Some random thoughts

1) Its been nine years since the September 11th terrorist attacks occurred. I remember the devastation quite vividly, actually. I felt that MLB demonstrated a classy gesture with all the players wearing the tribute hats. It was also pretty neat to see a close up of the memorial plaque residing in Monument Park.

2) Today’s YES fan poll asked “Excluding New York teams, which Week 1 NFL game are you most looking forward to?” Of the 58,772 votes, 13% chose Bengals at Patriots, 40% chose Colts at Texans, 38% chose Cowboys at Redskins, and 9% chose Packers at Eagles. Personally, I’m most intrigued with the Dallas / Washington matchup. Fantasy football implications aside, I can’t even fathom seeing Donovan McNabb in a Washington uniform. On a side note, have I mentioned that I can’t stand Brett Favre?

3) I suspect there is going to be some degree of fan backlash for Girardi’s decision to give Derek Jeter “some rest” after last night’s debacle. Grumblings will most likely be vocalized from the same fans that have their heads so firmly lodged in their… uhh the ground… that they have failed to notice Jeter’s miserable performance of late. In other words, when the captain isn’t in the lineup, it’s a pretty sure sign of apocalypse. Said Girardi when asked if age played a factor in Jeter’s production, “Now if he were 38, 39, you might start thinking about it. …We believe Derek is going to hit and he’s going to get hot.”

4) Girardi said that he wouldn’t use Jorge Posada tonight in any role other than perhaps as a pinch hitter depending on the trainers’ assessment. In case you were curious, here are Posada’s stats as a pinch hitter:

*PHlev represents the Pinch Hit Leverage Index. Baseball-reference explains the stat as, “the importance of the context in which the Pinch Hitter was used.” A value above 1 represents a situation that is considered higher than average pressure. In contrast, a value that is below 1 is considered lower than average pressure.

5) In case you didn’t have fun watching a gazillion pitching substitutions over the course of five hours and twelve minutes last night, tonight promises to be another long one. G)#*%&*#&$ rain delays… In the meantime, Jack Curry and Bob Lorenz discussed A.J. Burnett‘s outing. The knock against Burnett’s performance tonight pretty much mirrored the “same old song and dance.” Both runs occurred after lead off walks and seemingly sporadic control. They also discussed Lance Berkman‘s rejuvenated performance since his return to to the lineup from the DL.

6) Whose excited about seeing Cliff Lee on the mound tomorrow? Since joining the Rangers, he’s pitched to a 2 – 5 record with a 4.69 ERA. He’s also been coping with some back issues. Injuries aside, are those numbers fooling anyone? Anyone?

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