05/22: 5/22 Trade Rumors
Posted by: Patrick
Jason Giambi to the Angels:
Two players we may be interested in: Todd Helton and Ryan Dempster.
Via PSD.
The Angels have utility man Chone Figgins to move as well as backup catcher Jose Molina. And their farm system is loaded with young arms. However, if the Yankees have to eat a sizeable portion of Giambi’s salary to make the trade they would want more back for Giambi. As for Giambi, he has a blanket no-trade clause. However, the Angels play 20 minutes from West Covina, where he grew up, and an equal distance from the Orange County beaches Giambi enjoys.
Two players we may be interested in: Todd Helton and Ryan Dempster.
Via PSD.
Posted by: Patrick
From Lohud.com:
Via Ben.
Hughes made 25 throws off a half-mound at the team complex in Tampa, Fla. He also did jogging and agility drills.
"Now the process starts," Torre said. "We'll see what happens."
Hughes will need to throw a series of bullpens before working his way up to batting-practice sessions and games. He is at least three or four weeks away from rejoining the team.
"Now the process starts," Torre said. "We'll see what happens."
Hughes will need to throw a series of bullpens before working his way up to batting-practice sessions and games. He is at least three or four weeks away from rejoining the team.
Via Ben.
Posted by: Seamus
The Yankees got a grind-it-out performance from Chien-Ming Wang and a few timely hits last night as they took the first game of a crucial three-game set against the Red Sox by a score of 6-2. The victory was the Yankees' second in a row (first two-game winning streak since May 8th and 9th against Texas) and moved them to within 9.5 games of first place.
A-Rod got it started early with his league-leading 18th home run and his 3rd in as many days to put the Yankees up 2-0. The Yanks got two more in the 2nd on a home run by Jason Giambi and an RBI single by Derek Jeter that scored Robinson Cano. Cano himself went 2-4 with a double in the 2nd and capped off the night offensively for the team with a two-run triple in the 5th.
Chien-Ming Wang didn't have his best stuff on the mound but you wouldn't be able to tell from the numbers as he gave up only two runs and struck out 5 in 6 and 1/3. He fell behind a lot of hitters but always seemed to recover and it was good enough to bring his record up to 3-3.
The Red Sox threatened in the 7th but Mike Myers came in to do what he was brought onto this team for, which was retire David Ortiz, albeit on a sac fly which drew the Red Sox within four. Myers would face only one batter and Brian Bruney came in to finish the 7th and struck out Manny Ramirez looking. Boston brought the tying run up in the 8th and with two outs and the bases loaded, Robinson Cano may have saved the Yankees' night with a great play, snatching the ball behind second base and flipping it to Jeter for the out, robbing Julio Lugo of a two-run base hit.
Good to finally see a game where things worked on all cylinders for the Yankees. I felt like Sunday night's win against the Mets could be the type of game that gets this team rolling as the pieces seem to all be slowly falling into place. Cano is hitting better. Abreu still struggles but at least has regained some of his patience. Giambi actually ran the bases without having to be pushed by a zamboni, Damon went 3-4 last night and most of all it's good to see good pitching and good hitting finally coincide with this team. I don't think it's happened for two straight games all year.
Also, just for the record, I don't think any of us should be surprised if when scientists release The Encyclopedia of Life which will document all of the world's species, we see Derek Jeter classified as his own walk of life. This true freak of nature stealthily creeps up on enemy pitchers and is known to be dangerous with runners in scoring position (17-34 .500 AVG) and has an especially deadly bite with RISP and two outs (12-19, 6.32 AVG). This creature is sometimes mistakingly labeled by uneducated scientists as "the most overrated player in baseball."
The Yanks will have their good luck charm at the Stadium tonight (myself, of course) as they go for two in a row and hopefully gain some more ground on the Red Sox. A sweep would put them a somewhat manageable 7.5 games back in late May. Mike Mussina will be going up against Julian Tavarez. Game starts at 7:05 ET.
A-Rod got it started early with his league-leading 18th home run and his 3rd in as many days to put the Yankees up 2-0. The Yanks got two more in the 2nd on a home run by Jason Giambi and an RBI single by Derek Jeter that scored Robinson Cano. Cano himself went 2-4 with a double in the 2nd and capped off the night offensively for the team with a two-run triple in the 5th.
Chien-Ming Wang didn't have his best stuff on the mound but you wouldn't be able to tell from the numbers as he gave up only two runs and struck out 5 in 6 and 1/3. He fell behind a lot of hitters but always seemed to recover and it was good enough to bring his record up to 3-3.
The Red Sox threatened in the 7th but Mike Myers came in to do what he was brought onto this team for, which was retire David Ortiz, albeit on a sac fly which drew the Red Sox within four. Myers would face only one batter and Brian Bruney came in to finish the 7th and struck out Manny Ramirez looking. Boston brought the tying run up in the 8th and with two outs and the bases loaded, Robinson Cano may have saved the Yankees' night with a great play, snatching the ball behind second base and flipping it to Jeter for the out, robbing Julio Lugo of a two-run base hit.
Good to finally see a game where things worked on all cylinders for the Yankees. I felt like Sunday night's win against the Mets could be the type of game that gets this team rolling as the pieces seem to all be slowly falling into place. Cano is hitting better. Abreu still struggles but at least has regained some of his patience. Giambi actually ran the bases without having to be pushed by a zamboni, Damon went 3-4 last night and most of all it's good to see good pitching and good hitting finally coincide with this team. I don't think it's happened for two straight games all year.
Also, just for the record, I don't think any of us should be surprised if when scientists release The Encyclopedia of Life which will document all of the world's species, we see Derek Jeter classified as his own walk of life. This true freak of nature stealthily creeps up on enemy pitchers and is known to be dangerous with runners in scoring position (17-34 .500 AVG) and has an especially deadly bite with RISP and two outs (12-19, 6.32 AVG). This creature is sometimes mistakingly labeled by uneducated scientists as "the most overrated player in baseball."
The Yanks will have their good luck charm at the Stadium tonight (myself, of course) as they go for two in a row and hopefully gain some more ground on the Red Sox. A sweep would put them a somewhat manageable 7.5 games back in late May. Mike Mussina will be going up against Julian Tavarez. Game starts at 7:05 ET.
Posted by: David
Joe Dimaggio was the Yankee Clipper. The New Clippard saved the Yankees bacon last night with a stellar performance in his major league debut. Tyler Clippard only gave up one run and the bullpen saved it for him as the Yankees took the finale of the interleague subway series from the Mets 6-2 on Sunday night baseball.
Clippard fell behind early when Yankee killer David Wright took him deep to the Mets out to an early 1-0 lead. The Yankees battled back and got a break when Johnny Damon blooped a double to left which fell in front of the diving attempt of Shawn Green. The hit plated two runs and the Yankees had the lead for good. Home runs from Jeter, Posada and A-Rod extended the lead.
Rivera pitched the ninth in a non-save situation and surrendered a home run to Easley. Mo is getting better but is not quite there with his command yet. He had to throw 27 pitches to get the side out.
Clippard started the game by striking out Jose Reyes on three pitches and was dominant for most of the night. The Yankees were able to get to Mets young phenom John Maine but having good at bats and finally getting some clutch hits.
The Yankees now face the Red Sox in a critical three game series at the stadium starting tonight. Chien Ming-Wang goes against Tim Wakefield. The Yankees really need to sweep to get back into the race. They are even eight games out of the wild card race.
Clippard fell behind early when Yankee killer David Wright took him deep to the Mets out to an early 1-0 lead. The Yankees battled back and got a break when Johnny Damon blooped a double to left which fell in front of the diving attempt of Shawn Green. The hit plated two runs and the Yankees had the lead for good. Home runs from Jeter, Posada and A-Rod extended the lead.
Rivera pitched the ninth in a non-save situation and surrendered a home run to Easley. Mo is getting better but is not quite there with his command yet. He had to throw 27 pitches to get the side out.
Clippard started the game by striking out Jose Reyes on three pitches and was dominant for most of the night. The Yankees were able to get to Mets young phenom John Maine but having good at bats and finally getting some clutch hits.
The Yankees now face the Red Sox in a critical three game series at the stadium starting tonight. Chien Ming-Wang goes against Tim Wakefield. The Yankees really need to sweep to get back into the race. They are even eight games out of the wild card race.
Posted by: Patrick
This is my weekly recap of the performance of the YanksBlog.com teams in the Yankees Bloggers Fantasy Baseball League.
Last Week
This wasn't the prettiest week for James or Jen (NoSenseWorrying.com) - the winning numbers for their match were as follows: 32 R, 5 HR, 22 RBI, 5 SB, .275 AVG, 4 W, 9 S, 44 K, 4.71 ERA, 1.37 WHIP. Even so, James managed to come out on top for most of the categories, allowing him to take an 8-2 victory.
James' offense was led by Mark Teahen, who hit .379 with 5 runs, 6 runs batted in and 2 stolen bases. Jen's squad was led by Miguel Cabrera, who had 4 runs and 5 runs batted in to go along with a .296 average. Pitching wise, Jen picked up 4 wins (Gorzelanny, Wang, Hoffman, Tankersley) and 5 saves (2 for Ray and Fuentes, 1 for Hoffman). James managed 9 saves, in big part thanks to a 4 save week from Jose Valverde. Joakim Soria pitched in 3 with Billy Wagner and Bobby Jenks each picking up 1. James' 2 wins came from Escobar and Lilly.
Seamus and Joseph (River Ave. Blues) took a split decision, 4-4. Seamus won the offensive side (taking 4 of 5 categories) while Joseph won the pitching side (taking 3 of 5 categories). They tied on both wins (3) and saves (1). For Seamus, David Wright was on fire this week, hitting 4 homers and scoring 7 runs while driving in 2, stealing 2 bases and hitting .409. Victor Martinez (5 R, 1 HR, 4 RBI, .333 AVG) and Rafael Furcal (3 R, 4 RBI, .500 AVG) were the best on Joseph's side.
Seamus got a 2 win week out of Jered Weaver, who struck out 11 with a 1.98 ERA and 1.10 WHIP. His other win came from Ervin Santana with his lone save coming from Todd Jones. Joseph's wins came from Greg Maddux, Bartolo Colon and A.J. Burnett with his save coming from Papelbon. Joseph's pitchers put up an incredible 76 strikeouts - 19 from Bedard, 13 from James Shields, 10 each from Aaron Harang and A.J. Burnett and 9 from Maddux.
Finally... wow. I got crushed. If my team didn't manage to hit a whopping 15 homers (more than any other team hit this week - except for Aziz's team, of course), it would have been a 10-0 loss. Instead, it's a 9-0 loss. Both offenses were very good - but Aziz's was simply amazing. And his pitching - well, forget about it. A 1.57 ERA and 0.93 WHIP for the week.
Jorge Posada led my offense with 5 runs, 3 home runs, 4 runs batted in and a .476 average. Kevin Youkilis was the man for Aziz, hitting .407 with 5 runs, 3 home runs and 7 runs batted in. Pitching wise, I got all of my wins from one player thanks to a 2 win week by Justin Verlander, who also had 10 strikeouts, a 2.30 ERA and 0.77 WHIP. All of my saves came from one guy, too, which makes sense being that I only had 1 (Joe Borowski). Aziz's 4 wins came from Oliver Perez, Randy Johnson, David Weathers and Ben Sheets. His saves came from Francisco Cordero (2), Takaski Saito (2) and Weathers (1). The Unit had 10 K's.
Much like the Yankees, my team is in a lot of trouble.
Top 3 teams in the league:
1. Mike (River Ave. Blues) (43-24-3)
2. James (39-28-3)
3. EJ (Pinstripe Potentials and Pending Pinstripes) (38-29-3)
This Week
James (2nd, 39-28-3) vs. Mike (1st, 43-24-3).
Seamus (8th, 29-37-4) vs. Patrick (10th, 23-42-5).
Last Week
This wasn't the prettiest week for James or Jen (NoSenseWorrying.com) - the winning numbers for their match were as follows: 32 R, 5 HR, 22 RBI, 5 SB, .275 AVG, 4 W, 9 S, 44 K, 4.71 ERA, 1.37 WHIP. Even so, James managed to come out on top for most of the categories, allowing him to take an 8-2 victory.
James' offense was led by Mark Teahen, who hit .379 with 5 runs, 6 runs batted in and 2 stolen bases. Jen's squad was led by Miguel Cabrera, who had 4 runs and 5 runs batted in to go along with a .296 average. Pitching wise, Jen picked up 4 wins (Gorzelanny, Wang, Hoffman, Tankersley) and 5 saves (2 for Ray and Fuentes, 1 for Hoffman). James managed 9 saves, in big part thanks to a 4 save week from Jose Valverde. Joakim Soria pitched in 3 with Billy Wagner and Bobby Jenks each picking up 1. James' 2 wins came from Escobar and Lilly.
Seamus and Joseph (River Ave. Blues) took a split decision, 4-4. Seamus won the offensive side (taking 4 of 5 categories) while Joseph won the pitching side (taking 3 of 5 categories). They tied on both wins (3) and saves (1). For Seamus, David Wright was on fire this week, hitting 4 homers and scoring 7 runs while driving in 2, stealing 2 bases and hitting .409. Victor Martinez (5 R, 1 HR, 4 RBI, .333 AVG) and Rafael Furcal (3 R, 4 RBI, .500 AVG) were the best on Joseph's side.
Seamus got a 2 win week out of Jered Weaver, who struck out 11 with a 1.98 ERA and 1.10 WHIP. His other win came from Ervin Santana with his lone save coming from Todd Jones. Joseph's wins came from Greg Maddux, Bartolo Colon and A.J. Burnett with his save coming from Papelbon. Joseph's pitchers put up an incredible 76 strikeouts - 19 from Bedard, 13 from James Shields, 10 each from Aaron Harang and A.J. Burnett and 9 from Maddux.
Finally... wow. I got crushed. If my team didn't manage to hit a whopping 15 homers (more than any other team hit this week - except for Aziz's team, of course), it would have been a 10-0 loss. Instead, it's a 9-0 loss. Both offenses were very good - but Aziz's was simply amazing. And his pitching - well, forget about it. A 1.57 ERA and 0.93 WHIP for the week.
Jorge Posada led my offense with 5 runs, 3 home runs, 4 runs batted in and a .476 average. Kevin Youkilis was the man for Aziz, hitting .407 with 5 runs, 3 home runs and 7 runs batted in. Pitching wise, I got all of my wins from one player thanks to a 2 win week by Justin Verlander, who also had 10 strikeouts, a 2.30 ERA and 0.77 WHIP. All of my saves came from one guy, too, which makes sense being that I only had 1 (Joe Borowski). Aziz's 4 wins came from Oliver Perez, Randy Johnson, David Weathers and Ben Sheets. His saves came from Francisco Cordero (2), Takaski Saito (2) and Weathers (1). The Unit had 10 K's.
Much like the Yankees, my team is in a lot of trouble.
Top 3 teams in the league:
1. Mike (River Ave. Blues) (43-24-3)
2. James (39-28-3)
3. EJ (Pinstripe Potentials and Pending Pinstripes) (38-29-3)
This Week
James (2nd, 39-28-3) vs. Mike (1st, 43-24-3).
Seamus (8th, 29-37-4) vs. Patrick (10th, 23-42-5).
Posted by: Patrick
From the New York Daily News:
Via Steve.
According to baseball sources familiar with the situation who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, the Yankees will revisit the possibility of terminating Giambi's deal if it is determined that he used illegal drugs after they signed him to a seven-year, $120 million contract in 2001.
The commissioner's office is investigating Giambi's comments to the newspaper and will summon him to a meeting to discuss them. What he says in that meeting - or doesn't say - may go a long way toward determining how the Yankees proceed.
The commissioner's office is investigating Giambi's comments to the newspaper and will summon him to a meeting to discuss them. What he says in that meeting - or doesn't say - may go a long way toward determining how the Yankees proceed.
Via Steve.
Posted by: Jason
Although Paine's famous observation described events infinitely more important than a baseball team, the phrase nonetheless conveys the current mood of the Yankees Universe.
A combination of bad fortune and substandard play doomed the Yankees during yesterday's FOX broadcast. To add insult to injury, Joe Buck and Tim McCarver were rolling with their own curious (read: painful) mix of conventional wisdom and self-love. That is, McCarver supplies the conventional wisdom and Buck embodies self-love.
The bad news: The Yankees lost yet another starting pitcher as a hot shot broke a finger on Rasner's pitching hand in the 1st. He's done for three months, if the media reports are correct.
More bad news: The bullpen trio of Myers, Vizcaino and Villone surrendered 8 runs in the next 5 innings and the Yankees were in a 6 run hole, 8-2. In a tragically comic moment in the 3rd, a long fly by David Wright bounced off of the inside of Damon's glove and over the wall for a 2 run HR.
A tiny grain of good news: The Yankees did not fold. With the score 8-3 in the top 8th, Alex and Jorge each hit solo jacks. Phelps then doubled in Abreu and it was suddenly a game, 8-6.
So close and yet so far: The ageless Julio Franco gave the Mets two insurance runs with a single in the bottom 8th (off of Farnsworth) for an insurmountable 10-6 lead.
The Yankees scored a meaningless run in the top 9th after a strange decision by Mets closer Wagner, who tried to throw Alex out at home rather than taking the safe out at 1st with a 4 run lead. 10-7, and that's how it ended.
What to say? I believe that the Yankees need to win their next 4 games.
Tyler Clippard makes his debut tonight on ESPN...I'm not sure I can stomach Morgan/Miller on the heels of Buck/McCarver.
As Dan Rather once said: Courage.
A combination of bad fortune and substandard play doomed the Yankees during yesterday's FOX broadcast. To add insult to injury, Joe Buck and Tim McCarver were rolling with their own curious (read: painful) mix of conventional wisdom and self-love. That is, McCarver supplies the conventional wisdom and Buck embodies self-love.
The bad news: The Yankees lost yet another starting pitcher as a hot shot broke a finger on Rasner's pitching hand in the 1st. He's done for three months, if the media reports are correct.
More bad news: The bullpen trio of Myers, Vizcaino and Villone surrendered 8 runs in the next 5 innings and the Yankees were in a 6 run hole, 8-2. In a tragically comic moment in the 3rd, a long fly by David Wright bounced off of the inside of Damon's glove and over the wall for a 2 run HR.
A tiny grain of good news: The Yankees did not fold. With the score 8-3 in the top 8th, Alex and Jorge each hit solo jacks. Phelps then doubled in Abreu and it was suddenly a game, 8-6.
So close and yet so far: The ageless Julio Franco gave the Mets two insurance runs with a single in the bottom 8th (off of Farnsworth) for an insurmountable 10-6 lead.
The Yankees scored a meaningless run in the top 9th after a strange decision by Mets closer Wagner, who tried to throw Alex out at home rather than taking the safe out at 1st with a 4 run lead. 10-7, and that's how it ended.
What to say? I believe that the Yankees need to win their next 4 games.
Tyler Clippard makes his debut tonight on ESPN...I'm not sure I can stomach Morgan/Miller on the heels of Buck/McCarver.
As Dan Rather once said: Courage.
Posted by: Patrick
In debut in Class A, Roger threw 58 pitchers in 4 innings, allowing 3 hits, no walks and 1 ER (on a solo home run) while striking out 2. MLB.com has an article on the homer and the kid that hit it.
After the game, Lis was rewarded even more so when he found out his dad, Greg, who flew in from Chicago just hours before the game, had retrieved the ball.
While Lis said he'd be reluctant to ask the Rocket to sign the ball, Clemens later met with the Illinois native.
"I remember when I was coming up and I told my mom that I wanted to hurry up and face Reggie Jackson, which I did," said Clemens. "So I know how it must have felt for him."
While Lis said he'd be reluctant to ask the Rocket to sign the ball, Clemens later met with the Illinois native.
"I remember when I was coming up and I told my mom that I wanted to hurry up and face Reggie Jackson, which I did," said Clemens. "So I know how it must have felt for him."
05/19: Giambi Could be Investigated
Posted by: Patrick
Giambi could be investigated by Major League Baseball for his comments on Wednesday.
Yankees manager Joe Torre and general manager Brian Cashman both said that they could not and would not comment on the specifics of Giambi's comments.
Cashman said that he has been told that an investigation is possible.
"I think the Commissioner's office is going to be looking into this, so at this point I can't comment," Cashman said.
Cashman said that he has been told that an investigation is possible.
"I think the Commissioner's office is going to be looking into this, so at this point I can't comment," Cashman said.
Posted by: Patrick
Ben pointed (care of Matthew Cerrone) to the commercial below, starring George Steinbrenner. What an awesome commercial. I was surprised that I'd never seen it before. I checked with Seamus and he'd never seen it either. So, check it out below.
Curious to see what else might be out there that I hadn't seen, I went looking on YouTube to see if there was anything else I hadn't seen. I did come across something. This Miller Lite commercial with George and Billy Martin:
And there were also a couple of others I had seen. The Visa card commercial with the Boss and D. Jeter:
Curious to see what else might be out there that I hadn't seen, I went looking on YouTube to see if there was anything else I hadn't seen. I did come across something. This Miller Lite commercial with George and Billy Martin:
And there were also a couple of others I had seen. The Visa card commercial with the Boss and D. Jeter:
