Even after beating the Yankees in Game 1, most attention is on New York.
By Associated Press
Published October 2, 2003
NEW YORK - Jacque Jones watched television and kept hearing the same thing: Yankees lose! Yankees lose!
Almost no one was talking about Minnesota's victory in an AL playoff opener.
"We still don't get credit, which is fine," the Minnesota outfielder said Wednesday. "If it had been a role reversal, it would have been, "The Yankees beat the Twins 3-1."'
Maybe if the Twins win tonight and take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series, they will start to gain attention. They already have the Yankees thinking about last season's first-round loss to the Angels.
"They're a lot like Anaheim - better I think," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said. "That's not based on yesterday's game. That's based on what we knew about them."
Yankees manager Joe Torre agreed with Jones' claim that the Twins weren't given enough credit.
"We got beat by a very good ballclub," he said.
Minnesota hopes for more of the same in Game2, when Brad Radke (14-10) pitches against Andy Pettitte (21-8). New York expects a more raucous crowd for the night game.
While New York insisted there was no panic, the team was faced with reviews that would cause a Broadway show to close after opening night.
"Bombers stink up the house," read the front-page headline in the New York Post.
Jason Giambi, who went 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts, was the subject of harsh criticism, and the Yankees had former World Series MVP Reggie Jackson at Wednesday's workout, where he was available for advice and support.
Torre held a meeting before Wednesday's workout and told players to relax. He said it wasn't unusual, that he holds a lot of meetings during the postseason.
"Let's all stick together. We're going to win together or lose together," was Torre's message, according to Giambi. "It's not about individual performances."
Anaheim, which beat the Twins in last season's AL championship series and beat San Francisco for its first World Series title, excelled with a strong bullpen, tight defense and aggressive baserunning.
All three of those elements were evident in Tuesday's opener. On the negative side, Corey Koskie was thrown out trying to steal third base.
"That's why I have no hair, and the hair I have is gray," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "We played with confidence yesterday. We were running around, trying to do things on the basepaths."
The Yankees bounced back from a 2-0 deficit in the first round against Oakland three years ago, so they know how difficult the task is. And in Radke they face a pitcher who went 4-0 with a 1.80 ERA in September.
"We've got to show up," catcher Jorge Posada said. "We've got to find a way of winning the game. It doesn't matter if its ugly or not, we've just got to do it."
Pettitte, eligible for free agency after this season, could be making his last start for the Yankees. The left-hander has gone 149-78 for New York in nine seasons.
"I guess definitely it will be in my head. I would be lying again saying that I wouldn't let it creep in there," he said. "But I've been able to set all that aside. I've been able to do it this whole season, and I want to continue to do it throughout these playoffs."
