Tagged: Somebody Needs a Hug
On to the ALCS!!!
Yankees Sweep Twins…Again!
Remember in my last post when I said the Yankees were reminding me of the Yankees from last year? Well, last night, this statement proved to be even more true. The most apparent reason was because last night my Yankees wrapped up their 3-game sweep of the Twins to win the ALDS – just like last year. But more importantly, the Yankee have established an amazing 1-2-3 punch, which is Powerful at the beginning, Crafty in the middle, and Philthy at the end.
Pitching Analysis: Phil Hughes is the “Philthy” component of the 1-2-3 punch, in case you didn’t get my analogy. And BOY was he philthy last night. I didn’t know what he was going to give us, having not pitched since September 26, and starting in the postseason after struggling in postseason relief last year. Did I expect Hughes to throw 7 shutout innings, allowing just 4 hits and striking out 6 along the way? I was pleasantly surprised to say the least. Hughes was a beast.
Huuuuuuuuughes!!!!!!!!
If the starting pitching in this ALDS is a sign of things to come for my Yankees, then I think the team is in pretty darn good shape. Their chance of a repeat is within striking distance. The combo of CC, Andy, and Phil reminds me of the CC, A.J., and Andy the Yankees used last year. And when you can compare anything, especially pitching, to the 2009 Yankees, you definitely have reason to smile. Eeeeek!! I’m excited!
Offensive Analysis: JUST like last year, the Yankee offense got to Brian Duensing. I felt kind of bad for the kid…his family was in the audience, and he received the loss. The look on his face as he sat there, all dejected on the bench after being taken out almost broke my heart. The poor guy looked like he was going to cry. But really, it was not his fault that the Yankees won. Sometimes, you gotta give credit where credit is due. The Yankees are a pretty good baseball team.
The offense started in the 2nd inning, where Robinson Cano led off with a triple. He scored on an RBI single by Jorge Posada. In the 3rd, Nick Swisher doubled with 2 out, and Mark Teixeira drove him in with an RBI single. That was a bullet of a single…it hit off the wall too hard and too fast for Mark to advance. But that’s okay. The Yankees were up 2-0.
Tex’s big swing!
In the 4th with Cano on first, Marcus Thames took his turn. He did what he always does, only different: Thames homered, but it was to right field. Thames went oppo! And the Yankees led 4-0. I think that was the swing that ended Minnesota’s season. Minnesota was done…but the Yankee bats weren’t. Brett Gardner tacked on a run with a sac fly, and Nick Swisher homered in the 7th. The Yankees were up 6-0. They went on to win it 6-1.
Thames’s reaction to his homer.
Swish’s smiley reaction to his homer.
Aww
The Heroes for this ALDS-Winning Victory are Phil Hughes, for proving that he can start in the postseason and for solidifying the Yankees 1-2-3 punch, and Marcus Thames for providing what was in essence the winning blow.
The Somebody Needs a Hug goes to….hmm…..I guess the Twins. They got swept…again. But I really shouldn’t be feeling bad for them, I mean the Yankees HAD to beat them. Forgive me for having a heart.
Okay the REAL Somebody Needs a Hug goes to Mick Kelleher. The poor guy was in the wrong place at the wrong time…in the 4th inning, on Robinson Cano’s infield single, the Twins threw the bald wildly…and it hit Mick…yeah…no guy wants this…
Ouch…
I leave you now with some HAPPY images of my Yankees celebrating with the bubbly after their win. 3 wins down, 8 wins to go.
A-Rod gets double-teamed. Look all the way on the right…see that cutie with the goggles? CERVELLI!!! Hi sweetie!
OMG Curtis! Look at him…such an innocent little boy. You are my MVP of the ALDS, with that .455 batting average. Keep up the good baseball, darling!
The next time the Yankees play is on Friday. That’s a long time…I’m going to miss them. I hope they rest up, but stay hot at the same time. From here on, it only gets harder. But I’m ready!
GO YANKEES!!!
…And It’s Only Just the Beginning!
Yanks Up 2 Games to None in Intentisy-Packed ALDS
I’m going to be honest: I didn’t expect my Yankees to be up 2 games to none after the first two games against the Twins at Target Field, for a number of reasons: 1) The Twins had the best record at home, even better than my Yanks. 2) The Yankees had to face a tough lefty in Francisco Liriano in game 1, after losing their last 9 games against lefty starters. 3) I didn’t know what the Yankee starters would give, since CC was on extra rest and Andy had iffy starts after his injury. Add all that together, as well as adding the fact that the Yankees were horrible down the stretch, and the thought of elimination in the first round wasn’t too crazy. But after these first two games, I am confident in my Yankees’s ability to move on to the next round. They have proven to me that te regular season did not matter: the postseason is a brand new season, and they are going to make the most of it – just like last year.
I was worried in game 1, because CC Sabathia was not sharp, and the Yankee offense struggled mightily against Francisco Liriano – up until the 6th inning, that is. Down 3-0, with 1 out, Mark Teixeira doubled and Alex Rodriguez walked. Robinson Cano drove in Teixeira with an RBI single, and FINALLY, my Yankees were on the board. My family and I were starting to get excited.
Then it was Jorge Posada’s turn, and he delivered with an RBI single to score A-Rod, which made it 3-2. Out of her excitement, my Grandma, once again butchered a Yankee’s name. After Jorge singled, she yelled. “OOH NOW IT’S 3-2!!!! A SINGLE!!! A-ROD SCORED!!! OOH SAPADO!!!!”
You can guess what happened next.
My entire family broke into hysterics, and so did Grandma, once she realized we were laughing at her. She did her typical laugh: hands over heart, hysterical, laughing so hard we couldn’t even hear her. It was that silent laughter, the kind that happens when something is just SO funny. Through the laughs, she said, “Ooh POSADA!!!!” Yes, Grandma…POSADA…not SAPODO. He’s been on the team for how long now? But that doesn’t matter…she butchers everyone’s name. For more info, check out this post dedicated to my Grandma and her…interesting names for the Yankees: http://southernbelle.mlblogs.com/archives/2010/08/grandma-makes-me-laugh.html
LOL, good job Sapodo!!!
Anyway, the Yankees had inched closer, and everyone now believed they could win.
My sweet Curtis Granderson delivered witn a clutch 2-run triple to give the Yanks a 4-3 lead. It was so clutch, I screamed for like an hour. My throat still kind of hurts.
CURTIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ♥♥♥
After taking the lead in te 6th, my Yankees never looked back. Actually that’s not true: CC Sabathia walked in a run in the 6th, tying up the game at 4. But no biggy: Mark Teixeira added the final blow with his 2-run homer in the 6th, making it a 6-4 Yankee lead. The bullpen closed it out, and my Yanks came back to win the first game of this ALDS 6-4.
MAAAARK TEX!!!!!!!!!
Game 1 was so stressful. After the game I was so exhausted. I said to Grandma, “Thank GOD we won.”
She said, “Yeah. But it’s only the first game!”
True. If game 1 of the ALDS was so intense, what would the rest of the postseason be like? It was only just the beginning!
I was stressed out before game 2, because I had no idea what Andy Pettitte would do. My Dad said, “Don’t worry about Andy…He’s ANDY. He’ll give it his all and pitch a hell of a game just like he always does.”
Aw, Andy….you are such a cutie ♥
Well, Daddy was right, just like always. Andy did pitch a gem: 7 innings of 2-run ball, and just 88 pitches. And he received offensive support from his buddy Lance Berkman. I was hoping that Lance would do big things in the postseason, since Andy cracked him up to be a postseason clutch machine. He did. Game 2 was Lance’s Yankee moment. He drove in 2 of their 5 runs, with a monster opposite-field home run, and an RBI double the other way. Thank you, Lance!
FAT ELVIS HAS LEFT THE YARD!!!! Damn…he looks kinda sexy with high socks…♥
The Heroes for these ALDS Victories are my cutie-Curtis Granderson, for his extreme clutchness, Lance Berkman, for the same reason, and Andy Pettitte, for doing what he always does. Now the Yankees head back home to the Bronx, where they look for some of that good old Yankee Stadium Magic to spark them to another victory.
The Somebody Needs a Hug goes to…..the Twins! I want them to lose, don’t get me wrong, but I kind of pity them. They ALWAYS lose to the Yankees…it must be haunting their minds. Oh well…it’s really not my problem. And let’s be fair: It really ain’t over till it’s over.
Remember…it’s only just the beginning.
GO YANKEES!!!
The Power of Positivity
Yanks Lose Heartbreaker to O’s 4-3
I’m blogging from school, and I’m kind of upset. I’m not particularly upset that the Yankees lost to the Orioles. I’m just upset that they lost. The Orioles are as hot a team as anybody lately. I think I jinxed the Yankees and their winning streak, because since I mentioned it, they have lost 2 in a row. And that bothers me. But I must try to remain positive. The season has less than a month left, and we are still in first. It’s just hard to accept a loss when the team shouldn’t have lost. I’m not taking anything away from the Orioles, but I think Joe Girardi let this game get away from my Yanks.
Pitching Analysis: A.J. Burnett toed the rubber for the Yanks yesterday in search of another solid outing. In all honesty, I expected to see the Bad A.J. yesterday. But he wasn’t that bad…in fact, he was pretty solid. 7 innings, 4 runs, 7 hits, that’s not too bad at all. What I liked about A.J. yesterday was that he didn’t let the game get away from him. He prevented the Oriole offense from exploding, allowing just 1 run at a time. But this proved to be fatal for A.J….and once again, I just don’t understand Joe Girardi.
Let’s flashback to Friday’s game: Ivan Nova, the cute new rookie sensation, was pitching an okay game. He wasn’t that great. But in the 5th inning, just 1 out away from a win, Girardi gave Nova the hook. The Yankees went on to win the game.
Then on Sunday, it was Javier Vazquez. He was scuffling along. And in the 5th inning, Girardi took him out, and he didn’t get the win. But that was okay, because the team did.
Fast-forward again to yesterday’s game: A.J. Burnett has been struggling, and finally he was having himself a solid start. But he kept letting the lead slip away. In the bottom of the 6th, the Yankees had just tied up the game at 3. A.J. started off the 7th by walking the leadoff man.
Aw, A.J….don’t be so down….turn that frown upside down 🙂
Okay, hold on. Isn’t that right there enough of a RED FLAG to make Girardi make the hook? I don’t get it. He didn’t. And the inning got away from A.J. He wound up allowing that fatal 4th run, when that didn’t have to be. Girardi wanted to end Nova’s outing on a positive note, so he took him out before things got out of hand. Same with Javy. He didn’t let him lose.
Why, then, would he leave A.J., whose confidence is as unstable as anything, in the game? ESPECIALLY after he walked the leadoff man?
I don’t know. It’s just another Joe Girardi blunder.
Offensive Analysis: I have to give credit to that cutie southpaw Mr. Brian Matusz on the Orioles. He really pitched a good game. The Yankees barely could make a scratch in his armor. He was rock solid.
Alex Rodriguez made history with his solo homer in the 4th, becoming the only player in the history of the game to have 100 RBI in 14 seasons in a row. My oh my.
Nice to have you back 😉
A-Rod had another RBI in the 6th with a sac fly, and Robbie Cano drove in a run. But that was it. Offensively, it was a pretty boring game.
I’m annoyed that the Yankees couldn’t find a way to win. Thankfully, the Red Sox beat up on the Rays, so the Rays didn’t gain any ground. With the Red Sox sitting so far behind in the standings, I can actually root for them when they play the Rays! Thank you, Red Sox.
The Somebody Needs a Hug goes to….of course, A.J. Burnett. A.J., I’m proud of you even though you lost. You didn’t unravel. That’s a good sign, and something to build on. I just wish Joe Girardi took you out. Now you feel like the loss is your fault, but it’s not. You should be positive. I will, too.
It can get you a long way.
A Week of Winning!
But I guess it could be worse. I am not taking science or math this year because my math teacher scarred me for life last year. And this year, I actually like all my teachers. I’ve had them all before. Some of them are very fun to talk baseball with. And, oh yeah: IT’S SENIOR YEAR. I should enjoy this.
Even though I haven’t blogged recently, I have watched all the games. My boys are making me so proud. So far, the heroes for this winning streak are Curtis Granderson and Marcus Thames for their hot-hitting, and the bullpen, which has done an absolutely fantastic job.
Yesterday’s 7-5 win over the Blue Jays was the typical win of this winning streak.
Pitching Analysis: After beasting in the bullpen, Javier Vazquez was inserted back into the starting rotation. I had a feeling he would be….suckish. Javy tends to give up the longball. The Blue Jays tend to hit the longball. The wind was making it easier to hit the longball. Add all that up, and it wasn’t going to be a pretty day for Javy.
Weather-wise, it was a beautiful day…but not for Javy.
Javy did give up the longball. Homers by Overbay and McDonald gave the Blue Jays a 3-0 lead. Vazquez didn’t even get through 5 innings, and he allowed 5 runs.
The bullpen again had a lot of outs to get, and they did another amazing job. The combo of Dustin Moseley, Boone Logan, Joba Chamberlain, Kerry Wood, and Mariano Rivera shut the door on the Blue Jay batters’s faces. They allowed 0 runs on 3 hits, and struckout 5. THEY ARE BEASTS!!!
Offensive Analysis: Despite being down 3-0, the Yankee bats weren’t ready to give up. They had that rally in them. And the rally all started thanks to my sweet Francisco Cervelli ♥ In the 3rd with 1 out, Cervelli hit a ball in the left-center gap. And he hustled. And because he hustled, Francisco Cervelli had himself a double. That ball never made it to the wall. Many guys would have just settled for a single. But not my Cervelli. And that’s why I love him.
Then Brett Gardner walked (the 9th straight game he did that!), and Derek Jeter ripped a double, scoring Cervelli. Inching closer, it was now a 3-1 game.
After Mark Teixeira walked to load the bases, a struggling Robinson Cano stepped up to the plate. He hit a ball back up the middle, and it found grass! 2 runs scored on Robbie’s game-tying single.
The Yankees went ahead in the 4th. Cervelli doubled with a man on and 1 out, then Gardner drove in the go-ahead run with an RBI groundout. A wild pitch let another score, making it 5-3.
And finally, in the 7th, the Yankees had their share of the longball. With 2 outs, Cano singled, bringing up Hank Aaron Marcus Thames. He had a few good swings earlier in the game, but didn’t have a hit to show for it. Until this:
I love my Marcus Thames!!!!!
That made it 7-5 Yankees. And that’s the final 🙂
Another win, another series win, and another game gained on those Pesky Rays. The heroes for this victory, the 8th in a row, are the bullpen, for cleanly eating up all those innings. And Marcus Thames, for turning into the Home Run King. Hank Aaron who? Hahaa…The other hero is my Francisco Cervelli, because he started the rally. And just cuz I love him ♥
Oh, Francisco….too cute for words.
The Somebody Needs a Hug goes to Javier Vazquez. Javy, your confidence has taken a rollercoaster ride throughout the entire season. I don’t want you to lose it after 1 icky start. You were great out of the bullpen, and that was no fluke. Believe in yourself!
Yankees, the season is winding down. And you are still leading the AL East! Congrats on everything you have done so far. Please just keep it up. Go as far as you can this season, because I need to keep seeing you.
I love you! GO YANKEES!!!
The Best Yet!
Yanks Win Series Opener
Last night’s 11-5 win over the A’s was a HUGE win for the Yankees this season. Why? It brought them to a new high-water mark of 31 games over .500 for the year! They are 81-50, still tied for first with those Pesky Rays. The Yankees hovered at around 30 games over .500 for so long – and finally, they broke through! The Yankees played a great game last night, and I see signs of an even brighter future for 2010. No more .500 baseball this month!
Pitching Analysis: Dustin Moseley toed the rubber for the Yanks, coming off two very good starts in a row. At first I was optimistic, thinking, “Well maybe he could string three good ones together!” But after seeing him allow three runs in the first inning alone, my hopes were seemingly gone. I thought there was no way the Yankees or Moseley would win after those three runs – especially because the Yankee bats were going up against one of the toughest pitchers in the league, Mr. Trevor Cahil.
Moseley’s outing wasn’t too long, and he wasn’t horribly awful either. In 4.1 innings, Dustin allowed 4 runs on 5 hits, and 4 walks (that’s bad). But Moseley gave the team a chance to win the game. And thanks to a certain someone who shut the door on the A’s batters’s faces, the Yankees did win.
Aw, Javy ♥
I felt bad when Javy Vazquez was demoted to the bullpen. I knew his confidence was shot, and I thought his demotion was the last straw. But no. Javy, unlike me, didn’t melt. He embraced his new role. And last night, Javy really made me proud. Oh, he was brilliant. The best I’ve seen him in a long time. Javy shut down the opposition, and for his efforts, picked up the win. In 4.2 innings, Javy allowed 1 little run on just 2 hits, stirking out 6 along the way. Javy was the only reliever the Yankees used last night. His command was back, and he survived with that 89 mph fastball. I hope he can keep this confidence, because if he does, he’ll keep getting these results. Oh, Javy…maybe you can go back into the rotation now?
Defensive Analysis: Jeter hasn’t been doing much (anything) with the bat lately, but that hasn’t affected him in the field at all. He proved this in the 5th inning last night, with his patendted Jetarian jump-and-throw to nail Kouzmanoff at 1st. Good job, Derek. Oh, and Jorge and Moseley’s strike-em-out-throw-em-out double play was nice, too.
Offensive Analysis: The Bronx Bombers showed up last night, and the offense exploded multiple times. The Yankees pounded out 11 runs on 13 hits. So many guys had great nights at the plate, especially those in the middle of the order. Tex, Cano, Swish, and Thames were almost impossible to get out. Three Yankees went deep last night.
Tex was first.
And Robbie went back-to-back with him.
Thames’s 3-run blast gave the Yanks an 11-4 lead.
Last night’s game had so many positives, and it had the desired result. The heroes for the victory are the homer boys Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano, and Marcus Thames, as well as Javy Vazquez for pitching over 4 stellar innings of relief. I think the Yankees should keep playing Marcus Thames – even when Berkman comes back. Don’t mess with success, right? And Javy…I hope and pray that he keeps this up. We need another guy to trust.
The Somebody Needs a Hug goes to Derek Jeter. The poor guy was 0-4 once again last night, and his average has dipped to an un-Jeter like .268. He’s still trying so hard, maybe too hard. Jeet, we love you no matter what. But still, you need to fix yourself, because we need you. The Yankees need their Captain 🙂
GO YANKEEEES!!!!!!!!
A Taste of Their Own Medicine
Offense Explodes and Power Surges
Well, it’s not really fair to say that home runs are the Jays’s medicine. After all, the Yankees are the Bronx Bombers. So the Blue Jays lead the Bigs in home runs…big deal. Bautista has 40, when his previous career high was 16. Take away half of Bautista’s homers, because their is no way they are legit, and then the Yanks and Jays are neck-and-neck in the home run count. The Yankees had 5 homers last night. Combine that with solid starting pitching, and you have a win. The Yanks evened the series last night with their 11-5 victory.
Pitching Analysis: Ken Singleton pointed out during the broadcast that Dustin Moseley had alternated wins and losses in all of his Yankee starts. He won his last start, so according to the trend, Moseley was going to lose last night. But after Moseley struckout the steroid monster Bautista to end the 1st inning, I had a feeling the trend would end. And I was right.
Dustin’s game face
Moseley pitched beautifully again last night, tossing 6 innings of 2-run ball. He didn’t allow a home run. The other three Blue Jay runs were given up by Chad Gaudin.
Offensive Analysis: The 11 Yankee runs came mostly off the longball. And it was so fun to watch. Homer after homer, the Yankee attitudes remained the same. Each Yankee who homered rounded the bases in the most modest and classy manner – perfectly Yankee. There was no bat-flipping, staring, trotting, or fist pumping right in the catcher’s face as they crossed the plate (ahem, Jose Bautista). They just put their adorable faces down and ran. God I love these men.
The 3rd inning alone contained 3 of the Yankees’s 5 home runs. First was Mark Teixeira, whose solo home run gave the Yanks a 3-0 lead.
After a Robinson Cano walk, Marcus Thames went deep with a 2-run shot.
And Jorge Posada went back to back with Marcus.
In the 5th, after a Marcus Thames single and an Austin Kearns walk, Curtis Granderson decided it was his turn to go deep. His 3-run shot gave the Yanks a 9-1 lead.
Then, it was the Captain’s turn. It was Jeet’s first home run since….jeez, I don’t even remember! That made it 10-1. And the Yanks went on to win it 11-5.
Overall, it was a great win for the Yankees. They pounded out 11 runs on 17 hits, and got contributions from guys up and down the lineup. The heroes for the victory are the Homer Boys Tex, Thames, Jo-Po, GrandyMan, and Jeet, as well as starter Dustin Moseley.
The Somebody Needs a Hug recipient is Nick Swisher. In the 7th inning last night, Swish fouled a ball off his knee, and he went down. He yelped in pain…which really hurts me. It’s sad to see Nick Swisher not smiling. The part that made me yell, “AWWWW” was when Swish insisted that he stay in the game. But two pitches later in to the at bat, Girardi pulled him. Swish again put up a fight, but it was no use: Girardi won. Then Brett Gardner had to finish the at bat. It was his birthday, and he didn’t even think he was going to play. He didn’t even have his high socks. Brett struckout. I’m sure he, and Swish, were not too thrilled.
Swisher says he is okay. He was his jolly smiley self in his postgame interview. I hope he can play today ♥
GO YANKEES!!!
Taming the Tigers
Yanks Take 3 of 4!
The Yankees haven’t won a series since they took 3 of 4 from the Indians at Cleveland on July 26th, 28th, and 29th. That’s a long time. So this series win is especially tasty, because the Yanks haven’t had that taste of victory in awhile. In the last 2 games, the offense exploded. Nice. And yesterday, the Yankees received a short but sweet performance from their starter. It was the perfect recipe for success. The Yanks won the finale by the score of 11-5.
Pitching Analysis: I missed seeing start of the game because I was coming home after a college tour, but I caught it on the radio. I was hoping for big things from Phil Hughes. After I heard that Miguel Cabrera homered AGAIN to give the Tigers a 2-0 lead, I wasn’t so sure. And the Yankee offense couldn’t do anything off Porcello (early, that is), so I thought they reverted back to their old ways of dying early on.
But then, Phil Hughes found it. And I began to think “Alright. After all, Hughes is pretty good. He’s fine now. And I didn’t ever see Miggy’s home run. It could’ve been like the other night when he hit one off Joba: it could have been a good pitch and a homer that barely scraped the fence.”
Huuuuuuuughes
Okay, not really, I saw it now, and it was no cheapie. Nothing hit into the Yankee bullpen is a cheapie. But who cares about that homer?
Phil Hughes settled down mighty fine after that first inning. He made that face, the mean one, so I knew he was feeling good out there. After 6 innings of 2-run ball, Hughes’s afternoon was over, but that’s not because of ineffectiveness. Hughes pitched very well yesterday.
Sergio Mitre, on the other hand, did not pitch well. At all. Sorry cutie, but you didn’t. He came in in the 7th, and the team needed him to finish the game. The Yanks had a nice cozy lead, and the bullpen needed a breather. It was up to Mitre to finish it. But after throwing 30 pitches in his 1st inning, I wasn’t so sure. He did come out there for the 8th, and the 9th. It wasn’t pretty, but he closed out the game – allowing 3 runs in 3 innings.
Defensive Analysis: Mark Teixiera deserves another Gold Glove this year – no doubt. He’s a beast, and there is nothing he can’t catch. I think this explains it all:
Sliding into foul territory, bobble, falling, bobble, catch. Talk about perseverance.
Offensive Analysis: I didn’t know when/if the Yankees were going to start scoring. They perked up in the 4th, tying the game courtesy of RBI singles by Swisher and Granderson. 2-2.
The 6th inning is where all the fun really began. 9 runs in 1 inning, sealing the deal for the victory. Cano’s RBI double drove home Tex, giving the Yankees their first lead of the day, 3-2. But they didn’t stop there:
-Swisher walked, and Posada got an RBI single. 4-2
-Granderson walked to load the bases with none out. Austin Kearns got a 2-run double. 6-2
-Gardner walked, and Granderson scored on a pass ball. 7-2
-Gardner stole 2nd, and Jeter drove in 2 runs with a triple. 9-2
-Cano hit a 2-run homer. 11-2
Cano doing the “drop” with his bat after hitting a home run.
I kind of felt a little sorry for the Tigers. Everything just fell apart.
WHO AM I KIDDING??? I hate the Tigers. How could I forget…that ugly Jeremy Bonderman hit my sweet Brett Gardner on purpose the other day…right in his cute little shin. The Tigers deserved to lose like that.
So finally, the Yankees win a series. The heroes for the finale victory are Phil Hughes, for his impressive performance, and the whole Yankee lineup, for their impressive performance as well.
The Somebody Needs a Hug recipient for the finale is Sergio Mitre. Sergio, thank you for biting the bullet and finishing the game. It was hot, you were stinky, but you toughed it out and did your job. Thank you 🙂
The Yankees are back in first place! This time, they better stay there.
GO YANKEES!
Happy Belated Birthday to Me!
Yanks Finally Win – A Day Late, But I’ll Take It
I’m not even kidding: I think the Yankees have a secret camera in my house. Yesterday, I was frustrated after they lost on my birthday (17!!!), and needed to take out my frustration. So for FanVsFan, I posted a debate about Joe Girardi, and how he deserves some of the blame for the offensive woes:
http://fanvsfan.com/claims/joe-girardi-is-partly-to-blame-for-the-yankees-s-offensive-struggles
He must have heard me recording this, because he took my advice. And it paid off! The Yankees won 6-2….on Jorge Posada’s birthday instead of mine. But that’s okay. We just needed a win!
Pitching Analysis: The Yankees looked toward CC Sabathia to throw up a bunch of zeros and stop the bleeding last night. I thought he was the perfect guy to be on that mound last night to turn things around for the Yanks. But after the first pitch of the game connected to A-Jax’s bat and landed in the seats, I lost faith. 1-0? Already? In the 1st inning? That was asking too much from the Yankees, who lost a game 1-0 to the Royals the other day. I thought we were screwed.
THANK GOD, I was wrong.
My sweet Hefty-Lefty settled down after 2 innings. After that leadoff homer, CC shut down the Tigers offense until Inge homered in the 7th. CC got into a little jam in the 7th, but made it out unscathed. I read his lips when he left the mound after the 7th: “F*** YEAH!!!!”
I was thinking the same thing, CC ♥
The bullpen, which all of a sudden has turned itself around, did well last night. David Robertson pitched a clean 8th, and Mariano tossed a scoreless 9th.
Defensive Analysis: Curtis Granderson has always played a good centerfield. Even when his hitting wasn’t there, he contributed with his glove. In the 1st inning, Granderson made two exceptional plays: One going to his left, and one diving going to his right. He helped set the tone last night, and got CC out of some potential jams. Thank you, Curtis!
http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=11053857&topic_id=8877494&c_id=nyy
Offensive Analysis: This was what I really wanted for my birthday: runs. Joe Girardi took my advice. The Yankees really forced the action last night, which you have to do against a pitcher like Verlander. I saw a bunt last night. And I even saw a steal – by JORGE POSADA!!! Happy Birthday Jo-Po! That’s a single season-high 3 steals for him this year. And aside from the small ball, the Yankees actually hit last night. Hallelujah.
After falling behind 1-0 in the top half of the 1st, the Yankees came right back, which surprised me – they haven’t done that in ages. With loaded bases, Nick Swisher knocked in 2 with a single, giving the Yanks a 2-1 lead. It seems like ages since they’ve had a lead…
Swishialicious…
In the 2nd, my cute little Curtis hit a solo home run, making it 4-1 Yanks. Boy, he sure is cute when he’s swingin’ that stick so well 😉
In the 6th, Brett Gardner hit a 2-out double. That brought up Jeter, who I couldn’t help being angry at because of the loss on my birthday: the Yankees were down 3-1 in the bottom of the 9th. With bases loaded and 1 out, Jeter grounded into a game-ending double play. I hoped he could do something to make me happy last night. And he did. His 2 out RBI single scored Gardner, and gave the Yanks a 4-1 lead. Thank you, Derek.
In the 7th, Robbie Cano homered, making it 5-2. He’s been struggling lately, so that homer was a good sign. Later in the inning, Nick Swisher got hit by a pitch right on the foot. He went down, and was in a lot of pain. I didn’t even think Nick would have been in the lineup last night, because he hurt his forearm the night before. But with Berkman and A-Rod still hurt, Swish chose to play last night. What a guy. I was relieved when I saw him trot down to first base.
After an infield single by Marcus Thames and a Curtis Granderson walk, the bases were loaded for Ramiro Pena. He tacked on a run with a sac fly, giving the Yanks a 6-2 lead. And that’s the final score.
Last night’s win was comforting for sure. But is the offensive slump over? I wouldn’t exactly call 6 runs an explosion. But the offense doesn’t always need to explode for the team to win. I’m not going to say if the slump is over or not….I’ll just stay quiet and watch them play. I’m not going to be the one to jinx them (that’s Michael Kay’s job). The heroes for the victory last night are CC Sabathia, for another win, giving him the league-leading 16, Curtis Granderson, for his contributions with both the glove and bat, and Nick Swisher, for being a man, and for giving the Yankees their first lead since God knows when.
My little brother had an idea for a new segment on my blog: the “Somebody Needs a Hug” segment. This is brilliance at its best. Every game I watch, I always say that at least once. So why not write it, too? The “Somebody Needs a Hug” recipient is someone who either did something or had something happen to him that makes me pity him. The hug is to either comfort, or show that I appreciate him and his efforts. Thank you Tommy for this idea.
The first ever Somebody Needs a Hug goes to….Nick Swisher. Like I said before, he played through pain, and then got hurt again. I love my macho Yankees.
Stay tough, boys! And thanks for winning 🙂
Live, Eat, and Breathe Yankees 