Yankees Take It On The Chin In World Series Opener Losing To Phillies 6-1

I'm going to keep this post brief. I'm tired, annoyed, and my laptop is going to die soon. Tonight's Yankees/Phillies game didn't go as I had hoped. Despite his rough start, I thought CC Sabathia pitched one hell of a game. The only negative aspect of his outing were the 2 mistakes he made to Chase Utley. Normally, those mistakes wouldn't be that big of a deal if the Yankees could muster up some offense. I know Cliff Lee is good but damn, the Yankees offense isn't that bad. With the exception of Derek Jeter, it was a very uninspired effort by the Yankee bats. The only run they could muster came in the 9th inning on a bad throw. That's not going to cut it.

My other big beef is with the bullpen. Had they kept the game at 2-0 maybe I'd be singing a different tune. Phil Hughes looks absolutely terrible. He's not even close to being the same pitcher that he was in the regular season. Brian Bruney also showed us why he was left off the ALDS and ALCS roster. It wasn't a good return to the mound for Bruney. It was far from it. The Yankee bullpen is supposed to be a source of strength. They need to start pitching that way.

I'm not worried about losing the opener. I expected to head to Philly with the series tied at 1. I also wouldn't be surprised if the team found themselves down 3 games to 2 when/if they return back to the Bronx. It's 1 game. Many teams, the Yankees included, have been down 1-0 and come back to win. Heck, the 1996 Yankees lost the 1st 2 games (at home) of the World Series and came back to win 4 straight. This team is good and they're more than capable of winning these games. They certainly didn't play that way tonight though. They need to step it up.

A.J. Burnett vs. Pedro Martinez tomorrow. I have no idea what to expect. Both have good stuff and can dominate but both can also stink up the joint. Either way, it should be a good game.

Back with more thoughts about this loss tomorrow.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie