Silversword551

Oye Vey! I think it is safe to say the Boston Red Sox are the New York Yankees' kryptonite this year.

The Yankees have just lost their first eight games against Boston, 9th straight overall dating back to the 162nd game of the 2008 season. 4-3 was the final score.

CC Sabathia pitched a gem, but was very shaky in the 8th inning, but we'll get to that later.

In the top of the 7th, Melky Cabrera kicked off the inning with a single, then Francisco Cervelli doubled to plate Melky, it was a 1-1 game. Boston's then lone run was a David Ortiz home run.

Derek Jeter grounded out, then Johnny Damon walked, and Mark Teixeira flew out to left which was the 2nd out.

Then Alex Rodriguez, the guy who has taken a lot of criticism from a lack of clutch performances against the Red Sox, doubled to bring home 2 runs, it was a 3-1 Yankees lead. We all thought the Yankees were out of the woods, all we needed was CC Sabathia to pitch brilliantly for three more innings for a CG win.

But we were sadly mistaken, as the Boston Red Sox had no problem snatching the lead back, as they scored three runs in the 8th to lead 4-3.

But in the ninth, the Yankees had the top of the order, and the Yankees could have possibly had one more shot at getting the lead, but it was a moot point as Jeter grounded out, Damon flew out, and Teix lined to Youkilis.

I'm at a loss for words. It was not just that they lost 8 games to the Sox, it was also the way they lost which infuriates me the most. Blown leads, missed opportunities especially with RISP, dumb baserunning, poor management by Girardi (like leaving Sabathia out to dry in the 8th, only to see him wilt and let his inherited baserunners score), and the Red Sox made them pay dearly for those mistakes.

Aye aye aye. The Yankees are KILLING ME! Why do they look so good against the other 28 MLB teams, but look like the Keystone Cops in baseball cleats and pinstripes against Boston? Why?

Like Heartbeat of the Bronx said in his latest article from Bleacher Report, it's the mentality. The Yankees no longer look like they could do no wrong against the Red Sox. It's now the same thing, but switch "Yankees" with "Red Sox".

Look, I'm not saying the season is over or anything, or that we can't win the AL East. It's just why we can not figure out the Red Sox. They are the ultimate puzzle that the Yankees can not solve, so much pieces, they don't know where to place them. We may very well win the AL East, even if the Red Sox still continue to beat us, but here's a thought:

If they had split the series 4-4, we would be up 2 games, instead of down 2. And we need all the wins in the AL East we can get, especially when the playoff race heats up in September.

The Magic got the Cavs right where they wanted them. The Cavs played the Magic's game, they forced up jumpshots in a frenzy. The Cavs didn't do that in their 1st 8 playoff games, they went to the rim at will. The Cavs big men didn't bother give Dwight Howard a challenge all series, let alone last night (he had 40, 14, and 4 last night). Ben Wallace used to be the minister of Defense in his Detroit Pistons years, instead, he and Z were ministers of being Dwight howard's punching bags for 6 games. Superman flew high and above the Cavs, and his "Justice League colleagues" would nail a three if they tried to focus on him (they did that 62 times in 6 games, a playoff record in a 6 game series). Don't forget the Magic's brilliant bench play, Mickael Pietrus was nailing dagger shots all series, meanwhile Cleveland's bench was pathetically weak, Wally, and the Cavs bench were a non factor.

Mo Williams pulls off a disappearing act against an elite team, AGAIN! The Cavs need a low post scorer, a big upgrade over Z who is trash. Lastly, how about LeBron James? He may be the king, but he was relegated to jumpshots throughout much of the series, and his palace came tumbling down, and so did the Cavs chances.

Gotta credit the Magic, they weren't scared, they beat down the Cavs at anything, in the post, beyond the arc, any and every aspect of the game, the Magic outclassed and outcoached the Cavaliers. The Magic fly to L.A. to face the Lakers on Thursday, while Cleveland once again goes golfing, wondering what could have been.

I will be rooting for the Magic, I hope they defeat the Lakers. I hate the Lakers.

Alright New York Yankees' fans, fasten up your seat belts, because it could be a long ride. As always, the Yankees have high expectations. If they match them, the World Series title will likely be coming back to the Bronx for the first time since 2000.

There will also be a new Yankee Stadium hosting it's first game against the Indians in two weeks, as the older Yankee Stadium, whose sung it's swan song on September 21, 2008, as Derek Jeter, and the Yankees walked around the stadium, greeting, and addressing the crowd of 54,610, who crossed the turnstiles and saw Yankees defeat the Baltimore Orioles 7-3. Expect the see the old Yankee Stadium to be dismantled somewhere around the baseball season.

Back to this season, the Yankees broke the bank, when they acquired CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, and Mark Teixiera. Other notable signings were Nick Swisher, and Kevin Cash. Jason Giambi, Carl Pavano, Wilson Betemit, Ivan Rodriguez, and Bobby Abreu are no longer members of the Yankees.

Some things that need to happen if the Yankees want to get back to glory.

1: Staying Healthy.

Injuries doomed the Yankees in 2008, Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Phil Hughes, Chien-Ming Wang Hideki Matsui and others went down at some point during the season. Unfortunately, A-Rod will already miss the early part of the season, due to a cyst on his hip.

It is paramount to stay healthy if we want to keep pace with the always powerful Boston Red Sox, and last year's World Series runner up Tampa bay Rays in a tough AL East.

2: New signings have to handle New York, and start contributing.

CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, and Mark Teixeira, welcome to New York City! The pressure is on these three to produce, and help the New York Yankees win. The Yankees are paying them big time bucks, and if they flop, it is not going to be pretty!

CC Sabathia delivered the Milwaukee Brewers a playoff appearance for the first time since 1982, shutting down his opponents while pitching in all 27 outs most of those games, unfortunately, the momentum couldn't carry the Brewers against the eventual champion Phillies in the NLDS, as he was bombed all series. I'm looking for Sabathia to be our ace, making opposing hitters look like sitting ducks.

A.J. Burnett, well what can I say? He's been above average throughout his career, and injury prone, yet he makes the Yankees batters look like Keystone Cops in baseball uniforms everytime he takes the mound against them. Hopefully he does that to every team he faces, and stays healthy in the process.

Mark Teixeira has been nothing short of brilliant in his MLB career. .290 BA, 203 HRs, 676 RBIs in his career with the Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves, and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. He also won two Gold Gloves as well. He usually goes on slow starts, hopefully that won't be the case in 2009.

3: Beat the Rays and Red Sox, and capture the AL East!

Our two main adversaries heading to 2009 obviously. Both the Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox made some smart moves in the offseason, with the Rays acquiring good players Pat Burrell and Jason Isringhausen, and the BoSox acquiring former Ray Rocco Baldelli, Brad Penny, and John Smoltz. The Rays won the AL East and AL pennant, and the Red Sox won the wildcard in 2008.

4: PLEASE improve on offense, especially on RISP situations.

The Yankees were a complete abomination with RISP. A-Rod grounded in to a double play about 33,423 times last year. In 2007, they would be home runs. It was sad to watch. Another reason why the Yankees were not invited to the postseason in 2008. Great teams takes advantage of every opportunities they get.

5: Bullpen must be in form.

The Bullpen, they must not squander leads like LaTroy Hawkins, Kyle Farnsworth, and Kei Igawa (heaven forbid I see him on the mound this year).

6: Just win, baby!

Yankees have to meet, even exceed the high expectations they received this year.

Looking forward to the Yankees taking the field, go Yankees!

 

This was a nice win by UConn, even when Missouri was keeping them at bay early in the 2nd half, tying it at 50 and 54 points, they got out of it by going aggressive to the rim, going 26-32 .813% from the charity stripe, which is why the Huskies beat the Tigers.

Kemba Walker had a great game, scoring 23 points, on 7/9 from the field, 9/10 on FTs, 5 rebounds, 5 assists. He showed a lot of toughness, driving to the rim, and drawing fouls. AJ Price had 18 points, and he also was making his FTs, 5/7 from the charity stripe. Stanley Robinson added 13 points, Jeff Adrien scoring 12.

1 Quick Note: Uconn is in the West region, the last 2 times they were in the west region, they won itall in 1999, and 2004.

Do not look ahead to Miami, Take it 1 game at a time - Look for Miami to dispatch Kansas City, setting up a gigantic match-up which decides who wins the AFC East. If we take Seattle lightly, we will lose, because they have nothing to lose, and they will be looking to send out Mike Holmgren out a winner. Jets, this is your moment to silence critics who are writing you out. Send a message that the Broncos and 49ers games were a fluke. They need to pound the Seahawks.

Better Defense - The last 3 games (with the exception of the late 4th quarter vs the Bills), the defense was atrocious. Peyton Hillis, Frank Gore, and Marshawn Lynch looked like Second Comings of Walter Payton, the way they ran through our run defense. And we have Kris Jenkins, Christ! The arm tackling has got to stop. We need to punish Seattle's offense by wrapping up the ball carrier, and bringing them down to the turf. Make them feel the pain! Like Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Tennessee's defense plays. See how physical they play?

Also, blitz, blitz, blitz! Seneca Wallace has been playing well lately. Against the Pats, he threw 20 completed passes out of 28, for 3 Touchdowns, with a QB rating of 128.9. Against the Rams, he threw no TD passes, but led a rally, he threw for 226 yards, and made clutch throws to help Seattle win. And judging by the atrocious Broncos and 49ers games the Jets D played, he must be licking his chops. Pressure him, we need to blitz him early and often and toss him around Qwest Field, or else the Jets will lose.

Better Play calling - Seriously, no excuse giving Leon Washington only 1 carry! And 4 out of the last 3 games. He, and Thomas Jones is the Jets best play makers, and it makes no sense how we abandon  the run so easy, leaving Favre to tossing ducks around the field. This is exactly what happened in the Broncos and 49ers games. It's still bugging me. Seriously, give the ball to the play makers, and good things happen. Now, it's time to wake the AFC East. J-e-t-s Jets Jets Jets!

A-rod clearly came back with a bang, he hit 2 hrs in 2 games since he came back. He had another HR taken away by the retarded umpires. That ball bounced off the yellow stairs in right-center. Because of this and the Delgado foul ball that was incorrectly called a HR, baseball will experiment an instant replay.

sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story

Marlins - They are 22-14 as of Today, and won 6 straight ballgames! They crushed the Nationals 11-0, dominated them in every facet of the game. They recently give Hanley Ramirez a big contract extension. Smart move, IMO, considering they historically trade all their good players away.

Rays - After a decade of frustrations and failures, the rays are finally playing like contenders. They shut out a strong Angels team not once, but twice. They are definitely giving the Yankees, and Red Sox a run for their money. And guess who is BAAAAAAAAACK? That's right, Scott Kazmir returns with a vengeance, 6 IP, 0 ERs.

The sun has shined on Florida Baseball..

Jets had a 4-12 season last season.
Nuggets get swept out of the playoffs by the Lakers.
Yankees last 7 seasons have been extremely disappointing
Rangers are currently handing the series to the Penguins as we speak
Miami Hurricanes (football) were brought to the ground by Larry Coker
UNC (basketball) had an amazing season, but got trucked by Kansas

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