A-Rod, Jeter Lead Yanks To Victory Over Braves

On a muggy summer evening in Atlanta, the Yankee’s bats finally woke up, bashing 16 hits before emerging victorious over the Braves last night at Turner Field. However, it would be just barely enough, as the Yankees and their fans had to sweat out an ugly 11-7 win.

Alex Rodriguez’s first inning homerun and Johnny Damon’s 3-run triple in the third inning helped spark the Yankees to a 6-1 lead. Cody Ransom, playing for the first time after a 54-game absence, added a two run double in the fourth, which chased Braves starter Derek Lowe, and the Yankees seemed to be cruising along with an 8-1 lead.

Andy Petitte, the Yankees starter, quickly turned that 8-1 cushion, into an 8-6 nail-biter. Petitte started the bottom half of the fourth inning by allowing consecutive hits, a single and two doubles to Garret Anderson, Jeff Francoeur and Casey Kotchman. Kotchman’s double scored two runs and Yunel Escobar added a two run single to close the gap.

Alex Rodriguez’s homerun in the first was the 563rd of his career, which tied him with Reggie Jackson for 10th on the all-time homerun list. He also batted in two insurance runs in the seventh inning to increase the Yankees lead to 10-6. A-Rod went 3-for-5 with 4 RBI’s and a homerun and teammate Derek Jeter went 4-for-5 and scored all four times he was on base. Jeter’s first inning single was his 300th career hit in Interleague play and he is the only player to have that many hits since Interleague play started back in 1997.

The starting pitchers just couldn’t settle into a groove as both teams combined for 18 runs and 29 hits. Derek Lowe threw 78 pitches in three innings of work, while giving up six runs and three walks. Andy Pettite didn’t fare much better as he pitched three and two thirds of an inning, throwing 95 pitches and allowing six runs, three of them unearned.

The Yankees travel back to New York to face the Mets at CitiField for the second installment of the Subway Series. It is still uncertain as to whether or not A-Rod will be sitting on the sidelines for any of this weekend’s games. "Alex feels good, he feels like he's got a lot of energy in his legs,” said Yankee manager Joe Girardi. “We'll see how he feels tomorrow and check with him on Saturday and Sunday. If he feels good, we'll let him keep going, because we need his bat in the lineup."

Photo credit: (AP Photo/John Bazemore)(ESPN.com) Quote taken from the NY Daily News

Mets' Makeshift Lineup Beats Cardinals, Pujols

With yet another star player added to the disabled list, the injury depleted New York Mets were not intimidated as they held off the pesky Saint Louis Cardinals for a 6-4 victory last night at CitiField. Before the game, the team announced that Carlos Beltran was added to the 15-day disabled list with an aching bone bruise on his right knee. Beltran joins Jose Reyes, Carlos Delgado, John Maine and Oliver Perez, among others. It’s possible that Beltran may be out longer than 15 days and when asked if Beltran may be activated after the All-Star break, general manager Omar Minaya said, “That’s something that we have to consider.”

Daniel Murphy looks on as he hits solo home run in 5th inning. (AP Photo/Paul J. Bereswill)(ESPN.com)

Tim Redding earned his first win of the season last night even though the Mets fielded a starting lineup that has hit 10 fewer home runs than Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols. Mets catcher Omir Santos went 4-for-4, driving in a run and scoring a run, and second baseman Luis Castillo went 3-for-3, driving in a run and scoring two himself.

Despite sticking to their plan of not letting Pujols step to the plate with runners in scoring position, the Cardinals managed to stay in the game. With the Mets ahead 4-1 in the top of the sixth inning, Pujols laced a two out double to left field which was followed by Ryan Ludwick’s two-run shot to left which cut the Mets lead to 4-3. Redding got out of the inning when Rick Ankiel grounded out to short.

The key to the game came at the top of the eighth inning, when Mets reliever Brian Stokes faced Pujols with two outs and a runner on first. After working the count to 2-and-2, Stokes delivered a slider that Pujols grounded into an inning ending double play and ended the St. Louis rally. Cardinals shortstop Brendan Ryan led off the inning with a solo shot to left field to pull the St. Louis within two runs of the Mets.

The Mets loaded the bases in the first inning off three straight singles from Daniel Murphy, David Wright and new cleanup hitter, Fernando Tatis. A sacrifice fly from Ryan Church and an RBI single from Omir Santos, gave the Mets an early 2-0 lead. Luis Castillo, a favorite among Mets fans, hit an RBI double in the fourth inning which preceded Murphy’s solo home run in the fifth and Alex Cora’s RBI single in the sixth.

"We won on points. We jabbed them to death," said Mets manager Jerry Manuel, using a boxing analogy. "That's the way we have to play. Something from everyone."

"It is the way we have to play," Ryan Church said. "Use this ballpark to our advantage. But we can't just hit a switch and say, 'Let's do it this way now 'cause Carlos is out.'”

Despite allowing four earned runs, Tim Redding pitched seven solid innings, striking out four and allowing one walk. Francisco Rodriguez earned his 19th save of the season by sending the Cardinals down in order in a 1-2-3 ninth inning.

From The Couch…Redding’s last win against the Cardinals came in 2004 when he was with the Houston Astros…The Mets earned their first win over the Cardinals this season…St. Louis is the only team in Major League Baseball not to use a left-handed starter this season…This was the Mets seventh victory in their last nineteen games.

Information and quotes from SNY and MLB.com was used in this story.

Yanks Stumble, K-Rod Crumbles

After a five and half hour rain delay, the Washngton Nationals won the rubber game of their series by drowning the Yankees 3-0, at Yankee Stadium last night. Joba Chamberlain pitched six innings and allowed all three Washington runs before being yanked. His record drops to 3-2 and it is the 11th time in 13 starts this season that Chamberlain has failed to pitch at least seven innings.

Ryan Zimmerman had three hits for Washington, including an RBI double in the fifth inning. Alex Rodrigue* went 0 for 4 last night and is in a 3-for-34 slump. Derek Jeter also made a pinch hit appearance in the seventh inning but grounded out to short, ending a potential rally. This was the first game in the new Yankee Stadium in which no home runs were hit.




Felix Pie claps his hands after being called safe at third-base in the bottom of the ninth.
(AP Photo/Gail Burton)(ESPN.com)

*I intentionally left off the "z". Why should I correct the spelling of his name, if he can't work to correct his slump? I know everyone has bad days, or bad months even, but is it me or does it seem like A-Rod has one all the time??

Mets closer Franciso Rodriguez blew his second game of the season last night, when Aubrey Huff hit a bases loaded walk-off single last night to give the Baltimore Orioles a 5-4 victory last night at Camden Yards. Huff, who has been a thorn in the Mets side over this series, went 3-for-5 last night. "Those types of things happen," said Mets manager Jerry Manuel. "[Rodriguez] happened to have a bad night."

Baltimore came into the ninth training 4-3 when Brian Roberts layed down a bunt in front of home plate, with two on and nobody out. Mets catcher Omir Santos and made a strong throw to third but umpire Tim Timmons ruled that pinch-runner Felix Pie narrowly beat the throw, which loaded the bases, before Adam Jones was walked to tie the game.

"I'm a human being and unfortunately, days like these are going to happen," said Rodriguez. "You just have to move on." Moving on is going to be tough for the Mets who squandered a golden opportunity to gain ground on Philadelphia after the Phillies were swept by the Toronto Blue Jays. They face a 10 game home stand in which the defending AL champion Tampa Bay Rays, St. Louis Cardinals and New York Yankees come to town.


Information from the NY Post was used in this story.

Yanks, Mets Both Win

On a unseasonably chilly night more suited for football than baseball in the Big Apple, the New York Yankees came from behind to defeat the Washington Nationals, 5-3. Mark Teixeira and Robinson Cano hit RBI doubles in the seventh inning to both tie the game and pull ahead of Washington, 4-3. Ramiro Pena, subbing for Derek Jeter who had to leave the game due to ankle soreness, smacked a single to left center field, driving home the run that would add up to the final score, and avoid the embarrassment of being beaten by the worst team in the major leagues.

"You never underestimate who you're playing," Yankee manager Joe Girardi said. "I know from being on the other side with the Marlins that when you're struggling, you're really hungry."

CC Sabathia took the mound for the Yankees and despite allowing a three-run homerun to Washington second baseman Anderson Hernandez, he came out of the game in the eighth and received a standing ovation from the crowd. Mariano Rivera came on in the ninth to record his 15th save.

While that game was taking place, the Baltimore Orioles hosted the New York Mets in a rematch of the 1969 World Series. The Mets exploded for four runs in the fourth inning, led by David Wright's RBI single to left field. In the top of the seventh inning, with the score 4-2 in favor of the Mets, New York would finally catch a break as Baltimore first baseman Aubrey Huff misplayed Wright's pop-up, allowing two runs to score.

Mike Pelfrey pitched five and two-thirds of an inning and got his first win since May 7, against Philadelphia. Today was also manager Jerry Manuel's first anniversary with the team, since taking over for Willie Randolph last summer. "I feel like I've been here for 10 years," Manuel kidded. "I told somebody today: Every month I age five."

Bottom of the ninth...The Yankees didn't make an error for only the third time in 13 games...Wright has hit in 11 straight games, going 24-for-42 (.571) in that span...A-Rod is 8-for-48 (.167) in June, dropping his batting average to .224...Brian Bruney was activated from the Yankees DL and pitched one-third of an inning tonight. He was creditied with a hold; his fifth of the season...Including this game, there has been a homerun hit at every game at Yankee stadium this season.

Stats were taken from ESPN.com. Player/manager quotes taken from the NY Daily News.

Photo Credit: David Wright (AP/Rob Carr)

Weekly Sports Rewind

The two New York baseball teams played a grueling six game stretch in which they faced their divisional rivals and each other. And if you’re a fan of either team, chances are you were not very happy come Monday morning (maybe more so for Mets fans than Yankee fans.) Both teams went 2-4 over the six games, losing ground in their respective divisional races.

The Yankees came into Boston having never won a contest against the Red Sox this season. They were 0-5 against them and when they left town, they were 0-8 against their long time rival. "We definitely didn't envision this when we started off the three-game road trip. We came in here expecting to win some games," said Yankee outfielder, Johnny Damon.

A.J Burnett and Josh Beckett squared off in the first game and Burnett looked like anything but the $85 million prizefighter he was supposed to be. Burnett was rocked for five runs over two and two-thirds of an inning and the Yankees only managed to scrape two hits together, losing 7-0, much to the delight of the Fenway faithful. The next night, last years ace of the Yankees, Chien Ming Wang, made his return from the DL and brought with him an ERA higher than most people’s stock portfolios right now. He allowed four runs in two and two-thirds of an inning pitched, but at least this game was a lot closer than the previous night’s. The Yankees fell behind 6-2 and despite a valiant effort in attempting a comeback, they lost 6-5. The third time is usually a charm, but not this time for the Steinbrenner Nine. The Yankees took a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the eighth inning, and with ace C. C. Sabathia already having thrown 123 pitches over seven innings; it was time to let the bullpen take over. J.D Drew ignited the Boston comeback with a single, scoring Nick green. Jason Bay added another single with the bases loaded to tie the game at three and then Mike Lowell hit a sacrifice fly to score Drew with the eventual game-winning run. Jonathan Papelbon came on in the ninth to close it out and nine pitches later, Boston completed a three game sweep.

Meanwhile, down the turnpike and into Flushing, Queens, the injury depleted New York Mets were hosting their division rivals: the world champion Philadelphia Phillies. Coming into the series, the Mets were 3-1 against the Phillies and they sent ace Johan Santana out to oppose J. A. Happ in the first game. The Mets jumped out to an early lead when David Wright and Carlos Beltran went deep. The Phillies slowly crept back and took the lead away until Santana helped his own cause by using the “butcher boy” play to tie the game in the bottom of the sixth. Santana first showed signs of bunting bunt, then faked it by swinging and blasting the pitch to deep right for an RBI double. Mets outfielder Ryan Church homered for an insurance run but then Phillies star Chase Utley also homered to make the score 6-5. K-Rod came on in relief and saved the game for the Mets.

The next night would be the first of two long games for the Mets and they fell to the Phillies, 5-4, in 11 innings. Chase Utley hit the go-ahead homerun in the bottom of the 11th inning. The game would’ve ended happily for the Mets, if not for Jason Werth, who made a spectacular diving catch of David Wright’s line drive. If that ball falls, the Mets would have won the game. In the final game of the series, Raul Ibanez hit a three-run homerun with two outs in the top of the tenth inning to give the Phillies a 6-3 lead. The Mets had a 3-1 lead in the fifth inning, but they could not hold on as Bobby Parnell was tagged with the loss.

With both teams heading for a train wreck, the Subway Series began Friday night in the Bronx. The first game was a back and forth slugfest, something fans expect to see from these two teams. The Yankees wasted leads of 1-0, 3-2 and 7-6 and heading into the bottom of the ninth, they were trailing 8-7. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Alex Rodriguez stepped to the plate with Derek Jeter on second and Mark Teixeira on first. Facing Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez, A-Rod hit a pop up just beyond the infield and it looked as if the game would end. Luis Castillo was under the easy play and as he tried to put the game away, he couldn’t hold onto the ball and he tumbled to the ground. Jeter scored easily and Teixeira raced around the diamond all the way from first base and beat the throw home, giving the Yankees a dramatic 9-8 victory.

On Saturday afternoon it would be the Mets chance for revenge as Fernando Nieve earned his first major league win in three years. Nieve allowed two runs and four hits in six and two-third innings of work in the 6-2 victory. Along with home runs by Gary Sheffield and Omir Santos, the Mets had 17 hits during the game. Andy Pettite allowed 12 of those hits. In the rubber game on Sunday, the Mets sent Johan Santana to the mound, who looked more like a queen than an ace, against A.J. Burnett and the Yankees. Santana allowed nine runs and nine hits over three innings and was pulled for Brian Stokes. Stokes gave up six more runs as the Yankees cruised to 15-0 victory, which was keyed by Derek Jeter who went 4-4 with two RBI’s. "Today was a terrible day and that's about it," Santana said. "I didn't locate my fastball today the way it's supposed to be located."

The Mets and Yankees are both off on Monday and take on each other’s divisional opponents as interleague play continues this week. The Yankees welcome the lowly Washington Nationals to the Bronx, while the Mets travel to Baltimore to battle the cellar dwelling Orioles. This is a good opportunity for both teams to pad their stats and make up some ground in their respective divisions.

Elsewhere in sports…

The Pittsburgh Penguins won the Stanley Cup with a 2-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings in Game 7 on Friday night. Maxime Talbot scored both goals for the Penguins, before Jonathan Ericsson scored with six minutes remaining to give the Red Wings a little life. The Red Wings came alive at the end with an extra attacker, rifling shots at Penguins goalie Marc Andre Fleury, but Fleury made key saves, including a diving stop on Henrik Zetterberg as the clock expired. Sidney Crosby was out most of the game due to a leg injury he suffered in the second period. Evgeni Malkin of the Penguins was awarded the Conn Smythe trophy as the playoffs most valuable player.




Kobe Bryant led Los Angeles Lakers to their 15th NBA Championship last night, defeating the Orlando Magic 99-86 in Game 5 of their best of seven series. For Bryant it was his fourth title, and his first without start center Shaquille O’Neal. For coach Phil Jackson, it was his tenth title, passing Red Auerbach for the most championships won by a coach in league history. Bryant scored 30 points and teammate Pao Gasol scored 14, powering the Lakers over the Magic. Bryant averaged 32.4 points a game and was named the finals MVP. Also for Bryant, he finally answered his critics who said that he couldn’t win without Shaq. "It was like Chinese water torture," he said. "I would cringe every time. I was just like, it's a challenge I'm just going to have to accept because there's no way I'm going to argue it. Shaq congratulated him on his twitter page saying, "Congratulations kobe, u deserve it. You played great. Enjoy it my man enjoy it."



The Jets signed rookie QB Mark Sanchez to a five year deal that could be worth up to $50 million. While I don’t doubt that Sanchez is a good football player, I think he’s getting paid way too much for someone who hasn’t even taken an NFL snap yet. The college game is a lot different than the professional game and not counting injuries, some players have a hard time adjusting (see Matt Leinart). Sanchez comes to the table with a great attitude and strong work ethic and hopefully in time, he will prove his worth. He even stated that he will work harder than ever in order to justify the contract. When was the last time an athlete said that??




Photo Credits: Johan Santana (AP Kathy Willens/ ESPN.com); Kobe Bryant (AP David J. Phillip/ESPN.com); Mark Sanchez (www.nysuperblog.com)

Great Games From The Subway Series

Since interleague play started 12 years ago, there has been no better inner-city rivalry than that of the Yankees and the Mets. Since 1962. when the Mets first burst onto the New York baseball scene, fans from the Bronx and Queens have been debating endlessly over who has the better team. There is no question, that when you look at championships won, hall of famers, and post-season appearances, the Yankees hold the edge. But they've also been around a lot longer.

With this weekend's Subway Series tilt, the first one at the new Yankee Stadium, I decided to take a look back at some of the great games and moments played between these two teams. If you have anything you like to share: moments, memories, comments, or if there is anything I left out, feel free to e-mail TheDailyMoose@gmail.com.

Photo from www.cnycentral.com

June 16, 1997- Mets 6, Yankees 0 at Yankee Stadium

This is the game that started it all. Dave Mlicki, a mediocre pitcher at best, pitched a complete game shutout, allowing only two walks while striking out eight, in drawing first blood in the first ever regular season game played between these two teams. Andy Pettite opposed him and allowed five runs in seven innings. John Olerud was the star for the Mets and 3-5, scoring one run and adding three RBI's.

June 18, 1997- Yankees 3, Mets 2 at Yankee Stadium

In the rubber game of their first interleague match up, David Cone pitched a no-hitter through six innings, before John Olerud ended his bid with a double in the seventh inning. Tino Martinez ended the game when he hit a single off Met closer John Franco in the 10th inning, scoring Paul O'Neill. Despite finishing with a no decision, Cone allowed two runs and two hits over eight innings and he struck out 11.

June 28, 1998- Mets 2, Yankees 1 at Shea Stadium

This game ended in a wild fashion. With Brian McRae on first base and Carlos Baerga on third, and the game tied at one in the bottom of the ninth, Luis Lopez stepped to the plate. He flied out to Paul O'Neill in right for the second out, and O'Neill rifled a throw to first base to try and double up McRae. At the same time, Baerga broke for home and as the home plate umpire ruled Baerga safe, the first base umpire ruled McRae out. Bobby Valentine, the Mets manager at the time, came out to argue and after an umpire conference, the Mets won the ballgame 2-1 as Shea Stadium roared.

July 10, 1999- Mets 9, Yankees 8 at Shea Stadium

With the Mets down 6-4 in the bottom of the 7th, Mike Piazza hit a three run blast off Ramiro Mendoza that landed in the picnic area to give the Mets a brief 7-6 lead. Jorge Posada took the lead back for the Yankees with his second home run of the game in the 8th. Facing an 0-2 count against Yankee closer Mariano Rivera in the bottom of the 9th, Matt Franco ripped a line drive to right field which easily scored Rickey Henderson. Edgardo Alfonso was also rounding the bases and he beat out Paul O'Neill's throw to win the game for the Mets.

July 8, 2000- Game 1: Yankees 4, Mets 2 at Shea, Game 2: Yankees 4, Mets 2 at Yankee Stadium

It had been 100 years since the first day-night double header in two different ballparks, but on this day, the Mets-Yankees rivalry was solidified as a different kind of history was made. In Game 1, Tino Martinez went 3-4 with a home run and three RBI's to help the Yankees to a 4-2 victory. Game 2, however, will forever be known as the low point of Roger Clemens career. Despite the Yankees winning 4-2, Clemens intentionally threw at Mike Piazza's head, knocking him to the ground and taking him out of the game with a concussion. Piazza had good numbers against the steroid user and took him deep during the few games they faced each other.

October 21, 2000- Yankees 4, Mets 3 at Yankee Stadium. (Game 1 of the World Series)

Al Leiter and Andy Pettite both pitched scoreless innings until the bottom of the sixth when Yankee slugger David Justice hit a two-run double to give the Yanks a 2-0 lead. Edgardo Alfonso had put the Mets on top in the seventh inning, but Chuck Knoblauch went on to tie the game in the ninth when he managed to hit a sacrifice fly off Met closer Armando Benitez. The game would go 12 innings and ended when Jose Vizcaino drove in Tino Martinez with his fourth hit of the game. The Yankees would go on to win the World Series that year in five games.

June 15, 2002- Mets 8, Yankees 0 at Shea Stadium

This game was hyped up all week long as it would be the first time Roger Clemens would bat in Shea Stadium. Clemens stepped up to the plate looking like a prisoner on death row who knows his time has come. Mets hurler Shawn Estes let his pitch fly and it went behind Clemens, missing him totally, as many fans in attendance who expected retaliation for the Mike Piazza incident booed. Those boos would turn to cheers as both Estes and Piazza took Clemens deep in an 8-0 win. Estes struck out 11 Yankees over seven innings.

June 28, 2003- Game 1: Yankees 7, Mets 1 at Yankee Stadium, Game 2: Yankees 9, Mets 8 at Shea Stadium

Game 1 was uneventful as Roger Clemens beat the Mets for his 301st career victory. He pitched eight innings, striking out seven and allowing one earned run. In Game 2, the Yankees stormed out to a 9-0 lead, but it almost slipped away. Home runs by Roger Cedeno and Ty Wiggington and a three run double by Raul Gonzalez off Mariano Rivera in the 8th, cut the Yankee lead to 9-8. Rivera struck out Wiggington to end the game and Brendan Claussen won in his major league debut. The Yankees won all six games of the Subway Series that year.

July 3, 2004- Mets 10, Yankees 9 at Shea Stadium.

Shane Spencer hit a dribbler between the pitchers mound and first base with the bases loaded to give the Mets the victory over his former team. The Mets came from behind at three different times during the game.

July 4, 2004- Mets 6, Yankees 5 at Shea Stadium

George Steinbrenner was in attendance for his 74th birthday as the Mets took his cake and ate it too. Ty Wiggington had two home runs: the first was a two run blast that gave the Mets a 3-0 lead in the second and the other was a solo shot off Yankee reliever Tom Gordon in the 8th. The Mets swept a three game series for the first time against the Yankees that year.

Live From The Couch!

Its a big night for sports. On tap, we have the Yanks-Red Sox, Mets-Phillies, Red Wings going for the Stanley Cup against the Penguins, and Game 3 of the NBA Finals. Dont know how long I can go, but it should be an entertaining evening.

7:11 pm- Here we go- Misty rain falling at Fenway. Derek Jeter leads off, gets booed, no surpise there. First pitch, ground out to second.

Damon grounds out to Pedroia. Lets go Yankees!

Teixeira up now, fouls away three pitches, full count, works a walk.

A-Rod booed heavily as he approaches the plate for his first at bat in Fenway this season. Pops up. Way to go A-Rod.

7:18 pm- No score in Mets game. Bottom of first, 1 out, Cora grounds out to Rollins.

Beltran up. Lets see if he takes his own advice from that pep-talk he gave the other day. Flies out to left center.

No Brad Lidge for Phillies, according to SNY promo.

7:21 pm- Back to my9. Pedroia tries to sell a walk, long fly-out to Brett Gardner. Is it me or does he look like a rat?

#7 grounds out to Cano. Cano has one error in his last 50 games.

Yoooouuuuuukkkk can do it. Works a walk to increase his OBP. Its at .417.

Burnett throws wild pitch, Youkilis advances to second. Oficially scored as passed ball. Jason Bay grounds out to Jeter. One inning in the books, no score.

7:28 pm- Back to SNY, Sheffield up in the bottom of the 2nd. Grounds out to 3rd.

David Wright at bat. Second in the NL in batting average with .345 according to Gary Cohen. Homers to left field for his first dinger in 100 at-bats. Guy who catches the ball looks like Steve Wilkos.

Tatis up now. Draws a walk.

Church is now sitting pretty at 3-0. Knew that pitch was coming, 3-1 the count now. Ball four. Back to back walks after the home run,

Omir Santos steps in. He's ahead 2-0. Santos pops up, infield fly rule is called.

Johan almost takes one on the elbow. Strikes out.

7:40 p.m.- Back to my9. Red Sox up, no outs. Mike Lowell draws a walk.

Shrek steps up to the plate. Hasnt been the same since Donkey (a/k/a Manny ramirez) left him. Looks like the eye-drops are working. Blasts a homer to center field. Red Sox up 2-0.

Paul Bunyan (a/k/a Jason Varitek) is up now. Strikes out.

Kotsay walked on four straight pitches.

A-Rod double clutches a grouder, Kotsay safe at second. Nick Green on base by fielders choice. Error charged to A-Rod. Way to go Alex.

Pedroia gounds out as A-Rod makes long throw across diamond. He redeems himself a little bit here.

#7 hits a two run double. Sawx up 4-0. So far Burnett has not been worth his money.

Full count to Youkilis. Youkilis hits Burnett's 55th pitch to shallow left, #7 holds at third.

Red Sox bat around, Jason Bay at bat again. Bay flies out to Gardner.

8:01 pm- Back to SNY. Mets leading 3-0 thanks to a two run HR to Beltran earlier in the inning. Mets have the bases jacked in the bottom of the 3rd with one out and Ryan Church at bat. Church flies out to Werth and he gets the throw home as Sheffield wisely decides to hold at third base.

Omir Santos up and he hit the first grand-slam in CitiField history earller in the season against the Marlins. Santos pops up to Chase Utley to end the threat.

8:05 pm- Hockey hasnt started yet. Back to my9, Jeter at bat now. 2 outs. Grounds out to Beckett. No hits for Yankees through 3 innings.

8:08 pm- Utley hits chopper to Tatis for an easy out.

Howard blasts his 18th HR over the Dunkin Donuts sign in center to the delight of teh Philly fans scattered about. Lets see how big of an impact

Ibanez rocks one over the Modells sign in right and the Phillies put two on the board very quickly. The Mets had a chance to do big damage in their last chance, what kind of impact will that have now.

Rollins line a single to left. Three straight two out hits given up by Santana.

Feliz flies out to Beltran to end the rally.

They're about to drop the puck in Pittsburgh. Penguins have their backs against the wall tonight. I expect a rough game and I see this going back to Detroit for a Game 7. I would love to see this end tonight. Petr Sykora is in and Miroslav Satan is out tonight.

Quick check on Yankee game- Yanks still down 4-0.

8:16 pm- Over to NBC for some playoff hockey. Crosby had a good opportunity to score but was troipped up in the crease. Penguins two early shots on goal. Its a white out in Pittsburgh. Kennedy shoots and Staal misses an opportunity. Fleury makes a great save as Zetterberg is whistled for goaltender interference.

Pens first power play of the game now. Draper wins face off and Detroit clears. Guerin tries to slam one past Osgood, but net comes off moorings.

Quick check...5-0 Red Sox. Mets up 3-2.

Lidstrom clears puck, Gonchar shot saved by Osgood. Lot of traffic and swiping at puck in front of Osgood but no goals scored. Penguins PP over. Its the 118th sell out in a row at the Igloo.

Malkin's shot blocked by Kronwall. Guerin rifles a shot which Osgood saves. Osgood swipes another Guerin shot out of the air. Pittsburgh is out shooting Detroit 8-2 this far.

8:29 pm- Back to Fenway and Mark Teixeira is at the plate with 1 out and no one on base in the top of the fourth. Draws a walk. Hes the only Yankee to reach base at this point with two walks.

A-Rod goes down swinging. Cano reaches first base after Peroia makes a diving stop, but he cant get a handle on the ball. Its the first hit of the game for the Yankees. Posada strikes out to end the inning. Five strikeouts for Burnett so far.

8:37 pm- Check in at CitiField and Jason Werth brakes his bat with a single past Alex Cora. One on and no outs for Ryan Howard. Howard flies out.

Back to Steel city at the end of a Penguins PP and a little pushing and shoving between Eaton and Maltby. One shot on PP for Penguins. No shots for Red Wings in last 8 minutes. Ericson shoots wide and Red Wings maintain posession. Not much going on now. A lot of dumping and chasing. Eaton shoots wide. 13 minutes and counting for the Wings with no shots. Datsuyk passes to Zetterberg in front of crease and Z-Berg shoots but is saved by Fleury.

8:44 pm- Back at CitiField and Jimmy Rollins puts the Phillies on top with a two run HR. Phils now lead 4-3. Mets at the plate now and Tatis leads off the bottom of the sixth with a double. Crowd start the "Lets Go Mets, Hoooo!" chant. I realy wish the fans would drop the "Hooo!" part. It sounds so stupid.

Ruiz throws to second to try and get Tatis and the ball goes into the outfield. Tatis moves over to third and Ryan Church is facing a 2-1 count. Gorunds to Howard and Howard throws Tatis out at the plate. Replays show he may safe, broadcasters say so too,

Why isnt Manuel arguing?? Mets get robbed and thats a big break for the Phils. Phillies pitching change. Happ is out, Clay Condrey is in.

8:52 pm- During the pitching change, they are scoreless in Pittsburgh and the Yankees trail the Sox 6-0.

Omir Santos lines a base hit to center. Church moves to second. Johan will attempt a bunt and he misses. Santana bunts it foul now, count is 0-2. Santana fakes bunt and swings and rocks an RBI double to right field to bring Church home. Tie game now as Santos holds up at third. Way to help your own cause.

Castillo up now and is 0-3 in the game. He is now 0-4 after he pops up to Rollins. Cora hits a base hit up the middle and scores Omir Santos. Mets lead 5-4 and Cora takes second as the throw comes home.

Beltran is intentionally walked and Sheffield is at bat now with the bases juiced. Sheffield goes down swinging and the Mets leave the bases loaded for the seond time in this game.

9:03 pm- Back at Fenway, Nick Green is batting with one out in the bottom of the 5th. Swings at first pitch and flies out to Gardner in center. Pedroia up now and Brett Tomko was on in relief. Pedroia draws a walk and brings #7 to the plate. Enough with the pickoffs!! There should only be a limited number of pick off attempts per at-bat. Slows the game down too much.

Wild pitch by Tomko, Pedroia advances to second base. #7 flies out Nick Swisher all the way in the left field corner. End of inning.

9:08 pm- Theyre just underway in Orlando and Pau gasol drives past rashard Lewis and slams it home, giving the Lakers an early, but meaingless, 4-2 lead.

Back in Pittsburgh, and Johan Franez goes sliding hard into the backboards. Pittsburgh is up 1-0 as Jordan Staal scored 51 seconds into the 2nd period.

Quick check...Mets lead 5-4, Yanks still down 6-0, Lakers lead 10-9.

Fedotenko blasts a shot from the right circle but Osgood manages to hold on to it. Red Wings are being outshot 17-6 with 15:10 left in the 2nd. Lidstrom shoots wide. Red Wings look stale and sliggish out there tonight and its a "gimme" that they'll win Game 7 back home. Dupuid shoots and Osgood turns it aside. Pens are smothering the Wings as Detroit cannot do anything wiht the puck.

What a hit by Cooke on Datsuyk! Helmet goes flying. Gurein shoots and Osgood kicks the rebound back to him. Guerin shoots again and Osgood makes save. Smauelson;s shot blocked by Orpik. Helm shoots and Fleury saves a close one. 2 on 1 with Malkin and Dupuis against Osgood and play is broken up.

Detroit has had some chances but a lot of their shots are being blocked by the other Penguins players. TV timeout and I need a drink of water.

9:30 pm- Back in Fenway in the top of the 7th and the Yankees are still trailing 6-0. Posada is up with none on and 2 outs and he draws a walk. Nick Swisher is up next and he grounds out to second base to end the inning.

9:35 pm- Back out in Queens and J.C. Romero is in the game for the Phillies. Romero was out serving a 50-game suspension for a drug violation. Daniel Murphy is in pinch hitting in the bottom of the 8th and the Mets lead 6-5. There have been seven HR's tonight so far, a CitiField record. K-Rod is warming up. Murphy strikes out.

Luis Castillo is up and finds himself in a 1-2 hole and he fouls out to Ryan Howard. The Mets could have had seven more runs, if they didnt leave them out on the bases and the umpires didnt blow that earlier call.

Alex Cora lines out to Jimmy Rollins.

Quick Check before we go to the ninth...Red Sox lead the Yanks 7-0 in the bottom of the 7th, Penguins lead the Red Wings 1-0 after two periods and LA leads Orlando 36-31 with 9:30 to play in the 2nd quarter.

9:44 pm- Top of the ninth at CitiField and K-Rod is facing Jimmy Rollins with a 6-5 lead. Full count for Rollins. Rollins lines one into right field for his third hit of the night.

Pedro Feliz up at bat. Phillies have 18 come back wins this year. K-Rod strikes out Feliz.

Matt Stairs comes in as a pinch hitter for Ruiz. He is 0-7 inhis career against K-Rod but has 3 pinch hit HR's this season. Stairs is facing a 2-2 count and Rollins is taking a big lead against K-Rod. Stairs grounds into a fielders choice, but a great takeout slide by Rollins breaks up a game ending double play.

Greg Dibbs is pinch hitting for the pitchers slot and swings and misses at the first pitch. Looks at a changeup for an 0-2 count. Shane Victorino waits on deck as count goes to 1-2. Stirkes him out and the Mets win! K-Rod stays perfect and Santana gets the win. Mets win 6-5. Santana improves to 8-3 and K-Rod gets his 16th save in as many chances.

9:58 pm- Enough with the Yankees as they trail Boston 7-0 in the bottom of the 8th.

Back to Pittsburgh for the third period of Game 6. Holmstrom launches one, but it slams into the backboards 25 seconds into the period. Helm and Cleary attempt to scare 3 times and Fleury kicks away all three. Dupuis blasts a shot from the left wing and Osgood makes a save. Malkin steals puck behind the net in his defensive zone and drives down ice, but his backhander is saved by Osgood. Kennedy scores as he taps the puck in front of Osgood and over his skate. Pittsburgh leads 2-0 with 14:22 left in regulation.

10:08 pm-Cooke's drive is saved by Osgood. Time is running out for the Red Wings. Doc Emrick just reminded us that the Penguins have not lost on home ice in over four weeks.

In Orlando, the Magic have taken a 57-54 lead with under 30 seconds to play in the 2nd. Alston dishes to Howard and he;s fouled going in for the layup. Howard makes his first shot and Orlando leads 58-54 with 9 seconds remaining.

10:13 pm- Back to NBC and Kris Draper put the Red Wings on the board with 11:51 left to play in regulation. Fleury makes a great save without a stick to prevent a tie and Red Wings have found some momentum. Malkin gets whostled for cross checking Filpula and this is not the time if your Pittsburgh to commit a stupid penalty like that. Its the first PP for Detroit.

penguin player makes a great save as the puck was suspended in the crease by a wide open net. Hossa shoots and Felruy makes a save after Staal coughs up puck at other end.

10:20 pm- Bill Guerin is going to the box for a high stick. Does Pittsburgh wanna give this game away???

Update- Red Sox beat the Yankees 7-0.

Lucky for Guerin and the Oens its only a two minute minor penalty. Lidstrom shoots wide. Rafalski shot deflected behind net and Gonchar clears for Penguins. Detroit PP is over and Osgood comes out of net to make saves on Sidney Crosby with 5:01 remaining in regulation.

malkin steals puck from Datsuyk and Osgood covers the dump in try. Osgood makes a good save off a faceoff. Kunitz fed one ot Crosby bit Osgood broke it up with 2:20 remaining.

10:31 pm- Two minutes to play in the game now. Fleury stops Cleary on a breakaway to preserve the lead. Timeout Detroit with 1:12 left to play. Osgood is out of the net now as the faceoff is to the right of Fleury. Felury kicks away Rafalski''s rocket shot. A lot of traffic in front of Fleury, but puck does not cross goal line, thanks to Fleury stellar goaltending and Rob Scuderi's awareness. Penguins win 2-1 and its on to Game 7 Friday night in Detroit.

10:39 pm- Time for a little break as Orlando is leading LA 61-58 with 10:00 left in the third quarter.