August 16, 2006: Baltimore 3, N.Y. Yankees 2
Cory Lidle had a rough first start, giving up a run in each of the first three innings. He was lucky it wasn't more. He settled down after that, but it was too late. He'd put the Yanks in a hole they were unable to climb out of.
The game never felt out of reach. Indeed, I was sure the Yanks would beat up the Baltimore bullpen as soon as Loewen was pulled. Alas, it didn't happen. The much-maligned Orioles bullpen shut the Yankees down.
Many groaned when they saw the lineup. Joe decided to start Bernie in CF, prompting some fans to call for DFAing Andy Phillips and bringing Bubba up again. And as expected, the Orioles ran on Bernie without even looking up.
OTOH, Bernie did hit a double - moving him past Don Mattingly on the Yankees career list. Only Lou Gehrig is ahead of him now. He eventually scored, so I guess I'd call him a wash for the night. He did get a nice ovation from the crowd. They love Bernie, no matter what he does.
Some wanted Melky to start in CF instead of Bernie, but he badly misplayed a ball in LF, which caused some to reconsider. Melky didn't get an error, but he probably should have. OTOH, it seems to be the walls that confuse him, and there are fewer of them in CF. Still, I guess I can understand Joe not wanting to move him. The kid is just a rookie.
Octavio Dotel made his first appearance. It was short - three batters - but encouraging. He wasn't exactly lights-out, but all things considered, it was a decent performance.
Joe ended up using Nick Green as a pinch-runner for Giambi. Oy. Nick is not fast. He's courageous, though, sliding in hard and breaking up the DP.
Definitely a night when Bubba was sorely missed. It's pretty sad that we don't have a real backup CFer or pinch-runner any more.
