TAMPA, Fla., March 5 — You might think it would be difficult to find any good moments in a 12-2 loss that was both ugly and over early, but my first response is to share the game time temperature: 83 degrees under gloriously sunny skies. In fact, although I was fine after a couple of innings and the ice cream cup, the heat initially drove me from my seat (20 minutes before game time). But before I continue with a Top 12 Great Things about being a Yankee fan in Tampa today, perhaps I should describe how things got so lopsided.
It seems a minor point now, but Wells couldn’t get his off speed pitches over, as he started the first four batters with balls. Castro singled on 3-2, and DeRosa’s bloop single over first sent him around to third. Boomer got the next three while surrendering just the one run, but I was painfully wrong to feel good when he started the second by inducing a grounder to short. Then Wells flopped to the ground awkwardly after failing to corral Javy Lopez’s comebacker, and gave up a single to Castilla. But we were out of the inning (I assumed) when David snared Estrada’s sharp one-hopper. Only he then threw it wildly to the right field side, the second run scored and Castro and DeRosa followed with singles. Then a charging Soriano booted a Sheffield grounder that caromed off Wells, and the Braves had five runs on seven hits, while we had no hits but two errors.
Boomer survived the third, and we hoped for a fresh start with young Jorge DePaula. The fourth got off well with a fabulous Jeter grab deep in the shortstop hole, coupled with a leap, turn and one-bounce throw to first for the out. But single, double, double, double, strike out, single, and we were down 9-0. Things settled down with nine Braves succumbing in succession until Charlie Manning (I remember Rick Manning with the Tribe in the 70’s, but is there a less baseball-like name than “Charlie Manning”?) allowed the final three Braves runs in the eighth.
Other downers: seven hits and two runs (one earned) against a string of pitchers named “Who?” (I mean, Horacio Ramirez — Please), except Roberto Hernandez (and HE gave up two of the hits and one of the runs); the two errors; two balls that glanced off Matsui’s glove (one on Castilla’s single in the fourth caused no harm; the hard line double by Franco two batters earlier would have been an exceptional catch, but that’s not to say I didn’t want it badly); Flaherty, my choice for backup catcher, is doing NOTHING; Osuna walked two guys less well known than the pitchers; and Boomer failed to cover first on Estrada’s infield single in the third.
But some really great things happened out there today.
- I discovered my seats behind third start a day game in sun and stay that way until 3:55 pm.
- Jorge made a fine peg on a steal attempt by Sheffield in the fateful fourth, Marty Foster’s incorrect safe call notwithstanding.
- Alfonso made a great play up the middle on Castro leading off the game; it was bang-bang and I won’t argue THAT call.
- Jeter’s already described great play in the third.
- Omar Fuentes batted for Flaherty in the ninth (Sue and I had not seen him since a Staten Island Yankees game in 2000 BEFORE the Yanks built them a Stadium).
- Erick Almonte got no hits, but he made a fine grab of a Castro bouncer up the middle to end the seventh.
- Alfonso Soriano has taken the first pitch six out of the nine at bats I have seen, and walked today.
- Chris Hammond looked very effective today. On Sunday it appeared that if batters laid off the off-speed pitches, he would fail to throw them for strikes, he’d have to come in with fastballs, and they would be hit hard. Today he controlled all of his pitches, and threw to righties only.
- David Post. He’s short of stature, but I’ve already seen him play second, third and left field, all effectively. He runs well, and has two hits with a homer with two runs scored, and was robbed of a double.
- Fernando Seguignol. He is big, strong, left-handed, plays first base and stroked a hard single today. He reminds some of Ivan Cruz from the Donnie teams.
- The sunset was stunningly beautiful, with a cool libation and the strains of James Taylor, Jimmy Buffett and the Grateful Dead, and the weather forecast is more of the same through Saturday. And…
- Mo is Mo! Side retired on nine pitches, with two punch-outs.
YANKEE BASEBALL!!!