Behind eight innings from Hideki Irabu, the Yankees blanked the Devil Rays by a score of 4-0. Entering their game against Tampa Bay on September 17th, the Yankees had only a dozen contests remaining in what had been a magical season.
The Yankees and Blue Jays didn’t have much to play for on this September night, but that didn’t stop tempers from flaring. A day after officially clinching the AL East, the Yankees didn’t suffer any hangover, overcoming an early deficit to take their series-opening contest with the Blue Jays in the Bronx.
On this day in history, it was a bad day at the office for Hideki Irabu. Hideki Irabu’s Yankee career famously did not go great. He lasted just three seasons with the team, and was the subject of a fairly rude comment from George Steinbrenner.
Trade deadline intrigue added to the drama on the field, which saw the Yankees pull out a win thanks to their starting pitcher/catcher battery. After a solid series win in Anaheim, the 1998 Yankees continued their West Coast trip by traveling north to Seattle.
The Yankees crushed the Tigers on this day in 1998. The 1998 Yankees were firing pretty much all season, but they especially came out firing after the All-Star break.
A late rally set the stage for extra inning heroics from Ricky Ledee. The Yankees entered this game having taken the first two from Philly, giving them the chance for the sweep and wrapping up a stretch of interleague play against NL East opponents.
Hideki Irabu got torched while the Yankees offense couldn’t touch Bartolo Colon. As dominant as the 1998 Yankees were, no team is immune from a handful of distinct stretches of vincibility throughout a season.
The Bombers got blanked by the O’s in a rare quiet night, securing their first series loss since the beginning of 1998. On the heels of a relatively rare loss to open up their series in Baltimore, the Yankees headed into the second game looking to turn things around.
In an interleague matchup against the Expos, Hideki Irabu had quite the action-packed day. Now with 15 teams in each league, interleague play is something that has to happen all throughout the season.
Behind another excellent start from Hideki Irabu, the Yankees won their second straight game against the Devil Rays. The Yankees entered the day fresh off a victory against Tampa Bay the night before led by the MLB debut of Orlando Hernández, but that win was a tad pyrrhic.
Hideki Irabu spun a complete-game shutout while the Yankees’ lineup hammered the White Sox. Good teams find ways to win. When their starter gets lit up, the lineup absolutely batters the opponent’s pitching staff to win in a shootout.
After a rare blown save by Mariano Rivera, Texas took the Yankees down in extras. The Yankees entered this Thursday night game fresh off a big win the previous night in the series opener against Texas.
Hideki Irabu and the 1998 Yankees extend their winning streak to a season-high eight games on the eighth of May. After a much-needed day off on the seventh of May, the New York Yankees continued their three-city road trip by traveling north to Minnesota to take on the Twins.
Bernie Williams drove in both runs as Hideki Irabu stifled the Kansas City offense. As the calendar flipped from April to May, the 1998 Yankees had finally secured first place in the division, holding a half-game lead over the rival Boston Red Sox.
The Yankees offense couldn’t get anything going against Tigers righty Brian Moehler. Owners of an eight-game winning streak, the Yankees were riding high, their 1-4 start to the season a distant memory.
Hideki Irabu never became a dominant ace, but he was a solid contributor on two World Series winners. Hideki Irabu’s tenure as a Yankee was generally regarded as a big disappointment, and frankly, many fans and people around the organization would likely use harsher terminology.
Former New York Yankees pitcher Hideki Irabu had one of the more infamous Major League Baseball careers. After once being a hard throwing and dominant starter in Japan, Irabu never replicated it overseas.
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