Pitching wins championships. The Bronx Bombers have had the bats going for them all year long but fatigue becomes a factor in October as well as players breaking down in clutch situations. The New York Yankees did just that. The Tigers defeated the Yankees Thursday night at Yankee Stadium in game five by a score of 3-2 to advance to the American League Championship Series.
The Yankees had ample chances in game five to win the game. The problem is that they lacked the clutch and timely hits they needed from guys who are getting paid big bucks to get those hits. In the bottom of the 4th with only 1 out and the bases loaded, the Yanks failed to get a run in. In the bottom of the 7th they left the bases loaded after only scoring one run off a walk. The most expensive player in all of sports struck out in yet another clutch situation. Nick Swisher who also has struggled in October struck out to end the inning following Mark Teixeira's walk to score a run. The Yankees complied 10 hits together, but none of them in a timely manner to get another run on the board.
This was 27 year old Tigers pitcher Doug Fister's biggest game since he joined the majors in 2009. He pitched an absolute gem in his 5 innings only giving up a solo home run to Robinson Cano. Both teams used all the pitching they could Thursday night going through multiple pitchers and putting everything on the line to try and advance. The Tigers bullpen did the job and finally got the Tigers into the ALCS. Since 1988, the Tigers have made the playoffs only one other time in 2006 when they made it to the World Series but lost to the Cardinals.
It has been 27 years since the Tigers have won the World Series. Could this be the year they finally win it again? They have got the pitching that can get them there. The Tigers will face the Rangers Saturday in Texas to start the ALCS. They will try and defeat the defending American League Champs and prove to a star studded Yankees team that good pitching will always go further than a good lineup.
No comments:
Post a Comment