Thursday, August 06, 2009

Ready or Not

I've been looking forward to these next 4 games for a quite a while. . .

. . we don't break the goose egg here I'm hanging it up for the season.

16 comments:

The Scooter said...

Well the Yankees did what they had to do up in Toronto. Plus they got another win with their fifth starter on the mound.

Some guys are streaking at the right time (Damon, Swisher) but A-Rod seems to be slumping.

Melky has played an excellent center field and is doing the little things (moving runners over, sac flies) that help a team win. I have come full circle on Melky....maybe he CAN be a starting outfielder in the Major Leagues.

I'm excited about the four game stretch against the Sox, but unlike Mid, I don't think it's the "be all...end all". Listen, they can't get swept...that goes without saying, but if the Sox leave the Bronx still down 2.5 games then I think all is well. That means a "split". I like the way the pitching matches up (although I wish Girardi would have tried a little harder to rest Hughes last night). I have a hunch that Bruney and Coke are going to be BIG factors in this series.

I'm curious to see who Francona puts on the bench tonight against Joba. I would think that he would want Ortiz and V-Mart in the lineup against Joba, and we know that Yuke isn't coming out (I wonder if Joba buzzes him), so that would leave Lowell as the odd man out.

To quote Swisher...."Let's get it on, we're ready".

old professor said...

Interesting series with Boston, if the Yankees win only one, they will still be in first when the series ends. With the way the two teams have played against each other one victory would be nice a split of the series would be great.

Redundancy has been addressed. Ransom is gone - team player and a nice guy, but he wasn't hitting his weight. I don't see anyone taking him through waivers, which would allow the Yankees to put him at SWB. Claggett will be with the team through the Boston series to guard against overuse of the bullpen.

Once the series passes, he or Melanchon goes down. I am not sure Pena comes up, because all that does is add another infielder (even though Pena has been playing some outfield at Scranton Major league parks are a whole lot diffeent). I believe you will see Duncan come back to add depth to the outfield and the bench. (Melky and Damon keep running into walls, they will need an extra outfielder).

Crash said...

Things may break in favor of the Yanks this series. Smoltz starts tonight, he isn't fully back yet, Bucholz goes on Sunday he has an ERA approaching a touchdown, Lowell is struggling, Lowrie looked lost at the plate in the Tampa series, and I think Jason Bay hurt his hammy last night and is questionable for this series.

If the Yankees can somehow manage to get a sweep out of this series they have a commanding lead in the division and essentially leave TB and Boston to fight it out for the WC.

57 said...

Ok, now these Mets injuries are not just coincidental. I truly beleive that the entire traning staff should be sent packing. This is RIDICULOUS...absurd.

The Scooter said...

That was just a brutal game....but I'll take it.

Joba's awfulness was exceeded only by Smoltz' utter incompetence. If Smoltz was any more DONE as a pitcher, he would actually be pitching with the fork still stuck in his back.

The Yankee offense looks great, especially the bottom of the order.

The bullpen gave them what they needed...innings, without having to burn Ace, Hughes or Mo.

Now 3 out of 4 is a distinct possibility.

old professor said...

The outcome was very good - Yankees beat Boston increase lead to 3.5 games. Now the reality check - Yankee pitchers walked TWELVE red sox in the game; Chamberlain threw 108 pitches in five innings (is this a return to past form?), and Claggett shows he is not ready for the major leagues by ballooning his ERA to a Wang like 33.20.

Yankees make a deal with San Diego for Chad Gaudin who is 4-10 with an ERA north of 5.00. He is only 26, but has had coffee in Tampa, Toronto, Oakland and San Diego before landing in NY. This is the best they could do to strengthen the bullpen or come up with a new number 5 in the rotation? Who knows he could be the next Aaron Small (hey by the way, Small could be sitting at home waiting for the phone to ring - he couldn't be any worse than Mitre). This trade shows the complete lack of faith the Yankees have in their system. If no one is capable of filling the #5 spot in the rotation this does not bode well for the future. It would also appear the Yankees have given up completely on Kei Igwa and Edwar Remeriz.

Crash said...

The Red Sox look real bad. Watching them play I can't believe they are only 3.5 games back. It wouldn't surprise me if they end up at least 10 games out by the end of the season. If they keep playing that way there out of the playoffs. Too bad about Smoltz, maybe the Sox can trade him to the Mets, at least he still has a pulse which is more than we can say about the team in Flushing.

I think both Robertson and Clagget were called into the game with 7 or 8 run leads and walk the first batter in each case. Girardi showed great patience with Joba and the relievers. Joba was helped out immensely in the 5th inning by Casey Kotchman striking out swinging at 3 balls, that clearly would have resulted in another walk and more runs.

Melancon is an idiot for throwing at Pedroia. This kid just gets the call up and wants to show how tough he is by throwing at the other teams top player. I would pull that kid aside, rip him apart, then put him on the bus back to S/WB and tell him he's not coming back until he shows some maturity on the mound. As a result of his actions Jeter, A-Rod, or Tex is getting plunked tonight by Beckett.

The Scooter said...

Prof, we knew the Yankees would be all over the waiver wire in search of pitching. They also just signed Russ Ortiz to a minor league deal. I have no problem with Gaudin or Ortiz, they are trying to catch lightening in a bottle. Their depth was hurt by the injury to Ian Kennedy and by Hughes' success in the bullpen. I would think that Mitre gets one more shot to prove that he can get through the fifth inning before one of these new guys gets the slot.

Claggett is nothing more than a mop up "innings" guy, Prof...I don't think the Yankees have high hopes for him. He served his purpose last night.

Crash, I find it hard to believe that Melancon would throw at Pedroia intentionally. It doesn't make any sense whatsoever. I think they were just two pitches that got away. The Red Sox are reeling. I wouldn't be surprised if Beckett stirred up some stuff anyway. Just to try to change the Sox' mojo. I just hope they don't issue the warning immediately, because we know AJ won't shy away from plucking somebody.

old professor said...

Interesting statistic regarding the Red Sox - entering last night's game, they were 19-2 against the Yankees and Baltimore. Against the rest of the American League, they are playing at a .500 clip. Not a good statistic for a team competing for the playoffs.

Yankees place Cano, Melanchon, Bruney and Robertson on waivers to test the trade market. While the three pitchers seem to make sense (though Robertson has pitched well in most of his appearances), I don't understand Cano being put out there to test the waters.

Scooter, Ortiz couldn't make it with Houston and Gaudin couldn't make it with the pitching thin Padres - why would anyone think they are going to be able to help the Yankees??

Crash, I don't believe Melanchon hit a batter intentionally last night. He didn't have real good command to begin with and tried to come inside. Pedroia's reaction was punk. There seems to be a belief that pitchers shouldn't come throw at batters or come inside to make them move their feet - BS. Bob Gibson (Scooter that would be from the decade of the 1960's) made a living going after hitters and it got him into the hall of fame. Someone should have told Nolan Ryan he couldn't pitch inside.

Crash said...

I completely disagree about the Melancon/Pedroia situation. Melancon didn't seem to have any problem with control after Pedroia. Pedroia's reaction was anything but punk. He went to 1B while expressing his displeasure about pitches above his shoulders. You can see him motioning that while he was at first base. He then went into 2B hard. The punk move would have been to roll Jeter at second base. Pedroia may be a punk for wearing a Boston jersey, but he plays the game right.

On a side note, Pedroia and Yukillis remind me very much of Jeter and Paul O'Neil. Anyone else see the logic in this comparison?

Gaudin was good a couple of years ago in Oakland. He could be serviceable in many ways (long relief, situational relief, spot start, etc.), Ortiz had several good seasons many years ago but never came back after a series of injuries.

Don't be surprised by Cano on waivers. Teams put big time players out there all the time. It would be a mistake if Cano or Melky were traded during this season (I can't believe I just said that). They are both having great seasons, at the plate and in the field and the Yankees shouldn't mess with that.

Bruney's days are numbered. Girardi doesn't trust him anymore. The sheet on Bruney before late last season was that he had good stuff but couldn't locate and then tried to overthrow to compensate, it looks like that's what he's doing. Maybe we saw a flash of what could be there, but sometimes you are what the numbers say you are (to paraphrasing Coach Parcels).

57 said...

I have to say... i am pretty jealous and I HATE and RESENT that I am.

Middle Relief said...

What a pitching battle.

I didn't stay up for the whole thing, thank God for whomever invented the DVR.

Bruney came in and did pretty well lastnight (as did all the pitchers). He's turned the corner.

The Sox have a great bullpen.

Could be another good matchup today on the mound.

Crash said...

I'm glad that game ended when it did because I was turning it off after that inning. It was a pretty exciting game to watch, the Yankees had plenty of chances to win that game all night long. The Red Sox really never had a threat after the first inning.

I think Girardi actually managed his bullpen really well last night everyone that is really "critical" to that bullpen should be available today except Aceves. Hughes, Mo, Coke, Robertson should be able to hold the fort today if needed.

Bruney looked like he finally wasn't thinking about his elbow. His velocity was real good, he had some movement on his pitches. If he can do that for the rest of the season, the Yankees are in good shape. Gaudin should be here today I would think. Be interesting to see who gets sent down, I'm thinking it's Melancon.

The Scooter said...

I watched every pitch....and I was in it for the long haul. I brewed a pot of coffee in the 11th. I have to say it was one of the most entertaining games I have ever seen. The tension mounted with every pitch. No one wanted to be the guy who would make the one mistake to end it.

AJ and Beckett were just awesome. Both bullpens are championship caliber.

I don't care how good Yuke is and how well Jason Bay has played, without Manny and a juiced up Ortiz, this Red Sox team is not HALF as scary as they once were.

Good for A-Rod....if I had to hear Michael Kay tell us one more time how many at bats he had gone without a home-run, I was going to hunt him down knock his teeth out. Damn, Kay is really starting to annoy me. That being said, Paul O'Neil is GREAT in the booth. He is funny and a little wacky. Dare I say he reminds me a little of Rizzuto.

Just wanted to point out (although is is completely irrelevant at this point) that K-Rod blew ANOTHER save for the Muts last night. I wonder if 57 is going to cancel his SNY package.

old professor said...

Three in a row against the Red Sox, who would have thought it? Interesting statistic for the last two games - Sox have only 8 hits four of those are Pedroia. The rest of the team is batting .064. Wow. It would be nice to see Pettitte go 7 strong. Is it hoping too much for a sweep? The Yankees could send a real strong message to the rest of baseball.

Scooter, I think we need to go to 57's house and remove all sharp instruments from his reach. He is sinking into a deep depression over the state of the AAA team located in Queens. Unfortunately the Bills will not be able to lift his spirits this season either.

57 said...

Its football season! Get your popcorn ready!

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