Post-Rivera Era Begins With Win

In their 1st game without the most important pitcher in club history... or, at least, the most important pitcher the club has had since Bob Shawkey... the Yankees played the 2nd game of a 4-game series in Kansas City last night.

If ever we needed a starting pitcher to give us an emotional lift, we needed CC Sabathia to do that last night. He did, going 8 innings, allowing 7 hits and NO WALKS (I love typing that) for just 2 runs. He's 4-0.

Bruce Chen, a veteran lefty who's had a mediocre career, started for the Royals and pitched fairly well. He made a mistake in the 1st, and Mark Teixeira, moved back into the 3-hole, knocked it out for his 4th home run and a 2-0 Yankee lead, following Derek Jeter's leadoff single. The Royals tied it up in the bottom of the 1st, but CC cruised from there.

It remained 2-2 until the top of the 7th. Robinson Cano led off with a line-drive single to right. After Andruw Jones lined out, and Jayson Nix popped out, it looked like another runner would be stranded.  But Eduardo Nunez, so often useless, crushed one to right for a triple, driving home Cano with what proved to be the winning run. Chris Stewart singled him home, and then Jeter hit one out to left-center, to make it 6-2, and Chen was doomed (0-4).

Why is this man smiling? Because he's batting .404, even though he's almost 38. And, equally hard to believe, he now has more homers this season than Teix.

A four-run lead is not a save situation, but, still, as the new closer, it would have been nice if David Robertson could make a statement. He did, striking out the side.

So the 3rd game of the series, thus far split, is tonight, at 7:10 PM Eastern Time. Hiroki Kuroda goes for us, and, according to MLB.com, Felipe Paulino will come off the Disabled List to pitch for the Plainsmen.

Game 4 for the Devils tonight. Come on you Reds!

Awful performance by Arsenal today, blowing leads of 1-0 and 3-2 to draw 3-3 with Norwich City.