Game Two Perspectives

It feels great to be up two games to none. It feels absolutely great.

That being said, I am always cautious as a fan until the Yankees win the final game. The Yankees still have to go to Minnesota and win a game, or come back home and win a crucial Game 5 at Yankee Stadium. All is looking good, but the task is not finished, the job is not complete.

Still it feels great that the Yankees won both of the first two games. There cannot be a lot of confidence in the Twins locker room right now.

Here are some other perspectives on the series thus far:

I didn’t watch much of the game, at all, as I was driving on New Jersey highways coming home from Maryland and a family gathering. I was very glad that I was able to pick-up WFAN all the way in Delaware. John and Suzyn helped make the drive home go quicker.

The Yankees offense, especially in that long third inning, really made the drive much much easier and much more enjoyable.

I won’t say that I called Didi Gregorius’ grand slam, but as I was driving I had a sense that it just might happen. And when it did (I still haven’t seen the highlights), I guess it just sort of went out, that it was questionable until it was definitely a homer. As I drove, and hoped, for a homer, I was waiting, just waiting, for John Sterling to give a big call – “THERE IT GOES TO DEEP RIGHT…IT IS HIGH…IT IS FAR…IT IS GONE!!!!!! A GRAND SLAM FOR GREGORIUS, YES IN DIDI. THIS IS THE DAWN OF THE AGE OF GREGORIUS!!!! I was just waiting for that… Instead it was not as exciting of a call, “It is gone?” was more how it sounded – and then the enthusiasm. In the end, I’ll take it any way it came! Got to love Didi. You just have to love him!

From the radio broadcast, it seemed like Masahiro Tanaka escaped a big spot in the Top of the First Inning… two batters on, a hit batter and a would-be double play deflected by Tanaka that turned into a hit and the big Twins batters coming up… Got to love Tanaka for how he battled out of that.

The Yankees, with the big seven run third inning, went into the fourth inning leading 8-0. With one out, Masahiro Tanaka allowed a walk and a single and then a run scoring single, that according to the radiocast, went through the open area of the infield due to the shift. At that moment, it was said, the Yankees got their bullpen going. It also seemed that Chad Green got up, then Adam Ottavino, and then Tommy Kahnle (I might have the order confused, I didn’t take notes as I drove). If all of that is accurate, it seems pretty scattered and reactionary by Aaron Boone. First, Tanaka was dealing. He just had a long rest and a couple of singles, that early in the game, especially with an eight run lead, isn’t reason to start to get trigger happy and worried that the game is going to get away from you. A manager has to trust his starters. (Tanaka did strike out the next two batters and also retire the side in order in the fifth.) Also, getting three different relievers up within a matter of minutes, with an eight run lead, seems like the manger isn’t really all that confident in what he’s doing. I know that isn’t the case, but it sure seemed like Boone was managing nervously in that spot – all with an eight run lead.

Also, Tanaka only threw 83 pitches last night , in five innings. With an 8-1 lead, give him the sixth inning as well. I know the Yankees bullpen is great, but there was no need for the Yankees to use Tommy Kahnle and Adam Ottavino for an inning each last night. The Yankees are going to put a lot on their shoulders these next few weeks. Giving them the night off might have been the better long term move.

D.J. LeMahieu and Aaron Judge have really come to play so far this series…doing it all. I am so confident in both, every time they get up to the plate. I also feel very confident in Edwin Encarnacion.

Yes, I believe Giancarlo Stanton is also ready to explode. Suzyn Waldman said what I have been saying, he seems like a different hitter this year. Last year I saw Stanton “flinching” a lot on pitches. He seems to be seeing the ball a lot better out of the pitcher’s hand and seems more “secure” in the box. The results aren’t there yet, but if this is true, if Stanton is reading the pitches better, the results will be there.

We will now see how valuable home field advantage is for this series. I hope the Yankees put the Twins away in Game Three. Sweep, get it over with, and get to the next round.

It looks like that next round will be Houston, who is also up two games to none, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

I’m not thrilled that Monday night’s game is at 8:40 p.m. Uggg. Late nights on Mondays have a way of making it a long and tiring work week. That’s another reason the Yankees should just win – give the fans time to rest again before the next round.

Stress-free games are the best.

Let’s Go Yankees!