Baseball

As I had mentioned in my previous post, it has been nearly a year since the Mets acquired J.J. Putz from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for a bevy of players.

When they acquired the hard-throwing righty, the Mets envisioned having a proven closer that could fill the closer's role if needed.

However, as usual, things did not work out as planned for the Mets.

Matt Wieters was one of the most anticipated players heading into 2009, with fantasy owners waiting with bated breath for him to make his presence felt. Of course, the results fell short of the lofty expectations, as Wieters was kept in the minors until May 29 before being recalled and posting the following line:

For the second time in the history of Major League Baseball, the World Series was being played in November.

After an exciting Game Three that saw the bats come alive, the Yankees were facing the Phillies in Game Four of the 2009 World Series.

Coming into the game, the Phillies fans were excited and some were present earlier in the day to watch the Philadelphia Eagles rip apart the New York Giants just across the street at Lincoln Financial Field, so for some of the fans at Citizens Bank Park, it was going to be a long night, but one filled with excitement and drama.

Joe Girardi may as well change his jersey number to 30 right now.

Monday night, the Yankees have a chance to leave Philadelphia with their 27th World Series title in hand. Thus fulfilling Girardi's goal he set out to accomplish when he replaced Joe Torre, and intentionally wore the number 27.  

The rumors are out there. The free agent lists are nearly complete; only uncertainty over player and club option years remains. The trade market is beginning to rediscover itself, for the first time in six weeks or so.

And now, armed with all of that knowledge, we have an opportunity to begin the task of concretely formulating the best plan of action for the Chicago Cubs over the course of the upcoming off-season. It will be an imprecise science; it will also likely not come to fruition, whatever we may propose, because Jim Hendry's mind does not work in the same way as the average fan's...

With Johnny Damon down 1-2 in the count against Brad Lidge with two outs in the ninth, things were beginning to look very iffy for the Yankees' chances of winning their 27th World Series.

After Joba Chamberlain surrendered a game-tying home run to Pedro Feliz in the bottom of the eighth, the Phillies carried all the momentum into the ninth.

With Philadelphia's ace, Cliff Lee, scheduled to start Game 5 on Monday against A.J. Burnett on just three days' rest, a win on Sunday would've put the National League champs in control of this series.

I was going to wait until the World Series was over before I wrote a word.

I wanted to know everything and stop making predictions from game to game, as it drove me nine different kinds of crazy in the ALCS. And as superstitious as I am, I didn't have any intention of jinxing the Yankees on the doorstep of a championship.

But with the most important inning of the postseason—and surely the most amazing play in recent memory—under our viewing belts, the time is right.

Let me rewind to the 1995 ALDS between the Seattle Mariners and the New York Yankees.

It was Game Five, and the “Refuse to Lose” Mariners had rallied from a 2-0 series deficit to force a decisive final game at the old Kingdome.

The game was a classic and is undoubtedly remembered for the infamous Edgar Martinez walk-off, two-run double that scored a jet-fueled Ken Griffey Jr. in the 11^th inning.

But I want to flash back to the bottom of the ninth inning, with the game tied at 4-4.

With the soul of David Ortiz circa 2004 apparently having been transferred to Alex Rodriguez, at least for the 2009 playoffs, it's a good time to look back at the days before people thought he couldn't perform in the postseason.

Normally, loyal reader, this space is reserved for bone heads in the NFL. However, while watching the World Series I couldn't help but make an exception tonight.

In the top of the ninth with Brad Lidge on the mound and a 4-4 tie and two outs, the Philadelphia Phillies seemed to be cruising to a bottom of the ninth where they would only need one run to win it and tie the series at two games apiece.

Then Johnny Damon picked up a base hit for the New York Yankees.