This is as entertaining of a finish to the baseball season as I can remember.
From the looks of it, I'm not alone in my opinion: former Mets GM Steve Phillips seemed positively exuberant about several races in his weekly ESPN chat earlier this morning. As I know well, this is the sort of time when fans of a contending team get downright desperate for wins. The Yankees have, for the most part, breezed into the playoffs since 1996, and this time around has proved to be a bit more nerve-wracking.
-Last night, the Yanks loaded the bases with no out in the fifth, scoring two to tie the game. Chien-Ming Wang got an enormous number of comebackers with his powerful sinker, and Bubba Crosby hit his first homer of the season to win the game in the bottom of the ninth.
-Sunday was a heartbreaker for the men in pinstripes, as shaky defense, bad luck (starter Jaret Wright was hit by a broken bat), and one big run allowed by Alan Embree in the 8th cost the Yankees a chance at the series sweep.
-On Saturday, the Yankees needed every single diving catch they got to preserve a 1-0 lead behind surprising acquisition Shawn Chacon.
-Friday? That might take a little more time. The following is a recap of the contest, a microcosm of the insanity that is September baseball.
Friday
4:15 PM Pacific: Nice start for the Yanks. Jason Giambi takes the Dave Bush pitch for a double off the scoreboard, scoring MVP candidate Alex Rodriguez, who can help his team just by drawing a base on balls.
4:27: Uh-oh, looks like we're seeing the Dr. Jekyll side of Randy Johnson. After hitting Reed Johnson, the Yankee lefty walks light hitting Frank Menechino. This set up slugger Vernon Wells, who smacks a homer to left. 3-1, Toronto. I have to admit, both pitchers are getting very narrow strike zones so far.
4:41: Offense arrives from an unlikely source. After a Robinson Cano double, backup catcher John Flaherty (whose average rose to .169 after the game) smokes a double to score the rookie second baseman. Soon afterward, Derek Jeter is hit by a pitch on his elbow, but looks all right.
4:52: Well, this has New York Post cover story written all over it. A 2-2 pitch missed inside, but Johnson's pent-up frustration from previous close calls boiled over here, leading to his ejection. I'm more than a bit peeved at umpire Fieldin Culbreth myself. The not-so-nice words exchanged by Johnson and Culbreth were so audible that the announcers concluded: "We don't really need to explain what just happened here." Note to self while trying to stave off an attack of nerves: more announcers should use the word 'therein' like these Rogers SportsNet guys from Toronto.
5:00: Now that the dust has settled, Scott Proctor has come on in relief and gets the first batter to pop out with his initial pitch. Not bad for a guy who once walked in a run to lose a game.
5:04: How many times has Jason Giambi walked after being down in the count 0-2? This must be some kind of record. As the play-by-play man says, "That's the last thing you want to do."
5:08: It's Japanese Night at Rogers Centre, and Matsui pulls a pitch up the middle. For some reason, the Yankees hit and run with Giambi, which is the only reason he gets to third.
5:10: Cano has been white hot recently, which is reminiscent of a stretch he had at the beginning of the season. Just yesterday, he hit a grand slam against Tampa Bay. Here, he rewards my father for picking him up in his roto league, lining a pitch over the right field wall for three runs.
5:13: There must be a full moon or something tonight. John Flaherty now has two hits in the game, both for extra bases...and this one is just his second homer on the year. With that, Pete Walker enters the game, and Bush (who had lately been effective) has only a brief outing.
5:23: Proctor allows a single to the tough Shea Hillenbrand, but gets Aaron Hill out on a drive to the warning track. Proctor completes the inning by striking out Corey Koskie on a high heater; I'm sure Koskie can't wait to redeem himself next season.
5:30: The game doesn't get any better for Koskie, who lets Jeter's grounder get under his glove for a slow double, close to being a foul ball. Walker then receives a rude welcome to the game by Rodriguez, who hits a no doubt two-run shot to center field. Giambi walks amid chants of "Steroids!" and Sheffield singles, chasing Walker from the contest as well.
5:37: Enter Brandon League, who can't be faulted for allowing Matsui's run-scoring fielder's choice. Cano's second bomb of the game, however, can safely be charged to him. All of a sudden, it's 11-3 New York.
5:57: After two uneventful half-innings, the Blue Jays score a run on a Reed Johnson double, wild pitch, and (former Yankee) prospect John-Ford Griffin's RBI groundout. Still, what's one run in this game? Right?
6:17: Koskie gets on the board, hitting a chopper over the mound for a single, followed by a Gabe Gross double and Russ Adams walk. Proctor's allowing too many baserunners for my taste, and Joe Torre agrees.
6:27: Felix Rodriguez may have great stuff, but isn't fooling anyone here, allowing all three men to score with Reed Johnson's double. It's amazing how Tim Wakefield can consistently retire batters with a knuckler in the 50 mph range, and Rodriguez's blazing fastball gets hit around. Now it's an 11-7 lead for the Yankees.
6:47: As Ted Robinson would say, a valiant effort but no pay for the Yankees offense in the 7th.
6:54: Felix Rodriguez is at it again, surrendering a Hillenbrand single and Aaron Hill double.
6:57: Former Boston reliever Alan Embree attempts to put out the fire, but only makes matters worse. The Toronto offense has become unstoppable, and two more hits (by Gabe Gross and Scrabble hero Gregg Zaun) bring the Jays within a single run of tying this ballgame.
6:59: Last outing, Yankee reliever Tanyon Sturtze hit the only batter he faced. I can't help but be a little apprehensive as their former master of the seventh inning begins to pitch. But for the moment, he allows the Yanks to escape the 7th with their lead and what's left of their pride.
7:13: Looks like the Yanks have given up on padding their lead against former Angel Scott Schoeneweis, but Sturtze allows nothing but an infield single in the bottom of the 8th. Luckily for him, he was able to strand a runner on second with Hill's playable fly ball to center field.
7:22: Man, Derek Jeter looks cool even when he's called out on strikes.
7:26: Well, after all this, the Yankees have to use their closer. Mariano Rivera is on, and he has no margin for error against some decent hitters. On a payoff pitch, Koskie hits one sharply to center, but Bubba Crosby is able to get there to retire him. After Gross grounds out, Zaun extends the inning with a long at-bat concluded by a single rolling into right. Finally, Rivera induces the slow ground ball to Cano, and Jeter receives the ball at second to end the game before high fiving his second baseman. As even the home team announcers conceded, the fans had definitely gotten their money's worth.
baseball
From the looks of it, I'm not alone in my opinion: former Mets GM Steve Phillips seemed positively exuberant about several races in his weekly ESPN chat earlier this morning. As I know well, this is the sort of time when fans of a contending team get downright desperate for wins. The Yankees have, for the most part, breezed into the playoffs since 1996, and this time around has proved to be a bit more nerve-wracking.
-Last night, the Yanks loaded the bases with no out in the fifth, scoring two to tie the game. Chien-Ming Wang got an enormous number of comebackers with his powerful sinker, and Bubba Crosby hit his first homer of the season to win the game in the bottom of the ninth.
-Sunday was a heartbreaker for the men in pinstripes, as shaky defense, bad luck (starter Jaret Wright was hit by a broken bat), and one big run allowed by Alan Embree in the 8th cost the Yankees a chance at the series sweep.
-On Saturday, the Yankees needed every single diving catch they got to preserve a 1-0 lead behind surprising acquisition Shawn Chacon.
-Friday? That might take a little more time. The following is a recap of the contest, a microcosm of the insanity that is September baseball.
Friday
4:15 PM Pacific: Nice start for the Yanks. Jason Giambi takes the Dave Bush pitch for a double off the scoreboard, scoring MVP candidate Alex Rodriguez, who can help his team just by drawing a base on balls.
4:27: Uh-oh, looks like we're seeing the Dr. Jekyll side of Randy Johnson. After hitting Reed Johnson, the Yankee lefty walks light hitting Frank Menechino. This set up slugger Vernon Wells, who smacks a homer to left. 3-1, Toronto. I have to admit, both pitchers are getting very narrow strike zones so far.
4:41: Offense arrives from an unlikely source. After a Robinson Cano double, backup catcher John Flaherty (whose average rose to .169 after the game) smokes a double to score the rookie second baseman. Soon afterward, Derek Jeter is hit by a pitch on his elbow, but looks all right.
4:52: Well, this has New York Post cover story written all over it. A 2-2 pitch missed inside, but Johnson's pent-up frustration from previous close calls boiled over here, leading to his ejection. I'm more than a bit peeved at umpire Fieldin Culbreth myself. The not-so-nice words exchanged by Johnson and Culbreth were so audible that the announcers concluded: "We don't really need to explain what just happened here." Note to self while trying to stave off an attack of nerves: more announcers should use the word 'therein' like these Rogers SportsNet guys from Toronto.
5:00: Now that the dust has settled, Scott Proctor has come on in relief and gets the first batter to pop out with his initial pitch. Not bad for a guy who once walked in a run to lose a game.
5:04: How many times has Jason Giambi walked after being down in the count 0-2? This must be some kind of record. As the play-by-play man says, "That's the last thing you want to do."
5:08: It's Japanese Night at Rogers Centre, and Matsui pulls a pitch up the middle. For some reason, the Yankees hit and run with Giambi, which is the only reason he gets to third.
5:10: Cano has been white hot recently, which is reminiscent of a stretch he had at the beginning of the season. Just yesterday, he hit a grand slam against Tampa Bay. Here, he rewards my father for picking him up in his roto league, lining a pitch over the right field wall for three runs.
5:13: There must be a full moon or something tonight. John Flaherty now has two hits in the game, both for extra bases...and this one is just his second homer on the year. With that, Pete Walker enters the game, and Bush (who had lately been effective) has only a brief outing.
5:23: Proctor allows a single to the tough Shea Hillenbrand, but gets Aaron Hill out on a drive to the warning track. Proctor completes the inning by striking out Corey Koskie on a high heater; I'm sure Koskie can't wait to redeem himself next season.
5:30: The game doesn't get any better for Koskie, who lets Jeter's grounder get under his glove for a slow double, close to being a foul ball. Walker then receives a rude welcome to the game by Rodriguez, who hits a no doubt two-run shot to center field. Giambi walks amid chants of "Steroids!" and Sheffield singles, chasing Walker from the contest as well.
5:37: Enter Brandon League, who can't be faulted for allowing Matsui's run-scoring fielder's choice. Cano's second bomb of the game, however, can safely be charged to him. All of a sudden, it's 11-3 New York.
5:57: After two uneventful half-innings, the Blue Jays score a run on a Reed Johnson double, wild pitch, and (former Yankee) prospect John-Ford Griffin's RBI groundout. Still, what's one run in this game? Right?
6:17: Koskie gets on the board, hitting a chopper over the mound for a single, followed by a Gabe Gross double and Russ Adams walk. Proctor's allowing too many baserunners for my taste, and Joe Torre agrees.
6:27: Felix Rodriguez may have great stuff, but isn't fooling anyone here, allowing all three men to score with Reed Johnson's double. It's amazing how Tim Wakefield can consistently retire batters with a knuckler in the 50 mph range, and Rodriguez's blazing fastball gets hit around. Now it's an 11-7 lead for the Yankees.
6:47: As Ted Robinson would say, a valiant effort but no pay for the Yankees offense in the 7th.
6:54: Felix Rodriguez is at it again, surrendering a Hillenbrand single and Aaron Hill double.
6:57: Former Boston reliever Alan Embree attempts to put out the fire, but only makes matters worse. The Toronto offense has become unstoppable, and two more hits (by Gabe Gross and Scrabble hero Gregg Zaun) bring the Jays within a single run of tying this ballgame.
6:59: Last outing, Yankee reliever Tanyon Sturtze hit the only batter he faced. I can't help but be a little apprehensive as their former master of the seventh inning begins to pitch. But for the moment, he allows the Yanks to escape the 7th with their lead and what's left of their pride.
7:13: Looks like the Yanks have given up on padding their lead against former Angel Scott Schoeneweis, but Sturtze allows nothing but an infield single in the bottom of the 8th. Luckily for him, he was able to strand a runner on second with Hill's playable fly ball to center field.
7:22: Man, Derek Jeter looks cool even when he's called out on strikes.
7:26: Well, after all this, the Yankees have to use their closer. Mariano Rivera is on, and he has no margin for error against some decent hitters. On a payoff pitch, Koskie hits one sharply to center, but Bubba Crosby is able to get there to retire him. After Gross grounds out, Zaun extends the inning with a long at-bat concluded by a single rolling into right. Finally, Rivera induces the slow ground ball to Cano, and Jeter receives the ball at second to end the game before high fiving his second baseman. As even the home team announcers conceded, the fans had definitely gotten their money's worth.
baseball
posted by Alex at 2:45 PM
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