Let's Go Yanks!
We are down, but not out. Wounded, but not dead. Endangered, but not extinct. Pick any of those expressions and that about sums up the state of my Yankees right now.
With last night's impressive victory, the Yanks ensured there will be something to watch tonight other than the Cowboys-Bills snoozefest and "Dancing With the Stars." And with Chen Min taking the hill against Paul Byrd, I have to admit, optimism abounds right now. In fact, I'm already making plans to watch Pettitte vs Sabathia in game 5.
Why the optomism? Many reasons. Wang is great at home (almost 2 runs per game better than he is on the road). A Rod is ready to take over ... yes, I did write that. I'm telling you he is gonna get hot. Cano is swinging the bat well. Damon is a money player. And, I truly believe the Yanks will fight to keep Joe Torre's job. The players love the guy and Steinbrenner's ultimatum is no doubt giving them more motivation. Of course, it wouldn't surprise me one bit if that was George's plan all along.
I am a bit concerned with the two innings Chamberlain threw last night. He looked a bit tired toward the end and labored to get through the eighth. Not sure if he is available tonight, but with the Joba rules out the window and Torre's penchant for overusing his bullpen, expect to see the big guy out there in a close game. Same with Rivera. He ptiched the ninth yesterday, but didn't expend much energy and should be good to go.
So all that said, I see no reason why the Yanks shouldn't pummel the Tribe tonight and set up a do or die game 5 at the Jake. And as long as those freaking gnats stay away, I still expect a Yanks-Sox ALCS. And that, my friends, never gets old.
