Let's take a look at what happened. Jeff Mathis' career slashes are .200/.277/.320. This year, he had an OPS lower than that. So wouldn't you know it that he would have 6 hits in 10 ABs in the ALCS, with four doubles (including the game-winning hit in Game 3). He led off against Burnett with a single.
Next up is Erick Aybar. Everyone in the stands and watching on TV (including the usually clueless Joe Buck and Tim McCarver) expect Burnett to be taken out here. But Girardi leaves in Burnett. It's the #9 hitter and Burnett is only at 81 pitches. Or so he probably rationalizes.
Side note: Girardi pulled Andy Pettitte in the ALDS after only 80 pitches. And Andy Pettitte has never led the league in the two biggest "wildness" categories.
Burnett led the league in walks and wild pitches this season and this move had trouble written all over it. But when A.J. Burnett goes up 1-2, you have some faith. All he needs to do is get one more strike. Or get Aybar to hit to someone. But Burnett refuses to even come close to challenging him. As you can see from the chart below, he just threw 3 straight balls, with only one coming close to the plate.
Burnett refused to challenge Aybar. This is a #9 hitter who in over 1,230 plate appearances in the regular season and playoffs hadn't accumulated 10 home runs. The same guy who coming into the season never had an OPS of .700. The same guy who had never walked in the playoffs and had as many career walks as Nick Swisher racks up by the All-Star break.
And Burnett walks him to put the tying runs on base.
There's a lot of blame to go around, but don't forgot to give some to Burnett for not only the way he started the game, but how he finished it as well. A.J. Burnett failed. This was not what the Yankees paid A.J. Burnett to come here and do.
(images courtesy of The Daily News and Brooks Baseball)
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