New-York-Yankees

[caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“375” caption=““Honest” Abe and I fist bumping”] [/caption] For some reason Abe has become my favorite of the racing presidents. Maybe it’s his arrogant stride or maybe it’s the way he’s a sore loser when he doesn’t win, but I just love everything about the persona they’ve crafted for #16. 09 June NPB Chunichi Dragons (1) at Rakuten Eagles (4). Satoshi Nagai hurls eight innings of eight hit ball, miraculously only giving up one run. Nice work, Nagai. Rakuten’s record improves to 29-30-1, tied for fourth. ...

After two shaving cream pies, Strasburg got the silver Elvis wig for his game performance too. I’ll have a more detailed analysis about Strasburg’s start, but 14 strikeouts is not bad at all. Seven of those came in a row from the 5th to 7th innings. An impressive young pitcher. 08 June NPB Neither of my teams played. MLB New York Yankees (12) at Baltimore Orioles (7). My friends asked me to go to this game with them, but I couldn’t pass up seeing Strasburg. I’m surprised the Os scored so many, but it wasn’t enough for the Yankee juggernauts. Their record falls to 16-42. ...

Ken Griffey, Jr.’s retirement was overshadowed by the perfect game controversy of the same day. I just wanted to take a few moments to state that he had an amazing career that should be honored. It’s a shame to see him out of the game, but I’m so glad he played. 03 June NPB No games. MLB Baltimore Orioles (3) at New York Yankees (6). When you put David against the Goliath that is C.C. Sabathia and the Yankees, you should expect this, not the Biblical outcome. The Orioles record is now 15-39. ...

The biggest story in baseball today is the blown call by Jim Joyce in the Tigers game last night. Umpires make mistakes, it’s a fact of baseball, but it’s rarely a mistake this huge that costs a man history. Armando Gallaraga, for his part, is taking it in stride. He says he knows he did it, so he doesn’t care, but I’m more concerned with the fact that: 1. The history books will say he didn’t, and 2. Something needs to change. Bad umpiring has been a story in baseball since last year’s World Series and it’s not getting any better. I think that MLB needs to do something to increase the accountability of its umpires. I kind of understand why it is that they try and keep umpire disciplining on the down low (votes of confidence and all that), but that needs to change. In this case, it doesn’t really matter anyway. Diehards will remember Jim Joyce long after this game is done. He will probably be booed every time he shows his face in Detroit. I would feel worse for the guy if he hadn’t made such a terrible call, but I just can’t feel sympathy for him yet. Not this close to botched history. ...

Three of my teams managed to notch wins in the final innings of their respective games. It takes a lot of luck and skill to take a game in the 9th. Bravo, teams. 1 June NPB Hiroshima Carp (5) at Nippon-Ham Fighters (4). Eishin Soyogi gets the walk-off RBI single in the 9th to push the Carp ahead while Ryuji Yokoyama holds on for the save. Hiroshima’s record rises to 21-31-0 after the tilt. ...

I’m gonna blame Memorial Day weekend for making me forget that I was supposed to do this yesterday. All those barbecues were so good! 28 May NPB No games (with the Carp or Eagles) MLB Baltimore Orioles (0) at Toronto Blue Jays (5). Division rival mega match! Ok, I can’t keep a straight face on that one. The AL East’s two least interesting teams (to me) start a series that will inevitably bore me to death. ...

Ok, so this space isn’t really about Lost, but how great was it? Oh yeah, there was baseball played too. 21 May NPB Hiroshima Carp (7) at Softbank Hawks (1). Kenta Maeda is a beast. Really. This guy is the best pitcher in the Central League with his 1.59 ERA and he’s consistently dominant. Yomiuri Giants (4) at Rakuten Eagles (5). Always good to see the Giants lose. ...

[caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“500” caption=“There was much rejoicing in Citi last night.”] [/caption] Luis Atilano has his worst start yet, giving up the game. 20 May NPB Off day. MLB Florida Marlins (2) at St. Louis Cardinals (4). Nate Robertson just wasn’t good enough to hold the Cards down while Wainwright had all the right stuff to keep the Fish from putting too many on the board. Florida remains in second place with their 22-20 record. ...

After embarrassing the team, acting like a primadonna, insulting the manager, and making everyone involved look bad, Hanley Ramirez either apologized to his teammates or the team has decided not to make a fuss about it, because he was back in the lineup last night doing fairly well. Thank god that’s over. The Marlins are rarely in the news, but I don’t want them in there because of this. ...

[caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“375” caption=“The Marlins put together two wins against the Cubs and Coghlan is hitting again. What else to do but celebrate?”] [/caption] I listened to about half of the Marlins at Cubs game in Spanish to get some practice. It’s surprising how much I was able to understand easily despite not really knowing much about baseball in Spanish. My favorite part: the center fielder is translated as central gardener. ...