A.J. Burnett may have finally put any doubts to rest with his performance last night. Burnett had electric stuff, especially his curveball, and held the fort down just enough for the Yankees bats to get going in the 3-1 win. It seems listening to Cliff Lee a night earlier talk about confidence during the postgame turned on a light bulb in Burnett’s head that he carried with him to the mound. The most impressive inning to me was the seventh as Burnett struck out two batters and held the Phillies down after Matsui had given the Yankees the lead with a homer. I don’t know what years 3, 4, and 5 will look like for the Burnett contract, but if this game turns around the 2009 World Series in the Yankees favor it will be worth the $80 million.

Girardi’s Gamble Pays Off

There was tons of grumbling from the fans before the game when Joe Girardi announced that Jerry Hairston would start in RF and Jose Molina would catch. Anything that made A.J. Burnett comfortable was imperative for a successful Game 2. Whether it was the aforementioned Cliff Lee interview, or simply having Molina behind the dish, it worked in Girardi’s favor. The Hairston move was the bigger head scratcher. He hadn’t played against Pedro in five years so the solid numbers Girardi cited against Pedro were stale. With the Yankees down 1-0 heading into the fourth the grumbling on Twitter increased. Of course it subsequently stopped when Hairston started a rally which led to the insurance run in the seventh inning.

Pedro Deserves Credit

Pedro Martinez made all the “whose your daddy” catcalls seem moot. Predictably the hall of fame right hander didn’t melt under the pressure of Yankee Stadium. I wouldn’t have put him in to start the seventh inning, but outside of a Mark Teixeira bomb Pedro was spotless. The only thing that would have made the Matsui homer cheaper was if it went over the Citizen’s Bank right field wall. I wouldn’t put him on short rest, but certainly I would throw him out there if there is a Game 6 at the Stadium.

Teixeira Comes out of Hibernation

It’s not secret the Yankees offense has been stagnant the entire postseason. Much of that is due to the poor offensive performance by Mark Teixeira. Going into the fourth inning last night Teixeira was hitting under .200 for the postseason. His glove made up for that during the ALCS, but you could sense a sigh of relief from the Yankees as things were starting to get tight around that time. If this gets Teixeira going then maybe we will see the vaunted Yankees offense from the regular season. That is provided A-Rod can now get on track.

How much more of Mo?

Forty pitches over two innings for Rivera. Thankfully there is a day off today, but at age 40 how many times can he do these types of outings? It’s clear that Girardi has no confidence in his bullpen outside of Rivera. The pitching recipe last night (starter 7 innings, Mariano for 2) might be the only combination that will give the Yanks a chance to win.

Dead Crowd

Finally let’s talk about how disappointing the Yankee Stadium crowd has been. I know the World Series becomes more corporate because of the nature of the event, but there isn’t energy at all throughout the game. Sure the fans got up for the Teixeira and Matsui homer, as well as the Utley double play in the eight, but I thought I was watching the US Open instead of a baseball game. Also, wasn’t the whole Jay-Z concert uncomfortable? Not sure who was more out of place: the fans watching or the FOX panel of Eric Karros, Ozzie Guillen, and Mark Grace. Somehow I don’t see Karros dancing to “Empire State of Mind” like Joba Chamberlain was during the pre game. Message to MLB: The game is enough to entertain the fans. How about you start the game thirty minutes early instead of having the concert? Stop trying to be like the Super Bowl. At least the fans didn’t have to endure another night of politician’s wives creating a security inconvenience for the fans. That might be the only thing more annoying than Jay-Z at this point.

Mike Silva is a freelance writer and radio host since March of 2007. This website is his own personal "digest" of New York Baseball He's also hosts NYBD Radio on Blog Talk Radio and 1240 AM WGBB. Check out his sports media commentary at www.sportsmediawatchdog.com. Check out his official website, www.mikesilvamedia.com

Mike Silva

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Tags: A.J. Burnett, Empire State of Mind, Hideki Matsui, Jay Z Concert, Jerry Hairston Jr, Joe Girardi, Jose Molina, Mariano Rivera, Mark Teixeira, New York Yankees, Pedro Martinez, Philadelphia Phillies, Yankee Stadium