Bronx, N.Y., May 29, 2006 — Even in gorgeous weather, it can be depressing watching the Yanks play on getaway day, knowing they’ll typically be out of town longer than I would like. But it’s even more challenging when the offense leaves town before the rest of the team.

A lot of things weren’t as they seemed in Sunday’s 6-5 Yankee win over Kansas City. It appeared warmer than the posted 77 degrees; the contest promised early to be a laugher; and the Royals seemed like they were mailing it in.

Once Jaret Wright subdued the first three visitors on a mere 13 tosses, the Bombers came storming out like they hadn’t gotten everything out of their system in Saturday’s 15-4 explosion. Back in August 2002, a big crowd in the Bronx laughed when the “Elvis”-sounding Runelvys Hernandez was first announced for his Stadium debut, but the smiles turned to frowns as the rookie surprised the Yanks and beat them 6-2. But once Johnny Damon blasted his fourth pitch for a homer to right Sunday, the laughs were all on the struggling KC righty.

Derek Jeter, Gary Sheffield, Jason Giambi, and Alex Rodriguez added four straight hits for a quick 4-0 lead. And the Royals were adding to the fun. Giambi legged out a double on his shot that bounced off the wall in right because the Kansas City outfield opted for the relay to the plate for the not-a-chance shot at Jeter scoring from second. So when Rodriguez dumped a broken-bat 2-2 dying quail into no-man’s land in short right, Jason was able to score right behind Shef. Cold water was thrown on the Yankee rally on a 4-6-3 dp off Robby Cano’s bat, but the Yanks got another assist from KC after Melky Cabrera drew a two-out walk. While the Royals made two throws to drive Terrence Long back to first on his single to right, Cabrera never stopped and scored all the way from first for a 5-0 bulge.

That was it for Hernandez, and KC Manager Buddy Bell replaced him with righthander Bobby Keppel, into the game three days after his major league debut against Detroit. No laughs greeted this announcement, and rightfully so. Keppel contributed exactly what he had against the Tigers (one run allowed over 3.33 innings), and the game changed while he was in there. The 23-year-old righty is big at 6’5″, but he doesn’t throw hard most of the time. After a bumpy start, the cutting and slashing Yanks couldn’t figure him — or anyone who followed him — out.

Kelly Stinnett singled before Damon popped out to close the first, and Wright went back to work, hitting bats and recording outs. After two flies to right, Emil Brown doubled to left center to break up the party, but only briefly. When Cabrera slipped and fell on his posterior after fielding the carom, it gave the play a slapstick feel. This continued once Brown decided to try for three and was nailed at third trying for a two-out triple with his team down by five. Considering that Tony Graffanino would single leading off the third, the chuckling crowd could not know that they were perhaps witnessing the biggest play of the game.

Back-to-back Jeter and Sheffield singles leading off the home second led to a sixth Yankee run that Cano delivered with a sac fly. Johnny Damon added a phantom single with two down in the third, phantom because he would be caught stealing, representing the last Yankee baserunner of the day. Keppel, lefty Andrew Sisco, and righthanders Joel Peralta and Elmer Dessens retired the next 15, six on strike outs and five on grounders, with just two struck balls reaching the outfield. On the backs of their much-put-upon pen the Royals had arrived. The “laugher” quickly became a very serious game.

I was surprised when seeing Wright for the first time as a Yankee in Tampa last year, because although he could still bring some heat, he had seemingly transformed himself into a pitcher who hit bats rather than missing them. The Royals were his willing accomplices Sunday afternoon, swinging at everything stingy home plate ump Jerry Meals, with a tiny zone, determined was a strike. Wright threw 23 (of 43) strikes through three; 22 of them found Kansas City bats. While the bombastic Yanks stoically took 13 strikes (and 31 balls) in three frames, the Royals took but one strike.

None of Wright’s pitches were effective but his fastball, which measured 90 mph early and reached to 97 on the dial late. But Jaret was falling behind and the Royals started taking more pitches in the fourth, and it paid dividends right away. They singled twice for a run that inning, and three times for yet another in the fifth. Torre sent Wright out for the sixth, but DH Matt Stairs’s high pop to short left was the last out Wright would get. Graffanino followed a Brown single with a double to right center, and Angel Berroa delivered the third Royals run with a sac fly to deep center after Scott Proctor relieved. The Yankee hard thrower struck out John Buck to close the frame, and Adam Guiel to start the seventh. But Mark Grudzelanek drove Cabrera deep into the left center alley for out number two, and Doug Mientkiewicz and Reggie Sanders followed with back-to-back doubles that sent Proctor to the showers.

Torre answered with lefty specialist Mike Myers to face Stairs, but he walked pinch hitter Esteban German. The next call was to enigmatic righty setup man Kyle Farnsworth. He pounded Brown with 95-mph heat to 0-2, but surrendered run number five when the KC leftfielder stroked his 86-mph slider to left for a single. Graffanino drilled an 0-1 liner to Cabrera as 50,000-plus let out a sigh of relief, but the Royals were within one with two to go.

But Farnsworth was dominant in a one-strike-out, six-pitch eighth, and Mariano Rivera shut KC down in order, including a fine Cano grab of Grudzelanek’s short pop over first to start things off.

Sunday was the 45th birthday of vocalist Roland Gift, who led The Fine Young Cannibals with the nation’s number-one song in She Drives Me Crazy a few decades back. After two innings Sunday , the Bombers were up 6-0 in runs and 9-1 in hits. Seven frames later KC had outhit them 12-9 while losing by one. On a day like that the Yankees drive me crazy too.

After surviving six tense innings to beat the American League team with the year’s worst record, the Yanks are off to face the team with the best: the Bengals in Detroit. That the longtime AL stalwart Tigers are off to a great start is a feel-good story. The Yanks catch a break with lefty Mike Maroth placed on the DL, but they also miss ex-Yank Kenny Rogers, a thrower they have always solved before.

Sight-challenged musical legend Stevie Wonder, born in Michigan in May 1950, made his fame and fortune at Motown. Let’s hope the disappearing Yankee offense makes the flight to Detroit. We don’t need them to demolish the Tigers. Stevie told us what is needed when the Yanks arrive in Motown in his hit, Livin’ in the City. May they bring

Just Enough,
Just Enough,
For [that] City

BTW,TYW

YANKEE BASEBALL!!!