Game 7/17 vs Detroit

Tonight's Yankee game was a very nice way to open up the second half of the season. A nice 5-3 win over the Detroit Tigers. AJ Burnett really impressed me tonight, not because he had dominating stuff tonight, but because he did not have his best stuff tonight and still managed to keep the Yankees in the game. He went 6 innings 3 earned runs off of 6 hits and 5 walks and a hit by pitch. Thats a pretty high WHIP (walks and hits in innings pitched), but a quality start nonetheless.

The Yankee bats were quiet in the beginning off rookie starter Lou french, but awoke late off of Joel Zumaya. It was capped off by a mammoth 3-run HR into the 2nd deck in left by Mark Teixeira. After forty minute rain delay in the middle of the 8th inning, the game resumed to see Rivera get the final outs and close down the 5-3 win. It was a typical Yankee victory, but one that showed some good signs.

First the Yankees came from behind just like they always do, but a good sign of a good team. Being able to beat a playoff contender late in the game, good work NYY. Second impressive thing was the Yankee pitching. Burnett as I mentioned earlier being able to put a solid outing together despite his hardships. Also the bullpen, 3 scoreless innings to nail down the W. Most importantly I saw a lot from Joe Girardi tonight. Sometimes the best decision is to stop thinking about lefty righty matchups or how this pitcher does vs this hitter, blah blah blah. The best thing sometimes is the hot hand and the best player, straight up. I really liked that after a 20 pitch 7th innings, Girardi brought Hughes out for the 8th inning as well. He brought his total to 40 for the game, but he struck out all 6 batters he faced and looked phenominal. I was happy that he trusted Hughes and was thinking about the W and not about anything else. Hughes has been dominant lately and I was glad he just let the man do his job. Hughes-Rivera is an unbeatable combo, rivaling the Joba-Rivera duo in late 2007.

Overall a good Yankee win and in typical fashion, my only qualm with the whole game was the decision to send Posada home earlier in the game when Melky hit a single with 2 out and runners at first and second. I understand that with 2 outs you want to be agressive, but with Jeter on deck, I want him up with runners in scoring position. Not to mention that the outfielder caught the ball when Posada was just hitting 3rd base. He is a slow runner and he was out by 567 miles. O well, a small aspect of the game, just something that would have been a major issue had the team lost 3-2. Jeter is batting over 400 with RISP and 2 outs, so you might want to know who's on deck and who's on the base paths (slow ass Jorge) next time that situation arises.