Postseason Pieces: Day 2
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Day two of the MLB Playoffs 2007 and Postseason Pieces once again kept an eye on all the action. The Colorado Rockies rolled along in Philly with another impressive 10-5 win (they now lead 2-0 in the NLDS), the Cubs are in deep trouble after the young D'backs beat them 8-4 and in Cleveland, the Indians made a huge statement with a 12-3 beating against the New York Yankees.
The Good
Kaz Matsui: Excuse me... Kaz Matsui?! Yes, you got it. As if their team's huge collapse at the end of the season wasn't enough for Mets fans, now one of their former "favorites" makes a big impression on the biggest stage imaginable. Matsui's Grand Slam in the 4th swung the game back into the Rockies' favor and not even Jimmy Rollins could do something about it. Matsui was just a single shy off the cycle and finished with 5 RBIs.
Young talent: Wherever you look, Arizona, Colorado, Cleveland... a lot of young guys learn to swim in postseason waters this year and they look terrific. Chris Young, Stephen Drew, Asdrubal Cabrera, Rafael Perez... just to name a few who shone yesterday. It's great to see teams and franchises rely on young players, who will certainly be with us for years to come. Even the big market teams like the Red Sox or the Yankees take steps in this direction.
Game at the Jake: It's been six years now that postseason baseball was making a stop in Cleveland. What's basically only six years (Cubs fans will tell you that's nothing) seemed to be an eternity: Jacobs Field absolutely rocked the entire night! The fans were going crazy from the first minute on and the Yankees even though losing did their part by bringing their pinstripe pride and their reputation to the park. You can't help it but it's just something else when the Bronx Bombers step on the diamond. But yesterday it was "Tribe Time"!
Kenny Lofton: This guy is something special... has his own commercial, has played for almost any baseball franchise in the world... and performs on a crazy high level at the age of 40. Lofton delivered two crucial hits to go 3 for 4 (with 4 RBIs) and ultimatively set the tone for his young teammates. That's what you need from the guy who owns the entire postseason experience on your team (Lofton had 84 playoff games before yesterday, his teammates none).
The Bad
[1] Phillies pitching: Relax, Kyle Kendrick, you are spared of critisizm here but most of the Phillies pitching staff is a complete joke. Of course Citizens Bank Park isn't exactly pitcher paradise yet if you are running guys out there with the names of Kyle Lohse, over the hill guys like Jose Mesa and scrubs as Clay Condrey, then you can't expect to win postseason games. On top of that your manager removes your solid young starter way too early. Clint Hurdle owned Charlie Manuel in terms of pitching changes yesterday!
Ted Lilly: Yeah, Lilly pitched bad and all but the one thing I will remember is when he slammed his glove to the ground after giving up the homerun to Chris Young in the second inning. I mean that was just awesome! I'm sure though Lou Piniella didn't laugh that hard.
Bruce Froemming: Postseason year number 36 for the old veteran... respect! But fortunately it's also his last. A tight strikeout zone is fine (even though Froemming's wasn't ultra small) but please don't flinch after every pitch on the outside corner!
The Ugly
[2] Jeter's strikeout: Boy, did C.C. Sabathia made Derek Jeter look bad on that strikeout in the third inning. That swing was as awful as the Yankees' night yesterday. Other than that though, Sabathia wasn't as impressive as expected.
Chien-Ming Wang: After seeing last night's performance you would never believe that Wang has the most wins in the majors in the last two years. He had absolutely no control over his usually devastating sinker and as a result left it up all night long. The Indians made him pay for that early and often. On top of his ugly game (4.2 IP, 8 ER) Wang looked as if he was facing Freddie Krueger in the batters box instead of Tribe hitters. He was scared, plain and simple, and this isn't a good outlook for your Yankees future!
Aramis Ramirez: "ARam" with his free swinging approach is one of those guys who can look incredibly stupid and bad when he is in a slump. What a timing! He is now 0 for 9 in the first two NLDS games with 4 Ks. I'm not really sure but I would say this isn't getting it done. The Cubs need his bat to speak and maybe he will wake up at Wrigley Field.
All right fellas, the first two days of the 2007 postseason are in the books and we saw a lot of great baseball. But of course, this was just the beginning! We are facing a weekend with games from Wrigley Field, Fenway Park and "The House That Ruth Built"... "Postseason Pieces" will have all the action from the weekend on Monday!
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