I was a little nervous about this one in the seventh inning. With the Yankees leaving so many on base – going 2 for 12, overall, with RISP – and the score close, it just felt like one of those games where the bullpen was going to blow it before getting the ball to Mo Rivera.
But, not so!
Alfredo Aceves did a really nice job bridging the gap between Andy Pettitte’s exit via back stiffness and Sandman time. (Speaking of Pettitte, let’s hope this goes away quick – because he will pitch hurt and that’s not always the best thing for him or the team.)
The Yankees now own first place in the A.L. East (for the first time since the last day of the 2006 regular season). And, I won’t jinx them by mentioning their magic number.
Speaking of numbers, how about those Boston Red Sox? They’ve gone 9-10 in their last 19 games, 14-13 in their last 27 games, and 15-15 in their last 30 games. If not for that 10-game winning streak that they had from April 15th through April 26th, they would be in really tough shape right now.
Then again, you could say the same thing about the Yankees and their 9-game winning streak from May 13th to May 21st.
Maybe the A.L. East this season will come down to the team who puts together the most winning streaks?
7 Responses to “May 29th @ The Indians”
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May 30th, 2009 at 12:05 am
New York 28 20 .583 –
Boston 28 21 .571 0.5
Toronto 28 23 .549 1.5
Tampa Bay 24 27 .471 5.5
Baltimore 23 26 .469 5.5
I know it’s just May 30th, but…awwww…idn’t dat pretty?
BTW, watch out for the O’s. And no, I ain’t kidding.
May 30th, 2009 at 12:31 am
The amazing thing to me is that nearly one third through the season the Yankees trail the Texas Rangers by just 1 game for the best record in the American League.
HUH??
May 30th, 2009 at 5:33 am
[quote]Maybe the A.L. East this season will come down to the team who puts together the most winning streaks?[/quote]
you mean teams that win the most games end up winning the division? ZOMG WHAT A CONCEPT!
May 30th, 2009 at 7:35 am
Andy Pettitte’s exit via back stiffness and Sandman time. (Speaking of Pettitte, let’s hope this goes away quick – because he will pitch hurt and that’s not always the best thing for him or the team.)
——–
First of all, I really like Aceves in that swingman role. His repertoire is probably not good enough to make it through a lineup 2-3 times but he can definitely give you 2-3 innings and get the job done. The defense behind him did its job and Aceves kept the Indians quiet for just long enough to get the W.
As for Pettitte, 5 shutout innings was an improvement over his past 4-5 starts but he’s still letting too many baserunners get on. The K’s are down and the baserunners are up. I wonder what his strand rate is and if he’s lucky that his ERA is even as low as it is.
I love Andy a ton but he’s just not pitching that well out there. I suppose it’s all relative because, as a 5th starter, you could do a whole lot worse. I guess it’s just hard for me to see Andy as a 5th starter after all those years as a #2 or #3. In any event, 5th starter or not, I’d like to see Andy pitching better, if only because I love him so much and hate to be reminded that he’s an old fart…
May 30th, 2009 at 8:35 am
@ MJ:
The Yankees may be the only MLB team with 3 fifth starters: Chamberlain (who began the season in that role), Hughes, and now Pettitte.
May 30th, 2009 at 10:04 am
[...] fact, when the Yankees gained sole possession of first place last night, it became the first time in the last 972 days that the New York Yankees have owned first place in [...]
June 14th, 2009 at 10:30 am
[...] May 29th, we were told that Andy Pettitte had a bad back. I think it happened before that date. Check out [...]