On Posada and Basebrawls (postgame notes 15 September 2009)

I admit it.

Brawls, fights, whatever you call them, in the right time and place do not bother me.

Hockey is only second to baseball in terms of my love for the sport, and fights have long been part of the game. I like to see guys drop the gloves, play with a little intensity and bring some color to the game.

Don't blame me, I'm a Devils fan.

While baseball brawls, for the most part, play out like senior proms compared to hockey fights, I generally don't have too much of a problem with them. They can make a boring game a little more entertaining.

Then the fight happens to you or your team, and you realize there are very negative consequences.

The "fiery" Jorge Posada, as he's known, had every right to be peeved when Carlson threw behind him, but it should have ended there.

Be at the center of a baseball brawl, and two things happen: 1) you risk injury, and any injury in mid-September is likely to be season-ending, and 2) suspension.

Let's take these two in turn.

1) Injury.

This is by far the biggest issue. The Yankees are where they are right now because, for the most part, they've managed to stay healthy, or as healthy as you could expect a team with a LF, 3B, SS and other assorted on the wrong side of 30.

Even if it was just Posada that got hurt, it would still be a tremendous blow--I point you verily in the direction of 2008.

At the very least, those other teammates that rushed into to the fray put themselves at risk, too. While I understand that Shelley Duncan is unlikely to make the postseason roster, what the heck is Joba Chamberlain or any of the pitchers thinking when they are in the fray?

It'd be one thing if this was a last place team going nowhere, but the Yankees are legitimate contenders. They cannot, right now, risk anyone getting hurt. There's too much riding on it.

2) Suspension

In hockey, you fight and you get a five minute "major" and, barring extenuating circumstances, it ends there.

Baseball, alas, is not hockey. Fights come with suspensions.

If we look at Kevin Youkilis's six-game suspension for going after Rick Porcello, Jorge Posada might expect similar. The good news is that with September call ups, Jose Molina and Francisco Cervelli can split the catching duties as may be and neither will get too worn down. The bad news, however, is that all of a sudden the Yankees miss Posada's bat. The Yankees still have to go back to Seattle and Anaheim, which makes this an even less pleasing scenario.



There are two camps out there.

There's the camp that think the Yankees need to act with class and never retaliate, and then there's the camp that thinks the Yankees should retaliate, and the team should literally fight on occasion.

Normally I'm in the second camp, but this late in the season, with so much riding on it, Posada's actions hurt the team tonight and for the upcoming week.

These Boots are Made for Walking-off All Over You (postgame notes 12 August 2009)

At this point, if a Yankee game is tied headed into the ninth inning at home, you might as well start an office pool for who will hit the walk off.

For the eleventh time this season, the Yankees walked off--a quarter of all of the team's wins.

The game, otherwise, was fairly non-descript.

AJ Burnett was at times filthy, but, being Burnett, struggled with his control at others, and it came back to bite him when the Blue Jays tied the game on a wild pitch in the sixth inning.

The offense was stagnant, for the most part, though it should be noted that Ricky Romero is Toronto's best starter not named Roy Halladay.

Both Jeter and Alex Rodriguez got hit by pitches--Jeter eventually left the game, but to the relief of Yankee fans everywhere, X-Rays on his foot were negative. Alex Rodriguez got hit in the eleventh inning, so while we don't know if he would have stayed to play in the field, it would have been awkward if he hadn't. Jose Molina was the only Yankee left on the bench, so if A-Rod came out the most likely scenario would have been Mark Teixeira at third, Posada at first and Molina catching. Not the defensive alignment you want.

Thankfully, Robinson Canó--who has been red hot--was there to end it.

What should, of course, not go unnoticed is the stellar bullpen (yet again)--Phil Coke, David Robertson, Phil Hughes and Chad Gaudin.

Gaudin, especially, was impressive in his Yankee debut, pitching two scoreless innings.

Mariano Rivera was apparently not available--but this might just be related to the fact that the Yankees have that long west coast swing of doom upcoming.


The Yankees finish the homestand at 6-1, and their 41-18 home record is the best in the league.

They've taken the bottom of the ninth and turned it into a true home field advantage

A Moment in the 2009 Season (postgame notes 11 August 2009)

If the 2009 Yankee season were a book and you opened to a random page, tonight's game is what you'd find.

Joba Chamberlain cruising through some innings and nibbling in others.

A stellar bullpen taking over in the middle innings and not letting Toronto add to a 5-4 lead.

A rally in the late innings to secure a come-from-behind win, with some help from the short porch in right field and back to back jacks from Matsui and Posada.

A win.

That's the entirety of the game in a nutshell. Sure, there are concerns: Joba's nibbling and the fact that it took the Yankee offense from the second to the eighth to be able to score one more run off of a not-very-good Toronto ball club, for instances.

Still, as is more often than not the case this season, the ultimate result was a win.

Oh, and while there's still some time left--today is Melky Cabrera's 25th birthday. Cabrera has blossomed this year as a hitter, taking more pitches and hitting for more power. He had two RBI on the night.

The Hangover (Postgame Notes 10 August 2009)

It's common that when a team comes off a playoff-clinching performance to play flat the next day. A hangover, if you will.

The Yankees didn't clinch anything in their four game sweep of Boston, but you would have never known it from the atmosphere at the Stadium and the intensity in which those games were played.

Although the Yankees weren't exactly flat--they were done in more by bad pitching from Sergio Mitre than anything else--there was just something different about tonight.

It wasn't until the ninth inning that the crowd at the Stadium was anything close to alive, and by then it was pretty much too late--the Yankees best opportunities to tie the game had come earlier.

To be fair, had Sergio Mitre pitched to a modicum of a decent effort, the Yankees four runs could have been enough. One gets the feeling that any of the other Yankee starters and the 1-0 and 2-1 leads would not have been blown (almost) as soon as they were obtained.

At any rate, because of a heroic effort from Alfredo Aceves, no one else in the bullpen was used tonight, and Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui got (most) of a much-needed day off, while Posada had a day off from catching.

No, no one likes to lose, but when you're 31 of your last 42 it's hard to find decent reasons to complain.

The Yankees will be back at it tomorrow. Joba Chamberlain needs a decent outing to prove that his struggles against the Red Sox were an aberration and not him slipping back into his pre-All Star break whatchamacallits. However, the difference here is that while giving up 4 or 5 runs from Mitre constitutes an average and almost expected performance, the same from Chamberlain is considered failure. That's the difference between the first four in the Yankees' rotation and the guy that's pitching only because Wang's hurt and Hughes is otherwise occupied.

The important thing, as always, is to make sure that one loss doesn't become two.

Bring on the Sox (Postgame Notes 5 August 2009)

Admit it, because I will: at the start of this game, it would have taken a coin flip to decide which mix was more volatile: ammonia mixed with bleach or Sergio Mitre on turf.

While Mitre didn't exactly pitch well--and that's a generous assessment as he could not make it out of the fourth--he did, however, limit the damage to three Toronto runs.

The Yankees then got some help from Alfredo Aceves, Phil Coke, Phil Hughes and David Robertson--all of whom were excellent, and, once they grabbed the lead in the seventh, seemed to cruise to an 8-4 victory.

The Yankees struggled to score runs early, but, as they have done so often this season, did their damage in the latter innings--scoring six of their runs tonight in the seventh inning or later.

What does it all mean?

The past three games, the Yankees have played some great baseball after playing some rather bad baseball in the first three games of the White Sox set.

The offense seems to tailor its performance to exactly what's needed, scoring runs at the right time, and not all in the same way, either.

Make no mistake, the upcoming four-game set with Boston is huge, and the biggest game of the series is tomorrow. Win the first game of that set and they will automatically excise the Boston demons. Win tomorrow and the Yankees are assured that no matter what else happens they'll still be in first place on Monday morning.

Win tomorrow and Joba Chamberlain can continue to prove all us naysayers wrong.

Win tomorrow and much will be well.


One game in a baseball season rarely changes everything, but sometimes it can mean just that little bit more.

That's tomorrow's game.

It's too late in the season for excuses.

Andy is Dandy; outduels Halladay in Toronto (postgame notes 04 August 2009)

Among his many phrases, one of the most obvious--and yet ignored, except in a mocking tone--quotes of John Sterling is simply that "you can't predict baseball."


On paper, this should have been a rough game for the Yankees. They have, historically, struggled against Roy Halladay, and, of late had not been getting Andy Pettitte much in the way of run support.

Thankfully, the games aren't played on paper.

The Yankees never trailed, as they scored two runs in the first before Toronto had an at bat. Although the game did get close at times, the Yankees maintained their lead throughout, making the most important pitches at the most important spots.

Andy Pettitte, the starter, was brilliant.

In his career, Pettitte has solid enough numbers against Toronto, but tonight he needed to match Roy Halladay--and that he did.

He had some of his best stuff all season, and used it in a game where the Yankees sorely needed it.

The Yankee offense was excellent given the opposing starter; like the game on July 4th, the Yankees hit three long balls off of Halladay, this time Johnny Damon, Mark Teixeira and Hideki Matsui being the culprits.

The home runs, all solo shots, came late in the game and gave the Yankees insurance runs that they ended up needing, on a night when Mariano Rivera was not at his best.

I wouldn't get too concerned about Rivera; before pitching on Sunday he had not pitched in a while and thus, rust is rust. What matters is that he held onto the lead--if he's still getting hit like this come September, then there's an issue, but he's still 39 years old...

At any rate, the Yankees have won a game that didn't favor them on paper, and all of a sudden there's just a little less pressure on Sergio Mitre tomorrow.

It is way too tempting to blame this one on the umps...(Postgame Notes 6 July 2009)

...but you can't.

The umpires today made three hideous calls, but it was the Yankees' job to pitch and hit around them.

Yes, Derek Jeter was safe on the attempted steal of third base, but he should have never attempted the steal with none out in the first place.

Yes, Derek Jeter's jump play should have been an out, but Andy should have still thrown a better pitch to Alex Rios.

On and on.

Ultimately, the Yankees' pitching is the culprit here; Pettitte had another shaky outing at Yankee Stadium and the Yankees have to be very concerned about Brian Bruney.

Mark Teixeira's been slumping something awful (along with Robinson Canó any time a runner is on second base), but these have been masked because on the whole the Yankees are scoring enough to win games.

In fact, despite being down 7-1 at one point, they nearly won again today. Alas, they simply ran out of outs.

Still, the Yankees have won 10 of their last 12.

Yes, there are some issues, but trust me. Things could be a lot worse.

Baseball on the Fourth of July

The spot is perfect.

Dangerous, sure, but we're humans. We sacrifice safety and comfort for bright lights and big noises, all in the name of celebration.

We are Americans, after all. We always find a way.


****

On the mound, starting for the Yankees today, is not an American but a Taiwanese. Chien Ming Wang.

It's no secret how he's struggled all season.

His first three starts were so horrendous the Yankees placed him on the disabled list, even though there were questions about whether or not he was really hurt.

He came off the disabled list again, but slowly, he has begun to look more and more respectable.

The last time he pitched, last Sunday, nearly halfway into the season and against a depleted Mets line up, Wang finally picked up a win.

It wasn't pretty, but the five-and-a-third innings and only two runs given up were a season best.

We're Americans. We like our progress.


****

It's the top of a hill made up of construction rubble; a block east of the West Side Highway it affords us a perfect view of the Hudson River and the sunset over New Jersey.

It's not safe.

Not even a little.

There is a steep climb, full of loosed rocks and sharp weeds, to get to the top, and then, once there, there is a steep drop off into a construction pit. Put simply: take too big a step forward, and you're dead.

Still, this is the best spot we can find, an hour before it's supposed to start.

The West Side Highway is completely blocked off and everything else is too low.

We marvel at our ingenuity in finding the spots.

We're not all Americans; we speak to each other not just in English but in Spanish and Polish and Hebrew; but we are all in America, and on today, that is all that matters.


****

Wang is not an American, but he plays for an American team.

Today, the Fourth of July, an American team is facing a Toronto team.

The Yankees have to win today, it's tempting to think, because there would be something inherently wrong about a Canadian team beating an American team on Independence Day.

Nothing personal against Canada, but today is America's day. It's not that I'm uppity or anything, but Canada had their celebration three days ago.

Today, it's our turn.


****

There are only a few of us on the hill at first, but then people see us, and they follow.

More and more people climb the hill.

Some climb it too fast; some sit all the way over the edge; one has sushi and a Blue Moon.


****

Before the game starts I tell Brent that I don't expect the Yankees to win, so I'll enjoy the game for the sake of enjoying the game.

Brent nods.

Again, it's nothing personal.

Roy Halladay is that good of a starter.

Chien Ming Wang has, this season, been that bad.

I never stop to consider how the two are on divergent paths.

Wang has been getting better. Stronger. More efficient. Halladay has only just come off the DL and struggled in his first game back.

As John Sterling would say, "You can't predict baseball."

****

While we wait we make friends with the others that have gathered on the hill.

We laugh about the danger, about the illegality of what we are doing.

We act like idiots and then proceed to admit that no, we have not actually been drinking.

Neither, we are somewhat shocked to hear, has anyone else.

It's like my brother told me via AIM two nights ago: Fireworks, then alcohol.


****

It's easy enough to tell it's the Fourth at the Stadium: an actual band performing the National Anthem; a reading of Lou Gehrig's farewell address that has lost none of its potency; Ronan Tynan singing "God Bless America"...

...You don't see these things every day.

Another thing you don't see every day: Alex Rodriguez knocking in a two-out base hit with a runner in scoring position to give the Yankees a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first. It's not a knock on Alex Rodriguez. The entire team has struggled here this year.

The lead is short lived, but that doesn't matter so much.

The Yankees drew first blood.

The Yankees showed, in the very first inning, that they could hit and score off of Roy Halladay.

He would have to be that much better, if he wanted to win.

****

Five minutes before the fireworks are supposed to start, an undercover cop makes himself known.

"This is a Construction Site. Private property. If you don't want to be arrested, get off the hill now."

He is alone.

We move slowly. We drag it out like a 12-pitch at bat or a 22-inning baseball game.

We do not go quietly into that good night.


****

Somehow, some way, the Yankees get to the sixth inning with a 3-2 lead.

Wang is not just pitching well; he's pitching the best we've seen him this season.

It's the sixth inning and he's only thrown 58 pitches. Both Brent and I want to talk about it, but we won't. We're baseball fans, and superstition runs deep in our blood.

On this day, however, even thinking about it seems to be bad luck.

A single. Then a home run. A 3-2 lead is now a 4-3 deficit and it gets worse when Jorge Posada motions to the dugout, sending Dave Eiland back and bringing out Joe Girardi and the trainer.

It doesn't matter how badly Wang is hurt; that he's hurt is bad enough. It disrupts the flow of the team. Already the speculation begins: what about Wang's next start? Do you take Hughes out of the bullpen? Do you dare to disrupt a bullpen that since the 1st of June has a 2.35 ERA and a .179 BAA? You can't.


****

The undercover cop is soon backed up by a squad of uniformed cops.

I feel like I am in a Law and Order episode, in the very beginning, just minding my own business before all hell breaks loose.

It doesn't.

Not tonight.

We walk slowly downhill. Biding our time.

Then the fireworks start.

We stop. We stop, we turn, and we watch.

The police don't bother us any more.


****

The atmosphere that escapes the Stadium once Wang leaves with the injury is slow to build up again.

It will reach a certain point, and then, like clockwork, Robinson Cano comes up to bat and does something to record the final out of the inning.

This is how the game gets to extra innings.

Sure, scoreless innings from Brian Bruney, Mariano Rivera, Phil Coke and Brett Tomko all help, but it's the failure of Cano's bat that keeps the game going, even as the July sun beats down on us, as some decide they've had enough and leave, even as it comes down to one more pitcher left in the bullpen.


****

The fireworks dazzle.

It's a feast of light, of color and of sound.

"You know," Brent says, "This is what we should do with our firepower. Not blow up other people, but put on displays like this."

I wonder if, when the Ancient Chinese developed fireworks, if they had the same effect on those that saw them.

We are humans. We like bright sights and booming sounds.


****

It ends with Jorge Posada.

Jorge Posada, in the 12th inning, when it's gone from being high drama to please-for-the-love-of-America-end-this-game-because-I'm-hungry.

Is it fitting that Posada ends the game?

He doesn't have the mythical status of Derek Jeter, who doesn't come to bat in the evening; nor does it have the clutchy-mc-clutchness that Melky Cabrera's crafted for himself; nor the redemption that a Robinson Cano hit would bring; nor the long-overdue-ness that a walk-off Mark Teixeira blast would have; nor the grittyguttyness of Brett Gardner.

It is, instead, one of the guys just doing his thing.

Doing his job and doing it well.

That's American.

So's the pie that comes afterward--a fake-out from Joba Chamberlain and then BOOM! from AJ Burnett.

Triumph on the Fourth--that's America, too.*

****

"You know," Brent says, as we make our way east from the Hudson, "baseball, fireworks...we really are the luckiest people on the face of the earth."

"Yeah," I say, "We are."



*The Declaration wasn't actually signed on the fourth. It was made on the 2nd and most didn't sign it until the 19th. But, as in most all of history, such trivialities are minor details.

Yankees Win Behind Burnett's Solid Start (Postgame Notes 03 July 2009)

After AJ Burnett's last start in Boston (which, let's face it, was awful), he made a comment after the game that when he got on a roll, it would be a beautiful thing to behold.

Many of us shook our heads--how could he say something like that when he had yet to prove it?

Now, it might be him who's laughing: over his last four starts he's given up 0, 1, 0 and 2 runs. His ERA now is almost a full point lower than it was after his last Boston start, going from 4.89 to 3.93.

Watching him pitch today was, with rare exception, a joy to watch.

If he keeps pitching like he pitched today, seven innings, two runs, six hits, two walks and seven strikeouts, having him pitch after Sabathia may very well give the Yankees the best 1-2 punch in the Majors.


The Yankee offense wasn't great today, but it was good enough--four runs, with the way the team pitched, was enough. There were two bombs off of Canó and Alex Rodriguez; the other two runs came when the Yankees had a bases-loaded no one out situation and scored on a walk and a wild pitch. Mark Teixeira should have scored on a ground out, but the umpire missed the call.


Tomorrow's game does not favor the Yankees--Chien Ming Wang against Roy Halladay--but then, AJ Burnett against Johan Santana, at the time, didn't favor the Yankees, either.

True story, though: Wang's last start was better than Joba's last start. Maybe things are looking up for him after all.

The AL East Isn't What We Thought It Would Be. It's Better.

Last night I was thinking about the Jays.

I was thinking about the Jays, and how people are saying,

"Look at how Toronto is now 1-5 against non-Baltimore AL East opponents," as if to say that no, they're really not that good.

Now, these people are likely right. That a team that a number of experts picked to finish last in the division, or only just above it, has maintained its hold on first place for so long, deserves commendation...and also a second look.

The Jays are 16-8 against the AL Central, and 19-8 against the AL Central and Baltimore. They're 7-4 against the AL West, which is respectable enough, and, as said before, 1-5 against non-Baltimore AL East, for a total of 8-9 against non-AL Central, non-Baltimore opponents.

This illustrates two things:

1) The early Jays schedule was chock full of AL Central opponents,

and,

2) That the AL Central is quite possibly not very good.


It's not just the Jays here, either:

The Yankees are 10-4 against AL Central opponents; two losses against the Indians and one each against Justin Verlander and Kansas City.

Then again, maybe it's not the AL Central.


Maybe it's the AL East.


The division leaders in the AL Central, AL West, NL East would all be in fourth place in the current AL East; Milwaukee in the NL Central and the Dodgers in the NL West are right now the only teams that would be in first in the AL East, and when you consider the Dodgers' competition in the NL West--and they are 20-8 in their own division--the 29 wins is a bit qualified.

As another example, consider how the other teams in the AL are doing against the AL East.

Out of the other nine teams in the American League, only the vaunted Angels have a winning record against the AL East, and they've played their favorite regular-season foe Red Sox a few times already.

I would guess, right about now, that teams in the AL Central and AL West are very thankful for the unbalanced schedule, and that getting into the playoffs is based on how you do in your division more so than overall standings...

Another way of looking at it is that the AL East has not one, but two teams over .600, and the Yankees, at .585 are not far behind.

Granted, the Blue Jays will fall back to earth, at least a little, but the Rays are only just beginning to play well. In the end, the Jays and the Rays may simply end up flip-flopping, although, right now, if one takes the record against AL East teams as a portent, the Red Sox would have to be favored, being 16-6 against the division (with five wins against the Yankees and three against the Jays).

At any rate, what this means--and what we've kind of known all along--is that the AL East could end up finishing the season with the, potentially, three or even four best records in the American League, if Toronto doesn't falter too badly, and only two will even have a shot at the playoffs.


Crazy sport, right?

CC Sharp Again as Yanks Take Series From Jays (Postgame Notes 14 May 2009)

The Yankees did not score four runs today, but since they only gave up two, they can probably live with it.

CC Sabathia did not dominate in the way he dominated in Baltimore, but two runs over eight innings ain't exactly a bad thing, either.

He had some good innings and some stressful ones, and needed Brett Gardner to throw out Rod Barajas at home in order to keep the score at 2-1 Jays. He also worked himself into a jam in the seventh with runners at first and third with only one out, but like any true ace, was able to gather it together to get a strike out and a ground out.

It wasn't the best performance CC's had this season, but the eight innings was just what the Yankees needed, given Phil Coke's bad back and the fact that anyone else pitching that inning would have resulted in through-the-roof sales of Tums.

Mariano Rivera pitched a 1-2-3 ninth and looks as though he's finally built the velocity he needs. Reports of his demise have been greatly exaggerated.

The Yanks didn't do much offensively, but at the same time Brian Tallet has been impressive in his starts thus far.

In the first they scored when Tallet walked Swisher with the bases loaded; they tied the game in the seventh when Derek Jeter blooped a single to score Gardner from third and then took the lead on a Hideki Matsui solo shot in the eighth.

Johnny Damon extended his extra base hitting streak to ten straight games, tying Don Mattingly and Paul O'Neill for the Yankee record, but struck out twice after that and did not reach base again.

Alex Rodriguez looked as though he just missed a few pitches--his timing, understandably, is not quite there yet, but when it comes, he's in for a monster season.

Francisco Cervelli had two hits again tonight; a Mendoza line hitter in AA, he's holding his own thus far in the Majors.


The Yankees head home having gone 4-2 on a road trip, as well as having won three of the last four. Only Hughes pitched poorly on the trip--Burnett could have won his game had someone not named Halladay been pitching against him.

With the team back at .500, gaining a game on the Sox and the Jays, and Bruney, Posada and Wang all looking like they'll be back sooner rather than later, things are looking up for the Yanks.

Yankees at Blue Jays, 14 May 2009: A Liveblog

3.57 PM: Just a heads up, I got plans this weekend (surprising, I know), and won't be able to cover any games live. I'll do my best to make sure I get a couple posts up, but I will be back Monday, no sweat.

3.58 PM: Derek Jeter and Hideki Matsui are both back in today's line up. Melky Cabrera is sitting in favor of Brett Gardner; one assumes this is to reward Gardner's performance last night and nothing else.

5.14 PM: Yanks have promoted Reegie Corona from Trenton to SWB; the Scranton team has not scored a run in four games.

5.23 PM: Great news, Yanks fans: Someone in the front office has a brain!

" According to the new rules, posted on the Yankees’ Web site, fans can watching batting practice starting three hours before the start of each home game. Fans can stay on the field level and in the bleachers until the players leave the field or 1 hour 45 minutes after the gates open. Then “all fans will be asked to return their respective seats."

NY Times Bats blog

6.29 PM: This can't be good

7.11 PM: Johnny Damon has tied Don Mattingly and Paul O'Neill with 10 consecutive games with an extra base hit with that double.

7.20 PM: One more out and three walks later, Tallet walks Swisher and forces in a run. 1-0 Yanks. Could have more here but Canó has horrible numbers with the bases loaded so we'll see.

7.24 PM: Told yah. Actually, that was an excellent call by the umpire.

7.32 PM: When it's going well, it's really going well. Damon made a great catch to end the first inning.

7.37 PM: Nothing to see there as the Yankees go down in order. Had Gardner bunted a little slower he may have been safe.

7.42 PM: I like this version of CC.

7.51 PM: A hit and nothing else in the top of the third.

8.03 PM: What is it with Robbie Canó not hitting with the bases loaded? Because he's an awesome hitter otherwise.

8.07 PM: Single and nothing else doing there. This game could be over by 9.

8.12 PM: Solo HR from Alex Rios ties the ballgame. This guy has a personal vendetta against the Yanks, or something.

8.21 PM: That was so not the inning the Yankees needed.

8.28 PM: Wheels have come off CC a little bit here. Walk and a double and now 2-1 Toronto. Yanks are still in this, of course, but they haven't hit Tallet well.

8.32 PM: Brett Gardner (yes, that Brett Gardner) just nabbed Barajas at home to keep it a 2-1 game.

8.37 PM: This is Brian Tallet. We aren't hitting him because...

8.52 PM: Jeter plays defense? Since when?

9.00 PM: Walk to Gardner and perfect hit-and-run execution. What this means is even if Jeter GIDPs here, the Yanks could (likely) still tie the game.

9.04 PM: Jeterian clutch! Gardner scores on the blooper and Yanks have first and second with no out.

9.14 PM: What's frustrating is that in another two weeks, A-Rod probably hits three 3-Run home runs based on the pitches he saw that at bat. Still, the Yanks tied the score and have six more outs to play with, provided they keep Toronto from scoring.

9.28 PM: This is what an ace does. He gets himself out of his own jams. Now the Yanks gotta go out there and score some runs.

9.33 PM: Hit-deki Matsui. Punnalicioius, I know.

9.42 PM: Hold onto your hats folks. A one-run lead heading into the 8th could be in for a wild ride.

9.48 PM: Okay, I'm trying to decide what's scarier: Veras warming or that near XBH.

9.49 PM: The Yanks held onto that 3-2 lead there by about two feet. An insurance run (or two or three) here would be oh so wonderful...

9.55 PM: You nervous?

10.02 PM: There is only one Mo Rivera.

Yanks Ground Jays with Five Run 2nd (Postgame Notes 13 May 2008)

Double. Home Run. Triple. So on and on went the extra base hits in the second inning.

At one point there were two doubles, two triples and a home run...and not a single or a walk.

It was some good, old fashioned Bronx Bombing, and it sparked the Yankees to an 8-2 victory.

The surprise here, though, was that it was all the result of the bottom of the line up. In the second, when the Yanks sent ten men to the plate, everyone reached base except for Nick Swisher and Francisco Cervelli.

Whatever the cause for the bottom of the line up suddenly producing, the Yanks certainly appreciate it.

One night after the Yankees got, well, owned by Roy Halladay, they erupted for eight runs, including Brett Gardner's first career home run.


Andy Pettitte, pitching for the Yanks, started out very shaky. He walked three in the first inning, and with the aid of an error, the Jays actually took a 1-0 lead. However, he settled down after that, going six innings and allowing only one ER, and, had he not walked so many, would have likely pitched the seventh.


Alfredo Aceves was again great from the bullpen, allowing one hit over two innings, but Albaladejo struggled with his control to the point that Mariano Rivera began to throw in an 8-2 game. He was able, however, to get a game-ending double play that kept Mo from working too long.


All in all, tonight's game was quite the change from last night. It's perhaps the perfect exhibition of why baseball players, even with such a long season, need to have a short memory.


The Yanks will have a chance to take the series with a win tomorrow.

Yankees at Blue Jays, 13 May 2009: A Gimpy Liveblog

4.56 PM: From lohud, today's line up:

Damon DH
Swisher RF
Teixeira 1B
Rodriguez 3B
Cano 2B
Cabrera LF
Gardner CF
Pena SS
Cervelli C

Swisher's an interesting slot for the second batter, but the bottom three in the line up inspire virtually no confidence.

Matsui had said it was just a cramp last night, but apparently it's a little more than that. Jeter hasn't swung a bat since Sunday but hopes to play tomorrow...I wouldn't hold my breath. Obliques are nasty buggers.

On the bright side, we get defense at SS again.

6.29 PM: Ryan Zimmerman's hit streak is likely over at 30 games unless SF can score three or more in the bottom of the inning. Yeah, it's over.

6.30 PM: Coke is again unavailable today. Derek Jeter is available to play defense (...buh?) and Matsui is available to PH.

7.13 PM: Damon swings at what may have been ball four. The Yanks have never faced Richmond. It could potentially be a long night, and the Spring Training-ish line up doesn't help matters much. Think positive!

7.23 PM: Yanks work a hit and a walk but fail to get the run home as Canó flies out. It's such a regular occurrence now that you can nearly write it in stone.

7.30 PM: Two walks with only one out seldom ends well for the pitching team.

7.32 PM: See? 1-0 Jays.

7.37 PM: Three walks in one inning for Pettitte. Very un-Pettittian.

7.41 PM: Melky Cabrera slaps a lead off double; Brett Gardner goes yard. Who the heck saw that coming?

7.42 PM: 1) What did the bottom of the order have for breakfast? 2) Where can I get it?

7.45 PM: Now nine games in a row with an extra base hit for Damon.

7.49 PM: This inning for the Yanks: two doubles, two triples, one HR. No walks or singles...but there's still an out to go. 4-1 Yanks.

7.59 PM: There's the single. The Yanks have hit for the cycle in the 2nd. Richmond is knocked out in the second. 5-1 Yanks.

8.10 PM: Ramiro Peña: Mexicans can jump! (Peña is from Monterrey, Mexico)

8.14 PM: The 1-2-3 inning was exactly what Andy needed.

8.17 PM: Yanks went quickly and quietly there, but hey, they have a 5-1 lead so it's not a huge deal.

8.30 PM: Cervelli with a cannon picks off Marco Scutaro at second and it's still 5-1 after three.

8.42 PM: Yanks get a run there with a little small ball help--double, ground out to move the runner and sac fly. 6-1 and they'll take it.

8.56 PM: Pettitte worked into and out of trouble there. 6-2 Yanks at the end of four. With Coke unavailable, scoring a few more runs for the Yanks is not really a bad idea.

9.04 PM: Grit Gardner now has a HR and a triple. 7-2 Yanks.

9.11 PM: Canó on down in the line up have five of the Yanks' 8 RBI. Gardner has three of them.

9.33 PM: Hasn't always been easy, but Pettitte's made it through six giving up less than three runs = quality start. Now the question, do you send him back out for the 7th or trust Veras/Edwar/Albaladejo/Tomko with a six run lead? (You probably don't use Aceves here...)

9.44 PM: Okay, so I know absolutely nothing about baseball. Aceves on to pitch.

9.48 PM: And unlike those other guys, Aceves gets outs!

10.18 PM: It is an 8-2 game. The last person in the bullpen that should be up right now is Mariano Rivera.

Halladay outduels Burnett in Toronto (Postgame Notes 12 May 2009)

Man, are these Yankees snakebitten or what?

AJ Burnett pitched pretty well tonight. Six hits and a couple of walks.

Roy Halladay pitched a heck of a lot better He faced two hitters over the minimum and of the five hits the Yankees had, two were hit by the piping-hot Johnny Damon.

Roy Halladay is one of the best pitchers in the game today, if not the best. He's something like 12-2 against the Yankees in his last 18 starts (now either still 12-2 or 13-1).

Losing a game to Halladay is not the same sort of embarrassment that, say, losing to Sidney Ponson or Oliver Perez might bring, but teams that win World Series are teams that can beat Roy Halladay or Justin Verlander or whomever.

There's really not much else to be said for the game tonight. Halladay dominated and it can be argued the Yankees were lucky to get the one run they did.

Kevin Cash looked horrible at the late, but I suspect you don't expect more from your fourth string catcher.


Hideki Matsui left the game with tightness in his hamstring. It's tempting to argue for the firing of the Yankees' conditioning coach, but when a team's as old as the Yankees are, injuries are going to happen regardless of who's involved with strength and conditiong.

Yankees at Blue Jays, 12 May 2009: A Liveblog

3.52 PM: Well, the Blue Jays are the surprise team of the AL East and I'm not sure anyone outside of Ontario saw this coming. Now the Yanks will have to go and face Roy "Doc" Halladay, and they'll have to do it without Swisher. Gardner against Halladay does not inspire a whole lot of confidence.

4.20 PM: So Swisher's 2-12 against Halladay and Gardner's 3-7 with a couple doubles. Suddenly things make a little more sense.

4.47 PM: Jeter scratched from line up, no word on why.

5.10 PM: Jeter is out with an oblique pull. Let this be a lesson to you: Never ask the question "what else can go wrong?"

5.37 PM: Jeter is apparently day-to-day (thanks to @jimbaumbach), but these things tend to devolve quickly.

5.42 PM: Ayayayay. More from Baumbach: "Girardi says he learned of Jeter's oblique problem Saturday. "I'm hoping" he'll play tomorrow, Girardi says."

6.33 PM: Wishing a very happy birthday to one Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra!

6.47 PM: Swisher is sporting a new haircut

7.11 PM: Damon gets thrown out trying to stretch a single to a double. He's fast, but he's not that fast. Anyway, the good news is that even if the Yanks are held scoreless they won't be no hit. Actually, Damon may have been safe there.

Meanwhile Mark Teixeira still kind of sucks.

7.20 PM: Nice inning for AJ there.

7.26 PM: Six outs for Halladay and five via the grounder. He is the best pitcher in the game today.

7.33 PM: A-Rod boots what could have been a DP ball. And given the Yankees are something like 2-12 when they have an error, this does not bode well.

7.35 PM: Derek Jeter probably does not make that play. Not to say Peña's bat makes up for the glove, but thanks to the glove it's still 0-0.

7.41 PM: And through three Halladay has only faced the minimum and is on pace for a CG. As always.

7.47 PM: At this rate, the game will be over before nine.

7.53 PM: The Yankees right now look like they'll be lucky to get another baserunner.

8.00 PM: Burnett's overthrowing and now the Jays have 2 on with 0 out.

8.03 PM: Bases loaded with no one out. It's come undone for A and is unlikely to end well.

8.06 PM: 2-0 Jays, and there's still no one out. A-Rod probably doesn't make that play even if he's at 100%. With the way Halladay is pitching, that's probably the game.

8.12 PM: If Cash holds onto that just a bit longer, it's a great double play. Instead it's 3-0 Jays.

8.17 PM: Matsui's knees must be bothering him for Swish to be PH this early.

8.20 PM: At this rate Halladay could pitch a complete game in less than 50 pitches. He still hasn't faced above the minimum and the Yanks have only had one baserunner.

8.23 PM: Matsui's left the game with tightness in his hamstring. As RAB said, Age 1, Yankees 0

8.34 PM: I get you can't hope for much when Posada, Jeter and now Matsui are out of the line up, but damn, this is depressing.

8.40 PM: That DP was probably the best defensive play of the game, but unless the Yanks get some other baserunners (nevermind runs), it probably will go unnoticed.

8.46 PM: Is that...no it can't be...seriously... a baserunner!?!?!?

8.51 PM: And the Yankees have scored a run now. Even if they lose this game (which, at this rate, they probably will), I don't have to headline the post with 'Yanks one-hit by Halladay'. Which in itself feels really go.

9.02 PM: You're not going to win many games with your fourth string catcher. On the bright side, Johnny Damon gets to hit in the ninth.

9.06 PM: Likely icing on the cake for Toronto.

A Jay comes to the Yankees

ESPN is currently reporting that a 5 year, $82.5 million deal has been agreed to in principle between AJ Burnett and the Yankees.

If we ignore the fact that right now the Yankees seem to be printing their own money, this is a move that has to be approached with a lot of caution.

Burnett can be great, and you'd be hard pressed to find a Yankee or Yankee fan not excited at the prospect of not having to actually face Burnett, but the lengthy injury history is a major red flag. We're talking the Yankees are Marie Antoinette and Burnett is the storming of the Bastille--so what if I've been watching the History Channel?

It almost has a here we go again feel to it, but the good news is that because the Yankees signed Sabathia, they will (hopefully) not have to rely on Burnett as their ace.

Conventional wisdom states that you don't sign free agents coming from your division rival because there's probably a real good reason if they're letting one of their stars go to your team--at least in Burnett's case, the caveat is well known.

Won and Done (Postgame notes 23 September 08)

For one day, Yankee fans could dream the impossible dream and a sweet dream it was.

Tonight, it became official through a Boston win over Cleveland--the Yankees will not make the postseason for the first time since 1995.

The reasons are many and varied and will be gotten to in due course.

Yeah, it hurts. I won't lie about that.

However, for now, there are still reasons to watch. There are still reasons to take pride in being a Yankee fan.

First, there's the fact that Mike Mussina now has 19 wins, which means that he officially has a chance at 20 wins. He's got to win his next start, in Boston, and this is hoping his arm hasn't swelled too much after getting hit by a pitch in the arm tonight.

Mussina looked excellent in the early innings, and was able to tough it out through five--all he needed to qualify for the win.

It's completely ironic that Mussina is the one and only pitcher on the Yankees that might get to twenty wins when you consider where he was in September last year--having pitched himself out of the rotation, and it is also wonderful.

Mussina has pitched too long and too well to not get a chance for 20 on Sunday.

Secondly, the Yankees are doing a great job of finishing strong. They were eliminated not because they lost, but because Boston won.

Think about the other teams that were supposed to contend this year and fell short--the Tigers, the Indians, the Mariners, all in contention as of 1 September 2007. The Yankees were the only ones to make it this far, and that's with the injuries to Wang, Posada, Matsui, Joba et al, and Hughes and Kennedy combining for 0 wins. Never mind the regression of Canò and Cabrera and the un-clutchness of Alex Rodriguez.

The Yankees have won six straight and right now actually look like a good baseball team. It's too late, of course, but it's easier to go into the winter on a positive.

More coming later, in the form of video.

Won for the Road (Postgame Notes 20 August 2008)

There was an early barometer for the Yankees in tonight's game.

In the top of the first inning they had the bases loaded with no one out--and too often, this season, the Yankees have found themselves in this situation and not been able to score.

Today, however, (thank g-d), the Yankees took advantage of the situation and scored two runs.

Though the two runs would be all they needed to win, the Yankees grabbed a few more insurance runs, including two on a Derek Jeter home run and won easily a game that they had to win.

It's perhaps an over-used phrase at this point in time--the Yankees have to go about 24-12 and hope Boston plays .500 ball the rest of the way to have a sot at the postseason--but it's true. Every game for the Yankees now is a must win game.

Andy Pettitte had one of his better starts this year, going seven innings and giving up just one run. He had some great defense behind him, and at one point retired nine in a row.

****

As far as the Olympics go, Usein Bolt has the most amazing and appropriate name ever, Michael Phelps has gills (but this you knew) and Nastia Liukin is so flexible she makes the Cirque du Soleil contortionists look rigid.

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.