Just Joshing Ya

Ah, Nothing like a trip from your most heated rival to get things back on track. To be fair, Beckett was straight dealing last night, there wasn't anything the Yanks could do about it. After pitching terribly against the Yanks the past couple years, Beckett turned back the clock and shoved it like it was Game 6 of the 2003 World Series.

Some alarming points in Yankeeland:

1.) Phil Hughes' Velo. 85 MPH BP fastballs aren't going to get it done in the AL East. Hopefully he gets his arm strength up as the season progresses but the fact that the Yankees needed to throw money at the corpse of Carlos Silva this weekend is not an encouraging sign.

2.) Derek Jeter. - I love the Captain, and he can play on this team for as long as he desires and I won't complain or boo. Ever. With that being said, he just isn't the same player anymore. I got caught up in the hype around his new batting stance this spring and how he was going to have a bounce back year. With every AB that is looking more and more like a pipe dream.

3.) Ivan Nova. Kinda. - Nova seems to be doing exactly what he did last year; rip through the lineup the first time through and then struggle the next time around. He needs to learn to make adjustments out on the mound or he will continue to just be a mediocre pitcher. Fenway is a tough place to pitch in, especially against the Sox ruthless lineup so I still am willing to give him some more time before officially passing some judgment.

Either way, this weekend went exactly how I thought it would. Nothing like a little Pinstripe to cure Boston's hitting woes. Welcome to the 2011 season Sox, lets get down for the thrown down.

Say Hello To The Enemy

We are bringing a new angle for our baseball coverage, and as you can tell from the title it's a Yankee fan. So without any further delay, here is "The Empire"...

Are we really different you and I? Did your father not put a glove on your hand and a ball in the other before you could put sentences together? Do we not suffer through the same cold, and miserable winters together? Can you not recall every excruciating playoff defeat, and the glorious playoff victory of your team since your 10th birthday? I bet you can. Because I can too.

The thin line between love and hate can be drawn on that 220 mile journey on I-95. Or maybe you are more of an 84 to 91 guy like myself. Either way, the passion, the ideals, the way of life - those things donʼt dissipate on the ride; they just change colors. The distance isnʼt far enough for us to not understand each other. We get each other so well and thats why we will never understand; how can we be so similar, yet so different? Donʼt believe me? Try having an intelligent sports conversation with an LA fan - you may need to wait until their team is in the playoffs, but still, try and have one and see how it goes.

On the boarder of North Korea and South Korea soldiers from both countries guard a thin line. They stand there, all day intensely focused on protecting their side of the 38th parallel. I wonder if those soldiers ever think about how similar they are to their enemy. They made the same life commitment to serving their country. They both have parents. Maybe both their fathers were fisherman. Maybe both their mothers like to sow. In another life, with different politics, those two sworn enemies could have been best friends. Yet they stand there willing to fight to the death to protect their alignment.

My dorm-room was freezing that night for Game 7. There was a window still cracked from my roommate who used to shoot his bebe gun at unsuspecting students in the quad. The room was mine now because he had just gotten kicked out of school for his little fetish. The floors were dirty, the lighting was crappy, my TV was tiny and my stomach was turning when Johnny Damon hit that grand-slam off Javy Vazquezʼs first pitch. I remember it like yesterday. I remember it because the Yankees are part of who I am just like the Red Sox are part of you. I have a hundred of stories just like that. I look forward to sharing them with you. Lets Go Yan-Kees!!