Yanks Beat Rays While I Stuff My Face
When I left the house to meet my friends for dinner, the Yankees were up 3-0 over the Rays in the bottom of the fifth. Despite his rising pitch count, AJ looked downright nasty and I was feeling pretty optimistic about his outing.
I was driving to the restaurant listening to the audio of the game when Cano and Swisher went back to back in the sixth to make it 5-0. I was so excited I nearly did this.
But I kept it together and continued on to the restaurant, a cute Mexican place in Montecito.
I was dying to monitor the score, but I didn’t want to be rude to my friends, neither of whom was hanging on the fate of the Yankees. So we sat there eating our chimichangas or enchiladas or whatever the hell they were. (Bottom line: they came with rice and beans and had cheese and guacamole on them.)
I ate mine really fast, so I could get home and find out what happened. After I pulled in my driveway, I raced in the door and asked Michael, “So? Did we win?”
He can be really annoying the way he withholds information. Typical male. I tried again. “DID WE WIN?” I should add that I strangled him as I asked the question this time.
“Yes, we did, OK?” he said after coughing for five straight minutes. “The score was 11-4.”
“A blowout? Are you kidding me?”
“We had four homers.”
“Wow. I thought Yankee Stadium was the home run palace. We went deep four times at the Troperoo?”
“Watch the replay and see for yourself.”
Which is exactly what I did. And yeah, the homers were sweet. I cheered as Swisher hit his second of the night, remembering when we were on the wrong side of a blowout at the Trop and he was called upon to pitch. Nice reversal of fortune.
And Damon. Congrats to him on #200.
There were so many other great offensive moments:
* A-Rod’s two-run double (happy birthday).
* Matsui’s sprint all the way home from first.
* Cano’s triple.
* Jeter’s three hits.
Come to think of it, didn’t everybody in the lineup have a hit?
But the star of the game had to be AJ. Two hits and one run over seven innings? That’s just sick.
He’s the guy I used to dread facing when he was with the Blue Jays. When people talk about pitchers having “live stuff,” I know what they mean when I watch him throw the ball.
I do wonder why Girardi didn’t use Melancon in relief. The kid hasn’t pitched in weeks. If you don’t use him in blowouts, why not send him back to Scranton?
But I quibble. It’s very satisfying to beat the reigning AL Champions. I realize it’s only one game and we’ll be back at it on Tuesday night. But I’m glad I wolfed down my dinner so I could get home and see….
Oh, no. I’m not glad. I’m having chimichanga kickback right now – that “burning sensation.”
I asked Michael if we had anything I could take for it. He handed me this.
I chimichugged it right down.
Confessions of a She-Fan 
What a wonderful start to the road trip! I am starting to think though that YES Netowrk should start a new series “Where in the Bronx is Mark Melancon”. I agree with you. If you’re not going to use him let him get a chance to play in Scranton. Tonight’s game would have been perfect. I’m thinking the blow out didn’t help. If it was a closer game I hope Girardi had plans for using him. I’m hungry now. Thanks Jane 😉
Megan http://yankeemeg.mlblogs.com/
Look who’s here! I guess you posted tonight. Will go look. I think the idea for the YES show could be ongoing, since we’ll probably never see Melancon again in our lifetime. The game was great and I’m so relieved to have the first one in the win column. I was really nervous about it.
Well, at least you got good news from your hubby. It’s always hard to be away from the action and even harder when you’re with people who don’t give a flyin’ fig. If your Yankees had lost you would’ve had heartburn AND a headache though!
Lori
http://luckylori.mlblogs.com
That’s a great start to a tough stretch of games. I don’t think that the last pitcher in your bullpen should ever be a rookie. They need consistent work to develop. That reported trade for Arroyo scared me. I don’t mean to be harsh but he literally sucks!
*10 wins in 11 games… There’s no stopping us right now!
http://jquist.mlblogs.com/
Very funny post, Jane. Glad the Rays lost at home for a change, but not so glad about who beat ’em…
Steve T.
http://soxblog.mlblogs.com
You chimichugged Mylanta? Ew. Don’t worry about stuffing your face… C.C. Sabathia looks like he’s done PLENTY of that.
–Jeff
http://redstatebluestate.mlblogs.com/
http://mtrredstatebluestate.com
http://twitter.com/RSBS
Watching that game burned last night. Ouch. I was hoping for a good competitive game, and I got a blowout instead. And now we’re 7 1/2 out. We haven’t been that far away from 1st in a long time. Kind of a weird feeling. I’m hoping for a min-2-game winning streak that can get us back to feeling good about ourselves heading into the weekend against the Royals.
No more Yankee wins, please. My stomach can’t handle it.
http://raysfanboy.mlblogs.com
AJ’s the MVP of this game, although Johnny Damon, Nick Swisher and Robinson Cano were equally impressive against the Rays’ James Shields. It’s fun to see the Yankees rack up some runs to give some great run support.
Matthew Tang
http://matt7.mlblogs.com/
Hi Jane! I’ve never really read your blog before, and I love all the pictures you put in! They really make me laugh. Check out my first blog entry! ~ #1ClaMeredithFan aka Kaybee’s sister
Lori, it was great to walk in the house and have the right answer to the “Who won” question. But next time I’m out for dinner I’ll have to pretend to go to the ladies room and just duck outside every few minutes to hear the score.
I don’t see any consistent work developing for Melancon, Len. He’s not going to be the 7th or 8th inning guy when the Yankees are ahead, and he’s not a long man. So I would have used him instead of Albaladejo/Robertson just to give him some work. Agreed about Arroyo. (Yikes. Just realized maybe it was an omen that the restaurant I went to was called Los Arroyos!)
Ten wins in 11 games is insane, JQuist. And I’m loving every minute of it.
But your guys won too, Steve. The pressure is on both teams. Darn. Now my stomach hurts again.
I bet CC doesn’t get heartburn, Jeff. He probably has an iron gut.
Yeah, I bet your stomach hurt too, raysfanboy. In the first inning, I thought Shields looked tough. Then we scored those early runs, and it was nice to have the lead first for a change instead of having to play comeback. Meanwhile, AJ was dealing. What can you do? He did a great job of keeping your sluggers in check.
I bet AJ liked having the run support, Matthew. It must have been such a relief to pitch with a cushion like that.
Thanks, Kaybee’s sister!
Ah, Miz J — only YOU can miss a game and still make it as detail-packed (and fun-filled) as ever…definitely great to get the 1st one, one day at a time…maybe they took my advice to heart and pretended they were really in the Humpdome…? Hey, whatever works! Congrats to all of the Achievers, be they birth daze or HR daze…and yeah, wolfin’ down that Mez’can chow can have some unpleasant side effects (being a Typical Fire-Belching Male, you can guess what MINE usually is…clear the room…!!) Let’s all just hold hands, fan-wise, and keep hopin’ that The Wrong Team doesn’t get Roy, so we can all enjoy the stretch drive…?!!
Cashman said he MAY be looking for a backup outfielder as well as another arm, Dave. So maybe we’ll hear news of a new pinstriper soon. In the meantime, things are going pretty well, wouldn’t you say? It would be very, very nice to get another win tonight at the Trop.
I can’t believe that last night, I expected a much closer game… and whats with the Yankees hitting 4 homers anywhere other than Yankee Stadium… wow…
Outside the Phillies Looking In
http://devilabrit.mlblogs.com
BOOK ALERT — heyy, Miz JANE — had to blog on again, because, well, once in awhile I look up your book on Amazon.com to see if there’s any new reviews and stuff — and guess what — they have you, i.e. the author, listed now as “RACHAEL F. HELLER.” Que? Who Dat?? Gentle fellow readers, please note that ‘Our Lady’ is Jane S. Heller, so who is this Interloper who’s a-stealin’ your spotlight?? But hey…don’t take it TOO hard, now…maybe you can get an idea for a New Mystery outa this screw-up!!
Jane,
If is a fried stuffed flour tortilla, is a chimichanga, if they are baked stuffed rolled tortillas, those are enchiladas. You should have gone for some crab enchiladas. yum…
.
so who is this …Albaladejo? Ever since you mentioned Aceves, I’ve been keeping an eye on him. My brother said that he actually has him on one of his fantasy teams but his American team has always been the Rays since their infancy. Sigh.. I miss not having a fantasy team this year.
Emma
http://crzblue.mlblogs.com/
I was thinking the same thing, devilabrit. The Trop isn’t in the Bronx, so I guess there are jet streams everywhere. I just hope the Rays sluggers don’t take advantage of it tonight.
Dave, thanks so much for the heads up. So weird about the author’s name problem, but there are always occasional glitches on amazon. Right after I read your comment about it, I emailed my publisher and called amazon, and I’m told they’ll make the correction “soon.” Btw, I already wrote about name switches and the mysteries therein. The novel is called “Name Dropping!”
I appreciate the clarification, Emma. I’m so clueless when it comes to Mexican food, which I love. So delicious. Albaladejo is a pitcher we’ve had up and down between the Bronx and Scranton. He’s pitched pretty well out of the pen, but isn’t one of our front liners.
I loved last night’s game. AJ was smokin’, no doubt about it. I hope Swish is getting hot again – that would be fantastic. And A-Rod definitely had a great birthday; he probably went out with K-Hud afterwards, haha. I also got a kick out of Matsui’s butt-slide into home or whatever you’d call that LOL. Hope that Mexicano comida didn’t sneak back up on you too badly! =)
– Lisa
http://perennialpinstriper.mlblogs.com/
Lisa, I loved how Matsui chugged all the way home and slid (or whatever that was), but I hope he didn’t have to get his knees drained afterwards. It’s painful to watch him run these days. My Mexican food backup is better today, thanks!
Haha, loved the entry! Wow, the Yankees just keep rolling, dont they? Its been great for them this year. http://tribechick.mlblogs.com/
-TC
Love the entry as usual! I’m glad the Yankees are doing so well for you! Aww I love Matsui so much! When I used to live in Tokyo, my Dad and I would watch the Yomiuri Giants all the time. He was definitely my favorite after I met him at a grocery store and he was so nice to me (I was about 14 years old back then). Plus he’s such a gentle, hard working player. I’m glad he’s helping you guys out! xoxo http://diamondgirl55.mlblogs.com
The Yankees have been playing great since the All Star break, tribechick. I see your guys have picked it up lately too, which must make you very happy!
Diamondgirl, I’m so glad to hear that Matsui was nice to you when you met him. He seems like the sweetest guy in the world. Never complains about playing time or hogs the spotlight. Just goes about his business in a very professional way. I’ll be sorry when his contract is up. I doubt the Yankees will re-sign him because of his limitations as a DH.
At least it was your dinner and not the Yankees’ play that gave you indigestion. By the way, can we borrow Melancon if you’re not using him? We’ll have him back by the end of September, I promise. Thxbi.-Erinhttp://plunking-gomez.blogspot.com
Jane: It makes me proud that you read my blog! You are another crazy (in a good way) female Yankee fan like me! Your blog is hysterical. I was wondering who your favorite players are. Mine are Francisco Cervelli and Melky Cabrera. I have a HUGE crush on Cervelli! Seriously! Today my brother & I bought baseball cards, and he had Cervelli’s rookie card! I made a lopsided trade and gave him everything he wanted for it. When I got it, I screamed and kissed it. Well, lets hope the Yanks stay hot (in more ways than 1!) and CC pitches well tonight. -from Virginia
http://southernbelle.mlblogs.com
If you borrowed Melancon, Erin, nobody would know he was gone. Just have him back healthy, please, in case the Yankees actually want him to pitch.
My pleasure, southernbelle. My favorite Yankee is Mo, hands down. You’ll figure that out when you read my blog, because I’m always giving him love. But they’re all great to me.
Hi Jane!
I’m running up and down stairs to watch the game tonight…Scotty’s pitching so I don’t want to miss anything. 🙂
Congrats on the win last night. But I’m hoping tonight I get to be the happy one! 🙂
Ginny
http://watercooler.mlblogs.com
You must be happy right now, Ginny. Kaz is pitching really well and CC isn’t. Sigh.