Game 139 Wrap-Up: NYY 6 CHW 5

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

Not like I'm trying to toot my own horn or anything, but you're all welcome for sparking this turnaround.  On August 8th, you may recall, I wrote this post declaring the Yankees done and the season over.  Since then they've gone 17-8, changed the entire atmosphere around the team and the stadium, and pulled within 2.5 games of a playoff spot.  If you've been an AB4AR reader for long enough, you know I can jinx with the best of them and that's exactly why I wrote that post.  I jinxed the season being over, thereby reversing the fortune of said season and acting as a reverse jinx to get the team back into contention.  It was the AB4AR jinx at its finest and I'm glad I pulled it out when I did.  Just wish I knew how to use it to turn CC around...

Game Notes:

- White Sox starter Erik Johnson made a rookie mistake hanging a first-pitch curveball to Robinson Cano in the bottom of the 1st and Cano slammed it for a 2-out solo HR.  Johnson almost unraveled, loading the bases after the at-bat, but recovered to strike out Ichiro.

-  Sabathia, after giving up a run on a double and 2 walks in 1st, settled down and managed to work safely through the next 5 innings.  His command wasn't much better - he walked 4 batters total in the game - but he managed to work around potential trouble every inning.

- After not imploding in the bottom of the 1st, Johnson did in the 4th.  An error put 2 on and nobody out and Johnson gave up a run-scoring double to Lyle Overbay and a 2-run triple to Brett Gardner to make it a 4-1 Yankee lead.

- After working a 1-2-3 7th with 2 Ks, CC put 2 men on in the 8th and that was it for him.  A better outing, thanks in part to the White Sox sucking, than what CC's been giving this summer.  Good to see some GB outs again.

- A Cano RBI single and Alfonso Soriano sac fly to make it 6-1 seemed like enough to cruise to victory with D-Rob on in the 8th but Robertson struggled and only retired 1 of the 5 batters he faced after CC left.

- A 5-run lead evaporated into a 1-run lead and Joe went to The G.O.A.T. to finish the 8th and the 9th.  It was Mariano Rivera's first 4-out save since 2011 and he handled it without issue.

F*ck Yeahs:

- Cano: 3-4, 1 HR, 1 R, 2 RBI.  Turn on the jets, Robbie.  Go nuts for a few weeks.  I'm begging you.

- Gardner: 2-4, 1 3B, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 LOB.  Another multi-hit game.  That's 4 in his last 5.

Oh Nos:

- Ichiro Suzuki: 0-4, 1 R, 1 K, 4 LOB.  Could have blown the game open and rattled the rookie in that bases loaded bottom of the 1st AB.

- David Robertson: 0.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 0 K.  D-Rob hasn't had a game like this in a while.  Just a little off with his command and a few singles got through.  He'll bounce back.

Next Up:

It's Yanks-Sawx time again, baby!  HYYYYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOGE 4-game set this weekend with Boston and the first game, the only game I'm not attending, is tonight.  Ivan Nova and Jake Peavy are the starting pitchers.