Yankee Fever

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Yankee Fever

by Issac Middleton
Photos by Ryan Edwards

Last night Derek Jeter proved to be the reason why the New York Yankees are still in the pennant race this year. Jeter went 3 for 4 with three RBIs, including a solo shot to left field in the third inning, helping the Yanks to a 4-2 win over the Detroit Tigers.He now has six hits in his last eight at-bats, bringing his average to .303 for the season.

Ted Lily started on the mound, and his opponent was Jose Lima. The Tigers gave Lima a 1-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning on Shane Halter's fifth home run of the season. But New York tied the game in the bottom of the same inning off of Jeter's homerun. Paul O'Neill added to the lead with his 15th home run of the season, his third in the last four games. Lily cruised though the sixth inning before running into trouble in the seventh. After Lily struckout Robert Fick, Juan Encarnacion tied the game with a RBI single, ending Lily's night. Jay Witasick entered the game and retired the first two batters he faced, leaving the runner stranded at first base. The Yanks took the lead with a Scott Brosius RBI single, which broke his 0-14 slump. Jeter added an insurance run in the eighth inning, driving Chuck Knoublauch home with a double to deep center field, and giving Jeter his third hit of the night. Joe Torre called on his best closer Mariano Rivera to complete the game, which he successfully did, giving Witasick his second win of the season and giving himself his 34th save of the season.

With the Toronto Blue Jays beating the Boston Red Sox in extra innings on Wednesday, the Yankees lead the American League East by 2 1/2 games. "In order for the Yanks to go to the playoffs they will need more hitting. They couldn’t get much hitting off Lima. Who's to say they can't get a hit off a much better pitcher?" says Bill Schnider of Long Island. Ben Barish of Long Beach says, "They need to get rid of Chuck Knoublach if they want to go anywhere. He struggled tonight hitting 1-4 and he also bunted into a double play. What kind of player bunts into a double play?" Most Yankee fans feel that they need better hitting, or better pitching or, in Ben Barish's case, they need to get rid of Knoublach.

The Yankees are trying their best to win their 27th championship in almost 90 years.The Yanks will need to make just minor adjustments to better themselves as a team. They have a number of all-stars on their team such as Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, and Mariano Rivera. The talent is very solid but they still need to play like a team and not get too cocky. There are still about two months of the regular season left and they can't afford to go into a slump. The Yanks represent the Bronx and the Bronx loves its team but only if it continues to win!