Yay clinch!  Yay that it happened against Boston;  Yay that it happened comfortably early to leave time to rest before the playoffs.

so we tied them in the regular season head to head record?  who ever thought THAT was possible after our slow start?

Also nice that we kept them from clinching the WC in our house.

Does Peter Pasquarelli ever look handsome with champagne-doused hair.

Does Peter Pasquarelli ever look handsome with champagne-doused hair.

He’s a regular Rudolph Valentino when his hair is in place.

Darn it, I love this team and i don’t care who knows!

How did the Yankees sweep a flawless team?

I seldom get to actually see the games: I’m glad I got to see this one. These players are good at baseball. I like them.

Best moments of the year?

A-Rod’s homer off Tazawa? back to back jacks off Bard?

I also loved Melky’s game winning hit against the Twins.

[2] “slow start”

I’m not sure that quite captures 0-8…

This is the second time in five years the Yankees have clinched against Boston. The champagne celebration in the Fenway clubhouse in 2005 was pretty sweet.

Arod homering on the first pitch he saw after coming back
Jeter passing Gehrig

Hughes’ start in Texas was a personal highlight. Also, Joba’s belly-flop start in Cleveland.

And Mariano’s RBI BB.

And the Luis Castillo drop for hilarity.

slow start = being too lazy to look up if it was 0-6 or 0-8

Every Phil Hughes pitch.

When Melky, Posada and A-Rod were jumping up and down like eight-year-olds gesturing for Matsui to toss his helmet during his walk-off home rum trot.

Back to back jacks against Bard were pretty sweet.

Ian Kennedy’s return. Teh 8th is secure for one more year.

Just thought I would pop in and say well done Yankees.

Hopefully the Red Sox won’t do a Mets and collapse, then might even get a chance to play the Yankees in the ALCS…

Take care

PC

Best sports weekend for me in recent memory.

Iowa takes it to Penn State on the road.
Yankees clinch the division.
The Lions win.

Shocker: Steve Lombardi is officially worried about the offense.

So tomorrow night should see the mother of all house money lineups, right?

(listed by position, because I really have no idea what order I’d bat these guys in)

Cervelli C
Miranda 1B
Hairston 2B
Hinske 3B
Pena SS
Guzman LF
Gardner CF
Duncan RF

I suppose Posada might DH, since he hasn’t played in a while, but maybe they’ll just let Gaudin hit.

Molina DH

Yay division.

I know it mostly comes from Associated Press, but here is how the ESPN report in the game goes:

“Favored to win the World Series since opening day, the New York Yankees celebrated like playoff newcomers after beating Boston 4-2 Sunday to clinch the AL East title and home-field advantage throughout the postseason.”

And here is the prediction of ESPN <strike>Red Sox Homers</strike> “experts.”

[23] I know he’s a god, but come on, the guy needs a day off once in a while.

Enrique Rojas (who?) had the Reds in the World Series.

You’ll never guess who Gammons picked.

Predicting stuff is hard; especially the future.

The BJ Upton MVP predictions are pretty funny.  The Grady Sizemore MVP predictions are kinda sad.

Hughes’ start in Texas was a personal highlight. Also, Joba’s belly-flop start in Cleveland.

And Mariano’s RBI BB.

Good call on all of them.  Joba’s bellyflop was an all time great.  I would have to add two Hollywood type moments: Gardner hitting a HR (inside the park, but still a HR) after a sick child asked him to hit one; Swisher finally hitting a HR at home, after a woman stricken with cancer, with whom he did a pregame promo, told him he was going to hit one for her.  I nearly cried my eyes out when I saw the woman, pink bandana covering her head (bald from chemo), hugging Swisher after the game.

[24] I can see what they mean.  3 out of 21 writers picking the Yankees to win the world series made them the clear-cut favorites.  Only 7 predicted the Red Sox.  3 is more than 7.

All good stuff.  I appreciated being present at the 20-11 thrashing in Boston - particularly getting to hang out in the visitor’s dugout prior to the game.

[24] Its crazy how many of the “experts” didn’t even pick the Yankees fro the postseason. I realize that picking against the Yanks was popular but they just signed 3 of the top 5 or so free agents during the off season.

Tomko and Ransom getting DFA’d were high lights for me.
Ace and Robinson filling out the pen was nice too.
I sat in the rain in East Rutherford today and had a gay old time. Flinstones style. Ribs and bad brakes.

Also, it’s hard not to remember the Twins series in early summer with the three straight walkoff wins. The Melky hit, the A-Rod walkoff homer, and the Damon upper tank walkoff. That was when you first started to feel really good about this team.

Why not give a start to IPK this last week?

34- Why not give me one? Or you? Or Swish?
I love nearly everyone today, including Varitek.

Wow, 9 predicted the Red Sox in the Series, 7 having them as Champions.
Well, I guess they are a dynasty and all.

32- Robertson, I am truly an idiot. Thank Mo I did not drive today. Yay Jets!!

Kurkjian seems to be the hands-down prediction winner.  (At least amnng the people there I’d heard of.)

As unimportant as it was, I took an instant liking to CC’s pitch to Yuck yesterday, the one that had him spun around until thumping onto his ass in the opposite batter’s box, looking perfectly dopey.

I have to say that I also remember being very excited about Joba’s three post-break starts.

And the Socks not winning a season series they opened 8-0 is mind-bogglingly, gigglily satisfying.  NY was going to clinch anyway, but THAT was just amazing.

Holy raindrops on roses, these are all good moments!  Keep’um coming.

The trip to the pool hall in spring training?

It’s beating you know who big!

The seven stolen bases.

otf, can you make sure Sanchez gets familiar with the slide?

40- Trip to the woodshed in hotlanta?

Ending the seasons of a few players (and potentially the entire White Sox team, IIRC)

CC/Burnett outdueling Verlander/Jackson

Dropping 2/3 at home vs. Washington (perspective?)

Do what I can Vill. I’m not going again til the Dolphin game.
People wearing sombreros? in the stands today. WTF is that about.
Me hammered and drowzy. Good night Champs. Curb and Dex tomorrow.

For perspective, how about Wang’s first two starts, and then coming back to pitch three three consecutive no-hitters… wait, sorry, I forgot, that didn’t happen.

That was when you first started to feel really good about this team.

This is just laugh out loud funny coming from the guy who was congratulating the Red Sox on their division title a week ago.

Man, and I thought WE hated the Red Sox. This is some serious hate.

Who can forget that amazing comeback when Swisher almost blew the game by bunting and snuffing out that amazing rally?? That would have sucked if he gave away an out in the middle of that rally…

wait…

Highlights not mentioned previously:

A-Rod’s first-pitch-back HR.

AJ taking Beckett in the duel.

Every Matsui homer.

Pedrioa getting plunked by Melancon.

Swisher wants the ball back from his first K (Gabe Kapler).

Youklis getting plunked by AJ.

cough#12cough

Just replayed the postgame where Gammons mumbled “popup” about the Teix HR.  He was noticeably silent during most of the highlights.

The two most enjoyable developments of the season to date have been Jeter’s resurgence and Hughes’s emergence.

Truth be told, if someone had told me in early June that the Yankees would finish the season series with the RS at 9-9, I would have called them a fanboy. My bad.

When did the folks here stop complaining about the NYS? I missed my couple of chances to check out the new stadium, has it improved as the season progressed (and with the price chop), or did the season take precedence?

And Mariano’s RBI BB.

Far and away my favorite moment of the season.  RBI and a save in the same game.  How sweet.

Swisher gesturing “blow me” to the A’s fan who was calling him “TRADER”.

[55]
When we got sick of repeating the obvious.
We could start again, if you like.
It hasn’t changed.

The incontrovertibly key moment in the season is when they controls to the vortex machine were placed in the hands of our Pinstriper.

[52] Oops. Uh, short attention span. Sorry. I narrowly averted double dipping on A-Rod’s walkoff vs. the Mets.

[59] Been tinkering with a new afterburner design, hope to have all the kinks worked out by the ALDS.

Originally scheduled to debut yesterday but I skipped the game for the opportunity to shoot a smooth net 87. So Cano’s was an unenhanced genuine shot with no V-boost. Gammons can kiss my fat porkchop ass.