The Inning That Wouldn't Die

Or title number two could have been, "The Leaky 'Pen." But I'll stick with what it is now. And what inning would that have been? Why, yesterday's top of the ninth, a study in human exasperation and patience in the face of utter disaster. The pen did its best to squander a 7-4 lead after 5. Jon Lester threw 102 pitches in only 5 innings as he struggled mightily again. Let's not have to get used to this. Please. Kyle Snyder was totally ineffective. Manny Delcarmen was better until he lost sight of the plate. He must have dropped a contac lens or two. Craig Hansen? I shudder to think back. And finally, the guy Tito wanted to rest had to come in, for the Yankees had lost and we were in a great position to gain another game on them. 31 pitches and a tremendous backhanded stab by MVP of the game Mike Lowell (thank you Mikey!) and it was over. Over, finally. I angrily and happily turned off the TV and tried to calm down. Jogging did the trick. But for too many minutes a beautiful picture perfect Sunday afternoon turned into a pacing nervous agony.
So we're off to a 3-0 start on this August '06 homestand. 8 more to go. Let's win 'em all.