Bronx Bombers sweep Twinkies and move on to face Angels in ALCS

Mark Teixeira hit a Game 2 Walkoff Home Run and helped lead the Yankees to a ALDS sweep of the Twins

With Mariano River’s last pitch, which produced a weak groundball to Derek Jeter, it appeared as though no time had passed since the Yankees teams of the late 90s and early 2000s dominated postseason play and earned the opportunities to play deep into October. This groundball, which Derek Jeter threw over to Mark Teixeira at first, concluded a 4-1 Yankees win over the Twins on Sunday night, giving the Yankees a 3-0 ALDS series sweep over the feisty Twins.

League of Shadows: Sammy Sosa tested positive for steroids

 

Sammy Sosa tested positive for PEDs in 2003

You can check another one off the list. A New York Times article earlier this week revealed that former Cubs’ slugger Sammy Sosa tested positive for performance enhancing drugs in 2003. Sosa is the latest of many to finally be caught cheating while playing in an era of baseball that will forever have a cloud over it. The positive test comes from a test that was supposed to be kept secret and anonymous, but Sosa was unlucky enough to have his name and test result leaked to the press.

Boston Massacre: Sox sweep series

 

The Red Sox swept the Yankees and moved to 8-0 against them this season

 

 

As i wrote before in my pre-series article, this was more than just a June series. Last night’s 4-3 Red Sox victory over the pathetic Yankees gave the Sox the series sweep and makes them 8-0 against the Yankees this year.

Yankees – Red Sox, Not just a June Series

 

Its that time of the year. On Tuesday night, the Yankees will begin a 3 game series at Fenway against the Red Sox, with people debating just how important the series is. Yeah yeah, I know. It’s only June. However, I think this series is much more important than people will believe. The Yankees have recently taken over first place and the Red Sox will be a very good test to see just how well they are playing.

Musings of a Cubs Fan (Part II: Carlos Zambrano)

Big Z Bashing a Gatorade Cooler: NOT a Bad Thing

So I was reading a sports blog written by two of my friends from high school, when I came across this article:  http://www.downswinging.com/wordpress/2009/06/zambrano-to-retirein-a-few-years/, which, paired with pieces like this and this have caused me to reach the breaking point.  I am really sick of people ripping on Carlos Zambrano from everything ranging from his attitude to his interaction with the media.  The fact of the matter is: the man produces great numbers every single year, so get off his goddamn back.

Musings of a Cubs Fan

 

We miss you, buddy

Normally, I support the general manager of the Cubs, Jim Hendry, in his leadership of the team.  For example, his decision to bring in injury prone Rich Harden this past season for some low-ceiling prospects was a brilliant, if risky, move.  It gave the Cubs staff a superb extra starter who provided the team with 71 incredible innings in the midst of a high pressure playoff race.  Had CC Sabathia not been even better for Milwaukee, Harden would have assuredly gotten the attention he deserved for his almost superhuman efforts.  Such a gutsy trade was exactly the sort of thing the Cubs needed to combat a Milwaukee and St. Louis team and stay on top in the division.  Hendry realized that the Cubs needed another ace behind Carlos Zambrano and made this decision after witnessing the Cubs play over the course of the first half of the season.

“IT IS HIGH, IT IS FAR,” please let him be gone!

For years I’ve tried to defend Yankees radio broadcast announcer John Sterling as a quirky, funny announcer who, while making some occasional mistakes, more than makes up for it with his infamous calls and one liners, but I must finally give in. I can now say with utter confidence, even without having listened to a ton of other broadcasters, that John Sterling is the WORST announcer in all of sports.

The Baseball Police

 

Baseball commissioner Bud Selig

 

 

The recent suspension of Yankees pitcher AJ Burnett really makes me question the way the league is being policed. In a game between the Yankees and Rangers, Rangers pitcher Vicente Padilla hit Mark Teixeira 2 at bats in a row, with what appeared to be clear intention. Teixeira took exception to this because he feels it has become a personal thing between he and Padilla, with Padilla constantly seeming to throw at him. The announcers discussed how Padilla was known for throwing at guys a lot, and that this had earned him a bad reputation not only in the league, but also with his teammates. After he hit Teixeira the second time, the umpire did not proceed to warn both teams, so it was pretty clear he was going to let the Yankees retaliate and then be done with it.

State of the Yankees

Although it is still early in the season, I can say with more confidence than usual that this year’s Yankees appear to be the best of recent years. Without a championship since 2000, Yankees gm Brian Cashman has finally begun to go back to the formula for winning baseball, especially playing in a very competitive AL East division.