Giants Storm 49ers - Oct 14, 2012

October 14, 2012

     It was just earlier this year when the New York Giants defeated the mighty San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship.  Since the off-season, there have been some changes.  Brandon Jacobs decided to leave New York and head for the West Coast.  Mario Manningham would soon follow.  Certainly coming into this game, the 49ers looking strong at  4-1 were in no doubt the favorite to win the game and looked to obtain revenge on the defending Superbowl Champs.  However the New York Giants made it look easy as they came into San Fran and crushed the 49ers by a final of 26-3.

     San Fran threatened early as David Akers' 42 yard field goal put the Niners up 3-0 in the first.  The Giants defense would take care of the rest as they not only shut down the Niners' running game, but they also forced three big interceptions against Alex Smith and their offense.  The first take away was credited to Prince Amukamara in the second quarter that would set up the Giants offense from there.  A terrific 39 yard catch by Domenik Hixon brought the Giants into 49ers territory, and Eli Manning's 6 yard pass to Victor Cruz would result in a touchdown giving Big Blue a 7-3 lead.  Lawrence Tynes kicked a 34 yard field goal that gave the Giants a 10-3 advantage at the half.  

    The second half opened up as the kickoff by David Akers was returned by punt returner David Wilson for 66 yards.  Ahmad Bradshaw would run in for the touchdown giving New York a 17-3 lead.  Later on in the third, it would be Antrelle Rolle coming up with one of his two interceptions that would eventually lead to another field goal.  Lawrence Tynes would end up with 4 field goals on the day.  The Giants offense would perform impressive especially on the road and against a very tough Niner's team.  Eli Manning threw his game and let his offense roll, "We knew it was gonna be a tough game but we played smart football, our offense, no sacks, no turnovers, we knew that was the right way to play the game".  

     Indeed the offense committed zero turnovers, and the offense flashed on all cylinders.  Domenik Hixon had 78 yards especially several key catches down field that set up the Giants touchdowns and field goals.  Victor Cruz had 6 big receptions and Hakeem Nicks was back and active with 3 receptions.  Ahmad Bradshaw had an impressive display with 27 carries and 116 yards, the first time racking up 100 plus yards in 43 games.

     The Giants defense showed up San Fran as they committed 6 sacks today, four of them on Alex Smith.  The 3 interceptions prompted a huge role, as Antrelle Rolle had two of them.  Michael Boley along with Prince Amukamara and Antrelle Rolle led the way with 6 tackles.

     At the end, the San Francisco 49ers never showed up as they fall to 4-2 and the defending champs improve to 4-2.  Also this win ranks Tom Coughlin with the 2nd most wins as a Giants head-coach surpassing Bill Parcells.  Coughlin now has 78 wins with the team.  Most importantly the Giants are back in first place and will host the Washington Redskins next week.

B.C Sports
Brian Chin

Tigers Defeat Yankees in Game 1 of ALCS - Oct 13, 2012

October 14, 2012

     A day after C.C Sabathia pitched a gem to finish off the Orioles in the Division Series, game one of the ALCS was nothing short of a typical Yankees playoff game.  Playing their third extra-inning game in four nights, it all ended in the 12th inning when the Detroit Tigers tacked on the go-ahead runs to win it over the Yankees 6-4.  This spoiled a miraculous Yankees comeback in the 9th inning when Raul Ibanez once again came through big in the clutch sending a 2-run homerun to tie the game at 4.  What made this game more of a heartbreaking loss was when the Derek Jeter left the game for good after he suffered a broken ankle injury in that 12th inning diving to stop a ground ball up the middle.  The Yankees Captain might have seen his last action for the remainder of the playoffs.  Jeter will certainly join Closer Mariano Rivera cheering their team on from the sidelines.

     Game 1 was scoreless for the first 5 innings as Yankees Andy Pettitte faced off against Tigers Doug Fister.  Doug Fister has had success against the Yankees especially in the postseason last year as he won game 5 in the division series against the Yankees.  It was a pitcher's duel but in the top of the 6th, the Detroit Tigers would be the first to draw blood as they put up 2 runs with Prince Fielder and Delmon Young with RBI singles.  Andy Pettitte would leave after 6.2 innings with 5 strikeouts.  In the top of the 8th, Delmon Young would homer to left field off of reliever Derek Lowe giving the Tigers a 3-0 advantage and a RBI single by Avisail Garcia would have the Tigers leading 4-0.  Doug Fister on the other hand doing what he does in the postseason completely shut the Yankees out with 6.1 innings pitched and surrendered no runs.  The Yankee offense was a complete disappointment as they had the bases loaded in three different innings and were unable to push across a run.  The Yankees offense once again not coming through with runners on base at a critical time of year.  

     That is when the bottom of the 9th inning came around and Tiger's Manager Jim Leyland decided to go to his closer Jose Valverde in a non-save situation.  Russell Martin would lead off the bottom of the 9th with a single.  With 1 Out, Ichiro Suzuki would send a 2-Run homerun to right field to finally put the Yankees on the board.  Then after a walk to Mark Teixeira, Raul Ibanez would come to the plate and for the third time in just a week and a half, Ibanez would deliver.  A huge 2-Run homerun would come off of Raul's bat into the right-field seats tying the game at 4 and posing a huge Yankee comeback.  We go to extra-innings.  In the bottom of the 11th inning, the Yankees would threaten and put themselves 90 feet away from scoring the winning run.  With Brett Gardner at third and 2 Outs, Derek Jeter would pop a short fly to right to end the inning.  Top of the 12th, and things went astray for the Yankees.  David Phelps would issue a lead-off walk to Miguel Cabrera and would break a string of 15 consecutive innings pitched by Yankee relievers while not surrendering a walk.  With Prince Fielder grounding out and moving Cabrera over to second, Delmon Young would come to the plate.  With Cabrera at second, Delmon Young would send a line drive fly ball to right field and just out of the reach of a leaping Nick Swisher.  The ball would roll all the way to the wall scoring Cabrera and giving Detroit a 5-4 lead.  The next play, Johnny Peralta would ground one near up the middle and Derek Jeter would make a diving stop for it, unfortunately for the worst, Jeter's injured ankle would go along with it.  Jeter left the game with a broken left ankle and perhaps will be done for a while.  The Tigers would tack on another run and come away with this one at the end.  Drew Smyly came in for Detroit for the win in the bottom of the 12th inning.  The Yankees continue to struggle with scoring runs and Alex Rodriguez would add on two more strikeouts with an 0-3 night.

     
     The Yankees host game 2 this afternoon in the Bronx.  Huroki Kuroda would oppose Detroit's Anibal Sanchez on the mound.  The Yankees look to take a game at home before going off to Detroit.

B.C Sports
Brian C

Yankees AL East Champions!!! - October 3, 2012

October 3, 2012    

     
     Well, the New York Yankees have clinched the American League East in fashion.  On the 162nd game of the season, who would have thought it would come down to this.  The Yankees would put a cherry on top of their season as they defeat the Boston Red Sox 14-2.  It was in the bottom of the 7th inning right in the middle of an Alex Rodriguez at-bat when the fans at Yankee Stadium suddenly erupted as they realized the scoreboard showing the Baltimore Orioles had lost 4-1 to the Tampa Rays which secures the Yankees on top and ending up clinching the East.  Also the Yankees end up with the best record at 95-67 in the American League rewarding them with home-field advantage throughout the first two rounds of the playoffs.

     Let the celebrations begin, Champagne in a clubhouse frenzy and the Bronx and Yankee fans celebrating everywhere with the playoffs to look ahead to.  Well it was Huroki Kuroda who would be sent to start and early at the top of the first, it did not seem well as Cody Ross singled in Jacoby Ellsbury to give Boston a 1-0 lead.  The Yankees would turn on the power against Daisuke Matsuzaka as Curtis Granderson cranked a 3-run homerun in the bottom of the second to put the Yanks in the lead 3-1.  It would be the Bronx Bombers from that point on.  Robinson Cano powered a 2-run homer in the third giving them a 5-1 lead, then in the 5th, Cano would launch another 2-run bomb way into the right field deck seats.  Matsuzaka's night would be done, and the rest of the damage came off of Boston's bullpen.  The Yankees led 7-1 and Robby Cano would add two more RBIs in the 6th.  Yankees would lead 9-2 in the bottom of the 7th when Curtis Granderson crushed one to right-center for his second homerun of the game as well.  Robinson Cano would go 4 for 4 on the night with 2 homeruns and 6 RBIs.  Huroki Kuroda pitched an extraordinary 7 innings giving up just two runs and end his season record at 16-11.  The Yankees would go on to win 14-12.

Certainly many great highlights and key positives for the New York Yankees the way they finished the season and hot at the right time going into the playoffs.  Robinson Cano's 9 game-hitting streak in the final games of the season certainly is a highlight but more impressive is his .615 batting average with 3 homeruns and 14 RBIs.  His two homeruns constitutes for 33 homeruns on the season and 94 RBIs.  Curtis Granderson hit homeruns number 42 and 43 and winds up with 106 RBIs on the year.  The Yankees tonight not only tied their all time record of 244 homeruns in a single season, they also surpassed it and now have 245 with Granderson's shot.  The Captain Derek Jeter is certainly an impressive story with the .316 batting average and his consecutive season record of 200 hits or more.  Closer Rafael Soriano collected 42 saves in replacement of Mariano Rivera.  Raul Ibanez contributed big down the stretch especially during the critical recent games that helped boost the Yankees.

     
     It was just a few games ago when it all seemed that the Yankee season was indeed in jeopardy as the Orioles tied them for the AL East.  It dwindled down to the remaining games as the Yankees went 14-4 in their final 18 games.  Manager Joe Girardi certainly proud of his team, "It is not easy to do what these guys did, win 95 games in our division".  Not only winning 95 games, but the fashion in how the New York Yankees fought and pulled through.  The tail end of their pitching staff was in question early in the season with newly acquired starter Michael Pineda out for the entire season and Andy Pettitte unavailable for a big part of the summer months.  Starters C.C Sabathia was injured early in the season and Ivan Nova also went through shoulder injury.  Outfielder Brett Gardner was disabled for the majority and probably the worst that befell the Yankees was when closer Mariano Rivera was injured for the remainder of the year while catching a fly ball during a practice routine back in May.  Then Alex Rodriguez spent time on the disabled list and so did Mark Teixeira late in the season.  It was a team plagued with injury all throughout their lineup and for this team to pull together and maintain their position in the Major Leagues was quite a remarkable one.  

     The Yankees lead was 10 games in July and many saw the number slowly dwindle down as the resilient Baltimore Orioles gave chase in the East.  When it finally came down to the wire, and players knew they must step up and fight to maintain first, it is exactly what they did, "If we controlled our own destiny, everything was in our control" - Curtis Granderson.

     The Yankees with the clinch and the win will now enter the postseason for the 51st time in their illustrious history and the 24th time with the best record in the American League.  They will either face the division rivals Baltimore Orioles or the Texas who play a one game playoff to determine the first round match-up.  Congratulations and now the real season begins as the American League East Champions Yankees have their eyes on the playoffs!

B.C Sports
Brian C

Yankees Beat Boston in 12 to Remain 1 Game Ahead of Baltimore - Oct 1, 2012

October 2, 2012

     With Baltimore beating Tampa, and the Yankees lacking any sort of offense in last night's game, Raul Ibanez pinched-hit in the 9th inning and sent a 2-run home-run into the right field seats to tie the game at 3.  He would come up again in the bottom of the 12th inning with two on and 2 Outs, Raul Ibanez's single to left-field scored Francisco Cervelli coming home from second-base sent the Yankees on to win it 4-3 against the Boston Red Sox in extra-innings and keep the Yankees one game up on the Baltimore Orioles with the season's final game tonight.  

     Well indeed the Yankees season would come down to the final several games remaining, and with game 161, the magic number to clinch the American League East is down to one.  They are certainly in the driver's seat.  The Yankees are also fighting for potential home-field advantage throughout the playoffs of course the only thing to do is win.  

    With the decision earlier in the week to take Ivan Nova out of the Starting Pitcher's role in last night's game, the Yankees would pitch David Phelps.  Phelps would allow two runs in the first inning on an RBI double by Dustin Pedroia scoring Jacoby Ellsbury and a sac-fly by Cody Ross.  The Yankees would gain one back against Jon Lester in the 2nd inning on Eduardo Nunez's RBI single misplayed by shortstop Jose Iglesias to allow Curtis Granderson to score.  David Phelps in the 5th inning and the Yankees trailed Boston 2-1 the majority of the game.  The bullpen secured some quality innings and in the top of the 9th, Rafael Soriano would allow a solo home-run to James Loney which would give Boston a 3-1 lead.  Then in the bottom of the ninth with Boston pitcher Andrew Bailey to close it out, Curtis Granderson led off with a single, and Raul Ibanez would pinch-hit for Eduardo Nunez.  Ibanez drove one deep to the right field which cleared the wall and sent the Bronx fans roaring in a 3-3 game tying 2-run home-run.  Derek Lowe would then pitch 2 exceptional scoreless innings for the eventual win.  In the bottom of the 12th against reliever Andrew Miller with no one on, Francisco Cervelli would be the last line of offense from the Yankee bench.  Rejoining the team after being banished to the minor leagues, Cervelli worked the count full after a quick 0-2 count, and would draw a walk.  Andrew Miller would issue another walk to Curtis Granderson, and that is when Raul Ibanez would came to the plate and would ground one just in the hole between shortstop and third, and Francisco Cervelli would slide home for the winning run.  The entire dugout would clear and the Yankee fans would certainly enjoy this one.  Paying homage to Raul Ibanez and his late-game heroics again, he would be thanked with a bucket of ice-water on him.  

   The Yankees are one win away from clinching the American League East and the opportunity comes on the last game of the season tonight.  They also have the opportunity to sweep the Red Sox on the final day of the regular season.

B.C Sports
Brian C

Controversial Finish: Seahawks & Packers Game Spurs Last Straw for Replacement Refs - Sept 25, 2012

September 25, 2012

     The most Bizarre, Shocking, and Controversial Finish you will ever see took the stage on Monday Night Football as the Seattle Seahawks defeated the Green Bay Packers in a Stunning, and perhaps an unprecedented and questionable touchdown call to award the Seahawks a victory.  With 8 seconds left on the clock and the Seattle Seahawks down to their 4th-down, rookie Seahawk QB Russell Wilson fired a Hail Mary into the Endzone which was clearly caught and intercepted by Packers M.D. Jennings with Seahawks Golden Tate seemingly having an arm and simultaneous possession of the ball, the final ruling and result on the field was a game-winning Touchdown by the Seahawks in the most confusing and controversial finish in NFL history.  It included a sequence of events which included so many major plays that were called and not called, but towards the end, two replacement officials looked indecisively at each other and signaled two very quite opposite calls, one official was signaling what appeared to be a "dead-ball" or touch-back and the other official waving the touchdown call, and at the end was decided as a touchdown.  This happened moments after Golden Tate shoved Packers Sam Shields to the ground for an offensive pass interference that was not called and this obviously led to the "biggest" and most controversial endings that has the entire NFL, players, coaches, fans, the whole world of sports in an uproar.

     Week 3 of the NFL has seen so many bizarre corners of the institution of replacement referees and the NFL analysts said "it is only going to get worse".  Unfortunately it took a highly-rated and anticipated game like the Seahawks and Packers on Monday Night to finally witness the Volcanic Explosion that was expected to happen on a season already full of infuriating, agonizing, and upsetting emotions toward the novice crew of officiating.  We have seen coaches in upsetting games erupt, player tweets, fans and NFL specialists sound off on this downward spiral and ruining of the "greatest game".  However, Bill Belichick's antics on the field as he grabbed an official after Sunday's loss and Jon Harbaugh's rant was merely the beginning of it, but what happened last night to Mike McCarthy and his Green Bay team was beyond jaw-dropping and no doubt there will be movement and unrest in the NFL world to come after yesterday's blown game.  "Don't ask me a question about the officials", was Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy's ecstatic reaction after the game.  What made it worse was the fact that Green Bay had to send 11 men back onto the field to finish the game and kick that extra point after perhaps the most disgusting call in the NFL just robbed the Packers of a win.  Give credit to the Packs for their professional display after an event like that one.  The truth of the matter is fans, players, coaches, and any follower of National Football grow more furious by the day as the continued implementation of replacement officials by the League remains in order, and any close solution of returning the regular league officials back onto the field is unlikely. 

     There should not be any reason to believe that a game like this would not shake trees and blow the top off the can.  Players and coaches have been complaining and showing their frustrations on the field, reports had it that the Packers trashed their locker rooms, throwing chairs at the television screens not believing anything that was made official in yesterday's loss which should not have even been a loss.  Nonetheless, the entire sports world and nation is tuning in, as this means the legitimacy of these new league officials are no doubt in question, and the "integrity and safety" of the game of football that has come to be so respected has now been jeopardized.  Aaron Rodgers had plenty to say immediately after the game, "It was awful... just look at the replays .. and the fact that is was reviewed.. awful".  We knew the installation of replacement referees was bad, we saw it in preseason football, we saw it the first three games of the season, coaches fired-up, players mouthing off, but it starts to get heavy when the consequences begin to affect the result of the game.  As many sports analysts and former officials of the league have reacted, nothing gets done until something bad happens and sure enough, something happened.  It could not get any worse than Monday night.  It was just fortunate this was not a playoff game, although this certainly does affect a team's course in getting to the playoffs.  What is more intriguing is the fact that player's safety is at risk, there already has been so many incidences in Week 3 and so far as this season has taken its course where players have been chop-blocked and there has been no call, face-masks attempts that were not enforced by the refs, unnecessary roughness calls that were not made, close-to injury plays that were not followed-up and flagged by the officials.  What ends up happening perhaps in response by the coaches, players, and teams is they begin to take advantage of the rules, these holes and all these flaws in officiating the game, relying on the fact that the ref might just end up screwing up a play and have the call go in favor of their team.  

     Despite such drama, and throughout all the Mayhem that "left a bad taste in the mouth", as MNF Sportscaster Jon Gruden said, there was still football laying beneath the dark shadow hovering over the field.  Give the Seahawks credit especially on that last play as Russell Wilson fired it in, and Golden Tate's efforts in competing on that "catch".  He was asks after the game if he pushed off on Sam Shields, "I don't know what you're talking about... I don't know what you're talking about", said Tate to a reporter.  It was clearly shown through many times of replay that M.D. Jennings had established possession of the ball to his chest, and Golden Tate did not have "simultaneous" possession as the rule says, it should not have been called a touchdown.  This is not even in relation to the offensive pass interference that Golden Tate should have been penalized for.  The NFL has now officially up-held the ruling of the touchdown call saying that the play is cannot be reviewed nor overturned.  This unfortunate event comes at a hefty price and the issue of replacement refs and the questionable return of the regular officials sits amidst this mayhem that has got the entire NFL, Sports and for that matter the world rumbling!

B.C Sports
Brian C

Pettitte Sparks - Yanks Topple Twins - Sept 24, 2012

September 24, 2012

     The Yankees continue to win and play hot baseball in the month of October as the season winds down.  In just his second start since returning from the DL, veteran Andy Pettitte tossed 6 scoreless innings in a 6-3 Yankees win over the Minnesota.  His presence back in the lineup certainly can solidify staff rotations in a postseason.

      The Yankees in the Twin City faced off against Liam Hendriks, and they did not waste any time as they jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the top of the first with Nick Swisher ripping a chunk out of the ball, into the deep right-center field seats it went for his 23rd homer of the season.  Curtis Granderson homered in the fourth inning, his 40th home-run of the year.  Granderson is now one of the only three in Yankee history to have back-to-back 40 home-run seasons, he is now among an elite few which includes Jason Giambi and Lou Gehrig.  Raul Ibanez and Eric Chavez added back-to-back solo shots in the seventh to get the Yankees their 6 runs.  As for Andy, he was dandy and pitched 6 solid scoreless innings despite giving up 7 hits.  Pettitte escaped out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the first.  Then in the bottom of the fourth, he was helped by Curtis Granderson in center-field as his relay throw to home plate was right on the mark to Russell Martin who applied a very nice tag to the shoulder of Ryan Doumit who was attempting to score from second on a 2-Out single.  That kept the scoreless innings in place.  David Robertson did make things interesting in the 9th as he surrendered a 2-run triple which brought the Twins a bit closer, but got the final out to make things official.  The Yankees have won 8 of their last 9 games, and certainly feel positive with less than 10 games remaining on the season.

     Andy Pettitte has not given up a run since coming off the DL which is a bonus for Yankee pitching.  The Yankees now go up by a game and a half against the Baltimore Orioles who lost the second game of a double-header against the Blue Jays.

B.C Sports,
Brian C

Russell Martin's Walk-Off Against Oakland A's - Sept 21, 2012

September 21, 2012

     
     Well when it is all said and done, it all comes down to winning and that is what the New York Yankees did tonight in the Bronx.  The hero in extra innings Russell Martin homers to left field in the bottom of the 10^th inning to give the Yankees a 2-1 victory over the red hot Oakland Athletics. Martin’s homerun was just the thing to put a cherry on top especially after Rafael Soriano’s blown save spoiled a brilliant pitching performance by C.C Sabathia.

     It was a pitching duel from the first inning on as Sabathia took the hill against the Oakland Athletics, winners of 9 of their last 13 games and tied with the Baltimore Orioles for the wild card lead.  Sabathia worked through the early innings without much trouble, and his outfield showing some speed thanks to a nice running catch by Ichiro Suzuki in the first inning.  The Yankees would oppose Oakland starter Jarrod Parker who would allow just one run to the Yankees.  That run came in in the bottom of the fourth where Curtis Granderson's sac-fly would give the Yankees a 1-0 lead.  C.C Sabathia, just brilliant going 8 strong innings with just 3 hits and 11 strikeouts.  All was set for the win only except when Yankee closer Rafael Soriano came in in the top of the 9th and surrendered a 1 Out, pinch-hit, game-tying homerun to Brandon Moss.  That long-ball was crushed deep into the second deck in right and the game was knotted at 1-1, spoiling an impressive start by C.C Sabathia.  The game goes to extra innings and in the bottom of the 10th, Russell Martin comes to the plate and delivers a deep drive to left-field off of Oakland reliever Sean Doolittle which sends the Yankees home for a 2-1 victory, the Yankees win their 6th straight.

     Russell Martin was all pumped up in the clubhouse after the game, "We have a day game tomorrow and I was trying to get out of here as quickly as possible", a humorous Martin said.  For Martin that was his 19th long ball of the season.  It certainly took Rafael Soriano off the hook who was very pleased and happy for his teammate picking him up.  David Robertson would win in relief.  After the excitement, C.C Sabathia had much to feel happy for despite his win being spoiled, "We haven't had a lot of walk-offs here since 2009, so it was great".  What was much more outstanding was Sabathia's pitching performance in this game, especially losing his last three starts, "We always need a start like this especially in a tight race.  It feels great", Sabathia said.  Sabathia on 6 days rest had all his pitches working for him including a mid 90s fastball, and slider which was his strikeout pitch.  His change-up also caught the corners of the plate which posed effective.  With 6 days of rest between starts in his career, Sabathia is 2-0 with a 0.42 ERA.

     The Yankees remain a game ahead in the AL East with Baltimore beating the Boston Red Sox 4-2 at Fenway.

B.C Sports,
Brian C. 

Giants Bury Panthers in Crusher - Sept 20, 2012

 September 20, 2012

     
     Coming into the match-up, it was going to be about which offense can out-match the other.  With high  speculation that Cam Newton and his young Panther offense would come away with it, the New York Giants came into Carolina and stomped the Panthers in a 36-7 crusher.  After an impressive 4th quarter comeback by the Giants last Sunday, it was sure Eli Manning would have to do it again, but "Easy E" as his teammates call him, did not have to sweat too much in this one.

     An offensive line that did not feature WR Hakeem Nicks and RB Ahmad Bradshaw and their Right Tackle David Diehl due to injury, there seemed to be little doubt that the Panthers would have the edge in this match, but the Giants jumped out to an early 7-0 lead thanks to a 14 yard touchdown pass Eli Manning to Martellus Bennett in the opening drive.  Later in the second, Andre Brown would take it into the endzone for his touchdown making it 17-0.  The Giants would score on their first four possessions along with a pair of field goals and go into the half with a 20-0 advantage.  Later in the fourth with the Giants already up 26-7, Andre Brown would rush it in for his second of his two-touchdown night making it 33-7.  The only offense coming from the Carolina Panthers came in the third quarter when Cam Newton dove in for a 1 yard touchdown at the goal line.  The Giants would go on to win 36-7 in this impressive offensive and defensive display in Carolina.

   

     Giants head coach Tom Coughlin said on a Thursday night that they came in here feeling positive and good about themselves, "We didn't turn the ball over which was big for us, we got some takeaways".  In fact, Eli Manning threw for 288 yards and 0 interceptions.  With this performance, make it 22 consecutive games with 200 yards or more for Eli Manning.  This ties Drew Brees who achieved it in 2008.  "When we run the ball our offense really gets clicking", said Manning relating to his impressive offense.  A game when Hakeem Nicks and Ahmad Bradshaw did not play, the replacements really shined on the spotlight.  Ramses Barden who filled in for Hakeem Nicks had 9 receptions going for 138 yards.  Backup RB Andre Brown had an outstanding 20 carries including 113 yards and two touchdowns.  After the game Eli had props for the two new replacements, "You never know when you're going to get an opportunity, you got to step up for it", and they certainly put on a display.  The Panther defense focusing their attention on key offenses such as Victor Cruz were no match for these "killer Bs".  Ramses Barden hugged his quarterback on the sideline in the fourth.  

     As for Cam Newton, he finished off the night with 1 touchdown, 242 yards, and committed 3 interceptions.  The Giants defense that smothered Cam Newton and the Panther offense was led by Justin Tuck who felt great about their performance, "Cam is an athletic quarterback and hard to stop, but we got them".  The end result surely reflected the Giants defense as Cam Newton was sacked 2 times with Osi Umenyiora(1st sack of season) showing honors in the second quarter as well as by Jason Pierre-Paul.

     It was no doubt that the impressive performances of replacements Ramses Barden and Andre Brown pose as positive key options for the Giants offense later in the season especially filling in with the absences of Hakeem Nicks and Ahmad Bradshaw.  It gives the Giants more dynamic depth in their receiving and passing game.  The defending champs go 2-1 with this blowout in Carolina as the Panthers fall to 1-2 on the season. The Giants have a big one coming up next Sunday as they visit their division rival Philadelphia Eagles.

B.C Sports,
Brian Chin

Yankees Double Up On Jays in Double Header - Sept 19, 2012

September 19, 2012


Game 1:     

     It has been a while since we have seen the big lefty ace on the mound but today Andy Pettitte returned on the hill for the Yankees in the first game of a day-night double header against the Toronto Blue Jays in the Bronx.  Pettitte returning from the DL since going on the injured list on June 27, it was a great welcome back as he pitched an impressive 5 scoreless innings with 3 strikeouts in a 4-2 Yankee victory.  Despite Manager Joe Girardi's close eye on his veteran's pitch count and outing, Andy ended up pitching those 5 innings earning a win, and more importantly helping the Yankees win.  

     The Yankees jumped out into an early 3-0 lead in the first inning.  Ichiro Suzuki went 3-4 in the victory and the Yankee offense gelled and manufactured the early runs.  Although a questionably decision by Joe Girardi to use six relievers including Derek Lowe, Clay Rapada, Joba Chamberlain, Boone Logan, and David Robertson to pick up in the sixth inning, the bullpen was able to piece it together for the remainder of the game.  Rafael Soriano came in in the eighth inning during a 2 Out bases loaded jam and got the Yankees out of it while picking up a 4 Out save and his 41st on the year.  

     As for Pettitte, the Yankees were grateful to have him back and his brief but quality outing give the Yankees more depth in their starting rotation.

Game 2:     

     Earlier today, with six relief pitchers used in Game 1 of the double header against the Blue Jays, it was clear that David Phelps was expected to give the Yankees quality innings and pitch deep into the game.  However things got a bit dicey in the top of the second when Phelps pitch count began to go up and allowed an RBI single to Adeiny Hechavarria giving the Blue Jays a 1-0 lead.  In the bottom of the second, the Yankees came right back against Toronto Starter Ricky Romero as Chris Stewart ripped a 2-Out RBI ground-rule double down the left-field line scoring Ichiro Suzuki to tie the game at 1-1.  

     David Phelps then settled and went on to pitch 6.1 innings and only allowing a run on three hits. 
Phelps would leave in the 7th inning with no decision paving the way for Boone Logan and Cody Eppley.  Still tied in the bottom of the 8th inning, Curtis Granderson already on base would steal third.  With 2 Outs, and Ichiro at the plate facing lefty reliever Aaron Loop, Ichiro Suzuki would flip one over into left-field scoring Curtis Granderson for the go-ahead run giving the Yankees a 2-1 lead.  Ichiro would go on to steal 2nd base, and if that weren't enough, he would steal third base as well.  Ichiro would go 4-4 including a big go-ahead hit and add 4 stolen bases to that in Game 2.  Cody Eppley would pick up the win in relief.  Rafael Soriano would close it out for his 42nd save and second save of the day as the Yankees go on to win it 2-1 and beat the Jays a second time in the double-header.

     After the game Joe Girardi had reaction to their veteran outfielder Ichiro Suzuki, "Unbelievable day and the 2 Out hit capped it off, he's been swinging the bat good for us", Girardi said.  It was earlier today that Girardi had decisions to make regarding whether or not to start Andruw Jones in game 2 against a lefty.  With Jones batting barely .200 and with only 9 hits in the last two-months, it was clear the Skipper would go to Ichiro.  In fact Ichiro Suzuki would pick up 7 hits today and go 7-8 in both games with an impressive 4 stolen bases in the second game, that would be his 3rd time in his career with 4 steals in a game.  After the game, media reporters asked him about his rising hot streak late in the season,  "I haven't done anything different today, i don't know what the difference was", a smiling and charismatic Ichiro with his translator remarked.  Ichiro added that all he had his mind on was to, "contribute and be a part of this pennant race and continue to do what i can to help this team".  Help the team he did, and Ichiro shined his old-self again.  His hot streak comes at a critical point in the season and certainly can benefit a Yankee offense that seems to go streaky at times.

     With the win, the Yankees win the second game of the day-night double header against the Blue Jays and the Yankees lead the Orioles by a game in the AL East.  The Orioles play the Seattle Mariners tonight.


B.C Sports,
Brian Chin

Yankees Get Past Rays - Stay Ahead in East - Sept 16, 2012

September 16, 2012

     Well winning is the name of the game, they took two out of three from the Red Sox at Fenway and now back home with a 6-4 victory, the Yankees take two out of three from the Tampa Rays.  The Yankees started out the day a game ahead of the Baltimore Orioles in the AL East standings.  

     The Yankees sent their veteran Hiroki Kuroda to the mound.  Kuroda pitched 6 innings, gave up 4 runs and struck out 10.  The Yankee offense finally looked great hitting with runners in scoring position.  Jeter and A-Rod had RBIs and Russell Martin cranked a three-run homer (17th) to right to give the Yankees a 5-0 lead at that point.  The Rays came back to score 3 more in the 6th but Kuroda was able to get out of the jam and pick up his 14th win of the season.  The bullpen came on to finish the Rays in the final innings and Rafael Soriano recorded his 40th save of the season, the 5th Yankee to record 40 or more saves in a single season record.  

     With the win, the Yankees maintain a 1 game lead in the AL East over the Orioles who beat Oakland today.  These wins late in the season continue to play a crucial role in a Yankee postseason.  The Yankees with a day off tomorrow, welcome the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday.

B.C Sports,
Brian Chin

Giants Beat Buccaneers in Riveting Showdown - Sept 16, 2012

September 16, 2012

     The New York Giants looking to bounce back from their season opening loss to the Dallas Cowboys turned their attention to the visiting Tampa Bay Buccaneers.  Things did not start off too positive in the first half as Eli Manning committed three turnovers that all eventually led to touchdowns by the Bucks.  Probably the most highlighted interception came in the final minute of the second quarter when Eli Manning was picked off at the Tampa Bay 40 by Eric Wright who returned it for a 60 yard touchdown giving the Buccaneers a 24-13 lead over the Giants at the close of the first half.

     In the second half the Giants finally showed life.  Down 27-19 in the fourth quarter, Eli Manning turned it on as a 80 yard pass to Victor Cruz was good for the touchdown, and the two-point conversion by Andre Brown tied the game, 27-27.  Manning was not done, on the next drive, he fired a 33 yard completion to Martellus Bennett to put the Giants ahead 34-27.  However QB Josh Freeman and the Tampa offense were very much still alive as a 41 yard pass to Mike Williams down the other way was good to cuff it, 34-34.  The Giants offense proved resilient as they once again came down-field.  On 2nd & 1 near the goal line, Andre Brown rushed in the endzone to give the Giants a 41-34 lead at that point.  With the Buccaneers threatening, a call reversal on the field pushed Tampa's offense back, and a Giants interception finished it off for good.  The Giants came back and held on to defeat the Buccaneers 41-34.

     It was no question that it was certainly a team effort, and took a turn-around for Big Blue to make it happen.  Manning spoke about the change-of-face in the tale of two halves, "I got to make better decisions, we had missed opportunities, we know we were right there in the mix", "You get frustrated in the first half you're excited about the come back and you see it happen, of course you don't always want to be in that situation".  There was no doubt the second half simply could not reflect anything from the first two quarters and it did not.  Manning committed 3 interceptions and only threw 1 touchdown in the first half, and turned it around as he gave up 0 turnovers and threw for 2 key touchdowns in the second leading to the win.  Manning ended up with 510 yards today.  The touchdowns came and was also played in part from key contributions from Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks. Eli proud of his receivers remarked, "Victor and Hakeem both stepped up, made some big time plays, some big 3rd down completions", and Nicks did put up some great numbers, 199 yards with 10 catches including a 50 yard catch which advanced the Giants down-field in the final go-ahead drive.  

     The Giants defense which did not seem effective in the first two quarters only allowed a field goal and touchdown in the second half.  The leader Justin Tuck said that it was thinking and being "positive" that led them to key stops and contributions from especially rookie corner back Jayron Hosley who impressively had 5 tackles and later based it on, "preparation, watching videos, coming in here and being ready to go".  

   With this satisfying win, the Giants prevent the idea of going down 0-2 to start the season and even their record at 1-1.  The Giants play next week in Carolina against the Panthers.

B.C Sports,

Brian Chin

Yankees Take Rays Hold Half Game Lead in AL East - Sept 15, 2012

September 15, 2012

     What started out this morning with the Yankees tied in first place with the Orioles ended with a 5-3 win over the Tampa Rays.  With the Orioles keeping pace with the Yankees in the American League East, the Bombers were sure thrilled to have this one after a crucial loss yesterday.

     Rafael Soriano sealed his 39th save of the season and Ivan Nova returned from the DL and pitched his first game since injuring his shoulder back on August 21st.  He went 6 strong innings for his 12th win of the season.  Nova's return from the disabled list proved big for the Yankee win and more importantly for the concerned starting rotation.  

     Curtis Granderson and Eduardo Nunez powered the Yankee offense as they hit back to back homers in the 2nd inning.  For Granderson, that was his 39th homer of the season.  The Rays cut it close as Luke Scott's 2 run single in the 7th cut it to a one run lead.  The Yankees then tacked on another in the 8th inning to seal the victory. The Yankees now lead by half a game in the AL East Standings as Baltimore plays Oakland later on tonight.

B.C Sports,
Brian Chin

Yankees Beat Baltimore : Back in First - Sept 9, 2012

September 9, 2012

     They started their series in Baltimore with a one game lead atop the American League East.  It has been an intense and exhilarating series through the first three games against the Orioles at Camden Yards.  The Yankees dropped the first game to the hot bats of the O's, then bounced back with heavy offense in the second game, followed by a disappointing and frustrating loss yesterday that controversially should not have been a loss.  Having lost 9 of their last 13 games, the Yankees and Orioles were all tied up in first place in the East coming into today's game.  However, the Yankee offense finally came alive once more this afternoon as they shelled the Orioles 13-3 in the final game of a 4-game series.  Manager Joe Girardi and the Yankees knew how vital and essential it was to have this game and seal it.  Importantly it was win, even more importantly the Yankees maintain first and hold on to the top of the division.  

    With Freddy Garcia on the mound, the Yankees wasted no time in getting ahead. They took a 5-0 lead including a four-run 4th inning.  Garcia with three good innings runs into trouble in the bottom of the fourth giving up a 2-run double to Wilson Betemit.  Garcia would leave after 3.1 innings pitched, Joe Girardi would go to Joba Chamberlain and the bullpen to piece it together from there.  The Skipper was very pleased with his pitching staff, "It was an outstanding job by the bullpen, with Joba coming in".  Chamberlain pitched 1 2/3 innings shutting out the Os in his outing while fanning 4, allowing no hits and getting the win.  When asked about how he felt, Chamberlain said he felt great and remarked, "It was frustrating at first, but we worked on adjustments, and we got to build on the confidence and what we've done".  Cory Wade, Boone Logan, and Derek Lowe polished off the rest of the four innings for the win.

     On the other hand, give the Yankee offense much credit as they bombarded starting pitcher Zach Britton early and rang up the Orioles with 13 runs.  Curtis Granderson pinch-hitting in the 6th inning, right away crushes one to the opposite field, his 35th home run of the season.  Granderson went 3-3 with a home-run and 5 runs batted in.  Girardi was impressed at a slumping Granderson who definitely needed a performance from him like this one, "It would be great to get him going, he is so important to our offense".  And so it is especially with the New York Yankees trying to hold on to first place.  The Captain Derek Jeter responded to remarks about a comfortable and prominent lead in the division, "we don't have that luxury, we have to play each and every day".  Jeter also hit a 2-run home-run in the 8th inning and humorously added that there is no stress and the focus is going into Boston and playing every game.

Extra game notes:  Mark Teixeira is at this point likely questionable if indeed he will play again this season after re-injuring his calf in a dive to first base in yesterday's frustrating game that would have tied it and would have been a pivotal turning point for the Yankees.  Teixeira answered the media regarding questionable decisions of playing while not physically 100 percent."I had to test it out, I had to see where i was, Hopefully it is not worse than what we saw".  He also added that it was great to win this ballgame especially after a bad call made by the official in yesterday's loss.

   The Bombers leave Baltimore going 2-2 but maintain a one-game lead in the American League East.  With this win, the Yankees might go into Fenway with a little momentum against the Red Sox with a day off tomorrow.


B.C Sports,
Brian Chin

Yankees Regain First Place - Sept 5, 2012

   
September 5, 2012

     After dropping six of their last nine games, the Yankees rolled into the final game of the series in Tampa tied in first place with their division contenders the Baltimore Orioles.  Prior to that the Yankees have maintained first place for 87 consecutive days.  It was clear the Yankees needed a wake up call and with a team meeting before the game, they might have just gotten that kick in the engine.

     The Bronx Bombers had their 37 year old veteran Huroki Kuroda on the mound.  Things did not look good in the bottom of the first when Evan Longoria drove home the first run with an RBI single.  The Rays pitcher Matt Moore pretty much held the Yankees hitting down until the top of the fourth when finally the Yankees did what they could not do so often during the season, hit with runners in scoring position.  With runners on first and second, Alex Rodriguez ringed a double to left field which knotted the game at 1.  Then Russell Martin hit a ground rule double to right field scoring Robinson Cano and Rodriguez giving the Yankees a 3-1 lead.  The Yankees would surrender that lead and the Rays would tie it at 3.  Then in the top of the sixth, Russell Martin would come up to the plate and bomb one over the left center field wall putting the Yankees ahead 4-3.  At the bottom of the sixth however, Luke Scott would take one out off of Kuroda to re-knot the game at 4.  We then go to the top of the seventh and with a little help from Tampa's defensive miscues, with one out and Ichiro Suzuki and Steve Pearce at third and second, Derek Jeter's ground ball to second was mishandled by Elliot Johnson who committed a throwing error past the catcher scoring both Suzuki and Pearce.  This put the Yankees up 6-4 and at that point, Rafael Soriano came in for his 36th save of the season.  It was a much win by the Bronx Bombers.

     The Yankees were able to salvage the final game of the series in Tampa and with the Baltimore Oriloes losing to Toronto, the Bombers regain sole possession of first place.  Manager Joe Girardi and the Yankees might finally breathe some fresh air but nothing will get easier as they roll into Baltimore and play the next four against a hot Orioles team breathing right on them.

B.C Sports

Brian Chin

The History of the New York Yankees

The History of the New York Yankees

One can call it greatness, one can call it destiny, but the most successful franchise in all of sports The New York Yankees are a team that developed into nothing but a world renown team of excellence.  The story of the New York Yankees developed from and covers for more than a century.  This is the story that is filled with the most memorable and magical moments, mystique, drama, destiny, thus it falls nothing short of a fairy tale.  Just the word Yankees represents ideas of greatness, excellence, and success.  One can say the names Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford, Mickey Mantle, Reggie Jackson, Don Mattingly.  One would totally be confounded in amazement at the greatness of these legendary players especially those that have followed the success of the team’s history over the years.  One may not have grown up around the time of the great “Babe” or “Joltin Joe”, but certainly they have heard of the names before.  The countless times of magic and mystique continue to dwell in the hearts and memories of Yankee Fans forever and the Yankee fans of today fall nothing short of that sense of pride in the pinstripes also.  In fact the pride and the belief in this team is what fueled the spirits of many New Yorkers throughout the years.  Throughout the existence of the New York Yankees, its greatness would not exist without the ultimate support and backing of the “greatest fans in the world”.  The home of where this storied franchise began and where the memories and the lore had been born laid in the heart of the South Bronx, Yankee Stadium.  The fans it drew, the financial success it helped give the city, as well as the greatest team that took host in this famous piece of real estate showed its significance to New York City.

Throughout the eras, the Yankees have assembled possibly the most lethal and best teams in baseball and the league.  The 27 world championships won marks and exemplifies the awesomeness of the franchise.  However this team of New York as the majority of the people know and come to love was not always great and in fact was born from nothing but a second or even third rate squad.  The Yankees were actually born as the Baltimore Orioles in 1901.  About two years later, Bill Devery and Frank Ferrell bought the team for $18,000 dollars, moving this franchise to be situated in a location in upper Manhattan.  They built a stadium nearby to where the Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital is now, and they called it Hill Top Park, thus naming the team the New York Highlanders.  This team was composed of their best player a pitcher named Jack Chesbro who had won 41 games in 1904 which was a standard high at the time.  However, Chesbro threw a wild pitch in the 9^th inning of their last game of the season that year costing them the pennant and rendering them inferior to many of the top teams for the next ten years.  Due to poor management, the next highlight for this third-rate team was in 1912 when they added pinstripes to their uniform(signifying what is now an emblem of a world renown icon).  The first decade of the history of the Yankees was riddled with mediocrity and poor ownership and management.  Soon these Highlanders moved into and shared the Polo Grounds, home of John McGraw’s New York Giants.  It was not until 1914 that a wealthy businessman in Jacob Rupert bought the team now without a home and the Highlanders, after being labeled as “Yankees” in the media at the time became known as the New York Yankees within those years of change. 

Jacob Rupert in need of promoting his brewery products decided to try and take this team into a new direction.  Since the beginning of baseball and up to the point of 1918, the most successful baseball team was that of the Boston Red Sox.  They had won the majority of world championships up to that point.  They were led by a superstar by the name of George Herman Ruth(Babe) who spent the early days of his career as a great pitcher.  In 1918 he was among the leaders in strikeouts, wins, and because the manager Ed Barrow switched him to the outfield, he led the league in home runs as well.  However the most dubious move and arguably the most well-known move in baseball history came in the 1918 off-season.  It was said that Harry Frazee the owner of the Red Sox also ran and invested in Broadway shows.  *Needing the money to continue running that business, he sold the “Babe” to the New York Yankees for what was $125,000 dollars at the time stunning baseball fans and perhaps setting their own Red Sox fans in what would be the next 86 years of misery.  However what an impact Babe Ruth had in his first years with New York.  He set the major league record for home runs in 1920 and 1921 and drew a record high 1 million fans to watch the Yankees play in the Polo Grounds.  This feat was an accomplishment not even the New York Giants had achieved.  Ruth was arguably the biggest star and attraction to the New York fans which of course brought in much more revenue and profit.  Seeing the increase in fans of these new Yankees, John McGraw kicked his residents out.  So the New York Yankees found land just across the river in the South Bronx and this new building would become known as “the House that Ruth built”.  So in 1923, Yankee Stadium opened up and to many people’s delight, The Babe hit a home-run on Yankee Stadium’s opening day and that year they would go on to beat their rivals across the river, the New York Giants for their first World Series title in their history.

* Film/Documentary: 100 Years of the New York Yankees

           In the years after that, the Yankees hired Ed Barrow away from the Red Sox as their general manager, and from that point on, half the Red Sox team followed the Babe from Boston to New York.  Pitchers like Waite Hoyt and Herb Pennock would be included.  This remarkable change would in turn throw the Red Sox into a next generation of incompetence.  The sale of Babe Ruth and the events that followed right after would utterly begin the most fabled and most famous rivalry in sports history, between the Yankees and Red Sox.  The Red Sox would not win for nearly a century as the “Curse of the Bambino” was born.  The dawn of Lou Gehrig in 1925 would signify a sure quality first-baseman for the Yankees and batted right after the Babe himself.  Gehrig would become the Yankees 5^th team captain and in 1927, players such as Tony Lazzeri, Earl Combes and Bob Muesel would add to this already powerful lineup into what the Yankees were known as “Murderer’s Row” that year.  The most devastating 1-2 punch in history of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig resembled that awesomeness of the Yankees as Ruth set a record that year with 60 home runs and Gehrig followed with 46.  The Yankees would go on to win in 1927 beating the Pirates and also won the year after.  Lou Gehrig would be perhaps the most famous sports athlete to have played in more than 2000 consecutive games and starts.  Most of their early success came from manager Miller Huggins who led them through their first decade of excellence.  Unfortunately the late 1920s marked the beginning of the Great Depression and the loss of Miller Huggins in 29’. 

The entrance of Joe McCarthy would pick up where Miller Huggins left off.  The Yankees would win again in 1932 but also marking the end of Babe Ruth’s legendary career with the Yankees and would end his career with the Boston Braves.  Players such as Red Ruffing, Lefty Gomez and Bill Dickey filled out the lineup and order that was now led by Lou Gehrig.  The arrival of a young boy named Joe DiMaggio in 1936 would take this team to one of their pinnacles of their history.  With the addition of “Joltin Joe” on a team that already featured Lou Gehrig, the Yankees would win three consecutive World Series Titles from 1936 onto 1938.  Lou Gehrig’s incredible run and streak of 2,130 consecutive games ended in 1938.  *In the summer of 1939, Gehrig spoke the most famous words in sports history in front of the crowd at Yankee Stadium as well as in front of his teammates from the eras of the past.  He had addressed and announced the diagnosis of the disease that unfortunately ended his life at an early age of 37.  The Yankees would win the World Series that year.  Lou Gehrig’s number 4 would be the first number retired as a Yankee.

1941 marked a significant year as Joe DiMaggio set a record still held today hitting in 56 consecutive games leading them to yet another Pennant and championship that year.  The Yankees would win eight World Series titles with Joe McCarthy as manager.  In 1947, “Joltin Joe” would win his third MVP that year and Red Sox outfielder Ted Williams would win the triple-crown.  Both were have said to be in a rumor that was brewing and said to have involved a trade between DiMaggio and the “splendid splitter”.  However both Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams had served in the military in several of their big league careers prior to 1947.  In fact, the nation’s victory in the war resembled great pride and honor in the strength in this country and fans were absolutely proud of their many heroes in the war.  Fans showed great support for especially two of the league’s best in DiMaggio and Williams.  Thus baseball and the success of the New York Yankees gave fans but also the American people something to fall back on, to get them through, to relieve their stresses and worries in a time of war as well as a sense of entertainment and pride as well.

* Film/Documentary: 100 Years of the New York Yankees

Though the Yankees would win in 1947 under Bucky Harris, they would replace Harris in 1949 with Casey Stengel whom many people and media doubted in terms of character and managerial skill.  Surprisingly he stunned the skeptics with a Championship victory his first year.  In the years following, this team would be surrounded by dominant pitching such as Vic Raschi, Eddie Lopat, Joe Page and Allie Reynolds who is the only Yankee to throw two no-hitters in a single year.  Names such as Phil Rizzuto “Scooter”, Jerry Coleman, and Bobby Brown would help the team’s success.  1951 marked the end of an incredible career for Joe DiMaggio but also paved the way for a guy named Mickey Mantle to enter the stage.  Billy “the Kid” Martin would be players who followed making great defensive plays in critical world series games along with a great catcher Yogi Berra who would lead the team after DiMaggio’s departure.  *The Yankees would go onto win five consecutive World Series from 1949 to 1953, a feat unmatched in baseball history.  This decade of Yankee success but also led by manager Casey Stengel would be a great decade in Yankee and New York history as well.  The Yankees would win the pennant for another four consecutive years from 55’ to 58’.  In 1956, Don Larsen in game 5 of the World Series would throw a perfect game leading the Yankees to win that year.  Casey Stengel would round out his career in 1960 leading the Yankees to 10 American League pennants and 7 World Series Titles under his management.  Thus New York’s golden age was well in motion as Yankee fans knew in their hearts that the Yankees were going to win the pennant nearly each and every year.  On top of that, there were 6 subway series played in the 1950s and that really gave New York that great sense of pride knowing that at least one team from New York was going to win.  Most if not all New York baseball fans got into it and it thrilled the fans, excited them, provided that sense of pride and it marked a decade of Glory years for New York City. 

Just the name Mickey Mantle would resemble greatness and that sense of respect.  That is what he was all about Mantle did not only win batting crowns and hit home runs, and drive in RBIs and fielded the ball exceptionally well, he was a great teammate and a hero to many people and those that really admired and looked up to him.  Elston Howard became the first black player on the Yankees several months after the Dodgers signed and brought in Jackie Robinson.  Howard was a great catcher along with Berra and played in the outfield as well.  Ralph Houk replaced Stengel and became manager in 1961.  That year was arguably perhaps the most studded and awesome line-up in baseball history as it featured players like Mickey Mantle of course, Yogi Berra, Elston Howard, Moose Skowron, Bobby Richardson, Tony Kubek, and Clete Boyer.  Whitey Ford had 25 wins that year, Mickey Mantle hit 54 home runs and Roger Maris broke a record set only in history by the Babe himself.  Maris hit his 61^st home run on the final day of the regular season in 61’ surpassing Ruth’s prior record of 60 and Whitey Ford also surpassed Ruth’s record as a pitcher 33 1/3 scoreless innings pitched.  Comparing such a line-up to the “Murderer’s Row” of 27’ exemplified the greatness of the team over the eras.  The Yankees won 109 games that year and went on to win another championship.  1964, Mickey Mantle hit his 18^th home run in the playoffs but were beaten by the Cardinals in seven games.  That was Berra’s only season of managing while leading them into a pennant.  In 64’ the Yankees were bought by CBS and were brought into a decade of mediocrity as players such as Mantle and others got older and lost skill.  It was not until the 1970s that players such as Thurman Munson, Graig Nettles, Bobby Murcer and Sparky Lyle were brought in. 

1973 marked the dawn of a new era as a group of businessmen from Cleveland bought the team from CBS and was led by George Steinbrenner.  *He says “this team will be champions again, give me three years”.  So within those three years, he had brought in guys like Chris Chambliss, Mickey Rivers, Willie Randolph, Lou Piniella, Dick Tidrow, Ed Figueroa, and Catfish Hunter.  Yankee Stadium had undergone renovation in those years and reopened  in 1976 beginning a new era in their history.  Thurman Munson became team captain and Billy Martin returned as manager.  So the Yankees returned to the postseason after a 12 year drought of not being in the playoffs.  In the 5^th game against the Kansas City royals, Chris Chambliss hit a walk-off game winning homerun in the bottom of the ninth sending the Yankees back to the World Series however they lost to the Cincinatti Reds.  In the off-season after, Steinbrenner signed a free agent named Reggie Jackson.  His immediate impact on the team brought drama to the team as well as the media.  He doubted and questioned the leadership of Thurman Munson and also noted in a magazine “I’m the straw that stirs the drink”.  This immediate impact caused a ruckus in the Yankee dugout as clearly Munson was the Yankee captain and also during a game against the Red Sox, in 77’, a failure to make a

routine play put Jackson on the bad end with manager Billy Martin.  All this drama and ruckus in the Yankee clubhouse was termed “The Bronx Zoo” and attracted the media and the press and everyone involved with the Yankees.  The Yankees went on to beat their American League rivals the Royals which landed them back into the world series against the L.A. Dodgers.  This is when those magical moments of the Yankees seem to stir and rear itself up when in game 6, Reggie Jackson blasted 3 home runs never done by a Yankee or perhaps any other player in the world series.  This brought the Yankees back to their winning ways as they brought home their 21^st World Series title and all that fury, that turmoil was forgotten and perhaps forgiven.  George Steinbrenner had more or less kept to his word as a title returned to the Bronx.  The 78’ season did not start as expected as early troubles between the Martin and Jackson and the team took holster forcing Billy Martin to resign as manager and Bob Lemon took over to try and re-inspire the team.  Trailing by 14 games behind Boston late in the season, the Yankees crept back and tied the Sox by the end of the season forcing a single game playoff between the two.  Ron Guidry prior to this start against the Sox had recorded an 18 strikeout game against the Angels surpassing Whitey Ford’s record of 15.  Guidry won the Cy Young that year and the Yanks entered this must-win game.  Down by two, “The Curse of the Bambino” presented itself as Bucky Dent hit a three-run home run to give the Yankees the lead and eventually win the pennant that year.  The Yankees would also go on to win the World Series that 78’ season.

The Yankees would not win for another 18 years.  Within those unsuccessful years, Dave Righetti pitched a no-hitter against the Red Sox in 1983 and Don Mattingly’s first taste of the off season in 95’ landed not much success.  It did however bring in players such as Bernie Williams, and Paul O’Neill as led by Buck Showalter in the 95’ season brought them closer but no cigar.  Mattingly retired and Tino Martinez came in 96’.  That also marked the beginning of the Joe Torre era and a young kid who would be named the “Captain” and certainly is still the captain today, Derek Jeter.  The greatest closer of all time arguably also came in, Mariano Rivera.  The Yankees would return to the postseason that year with Derek Jeter’s mystified home run caught by a kid in right field.  The catch of third base Charlie Hayes and John Wetteland with the save brought the Yankees back to being World Champions as they defeated the Braves in 96’.  1998 marked another historic season as the Yankees go on to win 125 games in total and clinch another title.  They would sweep the Braves in 1999 and go on to defeat the New York Mets in the subway series of 2000 signifying their 26^th World Series Championship.  The Yankees led by Joe Torre and Derek Jeter along with the great line-ups of that era would win 4 World Series titles out of the five years.  The 2001 World Series and its magical moments in it with Tino’s game tie-ing home run in game 4 and Scott Brosius’ game tie-ing home run would represent the spirit and the fight of New York especially after the events of 9/11.  The comeback the team showed against the Athletics as well as against the Diamondbacks represented the strength and fire in rising out of the ashes, it gave New York as well as the New York Fans a sense of hope in those devastating times.  It brought people together and it also reminded New Yorkers of the strength and the pride of the city.

Throughout the Yankees illustrious history, there were many moments of magic,, mystique, story that surrounded this greatest franchise in all of sports.  The excellence and success of these Yankee dynasties throughout the century really exemplified wonder and greatness of the team.  The Yankees meant more than just a baseball team, their success gave the fans a wonderful sense of leisure.  They gave the fans a team to root for.  The excellence over the years brought in a great amount of revenue for the city.  In times of trouble, the Yankees symbolized the strength and recuperation that the fans and New Yorkers needed.  The determination to recover resembles the fire of the people that made New York City great.  To come out and play and win as the New York Yankees came to do in their history portrayed that sense of triumph, excellence and pride in the pinstripes and also the fans that have supported them throughout their century, the New York Yankees have fell nothing short of baseball’s greatest.

* Film/Documentary: 100 Years of the New York Yankees