WAR

MESSAGE FROM JOE GIRARDI, 12:44 p.m. 3/12/08

My fellow citizens, at this hour, Yankee and minor league farm forces are in the early stages of physical operations to disarm Tampa, to free its fans and to defend the league from grave danger.

On my orders, Shelley Duncan has begun striking selected targets of infield importance to undermine Joe Maddon's ability to wage war. These are opening stages of what will be a broad and concerted campaign. More than 35 players are giving crucial support -- from the use of bean balls and home plate collisions, to help with intelligence and logistics, to the deployment of combat units. Every player in this coalition has chosen to bear the duty and share the honor of serving in our common defense.

God bless the Yankees.

One day after Yankees manager Joe Girardi insisted his club would not retaliate for a violent home-plate collision in Saturday's game against the Rays, both clubs spilled onto the field at Progress Energy Park in a bench-clearing incident Wednesday.

In the first inning, Yankees starter Heath Phillips was ejected for throwing an up-and-in fastball to Rays third baseman Evan Longoria, grazing the batter and earning an immediate thumb from home-plate umpire Chad Fairchild.

In the home half of the first, the Yankees' Shelley Duncan escalated the incident by sliding hard into second base, clearing both benches. Play halted for several minutes as the two clubs engaged in shoving, and at least one punch appeared to be thrown.