Daily Archives: August 8, 2009

Things are looking up. Like A.J. Burnett last night, C.C. Sabathia could hardly have been better this evening – good thing too after what the bullpen just went through – and the Yankees beat the Red Sox 5-0, though most of the game was much closer. New York has taken the first three games of the series, and now have a 5.5-game lead in the AL East. Feels like old times.

Sabathia pitched 7.2 shutout innings, allowed just two walks and two hits, and struck out nine. In fact he took a perfect game into the fifth inning, and a no-hitter into the sixth, and the way he was throwing I wouldn’t have been stunned to see him pull it off. Sox starter Clay Buchholz was pretty good himself, giving up two runs in six innings, but with Sabathia rolling and the Red Sox hitters collectively slumping, that was two runs too much.

New York scored their first run in the third, when Mark Teixeira singled home Melky Cabrera. They scored one more in the sixth, when Robinson Cano scored on a Jose Molina sac fly, and another in the seventh when Nick Swisher walked with the bases loaded, though they then left the bases loaded. Finally, in the eighth, Derek Jeter hit a real New Stadium Special about 314.5 feet to right field for a two-run homer, which meant Dave Robertson could close out the game instead of Rivera (though not without enough drama to get Mo warming up). According to Joe Buck during today’s game, the Yankees are 45-1 when leading after six innings – more impressive than I would have guessed.

There was a little drama in the seventh inning when Ramon Ramirez threw one uncomfortably up and in to Mark Teixeira, then hit A-Rod in the elbow. He was immediately ejected and that was the end of it, at least for today; afterwards Joe Girardi, while careful with his words, seemed to think it was payback for Pedroia getting hit the other night. I’m sure some fans will be ticked off because the Yankees didn’t retaliate, but that seems like the right move to me – they’re cruising now, so why risk firing up the Red Sox and getting someone on either team hurt? I say a 6.5-game division lead would be the best revenge.

Tim McCarver WTF? Quote of the Game: “There’s a difference between playing with fire, and playing with fire in your eyes.”

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Side note: I was at the Stadium for last night’s ridiculous 15-inning epic. I’ve never seen such a wrung-out crowd; by the thirteenth or so everyone was punch drunk and could barely muster the energy to boo Kevin Youkilis. It was both awesome and agonizing since, for a number of reasons, I really needed to get home on the early side last night. The best laid plans.

I kept saying: Okay, if they don’t score this inning I’m leaving. Hmmm. Okay, if they don’t score this inning… but of course I couldn’t do it. How would I ever have lived with myself? I think I got A-Rod’s homer out of the park by sheer force of will, and by the time I staggered off the subway in Brooklyn it was almost 2:30 in the morning, but I have no regrets. That was my first real classic at the new Stadium (though the Yankees are now 3-0 when I’m there) and since we’re all stuck with the place, I’m glad I’m starting to build up some good memories there – because that’s what will eventually, years from now, make it feel like home.

How do you follow that up?

With a win, of course. If the Sox come back and win the next two games the weekend will be a drag for the Yanks. Mr. Sabathia has to take over today.

Nevermind the Fox broadcast,

Let’s Go Yan-Kees!

Friday night, the Yankees and Red Sox did something they’d never done before: open a game with 14 1/2 scoreless innings. Jacoby Ellsbury led off the game with a bloop hit of A.J. Burnett that fell between Melky Cabrera and Nick Swisher in shallow right center. The next Boston hit came with two outs in the top of the ninth inning when David Ortiz singled off Mariano Rivera. Burnett walked six men in between those two hits, and another man reached base on catchers interference, but none of those runners got past second base. The only Boston runner to get to third base in the entire 15-inning game was Ellsbury in the top of the first, who stole second and moved to third on a 4-6-3 double-play only to be stranded there.

The Yankees fared no better against Josh Beckett. Robinson Cano doubled to lead off the third and was followed by a Nick Swisher walk, but like the Sox in the top of the first, a double play and a groundout stranded Cano at third. In the fifth, the Yankees loaded the bases on singles by Hideki Matsui and Jorge Posada and a two-out walk to Melky Cabrera, but Derek Jeter grounded to third on the first pitch he saw to end the threat. The only other baserunner off Beckett came on a leadoff Hideki Matsui single in the seventh, but he was erased when a one-out hit-and-run turned into a strike-em-out/throw-em-out double play.

Both bullpens came into play in the eighth. After Burnett walked Jacoby Ellsbury on four pitches, the last his 118th of the night, Joe Girardi brought in Phil Hughes to get the last out of the top of the eighth. With Beckett already at 115 pitches, Terry Francona went straight to his pen and Hideki Okajima in the bottom of the inning.

Hughes, Rivera, Alfredo Aceves, Brian Bruney, and Phil Coke combined to keep the Red Sox from scoring for 7 1/3 innings after Burnett left the game. Comined, they allowed just three singles and two walks while striking out eight. Aceves did the bulk of the work, striking out three in three scoreless innings and throwing 73 percent of his 37 pitches for strikes.

The Boston pen was nearly as good. Okajima, Daniel Bard, Ramon Ramirez, Jonathan Papelbon, Manny Delcarmen, and Takashi Saito combined for six scoreless innings allowing just one hit, but walking five against just four strikeouts. In the bottom of the 14th, Francona turned to the last man in his pen, 23-year-old Japanese rookie Junichi Tazawa, who thus made his major league debut. The Yankees sandwiched singles by Jorge Posada and Cano between a pair of hard outs, but Tazawa won an eight-pitch battle with Cabrera (which included a ball that was roughly an inch foul down the right-field line) to strikeout Melky swinging and push the game into the 15th.

After Coke’s ten-pitch top of the 15th, Tazawa returned to the mound and was greeted by another single, this one by Jeter. Johnny Damon failed to bunt Jeter over, fouling out to Victor Martinez on his second attempt, and Mark Teixeira struck out on four pitches. That brought Alex Rodriguez to the plate with two outs. Rodriguez had already come to the plate thrice in the game with two outs and a chance to end the game on one swing. The first time he reached on an infield single and stole second, but was stranded. The next time he struck out. The last he flied out to left. Facing Tazawa, Rodriguez took three pitches to get ahead 2-1 then broke his not-quite-career-long homerless streak by crushing the 2-1 pitch into the visiting bullpen, ending five and a half hours of scoreless baseball.

Welcome to the big leagues, kid. Yankees win, 2-0.

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