It's really no surprise that CC Sabathia dominated the Angels last night. It's no surprise the Yankees are in the ALCS. It's no suprise that A-Rod is having a huge psotseason. And it's no surprise that the Yankees are on a path to their 27th World Championship.
When the Yankees first signed CC to that $161 million deal back in December, everybody knew the Yankees finally got the ace they were looking for. The only question was - would he perform in the postseason?
And as you know, so far he has, as he started Game 1 of the ALDS last week and allowed only 2 runs, and then last night he went 8 strong and allowed only 1 against a very dangerous Angels lineup in Game 1 of the ALCS. His stats in October thus far - 14.2 IP, 3 R, 12 H, 15 SO, 1 BB. Amazing, but not surprising.
Let's go on to Alex Rodriguez. Coming back from a steroid admission and going under the knife in March, A-Rod worked very hard in rehab to return to the Yankees' lineup. And he did on May 8th in Baltimore, and on the first pitch he saw, A-Rod launched a 3-run home run to left, to jumpstart the Yankees and kickoff a great year for A-Rod. In the final tuneup before the postseason, A-Rod hit 2 home runs in one inning, to give him 30 home runs and 100 RBIs on the year even though he missed the first 30 games of the season.
Then, the ALDS started. And in the first game, A-Rod ended his postseason slump, by picking up an RBI in the 5th inning of Game 1. Then A-Rod really erupted in Game 2, by slamming a game-tying, 2-run home run off closer Joe Nathan in the 9th inning of Game 2, to tie the game at 3 and set up a chance for Mark Teixeira, who walked off with a solo home run in the 11th. And to put the Twins to bed, A-Rod hit another game-tying homer in Game 3 - this one a solo shot though, but nonetheless it capped off an incredible Division Series for A-Rod, as he batted a combined .556 with 2 homers and 6 RBIs. And before he even stepped up to the plate in the ALDS, we all had a feeling this would be the year that A-Rod rightfully places himself among all the Yankee legends.
And thanks to these great postseasons by CC and A-Rod, and the entire team, the Yankees are only 3 wins away from returning to the Fall Classic. Anybody think this wouldn't be the case throughout the season? I didn't. I knew the Yankees had a good chance for #27, and they're proving it on the field this postseason. Keep it up guys, we're almost there.
