Bronx, N.Y., June 19, 2008 — Considering the fact that Wednesday night cleared beautifully after the more than one hour rain delay, it actually had a few things in common with the tight, taut battle the Yanks and Padres played Thursday afternoon. Yankee pitching disposed of 15 batters via the strike out Thursday, and 14 the night before. Although the five ground-ball outs Wednesday night seemd an awfully low number, it dipped to just four the following afternoon. Finally, despite the fact that I had to double- and triple-check my math on this, the Wednesday night marathon actually clocked in at one minute shorter than this duel in the afternoon sun.
Right there, however, the similarities end. And it is not hard to discover why. Josh Banks and Joba Chamberlain, quite simply, dominated the opposition, and it led to a tense battle that certainly seemed to come to a much quicker conclusion. Chamberlain started his 5.7 innings in impressive fashion, striking out the first two Padres he faced in a three-batter first inning. Hometown fans relaxed immediately in the frame’s bottom half when Johnny Damon and Derek Jeter reached Banks for singles on the first nine pitches, and Bobby Abreu moved both runners up a base with a long drive to center.
But something was wrong with this scenario. With most in the stands expecting a young fireballer like the tall Nebraskan the Yanks sent out this day, Banks did not disappoint, reaching 93 and 94 mph on the gun, but he started Damon out with an 83-mph slider. Before the first inning was over we were to see a curve, a cutter and a change up mixed in with the heat and the slide. The Yanks, in short, were facing a pitcher with game, not a stud with fire. Banks used his bag of tricks for back-to-back strike outs to escape the early trap, and the Yankees would not manage another hit until Jeter lifted a 3-2 pitch over third for a single leading off the sixth.
But although Joba started his day with high 95-mph heat, he came to pitch as well. Chamberlain has been humiliating batters with his combo fastball/slider in the pen since last September, but he backed himself into a few corners early in this one, and he largely pitched his way out of them. A single, double, walk had him in a bases-loaded, no-outs pickle in the top of the second, but Houdini would have been proud at his cunning escape. He struck out Scott Hairston mixing his curve in with the power, then took Jose Molina’s peg at home to snuff out Adrian Gonzalez’s scoring attempt when a pitch to Khalil Greene rolled several feet behind the Yankee backup catcher. Further heat set Greene up, and an 84-mph slider finished him with Joba’s fourth strike out, three of them swinging.
Following a one-two-three, one-strike-out third, Joba ran into more trouble in the fourth. Brian Giles doubled past Jason Giambi’s leaping attempt past first leading off and first baseman Gonzalez walked. Chase Headley went down swinging on three pitches, but veteran DH Tony Clark bounced a grounds rule double the opposite way to left and San Diego had their first lead of the three-game series. Hairston bounced to Rodriguez at third, who pegged Gonzalez out at home, and Greene’s drive to deep right died before the wall where Abreu gloved it.
Chamberlain had escaped a bases-loaded, no-outs inning and gave up a single score after a two-on, no-out situation that morphed into one with two runners moved up to scoring position with one down. But the 1-0 lead was worrying as Banks continued to mow down the recently hot-hitting home team. A two-out hit by pitch of Giambi in the fourth gave the Yanks their first baserunner since the first, but Jason advanced no further. Robbie Cano lined out to deep center to start the fifth after Chamberlain shut down the Pads around a walk and another strike out, with some help from Jeter snaring a hotshot to close the frame.
But something about Melky Cabrera’s demeanor following Cano was menacing, and Banks fell behind him 2-0 and 3-1, then missed again for his only walk of the day. The Yanks swiped three bases in four attempts against young Luke Carlin Wednesday; it became obvious that veteran Michael Barrett and the San Diego mound staff were in the same danger today. Cabrera stole second, and then third as Molina worked the count full. Jose fouled off strike three twice, once on just a tip, but when he lofted the eighth pitch to medium-deep center, the Yanks had tied the score while still not getting a third hit.
Jeter would take care of that the next frame with his leadoff single, but by then Chamberlain had left the fray. Joba began the sixth with just 88 pitches with a ceiling of 105, but he was a victim of his success, as it took him 12 throws to garner his eighth and ninth strike outs. Joe Girardi emerged to mild boo’s to remove the young hard thrower, both saving him from a possible loss (should someone reach) while ensuring he could not win, rather than risking that another high-pitch battle would exceed his count. Ironically, once Joba exited to vigorous applause, Clark would extend reliever Jose Veras to seven pitches before flying out to left to end the inning.
Chamberlain had left with two down in the sixth; Banks would not make it even that far. Jeter promptly stole second base after his leadoff single, and he moved to third when Abreu contributed his second “team” at bat in an 0-for-4 day, a bouncer to first. The Pads pulled the infield in and Banks went after A-Rod with the lead run on third with one down for the second time. It was a one-pitch battle, with Alex claiming victory with a line single to left for the 2-1 lead.
From there it went to the pens and to the defense. Southpaw Justin Hampson came on to strike out Giambi, one of three on the day, and Bryan Corey retired Abreu in the seventh after Molina doubled and Jeter walked. Damon had almost scored Jose with a pop single bid to short right, but Giles made a great play to run it down. Jody Gerut had already retired Damon on a sinking liner to center his last time up. Johnny collected another hit, but it could easily have been three.
On the Yankee side, Veras got through the seventh with a strike out and two flies around two walks, big trouble in this squeaker. Kyle Farnsworth escaped a one-out eighth-inning single with dominating, back-to-back swinging strike outs, and Mariano Rivera struck out the side in the ninth for save number 20.
So the winning streak stretches to seven, with Cinncinati due in the Bronx Friday night. The Yankee offense was challenged by a very well pitched game, and they survived, thanks to Joba. Chamberlain was very good. He threw 14 of 23 first-pitch strikes, pitched to a 59/41 strikes/balls ratio, and he surrendered but four hits and three walks. He pitched out of big trouble twice, and kept his team in the game. He reached 99 on the gun, spun in sliders of 84-86, threw the occasional low-70s curve and kept the visitors honest with a low 80s change. He did not earn a win as a starter yet again, but he notched 17 of the 27 outs, and continues to say all the right things.
Another guy who played on this, baseball’s biggest stage, and always said the right thing, even unto his death, was Lou Gehrig, the Iron Horse, who would have been celebrating his 105th birthday Thursday afternoon. Once again, a huge San Diego contingent joined the Yankee faithful in witnessing this classic game. Some had ties to the East Coast and the Pinstripes; some simply came from 3,000 miles away to see the Baseball Cathedral. I met one fan who had relocated to San Diego 40 years ago, but from Minnesota, not New York. His favorite player growing up? Mickey Mantle, same as mine.
It can be hard for Yankee fans to listen to and watch hordes of out-of-town fans root on their own heroes, as they did with young Banks today, and with the three home runs in a late abortive comeback try Wednesday night. What the natives need to keep in mind is that while the out-of-towners want their teams to win, more often than not they are in the Bronx on a pilgrimage, one they’ve taken to sacred ground they know they will never get to see again.
Band leader Guy Lombardo was born on June 19 as well, one year before the beloved Gehrig. As many exult to Frank Sinatra singing this great city’s praises after each game in the flush of yet another victory, it’s hard for me not to hear the strains of another old tune, Lombardo’s signature Auld Lang Syne. We were lucky today that ex-Yankee infielder and Hall of Fame broadcaster Jerry Coleman accompanied the throng from San Diego who attended this three-gamer. It was he and no corporate shill who reduced the Stadium games-left counter down to 45 in the bottom of the fifth.
Coleman played hard in the Bronx for nine years, teaming with fellow infielders Phil Rizzuto, Billy Martin, and Bobby Richardson, and he is one of the few blessed to have played for this franchise only. He knew the business plan was to win at all costs. Joba Chamberlain appears to know the same thing. It’s obvious he would love to get the win in one of these starts, and he will soon. But Joba seems the genuine article, just like Jerry was. Joba knows Job One:
Yankees Win. The-e-e Yankees Win!
BTW,TYW
YANKEE BASEBALL!!!