Glory Days

27

I feel kind of tingly all over. I don't understand what's happening to me. Oh wait...is this...no, it couldn't be. Is this....is it....happiness?

My favorite things about last night, in no particular order:

• Derek Jeter hugging a besuited Paul O'Neill, and bringing a tiny tear to my eye
• Marion Rivera saying he was thinking of retiring, but now he wants to play five more years, then cackling and jumping up and down
• The satisfied look on Hideki Matsui's face
• Nick Swisher celebrating exactly how you would expect Nick Swisher to celebrate.
• The knowledge that there's never been a pitcher in the history of baseball that you would feel as confident bringing in to get the last five outs of the World Series than Rivera
• That once again, no one let Bloomberg speak
• Seeing all the fringe guys spray champagne and act like maniacs -- the Sergio Mitres, the Ramiro Penas, the training staff...
• Beating Pedro, one last time for old time's sake
• Not having to listen to Buck and McCarver for another year
• Seeing the World Series trophy in the arms of Derek Jeter. Where it belongs.
• The immediate reaction from Yankees haters across the land: "Payroll! Waaaaah!"
• This fucking feeling, back again

People at work keep congratulating me like I had a baby. What they don't understand is...this is better.

Game 5 Redux

So that's two consecutive Game Fives wherein A.J. Burnett essentially took the Yankees out of the game in the second inning.

All things considered, the Yankees probably got more than they could have hoped for this year out of Burnett. He was, stunningly, healthy all year, he was wildly inconsistent, and his final numbers were right in line with his career totals.

But the problem with Burnett, and the reason I was opposed to giving him $80 million, is that when he's Bad A.J., he single-handedly destroys your chances to win the game. I'd rather have a pitcher whose overall numbers aren't quite as strong, but who gives his team a chance to compete more often.

The Yankees' lack of a fourth started could be their downfall in this World Series. The injury to Wang and the decline of Joba are coming back to damage this team.

It's a minor miracle that the Yankees are leading this series, given that:

• Burnett handed a game to the Phillies
• The bullpen outside of Rivera has been terrible
• Mark Teixeira is nowhere to be found
• Robinson Cano is nowhere to be found
• C.C. Sabathia hasn't been dominant
• Jose Molina has started two games

The Yankees have been carried by a few great performances (Rivera, ARod, Jeter, Damon) and a few passable ones (Sabathia, Pettitte). They need to play better if they're going to win, and break this nine-year stretch of choking, misery and missed opportunities.

A Word, Peter

So Peter Gammons, who used to be a great baseball writer, tells us this:

Jimmy Rollins went on "The Jay Leno Show" and predicted the Phillies will win the World Series. He was made to be a villain in a tabloid front page, and fans chanted obscenities at him Wednesday night. First of all, the old locker-room bulletin-board clichés are just baloney. Rollins brings an attitude and an edge and loves the big stage. And, in so doing, he plays the New York fans and media for fools. It's comical.

How, exactly, P.G., has Jimmy Rollins played New York fans and media for fools? So anyone who baits someone else needlessly is playing them for a fool? And can you imagine what Gammons would say if Alex Rodriguez made a brash prediction and was getting booed by Philadelphia fans? I bet he wouldn't say, "Rodriguez brings an attitude and an edge," or "he plays the Philadelphia fans for fools."

Peter Gammons is an anti-New York homer who sold out the minute he started appearing on television. See that? I just played Peter Gammons for a fool.