They were but two of the Yankees' 14 hits, but few were bigger. So it was no wonder that Bobby Abreu could rightfully consider his first postseason game since 1997 nothing short of perfect.
The former Phillies all-star rightfielder showed a national TV audience why he's earned nothing but admiration from the Yankees since he arrived in a July 30.
Abreu went 2-for-5 and ignited a 5-run third inning with a two-run double, breaking up what had been a scoreless duel between Detroit's Nate Robertson and the Yankees' Chien-Ming Wang.
Abreu then used a two-run single in the sixth to add breathing room to what had become a 5-3 game. The Yankees never looked back, winning, 8-4.
"The last two [were] great because any time the other team starts scoring runs, the momentum slips over there," Yankees manager Joe Torre said. "He got it back to where it was comfortable for us."
Speaking of comfortable ...
"The team made me feel good over here," Abreu said. "After we clinched, I was so happy, going to October. just going to play in October. I came herr to New York and played my first game in the postseason - it's amazing.
"The New York Yankees - it's a very powerful name and you have to do whatever you have to do to represent that."
2 comments:
Good riddance to Bobby. He had 7 years here as a leader and he didnt have total commitment to getting this team to the playoffs. He refused to hit leadoff. He refused to give 100% in the field. Of course he's happy now that he is among other prima donna millionaires in plastic NYC.
Yeah, Bobby Abreu .... what did he ever do for the Phillies? Let me see. Almost 1,500 hits. Nearly 350 doubles. Just short of 200 homers. Over 800 RBI's. Close to 1,000 walks. More than 250 stolen bases. Twice as many outfield assists as errors. What a dog, huh? Bobby probably got tired of the whining; I know I do. He brought a lot of excitement to the game. So maybe people should appreciate him for what he did, rather than excoriate him for what he wasn't. And I wish him well, in the playoffs and thereafter.
Bill O'Malley
Canberra, Australia
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