February 18, 2006
The Big Difference
The moves that saved the Yankees from oblivion last year were the acquisitions of Aaron Small and Shawn Chacon. Forgotten by the rest of the game, those two managed to shore up a devastated rotation for just long enough to make it into the playoffs.
Of the two, Chacon is the most likely to replicate his success last year, which is a bit of a shame for Small. A marginal journeyman for 16 years, he only got called up to the big team last season because of all the injuries and ineffectiveness that plagued it. But he took full advantage of that opportunity, somehow pitching well enough for 10 wins and a 3.20 ERA. The New York Times has a sweet human-interest column on him today.
February 17, 2006
Drama in the Outfield
In lieu of Veronica Mars, I'll take my soap opera plots in pinstriped form.
Jorge Posada and Randy Johnson are starting an awkward courtship in camp, after Johnson demanded to work only with with backup John Flaherty last year.
Posada said that before the season begins, he is going to try to talk to Johnson whenever possible, hopefully connecting in ways that the two couldn't in Johnson's first year in pinstripes.
"I want to be out there [on the field] on a consistent basis," Posada said. "And obviously, I want to be out there when he pitches.
"We've just got to be there for each other. That's the main thing," Posada said. "I am going to be there for him, and I expect that he's going to be there for me."
Aaaaw.
In other news, poor Derek Jeter tried to defend the World Baseball Classic and his decision to play in it only one day after The Boss expressed his doubts about the whole thing.
Would Steinbrenner ever recover after a WBC-related injury to a Yankee? Will new pitching coach Ron Guidry be okay with Mel Stottlemeyer acting as a Spring Training instructor? And what the hell is Scott Erickson doing here? Tune in next time to As the Glove Turns...
February 16, 2006
Spring at last
Big Unit Starts Camp With Big Smile...
...Small children run away in fear.
Okay, that's not very nice. Randy Johnson may not be pretty, but he was the Yankees' best pitcher last year. And heck, it's Spring Training! Pitchers and catchers have reported, and all is fresh and new again. Well, except for Carl Pavano's back. But I'll ignore that for now and choose to believe, as I do every year, that this has the potential to be a great season. Those 162 games are stretched out ahead like a great green carpet, with the postseason an impossible distance ahead. Last year, it looked like the Yankees were out of it by the end of April, but they somehow scrambled back. I have a hard time calling that team "scrappy", but they sure were...something. Anyway, the winter this time around was a calmer, more pleasant one than last year's, and I'm hoping the team's performance reflects it.
So to Jorge and Bernie and A-Rod and the rest, good luck this year. May youngsters like Wang and Cano live up to their promise, and the wrinkled veterans squeeze one more solid season out of their aging bodies. May the front office be clever and sensible, and the management hold on to some semblance of sanity. As a Yankee fan, there's not much more I can hope for.
January 16, 2006
December 29, 2005
I Missed You So
As I flipped through my RSS feeds today, look what I found at the magnificent Baseball Toaster- an interview with John C. McGinley, otherwise known as Dr. Cox on Scrubs. And yes, he's a Yankees fan. *grins*
But the thing isn't all baseball talk- there's also an infuriating explanation of why my favorite hospital comedy's premiere has been delayed until next Tuesday. Read on for the incredibly stupid details.
Anyway, I have a gigantic Chanukah party to prepare for, so off I go. :)
December 12, 2005
Return of the Rocket
The Yankees and Red Sox are both circling tentatively around Roger Clemens, who's free to negotiate with anyone since the Astros didn't offer him arbitration, and the possibilities are intriguing.
Least interesting, of course, is if Clemens retires. He'll pitch in the World Baseball Classic then settle down and wait five years to be easily inducted into the Hall of Fame. Another option is that he'll simply wait until May, when he's allowed to negotiate with the Astros again, and join the team for the rest of the season, saving himself some wear and tear so maybe he won't collapse in September and October, as he did this year.
Then comes the really fun stuff. Clemens left Boston, then his first and only team, almost ten years ago amid bitter recriminations and accusations that he'd gotten lazy in the last few years of his contract. (Which were pretty inaccurate- he'd gotten injured, screwed by his defense, and angry at the front office, but not really lazy.) It's still considered one of the nastiest episodes in franchise history, and fans there seem to be split between those who thought Roger was mistreated and those who think the fat bum deserved everything he got. :D Ah, sports theatrics.
So imagine the hoopla if ten years, 4 Cy Youngs, and 2 World Championships later, and after having easily the lowest ERA in baseball last year, Clemens came back to the town that let him go after thirteen years of service, thinking he was in "the twilight of his career." I think a few sports columnists' heads might explode. And if he succeeded? The subsequent "Rajah"-worship would just be hilarious. So really, there's no downside to this scenario. Except...well, I'm a Yankees fan. Luckily, you can always trust Big George to sniff around any big free agent, even in his old age.
To the surprise of absolutely no one, the Yankees have made overtures to Clemens, as well. Really, you can't go hugely wrong with him- he's a fantastic pitcher who only requires a one-year commitment. And even though the rotation is the one place where the Yanks have too much depth, Clemens will easily be at least the #2 pitcher in the setup they have now. New York has its appeal for him, as well- it's the town that gave him his World Series rings, and where his (insane) elder statesman's role was cemented. He had a very good working relationship with Joe Torre and got along well with his teammates, too.
Of course, his very favorite Yankees teammate is playing for the Astros now. So really, who can say what will happen? The best story of the offseason is the guy who can't make up his mind.
December 09, 2005
Cash Lays Down the Law
If anyone had any doubts that Brian Cashman was really taking over Yankee operations this winter, they might want to consider resting at ease. This offseason is already looking about 10 times smarter than last year's, just by virtue of the fact that the team has passed on all the mediocre free agents available and chosen to maintain flexibility instead, even if it means not filling in all the holes in the roster. Better to leave money lying around for problem-solving than to overpay for poor solutions to those problems.
So in lieu of getting new players, the Yankees have been shedding less-than-satisfactory ones like an old skin. John Flaherty, the backup catcher who couldn't hit to save his life? Gone. Kevin Brown, whose most memorable achievement as a Yankee was breaking his hand by punching a wall? Sayonara. Ruben Sierra, Matt Lawton, and Alan Embree? See ya. Surely we can build a better bench than that.
But most delightful of all- Tony Womack, quite possibly the worst full-time player in major league baseball? The offensive black hole who inexplicably stayed in the lineup for months on end? Gone. And not just gone, but traded to the Reds in exchange for two minor leaguers who might actually contribute someday. This is a classic Cashman deal, the magic trick, the deal so one-sided you can't even comprehend how the other GM was talked into it. Our man is back in the saddle, and while it might take a couple of years for him to get rid of the leftovers from winters past, he looks to be making the best of the situation he has now.
November 29, 2005
C'mon, Joe
Joe Torre's evidently thought about moving either Derek Jeter or Alex Rodriguez to center field to fill in the nasty defensive hole the Yankees have there now that Bernie Williams has aged past the point of no return.
To which I say, "Thought about it? Thought about it? DOOO EEET!"
Seriously- move Jeter to center, get A-Rod back in the shortstop hole, and find some random third-baseman. It'll be brilliant.
Everybody and their mother knows that Gold Glove or no Gold Glove, Jeter's shortstop defense is average at best, and it only managed to scale to those lofty heights in the past couple of years. But you know what two aspects of Jeter's defense have been great for as long as I've been paying attention? One is a factor that manages to seep into every aspect of his game- his general baseball smarts, alertness, and (I'm gagging as I say this), hustle. That's transferable to any position. The second is more important here- he's always been uncannily good at pedalling backwards to track fly balls into short left-center field. On top of that, he's still a good runner with a solid arm. Tell me how that doesn't scream, "potential center fielder" to you. Sure, it might be a sting to the team captain's ego to have to make the move while A-Rod takes his place, but center isn't exactly a bad position. And the team really needs it. Just try it out in spring training, Joe. Please?
October 28, 2005
Wake Me Up For Spring Training
Brian Cashman is back, and armed with a newly assertive attitude that's bringing tears of joy to this Yankee fan's eyes. For years we've watched the bickering between the New York and Tampa factions of the front office, and wondered who was making the good decisions and who was making the bad ones. Cashman, evidently, was just as tired of being forced to defend moves he didn't want to make as the fan base was of watching it happen. So in his contract negotiations, he pretty much laid down the law anew:
"I'm the general manager, and everybody within the baseball operations department reports to me."
Damn straight, Cash. Now, of course, you have to wonder if the Tampa mafia has actually been helping the team more than hurting it. What if the mystery troika of Billy Connors, Bill Emslie and Damon Oppenheimer was actually making the GM look good? It's possible, I guess, but somehow I doubt it. After all, it's Cashman's idea to bring Gene Michael back into the fold.
Who's Gene Michael, you may ask? Only the architect of the late-90s Yankee dynasty. He's fallen out of Steinbrenner's favor of late, so having him take a major role again can only be for the good. As Cashman said:
"We have the most money ... that's no secret. If we can combine that with the best decision-making process on a consistent basis, then God help the rest of baseball."
Heck yeah. Now that's what I want to hear.
History in Dialogue
The Pinstriped Bible's Steve Goldman on ignoring evidence:
"Not to trivialize a tragic moment in American history, but this reminds me of the way Douglas MacArthur botched the Korean War. MacArthur has chased the North Koreans back into their own territory, and he's heading up towards the border with China. As he gets closer, his subordinates keep running in with messages like:
COLONEL: General, we've captured some more Chinese. It's the fifth group today.
MACARTHUR: Yes, I know. Intelligence tells me that they're tourists.
COLONEL Tourists?
MACARTHUR: Indeed. Ma and Pa Peking, taking the kiddies out for a mountain hike.
COLONEL: Sir, these "tourists" have Russian-made machine guns strapped to their chests.
MACARTHUR: Yes, they function in much the same way as our Kodak Brownie cameras! Charming, isn't it?
COLONEL: We think they're organizing a major insurgency.
MACARTHUR: Yes, Schmidlap! An insurgency … of tourists!
COLONEL: My god, you've gone stark raving mad.
MACARTHUR: Charming, isn't it? Bdeep! Bdeep! Bdeep!
… And we ended up getting kicked all the way back down the Korean peninsula, at the cost of many American lives."
***
Goldman is the best Yankees columnist around, bar none. With his honesty, style, and erudition, it's hard to believe he works for the YES Network, but there it is. If you want a guy who can reference Homer, Voltaire, and Benjamin Franklin in the space of one blog entry while performing effective baseball analysis, using statistics, and snarking at his reader mail, Goldman's your guy.
October 13, 2005
What Would Jeter Do?
So Nomar Garciappara rescued two women from drowning in Boston Harbor. How does Baseball Primer react? By asking what Jeter would do. Naturally he would have walked on water to save the two. From there, the discussion only gets more loopy and hilarious- what would Ted Kennedy do? What would Mark McGwire do? The BP hive mind is in top form. Check it out.
October 10, 2005
Yankee Blue
&^*%& *$%&*# ^(*% ($*#!!!!
NOTE: The administrator of this blog has been sedated and will return to her writing duties once her baseball-induced psychosis has been relieved. Thank you, and good night.
October 01, 2005
Sweet Victory
After their weakest, wackiest season since the bad old days of the early 90s, the Yankees have managed to clinch their 8th straight AL East title and a guaranteed spot in the playoffs. The Red Sox and Indians must now battle it out for the Wild Card, but frankly, I don't give a crap who wins.
The only possible downside to this victory is that Steinbrenner and his Tampa "brain trust" (please be assured I'm imbuing those two words with all the irony they can bear) will take it as a sign that last winter was a good one, when it was actually downright awful. This year hasn't been a victory so much as a lesson in what not to do in the offseason. Only some shrewd and downright lucky in-season moves, like the acquisitons of pitchers Shawn Chacon and Aaron Small, saved the Yankees from ignominy. Adversity brought out the best in in the front office, and I do have to compliment them for showing some mental flexibility in the face of the tremendous problems winter created.
Anyway, once the playoffs start the old anxieties- the lack of middle relief, the patched-up rotation, the gaps in the lineup and defense- will return. But after their horrible start to the season, who would have thought the Yanks would play even one game with the division title in hand? Ah, baseball. The only game that's crazy enough for me.
August 22, 2005
Something With Balls
There's a joke to be had from the fact that MLB's Comeback Player of the Year Award is being sponsored by Viagra. I'm just not sure what it is.
August 07, 2005
Simple Things
In an act of intellectual masochism, I was about to sit down and translate Honor� de Balzac's P�re Goriot from French to English myself when I came to an interesting realization: The French copy of the book I'd requested on interlibrary loan was, in fact, in English.
*kicks things*
How hard can it be to give me a copy of this book in French so I can make myself suffer for hours on end?
***
Anyway, the countdown to the Great Computer Switch has begun. My new laptop should be coming in four to eight days, and I've already got a shiny new lock and carrying case to go with it. The fun part will be trying to get all the software, connections, and settings I've accumulated in two years of using this computer into the new one. If by fun what's meant is "hours of the mind-numbing tedium of watching installation progress bars."
Other than that, life goes on as before. I'm reading a lot- The Diamond Age: or, A Young Lady's Illustrated Primer, by Neal Stephenson; Ma Rainey's Black Bottom and Two Trains Running, by August Wilson; and Cards on the Table and After the Funeral, by Agatha Christie. The Yankees are being carried by such luminaries as Aaron Small and Shawn Chacon, which says everything you need to know about their playoff chances. And the logistics of my trip to London are still an amorphous haze.
July 20, 2005
Lenses
After weeks of reading Oscar Wilde, Chaim Potok, Agatha Christie, and Philip Roth, I finally said, "Enough with Englishmen and Jews" and deliberately set out to get other kinds of authors in the library today. Naturally, I ended up snatching more than I'll probably be able to read by the due date, but that's okay.
The results of my diversity-oriented haul? A bunch of August Wilson plays, the book of A Little Night Music, and judicious sprinklings of Neal Stephenson, Gabriel Garcia-Marquez, Roger Angell and Yasunari Kawabata. Some sci-fi and baseball essays should be a good mental pick-me-up. Of course, I have to finish Zuckerman Bound first. It's good stuff, but there's only so much Jewishness even I can take.
Taking advantage of a newly widened rush policy, I saw Glengarry Glen Ross last night. To be completely honest, I may or may not post a review. But I will say it was interesting to see a play after seeing the movie adaptation. For some reason, I usually like to go into theatrical productions with as little back information as possible, but if a movie is based on a book I'll try to do the reading first. Just me being strange, I suppose.
Oh, and I knew the Yankees' division lead wouldn't last. But sometimes it stinks being right.
July 19, 2005
Riding High
I realize this isn't likely to last long, and very well might not be true at the end of the season, so I'll just celebrate while I can. With tonight's victory against the Texas Rangers, the Yankees are in first place for the first time since April.
Their rotation is practically nonexistent, there's a gaping hole in center field, and the big bullpen arms are probably going to explode from overwork, but by golly, they've managed to climb to the top of the division again. I love this game.
July 14, 2005
Mooglies
I love you, Jon Stewart, complete ignorance of Harry Potter and all.
Oh, and your set is still ugly.
Love,
Me
ETA- Despite their best efforts to the contrary, the Yankees managed to beat the Red Sox today, thanks to a blown save by Curt "bloody sock" Schilling. Oh, how sweet it would be if the most self-aggrandizing member of that endlessly self-aggrandizing team never quite recovered.
Strange Twinkies
So who's the hottest chick on the Minnesota Twins? Vote now!
Oh, and if your eyeballs shrivel up and fall out of their sockets I'm not taking responsibility. Enjoy!
July 10, 2005
Return of the G
In the past week, Jason Giambi has scored 5 runs on 10 hits, including 2 doubles and 4 home runs. His batting average has been 0.556, his on-base percentage 0.619, and his OPS an outrageous 1.952.
I'd say the man has found his power switch, wouldn't you?
Giambi's latest home run helped the Yankees beat the Indians by a score of 9-5. New York is now only 2.5 games out of first place and 2 games out of the wild card. How incredibly lucky is it that the year the Yankees fall apart is the year the rest of the league pretty much does the same thing? With division leaders like Washington, San Diego, Anaheim, and the White Sox, it feels like anything can happen- even a late-season triumph by the doddering old guard.
That said, the Yanks aren't nearly as doddering as they could have been, and I'm proud of them for that. Maybe they were forced into it by their immense and inflxible payroll, but they've finally overcome their overwhelming phobia of young players from their own system. And the rookies haven't disappointed. Chien-Ming Wang, only 25 years old, has been as close as the team can get to an ace, and this in a rotation that contains Mike Mussina and Randy Johnson. Robinson Cano, an outright baby at 22, has been a welcome relief from the Tony Womack Experience at second base. The latest callup, center fielder Melky Cabrera, has been a mixed bag in his 3-game career, but if he manages to be a bit above average defensively and a bit below average with the bat he'll be a godsend. And he's only 20! Way to make me feel like an underachiever, man.
Am I happy with this Yankee team? No, not really. The awful personnel decisions of this past winter still rankle, the woes of the pitchers who were supposed to be relied on have been extremely frustrating, and watching the worst hitter in baseball (see Womack, Tony) in the lineup night after night was enough to make me scream. But they just won't fall out of contention. They screw up, they miss their chances, they're stuck with some of the most misguided contracts in the league, but they keep on scrapping it out for a playoff spot. And if Giambi really has found his swing again, it'll be like acquiring an MVP midseason for free. So I'll keep on rooting for what passes for my home team. Because I'm a fan, and therefore an idiot, and I can't stop.
June 30, 2005
Shiny New Things
Just downloading a trial of Fireworks makes me want to create all kinds of web pages just so I can put shiny interactive graphics in them. Why should I let a complete ignorance of the workings of Javascript stop me? Man, I'm pathetic.
Anyway, when I'm not making lovely image maps with rollovers at work, I've been doing my usual summer vacation thing- read, exercise, sleep, and on occassion, watch a rerun of Veronica Mars. There's a good chance I'll be seeing As You Like It at Shakespeare in the Park, and I'm already planning my list of shows to see at this year's Fringe Festival.
The Yankees still suck, and will continue to suck. Barring some kind of mind-blowing trade that'll get them a real center fielder and pitching that doesn't stink, that is. Really, it says something when my highest hope is that they'll stop playing Tony "Worst Hitter in the League" Womack, doesn't it?
April 30, 2005
Pollyanna Strikes Again
Okay, I admit it. The Yankees really have sucked this April- the pitching and hitting have both been mostly awful, and the defense has been consistently putrid. But these past few days have been promising. Though the Yankees ended up losing the games, Kevin Brown and Randy Johnson did really well in their last starts. And today, Chien-Ming Wang, who was brought up from the minors to replace the horrid (and injured) Jaret Wright, pitched wonderfully in his major-league debut, and the Yanks actually managed to make their lineup function at the same time as their pitching for the win.
Yes, Mike Mussina still hasn't gotten it together, Jorge Posada is a 33-year-old catcher who isn't hitting, and Bernie Williams looks like he probably won't ever hit again. But Derek Jeter is hitting as well as he ever has, Gary Sheffield and Alex Rodriguez are still chugging along, and Carl Pavano has been a solid bright spot in the rotation. Not all is lost. With more games like yesterday's, these Yanks might even manage a .500 record. :)
April 18, 2005
Skinning the Cat
Well, if the pitching and defense idea doesn't work, having a lineup that absolutely pounds the crap out of everything you throw at it works, too.
Yankees win, 19 to 8.
April 16, 2005
It's Finally True
After years of false taunts, it looks like this season the Yankees really do suck. Somebody get this team some real pitching and defense. Please.
April 05, 2005
Outside Inside
I was walking outside in a short-sleeved T-shirt today. There was actual air touching my arms. Crazy.
And you know what warm weather means? Baseball! The Yankees won their second game in a row against the Red Sox today in thrilling fashion, with Jason Varitek homering off Mariano Rivera in the 9th to tie the game and Derek Jeter doing the same of Keith Foulke in the bottom of the inning for the win. Not a good day to be a closer, but a great day to be a Yankees fan.
*watches as all friends and family members die of boredom*
***
Since midterms are over and finals aren't until May, you'd think I'd be able to put in a few extra shifts at work, but nooo...I have to skip three days of prime work calls this week because I have moot court tomorrow. Remind me why I volunteered to switch from the session on the 20th? All that money, slipping through my fingers. *sniffle*
Anyway, other than eating, drinking, and breathing constitutional law (with an occassional tidbit of Old English on the side) for the next week, I'm waiting for my foreign study application to be processed on the other side of the pond. In related news, I haven't uncrossed my fingers in 4 days. Heaven help me if I don't get accepted- I'll actually have to go through 4 years of dining hall food.
February 25, 2005
Fun Baseball News, Part II
Evidently, Roger Clemens wants to get his first career stolen base. For those of you who don't do the baseball thing, Roger Clemens is a 6 foot-4-inch, 235-pound, 42-year-old man with bad hamstrings.
I'm definitely taping SportsCenter when he tries it.
Sheer Brilliance
You only get to keep a World Series trophy for one year, but if this actually happens, it'll last a good while longer. I think that Derek Jeter Center in downtown Boston has a nice ring to it, don't you?
What I'm listening to today: Dookie, by Green Day
January 03, 2005
Argh!
My favorite baseball team is run by people with all the foresight and self-control of a three-year-old on a sugar high. That is all.
December 20, 2004
Crazy Makes the World Go 'Round
Now this is exactly what New York needs- another certifiably insane pitching ace. With Roger Clemens back in retirement limbo, Kevin Brown hardly pitching like an ace, and David Wells in Boston, we were really lacking in the "crazy man who throws 90 mph" department. But never fear- Pedro Martinez and his former good luck midget are here to save the day, and to make the interminable winter a little more interesting. Thanks, guys.
What I'm reading today: A Study in Scarlet, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
December 11, 2004
Hot Stove Burning
Between the disgrace of the ALCS, Jason Giambi being a complete ass, and the general lack of Soriano and Clemens, I was pretty unhappy with the Yankees of last season. But no matter how stupid they act, I keep coming back in spite of myself. I'm a sad, sad little fangirl.
So I hope you'll excuse my little squeals of joy when I read that Carl Pavano is leaning towards signing with the Yanks. I mean, he's good, he's youngish, and he's not Eric Milton. What more can a team ask for in a free agent pitcher?
As for David Wells- go ahead, Boston. You can have him. Just don't be surprised when his back snaps in two from carrying his gut around all season.
What I'm reading today: Psychology, by Henry Gleitman et al.
November 09, 2004
Back to Baseball
Man, has this been a weird autumn for baseball. The Red Sox won the World Series, Derek "worst shortstop in baseball" Jeter won his first Gold Glove, and now Roger Clemens has won the National League Cy Young Award.
Okay, that last part isn't so weird- Clemens has won so many postseason awards, giving one to him is like a yearly tradition. But dude- the guy was retired. He's 42 years old. And Randy Johnson, who probably deserved the award more, is 41. Gotta love those old guys. So, uh, anyone really think Clemens won't come back to the Astros in January?
***
In other news no one cares about, the cast recording of Parade is really good, even if Carolee Carmello has a mild case of Julia Murney syndrome- lovely timbre but an occassionally nasty bleating vibrato. "The Old Red Hills of Home" and "A Rumblin' and a Rollin'" are especially good.
Some of the orchestrations in the OBC of Les Miserables are frighteningly outdated. But I guess hearing a score again for the first time in 10 years can be startling that way. And the songs are still good, even if Colm Wilkinson made me cringe sometimes. :)
Between the lynching and the persecution and people getting shot left and right, I really have a penchant for depressing musicals, don't I?
What I'm reading today: The Human Body Shop: The Engineering and Marketing of Life, by Andrew Kimbrell
October 27, 2004
Red Sucks
Congratulations to the Boston Red Sox. You've finally won that elusive World Series.
And now, my warning to all Boston Red Sox fans and bandwagon devotees- if I ever hear you talk about that stupid fictitious curse, if I ever hear you whining about the Yankees' payroll when yours is almost as high, if I ever hear the words "Bambino," "Bucky," or "1986" again- I will kick you. Hard, and repeatedly, in the most painful spots I can get to. Because you have officially lost the right to whine.
My God, this is huge. What will half the Boston fan base be without their curse? What will happen to the Boston sportswriting community now that they've lost their easy cliche? What will all of them do next time they don't win, when they've lost their easy excuse for losing?
Hopefully, they'll turn into another team, just like all the others. This year was good for both Boston and New York, I think. Boston can stop whining and New York can stop acting as if its yearly division titles are preordained. Realistically, I think the sportswriters in both cities are too ingrained in their old habits to really change and try to think of new ideas, but by golly, they won't find it so easy to pass them off as truisms anymore.
So congratulations, Boston Red Sox. You won just like the Yankees did- with smart deals, lots of money, and a little bit of luck. So if you spend your victory parade chanting "Yankees Suck," don't be surprised if a few of your fans end up with bruises from yours truly.
October 20, 2004
The Week That Was
My week of vacation involved four shows and a lot of sushi. In other words, it was good. In between California rolls and eel, I saw Movin' Out, Twelve Angry Men, Last Easter, and Avenue Q. So since I need a writing exercise to occupy my mind, I'm going to review them, plus some of the shows I saw in the summer- Assassins, Chicago, Frozen, and I Am My Own Wife. I don't feel so bad about adding spoilers to some of those reviews now since most of the shows in question are closed. Or, you know, Oscar-winning movies. :)
So what did I do when I wasn't watching shows? I hung around the city a lot, so I got to see Curt Schilling and Johnny Damon exiting a building under heavy police protection to get into the team bus. It was the day after Schilling blew his first ALCS start, so he was getting a lot of Bronx cheers. Johnny Damon had his hair tied up in a half-ponytail like a girl. Ah, good times. (As I write the Yankees are losing Game 7 8-1. So let me keep my happy memories.)
Other than that, I slept a lot. And I ate even more. After a while, it's easy to forget there's real food in the world, and that the stuff they serve in the dining hall usually doesn't qualify. Strangely, my pants are looser now than they've been in a while. I'm going to need to invest in belts.
October 03, 2004
Good News and Bad
Well, I have to say today was...balanced. If you can call a bipolar mix of disaster and good fortune balanced.
On the one hand, I got to go to New York City. On the other hand, I got got to go to New York City in a cramped van that inevitably got caught in Manhattan traffic. (I knew we should have taken the subway, dammit.)
On this trip, we got lots of free time to just relax and idle outside. Unfortunately, we got that free time because the van got a flat tire on the way home. See what I mean by a mix of good and bad?
I came home and found out the Astros had clinched the wild card, which was good news for one of my beloved Yankees-stuck-in-Texas, Roger Clemens. On the other hand, said ex-Yankee had to skip his start today because of a stomach virus. Ew.
On the one hand, I woke up at 8 this morning and didn't get back to campus until 7:30 at night. On the other hand, I just bought a ticket to Pacific Overtures.
When in doubt, the goodness of Sondheim always wins. So I think despite everything, I'll call today a good day.
September 19, 2004
I Do Think That They're Beginning to Show Signs of Life
The Yankees stomped on the Red Sox once again in a battle of aces, with Mike Mussina roundly outpitching Pedro Martinez for the win. I can't even begin to express how happy this series has made me. After a disheartening ninth-inning loss in the first game, the Yanks came back and really took charge in those last two games. Best of all, the rotation doesn't look like a total disaster area anymore.
Bring on October.
Restating the Obvious
Yesterday's game against the Red Sox featured a pitching matchup between Yankee savior Orlando Hernandez and, um...Branson Arroyo. The Red Sox won because Cy Young and possible MVP candidate Mariano Rivera blew a one-run lead.
Today's game against the Red Sox featured a pitching matchup of mediocrity Jon Lieber and the also-mediocre Derek Lowe. Of course, the Yankees won in a complete blowout. Because that makes complete and total sense, right?
Remind me to never, ever try to predict the outcome of a baseball game again.
What I'm reading today: Buried Child, by Sam Shepard
September 15, 2004
A Bit of Hope
I know that two games do not a pattern make, but between Mike Mussina's eight shutout innings last night and Javier Vazquez pitching seven of them today, the rotation beyond El Duque is starting to look a little more solid.
Sure, Jason Giambi could be doing better, but the guy's been through a lot this season- a benign tumor, an intestinal parasite, a strained groin, and a respiratory infection. I keep expecting him to be attacked by locusts or something.
Kevin Brown probably won't come back before the postseason, the back end of the bullpen is awful, and heaven knows what's happening with Steve Karsay. And admittedly, this mini hot streak has come against Kansas City, which isn't exactly Murderer's Row. But still- those two are looking a whole lot better than they have for most of the season. Hopefully they're getting it in gear for October.
What I'm reading today: A Midsummer Night's Dream, by William Shakespeare
September 01, 2004
Bad Sign?
I think El Duque is becoming the anchor of the Yankees' rotation.
I'm scared.
What I'm reading today: Four Plays by Aristophanes, by Aristophanes (duh)
August 08, 2004
Relievers Relieved
In what must be wonderful news for the arms of Mariano Rivera, Tom Gordon, and Paul Quantrill, the Yankees' last four starters- John Lieber, Kevin Brown, Javier Vazquez, and the seemingly immortal Orlando Hernandez- have each worked for eight innings before ceding to the bullpen.
Oh, and the Yankees won all four of those games, too, which is always a plus. They're currently 10.5 games ahead of the Red Sox, which is a bigger plus. And Boston is currently tied with Anaheim and Texas for the wild card. Not that I'm gloating or anything.
Okay, maybe a little. :)
In other news, I've been very bad about putting up show reviews lately. The reviews for Assassins and Chicago will be up and backdated soon, with links so no digging through the archives will be required.
What I'm listening to today: Let Yourself Go, by Kristin Chenoweth
August 03, 2004
When Interests Collide
A little note on today's Yankees game from the San Francisco Chronicle:
Tony award winner Hugh Jackman and his family frolicked in foul territory before the game. The Australian star of the Broadway show "The Boy From Oz" said he'd been at Yankee Stadium only once before, about four years ago. "We were stuck way, way up there in the upper deck. The view is a lot better from down here, mate," he said. Wearing a new Yankees hat and holding a couple of autographed balls, Jackman visited with manager Joe Torre and Alex Rodriguez in the dugout while wife Deborra Lee talked to Derek Jeter. "I'm a big cricket fan, but I'm really getting into watching the Yankees," he said. "In fact, I just had some of the guys in our show rig up my TV so I could get channel 80 to see them on cable, he said.
I knew I liked that guy for a reason. :)
July 14, 2004
All-Star Game
In case being a Red Sox killer isn't enough, Sori also won the All-Star Game MVP Award last night. Roger Clemens...didn't do so well, which kind of stunk. But he got a special award, too. And besides, I'm an American League gal. So overall, I'm pretty happy.
But if Pizza was tipping pitches...
July 12, 2004
You Can Take Away His Pinstripes...
...but Alfonso Soriano is still a Red Sox killer. I love that guy.
May 18, 2004
Amazing
The ever-spectacular Randy Johnson has added another feather to his cap- he just pitched a perfect game against the Braves. It was only the 17th perfect game in major league history. Amazing.
May 09, 2004
Fun and Games
Hey, I'm writing about baseball again. Surprised? Well, you shouldn't be!
Today, my favorite ex-Yankee, Alfonso Soriano, went 6 for 6 with 2 doubles, 4 RBI, and a run scored in an unbelievable slugfest between the Rangers and Tigers. How wild was this game? The Tigers scored eight runs in the top of the fifth to take a 14-4 lead. Then, in the bottom of the inning, the Rangers tied it.
That's right. Eighteen runs scored in one inning. Now that's quality baseball craziness. Anyway, the Rangers eventually won it by a score of 16 to 15, but I don't really care. Eighteen. Runs. In. One. Inning. I like suspenseful pitchers' duels as much as the next girl, but I would have loved to watch that happen.
Oh, by the way, I extend my fullest sympathies to the two teams' pitching staffs- each of them used 7 men in a vain attempt to stem the tide. ERAs were mutilated. Pitchers allowed more runs than outs. Things got downright ugly in that fifth inning- but man, does it sound fun. :)
May 05, 2004
How Things Change
Was it ony a week ago that the Yankees were doomed and the Red Sox were headed for a championship? Funny how things change. The Yanks have won seven games in a row, and Red Sox have gotten their asses beaten five consecutive times. They're now tied for first place in the division.
And that, my friends, is what you get for making assumptions based on what happens in April. There's a reason they play for six months. Ha!
What I'm reading today: Introduction to Algorithms, by Thomas H. Cormen, Charles R. Leiserson, and Ronald L. Rivest
May 02, 2004
Schadenfreude
I feel warm and fuzzy inside.
***
Edit: Make that three.
I feel extra warm and fuzzy inside. :)
May 01, 2004
Better Days
I knew things had to get better. Or maybe I didn't want to contemplate how bad they would be if they actually got worse. In any case, the baseball news has gotten better, and my school life has improved at the same time. So overall, things are good.
By beating the Cincinatti Reds, Roger Clemens became the first Astros pitcher to win 5 games in April, keeping his won-lost record perfect and actually lowering his ERA to a tiny 1.95. I can report this without any angst because...
The Yankees have just won their fourth game in a row. After being swept by the Red Sox, they came back to sweep the A's Big Three, and today they beat the Royals by a score of 5-2. They're finally back over .500, Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, and Alex Rodriguez are all hitting a bit, and the pitching is getting a bit more consistent. I'm not going to predict a monstrous winning streak or anything...but I feel much better about the team now. They're playing like they're alive.
***
Back in real life, today was my last day of classes. Next week will be completely free to allow students to study for finals, and the week after that is the finals themselves. I'm...just so happy. This semester has been borderline hellish for me, and it's been mostly due to my own actions, which only makes it worse. So seeing the end so near is a wonderful thing.
***
Edit: Okay, this is slightly weird. I went on Amazon to get the link for the Falsettos CD (below), and the first recommendation the site made for me was for Riedel wine glasses. Which made me think of today's column by Michael Riedel, the evil theater columnist for the New York Post, which was about how the producers of The Boy From Oz are desperately searching for someone to replace Hugh Jackman when his contract is up. Being an evil man, Riedel predicted they wouldn't find anyone good. But then, he was predicting that Alfred Molina would beat Jackman for the Tony. Fat chance.
Anyway, yeah. That's what I thought of when I went on Amazon. Just further proof that I have reached perviously unheard-of heights of geekiness.
What I'm listening to today: Falsettoland (OOBC), by William Finn
April 24, 2004
Very Bad Things
I'm almost glad that I haven't had the time to follow baseball closely this year. The Yankees just lost to the Red Sox yet again. Their record is now an abysmal 8-10. Yesterday, Derek Jeter was actually booed in Yankee Stadium.
This Yankees team is so lackluster when they play and boring as people that if fanhood wasn't such an irrational thing I'd stop caring about them. One of the chief complaints about the Yankees has always been how straight-laced and corporate they are were. Only now can I agree with that. There are some intersting personalities on this team- Mike Mussina, Kevin Brown, and Jorge Posada chief among them- but none of them are being interesting.
By that, I don't mean that I want players who act like assholes. I'm not asking for them to brag about their lack of a workout program or get attacked with butter knives a la David Wells. But don't act like little Jeter clones. Please.
When asked why he and Brown both got their 200th career victories this season, Mussina replied, "That's because we're all old." That cracked me up for some reason.
***
Meanwhile, Roger Clemens is still thriving with Houston. He won for the fourth time in four starts, managed not to get completely pounded in Colorado, and tied Gaylord Perry for 14th on the all-time victory list, with 314. He has a .333 batting average and 3 RBI. Heck, he even took a walk today. Who knew he had plate discipline?
And everyone who thought Clemens would get beaned if he ever played in the National League was so very very wrong. The guy is getting standing ovations on the road. I realize St. Louis and Colorado fans don't exactly have vicious reputations, but still. How many times does a guy get standing ovations in April, just for coming on the mound? How many guys get standing ovations for kicking the home team's ass? Last year's sort-of-farewell tour is starting to pale in comparison.
I really miss Clemens. And Soriano, too. Sori had 3 hits in his last game, a Rangers victory over the Mariners. He says he misses his friends on the Yankees.
***
You know what? On further thought, I'm going to give the Yankees some time. Sabermeticians will laugh in my face for suggesting this, but I do believe in clubhouse chemistry. I don't believe it means that everyone has to get along, or even be mostly professional and stoic like Torre's Yankees have been. I just think that players need to get to know one another, to feel connected. Even if they hate each other, it's something.
The Yankees had an exceptional amount of turnover from last season. The infield and outfield have been transformed and the pitching staff is virtually unrecognizable. Brown, Sheffield, and Rodriguez are all stars, and star athletes usually have pretty strong personalities. So maybe it's just taking them a while to find out how all the new pieces in the clubhouse fit. All they need is to find their rhythm and they'll be fine. There's too much talent on this team for it to have a losing record.
April 07, 2004
AAAH!
What happened to Mike Mussina?! Did I miss something here? Did he hurt himself during Spring Training or what? Because after his first two games of the season, Mussina's line isn't supposed to look like this:
2 GS; 0 CG; 9.0 IP; 19 H; 11 R; 2 HR; 4 BB; 3 SO; 0 W; 2 L; 11.00 ERA
C'mon, Moose; you're supposed to be the team ace. I'd hate to stake the season on Kevin Brown's back. Just repeat the following mantra: Sample size, sample size, samplesize, samplesize, samplesize...
***
Meanwhile, down in Houston, Roger Clemens had a great debut for the Astros, striking out 9 and holding the Giants to only 1 hit over 7 innings. He even managed to strike out Barry Bonds looking- twice. And he got a hit.
*sigh*
Yeah, I know there was no way Roger was coming back to the Yankees. But still...
Pull it together, Moose. Please?
***
In other ex-Yankee-who-I'm-rather-attached-to news, Alfonso Soriano has managed to walk twice in his first two games. Of course, he wouldn't be Sori if he also hadn't struck out twice, hit a double, stolen a base, and made two errors. Even magically aged two years, he's his usual crazy self.
What I don't get is why the guy was booed in Oakland. What the hell? Was it the ex-Yankee thing? Yeah, Sori used to don the pinstripes, but he's hardly a symbol of the evil Yankees. That would be Jeter or Clemens- or nowadays, Rodriguez, Brown, and Sheffield. If anything, Soriano is another young victim of the Yankees' win-now philosophy. He was young, cheap, and a great hitter, and what did he get? Traded. And now they boo him? Whatever. I don't get people sometimes.
What I'm listening to today: Sunday in the Park With George (OBC), by Stephen Sondheim
March 30, 2004
Life Stinks
Today I woke up, found out that the Yankees lost their season opener to the stinking Devil Rays, contemplated the fact that a classmate of mine from elementary through high school just died of brain cancer, and, in my usual show of stellar judgement, proceeded to go watch the filmed version of that most uplifting of musicals, Sweeney Todd.
I'm so depressed right now it's not even funny.
What I'm reading today: Dance With Demons: The Life of Jerome Robbins, by Greg Lawrence
Intolerable Cruelty
The Yankees are opening their season with a game against the Devil Rays in Japan. At five in the frickin' morning.
That's just wrong.
February 16, 2004
Another Angle
The Yankees are the talk of baseball once again, stealing the winter limelight from the Red Sox with their acquisition of reigning MVP Alex Rodriguez. Does this make the lineup better? Probably. The defense? Possibly. But despite the excitement and sheer jaw-dropping shock I've felt ever since I first heard about the deal, I'm also really depressed. My favorite player has left the Yankees.
I've had a certain amount of affection for several Yankees in the past few years- Bernie Williams, for just being his quiet no-nonsense self, and a musician to boot. Jorge Posada, for his funny face, his love for his son, and the fact that despite his tremendous talent, he's always being ignored or overshadowed. Roger Clemens, for his spectacular stubborness and incredible work ethic, and Andy Pettitte, just because he's a lefty like me. But Alfonso Soriano has held a special place in my heart ever since his rookie year.
***
Ever since he was first signed, Soriano was seen as a potential superstar. He's every scout's dream- fast, strong, agile, and just athletic as hell. Soriano has always been at least as exciting for what he's going to do as what he's actually done. (Though nowadays, what he has done is nothing to sneeze at either.) In 2001, he was promise personified, and few things in baseball are more fun than watching a young player bloom.
Alfonso Soriano arrived on American shores in 1998 after a nasty legal wrangle with his old team, the Hiroshima Carp of Japan. He worked out for several teams in August, and immediately attracted a bidding war. Naturally, the Yankees won, and a few months later Soriano was tearing up the Arizona Fall League. After a great spring training, he made a splash at the first-ever Futures Game in 1999, hitting two home runs (including one off Mark Mulder) for 5 RBI and winning the game's MVP award. He hit .305 with 15 homers and 68 RBIs in Double-A Norwich, and was moved up to Columbus by August- and that was with a delay for a rib injury.
Soriano at Columbus
In September Soriano had his first stint with the Yankees, doing what marginal young players always seem to do when they're called up- pinch running. But he was already starting to show his flair for the dramatic. In only his third major league at-bat, Soriano got an 11th-inning, game-winning home run against Tampa Bay's Norm Charlton that clinched a playoff spot for the team. Not bad for your first hit. With Derek Jeter firmly entrenched, what were the Yankees going to do with another gifted young shortstop?
Make him trade bait, of course. The skinny kid with a heavy bat (and erratic glove) was considered as part of deals for Vladimir Guerrero, Roger Clemens, Rondell White, Kelvim Escobar, Chris Carpenter, Roy Halladay, Arthur Rhodes, Roberto Hernandez, David Wells, Shawn Green, Ken Griffey Jr., Mike Hampton, Darin Erstad, Jim Edmonds, Brad Radke, Sammy Sosa, Moises Alou, Jose Lima, Juan Gonzalez, Matt Clement, Jeromy Burnitz, Pedro Astacio, Eric Owens, B.J. Surhoff, Donne Wall, Denny Neagle, Ruben Rivera, Jose Paniagua, Gary Sheffield, Ugueth Urbina, Drew Henson, and just about any player with two legs. Somehow, though, he always managed to hang on, the jewel of the Yankees' farm.
Soriano spent the next year bouncing between Columbus and New York and performing erratically. In his first two days starting at third base in place of an injured Scott Brosius, he made two errors and hit two home runs. 'Nuff said.
His unsteady fielding at second and short and his constant impatience at the plate started to discredit him a bit, and his battle for the shortstop position at Columbus with D'Angelo Jimenez became a bit of a symbol for the battle between sabermetric baseball fans, who saw only his congenital inability to take a walk, and the more traditional ones, who saw only a phenomenal athlete. That argument still hasn't really ended.
In 2001, though, Soriano seemed determined to make the team by any means necessary. Switching from shortstop to left field to second base, he still hit .348 with 5 home runs and 13 RBIs in Spring Training, and finally managed to catch the youth-leery Joe Torre's attention. It didn't hurt that Chuck Knoblauch's bizarre throwing yips were making Soriano look like a defensive specialist. At 23 years old, Alfonso Soriano had made the big leagues to stay.
***
The Yankees are a veteran team. An old team, to put it more bluntly. By 2001 guys like Pettitte and Jeter and Posada weren't exciting new talents anymore. Everyone on the team was old and steady, just the way the Yankees liked them. Soriano came into the clubhouse like a breath of fresh air, a smiling trilingual dynamo. He was young and fast, and exciting, something the veterans hadn't really been in years. I liked him right away.
On a team full of established players, Soriano was the unknown- fantastic one moment, clumsy the next, and so full of promise I couldn't help but want him to succeed. People made a sport of wondering whether he would ever take a walk (he did, after 104 plate appearances). His speed spurred the weak-hitting team, right down to rickety Paul O'Neill, to new basestealing heights. He never failed to swing at a pitch down and away, and he made every ground ball an adventure, though at least you didn't have to worry as much about where he would throw it. But always, always, he learned and improved.
Thanks to Ichiro, there would be no Rookie of the Year award for Soriano, but he could console himself with getting a round farther in the playoffs. 2001 was a truly insane postseason. Jeter's exploits in Oakland and Tino and Brosius' miracle home runs in the World Series got all the press, but Soriano did his part, too, in classic Soriano fashion. He flubbed a few plays, watched a home run that wasn't bounce off the wall, then stole a base on a pitchout or slapped a single when the rest of the lineup looked almost hopeless. Finally, he delivered a game-winning home run in Game 4 of the ALCS against Seattle. In the October-obssessed landscape of Yankeeland, he'd finally arrived.
2001 ALCS Game 4: Soriano Rounds the Bases
Of course, we all know what happened in the World Series. President Bush threw out a first pitch, Roger Clemens pitched his heart out, the Yankees' bats died, and lightning struck in Yankee Stadium not once, but twice, both times in the form of the hapless Byung-Hyung Kim. What's often forgotten is that Scott Brosius' game-tying home run would have been for naught if Soriano hadn't hit the game-winning single a few innings later. If Mariano hadn't blown the save in Game 7, the Series-winning home run would have been Soriano's, too, a miraculous golf shot on a splitter down and away. Curt Schilling was no fool, throwing Soriano that pitch. Nine times out of ten, he misses it completely. But somehow Sori extended his arms as far as they would go and scooped the ball into the stands. It was amazing. It was beautiful. It was futile. But that didn't change the fact that I'd just become Alfonso Soriano's biggest fan.
***
Watching Sori explode the next year was one of the greatest pleasures I've had as a baseball fan. I believe in the power of stats, in patience and OBP, but it was fun as hell to see Sori turn Baseball Primer on its ear. A top-flight offensive threat who never took a walk? Impossible! But there he was, a walking absurdity, hitting and hitting and confounding every stats lover who looked at him. How do you explain Alfonso Soriano? You don't- you accept he's unique, and talented, and very strange, then sit yourself down and watch him work. Watching Soriano is so fun. Jason Giambi is a fine hitter, but walks aren't going to make a highlight reel. Soriano is a highlight reel, an agile infielder who homers and steals with spectacular frequency. Even his batting stance is energetic- he wiggles so restlessly anyone can tell what he wants. Taking pitches is for other guys- Sori just wants to hit the ball, and hit it hard.
After two great seasons, I thought Soriano's place on the team was safe. He was an MVP candidate, a second baseman, a young player on a team full of guys past their peaks. Nick Johnson, the team's other great young hope, had already been traded. Yes, Soriano could be streaky and his fielding left something to be desired. But first impressions really damaged his reputation- his fielding is just slightly below average now, and his patience has improved in increments every year. It isn't his fault his manager stuck him in a leadoff spot he was dreadfully unsuited for. Tell me, who puts a 40-HR threat behind the team's worst hitters? But that's all in the past. Sori is out and A-Rod is in. Hopefully in Texas, the fans and press will appreciate him for what he is and not condemn him for what he's not.
Considering their home-away splits and the parks they've played in, the offensive difference between Soriano and Rodriguez isn't as great as it seems. Soriano is younger than Rodriguez and played a position the Yankees now have no good player for, while Roriguez- well, he'll try to play third, supposedly. We'll have to see how all that works out. Losing Johnson was bad. Losing Pettitte was even worse. But this- this hurts. A lot.
I'll miss you, Sori.
February 14, 2004
Holy *^&%!
If this goes through...I can't even analyze it right now. I'm going to hyperventilate...
What I'm reading today: Erm...I'm sure I was reading something, but I'm busy ducking all the flying chairs from Boston right now.
January 31, 2004
Super Sunday
The Super Bowl is here at last! Yay! The fact that I don't give a crap about football doesn't stop Super Bowl Sunday from being one of my favorite days of the year. You see, the Super Bowl isn't just the biggest day of the football season- it's also the last day of the football season. And that's worth looking forward to.
Bring on Spring Training!
What I'm reading today: Rainbow Six, by Tom Clancy
January 24, 2004
Almost There
Today when I checked the Replacement Level Yankees Weblog for updates, I was startled by a little tidbit of information in the left margin:
Pitchers and catchers report in 18 days, 3 hours, 43 minutes, and 13 seconds.
Seriously? Just two and a half more weeks of the dead zone of football, basketball, and hockey before Spring Training finally begins? Woohoo!
What I'm reading today: The Musical: A Look at the American Musical Theater, by Richard Kislan
January 12, 2004
Guh
Ah, baseball. It's the middle of January, but once again my favorite sport is on my mind, thanks to one of my favorite players. Roger Clemens has signed with the Astros, joining his buddy Andy Pettitte for one last season in the sun. That's half of the Yankees' former Big Four, pitching in Houston. Guh.
What can I say? Roger, being older and right-handed, isn't as great a loss as Pettitte was. It isn't even close. He'll be pitching for a National League team that's unlikely to get to the World Series, so chances are this won't affect the Yankees at all. But it's still depressing. Clemens had so many special moments last year- getting strikeout number 4,000 and victory number 300 in the same game, basking in one last standing ovation at Yankee Stadium... I said goodbye to him twice, dammit- once at his last game at Yankee Stadium, and once watching his last World Series start on TV- and now he's coming back?
Of course, that's a pretty silly train of thought on my part. Clemens doesn't (and shouldn't) give a crap about the sanctity of his farewell tour last year. He loves to pitch, and loves to compete- the fact that he's still here at age 41 is a testament to that. But still...maybe this is the literature student in me, but last year brought a sense of closure to his career. All his demons were conquered- he got a standing ovation at Fenway, kept his cool and roundly outpitched Pedro in Game 3 of the ALCS, and overcame a rough start in the 4th game of the World Series to craft a fine final start. Heck, he even got his first World Series hit that night, and left to the cheers of everyone in an unfriendly stadium, right down to the opposing players. The man who had carefully carved a career out of being the meanest, toughest, most antagonistic pitcher around was being saluted by the very hitters he'd dusted, the managers he'd foiled, and the crowds whose favorite teams he'd tormented for twenty years. It was beautiful. And now it's almost meaningless.
Eh. Life goes on. And who knows what next season may bring? Good luck, Roger, in all that you do. Just seeing you hit on a regular basis might make this all worthwhile. :)
What I'm reading today: In the Spirit of Crazy Horse, by Peter Mathiessen
December 11, 2003
Cashman's Lament
You pulled a sneak attack
I thought that we were brothers
Then you stabbed me in the back!
Betrayed!
Oh boy, I'm so betrayed!
Like Samson and Delilah
Your love began to fade
I'm crying in the clubhouse
You're in Houston getting laid!
Betrayed!
Let's face it, I'm betrayed!
Boy, have I been taken
Oy, I'm so forsaken
I should have seen what came to pass
I should have known to watch my ass!
I feel like Othello
Everything is lost
Andy is Iago
The Yanks are double-crossed!
I'm so dismayed
Did I mention I'm betrayed?
Sing it, Nathan. Andy Pettitte, Yankee farm product and an anchor in the rotation for nine years, has signed with the Houston Astros. Now, I could talk about the specifics of the deal, the years and money. I could tell you that this leaves the Yankees with 41-year-old "I don't work out and I'm proud of it" David Wells as their only starting lefty. I'll probably think about all those things pretty soon, but right now I'm hurt.
Why, Andy, why? I know Steinbrenner never liked you much, but did you really feel that unloved? Is Houston's flattery and the promise of playing closer to home enough to negate any loyalty after nine years in pinstripes?
Wait, that was a rhetorical question. Seriously, though- Pettitte will no doubt be getting better defensive support in Houston. He'll also be close to his family and his beloved mentor Roger Clemens. (And don't get me started on the Rocket's role in this debacle.) So maybe some of his numbers will improve; who knows? A rather quiet man, he'll probably appreciate being away from the New York media. And there's no doubt he'll like being away from Steinbrenner, whose relationship with the pitcher has been shaky at best. But he's also switching leagues, giving up the support of one of the best offenses in baseball, and dramatically reducing his chances for another championship. But I guess four rings were enough, huh?
Thanks for everything, Andy. It's been fun.
Just like Julius Caesar
Was betrayed by Brutus
Who'd think that this lefty
Would turn out to be my Judas?
I'm so dismayed
Is this how I'm repaid?
To be...
Betrayed!
BETRAYED!
Lyrics courtesy of: The Producers
What I'm reading today: Keeping the Compound Republic, by Martha Derthick
November 12, 2003
Back to Baseball
It was inevitable, wasn't it? Sure, baseball season is over, but I knew eventually I'd get back to writing about it. Now, I could write something smart, analytical, and meaningful about the state of defensive analysis, the Yankees' potential offseason moves, or why Tuffy Rhodes can't seem to get a roster spot on an MLB team, but instead I'm going to rant. Because, thanks to the wonders of Clutch Hits, I've found an article so inspired in its sheer egotistical, brain-dead idiocy I can't help but comment on it.
Here, my friends, is the masterpiece by Star-Tribune's Jim Souhan, entitled Baseball Insider: Steinbrenner ire affirms writer's vote.
Here's the background: Angel Berroa of the Kansas City Royals recently edged out the Yankees' Hideki Matsui for the American League Rookie of the Year award. That's fine by me- Berroa's hitting stats were comparable to Matsui's, and he played the far more difficult defensive position of shortstop. Berroa probably deserved to win.
What I really, really don't like is the fact that some writers decided of their own accord that Matsui's experience in the Japanese leagues disqualified him from rookie status. Believe it or not, BWAA does not make the voting rules for the postseason awards. MLB does. And MLB rules state that Matsui, whether he played in Japan or Cuba or Mars, was a rookie this past season. What does Souhan say to this?
The crux of the arguments I've seen against my decision is that Matsui is considered a rookie by Major League Baseball, so I was compelled to consider him one.
Yup. What I said.
I'm sorry. You can tell me Madonna is like a virgin, that the Metrodome is a baseball stadium, that computers are built by extremely intelligent people, but I'm entitled to employ common sense.
Uh huh. So in other words, your common sense makes better voting guidelines than the MLB ones you're supposed to follow. Gotcha. What is this brilliant common sense?
To consider the likes of Matsui, Ichiro Suzuki, Kaz Sasaki, Shigetoshi Hasegawa or Hideo Nomo a rookie would be to insult all of Japanese baseball.
Um...no. An MLB rookie, to use the simplest definition, is a player in his first year of MLB baseball. Japanese baseball is not a part of MLB. Therefore, a player from the Japanese leagues playing in MLB for the first time would be...a rookie. Furthermore, it's generally agreed that the level of competition in Japanese baseball is not as high as that in MLB. But really, I understand if you don't want to insult Japanese baseball. Wouldn't want to cause an international incident, after all. And I'm sure that all those fans back in Matsui's home country would have been just devastated if he'd won the ROY.
But is Souhan's love and respect for Japanese baseball the real reason he left Matsui off his ballot entirely? Let's look back at the headline- nothing about Japan, but definitely something about...oh yes...George Steinbrenner. Now this calls out for further investigation. What does Souhan think of the Yankees' owner?
Steinbrenner, the Yankees' imperialistic owner, criticized my decision to vote for Royals shortstop Angel Berroa, Indians outfielder Jody Gerut and Devil Rays outfielder Rocco Baldelli for AL rookie of the year, eschewing Matsui.
Now I am sure of what, before, I could only suspect: A conscience knows no greater comfort than Steinbrenner's opposition.
Hmm...I sense some George issues here. Let's delve into further detail.
Luckily, he's no more effective accosting baseball writers than beating semi-retired 72-year-old managers.
Now, that's just plain inaccurate. Pedro Martinez is the one who goes around rasslin' gerbils. Steinbrenner just verbally abuses them.
In any case, Steinbrenner on Tuesday rewarded me for my decision. His criticism qualified me for the pantheon -- the roster of all-time greats who have incurred the wrath of George.
The pantheon, you ask? What would this be? The pantheon, mentioned earlier in the article, is made up of "Steinbrenner whipping boys Joe Torre, Billy Martin, Yogi Berra, Reggie Jackson, Don Zimmer, Mel Stottlemyre and Dave Winfield." But as the very astute MNP pointed out in Primer, "No, jackass, those are all guys who did their job well and were criticized by Big George. You're a guy who willfully disregarded the rules and were criticized by Big George. Those are all guys who may or may not have deserved the abuse; you're a guy who deserves more abuse than even Steinbrenner will give out."
I couldn't possibly have put it any better. But you know what the funny part is? For all the hatred Souhan professes to hold towards the Big Stein, the highlight of that writer's offseason has been getting attention- any kind of attention- from the owner, and basking in a bit of the frigid spotlight his outrage at the voting provided. Souhan wasn't voting for Angel Berroa, he was voting against Steinbrenner's Yankees and their very expensive, not-so-young rookie. Who cares about the numbers, or who was actually the best rookie? What matters is that George Souhan, the most principled baseball writer in the world, got to stick it to George "Satan" Steinbrenner. In Souhan's little fantasy land, this makes him the next in a great line of men who have resisted George. In reality, it makes him a voter who should be stripped of his BWAA priviliges for life.
October 26, 2003
The End
Well, that's the end of that. Baseball season is over, and the Florida Marlins won the World Series. Somehow, though, I can't bring myself to be sad. I'm disappointed, yes, but not genuinely grief-stricken. I'm not even particularly angry. The only thing that really rankles me about this World Series is that Jeff Weaver got involved...but I'll get back to that little debacle later.
I've been following the Yankees fanatically since March, from the hype and hope of Spring Training to the grind of the regular season to the thrills of October. I've been reading, listening to, or watching something baseball-related just about every day for 8 months now. I really, really wanted the Yankees to win the World Series. So why can't I even work up a good temper tantrum now that they've lost to the Marlins, of all teams?
Maybe the fact that it was the Marlins was part of it. Other than a low-grade contempt for Jeffrey Loria, the owner and Selig crony so foul he makes George Steinbrenner look like a good guy, I don't really feel anything for the team from Florida. It's hard to get really emotional about a team with so little backstory, tradition, or personality. The Marlins are just- the Marlins. They aren't the lovable Cubs or Twinkies, the Beane-a-riffic A's, or even the Braves, who we can always count on for postseason disappointment. Most of all, the Marlins aren't the Red Sox, and that's what killed this World Series for me.
The ALCS thrilled the heck out of me- but it was also draining. I mean, we're talking a Yankees-Red Sox series with two brawls, two Pedro-Roger duels, and an 11th-inning home run in Game 7- by Aaron Boone, of all people- to end it. By the time I was done hopping up and down in sheer glee at the victory, I was exhausted. All the excitement, all the emotions I had been storing up during the season for special use in October, were gone. I was finished.
So if my slightly lackluster cheering was what brought the Yankees down, I'm sorry. If my lack of grief over the lack of a championship makes me a bad fan, so be it. The ALCS was my World Series, and I kind of wish the season had ended right there.
But, since the season most assuredly didn't end with The Lesser Boone's miraculous shot, I've had to hold off on final thoughts until today. The 2003 Yankees will probably be seen by some as a disappointment- they were a team constructed to win a championship, and they didn't. In my opinion, though, they did very well for themselves, especially considering all the turmoil they went through this season. They suffered injuries to Jason Giambi, Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, and Mariano Rivera, bickering between the Tampa and New York offices, endless poking and prodding by their beloved owner, and unsteady or disappointing performances by Boone, Alfonso Soriano, Hideki Matsui, Jose Contreras, and the whole bullpen. The only consistent bright spot was the starting pitching of the Big Four- Roger Clemens, Mike Mussina, David Wells, and Andy Pettitte all had very good seasons despite being consistently screwed over by the defense behind them and the bullpen following them. And yet, even with all the controversy and worry, the 2003 Yankees managed to win 101 games and have the best record in the league. In other words, they were a great team.
So, to finish my thoughts on the strange season of 2003, I have a few parting words to the main players:
To Joe Torre: Here's hoping you get to finish out your contract and stay for one more year. If, however, you get fired or resign, thank you for an amazing managerial run. You alone have managed to tame the wrath of George and bring some semblance of sanity to Yankeeland for a while. Your steadiness and ability to handle the players, the aforementioned George, and the slightly insane New York media will be missed.
To Aaron Boone: I still don't like you, but thank you for an absolutely spectaular postseason moment. Please remember how to hit next season- I know you have it in you, somewhere.
To Alfonso Soriano: I'm one of your biggest fans, but if you don't do some serious work on your strike zone judgement in the offseason I'm going to be pissed. You're 25 years old- it's time to stop wasting your talent.
To David Wells: On the day before your World Series start, you bragged that you got along for 20 years in the big leagues without working out. Next thing you know, you had to leave after one inning with a bad back. Coincidence? I think not.
To Jeff Weaver: I really don't like you, but I won't hold you responsible for that debacle in Game 4- the blame lies squarely on Torre's shoulders. You should have been cheering on your teammates, doing jumping jacks, cleaning the bullpen bathroom- anything but actually pitching. Grrr.
To Jason Giambi and Bernie Williams: I hope your knees get better. You're needed.
To Jeffrey Loria: Hey, who needs to deal with the devil when you've got Bud Selig, right?
And finally, to Roger Clemens: Congratulations on an incredible career, and a very credible final start, though it probably didn't end the way you'd hoped. Good luck getting that Olympic gold medal.
So...that's it. After 179 games, the Yankees' season is over.
How many days until spring training?
October 17, 2003
Woah
That's been about the extent of my thought processes for the past few hours. I mean, Boone? Aaron Frickin' Boone? But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me backtrack a bit.
Game 7 of the ALCS was absolutely amazing. I'm sorry I couldn't come up with anything better to describe it, but it's 4:30 in the morning and I've been hopping up and down celebrating ever since that last home run landed in the seats. The great Roger-Pedro pitching duel never materialized, but seemingly all of the Yankees' staff combined forces to hold off the Red Sox, keep the game close, and give the team a chance to rally.
I can't overstate the importance of Mike Mussina in this game. Mariano Rivera absolutely deserved his MVP award, and his 3-inning performance in this game was the stuff of legend, but none of it would have been possible if Mussina hadn't acted as stopper in the middle innings. Joe Torre elected to remove Clemens after he gave up 4 runs in 3+ innings of work, but was left with a nasty situation- two men on, no one out. Who did he call? None other than the aforementioned Moose, who calmly got a strikeout and a double play to put out the fire, then pitched two more scoreless innings.
In my opinion, the game was decided by two managerial moves- one by Joe Torre, and one by Grady Little. I already mentioned the one by Torre- his quick hook with Clemens and his fearlessness in getting the best possible pitcher (outside of Rivera) in there right away changed the tone of the game from a Red Sox romp to a tense pitcher's duel. It was just another case of Torre playing his cards just right.
Grady Little's decision to leave Pedro on the hill in the eighth, however, will no doubt cost him his job. Pedro was visibly flagging, but he asked Little to keep him in and the manager assented. I feel bad for Grady in this situation- Pedro had pitched a great game, and he's Boston's ace. I guess Little was subscribing to the "go down with your best" theory of managing, but he forgot something rather important- his bullpen was excellent, too.
Anyway, that move by Grady proved to be the one that finally turned the game in the Yankees' favor. They tied the game in the eighth and went to the spectacular Rivera for the next three innings, but then things started to get worrisome again.
I don't trust the Yankee bullpen. As far as I'm concerned, it's Mariano or bust, and evidently Joe feels the same way. So when the Maginificent Mo finished his third inning of work, I started to panic. The only pitchers left in the bullpen were Gabe White (unreliable), Jose Contreras (unpredictable), and Jeff Weaver (*whimper*).
And the hitters due up in the bottom of the 11th weren't much better. First up: Aaron Boone, or, as Larry Mankhen so aptly called him, the king of suck. (Or the suckiest of sucks, but it depended on the context, really.) Next: Karim Garcia, slayer of groundskeepers, whose main contribution in the postseason was getting hit by a Pedro Martinez pitch in Game 3. And finally, Alfonso Soriano, who already had a golden sombrero (4 strikeouts) to his name. To top it all off, this bunch had to face Tim Wakefield and his Knuckleball of Doom, which had stymied the Yankees throughout the series.
So imagine my surprise when Boone hit the first pitch of the inning- and it carried. And carried. And carried. And landed in the left field seats.
Let's just say I've been floating ever since, and I'm not coming down. I can't even imagine how Boone feels. Congratulations, Aaron, you've made up for a half-season of suckiness with one swing of the bat. Feels good, doesn't it? October will do that to you. The Red Sox and their fans now have one more reason to see autumn as the season of woe, but you, Aaron, have see the other side of this month- it can also be the season of redemption. Congratulations.
October 16, 2003
My Mistake
A few weeks ago, my college informed me that I would not receive my grades at the end of the semester unless I gave them my cholesterol level. Of course, I laughed at this. What, were they afraid that a skinny 18-year-old was going to drop dead of a heart attack in the middle of class? How silly, I thought. Until today.
Game 7 of the ALCS. Yankees vs. Red Sox. Roger Clemens vs. Pedro Martinez. Winner goes to the World Series. Oh. My. Lord. I haven't gotten my cholesterol levels back yet, but I certainly hope they're healthy. Because otherwise that heart attack is only a few hours away from happening.
A commonly held viewpoint says that Yankee fans are insufferably arrogant, believing quite firmly that their team's pinstriped aura is enough to overcome any obstacle. Especially in the postseason, and most especially against the Red Sox. I am not that Yankee fan. In fact, every time I try thinking about tonight's game for more than 20 seconds at a time my palms start sweating too much for me to type. It's Roger vs. Pedro, for heaven's sake. After Game 3's fireworks, how can I not be nervous?
No, there is no destiny, even when the teams involved are the fabulously successful Yankees and always-just-short Red Sox. There are only two incredible starting pitchers and the eighteen hitters supporting them. Games aren't won and lost with curses and mystique; they're played with gloves and bats and cleats and helmets. Ted Williams and the Babe have no say in the outcome of tonight's contest, and I'm okay with that. Manny, Bernie, Nomar, and Sori suit me just fine.
Now I just need some antacids.
October 08, 2003
Detrimental to One's Health
The Yankees-Red Sox ALCS starts tonight. Wait, let me repeat that: The Yankees-Red Sox ALCS starts tonight. Division rivalry? Who cares! Thanks to the wonders of the wild card, the season series against the Sox means just about nothing now.
But hey, that's okay. Yankees vs. Red Sox. New York vs. Boston. Giant Ego vs. Immense Inferiority Complex. It's going to be exciting. Every insane Boston fan in my dorm will hate me by tomorrow, but it's going to be exciting. I'll probably end up fainting, clawing my eyes out, or being reduced to a quivering pile of nerves- but it'll be exciting. Yeah. Can't wait.
Now where did those tranquilizers go...?
***
The always-witty Jim Bouton has a fun perspective on the upcoming series. If you haven't read Ball Four yet, shame on you. Especially if you read my first blog entry.
October 06, 2003
A Slight Distraction
I would be writing about how happy I am that the Yankees won the Division Series with an 8-1 ass-kicking, but there seems to be a slight distraction. What could it be?
Oh, right. I'm starving. Yom Kippur is that much harder when you still have to go to class- at least in high school we had vacation on the High Holy Days. Oh, well...only 6 or so hours to go. *stomach growls loudly*
Update: 8:30 pm
Is it worth the waiting for?
If we live 'til eighty-four
All we ever get is gru...el!
Ev'ry day we say our prayer -
Will they change the bill of fare?
Still we get the same old gru...el!
There is not a crust, not a crumb we can find,
Can we beg, can we borrow, or cadge,
But there's nothing to stop us from getting a thrill
When we close our eyes and imag...ine
Food, glorious food!
Hot sausage and mustard!
While we're in the mood-
Cold jelly and custard!
Peas, pudding and saveloys!
What's next? is the question.
Rich gentlemen have it, boys -
In-di-gestion!
Food, glorious food!
We're anxious to try it.
Three banquets a day -
Our favorite diet!
Just picture a great big steak-
Fried, roasted, or stewed.
Oh, food
Wonderful food,
Marvellous food,
Glorious food.
Food, glorious food!
What is there more handsome?
Gulped, swallowed, or chewed-
Still worth a king's ransom.
What is it we dream about?
What brings on a sigh?
Piled peaches and cream, about
Six feet high!
Food, glorious food!
Eat right through the menu.
Just loosen your belt
Two inches and then you
Work up a new appetite.
In this interlude-
The food,
Once again, food
Fabulous food,
Glorious food.
Food, glorious food!
Don't care what it looks like-
Burned!
Underdone!
Crude!
Don't care what the cook's like.
Just thinking of growing fat-
Our senses go reeling
One moment of knowing that
Full-up feeling!
Food, glorious food!
What wouldn't we give for
That extra bit more-
That's all that we live for
Why should we be fated to
Do nothing by brood
On food,
Magical food,
Wonderful food,
Marvellous food,
Fabulous food,
Beatiful food,
Glorious food!
Ahem. *Rubs belly* That will be all.
Edit: Lyrics courtesy ofOliver
October 03, 2003
Mystique and Aura, Together Again
That's right, folks, everyone's favorite strippers are once again performing at Yankee Stadium, as evidenced by the Yankees 4-1 victory in Game 2 of the ALDS.
Andy Pettitte pitched magnificently, Alfonso Soriano drove the offense (again), and Jason Giambi redeemed himself in the eyes of the fickle Yankee nation.
You'd think I'd be happy about all this, and I am, but there's just one fly in the ointment, and that fly is ER Girl. Don't ask me her name; she's just ER Girl, who's purpose in life is to ruin the television viewing of everyone else in the dorm. ER Girl reserved the only TV in the building for every episode of her precious show, and she keeps popping up at the most opportune times to take advantage of it. Democratic Presidential debate? Here comes ER girl. Playoff game tied in the fifth? Here comes ER girl, to take away the TV and force me to watch stupid little dots on my computer screen and wait for half a minute while the page refreshes before I find out if a ball in play is a hit. Curse you, ER Girl, for tainting the only playoff game I've gotten to watch on TV since Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. (And wasn't that a delightful experience.)
*Takes deep, calming breath*
OK. I'm good now. Roger Clemens is up in the Metrodome tomorrow- I'm crossing my fingers, legs, and toes for good luck.
October 02, 2003
Falling
Autumn has finally hit our little corner of the country. After the death-by-boiling I experienced in the first few weeks of school, and the pleasant weather after that, I've finally discovered that wearing a T-shirt outside in the morning just isn't going to cut it anymore. But while sweatshirts and jackets have become standard gear around campus, the leaves have barely begun to turn. I can't wait until they do- it's going to be beautiful.
Today was just a normal day. Nothing special happened- I went to my Islamic history class and watered my plant in the morning, then hung around reading in the afternoon. In the evening, I ran around like a maniac trying to get from an Aikido class in town to a required screening of Amistad in the middle of campus.
When I came back from the movie, I found half the dorm in the lounge, watching the Red Sox and the A's battle it out. It was one of those games where I kinda wished both teams would lose, but I didn't think that would win me any points with the crowd. So I went back upstairs to my room, and that's where I am now.
Huh. How boring. But boring is okay sometimes, especially since most of the points of interest in my life of late have involved all-nighters and evil, evil essays. So, here's to a boring day and an early bedtime. I hope I have days like this more often.
September 30, 2003
The Baseball Blahs
Game 1 of the ALDS managed to ruin my day, and I didn't even see most of it since it was smack dab over my political science class. I just got to watch the last 2 innings, and receive the sympathy of fellow Yankee fans and the smirks of Yankee haters in the lounge downstairs as Nick Johnson, of all people, ended the rally in the 9th inning. Ugh.
Thankfully, tomorrow is another game, and the Yanks are sending up Andy Pettitte, who had an excellent second half, and also happens to be a lefty- just the kind of pitcher the Twins can't hit. But then again, before Game 1 the Twins hadn't beaten the Yankees in two years. That'll teach you to assume anything in baseball.
I'm not panicking- unlike certain writers in Yankeeland, I don't think the sky is falling. Losing Game 1 stinks, but if Good!Andy shows up in Game 2, the Yanks will be in an excellent position to win. Honestly, that Buster Olney article I linked to just pisses me off. Repeat after me: the Yankees are better than the Twins. The Yankees are better than the Twins. The Yankees are better than the Twins. The Yankees are better than the Twins...
Good night, folks. Dream of pinstripes and ticker tape parades...
September 28, 2003
Final Takeoff
I spent the weekend at home, eating actual food, sleeping in my old bed, and generally alternating between feeling comfortable and disoriented. It's strange, going back to the habits of living at home after a month spent in a dorm. Nevertheless, the weekend was a lot of fun- I even got to see some old friends who also came home for Rosh Hashanna.
But the best part was definitely the baseball. Saturday's game was the first I attended that had any historical significance, and this wasn't any old milestone- it was the final regular season game of Roger Clemens' career. I brought my little brother along to the Stadium; the Rocket's last major league game was my brother's first. Clemens had a solid start, not allowing a single hit outside of a 2-run second inning. Since I wasn't tracking his pitch count, I was almost as surprised as he was when Joe Torre came to take him out in the seventh inning. Roger got a huge standing ovation to the strains of Elton John's Rocket Man, and the cheering only got louder when he came out for a curtain call. It was a great moment. Then, to finish it all off, the bullpen protected Roger's lead beautifully and the Yankees won their 100th game. Way to exit with a flourish.
It's kind of startling to contemplate the retirement of a player who's been around as long as Roger. He's been pitching in the major leagues longer than I've been alive, but now he's...done. His numbers are complete. 310 wins, 4,099 strikeouts, and a 3.19 ERA in 20 years of domination. Congratulations, Roger Clemens, on a career well done...and your first managerial win, as well. :)
The postseason starts on Tuesday- Yanks vs. Twinkies in the Bronx. I can't wait.
September 21, 2003
That Magic Number
It's been a weekend of grocery shopping and Devil Ray stomping.
There are times when I feel more like a little homemaker than a college student. I'm running a household in miniature- going grocery shopping, picking up packages from the post office, vacuuming, washing the dishes, and doing laundry, all on the scale of one person living in half a room. I even get miniscule phone bills once a month. How grown-up.
***
Okay, I think it's safe to say it now...
The Yankees' magic number for clinching the division is 1.
Phew. Nice to get that over with.
Except for a mini-beanball war between Roger Clemens and Tampa Bay starter Jeremi Gonzalez, it was an ordinary night of Devil Ray-pounding for the Yanks, who rode Roger's 7 shutout innings to an easy 6-0 victory. Nick Johnson got on base four times in five plate appearances, Alfonso Soriano hit his 34th home run- heck, even Enrique Wilson had a good night. Yes, the opposition has stunk, but the Yankees look to be on a roll going into the postseason, and that can only be a good thing.
