Yanks Lose Heartbreaker to Twins

Like many Yankees fans, I have become used to the Yanks owning the Twins since they have dominated them for years now. They played well in the game one victory, and appeared to have game two in the “W” column. But as Yogi Berra said, “It ain’t over till it’s over.”

And last night, Yankees fans were not happy when it was over.

It started out well, like the other three Yankees wins so far in the young season. Mark Teixeira hit yet another three run home run, and Andruw Jones hit a homer in his first at-bat as a Yankee. The Yankees jumped out to an early (and seemingly insurmountable) lead off Brian Duensing and the Twins.

After that, the Yankees bats quieted, but there didn’t seem to be a need for worry. CC Sabathia was pitching a gem. He went 7 shutout innings, and surrendered just 2 hits throughout the whole night, both in the 2nd inning. I was hoping he would come out to pitch the 8th, but I wasn’t annoyed that he didn’t.

But I was annoyed that Rafael Soriano relieved him.

Now I know it sounds crazy, but I was annoyed. Soriano had worked recently, and with a 4-0 lead in the 8th, I just didn’t think it was necessary to use him. I figured since the game wasn’t too tight and the Twins bats were pretty dead, Soriano could have used a night off.

And I know it may sound crazy, but in my time watching baseball, I have noticed that closers and closer-type guys seem to struggle in games where they have a rather large lead. I don’t know why. Maybe they don’t come out with the same fire or intensity like they do knowing they have to save the game.

For whatever reason, Rafael Soriano struggled mightily for the Yankees, and cost them the game. His eighth inning performance was dreadful: he had no command, walked three, allowed a hit, and gave up four runs – and with it, the Yankee lead.

The momentum shift was too great for the Yankees to overcome. They wound up losing 5-4, in a game they came so close to winning. Perhaps I’m dwelling too much on this one loss. But in the AL East, anything can happen. This is the most competitive division in all of baseball. If the season comes down to one game, and if this one loss keeps the Yankees out of contention, then it is definitely worth being upset over.

I was hoping I could just watch Game 3 tonight and forget this horrible loss, but of course the weather had other ideas. I’m looking forward to the game (or two) tomorrow.

Related posts:

1. Sabathia Still Winless
2. Yanks Sign Rafael Soriano
3. Lee to Phils: What Next for Yanks?
4. Yanks Strengthening Bullpen
5. Yanks Acquire Pitching Prospect from D-Backs

Tags: Andruw Jones, CC Sabathia, Joe Girardi, Mark Teixeira, Rafael Soriano, Yankees