Monday night, Bubba Crosby’s walk-off home run lifted the Yankees even with Boston in the loss column, the biggest hit of his career. But his most memorable hit last night came when he ran through a tag at first on a play that left Baltimore’s Brian Roberts crumpled in an injured heap.
The play was by far the ugliest part of an ugly game the Bombers won 12-9. With Bernie Williams on second and nobody out in the second, Crosby laid down a bunt. B.J. Surhoff fielded it and threw to Roberts, covering the bag. He ran through the tag, but the second baseman’s left elbow bent back in grotesque fashion.
Roberts immediately dropped the ball and crumpled in a heap, and Williams came around to score, the first run of a five-run inning. The injury was visibly unnerving enough that Williams grimaced from the sight after crossing the plate, and trainers immediately rushed out to Roberts.
Roberts sat on the ground with his arm dangly limply for minutes, in obvious agony. Beleaguered Baltimore interim manager Sam Perlozzo – who took over for the fired Lee Mazzilli – came out to help take Roberts off the field, then went back out to vehemently argue his case with the umpires.
Crosby eventually scored on Gary Sheffield’s grand slam, part of a five-run second after a four-run first. In the end, Roberts suffered a dislocated elbow that was put back into place at the Stadium, and eventually left to go to the hospital. The Yanks left having won eight of nine, and are still even with the Red Sox in the loss column.
The 29-year-old Crosby should have his picture in Webster’s next to journeyman, with five trips to a from Triple-A last year and four more this year. But after starting in right in back-to-back games against first a lefty and then a righty, Joe Torre said, “with his versatility, he may find himself in center [tonight].”
A long time ago – like last week – the Yankees would’ve considered that sacrificing offense for Crosby’s defense. And considering he hit. 151 for them last year and .231 for Columbus this season, they’d have been right.
But Don Mattingly noticed he’d been hastily lunging out at the ball earlier in the season, overanxious to prove that he could hit, that he belonged in the bigs. It’s hard to learn patience while commuting on the Columbus shuttle, but Crosby did just that, and he’s since gone 9-for-22.
“I wasn’t letting the ball get deep in my stance, wasn’t trusting my hands. I felt I needed to hurry up and get it, didn’t want to strike out, wanted to show I belonged,” Crosby said. “I put a lot of pressure on myself. Going up and down, it was difficult to have a whole lot of confidence.
“It’s hard enough to hit a 98 mph fastball, [especially] if you’re trying to force yourself to get a hit so you might play the next day.”