Wednesday, June 07, 2006

The New and the Old

With the rainout tonight, I have plenty of time on my hands to comment on last night's game. The Yankees pulled off a 2-1 win against their biggest rivals, the Boston Red Sox, in a game that featured a great blend of both the new and the old. Wang, a new sensation last year after coming to the big leagues, was shaky early. Unlike last season, he has been very inconsistent of late and it's hard to know which pitcher will take the mound on a given night. But, despite throwing almost 50 pitches in the first two innings, Wang battled to keep the Yankees in the game and pitched through the seventh. The only run he gave up was a monster solo shot to Ortiz. Farnsworth pitched a scoreless eighth. Then “Enter Sandman” blared as Mo came on to close out the game in the ninth. Mo was back to his reliable self after back pain sidelined him for a few games.

Jeter was out for his second game in a row so Cairo started at shortstop. Philips once again took his place at first base relegating Giambi to DH. Andy is a far superior defensive first baseman and because he has been hot of late he is “forcing” Torre to continue playing him. Bernie has been taking Sheffield’s place in right field and sometimes spelling Damon in center. Without Bernie I don’t know where the Yankees would be. He has saved the team from falling apart in the outfield and has really contributed with his bat. Sure enough, Bernie came through again with a solo homer to tie the game at one. The fans went crazy and chanted his name until he came out for a curtain call. I could hear the stadium shaking.

But, the night was not over yet. The Yankees managed to scratch out a run with two outs in the seventh. They started a rally on Cairo’s infield single (that rolled right below the glove of the pitcher), Johnny Damon singled, and Cabrera walked. That brought Giambi to the plate and, after what seemed like a really long at bat, he worked a walk to force home a run (the game winning run).

The game seemed to be winding down with two outs in the eighth as Farnsworth dug in to face Manny Ramirez. But, then the stadium became very quiet as Manny smacked a long fly ball that seemed destined to be a home run. The whole outfield had been playing him very deep and both Cabrera and Damon sprinted into action to try and chase the ball down. At the last second both players jumped, and Cabrera raised his glove over the wall to bring back Manny’s home run to save the game and preserve the Yankees’ ownership of first place. As he was coming down with the ball in his glove he hit with wall with enough force that he fell face first onto the field. Cabrera’s game saving catch to rob Manny of a game tying home run was unbelievable. Some even called it the turning point of the season. The celebration/jubilation on the field by the players was electrifying. They all knew it was something special. It was great to see the exuberance from a Yankee team that is usually all corporate and serious. Baseball is fun again. The players were jumping up and down like little kids. Damon had jumped the wall with Cabrera and when he landed he pumped his fists in the air and skipped backwards. Farnsworth was staring in disbelief (it looked like he was saying holy sh--) before he hugged A-Rod and then bear hugged Melky as they walked off the field. And Susan Waldman, a Yankee broadcaster, said that the Yankees were celebrating as they walked back to the clubhouse at the end of the game.

Finally, last night there were seven Yankees who originated in the Yankee farm system: Bernie Williams, Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera, Chien-Ming Wang, Robby Cano, Andy Phillips, and Melky Cabrera. For once, they are playing without superstars at every position. They are playing the game how it was meant to be played and not just relying on the long ball, and I am loving it.

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