DETROIT — Joe Girardi promised that if Sergio Mitre completed five innings as a fill-in starter last night he would execute a cartwheel in celebration.
And Mitre was two outs away. He had not given up a hit since the second inning, retired 10 of 11 and was keeping the Yankees within 3-2. Then Johnny Damon came up, and Damon always has enjoyed drama. Never shied away from it. Embraced it, in fact.
“He doesn’t have that jewelry [two championship rings] on his fingers by accident,” Tigers manager Jim Leyland said.
Mitre tried to get a first-pitch fastball by Damon and, suffice to say, there were no cartwheels. Damon ended Mitre’s outing by launching just his second homer. His power might be down in a home park less friendly to lefty power, but his impact remains high.
Damon’s blast helped Detroit to a 5-4 victory. Yet even with a second straight loss, the Yanks remain on a 110-win pace. Nevertheless, you could still see where Damon could be helping.
This is not to re-state the he-said, she-said acrimony that fueled a separation or to try — again — to assess blame for the divorce. It is just hard to ignore that even on this excellent team, Damon is missed.
“You can’t play the ‘what-if’ game,” Girardi said. “Johnny would fit on 30 clubs.”
Still you can see specifically where he would fit this one, in that productive place between Derek Jeter and Mark Teixeira. He would bring the .412 on-base percentage, an ability to hit lefties (.360) and that dramatic flair.
But the Yanks were concerned about offering Damon length in a contract at 36. Yet two of the players brought in to help replace Damon — Curtis Granderson, 29, and Nick Johnson, 31 — are already on the DL. The durable Damon has been on the DL just once, compared to 10 times for Johnson.
Those injuries have forced the Yanks to play Marcus Thames, 33, and Randy Winn, 36 next month, in left. The Yanks were worried about Damon’s defense. But Damon is Carl Crawford in left compared to the bumbling Thames.
Yet Damon said he was not “that kind of person” to gloat. He insisted the homer brought him no special satisfaction, and that his only attempt to personalize the moment was trying to catch Alex Rodriguez’s eyes rounding third because he felt A-Rod had lobbied the most for the Yanks to keep him.
He claims, though, to have moved on, to enjoying a “peaceful” existence in Detroit. Except Damon was never much for peaceful. He’s an extrovert and a winner, both qualities better stoked in New York. In tandem with Austin Jackson, obtained in the Granderson deal, Damon has helped the Tigers look like a contender, albeit still an underdog in the AL Central to Minnesota and for the wild card to whomever is the AL East runner-up.
A contender would not trade Damon in July, though the Yanks just might need someone exactly like him. Still, Damon admitted he asked for and received his World Series ring already because the Tigers are not in New York until August, and he is not assured of being a Tiger then. He added, “You never know” before quickly stating, “I’m happy here.”
He looked happy, sporting a modified Mohawk (high in the middle, but not shaved down the sides) and a considerable five o’clock shadow. He also had his familiar bonhomie, hoping between interviews before stopping by the Yankees’ group stretch for a hearty hug of Rodriguez, a handshake with Jeter, and a bunch of waves and hellos.
“I know that forever I will be linked with the 27th championship there,” Damon said.
That was his exit line. He moved quickly from The Canyon of Heroes to acrimony.
“This is my fifth team I have been on,” Damon said. “I can turn the page quickly.”
The pages are turned. But it just does not feel as if the book is fully slammed close. Maybe Girardi will do cartwheels in July for a different reason.