Yankees vs Orioles, 21 May 2009: A Liveblog

4.35 PM: Some really interesting going-ons today

1) The White Sox and Padres had worked out a Jake Peavy deal, but it looks like Peavy didn't like the idea and used his NTC to get out of it.

2) The Brewers and Padres pulled off a Tony Gwynn Jr-for-Jody Gerut trade.

3) The Minnesota Twins are currently up on the ChiSox 20-0 and there's still another inning to play.

4) Yankees lineup, from @Yesnetwork:
Jeter SS
Canó 2B
Teixeira 1B
Rodriguez 3B
Matsui DH
Swisher RF
Cabrera LF
Cervelli C
Gardner CF


I'm not entirely sure why Canó is batting second, but I am assuming Johnny D is just getting a night off.


4.50 PM: I'm always wrong. From LoHud:

Josh reports that Phil Hughes will get another start. Hughes will start Monday in Texas. Chien-Ming Wang will pitch a minor league game tomorrow.

“We just want to see him have the stuff he had in the bullpen,” Girardi said.

Johnny Damon wrenched his neck jumping for Adam Jones home run yesterday. He is sore but Girardi hopes its only one day. “He’s a little sore.”

It doesn't seem like Damon's hurt too bad, but even so there's no being too cautious, especially with a neck.


5.40 PM: There's a rumor going around that Phil Hughes has asked to go to the bullpen when Wang returns to the rotation. If/when I get this from an official source I'll say so. For now, it might just be pointless rumblings.

5.42 PM: Now I'm hearing it was Girardi per WFAN.

5.57 PM: Phil Coke is a game time decision after getting hit on the shoulder yesterday.

7.03 PM: Yeah, old news now, but Peavy officially rejected the trade.

7.17 PM: Joba kind of couldn't get out of the way of an Adam Jones liner; he's in the game now, but we'll see if there are any effects.

7.19 PM: It looks like the Yankees are going to go to the bullpen. We have to hope that Joba's injury is not serious. And that the Yankees can piece this together with the bullpen.

7.31 PM: Guess Robbie's okay hitting second out of the line up.

7.41 PM: Melky is so clutch. Even lets the runs score before getting tagged out. 4-0 Yankees and Aceves and co. have some breathing room.

7.48 PM: I don't know which of the Yankees scouts signed Aceves, but he deserves a huge bonus check.

7.57 PM: Robinson Canó has three RBI and it's only the second inning. That ball probably doesn't get out at the old park, but it is at least a gapper.

8.11 PM: Ken Singleton asked Michael Kay if he remembered Ramiro Mendoza and then corrected that to Mario Mendoza, but an Aceves/Ramiro Mendoza comparison here seems more apt.

I'm not sure how much longer the Yanks let Mendoza Aceves go, but that might depend on what the Yanks do in the bottom of the inning.

8.14 PM: The longer we go without hearing about Joba, the more I worry.

8.27 PM: Can we give Aceves a medal here? And how the heck did this team go so long without a long man, given what Aceves has done? It's like Ramiro Mendoza spawned.

8.35 PM: Looks like Aceves is coming back out to start the fifth. I can't say I'm entirely fond of this idea. He's thrown 50 pitches so far. I know he's a starter, but he threw two innings last night

8.37 PM: And I am wrong yet again. Albaladejo is in. And he promptly serves one up to Brian Roberts. Now 6-1 Yanks.

8.40 PM: Only an eight pitch inning there. I can live with Roberts' solo HR, especially if the Yankees can tack on. Also, it means Albaladejo should be okay for the sixth, too. And then would you go Veras-Bruney-Mo? Or Veras-Bruney-Bruney? Or Veras-Bruney-Tomko? Or any combination thereof in which you can stay away from Phil Coke who is slightly injured?

8.49 PM: I know it's a bandbox, but as long as the Yanks keep hitting absolute bombs like that, I'm okay with it.

9.02 PM: And now it's a 7-3 game as Wigginton has a PH double. Albaladejo really needs to get the last out here before Baltimore gets any closer.

9.04 PM: That works. Yanks head to the bottom of the sixth with a four run lead. This would not have happened if the Yanks needed 8 innings from the pullpen as recently as three weeks ago.

9.11 PM: Word from YES is Joba X-rays are negative and he has a bruised right knee. That could have been so much worse.

9.15 PM



You see where that "I" is supposed to be in the big Mac sign?

Pujols took that out.


And A-Rod grounds out with the bases loaded. So unclutch.

(Photo credit Matthew H Leach/St Louis Cardinals)

9.20 PM: Markakis with a solo shot and now 7-4 Yankees. Albaladejo is likely gassed, but I'm not sure you can trust Veras with a three run lead. Guess we're gonna find out.

9.32 PM: Yankees could have used a run there but it was not to be. Somehow they have to fashion six outs out of the remaining relievers and I don't know if they go to Mo after a four out save last night, albeit a 14 pitch only appearance.

9.41 PM: Veras worked into and out of trouble there. The Yanks will go to the ninth with a three run lead.

9.48 PM: George Sherrill looked good there. It is now up to Mo. We'll see if there's any effects from last night.

Why Ben Sheets Does Not Belong in Pinstripes

There has been discussion over the offseason about whether or not the Yankees should sign Brewers' Free Agent Ben Sheets.

At the beginning of the offseason, before the Yankees signed either CC Sabathia or AJ Burnett, the discussion was somewhat more prevalent, but even now, there are still a surprising number of Yankee fans that are part of the Sign Ben Sheets movement.

Before any analysis of Sheets is gotten into, one basic idea needs to be stated:

Everyone is available for the right price.

In some instances, prices might be prohibitively expensive--for example, if the Yankees wanted to trade for, say, Tim Lincecum (note that I am only using Lincecum to illustrate a point and not seriously proposing an offer!), it would likely take a deal including Joba, Austin Jackson, Mark Teixiera, Chien Ming Wang, Jesus Montero and Robinson Canò, not to mention the Yankees paying the rest of his salary and signing him to a long term, 10, 15 year contract--and that's just for starters.

On the other hand, had Bobby Abreu been willing to accept a one year, perhaps $10 million (instead of $16 million) offer, the Yankees may have elected to re-sign their right fielder.

So, the basic premise here is not that Sheets is not a good pitcher and it's not that Sheets wouldn't help the Yankees win more games; rather, the point is that for the money that Sheets, as an all-star, would likely command, is prohibitive for the risks that would be involved in signing him.

If you haven't, go and read this article from Hardball Times that was published last May. It does a great job of analyzing Sheets, including the number of injuries he has had and how the injuries may be related to his mechanics.

I am far from a baseball mechanics expert, and I can't tell you whether or not the high arm slot is absolutely necessary for Sheets to pitch well.

What I can say is this--Sheets, when healthy, is a great pitcher. There is no doubting that--just think about his performance in last year's All Star Game, for starters.

So, there's a bit of a Catch-22: if one is tempted to alter Sheets' mechanics to save his arm health, one risks possibly losing what makes him a great pitcher in the first place.

More importantly than that, however, is the following:

Why do these injuries continue to mount for Sheets? The culprit appears to be his high arm slot. Although it’s partly responsible for the large 12-6 curveball, it’s also responsible for taxing the rotator cuff to the max. As a rule of thumb, the higher the arm slot, the harder the rotator cuff and biceps must work to stabilize the head of the humerus. This places stress on the rotator cuff interval, which includes ligaments in the front of the shoulder that also add stability.

As some have attested on other blogs, the MRIs of Sheets' shoulder sent to various teams have not looked good, and is, in all likelihood, the number one reason Sheets has yet to be signed when combined with the salary a starter of his caliber could rightfully desire.

Had the Yankees not been able to sign Sabathia or Burnett, the question of whether or not Sheets would loom much larger. As it is, the Yankees still need another starter--unless the Yankees resign Pettitte, they are looking at a 4-5 combo of Joba Chamberlain and one of Phil Hughes/Alfredo Aceves/Phil Coke/etc.

However, the risks inherent with signing Ben Sheets now seem that much more unnecessary to take on when one considers that the Yankees have Chien Ming Wang--their "ace" last year--slotted in the three spot!

Sheets will find a home, for sure, but whatever team that takes him is taking on the risk of him never being able to pitch a full season. After the Pavano disaster, the Yankees probably don't want to go down that road again...

Fearless Playoff Predictions, 2008

Brief LDS previews--I'll do LCS previews at the appropriate times.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Angels over Red Sox

To me it comes down to pitching--the Angels have the better rotation and the better bullpen. I can see this series going five games, because October is funny like that, but the Angels are a better constructed team, and unlike last year, they're not nearly as banged up.

Rays over White Sox.

While Bobby Jenks is the best pitcher in either bullpen, I think Tampa as a whole has a better team. The Sox barely scraped into the playoffs; they have momentum on their side, but let's see how that momentum carries away from the South Side.


NATIONAL LEAGUE

Phillies over Brewers

I like the Brewers well enough, and Ryan Braun is amazing, but outside of CC, what starters do they have? As much as the Brew Crew might want to, they can't pitch CC every day. The Phillies do have to worry, though, about putting Brad Lidge out there in a close game in the ninth--Albert Pujols still has a resonance.

Cubs over Dodgers

The Cubs are easily the best team in the National League. Whether or not this translates to postseason glory is yet to be seen, but if the Cubs can figure out how to pitch to Manny, they'll walk all over the Dodgers

A Preview A Day Keeps the Winter Away, #6

For the month of March I will be doing a season preview, with a new team each day, going in alphabetical order by team so I can save the Yankees for last, because I am, in fact, that devious.

As this is a Yankees' blog, the previews for AL East teams will be more detailed than those of AL Central and AL West teams, and any AL team previews will be more detailed than NL team previews, save maybe for the Mets. Each preview will involve consideration of how much 'threat' a team is to the Yankees, for fairly obvious reasons.

Up Today: The Milwaukee Brewers

Suffice it to say that last year the Brewers were first one of the great, feel-good surprises of the season...and then they were one of the great disappointments.

On paper, they should be competitive enough, especially at the corners in Ryan Braun (who put up numbers that defy, well, everything his rookie year) and Prince Fielder, who would have been treated like a king if not for A-Rod's monster season.

However, there are some major pitching questions. Ben Sheets appears to be taking lessons from Carl Pavano, Chris Capuano lost something like (at least) eighteen straight starts (okay, at that point it's luck herself doing you in) and, well, they signed Eric Gagnè, which should tell you quite a bit.

In the NL Central, they'll get some serious competition from the Cubs for the division lead, and it seems most likely that the NL Wild Card is going to come out of the West in either Colorado, San Diego or Arizona (not to mention the Dodgers), so the Brewers have quite a task ahead of them. Are they better than, say, 75% of the National League teams out there?

No question.

However, almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades (and midterms that give partial credit).

Threat level to the Yankees: Green. Proceed Normally.

The two would only play each other in a World Series, and, while technically possible, it's not likely to happen. Unfortunately, however, by taking Gagnè, we may now have lost a significant anti-Boston ally....