Yankees v Scumbags

[DJR313]

By the way DJR clean out your mailbox...it's full

I just checked it, it had a lot of sh#t in it, but it said 75% full. And Schilling has had a couple of real clutch games lately, 1 of which against the Yanks. It'll be fun to watch, if nothing else maybe that bastard can help me win a side bet in my fantasy baseball league.

[walksalone]

by the way....

 

BALL GAME OVER, AMERICAN LEAGUE EAST OVER, YANKEE'S WIN....

 

THEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE YANKEEEEEEEEEE'S WIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Sox can eat a.... (you figure it out)

[Eric the Red]

by the way....

 

BALL GAME OVER, AMERICAN LEAGUE EAST OVER, YANKEE'S WIN....

 

THEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE YANKEEEEEEEEEE'S WIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Sox can eat a.... (you figure it out)

Right on....Yanks punch playoff ticket

 

Unit, big bats deliver Yanks AL East title

 

Sheffield, Matsui, A-Rod homer in clinching win over Red Sox

By Mark Feinsand / MLB.com

 

 

Derek Jeter (left) and Alex Rodriguez celebrate in the clubhouse after clinching the AL East. (Jessica Rinaldi/Getty Images)

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BOSTON -- On Aug. 22, the Yankees moved into a three-way tie for the American League Wild Card, moving them firmly into the playoff picture.

Shawn Chacon, who had never been involved in a pennant race before, was excited about the idea of pitching into October, even if it meant getting there as the Wild Card entry.

 

"I remember talking to [Derek] Jeter in the locker room one day after we took over the lead in the Wild Card race," Chacon recalled on Saturday. "He said to me, 'We don't play for the Wild Card here.'"

 

As it turned out, Jeter was correct.

 

The Yankees clinched their eighth consecutive American League East title on Saturday with an 8-4 win over the rival Red Sox at Fenway Park.

 

Although the two teams can finish the season tied, that scenario would have one of the teams winning the division and the other making the playoffs as the Wild Card, so a one-game playoff would not take place. New York secured the season series with its 10th win of the year against Boston, assuring the Bombers of another division crown via winning the tiebreaker.

 

"We've been through a lot, and a lot of people counted us out," Jeter said. "But everyone in here thought we could win the division. This is the first step, but everyone here should be real proud."

 

"This is just one step," said Gary Sheffield, whose two-run homer against Tim Wakefield capped a three-run first inning. "We wanted the division. Now we want the World Series. But we can't look too far ahead. We need to focus on our next opponent."

 

Who that opponent will be won't be known until Sunday -- or Monday -- as the Red Sox and Indians continue to battle for the Wild Card.

 

If Boston reaches the postseason, the Yankees will play the Angels. Should Cleveland capture the Wild Card, the Tribe would open the Division Series in New York on Tuesday.

 

Randy Johnson continued his scorching September, winning his sixth consecutive game with 7 1/3 innings of three-run ball. Johnson, who improved to 5-0 against Boston, allowed five hits and struck out eight, earning his 17th victory of the season.

 

"The only thing that was missing was consistency, which we've seen over the last month and a half," Johnson said. "I'm hitting my stride at the right time. I'm disappointed I couldn't work things out a little sooner, but I'm thankful that I was able to get where I am right now."

 

• 10/01: Yankees 8, Red Sox 4

• 09/30: Red Sox 5, Yankees 3

 

• 09/11: Yankees 1, Red Sox 0

• 09/10: Red Sox 9, Yankees 2

• 09/09: Yankees 8, Red Sox 4

 

Previous coverage: 07/17: Yankees 5, Red Sox 3 07/16: Yankees 7, Red Sox 4 07/15: Red Sox 17, Yankees 1 07/14: Yankees 8, Red Sox 6 05/29: Red Sox 7, Yankees 2 05/28: Red Sox 17, Yankees 1 05/27: Yankees 6, Red Sox 3 04/14: Red Sox 8, Yankees 5 04/13: Yankees 5, Red Sox 2 04/11: Red Sox 8, Yankees 1 04/06: Red Sox 7, Yankees 3 04/05: Yankees 4, Red Sox 3 04/03: Yankees 9, Red Sox 2

That the Yankees were in a position to clinch the division is somewhat remarkable, given their 11-19 start, which left them nine games out of first place on May 6.

 

"May 6, I wasn't really concerned, because there was a long way to go," Torre said. "The only concern we had was playing up to our capabilities, because we felt the wins would come"

 

The Yankees have been red-hot since Aug. 11, going 35-14. In that stretch, New York lost two consecutive games just twice, the last time coming on Sept. 1-2. Since Johnson outdueled Wakefield, 1-0, on Sept. 11 in the Bronx, New York is 16-4, erasing a four-game deficit to become division champs.

 

"To do what we've done over the past three weeks, we needed every inch of it," Torre said. "These guys wouldn't be denied."

 

"We've been in postseason mode for about a month," said Alex Rodriguez. "We're very hungry; we're on a mission. To overcome the type of things we've overcome, hopefully there's no stopping us."

 

 

The Yankees, who entered the game with a .157 batting average against Wakefield this season, scored seven runs on seven hits in five innings against the veteran, who was pitching on three days' rest.

 

New York struck for three runs in the first inning, two on Sheffield's 34th home run of the season. Boston answered back with a monster shot of its own, as Manny Ramirez crushed an 0-2 fastball from Johnson out of the park, cutting the lead to 3-2.

 

"We knew coming in that if we don't get runs early on this guy, he can put you out," Sheffield said. "He can close the door on you real quickly. We weren't going to let up; whatever it took today, we were going to win."

 

The Yankees added two more in the second, using a Tino Martinez single, a Bernie Williams double and a pair of sacrifice flies by John Flaherty and Jeter to boost the lead back to three runs.

 

Beasts of the AL East

Most consecutive division titles

Team Streak Years

Braves 14 1991-2005 *

Yankees 8 1998-2005 *

Yankees 5 1960-1964

Athletics 5 1971-1975

Yankees 5 1949-1953

* -- Current streak

Note: MLB began divisional play in 1969 and began play in three divisions per league in 1994.

 

"We had a little luck, I think," Jeter said. "Wakefield's been tough on us, especially the last few years. You try to be patient with him, but you don't know where the ball's going, so I guess we guessed right today."

 

Matsui drilled a solo shot to dead center field in the third on an 0-2 pitch from Wakefield, making it a four-run game. A-Rod added a solo homer, his 48th, in the fifth, also mashing an 0-2 Wakefield pitch.

 

Johnson loaded the bases after walking Johnny Damon with two outs in the second, but he struck out Edgar Renteria with a 94 mph fastball, stranding all three runners.

 

"It stopped their momentum, without a doubt. If he gets a base hit there, things could have started to unravel," Johnson said. "Any time your team scores runs for you, you don't want to give them back right away. As well as we were swinging the bat, I wanted to get us back in our dugout as quickly as possible."

 

The left-hander settled in after the second, allowing two hits over his next four innings, striking out the side in the sixth. Tony Graffanino, who had three of Boston's five hits against Johnson, launched a solo homer in the seventh, but Johnson got the next two batters to maintain a 7-3 lead.

 

Facts machine: How the East was won

The Yankees' 8-4 win over the Red Sox on Sunday clinched the AL East title with one game remaining, despite the fact that the Red Sox and Yankees could finish the season with 95-67 records. But why? One word ... "Indians."

Yankees win the title

Saturday's win gave the Yankees a 10-8 edge in the head-to-head matchup, which is the first tiebreaker if the Red Sox were to win on Sunday. Since New York would finish with a 10-9 record against Boston in that scenario, both teams would have identical records with the Yankees winning on the first tiebreaker.

 

But more importantly, the Indians' loss prevented a potential three-way tie between New York, Boston and Cleveland, which would have set up a pair of one-game playoffs to decide the AL East and Wild Card winners.

What about the Red Sox?

Obviously, the Red Sox are out of the East race, but the Wild Card is still there for the taking.

 

Cleveland's loss on Saturday afternoon left the Red Sox one game ahead of the Indians in the AL Wild Card chase, so a Red Sox win or an Indians loss on Sunday would get Boston into the postseason. However, a Red Sox loss coupled with an Indians win would cause a tie atop the Wild Card standings and result in a one-game playoff on Monday. The winner of that game would be the Wild Card winner.

 

 

Up 8-3 after seven, Johnson got the first out in the eighth, retiring David Ortiz on his 123rd pitch of the day. Tom Gordon replaced Johnson, promptly allowing Ramirez's second homer of the game, but the reliever got the next two batters to move the game to the ninth.

 

Mariano Rivera closed out the win in a non-save situation, slamming the door with a scoreless ninth to set off the celebration.

 

The champagne flowed freely in the cramped visitors' clubhouse, while newcomers and veterans hugged and shouted with joy. The Yankees were division champions after a long, hard year, and they weren't going to let anything ruin this moment for them.

 

"I think it's important to celebrate and not look beyond what we've accomplished," A-Rod said. "Although it's just the first step, it's a necessary step. As close as this race has been, you have to celebrate the fact that you're in."

 

"It's pure elation and excitement," said Chacon, who had only seen champagne celebrations on TV. "This is something I've never experienced. The whole week leading up to it, playing meaningful games in September, I've never experienced any of it. A month ago, people were talking about us maybe playing for the Wild Card. It's not over yet."

 

They're in. Starting Tuesday, they're 0-0 again, looking for 11 more wins.

 

"You set your sights on winning the division; we've done that," Jeter said. "Now we set our sights on the next round. We've been through a lot, but everyone in here remained confident that we'd be able to turn it around and we did it."

 

Mark Feinsand is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

[Eric the Red]

Yankees ride momentum into playoffs

 

By Mark Feinsand / MLB.com

 

Mike Mussina will start the sixth consecutive postseason series opener for the Yankees. (Gregory Bull/AP)

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BOSTON -- In years past, Joe Torre has used the final week or two before the postseason to rest his battered players, set up his starting rotation and keep his relievers fresh for October.

The Yankees haven't had that luxury this season, as they scratched and clawed their way to another American League East title despite being four games out on the morning of Sept. 11.

 

Instead of lining up Randy Johnson for Game 1 of the Division Series, the Yankees will go with Mike Mussina, who will be available only because New York was able to clinch on Saturday instead of Sunday.

 

Instead of giving Gary Sheffield and Jason Giambi a few days of rest to heal their respective nagging injuries, the sluggers were forced to play every day, helping the Yanks win 16 of 20 on their way to their eighth straight division title.

 

To Derek Jeter, none of this is bad for his team.

 

"I've always said it; it's not the best team that wins the World Series," Jeter said. "It's the hottest team."

 

Jeter and the Yankees are certainly hot, having lost consecutive games just twice since Aug. 11 and once since Sept. 1.

 

"We've been playing hard every day the whole way, which is good for our focus," said Jorge Posada. "We have to be sharp, so it could be a positive for us."

 

"This ballclub has been pretty consistent for the past month," Torre said. "They have been as devoted, dedicated and hungry as I've ever seen a club in this period of time."

 

For the past three weeks, the Yankees have said over and over that every game is like a playoff game.

 

Starting Tuesday, each one will be.

 

But the urgency with which New York has played over the past month should work to the Yankees' advantage, as long as they can maintain the intensity they have shown in recent weeks.

 

"I'd like to think it works on our behalf," Torre said. "To be in the urgency mode in the past three weeks, these have been our playoffs. We never thought in terms of winning series over the last three weeks, we thought in terms of winning every game. That's the way you need to go into the postseason."

 

 

 

"We've been in postseason mode for about a month, kind of similar to what the Red Sox were last year," said Alex Rodriguez. "We were battling to come from behind and battling to get in. I think it does help us."

 

In each of the past three seasons, a Wild Card winner has won the World Series, as the Angels, Marlins and Red Sox all rode the wave of momentum from capturing the final postseason berth.

 

The Yankees accomplished the same feat, though they were able to win their division title instead of settling for the Wild Card. As a result, they are playing their best ball of the season at the right time, giving them a good feeling heading into October.

 

"This team has a lot of character," said Rodriguez. "The fact that we've been through so much, that makes us dangerous in October."

 

Yankee Stadium

By Mark Feinsand/MLB.com

More than four million fans crammed themselves into Yankee Stadium this season, giving the Bronx Bombers quite a home-field advantage.

 

The support of those fans helped the Yankees to an impressive 53-28 record at home, and when it comes to October, no fans have more recent history than those in the Bronx, who have watched the Yanks go deep into the playoffs in each of the past 11 years.

 

The "House That Ruth Built" is considered by many to be baseball's cathedral. Nine of the Yankees' 26 World Series titles have been clinched at home, most recently in 1999, when New York completed a four-game sweep of the Atlanta Braves.

 

The fans -- particularly the "Bleacher Creatures" in right field -- are a part of the action, getting the night started with their daily roll call. If you've never seen this ritual, pay close attention to each player as his name is called by the Yankee faithful.

 

Right-handers traditionally have trouble taking advantage of their power at the Stadium, but two of the Yankees' biggest sluggers have not had that problem. Alex Rodriguez and Gary Sheffield combined to hit 45 homers at Yankee Stadium, more than any right-handed duo in team history.

 

That said, left-handed hitters should have a field day with the short porch in right, which measures just 314 feet from home plate.

 

"The first half of the year, we didn't know who we were. We were struggling and we didn't know how it would end up," said catcher John Flaherty. "We had to really earn this one, and because of that, we're going into the postseason with a little edge we haven't had before. We feel like we're a dangerous team."

 

Although the Yankees weren't able to set up their rotation as they would have liked, it may not be such a big deal for New York.

 

Shawn Chacon (4-1, 2.23 ERA in September) and Aaron Small (5-0, 3.35 ERA) have pitched as well as anyone in the past month, so whatever order the starters happen to fall, the Yankees are confident that they can get the job done. Johnson, who will likely go in Game 3, is 6-0 with a 1.93 ERA in his last eight starts.

 

"Our pitching staff has carried us since August," Posada said. "As soon as we saw we had a chance, they stepped it up and took care of us. They deserve a lot of credit, especially Chacon, Small and Randy."

 

"We had a lot of ups and downs this year, a lot of hurdles to get over," said Mussina, who missed more than three weeks with an elbow injury. "The guys that came in here and took the place of guys that were injured, they're the reason we're standing here now."

 

New York's October opponents know that they will have their hands full with the Bombers, who are in search of the franchise's first championship since 2000.

 

"Let me tell you, the Yankees, it's a team that you have to be careful with in the playoffs, because right now, they have a lot of veteran pitchers," said Boston's David Ortiz. "The past couple of years that I've been here playing against them over and over and over, they know how to deal with situations better than anyone I've played against."

 

"We'd like to believe we have a long way to go," Torre said. "We have to win 11 games, and we have to stay at a level to allow us to do that. We've been as good as we've been all year the last few weeks."

 

Mark Feinsand is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

[TheKiD]

Ya but they did drop 2-3 to Boston in the final series tying for the East, though Yankees had 1 game better in the overall yankees v sox series, so they get the east, and red sox get the wildcard. looking at quite possibly another yankees v red sox al series. That is if the sox can get pas the OTHER sox from chicago... should be a tough series. Who cares, my Cardinals will coast to the world series, and it's gonna be tough to rout them this year. Great hitting, great rotation, great defense, great small-ball players. They are the team to beat this year... and I don't think the yanks or either of the sox can get past them.

[kc_husker]

Erstad and the Angels beat the fu#$ out of the yankees and the freaking cardinals will choke again.

[TheKiD]

The Angels only have a prayer if the Yankees go into a hitting slump. The Angels can only win low scoring games.. they just don't have any offesne. As for the Cardinals choking... WTF? The Red Sox last year came back from 3 games down to the yankees to make it to the WS, there was absolutely NO WAY any team last year could have beaten those guys in the WS... they were just absolute dynamite. There's a big difference between a team getting in a awesome groove and having huge momentum behind them, and the other team choking.

 

I don't see any of the teams in the AL getting anywhere near that momentum going this year, so I'm pretty confident in my Cards.

[cubhusker23]

Eric The Red, you have got some set of cajones(Yankees v Scumbags). Might I remind you the Yankees are still the most underacheiving, over-hyped, money grubbing, cheating, 'roid consuming bunch of scumsuckers to ever grace a baseball diamond. One lasting image that will be forever etched into the depths of my mind is when A-Rod BLATANTLY tried to knock the ball out of Bill Mueller's glove last year. In fact the only person I respect on the team is Joe Torre, who's had to put up with a whining bunch of primadonnas the last 10+ years. And all the championships from the 70's thru 90's shouldn't count, as their pregame rituals consisted of doing blow off each other's jocks. And just to let you know this doesn't count as flame-baiting becuase it's the honest truth and everyone knows it. May God punish the Yankees.

 

P.S. I will be rooting against the Yankees every round, even if they play the Cards in the World Series. It's like the lesser of two evils thing.

[Eric the Red]

Eric The Red, you have got some set of cajones(Yankees v Scumbags). Might I remind you the Yankees are still the most underacheiving, over-hyped, money grubbing, cheating, 'roid consuming bunch of scumsuckers to ever grace a baseball diamond. One lasting image that will be forever etched into the depths of my mind is when A-Rod BLATANTLY tried to knock the ball out of Bill Mueller's glove last year. In fact the only person I respect on the team is Joe Torre, who's had to put up with a whining bunch of primadonnas the last 10+ years. And all the championships from the 70's thru 90's shouldn't count, as their pregame rituals consisted of doing blow off each other's jocks. And just to let you know this doesn't count as flame-baiting becuase it's the honest truth and everyone knows it. May God punish the Yankees.

 

P.S. I will be rooting against the Yankees every round, even if they play the Cards in the World Series. It's like the lesser of two evils thing.

Jealousy will get you know where. If the Cubs upper managament had any guts at all, they would get some ball players. The Cubs are the biggest thing in Chicago. YOu have nothing else in the damn city. Every game is sold out. Memorabilia is through the roof. Start spending money and tell the GM and Pres. to quit hording all of it. Maybe then you'll win. Until then, stuff your sorry's in a sack.

[DJR313]

P.S. I will be rooting against the Yankees every round, even if they play the Cards in the World Series. It's like the lesser of two evils thing.

Yeah, my 2 favorite teams are the Dodgers and whoever the Yankees are playing. However, the Yankees look like the most complete team in the playoffs(and they damn well should be for $200 mil. +) and I wouldn't be surprised to see a Yanks-Cards series.

[BigRedJake]

Eric The Red, you have got some set of cajones(Yankees v Scumbags).  Might I remind you the Yankees are still the most underacheiving, over-hyped, money grubbing, cheating, 'roid consuming bunch of scumsuckers to ever grace a baseball diamond.  One lasting image that will be forever etched into the depths of my mind is when A-Rod BLATANTLY tried to knock the ball out of Bill Mueller's glove last year.  In fact the only person I respect on the team is Joe Torre, who's had to put up with a whining bunch of primadonnas the last 10+ years.  And all the championships from the 70's thru 90's shouldn't count, as their pregame rituals consisted of doing blow off each other's jocks.  And just to let you know this doesn't count as flame-baiting becuase it's the honest truth and everyone knows it.  May God punish the Yankees.

 

P.S. I will be rooting against the Yankees every round, even if they play the Cards in the World Series.  It's like the lesser of two evils thing.

Jealousy will get you know where. If the Cubs upper managament had any guts at all, they would get some ball players. The Cubs are the biggest thing in Chicago. YOu have nothing else in the damn city. Every game is sold out. Memorabilia is through the roof. Start spending money and tell the GM and Pres. to quit hording all of it. Maybe then you'll win. Until then, stuff your sorry's in a sack.

Hit the nail on the head there etr. They're like a rich version of the Rocks.

[NamelessHusker]

I will be glad once pro baseball is over. I can't stand pro baseball. It's full of whiners and cry babies. The college game is much more entertaining.

[BigRedJake]

I will be glad once pro baseball is over. I can't stand pro baseball. It's full of whiners and cry babies. The college game is much more entertaining.

I'd agree, but I think the fact that my team's season is over by May somewhat colors my opinion.

[TheKiD]

Scumbags v. Angels: tied up 1-1

Red Sox v. White Sox: The Sox of whitness are up 2-0, suprising.. wow

 

just an update.

[Eric the Red]

Three errors, three unearned runs.

 

Kill ya everytime.