2001 New York Yankees
The 2001 Yanks are probably the team I relate to most of the teams in the season. I grew up hearing those names: Bernie Williams, Paul O'Neill and of course Derek Jeter. These names were big for good reason. Having won three straight World Series titles, the '01 Yanks found themselves in the Fall Classic again. Clemens was dominate, going 20-3 and winning the American League Cy Young award. Andy Pettitte and Mike Mussina also had quality years. The offense, however, was unreal. Only four regulars in the lineup had under 20 homeruns! They were led by Tino Martinez who hit 34. The Yankees struggled somewhat in the regular season, only winning 95 games, but still finishing 13.5 games ahead of the Boston Red Sox in the division. In the playoffs, the Yanks would win the Divisional Series 3-2 over the Oakland Athletics and would go on to play the Seattle Mariners, winners of 116 games, in the ALCS. The Yankees handled the Mariners with ease, taking the series 4-1 and would look to become World Series Champions four years in a row. The series would go to game 7, where one of the most memorable moments for me as a young up-and-coming baseball fan would occur. Luis Gonzalez hitting a blooper over the shortstop off of Mariano Rivera in the bottom of the 9th inning and the madness that ensued. Some claim this year to be the end of the Yankees dynasty, however, having won the World Series in 2009 and with the look of their team going into 2010 they might have spoken to soon.
I'll be interested to see how they fare. There is 30 years difference between this team and the Orioles. Even with their power, I'm not sure they can "bop" with the Dodgers, Giants, and '61 Yankees.
ReplyDeleteHow are you handling the DH? None of the other teams in your league used it when they played.
I agree that they won't be able to bop with the big teams, they're missing that 40-50 homerun hitter in their line up. That being said I think they have an advantage over teams like the O's and Cards because their homers are scattered through the line up. Even the 8 hitter in the Yanks line up has 18 homeruns.
ReplyDeleteAs for the DH, my league doesn't use one. I felt as if the DH would benefit 2 or 3 teams and not help the others. Besides I'm a National League fan and favor the pitcher hitting.