[新聞] Yanks' playoff streak comes to end
09/23/2008 10:00 PM ET
Yanks' playoff streak comes to end
Boston's victory knocks New York out of Wild Card contention
By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com
NEW YORK -- Joe Girardi had spoken optimistically of keeping his Yankees
alive in the postseason discussion, even against long odds. His reasoning?
There had not been an 'X' affixed to the club's name in the American League
standings.
Those last hopes for a miracle were dashed on Tuesday, as the Boston Red Sox
defeated the Cleveland Indians, 5-4, at Fenway Park. With the victory, the
Red Sox secured a berth and officially ended New York's string of 13
consecutive playoff appearances.
While Girardi and many players had hoped for a miracle, the mathematics of
the situation were impossible to ignore. To keep Yankee Stadium open past
Sunday, the Yankees were going to need an awful lot of help.
"This is when character shows up," Girardi said on Sunday. "To me, this is
when I like to watch people really work and see the character. You can
evaluate a lot about people this time of year. For me, this is a very
important week as we move forward and prepare for next year. Character means
a lot and we're going to find out over the next week."
There had been a moral victory of sorts on Sunday, as the Yankees took the
field for their final game at Yankee Stadium knowing that a loss would
eliminate them from playoff contention.
A general stadium atmosphere mirroring the seventh game of the World Series
was not coincidental. Not only did the Yankees intentionally plan to create
an October-like setting for the Cathedral's sendoff, but the club secured a
7-3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles, while quite literally fighting for
its playoff existence.
"It almost felt like a playoff series that we had just won, as far as how
emotionally tired I am right now, and physically," Andy Pettitte said. "It's
really weird."
The Yankees' playoff dynasty has been well-chronicled, beginning with a Wild
Card in 1995 and highlighted by four World Series titles over a five-year
span from 1996-2000. The Yankees also appeared in the 2001 and 2003 Fall
Classics, but had found it more difficult to advance in recent years.
New York lost a 3-0 lead to the Red Sox in the 2004 AL Championship Series
and has not been able to move past the first round since. Last year, the
Yankees were eliminated in a four-game AL Division Series by the Indians, a
series remembered for a strange Game 2 incident when a swarm of Lake Erie
midges unnerved rookie relief pitcher Joba Chamberlain.
Longest postseason streaks
The Yankees fell one season shy of the record for reaching the most
consecutive postseasons.
Team Years Streak
Braves 1991-2005 14
Yankees 1995-2007 13
Yankees 1949-1953 5
Yankees 1960-1964 5
Athletics 1971-1975 5
The Yankees entered the 2008 campaign with high hopes under new manager
Girardi, who donned uniform No. 27 and made little secret of his intentions
to bring home the elusive 27th World Series title.
But Girardi rarely had access to his Opening Day lineup due to a slew of
injuries -- at various times, Girardi was without catcher Jorge Posada,
outfielder Hideki Matsui, third baseman Alex Rodriguez, Chamberlain and No. 1
starter Chien-Ming Wang for extended periods. Wang did not pitch after June,
and Posada was lost for the season after July.
Additionally, the club banked on major contributions from young players, who
were not able to fulfill expectations. Rookies Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy
both opened the season in the starting rotation and remain winless, having
battled through injuries and time in the Minor Leagues.
Second baseman Robinson Cano drew criticism for a perceived lack of hustle
during a disappointing campaign, and Melky Cabrera regressed from being New
York's starting center fielder to a spare part. Chamberlain's transition from
the bullpen to the rotation ended with shoulder tendinitis in an Aug. 4 start
and leaves his 2009 plans uncertain.
The season did have its bright moments. Mike Mussina -- removed from the
starting rotation last August -- bounced back in a huge way and, at age 39,
is one victory shy of his first 20-win season.
Derek Jeter surpassed Lou Gehrig for the hits record at Yankee Stadium with
1,274 -- a mark that can never be broken -- and Mariano Rivera had one of his
most automatic seasons while pitching in save situations, converting 37 of 38
opportunities. New York's victory over Baltimore on Sunday moved them to a
season-high 14 games over .500.
"It's been a good run," Jeter said. "We have a new Yankee Stadium opening
next year and attendance has been on the rise each year. It's not something
that is easy to do."
In the end, though, it was not enough for the Yankees to avoid the prospect
of a dark October in Yankee Stadium's final season. Club co-chairman Hal
Steinbrenner said Sunday that discussions will begin in the next few weeks on
a number of important decisions the team must make to shape their roster for
a postseason run in 2009, when the Yankees will open their brand new $1.3
billion facility across 161st Street.
--
※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc)
◆ From: 220.134.51.75
推
09/24 11:00, , 1F
09/24 11:00, 1F
推
09/24 11:01, , 2F
09/24 11:01, 2F
推
09/24 11:02, , 3F
09/24 11:02, 3F
→
09/24 11:03, , 4F
09/24 11:03, 4F
推
09/24 11:08, , 5F
09/24 11:08, 5F
推
09/24 11:18, , 6F
09/24 11:18, 6F
推
09/24 11:19, , 7F
09/24 11:19, 7F
推
09/24 11:30, , 8F
09/24 11:30, 8F
→
09/24 11:35, , 9F
09/24 11:35, 9F
推
09/24 11:37, , 10F
09/24 11:37, 10F
推
09/24 11:39, , 11F
09/24 11:39, 11F
→
09/24 11:42, , 12F
09/24 11:42, 12F
推
09/24 12:01, , 13F
09/24 12:01, 13F
→
09/24 12:06, , 14F
09/24 12:06, 14F
推
09/24 12:09, , 15F
09/24 12:09, 15F
→
09/24 12:09, , 16F
09/24 12:09, 16F
推
09/24 12:16, , 17F
09/24 12:16, 17F
推
09/24 12:46, , 18F
09/24 12:46, 18F
推
09/24 12:48, , 19F
09/24 12:48, 19F
推
09/24 13:23, , 20F
09/24 13:23, 20F
推
09/24 13:36, , 21F
09/24 13:36, 21F
→
09/24 13:41, , 22F
09/24 13:41, 22F
推
09/24 14:22, , 23F
09/24 14:22, 23F
→
09/24 14:22, , 24F
09/24 14:22, 24F
推
09/24 14:33, , 25F
09/24 14:33, 25F
推
09/24 14:45, , 26F
09/24 14:45, 26F
推
09/24 18:16, , 27F
09/24 18:16, 27F
推
09/24 18:47, , 28F
09/24 18:47, 28F
推
09/24 19:24, , 29F
09/24 19:24, 29F
推
09/24 19:48, , 30F
09/24 19:48, 30F
推
09/24 20:12, , 31F
09/24 20:12, 31F