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Mike: "Doggie, we almost saw history at the Stadium. Mike Niccolai — he’s out there, he’s dealing, he’s unhittable. He takes a no-hitter into the ninth inning! Into the ninth! Two outs away, and then Leo Romero — boom — base hit, breaks it up. You could hear the whole place groan."
Mad Dog: "And Mike, the game was O-V-E-R, over, in the first inning! Sal Cantu, who had himself a very solid regular season, has been a complete disaster in October. ERA up near 16, are you kidding me? And then Justin Laird — BOOM! — grand slam, four-nothing Indians, and that was it right there. Ballgame was over before the Yankees even had a chance to breathe."
Mike: "Cantu has been brutal. You can’t have that in October. And then Laird, he comes back in the third inning, adds an RBI single, he’s got all five runs at that point, he’s carrying the Cleveland lineup."
Mad Dog: "Give Niccolai all the credit in the world. Eight and a third innings, one hit, five strikeouts, 130 pitches. He absolutely dominated the Yankees. They looked lost at the plate. And now Cleveland’s up 3-2, going home with a chance to close it out. Yankees are on life support."
Mike: "Dog, this was a dagger. You can’t give up a grand slam in the first inning of a Game 5 at home. You just can’t. And the Yankees did. And now they’re staring elimination right in the face."
Mad Dog: "And Niccolai almost throwing a no-hitter in Yankee Stadium — that would’ve been remembered forever. Instead, Romero saves the Yankees from total embarrassment… but it’s still a 6-0 shutout, Mike. Cleveland’s in control."
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