Steal Home Next Time.

If Larry Bowa doesn't like it, maybe he should yell at the catcher, not the baserunner:

"When Corey Patterson stole second and third in the seventh inning with the Orioles leading by six runs Larry Bowa believed Patterson was rubbing it in the Yankees' nose.

From the top step of the third base dugout, Bowa let Patterson have it.

'I told him to play the game the right way,' Bowa said. 'That was terrible.' "

Stealing third with one out is playing the game the right way.

The punch line is that the Yankees loaded the bases with no outs in the very next inning. With a left-center field power alley that's a mere 360 feet away.

Look around, Larry. It's 2006, it's the American League, it's the Baltimore Orioles bullpen. Six-run leads don't mean what they used to.


Last week vs. Detroit, Damon unsuccessfully tried to steal second base when the Yankees had a six-run lead. I'm not sure if Bowa had a problem with this maneuver. Maybe Bowa believes there is a moral distinction between the third inning and the seventh inning.

Before you could say "Leo Durocher," the Tigers had the tying run at second base and the go-ahead run on first base. With the, err, "enigmatic" Kyle Farnsworth on the mound for the Yankees.


New rule for all the crotchety old school coaches and managers: When in doubt, rub it in.

My team has full freedom to rub it in every chance they get. Extend the game. Wear out the opponent's bullpen. Pad your stats.

Which means the other teams will do the same thing to you every chance they get. Boo hoo. If you don't like it, then you can stop it by scoring more runs than they do.