As expected, Roger Clemens re-aggravated his hamstring after giving up three runs in 2 1/3 innings. Luckily, rookie Phil Hughes pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings after that, allowing the Yankee offense to come alive. Johnny Damon hit a three-run blast for a 5-3 lead, and Robinson Cano hit a double misplayed by Trot Nixon to put the Yankees up 8-3. Alex Rodriguez and Hideki Matsui had two hits each.
The Cubs, Phillies, and Angels were all swept out of the playoffs, but with an 8-4 win, the Yanks live to play another day.
3 comments:
I assume you mean "another day" literally, as in one more day. These Yanks just can't get it done. They need Bernie Williams and Paul O'Neill out there.
I do mean one more day. I'd love to have Williams and O'Neill in their primes, but Melky Cabrera is faster and stronger than present-day Bernie Williams in center. Bobby Abreu, an above-average hitter with a decent throwing arm, is Paul O'Neill-ish. What they need right now is a third starter to back up Wang and Pettitte.
I'm with you that the current team doesn't have the swagger of the late 90s teams, but neither did the '96 Yanks.
I don't think they'll go all the way, but I'm excited to watch whatever they do, and as long as they're playing, who knows?
Yeah, I didn't mean the O'Neill and Williams today, I meant them in their prime.
And it's not so much their physical abilities. Those guys (plus Jeter, Posada, maybe a couple of others) always seemed to come through when they had to.
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