Yesterday's Yankee game had many storylines: Torre's 1,800th managerial win, Randy Johnson's 250th victory, Tino's two homeruns, Cano's four hits, Giambi's go-ahead RBI double.
But I'm still amazed that nobody has mentioned ARod's baserunning play in the top of the seventh.
After walking with one out, ARod was on first base when Tino fouled out to the third baseman.
Oakland's Coliseum has a lot of foul ground and ARod went back to first base to tag up. ARod made it to second base easily when a somewhat surprised third baseman hesitated on his throw.
It's head's up! It's small ball! It's aggressive! It's one of those fundamental little things that don't show up in the box score that us baseball experts love so much and that the Old Yankees did so much and the New Yankees don't do so much.
Posada was intentionally walked with two outs and then Giambi and Cano came through with RBI hits.
ARod is certainly not the only player in the big leagues who'd tag up on a play like that, but he might be the only player with 350 homeruns who'd tag up on a play like that.
I feel oddly compelled to bring it up because I get the feeling that Jeter or Womack would have made the headlines had they made the same head's-up baserunning play. This blog may be the only place on the Internet which reports on ARod when he does something besides ground into a double play, make an error, or hit another useless, quiet, tack-on homerun.
2 comments:
Well said. If Jeter did this, it would be way overblown as if nobody else ever takes that base. It would have been as big a post game story as Tino's HRs and Giambi's "clutch" hit (I guess even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while).
Using Retrosheet.org, I found the following play-by-play account of last year's game two vs. Minnesota:
"YANKEES 12TH: Olerud struck out; Cairo walked; Jeter walked
[Cairo to second]; Rodriguez doubled [Cairo scored, Jeter to
third]; Sheffield was walked intentionally; ROMERO
REPLACED NATHAN (PITCHING); Matsui hit a sacrifice fly to right
[Jeter scored]"
Now, Jeter did his part in the inning, and it was a very important inning.
But what I remember distinctly is that Jeter got massive credit for tagging up on Matsui's short fly ball to RF. Not just for speedily racing home, but for having the mental knowledge to run back to third base and tag up.
Jeter is great, we all know this, and he may be the best baserunner I have ever seen. But it's the first and only time you'll ever see the runner get more credit than the batter on a sac fly. Sometimes Jeter Worship = Dopey Sportswriting.
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