Game 1: Let’s try that again
BySo yesterday afternoon’s planned Opening Day didn’t go off quite as scheduled. Mother Nature decided to literally rain on the Yanks’ parade for a little while longer, and the Blue Jays and Yankees will try again tonight.
The keyword there is “try.” At around 5 p.m., it was still raining in the city, and the hourly forecast for the Bronx looks a little dicey. Forget the countdown clock; this non-stop rain is simply the Baseball Gods’ way of telling the Yankees that they should not be messing with baseball tradition with a new stadium.
For the Yankees, yesterday’s rain-out meant that the out-spoken Hank Steinbrenner will make tonight’s game. The Yanks’ Senior Vice President opted to stay in Tampa yesterday when he heard about the expected weather conditions in New York. Funny how that worked out for him.
The lineups are the same; the pitching match-ups are the same. Expect a lot of groundballs skating around on what will be a fairly damp infield. Can Chien-Ming Wang bring home the Yanks’ eleventh straight home opener victory? Will Joe Girardi win the first game managed by someone other than Joe Torre since 1995? We’ll find out, but no matter the answers, it’s time for baseball gain.
New York Yankees
Johnny Damon LF
Derek Jeter SS
Bobby Abreu RF
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Jason Giambi 1B
Robinson Cano 2B
Jorge Posada C
Hideki Matsui LF
Melky Cabrera CF
Chien-Ming Wang RHP
Toronto Blue Jays
David Eckstein SS
Shannon Stewart LF
Alex Rios RF
Vernon Wells CF
Frank Thomas DH
Lyle Overbay 1B
Aaron Hill 2B
Marco Scutaro 3B
Gregg Zaun C
Roy Halladay RHP
Notes: As we did last year and on and off through Spring Training, use the comments to discuss anything under the sun. How’s Michael Kay doing? How do the Yanks look? Just chat about the game…Please consider donating to the Big Three K’s Craniosynostosis fundraiser we’re hosting this year to benefit the Jorge Posada Foundation. We’ve received pledges totaling $3.235 per Big Three strike out.
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I have the baseball package and the Yanks game isn’t listed. Anybody know if we get the game still ?
i’m trying to figure that out too…
Why do I torment myself listening to M&MD? Fruit Loops is sitting here making the argument that Dustin Pedroia (http://djpostl.files.wordpress.....ppysox.jpg) is a better OVERALL player than Robinson Cano. I don’t even have to make an argument to that stupidity but the reason I’m writing about this is because a caller phoned in with actual numbers to back his argument of Cano over Pedroia (instead of fruit loops saying, “he likes to win, he loves to play”….yeah, that’s real rare dumb ass) and all Russo could do when the caller said that Cano had a better range factor was say (as he searches through his bright ass yellow “stat” book) “I don’t know, Mike said it before, Cano’s a little lazy sometimes”.
What an asshole.
Jamal:
Just remember that those two clowns are in the entertainment business, they aren’t sports analysts. They intend to get under your skin — that’s where the ratings are. Take it for what it’s worth, which is not much. Every once in a while they hit it right, like the blind squirrel finding an acorn.
Wait, Jamal. Are you saying that Mike Francesca and Chris Russo said something ignorant and racist? Stop the presses
Great news, tarp was taken off the field just moments ago. I’m serious, unlike Ben I actually have a heart…:)
Just for the fun of nitpicking, I have to point out that there have been a number of games managed by people other than Torre since then, what with suspensions and the like.
It just occurred to me that since Girardi is a former Torre bench coach, he must have managed some Yankee games already. Digging around, the first one I came up with was from May of 2005, when he lost to the effing Royals, ending a six game skid for them. Not a great omen.
I thought about that, but I don’t think that really counts. Torre’s still pulling the strings. Remember, a few years ago, Don Zimmer held the reins for a few weeks while Torre recovered from surgery. I know my statement wasn’t 100 percent true, but the dugout belongs to Girardi. No one else has been able to say that since 1995.
and the answer is yes…just added…whew
Yeah I just saw that the game was added, bout to think my 160 bucks was going to waste. Finally baseball… lets go Yanks
Pere PeteAbe when summarizing Joe G.’s pre-game press conference:
“The most interesting part, I thought, was that he plans to stick with Cano at the No. 6 spot and could move him up. He’s not hitting sixth because he has good numbers against Roy Halladay. The Yankees also seem to be off the idea of having a long reliever.”
That just makes me so giddy about Cano. Also the long relief thing is very good news.
2 left fielders? Is that allowed? Haha. Keep up the great work. You guys got me through the offseason. GO YANKS!!!!!!
Hughes got a damn good ovation!
LoL, A-Rod is such a dork. He has no special handshakes with anybody.
Thank God Yankee baseball is back.
If these walls could talk, they’d ask Michael Kay to shut the hell up.
Dude, that’s exactly what I was thinking during that piece.
I was talking to my friend online, and I kept hearing him say “if these walls could talk” for what seemed like 5 minutes straight. I started getting so furious toward the end there.
That’s really going to become this year’s “Buster Olney thinks A-Rod is a good fit,” isn’t it?
That’s hilarious.
i work for comcast so i get a discount…lucky me lol
That video SO got me in the mood of good ol’ fashion baseball.
lol@richyf
HERE WE GO! You guys want to get in a mlb chat room or just chill here.
lets pray arod catches his first pop up
STRIKE. game over. we win.
I’LL SHOW YOU RANGE TO MY LEFT!
Ah the Roll Call. Music to me ears.
Agreed.
AROD CHARGE THAT SHIT
“Solid baserunning there.”
Cant blame wanger for that one, that was just good hitting.
I’d hate for rios to ever make an out against us ho hum at least wangs stuff looks good
Wang’s leavin’ the sinker up.
Dont jynx it mann, I thought that in the playoffs too.
You do know you can reply to individual comments via the pull down menu under the comment box, right?
Yeah, I know that all too well, apparently I like to put my comments under others. I think Giambi looks dainty on the bases compared to Rios on that one.
Wow. Thank you, Alex Rios.
line drive to cano, dp.
god damn hes got mad hops.
Lucky you link.
Nice mowhack rios
nice job by rios contract on your mind bud
Thank you, Alex Rios.
Lets see that offense now. A little birdy told me they were pretty good.
Lmao, Cano had that “You dumb ass…” look when he was about to throw to 1st.
I really love this lineup BTW.
Damon got owned.
Come on Abreu, I have you in my “Yankees First…Contest” for a single.
Kay just called Halladay “a decent pitcher.”
These guys should really pick some new “at bat” music for the new season. These songs are so last year.
And there’s our first hit of the season. Single by Abreu for all 100+ of you keeping score at home.
DOUBLE!
Picture perfect. Can’t plan the first run any better. Color me excited.
yeah so that guys pretty good
A-Rod mofo. You can’t front on that.
I agree with the songs except Mo. enter the sandman is epic especially to number 42.
Arod says color me MVP again MOFO
Mind you I’ve been in VA now 6 years but listening to Kay question for you guys…does it seem like he has never gotten used to being on tv? he calls a game like he’s still on radio…we see the ball going to the wall lol….splitting the outfielders…wonder if he still does the ‘interlocking ny’ lol…
It sounds like he got too used to TV. He talks endless about stupidly obvious things just so he can go home and listen to himself on the encore. I’m convinced of it.
“if he can stay healthy, he can put up numbers” — kay, in reference to giambi. no shit, sherlock.
He is the master of the obvious.
A-Rod makes more than the Florida Marlins, but what are the chances he outperforms them as well? A-Rod win shares > Marlins victories? I wish.
Why won’t Giuseppe Franco just die?
Anybody interested in that MLBFA.org thing?
Fan Yang’s Super Spectacular Bubble Show? Is this for real? A gazillion bubbles? What?
Giambis out was one of those “OHHHH! aw…” outs.
NOOOOOOOOOO GUISSEPPI FRANCO IS BACK! =[
As a fan watching at home I jump up at everything since everything looks like a hr LOL, is it just me?
What’s the over/under on days until Jeter’s defense is attacked by the public this year?
past a diving a-rod lol….
Cheap hits. Very cheap hits.
Why did Kay just have to say “this is my hood…”?
God Dammit.
God Dammit again with these punk ass base hits.
at what point does toronto request permission for thomas to use a walker
Or a Rascal. Those are cooler.
I wonder if MO still remembers Scutaro.
i remember looking at the tv in disbelief…
GIAMBI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
breaking news giambi won ‘t win a gold glove
Mink woulda turned two there.
Agree. I miss him.
you would have turned two there
Maybe even 3. He would find a way.
Why are we still talking about the freaking Indians?
Giambi can still scoop
Jorge’s in midseason form…
I don’t think Derek Jeter makes that play ranging to his left to make a play behind second base last year with the way his knee was.
His range to his left has never been good (as is much discussed…). You don’t see him make that kind of play often. Last year was particularly bad with his knee being injured.
He supposedly worked out very hard in the off season and his knee is better.
One play but it was good to see.
nice slider
Pedro Martinez just had a 12 pitch at-bat. That is all.
screw it walk him he woul just get a hit anyway god I have come to hate rios
“they’re being very careful with rios, well, why wouldn’t they?” -michael kay
umm, michael, the bases are empty and there are two outs. retard.
oh yeah Jeter’s defense sucks :p
its only been three innings but I agree there is a 100% chance that last season we would have heard and past a diving jeter on that ball wells just hit
Work that count Melky!
that was then 1976 graphic…omg…
who thinks of these things honestly? inflation much? can they cpi those numbers and get back to us?
Really. 1976 was a very bad economic year and those gas prices were high. Wasn’t there an oil embargo or something? Wasn’t that when there were gas lines because you could only buy gas every other day or was that 78?
What do you think we’d have to give up to get Overbay. Something about him screams second coming of Olerud to me.
Too much. That seems to be the anwser to every trade proposal these days.
No more Aflac????
The NYS Smoker’s Quitline Quiz? Good grief.
Also, arent Paulie and Kay supposed to hate each other? sounds like someone at YES had a talk with them about doing a better job of pretending to get along.
MELKY!!!!!!!!!!
I LOVE MELKY!!!!!!!!!!!!
Eat it Overbay.
BTW, Pedro has given up 4 runs, 4 hits, and a BB in just 2 innings thus far…against the Marlins.
You can eat it too Hill.
HOLY DOUBLE SHITS!!
Melky!!
excuse me…Leche!!!
Damn you and your average defense at CF Melky!! DAMN YOU!!!!!
Gotta love contract years…2/2 for Abreu.
BTW, if I had A-Rod’s year, I wouldn’t change my song either.
Where is Brett Gardner?
I can’t believe we’re stuck with Melky. What is this non sense in centerfield. How do they play someone named Leche in centerfield
Paul, you were quite a pitcher in your day, how would you pitch A-Rod?
Heh.
ARod sucks. Trade him.
I think the Yankees forgot how to work the count. Halladay’s probably at like, 40 pitches.
Roy has thrown 42 thru four while Wang has already delivered 51 entering the fifth.
42 pitches … I wasn’t far off.
Why in the hell do the Yanks keep swinging at the first pitch after a DP?
scutaro meh
jeter can’t pick a short hop? really?!
way to go Big G! way to look the runner back.
Lmao, the Blue Jays have had 17 different SS since 2001 and yet JP Riccardi’s dumb ass still didn’t listen to Keith Law (when he was in TOR front office) and the scouting dept. when they told him to draft Troy Tulowitzki.
“And the pitch to Stewart…is inside” Pretty sure that pitch hit the dirt. I just choked on my sandwich a little bit. I’m going back in the kitchen.
Wang really can’t control that slider tonight…where’s the change up? Anyone noticed if he threw one yet?
Eat it Rios.
not for nothing but could it be possible that Wang occasionally throws up to set up that low sinker? I mean if he always threw low sinkers, sliders and fastballs it would be pretty easy to sit on that low pitch would it not? Rios was totally fooled on that pitch…
I like the Yankee’s offensive approach tonight. They needed to change the way they handled Halladay.
Halladay over his career has only walked 6% of all the Yankee hitters he’s ever faced.
That’s remarkable – especially against the yankees. And in turn he’s dominated them. Their approach of taking pitches, drawing walks, being patient to run up pitch counts isn’t likely to work against a guy like Halladay.
For comparison, Halladay has only walked 5% of all of the Tampa hitters he’s ever faced. Tampa Bay has always had some of the youngest and least patient hitters in all of baseball.
You’d think the Yankees would draw more walks against Halladay than the Rays would. But that’s not the case. That comparison shows how badly Halladay takes away one of the biggest strengths of the offense.
That pretty much tells you how much Halladay has neutralized the yankee’s patient approach in the past. What’s the point of falling behind 0-1, 1-2 every at bat?
I really hope Kay explains the logic behind him saying “Halladay’s faced the minimum through 5.”
Uh oh…Metsies might be in trouble – Pedro just left with either hammy or groin pull.
i hate how many cheap hits the blue jays have gotten
wang’s been pitching pretty well.
no breaks for the yankees but all the breaks you could imagine for Toronto.
Wang has a 2:1 GB:FB ratio through six innings while Halladay has a ratio of 5:1 through five.
Wang hasn’t ben dominant but 2 runs through 6 is not bad either.
Two AB by Melky and he was work the count full twice…Whadafuxup?!
MVP-ELKY
GOOOOOOOOOOOO MELKYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
MVP MVP MVP MVP
It’s Melky’s world, we’re just living in it.
Gotta love that. Give Melk some love RAB!
TIENES LECHE?!!?!??!
GO MELKMAN!
Sorry for the all caps, it exploded out of me 0;]
Holy Melky batman
Who had Melky in the pool as the first HR?
A liar.
Leche!!
That’s the Melkyway!
During a 10 pitch AB too!
Okay, who put Melky for first homerun?
I don’t think anyone had Melky.
All the guys from RAB did. They’ve been his biggest supporter since the day he got called up iirc.
Scratch that. You were the only one.
Holy crap, I did have him. I forgot. Wow.
Melk picked a good day to have his best game of the year
I hope he’s not done yet.
BTW, who the hell is going to replace Pedro for the Mets? Is El Duque ready?…..Claudio Vargas anyone?
We’re through six innings in under two hours…and here I am thinking the Yankees were on tonight.
El Duque probably can, he was going to be the long guy out of the pen. His arm is still in starters shape.
He’ll join Pedro on the DL pretty soon too though
I guess that’s the idea. platooning those two on the dl and occasionally the rotation.
BIG G is loose.
MINKY WHO?
Flashing the leather.
A big cat out there indeed.
Ive got to say Im impressed with Giambi so far.
Am I the only one whos sick of Michael Kay yet? His incessant ramblings completely take away from the game for me.
You’re not the only one.
“the numbers don’t lie there.” –michael kay in reference to giambi’s offensive splits 1b vs dh.
umm… actually they do michael kay. those 1b numbers were put up during his prime, some years on oakland (and on the juice). the dh numbers were accrued recently dumbass.
very true
GI Joe made 1 more good decision than joe torre ALREADY.
if he calls eckstein “pesky” one more time i’m breaking the tv.
7 IP, 2 ER in Wang’s first start. Now how many hack writes were predicting Armageddon for Wang due to his ST ERA and his 2007 ALDS?
its encouraging that wang was able to go 7ip, 2 runs considering he didn’t have his best stuff. he labored today. i’m impressed.
Pedro is hurt. Phillies win East.
Come on Paulie, do to Michael like you would a water cooler.
I gotta say every time I see Guiliani my stomach goes into knots thinking about his ass saying he’s rooting for that team in boston during the playoffs to try to get votes… disgusting politian
Which do you think happens first, Bob Lorenz replaces Michael Kay as the play-by-play man or Derek Jeter vacates SS?
when jeter vacates ss, he can play left field or first base. michael kay will be selling you a big mac.
More likely that a black hole opens up and swallows the Earth than either one of these….
“Jason Giambi spent all spring practicing going the other way, not necessarily hitting grounders to third…”
Who, tell me who the fuck practices hitting grounders to third Michael Kay?
C’mon Giambi, I had you for my first BB.
“Do they bunt with Cano?” Thank God Kay is not a ML manager.
Very heady play by Giambi today…
You see that Emil Brown, that’s what you call BASE RUNNING.
Wow, walking the bases loaded for Hit-deki
Repeat of ’03? Matsui Grand Salami
Make ‘em pay, Godzilla.
FINALLY, the 08′ NY yankees catch a freaking break.
dp ball
LoL, Halladay is a hater.
JOBA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Some fat kid from Nebraska is coming in…
I wonder what his song was?
He yelled at Melky for his Curtain call? He knows melky was the one that threw a punch in preseason… right?
joba time.
This just in, Midges attack Yankee Stadium.
Joba like it’s hot.
I better not see this shit the entire season.
Come on Joba, show me at least one curve or change up.
God Dammit, I need him to be a starter but I LOVE HIM IN THE 8TH.
wow, THAT ladies and gentlemen, Is a fist pump.
Pretty sure Joba serves nothing but Happy Meals, because I’m 100% lovin’ it
kay was speechless after that K. that’s a bonus.
1-run game in the final three innings, my coach would have my ass if I dove for that ball (even if I made the catch).
Maybe they IBB A-Rod and we see Ensberg/Duncan PH for the Big G?
Nope. No shelley unfortunately.
Uh.. a Joba commercial? Little early?
was thinking the same thing…
joba commercial?
My god where were these fans in the playoffs?
I love being a Yankees fan.
GG.
I mean… Going into this season, isnt that the way you script the first game out? That is exactly as we planned it. First of many fellas
ball game over…yankees win…theee yankees winn!!!
How bout these Yanks?
First place baby!
Let’s all just enjoy this moment…..
The baseball season has officially begun.
Wow, I though 200+ comments here was a lot, then I headed over to LoHud and he’s nearing 1000! I like this one better, more personal, smaller- suites me better. I’ll be more active chatting during the season, my one comment wasn’t even about baseball… go figure. I can go to sleep in a good mood now, the Yanks winning like they always should. Great game
First strikeout – Damon.
First Homer – Melky.
First Win – Wang.
Got meself 3 points today. Now I just need Jeter to steal a base before anyone else does and for Farnsworth to blow one.
Well it’s been 6 months, but that familiar winning feeling is back…and it feels as good as ever, let’s keep this going
P.S. Mike I think you need to revise the Commenting Guideline and add “when it comes to Michael Kay there is no such thing as offensive language, cursing, or whatever in describing him or his comments” I know you’re not limiting profanity to begin with, just telling us to keep in to a minimum (basically), but I believe this addition is necessary although probably understood
First Hit- Abreu Single
First Walk – Giambi
Wow, Melky
made some amazing webgem-quality defensive plays and even hit what would be the game winning HR off of one of the best pitchers in the leagueREALLY SUCKS!…
Can’t tell you how excited I was seeing a great performance from my boys Wang and Melky. Made waiting an extra day for the opener totally worth it.
First of all, I went to yesterday’s rainout. Just in case somebody didn’t mention this, it wasn’t really raining. I went back to work in Manhattan, it wasn’t raining. I walked to the Port Authority Bus. It wasn’t raining.
I miss Michael Kay on the radio. I’m done with Sterling. Suzanne would be fine with Kay…but there just isn’t room in the both for anyone with Sterling.
I have had some inside info…Kay and O’Neil get along just fine., are even almost friends. From what I heard, Kay had his fill with Sterling.
Yes, Kay calls the game like he is on radio. He is still the best of announcers, although the Singleton and Leiter have done well also.
I’ll take Singleton and Kaat anyday. Kay is TERRIBLE.
How is that for the MelkMan?