Twins Wrap Up

It looked for a while that the Yankees had a shot at sweeping the Twins. Moose feels a pull in the hammy and takes himself out of the game (smart move). Ortiz stifles the offense. And then there's Kyle Farnsworth. Ugh. What a pathetic performance. Dude didn't even looked like he cared he was getting knocked around. It's painfully obvious that if Farnsworth doesn't have his velocity up, he's not going to be effective. His arm strength isn't fully there yet, which is the main reason why he was so ineffective. Get out there and do some long toss bro. And the last thing any pitcher wants to do is walk the leadoff batter, especially when said leadoff batter is a speed demon like Luis Castillo. The whole world knew Castillo was running on the first pitch. Where was the pitch out? You'd think after Rivera walked Kevin Millar in the '04 ALCS and watched Dave Roberts swipe second, that a lesson would have been learned. The last thing you want to do is walk a leadoff batter when the game is close and then have speed on the basepaths. They always seem to come around to score. Thankfully, the Yanks won games 1 and 2 of the series so they leave Minnesota with a series win. If you can consistently win series, you're playoff bound.
A-Rod didn't go yard, but he still put the Yanks in position to win. He could have folded in the 9th but kept things going with his automatic double. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, A-Rod was the 4th player in the last 50 years to have an extra-base hit in hist 1st 7 games. His 9th inning double ran that streak to 8 and if my research is correct, he's now the only player in the last 50 years to have an extra-base hit in his 1st 8 games, leaving Phil Nevin, Ken Griffey, Jr., and Larry Walker in his wake. A-Rod is off to a monster start. He's having one of the best April's of his career. Maybe it's the odd numbered years he really excels in. He was the AL MVP in 2003 and in 2005. 2007 is off to a similar start. Another MVP for A-Rod, maybe? He's definitely playing like one. He's by far the Yankees MVP so far.
How impressive was the defense this series? Wow. Last night was much like the first 2 games in the Metrodome. Jeter going back to get the pop fly in shallow left-center. Cano's leaping grab. Dougie's diving stop. This is the type of defense I was expecting. Mientkiewicz is one of the best defensive first-basemen in the game. Cano is on the verge of winning numerous Gold Gloves. Jeter is a 3-time Gold Glove winner. And A-Rod may have had a bad year at the hot corner last year, but he showed in 2004 and again in 2005 that he can handle third base. The defense is perfect for ground ball pitchers like Pettitte and Wang. And I know the Yankee rotation has a lot of questions, but they've stepped up over the last 3 starts. If you were doubting the rotation's ability, you have to be encouraged by Pavano, Pettitte, and even with Mussina's abbreviated outing. I still think the Yankees have one of the better rotations. Pitching and defense wins championships. I think the Yankees have both pieces of that puzzle.
They just need to stay healthy.
Peace, love and Pinstripes.
J