[jg2977]

New York Yankees: 9th ALCS berth
1904 1905 1909 1910 1912 1913 1920 1921 1922

[Mike Francesa voice]
"Chris, Chris, lemme tell ya somethin’—this is a game the Yankees had absolutely no business winnin’. None. They gave up thirteen hits through four and a third innings. Thirteen! You’re sittin’ there thinkin’, ‘Alright, this is one of those nights where Seattle’s just gonna bludgeon ‘em, the Yanks are gonna pack it in, and we’re headed to a Game 5.’ But somehow—somehow—they wriggle out of jam after jam. Every time the Mariners had ducks on the pond, somethin’ went wrong for ‘em. Lineouts, double plays, missed opportunities. And that’s how you steal a ballgame."

[Chris Russo voice, high-pitched, fast-talking]
"MIKEY, you nailed it! THE YANKEES HAD NO RIGHT, NONE, ZERO, to come outta this game with a W! Barnard gets blasted early, the Mariners are hittin’ lasers all over T-Mobile, you’re thinkin’ six, seven runs easy—and somehow it’s still close! Rivera, MVP, fine, he gets on base, Wilson with the big home run—BUT THE STORY, THE STORY, MIKE, IS SEATTLE LEAVIN’ TEN MEN ON BASE!! You can’t do that in October! CAN’T DO IT!"

[Mike, calm, deliberate]
"And listen—credit where it’s due. You win ugly, it still counts. Yankees bullpen settled down, Nevarez came in, did his job. And then boom—Garcia’s homer in the 8th, Wilson earlier with the three-run shot in the 2nd, those are your difference-makers. That’s postseason baseball. You don’t ask how, you just survive and advance."

[Chris, cutting in]
"AND NOW, Mikey, they’re goin’ back to the ALCS for the third year in a row! Ninth time overall! I mean, it’s unbelievable. Doesn’t matter if it’s Cleveland, doesn’t matter if it’s Texas, the Yankees’ll be there, right in the thick of it! But Seattle—oh, boy—they’re gonna be sick about this one. Fifteen hits! Fifteen hits, six runs, and they LOSE! Absolutely brutal, Mike, absolutely brutal."