[I'll get to it eventually.]
I hope every member of the Yankees puts that in their lockers for the rest of their season as a reminder that there's only one place to go: up.
Look, it's Opening Day of a 162 game season. Am I concerned about the Yankees' performance last night? No, because I don't believe it will be indicative of long-term success. But it was highly obnoxious nonetheless, and here's what bothered me the most:
- The effects of the change in mentality is astounding. A few days ago the Yanks were on a Spring Training tear, winning some eight or nine straight (at least). And they looked sharp. But yesterday, since it "mattered", they looked like a totally different team. What gives?
- The defense on two fronts. One, Cody Ransom. I know he's expected to be a replacement-level player until Alex returns, but he at least exhibited competent defense in ST. Yet he was a mess yesterday with his two bobbles. But on the first mistake he wasn't helped out by the second defensive issue--Derek Jeter. Unlike Ransom, the Cap'n did NOT look that good in ST (at least from the games I saw), and I fear for our defense up the middle. I swear that Jete should have backed Ransom up on his first botched play (shouldn't the SS have played behind the 3B and the 2B covered second base?), and later on I remember a single up the middle that he didn't charge. Come on Captain--I know you're getting older, but you shouldn't be wearing the lead boots already.
- Mark Teixeira was noticeably affected by the boos from the O's fans, and as such was pressing. Mark--you're a Yankee now. You're gonna get booed everywhere; please get used to it.
- I really have faith in Brett Gardner, and I think he's going to be a vital piece of this team (despite what Joe Morgan says). And I know he can bunt, but christ JoeG, after a leadoff double, let him swing! That was the situation in which I hate the bunt the most, since you essentially gamble and probably will beat yourself. Which is exactly what happened. A rally killing move, indeed.
- Team goat: Xavier Nady. The low point of the game was his costly baserunning error. Yes, I know this was primarily the 3B coach's mistake, but it didn't make Nady look good at all.
But yeah. Long story short--yesterday was a low point, and I hope the team got it out of their system and will get back to work tomorrow. There is a division to win, after all!
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Sabathia wasn't the only ace to have issues on Opening Day. Take a look at what the top pitchers in the game did on their first day back:
Cliff Lee (CLE) - 5 IP, 10 H, 7 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 1 HR
CC Sabathia (NYY) - 4.1 IP, 8 H, 6 ER, 5 BB, 0 K, 0 HR
Brandon Webb (ARI) - 4 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 2 HR
Roy Halladay (TOR) - 7 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 2 HR
Yikes. Baseball's a funny thing, isn't it? We certainly don't expect those patterns to predict the season.
Random notes: The Twins, behind Liriano, were bested by King Felix Hernandez and the Mariners. It wasn't good news for me, but Griffey's HR swing was a thing of beauty. ... On that note, it's cool to see "The Kid" back in his original uniform. ... Marlin's leadoff 3B Emilio Bonifacio stole three bases and had an inside-the-parker. But it was against the Nats, so what do we expect? ... I meant to watch the A's/Angels game, but I was busy and didn't sit down for the whole thing. I'm really excited for the A's offense, and I wish Jason Giambi the best as he returns to his original colors.
LOL of the day: Probably the 9-8 slugfest between the Diamondbacks and Rockies. Nothing like making a statement about the NL West to kick off the season!
