WHY IT WORKED

If there's one thing that makes me smile, it's that the tools we put in place over the winter, started taking shape today. While not perfect at moments, some were pretty much as advertised and we looked damn good.

The Bullpen: Dominant. I was exchanging notes with my pal Carlos who said it best about the bullpen "how about that back end of Joba-Sori-Mo, making it a 6th Inning game for the opposing offense!". He's right. The pitching looked great. RaSo is going to be something special if he fills that setup role with no adjustment problems. And Joba, well, I feel like the kids back, no one's happier than me.
(Photo: US Presswire)
The Leadoff: What did I tell you, anything you can do to get on base. Granted, Gardner bunted twice and didn't get on, but that's the exercise and he executed it correctly, in fact he sacrificed which was nice. Over time, Gardy will pinpoint that bunt exactly where he wants it. Personally, his speed would have carried him to first no problem if it was to the left of the pitcher instead of the right. Yes, I understand he wanted to tangle up the pitching so they didn't throw to second for the force, but proper placement would have done the same thing and he would have been on base with a man on second. No matter, it was well done. Practice makes perfect and Gardner will perfect it no doubt.

Pitching: CC wasn't dominant today, but it's Game 1. Over time, he will get up to speed. The best part of CC today was he kept us in the game.(Photo: Getty)
Defense: The Grandy man can! Nice plays in the field today and I'd say that oblique is feeling pretty good, huh Curtis? I'm not kidding, with the rain today, I was a little worried. He looked great though, and that homerun, well, that was just gravy. It was beautiful.
(Photo: AP)
Offense: Nice steal by Russell Martin today second to third. That's heads up. And what can I say about Mark Teixeira, that home run was sweetness!

Yankee baseball is back Ladies and Gentlemen and as we work out the kinks, we're going to see even more improvement. Today's score, Yankees 6, Tigers 3.

Baseball, the best sport ever. You can thank the good Lord for that.

By the way, if you didn't see the Go Hard Today video exclusive to Bleeding Yankee Blue, be sure to check it out HERE.

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