Team President Randy Levine was not around for comment Tuesday regarding the four-hour delay. He did not make himself available yesterday, instead electing to issue the following statement through a team spokesman.
“The decision to play Tuesday night’s game vs. Baltimore was a collaborative effort between Major League Baseball and the New York Yankees. Every possible effort was made to play the game because there were no suitable alternative dates on which to play a rescheduled game given the poor weather forecast for Wednesday.
“We certainly recognize the inconvenience to our fans and have invited them back to enjoy a future game at Yankee Stadium.”
A Spring Training Feel
With a getaway day game, teams often play several reserves and give regulars off. The combination of expanded rosters and several players not getting to bed until around 4 a.m. took that up a notch.
When the first pitch was thrown, the Orioles featured two players hitting over .260 (Ryan Adams and Nick Markakis) and a leadoff hitter (Matt Angle) hitting .111.
The Yankees fielded a lineup that saw Jesus Montero’s .385 average lead the way and Ramiro Pena batting .080. The averages in the bottom third of the order were .167, .000 and .080.
The one advantage was offensive firepower coming off the bench, though that did not materialize in the seventh inning when pinch-hitter Mark Teixeira was intentionally walked and Robinson Cano struck out swinging on three pitches.
Do You Like Strikeouts?
If you like strikeouts then this was the game for you. The Orioles struck out 15 times and most of that came from Mark Reynolds and Chris Davis, who struck out a combined nine times.
Davis’ five strikeouts were the most by an Oriole since Chris Hoiles in 1997 and during his final at-bat, a small segment of the crowd was chanting “We Want Six.”
Remembering Sept. 11
For the second year in a row, the Yankees are not home on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. Like last year, they had an afternoon game against the Orioles Wednesday before going on the road.
This year’s ceremonies featured an on-field salute to veterans, rescue workers and victims. Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld also took part in the 15-minute ceremony which started with First Lady Michelle Obama reading a message on the scoreboard.
Before the first pitch, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera addressed the subject in a 20-minute press conference.
One of the best quotes of the session was delivered by Jeter when asked for his reaction about the May 1 death of Bin Laden.
“You’re happy that the person responsible for it has been taken care of.”
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