Posted by: David
Derek Jeter had put the Yankees ahead in the 7th - 4-3 with a clutch single up the middle and did it again in the top of the ninth when after Johnny Damon was called out trying to steal second, the umpire noticed the ball was dropped and changed the call to safe. DJ delivered a clutch single to right off of Orioles closer Chris Ray to give the Yankees the lead. Kyle Farnsworth pitched a perfect bottom of the ninth for the win. Kevin Millar led off the inning and grounded to short for the first out. Corey Patterson then fouled out to Andy Phillips at first and the last out was made by Javy Lopez who lined to Bernie Williams in right to end the game.
The Yankees fell behind early 2-0. The Orioles scored in the first on an RBI bloop single by Ramon Hernandez and added another run later. Andy Phillips got the Yankees to within a run by homering off O's starter Kris Benson. In the sixth, Jason Giambi crushed a Benson low inside pitch deep to right to give the Yankees a temporary lead at 3-2. However, the next inning Jaret Wright got the first two outs and Corey Patterson attempted to bunt. Wright fielded the ball cleanly but took his eye off his glove and dropped the ball and allowed Patterson to reach. He stole second even though the Yankees pitched out and then scored to tie the game on a single from Javy Lopez.
The Yankees went ahead in the seventh on the aforementioned RBI single from Jeter and the second run scoring on a wild pitch. Ron Villone pitched out of trouble in the seventh and Scott Erickson relieved him in the eighth and gave up an RBI double to Luis Matos to make the score 5-4 and put runners on second and third with only one out. Torre summoned Farnsworth and with the bases loaded he got the hard ground ball to third, but Cairo playing in place of flu riden A-Rod bobbled the ball and could not turn the double play. Farnsworth then intentionally walked Tejada to load the bases but then retired the next batter to end the inning.
The Yankees fell behind early 2-0. The Orioles scored in the first on an RBI bloop single by Ramon Hernandez and added another run later. Andy Phillips got the Yankees to within a run by homering off O's starter Kris Benson. In the sixth, Jason Giambi crushed a Benson low inside pitch deep to right to give the Yankees a temporary lead at 3-2. However, the next inning Jaret Wright got the first two outs and Corey Patterson attempted to bunt. Wright fielded the ball cleanly but took his eye off his glove and dropped the ball and allowed Patterson to reach. He stole second even though the Yankees pitched out and then scored to tie the game on a single from Javy Lopez.
The Yankees went ahead in the seventh on the aforementioned RBI single from Jeter and the second run scoring on a wild pitch. Ron Villone pitched out of trouble in the seventh and Scott Erickson relieved him in the eighth and gave up an RBI double to Luis Matos to make the score 5-4 and put runners on second and third with only one out. Torre summoned Farnsworth and with the bases loaded he got the hard ground ball to third, but Cairo playing in place of flu riden A-Rod bobbled the ball and could not turn the double play. Farnsworth then intentionally walked Tejada to load the bases but then retired the next batter to end the inning.
06/02: Quick Strikes
Posted by: James
With Mariano, it's amusing that early on, there was a lot of clamor about how he was rusty and underused. Well, things have changed, huh? After the other night's masterful 3 inning beat down of the Tigers, his ERA is down to 2.30 thanks to a pretty good May (17.6 IP, 16 H, 3 BB, 11 Ks). His K/BB is back to its usual lofty heights (3.60:1) although his K rate (5.93 per 9) remains well below his career average (8.05 per 9 and 9.19 last year) and his BAA (.252) and WHIP (1.13) remain higher than his career rates (.218 BAA/1.05 WHIP). Hopefully, Mariano continues his climb back to his usual form. One thing to note is that Mariano's now on pace for 84 innnings, which would be his most ever, outside of his breakout 1996 season.
Speaking of overuse, the current posterboy would of course be Scott Proctor's who's on pace on 104 IP while Ron Villone, who has been a starter in his career is only on pace for 64. Proctor has been solid but Villone has been very good in his opportunities as well and I'd much rather see someone who has pitched 104 innings as recently as 2004 get the increased workload. As for Proctor, while the Yankees were smart to try to stretch out his arm last year (combined 87 innings between the majors and AAA), I'm very wary of seeing another pitcher get Karsay-ed (or Quantrill-ized or Flashed or whatever). As for Farnsworth, he's on pace for 73 IP which seems to be about right even though he has pitched 8 out of the last 10 days (and 7 out of the last 9 games).
Still, it's not the Yankees offense that has let down the staff (they have actually averaged more runs per game AFTER Matsui went down), so let's see some blowouts and deeper outings by the starters so we can get these guys some rest!
Finally, I'm a little disheartened to see Rasner being used as an arm out of the bullpen. While I'm happy he gets a shot, I'd much rather see him starting in Small's stead. It makes no sense to bring up the guy who's been a starter for his entire career (93 of his 95 appearances have been starts) to come up and pitch in relief. If that's what you wanted, you could have very easily brought up Jose Veras, the Beaner or even Ramiro Mendoza. I mean, if Rasner is just a stop-gap until the organization can call up Matt Smith again, it was a silly move to take Rasner out of his established spot and have him miss a start. We'll have to see what they were thinking. Who knows? They could surprise me and actually give Rasner the next spot start.
Speaking of overuse, the current posterboy would of course be Scott Proctor's who's on pace on 104 IP while Ron Villone, who has been a starter in his career is only on pace for 64. Proctor has been solid but Villone has been very good in his opportunities as well and I'd much rather see someone who has pitched 104 innings as recently as 2004 get the increased workload. As for Proctor, while the Yankees were smart to try to stretch out his arm last year (combined 87 innings between the majors and AAA), I'm very wary of seeing another pitcher get Karsay-ed (or Quantrill-ized or Flashed or whatever). As for Farnsworth, he's on pace for 73 IP which seems to be about right even though he has pitched 8 out of the last 10 days (and 7 out of the last 9 games).
Still, it's not the Yankees offense that has let down the staff (they have actually averaged more runs per game AFTER Matsui went down), so let's see some blowouts and deeper outings by the starters so we can get these guys some rest!
Finally, I'm a little disheartened to see Rasner being used as an arm out of the bullpen. While I'm happy he gets a shot, I'd much rather see him starting in Small's stead. It makes no sense to bring up the guy who's been a starter for his entire career (93 of his 95 appearances have been starts) to come up and pitch in relief. If that's what you wanted, you could have very easily brought up Jose Veras, the Beaner or even Ramiro Mendoza. I mean, if Rasner is just a stop-gap until the organization can call up Matt Smith again, it was a silly move to take Rasner out of his established spot and have him miss a start. We'll have to see what they were thinking. Who knows? They could surprise me and actually give Rasner the next spot start.
06/02: June 1st @ The Tigers
Posted by: James
A loss isn't the worst thing in the world and going into the series, taking 3 of 4 from the team with the best record in baseball is surely something all Yankees fans would have signed up for.
That being said, the way the game was lost last night still leaves a bad taste. When you go up against a young, fireballing ace and can go up 5-0 on a team by the end of the third inning, your pitchers have got to find a way to go 6 innings without giving up 6 runs. It isn't too much to ask but Wang couldn't hold the lead, coming apart in the 4th and 5th and something's definitely up there. Orel Hersheiser pointed out that Wang doesn't pitch with the same form when coming out of the stretch (he loses the strike zone, gets behind hitters and then has to groove fastballs down the middle) and the numbers bear that out. With runners on, he's falling apart (.358/.402/.468/.870) and for those who were wondering, yes, the same thing applied last year as well (.287/.338/.414/.752) though certainly not to the same extent. However, he just looks shell shocked right now.
Terrence Long should not be on a major league roster. His first three at-bats were cheap outfield flies (each time, something productive would have scored another run) and when he came up for the fourth time, when an outfield fly meant another run, what did he do? Facing a pitcher who was losing the plate, he fouled out to third. Ouch. In total, Long left nine (9!) runners on base last night.
Of course, if Farnsworth holds the lead, that's a moot point. Or is it vice-versa? If Long brings home some of those runs, does Farnsworth lose the game? Depends on who you're looking to throw under the bus, I guess. Most people seem to be picking Farnsworth. Not me - yes, I agree he pitched a bad game (with his stuff, I'm amazed he walks as many as he does) and he's had a bad month but I don't recall hearing all this negativity towards Farnsworth when he had a 2.89 ERA after the first month or when he K'd David Ortiz. Already, after his first 24 innings in pinstripes, we have guys calling him a bum. Give me a break. He's not old, he's not hurt and he Ks people with authority. His walk rate is at the highest point in his career. Does anyone out there really believe that it will stay up there? I mean, come on, he's not Mo with pinpoint control but those walks will drop while those Ks will remain the same. That's the combination for a very good power reliever and the same guys who are calling for his head now will be hemming and hawing when he starts doing his job better.
That being said, the way the game was lost last night still leaves a bad taste. When you go up against a young, fireballing ace and can go up 5-0 on a team by the end of the third inning, your pitchers have got to find a way to go 6 innings without giving up 6 runs. It isn't too much to ask but Wang couldn't hold the lead, coming apart in the 4th and 5th and something's definitely up there. Orel Hersheiser pointed out that Wang doesn't pitch with the same form when coming out of the stretch (he loses the strike zone, gets behind hitters and then has to groove fastballs down the middle) and the numbers bear that out. With runners on, he's falling apart (.358/.402/.468/.870) and for those who were wondering, yes, the same thing applied last year as well (.287/.338/.414/.752) though certainly not to the same extent. However, he just looks shell shocked right now.
Terrence Long should not be on a major league roster. His first three at-bats were cheap outfield flies (each time, something productive would have scored another run) and when he came up for the fourth time, when an outfield fly meant another run, what did he do? Facing a pitcher who was losing the plate, he fouled out to third. Ouch. In total, Long left nine (9!) runners on base last night.
Of course, if Farnsworth holds the lead, that's a moot point. Or is it vice-versa? If Long brings home some of those runs, does Farnsworth lose the game? Depends on who you're looking to throw under the bus, I guess. Most people seem to be picking Farnsworth. Not me - yes, I agree he pitched a bad game (with his stuff, I'm amazed he walks as many as he does) and he's had a bad month but I don't recall hearing all this negativity towards Farnsworth when he had a 2.89 ERA after the first month or when he K'd David Ortiz. Already, after his first 24 innings in pinstripes, we have guys calling him a bum. Give me a break. He's not old, he's not hurt and he Ks people with authority. His walk rate is at the highest point in his career. Does anyone out there really believe that it will stay up there? I mean, come on, he's not Mo with pinpoint control but those walks will drop while those Ks will remain the same. That's the combination for a very good power reliever and the same guys who are calling for his head now will be hemming and hawing when he starts doing his job better.
Posted by: Jason
#1 in the American League in runs scored.
Winners of their last 3 series, including 2 against good teams.
10 games over .500, 0.5 games out of 1st place.
The injury situation is obviously important, but I sense an unjustifiable disturbance in the Yankees universe. We had great expectations of the intact lineup in spring training. Granted, it is worrisome to see injuries mount.
I understand and concede that it's still early in the season. But read the first 3 lines of this post: The current arrangement (even given Terrence Long) is getting the job done. Don't make the ideal (i.e., memories of the 1,000 run juggernaut that crushed Oakland on opening day) the enemy of the good enough.
Taking 3/4 vs. the Tigers and 2/3 vs. Boston is good enough.
Winners of their last 3 series, including 2 against good teams.
10 games over .500, 0.5 games out of 1st place.
The injury situation is obviously important, but I sense an unjustifiable disturbance in the Yankees universe. We had great expectations of the intact lineup in spring training. Granted, it is worrisome to see injuries mount.
I understand and concede that it's still early in the season. But read the first 3 lines of this post: The current arrangement (even given Terrence Long) is getting the job done. Don't make the ideal (i.e., memories of the 1,000 run juggernaut that crushed Oakland on opening day) the enemy of the good enough.
Taking 3/4 vs. the Tigers and 2/3 vs. Boston is good enough.
Posted by: James
Greg House perhaps? I prefer Cuddy (or Cameron) myself but that's another story - what matters is that we get this team some doctors!
The health woes of the Yankees continue to climb and Peter Abraham has the goods over at The LoHud Yankees Blog.
Update: More from Pete.
Man, this team is snake-bit right now. Forget the Columbus shuttle - they should reroute that shuttle to carry these guys to the hospital.
Speaking of Columbus, there really aren't any more outfielders at AAA who can be thought of as potential contributers to the big ball club. Remember, Richard Hidalgo was let go a couple days ago so Kevin Reese is the best down there right now. Heck, there really isn't anyone at AA Trenton either (unless you count Bronson Sardinha, who I don't). The next "legit" guy is Brett Gardner and he's slumping a little bit in A Tampa. It looks like we might be seeing Terrence Long for far longer than any of us orginally expected and other clubs won't exactly be forthcoming since they know the Yankees are in something of a bind. The pitching staff becomes even more important now and it'll be interesting to see how this plays out.
The health woes of the Yankees continue to climb and Peter Abraham has the goods over at The LoHud Yankees Blog.
Gary Sheffield has been diagnosed with a torn ligament in his left wrist and a dislocating (not dislocated) tendon. His wrist has been immobilized and he will be treated with therapy.
Mariano Rivera had a back spasm putting on one of his cleats today and may not be available tonight.
Bubba Crosby isn't making much progress and may not be back in the majors until around June 10.
Mariano Rivera had a back spasm putting on one of his cleats today and may not be available tonight.
Bubba Crosby isn't making much progress and may not be back in the majors until around June 10.
Update: More from Pete.
Brian Cashman said the doctors have recommended that Gary Sheffield try therapy for a period of time. If that doesn't work, surgery would be required. There is no question that Sheffield will be out much longer than two weeks even if the therapy works. Such surgery, if done now, would not be season-ending. Cashman described the latest injury as "additional" to the original problem in his wrist.
Man, this team is snake-bit right now. Forget the Columbus shuttle - they should reroute that shuttle to carry these guys to the hospital.
Speaking of Columbus, there really aren't any more outfielders at AAA who can be thought of as potential contributers to the big ball club. Remember, Richard Hidalgo was let go a couple days ago so Kevin Reese is the best down there right now. Heck, there really isn't anyone at AA Trenton either (unless you count Bronson Sardinha, who I don't). The next "legit" guy is Brett Gardner and he's slumping a little bit in A Tampa. It looks like we might be seeing Terrence Long for far longer than any of us orginally expected and other clubs won't exactly be forthcoming since they know the Yankees are in something of a bind. The pitching staff becomes even more important now and it'll be interesting to see how this plays out.
06/01: KT on the Rise
Posted by: James
Steve Lombardi points out that Kevin Thompson is on his way to Detroit to be activated for tonight's game. I'd write more about it but that post by Steve (as is to be expected) succinctly covers most of the important pieces.
The only part of the post that disappoints me a little is about Andy Phillips losing playing-time. I mean, it's not like he gets much as is but with Thompson up, Bernie (who has really helped the Yanks since Hideki went down and very quietly hit .301/.353/.409 in May) will take up any DH at-bats he might have otherwise seen. It's unfortunate as after a slow start, Andy has started to come around, hitting .306 in limited time in May. With more time, I'm sure that you'd start seeing flashes of the power he displayed in the minors as well. Still, Phillips is probably the best option for the backup first baseman as Carlos Pena has cooled off quite a bit in AAA (.248/.371/.414/.785 with only a 30% XBH rate).
As as aside, there was a lot of talk the last time he (Thompson) was passed over (in 2005 for Melky) that he got more than a little upset about not being considered for the promotion. Hopefully, KT doesn't get too excited trying to prove himself and plays well enough to displace Terrence Long as the backup outfielder. Thompson, as has been noted both here and eslewhere before, has quite a bit more to offer (i.e. a decent bat and great speed - 188/51 SB/CS in his minor league career).
Also, check out those splits on Bernie, especially the difference when he hits righty versus lefty and how he does against the starter and relievers. Talk about night and day.
The only part of the post that disappoints me a little is about Andy Phillips losing playing-time. I mean, it's not like he gets much as is but with Thompson up, Bernie (who has really helped the Yanks since Hideki went down and very quietly hit .301/.353/.409 in May) will take up any DH at-bats he might have otherwise seen. It's unfortunate as after a slow start, Andy has started to come around, hitting .306 in limited time in May. With more time, I'm sure that you'd start seeing flashes of the power he displayed in the minors as well. Still, Phillips is probably the best option for the backup first baseman as Carlos Pena has cooled off quite a bit in AAA (.248/.371/.414/.785 with only a 30% XBH rate).
As as aside, there was a lot of talk the last time he (Thompson) was passed over (in 2005 for Melky) that he got more than a little upset about not being considered for the promotion. Hopefully, KT doesn't get too excited trying to prove himself and plays well enough to displace Terrence Long as the backup outfielder. Thompson, as has been noted both here and eslewhere before, has quite a bit more to offer (i.e. a decent bat and great speed - 188/51 SB/CS in his minor league career).
Also, check out those splits on Bernie, especially the difference when he hits righty versus lefty and how he does against the starter and relievers. Talk about night and day.
06/01: Yankees 6, Tigers 1
Posted by: Jason
Please pardon this late entry, as your correspondent has been traveling (work related) for the last 48...
Mussina: Great... (Are we allowed to discuss Cy Youngs yet? (knock on wood)).
Giambi: Great. As I read a Detroit News recap of this game, the writer discussed how the Tigers could use a left-handed power bat like Giambi. I hope redemption feels better than expected, Jason.
Alex: Great.
Andy Phillips: Great on both ends, including an apparently stellar defensive play on a bunt last evening.
By and large, improved defense by the Yankees was a huge factor in last night's success.
Hopefully, the Tigers go into full old-school "run manufacturing" mode tonight and Jim Leyland displays the bunt sign to every hitter for the first time through the lineup.
Overall, this series has been a pleasant surprise, don't you think?
Mussina: Great... (Are we allowed to discuss Cy Youngs yet? (knock on wood)).
Giambi: Great. As I read a Detroit News recap of this game, the writer discussed how the Tigers could use a left-handed power bat like Giambi. I hope redemption feels better than expected, Jason.
Alex: Great.
Andy Phillips: Great on both ends, including an apparently stellar defensive play on a bunt last evening.
By and large, improved defense by the Yankees was a huge factor in last night's success.
Hopefully, the Tigers go into full old-school "run manufacturing" mode tonight and Jim Leyland displays the bunt sign to every hitter for the first time through the lineup.
Overall, this series has been a pleasant surprise, don't you think?
06/01: All-Star Voting
Posted by: Patrick
Don't forget to head over to MLB.com and vote. Jeter is leading all AL players in votes (has he ever done that before?!). A-Rod and Cano are also leading at their positions with a number of Yankees being in contention. Every vote counts!
06/01: Hughes on the Hill
Posted by: James
Phil Hughes is making a start right now for the Trenton Thunder. You can follow along by refreshing the current box score or if you can, the play by play is being streamed (free) over at MiLB.com.
He's just given up two runs in the second...which might be too much. Trenton doesn't exactly boast a very robust lineup. Of course, right after I write that they go ahead and score three runs (though they were probably the softest three runs I've ever heard).
Another 2 runs given up by Hughes with 2 outs. Still, I've counted at least 3 hits so far that the Portland announcing team (who are REALLY excitable) have categorized as bloops over the infield. Also, even these Portland (Red Sox AA club) guys are complimenting Hughes' stuff - even better results will start coming soon, I'm sure...but today is just not his day as he ends up giving up 8 hits and 6 ER (2BB, 6K)in 5 IP. Ouch. This outing takes his ERA which had been at 4 all the way up to 5. Hopefully, the other guy who had lowered his AA ERA to 4 (T-Clip) can come through with a better performance in a couple of days.
He's just given up two runs in the second...which might be too much. Trenton doesn't exactly boast a very robust lineup. Of course, right after I write that they go ahead and score three runs (though they were probably the softest three runs I've ever heard).
Another 2 runs given up by Hughes with 2 outs. Still, I've counted at least 3 hits so far that the Portland announcing team (who are REALLY excitable) have categorized as bloops over the infield. Also, even these Portland (Red Sox AA club) guys are complimenting Hughes' stuff - even better results will start coming soon, I'm sure...but today is just not his day as he ends up giving up 8 hits and 6 ER (2BB, 6K)in 5 IP. Ouch. This outing takes his ERA which had been at 4 all the way up to 5. Hopefully, the other guy who had lowered his AA ERA to 4 (T-Clip) can come through with a better performance in a couple of days.
06/01: "No! Stay There!"
Posted by: James
Classic moment. If you didn't get a chance to see what Mussina did at the end of the game last night, head on over to MLB.com and click on "Mussina's gem". Joe Torre's started to come out of the dugout (for the second trip to the mound of the inning) and Mussina sees him. He starts hollering at Joe to get his attention before he can come out on the field and yells "Stay There!". At this point, the look on Torre's face is classic. His facial expression goes from "What?" to "All right, all right, jeez, stop yelling!" very quickly. Great stuff.
Of course, Moose can get away with that, especially since the night before the game, Mussina had asked Torre what he needed. Torre said he needed eight. Mike gave him 9. Way to come through Moose.
Of course, Moose can get away with that, especially since the night before the game, Mussina had asked Torre what he needed. Torre said he needed eight. Mike gave him 9. Way to come through Moose.
