Yankees Reliever Puts a Dark Cloud Over an Otherwise Uplifting Victory

Any worries of a sweep of the season series in baseball’s biggest rivalry was squelched with a convincing 13-6 Yankee triumph on Thursday night.

The Bronx Bombers emphatically reinforced their moniker by launching four home runs into the night sky—though two of which would have been doubles in any other ballpark.

It was a feel good night for all Yankee fans watching from the Bronx and around the country, as an old-fashioned beatdown was being delivered without rubbing it in or acting like it had never happened before.

Things quickly changed in the top of the eighth inning, however, when Red Sox 2B Dustin Pedroia strolled to the plate in a 13-4 game.

Yankees reliever Mark Melancon proceeded to throw a 94 MPH fastball directly over Pedroia’s head—successfully crossing one of the most respected lines in Major League Baseball.

To make matters worse, Melancon then reiterated and stressed his intent by drilling the Sox leadoff hitter with the next pitch in his shoulder blade.

Hitters can, in most cases, understand being buzzed off the plate or thrown at when riding a hot streak—so long as all fastballs are kept from the rib cage to the cleats.

Melancon not only abused that unwritten rule twice, but also did so in a blowout win. It added insult to injury, and attacked a respected hitter who has absolutely no previous incidents with the ball club.

Pedroia’s hit by pitch was unprovoked and unnecessary, and added a new wrinkle to the rest of the 2009 season (as if the Youkilis-Chamberlain angle wasn’t heated enough already).

Entering Thursday’s game, Pedroia was just 8-for-31 (.258) with 0 HR and 1 RBI against New York in eight games. Is one opposite field gift home run now worthy of a head-hunting heater?

An old adage clearly states that one should “let sleeping dogs lie,” which is exactly what the Red Sox were. They were a struggling team looking for a spark; looking for a catalyst for a rallying cry.

Josh Beckett and the Red Sox will be out for blood tonight in the series’ second game. A fiery and borderline psychotic competitor when toeing the rubber, Beckett will not allow his MVP to be head-hunted twice without retribution.

The rest of the team will undoubtedly rally behind their gutsy and hard-nosed sparkplug, ensuring that revenge is packaged and sent with a bow to the home team’s clubhouse.

How will Yankee fans respond if their captain and fellow “leader by example” is drilled in Friday’s contest—perhaps suffering a broken bone on his hand?

What if recent Red Sox killer and white hot slugger Mark Teixeira (.343 AVG, .477 OBP, 4 HR) is sent to the trainer’s room with an elbow swollen up like Angelina Jolie’s lips?

Yankees Universe could not spend even one second yelling at the television set or calling for a bench-clearing brawl, because the Red Sox sadly would have done nothing wrong.

The “eye for an eye” retaliation method in MLB has a history as storied as the game itself, and the Yankees unfortunately chose the wrong method of message-sending.

Before hopping onto the couch to watch Game Two tonight, or popping the first potato chip into your mouth, please remember to take a second to say a prayer for the Yankee lineup.

Repent for the bullpen’s actions and ask for forgiveness from the baseball gods. Request that retribution leaves a Yankee star bruised but not disabled—making sure that he does not miss any important games in order to heal.

First instincts may understandably promote slurs, yells, curses, and jeers, but we have to try to remember one important factor: Mark Melancon (and possibly Joe Girardi) asked for this.

Cross your fingers and hold your breath, because tonight might be a bumpy ride.

Teixeira, Cano Seek Hardware: Right Side of Yankee IF Has “Midas Touch”

It has been virtually impossible to overlook the offensive production supplied by Mark Teixeira and Robinson Cano in the middle of the Yankee lineup.

Teixeira is currently on pace for 53 HR, 145 RBI, 119 R, and .618 SLG. These would all be career highs for the new pinstriped addition, as he has become as likely an MVP candidate as any player in MLB.

Cano has rebounded fantastically from a nightmare 2008 campaign—on pace for 28 HR, 104 RBI, 111 R, 41 2B, and just 51 K. All of these production statistics would set or tie career highs for him, and the 51 strikeouts would represent his all-time low.

The way the two stars are producing in other ways, however, could lead to very high praise after the season’s end.

It is how these men are handling the leather—as opposed to the lumber—that is earning them recognition across Major League Baseball. Teixeira and Cano’s “Midas touch” on the defensive end could spell a pair of Gold Gloves in their immediate future.

Already a proud owner of the award, Teixeira has somehow elevated his defensive prowess to new heights.

The new Yankees 1B has erased the clumsy years of Jason Giambi from fans’ minds, helping to reminisce about Don Mattingly and Tino Martinez playing next to flawless at the position.

Teixeira has yet to make an error in 60 games played at first base—of course producing a 1.000 fielding percentage.

His aerial acrobatics and controlled dives have seemingly saved as many runs as he has produced, and he has shown a knack for throwing with accuracy and strength from his knees—or even his stomach.

Teixeira saves a teammate’s errant throw nearly every single night, whether with a perfectly timed stretch or a scoop even Yankees sponsor Turkey Hill would be proud of.

While “Big Tex” has been jaw-dropping at first base, he has been far from alone on the right side of the infield. Cano has partnered with Teixeira in creating the most dynamic defensive combination that New York has seen in quite some time.

It appears the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry has added yet another wrinkle, as they will have to wrestle the awards away from Kevin Youkilis and reigning MVP Dustin Pedroia.

While Youkilis has played equally as well at the position thus far in 2009, he has also played 15 fewer games at 1B than Teixeira—putting “Big Tex” slightly ahead in terms of deservingness.

In the second base war, however, Cano has actually out-defended Pedroia. Cano has just three errors, a .989 fielding percentage, and has turned 41 double plays. Pedroia has committed four errors, turned just 36 double plays, and has a .985 fielding percentage.

By no means has it been a stark contrast in skill, as Pedroia is as consistently good as anyone in the league. To this point in the season, Cano has simply supplied a few more karats of gold.

Though I believe Bill James’ new statistical analysis to be a farce along with the rest of sabermetrics, Cano does also have a better “range factor” at 4.50 than Pedroia’s 4.40.

No players were more responsible for New York’s record-breaking errorless streak than Cano and Teixeira, and the publicity generated from the accomplishment should shift Gold Glove votes in their favor.

It remains to be seen if the consistency and impact can continue for 162 games, but it is undeniable how important their glove work has been to the Yankees success.

Every ball lifted into the air to the right side of the stadium may be ending up in the seats, but any ball on the ground is ending up in Cano or Teixeira’s glove.

Green Monster Knockout? Yankees Head to Fenway without a Right Uppercut

The game of baseball’s biggest and most passionate rivalry is once again unleashed on America tonight in Fenway Park.

In fact, the bad blood has already begun to boil over before the series’ first pitch, as David Ortiz has warned Joba Chamberlain to steer clear of his patented “chin music.”

It should be an entertaining and spirited clash, with an A.J. Burnett vs. Josh Beckett matchup representing baseball’s “must see” of the weekend.

The Yankees enter Fenway Park with a clear disadvantage offensively, however, which may prove to be the difference in the three-game series. With the absence of Alex Rodriguez and Xavier Nady, New York does not possess a right-handed power bat.

Lacking power from the right side is normally a moot point in baseball, as the majority of the game’s pitchers are right-handed as well. Many teams choose to stack their lineups with left-handed hitters as a result.

The Philadelphia Phillies are a perfect example of this, as they won the World Series with just two power hitters from the right side (Pat Burrell and Jayson Werth). They then let Burrell walk in free agency, and replaced him with another lefty in Raul Ibanez.

One of the strong exceptions to the rule is Fenway Park; the Red Sox proud and historic home for 97 years.

Due to its peculiar architecture and presence of the short “Green Monster” in left field, Fenway Park has favored righties since the massive wall was constructed in 1936. So much so, in fact, that the Yankees and Red Sox once considered exchanging Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams in order to take advantage of each park’s dimensions.

The current Yankee roster consists of only three right-handed hitters. After quickly disregarding Jose Molina and Cody Ransom as threats, we are left with only Derek Jeter.

Though Jeter is a solid offensive player and thorn in the Red Sox side, he has never been known to drive the ball to left field. His inside-out swing has instead produced countless home runs and doubles to the power alley in right-center field. During his last three years at Fenway, Jeter has hit just .286.

New York does employ a bevy of switch-hitters, including Mark Teixeira, Jorge Posada, Nick Swisher, and Melky Cabrera.

Boston’s only lefty starter is Jon Lester, whose hard cutter should somewhat neutralize their ability to lift balls with authority. They will be forced to hit lefty for the remainder of the series, aside from late-inning matchup situations.

The Red Sox, on the other hand, have assembled a roster to harness its stadium’s home-field advantage. They have littered the heart of the lineup with talented right-handers such as Mike Lowell, Kevin Youkilis, Jason Bay, and reigning MVP Dustin Pedroia.

The strategy has already paid huge dividends for the Red Sox in 2009, as these hitters have played pepper with the Green Monster every chance they get. While Bay has struggled at Fenway thus far, the other sluggers have relished their home games:

Lowell:
Home - .367
Away - .250

Youkilis:
Home - .560
Away - .375

Pedroia:
Home - .361
Away - .185

The Yankees will need to rely heavily on their pitching staff in order to have a chance to win the rivalry’s opening series in 2009. If it becomes an offensive “pissing contest”, New York will not be able to compete without A-Rod and Nady in the lineup.

Expect some fireworks tonight as Joba is unlikely to back down as a result of Ortiz’s caveat. In the event of a benches-clearing brawl, the Yankees better restrain Posada before his surgically repaired shoulder is compromised.

Friendships created during the World Baseball Classic are now jettisoned to the trash can…it is time for contention to again takeover.

MLB '09: The Show and 2K9 Win Big in Ad Campaigns

I do not even own a Playstation 3, nor have i played any other video game system in quite some time.

In fact, the most recent baseball game collecting dust on my closet floor is MVP Baseball 2004. It proudly displays Albert Pujols on its cover.

However, after watching the marketing campaigns presented by MLB '09: The Show and MLB 2K9, maybe we all should give them a shot.

In their two recent commercials, they feature players such as Dustin Pedroia, Tim Lincecum (in human form as well as CGI), and a beautiful cameo by newly acquired S.F. Giant Randy Johnson.

While the Lincecum commercial is clever and entertaining, the Pedroia piece is clearly the pick of the litter.

Even as a die-hard Yankee supporter, i grow more fond of the reigning AL MVP on a daily basis.

Check them out for yourself if you haven't already. Presented to you for your viewing pleasure:

Dustin Pedroia vs. Playstation


Tim Lincecum & His Animated Clone


Now if that does not make a baseball fan want to own these games, i am not sure what will. Short, sweet, and to the point...yet very funny and eye-catching.