Results tagged ‘ Ivan Nova ’
ALDS Game 1
It may have taken about 24 hours to complete – but Game One of the American League Division Series is in the books. The Yankees had to wait, but for them, a win like tonight was probably worth waiting for. The Bronx Bombers took Game One from the Tigers in convincing fashion, 9-3.
Obviously the two standouts from this game: Ivan Nova and Robinson Cano.
Nova finished what Sabathia started yesterday night, pitching 6 1/3 innings – and he nearly finished the game, although if he had, it would not have gone is the record books as a complete game because the game was suspended. Nova stood tall and refused to be rattled, only allowing two earned runs on four hits.
The walks may be a concern, as he issued four free passes, but he did strike out five.
Moving forward, the Yankees have to be feeling a lot more confident about him. Remember: Nova is a rookie, and for a rookie to basically start an important playoff game – and pitch the way he did – is impressive and reassuring.
If the Yankees are lucky, Nova will not have to pitch again until the American League Championship Series. Undoubtedly he will continue to be tested throughout this postseason. And if he duplicates what he did tonight, he will pass the playoff test with flying colors.
And then there’s the studly second baseman.
Cano came up in the bottom of the fifth with the score knotted 1-1 and went oppo, crushing a double off the left field wall that plated Curtis Granderson. The play went under review, as it looked to go over the wall and come back, but in fact bounced off the top of the wall. It stood as a two-base hit.
He may not have cleared the wall in left field in the fifth, but he sure as heck cleared the right field wall in the sixth.
Brett Gardner singled to drive in Mark Teixeira and Jorge Posada, but Cano then stepped up with the bases chucked and creamed a grand slam into the second deck in right field, completing a six-run sixth inning for New York.
That granny was the first slam in a Yankee postseason game since Ricky Ledee crushed one in Game Four of the 1999 ALCS – off Rod Beck (†) at Fenway Park.
You’d think a grand slam and a go-ahead RBI double would be enough for anyone in one game.
But Cano still wasn’t done.
In the eighth he doubled again, this time driving home Derek Jeter, registering six of the Yankees’ nine runs in the game. With his hitting show, he became the eighth Major League player to drive in six runs or more in an LDS game.
If Cano stays as red hot as he was tonight, the Yankee offense can breath easily.
Tomorrow afternoon Freddy Garcia will take the ball and hope to keep the Yanks winning. He will face off with Max Scherzer in Game Two.
I think the most important thing for the Yankees to keep in mind is that the series isn’t over. Indeed it was a motivating and encouraging win, but anything can happen.
Remember: in the 2006 ALDS vs. Detroit the Bronx Bombers started with a Game One win – and then dropped three in a row to lose it all.
Complacency is not an option. They still have two games to win in this series.
And I’m sure they know that. Now it’s just a matter of putting it together.
See you after Game Two.
Rain, Rain Go Away
Quite an inauspicious start to the American League Division Series. Come to think of it, “inauspicious” might not be the word for it. “Wet” and “Soggy” are probably the operative words.
Yankee skipper Joe Girardi had one thing to say about the weather once again ruining a night of baseball at the new Yankee Stadium:
“It’s too late to build a roof.”
The Yankees and Tigers looked primed to be in a battle tonight, tied 1-1 heading into the bottom of the second inning. Delmon Young went the other way in the first inning for a solo home run, depositing the ball on the short porch and putting the Tigers on the board.
But the Yanks answered with a groundout by Alex Rodriguez which plated Derek Jeter in the bottom half of the first to knot it up.
Then, like many times this season, the skies opened up, rain poured down over Yankee Stadium, and we entered a rain delay. About two hours after the game officially started, it was officially called, much to the chagrin of all Yankee fans.
My Facebook and Twitter feeds blew up.
“I hate rain!”
“Screw you, Mother Nature.”
“Game One postponed?!”
“This ruined my Friday night.”
What This Means For the ALDS
Game One will resume tomorrow night at 8:37, picking up right where we left off: in the bottom of the second inning, the score knotted 1-1.
CC Sabathia and Justin Verlander started tonight – and they will not pitch tomorrow.
Tigers’ manager Jim Leyland already knows how he is going to configure his pitching staff for the remainder of the series. Doug Fister will pitch the resumed Game One tomorrow night, Max Scherzer will start Game Two (to be played on Sunday afternoon at 3:07), Game Three he will re-send Verlander to the mound – and Game Three is Monday night.
If it goes to a fourth game, it will be played on Tuesday night and Rick Porcello gets the ball. If the series goes the distance and reaches a decisive fifth game on Thursday, it’s Fister again.
This rain-out could mean good news for the Yanks: they’ll only see Verlander once.
Girardi indicated that rookie Ivan Nova will start the resumed Game One tomorrow night. Freddy Garcia will start Sunday, but from there, he doesn’t yet know what direction he will go in.
In his owns words, “Nova will pitch for us tomorrow, Freddy will go Sunday, and after that I can’t tell you how we’ll do it.”
More likely than not, Sabathia will take the ball in Game Three, although from what I read he may lobby to pitch Sunday.
But the way things look right now, just as Verlander is only pitching once in this series, Sabathia might have to suffer the same fate. There is a chance the Yankees might need a fourth starter in this series, and the skipper hinted at who he will probably turn to.
“It’s obviously something we’re going to have to talk about,” Girardi said of a fourth starter.
“A.J. is obviously the most stretched out for us, in that situation.”
Cue the barf bags.
This certainly isn’t what either team wanted or expected, but as the old saying goes, you cannot predict or fight the weather. I’ve recently learned there are things in life you can and cannot control, and rain falls into that category.
Yesterday I wrote about the similarities and differences between this ALDS and the ALDS the Yankees played against the Tigers in 2006. This rain-out is another parallel that can be drawn between ’11 and ’06. There was a rain-out in that series as well which affected the Yankees.
No matter what happens now, at the end of this series, whoever loses is probably going to point to tonight and say the rain-out did not help. I don’t anticipate either team or manager to make excuses, but if there isn’t a sweep, they have to play four days in a row – and that is not favorable to any team in a playoff series.
Unfortunately for the Yankees and Tigers, just like tonight, heavy rain is in the forecast for tomorrow night. If the game gets rained out tomorrow night, I’ll be officially convinced that God is laughing so hard at the Red Sox collapse that He’s crying – which in turn is creating rain over Yankee Stadium.
If that is the case: God, I love you, but please stop. And let the Yankees play ball.
End of the Year Awards
No one gave the Yankees a fighting chance when 2011 started. The lineup and defense was declared “old.” The pitching rotation was called “comically thin,” and the fact that the Yankees did not pick up a huge free agent in the off-season led every skeptic to believe they were going to fail this year.
Now look where they are – and who is struggling for their playoff lives.
The Boston Red Sox were the favorites. They acquired Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford, bolstering their already-potent, veteran-laden lineup. All the folks who talked up the Red Sox to win it all this season are probably kicking themselves now, as the Red Sox are just 2 ½ games in front of the Tampa Bay Rays and the Los Angeles Angels in the AL Wild Card race.
Yesterday the Yankees beat the Rays twice, sweeping a day-night double header. The Bronx Bombers won both games by the same count, 4-2, and captured their 17th American League Eastern Division title.
Meanwhile Boston dropped their second straight game – and they are 3-7 over their last 10 games. The Red Sox have gone ice cold at the wrong time and the Yankees have become red hot at the right time.
With the Yanks no longer having to worry about winning the division and the end of the regular season right around the corner, it’s that time of the year again: the time to reward the Yankee players for what they have achieved this season.
It’s the third annual Yankee Yapping End of the Year Awards!
Let us all find out who this year’s winners are.
Yankee Yapping Milestone Man Award
Winners: Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera
In 2009 both Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera accomplished something special. Jeter became the all-time Yankee hits leader and Rivera captured his 500th career save.
Fast forward two years later and both of these perennial Yankees are still making history.
On July 9, Jeter stepped up to the plate at home and clubbed a home run to deep left-center field, his 3,000th career hit. He became the first Yankee to ever record 3,000 hits and the second person since Wade Boggs to leave the yard for 3K.
Rivera became the all-time saves leader on Monday, nailing down his 602nd career save, securing a 6-4 Yankee win over the Minnesota Twins.
With 602 saves under his belt he passed Trevor Hoffman for most career saves all-time. Including the postseason, Rivera has 644, as he also has saved 42 playoff games.
Jeter and Rivera have only solidified what we as Yankee fans have known all along: that they are legends. No one may ever duplicate what both of these men have accomplished. In the foreseeable future, there won’t be another Yankee to get 3,000 hits.
There’s also a good chance no one will ever do what Rivera has done in terms of closing ballgames.
I don’t have to sell the Captain and Mo at all; there is nothing to say that hasn’t been said a million times. Jeter and Rivera have earned the love and adoration of every Yankee fan in the world. Both are five-time World Series champs, and have an opportunity to become six-time champs this year.
Time will tell if they get there, but until then, there are Yankee Yapping Milestone Man winners. Congrats guys!
Yankee Yapping Most Valuable Player Award
Winner: Curtis Granderson
These past few years the Yankees have had a number of players in the running for the American League Most Valuable Player Award. Last year it was Robinson Cano, this year it is Curtis Granderson. The centerfielder’s .270 batting average may be the only statistic that is holding him down, but he has done very well for himself in every other offensive category.
At press time Granderson leads the majors in runs scored (134) and RBIs (119), and is second in home runs (41) to Toronto’s Jose Bautista (42).
Yet, remember the old saying, which originated in 2005 when David Ortiz was in the running for MVP: it should go to “full-time players” only. Defense is part of being a baseball player too, and Granderson has exhibited excellent D.
In the field he is showing off his capability with 11 assists and a .992 fielding percentage.
Throughout the year Granderson has come up in some huge spots on both sides of the field, and has turned into the elite player the Yankees traded for before 2010. He has made a lot of progress and stepped up, especially against left-handed pitching – which was something scrutinized when the Yanks acquired him.
The big fuss about Granderson was his strife against lefties. But that has not affected him this year.
In fact, Granderson is actually hitting .277 off southpaws, as opposed to his .266 BA vs. righties. 16 of his 41 homers have come off lefties and his slugging percentage vs. left-handers is .614. Against righties, Granderson is slugging .549.
He has a chance to win the AL MVP this year. But if he doesn’t, he can always take solace knowing he has won the Yankee Yapping MVP Award. Congrats Curtis!
Yankee Yapping Ace of the Year Award
Winner: CC Sabathia
I started this blog in 2009 and this will be the third Ace of the Year Award I will be handing out. All three years it has gone to the same man and rightfully so.
It was announced tonight that CC Sabathia will not make another start before the American League Division Series begins, which means he went 19-8 with a 3.00 ERA this year. He racked up 230 strikeouts, logged 237 1/3 innings, and registered three complete games (one of which was a shutout).
Sabathia has been the horse since day one; the leader. He takes the ball every fifth day and the Yankees seem to have a certain confidence and swagger whenever he’s on the mound. I think they take the field knowing they have a great chance to win with Sabathia pitching.
When the postseason begins, Sabathia has to be his usual self. Not that he pitched all that poorly last year, but he did end the American League Championship Series with a 6.30 ERA while surrendering seven earned runs in just 10 innings. If he can be that dominant pitcher we have seen, the Yanks can certainly win a lot of games. If not, they are in big trouble.
But we know what to expect from him – and he usually delivers. Sabathia won’t win the Cy Young Award because Justin Verlander of Detroit basically has that locked up. But he did win Yankee Yapping Ace of the Year for the third consecutive time.
Congrats, CC!
Yankee Yapping Silver Slugger Award
Winner: Robinson Cano
The Yankees have a lot of players to thank for where they are. But the biggest thanks probably deserves to go to the studly second baseman Robinson Cano.
After he showed off his might winning the Home Run Derby, Cano continued to portray exemplary power – which is something that sometimes doesn’t happen. There has been a theory going around these past few years that the derby messes up a hitter’s swing.
Take David Wright on the other side of town, for example. He came close to winning the Home Run Derby in 2006, but according to some experts, never put up the same power numbers after that year. Same thing goes for Bobby Abreu, who won the derby in 2005, but never hit more than 20 dingers in a season following it.
Cano on the other hand has 27 homers, 116 RBIs, and is batting .305. He has been a consistent force in the Yankee lineup, taking on the cleanup hitter role in the absence of Alex Rodriguez. He has thrived in everything that has been thrown at him and continues to impress with his sweet swing and smooth stride.
Like Granderson he may be considered for AL MVP Award – last year he finished third in the voting. Whatever happens, he has been a major reason for the Yanks’ success. Congrats Robinson!
Yankee Yapping WTF?! Award
Winner: A.J. Burnett
When Spring Training started, Yankee analysts (namely Ken Singleton) raved about the difference in A.J. Burnett. Singleton called his pitching delivery “completely revisited” and after watching a bullpen session, said Burnett’s fastball and curve ball were “crackling through the strike zone.”
Under the tutelage of first-year pitching coach Larry Rothschild, I thought he could finally go back to that dominant form he once displayed when he pitched for the Florida Marlins and the Toronto Blue Jays. A lot of other fans also felt Burnett was primed for a big year.
But those thoughts were not well-founded.
The man who was signed to a lucrative five-year, $82.5 million contract has not lived up to it, as he is 10-11 with a 5.28 ERA – after going 10-15 with a 5.26 ERA in 2010. He has given up 107 earned runs in 182 1/3 innings pitched, and has allowed more than a hit per inning. He also leads the league in wild pitches with 25 – and this is the third time in his career he has led the league in that category.
For the past few years I have attempted to defend Burnett for the sake of our initials. I can’t take away from the fact that he pitched the game of his life in Game Two of the ’09 World Series. If he had not won that game and pitched as effectively as he did, I’m not convinced the Yankees would have beaten the Phillies.
Yet New York sports supporters have one question, Burnett: what have you done for me lately?
Nothing. Absolutely nothing. And there is no way I can defend an ERA of 5.28 in a pitcher who cost $82.5 million. Burnett was supposed to be a solid number two starter and he hasn’t even proved to be a good number four starter; maybe an acceptable number five man, but he is nowhere near what the Yankees expected him to be.
I lost a little bit of respect for him when he made a start in Minnesota vs. the Twins on Aug. 20. Burnett tossed just 1 2/3 innings before Joe Girardi came to the mound to take the ball from him. He allowed seven earned runs on five hits, walking three batters and striking out only one.
As he left the mound, Burnett lipped off at his manager and stormed into the clubhouse.
In my mind it was a complete and utter display of unprofessionalism.
After this year he is still owed $33 million – which is a lot of money. Unless the Yanks can get rid of him somehow, they might be stuck with him for at least another year and a half. I just don’t know what to make of him anymore.
Burnett I have one question for you: WTF?!
Yankee Yapping “He Proved Me Wrong Award”
Winner: Ivan Nova
I had serious doubts about Ivan Nova when the year began. In a big game, I did not want to trust him with the ball, being that he was 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA in 10 games (seven starts) last year. In my mind I drew a comparison between him and Ian Kennedy (when he was a Yankee), thinking he would flop.
But soon after I found myself comparing him to Kennedy, I found myself comparing him to Chien-Ming Wang, being that his sinker ball has worked so effectively and he has induced a good amount of ground ball outs. Using that pitch, he has cruised to a 16-4 record this year with a 3.62 ERA.
Nova is in the running for the American League Rookie of the Year and is probably going to be the number two starter in the postseason – quite a responsibility for a 24-year old.
Although he has certainly proved me wrong as far as the regular season goes, he still has to show he can get it done when it matters. It remains to be seen whether Nova can help carry the Yanks in the postseason. But for now, he has shown an outstanding capability on the mound.
For the past two years pitchers have won Rookie of the Year; Andrew Bailey of Oakland in 2009 and Neftali Feliz of Texas in ’10. I wish Nova the best of luck to keep the line of pitchers winning ROTY moving.
And if he doesn’t win it, at least he won a Yankee Yapping Award. Congrats Ivan!
Yankee Yapping Best Season From a Newcomer
Winner: Russell Martin
He may be Canadian but after this year, I think he is officially a New Yorker.
Russell Martin was a wonderful pickup by the Yanks before 2011 commenced. He has displayed sheer durability, playing in 121 games this year. His batting average is hovering around.236, but he has smacked 17 home runs and knocked in 62 runs while scoring 55.
There’s an old saying about catchers: having one that can hit is a bonus – and we have that bonus.
Martin has also done very well working with a pitching staff he has never worked with before. He has done very well with every hurler on the staff and in the bullpen, and can easily call a good game behind the plate.
I’m looking forward to another year with Martin in pinstripes and he deserves the honor of being called the best newcomer to the team. Congrats Russell!
Yankee Yapping Reliever of the Year
Winner: David Robertson
This will be David Robertson’s second consecutive Yankee Yapping Reliever of the Year win. Last year he grinded through a slow start, only to become a lights-out relief man.
This year Robertson was an All-Star and in relief he is 4-0 with a tiny 1.11 ERA. The young man out of Alabama has struck out 96 batters in 64 2/3 innings pitched, has notched 39 holds, and has carved his niche as the primary setup man for Rivera.
He’s also earned the nickname “Houdini” for being able to get out of tight jams and sticky situations.
Robertson has been an asset ever since he joined the Yanks in 2008, and they have been lucky to have such a consistent bullpen pitcher on their roster. He scuffled a bit in last year’s postseason, but if he maintains that consistency he displayed all season, he will do just fine.
Congrats David!
Yankee Yapping Future Star Award
Winner: Jesus Montero
On Sept. 1 Jesus Montero made his much-anticipated debut in a game against the hated Boston Red Sox. He went 0-for-4 while getting hit by a pitch, and didn’t impress many fans in his first game.
But he collected his first hit in the next game against Toronto, and a few days later on Sept. 5 crushed his first two homers against the Baltimore Orioles at home. He became the first Yankee since Shane Spencer (1998) to hit his first two Major League homers in the same game.
Montero has only played in 14 games and still has a long way to go in terms of showing off what he can do. There are certainly high hopes and expectations, but from what he has given us so far, I believe he is capable; he can live up to the hype.
With Jorge Posada likely on his way out and Francisco Cervelli constantly getting knocked in the head, Montero is likely the catcher of the future.
With Martin around for at least another year, he can learn the ropes a little bit and still act as a designated hitter. That way when his time comes and he is the every day catcher, he will be more than ready.
In the meantime, it was smart of the Yankees to call him up and at least give him a taste of the majors. If he gets his little bit of experience now, I have no doubt he will be very dangerous in the future. And for that, he wins the Yankee Yapping Future Star Award.
Congrats Jesus!
Well, that about does it for this year’s awards blog. Congrats to all the winners (save for A.J. Burnett; I’m just sorry for him at this point) and congrats to the Yankees on the AL East crown. Within the next few days we will have our ALDS opponent, so look out for previews and playoff analysis.
October, here we come.
CC a Warrior, But Won’t Win Cy
Today he got hungry – and forgot his manners.
Yankee ace CC Sabathia ate up 7 1/3 innings this afternoon, giving up just two earned runs on six hits en route to the Yanks’ 9-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays at home. He walked just one batter and struck out 10 for the second straight game.
With the win, Sabathia has collected at least 19 wins in each of his three seasons in pinstripes – which ties him for most 19 win seasons (as a Yankee) with Andy Pettitte, Ron Guidry, and Mel Stottlemyre. He now has four career 19 win seasons and he has a good chance to win 20 (or more) before the 2011 campaign wraps.
Of late, the big man has been dealing like he’s been playing blackjack in Vegas.
But it hasn’t just been the past couple of starts that have put Sabathia in the running for the Cy Young Award. All season long he has been a horse. In fact, since day one he has done nothing but work, grind, and earn everything he has.
Case in point: his last start on Aug. 30 in Boston, a game the Yanks needed and won 5-2.
The Red Sox had gotten the better of Sabathia all season going into that game. His numbers proved that, as he boasted a poor 0-4 record with an inflated 7.20 ERA against the Yankees’ hated rivals. More than anything he needed to showcase his capability to win a hugely important ballgame in 2011 vs. the Red Sox.
And that’s what he did, although it wasn’t easy.
To start the game, Sabathia plunked Jacoby Ellsbury with a pitch – which probably sent a lot of skeptics and cynics into saying, “here we go again.” But he rebounded nicely, getting Marco Scutaro to ground into a force out before striking out Adrian Gonzalez and Dustin Pedroia swinging to end the frame.
In the second inning, Sabathia threw a wild pitch with Jed Lowrie on first, getting himself into a first-and-second, one out jam (He fanned David Ortiz to open the frame). Boston eventually loaded the bases with two outs, but the Yankee ace responded by getting Ellsbury to ground out to second to end the threat.
The fourth was a bad inning for Sabathia, as he surrendered two runs – one of which came on a solo homer off the bat of Carl Crawford. He also allowed Jarrod Saltalamacchia to score on a double by Scutaro, giving Boston their only two runs in the game.
The Yanks had already put three runs on the board and never trailed.
However in the fifth, he got himself into more trouble. He gave up a one out single to Ortiz, followed by a Lowrie double, setting up the BoSox second and third, one out. But Sabathia continued to refuse to buckle, as he got Crawford to line out and then whiffed Saltalamacchia to end another threat.
The big man labored; worked his tail off to earn the win – six innings pitched, 10 hits, two earned runs, two walks, 10 strikeouts, and he chucked a career-high 129 pitches to get through the game.
If that performance doesn’t have the word “Warrior” written on it, what does?
Last year Sabathia came in third in the American League Cy Young Award voting, losing to Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners (who won, coming in first in the voting; 13-12, 2.27 ERA) and David Price of the Tampa Bay Rays (first runner-up; 19-6, 2.72 ERA). Sabathia won 21 games last year while only losing seven, and his ERA was 3.18.
Most proponents for Hernandez’s Cy Young win argue that his individual numbers were better than Sabathia’s and Price’s – and that’s true. He led the league in batters faced (1,001), games started (34), ERA (2.27), innings pitched (249 2/3), and hits-per-nine (7.0).
Plus, he was able to post a winning record on a ballclub that gave him virtually no run support, another factor contributing to his winning of the award. Hernandez had a lot going for him; the writers recognized that and rewarded him for it.
I have always maintained that the Cy Young Award should go to the Most Valuable Pitcher – because the award says MOST VALUABLE PITCHER on it.
Sabathia (and Price, for that matter) were more valuable to their respective teams. Sabathia carried the Yankees into the stretch run and helped get them into the American League Championship Series. Price did much of the same. He stood at the forefront of the Rays’ pitching staff, leading them to the AL East crown.
There’s no doubt that Hernandez had an incredible year in 2010 because the numbers do not lie. Yet, the question has to be asked: if he was on a team (like the Yankees or Rays) that was locked a tight pennant race, would he be the same pitcher?
The Mariners were not going to the playoffs last year. Hernandez could have taken the mound every fifth day with no pressure whatsoever. Win or lose at the end of the day, Seattle wasn’t in the running for the AL West. Hernandez probably pitched “hakuna matata,” if you will; with no worries in his head.
Sabathia and Price had a lot to worry about, though. Both were the aces of pitching staffs that were going to be playing autumn baseball; they were under much more scrutiny and more likely than not, were thinking hard about the postseason.
But that was last year. Hernandez won. It’s over and done with.
With Sabathia’s outstanding numbers this year (19-7, 2.99 ERA) he is once again a candidate for the Cy Young Award. His stiffest competition is, without a doubt, Justin Verlander (21-5, 2.34 ERA) of the Detroit Tigers. Verlander has put the Tigers on his back and carried them to first place in the AL Central.
You name the pitching category, Verlander leads it.
I think what is going to win him the award, along with his numbers, is this question: where would the Tigers be without Verlander?
It’s a legitimate question. The answer: probably not in first place.
But another question needs to be raised: where would the Yankees be without Sabathia?
Same answer: probably not in first place.
The Yankees have three pitchers in their rotation with losing records. Bartolo Colon is 8-9, Phil Hughes is 4-5, and A.J. Burnett is 9-11. Without Sabathia’s 19 wins and brilliant workmanlike efforts, the Yankee ship would be sunk.
I still find it amazing the Yankees are in first place, considering three of their starters don’t own winning records. It’s pretty incredible that they have been able to continue to win games despite receiving subpar starting pitching at times.
Verlander has a little bit of an edge over Sabathia in terms of the Cy Young voting, as his numbers are a hair above the Yankee ace. Knowing the writers, they will give it to Verlander – and if he does win the award over the big man, I cannot dispute it in any way – certainly not the way Hernandez’s Cy Young win can be brought into question .
It was easy to point out why Sabathia (or Price) should have won over Hernandez, but Verlander is for real.
If a pitcher has 21 wins and September just started, he is doing something right.
There are, however, a couple different Yankees who are in consideration for other awards, namely the AL Most Valuable Player Award and the AL Rookie of the Year. Curtis Granderson is leading the majors in runs scored with 125 and in RBI with 107. He is second in home runs with 38 to Toronto’s Jose Bautista, who has 40.
The only thing that’s killing Granderson is his .271 batting average. If he can raise his BA, he’s a shoo-in for MVP.
Meanwhile Ivan Nova (15-4, 3.89 ERA) is up for AL Rookie of the Year. Each of the past two seasons a pitcher has captured the award (Andrew Bailey of the Oakland A’s in 2009 and Neftali Feliz of the Texas Rangers in 2010). Nova will hopefully keep the line moving and become the first Yankee to win Rookie of the Year since Derek Jeter won it in 1996.
Last year I truly felt Sabathia deserved the Cy Young. Although he is having a great season, Verlander looks to be the favorite this year. But there are other Bombers who are in the running for league-wide end-of-the-year accolades. If not one player wearing pinstripes takes home an award, I will be thoroughly convinced that…well…
The writers hate the Yankees.
When one of us loses, we all lose
Think back to the movie “Cool Runnings” for a second. Irv Blitzer, John Candy’s character, scolds his bobsled team after they failed in their first Olympic heat. His team had proven they were good enough to be in the Olympics, but buckled under pressure, showing that even though they have the talent and skill, they lost.
“You choked. It was yours for the taking, and you choked. You were ready, and you choked. You know the turns. You know everything there is to know about this sport. I’ll tell you something: you had all better find a way to stay loose out there. That’s something I can’t help you with. I’ll see you tomorrow on the hill.”
Yankee Manager Joe Girardi needs to say something like this to his team. The Yanks have proven they are a lot better than how they have been playing, yet they are not showing it. The Bronx Bombers have now lost six games in a row and they are 3-10 in their last 13 games. The last time the Yankees won a game was a week ago today on May 10; a 3-1 win over the Kansas City Royals.
Since then, it has been a dark time to be a Yankee.
There are so many guilty parties to consider in terms of this losing skid. Collectively it has been the whole team that has been struggling – there is plenty of blame to go around. But a number of players stick out. I’ll start with…
Joba Chamberlain
On Friday May 13 Joba Chamberlain came into the game in the top of the seventh, in relief of Bartolo Colon – who had given the Yankees six innings while only allowing two runs. Chamberlain proceeded to give up a three-run home run to Kevin Youkilis, giving Boston a 5-2 lead.
The Yankee offense, scuffling, managed to score two runs but could not come back to tie the game or win it. New York went on to lose, 5-4.
Two days later Chamberlain was just as ineffective.
With the Yanks trailing 6-5 in a tight series finale with the Red Sox, Chamberlain surrendered a solo home run to Jarrod Saltalamacchia – a player who had not homered all season up until that plate appearance. Saltalamacchia is currently batting .217, and has 24 strikeouts in 83 at-bats this year.
It’s almost impossible to give up a homer to him. Chamberlain did the impossible.
That tater gave Boston a 7-5 lead and they won by the same count.
Although Chamberlain’s current numbers don’t necessarily reflect a poor season (2-0, 4.05 ERA, 17 strikeouts and 16 hits in 20 innings pitched, and only three walks) he has given up 10 runs, nine of which have been earned.
It’s safe to say he has been a part of this losing streak, even to a small capacity.
Jorge Posada
We all know about the controversy. Jorge Posada took himself out of the lineup because he was batting ninth and he didn’t want to bat last in the order. His wife mentioned he had some back stiffness, but in the end he wasn’t injured; he just didn’t want to play on Saturday against the Red Sox.
Whatever. It’s over. I, for one, was glad he didn’t play. Has anyone else seen his numbers?
Posada is batting .165 this year, the worst in baseball among everyday players. In a big situation you cannot expect Posada to come up with a big hit because nine times out of ten he is probably going to disappoint you.
Case in point: Wednesday May 11 vs. the Royals, the night the losing streak began.
Eduardo Nunez (more from him later) stole second base, tied 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth inning. Nick Swisher was intentionally walked, setting up Posada. The 39 year-old DH had the perfect opportunity to silence his critics and regain some of that pride everyone talks about him having.
So with two runners on and a chance to win the game, what did he do?
He struck out swinging on a 3-2 count. Posada whiffed at a low slider that barely had the plate.
Since Saturday Posada hasn’t been in the starting lineup, although he has been used as a pinch-hitter. The media has made it seem that Posada has been left out of the lineup because he has been having a hard time with left-handed pitching – and since Saturday, the Yankees have only been facing southpaws.
Tonight however, a righty (James Shields) is taking the ball vs. New York. If Posada is in the starting lineup, we can assume everything is alright and that everyone is over his actions from Saturday. If he is once again left out, then get ready for another soap opera.
Ivan Nova
On Thursday May 12, Ivan Nova took the ball hoping to get the Yankees back in the win column. Nova failed at playing the role of stopper, getting shelled for eight runs on ten hits in just three innings pitched. He walked two batters, struck out two, and served up two homers.
What made it worse for me: I was there to witness it. I sat in the right field bleachers of Yankee Stadium to watch Nova blow the game and the Yankees lose, 11-5.
It was only one bad start for Nova, but it was a big one. If he could have managed to come out strong and win the game, the Yanks may have been able to gain some momentum heading into the Boston series. Instead they were reeling, it carried over, and as we all know Boston swept them.
Up until that point Nova had been on a little bit of a roll; he had won his previous two games against Texas and Toronto. But somehow he unraveled against the Royals.
Nova has to be able to get into a groove; he will be in for a long season if he keeps going up-and-down. Tonight he will once again try to play the role of stopper against the Tampa Bay Rays.
If he can stop the bleeding, he will be known as the guy who played a major role in ending this run of misery. Yet if he falters again, goes out and gets beat up the way he did against Kansas City, he will be considered a huge part of why the Yankees are losing.
Mark Teixeira & Alex Rodriguez
If anyone has seen these two, please call the NYPD. I don’t know where they have disappeared to, but I am reporting them missing.
Throughout this losing streak, Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez have practically been non-existent in the Yankee batting order; we might as well rename them Casper and Slimer, because they have been ghosts.
The number three and number four hitters are there to provide power, and most often intimidate opposing pitchers. At this point, every opposing pitcher is probably comfortable facing Teixeira and Rodriguez.
During this six-game skid Teixeira has one RBI, just four hits, no home runs, no runs scored, and he has struck out four times. His season batting average has plummeted to .250.
Teixeira looks off-balance and hasn’t been swinging the bat well.
Rodriguez hasn’t been much better, although he has been a bit more productive in recording four RBIs and hitting a home run (on May 12 vs. the Royals) during the losing streak.
However it doesn’t change the fact that A-Rod is hitting .242 on the season and he is fouling out an awful lot. The follow-through in his swing doesn’t look normal and as a result, he isn’t getting around on a lot of pitches, popping them up for outs.
Rodriguez also committed a costly error on defense in Sunday’s game, letting a ball go through his glove and allowing Dustin Pedroia to score.
The Yanks cannot expect to win when both of these players aren’t hitting. When one or two people are struggling, the other players are supposed to rise to the occasion and produce; it’s what baseball is all about, picking each other up.
Teixeira and Rodriguez always pick each other up. But when both of them are slumping, who picks them up?
Right now nobody, unless you count Curtis Granderson, who has been the only player on offense that has been hitting.
But Granderson can’t hit in all nine spots in the batting order, nor can he pick up every single hitter on the team. Teixeira and Rodriguez need to help him out and start swinging their bats.
When they get hot, the team gets hot. And right now they are about as cold as Antarctic ice.
Eduardo Nunez
I can’t exactly knock what Eduardo Nunez has been able to do at the plate. For a bench player he hasn’t done poorly on offense, hitting .304 on the year (7-for-23) with only two strikeouts. Nunez has also proven his worth on the bases, stealing four bags and getting caught just one time.
But that’s his offense. On defense…well…
For a bench player, he’s done well. For a backup shortstop, he has failed.
At shortstop he has committed five errors in six games. He played one game at third base and in that game, committed an error. That gives him a total of six errors this season at two different infield positions.
On May 5 in Detroit Nunez botched two throws filling in for Derek Jeter at short, helping the Tigers overcome a strong start by A.J. Burnett. In fact, Burnett had been no-hitting the Tigers into the sixth inning. Even with that strong of a start, the Yanks lost.
If Nunez could field the ball, he would be a genuinely good bench player; a good hitter and a good fielder. But his defense kills him; it only makes him a threat on offense and a below average defender (and saying he’s below average is being generous).
I could probably rant on all day about how poor the Yankees have been playing.
I could point out other struggling players like Brett Gardner, who is supposed to be a speed threat and has been caught stealing six of the 11 times he has tried to swipe a base this season.
I could touch on how Burnett had a chance to end the losing streak, and how once again he fell flat on his face, giving up five runs in the sixth inning of last night’s game to blow it.
I could mention how Russell Martin hasn’t been swinging the bat well and is carrying a .252 batting average, with only three RBIs and seven strikeouts over the last 10 games.
I could go on forever about how useless Rafael Soriano is, with his arm problems and inability to pitch.
But it’s not necessary because everyone knows it. The world knows the Yankees are scuffling and these Yankees that we see playing in front of us are not the real Yankees at all.
The real Yankees don’t choke.
The real Yankees know what’s theirs for the taking and don’t choke.
The real Yankees are ready, and don’t choke.
The real Yankees know how to hit, field, and pitch.
The real Yankees know everything there is to know about this sport.
I’ll tell them something…
These Yankees need to find a way to stay loose out there, which is something their coaches and manager can’t help them with.
We’ll see them tonight at Tropicana Field.
Too Late For Sori, Bullpen Blows It Again
Before this season began, many folks called the Yankees’ starting rotation “comically thin.” Those same folks praised the Yankee bullpen, calling them dynamic and strong. Rightfully so, considering they have Mariano Rivera, and they bolstered the ‘pen with the signing of Rafael Soriano, who led the American League in saves last year with 45 for the Tampa Bay Rays.
Right now, it’s almost as if everyone had it backwards.
A.J. Burnett, Ivan Nova, Bartolo Colon, and Freddy Garcia have been pitching great, giving the Yankees length and quality. Each of the starters, who everyone thought were going to pitch terribly, are doing their part. The bullpen on the other hand has been faltering and failing.
Case in point: tonight.
With the Yankees leading 2-1 in the eighth, Soriano plunked Carlos Quentin, who was quickly replaced by pinch-runner Brent Lillibridge (more from him later). The next batter, Paul Konerko, pulled a home run over the left field wall, giving the White Sox a 3-2 lead.
The Yankees tried to stage a comeback in the ninth; Derek Jeter singled, Curtis Granderson sacrifice bunted him over to second, and then Mark Teixeira walked.
Then it became the Lillibridge defense show.
Alex Rodriguez took a pitch to deep right field, all the way to the wall. On his horse, Lillibridge ran and tracked the ball down at the wall for the second out.
Robinson Cano, as the Yanks’ last hope, lined a falling blooper to right, again setting up another excellent play for Lillibridge; he dove, caught the ball, and ended the game.
The only two runs the Yankees generated were by solo home runs, off the bats of Cano (in the second inning) and Brett Gardner (in the fifth).
As a team the Yanks only had four hits tonight and two of them went over the wall. The Yankees collectively have 38 homers, and it’s evident they are relying heavily on the home run.
And as they say: if you live by the home run, there’s a chance you can die by the home run.
Tonight, that was the case.
But it probably should not have come to that in the first place. The Yankees brought Soriano to New York to fill the void in the eighth inning. He was meant to get big outs in the eighth inning; to hold close leads late in the game and set up Rivera, but so far he hasn’t done much of that.
In fact, Raphael the Ninja Turtle seems to be doing more for the Yankees than Rafael Soriano.
He is 1-1 with a 7.84 ERA and he has more walks (8) than strikeouts (7). He left a bad taste in a lot of people’s mouths last night, not going for that popup behind the mound. Tonight he blew a tremendous outing by Nova, who pitched 6 1/3 innings and gave up one earned run on five hits.
Nova walked two and struck out three, the longest outing of his young career.
It was unfortunate for Nova, because if he had won he would have moved to 2-2 on the year. Instead Soriano blew the game and his chance at his second win of the season. Soriano’s body language has also been rubbing certain people the wrong way.
When he surrendered the home run to Konerko, he didn’t look fazed; he remained stoic and it didn’t look as though he cared he had blown the lead. There are some pitchers who do not show emotion, but with the way Soriano has been recently pitching, it wouldn’t kill him to look a little upset with himself.
Yet as poor as Soriano has been pitching, he isn’t alone. Rivera has blown his last two save opportunities, both after good performances from the starters.
On April 19 in Toronto, Burnett gave the Yanks a great outing, turning in 5 1/3 innings and only allowing two earned runs. Rivera blew a 5-3 lead in the ninth and the Blue Jays went on to win 6-5 in 10 innings. Fast forward five days later in Baltimore, and another quality start, this one by Garcia.
Six innings and no earned runs by the starter and Rivera came in and once again let go of the lead. The Yankee offense bailed him out, taking the game into extra innings to beat the Orioles 6-3 in 11 frames, but it still goes as a blown save for Rivera.
The Yankee bullpen, as dynamic and strong as it can be, is not doing the job.
The only bright spot seems to be David Robertson, who has five holds so far this year. Robertson is 1-0 and has not allowed a run in 8 1/3 innings pitched. Tonight he tossed 2/3 of an inning, struck out one, and did not issue a walk.
It’s nice to know we have one guy out there doing his job, but the rest of the relievers are ghosts.
Tomorrow night Colon (1-1, 3.50 ERA) will take the hill for the Yankees (12-8), looking to get them back in the win column. He will face Chicago ace Mark Buehrle (1-2, 5.40 ERA).
As for the bullpen, minus Robertson, I have one closing thought for you:
Act like you care. Get your heads in the game. Start doing work and taking care of business.
Yanks Blanked By White Sox
The Chicago White Sox had lost 10 of their last 11 games going into last night’s game with the Yankees. Behind a masterful performance by Philip Humber, they changed that, beating the Bombers 2-0 last night.
It was the first time since May 16, 2000 the White Sox have shutout the Yankees.
Humber took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, when Alex Rodriguez broke it up with a seeing-eye single up the middle. The Bronx Bombers finished the night with just three hits.
The Yankees are now 12-7 on the season, still in first place in the AL East holding a 2 ½ game lead over the second place Tampa Bay Rays.
A lot to take away from this game. First…
A.J. Burnett
The lanky right-hander tossed eight strong innings, only giving up one run on three hits. He walked two batters and struck out two.
The Yanks’ number two man threw a solid game, and it was business as usual for him, being that the calendar still reads April. Burnett was 8-0 in April games coming into last night’s game, now 8-1 overall.
Burnett still leads the Yankee staff in wins (3-1) and he needs to keep pitching in top form for the rest of the season. He has enjoyed a great amount of success in April, which is good in terms of getting off to a quick start. Last year Burnett started at 4-0, and everything quickly caved in on him.
8-1 in April is nice to look at, but Burnett is 18-24 with the Yanks in all other months.
The Yankees cannot afford to have Burnett lose it, not with their current pitching situation. Yesterday things got worse for…
Phil Hughes
So far this season Phil Hughes is 0-1 with a 13.94 ERA. The Yankees have lost each of his three starts and in those three starts, he never made it out of the fifth inning.
He was placed on the 15-day disabled list on April 15 with a tired arm and seemed to be making progress; getting healthier and ready to make another start. In fact, he threw around 90 pitches in Baltimore and was set to make a minor league rehab start. Things were looking up.
That is until yesterday.
Hughes threw a bullpen session and had to stop after just 12 pitches, saying he felt “deadness” in his arm. He compared the sensation in his arm to getting punched in the leg and receiving a numb feeling.
It’s hard to say why this is happening to him. Some are theorizing that his 2010 workload is the reason for his dead arm period right now. Hughes logged 176 1/3 innings last year, the most innings pitched in one season in his career.
Prior to last year, the most innings he had ever thrown in one season was 86 in 2009, a year Hughes pitched primarily out of the bullpen.
Was the move to the rotation in 2010 the reason Hughes has lost it?
Again, it’s hard to say. All signs point to yes, but there really is no way of knowing for sure. Hughes himself can’t even explain it, saying he needs to figure out what is going on and then take it from there.
He will go for an MRI today and maybe that will give him and the Yankees some answers. Until he comes back, the Yankees will need to continue to get stellar pitching out of Burnett, Bartolo Colon (who took Hughes’s spot in the rotation), Freddy Garcia and Ivan Nova.
Rafael Soriano, Derek Jeter, and the Strange Play
In the ninth inning last night, the Yankees called on Rafael Soriano to do what he was brought here to do: hold teams down and not allow them to score in the late innings.
Alexei Ramirez stood at the plate and cracked an infield popup, throwing his bat down in disgust as he ran it out toward first base. Soriano pointed straight up as Derek Jeter, playing back at short, raced in to attempt to catch the ball.
The Captain didn’t get there in time, as the ball dropped between him and the back of the pitcher’s mound, falling in for an infield hit.
The White Sox capitalized and scored in the frame, taking a 2-0 lead into the bottom of the ninth.
After the game Soriano said it wasn’t his ball. In his owns words, “You think I could catch that ball? I don’t think so. I thought Jeter or Alex was going to catch it.”
A little bloop,” Jeter said. “Right behind the mound, not much you can do about it.”
Pitchers are oftentimes uncomfortable fielding popups, scared of colliding with a teammate, stumbling over the mound, and ultimately getting injured. Soriano obviously was not keen on taking that risk.
Manager Joe Girardi said the only player who had a fair shot at catching the ball was Soriano – but added that he might not have gotten there, either.
It was a weird play, that’s the best way to characterize it. The ball was hit so softly and it was just well-placed. It didn’t have a whole lot of hang time and with Jeter and Rodriguez playing back at their positions, there was no way for them to get the ball.
Jeter, in his prime, may have been able to catch up to it. But even so, it would have been difficult given the placement of the ball.
Soriano could have done more to take charge, but I understand why he didn’t. If he had gone for it, fell, and gotten hurt, I would be writing about what a foolish decision it was to go after the ball.
Bear in mind, Soriano sat out on Sunday with a strained lower back. He stated, however, that he was fine to pitch yesterday and just needed a day off.
That run cost the Yanks, somewhat, as Curtis Granderson smacked a single to leadoff the bottom of the ninth inning. He would have represented the tying run on first base if that run had not come around to score in the top half of the frame.
It didn’t matter anyway as Mark Teixeira, on a 2-0 count, bounced into a 3-6-1 double play to end the threat.
Clearly it wasn’t the Yankees’ night.
Tonight it could be, though. Ivan Nova (1-2, 7.63 ERA) will take the rock for the Bombers, battling Gavin Floyd (2-1, 4.00 ERA).
Yankees Slip Past Twins, Head into Boston to Face 0-6 Red Sox
The Yankees had a rare game on Tuesday – a complete meltdown of the bullpen, taking a 5-4 loss to the Minnesota Twins. Yesterday’s game was rained out, making this afternoon’s game a rubber game. The Bombers came out on top, beating the Twins 4-3 in the series finale.
The Yankees and Twins will make up Wednesday’s rainout in September.
A three-run fourth inning by the Yankees gave them the lead, which they never gave up. Down 2-1, Andruw Jones blasted a double to score Alex Rodriguez, tying the game up at two. Russell Martin then grounded out to first base, allowing Robinson Cano to come to the plate.
Jones came home on a bloop single by Brett Gardner, finishing off the scoring in the frame.
The Yankees built a run in the bottom of the third, with Gardner ultimately coming home on a sacrifice fly to right field by Nick Swisher.
Speaking of Swisher, he took out Twins’ second baseman Tsuyoshi Nishioka in the seventh, sliding hard into second base to break up what would have been a Mark Teixeira double play.
Swisher broke it up, but in the process, fractured Nishioka’s fibula. The Yankees’ right fielder looked visibly disappointed in himself after Nishioka was removed from the game. He is headed to the disabled list.
Next time the Yankees meet the Twins…watch your back, Swish. (Although Swisher did apologize after the game. Will the Twins will get back at him? We’ll have to wait and see).
In another storyline, Derek Jeter had two hits and he passed Rogers Hornsby and Jake Beckley for 33rd place on baseball’s all-time hits list. The Captain now has 2,931 hits, just 69 base hits away from 3,000.
The Twins scored two in the top of the fourth receiving RBI doubles by Jim Thome and Jason Kubel. They plated their final run in the top of the seventh on a groundout by Denard Span to score Alexi Casilla.
A.J. Burnett pitched for the Yankees and turned in a good performance. The lanky right-hander tossed six innings and gave up two earned runs on five hits. He walked two batters and struck out five, mixing pitches and using his curveball with confidence.
He was backed by the combination of Joba Chamberlain, Rafael Soriano, and Mariano Rivera who put the Twins away in the seventh, eighth, and ninth, respectively. It was certainly an improvement over Tuesday’s collapse. The only blemish was a run given up by Chamberlain – Span’s groundout to score Casilla was on him.
Burnett improved to 2-0 on the season and he is now 7-0 in 12 April starts as a member of the Yankees. He leads the Yankee staff in wins this year.
Rivera has saved all four games the Yankees have won this season, as the Bombers are 4-2.
Now they will head into Boston for the weekend, where things have not gone according to plan. While the Yankees have a winning record, the Red Sox have started the season 0-6, losing their first three games to the Rangers and their next three to the Indians.
Boston has only started two other seasons at 0-6 (1905 and 1927) and statistically it’s the worst start they have ever seen since 1945. Baseball analysts are asking themselves, “What have happened to these guys?” After all, many experts predicted the Red Sox to win it all this year, considering their huge off-season acquisitions. They added Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford to help bolster an already-potent lineup.
Although the BoSox are scuffling, they cannot blame Gonzalez. He is hitting .304 with five RBIs and he has a home run. Crawford on the other hand is not producing, hitting .174 with no extra base hits, only one RBI, and six strikeouts.
Jacoby Ellsbury, who is Boston’s leadoff hitter, is only batting .167 and has struck out seven times this year. Kevin Youkilis, one of the Red Sox main RBI producers in the middle of the lineup, is hitting a meager .105 with just one RBI and five strikeouts. Dustin Pedroia is batting .227 with no extra base hits and no RBIs.
After their 1-0 loss to the Indians today, Pedroia said he was going to go home and his wife was going to tell him “he stinks.”
Yet, it isn’t just the dead offense. Boston’s pitching hasn’t been much better.
John Lackey, who will start tomorrow afternoon against Phil Hughes (0-1, 11.25 ERA) was shelled in his first start of the year against Texas. He tossed only 3 2/3 innings and surrendered nine earned runs on ten hits. He walked two batters, struck out three, and served up two homers. Lackey’s ERA right now is 22.09.
On Saturday the Yankees will send Ivan Nova (1-0, 4.50 ERA) to the hill to face Clay Buchholz, who was touched up for four homers in his first start of the season against the Rangers. He pitched 6 1/3 innings on the way to a loss in Texas, as he is 0-1 right now with a 5.68 ERA.
The series will conclude on Sunday night with CC Sabathia (0-0, 1.38 ERA) squaring off against Josh Beckett – once the Boston ace, now throwing out of the number four spot in the rotation. Beckett only tossed five innings in Cleveland on Tuesday, giving up three earned runs on five hits. He walked four batters and struck out four, on the way to his first loss of 2011.
Look at it this way: tomorrow is Opening Day at Fenway Park. The Red Sox fans are going to be excited and hoping their team can put the abysmal 0-6 start behind them with a win over the Yankees. During the opening ceremonies, the fans will be cheering and going wild for their players, new life and rebirth fresh in their heads.
However…
If the Yankees jump all over Lackey for a few runs early on, they might turn on their team and get angry. The Boston fans might be getting restless, witnessing their team – that everyone thought was going be dominant – struggle so mightily in the early-going.
And with the way the Yankees have been going ahead early, getting on base, and putting pressure on the other team, it could make for a long weekend for the Red Sox.
As the people in Boston continue to scratch their heads and wonder what is wrong with the Red Sox, New York would love nothing more than to keep the ongoing Boston Massacre alive.
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
“It is our right seven months out of the year to sit on the couch with a bowl of pretzels and a frosty cold one and watch baseball…baseball is America’s game. It belongs to the people and the people is…us. So I say, let there be baseball. Let there be life.”
-Al Bundy
It’s your ace vs. their ace. It’s new life. It’s hope of a winning season. It’s the best day of the year:
Opening Day.
In less than 24 hours, the Yankees will embark on their quest for World Series Number 28, opening their 2011 regular season at home against the Detroit Tigers. It will mark the first time the Yankees have started a season in their two year-old Stadium, being that in 2009 and ’10 they opened their season on the road.
In a rather strange coincidence, the Yankees ended their Spring Training in the Grapefruit League on Tuesday with a 2-1 win over their Opening Day opponents, the Tigers. Now that camp has broken and baseball is officially back, there are a few storylines to discuss.
First off, Jesus Montero. The Yankees opted to send him and Austin Romine to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and they gave the backup catcher job to Gustavo Molina, who has hit .122 for his career (23 games) with no homers, seven RBIs. It’s apparent he hasn’t had much experience at the Major League level.
If you ask me, the Yankees should have let Montero join the big club. They keep stressing how they want to mold him and shape him to be the catcher of the future – and that is perfectly fine. In the coming years he will be the everyday catcher.
As for the present time however, he had an opportunity to at least see some big league action and the Yanks threw it away. I’d like to see Montero go through his trial time now.
There’s no doubt he is going to take his lumps when he first gets called up, and I would have liked to see it happen now – at the beginning of the season when there’s at least some room for error – rather than the end of the season when everyone needs to be producing.
What the Yankees should have done, in my opinion, is allow Montero to backup Russell Martin until Francisco Cervelli’s foot injury heals. When Cervelli gets healthy, they could have optioned Montero back to the minors – either way the Yankees win in that scenario.
Here’s why:
If Montero struggles at the big league level, they send him down and he will know what to expect when he comes back up; he will be a little more mature. If he starts tearing the cover off the ball at the big league level, well…that’s self-explanatory.
One way or another, Montero could contribute this year. He is someone to keep in the back of your mind.
Another storyline is Derek Jeter. As it’s been documented, the Captain is 74 hits away from 3,000 for his illustrious career.
Undoubtedly he will reach the milestone this year and when he does, he will become the first Yankee to accomplish the feat. He will also be only the fourth shortstop to ever do it (Honus Wagner, Robin Yount, and Cal Ripken, Jr.).
Jeter has said that he will “enjoy the ride to 3,000.” And when the ride ends and he reaches destination 3,000, it will unquestionably be a wonderful moment for the Captain and the Yankee team.
The pitching is another storyline that is always examined throughout each season, and this year will be no different. The Yankees’ starting rotation has rightfully been nicknamed “CC and the Question Marks.”
Looking at it objectively, it’s a fitting name. CC Sabathia has already proven he is a front-line starter, a horse, and a Cy Young caliber pitcher. He has been in the Cy Young discussion both years he has been in pinstripes and captured the ALCS MVP in 2009.
It’s safe to say right now Sabathia has nothing to prove.
The other four guys, on the other hand, have a lot to prove. A.J. Burnett, who according to the beat writers is battling a cold, goes without saying. Everyone pretty much understands that in order for the Yankees to be successful, their number two man needs to turn things around and put up a big season.
Last year Burnett averaged over five earned runs a game and was 10-15. He needs to change that.
Phil Hughes may have recorded 18 wins last year, but he averaged over four earned runs per game. He lost two important games during last year’s ALCS, including the series-ending loss to the Texas Rangers.
Hughes flew under the radar for the most part because of his 18 wins. But what most fans don’t understand is that the Yankee offense gave him a good amount of run support; he won some games in which the Yankees scored a lot of runs.
This spring Hughes had a 4.09 ERA and gave up 10 runs on 24 hits in 22 innings. If this is what we are to expect of him from the number three spot in the rotation, he will need the run support he had last year.
Ivan Nova won the fourth spot in the starting rotation with a good spring (2-0, 1.80 ERA in 20 innings pitched, four walks, nine strikeouts). Last year he was 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA and seemed to struggle when it came to the fifth inning.
It will be interesting to see how he holds up playing a full season.
Lastly there’s Freddy Garcia, who won the fifth spot in the rotation over Bartolo Colon. Garcia was the favorite to take the number five starter job because he was 12-6 last season for the Chicago White Sox and Colon had not pitched in an MLB game since 2009.
Garcia was 1-1 with a 4.91 ERA this spring – and yes, he too has a lot to prove.
Mark Prior did not make the team coming out Spring Training, much to my surprise. He had such a wonderful spring: 8 2/3 innings pitched, a 1.04 ERA, three runs (only one was earned), five walks, and 12 Ks.
Prior will go through extended Spring Training and has said he hopes to help the Yankees this year; he is still striving to make the big team and wants to contribute.
Honestly, I am disappointed in the Yankees. Prior is interchangeable; he can be a long reliever or a middle reliever. With Pedro Feliciano on the disabled list, it opened up a spot in the bullpen. What did the Yankees do?
Well, they gave it to Luis Ayala, which doesn’t look like a bad right out of the gate. Ayala pitched to a 0.79 ERA this spring, tossed 11 1/3 innings, and gave up just one earned run on nine hits. He walked no one and fanned nine.
Bear in mind though, Ayala was pitching mostly to minor leaguers late in spring games. If he scuffles against the major leaguers in the regular season games, I say dump him and bring up Prior.
On the offensive side of things, Alex Rodriguez had a monster spring. He averaged .388 and hit six homers in 18 games. He knocked in 15 runs and registered 44 total bases. He drew five walks and only struck out seven times.
There has been a lot of speculation that Rodriguez could be a potential MVP candidate. I think he has to get his feet wet and get going, but if this spring was any indication, A-Rod will have a spectacular year.
With all these storylines, new ones will emerge as the season rolls on. And so it begins.
Tomorrow afternoon at 1:05 (weather permitting) the Yankees and Tigers will square off on baseball’s Opening Day. Sabathia and Justin Verlander will start what will be a long, 162-game journey.
Ready or not, here we go. Let there be baseball. Let there be life.
What the 25 Man Roster Should Look Like
Today the Yankees beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-2 in Tampa, leaving only three more Grapefruit League games left on the schedule before they start playing for real on Thursday. The highlight of the afternoon was a towering, two-run homer off the bat of Alex Rodriguez that flew over the batter’s eye in centerfield, his sixth round-tripper of the spring.
A few decisions and moves were made recently, most notably the trade of Sergio Mitre, the signing of Kevin Millwood, and the naming of the fourth and fifth starting pitchers.
Yesterday Mitre was dealt to the Milwaukee Brewers for outfielder Chris Dickerson. In this afternoon’s win over the Bucs, Dickerson made his Yankee debut and put on quite a hitting show. The 28 year-old pounded out three hits (including a double) in three at-bats while knocking in a run.
Unfortunately Dickerson was forced to leave the game with an apparent hamstring injury after notching his third hit. As of this point, the Yankee medical staff can only diagnose his injury as “spasms and cramping.”
Tough luck for the kid to go down – especially following such an impressive debut. What’s more, it hurts the Yankees, being that Curtis Granderson is not yet confirmed to be playing on Opening Day in light of his oblique injury. Yesterday Granderson did some running and agility drills, as he hopes to avoid beginning the 2011 season on the disabled list.
Millwood, 36, was signed just yesterday. He owned the worst record in baseball last year, going 4-16 for the Baltimore Orioles with a 5.10 ERA. However, he has been a dominant pitcher in the past, leading the league with the lowest ERA in 2005 (2.86), making the All-Star team in 1999, and finishing third in the N.L. Cy Young voting in 1999 as a member of the Atlanta Braves.
Even though he has proven himself in the past, he hasn’t proven anything yet. He will probably have to go through extended Spring Training and wouldn’t make the team unless he flourishes, another pitcher struggles, or another pitcher gets hurt.
Along with the trade and the signing, it was announced that Ivan Nova will be the Yankees’ number four starter this year, and Freddy Garcia will pitch every fifth day. Bartolo Colon, who many people feel had a better spring than Garcia, will pitch out of the bullpen.
Garcia owned a 5.93 ERA in four spring outings, throwing 13 2/3 innings. Colon held down a 2.40 ERA in 15 innings, giving most people the impression Colon should have won the number five job.
Yankee Manager Joe Girardi maintained that Garcia, 35, was the favorite to win the spot because Colon, 37, hasn’t pitched in a Major League game since 2009. Girardi added that, for his standards, Garcia had a good spring.
Now that we are only six days away from Opening Day, here is how Girardi should build his roster. Only 25 players can be at Yankee Stadium on Thursday and these men (I feel) have earned the honor of making the trek from Tampa to the Bronx.
Position Players
1) Derek Jeter – SS
2) Alex Rodriguez – 3B
3) Robinson Cano – 2B
4) Mark Teixeira – 1B
5) Jorge Posada – DH
6) Russell Martin – C
7) Brett Gardner – LF
8) Nick Swisher – RF
9) Curtis Granderson* -CF (*if he does not start the season on the DL)
10) Andruw Jones – Fourth Outfielder
11) Eric Chavez – Backup IF/Utility
12) Eduardo Nunez – Backup IF/Utility
13) Jesus Montero – Backup Catcher
Pitchers
14) CC Sabathia – No. 1 Starter
15) A.J. Burnett -No. 2 Starter
16) Phil Hughes – No. 3 Starter
17) Ivan Nova – No. 4 Starter
18) Freddy Garcia – No. 5 Starter
19) Bartolo Colon – Long Relief
20) Mark Prior – Middle/Long Relief (he is interchangeable; can be used for both)
21) Joba Chamberlain – Middle Relief
22) David Robertson – Middle Relief
23) Rafael Soriano – Setup Man
24) Boone Logan* (*Pedro Feliciano will most likely start the season on the DL) – Lefty specialist(s)
25) Mariano Rivera – Closer
Most of these players will be in the Bronx next week and all of them deserve to be. Girardi will probably make a few modifications to my Opening Day roster, but expect to see most of these names called during the pregame ceremony on Thursday.
Mark Prior deserves to be on the roster because of how well he pitched this spring (eight games, 7 2/3 innings pitched, three hits, three runs, one earned run, 1.17 ERA, 11 Ks, and five walks).
He earned the chance to prove himself and could provide the Yanks with some solid middle and/or long relief. I’m not sure if Girardi will send Prior to the Bronx, but if they don’t call him up, at least at some point in the season, they are making a mistake.
If Granderson does start the season on the DL, obviously a spot will be open and it’ll be a toss up. I would expect someone like Justin Maxwell (.206 in Spring Training, but he only had 34 at-bats, three RBIs, and four runs scored) or even Dickerson (if he is healthy, given his injury today) to backup Jones in centerfield. That spot would only be open until Granderson returns, anyway.
Another position in question is the backup catcher role. I feel it is time for Montero to at least gain some experience on the Major League level. Today it was reported that Gustavo Molina could back up Martin at catcher, until Francisco Cervelli returns from his foot injury.
If you ask me though, Montero needs a taste of the big leagues – even if he doesn’t spend the entire season in the show.
Whichever way it goes, in a matter of days, anticipate Girardi giving the official word on who is going to the Bronx and who will be heading to the minors.
A.J. Martelli
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