Athletics Archives - Jane Heller

The Broom Is Back

May 27, 2012

I was out during most of today’s game, but I listened on my At Bat app. Nice win for the boys and very nice win for Kuroda, but I was nervous. All we had was a one-run lead on Jones’ homer until we squeaked out another run on the double by the suddenly-not-coughing-and-hitting-well Tex. So when Girardi brought in our new closer to shut it down in the ninth, I clutched my iPhone tightly and started talking to it. Sori got the first two outs but then gave up a hit. “I miss Mo,” I muttered. But then he got the strikeout and the ballgame was over. Whew.

The Yanks are looking better than when they were losing, no question, but there was still that first inning with the bases loaded and our heavy hitters up and yet nobody was able to knock in a run. I worry about that trend.

On the lighter side, I laughed earlier in the day when I read the NYT piece about Girardi’s Cap’n Crunch eating. If he’s lactose intolerant, why does he have to eat his cereal dry? Has he never heard of Lactaid or even Almond, Soy or Rice Milk? Clearly, I need to have a talk with his wife.

Back to the dark side, while it was sweet to win again in Oakland, the Yankees will face a much tougher rival when they get to Anaheim tomorrow night. No, I don’t mean the Angels. I don’t even mean Pujols or Weaver. I mean him.

I have to admit that some of their clips are funny.

Well, That Was Quite A Tex Message

May 26, 2012

What a turnaround for our Marky. I guess resting him and his bronchial condition was the ticket, because he’s been great ever since. He’s come alive offensively, and today was more evidence. He had five RBIs – yay – and led the Yankees to a 9-2 win over the A’s. I didn’t get my 10 runs but almost. I’ll take it.

CC got off to a shaky start but did what he usually does – settle down and win. Cano continued his resurgence at the plate. And Wade and Epply deserve a shout out for setting down the A’s in the eighth and ninth.

It seems the Yankees really like playing at the Coliseum in Oakland. Somehow, we need to hypnotize them so that when they get to the dreaded Angels Stadium on Monday they’ll still think they’re in Oakland.

The Golden State Is Golden For The Yanks…So Far

May 25, 2012

After watching the Rangers lose to the Devils (booooooooo), I switched over to the Yankees and felt my mood brighten with Tex’s three-run homer to put us on the board. Adding to the fun were homers by Cano and Swisher, and I started to relax. Nova had a strong start – not lights out but good enough – and Logan pitched a one-two-three in relief. Soriano was nearly Mo-like; he seems comfortable in his old closer role and my guess is that Girardi will leave him there even after Robertson comes back.

Were there any not-so-great moments? Sure.

A-Rod hit into a double play with the bases loaded.

Jeter was 0-for-5 and looked as bad as his stat.

Aside from the homers, the offense was sluggish once again with runners in scoring position.

The horns and drums at the Coliseum in Oakland were almost as annoying as the cowbells at the Trop and gave me a headache.

Off-Day Goings On

May 24, 2012

1. To Sell Or Not To Sell

First we had the Daily News report that the Steinbrenners were putting out feelers about selling the Yankees. Then we had vigorous denials from Hal Steinbrenner, Randy Levine and Lonn Trost, plus a comment from MLB. Probably much ado about nothing but it made for good copy on an otherwise blah news day.

2. Chad Curtis Emerges From Obscurity (And Not In A Good Way)

According to the AP, the former Yankee has been accused of sexual misconduct by two teenage girls who are students at the Michigan high school where he’s supposed to become the football coach. My most vivid memory of him is when he and Jeter got into a fight about fraternizing with opposing players (Chad was not in favor of it) and the next thing I knew he was gone. Which is what happens when you mess with Jeter.

3. Another Player Testifies In The Clemens Case

Former Oriole David Segue corroborated McNamee’s claims about the Rocket in today’s installment of a trial I don’t much care about. I can’t imagine the prosecutors getting a conviction out of this case so it’s a waste of everybody’s time and money. I’m just glad Pettitte didn’t have to hang around in DC and get dragged down by it all.

In other news, I went shopping instead of watched a baseball game this afternoon, which was dangerous for my bank account. It’s much safer when I’m home in front of the TV.

Here’s to a great series in Oakland.

I Saw History! (With a P.S.)

August 25, 2011

I also bought a poncho for ten bucks. It was like wearing the kind of plastic bags you get at the dry cleaner, but it did keep me from getting totally soaked.

When Michael and I arrived at the Stadium at noon, it was raining and I never thought they’d play a complete game, given the forecast. The tarp was on the field, so we hung around the great hall and looked for Audrey and her friend. After texting each other, we met up in front of the Hard Rock Cafe. She came all the way from Vermont and I was thrilled to meet her.

Next, we went in search of food. We figured we had plenty of time to kill, so Michael had his Lobel’s sandwich and I opted for a Boar’s Head sub and eventually we went to our seats. We’d heard the game would start at 2:30 and we wanted to be ready.

As soon as we sat down in section 104, along came YankeeCase. It’s hard to see him because the background was so dark (the rain was picking up again and my She-Fan Cam was getting wet), but here he is in the flesh. Such a hunk, right?

Michael and I sat under our hoods and umbrella as the game started and the rain continued to fall. Hughes was just awful. I know he struck out batters, but he took forever to throw the damn ball and he couldn’t get Matsui out and we looked at each other and said, “It’s gonna be a loooong day.”

When the score was 7-1, we thought about bolting. We were wet and depressed and wondering why we’d bothered. And then YankeeCase texted me that the boys would be making a comeback. I wrote back, “You promise?” He said yes.

So we stayed. And I’m I glad I did. Wow. What a great, crazy, incredible game. Cano’s slam landed two rows in front of us. Martin had a career-type day. Granderson amazed everybody. Even Andruw Jones got in on the homer act. And it was so much fun sitting right behind Swisher and watching him play with the crowd throughout the game.

It never occurred to me that no team in major league history had ever had three grand slams in a game, so when the scoreboard posted the fact we were doubly happy we’d stayed.

I’m still shaking my head and we’ve been home for a couple of hours. Long day but an unforgettable one.

(I’m too euphoric to dwell about the state of our pitching except to say that Hughes really disappointed me. And I think the Cory Wade experiment needs to end.)

P.S. YankeeCase just sent me a pic that his cousin took of him after he went back to his seat. He’s wearing the “she-fan” button that Melissa (it WAS Melissa, right?) made last year. It says, “I confess. I read the she-fan blog.” Pretty great, huh?

Coco Loco

August 24, 2011

Coco Crisp. Aaargh. Sounds like a breakfast cereal. He did a lot of damage tonight, and not even another big night from Swisher could provide an answer.

CC looked off yet again. He didn’t give up a lot of runs; it wasn’t that. He just hasn’t been as dominating as he was a couple of months ago. Robertson wasn’t thrilling either. And Soriano? Maybe he was rusty; we haven’t seen much of him lately.

But Girardi said it best after the game: “We had a lot of opportunities. We didn’t cash in.” Indeed. This whole runners-in-scoring-position thing is a problem. I mean we weren’t facing Verlander. It was Cahill, who’s usually so hittable.

The Yanks have been flat in this series – like they’d rather be lying in a hammock somewhere. Jeter tied Rickey Henderson, which was sweet, but the bats have been made of cheese.

The Yanks really need to pick it up tomorrow. I don’t intend to drive two hours to see them get swept by the Oakland A’s.

Such A Heartbreaker

August 23, 2011

I spent most of tonight’s series opener against the A’s wondering why the Yankees kept stranding runners. It was frustrating, to say the least. Jeter was getting hit after hit (congrats to him on tying Carew) and McCarthy was shutting the door over and over. Colon wasn’t horrible by any means, but he’s been giving up homers since the All-Star break and that’s not a good sign. I think he needs one of these.

Not that he got much help from the offense. But the bats did wake up and we rallied, which only made this loss more painful. Ugh. I love when there’s a chance we’ll come back in a game, but I hate when we don’t come all the way back. It’s such a tease. And I was really in the mood for pie; it would have given AJ something positive to do.

Should Jeter have bunted in the ninth? The guy’s been on fire. To me the bunt took the bat out of his hands, not to mention that it gave the A’s an out. But whatever. We lost. Boston won. We’re tied again.

And what’s this about A-Rod and his thumb? I’m glad his x-rays were negative, but come on! Enough with the injuries, Al.

OK, Just One More Shot At AJ……

August 22, 2011

I do love the “It Is High…” blog.

And I do miss “The Sopranos.”

Here’s hoping all the Yankees are having a good time tonight, whatever they’re doing. I want them rested and relaxed (but not too relaxed) this week – especially on Thursday. They better not lose that day. And it better not rain.

The Yanks Take The Rubber Game

July 24, 2011

Before I even get to the game and our players, what is up with Oakland pitcher Joey Devine? He was anything but divine the last couple of days.

Yesterday I chalked up his wildness to sweat. Today? He was just ridiculously wild. You can’t keep throwing behind hitters and call yourself a major leaguer.

Okay, now that I got that off my chest, I need to say a word or two about Eduardo Scissorhands.

Nunie — Photo: Christopher Pasatieri/Newsday.com)

I haven’t been a fan of his defense, but not only does he drive in runs with increasing regularity… he’s also an excellent baserunner. I like his speed and aggressiveness. There. I had to get that off my chest too.

Colon pitched well and I’m glad the Yankees scored some runs for him. (Keep up the homers, Grandy. And way to come off the bench, Andruw Jones.) He couldn’t get Matsui out but then neither could anybody else.

Which brings me to Dave Robertson. He’s been amazing, no question, and today was an off-day for him. But should we be at all concerned that he gets himself into trouble and then gets himself out of it? It seems pathological. Or is it just the tightrope that good closer-types walk because they actually like living on the edge?

tightrope512 — (courtesy: news.bbc.co.uk)

And speaking of closers, um, Mo? Not a comfortable ninth inning there. And I can’t believe that two-pitch eighth had anything to do with it.

And finally, in case anybody missed it, there was an article about Kei Igawa in today’s NYT – a very long, very thorough, very depressing article. The guy didn’t pitch well at the major league level, granted, and the Yankees paid a lot of money to bring him over from Japan, probably because they felt they had to counter the Red Sox’s acquisition of Dice K. But seriously. Why has he been passed over time after time when pitchers with less talent are brought up? (Yes, I know. There are roster issues but still.) And why would Cashman say outright, “He’s been a disaster?” There had to be a more graceful way for our GM to express himself. If somebody said that about me, I’d be pretty upset.

Baseball can be a cruel business.

P.S. On the not-cruel-at-all side, Friend of the Blog John had mentioned the other day that his daughter was going to the game with her friend and the friend’s eight-year-old son, who would be seeing Yankee Stadium for the first time. Here’s a pic of him eating his first big-league sandwich. Looks pretty happy to me.

Let's Hear It For The Sweep

June 1, 2011

cheerleader11 — (courtesy: amazing-animations.com)

Since you guys thought yesterday’s cheerleader was a transvestite, I thought I’d try this little blonde on you. I wish she had blue pom poms and a pinstripe outfit on instead of the dreaded red, but I haven’t learned Photo Shop yet.

Anyhow, how about A.J.? When he gave up that homer to Willingham in the first inning, I was more than a little anxious that things would go south. But no! He was fantastic. Truly. I know people think the A’s are hardly more than a minor league team, but anybody with a bat in his hands is a threat. That’s my position. A.J. deserves kudos for going seven and looking good doing it.

And speaking of looking good, how about that comebacker that Joba turned into a double play? Right on the heels of the comebacker that Garcia turned into a DP in the previous game. I like it. And I like that Mo set the A’s down one-two-three. Order has been restored. Soriano who?

rafael-soriano3-359x540 — (courtesy: bronxbaseballdaily.com)

And finally, how about Swisher living up to his “Swishalicious” nickname for a change? That homer was sweet. I hope it signals the end of his funk.

So….our boys go down to Anaheim, the scene of many a massacre. Whenever I think about playing the Angels, I get horrible flashbacks to a game I went to when Garret Anderson had TEN RBIs…to the era when we couldn’t beat them if they’d played blindfolded. And, of course, I flash back to this creature.

Please, Yankees. Beat the Angels this weekend and beat them quickly. Thank you. xxoo

Let’s Hear It For The Sweep

June 1, 2011

And finally, how about Swisher living up to his “Swishalicious” nickname for a change? That homer was sweet. I hope it signals the end of his funk.

Please, Yankees. Beat the Angels this weekend and beat them quickly. Thank you. xxoo

Ten Runs – My Kind of Game

May 31, 2011

pom.pom girl — (courtesy: school-portal.co.uk)

I said I would take good care of the Yankees once they got to California and so far I’m holding up my end. Tonight’s game was another show of dominance over the A’s – from Garcia’s effective pitching to more crazy good offense by Granderson. (Is that guy having a season to remember or what? I knew he was good when he was in Detroit, but this is insane.) Nice swat by Cano, excellent RBIs by A-Rod and clap clap clap to Jeter for piling up the hits. Oh, and I’m loving all the double steals lately.

What I’m not loving is Brett Gardner’s bunting. He needs to either stop trying or learn how to do it. I can’t stand watching him botch it anymore.

I also can’t figure out why our baserunning has been so bad (aside from the double steals). Doesn’t it seem like someone is getting picked off or caught napping or running into an out in each game these days?

Anyhow, we won – handily. I love blowouts – always have, always will. They’re so relaxing.

sleeping-girl-animated — (courtesy: strayac.com)

All Hail Bartolo Colon!

May 30, 2011

So what if he has man boobs in that picture? He’s incredible. And after that last lousy outing too, talk about a bounce back. If you told me we’d have a complete game shutout on this road trip, I would have predicted that CC would be the one to throw it, but no. It was our miracle stem cell man. Wow.

Tex just keeps hitting those bombs, doesn’t he? I wish he’d give A-Rod a little nudge in the power department. Jeter inched closer to #3,000. And Gardner and Cervelli had a nice double steal in the game. Posada looked woeful. I don’t know what’ll happen with him in the DH spot but I have a feeling it’ll happen soon.

Speaking of JoPo/Jorge/Sado, our old friend Bill “Surf Dog” Connell was selling hot dogs like hot cakes this holiday weekend. But he took a few minutes to rant about Posada, Girardi and Cashman to the She-Fan Cam. As always, he was not shy about sharing his feelings about the Yankees. Take a look and Happy Memorial Day to all. It’s good to have the boys in California.