Depressed Fan

Let's hop in the time machine. The date, October 5th, 2007. The location is the same, Cleveland, OH. The pitchers were different on that day, it was Carmona vs. Pettitte, but the dominance was the same. Two aces going at it, completely dominating two of the most potent lineups in the game. On that day, just like today, Melky Cabrera caught a mistake and sent it into the seats. In both games, the starter got the ball directly to Joba Chamberlain with a 1-0 lead. This is where the similarities end.

Back in October, Joba cruised through the final two outs of the seventh inning, then all hell broke loose when a swarm of midges invaded the field. Manager Joe Torre either did not, or could not, pull his team off the field until the swarm passed. Joba was eaten alive by the bugs and couldn't find home plate with his pitches. The Yankees would eventually lose the game in extra innings, fall behind the Indians 2-0 in the series and wind up losing in 4 games. It never should have happened.

Today, Chien-Ming Wang went 7 extremely strong innings, got the ball to Joba who blew right through the Indians in the 8th, striking out 2, and then Mo came in for an absolutely dominant 9th. A 1-0 Yankees win. This, my friends, is how that game back in October was supposed to happen. If not for those bugs, this is how it would have ended. Almost 7 months, but the Yanks finally got it right.

Today was one of the most dominant pitching days you'll find, on both sides. All told, both teams totaled 18 innings pitched, 8 hits, 1 run, 21 K's and 3 walks. The Yankees were just one pitch better.

Player of The Game: Chien-Ming Wang
Team Record: 13-13
Damon: Nada.