A couple of thoughts on last night’s victory over the Yanks.
— I believe in the Curse of Moose, which dictates that the Yankees doomed themselves to a World Series dry-spell the minute they signed the insufferable former Oriole. And, man, if there’s one thing that makes me happier than free steak and handjob night at the local pub, it’s beating Mike Mussina. Despite his obvious talents, this Matthew Perry doppleganger comes across as one of the most pompous, obnoxious twits in the game. I don’t care that he reads books and can do math till the wheels fall off; it seems like every time there’s a bum play or a dead bat during one of his starts, he won’t think twice about throwing a teammate under the proverbial bus. That said, I gotta hand it to him; last night, he bent over and took it like a brave, telling the Post, “It’s almost June, and I don’t feel like I have done anything as far as contributing.”
— Watching Doug Mientkiewicz standing on first base next to Youk, I like to think that there’s some kind of secret fraternal handshake or greeting among the members of the 2004 team. Even if it’s something as simple as:
Minty: What’s up.
Youk: Howzitgoin.
Minty: Hey, remember 2004?
Youk: Yeah.
Minty: That was pretty f–king awesome.
Youk: Indeed.
Minty & Youk: ::sharing a moment, staring off into the distance::
— I will never, ever get tired of watching Manny swing the bat. That three run jober he cranked in the first inning seemed so effortless, a quick swat that instantly pumped the air out of Yankee Stadium. As Manny flicked his bat away and headed for first, I could almost imagine Tavarez on the top step of the dugout, Mister Microphone in hand, announcing “no sweep for you!” Actually, that might have really happened.
— Always a class act, A-Rod fed Li’l Dustin a full day’s supply of vitamin elbow during a play at second base (presented here through the magic of YouTube). Ever the gentle non-giant, Pedroia brushed it off in today’s Post:
“Some people play like that, and some people slide in hard. A good clean slide,” Pedroia said. “He probably got a little carried away. He’s trying to win a game, help his team win. I don’t know. It’s no big deal. Ask him about it.”
So with Schilling on the mound tonight, it’s not a question of whether A-Rod’s gonna take one to the onions, it’s a question of when. With frustrations boiling over in Yankeeland, we could have our first quality donnybrook of the 2007 season. Stay tuned.
