Bronx, N.Y., June 30, 2008 — The Yankee team that bested Flushing’s Johan Santana on four hits over six innings Saturday, then lost to Oliver Perez of the Mets Sunday while hitting safely just four times, was at it again Monday night in the Bronx. Santana began the season as the titular best arm in baseball, and lefty throwing Perez has feasted on the Bronx lineup before. But how are we to explain the offensive meltdown against Texas’ Scott Feldman?
Feldman got a win in his first 2008 start in May, but had gone winless in eight tries since, and the victory he posted this night brought his career record all the way up to 3-8. He throws a middling fastball, a hardly memorable slider, and a slow curve that the crosstown Mets bashed for eight hits and six runs just 17 days ago. But he had the Yanks pounding balls into the ground much of the night. He walked three straight Yankees spanning the first and second innings, this on a night when home plate ump Dan Iassogna had a zone so generous that for the first time in many a game there were almost more called strikes over the first six frames than there were ones that hit bats.
But the home team failed to help themselves while Feldman struggled with his control, and went hitless until the fourth when Alex Rodriguez hit a ball far enough to account for four hits when he homered for the lone Yankee score of the evening. The long bomb to the Yankee bullpen was the 534th of Alex’s career, tying him with Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx for 14th place on the all-time list. But the best it could do was halve the 2-0 lead the Rangers had scratched out against Mike Mussina. Few in attendance realized that that would be the last Yankee score.
Mussina continues to pitch a fine season, and he survived an infield single and walk in a 31-pitch first inning to hold the visiting Rangers off the board. Mike struck out two in the second, and two more in the third, but one of his better pitches cost him that frame. Ian Kinsler had doubled to right with one down, and Mike appeared to have AL-leading rbi man Josh Hamilton right where he wanted him at 0-2 with two down, but the Texas right fielder fisted a short pop-fly single to right and the Rangers had a 1-0 lead.
But it was an uncharacteristic leadoff fourth-inning walk to left fielder David Murphy that would ultimately undo Moose this night. Murphy moved to second when Marlon Byrd bounced weakly to third, and Murphy scored the Rangers’ second run from there when first baseman Chris Davis doubled hard to the right center field gap. Mussina escaped with no further scores, and a Michael Young one-out double in the fifth as well, but the damage, alas, had been done.
A-Rod’s one-out fourth-inning blast was followed by a Jorge Posada double one out later, but Robbie Cano coughed up one of his three straight bounce-outs following the Sunday day off. Jose Molina delivered a rare infield single in the fifth, but once Brett Gardner reached on a fielder’s choice and stole second, Derek Jeter grounded out for one of three times in an 0-for-4 night. Jason Giambi drilled a two-out triple off Hamilton’s glove with two down in the sixth, but when Francisco Franco came on and struck out Posada to close the frame, the Yanks lost their last baserunner. The usually ready-to-pounce Bombers even failed to take advantage when lefty Eddie Guardado hurt himself while warming for the eighth inning. Veteran Jamey Wright was forced into unexpected service, but he retired them one-two-three.
The Guardado injury seemed a huge break because the Yanks had bitten a bullet in the eighth inning’s top half. Edwar Ramirez had pitched around a leadoff single in the seventh, but things looked bad when Young stroked a no-outs double against Jose Veras the following inning. Young took third on a first-pitch wild pitch that hurt Molina. But the home team survived when Hamilton lined to Jeter in a drawn-in infield, Milton Bradley struck out for the fourth time, and Marlon Byrd lined to third after an intentional walk.
It was surprising that the Yanks failed to capitalize on the break they got when Guardado couldn’t go. But that wasn’t the only thing uncharacteristric about this game. Where did all the Yankee fans go too? Yes, I know, Mr. Steinbrenner’s team coaxed yet another 53,000-plus-strong crowd, but who are these people pushing through the turnstiles really? Certainly some were Texas Rangers fans, taking this opportunity not only to accompany their team on a road trip but also to see 86-year-old Yankee Stadium in its final sesson. And some were from other parts of the country and the planet on the same kind of semi-pilgrimage, as was the Minnesota Twins fan seated next to me.
But most of this gang, while wearing the Yankee colors, seemed strangely divorced from the game taking place on the field. To start with, Brett Gardner’s initial at bat leading off the bottom of the first went unnoticed. Brett has been with the Yankees for three straight springs, and his callup has been rumored since Hideki Matsui first came up with left knee pain weeks ago, but the crowd failed to acknowledge this night’s new left fielder until the public address announcer advised us it was his major league debut in the third inning. Further, much of the crowd was so into doing the wave on all three levels during the seventh and eighth innings of a one-run game that many booed the (thank God for them!) fans in the right field bleachers for not carrying on their foolish behavoir after the bottom of the seventh had ended! And finally, with the Bombers down 2-1 in the eighth and the Rangers threatening to add a run, almost no one rose to their feet with rhythmic clapping when Veras got Bradley to a 3-2 count with one down and the potential third Texas run 90 feet from home. And then when Bradley struck out while letting his bat fly on consecutive swings, this crowd did not cheer the huge out; they booed!
It’s no secret that with Chien-Ming Wang out at least until September, the Yankees are relying on getting lots of wins from starters Mussina, Andy Pettite, and Joba Chamberlain. The team and their fans celebrated Sidney Ponson’s win against the Mets three days ago, and worries knowing they are likely to lose virtually every time the exposed Darrell Rasner starts a game. The team managed an odd offensive quirk this Monday night against the pitching-averse, offense-dominant Rangers. They stroked but four hits, unfortunately all of them after Feldman’s three walks. In the four they fashioned a club cycle, singling, doubling, tripling, and homering once each. It may be a record. I do not know. But it is not one any Yankee will be proud of.
And so, the wily and superb, really, Mike Mussina takes his sixth 2008 loss against 10 wins. Mike was very good. He struck out eight to Feldman’s three. Mike allowed no home runs in five hits, Scott one roundtripper in four safeties. And while Feldman walked three, Mike issued just two free passes. Unfortunately, the second one would cost him the game.
A stalwart from the Supremes, singer Florence Ballard would have celebrated her 65th birthday Monday had she lived. Motown’s legendary girl group scored their first number one hit just over 44 years ago. Who could blame Mike Mussina for asking what many Yankee fans are asking this night, formed by changing just one word in that hit’s title:
Where Did Our “O” Go?
YANKEE BASEBALL!!!