Andy Pettitte (5-6) did not have his good stuff, and, as much as we love the guy, it's becoming clear that he should hangup his cleats after this season. He was betrayed by an unearned run, thanks to Brett Gardner dropping a fly ball. But he still allowed too many baserunners.
And, in relief in the 7th inning, Joba Chamberlain yet again showed just how badly the Yankee brass messed him up, giving up 4 hits, including a 2-run homer to Nelson Cruz. Shawn Kelly made things worse in the 9th inning, turning a 6-5 deficit into an 8-5 final score.
In fact, the only Yankee pitcher to do any good last night -- aside from Preston Claiborne, who got the last out when Joba melted down again -- was Boone Logan. I saw him come in to start the 8th, and said, "Oh, sweet Lord, have mercy, and take me now." But he pitched to just 2 batters, David Murphy and Leonys Martin, and struck them both out.
The Yankees got some runs on Justin Grimm (7-5), including home runs by Lyle Overbay (his 9th) and Ichiro Suzuki (his 5th, and his 2nd in as many games). Between them, Gardner and Ichiro got 5 hits. But the rest of the Yankees combined only got 5, as Grimm and former Minnesota Twins closer Joe Nathan (with his 26th save) got the job done.
The series concludes this afternoon, weather permitting. Phil Hughes goes against Derek Holland. Come on you Pinstripes!
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If the Yankees do come on, it will be without Mark Teixeira. His wrist, which has kept him out of most of this season so far, now requires surgery, and it looks like he'll be out for the rest of the season.
It's worth asking if he'll ever play for the Yankees again. Like Alex Rodriguez. Although, in his case, only for an injury. Those enormous contracts did get us a World Championship, which we should never, ever take for granted -- after all, New York's Other Team hasn't won one in 27 years -- but the money we're spending on injured players is money we can't spend on healthy players.
It now looks like the New York Jets are no longer having the most embarrassing offseason in the NFL, or even the AFC East. In fact, the New England Patriots are having a killer offseason!
(NOTE: That was a reference to the Aaron Hernandez case.)
The New Jersey Devils re-signed Dainius Zubrus to a 3-year contract. That helps. So does the apparent fact that Adam Henrique, he who scored The Greatest Goal in Devils History, has received a qualifying offer, which may prevent him from becoming a restricted free agent.
But there are more important players to re-sign: Patrik Elias and David Clarkson. And it's looking more and more like the Big Bald Cheapskate won't re-sign Clarkie.
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Days until the Red Bulls play again: 3, this Sunday afternoon, home to the Houston Dynamo. In their last 2 games, Metro have lost to derby opponents: Knocked out of the U.S. Open Cup (America's equivalent of England's FA Cup) by the New England Revolution, and beaten in league play by the Philadelphia Union. They have got to step it up.
Days until the U.S. National Soccer Team plays again: 12, on Tuesday, July 9, vs. the Central American nation of Belize in the CONCACAF Gold Cup, at Jeld-Wen Field (fomrerly Civic Stadium) in Portland, Oregon. Under 2 weeks. Victories over Jamaica and Panama mean that we've come very close to qualifying for next year's World Cup.
Days until the next Yankees-Red Sox series begins: 22, on Friday, July 19. Just 3 weeks. Due to the MLB office banjaxing the schedule with this 15-teams-in-each-League setup, this 1st series after the All-Star Break will be the 1st series between the teams at Fenway this season. Then another series begins at Fenway on Friday, August 16. Then another in The Bronx on Thursday, September 5, and another at Fenway on Friday, September 13. Oh yeah, if you're a Red Sox fan, that's a day you want to play the Yankees: Friday the 13th!
Days until Arsenal play another competitive match: 51, on Saturday, August 17, home to Aston Villa of Birmingham. A little over 7 weeks.
Days until Rutgers plays football again: 63, on Thursday night, August 29, away to Fresno State University in California. Just 9 weeks. The 1st home game of the 2013 season will be on Saturday, September 7, vs. Norfolk State.
Days until the next North London Derby: 65, on Saturday, August 31, at New Highbury. It is unusual for Arsenal and Tottenham to play each other so soon in the season, just the 3rd League game. Usually, they wait until November, sometimes as early as October, for the 1st meeting of the season between the teams. I have to remember to do a post on "St. Totteringham's Day."
Days until the Red Bulls next play a "derby," against either the New England Revolution, the Philadelphia Union or D.C. United: 65, home to Washington's D.C. United.
Days until East Brunswick High School plays football again: 79, on September 12 -- on a Thursday due to Rosh Hoshanah, the Jewish New Year, falling on a weekend. It's away to South Brunswick. A little over 11 weeks. It will be the first game they play without Marcus Borden as head coach since Thanksgiving Day 1982 (a loss to Colonia High of Woodbridge), as he has left the program. (Did he jump, or was he pushed? I don't know.) A new coach has been named: Bob Molarz, who turned nearby Carteret High School, which couldn't buy a win while I was at EBHS, into a team that made the Playoffs 9 seasons in a row and won 3 Central Jersey Group II Championships. He comes to us from the head job at one of our rivals, St. Joseph's of Metuchen, where he coached their first 2 seasons of varsity ball. A great hire.
Days until the Devils play again: Unknown, as the 2013-14 NHL schedule has yet to be released. Most likely, the new season will begin on the 1st Friday of October (October 4). If so, and the Devils debut on opening night (rather than the next night, Saturday), that's 99 days. A little over 3 months.
Days until the Devils play another local rival: See the previous answer.
Days until the next East Brunswick-Old Bridge Thanksgiving clash: 154 (November 28). Just 5 months.
Days until the Devils play the Rangers at Yankee Stadium: 213 (January 26, 2014). Just 7 months.
Days until Super Bowl XLVIII at the Meadowlands: 220 (February 2, 2014). Of course, we have no idea who the opposing teams will be. The possibility exists that either the Giants or the Jets could be in it -- or both. To this day, no team has ever played a Super Bowl in its own stadium -- in spite of multiple hostings by Miami, New Orleans and various California teams. Only 2 have done so in their home metro area: The 1979-80 Los Angeles Rams, whose home field was then the L.A. Coliseum, and they lost to Pittsburgh at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena; and the 1984-85 San Francisco 49ers, whose home field, then as now, was Candlestick Park, and they beat Miami at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto, which had a much larger capacity than Candlestick.
Days until the next Winter Olympics, in Sochi, Russia: 225 (February 7, 2014).
Days until the next World Cup, in Brazil: 350 (June 12, 2014). Under 1 year.
Days until Rutgers' first Big Ten Conference football game: 443, on Saturday, September 13, 2014 -- at home, against our most hated rival, now a league rival for the very first time: Penn State. Yes, even before the 2013 college football season begins, the 2014 Big 10 sked has been released. I guess that's the difference between the Big East and a real college football league. Anyway, that's under 15 months.
Days until the next Summer Olympics, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: 1,135 (August 5, 2016). A little over 3 years.
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