Record for the Week: 4-2 (32 Runs Scored, 25 Runs Against)
Overall: 46-33 (2nd, 4 games behind the Red Sox)
Player of the Week: Let's leave aside Alex Rodriguez's .333/.407/.833 week, what with the four homers and twelve RBI. There are, after all, other candidates. If we go just by the rate stats, Jason Giambi had the better week, hitting .333/.481/.905 with four homers. Melky Cabrera got off the slide with a .945 OPS for the week.
Aside from those offensive performances, Chien Ming Wang led the pitching staff with two runs allowed in his eight innings of work. Mussina couldn't have been any better in the four innings he pitched--they were perfect, with four strikeouts.
But I don't think there is much doubt as to who the player of the week was. More on that below.
Dregs of the Week: It was a bad week for veteran outfielders. Bernie Williams "hit" .133/.235/.133 last week, Johnny Damon had a far superior, but still pretty weak .182/.357/.227.
In relief, Kyle Farnsworth and Scott Proctor made sure the "bridge" to Mariano Rivera was a rickety rope bridge with several boards missing midway accross.
Undisputably, however, the week's low came from Miguel Cairo, who was tithed a bunch of playing time as a result of the injury to Robbie Cano. Cairo hit .150/.150/.150--that's three singles in 20 at bats, for those of ou who are mathematically-obsessed. That's pitcher bad. At the end of the week it was revealed that Cairo has been suffering from a strained hamstring which, however, is "not debilitating." Comforting, no?
Story of the Week: I was at a cookout with La Chiquita's family on Sunday night. I couldn't sneak off to the TV room, but I had my phone, and therefore a very imperfect way of checking the score.
So I'm sneaking looks at the phone as the Yankees rally in the third, when Alex Rodriguez comes to the plate with the bases loaded. The count runs to 1-2 on Rodriguez when I reach a point in the party where I can no longer acceptably sneak looks at my phone.
I'm left wondering what happened. I figure if Alex struck out, the boos came back ringing down upon him. A double play would completely erase the goodwill from his walk-off homer earlier in the week, and would indelibly mark him a choker, as sure as if it was tatooed on his head. On the other hand, a grand slam would be a big fat bag of STFU (um, that's Shut The Fools Up, for those under 18...) for the haters, probably good until October.
Call me silly, but the next time I checked my phone, when I saw the Yanks had put up an eight spot in the inning, I knew what happened. Alex even added a three-run shot later on, to add a little insurance. So the haters better hush up, since between this and his game-winner earlier in the week, Rodriguez seems to have his groove back.
'Til October, that is. If the Yanks make it that far, all bets will once again be off.
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Granted, E-Rod came threw with that slam against the Mets. That's why they pay him as much as they do. More times than not he chokes. In todays game against the Devil Rays he came up w/ 1st & 3rd & 1 out in the 6th. he whiffed. Bernie then lined a single up the middle & Melki was thrown out at the plate trying to score from 2nd. Another o'fer for E-Rod. I say trade him for some quality pitching and give us a chance to win. He will never be Jeter & that eats him up. he will never be accepted as a "TRUE YANKEE" until he does something to earn his pinstripes. Hitting a walk off during the regular season does not qualify. There are only a few Yankees that earned their pinstripes w/o bringing a championship to the Bronx. And he's no Mattingly.
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