Results tagged “baseball”

     

The Giants win in overtime (finally), the Jets lose their sixth game of the last seven and more playoffs hopes, and the Knicks' winning streak ends at two, with a Celtics loss.

     

Yankees 7, Phillies 3: For the first time since 2000 and the 27th time in franchise history, the New York Yankees are the World Champions of baseball. The Yankees defeated the Philadelphia Phillies four games to two behind the bat of Hideki Matsui and the solid pitching of Andy Pettitte. Matsui was 3-4 in the game, including two two-RBI hits off Phillies starter Pedro Martinez and two more RBI against Phillies reliever Chad Durbin.

With the precognitive skills of Miss Cleo, the Philadelphia Inquirer ran a three-quarter page Macy's ad in this morning's newspaper for a Phillies 2009 World Series Championship t-shirt. The Daily News reports, "in the ad world equivalent of the 'Dewey Defeats Truman' headline, the bungled banner in The Philadelphia Inquirer said 'Congratulations Phillies! Back-to-back Champs.'" Maybe Macy's just hired local amateur psychic Jimmy Rollins to write its copy!

• Yankees 8, Phillies 5: Things looked bleak when Andy Pettitte gave up three runs in the second inning. But Alex Rodriguez hit a two-run homer in the fourth that was originally ruled a double, but then reversed by the umpires with instant replay, and then the Yankees -- helped by an Andy Pettitte RBI single -- scored three in the fifth. They added a run each in the sixth, seventh and eighth and now own a two games to one lead in the World Series. Hideki Matsui and Nick Swisher also had homers, and Johnny Damon had a critical two-run double.

• Yankees 3 Phillies 1: The Yankees gave AJ Burnett a lot of money this offseason to pitch in big games and he delivered on Thursday night. Burnett, who would have had a shutout with better defense, allowed only one run over seven innings and struck out nine. Pedro Martinez almost matched him, but he was touched up for two home runs, one by Mark Teixeira that tied the game at 1 and one by Hideki Matsui that put New York up 2-1.

• Philadelphia 6 Yankees 1: The Yankees looked like a team totally overwhelmed by circumstances while Cliff Lee looked like Orel Hershiser in 1988. CC Sabathia was good, allowing only two runs, both solo shots to Chase Utley, but Lee was much better. He dominated the Yankees, going the distance and he probably would have had a shutout if Jimmy Rollins hadn’t airmailed a throw in the ninth. The Yankees bullpen imploded in the 8th and 9th with Phil Hughes and Brian Bruney the chief culprits. New York will have to hope for a better result against Pedro Martinez in Game 2.

       

The New York Public Library is pitting Philly and NYC against each other in this fantastic catalog of old baseball images they put online. They say: "The 2009 World Series brings together two cities uncommonly rich in baseball history. Some of the game's earliest years are chronicled in over 500 photographs, prints, drawings, caricatures, and printed illustrations donated in 1921 to the New York Public Library by early baseball player and sporting-goods tycoon A. G. Spalding (whose name to this day is printed across every ball used in the National League)."

The insults keep flying in the pages of our beloved local rags in the build up to tonight's Game 1 showdown between the Yankees and "Frillies." The Post went out and interviewed "'Phil'istines" across Philly, only to come to the conclusion that, "If the Phillies are as soft as their fans, the Yankees could walk away with the Series in four with George Steinbrenner on the mound and Kate Hudson in the bullpen. These fans are softer than the bread their beloved cheesesteaks are served on."

   

The Yankees are headed to their 40th World Series, but they will have to beat the defending-champion Phillies in order to capture their 27th crown. The Phillies are battle-tested and have a lineup that can belt it out of the park. Four different hitters had more than 30 home runs and the Phillies made quick work of their first two playoff opponents, losing only two games along the way.

With the Yankees about to play in their 40th World Series tomorrow night, the city is excited. Especially the NY Post and NY Daily News, which are going to town with numerous stories... and Shane Victorino gets the "Frilly" treatment on the Post's cover. One Post story is headlined: "Their fans are second rate & so is their city."

     

The Yankees are headed to their 40th World Series. Johnny Damon had the big hit, a two-run single that put New York up 2-1 in the fourth. A-Rod forced in a run with a walk and that gave the Yankees a 3-1 lead heading into the fifth. Andy Pettitte made that stand up, holding the Angels to one run over 6-1/3 and Joba Chamberlain closed out the seventh to keep the lead at two. Joe Girardi went for the kill, calling Mariano Rivera into the game to start the eighth, but Rivera allowed a run in that frame to put the Angels only one run behind.

• New Jersey 4 Pittsburgh 1: The Devils did what only one other team has accomplished this year- they beat the Penguins. Mark Frasier got things going with a goal in the first and Martin Brodeur stopped 32-of-33 shots to make Pittsburgh 9-and-2.
• Montreal 5 Rangers 4 (OT): New York blew 3-1 and 4-2 leads as the Canadiens stormed back and earned the win in extra time. Scott Gomez had two assists in his first game as a Canadien against the Rangers and New York now has a three-game losing streak.
• Washington 3 Islanders 2 (OT): Maybe it’s a New York thing? The Islanders also blew a two-goal lead as the Capitals scored twice in the third period and then again in OT to earn the two points.

• Angels 7 Yankees 6: The Yankees overcame a miserable start by A.J. Burnett only to have their bullpen give the game away. New York put the first two runners on in the first, but failed to score while the Angels jumped all over A.J. Burnett for four runs in their half of the inning. And that’s exactly where things remained until the seventh. With two outs, Mark Teixeira delivered a bases-loaded double to clear the bases and put the Yankees on the board. A-Rod was intentionally walked and Hideki Matsui followed with a single to tie the game. Robinson Cano followed with a triple to put New York up 6-4.

They needed until their seventh game, but the Islanders finally won a game, 4-3 over Carolina, albeit in a shootout. They also blew a two-goal lead in the third period before recovering to win the shootout. Matt Moulson, Andy Sutton and Tim Jackman each had a regulation goal. When the shootout rolled around, it was rookie John Tavares sealed it. Dwayne Roloson earned the win in net. The Islanders, now 1-3-3, travel to Montreal for Thursday's game.

• Angels 5 Yankees 4 (11 innings): Joe Girardi made some strange moves in this game, but his last move, removing David Robertson and putting Alfredo Aceves in is what ultimately lost the Yankees the game as they fell to the Angels. Aceves came in with two outs in the 11th and gave up two-straight hits, the second the game-winner, as the Angels clawed back into this series.

This game took over five hours, but it leaves the Yankees in the catbird seat in the best-of-seven ALCS. Alex Rodriguez hit a game-tying homer in the bottom of the 11th. Is it safe to retire the "he's not clutch" storyline? In the 13th, the Yankees took advantage of Maicer Izturis' throwing error, as Jerry Hairston, who led off the inning with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice, scored. Starters A.J. Burnett and Joe Saunders dueled to a draw, each allowing two runs. Alfredo Aceves served up the go-ahead run in the top of the 11th, but Rodriguez saved his and his teammates' bacon. Derek Jeter had a solo homer and an error that proved meaningless. Robinson Cano had an RBI triple and two errors that proved meaningless. Was this a classic, or just long?

   

Yankees 4, Angels 1: If the Angels have to face the CC Sabathia they faced tonight three times in this series, they might as well give the Yankees three wins right now. Sabathia dominated the Angels in Game 1 of the ALCS, pitching eight strong innings, allowing only four hits and one walk while striking out seven.

    

The Yankees broke a five-year streak of playoff futility by sweeping the Twins on Sunday and now they will try and break an even longer streak of futility against the Angels. New York has not won their regular season series with the Angels since 2003 and they have lost both playoff series they have played against them. But these Yankees have some differences from their recent counterparts. They have better pitching, especially with C.C. Sabathia leading the rotation and the bullpen is much deeper than at any point since 1996.

     

The Yankees are headed to the American League Championship Series for the first time since 2004—when they lost to the Red Sox—and now they are signing the praises of Alex Rodriguez. Manager Joe Girardi said, "Without Alex, we're probably not in this situation right now. We're probably still playing. He had a monster series, monster hits."

     

• Yankees 4 Minnesota 1: Carl Pavano tried his best to make Yankees’ fans miserable, but the Yankees got revenge in the end. A-Rod and Posada homered in the seventh to put the Yankees up 2-1 and the bullpen took it from there. Mariano got the final four outs for the save meaning the Yankees won a playoff series for the first time in five years. The ALCS with the Angels begins Friday in the Bronx.

Our long nightmare is over, thanks to his dramatic two-run home run in the ninth on Friday, we can finally say that A-Rod is a “real Yankee”. And kudos to Mark Teixeira, who won the game with a home run and therefore is immediately promoted to “real Yankee” in his first Yankee postseason.

The Yankees are one game away from the American League Championship Series, after last night's dramatic 4-3 win in game two of the Division Series over the Minnesota Twins. The game went into extra innings, courtesy of Alex Rodriguez, who hit a game-tying two-run home run off All-Star closer Joe Nathan in the 9th inning, tying the game at 3-3. Then, in the 11th inning, Teixiera hit a home run—what the NY Times called "a screamer down the left-field line...The ball just cleared the 318-foot sign and sent the crowd of 50,006 into sudden delirium."

The first playoff game at the new stadium was a happy affair as the Yankees defeated the Twins 7-2 on Wednesday night. C.C. Sabathia pitched well, striking out eight and allowing only two runs, one earned, over 6-2/3 innings. Sabathia only struggled in the third when he ran into trouble with two outs. With runners on second and third, Sabathia allowed a single to score a run and then Jorge Posada simply didn’t catch a Sabathia pitch allowing a second run and putting the Twins up 2-0.

    

The Yankees will face the hottest team in baseball, the Minnesota Twins, in the ALDS starting tonight. Minnesota came back from a three-game deficit with four games to play to tie Detroit and then beat them yesterday in a 12-inning playoff game to earn a trip to the Bronx.

The Yankees have decided to lower their seat prices from astronimical to merely ridiculous in 2010, with the best seats dropping price by up to $1,000. The most expensive Legend Suite seats behind home plate will go for "only" $1,500 in 2010, down from $2,500 this year. The stadium will also rezone part of the Legends Suite into a new Champions Suite, with tickets down to $500 from $1,000 last year. Unfortunately, Champions Suite seatholders will lose access to the duplex restaurant behind home plate.

    

• Giants 27 Kansas City 16: The Chiefs fumbled away the kickoff to New York and things didn’t get much better from there. New York built up a 27-3 lead and then took it easy in the fourth quarter with the game out of hand. Steve Smith continued his dominant season with 11 catches for 134 yards and 2 touchdowns.

• Rangers 5 Ottawa 2: Hockey has blue lines. The Rangers have blue shirts and blue seats and apparently Blue Man Group as fans. They performed before the game and maybe it inspired New York. The top line had a huge night with four goals and two assists while Michael Del Zotto made his case to stay in the NHL and not return to juniors with his first goal and a solid game.

Penguins 3, Rangers 2: The privilege of opening against the defending Stanley Cup champions did not inspire the Rangers, who fell behind 3-1 before making a comeback attempt that came up short. Chris Drury scored the first goal of the year to tie the game at 1, and Marian Gaborik added one in the third period. The Rangers were outshot, 31-27, and get Ottawa at home on Saturday.

• Royals 4, Yankees 3: Too bad Kyle Farnsworth can't close every game against the Yankees. Joba Chamberlain turned in a middling effort. The Yankees, who have clinched everything from the division to home-field advantage, have nothing to play for except their health. They have an off-day Thursday before traveling to St. Petersburg to play the Rays. Then come the playoffs.
Continue reading "Last Night's Action: Nothing to Play For"

• Yankees 8, Royals 2: The one thing missing from this Yankees season was a Ramiro Pena home run. The reserve shortstop hit his first career homer -- and got the traditional silent treatment from his teammates -- as the Yankees ran away from the Royals. The Yankees have 101 wins, their most since they had 103 in 2002. Robinson Cano, one of the few regulars to play, hit a grand slam, his 25th homer of the season. Chad Gaudin pitched well again for a lineup that included Pena, Shelley Duncan, Juan Miranda, Eric Hinske and Francisco Cervelli.