Argument for Instant Replay gets stronger

1) Watch this video.

2) Tell me what you see.

If you saw the same thing I saw, you saw a) a short hop to Ryan Howard, b) no stepping on first base, and c) a throw wide of second base.

In theory, the Yankees should have bases loaded, one out, with Mark Teixeira at bat.


Instead, the play was ruled a double play--that Howard caught the ball and tagged the runner--and instead of being able to expand their lead and perhaps momentarily avoid using Mariano Rivera, the Yankees had to call on their 39 year-old closer for a 39 pitch save.

I was seated in the right field grandstand last night (check the photos from the post below), and, with Howard's back to me, I knew it was a blown call.

How did I know? If it really was a double play, Howard had utterly no reason to throw to second base.


It seems, that with every round there' yet another botched call, and each one increasing in severity after the last.

It has now gotten to the point where every play, even ones that should be utterly routine, have become the subject of much dissection.

Umpiring along with journalism has one single, cardinal rule: never become the story.

Alas, in the 2009 postseason, the umpires have.

Super Smash Party (Postgame Notes 21 August 2009)

Everyone on the Yankees tonight except for Johnny Damon and Robinson Canó had multi-hit games tonight--and Johnny Damon left in the first inning after getting hit by a pitch.

If, uh, you can remember that far back.

Every one on the Yankees who started except for Johnny Damon had an RBI--and even Damon's replacement, Eric Hinske got in on the act.

Hideki Matsui had seven of them himself.

So forget the fact that Andy Pettitte, Brian Bruney and Sergio Mitre more or less crapped the bed pitching wise--tonight was a night for the offense.

The Yankees came to Boston with only the requirement that they did not get swept.

They didn't.

Life, for Yankee fans, is pretty good.

Boston Sweep Party

If there was any question, any doubt, any uncertainty about the character of the 2009 New York Yankees, this weekend it was answered.

Oh, was it answered.

All the talk, all the rumors that the Yankees could not beat decent teams, that they were a bully team that could only beat up on teams like the Mets and the Orioles, all the insinuations that Alex Rodriguez couldn't hit in the clutch, all of it has gone for naught.

The Yankees came into the weekend set with the Red Sox needing to win one--just one--to ensure they woke up on Monday morning still in first place, and to get the 0-fer off their backs.

So they won the first game.

It wasn't pretty, a 13-6 slugfest in which the Yankees walked twelve of the Red Sox, but it counts.

After winning the first game, the rhetoric turned to winning the second. Win the second game and ensure a split, ensure that no matter what there is no net loss in the standings. Win and get AJ Burnett's own Boston monkey off his back.

So they won the second game.

It was pretty--a thing of baseball beauty--until it went too long, well into the early morning hours. Eventually, Joe Girardi out-managed Terry Francona's bullpen strategy; while Girardi maximized the relievers he did use in extra innings, Francona opted for one-inning stints and eventually Junichi Tazawa made his Major League debut, and Alex Rodriguez was waiting.

After winning the second game, the rhetoric turned to winning the third. Win the third game and ensure a net gain in the standings. Win the third game and ensure a series victory in a series in which most would have been satisfied with a split.

So they won the third game.

It was pretty, too. The pitching was pretty--more, actually, like domination than pretty--and with a starter like CC Sabathia on the mound, domination seems a better term to describe it. The offense scored early enough and the team never looked back. It wasn't a 15-0 thrashing, but the way the Red Sox had been hitting, it might as well have been.

After winning the third game, then, the rhetoric turned to winning the fourth game.

To a sweep.

No one wanted to utter that word before--too much attached to it, it might too quickly act as a jinx--but now, three wins already down, the fans (and, one senses, the Yankees) smelled blood in the water.

The match up, on paper, favored Boston. Jon Lester, in his career, is (still) undefeated against the Yankees, although he has not always won.

Tonight, Lester wasn't much different. He made only one mistake--a solo home run to Alex Rodriguez--in seven innings of work. That the Red Sox were held scoreless, too, had less to do with Andy Pettitte (though it must be said that Pettitte got much stronger in his last two innings of work) than it did the Red Sox offense, which has simply disappeared.

Between the ninth inning of Thursday's game and the eighth inning of tonight's, the Red Sox did not score a single run. Thirty-one-and-a-third scoreless innings. Blame Boston's offense or laud Yankee pitching, it's your choice, but the fact remains that in four games against their rivals the Red Sox scored eight runs and four of those came before the fifth inning on Friday.

If there was one blemish tonight, it was Phil Coke giving up a two-run home run to Victor Martinez, but Girardi's reasoning for using Coke in that spot was sound: Phil Hughes was unavailable after pitching four games out of five, and if the game got to extra innings, the Yankees needed pitchers available who could give length.

During the postgame interview on YES, Coke explained that the pitch to Martinez was supposed to be up near his hands, and not down by his thighs. He was angry about it, and then was not angry anymore once the Yankees won. "So much for 8-0," he said.


Johnny Damon and Mark Teixeira were there to bail Coke out, though, with back-to-back home runs in the next half inning. In fact, while with two outs, the Yankees would proceed to bat around in the inning.

So the Yankees won the fourth game.

They won the fourth game and swept the Boston Red Sox.

Had they swept this series against any other team it would be noted for the stellar pitching, clutch hitting, brilliant defense and everything else that went right. Since the series was against the Red Sox, though, it'll be remembered, rightly or wrongly, mostly for being a sweep of the Red Sox.

The Yankees are now 6.5 games in first place--the first time since 2006. It's still early, and there's still a long way to go, but there it is.

This is a team that is not just playing like it could, but playing like it will go on to do special things.

They can't get complacent now. They have to keep going. This has the feeling right now that the Yankees have just clinched the division. They have not, and with a month and a half to go it's not really that close, either.

Look for some of the regulars to get a day of rest while playing Seattle--after that it's back to the West Coast and then Boston again the weekend after.

For the moment, enjoy what you've seen.

And so much for Boston being 8-0, huh?

Breaking Down the Yankees for the Second Half--The Starting Lineup, Part One

[So the All Star Game is officially over--and we can thus consider ourselves in the second half.

This is where it gets fun.

All of those days players got rested in the first half? Well, now they have to play. Now the pennant races start to heat up, and every move a team makes, be it a trade, a free agent signing or simply bringing someone up from AAA has even more added meaning.

What do we expect from the Yankees?

I'm going to do a series of posts addressing this, because there's so much to say that having it all in one post would a) kill your eyes and mine, and b) give me carpal tunnel at the age of 23.]

For your lunchbreak, I'm going to tackle the one area that's remained relatively problem-free: The starting line up.

Here I've included hitters 1-5, because I think any more and the post will get too long. I'll be back with the rest of the line up a little later on today.


The Starting Line Up

The goal of an offense is to score as many runs as possible. The Yankees? Their 495 runs scored is tops in the Major Leagues and frankly is not too far off the pace if this team wanted to score 1000.

The most impressive thing here isn't just that the Yankees are scoring runs; it's the way they are doing it. Aside from the Chien Ming Wang disaster starts, games in which the Yankees have been blown out are few and far between. The twenty-five come from behind wins and eight walk off wins are illustrative of an offense that keeps fighting.

The offense alone can't win a World Series, but with these guys, it's not for a lack of trying.

In the second half there will probably be more attention paid to Mark Teixeira--who has been slumping--now that the excuse of cold weather is no longer acceptable. Joe Girardi will still have to do a balancing act in center, with Brett Gardener and Melky Cabrera--and both of them seem to perform better when they are not playing every day. Johnny Damon and Nick Swisher will need days off--for different reasons, mind--but as the pennant race heats up these will become harder to come by.

Still, out of all the problems the 2009 Yankees have, the offense is pretty low down on the list.

Derek Jeter

The renaissance that Jeter had in the first half was good enough to make him this year's leading AL vote getter in All Star voting. Getting him out of the second spot has drastically cut down on his grounding-into-double-plays, even if we're still not quite used to seeing him hit first.

The biggest boon to the Yankees, however, may very well be his improved defense, which has been attributed to playing further back in the field. It's as though Yankees fans have been whisked back to 2000...

In the second half, the Yankees just want more of the same from Jeter: great hitting and good defense. They could, perhaps, do without him trying to steal third with none out, but such are minor complaints.


Johnny Damon

Damon's first half witnessed a power resurgence that was unabashedly aided by the short right field at the new Yankee Stadium. He's been a good choice to bat second because of his relative lack of hitting into double plays, and he's also been a very poor ambassador for whatever bat company he uses--breaking at least one bat a game.

Going into the All Star break, Damon was hitting a not-so-robust .147 for the month of July--perhaps indicative, again, of his body beginning to betray him. Certainly, a nagging calf injury has kept him out of the line up on occasion and even kept him from fielding decently while in it.

For the second half, what the Yankees need is simple: they need Damon not to break down. An outfield of Swisher-Gardner-Cabrera for any length of time won't give the Yankees a whole lot of power, and it will over expose all three (who may be over exposed already). Hideki Matsui probably can't play the outfield all year unless there are literally no other options aside from forfeiting the game and Eric Hinske is, many believe, not an every day player. The Yankees will easily take Damon's kind-of-cringeworthy arm and misplays if it means his bat is in the line up.



Mark Teixeira


Perhaps the most important thing Mark Teixeira did in the entire first half is show the Yankees just how wonderful it is when everyone on the infield can play a little bit of defense.

Sure, the 20+ home runs and loads of walks help, as does his hustle in running out routine pop ups, but the defense is the first thing you notice when comparing him and Jason Giambi.

In the second half, Teixeira's fate will probably be even that much more bound up with Alex Rodriguez.

When A-Rod is on a roll and crushing pitches, Teixeira will likely get more pitches to hit as teams figure out that it's a bad idea to pitch to A-Rod with men already on base. If, however, A-Rod slumps--and he does--teams will again pitch around Teixeira. It would not hurt Teixeira's cause if he were to hit for a higher average. Right now his .275 average is his worst since his rookie season. Of course, when your OPS is .913, you tend to let these things slide.


Alex Rodriguez

His tumultuous first half saw him miss a month with a hip injury, come back and hit nothing but home runs, which slowly morphed into nothing at all, and then, only after a two-day rest period, has he begun to look something of the A-Rod of old. He may very well be the only player you've ever seen with a batting average of .256 and an OBP of .411.

A lot of this has to do with the inordinate about of games in which Robinson Canó hit fifth. Since Canó has some sort of can'thitwithmenonbaseitis, pitchers simply worked around A-Rod and pitched to Canó, who more often than not grounded into a double play--but more on him later.

Now that Canó has been moved out of the fifth spot--hopefully for good--Rodriguez is getting more pitches to hit. Rodriguez hit all of .207 in June, but is hitting .350 in July. A lot of that probably has to do with him being rested, but don't discount actually having protection in the line up.

In the second half, the Yankees need Alex Rodriguez to hit like Alex Rodriguez. They need to be careful that they actually do rest Rodriguez--once a week if possible--because the hip is only going to get worse until the entire thing can get repaired in the off-season.


Jorge Posada

The most notable thing about Posada thus far is that despite the hamstring injury that had him on the disabled list, his shoulder doesn't just seem to have held up okay, it actually seems to be stronger than it was before last year's disaster.

Teams were--rightfully--willing to run all over Posada to test the arm; while he may be no Molina Brother behind the plate, he has certainly held his own.

The controversy of him having tiffs with the pitchers is overblown--he's found a way to work well enough with AJ Burnett and Joba Chamberlain's had problems with every catcher--so please, please don't get too caught up in that.

With a bat, Posada is having a usual Posada-like season; his batting average fits in nicely with career norms; the on-base percentage is on the low end, true, but Posada makes up for this with a higher slugging than normal. It's not Posada's 2007 campaign--a career year hidden by A-Rod's antics--but the Yankees will take that production from a catcher without blinking.

The biggest concern going forward is, like Johnny Damon, what the wear and tear of late summer and a pennant race will do to a 38 year-old catcher's body. The Yankees know full well now how valuable Posada's bat is, so don't be surprised if he gets a number of half-days at DH or Girardi seems to pick odd days to just rest him entirely. The last thing the Yankees want is to go into that final Boston series with Posada being unable to play because he's too beat up.



[That's long enough for now, I'll be back with the Lineup, Part 2, later on in the day, followed by the bench and the bullpen].

Pettitte Strong as Yanks Roll to 7th Straight (postgame notes 1 July 2009)

For, perhaps, the first time this season, Andy Pettitte had an excellent outing at home.

On a warm night (without rain, if you'd believe it and I don't blame you if you don't) that saw four home runs, Pettitte maintained his cool and pitched as though it was still 1999.

He did give up two runs, but at no point in the game did he ever trail the Mariners, and was no doubt helped by some falling asleep on behalf of the Mariners on the basepath.

As for the Yankee offense, just like last night, it did enough at the right moments to get the win. Four runs won't win you a game every night, but it will most nights if your starting pitching is competent, which, tonight, it was.

Johnny Damon, Melky Cabrera and Alex Rodriguez all had home runs, with Melky's and A-Rod's shots being particularly, uh, blast-like.


And, really, that's all there is to say about tonight's game. Alfredo Aceves and Phil Coke combined for a scoreless 8th while Mariano Rivera picked up his 502nd save.

It was a crisp, clean game played in a very quick 2:17.

Once again, the Yankees have assured themselves of a series victory, and with the Jays coming in over the long weekend in which the Yankees get to face Roy Halladay and Ricky Romero (8 scoreless vs. the Rays today), that looms important.

CC Sabathia will be on the hill tomorrow as the Yankees go for the sweep.

How I Nearly Missed Melky's Walk-Off (Postgame Notes 15 May 2009)

Scene: 12.30 PM, Fordham area, Bronx, NY.

Dan and I make our way up to the fourth floor of my building, where my apartment is. Dan doesn't have a lot--you don't need a lot when only staying for a weekend--but he puts it down on my coffee table, which I worked so hard to clean last night.

The plan was to go to Central Park, toss a frisbee and find a bar to watch the Yankees.

You could not have asked for nicer weather.

I'm sitting on the couch, checking my email while Dan's putting his contacts in, when I get an idea.

"Hey, want to see if we can find cheap tickets to today's game?"

"Sure, why not?" He says.

I go to Stubhub and look for tickets. I can't do Grandstand or Terrace--Dan is not a height person--so I look around at the Main sections. I find one where the tickets start at $20. I click; I find two tickets for $26 each. I go to Yankees.com to compare face value. Face value on gameday is $80. It's a no brainer.

I buy, they send, and we walk over to the library to print.


5.30 PM Near New Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY.

Dan and I get off the subway. It's quite hot out right now, the air from the city sitting heavy as it likes to do in the summer.

"Would you like to go to Stan's or into the Stadium?" I ask. Dan's a beer and bars fan. I can't drink beer and I get claustrophobic in bars, but since Dan is visiting, it's up to him. If he wants to go to the bar, we go to the bar. It's reversed when I visit him.

"Well..." He gives it some thought. "It's early. Let's go to Stan's, I'll get a drink, then we can head over."

So we go to Stan's. It's crazy crowded, and the music is really loud, but the music is good music. I can't remember now, so many hours later, what they were playing, but I know the mood it set: life is good. Forget your troubles. Life is good.


Second Inning, Yankee Stadium.

Justin Morneau comes up to bat.

I think, but do not say, it would not be surprising if he hit a home run here. A few pitches later, I watch the ball sail over the right field fence. I do not even rise from my seat to see the ball land; there is no way it is going to come down in time for Swisher to have a chance.

At the end of the inning I am amazed it is only 1-0. The Yanks are still in this.


Third Inning, Yankee Stadium.

Dan and I have great seats, for the most part. We can see the entire field, and the players are large enough to be human, to be nuanced and flawed.

But we cannot see the pitches well.

From our angle, down the right field line, we can only tell if pitches are way high, way low or way inside--because the player jumps out of the way. We cannot see movement and location on close pitches.

When Johnny Damon strikes out, we are not sure how to react--and then Johnny Damon makes it clear for us.

He argues. There's no question what he's arguing about and no one is surprised when he gets tossed. We wonder if it'll give some life to the offense; we don't realize what, exactly, the consequences of bringing in Brett Gardner to play center will be.


Later in the Third Inning, Yankee Stadium


We kind of knew this would happen.

We kind of knew that Alex Rodriguez would be called on to do something big. Bases loaded here, one out, the Yankees down by one run, and all the Yanks need is a single to take the lead.

A-Rod's timing is still off, however.

A few more weeks, and some of those pitches go way over the centerfield wall.

Not tonight.

The chorus of applause turns to boos. This is, after all, New York.

It's refreshing to see some things never change.



Fourth Inning, Yankee Stadium


Minnesota's just scored again on a sacrifice fly.

I text Joe from River Ave Blues, who's at the game.

Me: Way too many pitches.
Joe: I'm just glad he got out of it.

How is the score only 2-0?

It baffles us.



Fifth inning, Yankee Stadium


Justin Morneau is at bat again.

I don't think about him hitting another home run, but this is what he does.

It's now 3-0 Twins. It's by no means undoable for the Yankees, but eventually the runs will continue to build. If Phil Hughes can keep it here, we have a chance.

I look at the scoreboard. I can't believe it's already the fifth inning. I can't believe it's only the fifth inning.



Later Fifth Inning, Yankee Stadium


Derek Jeter is at bat.

The count goes to 0-2 (or so I think. Later I see the count was actually 2-0, but somehow I've missed this.)

"Please," I say, "please, please do not strike out on three pitches."

He doesn't.

He plants one over the right field porch. The Stadium comes alive: We are still in this.


Sixth Inning, Yankee Stadium

"You know, Rebecca," Dan says, "I think this is the best idea you've ever had."

I want to agree; it's hard when the Yankees are losing, but there is time yet.


Seventh Inning, Yankee Stadium

Phil Coke comes into pitch.

It's been a few days since Coke has pitched and he's perhaps the only other reliever in the bullpen capable of getting outs.

It's refreshing to see him again.

So refreshing that he serves up a home run to Joe Mauer.

Not so refreshing after all. He settles down and gets two outs before Joe Girardi brings in Brett Tomko.

"Uh Oh," I think.

Then, two pitches later, the side is retired. Maybe it's not such a big deal after all.



Later Seventh Inning, Yankee Stadium

There are two quick outs and Brett Gardner comes up to bat. It does not seem too promising, and soon enough, Gardner is down in the count, 0-2.

"He's going to strike out on three pitches," I say.

"The last time you said that, there was a home run," Dan says, not really amused.

So I watch, but I don't expect much. Gardner doesn't have Jeter's power.

Gardner doesn't hit a home run. Well, it doesn't seem that way...just a bloop down the line...but then it gets past the third baseman and the left fielder, and Gardner never stops running.

He's flying around the bases and by the time he gets to third the Stadium is in an uproar, because we all sense it: Gardner can make it home.

We egg him on. He keeps running. He slides, and is safe.

I have never heard the Stadium this loud. None of us have ever seen an inside-the-park-home run before. We don't realize it'll get louder later.



Ninth Inning, Yankee Stadium


It's a 4-2 game and the Yankees have to hold it here to have a chance. Against Joe Nathan it will likely not be much more than that, just a chance.

"You never know," says the man sitting in front of me. "That's baseball."

"You're right," I admit.

Dan brings up an issue that is on both of our minds: it is getting late.

"Well, if the Twins hit a two-run home run here, against Edwar, we're leaving," I say. They don't hit a home run, but they do send to the bullpen for José Veras. You can hear the Stadium's collective "Uh oh", you can see the mass exodus.

Dan and I have a 15 block walk from the subway back to my apartment. It's late and we, despite being city people, still find ourselves preoccupied with our safety.

"All right," I say, "let's go."

We walk down the ramp and are heading towards the exit. We are in the great hall and I can see the Babe Ruth Plaza outside the gate.

Ten steps, eight, seven, six, five....

And with that, Vera strikes out the side. Do they have a rally in their bones?

I grab Dan's arm.

"You know what? Let's stay."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. It's Nathan. It'll probably be quick, anyway."

We walk up to the edge of the field level concourse. A crowd has gathered, all like us, all nearly out the door and deciding at the last minute to stay. Hey, why not?

So I try to watch Gardner's at bat--I can't see the field that well, because there are too many people in front of me, but I can see the screen.

I expect Gardner to strike out, but he doesn't. He hits the ball to the gap. He slips as he rounds first and still winds up at third. If he doesn't slip, he quite possibly has another inside the park home run.

"Dude," I say, "I've never seen one inside-the-park home run before, and we nearly had two."

Mark Teixeira follows. We just want a ball in the outfield. Something to score Gardner.

He obliges with a single.

It's now 4-3. The Yankees are only down one run, there's no one out, A-Rod's at bat. We can taste it. We are in this. We can win this.

"He's rattled," says the tattooed man behind me, referring to Nathan.

After A-Rod walks, it's clear, Nathan's definitely rattled.

We root for Matsui, who strikes out, and then root again for Swisher, who grounds out but moves Teixeira and A-Rod to second and third in the process.

This is key.

It's key because Joe Nathan and Joe Mauer and the Twins decide to intentionally walk Robinson Canó. It's a good idea in theory. Vaguely.

"Horrible idea," says the tattooed man.

"I know," I say. "Robbie's not good with men in scoring position and Melky's been hot. Gardner has a inside-the-park home run and a triple. You know Melky wants to do something."

"It's the competition. It's working. A little center field competition," smirks the tattoeed man.

While Robbie is being walked the Stadium starts chanting Mel-ky, Mel-ky.

Melky's already given the Yankees one walk off this season. He's been one of our most clutch hitters.

Right now, either he comes through and it's the most amazing experience I've ever had at a Yankee game, or he doesn't and we go home heartbroken, but right now, at this moment, none of us think Melky won't come through.

This has walk-off win written all over it.

Nathan pitches.

Melky dunks one in there.

The Yankees win.

The Stadium is howling with WHOOO, YAY, and everything else in between, including a lot of four letter words.

Brent calls me and is excited and I can't let him get a word in edgewise. This is way, way, too amazing.


10.30 PM, outside Yankee Stadium

Dan and I take a taxi back, instead of the subway. It's a little on the pricey side, but it's well worth it. The cabbie plays the Yankee postgame in the car.

"You know," says Dan, who is from Boston and a Red Sox fan, "I almost, just for a second, got caught up there. I almost had to cheer."

"It's the best $25 I've ever spent on baseball," I say.

I don't add: it's also the best two feet I never walked.

Game 35: Twins at Yankees

Hi all, Andrew Fletcher from Scott Proctor's Arm here. Rebecca is enjoying herself at the Yankees game tonight, so I'll be updating you periodically throughout the night.

The Yankees begin a four-game series against the Minnesota Twins as part of an even longer 10-game homestand. Phil Hughes (1-2, 8.49 ERA) gets the start for New York tonight. Alex Rodriguez is also playing in his first game at the new Yankee Stadium.

Here is the Yankees' lineup:

Derek Jeter SS

Johnny Damon LF

Mark Teixeira 1B

Alex Rodriguez 3B

Hideki Matsui DH

Nick Swisher RF

Robinson Cano 2B

Melky Cabrera CF

Kevin Cash C

Hughes threw to Cervelli when he got bombed in Baltimore last time out. Is that why Cash gets the nod tonight? I don't know, but that would be the case if I had to guess.

7:13 p.m.: Hughes allows a leadoff single to Denard Span but strikes out Matt Tolbert and gets Joe Mauer to ground into a 4-6-3 double play. He only threw 11 pitches.

7:25 p.m.: Justin Morneau golfs a pitch over the right-center field wall for a leadoff home run in the top of the second inning. 1-0 Twins.

7:35 p.m.: Hughes walks two batters but escapes further trouble. He wasn't helped when Teixeira couldn't scoop out a possible double play ball out of the dirt. Still 1-0 Twins, with Rodriguez leading off the bottom of the second.

8:06 p.m.: Damon strikes out on a questionable call with runners on first and second and no outs. He argued the call and got ejected, ending his extra-base hitting streak. Meanwhile, a walk to Teixeira loads the bases for Rodriguez.

8:10 p.m.: Fittingly, Rodriguez strikes out and gets booed.

8:12 p.m.: And Matsui can't beat out a slower grounder. Surprise, surprise; the Yankees left the bases loaded without scoring.

8:40 p.m.: The Twins scored on a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning and on a solo home run by Morneau in the fifth. 3-0 Twins. The offense has been nonexistent against Francisco Liriano and Hughes has been subpar. He has thrown 93 pitches through five innings, with only 50 of those going for strikes.

8:46 p.m.: Jeter lines a homer to right field. 3-1 Twins.

9:22 p.m.: And Joe Mauer homers off Phil Coke. 4-1 Twins. Here we go again.

9:38 p.m.: Gardner hits an inside-the-park home run and Teixeira hits a two-out double. There's some life in this crowd. 4-2 Twins.

9:49 p.m.: Swisher pops out with the bases loaded. Shucks.

10:32 p.m.: Gardner triples to right-center to lead off the ninth inning. He tripped over first base and still made it into third standing up. Teixeira follows with an RBI single. 4-3 Twins with Rodriguez up and no outs.

10:36 p.m.: Rodriguez walks for the fourth time tonight, despite two balls that were called strikes by home plate umpire Wally Bell. First and second, no outs.

10:42 p.m.: Matsui has a terrible at-bat (strikes out and doesn't advance the runners) and Swisher is robbed by Morneau at first. They are now walking Cano to load the bases with two outs with Cabrera on deck.

10:45 p.m.: Cabrera dunks in a single in between the left fielder and center fielder to win the game 5-4! Hooray!

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.

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 Ride Three HRs, Good Bullpen to Victory (Postgame Notes 10 May 2009)

It was some old-fashioned Bronx Bombing that won the game for the Yankees today.

Joba Chamberlain continued to struggle in the first inning--giving up a three-run home run to Aubrey Huff in the first--but he settled down after that, and the Orioles did not score another run.

It was not Joba's best effort, but six innings and three runs is both enough for a quality start and a win, and the Yankees got just that.

To be quite honest here, Joba's putting together a quality start was the best possible retaliation for Aubrey Huff's home run fist-pump (which itself was a retaliation for Joba's fist pump). It puts Joba on a higher plane, above the fracas and hubbub about an issue that really should not matter.

For the Yanks, they received solo home runs from Mark Teixeira in the first, and Robinson Canó in the seventh, but the biggest blow was Johnny Damon's three-run home run in the seventh with two outs.

The important thing here is, perhaps, not that Damon hit the home run (he's had an XB hit in each of his last seven games), but how the runners got on base before him.

Francisco Cervelli has not played even a week in the Majors, and is certainly not in there for his bat, but when he does put bat on ball, he does the little things right. Like today, when he hustled down the line to beat out an infield single--I'm not quite sure I remember the last time a Yankee catcher had anything resembling speed, but with two outs, that single play changed the outcome of the game.

Derek Jeter followed with another infield single, though with Melvin Mora playing back, that nubber was more obviously going to be an infield hit than Cervelli's--which had been grounded to the second baseman.

With those two on base, the Yankees' hottest bat came up to the plate, and did his thing.

It's probably not much of a surprise that Damon's playing for a contract here, but if he keeps hitting like this it won't be a very hard question to answer.

The bullpen today, in Phil Coke and Mariano Rivera did their job. They may be the only relievers that Girardi can trust, but that trust is not misplaced. Rivera's earned it over a fifteen-plus year career; Coke's done it in a few months.

***


I would like to wish all mothers out there a Happy Mother's Day.

Yankees at Red Sox, 26 Aprill 2009: A Liveblog

5.04 PM: Tonight's Yankees line up from LoHud begs two questions:

1) Is Girardi trying to get swept?

2) Is Damon hurt from last night's date with the Green Monster in the latter innings?

The line up:

Gardner CF
Jeter SS
Teixeira 1B
Swisher LF
Cano 2B
Posada C
Matsui DH
Cabrera RF
Berroa 3B

5.35 PM: The answer to question one seems to be question two. The problem isn't so much giving Damon a day off as it is having both Gardner and Cabrera in the line up.

6.26 PM: Here's some irony for you: Down on the farm, Carmen Angeline, he of the error-in-every-game-but-three variety, scored today...on an error.

6.34 PM: From LoHud (link above): Johnny Damon is out of the lineup with a sore right shoulder, a sore knee and a sore back. Ouch!

7.30 PM: Every time I read something about Swine Flu I get a scratchy throat. Yay for being a hypochondriac!

8.09 PM: Finally ready to get underway. Meanwhile in the other game I'm watching, Rolston should shoot the f'ing puck once in a while.

8.16 PM: Yankees go down 1-2-3 in the first, without getting a single ball past the infield. I hope this is not a sign to things to come. With my luck, however...

8.24 PM: You mean these two teams actually put together a scoreless inning? A lead off single for Ellsbury goes for naught as Pedroia flies out to deep center and Ortiz lines into a double play.

8.31 PM: A base hit would have been nice. Swisher put together a decent AB but struck out; Canó dribbled a ball that should have gone foul but didn't, and Jorge Posada flew out to left.

8.40 PM: Back to back two out singles for the Red Sox. Meanwhile it looks like the Devils-Canes series will be heading for a game 7. Maybe I'll try to get a ticket.

8.46 PM: Andy Pettitte works around the two singles and the score is still (!!) 0-0 after two.

8.49 PM: Matsui with the Yankees first hit of the evening, a lead off single. Let's see if they can do anything with it.

8.54 PM: Gardner with a sac fly after Berroa's sac bunt after Melky's single (got that?) plates Matsui. Yankees lead 1-0.

Meanwhile, Joe Morgan says the Yankees are not and offensive juggernaut and yet the rank in the top five in many offensive categories...

8.57 PM: After Jeter reaches on an error Teixeira flies out on the first pitch he sees. 1-0 Yankees after two and a half. I don't expect the score to last very long.

9.04 PM: Fenway park loves their sausages? Dude, there are kids watching...

9.07 PM: Yeah, this lead is not going to last very long. Angel Berroa has two errors in one inning. And we thought Cody Ransom was a black hole...

9.10 PM: Never a Pettitte start without a pick off.

9.24 PM: Ayayay, is that a BLACK HOLE OF DOOM at the bottom of the Yanks' line up or what? With Canó at third and two out, Melky swings at the first pitch and hits a lazy ground ball. Meanwhile, Matsui is 2-2.

9.34 PM: Andy Pettitte works around a two out walk and strikes out Lowell to end the inning. Still tied 1-1.

9.44 PM: Teixeira gives one a ride but it falls short on the warning track. We go bottom five still tied 1-1.

9.48 PM: Andy Pettitte has thrown five straight out of the strike zone. Ah, there's a strike.

9.57 PM: Pettitte walks two and gets burned with a two out double by David Ortiz. 2-1 Sox. Pettitte's pitch count is getting precariously high.

10.02 PM: A straight steal of home for Jacoby Ellsbury and now a ground-ruled double and it's 4-1 Boston.

Did someone on the Yankees murder a baby or something? I don't understand the karma.

10.23 PM: Wow, the Yankees look kinda helpless right now, don't they? Maybe we'll get to see Melancon...

10.30 PM: Pettitte manages to get through six innings. Alas, unless the Yankee offense can put something together, it will go for naught. I wonder how many times we'll be forced to watch replays of Ellsbury's steal of home...

10.40 PM: Right now it looks like this will be only the second time all season the Yankees have failed to plate more than four runs.

10.44 PM: Welcome to the bigs, Mark Melancon.

10.45 PM: Wow, I'm kinda shocked Melancon was able to handle that with the bat flying everywhere.

10.47 PM: Is Melancon single? Will he marry a Jew?

10.57 PM: I hope someone starts throwing crap in the locker room or something after this game. At least get SOMETHING out of these guys.

11.04 PM: The Sox have the bases loaded and no one one out. I am sorely tempted to throw something through a window, but I don't have enough money to pay for a replacement. However, if you'd like to donate to the cause I can totally give you my paypal information.

11.08 PM: Mark Melancon gets out of the jam without allowing a run. You know, it is entirely possible I might forget about how much this loss sucks just to fawn over Melancon...

Nady and Damon have assetts frozen in Stanford Scandal

Xavier Nady and Johnny Damon have had their assets frozen as part of the on-going investigation into Allen Stanford.

While neither Nady nor Damon invested directly with Stanford, those that they invested with did.

***

You would have hoped that for athletes that are getting paid more than most people will ever see in their entire lifetimes, that there would at least be some sort of money management program.

I know baseball players are not nearly as notorious for poor money management as football or basketball players, but even so, no one is immune.

Here's hoping their problems are resolved and they invest a little more wisely from now on.

AAAA (Amazing in Anaheim: Alfredo Aceves) Postgame Notes 9 Septembe 08

You may not believe it, but the Yankees won a game in Anaheim tonight.

Maybe it was because the pitcher on the mound for the Yankees, Alfredo Aceves, was making his first major league start and missed the memo that the Yankees were supposed to roll up and play dead while in Anaheim.

Maybe it was because Alex Rodriguez realized he hasn't homered since Tampa and Johnny Damon was that determined to get out of that slump he had been in.

Or maybe, it was simply that for once this season, the Yankees did the right things at the right time.

Of course, while the Yankees are still technically in the playoff race, they are still 8.5 games out of the Wild Card with not nearly enough left to play, so while tonight's win was perhaps a small moral victory, the outlook on October hasn't changed much.

Derek Jeter passed Babe Ruth for 2nd place on the Yankees all-time hits list, but I don't need to tell you about how valuable Jeter is as a player, even if he is beginning to decline. He is still a first ballot Hall of Famer.

****

The New York Jets did enough to win on Sunday, and I can't remember the last time I'd seen a Jets quarterback throw down field like that, and I think as Favre becomes more familiar with the playbook, that he and the team will improve.

The AFC East is now wide open, but I won't favor the Jets just yet. I'd like to see what they do against the Patriots and the Bills first.

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.

A Healthy Dose of Optimism

Don't look now, but there's a team that's just won nine of twelve games to move to four games over .500. In the past three games, they gave up a grand total of five runs while scoring 23 themselves. In the past six, they've given up 15 runs while scoring 34.

With the exception of one bad start in Oakland, the starting pitching has been exquisite--even going back to the last game of the Kansas City series, despite the Yankee loss.

Mike Mussina deserves a spot on the All Star team. Whether or not he gets it is, of course, up in the air, but if there's any Yankees' pitcher not named Mariano Rivera that deserves a spot this year, it's Mussina. He has been the Yankee stopper, on pace for twenty wins this season, which is all the more amazing when one considers that at the beginning of the season, most of the fan base (and even the experts) figured he'd be lucky to win ten games all year.

Joba Chamberlain's transition to starter has not been flawless, but he's improved significantly in each start, and in his next one, he will not have a pitch count limit. In his last start he allowed just one run over six innings while throwing 88 pitches--and hitting 97 MPH on his last pitch.

Andy Pettitte looked more like his old self in his most recent start, getting both the ground balls and the double plays, and Chien Ming Wang looks as though he has emerged from his pitcher's slump, though it may be a while before he makes his next start.

While Darrel Rasner faltered in his last start, it was most likely fatigue after having thrown 110+ pitches in his previous outing. With the exception of that start--one clunker in seven starts--he has given the Yankees a chance to win every time he steps on the mound.

The bullpen, too, has stepped it up a notch. Kyle Farnsworth recorded a save in the Yankees' 2-1 victory on Friday, and then pitched the eighth in Saturday's game, which, at the time the Yankees lead by only two runs. Jose Veras and Edwar Ramirez have been excellent; after pitching in five games out of six, Mariano Rivera has not pitched now in four games, so he should be available in the upcoming Padres and Reds series. Though he has given up a couple ninth inning home runs, he has not blown a save opportunity.


The offense, it seems, has finally figured out a way to score runs. Johnny Damon has been utterly on fire--currently hitting over .330, he is perhaps the Yankees' most valuable offensive player of the moment.

Derek Jeter's average isn't quite as high as he'd like, but his eighth inning home run on Friday illustrated why he has been dubbed Captain Clutch.

Alex Rodriguez has also been on fire since coming off of the disabled list; he's had two home runs in the past two games--a sign that he is utterly locked in--and, in other just-off-the-dl-news, Jorge Posada gives an added punch to the Yankee line up.

The rejuvination of Jason Giambi also continues--whether because of the 'stache or thong, though, is a question best left unanswered, and Hideki Matsui is still among the league leaders for batting average.

What does this all mean?

The Yankees have climbed to four games over .500, and while there's no guarantee, it feels like the Yankees have finally broken through the .500 barrier. There's still a while to go before they can catch Boston, but it's not quite time to worry about that just yet.

Currently, the Yankees are only 3.5 games back in the Wild Card--trailing only Oakland (from whom they just took two out of three) and Tampa Bay.

So while you're sitting there waiting for news on Wang, perhaps it will cheer you up to remember that these are the Yankees, and no season is ever over before July 4.

Joba Geise Win (Postgame Notes 08 June 2008

Don't look now, but the Yakees are beginning to fall into place.

Today's game was just the type of game we'd hope the Yankees would play this season--solid pitching, timely hitting, and more than five runs. If not for some stellar outfield defense from Kansas City's Joey Gathright, the Yankees would have at least had another two runs; probably closer to another three or four.

Anyway, to start at the beginning, coming off of yesterday's improbable win (I'm not quite sure how I managed to keep my car on the road while listening to the game on my way to Scranton), the Yankees were once again at .500 and with emotion on their side.

It was Joba's second start, and while he certainly wasn't perfect, Yankee fans (and management) have got to be pleased with his performance today. He threw 78 pitches, mostly strikes, going 4.1 innings. He did give up three runs, but two of those came on one mistake pitch to Jose Guillen and the third was unearned, on a passed ball.

Dan Giese, the Designated Reliever on Joba days, was excellent. In 2.2 innings, he allowed exactly one baserunner--and even that baserunner technically struck out. Jose Veras pitched a very good 8th and Mariano Rivera was, well, Mariano Rivera.

As for the offense, well, it was only the third time all year the Yankees had their Opening Day line up, but the line up performed as expected.

Johnny Damon continued his hot hitting (what is he eating for breakfast, and where can I get some?) despite going only 2-4...

Bobby Abreu had a two-run home run, adding to his RBI total, and the renaissance of Jason Giambi continued as he hit the home run to break the three-three tie.

If not for Joey Gathright, Jorge Posada would have had a two-RBI hit as well.

Right now, the Yankees look like they are finally beginning to figure out this season. Once again, they are above .500--and this time, they've gotten there with energized line ups and actually playing all 27 outs of the game.

Looks like the sleeping beast is beginning to wake up.

****

Had a tremendous night in Scranton last night with some of the fellow LoHud readers. A special thanks goes to Ron H. for putting it all together. It was wonderful to be able to meet so many people--here's hoping we can do it again next year!

Bronx Bombin' (Postgame Notes 08 May 2008)

In a lot of respects, this game was eerily similar to the first game of the series--a close game where the Yankees' offense was mostly a product of Jason Giambi and Robinson Canò--but, unlike that game, the Yankees won this one.

Mike Mussina started the game great, giving up a lead-off single to Grady Sizemore and then retiring twelve in a row before hitting a wall in the fifth. It was certainly not Mussina's best start of the season, but it was good enough to give the Yankees a chance, and one cannot ask for much more than that from a (supposedly) back end starter.

Ross Ohlendorf, who has not pitched in a while, had an excellent outing and is making a strong case for the eighth inning when Joba makes the transition to a starter.

Joba Chamberlain rebounded from his poor start--this time striking out David Dellucci, and he did not bother to hide the emotion.

On the offensive side of things, Johnny Damon had two crucial hits, Jason Giambi hit at least two balls to the left side (even if they were outs) and a two run home run, and Robinson Canò had (arguably) the best game of his season. Even Wilson Betemit had his first home run of the season.

Hideki Matsui now has a 17 game hitting streak, getting a hit in his first at bat.

OPTIMIST TAKE: The Yankees' offense was able to pick up Mussina after he hit a wall, and they combined for four home runs. Mariano Rivera had a "poor" outing for himself, but his line is still sick. Although the Yankees finish the home stand at 4-5, one can argue that it should have finished at 5-4, had Joba not had the bad outing.

Damonized. Or, Mussic to Your Ears (Postgame Notes 3 May 2008)

Today was the type of game one hopes the Yankees play more and more often as the year goes forward--excellent starting pitching, good hitting (even with RISP!) and a solid bullpen effort.

Mike Mussina, believe it or not, got his third win in a row, an certainly pitched like he wanted it. Seattle had eight hits (not all off of Mussina), but they only managed one run--which means that when Mussina need to make the big pitches, he was able to.

The crowning moment in his start came when he struck out the side in the sixth; he finished the day at less than 90 pitches so there is a little mystery as to why he did not come out to pitch the seventh.

As for the Yankee offense, the saying "As [Johnny] Damon goes, so goes the Yankees" could not have been more true today. Damon went 3-5, with two doubles and a home run (and he scored each time he reached base). Derek Jeter also had a great game, while Melky Cabrera and Bobby Abreu also had RBI.

As for the bullpen, LaTroy Hawkins and Jose Veras had great outings; Edwar Ramirez struggled with his control, but ultimately got the job done.

OPTIMIST TAKE: Damon, Jeter, Abreu and Cabrera are all at .290 or over on the year; Matsui is the only Yankee currently batting over .300. Mussina now has 254 wins for his career and has won three straight games--pitching, believe it or not, as if he is a number two starter.

Just Another Day at the Office (Postgame Notes 22 April 2008)

If Sunday's game from Andy Pettitte was a clinic on how to pitch, tonight's game from Chien Ming Wang as a clinic on how to grind it out and battle when you don't have your best "stuff".

Though he gave up ten hits in six innings, Wang was able to keep the White Sox to three runs, hich shows true grit among the starter.

As for the offense, tonight was the type of night you hope you see more often--hitting from Johnny Damon and even Jason Giambi, and Bobby Abreu with a clutch grand slam in the seventh.

It looks like the Yankees may be coming out of their offensive funk; Johnny Damon especially had a great day including a double in the top of the first, an infield hit in the seventh to set up the Abreu grand slam, and, as if for good measure, a three run home run in the eighth.

The bullpen was shaky--Billy Traber walked the only man he faced, Brian Bruney walked a man and gave up an infield hit, Joba walked in a run, and Kyle Farnsworth gave up a solo HR in the ninth--but, in the end, the Yankees did not have to go to Mariano.

OPTIMIST TAKE: The way Wang battled through the game shows a mature pitcher--young pitchers might give in and fold, but Wang pulled a Pettitte with his ability to get out of jams with men on base with only minor damage. Jason Giambi had a home run, though for those thinking Giambi should be benched, I guess it wouldn't be a good thing. Johnny Damon had an excellent night, and, of course, Bobby Abreu's four run home run was kind of cool, too.

And Win for the Road (Postgame Notes 20 April 2008)

The Yankees needed a solid win today--good starting pitching, offensive effort--and they got it, but the question is at what price.

Andy Pettitte was exactly what the Yankees needed on the mound, perfect through four and two thirds, and going seven strong with no runs and only four hits. Ian Kennedy and Phil Hughes should take note; Pettitte threw a clinic out there on the mound.

Johnny Damon, who has been blasted for poor play, blasted a two-run home run, and Derek Jeter had a three RBI double in the ninth.

However, the much bigger concern is Alex Rodriguez who left the game with a strained quad, just as Jeter did a few weeks ago While there is no knowing just yet as to how bad the strain is, losing a bat such as Rodriguez's in the line up is not what the Yankees need.

Jason Giambi continues to struggle, as he grounded into a double play with the bases loaded and went 0-3 on the day over all. It has gotten to the point where he is doing more harm on the Yankee line up than good, especially when the Yankees have other options in Morgan Ensberg (who will play third while Rodriguez is down) and Shelley Duncan.

OPTIMIST TAKE: The performance from Andy Pettitte was stellar. He's certainly not a young pitcher, but he is proving why he was worth the $16 million. The Yankees get a much, much needed off day tomorrow. Not only will the regulars get some rest, but Girardi and Co. might take the opportunity to realign the rotation so Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy are not pitching back-to-back. Yankees are back to .500 on the season.