this was it.  In the top of the first inning, after Derek Jeter grounded out, Johnny Damon and Mark Teixeira worked back-to-back walks.  And with the Oriole fans booing him vociferously for his admission during Spring Training of using PEDs while in Texas, A-Rod took the first pitch he’d seen of the season and crushed it to left field that gave the Yankees not only a 3-0 lead in the game but also their first lead in any game since the sixth inning of an 8-4 loss to the Angels almost a week before, which was a span of 41 innings.  As Michael Kay said at the time, it was “a fairytale swing,” and little did he know what a great story A-Rod was beginning to write that season.  Unlike his opening-day performance in Baltimore, Sabathia (W, 2-3; 9.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, BB, 8 K) was absolutely dominant in this game, pitching a complete-game shutout in leading the Yanks to a 4-0 win.  This was the C.C. Yankees fans had expected when he signed a long-term contract over the winter, and this was the offensive lineup the team had envisioned even before spring training began.  All was well in the Yankees Universe.  That was until the next game when the Yankees went down in flames 12-5 off a horrific pitching performance by Hughes (L, 1-2; 1.2 IP, 8 H, 8 R, 2 BB, 0 K).  But in the rubber match, Chamberlain pitched well enough (W, 2-1; 6.0 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 5 K) and the Yankees overcame an early deficit, scoring 4 R in the seventh to win the game going away 5-3.  Mo picked up his 6 S and Damon picked up his team, hitting the go-ahead 3-R HR.  (Series 2-1; Record 15-16; AL East -5.5, 3rd)

May 12-14 (NYY @ TOR)—Coming off a good road series win in Baltimore, the Yankees traveled to Toronto where they ran into the buzzsaw that is Roy Halladay, losing the game 5-1.  Burnett (L, 2-1; 7.2 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 4 BB, 3 K), returning to face his former team and a hostile Rogers Centre crowd, got off to a good start by not allowing a hit until the fourth inning.  But in that frame, he allowed 3 R, which was more than enough for Halladay who pitched another complete-game gem and improved his record to 7-1 on this young season.  In the second game of the series, Pettitte (W, 3-1; 6.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R/1 ER, 4 BB, 2 K) picked up his 3 W of the season, backed by a 5-XBH, 5-R offensive breakout in the second inning, which propelled the Yanks to an 8-2 win.  In the final game of the series, the Yanks battled back to win again, this time 3-2, tying the game on Jeter’s RBI 1B in the seventh and taking the lead for good on Matsui’s solo HR in the eighth.  Sabathia pitched very well (W, 3-3; 8.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 4 BB, 5 K) to earn his 3 W and Mo pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 7 S.  (Series 2-1; Record 17-17; AL East -4.5, 3rd)

May 15-18 (MIN @ NYY)—This entire series was another season-defining moment as the Yanks had three straight walk-off wins and swept the four-game set against the Twins.  In the first game of the series, after a decent performance by Hughes (ND, 1-1; 5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 2 K) the Yankees found themselves trailing 4-2 going into the bottom of the ninth and facing one of the best closers in the game in Joe Nathan.  Brett Gardner tripled to lead off the inning and then scored on Teixeira’s RBI 1B.  A-Rod walked and after Matsui struck out, Nick Swisher grounded out to first to move the runners to 2nd and 3rd.  Nathan intentionally walked Robinson Cano to get to Melky Cabrera , but the strategy backfired as Cabrera swung at the first pitch and dunked it into left field to cap the comeback and give the Yankees a 5-4 walk-off win.  Another event that emerged from this particular walk-off win was the first pie in the face by A.J. Burnett.  Burnett was acquired during the offseason more for his skill than his personality, but his pie-in-the-face routine became a staple at the new Yankee Stadium and was highly anticipated each time the Yanks won the game on the last play.  The second game didn’t disappoint as the Yankees rallied in the eighth to tie it at 4-4 off an RBI 1B by Teixeira; and then in the eleventh inning, after Teixeira walked, A-Rod hit an 0-1 slider deep to left field for his first HR at the new Stadium and for the game-winning HR and the second straight walk-off win, this time 6-4.  Chamberlain (ND, 1-1; 6.0 IP,  3 H, 2 R, 4 BB, 6 K) started the game, but Alfredo Aceves, a player the Yanks picked up from the Mexican leagues, earned the first of his ten wins of the season, the most of any reliever in the majors.  The next day, the Yankees rallied again, this time in the seventh inning, to tie the game at 2-2 and eventually won it 3-2 on a walk-off solo HR by Damon in the tenth.  Burnett (ND, 2-1; 6.2 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 6 BB, 7 K) got yet another no-decision, but was happy to pie Damon as the Yanks won their third straight walk-off and fifth straight overall.  The fourth and final game of the series saw another Yankee win, but not in such dramatic fashion.  Pettitte (W, 4-1; 6.2 IP, 12 H, 4 R, BB, 3 K) picked up the only win by a Yankee starter in this four-game series and was staked to a big, early lead as the Yanks scored 6 R in the first inning highlighted by Teixeira’s and A-Rod’s back-to-back HR.  Tex, who has made an incredible offensive resurgence since A-Rod came back into the lineup, also homered in the 7th, which proved to be the game winning run as the bullpen held on for the 7-6 win.  (Series 4-0; Record 21-17; AL East -4.5, 3rd)

May 19-21 (BAL @ NYY)—A last-place Orioles team came into the Stadium probably with hopes of not being swept.  But it was not to be as the surging Yankees put the spanking on the O’s.  In the first game, Sabathia (W, 4-3; 7.0 IP, 3 H, R, BB, 7 K) pitched his second straight dominant performance against Baltimore and let the offense do the rest.  A-Rod hit a 2-R HR in the first, which was plenty of run support to help the Yanks win 9-1, but the Yankees added seven more in the seventh, highlighted by Jeter’s 3-R 2B and Teixeira’s 2-R HR.  In the second game of the series, the Yankees again came out swinging and won it 11-4.  Swisher, Cano, and Cabrera went back-to-back-to-back in the third inning and the Yanks added more late-inning runs.  Hughes (W, 2-2; 5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, BB, 9 K) pitched well enough to pick up the W and Rivera earned his 8 S when he came in to get the third out of the eighth with the Yanks up 5-3.  Mo also pitched the top of the ninth inning, even though New York was ahead 11-3.  In the third game, Chamberlain (ND, 1-1; 0.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, K) started but left in the first inning after taking a liner off his knee.  In his place, Aceves pitched 3.1 IP to earn his 3 W and the Yankee offense did the rest, scoring 4 R in the first and 2 R in second.  Mo came in to get his 9 S and nail down the Yankees 7-4 victory and their ninth straight win.  (Series 3-0; Record 24-17; AL East -1.5, 3rd)

May 22-24 (PHI @ NYY)—In this 2009 World Series preview, and after scoring seemingly at will against the Orioles, the Yankee offense was shut down by the defending champion Phillies.  In the first game, Brett Meyers out-pitched Burnett (L, 2-2; 6.0 IP, 8 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 7 K), but both starters allowed 3 HR each as the Yankees lost 7-3.  In stunning fashion, the Yankees scored 3 R in the ninth off the Phillies’ closer, Brad Lidge, who was perfect in save opportunities in 2008, to win the second game of this series 5-4.  Pettitte (ND, 4-1; 7.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 5 K) started the game but was in line for the loss until the Yankees came back to earn their 6th walk-off win of the season.  After Damon led off the inning with a walk, Teixeira struck out, but then A-Rod homered to RF to tie the game at 4-4.  Cano then singled, stole second, and scored on Cabrera’s RBI 1B to center.  In the rubber game, Melky Cabrera’s heroics tied the game at 3-3 again off Lidge in the ninth.  But the Yanks couldn’t cash in in the tenth when Jeter and Damon started the inning with back-to-back 1B.  Sabathia (ND, 4-3; 8.0 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 4 K) started for New York, but Brett Thomko took the loss as he gave up the go-ahead 2B to Carlos Ruiz in the eleventh, which scored Chase Utley and handed the Yanks a 4-3 loss.  (Series 1-2; Record 25-19; AL East -1.0, 3rd)

May 25-27 (NYY @ TEX)—Returning to the site where he had to leave because of a pulled hamstring after no-hitting the Rangers through 6.2 IP back in 2007, Hughes (W, 3-2; 8.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, BB, 6 K) had his best pitching performance in a Yankee uniform and earned his 3 W of the season.  Offensively, A-Rod had his best showing since returning from the DL earlier in the month, going 5-5 with 2 2B and 4 RBI and leading the Yanks to an 11-1 win on Memorial Day.  In the second game, Chamberlain (ND, 1-1; 4.0 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 5 K) didn’t get past the fourth and Aceves (L, 3-1) lost his first of the season as the Rangers slapped him around for 3 R in 2.0+ IP to beat the Yankees 7-3.  However, in the rubber match, the Yanks got terrific pitching from Burnett (W, 3-2; 6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 7 K) to win the game 9-2 and the three-game series and move into a first-place tie with the Red Sox in the division for the first time this season since opening day.  Led by Matsui’s two HR, the Yanks pounded out 15 H and beat up on the Rangers once again for another easy win.  (Series 2-1; Record 27-20; AL East 0.0, T-1st)

May 29-31 (NYY @ CLE)—Behind the solid pitching of Pettitte (W, 5-1; 5.0+ IP, 6 H, R, 5 BB, 1 K) and Rivera (10 S), the Yankees were able to beat Cliff Lee for the only time this season in four attempts (once to open the new Stadium on Apr 16 and twice more in Games 1 & 5 of the World Series).  Jeter sparked the offense in the second inning with an RBI 1B, Gardner scored on Teixeira’s RBI ground out later in the inning, and Swisher capped it in the third with a sacrifice fly that scored Cano and helped the Yankees win 3-1.  In making his first start against his old team in Cleveland, Sabathia (W, 5-3; 7.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 8 K) was terrific in the second game of this series and his offense gave him plenty of support to win 10-5.  Cano had 3 RBI while Jeter and Damon each picked up 2.  In the third game, Hughes (ND, 3-2; 5.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, BB, 6 K) and the Yanks fell behind 4-0 against former Yankee Carl Pavano who again pitched well.  But again his bullpen couldn’t hold it as the Yankees stormed back to tie the game at 4-4 on a 2-R 2B in the eighth that just missed leaving the park.  However, David Robertson allowed an inherited run to score on an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth, and the Yankees lost 5-4.

(May 17-11; Record 29-21; AL East +0.5, 1st)

Read Full Post »