World Series: Clutch Rod and Captain Idiot Put Yanks Ahead 3-1
Baseball November 2nd. 2009, 9:15am
Maybe it was the clutch lessons. Maybe it was shedding the emotional heft after the revelation of his greatest shame, his centaur self-portraits in the boudoir. Perhaps, Brad Lidge’s demons are just that much more powerful. Whatever the reason, A-Rod earned his pinstripes hitting the timely two-out double to knock in an alert Johnny Damon. The Yankees took a commanding 3-1 lead over the Phillies.
The irony of the eventual Yankee win will be that it vaults Joe Girardi into the pantheon of great managers, when the team is winning despite him and his magical blue binder. Playing matchups is fine. Flouting convention on occasion may work. You might bring in your closer to kill a crucial rally in the seventh or eighth. You never bunt with two strikes, ever.
A.J. Burnett will pitch Game 5. He is 4-0 with a 2.33 ERA in four career starts on three days rest, though that is four career starts. Even if Cliff Lee rips off another gem, New York should be fine with Pettitte in Game 6 and Sabathia going again in Game 7.
The Yankees’ win puts the nefarious Jimmy Rollins in his place for having the audacity to predict his own team would win. Jerk!
Mark Teixeira may have a .576 OPS this post-season, but you can’t under estimate the value his pointing and emphatic gestures after routine outs have on team chemistry.
Did Mike Everitt know Howard didn’t touch the plate?
86 Responses to “World Series: Clutch Rod and Captain Idiot Put Yanks Ahead 3-1”
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November 2nd, 2009 at 9:17 AM
By…no one?
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:20 AM
Yeah, one series does not a great manager make.
/Needs more Hernia
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:27 AM
One WS wins makes legends of most managers. Not Yankees managers though.
And after the Phillies tied the game 4-4, I thought this game was going into extra innings. Of course, I forgot that Brad Lidge wanted to outchoke Joba.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:29 AM
With the combination of Molina, no DH, and Lee, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Yankees lost tonight 8-0.
clinching in NY would be more fun, though.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:31 AM
stats be damned, id take a guy like tex over an asshole like youkilis any day.
fuck the red sox.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:33 AM
Oh hell yeah.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:34 AM
keep up the reverse jinx. been working well since you bellyached after game 1.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:34 AM
do you guys go out of your way to pick a douchey picture of arod every time or is it that hard to find a normal one?
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:37 AM
We’re still waiting on the “ARod as Centaur” photos to hit Google images.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:37 AM
I’m still waiting for the centaur picture.
Cant believe this self centered prick is getting so much sympathy from non Yankee fans. How quickly you people forget.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:37 AM
You really think they clinch tonight Sparty? Not seeing it. Happening in New York in game six. Then again I picked the Yanks in five so I hope your clear eyed unbridled optimism pulls through I guess.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:39 AM
Been giving A-Rod sympathy for four-five years. When your as good as he is the bullshit he’s had to put up with FROM HIS OWN FANS is disgusting. Even Bonds got treated nicely at home.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:40 AM
winning with grace meet yankees fans, yankees fans meet winning with grace…
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:40 AM
I’ll give it to A-Rod, he is as good as anyone at hitting a straight fastball thrown right down the middle. As good as Pedro Feliz. As good as anyone.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:40 AM
Ring a ding, ding. Especially when an inferior player but “clutch guy” playing right next to him is revered like a diety. Jeter on a dood.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:42 AM
Oh boy, the ESPN 30 for 30 movie this week is on Len Bias. I dont even like the Celtics but I am probably going to be bawling watching that.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:42 AM
I was at a bar yesterday this Bartender from Boston was talking about Youk. I said, you know hes a rapist right? She said so what I need a good raping right now.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:43 AM
Couldn’t agree more.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:43 AM
That is going to be awesome. Cant wait.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:43 AM
Game.Set.Match.
/Captain Obvious’d
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:44 AM
Ha! Did you give up on the Bears, Tampa?
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:46 AM
amazing how much shit arod took from yankees fans. its the same thing manny had to deal with before the 04 season and the red sox actually put him on waivers. then they wonder why hes not grateful to the city and fans.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:46 AM
What a fucking win!!!!!
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:47 AM
Fuck that organization. I still support them but Im not gonna lose sleep over that shitty mess. Im putting focus on the bulls that organization has hope and potential.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:49 AM
Every time A-Rod does well an Angel loses its wings.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:49 AM
I kinda feel like when the Yankees win, ARod should strip off his uniform and reveal that he is, in fact, a centaur before taking a giant horse shit on the trophy, kicking Jeter with his hind legs and frolicking out of Yankee Stadium, never to be seen again.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:49 AM
Not Tony Danza?!
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:50 AM
just hoping. definitely going to be tough. none of these games have been cake.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:52 AM
The Centaur story is the most underrated sports story of the year. How did Selena Roberts miss that one? At least with the steroids and the adultery there’s some rational justification.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:53 AM
doesn’t the centaur thing just prove how small his weenie is? That he wishes he was a horse, so he’d have bigger junk?
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:54 AM
If A Rod has taken this shit since 04 and he is finally getting in his “how you like me now’s” in 09 then maybe the Yankee fans had a point in 04, 05, 06, and 07.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:54 AM
I get what everyone is saying. I get as pissed about it too. I wouldn’t trade AROD for anything in the world. Everyone was hating on him, including Francesca, when he went like .280 and had 30something homers a couple years ago. I wouldn’t trade him for anything. Not then, not now.
And Jeter does get treated like god around here (and rightly so) but he has gotten booed when he has performed badly. And he took it like a man until he performed better.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:56 AM
This always makes me laugh.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:56 AM
Because he hasn’t made any unbelievable plays in the field this post season? You’re such a Red Sox homer it’s ridiculous. Don’t hide your jealousy that Henry didn’t go the extra mile to get him and Luccino pissed him off by opening his big mouth.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:57 AM
was at the game last night – i’ve never seen such an extreme change in the atmosphere so quickly, from the high of feliz’ HR and near-certainty that we were gonna win it off coke in the bottom of the 9th, to the uneasiness after damon got on, and the hush after damon got to 3rd(!).
by the time lidge hit tex, the only question in my mind and those of the phillies fans around me was whether arod would hit a double or a HR.
fitting end to the season, considering the year lidge had. and along with joe carter and ronde barber, one of my 3 worst moments as a philly sports fan.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:57 AM
Not Tony Danza?!
ANGER-LER. MO-NER. JON-A-TIN. SAMAN-TER.
/he’s the boss
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:57 AM
Seriously, how much of an insecure d-bag do you have to be to commission a painting of yourself as a centaur?
You know what would tie the bedroom together? A painting of me as a centaur. Christ, even Napoleon wasn’t that vain.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:57 AM
The team in Chicago with the best chance of winning a championship is the Blackhawks. Commit to the Indian, Bo!!
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:58 AM
anyone see that florida player give that guy the business on saturday? think it was spikes. he tried to gouge the guys eye out.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:58 AM
/inferiority complex about 2004′d
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:59 AM
Who did that? The only way you could get away with a painting of yourself as a centaur is if you’re doing it as a joke. If I walked into a guy’s place and he had a painting like that, I’d probably cry laughing.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:59 AM
SG- I might try to get into Hockey. I haven’t been in to it since it was on ESPN.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:59 AM
In yours, you’d be atop the horse, and it’d be very tall.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:59 AM
also, still don’t understand why lidge stopped throwing sliders. he made matsui and jeter look silly, but gave in to damon and then completely went away from it. realize with damon on 3rd it was dangerous, but there is no other choice, in my mind.
at this point, it’s over – just don’t want to see the yanks celebrating on our field tonight.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:00 AM
can A-rod really be the MVP? guy has 2 hits in the series (though both majorly clutch)
I thought Jeter was the pick, but Rivera has to be in there, too.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:01 AM
But the Yankee fans didnt like him enough when he was failing in the playoffs for his first few years! You have to feel bad for him, the poor guy!
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:02 AM
In 2005 he had an OPS of 1.031. In 2007 it was 1.067. As a third basemen. If they’re point was “we’re the only fanbase that would boo that” then mission accomplished.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:02 AM
Bo – I posted this on FB but you need to watch it. I asked TBL to dedicate a post to Payton today.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:02 AM
It’s going to take more than 2004 for Red Sox fans to get rid of the inferiority complex. It took you almost a century to build it.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:02 AM
if the yanks win, it is going to rivera.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:03 AM
i think arod comes out of the closet tonight if hes named mvp. guy becomes an instant legend and finally breaks down the barriers
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:03 AM
not that i agree with it.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:04 AM
Gotta be Mo. But, if Burnett goes out and absolutely shuts down the lineup tonight, he has to get a look. But right now, def Mo.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:04 AM
As great as Payton was, he certainly wasn’t a great role model for young ball carriers where the “five points of contact” are concerned.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:05 AM
Sparty: Who would you pick?
/counting chickens
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:05 AM
Don’t be a racist, Tampa. It’s not worth it.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:05 AM
The revelation of the Centaur picture is bad enough but what really infuriates A-Rod is that Jeter’s picture of himself as a Griffin gets a slide for years.
/Still crying on the inside. Brad Lidge broke my heart.
//I wonder if all my riot juice will still be good for when the Eagles win the SuperBowl.
///Fighting back the tears, knowing that the Eagles will lose in the NFC Championship game again this year.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:06 AM
Get outta here with your fancy stats. He’s not a true Yankee.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:06 AM
Shouldn’t Manuel be getting more shit for still using Lidge after he spent a whole season proving he couldn’t be trusted? I don’t know who else you use but I’m not sure he should have even been on the roster.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:07 AM
Can you /J Morris’d that for me? I don’t know what it means.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:10 AM
Lidge had been fine in the postseason so far, but I agree…I would not have put him in in a tie game.
As for WS MVP…if Burnett were to throw a gem tonite, it wouldn’t even be debatable.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:11 AM
Here you go.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:11 AM
if the yanks win, it is going to rivera.
Truth. That BP has been waaayyy to shakey for him not to win it.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:11 AM
Fingers, palm, forearm, elbow, chest. Five parts the ball should be touching when the running back’s carrying it. Of course, when you’re Walter Payton, you can get away with skirting that.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:12 AM
Manuel was probably thinking about Lidge being money against AAAA teams earlier in the playoffs.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:13 AM
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:13 AM
If the Yankees win tonight, almost certainly will be Rivera – esp. since a Yankees win will likely be a close game b/c of Lee and that would be 4 saves (game 3 doesn’t count statistically but Girardi made the point by going to Rivera anyway.) But there could be 3 more games to play and someone else on offense might emerge. Jeter is having a decent series but not MVP level. They should give it to A-Rod as an apology for giving the ALCS MVP to Sabathia.
If the Phillies come back I’ve got my money on Utley for MVP.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:14 AM
I don’t know much about baseball because outside of the Braves I don’t really follow baseball all that much. That said, I don’t know how anyone couldn’t have seen this coming a mile away. Manuel stuck with him through what had to be the worst season ever for a closer who was never fully demoted from the closer role. They did nothing to address this problem during the regular season and it was obvious it was going to bite them in the ass come the playoffs.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:16 AM
Not every fan base genuflects at Clydesdales running across the field every mid-inning. Just because New York isn’t going to rename part of the Major Deegan Expressway A Rod Highway, or there haven’t been heartwarming stories of people traveling hours from 4 different states to Yankee Stadium, or Yogi Berra isn’t making everyone feel all warm and fuzzy by playing the harmonica from the pitchers mound doesn’t mean Yankees fans were wrong in their assessment of A Rod’s performance. If you’re 0 for your last 30 with runners in scoring position and you’re a cleanup hitter, you’re gakking, I don’t care what an ops or anything else says. It’s not like fans started out in the very first at bat in those postseasons booing him. But it doesn’t matter who you are, if you aren’t performing in NY, you get booed.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:18 AM
According to Baseball Prospectus it was only the 32nd worst season by a “closer”, but your right in that nobody else ranked was either the full time closer or wasn’t demoted at some point in the season (at least for months and generally forever).
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:19 AM
boom
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:21 AM
nice use of genuflect.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:21 AM
I continue to disagree…if Burnett pitches a gem tonite, he is the only and obvious choice.
/obv hopes he doesn’t
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:23 AM
The reason being that he actually saved a sizable number of games.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:26 AM
taguchi, manuel doesn’t exactly have a plethora of options.
believe me, he was open to just about anything. tried madson, and as good as he is in the 8th, he has been awful in the 9th. toyed with the notion of myers, but he got hurt in september, so couldn’t even be tried in that role (on top of the fact that he is a grade A, irredeemable douchebag). there was even discussion of tyler walker(!). in the end, cholly’s only option was to stick with lidge. and he coaxed him back to respectability in the playoffs, up until last night.
as much as we are making it out to be a foregone conclusion that lidge would blow it last night, he was one johnny damon foul tip from a 1-2-3 inning. then, predictably, he fell apart once damon got on base. but i don’t see how anyone can kill manuel for this…
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:29 AM
In total agreement..if there is blame to be laid, then it should go on the front office for not coming up with a better option.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:31 AM
For not being able to piece together a reliable bullpen? Either he or Amaro need to answer for it, because that’s their job. In the modern game, bullpen management might be the manager’s most important job. It’s not like Lidge blew his first save of the year last night.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:34 AM
I get the “no other option theory, butNeyer sums it up pretty well:
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:35 AM
…In a few hours Fetch is going to wander by and question the existence of wins, lossess, and ERA. These stat geeks.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:37 AM
Taguchi…earlier in the thread, I said I wouldn’t have used him in a tie game. I think I would have brought in Eyre.
If they were ahead, yes, go to Lidge. But not in a tie game.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:43 AM
we’re on the ropes. i think lidge might have sold his soul to the devil for last year to happen.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:45 AM
even Napoleon wasn’t that vain.
Napolean grabbed the crown from the Pope and put it on his own head. I think that’s pretty vain.
I do like the historical reference though.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:46 AM
nah Gooch, I’m disappointed in Neyer quoting a single season’s worth of stats and treating them like they’re gospel though.
November 2nd, 2009 at 11:05 AM
in the context of lidge being 48 for 48 last year, and one of the heroes of our postseason, i can understand why there was some sense of faith that the guy would eventually turn it around. obviously, that never happened, and in retrospect, it’s clear that amaro should have acquired a legit fallback option at some point.
as wonderful as the lee trade was, the front office didn’t do enough to strengthen the bullpen and bench. while the yankees pinch hit matsui the last few games, we bring out eric bruntlett and the corpse of matt stairs.
November 2nd, 2009 at 11:15 AM
What happened to JC Romero? Is he off his cycle?
November 2nd, 2009 at 11:48 AM
lost year for romero. he got hurt soon after returning from suspension, and didn’t get healthy in time to make the postseason roster.