MESSAGE TO KURODA: DON'T SHOW FEAR IN OPENER

Tomorrow the Yankees are back in the Bronx for an afternoon home stand sure to give every Yankee fan a feeling of relief. We’re home…we’re finally home.

Yankee Stadium is the greatest place on earth and with Jorge Posada throwing out the first pitch, it will be the perfect start to the afternoon which is supposed to be gorgeous in New York...in fact, it will be the perfect day for baseball. But someone needs to tell Hiroki Kuroda how to speak to the press knowing well and good that he will be starting the home opener in the Bronx. When speaking to MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch, Kuroda said “Rather than being excited, I ‘m more worried about how I’m going to perform.” Read HERE. Message to Kuroda: If you show fear on that mound tomorrow, Yankee fans will eat you alive.

We’ve seen it happen time and time again, some pitchers just can’t hack it in New York. It’s not to say they don’t have the stuff, it’s more than that. It's that they can’t take the pressure. Playing for the Yankees is like playing for the King... 54,000 Kings and Queens to be exact and you’re in the pit trying to slay the lion. You need to never show the fans that you CAN’T slay the lion... you just need to slay it. That’s what Kuroda has to do…go out there tomorrow in his home debut, pound the strike zone and trust his stuff. In addition to prepping with Russell Martin, I’m not gonna lie, I’d try to chat with Jorge Posada as well. He’ll be there for a bit and after all, Posada knows Yankee Stadium better than anyone. Most important though, Kuroda can’t show fear, fans smell it a mile away and we hate weakness, we love winners.

So on this beautiful day in the Bronx, I have one thing to say to Hiroki Kuroda; this ain’t Los Angeles, this is Yankee Stadium and while I appreciate your honesty, here's a tip... lie to us…especially if worry is filling your emotions right now, because one thing us fans hate is failure, especially on a perfect Opening day in the Bronx. Courage will carry you, Fear will bring failure. So what do you want to do? Win, that's it.

Go Yankees!

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