Quick, nobody tell Mark Teixeira the calendar’s turning to April tomorrow. The Bronx Bombers were back in action at Yankee Stadium and are assured of an unblemished March in this 2011 baseball season. We also found out that apparently Curtis Granderson’s strained oblique when translated from basketball to baseball equals “Jordan Flu.”
CC Sabathia was also on and had seven strike outs over six and yielded only three runs. There was also the debut of “JobSorMo” working the final three frames flawlessly out of the pen.
Cowboy Curtis Granderson was on his horse, bookending the game with a diving snag in the first and an overhead grab in the ninth. Sandwiched between those highlight worthy plays, Granderson took ex-Yanks hurler Phil Coke deep in the seventh with what amounted to the winning home run.
One of the chief reason’s it was Coke rather than Justin Verlander in the seventh is the Yanks were able to work him like a kid in a Kathy Lee sweatshop. Over 30 pitches thrown in the first inning alone enabled the Yankees to get a solid look at Verlander until he was pulled after 114 pitches through six.
Mark Teixeira had the big drive early with a three-run bomb off the Tigers ace in the third. It took 12 games for Teixeira to launch one in 2010 and the first of 2011 was a no-doubter.
It was one of those games Broadway couldn’t have scripted better. Timely and patient hitting, solid defense, pitching to the scoreboard with a hint of dominance. Only 161 more to go, but you can put a bow on Opening Day.