Blue Jays 7, Yankees 2
About what I expected, but not the way I expected. After being behind 2-0 after two batters, Wright got it together and with the help of 17 or so double plays, actually had the Yankees in the game until he tired and Proctor gave up a three-run homer that basically put it out of reach.
Meanwhile, Hallady wasn't his Cy Young self but was more than good enough, in conjunction with the bullpen. Somewhat surprisingly, Gibbons used BJ Ryan for a two-inning save. Presumably he's looking at the pitching matchups today and tomorrow and figured last night was a must-win.
And again, what is with the umps this year? Last night, bottom 8, Yankees down 5-2, one out, men on first and third. Bernie Williams grounds one to third . . . they get the out at second and Bernie is clearly safe at first. In live action he looked safe; on the replay his foot is on first and the ball is maybe six inches from the first baseman's glove.
It probably doesn't change the outcome of the game, but suppose, for the sake of argument, the correct call is made. It's 5-3. Maybe in a two-run game, Joe doesn't put Blow-up Strutze in to pitch the 9th and Toronto doesn't tack on. Maybe, maybe, maybe. Oh well. I konw this is supposed to all even out but so far, the Yankees are way behind this season on the "calls evening out" thing.
Stuff happens. Today's another day.
Saturday, April 29, 2006
Friday, April 28, 2006
Cosmic Payback; Going cold in Hot-Lanta would be bad
Yankees 4, Devil Rays 1
Baseball, as it always seems to, extracted its cosmic payback on the D-Rays last night. Wednesday, the Yankees got 14 walks, stole four (five?) bases, hit a lot of balls hard, and only get 2 runs in 10 innings. Last night, they get very few walks, get some hits on balls not exactly scorched, and win 4-1.
But that was then and this is now. And now isn't lookng too good. Jaret Wright has gone walk, home run, walk to the first three Blue Jays' hitters. I can't fault Wright too much, much as I'd like to. Wright hasn't pitched since April 15th, My expectations for this start are not the highest.
And there goes baseball again, making an idiot out of me. I no sooner finish typing the previous sentence and Wright gets a double play.
Mets have something to prove
The Mets open a three-game series at Turner Field vs. the Braves tonight. Turner Field has been the Mets' personal house of horrors since it opened; there record there is abysmal (can't be bothered to look it up right now but it's 17-50 or something like that.
Right now, the Mets are significantly better than the Braves. And though it's only April, the Mets can semi-bury the Braves, at least for a little while, with a strong showing in this series. And in the process convince themselves that they really are a good team. Which, and it pains me to say this, they are.
Baseball, as it always seems to, extracted its cosmic payback on the D-Rays last night. Wednesday, the Yankees got 14 walks, stole four (five?) bases, hit a lot of balls hard, and only get 2 runs in 10 innings. Last night, they get very few walks, get some hits on balls not exactly scorched, and win 4-1.
But that was then and this is now. And now isn't lookng too good. Jaret Wright has gone walk, home run, walk to the first three Blue Jays' hitters. I can't fault Wright too much, much as I'd like to. Wright hasn't pitched since April 15th, My expectations for this start are not the highest.
And there goes baseball again, making an idiot out of me. I no sooner finish typing the previous sentence and Wright gets a double play.
Mets have something to prove
The Mets open a three-game series at Turner Field vs. the Braves tonight. Turner Field has been the Mets' personal house of horrors since it opened; there record there is abysmal (can't be bothered to look it up right now but it's 17-50 or something like that.
Right now, the Mets are significantly better than the Braves. And though it's only April, the Mets can semi-bury the Braves, at least for a little while, with a strong showing in this series. And in the process convince themselves that they really are a good team. Which, and it pains me to say this, they are.
Thursday, April 27, 2006
No defense against the base on balls?
Devil Rays 4, Yankees 2 (10 innings)
Yankees hit the trifecta last night:
1. Became the first team since 1954 to be issued 14 walks in a game, scored 2 or fewer runs, and lose.
2. Burned Mariano for two innings and lost the game.
3. Made tonight's series finale against the Devil Rays a much more psychologically important game than it should be.
Fourteen walks! And four stolen bases! Two lousy runs!
I suppose last night's game proves the old saying that every time you watch a baseball game you stand a good chance of seeing something you've never seen before. With this lineup, 14 walks and four steals only amounting to two runs . . . well, before last night I'm sure a bookie in Vegas would've given you 5000-1 odds against it ever happening.
So reluctantly I put last night into the "stuff happens" category. I'd love to be able to bitch about the effort but for the most part the effort was there. (Sheffield's less than blazing dash down the first-base line on the final out of the game was a notable exception.)
Chacon against Hendrickson tonight. Hendrickson beat the Yankees three times least year. So, the Yankees will most likely score 9 runs off him in 2 2/3 innings. Or get totally shut down.
Yankees hit the trifecta last night:
1. Became the first team since 1954 to be issued 14 walks in a game, scored 2 or fewer runs, and lose.
2. Burned Mariano for two innings and lost the game.
3. Made tonight's series finale against the Devil Rays a much more psychologically important game than it should be.
Fourteen walks! And four stolen bases! Two lousy runs!
I suppose last night's game proves the old saying that every time you watch a baseball game you stand a good chance of seeing something you've never seen before. With this lineup, 14 walks and four steals only amounting to two runs . . . well, before last night I'm sure a bookie in Vegas would've given you 5000-1 odds against it ever happening.
So reluctantly I put last night into the "stuff happens" category. I'd love to be able to bitch about the effort but for the most part the effort was there. (Sheffield's less than blazing dash down the first-base line on the final out of the game was a notable exception.)
Chacon against Hendrickson tonight. Hendrickson beat the Yankees three times least year. So, the Yankees will most likely score 9 runs off him in 2 2/3 innings. Or get totally shut down.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Moose Squirrels Away a Win; Where's the beef in the Kazmir-burger?
Yankees 9, Devil Rays 1
A good start in what I see as an important series. Tampa beat New York, if I recall correctly, 11 out of 19 last season. With the East improved this year, winning, let's say, 26 out of the 38 games against TB and Baltimore is important both mathematically and psychologically.
Mussina was sharp but not terribly economical last night, having to come out having faced one batter in the seventh and having thrown 100 pitches. But all's well that ends well . . . Strutze actually didn't blow up, we tacked a few more late, and I didn't have to curse and scream at my TV, as I always do when Panic Joe has Mariano start warming up in the 8th with a 5-run lead.
Jeter had a home run last night and went 3-5. He's at .391, with 3 HRs and 18 RBI. (And an OPS of 1.175 for all you new-wave stat types.) Phenominal start. And while he did have better numbers as a leadoff man than Damon did, I knew that returning Jeter to the 2 spot in the order would be good for him and for the team. And Jeter's RBI numbers are with Damon off to an OK but hardly inspiring start (.284 BA, .360 OBP).
And, while we're on the subject of last night's game, what's all the fuss about Scott Kazmir? Here in the New York area, the media is obsessed with Kazmir, since he was drafted by the Mets and traded in 2004 mid-season when the Mets thought they had a shot at the playoffs. They got Victor Zambrano in exchange for the then-prospect, and Zambrano has been singularly unimpressive since joining the Mets (10-14 with a not very good ERA the gory details are here). New York writers and talk-radio hosts love to pound on the Mets every time Zambrano gets bombed but stays in the rotation. And the thinking is that the Mets are embarrassed to have traded Kazmir for this guy and thus are going to treat him like a good pitcher regardless of how poorly he actually pitches.
But really, other than being young, throwing hard, and being left-handed, what's so great about Kazmir? For his career, he's 14-14, 4.09. Very average. Walks a ton of guys. Always seems to be in the fifth inning when the 100 pitch mark comes. OK, he's young (turned 22 a few months ago). But so far, with Kazmir, there's no "there" there. Other than pitching well (usually) against the Red Sox, there isn't much to recommend this "phenom." Tampa may have ruined his career by rushing him up to the majors . . . time will tell. For now, despite Zambrano's struggles, the Mets don't have much to be embarrassed about.
Tonight it's Wang vs. Seth McClung. I still believe that Wang's shoulder is bothering him, so if this game degenerates into a classic NY-Tampa 15-11 deal it won't surprise me. I just hope the Yankees are on the plus end of it.
Set Your TiVo!
Friday night it's The Yankees and Blue Jays. Jaret Wright against Roy Halladay. The folks at YES I'm sure already are thinking this one is going to be an "Instant Classic." Don't use the bullpen too much between now and Friday, Joe. I expect you will have to piece together 5 2/3 innings out of the pen Friday night.
A good start in what I see as an important series. Tampa beat New York, if I recall correctly, 11 out of 19 last season. With the East improved this year, winning, let's say, 26 out of the 38 games against TB and Baltimore is important both mathematically and psychologically.
Mussina was sharp but not terribly economical last night, having to come out having faced one batter in the seventh and having thrown 100 pitches. But all's well that ends well . . . Strutze actually didn't blow up, we tacked a few more late, and I didn't have to curse and scream at my TV, as I always do when Panic Joe has Mariano start warming up in the 8th with a 5-run lead.
Jeter had a home run last night and went 3-5. He's at .391, with 3 HRs and 18 RBI. (And an OPS of 1.175 for all you new-wave stat types.) Phenominal start. And while he did have better numbers as a leadoff man than Damon did, I knew that returning Jeter to the 2 spot in the order would be good for him and for the team. And Jeter's RBI numbers are with Damon off to an OK but hardly inspiring start (.284 BA, .360 OBP).
And, while we're on the subject of last night's game, what's all the fuss about Scott Kazmir? Here in the New York area, the media is obsessed with Kazmir, since he was drafted by the Mets and traded in 2004 mid-season when the Mets thought they had a shot at the playoffs. They got Victor Zambrano in exchange for the then-prospect, and Zambrano has been singularly unimpressive since joining the Mets (10-14 with a not very good ERA the gory details are here). New York writers and talk-radio hosts love to pound on the Mets every time Zambrano gets bombed but stays in the rotation. And the thinking is that the Mets are embarrassed to have traded Kazmir for this guy and thus are going to treat him like a good pitcher regardless of how poorly he actually pitches.
But really, other than being young, throwing hard, and being left-handed, what's so great about Kazmir? For his career, he's 14-14, 4.09. Very average. Walks a ton of guys. Always seems to be in the fifth inning when the 100 pitch mark comes. OK, he's young (turned 22 a few months ago). But so far, with Kazmir, there's no "there" there. Other than pitching well (usually) against the Red Sox, there isn't much to recommend this "phenom." Tampa may have ruined his career by rushing him up to the majors . . . time will tell. For now, despite Zambrano's struggles, the Mets don't have much to be embarrassed about.
Tonight it's Wang vs. Seth McClung. I still believe that Wang's shoulder is bothering him, so if this game degenerates into a classic NY-Tampa 15-11 deal it won't surprise me. I just hope the Yankees are on the plus end of it.
Set Your TiVo!
Friday night it's The Yankees and Blue Jays. Jaret Wright against Roy Halladay. The folks at YES I'm sure already are thinking this one is going to be an "Instant Classic." Don't use the bullpen too much between now and Friday, Joe. I expect you will have to piece together 5 2/3 innings out of the pen Friday night.
Sunday, April 23, 2006
The Restoration of Sanity
Yankees 6, Orioles 1
Yankees 7, Orioles 1
Amazing what a little pitching will do. I saw Saturday's game. Today's, I'm relying on the box score.
Chacon apparently remembered how to pitch and shut down a pretty good-hitting Orioles team. The offense did more than enough and it was a nice routine win over a team we should beat regularly (I see the Orioles finishing last in the East this season).
Today, Randy must've been totally un-stiff. 8 innings, 3 hits, 1 run. 94 pitches. Could I'm sure have pitched the 9th but Mariano needed the work. In fact, aside from Tejada (4-4) the Orioles were no-hit today.
Two homers for Giambi and 5 RBI. One I heard was an absolute bomb into the upper deck. I'll have to hold my nose and watch Baseball Tonight to see if I can catch the replays of the home runs.
An off day tomrorow (it feels like the Yankees have had about 17 off days already this season) and then Tampa comes to town. A large part of the Yankees having to take down to the final series of the season was becasue of their ineffective play against Tampa Bay last year. Psychologically, I think it's important for the Yankees to make a little statement against the Rays early on.
Mussina pitches Tuesday. Moose and Joe discussed the upcoming start prior to today's game.
Mussina: Skip, if it's OK I'd like to fly down to Tampa today so I'm ready and rested to pitch Tuesday night.
Torre: Err, Mike. The game Tuesday night is at home.
Mussina: Damn!
Torre: What's wrong?
Mussina: This is not good, Skip. My biorhythms, my horoscope, and my personal brain-wave meter all indicate that Tuesday is an ideal day for me to pitch in Tampa.
Torre: Ummmmm . . .
Mussina: (whispering) Plus I odn't like pitching at home. There's an usher in Section 11 who is sending me subliminal messages from Bill Gates telling me that I have to kill every 17th person who asks me for an autograph.
Torre: Ahhhhhhhhh . . . ummmmmm . . .
(Mussina at this point drops a 2 for 1 drink ticket from Big Melons Gentleman's Club in Tampa.)
Torre: Mike, I really can't do anything about the schedule . . . it's . . .
(The phone rings)
Torre: Thank God! . . . I mean, hello?
(Torre covers the mouthpiece) Mike, I've got to take this. it's George wanting to know why Jeter's only hitting .375 and if Proctor is still eiligble for Rookie of the Year.
Mussina: (Leaving the office, picking up the ticket, grumbling) Great, just fucking great. How am I supposed to pitch in New York when I'm supposed to pitch in Tampa? 2 innings, 7 runs, here we come . . . hmmmm . . . I wonder if this thing has an expiration date . . .
Yankees 7, Orioles 1
Amazing what a little pitching will do. I saw Saturday's game. Today's, I'm relying on the box score.
Chacon apparently remembered how to pitch and shut down a pretty good-hitting Orioles team. The offense did more than enough and it was a nice routine win over a team we should beat regularly (I see the Orioles finishing last in the East this season).
Today, Randy must've been totally un-stiff. 8 innings, 3 hits, 1 run. 94 pitches. Could I'm sure have pitched the 9th but Mariano needed the work. In fact, aside from Tejada (4-4) the Orioles were no-hit today.
Two homers for Giambi and 5 RBI. One I heard was an absolute bomb into the upper deck. I'll have to hold my nose and watch Baseball Tonight to see if I can catch the replays of the home runs.
An off day tomrorow (it feels like the Yankees have had about 17 off days already this season) and then Tampa comes to town. A large part of the Yankees having to take down to the final series of the season was becasue of their ineffective play against Tampa Bay last year. Psychologically, I think it's important for the Yankees to make a little statement against the Rays early on.
Mussina pitches Tuesday. Moose and Joe discussed the upcoming start prior to today's game.
Mussina: Skip, if it's OK I'd like to fly down to Tampa today so I'm ready and rested to pitch Tuesday night.
Torre: Err, Mike. The game Tuesday night is at home.
Mussina: Damn!
Torre: What's wrong?
Mussina: This is not good, Skip. My biorhythms, my horoscope, and my personal brain-wave meter all indicate that Tuesday is an ideal day for me to pitch in Tampa.
Torre: Ummmmm . . .
Mussina: (whispering) Plus I odn't like pitching at home. There's an usher in Section 11 who is sending me subliminal messages from Bill Gates telling me that I have to kill every 17th person who asks me for an autograph.
Torre: Ahhhhhhhhh . . . ummmmmm . . .
(Mussina at this point drops a 2 for 1 drink ticket from Big Melons Gentleman's Club in Tampa.)
Torre: Mike, I really can't do anything about the schedule . . . it's . . .
(The phone rings)
Torre: Thank God! . . . I mean, hello?
(Torre covers the mouthpiece) Mike, I've got to take this. it's George wanting to know why Jeter's only hitting .375 and if Proctor is still eiligble for Rookie of the Year.
Mussina: (Leaving the office, picking up the ticket, grumbling) Great, just fucking great. How am I supposed to pitch in New York when I'm supposed to pitch in Tampa? 2 innings, 7 runs, here we come . . . hmmmm . . . I wonder if this thing has an expiration date . . .
Saturday, April 22, 2006
Arghh . . . Umps . . . Bud . . .
Orioles 6, Yankees 5
A brutal loss, especially with the prospect of two rainouts coming up. I hate to say it but I think Wang's shoulder is bothering him. Last night, for two innings he's unhittable, ground ball after ground ball. In the third, he loses the strike zone, loses the sinker, and it pretty much goes downhill from there. Apparently Wang's been working with Guidry on maintaining his arm angle. When his arm drops, the sinker doesn't sink. I'm thinking that the shoulder is bad again and that it hurts to maintain the proper arm angle. I hope I'm wrong, becasue losing Wang is something we can't afford. But if he's going to be ineffective . . .
I hate to talk about umpiring but I have to. In the third, the batter was out at first on the Jeter jump-throw play. Two runs scored on that play, three in the inning. With the proper call there no runs score. OK, it was a bang-bang play, and the batter made it closer than it should have been with the silly head-first slide into first. (When will these idiots figure out that that slows you down????) But still, bad call.
More infiuriating was the Matsui at-bat that ended the game. Down 6-5, bottom 9, bases loaded. The catcher pulls the 2-1 pitch down a good six inches. Called a strike. That's high-school stuff, pulling a pitch down that far. These "professional" umps can't see that? Then, on 3-2, Matsui is called out on a pitch that well, was pretty close but was a ball. Matsui gets thrown five balls , swings at none of them, and gets called out on strikes. Wonderful. Should Matsui have swung at that 3-2 pitch? Probably, but that doesn't alter the fact that the quality of umpiring started to decline badly last year and the slide continues this year. Already in Yankee games I've watched this season I've seen at last 10 egregiously bad calls in important situations. One can only hope they even out over time.
Overall, since Sandy Alderson left the MLB front office, the umpires have slowly reverted to their old ways. The "personal strike zone." The terrible positioning. The "I've got dinner plans" strike calls. I can't believe that Selig deosn't see that he needs to find a new Rotweiler to bring the umps back in line.
Selig to step down . . . in 2009!
This one just cracks me up. Can Selig/MLB do anything right, ever? Selig announces he's going to retire . . . three years from now? What the hell?
Are we to believe that the search process is going to take three years? Three years to find another shill for the owners? How about three weeks? I'm sure the owners already have a good list of potential lackeys lined up.
I can only assume that Bud wants the three years to help put a little time between himself and Barry Bonds, to clean up his legacy a bit. Sorry, Bud, but your legacy is pretty well set. You will be remembered forever as the Commissioner who:
1. Shook the pom-poms while drug abusers made a mockery of some of the most cherished records in the game.
2. Belatedly decides to "investigate" the steroids issue, but appoints perhaps the most conflicted person he could possibly think of to run said investigation.
3. Handed over control of playoff scheduling to Fox, thereby guaranteeing that no one under the age of 14 will ever see a World Series game beyond the fourth inning.
4. Abandoned all pretext of the Commissioner working on the behalf of the game, and gleefully embraced the idea of Commissioner as the owners' butt-boy.
5. Allowed greedy owners to simply pocket so-called "revenue-sharing" money while running their franchises into the ground. The Florida Marlins could draw ZERO fans this year and still make a profit.
6. Established the bogus World Baseball Classic.
The owners should just admit it's a farce and hire Donald Trump as the next Commissioner.
At least his hair is entertaining. And he might fire some people on national TV.
A brutal loss, especially with the prospect of two rainouts coming up. I hate to say it but I think Wang's shoulder is bothering him. Last night, for two innings he's unhittable, ground ball after ground ball. In the third, he loses the strike zone, loses the sinker, and it pretty much goes downhill from there. Apparently Wang's been working with Guidry on maintaining his arm angle. When his arm drops, the sinker doesn't sink. I'm thinking that the shoulder is bad again and that it hurts to maintain the proper arm angle. I hope I'm wrong, becasue losing Wang is something we can't afford. But if he's going to be ineffective . . .
I hate to talk about umpiring but I have to. In the third, the batter was out at first on the Jeter jump-throw play. Two runs scored on that play, three in the inning. With the proper call there no runs score. OK, it was a bang-bang play, and the batter made it closer than it should have been with the silly head-first slide into first. (When will these idiots figure out that that slows you down????) But still, bad call.
More infiuriating was the Matsui at-bat that ended the game. Down 6-5, bottom 9, bases loaded. The catcher pulls the 2-1 pitch down a good six inches. Called a strike. That's high-school stuff, pulling a pitch down that far. These "professional" umps can't see that? Then, on 3-2, Matsui is called out on a pitch that well, was pretty close but was a ball. Matsui gets thrown five balls , swings at none of them, and gets called out on strikes. Wonderful. Should Matsui have swung at that 3-2 pitch? Probably, but that doesn't alter the fact that the quality of umpiring started to decline badly last year and the slide continues this year. Already in Yankee games I've watched this season I've seen at last 10 egregiously bad calls in important situations. One can only hope they even out over time.
Overall, since Sandy Alderson left the MLB front office, the umpires have slowly reverted to their old ways. The "personal strike zone." The terrible positioning. The "I've got dinner plans" strike calls. I can't believe that Selig deosn't see that he needs to find a new Rotweiler to bring the umps back in line.
Selig to step down . . . in 2009!
This one just cracks me up. Can Selig/MLB do anything right, ever? Selig announces he's going to retire . . . three years from now? What the hell?
Are we to believe that the search process is going to take three years? Three years to find another shill for the owners? How about three weeks? I'm sure the owners already have a good list of potential lackeys lined up.
I can only assume that Bud wants the three years to help put a little time between himself and Barry Bonds, to clean up his legacy a bit. Sorry, Bud, but your legacy is pretty well set. You will be remembered forever as the Commissioner who:
1. Shook the pom-poms while drug abusers made a mockery of some of the most cherished records in the game.
2. Belatedly decides to "investigate" the steroids issue, but appoints perhaps the most conflicted person he could possibly think of to run said investigation.
3. Handed over control of playoff scheduling to Fox, thereby guaranteeing that no one under the age of 14 will ever see a World Series game beyond the fourth inning.
4. Abandoned all pretext of the Commissioner working on the behalf of the game, and gleefully embraced the idea of Commissioner as the owners' butt-boy.
5. Allowed greedy owners to simply pocket so-called "revenue-sharing" money while running their franchises into the ground. The Florida Marlins could draw ZERO fans this year and still make a profit.
6. Established the bogus World Baseball Classic.
The owners should just admit it's a farce and hire Donald Trump as the next Commissioner.
At least his hair is entertaining. And he might fire some people on national TV.
Thursday, April 20, 2006
The Best Team in the Universe?
Birds Crap on Cleveland's Windshield Again
Baltimore beat Cleveland again today, 9-4. Last night it was 18-9. Cleveland held the O's to a tidy 32 hits in 16 innings.
Did any of these so-called experts who predicted that Cleveland would win, I don't know, 130 games and sweep the playoffs and World Series, look at Cleveland's pitching staff at all?
Honestly, should this rotation scare any opposing team?
Jake Westbrook: Has shown flashes, but really has never been that good. For his career, 43-45, 4.46. Chews up innings but to what availe? Besides, everyone knows all the good ex-Yankee pitchers are on the White Sox.
Cliff Lee: A solid starter. 20-game winner potential.
Jason Johnson: 54-86 with an ERA approaching 5 for his career.
Paul Byrd: 74-65, 4.27 for his career (much of that in the NL). Journeyman. Another guy who gives you innings but is a .500 pitcher. And he looks like your creepy "uncle" your mother warned you too stay away from. 9 teams in 11 years.
Fausto Carmona: Too early to tell, of course. Could end up being very good. Had one good start his first time out, got torched today.
In the bullpen, Cleveland has some weapons. Wickman, Sauerbeck, Mota. Betancourt has been pretty decent in years past, is off to a bad start. Rafael Perez, too soon to tell. But, um . . . Danny Graves? Danny Graves? (He beat out Steve Karsay (ROFL!) in spring training, I guess.)
I don't see this team unseating the White Sox or beating out Boston or the Yankees for the wild card without a serious improvement in the pitching staff. They subtracted Milwood and added Byrd, not an even trade. I know that Sabathia is hurt, but how good is he, really? For his career he's 24 games over .500, but half of those 24 came in 2001, when he was 17-5. 2001 is a long time ago. Since then he's 52-40, with an ERA in the 4s. A pretty average pitcher. And could the Indians come clean about his weight? He's listed at 290. CC's a biscuit away from 320, at least.
From the Future News File
December 19, 2017 -- The New York Mets accounced that they had re-signed 42-year-old Victor Zambrano to a one-year deal. Terms were not disclosed.
Observers were surpised that Zambrano was retained, having gone 2-19 with a 7.79 ERA in the recently-completed 2017 season. Mets GM Omar Minaya denied that the signing had anything to do with the fact that Bill Kazmir won his 250th game on the final day of the season and led the Devil Rays to their third consecutive World Series title and sixth in 9 years.
"I talked it over with Joe (Mets manager Joe Torre) and Mel (pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre) and they agree with me that Victor still has a lot of life in that arm and that he can help us a lot in 2018."
Baltimore beat Cleveland again today, 9-4. Last night it was 18-9. Cleveland held the O's to a tidy 32 hits in 16 innings.
Did any of these so-called experts who predicted that Cleveland would win, I don't know, 130 games and sweep the playoffs and World Series, look at Cleveland's pitching staff at all?
Honestly, should this rotation scare any opposing team?
Jake Westbrook: Has shown flashes, but really has never been that good. For his career, 43-45, 4.46. Chews up innings but to what availe? Besides, everyone knows all the good ex-Yankee pitchers are on the White Sox.
Cliff Lee: A solid starter. 20-game winner potential.
Jason Johnson: 54-86 with an ERA approaching 5 for his career.
Paul Byrd: 74-65, 4.27 for his career (much of that in the NL). Journeyman. Another guy who gives you innings but is a .500 pitcher. And he looks like your creepy "uncle" your mother warned you too stay away from. 9 teams in 11 years.
Fausto Carmona: Too early to tell, of course. Could end up being very good. Had one good start his first time out, got torched today.
In the bullpen, Cleveland has some weapons. Wickman, Sauerbeck, Mota. Betancourt has been pretty decent in years past, is off to a bad start. Rafael Perez, too soon to tell. But, um . . . Danny Graves? Danny Graves? (He beat out Steve Karsay (ROFL!) in spring training, I guess.)
I don't see this team unseating the White Sox or beating out Boston or the Yankees for the wild card without a serious improvement in the pitching staff. They subtracted Milwood and added Byrd, not an even trade. I know that Sabathia is hurt, but how good is he, really? For his career he's 24 games over .500, but half of those 24 came in 2001, when he was 17-5. 2001 is a long time ago. Since then he's 52-40, with an ERA in the 4s. A pretty average pitcher. And could the Indians come clean about his weight? He's listed at 290. CC's a biscuit away from 320, at least.
From the Future News File
December 19, 2017 -- The New York Mets accounced that they had re-signed 42-year-old Victor Zambrano to a one-year deal. Terms were not disclosed.
Observers were surpised that Zambrano was retained, having gone 2-19 with a 7.79 ERA in the recently-completed 2017 season. Mets GM Omar Minaya denied that the signing had anything to do with the fact that Bill Kazmir won his 250th game on the final day of the season and led the Devil Rays to their third consecutive World Series title and sixth in 9 years.
"I talked it over with Joe (Mets manager Joe Torre) and Mel (pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre) and they agree with me that Victor still has a lot of life in that arm and that he can help us a lot in 2018."
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
Strong Moose Picks Up for Stiff Unit
Blue Jays 10, Yankees 5
I could say a lot about this game, but I think I'm better off forgetting it entirely. Other than to say how the hell do you send your "ace" to the mound with a 4-run lead and lose 10-5? Randy must've been a lot more stiff than anyone realized.
Yankees 3, Blue Jays 1
Strong effort by Mussina today. Enough hitting, nice work by Farnsworth and Rivera.
Braves take 2 of 3 from Mets
The Braves, with no Chipper, do what they usually do against the Mets. The Mets need to dump that hideous song before their good start goes completely down the tubes. Oh, and three errors by David (The Best Player Ever, Just Ask Any Met Fan) Wright.
I could say a lot about this game, but I think I'm better off forgetting it entirely. Other than to say how the hell do you send your "ace" to the mound with a 4-run lead and lose 10-5? Randy must've been a lot more stiff than anyone realized.
Yankees 3, Blue Jays 1
Strong effort by Mussina today. Enough hitting, nice work by Farnsworth and Rivera.
Braves take 2 of 3 from Mets
The Braves, with no Chipper, do what they usually do against the Mets. The Mets need to dump that hideous song before their good start goes completely down the tubes. Oh, and three errors by David (The Best Player Ever, Just Ask Any Met Fan) Wright.
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Stuff Happens . . . Happy Easter (so far)
Twins 6, Yankees 5
A nice comeback from 4-0 down to take a 5-4 lead. Farnswroth gets an out in the 8th, then allows a baserunner. I didn't want to see it, but I knew it was coming. Mariano being brought in to try to get the 5-out save.
Mariano gets out of the 8th. As I knew he would. Where these more and one-inning saves get tricky is in the subsequent inning, after the closer's had to sit on the bench for the top of the 9th.
In that top of the 9th, the Yankees fail to tack on. I'm hating this game more and more with each passing second.
In the bottom of the 9th, Castillo leads off with a 15-foot nubber that he beats out. (After looking at what I was sure was strike 3). Man on first, nobody out.
Mauer singles to left (after looking at two very possible third strikes). Matsui, unaccountably, tries to get Castillo at third rather than throwing it to second. Mauer moves up trailing the play -- men on second and third with no outs. The Twins can tie it by accident now and in fact win it by making two of the right kind of outs. I can barely watch at this point.
Mariano bears down and strikes out the next guy. Yes!
Mariano strikes out the next guy, too. All right! Might we actually pull this one out?
Alas, it was not to be. Morneau breaks his bat and places one through the right side of the infield. Ballgame. One hard-hit ball and one mental lapse in left field. Three ball/strike calls, any one of which going the other way wins us the game. Two runs. Brutal loss.
But stuff happens. My only quibbles are not doing more against Santana -- it's obivous that at this point he has no feel for the changeup and he's basically guessing where it's going when he throws it.
And I have always hated the one-inning-plus saves. I can't fault Joe too much last night, though. Farnsworth is not to be trusted (yet) with a one-run lead, and when you have Mariano there it's pretty hard not to bring him in.
Longer term, I do see a potentially bad effect, though. The 7th- and 8th-inning guys at some ponit are going to have to pitch with men on base. Should they really be in the mindset that the instant they allow a baserunner they're going to be yanked?
Yankees 9, Twins 2 (top 7th as I write this)
Two bombs by Giambi, Cano sneaks one around the left-field foul pole, and A-Rod unloads just now. We always hit Radke pretty well. Wang has gotten through 6 innings only alloowing the 2 runs. Presumably the Gang Who Can't Throw Straight can piece together the finall innings and at least we leave Minnesota (next to Florida and Tampa Bay, the worst stadium in MLB?) with a win. Off tomorrow, then two in Toronto against the new-look Blue Jays up at Skydome.
Joe and Randy discussed Randy's upcomng start in Toronto Tuesday:
Joe: You're good to go for Tuesday?
Randy: Yes. If I'm not stiff.
Joe: You're still stiff?
Randy: No.
Joe: Oh. OK, good.
Randy: But I might get stiff between now and Tuesday.
Joe: Oh. Well, would you rather start Wednesday instead of Tuesday?
Randy: No. I might feel good Teusday and then be stiff Wednesday.
(Posada peeks his head into Joe's office)
Posada: Hey guys. Can I catch Randy on Tuesday? Please?
Joe and Randy, in unsion: NO!!!!
(A reporter from the Daily News happens by)
Reporter: Posada is catching Randy on Tuesday?
Joe, Randy, and Posada, in unison: NO!!!!!
Posada: Randy's still stiff, anwyay
(Reporter scribbling furiously in his noteboook)
Reporter: Ohhhhhhh. Who's pitching Tuesday then, Joe?
Joe: (annoyed) Randy is, damn it!
Randy: (quietly) If I'm not stiff.
(Joe gets up and slams the office door)
Reporter: (to Posada as they walk away) Don't you think Joe looks kinda like a retard with his hat barely sitting on top of his head like that?
Posada: No comment. Wait. Fuck that, yes he does. Mariano blew the save last night becasue he couldn't stop lauhging at Joe's hat.
A nice comeback from 4-0 down to take a 5-4 lead. Farnswroth gets an out in the 8th, then allows a baserunner. I didn't want to see it, but I knew it was coming. Mariano being brought in to try to get the 5-out save.
Mariano gets out of the 8th. As I knew he would. Where these more and one-inning saves get tricky is in the subsequent inning, after the closer's had to sit on the bench for the top of the 9th.
In that top of the 9th, the Yankees fail to tack on. I'm hating this game more and more with each passing second.
In the bottom of the 9th, Castillo leads off with a 15-foot nubber that he beats out. (After looking at what I was sure was strike 3). Man on first, nobody out.
Mauer singles to left (after looking at two very possible third strikes). Matsui, unaccountably, tries to get Castillo at third rather than throwing it to second. Mauer moves up trailing the play -- men on second and third with no outs. The Twins can tie it by accident now and in fact win it by making two of the right kind of outs. I can barely watch at this point.
Mariano bears down and strikes out the next guy. Yes!
Mariano strikes out the next guy, too. All right! Might we actually pull this one out?
Alas, it was not to be. Morneau breaks his bat and places one through the right side of the infield. Ballgame. One hard-hit ball and one mental lapse in left field. Three ball/strike calls, any one of which going the other way wins us the game. Two runs. Brutal loss.
But stuff happens. My only quibbles are not doing more against Santana -- it's obivous that at this point he has no feel for the changeup and he's basically guessing where it's going when he throws it.
And I have always hated the one-inning-plus saves. I can't fault Joe too much last night, though. Farnsworth is not to be trusted (yet) with a one-run lead, and when you have Mariano there it's pretty hard not to bring him in.
Longer term, I do see a potentially bad effect, though. The 7th- and 8th-inning guys at some ponit are going to have to pitch with men on base. Should they really be in the mindset that the instant they allow a baserunner they're going to be yanked?
Yankees 9, Twins 2 (top 7th as I write this)
Two bombs by Giambi, Cano sneaks one around the left-field foul pole, and A-Rod unloads just now. We always hit Radke pretty well. Wang has gotten through 6 innings only alloowing the 2 runs. Presumably the Gang Who Can't Throw Straight can piece together the finall innings and at least we leave Minnesota (next to Florida and Tampa Bay, the worst stadium in MLB?) with a win. Off tomorrow, then two in Toronto against the new-look Blue Jays up at Skydome.
Joe and Randy discussed Randy's upcomng start in Toronto Tuesday:
Joe: You're good to go for Tuesday?
Randy: Yes. If I'm not stiff.
Joe: You're still stiff?
Randy: No.
Joe: Oh. OK, good.
Randy: But I might get stiff between now and Tuesday.
Joe: Oh. Well, would you rather start Wednesday instead of Tuesday?
Randy: No. I might feel good Teusday and then be stiff Wednesday.
(Posada peeks his head into Joe's office)
Posada: Hey guys. Can I catch Randy on Tuesday? Please?
Joe and Randy, in unsion: NO!!!!
(A reporter from the Daily News happens by)
Reporter: Posada is catching Randy on Tuesday?
Joe, Randy, and Posada, in unison: NO!!!!!
Posada: Randy's still stiff, anwyay
(Reporter scribbling furiously in his noteboook)
Reporter: Ohhhhhhh. Who's pitching Tuesday then, Joe?
Joe: (annoyed) Randy is, damn it!
Randy: (quietly) If I'm not stiff.
(Joe gets up and slams the office door)
Reporter: (to Posada as they walk away) Don't you think Joe looks kinda like a retard with his hat barely sitting on top of his head like that?
Posada: No comment. Wait. Fuck that, yes he does. Mariano blew the save last night becasue he couldn't stop lauhging at Joe's hat.
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Bad Bats + Bad Call + Bad Bernie + Bad Bullpen = One Bad L
Twins 5, Yankees 1
The re-emergence of a negative pattern from last year: The Yankees face a guy they're never seen before. He doesn't throw particularly hard. He doesn't throw much of anything. The Yankees lunge and flail at first pitches. Before you know it it's the seventh inning and we've scored one run.
Mussina pitched pretty well. Torre left him in for one batter too many and that cost us a run. Farnsworth blew up and that cost us two more runs, but by that time it really didn't matter.
Along with our burtal approach at the plate last night, two pivotal plays turned this game.
Posada was at third with one out and the Yankees trailing 2-1. Bernie flies to deep right. Posada is slow, and Lew Ford makes a very good throw. Posada's called out at the plate. On the replay it's clear that Mauer doesn't come close to tagging Posada's back before Posada's hand touches the plate. Inning over, huge momentum swing.
Any doubt that the call was bogus is erased next inning when YES shows the home plate umpire going up to Posada between innings and asking him about the call. You can clearly read Posada's lips saying "he didn't tag me." And they weren't arguing; the home plate umpire has this embarrased smile on his face. He knew he blew the call! Aaagggggghhhhhhh!!!!!
The other play comes in the eighth. We get first and second against Rincon, no outs, only down 3-1. Bernie comes up. And promptly bounces into a double play. Game.
But that shouldn't obscure the fact that we lost this game with our approach at the plate. Baker doesn't throw very hard, he doesn't have a devastating splitter or a killer change-up. His curve ball reminds no one of Bert Blylyven. His motion is hardly deceptive. He's the kind of pitcher, whether we've seen him before or not, that this team should if not feast on then at least get more than 3 hits off of in seven innings.
The other issue that games like last night point up is the Bernie Williams issue. This past homestand against KC Bernie did well and the Yankee Stadium crowd practically gave him a curtain call for every hit. And I understand it's going to be a love-fest this year, a "Thanks for the Memories" sort of deal as Bernie takes his "victory lap" all season.
Which is fine, but this is the reason I didn't want Bernie back this year, even at the bargain rate. Becasue I know Torre is going to find a way to play him 14o games this year. And Bernie simply isn't a 140 games kind of player any more. Torre will run two hours of windsprints before he'll go against one of "his guys." Having Bernie there makes Torre manage from the history books, which is bad for the team.
I blame the front office for not addressing the DH situation this off-season. For whatever reason, Giambi hits a lot better when he plays first base. I accept that and can live with Giambi's defensive shortcomings because his offense far outweighs those. Given that, we needed to have a much better option at DH than Bernie. Since we will undoubtedly need pitching by the time the trading deadline approaches, we are most likely stuck with Bernie Brain Lock as the mostly full-time DH all season.
Santana vs. Wright Tonight
Tonight, it's Jaret Wright's first start of the season, versus Johann Santana. And while Santana's first two starts haven't been good, I don't like the way this game shapes up at all. Santana is going to figure it out pretty soon, probably tonight. Wright seems totally incapable of dodging flying objects when on the mound and even when he's not getting hit by stuff he's prone to mental lapses. The Yankees' best hope is that Santana has one more bad start in him, Wright is decent and that the bullpen manages to hold it together. I'm not supremely confident.
The re-emergence of a negative pattern from last year: The Yankees face a guy they're never seen before. He doesn't throw particularly hard. He doesn't throw much of anything. The Yankees lunge and flail at first pitches. Before you know it it's the seventh inning and we've scored one run.
Mussina pitched pretty well. Torre left him in for one batter too many and that cost us a run. Farnsworth blew up and that cost us two more runs, but by that time it really didn't matter.
Along with our burtal approach at the plate last night, two pivotal plays turned this game.
Posada was at third with one out and the Yankees trailing 2-1. Bernie flies to deep right. Posada is slow, and Lew Ford makes a very good throw. Posada's called out at the plate. On the replay it's clear that Mauer doesn't come close to tagging Posada's back before Posada's hand touches the plate. Inning over, huge momentum swing.
Any doubt that the call was bogus is erased next inning when YES shows the home plate umpire going up to Posada between innings and asking him about the call. You can clearly read Posada's lips saying "he didn't tag me." And they weren't arguing; the home plate umpire has this embarrased smile on his face. He knew he blew the call! Aaagggggghhhhhhh!!!!!
The other play comes in the eighth. We get first and second against Rincon, no outs, only down 3-1. Bernie comes up. And promptly bounces into a double play. Game.
But that shouldn't obscure the fact that we lost this game with our approach at the plate. Baker doesn't throw very hard, he doesn't have a devastating splitter or a killer change-up. His curve ball reminds no one of Bert Blylyven. His motion is hardly deceptive. He's the kind of pitcher, whether we've seen him before or not, that this team should if not feast on then at least get more than 3 hits off of in seven innings.
The other issue that games like last night point up is the Bernie Williams issue. This past homestand against KC Bernie did well and the Yankee Stadium crowd practically gave him a curtain call for every hit. And I understand it's going to be a love-fest this year, a "Thanks for the Memories" sort of deal as Bernie takes his "victory lap" all season.
Which is fine, but this is the reason I didn't want Bernie back this year, even at the bargain rate. Becasue I know Torre is going to find a way to play him 14o games this year. And Bernie simply isn't a 140 games kind of player any more. Torre will run two hours of windsprints before he'll go against one of "his guys." Having Bernie there makes Torre manage from the history books, which is bad for the team.
I blame the front office for not addressing the DH situation this off-season. For whatever reason, Giambi hits a lot better when he plays first base. I accept that and can live with Giambi's defensive shortcomings because his offense far outweighs those. Given that, we needed to have a much better option at DH than Bernie. Since we will undoubtedly need pitching by the time the trading deadline approaches, we are most likely stuck with Bernie Brain Lock as the mostly full-time DH all season.
Santana vs. Wright Tonight
Tonight, it's Jaret Wright's first start of the season, versus Johann Santana. And while Santana's first two starts haven't been good, I don't like the way this game shapes up at all. Santana is going to figure it out pretty soon, probably tonight. Wright seems totally incapable of dodging flying objects when on the mound and even when he's not getting hit by stuff he's prone to mental lapses. The Yankees' best hope is that Santana has one more bad start in him, Wright is decent and that the bullpen manages to hold it together. I'm not supremely confident.
Thursday, April 13, 2006
A Sweep, But of Course it's Never Quite That Simple
Yankees 9, Royals 3
A sweep of the Royals. It was a close game late, 4-2, when the Yankees blew it open with home runs from Giambi and Damon.
But amidst the joy of a sweep and getting back over .500, there is the usual attendant nonsense with Randy Johnson. Johnson started today, and after 5 good innings, led 4-1.
He didn't come out for the sixth. Immediately, of course, the speculation is that he hurt himself in some way. Ut-oh. But nothing to do for four more innings but wonder and watch as Proctor, Meyers, Sturtze and Villone piece together the final four inniings. (Sturtze taken deep again.)
Driving home, I hear on the radio that Torre said Johnson had "stiffness," but Johnson says he didn't. What? I can only imagine the conversation between the fifth and sixth innings.
Randy: I think I should come out. I'm a little stiff.
Joe: (laughing) Randy, at our age, being "stiff" is usually considered a good thing.
Jeter: (in the background, to Posada) Mr. Torre made a funny!
Randy: (slightly annoyed) No, really, Skip, I mean it. I've thrown 87 pitches. I think I should come out.
Joe: (to Guidry): What do you think of our bullpen going 4 innnings, Gator?
(Guidry chokes on a sunflower seed)
Kelly Stinnett: His stuff is still really moving, Skip.
Johnson: (glaring at Stinnett) You can be replaced.
Posada: Yeah!
Torre: (shifting uncomfortably) Well . . . . ummm, ok, Randy. Can I tell the media that you came out because you're stiff?
Johnson: NO.
Torre: OK, thanks, I'll go with that.
Torre: (to Guidry, still being Heimliched by the trainer) Get Proctor up.
Guidry: Eeeeeeeeeeeeuuuuugggggggggffffffffffffhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh pttttuuuuiiiiii!!!!!!
Or something like that.
White Sox 13, Tigers 9
Yikes! Garland throwing BP again. Today's line: 5 IP, 13 hits, 7 runs, all earned. 1 walk, 2 Ks, 2 HRs, 104 pitches (68 strikes, most of which were apparently hit hard.)
Garland gets the WIN this time to even his record at 1-1 and lowered his ERA to 13.49.
Thankfully the Tigers pitching was even worse and the Tigers, despite 21 hits, couldn't score enough runs.
Ozzieball 2006?
A sweep of the Royals. It was a close game late, 4-2, when the Yankees blew it open with home runs from Giambi and Damon.
But amidst the joy of a sweep and getting back over .500, there is the usual attendant nonsense with Randy Johnson. Johnson started today, and after 5 good innings, led 4-1.
He didn't come out for the sixth. Immediately, of course, the speculation is that he hurt himself in some way. Ut-oh. But nothing to do for four more innings but wonder and watch as Proctor, Meyers, Sturtze and Villone piece together the final four inniings. (Sturtze taken deep again.)
Driving home, I hear on the radio that Torre said Johnson had "stiffness," but Johnson says he didn't. What? I can only imagine the conversation between the fifth and sixth innings.
Randy: I think I should come out. I'm a little stiff.
Joe: (laughing) Randy, at our age, being "stiff" is usually considered a good thing.
Jeter: (in the background, to Posada) Mr. Torre made a funny!
Randy: (slightly annoyed) No, really, Skip, I mean it. I've thrown 87 pitches. I think I should come out.
Joe: (to Guidry): What do you think of our bullpen going 4 innnings, Gator?
(Guidry chokes on a sunflower seed)
Kelly Stinnett: His stuff is still really moving, Skip.
Johnson: (glaring at Stinnett) You can be replaced.
Posada: Yeah!
Torre: (shifting uncomfortably) Well . . . . ummm, ok, Randy. Can I tell the media that you came out because you're stiff?
Johnson: NO.
Torre: OK, thanks, I'll go with that.
Torre: (to Guidry, still being Heimliched by the trainer) Get Proctor up.
Guidry: Eeeeeeeeeeeeuuuuugggggggggffffffffffffhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh pttttuuuuiiiiii!!!!!!
Or something like that.
White Sox 13, Tigers 9
Yikes! Garland throwing BP again. Today's line: 5 IP, 13 hits, 7 runs, all earned. 1 walk, 2 Ks, 2 HRs, 104 pitches (68 strikes, most of which were apparently hit hard.)
Garland gets the WIN this time to even his record at 1-1 and lowered his ERA to 13.49.
Thankfully the Tigers pitching was even worse and the Tigers, despite 21 hits, couldn't score enough runs.
Ozzieball 2006?
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
And the hits (and walks) keep coming . . .
Yankees 12, Royals 5
I'd have liked 12-2 a lot better. Once again the starting pitching lets down and we're down 3-0 before we even come to bat.
But KC's 3-0 lead wasn't enough for Affelt (who's so tough apparently he scared Ozzie Guillen into using his B-team against the Royals last week). Walk to Damon, walk to Jeter, a bomb by Sheffield, and it's a tie game.
And that was that. Today we put some this together with the walks and this one never felt in doubt once we got the lead. Chacon lasted six innings, giving up all five runs, and got the win, not necessarily well-deserved but earned.
Excellent patience at the plate again today, which makes me happy. The bullpen was good again, Meyers, Farnsworth, and Villone (a wonderful-sounding law firm -- two Ivy League-type barristers and the street-fighter type for those tacky but lucrative personal-injury cases) going untouched the over the final three innings in mop-up duty. This doesn't seem important but the way you become one of "Joe's Guys" is not just by clutch performances; it's by not losing focus in situatioins where it's easy to, also.
One more day game against the Royals (enact a minimum payroll NOW!) then it's off to Minnesota, where the bats will have a tougher test against an excellent Twins staff.
Mets @ Nationals
Is on as I write this. Hoping for the some more fireworks, but so far Pedro is on his best behavior. That can't last, can it?
I'd have liked 12-2 a lot better. Once again the starting pitching lets down and we're down 3-0 before we even come to bat.
But KC's 3-0 lead wasn't enough for Affelt (who's so tough apparently he scared Ozzie Guillen into using his B-team against the Royals last week). Walk to Damon, walk to Jeter, a bomb by Sheffield, and it's a tie game.
And that was that. Today we put some this together with the walks and this one never felt in doubt once we got the lead. Chacon lasted six innings, giving up all five runs, and got the win, not necessarily well-deserved but earned.
Excellent patience at the plate again today, which makes me happy. The bullpen was good again, Meyers, Farnsworth, and Villone (a wonderful-sounding law firm -- two Ivy League-type barristers and the street-fighter type for those tacky but lucrative personal-injury cases) going untouched the over the final three innings in mop-up duty. This doesn't seem important but the way you become one of "Joe's Guys" is not just by clutch performances; it's by not losing focus in situatioins where it's easy to, also.
One more day game against the Royals (enact a minimum payroll NOW!) then it's off to Minnesota, where the bats will have a tougher test against an excellent Twins staff.
Mets @ Nationals
Is on as I write this. Hoping for the some more fireworks, but so far Pedro is on his best behavior. That can't last, can it?
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Thrills and Chills for the Home Opener
Yankees 9, Royals 7
It was old-school roday -- stuck at work so had to listen to John (The Great I Am) Sterling and Suzyn Waldmyn on the radio.
Yankee jump out to a 3-0 lead courtesy of Gimabi golfing an 0-2 pitch into the stands. They make it 4-1 on four walks a couple of innings later. Things are looking good.
Um, no they're not. Wang doesn't have it, totally loses his mechanics and when a sinker ball pitcher isn't throwing sinkers, bad things happen. (Yankee fans will painfully remember one K. Brown.)
Soon it's 4-4. Then it's 5-4, KC. Enter Tanyon Sturtze. Along the way we've blown some good scoring chances, most notably on a patented Bernie Williams brain-lock creating a gift double play.
Now, Sturtze has a new approach, it seems. One that can be summed up as "hit it if you can." Well, guess what? They can. And they do.
Now it's 7-4 KC. Scott Prctor restores some sanity (how's that for irony?) and we come up in the bottom of the 8th, still behind 3.
We load the bases, courtesy of a couple more walks. Cano an RBI force out. 7-5. Bernie, a redemptive RBI single. 7-6, One out. Pitching change. Damon strikes out on thre pitches. Ouch.
Enter the Captain. Not too long after Sterling says "well, at least they go into the 9th down only one run," Jeter blasts one into the late afternoon sky. Three-run homer. 9-7 Yankees.
Mariano comes in an allows a bloop hit and hits Sweeney (good plan, hitting a guy who's 2-21 for the season), but that's all. Ballgame over . . . Yankees win, Theeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Yankees Win!
There's lots to complain about. Wang. Sturtze. Bernie's mental lapses. Getting a million walks and missing out on chances to break it open. But a win's a win. We did score 9 runs. We showed good patience at the plate today. Proctor looked sharp, Mariano got his first save. It's all good.
It was old-school roday -- stuck at work so had to listen to John (The Great I Am) Sterling and Suzyn Waldmyn on the radio.
Yankee jump out to a 3-0 lead courtesy of Gimabi golfing an 0-2 pitch into the stands. They make it 4-1 on four walks a couple of innings later. Things are looking good.
Um, no they're not. Wang doesn't have it, totally loses his mechanics and when a sinker ball pitcher isn't throwing sinkers, bad things happen. (Yankee fans will painfully remember one K. Brown.)
Soon it's 4-4. Then it's 5-4, KC. Enter Tanyon Sturtze. Along the way we've blown some good scoring chances, most notably on a patented Bernie Williams brain-lock creating a gift double play.
Now, Sturtze has a new approach, it seems. One that can be summed up as "hit it if you can." Well, guess what? They can. And they do.
Now it's 7-4 KC. Scott Prctor restores some sanity (how's that for irony?) and we come up in the bottom of the 8th, still behind 3.
We load the bases, courtesy of a couple more walks. Cano an RBI force out. 7-5. Bernie, a redemptive RBI single. 7-6, One out. Pitching change. Damon strikes out on thre pitches. Ouch.
Enter the Captain. Not too long after Sterling says "well, at least they go into the 9th down only one run," Jeter blasts one into the late afternoon sky. Three-run homer. 9-7 Yankees.
Mariano comes in an allows a bloop hit and hits Sweeney (good plan, hitting a guy who's 2-21 for the season), but that's all. Ballgame over . . . Yankees win, Theeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Yankees Win!
There's lots to complain about. Wang. Sturtze. Bernie's mental lapses. Getting a million walks and missing out on chances to break it open. But a win's a win. We did score 9 runs. We showed good patience at the plate today. Proctor looked sharp, Mariano got his first save. It's all good.
Monday, April 10, 2006
Willis in Pinstripes (or Elsewhere) by July?
According to MSN's Ken Rosenthal, the consensus among a number of MLB GMs is that the Marlins will look to trade Dontrelle Willis before the July 31st deadline.
It wouldn't surprise me. Nothing with the Marlins surprises me. I feel for Joe Gerardi; this team isn't going to be competitive with Willis; without them the 1962 Mets could be expunged from the record books.
But what I find really bizarre about this story is that not only will the Marlins pursue a new stadium but that MLB is ready to step in and help in that effort. The question in response to that needs to be screamed from the rooftops:
WHY?????????????
Florida fans are notorious for not supporting any other sport besides football. I don't fault anyone's choices in what they invest their sports-watching dollars in, but MLB needs to look reality in the face, sit down with Luria, and say "Look, we like you as an owner. Let's find a city where the team will be supported and has a chance to thrive. Your perennial fire-sales are bad for the team, and bad for the game. But in another place, you can make even more money and field a compeitive team on a regular basis."
Personally, although MLB won't do this, I'd bite the bullet and move the team to Las Vegas. Gambling is ubiquitous now, with the Internet; Las Vegas is actually "cleaner" regarding the "undesireable element" than many cities that already have teams.
But OK, MLB won't go for Vegas just now. There's other places. The point is, let's not soak the taxpayers of South Florida to help keep a team there that not that many people there really care about (even when they win the Woirld Series).
I won't hold my breath. Bud always has and always will think like an owner.
Good luck this season, Mr Gerardi. If you win 65 games you deserve Manager of the Year.
It wouldn't surprise me. Nothing with the Marlins surprises me. I feel for Joe Gerardi; this team isn't going to be competitive with Willis; without them the 1962 Mets could be expunged from the record books.
But what I find really bizarre about this story is that not only will the Marlins pursue a new stadium but that MLB is ready to step in and help in that effort. The question in response to that needs to be screamed from the rooftops:
WHY?????????????
Florida fans are notorious for not supporting any other sport besides football. I don't fault anyone's choices in what they invest their sports-watching dollars in, but MLB needs to look reality in the face, sit down with Luria, and say "Look, we like you as an owner. Let's find a city where the team will be supported and has a chance to thrive. Your perennial fire-sales are bad for the team, and bad for the game. But in another place, you can make even more money and field a compeitive team on a regular basis."
Personally, although MLB won't do this, I'd bite the bullet and move the team to Las Vegas. Gambling is ubiquitous now, with the Internet; Las Vegas is actually "cleaner" regarding the "undesireable element" than many cities that already have teams.
But OK, MLB won't go for Vegas just now. There's other places. The point is, let's not soak the taxpayers of South Florida to help keep a team there that not that many people there really care about (even when they win the Woirld Series).
I won't hold my breath. Bud always has and always will think like an owner.
Good luck this season, Mr Gerardi. If you win 65 games you deserve Manager of the Year.
Sunday, April 09, 2006
Splitsville in Anaheim; The Royals Loom
Angels 3, Yankees 2
Yankees 10, Angels 1
Two games back to back that pretty much sum up this team.
Saturday, Randy pitches pretty well. Not Randy Johnson well, but well enough to win most games. But for another game the bats are dead. Solo homers by Jeter in the first and Matsui in the ninth, and nothing in between.
Today, Colon didn't have it, Posada put on a personal highlight reel and it was over early. Mussina with six good innings. Mariano finally gets in a game, by the way, pitching a scoreless ninth. Flying home tomorrow; the home opener Tuesday is against KC.
What really bothered me about Saturday's loss was something that bothered me all last year. And that's the total lack of patience at the plate. The first couple of innings, the Yankees were taking a lot of pitches; after that, with the exception of Giambi and Damon, they were hacking away, making Santana's job a lot easier.
Announcers are constantly telling us how much video these guys watch, and how great that is. What are they watching video of -- their home run swings? The offensive formula of the Yankees' most recent championship teams was very simple: Take a lot of pitches. Get into the other team's bullpen as early as possible. This works becasue the bullpen, especially the middle part of the bullpen, is the weakest part of most teams; it's what they spend the least money on and it's where talent overall seems to be thinnest.
Since 2002 or so the Yankees have pretty much abandoned that approach. This pattern of one huge game, then a number of games where they can't seem to score at all, happened a lot last year and is going to be repeated this year unless they adopt a more patient approach and get the cheap runs that patient-hitting teams get.
Looking forward: 2-4 isn't great, but it's not terrible, and that's one West Coast swing down already. The starting pitching, my biggest concern, was actually pretty good overall. The bullpen still worries me (am I the only person who thinks that we shuoldn't have gotten quite so entranced by Farnworth's one good year last year?). So a lot is still up in the air.
As to playing KC this week, this is the sort of team that the Yankees can have trouble getting motivated to play, even on Opening Day. And it's too early for KC to realize that they don't have a chance this season, so they're dangerous. The fact that they're all day games (meaning I'm going to miss them, being at work) could be a blessing in diguise. If they turn out to all be glorious wins I can catch them on Yankees Rewind at night.
Yankees 10, Angels 1
Two games back to back that pretty much sum up this team.
Saturday, Randy pitches pretty well. Not Randy Johnson well, but well enough to win most games. But for another game the bats are dead. Solo homers by Jeter in the first and Matsui in the ninth, and nothing in between.
Today, Colon didn't have it, Posada put on a personal highlight reel and it was over early. Mussina with six good innings. Mariano finally gets in a game, by the way, pitching a scoreless ninth. Flying home tomorrow; the home opener Tuesday is against KC.
What really bothered me about Saturday's loss was something that bothered me all last year. And that's the total lack of patience at the plate. The first couple of innings, the Yankees were taking a lot of pitches; after that, with the exception of Giambi and Damon, they were hacking away, making Santana's job a lot easier.
Announcers are constantly telling us how much video these guys watch, and how great that is. What are they watching video of -- their home run swings? The offensive formula of the Yankees' most recent championship teams was very simple: Take a lot of pitches. Get into the other team's bullpen as early as possible. This works becasue the bullpen, especially the middle part of the bullpen, is the weakest part of most teams; it's what they spend the least money on and it's where talent overall seems to be thinnest.
Since 2002 or so the Yankees have pretty much abandoned that approach. This pattern of one huge game, then a number of games where they can't seem to score at all, happened a lot last year and is going to be repeated this year unless they adopt a more patient approach and get the cheap runs that patient-hitting teams get.
Looking forward: 2-4 isn't great, but it's not terrible, and that's one West Coast swing down already. The starting pitching, my biggest concern, was actually pretty good overall. The bullpen still worries me (am I the only person who thinks that we shuoldn't have gotten quite so entranced by Farnworth's one good year last year?). So a lot is still up in the air.
As to playing KC this week, this is the sort of team that the Yankees can have trouble getting motivated to play, even on Opening Day. And it's too early for KC to realize that they don't have a chance this season, so they're dangerous. The fact that they're all day games (meaning I'm going to miss them, being at work) could be a blessing in diguise. If they turn out to all be glorious wins I can catch them on Yankees Rewind at night.
Saturday, April 08, 2006
Yankees drab in loss; Ozzie clueless in KC
Angels 4, Yankees 1
Yankees lost to the Redondo Beach Angels of Miramax or whatever they're called this year, 4-1. Shawn Chacon never had it, the bats didn't do much, and a decent effort by the bullpen was an afterthought in a rather depressing loss.
Pivotal moment in the game came in the top of the seventh, when the Yankees loaded the bases with one out against the BBE (Best Bullpen Ever -- ask anyone on ESPN). I was watching the game with a friend, who said "I smell a rally." I wasn't quite convinced, but I was starting to get a glimmer of hope. Bases loaded, one out, down 4-1 but with Sheffield and A-Rod and Matsui due up.
Well, before I could start to smell the rally, Sheffield hits a grounder to third, and is out by three steps on the tail end of a 5-4-3 inning-ending, rally-killing, essentially game-sealing double play. Way to leg that one out, Gary. Guess he wasn't smelling the rally or the RBI chance there. For the game, Sheffield left 4 RISP with 2 outs.
OK, it's four games in. I'm nothing close to worried, in the larger sense, but I do see glimpses of something very troubling. And it's not the starting pitching, it's not the defense, it's not the middle relief. It's this:
An unhappy Sheffield is a huge deterrent to team chemistry and winning.
I saw flashes of it last year; Sheffield went into a couple of pouts of different times last season and completely mailed it in, both in the field (where his play has gradually deteriorated anyway) and at the plate. This year, having to play the whole season apparently with the contract option being an unresolved issue, I expect the sulks to be longer and more numerous. A scary proposition.
Torre is trying to do what he can to keep Sheffield's ego boosted, continuing to bat him third, but the lineup as a whole suffers as a result. The Yankee lineup typically so far this season looks like this:
Damon, Jeter, Sheffield, A-Rod, Giambi, Matsui, Posada, Bernie, Cano. (Torre got wild last night and flip-flopped Bernie and Cano -- beat still my heart!)
Several points here.
1. The hitters, in order are: L, R, R, R, L, L, switch, switch, L (L). Way too bunched. When a team only has one lefty in the its bullpen, like the Angels, the lineup has to force the opposing manager to gamble a bit in late-game situations and let his lefty face a one or two dangerous RH hitters rather than lose him for the game.
2. Why is our #3 hitter batting 6th? Matsui is the best overall hitter on the team and the most clutch RBI man they have. Torre's ego-massage of Sheffield isn't helping Sheffield or the team.
3. My proposed lineup: Damon, Jeter, Matsui, A-Rod, Giambi, Sheffield, Cano, Posada, Bernie. That's L, R, L, R, L, R, L, switch, switch, (L). Harder to match up against, better balanced. What's Sheffield going to do in protest? Hurt hiumself? I can think of worse scenarios.
4. If Joe really needs to placate Sheffield, take my propsed lineup and fli-flop Sheffield and A-Rod. Sheffield will still feel like The Man, hitting cleanup, and A-Rod would take fine to hitting 6th and still drive in a ton of runs.
But enough bitching. This lineup should be able to score lots of runs even if Torre threw the names in a hat and pulled them out at random. I do see the spectre of the Gary Sheffield "job action" affecting this team negatively all year, though.
Randy goes tonight against Santana. Looking for better things to start happening. 1-3 bites but the 1998 Yankees started 0-3. (Trust me, I know that this year's model bears no resemblance to that team, but I comfort myself with statistical curiosities.)
Royals 11, White Sox 7
Strange game. The W Sox jump out to a 6-0 lead. Garland gives 5 of them back in the bottom of the fourth. Oops! W Sox tack on a run top 5 to lead 7-5. Ozzie (The Certified Genius) sends Garland back out for the 5th. OK, still got a lead, give him a chance to get 5 innings in and still get the win. Oops! Royals tie it up with 2, bottom 5. Oops!
The White Sox don't score top 6. Ozzie sends Garland out there for the bottom of the 6th! Royals go strikeout, infield hit, double. 8-7. Garland out, Thronton in. Double. 9-7 Royals. Oops! Thornton gets out of the inning, mops up the rest of the way, giving up a couple more runs, letting the Royals fans for one night at least take their eyes off the just-released Chiefs schedule.
Garland's pitching line: 5.1 innings, 10 hits, 9 runs, all earned. 2 walks, 2 wild pitches.
OK, questions abound here.
You can't have Garland start the 6th. He's given up 7 runs in 5 innings, thrown 90+ pitches. He's going to "right himself" in the 6th?
The White Sox have a terrific bullpen. After the bonehead move of letting Garland start the 6th, Ozzie finally pulls his head out of the bag of sunflower seeds and his own press clippings, and brings in Thornton. Thornton? You're only down a run at that point. You had the day off the day before. You wanted the lefty-lefty matchup againts DeJesus? OK, I guess. But your bullpen is good enough that that shouldn't matter. But OK. DeJesus doubles. 9-7. Still it's not out of reach. Ozzie puts the game into mop-up mode, and lets Thronton go the rest of the way?
Not to mention the lineup. Ozzie put the B-squad out there last night, figuring perhaps it's KC, it doesn't matter? Was he that afraid of Affelt? Since when does that lefty make the World Champions put a spring-training lineup out there?
Weird. But I criticize out of love, of course.
Yankees lost to the Redondo Beach Angels of Miramax or whatever they're called this year, 4-1. Shawn Chacon never had it, the bats didn't do much, and a decent effort by the bullpen was an afterthought in a rather depressing loss.
Pivotal moment in the game came in the top of the seventh, when the Yankees loaded the bases with one out against the BBE (Best Bullpen Ever -- ask anyone on ESPN). I was watching the game with a friend, who said "I smell a rally." I wasn't quite convinced, but I was starting to get a glimmer of hope. Bases loaded, one out, down 4-1 but with Sheffield and A-Rod and Matsui due up.
Well, before I could start to smell the rally, Sheffield hits a grounder to third, and is out by three steps on the tail end of a 5-4-3 inning-ending, rally-killing, essentially game-sealing double play. Way to leg that one out, Gary. Guess he wasn't smelling the rally or the RBI chance there. For the game, Sheffield left 4 RISP with 2 outs.
OK, it's four games in. I'm nothing close to worried, in the larger sense, but I do see glimpses of something very troubling. And it's not the starting pitching, it's not the defense, it's not the middle relief. It's this:
An unhappy Sheffield is a huge deterrent to team chemistry and winning.
I saw flashes of it last year; Sheffield went into a couple of pouts of different times last season and completely mailed it in, both in the field (where his play has gradually deteriorated anyway) and at the plate. This year, having to play the whole season apparently with the contract option being an unresolved issue, I expect the sulks to be longer and more numerous. A scary proposition.
Torre is trying to do what he can to keep Sheffield's ego boosted, continuing to bat him third, but the lineup as a whole suffers as a result. The Yankee lineup typically so far this season looks like this:
Damon, Jeter, Sheffield, A-Rod, Giambi, Matsui, Posada, Bernie, Cano. (Torre got wild last night and flip-flopped Bernie and Cano -- beat still my heart!)
Several points here.
1. The hitters, in order are: L, R, R, R, L, L, switch, switch, L (L). Way too bunched. When a team only has one lefty in the its bullpen, like the Angels, the lineup has to force the opposing manager to gamble a bit in late-game situations and let his lefty face a one or two dangerous RH hitters rather than lose him for the game.
2. Why is our #3 hitter batting 6th? Matsui is the best overall hitter on the team and the most clutch RBI man they have. Torre's ego-massage of Sheffield isn't helping Sheffield or the team.
3. My proposed lineup: Damon, Jeter, Matsui, A-Rod, Giambi, Sheffield, Cano, Posada, Bernie. That's L, R, L, R, L, R, L, switch, switch, (L). Harder to match up against, better balanced. What's Sheffield going to do in protest? Hurt hiumself? I can think of worse scenarios.
4. If Joe really needs to placate Sheffield, take my propsed lineup and fli-flop Sheffield and A-Rod. Sheffield will still feel like The Man, hitting cleanup, and A-Rod would take fine to hitting 6th and still drive in a ton of runs.
But enough bitching. This lineup should be able to score lots of runs even if Torre threw the names in a hat and pulled them out at random. I do see the spectre of the Gary Sheffield "job action" affecting this team negatively all year, though.
Randy goes tonight against Santana. Looking for better things to start happening. 1-3 bites but the 1998 Yankees started 0-3. (Trust me, I know that this year's model bears no resemblance to that team, but I comfort myself with statistical curiosities.)
Royals 11, White Sox 7
Strange game. The W Sox jump out to a 6-0 lead. Garland gives 5 of them back in the bottom of the fourth. Oops! W Sox tack on a run top 5 to lead 7-5. Ozzie (The Certified Genius) sends Garland back out for the 5th. OK, still got a lead, give him a chance to get 5 innings in and still get the win. Oops! Royals tie it up with 2, bottom 5. Oops!
The White Sox don't score top 6. Ozzie sends Garland out there for the bottom of the 6th! Royals go strikeout, infield hit, double. 8-7. Garland out, Thronton in. Double. 9-7 Royals. Oops! Thornton gets out of the inning, mops up the rest of the way, giving up a couple more runs, letting the Royals fans for one night at least take their eyes off the just-released Chiefs schedule.
Garland's pitching line: 5.1 innings, 10 hits, 9 runs, all earned. 2 walks, 2 wild pitches.
OK, questions abound here.
You can't have Garland start the 6th. He's given up 7 runs in 5 innings, thrown 90+ pitches. He's going to "right himself" in the 6th?
The White Sox have a terrific bullpen. After the bonehead move of letting Garland start the 6th, Ozzie finally pulls his head out of the bag of sunflower seeds and his own press clippings, and brings in Thornton. Thornton? You're only down a run at that point. You had the day off the day before. You wanted the lefty-lefty matchup againts DeJesus? OK, I guess. But your bullpen is good enough that that shouldn't matter. But OK. DeJesus doubles. 9-7. Still it's not out of reach. Ozzie puts the game into mop-up mode, and lets Thronton go the rest of the way?
Not to mention the lineup. Ozzie put the B-squad out there last night, figuring perhaps it's KC, it doesn't matter? Was he that afraid of Affelt? Since when does that lefty make the World Champions put a spring-training lineup out there?
Weird. But I criticize out of love, of course.
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Two Duds After the Big Win; "Sandman" Gets Messy
Yankees followed up their big win in the first game with one lackluster and one miserable effort in Oakland. Somehow it was predictable. The main plus from the last two games was that Mussina pitched fiarly well. I was remarking to someone the other night that Moose is perhaps the oldest 37 I've even seen.
And the nibbling! Pleeeeeeeeeease make it stop. The Moose script is one I can so live without. Strike one. Strike two. Ball one, not that close. Ball two, a bit closer. Stare in at the ump a moment. Ball three, borderline. Long stare in at the ump. Batter swings at the next one, figuring he caught a break last pitch. Foul. Next pitch is normally hit hard somewhere.
It's maddening to watch him pitch. He's like a slightly better version of Kenny Rogers. Sad in a way that this guy will go down as a "number one and a half" starter. Could he be the best pitcher ever never to win 20 games in a season?
The Yankees did a lot wrong after that first blowout win. Costly errors, some Ks in big spots when they could've broken things open, and perhaps most troubling is the fact that of RJ, Mussina, and Wang, Wang was the least effective.
Much more entertaining scene in Flushing last night. The stage was set . . . Mets lead 4-3, top 9. Enter Wagner, to the strains of "Enter Sandman," which there was a little talk-radio flap about the past couple of days. ("Sandman" has been Mariano's entrance music for some years now. Apparently, it's been Wagner's music forever. Some (including WFAN's Chris Russo, the ultimate Yankee-hater) are of the opinion that Wagner shoudn't use this song, in New York, since, well, it's used across town by arguably the greatest relief pitcher ever.)
So, Wagner comes in and, as if Ruth and Gehrig and DiMaggio were calling the shots, gives up the game-tying home run. Not only that, it's no cheapie. It's crushed. Not only that, it's hit by a guy with maybe 50 career ML at-bats. Not only that, it's his first career home run. You couldn't write it as a work of fiction, it would'nt be believable.
So, tie game. The Mets threaten bottom 9 but don't score. Top 10, they bring in Jorge Julio, escaped from the perenially sinking ship in Baltimore. Yankee fans are familiar with Jorge Julio, but not his face. Mostly you see his back as he's watching home runs hurtling out of the park.
True to form, Julio gets taken deep. A bunch of other bad things happen and the Nationals put up a 5-spot. Mets get one run in the bottom of the 10th for appearances sake and lose 9-5. Rumors that Jorge Julio is being considered for the Mickey Rourke arsonist role in the remake of Body Heat can't be confirmed at this point.
And, as if a story like this needs a capper, Wagner, in his post-game interview, throws a dig at Mariano! He said something along the lines of he might consider not using the song anymore "since Mariano never blew a save." I don't know if there's video of this answer but presumably there was a suitable eye-roll on Wagner's part. Way to go, Billy. Pure class.
Three games in and it's a fun season already. Yankees are off today, and start three in Anaheim tomorrow. I'm looking for a much better performance than we had in Oakland. And I'll be so happy when they get off the West Coast; these 10PM starts are murder.
P. S. Has there ever been a dumber team name in the history of professional sports than "The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim?"
And the nibbling! Pleeeeeeeeeease make it stop. The Moose script is one I can so live without. Strike one. Strike two. Ball one, not that close. Ball two, a bit closer. Stare in at the ump a moment. Ball three, borderline. Long stare in at the ump. Batter swings at the next one, figuring he caught a break last pitch. Foul. Next pitch is normally hit hard somewhere.
It's maddening to watch him pitch. He's like a slightly better version of Kenny Rogers. Sad in a way that this guy will go down as a "number one and a half" starter. Could he be the best pitcher ever never to win 20 games in a season?
The Yankees did a lot wrong after that first blowout win. Costly errors, some Ks in big spots when they could've broken things open, and perhaps most troubling is the fact that of RJ, Mussina, and Wang, Wang was the least effective.
Much more entertaining scene in Flushing last night. The stage was set . . . Mets lead 4-3, top 9. Enter Wagner, to the strains of "Enter Sandman," which there was a little talk-radio flap about the past couple of days. ("Sandman" has been Mariano's entrance music for some years now. Apparently, it's been Wagner's music forever. Some (including WFAN's Chris Russo, the ultimate Yankee-hater) are of the opinion that Wagner shoudn't use this song, in New York, since, well, it's used across town by arguably the greatest relief pitcher ever.)
So, Wagner comes in and, as if Ruth and Gehrig and DiMaggio were calling the shots, gives up the game-tying home run. Not only that, it's no cheapie. It's crushed. Not only that, it's hit by a guy with maybe 50 career ML at-bats. Not only that, it's his first career home run. You couldn't write it as a work of fiction, it would'nt be believable.
So, tie game. The Mets threaten bottom 9 but don't score. Top 10, they bring in Jorge Julio, escaped from the perenially sinking ship in Baltimore. Yankee fans are familiar with Jorge Julio, but not his face. Mostly you see his back as he's watching home runs hurtling out of the park.
True to form, Julio gets taken deep. A bunch of other bad things happen and the Nationals put up a 5-spot. Mets get one run in the bottom of the 10th for appearances sake and lose 9-5. Rumors that Jorge Julio is being considered for the Mickey Rourke arsonist role in the remake of Body Heat can't be confirmed at this point.
And, as if a story like this needs a capper, Wagner, in his post-game interview, throws a dig at Mariano! He said something along the lines of he might consider not using the song anymore "since Mariano never blew a save." I don't know if there's video of this answer but presumably there was a suitable eye-roll on Wagner's part. Way to go, Billy. Pure class.
Three games in and it's a fun season already. Yankees are off today, and start three in Anaheim tomorrow. I'm looking for a much better performance than we had in Oakland. And I'll be so happy when they get off the West Coast; these 10PM starts are murder.
P. S. Has there ever been a dumber team name in the history of professional sports than "The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim?"
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
1 Down, 161 to go
Well, certainly nothing to complain about in Yankee-land after Game 1 of 162. The bats erupted. Randy was more than good enough. The Yankees typically hit Zito fairly well but last night Barry was obviously not himself. The only good thing about a 47.25 ERA is that is goes down really quickly.
Tonight's another story, and maybe a big story all year. Mike Mussina seems to be a very old 37. And while on paper the Yankees went into the season with "seven" starters, if Carl (Ouch!) Pavano can't get/stay healthy, and the league figures out Aaron Small, Mussina being ineffective/injured leaves us a starter short. Toss in Wang's surgically-repaired shoulder, Wright's inability to dodge flying objects directed towards the mound, and Randy's age, and things potentially could get very tricky this summer.
But I worry too much. It could all work out.
Remarkable restraint by Randy last night. Three Yankee batters were hit in a blowout game and Randy came close to a few people but didn't drill anyone. Kudos to the home plate ump for not warning the benches, preserving Randy's "free shot." None of the three HBPs were intentional. Oakland's pitchers were clearly in "get this over with" mode after Zito's early exit and Searloos' arsonoist routine.
Digital cable folks: MLB Extra Innings is free on digital cable for the first week of the season. Sometimes when you can't sleep, that KC-Seattle game works wonders.
Tonight's another story, and maybe a big story all year. Mike Mussina seems to be a very old 37. And while on paper the Yankees went into the season with "seven" starters, if Carl (Ouch!) Pavano can't get/stay healthy, and the league figures out Aaron Small, Mussina being ineffective/injured leaves us a starter short. Toss in Wang's surgically-repaired shoulder, Wright's inability to dodge flying objects directed towards the mound, and Randy's age, and things potentially could get very tricky this summer.
But I worry too much. It could all work out.
Remarkable restraint by Randy last night. Three Yankee batters were hit in a blowout game and Randy came close to a few people but didn't drill anyone. Kudos to the home plate ump for not warning the benches, preserving Randy's "free shot." None of the three HBPs were intentional. Oakland's pitchers were clearly in "get this over with" mode after Zito's early exit and Searloos' arsonoist routine.
Digital cable folks: MLB Extra Innings is free on digital cable for the first week of the season. Sometimes when you can't sleep, that KC-Seattle game works wonders.
Monday, April 03, 2006
Opening Day!
I really had wanted to get started here in advance of Opening Day, but life got in the way. Making up for lost time:
Official playoff predictions:
AL: Yankees, W. Sox, Angels. Wild Card: Boston.
NL: Braves, Cardinals, Dodgers. Wild Card: Mets.
World Series: Yankees/Cardinals. The Cardinals try to get another notch closer to 26 but fall short and the Yankees win the WS in 6.
I hate to be picking so much chalk, but:
Oakland is everyone's trendy pick this year. My not picking them is partially a reflection of the fact that the trendy pick almost never pans out. Cleveland? Teams that overachieved the previous year rarely do as well the following year. Minnesota's pitching should keep them very competitive, but it still looks like the White Sox have too much. I didn't like the Thome acquisition but I look an idiot already, Thome having gone deep last night. Toronto has improved and should hang around quite a while. Tampa Bay will be a very difficult team to play but they still lack pitching and will lose a lot of 10-7 games this year.
I see few playoff locks in the generally weak NL. The Mets should challenge the Braves but every year people get burned thinking the Braves' run is finally over. I don't see any big challenge to the Cardinals in the Central. No, it's NOT the Cubs' year. Perhaps they have something special planned for the centennial in 2008. In the West, I suppose that if Bonds doesn't totally break down the Giants are a contender, but I simply refuse to pick them for the playoffs. The Dodgers are as much a protest pick as anything else.
Predictions are fun. Let's hope my baseball predictions turn out better than my NCAA pool selections.
Dumb thing I heard during last night's White Sox/Indians game on ESPN: John (Balloon Head) Miller said, "it doesn't feel quite right calling the White Sox the 'World Champions' after we've just had the World Baseball Classic." John, please! Put down the Bud Selig Kool-Aid! The White Sox are the World Champions -- they decisively won the Championship of the highest level baseball league in the world. Done. MLB's scheme for selling more T-shirts in other countries has nothing to do with who is the "World Champion."
Dumb thing about last night's ESPN game: The two hour and fifty-seven minute rain delay. The game resumed in the fourth inning at 12:20 AM Eastern time (11:20 PM local time). As usual, MLB and ESPN have the fans' best interests at heart. It reminded me of Bill Murray in Caddyshack, telling the bishop in the midst of a monsoon, "I'd keep playing -- the real heavy stuff isn't coming down for another couple of hours."
Dumb thing about baseball in general: Bud Selig's "investigation" of steroids. On many levels, and I can't begin to get into them all right now. But, one aspect that troubles me, and which I've heard no one talk about, is this: George Mitchell is the Chairman of the Board of Disney. Corporate parent of ESPN, the head cheerleader in all this as MLB looked the other way. Oh well. They don't make investigations like they used to.
My Yankees are taking on those trendy A's tonight a 10PM start, my time. Going to be tough staying up for the whole thing. More soon.
Official playoff predictions:
AL: Yankees, W. Sox, Angels. Wild Card: Boston.
NL: Braves, Cardinals, Dodgers. Wild Card: Mets.
World Series: Yankees/Cardinals. The Cardinals try to get another notch closer to 26 but fall short and the Yankees win the WS in 6.
I hate to be picking so much chalk, but:
Oakland is everyone's trendy pick this year. My not picking them is partially a reflection of the fact that the trendy pick almost never pans out. Cleveland? Teams that overachieved the previous year rarely do as well the following year. Minnesota's pitching should keep them very competitive, but it still looks like the White Sox have too much. I didn't like the Thome acquisition but I look an idiot already, Thome having gone deep last night. Toronto has improved and should hang around quite a while. Tampa Bay will be a very difficult team to play but they still lack pitching and will lose a lot of 10-7 games this year.
I see few playoff locks in the generally weak NL. The Mets should challenge the Braves but every year people get burned thinking the Braves' run is finally over. I don't see any big challenge to the Cardinals in the Central. No, it's NOT the Cubs' year. Perhaps they have something special planned for the centennial in 2008. In the West, I suppose that if Bonds doesn't totally break down the Giants are a contender, but I simply refuse to pick them for the playoffs. The Dodgers are as much a protest pick as anything else.
Predictions are fun. Let's hope my baseball predictions turn out better than my NCAA pool selections.
Dumb thing I heard during last night's White Sox/Indians game on ESPN: John (Balloon Head) Miller said, "it doesn't feel quite right calling the White Sox the 'World Champions' after we've just had the World Baseball Classic." John, please! Put down the Bud Selig Kool-Aid! The White Sox are the World Champions -- they decisively won the Championship of the highest level baseball league in the world. Done. MLB's scheme for selling more T-shirts in other countries has nothing to do with who is the "World Champion."
Dumb thing about last night's ESPN game: The two hour and fifty-seven minute rain delay. The game resumed in the fourth inning at 12:20 AM Eastern time (11:20 PM local time). As usual, MLB and ESPN have the fans' best interests at heart. It reminded me of Bill Murray in Caddyshack, telling the bishop in the midst of a monsoon, "I'd keep playing -- the real heavy stuff isn't coming down for another couple of hours."
Dumb thing about baseball in general: Bud Selig's "investigation" of steroids. On many levels, and I can't begin to get into them all right now. But, one aspect that troubles me, and which I've heard no one talk about, is this: George Mitchell is the Chairman of the Board of Disney. Corporate parent of ESPN, the head cheerleader in all this as MLB looked the other way. Oh well. They don't make investigations like they used to.
My Yankees are taking on those trendy A's tonight a 10PM start, my time. Going to be tough staying up for the whole thing. More soon.
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