N.Y. Yankees ~ A Lansdowne Street Letdown

From the desk of:  BLAME CARLOS MAY



new york YANKEES:  Another Lesson Learned on the Bronx Bombers.


GAME TWO FINAL:
Yankees ~ 5
Red Sox ~ 9
Series tied 1-1


Wednesday night, Jason Varitek did what two Yankee catchers have not gotten the grasp of yet this season. 


He doubled home a run and hit a two run homer giving Boston necessary insurance runs against the Yankees late in the game.  But more importantly, he showed how a player is to comport themselves (unlike others, to include David Ortiz) upon completing a trip around the bases.  Secondly, some time ago, he accepted and embraced his role as a back-up catcher for the betterment of the team.  If he's done so grudgingly, we don't know about it.  And yet, he remains a highly respected team Captain; the Red Sox Captain.  And Wednesday night, he was another lesson learned on the Yankees; or at least two Pinstripers anyway.  You know who they are.  One gets called out for Tuesday night's game.  The other gets called out for pouting over his reduced role and importance to the team.


Josh Beckett wasn't especially good Wednesday night.  But Phil Hughes was a little worse because his skipper suffered over-managing stress disorder again.  But, not to completely take him off the hook, on nights where Beckett struggles, you'd hope for better from the pitcher following C.C. Sabathia in the rotation.  That pitcher was Phil Hughes this time.  He didn't pitch that badly.  But that isn't the kind of adverb; or adjective; you want to be hearing about your rotation; or sum of its parts; heading into September.  Is it?  And especially when Big Papi punctuates the Yankees' problems with a booming home run to dead center; followed by a minor flick of the bat; then a slow trip around the bases; and paying respects to his creator upon touching home; kissing the sky; and finally clapping his fists together to finish the whole demonstration off. 


Yes, he did all that.  But then again, he has a cool nick-name and makes ESPN commercials; something lost on Senor Cervelli.


All the Red Sox did was tie this series at one game apiece.  That's what you want to believe; right Yankee fans?  So why does it feel like you're doing so much more worse?

THURSDAY

GAME THREE
new york YANKEES

SP - A.J. Burnett

vs.

BOSTON RED SOX

SP - Jon Lester

From

Lansdowne Street Grounds

Mike.BTB

BROOKLYN-NATION

I am a Red Sox fan.  It says so on my blog page header.  I've been a Red Sox fan since about 1977.  My Pop was a Yankees fan.  I've already made you all familiar with the story.  The Chris Chambliss game of the 1976 ALCS is still the singular most spectacular game I ever attended.  I had no hate for the Yanks yet.  But in '77 I felt myself gravitating towards the Red Sox.  My Pop kept balance between us.  He kept feeding me a steady diet of my Mets' life but I spent equal time in Yankee World and it was all good!  In 1977 the Yankees signed Reggie Jackson and I never missed an at-bat of his.  But by '77 the Bronx Zoo really started taking form.  By '77 there were players that just started rubbing me the wrong way; Craig Nettles being the lead culprit.  In 1978 I remember running home from school to watch game 163, the AL East Playoff game or as everyone now knows it - The Bucky F'n Dent game.  YAZ was an instant hero of mine when he crushed that early home run in the game.  I've been a fervent BoSox fan since.  My Yankee "Hate" (which is really and honestly misleading) didn't truely kick in till after Thurman Munson passed away.  By then Mickey Rivers, Chambliss, Catfish and Sparky Lyle were no longer on the team and BOSS George was really coming into his own.  That, Ladies and Gentlemen is the Genesis of:

the BROOKLYN Chapter of

Red Sox NATION

How can such a thing exists in NYC?  I just told ya!  NUF CED!!

But you must know I have ALWAYS spent as much time going to

Yankee Stadium

as I do going to see the Mets.

Now, I must admit something to you, then warn you about another.  There is some Yankee fan in me as much as I hate to admit it.  But I will stand firm that my SOME is a hell of a lot stronger and more knowledgeable and appreciative of Yankee Tradition and History than many, many vermin sniffing the curb sides on their way home from the Stadium disguised as Yankee fans.  You know who you are.

With-in this BloggerHood I have done my best to keep my most derisive Yankee comments to myself, because they can be just that; - derisive.  I've done it out of respect for my fellow bloggers who are Yankee fans, to which I still consider myself the newcomer on the block.  I haven't wanted to move into the Hood like Godzilla out for a nice afternoon jog through Tokyo.  But after a few months of getting to know me, I think yous'guys know Baseball regardless of what team is my love and all their histories included.  Anything and everything this blog puts forth is either for love of our game or just to have a little fun, even if it is at other teams/fans expense.  Being a Mets fan, I was in St. Louis for the 1987 playoffs with my old army room-mate who's Pop had season tickets...so we took some leave and went .  Making it no secret I was a Mets fan amongst his friends, I enjoyed 4 days with them being called Pond-Scum!  It was great.  My point is, I'm equal opportunity so fire away.

Tonight the rivalry between the Yankees and the Red Sox resumes.  Before I go any further I must inform you forthright; M'Lady, Jane, our delectable She-Fan is the inspiration for today's post. 

She IS NOT one of the Yankee fans I described above!! 

I have the utmost respect for you Jane, you must know that. 

You are the Grand Supreme High Exhaulted Blogologist!

It's just coincidence I decided to wait till today to tap into my inner NUKE and announce my Red Sox Fandome with Authority. 

Today, your post is smartly entertaining as always! 

However there was one particular image missing from the Josh Beckett montage.  If only the Yanks could have hit 20 home runs against Josh Beckett on this night,

 maybe just maybe this memory wouldn't exist, but at the very least 

you could have had this image remain safely repressed

in the farthest reccessess of  your Yank-ollections. - 

...Until I came along that is.  Different team?  Yea.  Same guy?  You betcha.

I respectfully call this post:

Getting Back for Josh Beckett

This Total Recall was brought to you by Brooklyn Nation.

Let's go Red Sox

Happy Baseball Everyone.

Here's the rest of that collage for you Marlins fans.

Why did the BTB make a collage of the Marlins?

I collect Front Pages and I'll make a collage about any team just as long as I have stuff to use.

I have all my ticket stubs from the 80's on...etc.

Just for you Jane, I'll show you the one my son asked me to make him

(10 yrs ago)

 as a show of respect to your favorite team, you personally,

and to show I mean everything in fun.

Let the games begin!  Good luck Jane, Yankee fans and Red Sox fans everywhere.

Brooklyn Nation is open for business.

BTB

http://thebrooklyntrolleyblogger.mlblogs.com/

http://thebrooklyntrolleyblogger.blogspot.com/

4x4 Yanks-Red Sox

The Starting Front Four of the Red Sox vs. the Yankees:
(eh..hem - allow me SoxNation)


Evil Empire

vs.

RedSoxNation

C.C. Sabathia
Josh Beckett

A.J. Burnett
John Lackey

Javier Vasquez
Jon Lester

Andy Pettitte
Dice-K Matsuzaka


The ACE - Both are aces. I give the edge to Beckett. Two rings to one. Both won rings with their present team. Beckett closed out the Yankees in 2003 with the Marlins. C.C. wasn't enough to get the Brewers to a W.S. Make your own call when he was in Cleveland. Fugeddabou'th stats. I think it's fair.

Two Spot - Burnett, when he's on, he's really on. When he's off, he's befuddling to watch. He's been a headcase with respect to his catchers, but NYC seems agreeable enough with him. Lackey is a bulldog and more consistent on a game to game basis. I watched A.J. throw his arms in the air after surrendering a HR and yelling aloud "Why did I throw that pitch?!", somewhat showing up his catcher Posada. We all watched Lackey yelling at his manager, "This is my game skip!" in the ALCS. What say you?
EDGE? It's close, almost a wash. It's Lackey by a nose.

Three Spot - Let's not waist too much time with this. Vasquez didn't do too well here, literally, since he went to the All-Star game for the Bombers in his first stint. Foolishly, they wanted Randy Johnson instead. He has improved somewhat since then. He has nice strikeout numbers since those days. But currently he's a really good aquisition for the Bombers, giving up Melkey and a bag of balls.
....(say this fast, for effect)> LesterIsBetterNuff'Ced!!!
Edge - Jon Lester.

Four Spot - Dice-K? Hmmmm. Tough call. Versus all Andy Pettitte has done, key word here being "has", it's Andy. C'mon SoxNation it's true, today. But what does Andy really have left. At least we think there is still a promising future for Dice-K. Don't we? Last year was a nice Swan Song for Andy. Is there anything left? Perhaps. Now-Now Yankee fans, if I pit Andy against Jon Lester instead of Vasquez, Andy looses to Lester. There's way too much ahead of Lester and Andy's career is in the rear view mirror. So, does it matter?

The Verdict - three rounds to one.....TheNATION has a better starting rotation than theEMPIRE. The Brooklyn Trolley Blogger has spoken.


P.S. What comes after the four spot is another matter. The Sox have Buchholz, while the Highlanders continue to mismanage Joba and Hughes, and seem about ready to delete Wang. Is Wakefield still able to flutter a knuckler or is he retired for good?

The Hot Stove is a-burnin' folks.