Posted by: Patrick
Bryan Hoch reports that Major League Baseball has reduced Kyle Farnsworth's suspension from 3 games to 1. That's a pretty noteworthy reduction, I'd have to say. Given that Kyle doesn't tend to pitch on back to back days, anyway, it shouldn't have any impact.
05/09: David Wells: "I'm in shape."
Posted by: Patrick
What should we talk about? The Joba fist pump? Hmm... no, I think I'll take a pass on that one. Let's talk about David Wells. Mike Puma at the Post spoke with David Wells and Hank Steinbrenner about a potential return to the Yankees. Yes, you read that right. That's Yankeeland!
Hank tells Puma that he saw Wells on TV and he was thinking about it at that point. He notes that Wells hasn't come up in any conversations but, "you never know." He also said that Wells will always be a Yankee to him. Wells won't always be a Yankee to me. To me, he'll be a Blue Jay, Tiger, Red, Oriole, White Sock, Padre, Red Sock and Dodger. And, I'd harbor a guess, the reason that he's played 11 different stints on 8 different teams in 21 seasons is because he wears out his welcome.
"I'm in shape, I'd just have to fine-tune a couple of things," Wells told the Post. "I'd need a little bit of time, but not much. Physically I feel fine, real good."
Anyone remember the last game he pitched for the Yankees? Game 5 of the 2003 World Series. He pitched 1 inning and then left because of back spasms. A three headed monster of Jose Contreras, Chris Hammond and Jeff Nelson pitched the final 7, allowing 6 earned runs in a 6-4 Yankees loss. After the game, we heard of his rubber arm, but we also heard that he wasn't working out between starts like he should have been. The team needed him and he failed to answer the call. People are human and it happens to everyone more often than not. But, what stings is when you don't put it a full effort and fail. Then, people question you. After that series, as a Yankees fan, I did not want Wells to return. And he didn't.
Later in the article, Wells is quoted as saying: "New York has always been the favorite of all my stops. When I got traded, I was bitter. When they didn't re-sign me, I was bitter, but I know that wasn't the Yankees, everything was Joe Torre. I wasn't one of his boys. I don't think he liked the way I lived my life or that I spoke my mind."
Yeah, that's what it was. Joe Torre. Look, Joe Torre may not have been perfect (and no one is), but I'm getting a little tired of him being trotted out as an excuse by players who had plenty of their own issues. (Really, these comments shouldn't mean much when you consider, in comparison, the people who have good things to say. But, I know some people latch onto these sorts of remarks, no matter the source).
Let's review. Farnsworth stunk because of Joe Torre. Sheffield and Lofton were dumped because Joe Torre is a racist. Buddy Groom stunk because of Joe Torre. David Wells was traded and not resigned because of Joe Torre. Wells not being resigned couldn't have anything to do with that playoff game above, could it? How about the book he wrote in the offseason that proved to be a distraction when he used it as a platform to criticism teammates Mike Mussina and Roger Clemens? No, nothing to do with it. David Wells was a model citizen and the Yankees had no reason to not bring them back after 2003.
It's probably clear, but I don't want him back. I don't want him back on the basis of performance. His last good season was 2004. When you throw in the personal issues, I really don't want him back. If he didn't like Joe Torre and Mel Stottlemyre... how's he going to like Joe Girardi and Dave Eiland?
Hank tells Puma that he saw Wells on TV and he was thinking about it at that point. He notes that Wells hasn't come up in any conversations but, "you never know." He also said that Wells will always be a Yankee to him. Wells won't always be a Yankee to me. To me, he'll be a Blue Jay, Tiger, Red, Oriole, White Sock, Padre, Red Sock and Dodger. And, I'd harbor a guess, the reason that he's played 11 different stints on 8 different teams in 21 seasons is because he wears out his welcome.
"I'm in shape, I'd just have to fine-tune a couple of things," Wells told the Post. "I'd need a little bit of time, but not much. Physically I feel fine, real good."
Anyone remember the last game he pitched for the Yankees? Game 5 of the 2003 World Series. He pitched 1 inning and then left because of back spasms. A three headed monster of Jose Contreras, Chris Hammond and Jeff Nelson pitched the final 7, allowing 6 earned runs in a 6-4 Yankees loss. After the game, we heard of his rubber arm, but we also heard that he wasn't working out between starts like he should have been. The team needed him and he failed to answer the call. People are human and it happens to everyone more often than not. But, what stings is when you don't put it a full effort and fail. Then, people question you. After that series, as a Yankees fan, I did not want Wells to return. And he didn't.
Later in the article, Wells is quoted as saying: "New York has always been the favorite of all my stops. When I got traded, I was bitter. When they didn't re-sign me, I was bitter, but I know that wasn't the Yankees, everything was Joe Torre. I wasn't one of his boys. I don't think he liked the way I lived my life or that I spoke my mind."
Yeah, that's what it was. Joe Torre. Look, Joe Torre may not have been perfect (and no one is), but I'm getting a little tired of him being trotted out as an excuse by players who had plenty of their own issues. (Really, these comments shouldn't mean much when you consider, in comparison, the people who have good things to say. But, I know some people latch onto these sorts of remarks, no matter the source).
Let's review. Farnsworth stunk because of Joe Torre. Sheffield and Lofton were dumped because Joe Torre is a racist. Buddy Groom stunk because of Joe Torre. David Wells was traded and not resigned because of Joe Torre. Wells not being resigned couldn't have anything to do with that playoff game above, could it? How about the book he wrote in the offseason that proved to be a distraction when he used it as a platform to criticism teammates Mike Mussina and Roger Clemens? No, nothing to do with it. David Wells was a model citizen and the Yankees had no reason to not bring them back after 2003.
It's probably clear, but I don't want him back. I don't want him back on the basis of performance. His last good season was 2004. When you throw in the personal issues, I really don't want him back. If he didn't like Joe Torre and Mel Stottlemyre... how's he going to like Joe Girardi and Dave Eiland?
05/09: Yankees vs. Indians; 5/8/08
Posted by: James
Another good game from Moose and some key hits from the sleeping bats of Giambi and Cano were enough to beat the Indians and put smiles back on the faces of the team and Joe Girardi. I guess that averting a sweep is cause for mirth...but the Yankees are still at .500, just finished up a 4-5 homestand and going up against another tough team.
Mussina was matched up against a potent Indians lineup and opposed on the hill by Paul Byrd and was up to the task.
The Yankees scored first in the bottom of the fourth when Johnny Damon led off the inning with a home run to right. Later in the inning and with two outs, Hideki Matsui singled (extending his hitting streak to 17 games) to bring up Jason Giambi who homered on the first pitch he saw to give New York a 3-0 lead.
Cleveland stormed back in the fifth to tie the game when Mussina hit Ben Franciso with a pitch and Franklin Gutierrez followed with a single. Casey Blakes scored them both with an RBI double and was then plated on a Kelly Shoppach single before Mussina got out of the inning. He threw 34 pitches in the fifth and came out of the game after the inning. Gassed after 86 pitches through 5; I wonder if it's the innings or the amount of pitches that we should now be working with as the limit of what Moose can give us.
In any case, the tie didn't last long as the Yankees took the lead for good in the bottom of the fifth when Robbie Cano lead off the inning with a double. A line out and ground out put Cano at third with two out before Johnny Damon doubled him home for a 2-out RBI.
THe Yankees scored again in the 7th when Cano homered off of Byrd, which ended his day. Masa Kobayashi came into the game and Wilson Betemit greeted him with a long home run to center. 6-3, Yankees.
THe Yankee bullpen shut down the Indians the rest of the way. Ohlendorf (who has pitched quite a bit better of late) came in for two solid innings while Joba and Mo were their usual selves and the Yankees climbed back to .500 (and Cano and Giambi continued their pursuit of .200).
Mussina was matched up against a potent Indians lineup and opposed on the hill by Paul Byrd and was up to the task.
The Yankees scored first in the bottom of the fourth when Johnny Damon led off the inning with a home run to right. Later in the inning and with two outs, Hideki Matsui singled (extending his hitting streak to 17 games) to bring up Jason Giambi who homered on the first pitch he saw to give New York a 3-0 lead.
Cleveland stormed back in the fifth to tie the game when Mussina hit Ben Franciso with a pitch and Franklin Gutierrez followed with a single. Casey Blakes scored them both with an RBI double and was then plated on a Kelly Shoppach single before Mussina got out of the inning. He threw 34 pitches in the fifth and came out of the game after the inning. Gassed after 86 pitches through 5; I wonder if it's the innings or the amount of pitches that we should now be working with as the limit of what Moose can give us.
In any case, the tie didn't last long as the Yankees took the lead for good in the bottom of the fifth when Robbie Cano lead off the inning with a double. A line out and ground out put Cano at third with two out before Johnny Damon doubled him home for a 2-out RBI.
THe Yankees scored again in the 7th when Cano homered off of Byrd, which ended his day. Masa Kobayashi came into the game and Wilson Betemit greeted him with a long home run to center. 6-3, Yankees.
THe Yankee bullpen shut down the Indians the rest of the way. Ohlendorf (who has pitched quite a bit better of late) came in for two solid innings while Joba and Mo were their usual selves and the Yankees climbed back to .500 (and Cano and Giambi continued their pursuit of .200).
Posted by: Seamus
Jeez, how lights out can a pitcher be? After last night's 3-0 victory for the Inidians over the Yankees, Cliff Lee is now 6-0 with a miniscule E.R.A. of 0.81. We might have to sprinkle some kryptonite on the mound next time he pitches at the Stadium. Lee shutout the Yankees, allowing 6 hits through 7 innings. It was the third time the Yankees were shutout this season.
The unfortunate thing here is that Chien-Ming Wang, who suffered his first loss in the game, gave a performance that was comparable to Lee's. He allowed less hits but did allow three walks (Lee didn't walk any) and the runs he allowed were via two singles and a sac fly. If Wang pitches like this every game, the Yankees will win 80% of the time.
Obviously there is no offense to really talk about on the part of the Yankees. Damon, Jeter, and Molina went hitless. The only Yankee with more than one hit was Bobby Abreu. One of the few positives was that Hideki Matsui did extend his hitting streak to 16 games.
Well, first the Yankees would win two games in a row, lose two, win two and then lose two again. Now we are talking about alternating sweeps, as they were swept at home by Detroit, swept Seattle and are on the verge of being swept at the Stadium by the Indians. The Yankees will try to avoid that in a matinee affair at 1:05 E.T. as Mike Mussina will take the mound to face Paul Byrd.
The unfortunate thing here is that Chien-Ming Wang, who suffered his first loss in the game, gave a performance that was comparable to Lee's. He allowed less hits but did allow three walks (Lee didn't walk any) and the runs he allowed were via two singles and a sac fly. If Wang pitches like this every game, the Yankees will win 80% of the time.
Obviously there is no offense to really talk about on the part of the Yankees. Damon, Jeter, and Molina went hitless. The only Yankee with more than one hit was Bobby Abreu. One of the few positives was that Hideki Matsui did extend his hitting streak to 16 games.
Well, first the Yankees would win two games in a row, lose two, win two and then lose two again. Now we are talking about alternating sweeps, as they were swept at home by Detroit, swept Seattle and are on the verge of being swept at the Stadium by the Indians. The Yankees will try to avoid that in a matinee affair at 1:05 E.T. as Mike Mussina will take the mound to face Paul Byrd.
Posted by: Patrick
Anthony Rieber reports that Kei Igawa will start Friday and will get at least two starts, according to manager Joe Girardi.
Igawa has not pitched in the majors since September 25 of last year, when he held the Devil Rays scoreless over 5 innings.
Igawa has not pitched in the majors since September 25 of last year, when he held the Devil Rays scoreless over 5 innings.
Posted by: Patrick
Usually, when your offense scored 3 runs in 5 innings, that wouldn't be looked at as great. But, when the pitcher you are facing is the Indians' young star, Fausto Carmona, it looks pretty good. Coming into the game, Carmona was 3-1 with a 2.60 ERA.
The Yankees made him pitch, leading to five walks. They also collected six hits in the five innings of work. He threw 95 pitches before exiting the game, down 3-2.
Andy Pettitte outpitched Carmona in this one, going 6.1 innings and allowing 2 earned runs on 5 hits and 1 walk. Kyle Farnsworth pitched the final two outs of the seventh. Guess what time it is? JoMo time!
Unfortunately, it didn't go as we are now used to it going. Joba didn't have it. Call it rust, call it whatever... he was called to do a job and he's human. It was bound to happen and it's going to happen. Anyway, it went like this: walk, sacrifice of runner to second, walk, fly out, pitch hit home run and strike out.
Of course, he almost got out of it as that home run came with two outs. It came off the bat of former Yankee David Dellucci. And, just like that, the Yankees went from a 3-2 lead to a 5-3 deficit.
Even though the offense got Carmona out after just five, they struggled with the bullpen, collecting just 2 hits and 1 walk over the final four frames. The collective of Rafael Perez, Jensen Lewis and Rafael Betancourt kept the bats quiet. Jose Veras pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for the Yanks.
Hideki Matsui is hot. He went 3 for 3, extending his hit streak to 15 games, scored a run and walked. He's hitting .342. Jeter was 1 for 4 with a run and a walk, Abreu was 0 for 3 with 2 walks, Giambi was 1 for 4 with 1 run, 2 RBIs and a walk, Cano was 1 for 4 with an RBI, Betemit was 1 for 4 in his return and Molina was 1 for 4 with a walk.
Tonight, at 7:05 PM ET, we'll have quite a pitching matchup. It'll be Chien-Ming Wang (6-0, 3.00 ERA) going against Cliff Lee (5-0, 0.96 ERA). Conventional wisdom would tell us there won't be many runs scored in this one. So, that means it'll be an offensive blow out! Yankees 15, Indians 14. (Kidding).
The Yankees made him pitch, leading to five walks. They also collected six hits in the five innings of work. He threw 95 pitches before exiting the game, down 3-2.
Andy Pettitte outpitched Carmona in this one, going 6.1 innings and allowing 2 earned runs on 5 hits and 1 walk. Kyle Farnsworth pitched the final two outs of the seventh. Guess what time it is? JoMo time!
Unfortunately, it didn't go as we are now used to it going. Joba didn't have it. Call it rust, call it whatever... he was called to do a job and he's human. It was bound to happen and it's going to happen. Anyway, it went like this: walk, sacrifice of runner to second, walk, fly out, pitch hit home run and strike out.
Of course, he almost got out of it as that home run came with two outs. It came off the bat of former Yankee David Dellucci. And, just like that, the Yankees went from a 3-2 lead to a 5-3 deficit.
Even though the offense got Carmona out after just five, they struggled with the bullpen, collecting just 2 hits and 1 walk over the final four frames. The collective of Rafael Perez, Jensen Lewis and Rafael Betancourt kept the bats quiet. Jose Veras pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for the Yanks.
Hideki Matsui is hot. He went 3 for 3, extending his hit streak to 15 games, scored a run and walked. He's hitting .342. Jeter was 1 for 4 with a run and a walk, Abreu was 0 for 3 with 2 walks, Giambi was 1 for 4 with 1 run, 2 RBIs and a walk, Cano was 1 for 4 with an RBI, Betemit was 1 for 4 in his return and Molina was 1 for 4 with a walk.
Tonight, at 7:05 PM ET, we'll have quite a pitching matchup. It'll be Chien-Ming Wang (6-0, 3.00 ERA) going against Cliff Lee (5-0, 0.96 ERA). Conventional wisdom would tell us there won't be many runs scored in this one. So, that means it'll be an offensive blow out! Yankees 15, Indians 14. (Kidding).
05/06: Wilson Betemit's Back
Posted by: Patrick
Peter Abraham reports that Wilson Betemit is back with the team and starting at third in tonight's game. To make room, Alberto Gonzalez was optioned.
05/05: Three Years of YanksBlog.com
Posted by: Patrick
Today marks three years of YanksBlog.com. We launched on May 5, 2005 (05/05/05).
In light of this occasion, I wanted to take a moment to thank James and Seamus for their support and contributions as well as others that have blogged with us and everyone that visits, supports and links to YanksBlog.com. I (and we) appreciate it.
Thank you.
In light of this occasion, I wanted to take a moment to thank James and Seamus for their support and contributions as well as others that have blogged with us and everyone that visits, supports and links to YanksBlog.com. I (and we) appreciate it.
Thank you.
05/05: More Splits Fun w/ Jason
Posted by: James
Funny thing. I mentioned something about Jason just yesterday and here comes Steve with a little more insight.
Yes, yes, selective endpoints but hey, for the sake of a "complete" look, let's just take a gander at the beginning of 06 until now. 334 ABs, .216/.346/.419/.765...which isn't horrible (unless you get that production from your DH/1B who is supposed to be providing some pop...oh right).
Does this mean he's completely washed up? I dunno - I think the guy has one more good streak in him...probably one more Giambino month before he's completely toast...but the last few games, well, they haven't been encouraging.
In any case, if he has a resurgence, I know when it will happen though...whenever Girardi puts Jason back in the 7 hole is when he will take off. Crazy talk, you say? Well, it happened earlier this year...and when did Giambi start slumping again? When he started batting 5th. Coincidence? Yeah, definitely...but it's still amusing to me. Just look at those splits - .323/.488/.871/1.359 as the #7 hitter, 2 for 49 (that's an .041 average!) anywhere else! Get that man in the 7 hole!
In his last 204 Plate Appearances of 2007, Jason Giambi produced the following BA/OBP/SLG line: .192/.333/.389.
In his first 104 Plate Appearances of 2008, Jason Giambi has produced the following BA/OBP/SLG line: .150/.317/.375.
In his first 104 Plate Appearances of 2008, Jason Giambi has produced the following BA/OBP/SLG line: .150/.317/.375.
Yes, yes, selective endpoints but hey, for the sake of a "complete" look, let's just take a gander at the beginning of 06 until now. 334 ABs, .216/.346/.419/.765...which isn't horrible (unless you get that production from your DH/1B who is supposed to be providing some pop...oh right).
Does this mean he's completely washed up? I dunno - I think the guy has one more good streak in him...probably one more Giambino month before he's completely toast...but the last few games, well, they haven't been encouraging.
In any case, if he has a resurgence, I know when it will happen though...whenever Girardi puts Jason back in the 7 hole is when he will take off. Crazy talk, you say? Well, it happened earlier this year...and when did Giambi start slumping again? When he started batting 5th. Coincidence? Yeah, definitely...but it's still amusing to me. Just look at those splits - .323/.488/.871/1.359 as the #7 hitter, 2 for 49 (that's an .041 average!) anywhere else! Get that man in the 7 hole!
Posted by: James
Woo hoo for Darrell Rasner. He did what Phil Hughes and IPK failed to accomplish, i.e. pick up a win for the Yankees. He was the main story of the day, starting out shaky, giving up a 2-run HR to Adrian Beltre in the first before settling down to go 6 solid frames.
The Yankee offense broke out the brooms by breaking out the bats in the 3rd. It was actually the first time this season that the Yankees have scored more than 5 runs in an inning. Carlos Silva was doing pretty well before Johnny Damon, Jeter, Abreu singled to make the score 2-1. Hideki Matsui followed up with a double that plated Jeter to tie the game before a sac fly from Giambi gave the Yanks the lead. The came the resident Yankees slugger Melky Cabrera who cleared the bases with his team-leading 6th HR to make the score 5-2. Robbie Cano then launched a HR in the next AB (you should have seen the smile on the kid's face) to end the scoring for the inning but the damage was done.
The Yanks scored another 2 runs in the 4th on a single from Damon, a double from Jeter and after a Abreu groundout, a Matsui single. The top of the line-up really did their job today and hopefully they can keep it up. A string of victories to get the Yankees well past .500? Yeah, that would be nice.
The Yankee bullpen closed out the game as Ross, Farnsworth and Mo all pitched a scoreless inning. It was a good win for the Yankees on a great day for baseball as they head into the off-day.
The Yankee offense broke out the brooms by breaking out the bats in the 3rd. It was actually the first time this season that the Yankees have scored more than 5 runs in an inning. Carlos Silva was doing pretty well before Johnny Damon, Jeter, Abreu singled to make the score 2-1. Hideki Matsui followed up with a double that plated Jeter to tie the game before a sac fly from Giambi gave the Yanks the lead. The came the resident Yankees slugger Melky Cabrera who cleared the bases with his team-leading 6th HR to make the score 5-2. Robbie Cano then launched a HR in the next AB (you should have seen the smile on the kid's face) to end the scoring for the inning but the damage was done.
The Yanks scored another 2 runs in the 4th on a single from Damon, a double from Jeter and after a Abreu groundout, a Matsui single. The top of the line-up really did their job today and hopefully they can keep it up. A string of victories to get the Yankees well past .500? Yeah, that would be nice.
The Yankee bullpen closed out the game as Ross, Farnsworth and Mo all pitched a scoreless inning. It was a good win for the Yankees on a great day for baseball as they head into the off-day.
