Saturday, August 2, 2008

Ponson Sharp, Rivera the Weakest Link

Tampa and Boston both won but the Yankees slid back once again with a loss to the Angels. Surprisingly, Sidney Ponson pitched an excellent game, going 7.0 innings with only 2 hits and 0 runs, his best outing so far for the Yanks. When it came time to bring in Mariano Rivera in the 9th, the wheels came off. Mariano, who is normally a sure thing, walked a batter and gave up 2 hits, allowing the winning (and only) run to score.

That kind of a loss really hurts. A pitcher who normally struggles throws extremely well and the offense can't put a single run on the board in support. The Yankees had only 5 hits on the night and couldn't move runners or get them home.

It's been the same story all year long. The potential is there but the consistency isn't. The Yankees have had a few 1-0 losses and they feel absolutely demoralizing.

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