06/21: Yankees @ Colorado Rockies, June 21st
Posted by: James
On the first day of summer, the Yankees sent Roger Clemens to the hill to try to avoid the three game sweep at the hands of the Rockies.
Unlike the last few days, the scoring started early and surprisingly enough, with the Yankees! In the second, Alex Rodriguez started off with a single and came around to score on a two-run bomb by Hideki Matsui. 2-0 Yankees. Unfortunately, that lead didn't even make it a full half inning as in the bottom of the second, the Rockies hit two solo home runs (Garrett Atkins & Troy Tulowitzki) to even up the score. At that point, the Yankees pretty much reverted to the form they were showing the last two games - very few hits and no real pressure on the pitcher. Rodrigo Lopez ran into a few trouble spots but he got out of all of them with minimal issues. It just seemed that every time that the Yankees mustered a couple of hits, it was with two outs and the next guy up would line out. Story of the series.
Colorado scored two more runs in the fifth when Kaz Matsui (wow, is he having a little resurgence - small sample size, I know but still) singled, stole second and came around on a Matt Holliday single. Man, can this Holliday kid hit. Fastball, splitter, off-speed - you name it, he gets the bat on it. In any case, Rocket was done at this point after 4 and a third. Mike Myers came in and promptly gave up a single to Todd Helton, putting runners on first and third. Scott Proctor came on at that point and got Atkins to fly out but Holliday scored; 4-2 Rockies.
The Yankees made it a closer game in the 7th when Robbie Cano led off the inning with ground-rule double. Miggy Cairo put down a very nice bunt and Melky Cabrera hit a LONG fly ball to score Robbie (any other part of the park and that fly might have been a HR - them's the breaks...at least this series, I guess).
All in all, a disheartening loss. I would have been okay with losing the series - I mean, this is a good Rockies team and hey, you have to lose sometimes. However, getting swept as you head into another interleague series with an unknown quantity starting...that doesn't exactly bode well. Think about it this way - for all the great feelings that the nice Yankees run created in the first couple of weeks of June - a loss in their next game puts them at a game below .500 for the season.
Final point of the night: someone put Damon on the DL. He can't play the OF and he can't get around on fastballs so what can he do? Well, they tried him at first for a little bit today...which makes no sense to me. Why would you put a guy with oblique/rib cage issues at first base where he will have to pivot and lean on any ground ball? I don't get it...but in any case, put him on the DL and play Kevin Thompson in left and DH Matsui. Is there anyone out there that thinks that Thompson won't provide more with the bat and the glove than Damon would right now? It wouldn't have to be much!
Unlike the last few days, the scoring started early and surprisingly enough, with the Yankees! In the second, Alex Rodriguez started off with a single and came around to score on a two-run bomb by Hideki Matsui. 2-0 Yankees. Unfortunately, that lead didn't even make it a full half inning as in the bottom of the second, the Rockies hit two solo home runs (Garrett Atkins & Troy Tulowitzki) to even up the score. At that point, the Yankees pretty much reverted to the form they were showing the last two games - very few hits and no real pressure on the pitcher. Rodrigo Lopez ran into a few trouble spots but he got out of all of them with minimal issues. It just seemed that every time that the Yankees mustered a couple of hits, it was with two outs and the next guy up would line out. Story of the series.
Colorado scored two more runs in the fifth when Kaz Matsui (wow, is he having a little resurgence - small sample size, I know but still) singled, stole second and came around on a Matt Holliday single. Man, can this Holliday kid hit. Fastball, splitter, off-speed - you name it, he gets the bat on it. In any case, Rocket was done at this point after 4 and a third. Mike Myers came in and promptly gave up a single to Todd Helton, putting runners on first and third. Scott Proctor came on at that point and got Atkins to fly out but Holliday scored; 4-2 Rockies.
The Yankees made it a closer game in the 7th when Robbie Cano led off the inning with ground-rule double. Miggy Cairo put down a very nice bunt and Melky Cabrera hit a LONG fly ball to score Robbie (any other part of the park and that fly might have been a HR - them's the breaks...at least this series, I guess).
All in all, a disheartening loss. I would have been okay with losing the series - I mean, this is a good Rockies team and hey, you have to lose sometimes. However, getting swept as you head into another interleague series with an unknown quantity starting...that doesn't exactly bode well. Think about it this way - for all the great feelings that the nice Yankees run created in the first couple of weeks of June - a loss in their next game puts them at a game below .500 for the season.
Final point of the night: someone put Damon on the DL. He can't play the OF and he can't get around on fastballs so what can he do? Well, they tried him at first for a little bit today...which makes no sense to me. Why would you put a guy with oblique/rib cage issues at first base where he will have to pivot and lean on any ground ball? I don't get it...but in any case, put him on the DL and play Kevin Thompson in left and DH Matsui. Is there anyone out there that thinks that Thompson won't provide more with the bat and the glove than Damon would right now? It wouldn't have to be much!
mattymatty wrote: