Life without Derek Jeter.

I’ve kept quiet with my Yankee commentary as of late (shocking, I know). I’ve been watching, yelling at the TV, and arguing with Boston fans, but in terms of putting my rants to paper (er, screen?) … not so much. However, last night something happened that warrants me coming out of my Yankee-blogging hiatus…

I make it very obvious that I am incredibly amazed by Derek Jeter. While I do find him to be eye-candy, it’s more than that for me. I think he is a man among men, someone who defines what it means to be a role model in a professional sports world so often dominated by questionable behaviors. Not only did he lead the Yankees as a rookie when they were down and not the team we so often see today, but he does it every day, with grace and with passion.

Up until his more recent contract negotiations, there was never a negative word in the media about him – drama simply doesn’t go with Derek Jeter. I will admit I’ve been bothered by all of the media attention centered on his age, his declining stats, and anything and everything that can be said about how he “can’t perform.” Until today.

ESPN tweeted an article by Ian O’Conner which truly spoke of just what makes Jeter who he is, what makes “Numbah 2” so deserving of the C on his jersey and the reputation he has earned. He called it effort, and I’d like to add passion to that as well.

Jeter, similar to other players who go down as Yankee greats, stands out to me because he has passion. He stands out because day in and day out, he gives his all to the team, the fans, and the field. There are plenty of athletes out there who know that they’re talented, and not only that, but they use their talent as a crutch when they have an off-day… or in Jeter’s case, an off-season. Not him though.

Last season Jeter put up some lower than usual statistics, instead of saying “I’m Derek Jeter I can do that because I am the captain of the Yankees and I’ve led this team to multiple World Series titles,” he showed up to pre-season early to get some extra practice and training in with hitting coaches.

That’s what defines him as a Yankee great – he wants to play for this team every single day; he wants to win and he wants togive 110%, even if his 110% isn’t the best it’s always been. And let’s face it, when your 110% was always beyond par, and well above average, your lesser 110% is still pretty damn good if you’re Derek Jeter.

Now, he’s racing to hit his 3,000^th hit on his home field, and become the first Yankee to ever hit that number. He’s said  that the only pressure he’s felt on this journey has been simply that: hitting it at home and not at an away game. The Yankees are set to hit the road after this series against Cleveland, so it’s no wonder he’s been feeling a little bit more pressure, with only 6 to go as of last night.

Until last night, Jeter has been seen by fans as invincible. He hasn’t appeared on the DL since 2003, and he’s never been one to complain or take a day off. He’s played in over 2,000 games for a team that makes the post season nearly every year without fail. He’s the Yankee with five World Series rings. He’s the Yankee who leapt into the stands against Boston to catch a fly ball, emerging with a bloodied face, and playing not only the next night, but the rest of the game, too.

He’s not one to take a day off, and so when he walked off the field last night, you had to know it was bad.

But who can say this is really that surprising? Shortstop isn’t exactly the easiest position in baseball, and he’s done so for sixteen seasons. He has more experience and “street smarts” about the position than any player in the league, and up until recently, he’s also had more physical skill. Now however, his body is wearing down from giving his all every single night for all of this time.

He’s had this passion about him for the past sixteen seasons and no one has been able to stop him. He plays through everything. Except this apparently. Rumor has it Jeter will be placed on the 15-day DL. For a team being hit left and right with DL players, this one hits a different nerve: life without Derek Jeter.

I for one can’t handle the thought. But I know the day is going to come. Someone younger, faster, and more athletic is going to come along and replace the captain eventually… but not today. For tonight at least, we’ll see Nunez in his spot on the field and Gardner taking his place in the lineup, but for fans, he’ll still be in our minds. 6 away from 3,000, and still, invincible.

 

Thoughts on an expanded playoff season for baseball.

I read some news on this when I was back at school– in finals mode. I’ve been hectic lately and I’m about to hopefully bang out that thesis manuscript (after cleaning my room, organizing my newspaper clippings in my new cool green basket, and eating Wendy’s!).

I figure there are a few of you who come here hoping to find something new to read and I don’t want to disappoint– enjoy & please, leave your thoughts, I enjoy a good baseball debate! Once spring training and pre-season get started you can expect me to be back to my baseball rants– unfortunately, the Yanks didn’t make too many big moves this offseason (*grunt*)

An expansion of the playoffs. I read something about this a while back; and in my crazed-college life, I let it slip me by. However, I have no idea why I haven’t made my opinion heard sooner. I suppose it’s because never in my wildest dreams did I think baseball was actually serious about this. Expanding the playoffs in my mind was as far-fetched as Derek Jeter playing for the Red Sox (although, don’t start me just yet on that signing debacle of a lifetime). There is something to be said about this, and that is a lot of something.

Evidently, baseball is serious about adding two teams and another round to the postseason. The general consensus amongst those in control of baseball is that there are too few teams who make it to the postseason. According to sources, managers have been begging for a change for years. Well of course they have! This means they have more games to prove themselves, and to keep their jobs for one more year. Bud Selig has been making this point loud and clear, and evidently, he intends to go through with it—providing he gets approval from the rest of baseball of course.

Presently, there are 8-teams in the postseason every year. It is assumed, based on the fact that the current agreement with the union doesn’t expire until December of 2011, that the playoff format will remain the same—for now. However, a 10-team postseason with another round could very well become reality in 2012, and this is something worth talking about.  Currently, thanks to a great decision by Selig, there are 3 divisions and the wild-card exists; however, this doesn’t mean that we need more baseball.

The issue here is that the higher-ups are comparing baseball with other sports. When it comes to the NFL and the NBA, a good majority of teams advance to the postseason. I just feel like that’s comparing apples to oranges at this point. A baseball season is 162-games; a regular football season is 16-games long—this is a huge difference. I was never good at math, I will admit that, but it doesn’t take a mathematician to see the differences there.

Here is my argument—I can see the desire to change the postseason, I can even see the need for it. What I can’t see, however, is the need to change it in the way it is being proposed. In my esteemed opinion, I think the real issue is the length of the Division Series. Now, now, I will say, the best of 5 deal did work out in favor of my team this year, however, it doesn’t change the fact that these guys play 162-games in a season, and then it all comes down to luck in a best of 5 scenario. I’ve argued time and time again that the playoffs are a crapshoot, based on luck and chance, perhaps making this change could alleviate some of that issue.

This is my take on adding an additional wild card to each side—will baseball season ever end? I for one am all in favor of watching baseball all day every day; however, there comes a point when it loses its appeal. I think that half of the appeal of the season when it gets down to it, is that chase for the pennant, coupled with the drive for the wildcard the moment you realize your team’s chances are getting slim.  What makes the wildcard so elusive and desirable is that there is only one.

Further, the addition of more teams in the playoffs makes the season not only longer, but more of a crapshoot than it already was—and considering the state of things as it is for the Division Series, I for one do not agree with this at all. After playing 162-games and coming out on top, making it to the postseason, there is the chance of being ousted after 5 games— this boils down to fairness and luck, and I know that all is fair in love, war, and baseball, but c’mon! With the addition of 2 more teams, it seems that first round would be played in a best of three series. Best of three? Really?

Now, instead of having the best of 5 scenario being the ultimate crapshoot, baseball faces an even worse crapshoot—best of 3. I don’t see the point. I foresee nothing but downfall for this option. This would mean the 6 division winners would have a buy for the first round—meaning they would have at least 3 games worth of time resting—we saw how well that worked out for NY this season, didn’t we? Now, we are going to have the winners idle for longer. And speaking of longer, baseball season will last even longer than it already does. It’s bad enough that other sports pick up at the tail-end of baseball season, making baseball often second-best to what is new and exciting. Further, while it may be arguable that adding 2 more teams in a best of 5 scenario could potentially outweigh the crapshoot factor, it doesn’t change the idle time factor. This is a lose-lose situation.

 Baseball is already a 6-month regular season and the postseason has even leaked into November in the past due to the 162-game regular season being dragged out for one reason or another. How much of a good thing is enough? In my opinion, expanding to a best of 7 for the Division championship round of the playoffs is advisable, adding an additional series though, the cons outweigh the pros there for me.

If the Yankees are failures, what is the rest of baseball?

Hold the phone. Pause for just seven-seconds and listen to me: there is nothing, absolutely nothing that aggravates me more than hearing the phrase “store-bought championship.” Last year, when the Yankees won the World Series, I sat alone. Alone in my bed watching the final out, alone in my bed playing Jay-Z’s “Empire State of Mind” over and over again, basking in my own glory. Why you ask? Because I live in Red Sox Nation. When I was deciding on a college, I suppose I didn’t consider baseball affiliation as one of my target areas to look at when narrowing down my preferences (to be honest, I had no preferences, but that’s another story). Consequent of this, I wound up in a world of Boston sports fans—a world of bitter, resentful, Boston sports fans (I can feel them spitting at me right now as I write those words, really, I can). When I wake up in the morning and throw on a NY t-shirt or even a pinstriped jersey, I prepare myself for the snide remarks—and I give them right back.

 Last year, during the playoffs, I was at Target, rocking my Jeter jersey and from across the parking lot I hear “YANKEES STINK!” Obviously my friends, this man did not expect what he got back from my five-foot tall self: “Oh yeah, must be the smell of 26 rings, remind me again, how is Boston doing in the playoffs?” He was literally jaw-dropping shocked. After they won the series, obviously the only reason they won was because they bought it—right Boston? On a daily basis I found myself reminding Boston who the elusive team in second place for the highest payroll was—oh right Boston, that’s you guys.

 While it is completely normal and expected for me to hear this song and dance from Boston, when I turned to the online sports articles on the Daily News today, I did not under any circumstances expect to read the article I read. I mean let’s face it, the media is going to ride out this “failure” the Yanks demonstrated in the playoffs and beat it to death—forget the past 27 rings, let’s just all harp on being outplayed in the ALCS—obviously. However, this article actually had me shouting out random statements and even Googling different facts and statistics as I read—a sign of a good story, sure; a sign of an aggravating story, absolutely.

 Yankees failing to accomplish George Steinbrenner’s mission as $2 billion buys only one World Series. I was aggravated before I could even get past the fourth word of the title, but nonetheless, the title pulled me in and I read it. Mike Lupicia, I respond to your “Debbie-Downer” nonsense with my very own rebuttal—take it or leave it; but please know that you forgot to mention a few things which may have altered the point of your story.

 Right off the bat (no pun intended) you got my blood boiling: “You would compare the Yankees of the past decade to the Atlanta Braves of the decade right before it in baseball except for one thing: The Braves went to the World Series more.”The Braves? As in, the Atlanta Braves. How many World Series titles do they have again? Three. 1914, 1957 and 1995. REALLY?! The past decade, as in 2000-2010? The decade where the Yankees have gone to the playoffs 9 out of 10 times, to the World Series 4 out of 10 times (just one time less than the Braves I’ll have you know), and won the whole thing twice (double the amount of times the Braves won, by the way). No, no, no, no. I do not even think for a second you can compare the Yankees of this decade to the Atlanta Braves of the decade before.

The Yankees have 27 World Series titles and 40 pennants. The Yankees are a dynasty—a force to be reckoned with. During George Steinbrenner’s time on this earth he redefined baseball, and he did it with the New York Yankees. I haven’t heard anyone calling the Braves a dynasty lately, have you?

 “So they have made the playoffs, filled the old Yankee Stadium and the new one, made the YES network – which props everybody up – into a staggering success, become a bigger brand than ever. If that is the mission for the Yankees, well, mission accomplished. Only that was never the old man’s mission. And it is still the old man’s money. George Steinbrenner’s mission was pretty simple: Win it all. Or else. It is almost unfathomable that with this kind of financial advantage over the field, in a sport without a salary cap, the Yankees have only won it all once in 10 years.”

 First of all, let me tackle the elephant in the room on that one before I even begin to pick it apart—once in 10 years—now I know this is the age-old debate, does 2000 count in this decade, well considering this article cited 2000 as being part of this elusive decade then I’m pretty sure twice in 10 years is actually what was meant here, just saying. Further, going back to the Atlanta Braves argument, they only won it once in 10 years. 

Solid point, The Boss did have a mission to win it all—but winning it all goes beyond the scope of a World Series title if you ask me. Yes, he did not tolerate anything less than the best and the best are defined by who has that trophy at the end of the season; HOWEVER, trophy or no trophy the season always ends with the Yankees on top, why? Because they are a dynasty and that is what a dynasty does—sits on top. 

Now we get into the issue of money, and my pet peeve: “ In that time, only two teams have spent more than $100 million to win the Series: Yankees, Red Sox. Everybody else has been under $100 million. This year’s winner will be the Giants at $98 million or the Texas Rangers at $55 million.”

 The Giants at $98 million—that is only two million less than the number you just gave for NY, you know that, right? That’s it. No further argument. As I’ve said, the money issue is exhausting and I can’t waste space or energy arguing about it. I’ll say one thing: if the Boss had offered his wallet out to any single team at any point during his time reshaping the Yankees into a dynasty, raise your hand if you wouldn’t have taken that money from him. Right, I didn’t think I’d see any hands.

 “And let’s clear away all the peripherals right here: The Yankees aren’t breaking any rules, they are putting their money back into their product, they are funding other teams, they make money for themselves and everybody else. They’re the Yankees and their cost of doing business is different from everybody else’s. They spend it to make it. None of that has ever been disputed. Still: You’d think they would have won more than one World Series in a decade just by accident. Wouldn’t you?”

You had me there, really you did. They spend money to make it. As someone with a pretty solid background in business (I decided to major in communication at a school known prestigiously for business, so I’d hope I do) I have to say, is that not what you’re supposed to do? Let me give you a hint: it is. But let me ask this, how does that make any difference in their wins or losses. Sure, we can acquire the better players, and sure, we can spend money and build our team—but so can every other team; have you seen the Mets?

“The Yankees are a constant force of business and nature and the city and pop culture. Their attendance is a wonder, all season long. They do what they have to do feed the beast and continue to be a great draw, a great show, a great televison series.”

 Remind me of the issue there again? I watch them play. I want to watch them play. They draw my attention. I live for the season to start. What is the problem with that? I’d rather love and lose then never love at all. Translation: I’d rather be a passionate fan and watch my team lose in the end, then have a team who consistently underperforms. Furthermore, which team would you rather play for; the team with loyal fans—win or lose—or the team with the fans that never show up—until of course, you win (See Tampa Rays). 

If the goal of that article was to raise my blood pressure at 2 a.m. after a 6 hour management team meeting, then touché, you win. However, if the goal of that article was to prove that the Yankees are a disappointment and not at all deserving of the recognition as a Dynasty they have received (which, based on your last lines: “The Yankees are still covered like they’re the dynasty of the late 90s. They’re not. People still act as if it’s some kind of aberration when it’s the Giants and Rangers in the World Series. It’s not,” well then, you’re wrong, and you’ve aggravated me.

I’m going to bed, I have to unleash my inner-Lady Gaga tomorrow night, I need my beauty sleep. For the record, I’ll rest easy knowing my team fights on because they don’t want to let me, a fan, down—not because they make a good paycheck—that’s just a bonus.

It aint over til… okay, okay, denial subsided, it’s over.

I’ve been putting this off since Friday night—avoiding the inevitable. Whether or not I blogged about it, the reality wouldn’t change, right? As I got ready to go out, with the game on the television, I had a pit in my stomach; I knew we weren’t preparing for a comeback. Instead of waiting out the game, I decided to leave with my friends in the middle of the 8^th. By that point I already knew it was over.

We were doing well in the beginning, holding our own; we even tied it up. However, as soon as Texas maintained a solid lead, I could feel defeat. I was standing in a room playing a card game when I checked the score on my phone: 6-1, top of the 9^th. It was over. From across the room I glanced for my guy friends, made a sad face and heard them yell, “Don’t worry Tee, we’ll get it next year!” Next year.

I spent the rest of the night bitter, angry and upset. Alone in my Boston-dominated world, I found myself fighting off my friends left and right as they sent me text-messages asking things such as “I’m sorry, what’s the score of the game, I didn’t catch it,” and “Oh, did the Yankees lose?” or my personal favorite “HAHAHAHAHHA, YANKEES SUCK.” I had little motivation to argue so for the few I chose to answer, I simply said, “Twenty-seven.” Because although I slept restlessly knowing baseball season was over for NY, I woke up knowing that while my resentful Boston fans knocked me, they still couldn’t measure up to the dynasty that is NY.

I’ve said it for the past few weeks: we haven’t been on our A-game. We started off the season strong, we held the best record in baseball for a majority of the time, but somewhere along the line, and it fell apart. The playoffs are a crapshoot, and the Rangers outplayed the Yankees in every aspect of the game.

Their pitching was on fire, ours wasn’t. Their hitters showed up to hit it out of the park, ours did not. Their fans were fiery and passionate; ours started lacking the second we showed weakness. No matter how you look at it, Texas had destiny on their side; they were doing to do whatever it took to make it to the World Series… for the first time ever. 

Texas scored twice as many runs as NY (38-19), their batting average was over one-hundred points higher (.304 vs. .201) and their pitching ERA was nearly three points lower (2.76 vs. 6.58) compared to the Yankees. Was the 6-game series between NY and Texas really that close after all, definitely not.

I will admit that while the facts are there in black and white, that is the hardest thing for me to accept. Bring on the headlines and the media frenzy surrounding our veteran team, surrounding our aging players. Bring on the headlines about the fate of Pettite, Girardi, Jeter and Rivera. I can handle it. I think.

With an injured Texiera, A-Rod being extremely unlike himself and our pitching being dominated by Texas’ pitching, there was no chance we could beat these guys. They outplayed us, simply put, and there was nothing we could do about it. So as I say goodbye to baseball for a few months I wonder a few thoughts.

1. Is there Yankee baseball without the core-four: Jeter, Rivera, Posada and Petitte? This is my entire life of baseball, this is all I know. Now, Petitte, Jeter and Rivera are all at the end of their contracts and the media is explosive with theories and predictions about the fate. I’d like to believe that all of these players will retire in pinstripes, and I think that is what the fans and management would like to think, however, the media is going to play games with me until their contracts are in black and white, and that scares me more than the end of our chase for 28. I just can’t imagine Yankee life without phrases such as “Enter Sandman,” and Captain Clutch, what about “Hip-Hip JORGE!” and seeing Petitte’s stern face up on the mound, can you? 
2. Can we get Cliff Lee? In a Yankee world ruled by the Boss, there would be no question in my mind that we’d do whatever it takes for Lee. However, he’s obviously on fire right now, and I can imagine that if the Rangers go all the way to the World Series with a win, he is going to be incredibly hard to snag—will those in charge of all things NY express the same management style?
3. Marte. I read a story today about his surgery and the news about him being out until after the All-Star break. I actually thought I was seeing things considering baseball hasn’t even ended yet let alone begun again and that talk was in the news. It’s fact. We’re without him until July 2011. I’d like to see what this means for our prospective pitching for 2011. It is painfully obvious that our pitching is our biggest weakness (same as last year) and so I’m anxious to see what happens with this new development on top of everything else.
4. I know I already mentioned the future of Andy, Jeter and Rivera, but here’s the thing, with all the nonsense in the media as of late regarding Jeter and his supposed failure to perform, I worry about him the most. Yankees baseball is hugely defined by Derek Jeter. Let’s just hope no one falls on their heads in the higher up world of the Yankees and sees things otherwise.

What doesn’t worry me though, is the retaining of Girardi. Let’s be serious media frenzy, he isn’t going anywhere. He’ll be there next season with his 28 on his back and he’ll be leading the Yankees towards what they will hope to be another victory. Cashman wants him to stay. NY wants him to stay. The players want him to stay. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that even the Boss would have kept him around a little longer. He turned the team around and based on what I’ve recently read about his relationship with Cano and his management of the young players on the team, he’s worth keeping around for the longevity of NY.

For now, I bow out gracefully and accept that my team was outplayed. I’m sad to admit it, sad to see it happen, but it did. As I’ve already said, I got to watch these guys in the post-season and I get to do that year after year, at least I have that.

For now, time for bed, it’s 1 a.m. and we all know Monday means I’ve got work at 8 a.m. I’m sure this won’t be the last time I write/rant about NY for a while, we all know I’ll be following the trades and the contracts as if my life depends on it.

And so we live to fight another day.

I considered seriously working on my management paper, but then I decided I have only a half-hour until my Honors Capstone Session and that is not ample time to get into the management spirit, it is however, ample time to get into the NY sprit.

Last night, I strapped on my seatbelt and got ready for what was sure to be an emotional rollercoaster. All day long I got comments from the crude Boston fans that roam this campus asking me if I was embarrassed to wear my Jeter t-shirt, telling me we were done and had no chance, and I just smiled, because if I’ve learned one thing from my dad it’s this: you never count NY out.

When the pressure is on, when it comes down to the wire, we show up to play. Yesterday afternoon, we showed up to play. I got out of classes and work around 4, went to my e-board meeting for Communication Society and ran back to my room. The plan was to hit the gym for a run and watch the game there, but my eyes were glued to the screen. Our bats were finally awake yesterday, and we showed Texas that we’re the defending champions everyone’s been talking about.

In the bottom of the second A-Rod worked a nice walk—you could tell the boys in pinstripes were trying to get something going. Berkman then walked, forcing Alex to 2^nd—talk about an ideal situation. Posada gets a single and Granderson follows with another single—allowing for the Yanks to take the lead—finally.

I sat there watching this game as if my life depended on it, my emotions were fierce. Then, the bottom of the third comes and Swish leads it off with a homer, followed by Robbie Cano doing the same. 5-0 Yanks. Woah. This is the team I know and love.

Up until this point, we have been outplayed. Texas has simply proved better than we have been in this series, and while this has been disheartening to me, I was accepting of it. I knew we had it in us to fight back, but I’ve been worried, I won’t lie. The fact of the matter is, I think as fans we need to set ourselves apart from our rivals, we need to accept what’s going on and stand behind our team hoping they can change it—leaving in the 7^th inning and starting fights in the stands isn’t going to cause the Yanks to win.

We came out of last night with a 7-2 lead. I was running my heart out on the tredmill in the gym watching as if my life depended on it. When I was in salmo the hour before, I stood in front of the TV watching CC get his last strike during an inning which could have blown our lead. When I went over to lift my cute 10 lb weights I was anxious because I couldn’t see the TV. This is the NY I know, the NY that makes me feel this way. That’s something I think I was missing, although I was eluding to it, I wasn’t accepting of the fact that this is what they do: they bring you all the way down, to bounce you back up again in an instant—there is never a dull moment with this team, and that’s what makes them so great to watch.

I went into last night thinking to myself, well, even if we lose, I got to watch them in the playoffs, baseball lasted through October for me, and I got to enjoy countless innings of baseball this season with my favorite team. I went to sleep last night dying for game 6.

Of course, as predicted, the momentum is back in our favor—which is exactly what we need. This is a team that feeds off of the energy from its fans, and up until last night, the energy was at an all time low if you ask me. It was a disgrace how empty the stadium looked during the bottom of game 4. Although our backs are still against the wall and we’re still in a do or die situation, we have hope to hold on to. We’ve done this before, taken 3 in a row—we just did it in the ALDS. Now, instead of reading the headlines about how we’re done and don’t stand a chance, headlines across the board are chanting in our favor, the media frenzy is focused on our fight to get to the World Series, on our chance to take back this series. Talk about irony. I’m pretty sure I said this was going to happen.

Now, the headlines are telling Texas they need to worry, telling us to look to game 7 (game 7, huh? So NOW we stand a chance) and ironically, no one is nailing Girardi to a cross. Let’s face it, CC didn’t have his best game of the year last night, but I didn’t find one article crucifying Girardi for that—I can guarantee if we lost, he’d be the scapegoat there. As I’ve said time and time again, this is the playoffs—we need to score runs, and we need to believe in our pitching—it’s a crapshoot, determined by luck in only a few games. The playoffs take a season of over 100 games and turn it into 12. Those 12 or so games determine who goes to the World Series—c’mon, how can it not be about luck?

The reality of the situation is that although I feel better than I did yesterday, we’re still not playing our best. Texas has still outplayed us. Texeria is still done for the season. And that 3 game deficit was the first one in our history in over 50 years. Obviously something is off for us this postseason, but the difference between yesterday and today is one thing: hope.

We have two games in Texas—the Rangers need to only win 1 and they’ll send us off to our respective golf courses. We’re still facing Cliff Lee in game 7—what lies ahead is far more difficult than the obstacle we overcame—but, similar to everyone else who was feeling down a mere 24 hours ago, I believe in this team. It looks better and I feel better, hopefully this is all translating over to the boys in pinstripes, too.

I leave you with this, courtesy of ESPNsports, regarding Girardi’s message to his team on the eve of their 3-game deficit:

“Girardi, according to three people in the room, stood on the large, white, interlocking “NY” in the middle of the Yankee-blue rug that spreads across the enormous home clubhouse.

His demeanor remained even and calm.

His approximately two-minute message was clear and concise.

‘It wasn’t really anything complicated,” captain Derek Jeter said. “It was just, ‘Win a game.’”

Win a game. Take one battle at a time. It isn’t over yet. If you ask me, that is some solid advice, for the team, and for the fans.

Talk to me tomorrow if we lose though, I’m sure I’ll be singing a different song.

Homerun derby? Oh nope, just the ALCS.

To the untrained eye, turning on the Yanks game during the 9th inning might be confusing. I mean, I wouldn’t blame you, the amount of homeruns taking place would have confused me years ago as well. But no, this is just your classic example of crash and burn.

I’ve mentioned recently that I started reading a great sports blog, haven’t I? It’s About the Money Stupid has been my source of Yankee commentary for the past month or so, and to be honest, I don’t know how I’ve lived without it. Now, as I sit here and stare at Pettite’s confused face, I myself wonder, where did it all go wrong? This is where I turn to IATMS.

Warning signs. As a fairly well-versed Yankee fan I can’t really be too sure as to why I didn’t see this sooner. We came out of the first-round of the playoffs with a quick win. We were feeling good, we were feeling confident. There’s the key there, because despite their business-like approach to their clinching of the first series, you had to have known they were feeling on top of the world. They came out of the division in 2nd place, took the wildcard and then outlasted their rivals the Rays. I understand the excitement.

Here are some things I don’t understand: let us look only to games 3 and 4, because let us face it, if I focused on this entire series thus far, you’d stop reading right now. Last night:

Dear NY,

Were you actually playing or even considering helping out Andy on the mound there, or were you enjoying watching him take on the elusive Cliff Lee while you polished your golf clubs?

Love eternally,

Theresa

But really. Last night there was nothing to blame for the loss aside from offense. Defensively, NY was doing alright, Pettite let in only 2 runs– a reasonable lead for the Yankees to overtake. However, this would only be reasonable in the event that NY decided to I don’t know, score a run. By the time the last innings came, and Texas started kicking ass and taking names, I decided we deserved to lose– and so we did.

Now we look to tonight, and as fans we think– no big deal, we’ve come up from behind before, this is what we’re known for! We come into the game pretty solid, we even have a lead for a bit. Then the dark clouds descend and we lay down and die. Tex goes out with a hamstring injury in the 5th and I said to myself, “self, stop watching, this is a bad sign.”

A gluten for punishment, I kept my NY faith and I kept on watching, I kept on watching the entire time, right until the announcers said “and that’s the game, Texas takes NY with a 10-3 lead.” 10-3. As in, double digits. Great.

I can never tell if they do it on purpose– was this all some act of excitement, putting all of our eggs in one basket for tomorrow night, trying to come up from behind giving Texas a 3-1 lead? Do we not want to make it to the World Series and get our chance at 28? I’m sorry, I thought we were chasing 28– isn’t that the slogan? Tonight just looked like a replay of the homerun derby, except this is OCTOBER, and we’re in the damn playoffs! C’mon!

P.S. let it be known right now that I in no way shape or form put all the blame on A.J. Burnett for this loss. I’m sure the headlines will be rampid with blame saying he is the reason we are where we are. He isn’t. The fact of the matter is we showed up to play tonight, but we didn’t show up to win. Further, I’d like to go on record now before all the other “fans” start freaking out putting blame on Tex, on Girardi and god-only knows who else for this loss and say that as a team, we blew it. The next 14 hours should be complete agony.

Alas, take a deep relaxing breath IATMS tells me, because the playoffs are a crapshoot. Life in the post-season is dominated by luck and we’re just running out of ours. If we had won tonight, things might have started to look up, we might have picked up some momentum, some pride, alas instead we’ve lost and gave Texas a 3 game advantage over us, paving their road to the playoffs and calling up the golf club to prepare for our own arrival.

I don’t want to sound like doom and gloom here but we’ve literally put all of our eggs in one basket. Everyone was so worried about AJ being erratic tonight and losing it for us– we have no one to blame but ourselves. We failed to easily get on the board, again, we failed to maintain our lead, again, and we failed to come up from behind, again. So now, we’ll look to CC, again, to pull us out of another slump– but can we do it, that is the question I will ask my self over and over until then.

So where am I at right now? I’m done with exams for the week, looking at a 10-page paper, a meeting for my capstone thesis Thursday and Open House this weekend. Oh and right, now I have the looming black cloud over my chest as I sit and wait for game 5. Despite the negativity I’m spewing right now, I’m going to rock my NY attire tomorrow, I’m going to have pride and faith in my team and I’m going to hope and pray with all I have that momentum will swing back to the Evil Empire and we will come out on top.

Let’s be honest, what will entertain me when baseball season really does end for the Yanks? There is only so much commentary on the trade deadline and deals that I can read about– it’s not as if I even understand a fraction of what goes on during a football game (GO JETS!)

You’ve all been waiting for this.

Well, you’ve all been waiting for this haven’t you? Time for me to eat my words, huh? After the Yankees took a downward spiral during the month of September, I was being quite the Debbie-Downer. I was pretty convinced that we’d be out of the playoffs first-round (yes, I know, despite our stellar playoff record against the Twins) and that they really were all doing serious drugs to be playing so awful…

And then this happened..

Swept. Get those guys some brooms because they sure know how to use ‘em. I know, I know… you all expected this.  Let me rationalize this though: my dad even thought they were going to lose to the Twins in 5… Now when it comes to all things baseball, he is the one I turn to, so if he thought it, I feared it was truth. The best part though, in complete seriousness, was the fact that they carried out that win in a business-like manner. They didn’t all run out of the monud and celebrate; not this team. Instead, they walked out and greeted one another with fist bumps, high fives and hugs. Why? Because it isn’t over yet. For this team, it isn’t about a first-round playoff win, it’s a quest for a championship… a 28th championship.

After taking the first two games on the road, we were on our own turf for game 3– who could ask for a better situation? Not I said the cat. What was even better was that Hughes was pitching, and everyone has been up in the air about whether or not he is dependable and could pitch in the post-season for us. Everyone but me that is. I know, I know… I’m contradicting myself, but the thing is, in the back of my head, I know that October is a big deal for the Yankees– they come through in the clutch, always.

Now though, I’m left waiting. The Rangers/Rays need to finish their series so we can all know who we face next, right now the series is tied at 2-2. I can’t tell who I want to win more though, the Rangers or the Rays, because honestly, they’re both kicking ass right now and that’s concerning all on it’s own. We don’t have the best record against the Rays either so that makes me nervous– however, with the way we have been playing lately, I think we’ll be okay either way… don’t make me eat those words, NY.

But who scares me more? Tampa. I’ll be rooting for Texas to come out with the final win to advance… because to be honest, Tampa has a solid bullpen and sick offense– they lead the MLB in stolen bases… that’s pretty terrifying if you ask me. They’ve also shown us time and time again that they can handle our pitching and offense– also concerning.

In the National league, it looks like the Phillies and the Giants are up next, I know little about the National league, but I do know one thing: the Phillies are a much better team this year than the last time we faced them in the World Series *shudder*

For now though, its a waiting game to see who we’ll take next, this article maps out the pros and cons for both teams pretty straight-forward–well worth the read. Overall, it seems the major fear with the Rays is, as I said, their speed, and with the Rangers it’s their pitching– they did cost the Sandman a loss this year– which I’m still not over. We’ll see what happens, but as I said, I’m rooting for the Rangers.

As a side note, I stumbled upon this advertisement for Nike– I have a project due for my advertising class, I need to critque an ad, I got assigned to find a “good ad,” which is incredibly tough because in my opinion, I notice bad ads more often. While I can’t really use this advertisement for the class, it is still pretty legit if you ask me– legit enough that I kind of want to print it out and put it on my wall..

In other news, this weekend was a 3-day so everyone headed home basically. I had a friend staying over who graduated last year. The Bulldogs secured a nice homecoming win and the drama was explosive. Not because of the game of course, but becuase when you take a Saturday night and add some graduated senior guys, what else would you get? I woke up this morning with the worst headache of my entire life. Mina and I grabbed Dunkin and I got back into bed… until 5 p.m.

The plan was to do homework all day today– that plan sort of failed. The good news is I got a good deal started on Saturday during the day and finished up my press release for my PR class before Mina and I headed to the movies. We went to see Life as We Know It. I love Katherine Heigel and I thought the movie was great– a perfect mix of comedy and romance. I will admit, I even teared up a few times, but that is just because I’m an emotional wuss because Mina didn’t cry… ha ha ha.

Now its about 11 and I think I’m going to try to do that advertising assignment and head to bed– I’m working in Admissions tomorrow from 10-4, lots of interviews.

The next 48 hours.

They (whoever it is they are) say that a picture is worth a thousand words; well then this should be worth at least three-thousand. A) Disney Princess blanket B) Understanding Organizations C) Yanks Cap.

This my friends, is multi-tasking at its absolute finest: studying for my management exam on Friday, while cuddled up with my favorite princesses, while screaming at my TV watching the Yanks take game 1 of the first-round of the playoffs.. talk about one fantastic Wednesday night. As for tomorrow, lets just say I should be avoided at all costs… unless of course you’d like to discuss cognitive biases, symptoms of groupthink, or Mintzberg’s roles of a manager, which, by the way, I totally know…

18 match-ups between the Yankees & Rays; the end of Javy.

Last night, I sat in front of my computer screen refreshing the ESPN play-by-play box repeatedly. I was feeling good because we were putting up a fight against the Rays—it’s painfully obvious at this point that this is the team to beat—not just for the pennant, but in the playoffs.

Out of 18 games, we have taken 8—not so consistently, and not so easily. Winning last night would have meant a split in W/L for us—I would have been okay with this. Instead, I got up to go to the bathroom, stopped in the living room to chat with some of my roommates, and then walked back into my room—let’s say this entire process took about 5 minutes. How, then, I asked in the world, did the Rays score SEVEN RUNS during that time—SEVEN, seriously?!

At this point, I became doom-and-gloom because I saw Joba and Javy were the relievers, and I’ve been watching all season, I know that always spells out trouble. The day the Yanks picked up Javy and got rid of Melky I knew this was a bad idea. To this day, I struggle to understand why a world championship winning team needed to be picked apart the way Cashman did; but I tried to trust his instincts—I’m certainly not a baseball manager or pro of analytics.

Obviously though, my suspicions proved valid– how do you hit 4 batters in a row, that is really all I want to know. REALLY, tell me… please. A forced run– which let’s face it, started the downward spiral and determined the outcome of the game– I didn’t even know that was possible.

When I mentioned my fears during the trades last season, my dad reminded me just who Javy is—the man responsible for the ugly upset against the Red Sox during those fated playoffs.  I realized quickly what a bad omen this was and jumped right onto the Javy-hater bandwagon.

One of the times I went to see the Yanks play in August, Javy was pitching—we lost. My opinion of him has never been good. I do appreciate that small timeframe where he was kicking ass and taking names, but he’s inconsistent and unstable. I place him on the same playing field as our glass man Nick Johnson.

For pretty much the entire season, this guy has not had what it takes. He has not redeemed himself in my eyes, or in the eyes of the organization. He needs to go. I firmly believe there is no chance of him making the post-season roster—and I’ve never been happier about a speculation.

He is unreliable—we’re trying to win our 28^th World Series title here, not the little league championship.

As for the Rays—they terrify me, and this is no secret. Since July, I’ve been talking about how much I’d rather the Sox win the wild card and head to the playoffs—let’s face it; we have a better shot with them in the race. Now however, the issue is two-fold: 1) who is going to win the pennant, because at this point, it’s anyone’s game, and 2) whose going to come out on top in the playoffs?

The reality is that the Rays aren’t going anywhere—now this isn’t to say our rivalry with them is any more intense than our rivalry with the Sox—I can’t stand people who make that argument, it simply isn’t true—when the Rays beat us, I’m certainly angry, but when the Sox beat us, it’s about more than a win or a loss, its personal.

They’ve proven time and time again that they are a force to be reckoned with—whether home or away, we have never exactly had an effortless game against them—we’ve always had to fight for it. I’m also ultimately concerned about what a playoff match-up of Yanks-Rays means for Tex. Time and time again, he has proven a valuable powerhouse hitter for the Yanks—except against the Rays. We need him, and he can’t seem to figure out their pitching, which will prove to be an issue.

It’s pretty obvious at this point that the Yanks and the Rays will be heading into the playoffs together—who wins the pennant, and who dominates the playoffs is to be determined. I’d like to argue that we can take the next 3 match-ups well—the Sox twice and the Orioles. But stranger things have happened…

Regardless, I totally rocked my “Beat the Red Sox” t-shirt today… let’s just hope we actually do that tonight—everyone knows we need it.

Backtrack, end of summer and Bryant bound!

This post will be long. Let us go back a few weeks…

Despite how terrifying the ending of my last Yanks game experience went, I decided to go to another on August 18. They were playing the Tigers, and my cousin Kristin was coming up to visit. My dad scored us pretty sweet seats down in the lower level and me, my parents and Kristin went. Unlike last time, the Yanks won.  The game was incredibly exciting because it wasn’t one of those games where they win by a landslide, or no one scores—it was full of some incredible plays (Granderson was on fire) and the fans were amped.

Kristin stayed with us for a few days—we went out to dinner a few times, and went shopping—yes, I bought shoes (that is 112 pairs for those of you counting). The morning she left, the family got in the car bright and early to head up the Lake George for vacation.

We stayed in this great place near the lake and the village and despite some rain it was a ton of fun. We skipped the whole amusement park bandwagon and did some other fun things. We had wanted to go white water rafting, however the rain kept us from it—maybe next time. On the way home we threw around the idea of going snow tubing during my break in the winter, so I’m pretty psyched about that. Oh, I forgot to mention—I bought shoes (113). However, these were totally necessary shoes, it rains at least once a week in Rhode Island and they are new rain boots!

I also bought this sweet Yanks pennant that is currently displayed proudly on my desk… but I’m getting ahead of myself, I’m not up to Bryant yet…

After vacation, it seemed as if time was flying—as it always seems to do once August hits. (In other random news my laptop keeps changing my font to Chinese).  Most days, I hit the beach early in the morning to work on my pastey skin—I got decent color. I spent my last days home packing up all my clothes—I will admit, my compulsive and borderline obsessive packing before I left Bryant was a huge help—everything was so neat and organized (and labeled!) in the basement so I really only had to pack up clothes.

I guess now I’m up to BRYANT!

Last semester, I nervously applied for a highly competitive position in Admissions as an Admission Fellow. Out of all the applicants, they only hired 6 people for the job. I was so excited when I got the phone call offering me the job. I remember being so nervous when I saw the number in my caller ID and then being ridiculously happy with the news. As a result of this position, I get to move-in to campus early. Training began on September 2, so I moved in on the 1^st.

My mom came storming into my room at 5:30 a.m. to tell me we were “late.” Evidently my dad planned on leaving at 4 a.m. because he “doesn’t drive in traffic.” So we hit the road a little bit later and finally got to Bryant around 10 a.m. I checked in with Admissions, got my key and all that, and headed to my room.

I walked in shocked. Mina and I are in the 240s again, this time in Hall 4—so once again we took room 1. However, it took me about 2 minutes of standing there to figure out why the room looked so small—the beds weren’t lofted. “Ohhhhh Daddddyyyyy—wouldn’t you LOVE to loft my bed?!” After about a half hour of moving furniture the room started to look the way it should. I was there for about 2 hours before Mina and I used that time to put away my clothes—that takes the longest.

As I’ve said, I’m compulsive and obsessive—I organize my closet by work suits, dresses, going-out clothes, sweaters and coats… it took me about 3 hours to unpack my clothes into my closet and drawers— well worth it though because I was so organized that I have more room to buy new things! (Cue my dad’s excitement!)

I only brought up about 60 pairs of my shoes—they all look lovely inside my closet :) My parents were actually a huge help this year—my dad napped and surfed the internet after moving in my stuff and my furniture and my mom helped me get organized in my room and in the bathroom. She also always makes my bed for me (in my defense, its super high and annoying to make all by myself). Mina showed up at some point and with the two of us getting to work, it really started to look like home!

The two of us have a knack for decorating our room extensively—lots of pink and lots of pictures on the walls. This year, I even got these great frames with wall quotes that read “Always kiss me goodnight,” and “Chase your dreams.”

Keep in mind that it was 98 degrees out on move-in day. I can’t believe I didn’t mention this sooner. My body was dripping with sweat—and we had three fans! 

I obviously cried when my parents finally left around 7 p.m. We did a target run and had Chili’s for dinner, picked up my refrigerator from Mina’s sorority’s storage unit and then they hit the road.

We finally went to bed around 2 a.m. because we obviously needed our room to be perfect! The next day I had work at 9 a.m. until about 4 for training and I picked up my new laptop.

The past few days I’ve been alone, messing with my laptop, putting up my frames and organizing my planner. I’ve color coded my schedule, figured out which hours I can work in the Writing Center with Admissions, and my tour time (Mondays at 2 p.m.).

Today the freshmen moved in! I was sitting in the tent in the lot handing out ID cards from 7 a.m. until about 3. I had a ton of fun with it—it was great to see students I have been in contact with, such as Kelly, and it was also fun to create my own matches with their cards—freshmen, if you’re reading this, I may have found your soul mate today via your ID card!

Tomorrow the rest of Bryant moves in, I’ll be swiping keys in Bello most of the day—it’ll be nice to see all my friends as they move-in. As of now, I’m sitting in the room, it’s cooled off substantially now thanks to that “hurricane” last night. I’m super excited to see all of my friends, and to be able to be set up and ready for the first night of shenanigans with the girls without compulsively worrying about if my room is all set.

I’ll keep everyone posted on the new job, and life at Bryant—I’m certainly looking at a ton of work in my classes and 20 hours working a week, but I love being busy. In the next few weeks I also find out if I was accepted into ODK and I have my first e-board meeting for Communication Society on Wednesday! My planner is filling up—but I’m looking forward to it!

 

*P.S. all of these photos were taken on my new, super amazing camera! Mine met the toilet last semester (it was very old) and my dad’s met Lake George. So, last week I had to bite the bullet and buy a new one—which I love!