Snatching Defeat from the Jaws of an Unlikely Victory (Postgame Notes 25 August 2009)

The win was there for the taking.

Down by five runs in the ninth, the Yankees clawed back to within one run, and had men on second and first base with no one out and Swisher at the plate.

Nick Swisher doesn't much like hitting at Yankee Stadium, but he still draws quite a few walks, and against a pitcher that couldn't throw strikes, the call for him to bunt in that situation will likely haunt Joe Girardi and the Yankees until their next win.

The bunt may have been the conventional move and the by-the-book move, but there were two problems with it: Swisher's not a typical bunter, and Frank Francisco had been showing himself to be eminently hittable.

The only significant problem I have had with Joe Girardi all year is that he plays by the book just a little too often.

Sometimes--rarely, but still--momentum or a unique situation calls for the book to be thrown out the window.

That's exactly tonight. The Yankees had sent six men to the plate before Swisher in the ninth inning, and all six of them had reached via walk or hit.

When Swisher showed bunt, it became clear that Girardi was playing for the tie and not the win (which is normal when you're home), but one has to ask, had this been any other inning, would Swisher really have bunted there? If this game was on the road, would Swisher have bunted there?

Absolutley not.


****

That aside, this game wasn't lost in the ninth inning. It was lost when Joba Chamberlain blew a 4-0 lead.

Some stuff from Joe P. of River Ave Blues:

Nine of 10 runs scored after bases empty, two outs...in both innings Joba allowed runs, it came down to his inability to retire the No. 9 hitter...


Sure, it'd have been nice if Chad Gaudin had not given up those two bombs, but Gaudin didn't put the Yankees in a 7-4 hole to start.

Right now, the fact that Joba is the Yankees' #4 starter in the postseason is a little disconcerting. He's still young, but he's got some serious on-field growing up to do.

Don't Blame This One on Andy

Andy Pettitte, since the All Star Break:

20 IP, 16 H, 7 R, 6 ER, 23 K, 3 BB (Yes, that's 23 strikeouts to three walks over twenty innings pitched).

In those starts, he's also received a grand total of three runs of support.


The Yankees have scored more runs than any other team in baseball, but apparently Pettitte did some sort of voodoo curse on the bats because they are very much not scoring for him.

It's a shame, because Pettitte has been stellar since the break, and even if he isn't exactly the Andy Pettitte of the late 1990s, he's certainly pitching well enough to be 3-0 in his last three starts, and not 0-0, with the Yankees having lost two of those games.

*****

It's tempting to blame the loss on Phil Coke, but Coke didn't put that runner on second, Hughes did. To be fair, Hughes was probably a bit gasses, and Girardi remains afraid to use Rivera in a tie game on a road.

At any rate, if you're going to blame anyone for this game, blame the offense that struck out seven times looking.

If the home plate umpire has a strike zone the size of a small state, you should probably at least swing at anything remotely close.



Some of you will consider this loss more grating than the game Sabathia recently lost; I disagree. Most nights if you get an effort from your starting pitcher like Pettitte gave, your team will win.

Figure Something Out

A month ago, everything was going so well. The Yankees weren't losing, and if they did, they rallied after that with another two or three wins in a row. They played eighteen straight games in a row and in a period of twenty or so games, the starting pitching had only lost two or three of those games.

Then the team ran into a Boston Red Sox team that it still can't beat, and everything fell apart.

The team isn't playing good defense, and, more importantly, it's not hitting. Not even a little. Certainly, not when it matters, or the players that the Yankees need to produce.

Instead, as we saw last year, double plays and first-pitch swinging is again rampant, as I sit here and watch the Yankees lose their third game in a row.

What is going on?

Out of nowhere, it seems, the entire team has gone into a slump.

I know teams slump, players slump, etc., but this is beyond ridiculous. Earlier in the season, when the Yankees lost it wasn't so bad because the team fought, game after game after game. Where has that fight gone? It certainly hasn't come to south Florida or Atlanta.

I know Tommy Hanson is supposed to be the next big thing for the Braves--and therein is the Yanks' critical problem: An inability to hit (good) young pitchers whom they've never seen.

I don't know why that is, but I do know that any team that aspires to the World Series can't shrug their shoulders and give up when a young pitcher takes the mound. Is it an issue with scouting? With the Yankees' batters? With someone else?

It's become such a big deal now because it's only gotten more pronounced over time.

These guys can't face Livan Hernandez every night.

They have to figure something out.

Sometimes It's Best Not to Dwell

Check out Pat Venditte pitching for Staten Island on Thursday, courtesy of Brent Nycz



****

Brendan Morrow should remember tonight for the rest of his life. In his first major league start he was four outs from a no-hitter.

Meanwhile, the Yankees inability to win on the West Coast are astounding.

Things Are Not Always As They Seem

From River Ave Blues:

Now for a tangent. Many people believe that the Yankees woes are centered around the offense, in particular the lack of hitting with runners in scoring position. Will you venture a guess as to who has the worst team average in the AL in those situations? None other than the first place Tampa Bay Rays. They’re hitting .246 with RISP. Yet, they’re still atop the division. Sure, it doesn’t hurt that they’ve had their top five pitchers going every game from early May through now. But they’re finding ways to win even though their numbers with RISP are the worst in the AL. They Yankees, well, just aren’t.

http://riveraveblues.com/2008/09/01/where-has-this-team-been-all-year-4175/



Just some food for thought.

Road Woes Continue (Postgame Notes 19 August 2008)

When things go wrong for the Yankees, it seems like everything collapses at once.

Darrell Rasner shouldn't be blamed for today's loss...until the seventh inning of the game he had actually out-pitched AJ Burnett.

As this season has gone, however, perhaps it's no surprise that a 1-0 win was too much to hope for--not that Burnett is a bad pitcher (he is excellent). However, as it is, the Yankees are now one game from fourth place.

Alex Rodriguez had made a comment about needing to produce--and then struck out three times and got thrown out on a great play trying to stretch a single into a double.

Johnny Damon, who has been slumping, was horrible in center field, directly contributing to Toronto's winning run.

Hideki Matsui made his first appearance since coming off of the disabled list.

****

I apologize for the utter lack of posts the past few days--busy moving in for grad school. However, that is now completedd and I should be back to my regularly scheduled delusional blogging.

Just an idea...

...but maybe the Yankees could institute a fine every time a batter grounds into a double play?

They could donate the funds to Yankees Universe or some other charity.

What was that, four DPs hit into by the Yankees today? It's a little hard to win games when you do that.

Also, Andy Pettitte has not been Andy Pettitte of late--one hopes he is not pitching hurt.

In a series the Yankees had to take three of four, they will now be lucky to salvage a split. Sidney Ponson pitches tomorrow--have fun watching that, I'm going to Maryland to visit family for the evening.

Mail Call

To the New York Yankees--

Hi. So I know you just had an eight game win streak right after the All Star Break. That was a lot of fun, really--everyone was hitting, pitching...it was great baseball.

I know that you lost on Sunday. That was a bit of a pitching mis-match. It's understandable.

However, I am extremely disturbed by your inability to rebound after a loss. It's never one loss in between wins, but a losing streak of significant length.

It is beyond frustrating to watch. I understand it's probably frustrating to play like it...but dude, this is the Baltimore Orioles. They're in last place in the AL East. There is NO logical reason they should be beating you in two straight games.

Darrell Rasner was great tonight, two runs in six innings...and while the bullpen should have kept it there, it wouldn't have been an issue if the offense had been able to come through at all, and yes, Jason Giambi, I'm looking at you.

At least, tomorrow, will you give Joba some serious run support? Please?

Because getting swept by the Orioles is not what you want to do heading into a series with the Angels.

Though I think you know this. That's why you scored three in the 8th and three in the 9th.

--A concerned fan.


John Lackey--

That was a great try. Please don't do that through 8.1 innings when you see us, or I might cry.

--Me.

Kyrptonite (Postgame Notes 28 July 2008)

There's no other way to describe it.

How else can you figure that the best pitcher for the Yankees this season loses to the worst team in the division?

The Yankees do tend to play flat after a series with Boston, but tonight wasn't just flat.

They were flat-out dead.

Mussina threw strikes--and got beat. The offense hacked at nearly everything and managed just one hit through the first five innings. David Robertson struggled to throw strikes.

Any way you look at it, it was a depressing game to watch.

The Yankees played a little better in the late innings against the Oriole bullpen, but it was a case of much too little, much too late.

One has to think that playing the Orioles now has become a psychological hurdle for the Yankees--they struggled against Baltimore all year last year as well.

Let's hope that the Yankees play a much better game tomorrow evening.

Fenway Fizzle (Postgame Notes 27 July 2008)

Find a comfortable seat and sit down. Close your eyes. Take a deep breath and open.

Right.

Are you thinking rationally yet? No? Repeat the above until you are.

Thinking rationally now?

Okay. Good. So you will agree with me: yes, that was an ugly loss, yes, Sidney Ponson had me reaching for the first alcoholic beverage I could find, yes the offense seemed to revert back to the way they played in the first half...but in the end, all it is is one loss.

The Yankees weren't going to win every single game after the break, nice as the thought would have been.

Let's consider what the Yankees have done since the break, though, shall we?

1) They won their first eight games, sweeping two teams--Oakland and Minnesota--that have remained in contention in the process.

2) They took two out of three from Boston at Fenway, a place where the Red Sox have won three out of every four games they've played.

3) They signed Richie Sexson for an amount lower than the league minimum.

4) They traded for Xavier Nady and Dàmaso Marte, two of the most sought after players this deadline, while surrendering two AAA and two AA players in the process.

4a) By getting Marte, they strengthened their strength (the bullpen), and they kept the Red Sox from addressing their weakness.

4b) By getting Nady, they ensured that Christian/Gardner can remain in a role in which they are much more useful--pinch runners off the bench.

So yes, Sidney Ponson got absolutely hammered. The offense only managed two runs with the bases loaded and no one out in the fifth (though two runs are better than none). Dan Giese did not have the greatest outing of his career.

It could be a whole lot worse.

First Half Recap

So now that we've reached the midpoint of the season, it's a good time to take stock of where the Yankees are now, where they are headed and what they need to do in the second half of the season.

I was curious to see what Yankee fans other than myself thought about this season so far, so I set up a short poll here, in a Yankees' fans community.

Some notes on the results:

It's pretty obvious that the biggest (pleasant) surprise of the season has been Mike Mussina.

He won 11 games all of last year, and has already equaled that total this year. He's throwing more first pitch strikes, walking almost no one and giving the Yankees a chance to win in almost all of his starts.

He's even solved the issue of how to pitch to Manny Ramirez--just hit him!

Joking aside, whatever the Yankees expected they'd get from Moose this year, it wasn't this.

Mussina had, after all, pitched himself out of the rotation last August. He was supposed to be competing for the fifth spot, and when he ended up in the two spot because of an injury to Andy Pettitte, you could hear Yankees' Universe holding its breath.

Eleven wins later, there are still doubters, those that think Mussina will fall off, because pitchers in their late thirties aren't supposed to be this good.

The numbers don't lie, though. Without Mussina, the Yankees are under .500 and in last place.

He's stayed healthy all year, and pitched quality start after quality start, even if they haven't all been wins.



In terms of other surprises, the Yankee bullpen has come out of almost nowhere, and transformed from the greatest Yankee liability to the greatest asset. I'm not joking.

First of all, it doesn't hurt that Mariano Rivera is not just having a career year, he's having the type of year that can stand on its own for generations, like a Maris '61 or Pedro Martinez '99, and even then...

While, at 1.06, Rivera's ERA is about the highest it's been all season, it's still the lowest it's been in his career. In 42.1 innings pitched, he's allowed five runs. Five--and only one of those has come in a save situation.

His strike out per nine ratio is over 10; the only season in which he was better in that regard was in 1996, when he worked multiple innings as a set-up man, and his strike out to walk ratio, of 12.5, is by far the best it's ever been in his career. Considering that Mariano Rivera was headed to the Hall of Fame before this season started, that says something.

Never mind that he has converted all of his 23 save opportunities thus far.


Thing is, the bullpen hasn't been successful just because of Rivera.

With the probable exception of LaTroy Hawkins, everyone currently in the bullpen now is pulling his weight.

At the beginning of the season, the bullpen was a serious concern--outside of Joba Chamberlain and Rivera, there was no real confidence in any one of the relievers.

Somewhere along the line, however, the bullpen straightened itself out. Kyle Farnsworth figured out how to pitch and keep the fly balls in the ballpark, and Jose Veras went from being wildly inconsistent to a solid seventh inning guy. While Veras has given up a couple late inning home runs, for the most part he has come through in a big way.

The result of Farnsworth's and Veras' success is that the workload for Edwar Ramirez has been reduced--meaning that his change up is more effective because hitters see it less--and Dan Giese has thrived as a long man, while Dave Robertson has become another solid arm.

Joe Girardi has done a great job of spliting up the workload in the bullpen, but that alone cannot be the explanation to the bullpen's success.

Somewhere along the line--about the same time the Yankees decided to make Joba a starter--the bullpen figured it out.

To put it in statistical terms, considering the following splits, courtesy of Baseball Reference:

ERA
1998: 3.76
2008: 3.56

BAA
1998: .252
2008: .232

OBP
1998: .320
2008: .308

SLG
1998: .386
2008: .371

K/BB:
1998: 1.91
2008: 2.39


Granted, there's still a whole half season to go, but if the bullpen keeps this up, then once again we've got ourselves a team that can shorten games to six innings, and we know what happens when that occurs.




On the flip side of things, the most disappointing aspect of the season so far has easily been the offense.

At the same time there are both a million reasons for the fall off from last year, and no reasons at all.

You can look at all the injuries as an excuse--it's hard to manufacture runs when you have Jose Molina, Alberto Gonzalez and Wilson Betemit all with regular playing time, you might say--or, you can say, well, the Red Sox lost Ortiz and they're still scoring something like seven runs a game.

The truth is, the injuries that should have hurt us the most--the loss of Alex Rodriguez in May and Jorge Posada for much of April and May--shouldn't be considered a factor any more (well, at least A-Rod. Jorge is still playing with a tear in his shoulder.)

Instead, the Yankees need to look at other factors. For instance, Derek Jeter is having the worst offensive year of his career. Robinson Canò, who has started slowly every season, has started especially slowly this season, and Bobby Abreu isn't just not hitting, he's not even walking at the pace that he's set for himself in years previous.

Nevermind the offensive contributions (or lack thereof) from Melky Cabrera, Wilson Betemit or any of the other bottom-of-the-lineup guys; when the top and heart of the order aren't producing, it's real hard for the rest of the line up to make up the difference.



So for the second half of the season, if the Yankees want to have a real shot at a playoff spot, what do they need to do?

First, they need to keep pitching as they are. They aren't getting perfect starts, but for the most part, their starters are giving the team a chance to win which is all you can ask for game in and game out. The bullpen is shutting the opposing team down in a way they haven't really done since the late nineties.

Second and more importantly, the Yankees need to get out of this offensive malaise. They need to follow Brett Gardner's lead when it comes to grinding out at bats--if they remember how to work pitchers again, success will eventually follow. They need to be willing to sacrifice an out to move the runner over if they're facing a tough pitcher, and they need to stop acting as though a nine run outburst every once in a while is a substitute for a consistent offensive effort.



So, can the Yankees make the playoffs this year?

They can, but it won't be easy. With both Boston and Tampa Bay ahead of them, the Yankees have even more games to make up and less AL East teams to feed on--even traditional cellar dwellers of late, the Orioles, are exceeding expectations.

The Yankees still have ten games left against Boston, and I think a similar number against Tampa Bay, which is more than enough to make something happen, but they can't sit around and wait for those games to occur.

The Yankees have to start putting together win streaks of four or five in a row, and then not follow them with losing streaks of almost equal length.

The Yankees can do it with the players they have on their team now--after all, they did it last year--but they have got to pick it up and come out of the break flying.

They've been in worse situations before, and made the playoffs, but they have some serious work to do.




First Half Yankee Awards:

MVP: Mike Mussina. The team is nowhere this year without him.
Cy Young: Mariano Rivera. Read above. 'Nuff said.
Rookie of the Year: Joba Chamberlain. Has over exceeded expectations.
Comeback Player of the Year: Mike Mussina

Best Win: 6/5/08 vs. Toronto. Jason Giambi has a two strike, two out, two run home run in the bottom of the ninth to cap a comeback from down 7-2 to win the game.

Most important win: 7/5/08 vs. Boston. Mariano Rivera pitches into a bases-loaded, no one out jam before pitching himself out of trouble and helping the Yankees to a series split with Boston.

The Losses Keep Coming (Postgame Notes 13 July 2008)

No excuses.

The Yankees had another lackluster effort today.

Andy Pettitte had one bad inning in the second, and it cost the Yankees the game.

A solo home run by Jason Giambi in the ninth was the only offense the Yankees could muster against AJ Burnett, who was pitching on three days' rest, on a 90 pitch count and pitched into the ninth inning.

It is certainly not the way the Yankees wanted to go into the All Star Break, but, like their entire season so far, the offense is non existent.

*****

Check back tomorrow for some more detailed insight into the first half of the Yankees' 2008 season.

They Just Look Silly (Postgame Notes 11 July 2008)

The Yankees have had more than their fair share of bad losses, and tonight's certainly fills that category from an offensive standpoint.

I'll get to Joba in a second, but the much, much more pressing concern has got to be the offense.

It's not just that the offense isn't producing like they did last year, but right now, it hardly looks like they're trying.

Roy Halladay is a good pitcher. A really, really good pitcher. He's probably one of a single-digit handful that has the potential ability to throw a no-hitter or a perfect game. Lord knows he throws enough complete games that pitch counts aren't any sort of issue for him.

However, the Yankees have a nine-digit salaried line-up so that they won't be on the wrong end of such a performance.

So their antics tonight? Inexcusable.

Halladay was really good, yes, but this offense should be better than a two-hit performance.



On the other hand, Joba actually had one of his better starts this year. He went 6 2/3 innings, with nine strikeouts, and, more impressive, no walks. He was done in by poor defense and a bad pitch to Rod Barajas, but, while he'll take the loss, it does look like he gained in tonight's performance.

He still needs to figure out his shutdown pitch, the one he can throw on an 0-2 count, but he's young and it should come with time.


Also, it was very clear that Jorge had not caught in a week. I know Jorge's always been more valuable as an offensive player and clubhouse presence than a defensive catcher, but I don't know if it's that Jose Molina is just that good behind the home plate, or if Jorge's defense has gone from adequate to a bit of a liability. I give him credit for playing hurt, but that doesn't mean I'm not concerned.


The good news is that there's a quick turn around before tomorrow so hopefully the Yankees can shake off another wasted effort by Joba.

****


In other news, FanFest was a lot of fun.

I can report that I can throw a 29 mph pitch (I don't think that can qualify as a fastball), which is actually an improvement over the last time I tried.

I also have myself an American League All Star Rivera t-shirt, and various other knick-knacks. I got a free pennant because I twice made contact off of a video projection of Pedro Martinez. Never mind that they were bunted foul...

Missing in New York

Missing:
Offense Capable of Mounting Sustained Attack over Nine Innings

Description:
Said offense ranges in ages from 23-38. Mix of American, Latino and Japanese. Can play every position on a baseball diamond, though there is controversy over shortstop, the first baseman doesn't like to throw to second and the right fielder has a phobia of walls.

Third baseman is known for hitting home runs.

First baseman's face may be obscured by garish mustache.

Last Seen:
Offense was last spotted on the evening of 27 June 2008 at Shea Stadium. Previous whereabouts include Pittsburgh, PA and 2007.


Reward:
Reward includes October Baseball


If spotted, please notify one Joe Girardi, 161st Street and River Avenue, Bronx, New York ASAP.

This notice published on behalf of Darrel Rasner, Mike Mussina, Joba Chamberlain, Andy Pettitte, Sidney Ponson, Dan Giese, Jose Veras, Kyle Farnsworth and Mariano Rivera

Texas Two-Step (Postgame Notes 30 June 2008)

Apparently, no one told the Texas Rangers or the New York Yankees that they were supposed to hit tonight.

Two line ups--one with this year's best offense, and one with last year's best offense (nearly all returning this year, too)--could not manage more than three combined runs in tonight's game.

While Texas had the misfortune of running into a stellar Mike Mussina, the Yankees have no excuse for their utter lack of hitting since Friday evening.

Yesterday the only run they managed came off of the bat of Wilson Betemit, and today they managed just four hits against a Texas team known for everything but their pitching. While Alex Rodriguez had (yet another) mammoth home run and Jason Giambi had his first triple since 2002, the utter lack of offense from the top and bottom part of the line up is astounding, frustrating, and extremely hard to watch.

On most teams, if your starter can go six innings while yielding just two runs, he is usually in line for the win, but Mike Mussina seems to be cursed in his quest for 20 wins--He has not won since the series in Houston, taking the loss against Edinson Volquez and having his start rained out in Pittsburgh (when the Yankees were actually winning the game).

Mussina and the Yankee bullpen ought to be credited for keeping the most potent offense in the league to just two runs, though that won't happen because of the loss.

In the seventh inning there was an exceptionally scary moment as Jose Molina was crossed up on a pitch by Jose Veras and a fastball hit him...well, let's just say he's probably worshipping at the alter of athletic cup makers tonight. As a true testament to the amazingness that is a Molina brother, Jose Molina stayed in the game.

Brett Gardner also had his much awaited major league debut today, and while he did not get a hit, he worked a full count twice and reached on a Fielder's Choice before promptly stealing second. He might not hit for much power, but the kid can fly and was adequate, though largely untested, in left field.

Joba Chamberlain will pitch for the Yankees tomorrow--with luck he will recieve a little more support than just one run.

Aaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrggghhh (Postgame Notes 24 june 08)

Of all the Yankee losses this season, tonight's has to rank as one of the worst. It's not that Pittsburgh is necessarily is a bad team (they are), but that the level of play from the Yankees was just flat-out embarrassing.

They didn't pitch. They didn't play very good defense. They didn't hit when they needed to.

Someone needs to send the Yankees a memo that the idea of the game is to score more runs than the other team. Or something.

Seriously, when Darrel Rasner is arguably the best hitter of the evening? Yeah, there are some issues there.

The bats have gone ice cold. In their past four games they have scored nine runs--not as bad as it could be, but nowhere near what the offense is capable of doing. In fact, this offense has not hit a home run since the second game of the Padres series (though Melky missed a grand slam by inches). Okay, Bobby Abreu homered, but the point is still the same.

That the Yankees will have clunkers is a given.

The problem, however, is that the Yankees are having too many of them, and against the wrong teams.

Losing to Pittsburgh is bad enough on its own.

Getting blown out? Getting blown out against a starting pitcher with an ERA over seven?

That's not a performance from a team that wants to be considered a playoff contender. That's not even a performance from a third place team.


Again, the Yankees have some serious issues with their bullpen, especially now that Rasner's magic seems to have worn thin. With the trade deadline approaching sooner than you think, look for Brian Cashman and the Yankees to make some moves. They might be as simple as promoting David Robertson or Mark Melancon, or they might me more complex, but either way, the Yankees need help.



If you want some good news, though, Fresno State is winning--their Cinderella story looks like it might live on one more night.

Rasner, Yes, Offense, No. (Postgame Notes 06 June 2008)

Two walk off wins in a row.

Could it be?

Twice in a row, the ninth inning came with the Yankees down and two outs before anyone reached base. Twice down to their final strike. Could they repeat the feat and walk off again?

Alas, they could not.

It's a little weird. Yesterday's game could not have been more different than tonight's--a slugfest against a good ole' pitcher's duel. Yesterday, Chien Ming Wang had another shaky outing. Tonight, Darrell Rasner had, possibly, the pitching performance of his career. Yesterday had costly errors; tonight had (mostly) solid defense.

Yet, at the end, in the ninth inning, it was the same scenario: down a run, two outs and no one on.

Momentum was clearly on the Yankees' side yesterday--having been down at one point 7-2, while, tonight, a very clearly botched call by home plate umpire Ed Montague in the eighth stole much of the momentum that the Yankees had in that inning.

That said, the Yankees lost tonight's game because of a total lack of offense.

Rasner did not just what he was supposed to do but more, and the offense reverted back to what they've been doing in stranding runners and not getting the big hits.

Rasner should be satisfied with his performance (though I'm not sure any pitcher would be when his team is on the losing end), but the offense needs to figure this not-getting-the-big-hit thing. A-Rod's healthy and Posada's healthy. They're out of excuses at this point.


Headed up to Scranton tomorrow for the LoHud gathering. Since I won't be able to catch the Belmont, I'd go ahead and put money on Big Brown.

Sputtering (Postgame Notes 2 June 2008)

Of all the types of baseball games one can play, ones like tonight's are by far the most frustrating to watch.

Every inning (or almost every inning), it seemed, the Yankees took the lead, only to lose it in the bottom half of the inning. Both the pitching and offense are to blame--as neither could pick up the other--even if, on the surface, it looks like the offense had a good showing.

As seemed to be the case for the entire month of April, the Yankees were able to get runners on base without a problem, but then unable to bring them in to score. Multiple innings they had runners in scoring position with less than two outs, and they could never build a lead larger than two runs.

Andy Pettitte, who has built a career around being a "stopper", is not having the best season of his life. While he is a second half pitcher, it can't be ignored that Pettitte's inability to provide some stability in the rotation is hurting the Yankees.

Kyle Farnsworth, simply, did not have a good outing. If the Yankees are looking to make any move in the coming days, one has to hope that they can find someone that can fill the bullpen void that Farnsworth seems to be unable to do. An 8th inning pitcher does not have to be Joba-good, but he has to be able to get three outs before giving up the tying run. It doesn't seem like it should be a hard thing to do...


OPTIMIST TAKE: Alex Rodriguez looked great at the plate; Jeter looks like he is finally coming out of his slump.

Subway Slumpin' (Pictures from this Weekend)

So I had tickets to both Friday's rain out and yesterday's drubbing.

While it was fairly depressing, I did manage to a) meet Pete Abraham and meet with jscape2000, and b) take lots of pictures, and by now I think you all know I like sharing them. So here are some more.



Friday I went with my brother, my dad and my cousin, who got tickets to one of the box seats from his supplier. The view from the seats, when we got there:





The inside of the box. Usually, at game time, there can be 20-40 people in the box. However, given the rain on Friday, it was just the four of us for about an hour before they called the game (eventually 2 others joined us, but only for about 10 minutes). The best part? Free food and private bathroom!



Oh, and they give you nets to catch the foul balls as well. That's my brother.



Sunday, now. This time it was just myself and my brother. Walking to the Stadium I grabbed a picture of the new Stadium. The pictures don't really do it justice--it looks magnificent.



Wall mural.



Our seats on Sunday weren't quite as nice--loge level, last row back--but we were covered, and didn't have to wait behind a long line to leave at the end of the game. And yes, that is the new Stadium in the background.



The countdown board.



The broadcast booth. Couldn't really get a great picture because of the angle, but that's okay--not like you wanted hi-def pictures of John Miller and Joe Morgan, anyway.



Monument Park.



The New Stadium, taunting you.



The umpires. One of them botched the home run call but I don't know which.



Taking the field.



Wanger. Definitely not his best start of the season, though he tried to save the bullpen by pitching into the 8th inning. Unfortunately, the bullpen basically damned itself.



Right before the second pitch. I would have gotten the first, but there was an asshole standing in the way.



Giambi made a couple of nice plays...and then one really, really, really boneheaded one.



Robbie made a lot more nice plays.



Jeter batting. He didn't have a bad game--hit and walk and scored on Matsui's homer, but alas, it was not enough.



Matsui. This was not his home run at bat, though that would have been kind of funny, timing-wise.



Robinson Cano action shot



More game action. This might have been right before the Matsui home run; I can't remember.



...Yep, right before the Matsui home run.




Right after the Matsui home run. I was screaming a bit, which is why it's blurry. Of course, as you now know, the Yankees are now incapable of scoring more than two runs in a game.




This is a little less blurry.



Robbie on base. (...What? I like Robbie!)



My brother was very amused by the slippery when wet sign.



Molina on third; Abreu and Jeter each had a chance to drive him in. They didn't.



My brother tried the rally cap thing. It didn't work.

Pregame Notes 2 May 2008

The Yankees will try to break a three game losing streak tonight, but to o that, they will have to face Erik Bèdard, who many believe would have lead the league in strike outs last year if not for an oblique injury that shut him down.

Fortunately, the Yankees have their own ace of the moment on the hill, as Chien Ming Wang looks to go 6-0 and join the league leaders in wins.

The Yankees will need a more stellar offensive effort, however, if they are to have any chance at wining the series. They still haven't won since they returned home.

The struggling Robinson Canò will get the night off, with Alberto Gonzalez playing second in his place. Johnny Damon will also get the night off, with Jason Giambi DHing and Hideki Matsui playing left.

Say what you want about Joe Girardi, but when it comes to line ups, it seems like he is a firm believer in 'variety is the spice of life'

Check back later for postgame notes.

In the meantime, I'm going to celebrate this grad school thing.