At some point this winter, someone is going to construct a formula that will show just how much money Cliff Lee made himself pitching Game 3 of the ALCS. The “soon to be free agent” was simply dominant against an overmatched,aging New York Yankee lineup. It was such a struggle for the Yankees, and their fans, that the entire stadium stood and applauded a full count to Mark Teixeira in the bottom of the 4th inning. More impressive than his final line (8IP, 2H, 1BB, 13K, 0ER) was the way Lee went about carving up the best lineup in baseball. He was not so much overpowering as he was accurate. How many Yankees couldn’t resist swinging at that 2 seamer tailing away from the strike zone?
So where do we go from here? Early word this morning is that AJ Burnett is still scheduled to take the mound in Game 4. We shall see if this actually happens because I’m sure Joe Girardi is feeling the pressure to go with Sabathia in game 4 and 7, if necessary. By the way, I think the Yankees still have a great shot to win this series.