Grant’s Tomb has been livelier than the Yankees offense in the first two games of the ALDS. The Yankees’ Game 3 starting pitcher is 45 years old, coming off blister, elbow and hamstring woes. The home crowd is ready to extract assorted bodily organs at the first sign of trouble.
But the Indians are the ones sounding cautious about their chances.
“It’s always good to be ahead and for us, we just need to keep the same focus going straight ahead,” said left fielder Kenny Lofton, Cleveland’s 40-year-old wonder who has five hits in the series – three fewer than the entire Yankees team. “It’s a game. Nothing changes.”
Though they sound cautious, they undoubtedly are confident. Nevertheless, they’re not about to proclaim the Yankees deader than Caesar. We said cautious and confident, not stone-cold stupid.
“We are confident. We feel good we’re playing well,” center fielder Grady Sizemore said.
“To get overconfident would be a mistake. We’ve just got to go out there and do what we’ve been doing,” said closer Joe Borowski, who was a spectator in the first two games – a Game 1 romp and a Game 2 last-at-bat (2-1, 11-inning) victory.
“We’re 2-0 but that doesn’t mean anything,” catcher Victor Martinez said. “We need to finish it up. Hopefully we can play our game and finish this team off.”
Tonight, it’s Jake Westbrook’s turn in his first postseason appearance. He will be pitted against Roger Clemens, a likely Hall of Famer. But Clemens pitched just twice in September.
“Another pitcher on the mound and you just keep going,” Lofton said of facing Clemens.
Sizemore said, “Regardless of who we’re facing, don’t change anything. Don’t change what got you here. A lot of guys here might not have faced him [Clemens] so it might be the first time but you just have to do what you’ve done.”
Pretty much kick the tar out of the opponents.
But nature provides no greater danger than a desperate animal. And the Yankees, one defeat away from a third straight embarrassing first-round exit, are a couple levels above desperate. Closing a series on the road usually is as much fun as sticking your tongue in a wall outlet.
“Our focus is always going to be on ourselves,” Indians manager Eric Wedge said. “It’s never on who we play or where we’re at or what any of the others’ situation is. The focus is on us and going out and playing our game and playing good baseball and just doing it the way we do it.”