Bleeding Yankee Blue: BLEEDING YANKEE BLUE... LIVE AT THE STADIUM!

Wednesday, October 3, 2018

BLEEDING YANKEE BLUE... LIVE AT THE STADIUM!

The trek to Yankee Stadium from Central NJ via the 3:54 a.m. NJ Transit train this Wednesday morning when most were still catching z's was easy.

Source: Mike Stobe/Getty Images North America

Not sure the same will be true for the Yankees tonight as this Oakland Athletics team is a force to be reckoned with in a game that will determine each team's destiny in the 2018 post season.

BYB had an exclusive opportunity to share our thoughts on tonight's AL Wild Card matchup against the Oakland A's during Spectrum NY 1 News Mornings on 1 at the crack of dawn in front of the House that Ruth Built. And we shared your concerns and ours as well, as the Yankees battle in a one and done game that will either make them winner take all winners or better luck next year losers.

Thanks to Spectrum NY 1 News reporter Shannan Ferry's search for active Yankee fan blogs, #BYB was picked to be this morning's Yankee analyst for tonight's playoff in the Bronx. And we took every opportunity to share our concerns and our excitement for this AL Wild Card match up. I took on questions regarding Luis Severino and his readiness for tonight's game, the fan's take on the choice of Sevy to pitch tonight's critical game and what strategies could lead us to victory.

I echoed the fan's concern about Sevy but also made a point to say that if Sevy is the early part of the season Sevy, he would perform at his best and be lights out to A's bats early on. Sevy's stud-like performances through July were nothing short of stellar. Could that guy stand on the hill tonight in front of thousands of screaming fans and lead this team to victory? Of course! I think I share many of the same worries you all do and they don't stem just from Sevy.

As we wrote earlier this week in the post COMMUNICATION IS NOT A SOFT SKILL IN BASEBALL OR IN LIFE, we need the two Baby Bombers in Sevy and Gary Sanchez to effectively communicate with one another and be on the same page. They need to trust the process and stay focused on performing at their highest potential tonight. No passed balls. No temper tantrums. Just pure clean baseball. When you are the ace of your club and your organization chooses you to lead your team to victory, you have to bring it. That also means Sanchez needs to get out there and block every ball and frame every pitch with finesse and expertise to support the Yankees and their ace.

Source: Jason O. Watson/Getty Images North America

Sure, the A's are going with the trendy "opener" approach since they will need to rely on their bullpen to get it done early instead of a starter like Sean Manaea who was shut down with a shoulder injury in August. The A's no-hit wonder is likely out for the entire 2019 season following his surgery. This means the A's big guns will be out of the box first and the Yankees offense needs to anticipate the hard stuff and get their bats moving quick.

Clearly, we want to win and we have the capacity to do so, as I shared with Spectrum NY 1 News this morning, but it is going to take everyone's contribution to get there. I stated that the team has no "standouts" this year. This team has won and lost as a team and for tonight to be a W it has to be all hands on deck. The Yankees need to keep their eyes on their defense while taking advantage of mistakes made by the litany of A's pitchers and driving those mistakes into the outfield and over the short porch.

The road to the Bronx from NJ this morning was filled with anticipation and anxiety. It was smooth sailing for me but I only needed to talk about the Yankees chances of winning. The Yankees have to actually go out there and win. And they have the capacity to do so, just like I followed the transit plan to the Bronx they need to follow the script to Boston.

All eyes on the Bronx today as the Yankees look to pick up from last year, stronger and with more key elements to lead them to #28. If you get the chance to watch the stream of this morning's Spectrum NY 1 News Mornings at 1, please let us know what you think. Hoping to share the video clip with you if you are not a Spectrum user or within the five boroughs. Catch up with Shannan Ferry and Spectrum NY 1 News on Insta, and Twitter...they will be at the Stadium all day bringing coverage of today's excitement around the Yankees Wild Card Game.