Here’s last night’s game in a nutshell: Both starting pitchers were excellent, both gave up an run following a defensive miscue, but A.J. Burnett also allowed a solo homer; Fish win 2-1.
A.J. Burnett struck out eight men in 6 1/2 innings, but he also grooved a fastball to Dan Uggla in the bottom of the second, and Uggla hit it over the center field fence. Burnett didn’t walk a man until the sixth, when he issued a four-pitch pass to speedy out-maker Emilio Bonifacio to start the inning. Given a reprieve when Jorge Posada threw Bonifacio out trying to steal, Burnett walked Hanley Ramirez. A.J. then hung a slider to Jorge Cantu. Cantu hit it to the gap in left, but Johnny Damon lined it up . . . then missed it. The ball just barely hit the pinkie of Damon’s glove then appeared to nick his foot as Damon tripped over his own leg and tumbled to the turf. Ramirez motored around and scored. That was the ballgame.
The Yankees scored in the next half inning after the Marlins failed to convert a one-out double play ball. Prior to the seventh, Josh Johnson had allowed just two baserunners: a walk to Damon in the top of the first, and a bloop single into no man’s land behind first base by Burnett in the third. After Damon grounded out to start the seventh, Johnson walked Mark Teixeira, who was replaced by Posada on the botched double-play. Robinson Cano then picked up the Yankees second hit, singling Posada to third, and Nick Swisher singled Jorge home with the first and only Yankee run, but Johnson struck out Melky Cabrera on three pitches to end the inning and his night.
In the eighth, Joe Girardi sent Hideki Matsui up to hit for Angel Berroa against Leo Nuñez. Matsui singled. Brett Gardner then ran for Matsui and stole second. Alex Rodriguez hit for the pitcher and walked, putting the go-ahead run on base with no outs for Derek Jeter, but Jeter couldn’t get the bunt down and wound up grounding into a rally-killing double play. Dan Meyer then came on to strikeout Damon. Facing closer Matt Lindstrom, Mark Teixeira led off the ninth with a single off first base, but Jorge Posada popped out and Robinson Cano, for the second time in four games, ground into a game-ending double play.
Damon fell on his sword after the game, and Burnett blamed himself for allowing the homer to Uggla, but the Yankees should win games in which they only allow two runs. Josh Johnson was simply too good and the Yankees blew the one real opportunity they had against the Marlins’ bullpen in the eighth.
Adding valor to victory after the game, Johnson absolved Joe Girardi of the infamous rain-delay incident I mentioned in my pre-game post. Per Pete Abe:
Johnson absolved Girardi, saying his elbow was tight before that and that he was determined to stay in the game. Girardi, he said, was not to blame.
“It’s something that just happened,” he said. “I was hiding from Joe, there’s no way he was taking me out of that game.”
I can understand having trouble scoring against Josh Johnson, who has sick stuff, but a really good team scores against their pen.
The Marlins lost very little when they let Girardi go.
The lineups for the Inaugural HoF Classic
Team Collins
SS Paul Molitor
2B Bobby Grich
CF Steve Finley
1B Kevin Maas
3B Johnny Grubb
RF Mike Timlin
LF Jim Kaat
DH Jon Warden
P Phil Niekro,
Team Wagner
3B Brooks Robinson
SS Steve Lyons
2B Jeff Kent
LF George Foster
1B Mike Pagliarulo
RF Joe Lahoud
CF Lee Smith
DH Bill Lee
P Bob Feller
Should be fun, hopefully the weather cooperates
In midst of the rainy season, with a broken laptop, I was forced to watch Josh Beckett throw a shutout on tv this morning..and we lost to the Marlins..someone please tell me that one day i'll find the Rainbow Connection? 3 games out now...sigh....
so far, so good Raf. It was POURING yesterday.
That's good to hear, unmoderated. I would hate to drive all the way up there, and have the game rained out, but that's the chance we take, right?
Hey, Tokyo...is there anything to the rumor that Andy Phillips is headed to Japan?
I saw this game through the sixth and thought it was really good. Sorry to hear about Jeter 'n' the eight, but I don't find the loss to be a bummer. Johnson's a great pitcher - this year anyway - and great pitching can shut any team down. Sometimes getting smothered through 7 will mess the team up for the other two.
And hey, that's two excellent Burnett performances in a row.
[7] But they couldn't score Gardner even though he was on 2nd with no outs in the 8th. Really good teams find a way to do that.
Not hitting will let down good pitching as much as bad pitching will let down good hitting. Need some bats. How many hits did they get this week? Only five last night.
[9] Yeah but a buzzsaw is a buzzsaw, and that was Johnson last night.
[9] They need bats to replace whom? At what position is an upgrade realistic? I can think of two: CF and BUIF. The latter is doable, but where are thy going to get a CF, and how much would one cost?
[8] Really good teams score between 90 and 100% of the time when they have a speedy player on 2B and no outs. The 1998 Yankees scored 99.44% of the time in that situation. You can look it up.
[11] Link?
What's this team's percentage?
[8] I didn't see it so I don't know what the feel of the game was, but as I say, sometimes a dominant pitching performance throws the offense out of whack even after the SP is gone.
[9] I mean, cripes, they are second in the league in scoring--a tenth of a run behind TB. It would be nice, of course, if they could score precisely 6 runs every game, not 15 one day but 1 the next. Then again, find me the team in MLB history that has succeeded in this regard. Just looking at the Yankees--only one team in franchise history has every gone the entire season with getting shutout (1932). I'm not sure offense is really the team's primary concern, save for getting a healthy A-Rod back as soon as possible.
[12] Sorry, that was sarcasm. 99.44 was of course taken from the old Ivory Soap ads.
[11] Ha, you were asking for it (12).
[14] The problem is Yankees have often had issues getting runners in. They go through stretches where they can't score a RISP to save their lives. It's not overall offense that's the issue, but timely offense.
[12] Being less sarcastic, here is an old article that looks at run expectancy (using data from 1999-2002).
http://www.tangotiger.net/RE9902score.html
In those years, on the average, a team scored no runs in a man-on-second-no-outs situation about 37% of the time. I don't know if good teams scored more often in that situation (I doubt it--rather, they probably just put more men on base in general, leading to more scoring). I also don't know how to factor in the speedy factor.
[17] Sure, but the real question is: are their stretches any worse than those of other teams. We tend to focus only on the Yankees and exaggerate their virtues and vices. We also tend to have selective memories: not scoring Gardner will be seared in the memory, but we forget other instances of "timely hitting."
Again, it would be wonderful if one could figure out how to build a team that never goes into slumps, that always has timely hitting, whose performance every single day is predictable and thus perfectly representative of their overall performance. But it doesn't work that way.
Now, off to brunch.
Apparently, that case of the "red ass" they got from their flight to Miami only lasted for about two thirds of one game...
A-Rod's partying until 2:30 A.M. probably didn't help either.
You know you're really getting old when you need to take time off from your job in order to stay out late at night!
I know it's The Post and all but really, who didn't see that coming out of a trip to South Florida?
: )
[18] i think what was more frustrating is the now-he's-bunting-now-he's-not at bat that jeter had.
bunt or don't.
double steal or don't.
but swing-bunt-swing-bunt (and a lousy attempt, at that)-swing just seems like they couldn't quite decide what to do ...
[20] mmm ... Kate Hudson.
[15] Although sarcasm on a Sunday morning often flies over my head, I asked for a link because I was skeptical.
[13] With proper execution, a player on 2B with no outs (especially one with great speed) can score without the benefit of a hit. That's why the failure to score Gardner is frustrating.
Chasing women is tiring. Being with one you already have usually isn't.
[19] I don't think every day should be predictable, nor do I want it that way. That's a rather brittle straw man, as I don't think anyone expects nor desires it.
As far as how other teams do, the Yankees should do better than them, because they should be an excellent team. I'm not gonna look at the numbers and say "Oh hell, the Yankees are no worse than the Orioles, what am I getting bent out of shape about?" That's not the way fandom works; this isn't scientific research, ya know.
A far as selective memories go, I certainly remember well a lot of the clutch hitting they got this season thus far. I miss it so.
[24] You've obviously never been to South Beach in the day or night, Rich. Having a woman or not is irrelevant. You get tired simply from all of the neck turning!
: )
I think most fans would feel better about this team if they stop getting owned by the Sox.
[26] I plead guilty.
[27] That is probably the crux of the matter.
[27] Beating the best team in their own division once would certainly be a step in the right direction, Rich.
Too bad we must wait another six weeks or so for that...
In the meantime, how about a nice week long winning streak or something so they can actually get into first place again?
Or have they already used that up for the '09 season already?
I would argue that anything short of 6-3 on this road trip is yet another failure. They should be able to win all three of these series against NL teams, yes even against the Mets at Citi Field.
It's not like these teams have rotations full of Johnsons.
heh heh
a good team's hall of fame shortstop never grounds into a double play with a speedy runner on 2nd and no outs!
Happy Father's Day fellows!
i actually think the yanks are moving back in the right direction. aj, andy, and wang are all making positive (albeit only a start or two) strides on different levels. cc is cc. the pen is in a good spot.
no one is particulalry hot right now (except maybe cano), but the offense is fairly balanced and just needs a few more timely hits.
so on the whole i am feeling okay - hopefully not misguided.
[25] I'm not accusing you per se, but what is predictable is logging on to this site after the Yankees get shut down for a game or three and seeing statements like "good teams score Gardner from second," as if this is some sort of automism. Even the statement that you made, about teh Yankees going through stretches where they don't timely hitting--the observation itself seems rooted in the expectation that the Yankees should not ever go through such stretches.
I am curious how you define an "excellent" team. They are currently, after a now week or two if scuffling, in possession of the second best record in the AL and the third best record in the majors. They would be leading four out of six divisions. They have the second best offense in the league. Yes, their pitching is weaker. But otherwise, what more do you want?
Sometimes I get the feeling that if this team doesn't win 105 games and go to the WS every year, they are considered a failure.
[27] And yes, I think this is really the crux of the matter. The mood on this site (at least in the comments) has been extremely sour since that red Sox series, and that has magnified all alleged problems, errors, inadequacies, and so on. Since then, the team with the second best record in the AL is "inadequate", "unacceptable", "scared", "lazy" (more accurately, fat and rich, as I recall), "incompetent" and so forth.
It's a real drag, sometimes. Maybe I'm romanticizing, but sometimes I miss what I recall as a rather more elevated tone of discussion here during previous seasons--smart, often counter-intuitive analysis, reflections and discussions in the threads to match the always excellent writing by the owners of the site.
[21] I didn't see the game, but from what I read/heard, it sounded like Jeter was trying to bunt for a base hit, not truly sacrifice. If so, he may have been on his own with that play.
I generally am not a fan of the bunt, especially when one of the better hitters is up to bat. However, Jeter has been a bit off lately. Plus that specific tactical situation is one in which I would tend to call for a straight sacrifice more times than not.
[33] i think you're romanticizing, banter's always been a glue factory and has never been a pretty sight during a run of bad yankees' play.
there are a couple of thoughtful, insightful posters whose presence i miss, but they're balanced out by several unmissed posters on the other side.
[34] problem is, nobody seemed to be on the same page. gardner was straight stealing on the 3rd pitch and jeter decided to hit and run. jeter then attempted a bunt that landed over the yankees dugout. i guess my point was that the way it played out it looked like there wasn't a plan ... because, AFAICT, there wasn't. it was just a frustrating sequence.
[35] i think you’re romanticizing,..
You're probably right.
...it was just a frustrating sequence.
That seems certain.
[36] Agreed. The Jeter ab made no apparent sense, which was magnified by the fact that that was the game right there. It was aggravating to see Jeter, of all people, not only not get the job done, but be unclear for the duration of the ab what the job even was. It looked very unprofessional.
Monkeypants has been riding solo for the morning it seems, but I'll weigh in and say I've got his back (belatedly). Variants of 'this is the test of a championship team' lines, about a single at-bat or sequence basically just ignore the stats of the sport. I had to laugh at the 99.44% pure bit. Of course it is frustrating, especially in a playoff scramble, which is where we are, and (we hope) will be all year.
I had no problem with Jeter bunting with two on and no outs in that game, that's what he DOES, and I'd suspect it was called from the bench, I just hated how that played out. Game-turning moment, really.
A Rod's 'fatigue' thing is playing every day, not staying up late on a night when he is not playing the next day and can sleep till noon, BUT ... jeez it is stupid. And he was doing so well in keeping a low profile since returning.
[34] Personally, I wouldn't have bunted in that situation, but I agree with [21] that the AB was seriously compromised by the wavering approach. First he tried to bunt, then he swung away, then another bunt and then another swing. I am not a major leaguer, but hitting really requires focus and when you go back and forth in approach on every pitch, it has to have an impact. Instead of either dedicating the AB to the sacrifice, or really picking out a pitch to drive, Jeter pretty much was put in a situation to force the issue on every attempt. Now, maybe that was his own doing, but that's still on Girardi. Too often, Girardi has shifted the blame (Gardner didn't go; Melky bunted on his own). A good manager has to control the game in the late innings.
Even with Jeter's wavering approach, there still were chances to force the action. With Bonifacio creeping in on the bunt attempt, Gardner would have had a good chance to steal 3B even without a good jump. Also, once the count went to two strikes, it seemed like an ideal situation to have the runners go and see if Jeter could put the ball through the first base hole. In other words, the one strategy that seemed most likely to fail was to have the runners stay put and have Jeter swing away behind in the count.
Also, if you aren't going to sacrifice or be aggressive, why do you have Gardner steal with Arod up. As soon as the base opened, it was obvious Arod would be walked. If Girardi was going to eventually sit back, the better plan would be let Arod swing away, and then have Gardner steal with Jeter up. The risk of an Arod DP is still there, but so is the opportunity for an A-bomb.
In other words, Girardi looked like he had no plan in place for after Gardner's steal of 2B, which is inexcusable because you have to have contingencies in place for the entire inning.
I mentioned it last night...I am so down on Girardi that I really don't even trust my own objectivity about him anymore. Still, it really eats at me that so many of these losses seem to hinge on moves he does or doesn't make. Since the win streak with all those walk offs, the Yankees have won 3 games in a row once. They have pretty much been a .500 team before and after the streak, just like they were pretty much a .500 team before the late season run in garbage time. In other words, at what point should we expect the Girardi Yankees to play well above .500 for more than brief intervals?
So I went to the new stadium last week. Here are my thoughts in brief, for whatever they are worth.
My overall impression was...meh...
I was there with some family, including a small child in a stroller, so this was more of a casual visit than a hard core baseball fest (that is reserved for later this summer). We paid far too much for tix in the field level, down the LF line more or less behind the foul poll.
Access to the stadium was fine (I drove--plenty of parking, but it also looked like the Metro North station had a lot of business). The short walk to the new stadium was easy, the new overpass is spacious and (still) clean.
It was a real drag walking past the derelict old park. I hope it's gone the next time I visit.
Staff at the new stadium were universally friendly and generally helpful, though I did get contradictory information as to what needed to be done with the stroller.
The great hall was underwhelming. The additional food and souvenir options do not excite me, but the concourses were much more spacious and seemed to better accommodate the large crowd. It still took me the better part of an inning and a half to get a hot dog (and six dollars for a dog is simply criminal); this was mainly due to the seeming incompetence of the cashier than because of the stadium design.
My seats were fine; great view. It will be interesting to see the game from some of cheaper seats to compare. After a few innings, we were allowed (again by very accommodating staff) to move back a few rows to the handicapped section, because one of the people in my group needed to feed the baby. We ended up sitting there the rest of the game; views from those seats were indeed excellent, since you are slightly elevated.
The sound system is improved, but this only exacerbates the sonic assault of rap music and sound effects. This was particularly annoying before the game (how old is that awful Yankees theme rap song?) and in the seventh inning or so when they played the "make noise" sound effect, which is designed I think to cause hearing impairment. In any case, it made the child cry.
The new PA announcer is pretty bad.
Sadly, YMCA was still there, but I at least did not notice Cotton Eye Joe.
Aesthetically, I was under-impressed. The field just looks smaller, and with the bleachers and OF stands drawn closer, and with that abomination restaurant in CF, the entire interior seems less majestic and sprawling, and more cramped. Some views, especially looking it at home plate and at the facing decks, really reminded me of the old stadium. Other views, especially of the OF, just didn't look the same. The restaurant and subterranean monument park are a mess. In total, I found the outfield very unattractive.
The big screen did not look as huge as I thought it would, and that's actually a good thing.
The frieze looked ok, but it did not stand out as much as I thought it would. Maybe because it was a night game, but my wife also thought that the open grating at the back of the upper deck detracted from the effect of the frieze. She thought it looked "weird."
The biggest difference to me is the open concourse design. One of the most memorable features of the old stadium, in my mind, is how cramped you were, walking through a series of tunnels, and then as you walked down a portal to your seat you could see the greenest green grass emerge before you. I still remember that moment as a boy, and I remember the look on my nephew's face when he first experienced it. My wife even told me that she found the experience amazing when, as an adult, she walked into the stadium for the first time a few years ago.
But now you see the playing filed almost immediately. And the open concourses and food court made the stadium feel...I don't know...like a lot of MiL parks I've been too. It's not bad or wrong, it just wasn't The Stadium.
I asked my wife to comment on the amenities, including the women's bathrooms. Also, since she is less of a fan, I asked her what she thought about the new stores and other not directly baseball related bits. Her overall assessment was blasé; it was "all right," she said.
The crowd was pretty loud--at least as loud as it has been over the last few years. Overall the atmosphere was adequate.
I did not have time to adventure around the upper deck or check out the museum or monument park--that is for next time. Maybe my impression will change. Until then. I have to admit that I was somewhat disappointed. The new stadium lacked a certain something--I don't know, grandeur or massiveness or even a sort of sagging aging-ness--whatever it was, it is hard to articulate.
In the end, though, it simply wasn't Yankee Stadium.
=====
Postscript: I had pretty expensive seats. It will be interested to see how I am treated by staff not at the field level. Also, I found most of the pricing to be simply appalling, even for NYC and even for stadium rip-off prices.
[38] I'm glad someone appreciated the Ivory Soap reference!
[33] That argument is a little disingenuous. Sure, the Yankees have the third best record in the majors. But, it’s also true that they are only 4 games from having the 13th best record. In other words, they have done nothing to distinguish themselves from half the league. Now, maybe you had different expectations coming in, but I expected this team to be not mediocre, not pretty good, but close to great. I thought 100 wins was a possibility and the playoffs a strong likelihood. I know it’s only June 20, but great teams should be establishing themselves by this point.
While it’s nice to talk about the elevated tone of game discussions in the past, it is also important to consider the context. When the Yankees were playing like a machine, I am sure the posts were more positive and the topics more in depth. When the team is coasting to the playoffs, there is more energy available for less primal topics. Over the past few years, however, this team has played well below expectations. When that happens, strong emotions and dissenting opinions are going to abound. I don’t think that makes this place less civil, expect when people disrespect other’s opinions. Instead, I think it makes this place more real, especially because the relatively small number of contributors adds an element of accountability. I am not one who thinks bashing everyone means you have more passion, but I also don’t believe being rah rah makes for a better, more “civil” fan.
[42] That argument is a little disingenuous. Sure, the Yankees have the third best record in the majors. But, it’s also true that they are only 4 games from having the 13th best record.
I'm not sure how the argument is disingenuous. If anything, it simply shows the fine difference in professional sports between most teams. Or. let's look at it another way. They are only four games from having the best record in the AL, better than the Red Sox, and therefore a great team.
By the way, "disingenuous" means lacking sincerity. You have essentially accused me of lying. I am completely sincere in my argument. You may disagree with it and cite counter-evidence (indeed, your point about come from behind wins skewing their record is a good one); you may think that it is fallacious, ridiculous, absurd, untenable, etc. But it is definitely not disingenuous.
Over the past few years, however, this team has played well below expectations.
Perhaps the problem lies with the expectations?
I thought 100 wins was a possibility and the playoffs a strong likelihood.
they are on pace for 92 wins. 100 wins are still a possibility, though a slender one. Even the Sox, an elite team in your estimation, are not on pace for 100. The playoffs are still a strong likelihood.
I fail to see how this team, therefore, ha yet to live up to expectations in any meaningful way. But again, that is just my view.
but I also don’t believe being rah rah makes for a better, more “civil” fan.
I'm not calling on anyone to be "rah-rah," certainly not considering the way I bitched about, say, Miguel Cairo in the past. In any case, it's not about civility. It's about perspective. A few bad games and the tone here swings wildly negative, at least in my opinion.
[40] MP,
Did you have to purchase a Field Level Ticket for the small child?
[43] Addendum--
This team is playing at or above my own expectations (maybe I have low standards). I didn't not expect 100 wins out of team with an aging SS (who's playing better than expected) and an aging C coming off an injury (playing better than expected), an all-start 3B who had hip surgery and missed a few weeks of the season, a CF platoon of Melky/Gardner, and a starting rotation that included Joba (still untested young guy coming off injury), Andy (aging guy with bad back who collapsed at the end of the year), AJ (enough said), and CMW (coming off injury). Oh yeah, and a closer coming of shoulder surgery.
Lots of question marks to go around. I think my tempered expectations have been pretty much satisfied.
[43] I think it's a "little" disingenuous because I don't think anyone is saying the Yankees are awful or even just ok. The problem most people have is they are underperforming expectations and showing few signs of being a very good to great team. Saying they have the 3rd best record doesn't refute that frustration.
Also, I don't think the Red Sox are an "elite" team. Going into this season, I posted that I thought the Yankees had much more talent. What the Red Sox seem to be, however, is a more opportune team that lives up more to their expectations. Part of my frustration with this team is I think they should be significantly better than Boston. Maybe my expectations are the problem, but they happen to be high. I haven't formed them on a whim, so at least for the time being, it seems to me as if this team is underperforming.
Finally, while the negativity probably does swing wildly, I think it is an understatement to call these last 10 games on a "few bad games". After all, they did get swept by Boston to go 0-8, then played 5 underwhelming games against the depleted Mets and historically awful. If such a stretch doesn't inspire negativity, then what would? At some point, having perspective does include reacting negatively to poor play.
[45] In other words, everyone's negative tone is really in line with your negative expectations :) More seriously, if that is how you view this team, I could understand having a more tempered reaction. I definitely disagree.
[46]Also, I don’t think the Red Sox are an “elite” team.
I'm sorry, then. I have misunderstood the tone and contents of your many posts that seemed to describe the Sox in elevated terms.
So if I understand correctly, the Yankees play in an AL with no great teams at all?
[40] Monkeypants,
Did the family you attended the game at NYS with have to purchase a Field Level Ticket for their small child?
[47] More seriously, if that is how you view this team, I could understand having a more tempered reaction.
I thought from the beginning that they had made improvements but had a lot of question marks, and also that they play in the toughest division. The optimist in me predicted they would win the division (and I am still guardedly optimistic on this front), the pessimist said they would be in a fight for the WC, which is right where they are now.
I never envisioned 100 wins, but thought 95 was more reasonable. They are on pace for 91 wins (I made an arithmetic error above), but their pythagorean win percentage only projects out to about 89 wins. That is indeed a bit disappointing, but only by a couple of games. Surely not enough to warrant repeated calls for the coaching staff to be fired, charges of organizational incompetence, repeatedly calling their performance unacceptable, etc. (And no, I am not saying that you are the one saying all of these things).
That's all I am saying.
[49] We didn't (she's only about five months old). I think that kids under a certain age (2 or 3--check the website) can enter without ticket if they sit on an adult's lap. In any case, I just showed up with child but without a ticket, and no one at the gate gave me any problems.
Checking the stroller was a bit of challenge, only inasmuch as the location is to the far RF side of the great hall, but we were sitting on the opposite side of the stadium.
If I had it to do over again, I would have kept the stroller and stayed in the concourse for the first inning or two, then asked the security staff if we could occupy the unused handicapped seating, with the child in the stroller. I'm not sure if they would have let me, but I bet they would have relented.
There is a guest services outpost in LF as well, but it was small and they did not seem set up for checking bags, strollers, etc.
[40] From the NY Yankees online stadium guide:
[31] a good team’s hall of fame shortstop never grounds into a double play with a speedy runner on 2nd and no outs!
No....
People can learn from reading williamnyy23's posts:
[39] ...With Bonifacio creeping in on the bunt attempt, Gardner would have had a good chance to steal 3B even without a good jump.
There were multiple ways for Gardner to score.
[51] [52] Thanks for replying!
I hope you got him/her one of those great tiny pinstriped outfits! "Onesies" I believe they are called...
Poor kid RE: the loud sound system. Perhaps a nice clean baseball to gnaw on could have been in order.
I could use one of those from time to time as well! I've outgrown the "Onesies" though... finally!
: )
[54] Even better, a pink pinstriped shirt with NY, matching pink pants and Yankees floppy baby hat. Very, very cute indeed!
With Bonifacio creeping in on the bunt attempt, Gardner would have had a good chance to steal 3B even without a good jump.
Gardner tried, Jeter fouled off a pitch. Uggla was keeping Gardner close to the bag, which is why he was in the position to make the dp so easily