Crazy Eights

Tampa, Fla., February 27, 2014 — It was another “one bad inning” day in Tampa on Thursday, but a good time was had by all nonetheless. Wednesday forecasts guaranteed some rain, but we awoke to a cool, partly cloudy day where sun shone on George M. Steinbrenner Field for much of the day. The only rain was what the Pirates laid on the Yankees once free agent signee Robert Coello took the mound in the eighth.

Despite the Tuesday game where South Florida visited, this was Opening Day, the day where pregame much of the Tampa brain trust was introduced, the home team wore their Yankee pinstripes for the only time until the games go North and count, and we got a post-National Anthem flyover (though I’m not sure George would have approved of the choice of three small utilitarian helicopters to deliver that honor). The marching band from George M. Steinbrenner High School entertained on the field, and the mayor of Tampa threw out a ceremonial first pitch with some zip. Coello should not run for office here once his baseball career ends.

The highlight for much of the crowd, including a significant amount of Pirates fans, was when Derek Jeter ran out onto the field a little before 1 pm. Jeter showed no health issue running out two grounders to first, and looked right at shortstop, even if not one ball was hit his way through five frames. Additional highlights included Brett Gardner, from the leadoff position, reaching base both of his times up, mirroring Jacoby Ellsbury’s work from Wednesday in Bradenton; another debuting lefty bat with rbi potential — third baseman Kelly Johnson — doubling to the wall for a run; John Ryan Murphy continuing to wield a potent bat (the other rbi); and six of seven Yankee pitchers performing well.

The standout of that group was Japanese righty Yoshinori Takeyama, whose funky sidearm/down under delivery promised to coax ground balls, and did, though he got two swinging strike outs as well. Starter David Phelps was reached for a one-out home run by apparent star-to-be outfielder Gregory Polanco in the first, but pitched around a leadoff double in the second. Phelps notched four K’s over two innings. Francisco Cervelli had a single, scored a run, and threw out one of two Pirates stealing.

The writing appears to be on the wall that 2013 backup catcher Austin Romine has had his chance. With Cervelli off to a decent start and Murphy opening eyes everywhere he goes, Austin appears to be a fading No. 3, at best, for the right to spell Brian McCann in the Bronx. This, however, was no reason for Joe Girardi to pencil the offensively challenged Romine into the starting DH spot. His first time up he watched three straight strikes, then failed to advance Johnson to third with no one out in the fifth by tapping meekly back to the box. It wasted the only chance the Yanks had all day to take a lead in the game, one inning before Coello would enter and implode. I get it. It’s not about winning games at this point, but playing to lose makes no sense either.

Coello, who has pitched 28 games in major league bullpens the last four years, started a 2-2 game in the top of the eighth by walking Robert Andino. Then he surrendered five hits and a hit by pitch to the next seven batters, just two of them on Pittsburgh’s 40-man roster, with Mel Rojas, Jr., wearing star Andrew McCutcheon’s number 22, delivering the big blow, a 3-run bomb to right field. Coello was signed by the Yankees to a free agent contract on January 8, 2014. Then he imploded facing eight batters in the eighth inning his first time out.

Let’s just call it the Crazy Eights.

YANKEE BASEBALL!!!