It seems like it has been forever since we’ve seen a New York Yankees game on TV and thankfully, the long, agonizing wait is finally over. This afternoon, Yankees will take on the Toronto Blue Jays at Steinbrenner Field.

The lineups have been posted and good news for the people, like me, who will be parked on their couches watching, most of the regulars will at least, start the game. Guys like Ichiro, Cano, Gardner, Granderson and Tex are playing. We will get our first look at both Travis Hafner and Kevin Youkilis in Pinstripes and the outfield configuration will be slightly altered with Grandy in left and Gardner in center.

Thanks to our founder Julie DiCaro, I am now addicted to Bitstrips, an app on Facebook which allows you to make comics of yourself. So until I get sick of doing them, you will see comics of me in various settings. This one is what I’ll look like later this afternoon while I’m watching the game. Okay, to be honest, I’ll more than likely still be in my PJ’s but you get the idea.

So here is today’s lineup.

YANKEES
Gardner 8
Ichiro 9
Cano 4
Teixeira 3
Granderson 7
Youkilis 5
Hafner dh
Nunez 6
Stewart 2

Warren 1

The game will be broadcast locally on the YES Network and nationally on MLB Network starting at 1 p.m. Enjoy and Go Yankees!

CHICKENS
Jeter 6
Granderson 8
Teixeira 3
Rodriguez 5
Cano 4
Swisher 9
Jones 7
Martin 2
Pettitte 1

METS
Torres 8
Cedeno 6
Wright 5
Hairston 7
Duda 9
Turner 4
Davis 3
Nickeas 2
Niese 1

WASHINGTON
Espinosa 2B
Harper CF
RZimmerman 3B
Morse RF
Desmond SS
Moore 1B
Nady LF
Flores C
JZimmermann P

YANKEES
Jeter SS
Granderson CF
Teixeira 1B
Cano 2B
Swisher RF
Ibanez LF
Martin C
Chavez 3B
Pettitte P

Don’t worry, it’s just a normal day of rest for A-Rod. There are no injury concerns.

YANKEES
Jeter SS
Granderson CF
Teixeira 1B
Rodriguez 3B
Cano 2B
Swisher RF
Jones DH
Ibanez LF
Martin C

Kuroda (4-6, 3.82)

METS
Nieuwenhuis CF
Thole C
Wright 3B
Duda DH
Murphy 2B
Hairston RF
Davis 1B
Bay LF
Quintanilla SS

Santana (3-2, 2.38)

Thanks to Jon Lane of YES for the lineups:

YANKEES
Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Alex Rodriguez DH
Robinson Cano 2B
Mark Teixeira 1B
Nick Swisher RF
Raul Ibanez LF
Eric Chavez 3B
Russell Martin C

Pitching: Ivan Nova (3-0, 3.79)

TIGERS
Austin Jackson CF
Brennan Boesch RF
Miguel Cabrera 3B
Prince Fielder 1B
Don Kelly LF
Brad Eldred DH
Alex Avila C
Jhonny Peralta SS
Ryan Raburn 2B

Pitching: Justin Verlander (2-1, 1.72)

Brett Gardner CF
Eduardo Nunez SS
Robinson Cano 2B
Mark Teixeira 1B
Raul Ibanez DH
Bill Hall 3B
Justin Maxwell RF
Dewayne Wise LF
Gustavo Molina C

Ivan Nova P

Okay, so the game isn’t being televised and it’s against a college team (University of South Florida). Oh and it also doesn’t even count in the Grapefruit League standings but so what! It’s a baseball game. Guys will be pitching, guys will be hitting – hopefully – and all will be right in the world.

Hooray!

Here’s the Yankee lineup:
Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Raul Ibanez DH
Nick Swisher RF
Brett Gardner LF
Eduardo Nunez 2B
Gustavo Molina C

Adam Warren P

And finally, what’s sure to become this week’s Yankee motto, Derek Jeter was asked about the Wild Card format to which he replied, “Win your Division, Buddy.” And there you have it. I can already picture the t-shirts.

This morning, I was watching “Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner,” the Academy Award winning film which stars Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn and Sidney Poitier. I was looking at the fashions, the decor, the hairstyles and I was thinking about what it would be like to live back then. The film was released in 1967 so I wondered, “Hmm, how did the Yankees do in 1967?”

I knew the answer wasn’t going to be a positive one. By the time the mid 1960′s rolled around, the once dominant New York Yankees were a shell of their former self. They changed ownership in 1964 when CBS purchased the franchise for $11.2M. You’re not seeing things, the whole franchise was worth $11.2M which is crazy to think about now.

In 1965, the Yankees finished in the Second Division for the first time in 40 years. Back then, the word “division” had more to do with rankings within the leagues. Teams who were ranked in the top 50% of a league – American or National – were said to have finished in the first division, while the rest were in the second division. The Yankees finished in the first division from 1926-1964, a record setting 39 years. Another team who had a long string of good finishes were the Chicago Cubs who finished in the first division 20 years in a row (1947-1966).

Do you remember how in 2008 flabbergasted people were when the Yankees didn’t make the playoffs for the first time in 14 years? Now imagine how Yankees fans in the 1960′s felt. Their teams were always on top or at least near it for almost four full decades. That’s an incredible run and unfortunately for Yankees fans, they still hadn’t seen the worst of it.

So back to my initial question: How did the Yankees do in 1967? Well, the answer is, they were pretty dreadful.

» Continue reading “A Walk Down Memory Lane: The 1967 Yankees”

Red Sox
Jacoby Ellsbury, CF
Dustin Pedroia, 2B
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Kevin Youkilis, 3B
David Ortiz, DH
J.D. Drew, RF
Jed Lowrie, SS
Carl Crawford, LF
Jarrod Saltalamacchia, C

Clay Buchholz, RHP (3-3, 4.19)

Yankees
Derek Jeter, SS
Curtis Granderson, CF
Mark Teixeira, 1B
Alex Rodriguez, 3B
Robinson Cano, 2B
Nick Swisher, RF
Jorge Posada, DH
Russell Martin, C
Brett Gardner, LF

Bartolo Colon, RHP (2-1, 3.86)

http://youtu.be/cdEE5Ph4p3A

Some changes for the Rangers: Scheduled starter Alexei Ogando has been scratched and his start pushed back to Friday. He has a blister on right index finger. Right hander Dave Bush will be starting in his place.

Yankees:
Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Robinson Cano 2B
Nick Swisher RF
Jorge Posada DH
Brett Gardner LF
Francisco Cervelli C

CC Sabathia LHP (2-2, 2.68)

Rangers

Ian Kinsler 2B
Elvis Andrus SS
Michael Young DH
Adrian Beltre 3B
Mike Napoli 1B
David Murphy LF
Yorvit Torrealba c
Craig Gentry RF
Julio Borbon CF

Dave Bush RHP (0-0, 1.46)