Baseball Toaster was unplugged on February 4, 2009.
It had all the makings of another frustrating game for the Yankees. They couldn't come up with a timely hit and the Pirates kept tacking on runs. Not only that, but when the Yankees did hit the ball hard it tended to be directly at a Pittsburgh defender. The Pirates boast a slick defensive infield, and they strutted their stuff all evening long. But with a little bit of luck (in the form of a missed call that would have ended the game in the ninth, as well as a ball that hit Russ Johnson in the tenth), the Yankees finally earned a come-from-behind victory, as Jason Giambi's moonshot off of Jose Mesa sent Yankee fans to bed with a smile on their face. The final was 7-5, and the Bombers didn't lose ground to the Orioles and the Red Sox, who both won as well.
Giambi couldn't catch up to southpaw Mike Gonzalez's gas in the eighth inning, but Mesa couldn't sneak the heater past him in the tenth. I called Cliff a few minutes after the game ended and he said something to the effect that Jose Mesa is good for what ails ya. Amen to that, brother. The Yanks pounded out fifteen hits in all. Kevin Brown had to leave the game due to back spasms, and Tanyon Sturtze was roughed up again, but Mariano Rivera dominated the Pirates for two innings, lowering his season earned run average to 1.09 in the process. After a one-two-three ninth, Rivera clapped his hands and encouraged his team in the dugout.
With Gary Sheffield on first and two out, Alex Rodriguez came to the plate. The Yanks trailed by one run. Rodriguez missed a room service fastball with the count 1-1, and I thought that might be the game right there. Man, was it ever a fat pitch. As much as I think the notion of Rodriguez as a choker is nuts, I admit that in a tight situation I don't have the same confidence in him that I do with, say Sheffield. Nevertheless, Rodriguez was patient, and eventually muscled a good fastball that was bearing in on his hands into center for a single. Jorge Posada followed and laced a line drive into right, which tied the game.
After Tino Martinez walked to lead off the bottom of the tenth, Russ Johnson came into the game as a pinch-runner. Increasingly disgruntled left fielder Tony Womack, who replaced Ruben Sierra in left an inning earlier, was set to sacrifice him to second. After several pitches the Pirates called a pitch-out. Johnson was running. Hung up, he retreated to first. But the throw hit him and he made it back safely. At that point I turned to Emily and said, "There is just too much going right for them tonight to lose this one." Fortunately, I was right, and I couldn't be happier for Giambi, who absolutely crushed the ball into the upper deck, momentarily turning the jeers to cheers. After he was mobbed at home plate, Bernie Williams, Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez all took the time to not only hug Giambi, but give him some words of encouragment too. Good for the Big Lug. And kudos to the whole team.
Especially since tonight's match-up could be special.
Ain't We Great?
As expected, the Yankees announced their plans for a new stadium yesterday. George Steinbrenner even suggested that his son-in-law Steve Swindal will run the show when he's finished.
My one pet peeve with middle-aged ballparks is the gigantic foul area, and this doesn't look to be changing. Every place should resemble Fenway in that regard.
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A big Amen to that - man, I was squirming in my chair, begging Jason to hit a least a scratch single - single my ass- what a monumental blast - like Mel Allen used to say - 'that's a Ballantyne Blast"...
"After Wednesday's game, the Yankees optioned infielder Andy Phillips to Triple-A Columbus. They will recall outfielder Bubba Crosby before Thursday's game."
Possible preparations for a Womack trade?
By the way, has anyone heard rumors that the Yanks are shopping Sheff? I don;t like the sound of that.
This comes on the heels of Murcerism #1,256 last night:
"With those 8 RBIs, Jason Bay became the only Canadian with the most RBIs in one game."
I'm not even sure why that doesn't make sense but I'm sure it doesn't.
And odds are the rookie would have a better glove to boot. Or not boot, in this case.
As to Womack, wow, that Verducci article was brutal. I knew his numbers were bad, but not historically bad. Hopefully someone somewhere'll want him.
My one pet peeve with middle-aged ballparks is the gigantic foul area, and this doesn't look to be changing. Every place should resemble Fenway in that regard. "
The old (pre-1976) stadium had even more room behind the plate, and even after renovation the team has removed foul territory to put in extra seats.
As for the overall design of the new park, I like the look of the exterior, as well as some of the interior decoration (we'll see if these really come to pass). But, and this is related to my comment about foul territory, I am rather disappointed that the dimensions will replicate the current pseudo-symmetrical configuration. Even in 1976 LF was 387, LFC was 430, and CF was 417. I was hoping we would see a return at least in part to the Death Valley days--give me at least 415 in LCF. No, they want to reproduce the dimensions that Winfield built.
Also, it is a shame to lose the true three deck arrangement, since the stadium was the first three tiered park in the country. I guess that is probably inevitable given the need for luxury boxes, the elimination of seats, and the desire to move fans "closer" into the first deck.
Womack is getting traded not a matter of where but when. The taker is definitely the Padres. The Padres are stupid for doing it? Well, what choice do they have? 2b base around the league is a very scarce commodity. The talent is thin and losing Loretta was a big blow. Loretta is out with his injury for some time and Womack is a proven 2b in the NL...unfortunately not the AL. So the Padres will be a perfect match. Now its a matter of when it will happen and who get back in return. The Yanks should be careful with this trade. They have the leverage because they have someone that someone else wants for a change. I personally am not impressed with the Womack for Roberts trade talk. You are talking about a null trade. Roberts was notorious for his basestealing in last year ALCS, but the guy has hammy problems all the time which was evident with his Dodger days last year. If you are getting Roberts for the CF capabilities, I rather have Bubba out there. He needs some playing time and is the same quality as Roberts without the hammy risk. I say the yanks unload womack to the Padres with money to cover the 2nd year of his contract for a minor leage prospect. Cut your losses and get something good out of the deal. By the way they have sent down Phillips last night and brought up Bubba, it looks like they are definitely making a move soon.
The Sporting Brews
The Sporting Brews
It may be difficult to separate the building from the events that occured within it, but on its own, the building is not as engaging as SBC, Wrigley, Dodger Stadium, Safeco, or Kaufmann. The only stadiums I have been to that are worse are (or were, in one case) the Vet and Shea.
Sorry to think the unthinkable, but has anyone heard anything from Steinbrenner about naming rights?
I hope that Verducci is wrong about Giambi.
I hope that Verducci is wrong about Giambi.
"Giambi cannot field, he cannot throw, he cannot run, he cannot hit with power, he cannot hit the ball to the opposite field. " Kind of touches all the bases, doesn't it?
" I had a friggin earpiece in my ear with the game on at my wedding 24 years later!!"
Was that YOU? You did give me one helluva beating, but I probably deserved it.
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