SEPTEMBER, for the Yankees, has a melody all its own. There is a sense of finishing a job while putting it together for the bigger task at hand, winning a 26th World Series championship.
It is a different song than the Mets or anyone else plays at this time of year. Bobby Valentine’s club is still trying to prove it belongs with the Braves, a monumental task. The Indians, the Yankees’ opponents last night at the Stadium, are trying to come back from the baseball dead, a season coming together the moment a pingpong table was exorcised from their clubhouse. The Indians are 38-27 since getting rid of the dreaded recreational device. It also helps that their pitching is coming together.
“No one thought we would be in this position a few months ago,” All-Star second baseman Roberto Alomar said of Indians’ rebirth.
The Yankees have had a rebirth all their own, the re-emergence of Roger Clemens as the Retro Rocket, an unhittable, unbeatable force who has gotten it together in time to shut George Steinbrenner’s grand mouth.
It was Steinbrenner doing what he does best, challenging Clemens back in mid-season, using David Wells’ success as a way of getting The Rocket flying to nine straight victories, heading into last night’s high-octane matchup against young flame-thrower Bartolo Colon. It also helps that Clemens’ body is back together again.
“I’m sure George rattled his cage,” manager Joe Torre said of The Boss’ way of getting Clemens refocused on the mound. Curious, isn’t it, that the World Series ring that Clemens received from the Yankees had No. 33 on it by mistake. That happened to be Wells’ number.
Mind games only take you so far in the majors, though. As Torre noted of Clemens’ success, “A good portion of this could have been physical. His legs didn’t allow him to be the power pitcher.”
Clemens is all about power again. His motion is compact and strong. Together, Clemens and Andy Pettitte have danced a Texas two-step on the mound that has enabled the Yankees to pull away from the Red Sox and Blue Jays. Pettitte will look for his 19th win of the season tonight in Toronto.
“Pettitte has the habit of being the one nobody pays attention to and he keeps winning,” Torre explained. “Right now he’s pitching the best since he’s been here.”
Pettitte and Clemens have become workout partners. Considering Clemens is the same age as Patrick Ewing, his workouts are working out.
“They’re the best cheerleader for each other, and Andy is working with Roger on the same kind of conditioning and Andy seems to be throwing harder,” Torre said. Whether that’s a coincidence or not, I don’t know, but he certainly seems to be quicker, whatever it is it is working.”
Torre was asked if any other pitcher has been in this kind of shape at the age of 38, and he didn’t hesitate in naming another Texan.
“Nolan Ryan was another lower-body power pitcher,” Torre said before adding Steve Carlton to the list. Not bad company.
In Torre’s day a pitcher was washed up at the age of 34 or 35. There wasn’t today’s kind of weight training. All of that helps make Clemens The Rocket Man.
“There’s only one way to beat him,” Robby Alomar said. “You just have to compete, compete and compete. You can’t stop competing.”
Because Clemens never stops competing. The only thing left for the Yankees in September is to try to win the most games in the American League so they gain home-field advantage in the ALCS.
It is a totally different approach than the Mets must take. The Mets appear to have the wild card in hand, but need to get over the emotional hump of beating the Braves. Torre has managed to keep the Yankees on the same high plane of attack the past three years. Of the Mets last year he made this interesting point: “They lost it but they got it back, which was probably better than keeping it. They were an out or two away from going to a Game 7 [of the NLCS]. I wouldn’t have wanted to be in Atlanta’s shoes playing at home after losing a couple of straight games.”
What does Torre do to get the Yankees ready for the October run. “I’d sell it if I knew,” he joked.
Make no mistake, he knows and he is selling it in his winning way. Torre said the Yankees make it easy for him.
“The best way I do it is that these guys have done it before,” he said. “They have the feel for it, first of all not to get overly excited. There’s a certain ‘not do anything different attitude’ that you have to have. Even though it is the postseason, you have to be the same people.”
When a team is out of it, there are only individual goals. Torre remembers his rookie year [1961] and the final game of the season. “I’m hitting .279 and Ed Bailey was catching for the Giants and he’s telling me what’s coming every pitch, he’s trying to help me. I was 0-for-4.”
In baseball, even when you know, you never really know.
