Giambi Caps Improbable Comeback

It's been nearly 18 hours and we still don't quite believe the Yankees won yesterday's ball game with the Toronto Blue Jays. Jason Giambi's upper deck 2-0ut, 2-run home run in the 9th inning off Blue Jays closer B.J. Ryan sent the remaining fans, and the team, into pandemonium. It capped a comeback from a 7-2 deficit and an 8-6 9th inning deficit.

The Yankees had cut the lead to 7-6 entering the 9th, but it looked like the Blue Jays would once again break the game open against Kyle Farnsworth. Alex Rios and Scott Rolen opened the inning with consecutive singles and Matt Stairs followed with a ground rule double and an RBI. The ball going out of play proved to be a huge break for the Yankees, because Farnsworth remarkably escaped without allowing another run.

Yankees vs. B.J. Ryan entering the 9th inning:

Derek Jeter 2-12
Bobby Abreu 1-4
Alex Rodriguez 0-8
Hideki Matsui 3-21
Jason Giambi 3-14

Not exactly a confidence builder and it didn't help when Jeter and Abreu quickly made the first two outs of the inning. But A-Rod singled, took 2nd Base on defensive indifference, and scored when Matsui singled to center. Trailing by a run, Joe Girardi sent up Giambi, still hobbled by a sore foot, to pinch-hit for Jose Molina. After falling behind in the count 1-2, Giambi guessed fastball and got a hanging slider. He crushed it, but wasn't sure if he would keep it fair. To the delight of everyone not in a Blue Jays uniform, he did just that.

It was a great win, but not a pretty game for the Yankees, and it was reflected in Joe Girardi's post-game comments. Chien-Ming Wang got off the hook, but was awful again, and was confused after the game as to why he didn't have the proper mechanics during the game. Robinson Cano failed miserably in attempt to lay down a sacrifice bunt and hit into a double play instead. With the Yankees carrying 3 catchers, the bench is also short-handed. Shelley Duncan, no speed demon, pinch-ran for Jorge Posada, because he was the only viable option at that point in the game.

Back to Wang though. He breezed through the first two innings, before running into, but eventually escaping a jam in the 3rd. But the wheels came off after that. Stairs had tied the game 2-2 in the 4th with his 7th home run of the season. What appeared to be the turning point of the game then occurred with runners on 1st and 2nd and one out in the 5th.

For some reason Joe Inglett took off for 3rd Base when Alex Rios hit a line drive to center field. It would have been an easy, inning ending double play. But Melky Cabrera dropped the ball. Inglett scored the go-ahead run and the Jays took full advantage. Wang hit Rolen with a pitch, and Stairs followed with a 2-run single for a 5-2 lead. Lyle Overbay doubled well over the head of Cabrera to score 2 more and Wang's day was done.

Blue Jays starter Dustin McGowan wasn't having the best of days either. The Yankees quickly got back in the game in their half of the 5th inning. They loaded the bases on a single by Cabrera, a walk to Johnny Damon, and Jeter tallied another hit by pitch. Bobby Abreu (ground out) and Alex Rodriguez (sac fly) brought home a pair of runs in the same manner they did in the first inning to cut the lead to 7-4.

Wilson Betemit made the game even closer in the 6th, when batting right-handed, he crushed a pitch and sent it over the fence in left-center field. The 2-run shot cut the lead to 7-6 and gave the Yankees further hope. It appeared they would take the lead in the 8th against Scott Downs.

Jorge Posada drew a lead off walk and was replaced by Duncan. Cano failed twice to get the bunt down and bounced into a rally killing double play. But the Yankees still had a chance. Betemit singled to right and Cabrera drew a walk to put the tying run in scoring position for Damon. He responded with a drive to deep right field, but Brad Wilkerson, who had entered the game as a defensive replacement in the 7th, got to the wall, leaped, and robbed Damon of a possible 2-run double.

The air went out of the Stadium, but life would return an inning later thanks to the Giambino.

News and Notes

Suzyn Waldman's radio legacy continues. After talking about her post-game interview with a distraught Chien-Ming Wang, she blathered on about how sad it was and how distracted she was by it. George M. Steinbrenner III is the only reason this woman still has a job.

After winning on May 2, Wang was 6-0, 3.00. In his last 4 starts, he's allowed 23 earned runs in 23.2 innings pitched to bump his ERA to 4.57.

Johnny Damon extended his hitting streak to 14 games. He was also 1-2 in stolen base attempts. In the Blue Jays series, Damon was 8-11 with 3 walks and is now batting .315.

June 5, 2008

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Toronto	0	0	0	2	5	0	0	0	1		8	9	0
NY Yankees	2	0	0	0	2	2	0	0	3		9	14	1

Toronto	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Stewart, LF	3	0	0	0	1	0	1	.249
Scutaro, 2B	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	.268
Eckstein, SS	5	1	1	0	0	1	5	.265
Rios, CF	4	2	1	0	1	1	3	.265
Rolen, 3B	3	2	2	0	1	0	0	.312
Stairs, DH	5	2	3	5	0	1	2	.272
Overbay, 1B	5	0	1	2	0	1	3	.278
Mench, RF	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	.216
Wilkerson, RF	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	.237
Barajas, C	3	0	0	0	1	3	4	.288
Inglett, 2B-LF	3	1	1	0	1	0	3	.281
Totals	35	8	9	7	7	7	24
BATTING 2B: Overbay (11, Wang), Stairs (5, Farnsworth). HR: Stairs (7, 4th inning off Wang, 1 on, 0 out). TB: Eckstein; Rios; Rolen 2; Stairs 7; Overbay 2; Inglett. RBI: Stairs 5 (21), Overbay 2 (24). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Rios 2; Barajas; Overbay; Eckstein 2; Inglett 2. S: Inglett. GIDP: Stairs. Team LOB: 10. BASERUNNING SB: Wilkerson (2, 2nd base off Veras/Posada). FIELDING PB: Barajas (2). DP: 2 (Overbay-Eckstein-McGowan, Eckstein-Overbay).

Toronto	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
McGowan	5.1	7	5	5	2	5	0	4.26
Carlson (H, 7)	0.1	2	1	1	0	1	1	1.96
Frasor (H, 3)	0.2	1	0	0	0	0	0	3.26
Downs (H, 8)	1.2	1	0	0	2	1	0	1.75
Ryan (BS, 2)(L, 1-2)	0.2	3	3	3	0	0	1	2.95

NY Yankees	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Damon, DH	3	2	2	0	2	0	2	.315
Jeter, SS	4	1	1	0	0	1	1	.281
Abreu, RF	5	0	2	2	0	0	3	.284
Rodriguez, 3B	3	1	1	2	0	0	3	.293
Matsui, LF	5	1	1	1	0	2	4	.333
Posada, C	3	0	1	0	1	1	0	.303
1-Duncan, S, PR	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.175
Molina, C	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.222
a-Giambi, PH	1	1	1	2	0	0	0	.258
Cano, 2B	4	1	2	0	0	0	1	.222
Betemit, 1B	4	1	2	2	0	1	2	.261
Cabrera, CF	3	1	1	0	1	2	1	.266
Totals	35	9	14	9	4	7	17
a-Homered for Molina in the 9th. 1-Ran for Posada in the 8th.
BATTING 2B: Jeter (9, McGowan), Abreu (13, Frasor). HR: Betemit (3, 6th inning off Carlson, 1 on, 1 out), Giambi (12, 9th inning off Ryan, 1 on, 2 out). TB: Damon 2; Jeter 2; Abreu 3; Rodriguez; Matsui; Posada; Giambi 4; Cano 2; Betemit 5; Cabrera. RBI: Abreu 2 (39), Rodriguez 2 (25), Betemit 2 (6), Matsui (29), Giambi 2 (31). 2-out RBI: Matsui; Giambi 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Cabrera; Matsui 3; Damon 2. SF: Rodriguez 2. GIDP: Betemit; Cano. Team LOB: 7. BASERUNNING SB: Damon (9, 2nd base off McGowan/Barajas). CS: Damon (3, 2nd base by Frasor/Barajas). FIELDING E: Cabrera (3, fielding). DP: (Betemit-Jeter-Veras).

NY Yankees	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Wang	4.1	5	7	6	4	4	1	4.57
Ohlendorf	0.2	0	0	0	0	1	0	5.67
Hawkins	1.0	1	0	0	1	0	0	6.08
Veras	2.0	0	0	0	1	1	0	4.50
Farnsworth (W, 1-2)	1.0	3	1	1	1	1	0	4.45

Hawkins pitched to 2 batters in the 7th.

IBB: Wilkerson (by Farnsworth).
HBP: Jeter (by McGowan), Rolen (by Wang), Barajas (by Veras).
Pitches-strikes: McGowan 100-65, Carlson 13-8, Frasor 12-7,
Downs 31-15, Ryan 21-14, Wang 90-51, Ohlendorf 9-5, Hawkins 22-14,
Veras 35-18, Farnsworth 26-15.
Ground outs-fly outs: McGowan 7-4, Carlson 0-0, Frasor 1-0,
Downs 3-1, Ryan 1-1, Wang 6-3, Ohlendorf 0-1, Hawkins 0-3,
Veras 4-1, Farnsworth 1-1.
Batters faced: McGowan 25, Carlson 3, Frasor 2, Downs 7, Ryan 5,
Wang 24, Ohlendorf 2, Hawkins 5, Veras 7, Farnsworth 7.
Inherited runners-scored: Carlson 1-1, Frasor 1-0, Downs 1-0,
Ohlendorf 1-0, Veras 2-0.
Umpires: HP: Joe West. 1B: Ed Rapuano. 2B: Ed Hickox.
3B: CB Bucknor.
Weather: 71 degrees, cloudy.
Wind: 7 mph, R to L.
T: 3:53.
Att: 53,571.