Before anything else, I'd like to tip my cap to the Marlins as they showed exactly why they were not just the defending Championship, but considering they have won it 7 of the 10 years the 45 Division has been in existence, I'd say it's pretty safe to call them a dynasty... And they were not about to let that mantle go away easily!
Plus after winning the first game 4-0 and Mash keeping our Big Yankee bats mostly silent, they were full of confidence ~ as they always are... But guess what happened? We had our own Upstate NY Yankee version of Enter Sandman happen, that's what happened! And his name is one Mr. Lex Herrlett, aka "The Lexter"...
The long and short of it is that he then came on and proceeded to pitch the next 14 innings over a span of just over 24 hours to get not one big W, but 2! If not for some miscues by us in the field yesterday (especially my own pathetic fielding), he would have had a near shut-out in the deciding game of the 3-game set yesterday... And this is not to even mention the fact he also showed why he is the consummate lead-off hitter and got yet ANOTHER big hit in the walk-off rally just to boot! I mean seriously, for anyone who has pitched at our age, you already know what a big toll it takes on you to throw one CG victory, much less to come back the very next day and throw an even BETTER game and get ANOTHER big W in the BIGGEST game of the year thus far??? That's just jawdropping...
And yes, it's a team game (good thing too as I had my worst game EVER yesterday), plus you don't get an MVP for leading your team to victory in the semi-finals... However, I am going to give him the unofficial mantle of "King Stud" while also recognizing the other Yankee Studs who were also behind the comeback, walk-off 9-8 win...
First, field general Rick Caruso was 4-4, including a Billy Fucillo kind of HUUUUUGGGEEE hit in the big bottom of 7th rally... Trailing 8-6, he fouled off 3, maybe 4 Mike Girrard pitches as Girrard had came on to try and close it out after Mash's gutty performance on day 2 of this slugfest... He won the battle by knocking in Ray Demers who had led off the prodigious Yankee inning with a bouncer up the middle just out of Randy Craft's reach. BIG Kuddos as Ray also came on to catch the Stud King's final 3 innings following a hamstring injury to our stud 3rd baseman Dean Little and precipitating Mikey "Big Dog" Reutter's moving over from behind the plate to third... Sandwiched in-between Ray's lead-off single and Caruso's battling gem, The Lexter had also singled down the line sharply and moved Ray to third. So when Rick got the big 2-strike hit against Girrard and scored Ray from 3rd, Lex went to third after stealing second (uh yeah, he steals bases too ~ LOTS of them!)...
Next up was our "Gentlemanly Stud," Jack Griffin. He had already had a BIG hit earlier in the game to knock a run a run in and he followed that with another solid single to right-center and knocked in Lex with the tying run... Even better was Rick got to third with NO outs! And then after Jack stealing second, it became a no-brainer to walk The Big Dog Mike Reutter and set-up a home-to-first dp possibility...
And so, with the bases loaded and still no outs, the Marlins handing over the keys all came to fruition with a John "Hall of Fame Stud" Kalinski (uh yeah, like I said, we have a team full of 'em) fly ball to center field that Rick tagged on and scored easily when the relay was bobbled, setting off a wild Yankee celebration! Yee~Haw!!!
Dramatic indeed and very befitting a game 3 show-down with the defending champs... But it all means nothing if we don't seal the deal next weekend against the equally potent Giants of NY... We have to match them stud-for-stud (yeah, there will be plenty to go around go around) as their bats are sure to make some noise, but so are ours! Looking forward to the challenge of the rematch from 2 years and glad to see Stevie back on the hill and in action when it matters most... Seems a perfectly fitting end to the 2013 season as a 1 vs 2 match-up is the way it is supposed to go... But now it's time to upset the apple-cart and play some D as the likely winner is going to be the one with the least error's as giving either team extra outs does not usually work out too well...
And now I gotta go play golf! Tomorrow too! Life is good...
I can think of a few words for Lex. The guy is the "Ultimate Warrior." I tip my cap to the Yankees. Down two runs in the bottom of the seventh and they earned the win by stringing together hits off one of the tougher closers in the league in Mike Girard. And it took a Damn Yankees gamer, Ray Demers, to get the fire started with his single up the middle. Should be a great series next weekend.
Always loved your game Lex. You beat us on the bump, and in the box. You stepped up your game when the pressure was greatest. Kudos brother! Couldn't be happier for Donny, Kevin, and John who have been the best this league has had to offer for the last 20 years. Big Mike, any chance you might go back to proffesional softball? What a hitter, and a class guy to boot. Rick, Jack, Rich, Ray, outstanding 3 games, always an honor to share the diamond with you. Also I noticed you had a few ballplayers who didnt get a lot of playing time, but were contributing in other ways. Thats how you get it done. Congrats to the entire Yankee team!
A special tip of the cap to fellow Viking fan, Rick Caruso, who was the eventual winning run in the clutch come-from-behind win on Sunday. I had him down in the count 1-2, and threw everything I had at him, and he just kept fouling off pitches until I made a mistake, and he singled over second base, to drive in the first run of the rally and send the tying run to third with no outs. Huge clutch hit! I believe Rick was 4-4 on the day with big hits in each plate appearance. Also a huge hats off to Lex, who threw two 7 inning games on back-to-back days, when the Yankees needed him most. He also is a walking triple. If he walks or singles, he ends up stealing second (by far not the fastest guy in the division) and always seems to end up on third. Lex had the single down the left field line that chased Mash and brought me to the mound, in the bottom of the 7th. As Billy Fucillo would say: "He was HUGE!" Good luck to the Yankees as they next face a herculean task in the finals. The Giants look poised to take the trophy back from the Golden Marlins in a "you have it this year, we want it back next year" trade. I am already looking to add the parts I feel we will need to contend with the Giants for next years title. With Lounello, Bolt, Kane, Konstantakis, and Geanellis as a starting staff, it looks like pitching depth would be a great place to start. I love my big 3 of Gadomski, Ansel, and Latorre, but we will need to add a little more depth to be in the same league with the Giants. Next year is an even year (2104), and I don't want to be the first Golden Marlins manager not to win the 45+ championship in an even year, since the division began in 2003. Looking to build for that 8th title in 12 years.
Good luck to both teams in the finals, but I am going to be first to post my prediction here: Giants in 2. First game is close. Second game, not so much.
Good luck to both teams. The Giants had to get by the tough Reds and we gave the Yankees all we could muster. Two teams that are both full of winners, Should be a great series...... And I hope it goes three. It'll be a well deserved championship either way. See you out there. Jreel
