Bronx, N.Y., August 25, 2011 – It was a day of extremes at Yankee Stadium Thursday afternoon. The skies opened in the morning, making the legions of fans traveling to the park wonder if they were wasting their time. Despite discouraging weather repors, however, the rain slowed, then stopped, although intermittent showers continued through the early hours of the game. Continue reading →

Bronx, N.Y., August 24, 2011 – Perhaps the most convincing, and simultaneously bizarre, argument supporting Curtis Granderson as the 2011 American League Most Valuable Player is emerging in Yankee Stadium this week. If Curtis doesn’t hit, the Yankees don’t win. Team captain Derek Jeter has gone 6-for-8 over two nights, teammate Nick Swisher has homered three times for five runs, and Robinson Cano has extended the Yankees’ longest 2011 hitting streak to 15 games. Still the team has dropped back-to-back home games to the lowly A’s. Continue reading →

Bronx, N.Y., August 23, 2011 – The oft-injured A’s righty Brandon McCarthy put on such a mesmerising clinic on throwing strikes in the A’s 6-5 win in Yankee Stadium Monday night that for all intents and purposes it appeared the Yankee offense took the first seven innings off. Of course they did not. In fact, as my scorecard incredulously tells me, McCarthy had just one solitary one-two-three inning through seven-plus (although a base hit, double play grounder also got him through the home fourth facing just three batters as well). Continue reading →

Bronx, N.Y., August 13, 2011 – Just when Yankee fans were thinking it was safe to put aside the offense and devote all their attention to the starting rotation, a familiar figure rode into town Saturday and stole the show, driving in six runs in a 9-2 win. The all but gone Jorge Posada took his turn in the lineup as the DH, striding twice to the plate with the bases loaded. All he did was drill a two-run single to give the Yanks the lead in the second on a 1-0 pitch, then lift a grand slam to right to make the game a 7-0 laugher three innings later. He had a single in the fourth as well, but the “underperforming” DH failed to plate a run with that one. Continue reading →

Bronx, N.Y., August 12, 2011 – With all the building drama in Yankee land about the makeup of the rotation going forward, and A-Rod rehabbing in Florida, Yankee fans in general ignored what to one visitor was a momentous night in Yankee Stadium Friday night. While nigh on 50,000 had their best day of 2011 when Derek Jeter put his 3,000-hit magic show on about five weeks ago, one athlete in the building decidedly did not. Continue reading →

Bronx, N.Y., August 11, 2011 – The Yanks outhit the visiting Angels in the rubber match of their three-gamer on a glorious Bronx afternoon Wednesday, 10-9, but it had very little to do with the outcome. Each team began their scoring with a two-run home run; each team concluded it with an additional multi-run drive. Five of the nine Angels who stroked hits scored, two more than was the case with the Yankees. Still, the Bombers’ offensive math prevailed in the 6-5 win. Continue reading →

Bronx, N.Y., August 10, 2011 – The baseball headache hovering over the Bronx from Tuesday night’s loss dissipated in a hurry Wednesday. The skies over the ballpark were largely clear except for a smattering of purple clouds and a waxing moon, both looking like they had been painted by fifth graders – with evident style – and stuck up there with velcro. Continue reading →

Bronx, N.Y., August 9, 2011 – The biggest upset in the Bronx on Tuesday night was that the Angels and Yanks started on time, played nine full innings, andd got no rain. But that was far from the thing(s) that caused the most upset. Continue reading →