The only thing that went wrong for the New York Yankees in what might have been the best baseball game of the year is that they lost it.
Aside from the defeat, which put the Bronx Bombers half a game behind the Tampa Bay Rays, last night's game was everything I hoped for. It was a fantastic pitchers’ duel between two brilliant pitchers in CC Sabathia and David Price. Both lefties were dominant, keeping good hitters off balance all night long. I thought that the game might get out of hand when the bullpens came into play, but the pitchers on both sides continued to dominate, holding each other scoreless for another two and half innings after the starters left the game.
Of course, the Yankees didn't help themselves with their base running. I truly hope Jorge Posada just missed a sign and hasn't started to think he's Carl Crawford and tried to steal that base outright. But I was more disturbed by Brett Gardner's attempted steal of third with two outs in the 10th inning, a bad baseball play on all fronts. Joe Girardi seemed to make that point to the youngster during the game, but curtly refused to discuss what he said to Gardner with reporters. Gardner was genuinely apologetic to his teammates, specifically Austin Kearns, who was left holding a bat in his hands.
The Yankees are going to have to figure out a way to manage their disappointment and fight back for the division lead. But there's no question they will have a tough go at it for the rest of the series, especially having to face Matt Garza tonight with rookie Ivan Nova on the mound. Last night's game was the one they needed to have to give them the best shot at taking the series. CC did his part, but the offense couldn't deliver.
Aside from the defeat, which put the Bronx Bombers half a game behind the Tampa Bay Rays, last night's game was everything I hoped for. It was a fantastic pitchers’ duel between two brilliant pitchers in CC Sabathia and David Price. Both lefties were dominant, keeping good hitters off balance all night long. I thought that the game might get out of hand when the bullpens came into play, but the pitchers on both sides continued to dominate, holding each other scoreless for another two and half innings after the starters left the game.
Of course, the Yankees didn't help themselves with their base running. I truly hope Jorge Posada just missed a sign and hasn't started to think he's Carl Crawford and tried to steal that base outright. But I was more disturbed by Brett Gardner's attempted steal of third with two outs in the 10th inning, a bad baseball play on all fronts. Joe Girardi seemed to make that point to the youngster during the game, but curtly refused to discuss what he said to Gardner with reporters. Gardner was genuinely apologetic to his teammates, specifically Austin Kearns, who was left holding a bat in his hands.
The Yankees are going to have to figure out a way to manage their disappointment and fight back for the division lead. But there's no question they will have a tough go at it for the rest of the series, especially having to face Matt Garza tonight with rookie Ivan Nova on the mound. Last night's game was the one they needed to have to give them the best shot at taking the series. CC did his part, but the offense couldn't deliver.
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