Quick notes...not in any kind of order:
Another heartbreaking loss to the Angels in a tough fought game. They always get the last laugh on the Yanks at home and Monday was no different.
Sean Henn (why not Villione?) gave up a double to Kendrick with one out in the tenth. When you pitch behind in the count, bad things happen. Sean goes 2-0 and grooves a fast ball down the middle to Budde (a rookie who has one hit in the Majors) who drills it to right center. I thought if Melky dove for the ball he had a chance to make the grab, but with Abreu coming hard it seemed like he shied away from making a stab or thought he was going to catch it without leaving his feet. Melky is still learning to play the angles in center and his inexperience reared its head. Good night and good luck.
Hughes pitched pretty well (he said he didn't have his good stuff) for six innings, giving up three runs in the second after getting wild and walking two hitters. He got burned by another weak hitting catcher (Mathis) on a hanging breaking ball with the bases loaded, but regrouped nicely.
I thought Torre would pull him after six good innings even though he had a low pitch count. Let the kid feel good about himself, but Joe felt he had enough left in his tank. Torre usually goes one man at a time if he feels the pitcher is about done so when Kendrick singled to open up the inning I thought he was finished. Nope...After getting an out...he issued his fifth walk and then Torre gave him the hook for Viz, who immediately got tattooed and Anaheim scored three runs to take a 6-4 lead.
Georgie is still on an incredible roll and juiced a two run blast to tie the game in the 8th, but that was it for the Bombers.
Weirdness:
Phillips was on in the fifth with a lead off single and Melky worked the count to 3-2. On the next pitch Phillips ran and Melky took a pitch right down the middle and Andy was thrown out at second for an easy double play. Damon then singled...Argggg....Not a great game for the Melkyman.
Earlier in the game, Cano lined the ball down the left field corner, but a fan reached over by the foul pole and caught the ball with a glove. The replay showed that it could have been fair (it was hard to tell), but the ump ruled it foul. Torre briefly argued.
Farnsworth flirted with disaster as he usually does in the eighth, but pitched out of a it. He had second and third and one out, but struck out Willits on a check swing to end the threat which causes Mike Scioscia to freak out and get tossed.
A friend of mine was at the game and told me that all the Yankee fans (many) booed the heck out of him and yelled "You suck!," as he came off the mound. The Angel fans in his section were really shocked at their reaction since he got out of the inning. If only they knew. If only they knew.
Torre was forced to go to Mariano in the ninth and he tip toed out of trouble. If they need two innings and have the lead going into the eighth Tuesday, look for Joba to close. That's just a gut feeling I have.