"A man can be destroyed but not defeated."
-Ernest Hemingway

Randy Johnson has always reminded me of a tragically flawed Hemingway character: Last night he was the epitome of Jack, the boxing protagonist of EH's "Fifty Grand." Jack, like RJ, is an aging combatant with waning (but not depleted) skills. In the story's final fight scene, Jack is performing better than expected against his opponent until he sadly disqualifies himself with a flagrant low blow. We are left to wonder: Why? Was the foul a futile rejection of time's inevitable handcuffs?

Sound familiar?

For 6+ innings, RJ was 90% the flamethrower of old. Retired 11 in a row. Good slider. Fastball at 95/96. Our man Jim Kaat (YES network) continually praised Johnson's location. The underperforming (vs. preseason expectations) Indians managed just a lone run in the 5th on two "seeing-eye" singles. In the top 7th, RJ's congenital mean streak returned as he buzzed Eduardo Perez inside. Did Posada's HBP necessitate the retaliation? No. Was this pitch an expression of frustration at the last 60 days? I believe it was. For the Yankees, the offense gave a revitalized RJ four more runs than he needed. The scoring was provided on HRs by John Damon and Andy Phillips and RBI hits by Robinson and Bernie.

What of Randy Johnson? I hope that Hemingway correctly describes what the Yankees universe can expect from the left-hander:

"The world breaks everyone and afterward many are stronger at the broken places."