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Another Day, Another Game-Winner
Alex Rodriguez heard his first chorus of boos at the new Yankee Stadium in the bottom of the sixth when he struck out with two men on. I'd say he handled the situation pretty well when he stepped to the plate in the bottom of the 11th. The celebration started a split second after the two-run bomb left his bat. A no-doubter to win the game, nice way to break out of the slump he's been in since his first at bat in Balto.
It's a shame Phil Coke spit the bit, Joba deserved a win for his effort today. Does anyone else get the feeling that Joba is going to be a special, special pitcher for a long time? The kid has 4 nasty pitches, and he isn't afraid to throw any one of them in any count. Two things are holding him back right now, pitch counts and efficiency. If Girardi allowed him to go to 120 or 130 pitches, he could do it. I'm convinced of that. The last two fastballs Joba threw today were 97MPH, his fastest of the game. This isn't a criticism of Girardi, because you simply don't push young pitchers like that these days. Which brings me to efficiency. I don't know how he's going to do it, maybe by mixing in some two-seamers to induce ground balls early in the count, but he needs to do better than 4.5 pitches per batter. Watching CC would be a good learning experience for Joba.
It was great to see Teixeira continue to rake. It certainly doesn't hurt to have A-Rod behind him in the lineup. Girardi rewarded Gardner for his huge game Friday night with a start in center today. Gardner rewarded Girardi with an 0/4. Swisher has continued his slide back to uselessness with another 0/4.
I'd like to make a quick distinction between last night's game and today's. Actually, just a distinction between the last play. A-Rod's bomb was dramatic, and yes it won the game, but was it clutch? Not so much. Tie game, extra innings. It's pretty much like any other at bat in terms of pressure. Now on Friday night, Melky was up with the bases loaded, two outs, down by 1 run, against one of the best closers in the game. That's pressure. Melky may have only hit a single the other way, but his hit was 100 times more clutch than A-Rod's bomb today. That's neither here nor there, though. Wins are wins and this team needs all they can get. Let's just hope A-Rod has found his stroke for good this time. Because if he isn't hitting, his name is only going to protect Teixeira for so long.
Player of The Game: Teixeira.
Team Record: 19-17
Up Next: Burnett vs. Slowey, tomorrow at 4pm.
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