Lazing on a Sunday afternoon

Sunday, August 28, 2005
Home Game 68
Yankees 10 Royals 3
Subway Race Winner: D train
Cap Game: #1



I woke up this morning to the sounds Steve Phillips saying that the Yankees will finish 3rd in the Wild Card race. This was the second time this week I heard him say that the Yankees won't make the playoffs. Think he's still bitter about 2000?

After yesterday's dramatic 9th inning comeback, they needed to stomp the Royals today. And that they did, thanks to Giambi's 2 HR and 7 RBI. (Bernie had the other 3 RBI.) Hopefully this is signal that Jason's slump is ending. Probably the best thing to come out of this Lawton deal is that Giambi can get more starts at first. He hits much better when he's playing the field. I, for one, will take his production at the plate in exchange for his shaky defense, which hasn't bee too much of a liability as of late (knock on wood.) Plus, Tino is available as a defensive replacement late in the game and a serviceable bat off the bench (as was evident yesterday.)

My friend Brian went to the game with me today. The last time he came along (July 10) Giambi hit a monster home run that landed just a few feet away from us (our seats are about 6 rows from the back wall in the right field bleachers.) And now today he hits 2 more. If Jason goes into another slide I am kidnapping Brian and taking him to the Stadium. I didn't think his first dinger had enough to get over the wall. I thought it would die in center field. But it just kept going. (I'm not quite sure where it landed though. We had to wait for the reaction of the rest of the Stadium before celebrating.) There was no doubt about the second one.

Cano made another rookie mistake today. On a hit and run, Jeter hit a grounder right to the second basemen who was on the move to cover the bag. (If Cano wasn't going it might have gone through for a base hit.) But Robinson got a good enough jump to beat the throw to second. Berroa threw to first to get Jeter. But Cano didn't know that he was called safe, started to head to the dugout and was picked off to end the inning. Luckily the mistake didn't cost them.

Leiter was a bit more wild than in his previous start, giving up 4 BB. But he only gave up 2 hits and 1 run today (which was scored on a groundout to first). He struck out 6, 4 of which were caught looking. Brian said that when Al gets 0-2 on a batter he should just lay the next one in there since everyone expects the count to get to 3-2 eventually. It may catch them off-guard. Leiter's only real shaky inning was the 3rd, but he was able to get himself out of a bases loaded, 1 out jam.

Sturtze entered in the 7th and had a decent inning. But in the 8th he gave up a 2-run dinger. I'm worried about Sturtze's effectiveness as of late, but if he's going to give up a 2-run shot it's better that it happens with a 9-run lead than in a tight game.

Randomness
- There were nearly 55,000 in attendance today. For a game against KC that's just incredible. They are averaging over 50,00 per game now, well above pace for 4 million on the year.

- With the Angels losing today (they got swept by the Devil Rays!), the Yankees are in the WC lead by a half game. Baseball Musings has a link to the standings after the All-Star break. Tampa is leading the AL East by a half game. Let's hope they can continue their winning ways in Boston. (and drop back down to earth the next week in NY.)

- A wave attempt was quickly squelched today. This time it started in the LF bleachers but died a quick death once it got to us.

- For the first time in what seems like a long time the anthem was sung live by the American Girl Place singers (or something like that). However they did it before the Yanks ran out on the field which annoyed my friend. He said it screwed up the flow of pre-game, which I guess I can understand. It's usually, Yankees warm-up (short runs, infielders play some catch); they head into the dugout for a few minutes while the riff of Won't Get Fooled Again or some other song which I can't identify is played; they run out to that other song which I don't know the name of; we stand and cheer and stay standing for the anthem. But today the routine was mucked up a bit. Oh well. It wasn't the first time nor will it be the last, but at least they played Frank at the end of the game.

- This looks to be another unproductive week for me as the Yanks go west. I always say that I'll be good and won't stay up to watch the whole game, but I just can't tear myself away. Maybe I should just take a nap when I get home from work.

I don't want to go on the cart!

Friday, August 26, 2005
Home Game 66
Yankees 5 Royals 1
Subway Race Winner: D train
Cap Game: #1



Bernie's not dead yet.

And from the way he looked tonight, neither is Randy. He won the battle of the phallic euphemisms for his first win of the month. Johnson only struck out 6, but he didn't walk anyone and gave up 1 run on 4 hits in 8 innings. He went right after the Royals and forced 13 fly ball outs. It's amazing what you can accomplish when you throw strikes.

I'm not quite happy with bringing Mo in for the 9th. But, with the Yanks only ahead by 2 runs he was already warming up in the 8th when Bernie hit his second dinger of the night to make it 5-1. It was a bomb in the upper deck. His first was a shot too. From the brief replay I saw when I got home, it looked like it hit the face of the Loge. Don't see too many of those. Tino popped up for the 3rd out. Since Mo was already warmed up I guess it only made sense for him to come in rather than have someone else hurry to get loose.

Bernie picked a good time to get hot. Actually he started to hit better when I finally dumped him from my fantasy team. I think I put a whammy on Gordon in the beginning of the year as well. He didn't get it together until I dumped him. Go figure.

A-Rod also hit one out in the 6th, his league leading 38th homer. I didn't know it at the time, but it landed in the black. I think this was at least his second shot out there this year.

Whoa, this is unexpected. While looking up the link to the game summary I saw this: Yanks are near a deal to acquire Matt Lawton from the Cubs. This may not be such a bad thing. He brings some speed, can work a walk, and once in a while can hit one out. In other words, he's a better option than Womack. I'm not sure how his fielding is though as I really haven't followed the NL all that much. He could turn out to be a good choice for the number 2 hole. Bernie can go to the DH spot and Giambi can get back in at first (he seems to hit much better when he's playing the field.) Anyway, if he's better than Womack, it can't be all that bad of a deal. Getting someone else in the lineup that can get on base would be a major plus.

Randomness
- I can't stand black road jerseys. Toronto wore them too. It makes them look like they're still in spring training. Anything to make an extra buck in merchandise sales I guess.

- The Friday night crowds at the Stadium are usually pretty fun. People just seem to be more into the game. Must have something to do with everyone winding down from the work week.

- Tonight was another sell-out. I never thought I would see 54,000 people at the Stadium to see the Yanks play the Royals. As a guy in front of me said, this next month is going to feel like one big playoff.

- It was football jersey night in the bleachers. There were some non-NY teams in the mix, and the Giants/Jets shirts seemed to be split. There were several rounds of "J!E!T!S! Suck! Suck! Suck!".

- Once again the box seat crowd felt the need to start the wave during another close game. This time though, it started in left field and went counter-clockwise. So when it hit the right field box seats we gave them the obligatory flip-off. The second time around the box seat folks got annoyed and chanted "bleachers suck". To which we replied "$50". They answered with "We got beer". And we answered right back with "We got weed". And that was that.

And don't you know it's a beautiful new day

Thursday, August 25, 2005
Home Game 65
Yankees 6 Blue Jays 2
Subway Race Winner: WW
Cap Game: #3



What a glorious day for a game. I think I saw maybe 2 clouds in the sky all day (which I'm sure Escalona was grateful, since it lead to his lone hit of the day.) Big win for the Yanks today, taking the final game of a 4-game series against the birds from up north. (I guess right now, every win is a big win.)

"You've got a mess you made yourself. You've got to work out of it."

Did I ever mention how much I like... no make that love, Shawn Chacon? He made a mess and was able to clean it up himself. After loading the bases and walking in a run in the 3rd he was able to get out of the inning without imploding. He loaded them up in the 6th again with one out, but struck out the top of the order to once again get himself out of trouble. He didn't have his best stuff today, by any means, yet he was able to keep the Jays to only 2 runs through 7 innings. The Yankees got him an early 4-run lead with 2 blasts from Sheff and A-Rod. Good thing they got on the board early because Mr. Roboto shut them down until the 6th, when Posada doubled, Jeter knocked him in with a triple, and Matsui knocked Jeter in with a single.

There were some nice plays in the field today too. Escalona (playing 2nd to give Cano a rest) made a sweet grab in the 2nd. He also had a nice sac bunt. If he was a little faster he may have gotten a hit out of that. Sheff had a great sliding catch in the 7th. Posada also made a nice play on a dribbler in front of the plate in the 9th.

My dad went with me today. Right after we argued about having Matsui bat second (I'm all for it, he's not), Jeter and Hideki smacked a couple of singles and Sheff knocked them in with his long overdue blast to left. I guess Joe finally realizes that his hot hitters should be getting more at-bats.

I guess Gordon's urethra is feeling better. He shut down the Jays in the 8th. And Mo came in and finished them off in the 9th. We had a perfect ending to a beautiful day with a trip to Callahan's.

I love weekday day games (and not just because it gives me an excuse to take a day off work). And sadly this was the last one of the 2005 season. Anyway, here's to hoping that Royals can steal another one from the BoSox and then go into another slide when they come to the Bronx tomorrow.

Gunter glieben glauchen globen

Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Home Game 63
Yankees 5 Blue Jays 4
Subway Race Winner: 4 train
Cap Game: #2



Wow!
What a freaking game! The weather was perfect. The crowd was great (except for the wave during the 9th, but more on that later). And the ending was unfuckingbelievable.

Leiter was solid and pitched a surprising quick game. (At one point the game was going along so fast I felt like I wasn't getting my money's worth.) 5 strikeouts and only 1 walk. Very, very nice outing. When the Yankees picked him up I was really hoping that he could turn things around. Mostly because they need stability in the rotation. But also because I always like him. I think he's great in the booth during the playoffs and I always enjoyed his weekly call-in to Michael Kay's show last year. (Plus, he's a Jersey guy and we share a birthday.)

Gojira tai Kanadajin
Matsui's dinger was a laser. (I always likes how he and Jeter keep both hands on the bat on their followthrough. You don't see that much anymore.) Whenever Hideki gets 2 strikes on him, often times looking at both, he always seems to come through. I wonder how of his many home runs this year were hit when he was down in the count with 2 strikes?


The Kids Are Alright
Cano went 1-for-2 tonight (including laying down a nice sac bunt and drawing a crucial walk in the 9th). And Escalona had the walk-off hit on an 0-2 count. The guy behind me was skeptical about him coming through, but for some reason I had faith in Felix. His hit last night was solid and I hoped that he could build on that tonight. And, well, he did. Waldman said on the post-game that the first person to greet him on his way to the clubhouse was Rudy Giuliani. This has to be a surreal night for him.

Still rollin', rock'n'rollin'
I had Def Leppard's Rock of Ages in my head most of the night. Why? Because that was the song played before Tino's first at-bat. (I was a Leppard freak in junior/high school. It was nice to hear them again tonight.) With the way Bernie and Tino have been hitting lately I can't help but think of those two when I read those lyrics.

Misc. Notes
- Before the game tonight the Yankees honored the Disable American Veterans, which was cool. But what I could've done without was that Lee Greenwood song they played afterwards. Now, I'm not anti-American or anything like that, I just can't stand that freaking song.

- I like when Toronto comes to town because they play the O' Canada. Musically, it's probably my favorite national anthem. (I've always enjoyed John Amirante's version before Rangers games.)

- Now about that wave. I've never been a fan of it. But, I guess I can let it go for football games. The stadiums are generally conducive for it (big ovals and such). But at baseball games (in the Bronx, no less)? No. They tried to start one in the top of the ninth. Give me a fucking break. It's the top of the ninth, tied game, with the team in the middle of a pennant/wild card race and people feel the need to do a freaking wave? Was the game really that boring to you? Just sit down (or stand up, but pick ONE) and watch the game. Or just take the wave to Shea.

262

Monday, August 22, 2005
Home Game 62
Yankees 7 Blue Jays 0
Subway Race Winner: 4 train
Cap Game: #2


262
That's the number that was in the lower left hand corner on the marquis outside of the Stadium. The one that lists the opponent of the night and the game time. Driving in over the Macombs Dam Bridge I noticed the number but had no clue what it meant. Then, during the game I heard someone talking about it. Turns out, 262 is the number of home games that are left at the current Yankee Stadium. I thought it was kind of odd (and tacky) that they would start that at this point of the season. It probably would've been better to start the countdown during the final season before the new park opens.

Anyway, on to the game. It was a nice, tight win tonight. I have to agree with Steve. It's nice to see someone out there pitching who really gives a damn. On the post-game Waldman was saying how guilty Jaret felt for pitching so lousy to start the year and then being unavailable for all of this time. He truly wants to help the team win. (Not that other pitchers don't want to win, but it's nice to hear someone talk about helping the team and giving the fans what they expect of him instead of their own performances for a change.) Walking the bases loaded in the 1st, some guys would've spit the bit. But Wright came back and pitched himself out of trouble. And he was solid the rest of the game.

(crap, I just lost a whole thing I had written about A-Rod. I'll try to rewrite it tomorrow)

Sheff looks like he's swinging at a wiffle ball. His cuts are ferocious but the ball barely makes it past the pitchers mound half the time.

Hopefully Matsui is making his way out his slump. He had some nice hits tonight.

The sell-out streak ended tonight, but they still drew 50,000 people. Which, for a Monday night game against Toronto, ain't too shabby. A couple of guys behind me were complaining about how the crowd in the bleachers wasn't lively enough and that the regular Creatures weren't there so there wasn't enough energy or some such shit like that. Ferchrissakes, it's a freaking Monday night. Against Toronto. And a lot of the regulars were there. But they're not there just to entertain you. Talk about your spoiled Yankees fans. Jeez.

I'll be at the game again tomorrow. With Al "and the 3-2 pitch" Leiter on the mound, that means I'll probably get to posting about the game sometime around Labor Day.

When you're chewing life's gristle...

Um, well, at least the bull pen is well rested.

I'm calling it.

A-Rod is busting out today. 3-for-4 with a dinger, 3 RBIs, 3 runs scored.

Instant karma’s gonna get you

This is why I don't chirp too loudly when Schilling blows a save.

Sweepin' in the Rain

Sunday, August 14, 2005
Home Game 61
Yankees 10 Rangers 3
Subway Race Winner: 4 train
Cap Game: WW


Finally, some run support for Shawn Chacón. He didn't have his best stuff, but it was enough to get the win. Bernie and Jorge each had 3 hits on the day. Posada, dare I say it, may be starting to get out of his funk. Matsui clobbered one to take the lead back in the 5th. I thought it was going foul. Didn't see the replay so I don't know how close it was to the pole.



A-Rod hit another bomb. Though it wasn't as far as yesterday's, it was still a monster shot. It is such a stark contrast watching Sheff and A-Rod bat. Yesterday's back-to-back homers was the perfect illustration of that. Sheff is just ultra-violent at the plate. Most of his dingers seem to be frozen ropes. Alex, on the other hand, has that long, sweet swing that turns pop-flies into home runs. I'm guessing that's why he strikes out a lot. He never shortens that swing. But, man, when he makes contact it's just poetic. For all of the shit that some Yankee fans give him, I hope they at least recognize that he may very well be considered one of the the all-time greats and we should all feel lucky that we have the opportunity to see him play everyday.

Took my mom to the game today. We knew it would be a scorcher so we brought about 6 bottles of frozen water. They were melted by the second inning. What I didn't expect was the rain, but it was very much welcome. There was a bit of a scare early in the game. A woman (about 70 I would say) passed out a few rows in front of us. Took her a good half-inning or so to come around. They put an oxygen mask on her and walked her out. She got a nice round of applause and waved to the crowd. Her color did not look good though. My mom pointed out that she should've been wearing a hat. It was hazy most of the day and the sun really wasn't beating down all that much, but it was one of those days where if you didn't drink enough fluids, you were toast. So take note, if you ever bring the elderly to a hot-as-balls game, make sure they wear a hat and have enough to drink.

When it started to rain we sat there for a bit. It felt good. After a while though, it got to be a bit much and we headed for cover inside. If you're ever at a game during a rain delay and they start to play "Singing in the Rain" over the PA, that means the tarp is about ready to come off. When the second delay hit my mom hinted that she wanted to go. She would've stayed if I wanted to, but I wasn't going to make her. If there was something notable going on, like a no-no, I would've, but not for a game like today. By the time we got back to the car the tarp was coming off. And by the time we got back to my town and had some frozen yogurt the game was over. A nice ending to a long week. Let's hope they can keep it up on the road trip.

We were home in time to see some of the post-game (Kim Jones wasn't that great, but who's this chick they have now? She can't even get the questions out). I'm usually a sucker for facial hair, but I think Chacón looks a lot better shaved. He reminds me a bit of actor Jeffery Wright, star of Basquiat, one of my favorite movies. Maybe that's why I like the guy so much. I would love it if the Yankees can hold on to him.

(btw, while searching for a pic of Chacón I found this photo of his rookie hazing. I wonder what the Yankee rookies will have to do this year?)

Today's attendance broke the 3 million mark. If they average just under 50,000 for the remaining 20 home games they will break 4 million this year.

I can't even get laid at Hawaiin Night in the bleachers.

Friday, August 12, 2005
Home Game 59
Yankees 6 Rangers 5
Subway Race Winner: B train
Cap Game: #1


Hello, and welcome to day 5 of 1-run Game Week.

Man, was it freaking hot tonight. And of course Al "and the 3-2" Leiter had to be on the mound. I guess I'm a little confused as to why people get so enraged with him. This is what you're going to get folks. He throws a lot of pitches, about half of which will be strikes. Batters wait him out. If he starts off with an 0-2 count, chances are it will go full eventually. No matter how many times you yell "Throw a strike Leiter" (yes, I'm talking to you, Mr. Asshat sitting 2 rows behind me), he's not going to do it. This is Al Leiter. Get used to it. It will save you from popping that vein in your forehead.


Luckily there were enough distractions in the stands early in the game to keep us occupied while Al was throwing 125 pitches in 5 innings. In fact I was in the middle of telling a friend of a friend that Miami (college FB) sucked when Bernie hit his homer. It was great to see him come through with a big hit. And it was even better to see the bullpen doing its job. A lot of people seemed to forget that Wayne Franklin was still on the team. One kid thought it was the other lefty and started to yell "Fuck you Embree" as he came in. Wayne did a fine job He had a nice little 9-pitch battle with Mench before he struck him out. Using Chacon was a great move too. We saw him warming up in the pen and thought he was just doing his "throw day" routine. Instead he got his throws on the field, which turned out rather nicely.

In the 8th we could see Sturtze warming up, and some panic set in. With the 3-4-5 hitters coming up in the 9th we didn't have a good feeling about it. But thankfully he proved us wrong and shut them down. And, as a plus, the Yankees forced Cordero to throw 30 pitches in the bottom of the 8th. (Cano had a nice 12-pitch at bat which resulted in a single to center) Should they have to bring in their closer tomorrow hopefully he'll be a bit worn down.

A couple questions. Were the pitchers getting squeezed tonight? Mainly Leiter. Some of those looked damn good, or at least as good as the strikes that were being called against the Yankee hitters. And what was with that double error from Jeter? Does a bobble really count as a boot?

The Road Trippers were in the bleachers tonight. Ray started that whistle thing he does early. Luckily he didn't do it all night or he would've ended up with his lei stuffed in his mouth.

Now, back to Mr. Asshat. When Mel comes out to talk to Leiter, he's not telling him to throw strikes. Al knows he has to throw strikes. That's his fucking job. It's not like he's trying not to throw strikes. He just misses. A lot. And he's not Maddux so he's not going to get the borderline calls. And, yes, we know that on a 2-0 count it's a "hitter's pitch". You don't have to be MichaelFuckingKay and tell us every time the situation arises.

And to anyone who's never sat in the bleachers, alcohol is prohibited. It has been for 5 years. (There are also alcohol-free sections in the upper deck.) If drinking at a game is that important to you, check this shit out before you purchase your tickets. And if your ticket says NON ALC that means you can't buy beer. Deal with it. Relax and enjoy the game and the atmosphere you're in, because there's no other place like it.

Props to Proctor

Thursday, August 11, 2005
Home Game 58
Yankees 9 Rangers 8
Subway Race Winner: B train
Cap Game: #1


Driving in tonight I had a strong feeling this would be a high scoring game. And as much as I hoped that Proctor could continue this week's streak of quality starts, I truly didn't believe he could do it. Man, am I ever happy I was wrong. Giving up a dinger to start off the game didn't put me at ease any (I'm glad I decided to bring my inhaler tonight). But Proctor bore down after that and had an unbelievable debut as a starter. Only giving up 3 hits (including a second homer to Dellucci who ended the night 4-for-5) and no walks through 5 innings is more than I think any one of the 54,000 of us could've asked for. He got a standing-O when he left the game which had to make him feel all warm and squishy inside (that's how I felt anyways). I hope that this performance gives him some confidence when he goes back to the pen. Hopefully he knows that he has the ability to be successful if he throws strikes (which 50 of his 76 pitches were tonight).

It's a shame Scott couldn't get the win tonight. I wonder if he'll give his bullpen mates (Sturtze especially) shit for taking the win away from him.

There was a decent crowd tonight. We did a roll-call for Soriano which, as usual, he acknowledged. One schmuck decided to wear a shirt suggesting that The Captain enjoys performing a certain sex act on the Third Baseman. I get the feeling that in the past this guy would've been pummeled before he made it up the stairs. But this time he just got the obligatory Asshole chant and the cops made him turn his shirt inside out. Now, I'm not one to advocate violence, but I also enjoy seeing a good scrum now and then. And I wouldn't have minded if someone had knocked this guy on his ass. It's bad enough people wear BoSox paraphernalia when Boston isn't even at the Stadium, but to wear shit like that (in the bleachers no less) is just all sorts of wrong.

As for the rest of the game, it was nice to see the 3 guys on the team that I felt were sorely in need of home runs come up big. And let me just say that my love for Mariano Rivera is unhealthy.

You taught me the ways of desire, now it's takin' its toll

Wednesday, August 10, 2005
Home Game 57
White Sox 2 Yankees 1
Subway Race Winner: D train
Cap Game: WW



Well, at least I didn't have to go to work today. Although my boss did call me during the 8th (and I missed the double play turned by Jeter) and I also was given some freelance work for tonight.

I guess I can say I was lucky to see 2 pitchers' duels in a row. Unfortunately my beloved Bombers came out on the losing end once again. And once again their lack of depth on the bench is glaring. I never thought I would say that I miss Reuben Sierra. You never know when the pixie dust is going to wear off of Small. It's a shame that they squandered his performance.

1 run, 4 hits, 7 strike outs, 2 walks and a HBP. You can't ask for much more than that. The weird thing was that he only got 3 ground ball outs. The rest were fly balls or strike outs (including 3 of Podsednik). I see that his pitch count was up to 106, but I would've liked to have seen Small come out in the 8th. He had gotten the last 12 outs in a row. If he could get through another inning, you had Gordon for the 9th and fresh Mo for the 10th.

While the outcome of the game sucked, it was a nice day at the Stadium. The sun was out all day (in the 7th we cheered when a small cloud sailed by for a bit of relief). Day games during the week tend to have a different vibe. The crowd is usually a bit more subdued. Although some White Sox fans tried to start shit early in the game. By the 2nd inning the cops had them move seats for their own safety. The upper deck and left field bleachers were dotted with camp kids. (I wish the camps I went to as a kid took us to Yankee games.) It looked to be another sellout. For as lousy as this season has gone, I think they're on pace to hit 4 million in attendance this year.

As I said yesterday, I took my aunt (my dad's sister) to the game. As a teen, she used to go to games with my mom all the time. They would take the train from Jersey City and bought tickets at the gate, usually getting seats near the dugout. Nowadays you need to know someone to get that kind of view. After the game they used to hang out to wait for autographs. Back then you could just hang out near the players' lot (which was where the parking deck right outside of the Stadium is today). How cool would that have been? They apparently were fairly accommodating because the ball she has is filled with signatures.

Friday night is Hawaiian Shirt night in the bleachers. I'm off to Value City to see what kind of schlock I can find. I'll be at tomorrow night's game as well. As far as I know Proctor is still set to take the ball. Let's hope he continue the string of strong outings by the Yankee starters.

I Need a Lover That Won't Drive Me Crazy

August 9, 2005
Home Game 56
White Sox 2 Yankees 1
Subway Race Winner: 4 train


Today was just a heartbreaker. Coming at the hand of Contreras makes it worse. And to compound the issue, I was tied up at work, stuck in major traffic driving in, and even worse coming home (most of the crowd stayed til the end and the lower deck was closed. It wasn't pretty.) They got beat at their own game tonight (winning by the long ball) by a team that's known for playing small ball. That just ain't right.

It was a tough loss to say the least, but I really liked what I saw from Chacon. He wanted to get through 7 innings today and he did. And I gotta give a hand to Joe for letting Shawn get out of it himself. But that's all I'll give him a hand for (see below). Chacon keeps saying how he really wants to get a win for the team, but with only 3 earned runs in 3 games, it's the team that needs to get a win for him. I really hope he can continue to pitch like this. In every interview I've heard so far he comes off as a guy that really appreciates where his is right now and is just concerned with giving the best effort that he can each time out. I really like the guy. Plus, I have a soft spot for him since he's a fellow adoptee.

That was the only exciting thing that happened today. - George Steinbrenner

He was, of course, referring to the fan that jumped from the upper deck. I was also at that game in May 2000 when the drunk guy took a dive onto the netting. Ironically it was also the day they stopped serving beer in the bleachers. This time, however, I actually got the see the guy fall, arms flailing and everything. In turn, I missed the play at first which I heard was a close one. There seemed to be quite a few close calls tonight that didn't go the Yankees' way. Of course I sit 450 feet from home plate, but still, I could swear some of those pitches Chacon threw in the 7th were strikes.

Like I said, most of the crowd stayed through the end. And of course we went nuts after Alex's dinger. But once everyone got their composure a bit and realized that if it wasn't for Konerko's home run the scored would be tied, you could see people everywhere mouthing the words Alan-fucking-Embree. While Dave (the guy that sits behind me) and I were saying Joe-fucking-Torre. We just couldn't fathom why he left him in. On the post game I heard something about Konerko's numbers vs. lefties and Embree's numbers vs. righties, but still, I thought it was a bad move. Then I heard them mention that Proctor will probably get the start on Thursday, which sounds like an even worse move.

I took the day off tomorrow and will be going to the game with my aunt. I'll have more on her and her history of Yankee fandom in tomorrow's post. Here's to hoping that Small can continue to pitch well so my aunt doesn't have anything to complain about.

Better late than never, right?

At the suggestion of Steve at WasWatching.com I'm starting a blog. A Yankee blog to be exact, but I may touch on other sports once in a while. This year I decided to finally become a season ticket holder. I was attending more and more games every year so this seemed like the logical next step. I'm not a particularly good writer, so until I get used to this blog thing, most of my posts will be recounting my experiences at the Stadium from my view in the bleachers. Yeah, I know that I probably should've started this in the beginning of the season, but, well, I'm a bit of a procrastinator.

As for the title, I try to view the Yankees through the philosophy of one John Milton Rivers. I'm not a Yankee player or coach and I don't work in the front office. So, I try not to make myself sick over their poor play or Torre's misuse of the bullpen or... well you get the idea. I have no control over these things. Don't get me wrong, a bad loss still takes its toll on me (a piece of my heart is still floating around somewhere in Section 11 of the upper deck, where I witnessed game 7 last year), but I just try to remember that there ain't no sense worrying about what you can't control, because if you can't control it, there ain't no sense worrying about it.

Of course, your views may vary, and any and all comments are welcome.