Game 2

Game 2 is in the books and it was a good one, for the average baseball fan it had everything you could have asked for. The Yankees pitching was very impressive in the way they handled the tough situations. Many fans are most likely looking for the real identity of the impostor that is dawning the #13 jersey as it has been senonomus with the word clutch all postseason long. Rodriguez can bask in the spotlight New York has shined on hm since the moment he put on the pinstripes, As far as what I've seen from him in the playoffs he might as well be the white knight coming to rescue whenever trouble befalls the kingdom. It was a long game that kept you on the edge of your seat as Ic an imagine every fan was sitting on each pitch made. I, like every Yankee fan in the world showed absolute elation as Hairston scored the winning run to secure another important victory. Now it's time to take the series to the west coast where Andy Pettite will take the mound hoping to match Sabathia and Burnett's great outings. Andy is considered by fan to be mr. reliable in the playoffs here's hoping that he can be exactly that for the Yankees monday afternoon.

Game 1

Game 1 is in the books and it went as well as you could have possibly hoped for the Yankees. I'll admit they were helped out by some uncharacteristic mistakes by the Angels, but they got the hits when they counted therefore capitalizing on those miscues. Outside of that there is one solitary reason for why the first game was a win for the Bombers....C.C. Sabathia. He pitched as great as you would expect an ace to do, and I must say that I was rather impressed with the command of the plate he had the entire game especially the usage of that changeup he was throwing. Good pitching can suppress scrappy teams like the Angels and that is the precedent the Yankees have to enforce upon the entire pitching staff so the other starters will follow Sabathia's lead. As much as it is great to get the first game, it is only game 1 and there is still much to do and every New Yorker knows the Yankees are not out of the woods yet with the team from Anaheim. The Bombers can celebrate this win for the time being but it's right back to work tomorrow night, just. The baton has now been passed to A.J. Burnett who will take on the same task of shutting down the potent Angels lineup. Let's all hope for the best as the Yankees look to take a small command of the series.

I watched Game 2 between the Dodgers and Phillies and I like many people thought the Phillies had the game in hand, but to no surprise the Dodgers made a comeback once Martinez was taken out of the game. Quite an inauspicious ending to a well pitched game on both ends. Look like this should be an interesting series.

On to the ALCS

The Yankees have given New York something that hasn't been seen in 4 years...a series win. The demons of past first rounds have been lifted of the conscience of the team and fans and not a moment too soon. This was a great effort all around, especially by one Alex Rodriguez. whoo would have thought after all of his struggles and mental cramps in clutch situations during October baseball he would be the one getting hit after hit in situations where he needed to come through. I certainly hope he can continue his hot, clutch hitting as the Yankees are going to need it when they take on those pesky Angels. They have given the Yankees fits for the last 7 years and that is the monket=y that the organization would like to solve in the postseason. The tremendous pitching from the staff will be absolutely crucial if there is going to be any hope of defeating the Angels and that cannot be stressed enough. I will say this the Yankees are going in prepared for a war with the winner obtaining a birth in the World Series. I'm looking forward to seeing how it will play out in the ALCS.

New Update

It's been a while since I've posted something, I've been very busy with school and it has consumed most of my time. However, now that I have some free time I can finally put something new up.

Now that the season is winding down The Yankees are looking to secure home field advantage throughout the playoffs. I have reason to believe that the Yankees have placed this on high priority since being at home has delivered the most success and excitement among the players and fans. I guess it would have mostly to do with the 14 walk-off hits. It would be safe to assume that the fans are being patient and are counting down the games until the playoffs. I'll admit with what has transpired over the last few years I've become a little skeptical and am taking nothing for granted. The Yankees have the best team on paper, but we've all heard this song before and it is no Grammy nominated hit. The key to a championship is to play l like you want it not as if you expect it. That has been the problem with the teams of the the past 7 years and I feel that this team has gained a much better perspective on what it takes to win.

Update, Finally

Well it's been so far so good for the Yankees at this point. Can't complain about the road trip at this point since they have taken each series, now on it is on to Boston where the AL East can get an even softer cushion. I fully expect the Red Sox to play very hard in order to stay in contention for the division, but the Yankees still have a bit of a score to settle in Fenway with the season series still up for grabs. A prime opportunity knocks for the Bronx Bombers and they should not let it slip away.

One thing comes to mind when I think of Brett Favre coming out of retirement yet again to play for the Vikings; how much is the price for glory? I understand that The viking felt that they were a quarterback away from being a Superbowl contending team, but I am not so sure that Favre was the answer to their problems. What the Vikings now look at is one of two results; should Brett Favre play well and lead their team to a championship it will be glory for all who made it happen, however if all does not go well, then not only does Brad Childress and the Vikings management look bad, the fans will think they were suckered into believing a 40 year old quarterback was the ultimate savior who would lead them to the promise land. One can only hoe Minnesota knows what it is doing...if it were up to me I would wait one more year and bring in someone like a Colt McCoy to provide a solid foundation for the quarterbacking future

Playing Well

I am extremely pleased with the Yankees are playing right now, they're getting good pitching and timely hitting which are essential to any winning formula. I still think that the Yankees need to solidify the 5th spot in the rotation so that there won't be any concern during the stretch run because they don't want to have any flaws that can be exposed. After a sweep of the arch rival Red Sox and another series win it's easy to see that this team is carrying a much different attitude than the teams of the past 5 years. The youth being infused with the vets has allow the team to have fun, which was not present during the times when Giambi, Sheffield, Tony Clark, Kevin Brown, and others. There was no real defensive players because most of the team then were past their prime and had lost steps in the field. There is a younger, faster, more defensive minded team playing now and it has shown throughout the season just how the fun of playing baseball has come back to the Bronx. I know everyone was skeptical of the new stadium having no mystique behind it, but I think new memories are already being built and more are sure to come, I hope that the Yankees can keep up the good baseball on this road trip.

Update

Finally, yes FINALLY The Yankees have a win against the Red Sox. It was nice to see the offense get on Smoltz and not worry about trying to put too much pressure on themselves to get hits. The only thing that I didn't like was the 13 walks the pitching staff gave up including 7 by Joba, and I'm sure he knows that he is better than that. Now it's on to tonights game vs Beckett who I despise to no end, his cockiness may help him pitch well and win games but it does not put him in any good standing with me or any other Yankee fan. I hope Burnett can excercise his demons and have a great start, He really needs one against this team or the fans will give him the Randy Johnson treatment, even though he has been pitching well, However we all know how everything is magnified in New York especially when its the Red Sox.

I just wanted to put something out there in regards to the New York Knicks their pursuit for a better team. I realize that the Knicks want to put themselves in position to grab a top free agent in 2010 and I can respect that, but why are they not lookng to put together a good team now. They really need to resign Lee and Robinson bacause they have proven to be good players with a lot of heart and not rely on someone like Lebron James to come and lead them to a championship because it will not happen and personally, The only thing he will do is bring more fans to games and give an awe to everyone that comes to the Garden, which is like putting shiny rims on an old peice of junk car from the scrap yard. If the Knick want to go by anything to find out how to bring a good competitive team on the court they should listen to my grandfather who has been watching Knick games since 1949. New York has always been a blue collar city known for being tough and har nosed, The chants of the fans that started on the fateful evening aginst Lou Alcindor and the Bucks synbolized what the Knicks are truly all about...DEFENSE. As much as I must support what D'Antoni is trying to do nothing beats a team that plays good Defense and if anyone doubts that remember this...When your are Offensive, that means you smell.

Yankees update

The series with the White Sox is over and as you can imagine I am a bit disappointed at how things went. Everything that could have gone wrong, did go wrong and the team looked somewhat dumbfounded that it was happening. I can't blame them though since everything was going so well over the last to weeks, but you can't win them all as they say. I will say this though it was very satisfying to see Melky Cabrera hit for the cycle, That was something I never thought I'd see from a Yankee player and now i can finally say to everyone that I actually watched one. It was good for the Yankees to get the final game in Chicago because they're going to need all the positive play they can get for this week...That's right the Red Sox are coming to town and the Yankees need to bring their "A" game. No Way they can afford to lose another series to them so I am sure they will be more than ready to play some solid baseball. However they cannot look too far ahead, Halladay and the Blue Jays are up first,



David Ortiz tested positive for Performance enhancing drugs in 2003, to be quite honest I am not surprised at all. His number increased tenfold as soon as he arrived in Boston after being pretty much left for dead in Minnesota. I wonder why it took this long for anyone to have suspicions, but I know one thing Senator Mitchell is going to have some explaining to do regarding why Ortiz, Ramirez, and Possibly Arroyo who were on the Red Sox were conveniently left out of his report. I'm sure this is going over really well in the Bonds and Clemens camp.