Granderson starting Yanks career off with bang

BOSTON

In all, Curtis Granderson opined with a smile, Yankees-Red Sox didn't quite live up to the hype.

"I was expecting a little more craziness," the Yankees' new centerfielder said late last night. "I'm sure it's going to come."

Hmm. It seemed like a standard rivalry series to me. In which case, maybe Granderson already has started to master life as a Yankee.

Of course we're talking about a mere three games, but the Yankees' primary offseason acquisition delivered his first huge moment. His solo, 10th-inning homer off Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon broke a tie and propelled the Yankees to a 3-1 victory at Fenway Park and a 2-1 series victory.

This marked the Yankees' eighth April series at Fenway in the last 10 years. They lost the previous seven. The defending World Series champs ensured some early positive mojo, and Granderson shielded himself against the "Slow-starting Yankee" label.

"You don't know how everybody's going to react to New York, because you've seen so many people come to New York and kind of struggle here," said Andy Pettitte, who pitched well in his first start of the season. "So it's great to see him come in here and get a big hit like that in a big situation and man, I'm just happy for him. He'll just be able to continue to build off that, I think."

General manager Brian Cashman had to be pleased with what he saw, since both Granderson and winning pitcher Chan Ho Park contributed. Park, however, is a replaceable reliever. If he flops, he flops. If Granderson can't produce, the Yankees' quest becomes considerably more difficult.

Which is why manager Joe Girardi, who experienced his own slow start as a Yankees player in 1996, told Granderson over and over this spring, "Don't try to be Hideki Matsui. Don't try to be Johnny Damon."

Granderson lacks the on-base skills of the departed, beloved veterans Damon and Matsui. He makes up for it with youth and defense. What we all wanted to know was, could he display the same late-inning confidence and competence as those two guys?

You can't answer that question much more convincingly than with a homer off a 94-mph Papelbon fastball. Granderson now has two career homers against Papelbon.

"I really don't know," Granderson said, when asked to explain his success against Papelbon. "Get myself ready to hit. Just try to go ahead and get a ball out over the plate, and just go ahead and get on base. Sometimes, you look up, and you're able to drive the ball out of the ballpark."

That's two homers now for Granderson, and stellar defense in centerfield. He's not going to own lefty pitchers, we already can see that. Yet that can be overlooked if he lines up his other assets.

"That's all I want to do, be a small piece of this puzzle," Granderson said. "I'm happy to get a chance to be a part of that."

Happy, and apparently unfazed. Given that Yankees seasons often start out with mediocrity and adversity, Granderson's comfort zone represents progress. Maybe he can be one of the few who transition with ease. Maybe he can set a precedent for future newcomers.

"Curtis is a great player," Pettitte said. "He's going to do great things, unless he tries to put too much pressure on himself. But he looks really relaxed to me. He's mixing in great with the team, and he's just going to really help us."