On Tuesday evening, I was jubilant. My adoptive team, the Texas Rangers, defeated the execrable New York Yankees, 4-3. David Murphy (the heart and soul of this team) had a walk-off single in the 10th inning off the Yankees' best relief pitcher, Mariano Rivera. All of the joy dissipated yesterday evening, when the Rangers blew a 6-1 lead and lost, 7-6. The Rangers have no instinct for the jugular, and the Yankees, who have dominated them in the playoffs (1996, 1998, and 1999), know it. The Rangers had their best pitcher on the mound yesterday: Cliff Lee. The Yankees made him throw a lot of pitches, and by the seventh inning he was gone, worn out by the heat. As much as I love the Rangers, I hate the way they play. They still don't play fundamentally sound baseball. They fritter away leads. They make stupid mistakes in the field and on the bases. Their pitchers are unreliable, pitching great one day and atrociously the next. Some of their players, such as Ian Kinsler, are injury prone. All things considered, I don't see the Rangers winning even one playoff series this year. They lack the intensity and tenaciousness that are necessary to beat the best. Congratulations, Yankee fans. Your team came to Arlington and humbled us.
Addendum: This columnist thinks Cliff Lee will leave Texas after the season because of the heat. I don't understand the logic. Yes, it's hard for a pitcher to pitch in the heat, but isn't it hard for batters to bat in the heat? Everyone is playing in the same conditions!
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 