Some Good Baseball

In years past, anytime my beloved Yankees came to DFW to face the Texas Rangers(whom I also love...yes, it's a problem), there never was much drama. I mean, it's been almost 10 years since the Rangers made the playoffs and they got swept by the Yankees back then. But tonight is different. August baseball in Texas actually means something. And even though the Rangers are a long shot to make this year's playoffs, they are still contenders for the wild-card and unlike recent seasons, the Rangers won't go away and they play hard and they are making baseball meaningful again in North Texas.

So, here we are in one of the hottest Summers on record in DFW and the Yankees come to town playing with a purpose and with some fresh trades(Nady, Marte, and now Pudge) that many believe(including myself) will put them into the playoffs. The Yankees are only5 games back in the East and only three wins above the Rangers.

So, it's top of the 9th inning with the go ahead run on base and Derek Jeter hits a shallow centerfield fly ball that surely will drop and score the runner. And it's not like Jeter(one of the greatest players of the last 20 years and maybe one of the most clutch players ever in the game) hasn't been here before. Jeter is 4th in hits on the Yankees' all-time list. His postseason batting average is .309 and he's won more MVPs in the playoffs and won more games period than I can mention. So, here's Derek Jeter and he hits the go-ahead right? Wrong! Josh Hamilton makes a diving catch in centerfield to get the Rangers out of the inning. And the game is still tied 5-5. And that drama is only the beginning... Bottom of the 9th inning and just like that, the Rangers load the bases on walks. Tie game, 2 outs, bases loaded, and the Rangers' Marlon Byrd hits a walk off grand slam for Texas! Don't tell me baseball isn't significant in DFW this year. And maybe the Rangers will make the wild card. I would love it!

Click here for the box score from tonight's game:

http://texas.rangers.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jspgid=2008_08_04_nyamlb_texmlb_1&c_id=tex