As Paul Krugman says, when there's a lot on his mind and he's about to break it down:
"Ok...."
Tex: Two hits, an RBI in the bottom of the ninth, a run, and a walk. That's productivity.
Damon: Ejected for instructing the umpire on the location of the strike zone. Girardi burst out of the dugout to calm him, but arrived too late, just as Damon was bent down indicating with his bat where the inside and outside corners are located, and as the umpire was pumping his arm wildly as a signal that Damon's night and his ten game extra-bases hitting streak, which only Paul O'Neil and Don Mattingly have matched in pinstripes, were both over. (Don and Paul also share the distinction of being my favorite players while they were playing. After Paul retired it became Matsui, and it still is. But there's no denying anymore that Jeter is the greatest. So now they're my co-favorites.) For Damon, that's passion.
Gardner: What separates the good Yankee teams from the great ones has always been the penchant for accomplishing something truly amazing. Sometimes it was a perfect game (or two), a 5 for 5 hitting performance, or a back-to-back-to-back home run rally. Today Gardner did something on that level: An inside the park home run. (Video). That's exceptional.
Jeter: The Twins starting pitcher Liriano cut the Yankees down until bottom of the 5th. Then Jeter changed the whole dynamic of the game, blasting one out of the park. And the game was on. That's what Jeter brings.
Hughes: 5 IP, 4 walks, 3 runs. That's....average but we'll take it.
A-Rod: The Twins simply refused to pitch to him. I don't think they threw him one strike in any of his 5 at-bats. It says a lot about the mystique of A-Rod that, even with a .136 average, he is still getting the Bonds treatment. It also says something about the Twins, who really threw the kitchen sink at the Yankees today, playing and strategizing throughout the game as though it were a game 7 (the Yankees are used to this stuff from most teams, I hope). For example, after a swinging strikeout that bounced before the plate, the Yankee catcher Kevin Cash corralled the ball. Usually, if the catcher is able to secure the ball, the batter might jog over to first, or just walk politely out of the box toward the dugout, allowing himself to be tagged. But the Twins run full-speed towards first, as though someone had shouted "go!" and fired a pistol. In the playoffs, yes. In May, gimme a break. And even in the 8th inning there were fireworks when another Twins runner got too close to Tex at first. Girardi correctly blamed the Twins manager, feeling that the whole game was played too aggressively. Anyway, for A-Rod and his 4 walks; that's respect.
Morneau: You gotta give this guy credit. He single-handedly kept the Twins in the game. Two home runs and a huge game-saving steal of a hit by Swisher almost did the Yankees in. That's solid baseball (but he's still a chump).
Melky: Ever since being sent down in August last year, and then losing the starting job to the speedier Gardner this April, Melky has come roaring back, leading the team in batting average. I mean, this guy is the bomb: he switch hits, goes the other way, hits for some power, has some speed, and can play the outfield with the best of them. And this year he is proving that he can do the most important thing of all: Perform at his best in the clutch. Bottom 9, 2 outs, bases loaded, Yankees down by one, Melky up: Base hit to left!, Teixeira scores! Pena scores!, ballgame over!, Yankees win...Theeeeeeeeeeee YANKEES WIN!!!! (video here).
That's courage.
This game had everything you would expect when you watch the Yankees (video recap here). An extraordinary performance, a display of raw power and skill, and a demonstration of real courage under pressure. Yankee baseball at its finest.
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