Results tagged ‘ Matsui ’

Yankees Dominate Twins 10-2 in Series Opener

CC Sabathia bounced back from his last start the only way you would
expect it, by putting together 7 innings of 3 hit, one walk ball while
giving up only one earned run. Although dominate performances are
somewhat expected you never really know, Sabathia did give up 6 earned
against a much less potent Seattle Mariners lineup just 5 days earlier.
It is worth noting that CC’s ERA is a whole run and a half (1.57
actually) better on the road than at home, that seems to be a trend
with Yankee pitchers this year.

While Sabathia put together a sparkling performance his counter
part, Scott Baker, was getting hammered by Yankee batters and couldn’t
find his way out of the 4th after loading the bases. At the end of the
inning Baker was charged with 5 earned runs, and if it wasn’t for the
defensive play of the game by Carlos Gomez, robbing a grand slam from
Alex Rodriguez, it would’ve been 7.

Baker has been struggling this year, posting a 6 and 7 record with a
5.31 ERA (last night factored in) after coming off a career year in
’08. Being one of the strong holds in, what the Twin anticipated to be,
a young talented rotation with a chance to compete, management might be
scratching their heads and wondering where the talent has gone. The
Twins rotation has put together a robust 4.40 ERA, that is including
Blackburn posting a 2.94, and their wonderkid Liriano has shocked the
baseball world with his sub-par performances all year. The Twins
pitching has caught the Yankees at the worst time, the Bronx Bombers
are streaking and putting up numbers (7.2 runs/game over the last 5
games) on teams all over the league. Tonight they face another young
struggling pitcher in Glen Perkins, who is substantially better at home
than on the road but struggled mightily against the Yanks in his last
start. Back to that shortly.

Matsui drove in the first run of the game with a single in the top
of the first and the Yankees didn’t look back. Two more in the top of
the 2nd provided all the offense that the Bronx Bombers would need, but
they didn’t stop there adding 7 more runs on their way to a 10 run
offensive onslaught. Side Track: Matsui has found his way into a 7 game
hitting streak with 3 homers in that run. Matsui might be coming to
form now and his knees might be feeling better, look out for a big July
from him.

Every starter in the lineup accounted for at least 1 hit, with
Teixeira, Cano, Cirvelli and Gardner having multi-hit games accounting
for 11 of the Yankees 16 total hits. Surprisingly enough, especially
being indoors, the Yanks won the game, and put up a 10 spot, without a
homer, one was robbed from Arod as mentioned earlier. The Bombers drove
home runners in scoring position by way of sacrifice flies (2), singles
(2), extra base hits (2) and one walk with the bases loaded. They were
patient at the plate and did what they had to do with the ball and
nothing more, small ball wins games too.

The Twins had no definitive answer for the Yankee bats as they
touched up reliever Brian Duensing for an additional four runs and R.A.
Dickey for one. Dickey finished out the last 3.1 innings and cooled
down the Yankee bats for the remainder of the game.

Yankees Player of the Game:

Mark Teixeira: 4 for 6 last night with 1 RBI. I chose him over
Gardner (3 for 5, 2B, 2 RBI) because this might be the spark he needed
to bust out of the slump he was in, and help him find his power.
Teixeira is homerless in his last 22 games.

Twins Player of the Game:

Carlos Gomez: Not for his bat, but for his glove. His home run,
grand slam, saving catch in the 4th actually kept the Twins within
striking distance of the Yankees before the game got out of hand.

Game 2 Preview: Burnett (7-4, 3.83 ERA) vs. Perkins (4-4, 4.38 ERA)

It has been noted a few times that Burnett stated “once he hits his
stride, watch out”. We might just be witnessing his prediction coming
true. Over his last 4 starts (3-1) A.J. has only allowed 3 earned runs
in 27.1 innings pitched (0.99 ERA) with two of those starts coming on a
road, so he can pitch well away from home. In 5 starts against the
Twins in his career Burnett has put up decent numbers, 1-1 with a 3.90
ERA, but with his current trend we can almost expect a good performance
out of him. The Yankee bats are hot right now and should handle a
struggling pitcher, but Perkins, over his last two starts has only
given up 2 earned over 14 innings. His last start at home he pitched to
his ability going 7 innings while giving up 4 earned, so there should
be some expectation to at least produce that from the Yankee bats.
Perkins has struggled with the Bronx Bombers in the past going 1 and 3
with a staggering 7.71 ERA and only lasted .2 innings in his last start
against them giving up 6 earned before getting the hook. I am
predicting a Yankee win tonight with the bats being more of a driving
force, it’s hard to think that M&M will stay quiet during the
Yankees 3 game stay.

Other Notes:

Paul Konerko: 3 homers yesterday, what a performance and now I am 1
for 3 in 3 home run player being in my lineup (Votto last year, Ethier
this year were both on my fantasy teams bench)

Mets: Should they just give up? They are performing horrilby and
there is no great light at the end of the tunnel. Any big trades coming
up soon?

Hope you enjoyed the new and improved…let me know what you think… riveraverant@yahoo.com or just simply comment!

Thanks!

Yanks Hand Mets, Santana a 13-0 Beating

Well now that I am officially back from my trip to A/C I can make my triumphant long awaited return to my blog…don’t act like you didn’t miss me…and boyyyyy howdy do I have a lot to talk about…Just a heads up there is no game tomorrow so I am saving my preview of he first game in the Nationals series for tomorrow. Wow, what a weekend! Not just for me but the Yankees and Mets as well…A whole lot of ups and downs but WHO CARES the Yankees take the series 2 to 1 and after a quick nap yesterday (only scoring two runs off of who? oh right Nieve) the Yankee bats were alive and ON FIRE!!! Scoring 15….yeah that’s right 1-5…15 runs today!! I’m gunna get back to today’s extremely impressive performance in a few but…I of course have to talk about Friday and Yesterday’s game…of course no one cares about either BUT I DO!!! So I am just gunna go over a few quick notes about each game…really brief I promise.

 

Friday:

What a great game…well it had to be b/c I had tickets to it but couldn’t go (inside joke)…The Yankee bats did what they had to do…they attacked Livan Hernandez and took him for 6 earned over 5.1 innings pitched. Too bad Joba, who gave up 2 earned by way of a bases loaded HBP and Walk) couldn’t hold up his end of the bargain and only pitched for 4 innings (throwing 100 pitches by that time…not good) Brett Tomko blew up giving up 4 earned over 2/3 of a inning and leaving the Yankees in a 6 to 3 hole after the top of the 5th. The Yankees took the lead 7 – 6 in the bottom of the 6th by way of a 3 run Matsui bomb and that’s where the real fun started. The Mets seemed to be on a role…Side Track: Wow, in the middle of a sentence….anywho the game was no where to be found in atlantic city so I am piecing this together off of recollection of my oft-praised MLB.com App on my Iphone…and they took back the lead in the top of the 8th on a David Wright double…Oh wait…this is where the fun begins!!! After a one out single by Jeter, he steals 2nd when Damon strikes out, followed by an IBB to Teixeira, Arod comes up to bat and pops up a fastball right down the middle and Castillo makes the out to win the game….OHHHHH NOOOOO!!!! That was supposed to happen but didn’t…Castillo tracked the ball wrong and it ended up hitting the heel of his glove and dropping to the ground…ummmm what do you call that a walk off error? That was too good!!!! 

 

Saturday:

Real real short…I hate praising the Mets…this guy (I called him a kid the other day and was clearly wrong) Nieve pitched a great game and showed the Yankees of years past…They usually have a history of not being able to hit horrible pitchers…but w/e….Mets clearly out played the Yankees in this one and exploited Pettitte and his continuing woes at home…I don’t know what is wrong with him…it’s really scaring me but it doesn’t seem to matter to anyone else…including the Yankee announcers….In my opinion they need to do something with Pettitte….Have him pitch batting practice or something along those lines to see what he can get away with at home…because he is clearly not pitching to his potential when the Yankees are in the Bronx…I just checked his YTD (year to date) stats for this year at home and he has only had 2 starts where he has given up less than 3 runs….Something needs to be done or it can be a LONGGGG season for Pettitte at home.

 

Today :-) :

One of those rare “PERFECT” days for the Yankees today…I think everyone and their brother…including me…figured the Yankees would have had a hard time against Santana today…but WOW were we wrong…the Yanks took 9 earned off of Santana before knocking him out in the 4th before he got an out…The Yankees woke up today and scored 4 runs in the second inning then were at full steam in the 4th when they knocked in 9, yes 9 runs!!! What a great day to be a Yankee fan but an even better day to be a Yankee batter…it must’ve seemed like batting practice to them….Side Track: I wonder how the Mets fans are gunna take this two game skid from Santana…I can only imagine the sports talk shows tomorrow…but they might have a point this is the only time in Santana’s career when he has given up 9 earned…by the way that’s 14 earned over his past two starts…it happens Mets fans don’t go crazy and kill yourselves it’s one game…too bad Philly won today too LOL…I want to go over the bats first…with a brief synopsis b/c dinner is almost here but I will hit on Burnett very soon…There is really no complaints from me about the Yankee bats AT ALL…I am a little concerned about Arod though…he is not getting into the swing
of things…and it’s gunna kill me to say this butttt Susan Waldman (ewwwwww) actually said something worth while and made a great point that we kind of have to be patient with Arod…he is coming off major surgery and probably doesn’t trust his hip yet…but we shouldn’t fret on that what a great hitter performance overall…7 of the 9 starting hitters got a hit in this game with 5 of them having multi-hit games..and Jeter going 4 for 4…what a great day..I am very happy…and more importantly Damon got his swing back and this game will hopefully completely snap him out of his slump. Oh by the way Matsui hit another one and if he stays healthy that just makes our line up even more dangerous….sorry for being brief…

 

Player of the game has to be Burnett in my mind…he not only set the pace by getting out of a no out bases loaded situation without giving up a run but struck out 2 of those batters….he flat out dominated the Mets hitters today and showed the Yankees why they went out and got him….He has been teasing the media by saying once he is “on” he is never gunna stop…let’s hope this game is a sign of the future with him on this team….Burnett pitched a great game and hopefully now he can calm down…this just might be his “Yankee Moment”….although not the biggest rival of the Yankees this matchup always stirs up emotions and is a HUGE deal to the Yankee fans…ALWAYS…so hopefully if he was feeling the pressure of pitching against Boston as a Yankee this game will be a huge step in the right direction for him. Again Burnett showed his real stuff today and how dominate he can be, yes the Mets are dinged up but they still have great bats in the lineup…he worked out of tight situations and kept his composure the whole way through…The Yankees were fired up today and the swagger was back…let’s keep the Mojo working boys…don’t lose that desire and become flat again, like you did in Boston PLEASE!!!! Interesting series coming up starting Tuesday…will be back tomorrow to preview it…LET’S GO YANKEES!!!

Another Bad Start for Wang

Even though I
hate to admit it, it seems like maybe the Yankees experiment with Wang
is coming to an end, and he has one more start to prove he should be in
the rotation. The start will come against the Nationals and it will
have huge implications upon where he will spend the rest of the year.
In my opinion, he should be sent to the minors to work out the kinks
and make all the necessary starts, unlike being rushed back this time
in fear that Joba was hurt for an extended period of time. This means
Hughes is back into the rotation again, figuring in that Wang wouldn’t
perform, he has pitched well coming out of the pen and showed again he
is a HUGE asset…he also performed and proved to be very effective last
night when he relieved Wang in the 3rd. Hughes had one blemish, an
opposite field homerun to Youkilis on a pitch that might have been a
little high but wasn’t that bad and was more impressive hitting than it
was bad pitching.Back to Wang…it is really
sad to see what this guy is going through, our ace for the past 3 years
is now the laughing stock of all Major League Baseball…over the first 5
starts of the season he has the highest ERA in HISTORY!!! This guy won
54 games in his first 4 seasons, he was the most consistent Yankee
pitcher for years and was usually the stop gap if the Yanks were on a
slide for an extended period of time…I’m really hoping this guy can
come back because it is truly sad to see someone so talented perform so
poorly. My true feeling is that Wang should go to the minors…and
everything else I said earlier…and then get put as long relief in the
bullpen for the rest of the year, unless an injury or struggles occur,
and start over from spring training next season…Maybe some winter ball
to get his confidence back…he is far too good and talented to just give
up on him…I have faith that he will return to be a great asset to this
team but we almost have to give up on him being a starter this
year…Side Track: Now wait a minute…it is only what? 60 games into the
season? I know I am being rash and possibly overreacting…but isn’t that
what being a Yankee fan is all about?…Just Kidding…but for real
everyone growing up in New York expects perfection 100% of the time…it
doesn’t happen like that…we are killing Wang and the Yankee front
office for putting him out there…but don’t forget he was the ACE of
this staff for 3 years, they don’t owe it to him but they should show
confidence in him…so before we kill them…it’s still early in the
season…if this happens down the stretch we take the protest to the
streets…but the season is only 1/3 over let’s not get too hasty…I KNOW
A LITTLE HYPOCRITICAL…but it’s the truth.

Hmmmmmmmmm….tough to find a bright spot in last nights game…..but
you almost have to say the bats and bullpen were what kept us in
it…before I praise the bats I have to bash them a little bit though.
Not that it’s a BIG number but still not good…the Yankee batters
stranded 6 runners in scoring position last night…that’s 6 potential
runs with 5 of those runs not getting in with 1 out or less in the
inning…my small ball rant from the other day fits perfectly here…that’s
just not acceptable especially against a guy like Wakefield…I
understand the game and I know how hard it is to hit a Knuckleballer,
especially when he is on his game, BUT 6 runners left in scoring
position with 5 of them with 1 out or less? that’s INSANE!!!
UNEXPLAINABLE!!! UNACCEPTABLE!!! C’mon guys this is Wakefield not
Beckett! I am so dejected and upset by this that I decided to outline
each inning they left runners on:

1st: Tex single, Arod Walk, Cano pop out to 3rd = 1 risp

2nd: Posada Homerun…Matsui Double, Swisher bunt to pitcher – Mastsui
to Third, Melky lines into double play (tough to swallow but you can’t
really get mad about that one), Jeter pop out to catcher = 1 risp

3rd: Tex Double, Arod and Cano fly out to center = 1 risp

see a trend yet? By the way Wakefield is still in and at this point it is 3 to 1 turns 4 to 1 after bottom of inning

4th: Matsui singles, Swisher walks, MELKY DRIVES IN MATSUI!!!!
YAY!!! (so after stranding 3 we finally come through) Swisher to
second, Jeter and Damon both fly out to….THE CATCHER!!! At least get
the ball on the field boys! = 1 Risp

5th: NONE!!  WOW!!!! Cano grounds out to 3rd to drive in Tex

Wakefield still in…6-3 Red Sox

6th: NONE!!! – Matsui did single in inning…rest of hitters down in order

7th: NONE!!! – Wakefield out..YAY!!! Back to back homers by Damon and Tex

6-5 Red Sox

8th: Swisher single, pinch runner Gardner comes in, Melky Sacrifies
him to 2nd then back to back Strikeouts by Jeter and Damon…PUT THE BALL
IN PLAY!!!! = 1 risp

9th: Rodriguez draws walk, pinch runner Pena comes in, Pena steals second, Cano strikes out, Posada fly out = 1 risp

That’s all 6 runners in scoring position…pretty bad Yankees,
pretty bad. SOOO Bad that I’m writing right now in bold to make a
stronger point…I know I’m pathetic thank you…two pop outs to the
catcher and back to back strike outs???? That’s horrible and
unacceptable guys, come on!!! The bullpen gave you a chance…you did
fight back…but we had sooo many opportunities to tie/win the game it’s
nauseating.

Well sorry for that, but I was frustrated by the shear lack of
effort last night and the flat, lackluster performance. There were two
bright spots in last night’s game Teixeira went 4 for 5, with his one
out coming off Papelbon, and Matsui going 2 for 3 and breaking out of a
horrible slump and hopefully this will be the catalyst to him turning
his season around. Three other decent bright spots were the Homeruns by
Posada, Tex and Damon, all put a charge back into the game and made it
interesting but unfortunately the team couldn’t pull it out in the end.
On to the bullpen…what a great performance by these guys last
night…Wang left the game giving up 4 runs and Hughes gave up 2 but that
was in the first 4 innings and the rest of the night the potent Saux
offense was shut down and dominated. Red Sox batters only got 6 guys on
by way of walk and hit and were struck out 5 times…all by Hughes…this
Yankee bullpen is showing up big and responding to the call…My main
concern is that they are being used too much right now…With Sabathia on
the hill tonite they should get a rest…but if they get worn out by the
end of the year it is very, very worrisome…our starters neeeeed to go
longer!

Tonite!!!! Sabathia vs Penny…the Marquee Matchup…the creme de la
creme of pitching excellence…oh wait…Penny not Peavy…sorry…ummmm not
much to say here if Sabathia keeps pitching the way he has…and gets
over his performance against the Rays the advantage is definitely on
the Yankees side. Sabathia has handled the Sox well over his tenure as
an MLB pitcher, despite his losing record at 2-4, but his ERA is a
respectable 3.91 over 7 starts. The Yankees NEED this game to prevent
falling 2 games behind in the East and still staying ahead of a hot
Blue Jays team, remember they fell apart a few weeks ago…well their
back! and playing very well (but how long will that last?). Yankees
will be fired up…Sabathia knows how big this game is for the Yankees
psyche going into this weekend against the Mets. This is a must win for
the Yanks and I think they should win easily with Penny on the
mound…perfect matchup for the struggling Yankees and it couldn’t come
at a better time…LET’S GO YANKEES!

Other Notes:
Mets: You thought the Yankees stranding 6 RISP is bad? How bout them
Mets leaving 16!!! that’s right 16 runners left on base last
night…direct reason for their loss..DON’T BLAME PARNELL!

Verlander: He’s back…simple as pie…performing at his best…he can’t
be touched and has his confidence back…dare I say Cy Young contender?

Lakers/Magic/Kobe: This is a MUST WIN for the Magic…if they don’t
put up an effort tonite they are done and there is no way they can win
in LA they must even the series…Kobe was offended that he was asked if
he was tired and responded in a weird way to me…the right way, but
weird in my opinion, WE KNOW YOUR TOUGH KOBE, DON’T WORRY!

That’s it…Late!

p.s.: Look for a joint blog entry previewing this weekend’s BIG
MATCHUP in the eyes of a Yankee fan (River Ave Rant) and a Met Fan (4th
Quarter Punts)

Weird Win by the Yanks

First I would
like to start off by thanking Mike Carver, 1240am and his show Sports
Radio New York for inviting me to call into to talk Yankees last night!
Mike you have a great show and thanks for letting me come on to talk
and give my thoughts on the New York Yankees!…even though I was in some
hot water when I got back to the wedding :-/…LOL…anywho what a wacky,
wild and overall GREAT win by the Yanks yesterday…I can’t remember the
last time, actually any time for that matter, when a team won a game by
way of a bases loaded walk, followed by an error at 3rd, with the bases
loaded, and a fielder’s choice…in which Matsui must’ve ran his butt off
because he got down the line pretty quickly! What a great and exciting
win, and one that proves that this year is a whole lot different…calls
are going the Yankees way and they are making sure to take advantage of
them…I am very impressed by yesterday’s win and it just goes to show
you that you don’t always need the longball to win games. I would also
like to say that my prediction was right this
game ended up being, for the most part, a pitchers duel with both
starters pitching beyond their years…getting into tight situations and
working their way out of them by way of outsmarting the hitter. Joba
showed some fatigue and loss of command in the 6th and got nicked up a
little bit…but the truth of the matter is that those hits fell in the
perfect places, just out of the reach of Cano both times…Gross came
up….Yeah that’s right Gabe Gross, hit a 2 run single that if Cano
wasn’t shaded in the hole probably would have still been a hit but
Robinson might have got to it before it reached the outfield…but that’s
neither here nor there and what happened, happened…back to the point.
Joba had a very good quality start yesterday and like I said worked out
of tough situations and had his slider working amazingly. People might
be yelling that he gave up 3 earned…hey guys, he’s Joba, he’s still
young and actually didn’t pitch bad in that inning it was just a
product of perfectly placed balls.  I was impressed by his poise and
confidence as well, especially when he was shaking off Posada to go to
the slider in situations where he knew it would work…AND IT DID!! That
slider spun for, what seemed to be, 63 ft then fell off the
table…hitter’s were fooled and didn’t know what to expect from
him…hmmmm I guess they haven’t realized that his fastball is going to
set up that devastating slider…but that’s even better, make the batters
keep guessing! I’ll get back to Joba in a second…

Matt Garza pitched an equally good game…he made only one mistake…AND
IT WAS A BIG ONE!!! Swisher…or Swishalicious…REALLY STERLING???
REALLY??? Side Track: I have shown my distaste for John Sterling in
posts past but really man? You invented “A Bomb for A Rod!”…sorry that
was sarcasm…you really couldn’t think of something better for Swisher?
Better yet maybe you should drop those stttttttttuuuuuppppppiiiiidddd
calls!!!…I’m sorry but it had to be said Swishalicious is the WORST!!!
nickname I have ever heard! Sorry about that…a little angry
hahahaha…but I don’t like to praise opposing pitching but I do have a
mini man crush on Garza…yes for real..the kid is good!! But he did
pitch good yesterday…getting ground balls and getting his first pitches
over for strikes…the Yankees tried to rattle him by calling time…he was
taking extremely long between pitches yesterday…and taking him deep
into counts…but it didn’t phase him whatsoever. The only good thing
about Garza…for the Yankees…was the fact that they knocked him out in
the 6th and got to that abysmal bullpen. Wait, there is something
wrong…they are pitching good today!! Ummmmm what’s going on? That’s
what most Yankee fans…at least the avid fan…was thinking…but don’t
worry the showed up in the 8th…PHEW!!! Side Track: Two quick
points…both teams only got 6 hits yesterday…these guys pitched
extremely well…sorry was just counting the Yankees hit and were
surprised they didn’t get a few more…back on track…The dominating Grant
Balfour…what? that was last year?…just isn’t where he was last year
when he busted onto the scene to head the great Rays bullpen of
2008…but wait? this year is really more like his career path…he has a
4.28 career ERA so last year is seeming to be more of a
fluke…anyway…Balfour has struggled for 2 straight days, yesterday he
came in to relieve Joe Nelson and trouble started right away…after a
quick put away of Jeter the wheels fell off the bus…after 2 singles, by
Damon and Tex, Balfour walked A Rod to load the bases…putting 3 batters
on is inexcusable…The dominate J.P. Howell comes in, probably the
bright part of this horrible Rays bullpen, and walks Cano!!! with the
score being 3-2 the rays fell apart with an error by Aybar, allowing
Tex to score, then he got what seemed to be a double play ball by the
lumbering Matsui but he beat out the throw to first to allow A Rod to
score and give the Yanks the lead at 4-3. Mo came in and shut the door,
maybe the day before was a fluke but I still think we should explore
other people in non-save situations, but he did prove why he is still a
dominate closer and will be for a few more years to come.

I really think Joba is proving more and more why he is a reliable
starter and why he needs to be in the rotation…I have the feeling that
people are going to point to yesterday’s game as a reason why he should
be in the pen…but really? he had a quality start and showed poise in
tight situations along with not allowing many baserunners and walking
only 1 batter…to me it’s NO CONTEST! I don’t see why you would want to
keep him in for 1 inning when you can get 6 – 7 innings of dominate
pitching…HE’S ONLY GUNNA GET BETTER!!! He’s 23 and shaking off Posada
because he knows he can get people out…it’s not young cockiness it’s
his skill level and trust in command that is allowing him to do that…I
know I’m some people are sooo against him starting but I really don’t
see why…our bullpen isn’t bad and if Veras learned how to pitch he can
be a great 8th inning guy or for now Aceves has been great and we
should give him some looks as well…JOBA should be a starter no doubt
about it.

On to tonite…”The battle of the Andy’s”…or atleast that’s what
Michael Kay called it yesterday…I had to slap my head for that one too.
Sonnanstine vs. Pettitte two guys who are having less than stellar
years right now…well Pettitte is a product of pitching poorly at home
on the road he is flat out pitching great. This matchup is really one
sided in my opinion and the Yankees shouldn’t have a problem with a
struggling Sonnanstine, who has to go at least 7 innings for the
bullpens sake. Sonnanstine, who is an average at best pitcher, has
posted a robust 7.07 ERA this year over 11 starts and needs to get back
on track if the Rays want to make a run for any type of playoff hopes.
Like I said the Yanks should handle him fine, after yesterdays loss the
Rays might be fired up but I don’t think it will last long, the Yanks
have been jumping on horrible pitching all year and with their bats
right now they should jump all over Sonnanstine…case closed…Key to the
game is definitely Pettitte…if he pitches well and keeps the Rays at
bay the Yanks should run away with this one and take the series. Over
his last 3 home starts Pettitte has given up 4 earned in each one…he
MUST pitch better today and get back on track…the Yankees score a ton
but Pettitte has to start pitching better for his own sake…yes I said
‘sake’ twice…like I said I can’t see the Yankees losing this game, I’m
sure the bookies can’t either…LET’S GO YANKEES!!!

Other Notes:

Red Wings: They win tomorrow…can’t see how they don’t, at home with the cup on the line…no doubt about it in my mind.

Lakers vs Magic: Not a surprise…wish I could’ve seen more of the
game…but I thought the Lakers would win this series in 5 and it’s
looking like it might not even get that far.

That’s it!! late!

Yanks lose in 9th

A very, very
disappointing game today…one with many peaks and valleys but at the end
of the day the Yanks put themselves in a 4 run hole that they can only
half way dig out of. I, and probably every other Yankee fan, thought
that with the way they battled back there was noooooo shot they would
lose, especially with Mo coming in. Side Track: Hey Joe!!! Maybe it’s
time you realize that Mo can’t come in, in non save situations!!!! He
doesn’t have the same intensity and doesn’t have the same focus.
Please!!! we have other guys in the bullpen, definitely not as good or
with even close to the same track record but maybe Mo should only be in
during save situations…it has been said by many closers and many
pitching experts that when a closer comes in in a tie game they don’t
have that same fire or adrenaline rush…Joe, we have some talent in the
bullpen, including Phil Hughes lets give them a try too…Sorry Mo lovers
I am one too but you have to admit there is something wrong there.
Anyway the Yanks in the top of the 9th looked horrible, really can’t
blame them I guess…they got beat by the bats of the Rays and by Mo
getting just a bit too much of the plate. Although disappointing it is
just one loss, and the Sox still have to play a powerful offense today,
but as of right now we are tied for 1st.In
the long run the ONLY bad thing about this game was the
pitching…Sabathia’s performance was lackluster, although he did eat up
a ton of innings, 8 to be exact…but he kept the team in the game
despite giving up 5 earned on 2 homeruns. Price pitched extremely well,
he gave up 3 runs but only 1 of them was earned and the other 2 runs
were either caused or set up by Navarro who had 3 errors in the
game…OUCH! Without these errors the Yanks really had no shot, but
because of them it kept them in the game and the crowd was pumping, and
kept their adrenaline running…Side Track: Now you have to understand I
am a huge fan of Michael Kay’s radio show, I think it’s great but today
he really really made me mad. Jeter smacked a ball to right field in
the bottom of the 7th, and if it was a homerun it would have tied the
game but it wasn’t really that close, and Michael called it the whole
way like it was 20 rows deep and it was a no doubter…I understand the
job of the commentator is the keep the game entertaining but…Stop being
a superfan Michael….and you’ve been around this game long enough to
know when it is a no doubter…C’mon man I know people make mistakes but
that was a Sterling mistake.

Sorry…so like i said the pitching was the Achilles heel of the
Yankees today and it wasn’t from their inexperienced bullpen or their
journeymen pitchers but from two pitchers who you wouldn’t expect it
from. It really is just one loss, and everyone has their bad  days but
you just wish, with the way this team fought back, that both wouldn’t
come across bad performances today. O well, chalk it up to bad luck.
The Rays bats were on fire today and they took advantage of every bad
pitch they got, especially their position players and three guys you
really wouldn’t expect it from. One is Ben Zobrist, taking over for the
injured Bartlett, he went 2 for 3 today, with a solo homerun and the
most important hit of the game a triple in the 9th, followed by scoring
a run on a single by Joe Dillon…another unsung hero…Joe went 3 for 3
today and got key hits off of two really great pitchers and more
importantly the go ahead RBI off of Mo. The thrid player is Willie
Aybar, who hit a bomb in the top of the 6th to give the Rays a 5-3 lead
which they would eventually blow. But let’s not dwell and praise the
Rays, this is a Yankee blog hahaha.
YANKEE HITTERS!!! My prediction was right from the other day, in that
the Yanks MUST get Price out of the game early and get to this depleted
bullpen, who struggled ALL OVER today including the bottom of the 9th.
Until the bottom of the 8th the Rays bullpen actually showed up and I
thought the Yanks couldn’t come back with the way they were
pitching…but then Balfour decided to throw Tex a fastball down the
middle of the plate, btw he had him in either a 0-2 or 1-2 count,
Navarro wanted to the ball higher but Balfour made a HUGE mistake and
Tex hit the longest ball in Yankee Stadium so far…NOTE: I JUST MADE
THAT UP BUT IT WAS A BOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMBBBBB!!!!!…After a couple of
close calls going the Yankees way the bases were loaded for Melky…seems
to be a theme Melky in clutch situations…anywho, he grounds a weak ball
to short and there is a very close play at first that could’ve went
either way…My opinion he was out…but it doesn’t matter the Ump said
safe…YES!!! the Yanks are tied…Matsui struck out swinging on a call
that went to Rays way…my opinion he checked his swing. After the worst
top of the 9th inning I have ever seen, Tex does it again, after a
single by Jeter and a misplayed double by Damon, Teixeira hits a double
in the gap to bring the Yankees within 2 runs…but to no avail Randy
Choate comes in and gets Cano to hit a long fly ball to Center…which
almost went over the head of Upton…but didn’t.

So if there is something positive to take away from this game it is
that the Yankees will show fight in every game, and even though they
were battling back into the game, it seems like they always have
enthusiasm and the desire to win…I’m liking this team this year, the
kids are showing the Vets how to have fun and enjoy the game again…our
pitchers are showing up…most of the time…and the bats are on fire and
seem like they will never stop…let’s forget this loss….even though it
is a tough one to swallow…and take the next 2.

Tomorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrow! Chamberlain against Garza….Great matchup of
two perennial all stars and two pitchers who in 2 or 3 years will be
among the ELITE in the game. This matchup does intrigue me ALOT…it can
really go either way…can I be more vague? I thought today’s game would
be a pitchers duel…I was half right (Price did pitch great)….but
tomorrow I don’t see much offense coming through…both pitchers do have
the ability to get knocked around but this game determines the series.
Chamberlain proved over his last start why he is an asset to the
starting rotation and why he really wants to be here…if he can keep his
pitch count out of his mind, and let his ability and skill take over he
will dominate this matchup…Garza is a head case who usually throws
first ball fastballs to get ahead in the count…I don’t like over
aggressiveness but tomorrow the hitters might have to be. I’m gunna
call this game being a coin toss with either teams having to take
advantage of first pitch strikes and having the runners, those who do
get on, making the pitcher pay too much attention to them…if the
pitchers aren’t challenged and taken into late counts this game could
be a 1 – 0 victory by either team. The Yankees have to be aggressive
tomorrow in both pitching and hitting…the Rays strike out a lot but
don’t throw too many fastball because they have a lot of power. If the
bats get to Garza he gets flustered…swing early in counts if the pitch
is there…but if he is a little wild take him deep into counts and
rattle him a little…Gunna be a good game tomorrow…LET’S GO YANKEES!!!

No notes…can’t really think of any….late

Teixeira Slides in Hard!

SORRY FOR THE
DELAY! I gotta say I’m feeling good about this team…I know that
shouldn’t be a surprise but over the past couple of years we have had
teams perform like this only to fail in the playoffs. I don’t know what
it is, and I honestly don’t really care…the Yanks are winning big and
playing like champions. I say this over and over again but these guys
are just playing to have fun…and the new guys (and even younger
players) are breathing life into this team and making the vets realize
what it was like to be young and play for the YANKEES!!! You can’t get
any better than that! Most importantly the fans see this and are
reacting, the buzz around this team is astounding and I think I can
speak for every Yankee fan when I say this really looks like it might
be the year. I hate saying things like that soooooo early in the
season, BUT this team has that feel…we have pitching, hitting,
running…you name it we got it! (sorry for the sales person cliche
there). Last night proved what this team is capable of and more
importantly what they will do to win!Granted I didn’t get to see the play (I was working and OF COURSE! the one TV in front of me had on the Met game :-(
), well that’s kind of a lie I saw it quick on an ESPN highlight, but
Teixeira’s slide into second was the play of the night, and seemed to
be the catalyst for this team to perform. In case, like me, you missed
it with 1 out in the bottom of the 4th Tex comes up to the plate and
gets hit by a Vincente Padilla pitch, he got hit in consecutive at
bats. (There are a lot of murmurs that it was intentional, however
given the position in the game, with Arod coming to bat, and hitting
Tex to load the bases, it isn’t likely). Padilla got the job done, or
so it seemed, with a double play ball hit by Arod, but Teixeira slid
hard in to second breaking up an inning ending double play and allowing
the Yanks to score 5 more runs in the inning, for a total of 7. Many
people are coining this as Teixeira’s first “Yankee Moment” and you
kind of have to agree with that, if it wasn’t for him breaking up that
play the Yanks are tied at 3 going into the top of the 5th, but instead
the inning went on and was capped off by a 3 run A BOMB…O sorry…that’s
what John Sterling thought…Hey John stop flirting with Susan and get
over your man crush for a moment and give Matsui credit…he did correct
himself right after but I love bashing him ;-)
. BTW Matsui’s homerun was CRUSHED! Hopefully he is getting his swagger
back. Anyway the Yankee bats stay hot and they go on to win the game
12-3…which I will get back to but I want to touch on Burnett first.

A.J.!!! Besides the one blemish, I can’t lie though…Nelson Cruz
hammered that ball in the 3rd…it was pretty impressive, SIDE TRACK:
Nelson Cruz is showing why he was so sought after in every fantasy
draft and a huge asset for the Rangers…Look out for this kid in
upcoming years I see good things for him. Back on track: Burnett
pitched the same way he did a week earlier against this team,
dominating them at every turn and keeping them guessing. Burnett isn’t
going to be C.C though so I really hope people aren’t expecting that,
don’t get me wrong he is a great pitcher with tonssss of potential but
he ISN’T going to give you back to back complete game shutouts. What he
will give you is 6 – 7 innings of good pitching, he will usually give
up a few runs, in some places he will get shelled though, but all
pitchers have the bad games…but he backs up his games with a ton of
strike outs and the ability to work out of tight situations. His stuff
is so great that almost any jam, in any situation, he can work out of
it with his unhittable stuff. Sometimes he doesn’t trust it enough
though and you find him working the fastball to much and that’s when he
gets into trouble. Sorry for being a downer…but AJ pitched amazing last
night, giving up only 3 earned while striking out 8 and eating up 7
innings…I LOVE WHEN PITCHERS LET THE BULLPEN REST!!!! The only concern
was the amount of batters he put on the bases but the runs didn’t come
around so it was fine! My man Tomko came in and held it down and Veras
showed some promise…but lets not think that means anything the game was
out of reach so he didn’t really feel any pressure. However the Yankees
keep on rolling and our rotation is getting even stronger now! YES!!!

The Yankees offense took care of business against a mediocre
pitcher, which is what they need to do, and we have to believe they
will keep on rolling. These games are essential right now, they aren’t
must wins, but they are facing beatable opponents (ummmmmm….Texas is in
first place in the West though, just proving how much better the AL
East is than the rest of the AL) so they must take advantage of this
home-stand, especially going into Boston next week. It’s also good to
see other players hitting the ball well and coming back strong. The 5
through 9 hitters accounted for 9 of the 13 total hits the Yankees got
last night and 9 of the 11 RBIs….of course 4 of them came from Posada
who hit a 3 run bomb and Matsui brought across 3 as well with a homerun
of his own. Also Jeter has obviously become accustomed to his new role
at lead off…he went 3 for 4 yesterday and has a 16 game hitting
streak…he is blistering hot right now and is hitting everything!

Well on to tonite’s game…Yankees have another matchup, which on
paper, is in their favor. Another one of Texas’ youngsters, Scott
Feldman, against the veteran Pettitte. Most of us can see that the
Yankees should have the advantage in this game but…Pettitte has been
struggling at home this year posting a 5.57 era and giving up a
******** 7 homeruns! The Rangers lineup is balanced however most of
their power comes from the left side…but this is an advantage
considering that their biggest threat Josh Hamilton is on the DL and
will obviously not be facing Pettitte tonite. Feldman is a young right
hander who is having a good season posting a 3.91 ERA, which is
actually better than it seems considering his home ball park is
Arlington. I haven’t seen much of him but from what I have seen he has
good stuff and he is a groundball pitcher. He will get you the
occasional strikeout but don’t expect them to exceed 5 in any of his
starts. Also for this year Feldman has only given up 5 homeruns in 7
starts and only 2 of them are on the road, that could change tonite at
the rate balls are flying out of Yankee Stadium. The keys to tonite’s
game are the Yankees sitting back on pitches and waiting for Feldman to
get the balls up in the zone and taking it from there…being impatient
will only lead to groundballs and killing rallies. The Yankee runners
must also take advantage of a young pitcher who might pay too much
attention to them…but beware the Rangers do have a good young catcher
behind the plate who can throw out runners…so they can’t go too crazy.
Pettitte must take advantage of aggressive hitters…get ahead in the
count and work your fastball early to set up your off speed stuff…get
them swinging early to hit the ball in the ground. This team is
aggressive and they will attack especially if Pettitte is struggling. I
don’t feel real confident in this matchup, not that I don’t trust
pettitte but Yankee Stadium has not been kind to him…It’s a toss up,
but if the Yankees are hitting they take the game…LET’S GO YANKEES!

Other Notes:

Red Wings: Take the next game and take the Pens back to Detroit with
the series on the line…they won’t win on your ice and you can take Lord
Stanley’s cup for consecutive years

Ichiro: 26 game hitting streak…pretty impressive

That’s it I think….Late

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