The Sommer Frieze

YANKEES
Derek Jeter SS
Johnny Damon LF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Hideki Matsui DH
Robinson Cano 2B
Jerry Hairston RF
Melky Cabrera CF
Jose Molina C

Pitching: RHP A.J. Burnett (0-0, 4.42 ERA in postseason)

Yes, you see Posada and Swisher out of the lineup. It’ll be interesting. 51 HR out of the lineup. 81 and 82 RBI replaced by a .217-1-11 hitting catcher and a .251-10-39 utility man.

Maybe a bigger surprise is that it is Hairston, a righty hitter, and not Hinske.

Some are getting on Alex for his 0-for last night with 3 whiffs. But consider this. Even if Alex has a bad WS, he is the reason they are there (along with CC). The Yanks’ offense hasn’t been too alive this postseason. Teix hasn’t done much except for the walk-off vs. Minny and the 3-run double (in a losing game) vs. the Angels. Swisher is benched. Others except for Jeter have struggled.

Alex was huge…VERY huge in 3 wins. Games 2 and 3 vs. the Twins. Game 2 vs. the Angels. HRs that tied the game. One in the bottom of the 9th. Another in the bottom of the 11th. If not for him, the Yanks may not be here.

As for AJ, who knows. This is a dangerous spot to be in. The Phils have those lefty bats. Howard’s numbers are so much better vs. righties than lefties. We all know that AJ can be very good and then implode as quickly as snapping your fingers.

Should the Yanks lose tonight, things would be bleak. A friend asked me what WS the Yanks won when they lost Game 1. I couldn’t look it up (no time) but said that off the top of my head, 1951, 1958, 1978, 1996 … now that I think of it, 1956. In fact, in 1956, 1978 and 1996 they lost the first two games of the WS and came back.

In 1956 and 1978 they were coming home for Game 3. 1996 they went away. We remember that the Yanks swept in Atlanta. Granted though, you don’t want to go to Philly down 0-2. But still, they beat Glavine, Avery and Smoltz in Atlanta in 1996 and then Maddux at home. Improbable? Yes. Impossible? No.

Funny how last night went. In the last WS game at the old place, Josh Beckett shut out the Yankees. In the first WS game at the new place, Cliff Lee almost got the shutout.

How much does Pedro have left?

In some ways, I wonder if this WS could be a last hurrah for some people. Pedro for one. Jamie Moyer is injured and if he were healthy and on the roster, I’d put him on the list.

But you wonder about others. You would like to believe that the Yankees have what it takes to get back to the Big Show next year or if not in 2010 then very soon after that; but it took six years, from 2003 to 2009, for the Yanks to return.

Alex is 34. Jeter 35. Damon will be 36 next week. Rivera 40 in a month. Andy is 37, Posada 38. Matsui is 35. If it takes another six years, Alex and Jeter could be the only ones left. Maybe no one from that group is left at all.

But you don’t know what tonight will bring. Palmer vs. Koufax in Game 2, 1966. A good 20 year old vs. the best pitcher on the planet at the time. Guess who threw the shutout? If you said Koufax, you lose.

Unexpected heroes. Sojo, Al Weis, Jose Vizcaino, Rick Dempsey. A diving catch by…Ron Swoboda? People remember Kirk Gibson’s HR off of Eckersley. Do you remember Joe Oliver’s double off him two years later? 

Which makes the WS so interesting. You don’t know who the hero will be…or from which team.   

One last thing to add…I believe in Robertson, Joba and Hughes but do wonder about recent struggles. All are 24 or under and I wonder if the tank may be getting near empty. Consider that not too long ago, each had seasons end around September 1st (I know some played winter ball, but…). Anyway, I would need to see IP from previous years and IP for each now. I would say that each has pitched more innings this year than previous…significantly more innings. I just hope something is still in the tank.