Not yet, advised Steven Goldman in yesterday's installment of the Pinstriped Bible on YESnetwork.com: "For the 2003 Yankees, the moment to embrace the 'Don’t Panic' mantra is now."
Of course, when he wrote that, Steve didn't know how serious Bernie Williams' knee injury is, or that Jorge Posada would get hit by two pitches last night (one on his unprotected ankle bone) or that Andy Pettitte would continue to get clobbered. The Bombers, 3-7 duds in their last 10 games, have escalating problems in the bullpen, at DH, on the bench and in the outfield. If the Blue Jays get to Mussina this evening, panic might be the appropriate response.
Goldman makes a scary comparison of Matsui's North American production to countryman Tsuyoshi Shinjo's modest career numbers. Last night, I noticed how Hideki's facial expressions and body language, so regal earlier in the spring, are beginning to show the pressure of high expectations, which will be even worse without Williams and Nick Johnson in the lineup. Instead of dropping "Godzilla" in the order, Joe Torre had little choice but to move him up to the 2-hole. With Juan Rivera expected to take over as the regular left fielder, playing out of position with greater responsibilities in center is unlikely to help Matsui regain his confidence at the plate.
Things could get worse -- the New York media will soon be in vulture mode, and fans in the Bronx are already beginning to express their impatience. Nobody expects George Steinbrenner to accept misfortune without throwing a tantrum or two, and when the Boss pushes the panic button, everybody jumps. Brian Cashman might be forced to look for a quick fix, allowing astute rival GMs to take advantage of the situation. Again.
Kelvim Escobar knows he's auditioning tonight, and he's goofy enough to covet the Big Apple spotlight. If he impresses the right observers with those four awesome pitches, it might give J.P. enough leverage to get Brandon Claussen, Andy Beal or another prospect, for someone whose time in Toronto has run out. We can hope, can't we?
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20030523010150999