Yankees rout the Orioles, 13-3, since there is no MLB mercy rule

The Orioles could've used as much offense as they could get, but Nick Markakis could only sit and watch. He didn't play, since he had been injured after CC Sabathia's pitch the previous day. He sat in the dugout as his team got routed, and I could see that his wrist was wrapped.

I sat 5 rows from the New York Yankees dugout and watched the Yankees take on the Orioles and take the lead in the AL East.  I'm not going to go into the play by play, but let's just say that it always seemed as though the Orioles pitchers were loading the bases and/or the Yankees were scoring. 

The Yankees won the game with a score of 13-3.  Yes, the Yankees scored 13 runs. 

The father-son conversations sums it up nicely.
Son:  Dad, what's the score?
Dad: I think it's 2-0.  Maybe 3-0.
Me: I think it's 4-0.  Wait,  I see it.  It's 5-0.

Yes, it sounded like an auction, and it more or less felt like one. 

The Orioles started to rally in the 4th, but they could never score more than 3 runs.

You want to know who scored?  Everyone scored.  Ok, not everyone scored, but it sure as hell felt as though, every time you looked there was a Yankee crossing home plate.

Another fun moment in the game was when someone started yelling, "overrated" when Derek Jeter was at bat.  Yeah.  If you are an Orioles fan, you should probably tell that guy to be quiet, since Jeter ended up hitting a homerun.

If you're a Yankees fan, today was a BEAUTIFUL day.  If you're an Orioles fan, at least today's game is over and only counts as one loss.

Maybe MLB needs a mercy rule...  I know the Atlanta Braves came back from a 0-9 deficit against the Washington Nationals, but...

After crushing the Orioles today, the Yankees are back on top of the AL East.

THE WIRK

Yankees v Orioles ~ Saturday's bogus double play ends the game

My friend, Teri, is a huge New York Yankees fan, and she'd never been to Oriole Park at Camden Yards (i.e. until this weekend).  With the race to first place in the AL East coming down to the wire, I talked her into going with me to Saturday's Yankees v Orioles game.  She didn't need much convincing, once I planted the idea and before you knew it, we had a couple of tickets to the game!

Saturday night was a great ball game.  Covered from the rain in section 49, we watched the Yankees and the Orioles battle. 

We watched CC Sabathia serve up meatballs and Orioles hit homeruns.  We also saw CC hit Nick Markakis with a pitch.  It's going to be a while before Orioles fans see Markakis at bat.  Reports that I read say that, Markakis is out for six weeks.

It was a great game, but the ending was very unfortunate. 

As the Yankees were rallying from a 3-5 deficit in the 9th inning, I saw the supposed "double play" that ended the inning and the game.  It didn't take a genius to see that Mark Teixeira was safe.  Umpire Jerry Meals made a bad call, and I agree with Teixeira.  My guess is that Meals either wanted to go home or just got ahead of himself.  Either way, it was what it was, and the game was over. 

If I was Teixeira, you wouldn't have been able to pull me off the base.  How frustrating...  That's baseball, and that's life. 

The Baltimore Orioles won the game 5-4, and as a result both teams are tied for the lead in the AL East.

THE WIRK

Yankees rally in the 8th to defeat the Rangers ~ ALCS, Game 1

I'd never been to Rangers Ballpark so I decided that there was no better time to go then last night to watch game 1 of the ALCS.  I flew to Dallas and immediately went to see my family.  After catching up with Ashley, the kiddos, the new kitty, and meeting her neighbor Dave ~ they whisked me away to the game.  I got there early so that traffic wouldn't be an issue and it worked out well so I could eat and not worry about picking up my ticket at will call. 

For under $20, I had a hotdog, a large drink, and a funnel cake.  ****  Funnel cake is one of my guilty pleasures!  After satisfying my inner fat kid, I walked the concourse to see what the park had to offer.   I found a large gift shop (i.e. the Majestic) and a huge Nolan Ryan statue.  After taking the obligatory photo it was time for me to get ready to watch the action. 

Nolan Ryan threw out the ceremonial first pitch.  Here's the video I shot:

It was a comfortable 80-degrees, and I settled in my seat.  Before you knew it, the Texas Rangers were up 3-0.  I'd never heard the name Michael Young until yesterday, but after last night I won't forget it.  Evidently he lives down the street from my cousin.  At his first at bat, he singled and then next thing you knew Josh Hamilton drove him and Elvis Andrus home with a home run!

I watched game 1 of the ALDS and CC Sabathia got off to a slow start at Target Field (i.e. against the Minnesota Twins) so it felt like de ja vu...  CC managed to get himself out of some other jams, and before you knew it Joba Chamberlain was in the game, pitching in the bottom of the 5th.

Anyone else remember Joba Chamberlain on the mound in Cleveland when those flies came out?!?!  That's an image I can't forget!  So gross... 

Around the time of the 7th inning stretch, I noticed George W. Bush in the crowd.  Here's a picture.  He's in the blue shirt, front row, to the left of the sign.

Anyway, some time around the 8th inning I noticed the guy to my right.  He was a cross between Rick Fox and another guy I grew up with (i.e. that I had a crush on).  Needless to say he was attractive and shooting pictures with a serious camera.  I found it all very interesting.  After some small talk, we both noticed the Yankees had scored!  Wouldn't you know it?  The Yankees were beginning to rally!  It was so quiet in the ballpark that it was as if the Rangers balloon had completely deflated, but thanks to some good conversation and Yankees offense ~ I was still smiling!

If you want the box score or a play-by-play check ESPN.com.  Great game and definitely a good time!  Rangers lose at home.  Final score Yankees: 6, Rangers: 5.

"The stars at night, shine big and bright ~ deep in the heart of Texas".

Game 2 is today (i.e. Saturday) at 4PM ET.

THE WIRK

Teixeira hits a homerun and Yankees defeat the Twins - ALDS, Game 1

Last night was the first night of the MLB postseason.  I was able to attend Game 1 of the ALDS between the New York Yankees and the Minnesota Twins.  Earlier in the evening, baseball fans were treated to something special when Philadelphia Phillies' pitcher, Roy Halladay, pitched a no-hitter!



Wow.  Coming off watching the celebration in Philly, I was expecting big things at Target Field.  I didn't witness a no-hitter, but I did see a great game.

CC Sabathia and Francisco Liriano went pitch to pitch, but the bats were hot also.  10 runs were scored, but the Yankees ended up winning 6-4.

CC Sabathia on the mound

My 3rd base favorites, Alex Rodriguez and Scott Ullger

Twins congratulating Cuddyer after his home run

There was not a no-hitter to witness at Target Field.  In fact, the crowd seemed to "boo" a bit when Sabathia hit Thome in the arm with a pitch.  Come on, people!  That's no big deal.  Don't you know that that's how former Tribe players greet each other?!?! 

The Yankees were down 0-3 for a few innings, but then the Yankees found their offense.  I was sitting next to Kunal, a Yankees fan, and he was stressed for most of the game.  I think he finally relaxed in the 8th or 9th inning.  What most people thought was a "gimme" game for the Yankees turned into a bit of a nail biter, even though the Yankees were up 4-3 heading into the bottom of the 6th.

In the bottom of the 6th with Sabathia loading the bases, I started to panic.  However, he was able to work himself out of the jam after only walking in one run.  Great. Game was tied at 4.

In the 7th, with Nick Swisher on base, Mark Teixeira hit a home run to put the Yankees up 6-4.  That would be the final score of the game! 

Mariano Rivera handled the rest.

In today's game that starts at 6:37PM ET, Andy Pettitte takes on Carl Pavano. 

Should I stay or should I go now?!?!

Oh and  I have to mention that since Randy Moss returned to the Minnesota Vikings yesterday, it seems like the people in Minneapolis dusted off their Moss jerseys and decided to wear them to the game.  Welcome back, Randy.  Seems like Vikings fans can't wait to see you.

Lastly, guess what?!!?  I found $20 on the ground on the concourse.  Woohoo! Winner!!!  :-P

Fan of Teixeira?  Pick up a shirt.  Man his name is hard to spell...  "I before E, except when sounded like Teixeira"...


THE WIRK

Yankees v Twins, ALDS Game 1 ~ I'll be there!

After looking at Stubhub.com, Craigs list, and eBay, I decided to say, "to hell with it all" and hit the streets.  When did the going price for a good ticket hit $300?  Actually from experiences haggling with scalpers and researching websites for YEARS, the answer to that question is maybe 5 years ago... 

At lunch today, I decided to go out and look for scalper.  I was curious if I'd run into any Yankees or Twins grabbing food.  It's not a secret boys and girls...  Those men need to eat lunch, too...  Well on my path towards Target Field, I decided to go right to the ballpark to check out the scene.  As usual, I was at the right place at the right time!

Guess who just scored her ticket to the Yankees v Twins, American League Division Series (ALDS), Game 1!?!?!! Yep, this girl!  I cannot wait for the game to start...  Looking forward to watching CC Sabathia take on Francisco Liriano.  Great.  Now I have that little girl song in my head...

"CC, my playmate, come out and play with me."

Actually, when ever I think of Sabathia I always remember his days with the Cleveland Indians.  In 2002, when he was robbed at gunpoint, while trying to leave the Marriott Key Center.  Here's an article that provides more details for those of you that never knew.  For those of you that would rather copy and paste the URL into a new window, here you go: http://www.woio.com/Global/story.asp?S=793891.  It's scary stuff!  According to the article, "Sabathia was robbed of $44,102 in cash and jewelry, including a necklace and earrings."  I'm sure his fans are happy that no one got hurt.  It's great to see CC successful.  By the way, did you know that 52 is one of my lucky numbers?

As for me tonight, my only "concern" is what I'm going to eat on the Target Field concourse...  Do I stick with Murray's steak sandwich or try something else? :-P


THE WIRK