Game 80 Wrap-Up: TB 7 NYY 4

(Nice catch, dickfor.  Courtesy of The AP)

Are the Yankees cursed at The Trop?? Seriously, what the hell is going on with this team and that stadium?  It's getting ri-goddamn-diculous and I've had about enough of it.  For the second straight night, things looked like they were all peaches and cream early for the Yankees, and then they very quickly fell apart in what ended up being a series-clinching loss.

Game Notes:

- The offense started rolling quickly in the 1st.  A pair of doubles by Derek Jeter and Curtis Granderson made it 1-0, and a Robinson Cano RBI single made it 2-0.  But Cano brainfarted on how many outs there were and got doubled up on a flyout to end the inning.  It was the first of many gaffes by the Yankees on the night.

- A Dewayne Wise solo shot in the 3rd made it 3-0, and it looked like the Yankees were fixing to cruise to another beatdown of James Shields, but the wheels came off Ivan Nova's wagon in the bottom half.

- Nova just couldn't locate his fastball and he gave up consecutive RBI singles to B.J. Upton and Jeff Keppinger to tie the game at 3.  Give an assist to Russell Martin, who dropped a perfect throw from Wise that would have been an out at the plate.

- Eric Chavez singled in a run in the 4th to give the Yankees the lead back, but Nova promptly gave it up in the bottom half by putting a fastball on a tee for Sean Rodriguez.  Shoulda intentionally walked him.  Nova wasn't awful last night, but he wasn't sharp either and his fastball really betrayed him after the first 2 innings.

- Martin's rough defensive night continued in the 7th when he one-hopped a throw to second into center field, allowing Desmond Jennings to trot home from third and Upton to advance.  The insurance run would score on a 2-out single by Ben Zobrist off of new Yankee Chad Qualls.

- Here's a list of the other bad moves the Yankees made last night. 1) Jeter's sac bunt in the 5th (dumb decision), 2) Rob Thomson sending Cano home on Raul Ibanez's double in the 6th (dumb decision), 3) Bringing Qualls into the game (never a good decision).  Just an all-around slopfest by the Yanks.


F*ck Yeahs:

- Wise: 2-3, 1 HR, 1 R, 1 RBI.  Dude is putting in WORK right now.  If only some of his teammates who play every day and hit in more important spots in the lineup could follow suit.

- Raul Ibanez: 2-4, 2 2B, 1 R, 1 K.  Ibanez had 2 of the remaining 4 Yankee XBH, so that's gotta count for something.

Oh Nos:

- The Horse: 0-4, 2 K, 2 LOB.

That ain't gonna get it done, Al. I don't know if my post yesterday morning distracted you or not, but you should really think about trying to get your shit together.

- Martin: 0-4, 1 K, 1 LOB, 2 E (1 throwing, 1 fielding).  The best thing I can say about Russell Martin's game last night is that he was diverse in his errors.  This is not the way to earn a new contract, Russ.

Next Up:

I'm not even sure I remember what it's like to get swept in a series, and I don't even play professional baseball.  I have to imagine that feeling must be even more unfamiliar for the guys in the clubhouse who do this for a living, so hopefully the Yanks can get it together tonight with David Phelps back on the mound and salvage something from this series.  It would be the American thing to do.