***YANKS LOSE, 4-3***
Friday, the Yanks hit everything that came near home plate and then Saturday, they couldn't even hit home plate. In between steak sandwiches, Pina Coladas, and, in a minor concession to healthy eating, a leaf of lettuce, Paul O'Neil made an excellent point yesterday. Without A-Rod, the whole dynamic of the Yankee lineup changes. When he's playing, it always seems as though they try to get A-Rod up at the plate in a critical point in the game. He probably doesn't perform any better or worse than anyone else in those situations, but the threat of him coming to bat seems to put extra pressure on the opposing team.
When you get two men on with no outs and 3-4-5 hitters due up, you have to think the Yanks chances of tying or winning the game are pretty good. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way. The only reason they got one run, was because Brett Gardner managed to steal third while Granderson was striking out. He was then able to score when Teixeira hit an easy fly to right center. Cano, who had been hitting rockets all afternoon, bounced a soft ground ball to the infield -- game over.
If you listen to Michael Kay, the highlight of the Yankee effort came when David Robertson struck out his 9th batter in a row with the bases loaded. The fact that he LOADS bases all the time didn't seem to come up. When your team averages over 5 runs per game, and your pitching staff only gives up 4 runs, don't you think you should be winning these games? So now the Yanks are 3 games back of the Red Sox and are facing the A's best pitcher today.
***AROUND THE LEAGUE***
The Sox dealt the Mariners their 14th straight defeat. Dwight Perry says with their record, you can be sure the Mariners aren't taking steroids. I think it's time to start. They may still lose, but they'll be able to get on and off the field faster. That's gotta count for something.
The Pirates have now lost 3 in a row and have slid back to third place, one behind Milwaukee and St. Louis. No one in the NL Central is doing that well. The first place team has a .530 winning percentage. That's the same situation as in the AL Central.
If baseball realigns the divisions, supposedly to separate the powerhouses in the East, won't this also destroy whatever hopes the current Central teams have? Move the Yankees to the Central division and the Tigers, instead of leading their division by a game, will suddenly find themselves 6 games back. I'm sure Jim Leland is okay with that.
Kansas City leads the American League in stolen bases with 101. Do you know who is second? Yep, it's the "Bronx Bombers" with 100. I'm not sure I understand this.
As we get closer to the trade deadline, the rumors get more and more outrageous. Here are some names that are being thrown around when the Yanks are involved: Alfonso Soriano, Marcus Thames, Melky Cabrera and Ian Kennedy. Sound familiar? I don't think any of this is for real, but you never know. While we're at it, why don't we sign Kei Igawa to an extension?
***THEY SAID IT***
"Denver Nuggets guard Ty Lawson asked on Twitter if locked-out NBA players can apply for unemployment. Here's a nightmare for employment counselors — trying to find work for guys who didn't finish school and are used to earning $300,000 per week." -- Brad Dickson
I can see this happening: "Yes, I think I have something over at Burger King...oh wait, never mind."
"New research adds DNA evidence to the theory that Neanderthals and humans started interbreeding between 50,000 and 80,000 years ago. In related news, Ben Roethlisberger was married today" --Janice Hough
"New York 17, Oakland 7. Uh, I know I’ve heard talk of a deal. But how did I miss the start of the NFL preseason?" -- Janice, again
CP-
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