So, how’s that Cliff Lee acquisition working out for Philadelphia? Lee continued his National League dominance last night, giving up just one run in a complete game win over the Rockies. Lee gave up just six hits and didn’t walk anyone. Despite giving up an RBI double to Tulo in the 9th inning, Lee was never really in any trouble. Simply put, the dude earned his money last night, making Phillies GM Ruben Amaro look very smart. Lee even stole a base for good measure – when was the last time a pitcher threw a complete game and stole a base in a playoff game?
Ubaldo Jimenez looked good for about 4 innings – guy was throwing gas – but the Phillies bats came alive in the 5th. The Illadelph has got Hamels on the bump for Game 2, and it’s not looking real great for the Rockies right now.
Keep reading for thoughts on the Yankees/Twins and Dodgers/Cards.
I was at work (this isn’t my like “real” job, unfortunately), so I had to follow most of the Phils/Rockies game on the computer. Fortunately I made it home in time to watch the Yankees/Twins. The Twins jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the 3rd inning, but that was all they got off of CC Cumbathia. CC silenced the critics who pointed out that he’s usually awful in the postseason, striking out 8 and only allowing 1 ER in 6 2/3 innings. Pretty good. Duensing didn’t fare too well, but really, the kid never had a chance against this Yankees lineup.
Jeter tied the game in the bottom of the 3rd with a 2-run blast to left field, and it looks like his recent trend of underperforming in the playoffs (very recent, mind you) has come to an end. I talk a lot of shit about Jeter sometimes, but it’s really the media adoration that gets me – nothing about the guy himself. In fact, he’s just about impossible to dislike: after Matsui’s bomb to center field, Jeter was genuinely giddy in the dugout, hooting and hollering in support of his teammate. Even A-Rod had a good game, going 2-4 with a pair of RBI singles. One single was an absolute laser off the right field wall, so A-Rod wasn’t getting anything cheap.
For the Twins, Mauer looked impressive as always, and nobody should be surprised that he had himself a 2-hit game. There wasn’t much to the Twins’ offense last night, though, as both Cumbathia and the Yanks pen was more than effective. Speaking of the pen, it looks like Joba has been assigned mop-up duty for now, but that didn’t stop the New York crowd from giving him a huge pop when he emerged to take the mound.
Some other thoughts from the game:
Not enough shots of Jay-Z and Kate Hudson. I’m kidding. I tuned in to watch baseball, not TMZ.
Did you see Liranio’s necklace? Good God. That’s the most bling I’ve ever seen on a ballplayer. No way that thing cost less than $100,000.
The play Punto made at second base, where he barehanded the ball and contorted his body to make the throw to first, just in time to beat the runner, was simply incredible. Just a great, great defensive play.
When CC hit Tolbert with a pitch, announcer Ron Darling commented, “That’s the last thing he wanted to do.” I disagree. Pretty sure CC would rather have hit him than, say, give up a home run. And if we’re going outside the context of baseball, I’d say the last thing CC wanted to do would be to drop dead on the mound, or have his penis fall off. Hitting Tolbert doesn’t seem so bad when you weigh in those options.
Moving on to the Dodgers/Cards…Did I not fucking say that Matty Kemp was gonna have a big series? The guy is such a stud and doesn’t get nearly the amount of attention he deserves. A young Dave Winfield is who he reminds me of. Kemp hit an absolute moonshot to center field off of Carpy, who was really struggling last night. 9 hits and 4 walks in 5 innings? That’s not going to get it done, and I’m honestly a bit surprised that Carpy was so craptastic.
Pujols didn’t do much – he was 0-3 with 2 walks (both intentional), and it seems as though Torre’s smart enough to avoid pitching to Pujols. Seriously, I have a hard time understanding why the guy isn’t intentionally walked more often. He can hit any pitch, at almost anywhere in the zone, out of the ballpark. Pujols showed why he’s one of the best defensive first basemen, too, with his diving stop on Russ Martin’s grounder.
By the way, how long has Brendan Ryan been sporting that mustache? It’s not cool. It’s not awesome like Clay Zavada’s; it looks like the hairy child of a pedophile’s mustache and the type of mustache Will Forte would sport in an SNL skit.
The Dodgers will have to face Wainwright next, so things won’t be easy. Still, they’ve got to be absolutely thrilled that Randy Wolf couldn’t even go 4 innings, they used 5 relievers (including Jeff Weaver), and they still beat Chris Carpenter.
Baseball rules.
