Cervelli out indefinitely with broken wrist

March 8, 2008 by Mike Axisa 32 Comments

As if getting hit in the wrist by David Price wasn’t bad enough, Frankie Cervelli had his wrist broken on a collision at the plate with Elliot Johnson during today’s game. Slated to start the year with Double-A Trenton, Cervelli will be out for an undetermined length of time. “I think it’s uncalled for in spring training. You get people hurt and that’s what we got, we got Cervelli hurt,” said Joe Girardi. I can’t agree more–there’s no place for a play like that at this time of year, and I’m fairly certain there will be some retribution at some point. The two teams meet again on Wednesday, and the Rays visit the Bronx for a weekend series starting April 4th. Watch out.

(Hat tip to barry for the link.)

zack

That really, really, really sucks.
http://knickerbockerchatter.blogspot.com/ Bruno

Yes, yes it does. He’s supposed to be the Yanks catcher of the future. We can only hope for a Matsui-like comeback.

http://knickerbockerchatter.blogspot.com/
It’sMeSNITCHES!!!

Major bummer.
Babe’s Ghost

Say what you want about Roger and roids, but he was one of the only Yankees who stood up for his team-mates on a regular basis. Joe would routinely absorb multiple plunkings of his top players without retaliating. Hopefully Giardi will bring in Farny to drill Johnson.
- barry
  
  Farnsworth? He’ll miss give joba a whack at him, you know rookie on rookie retribution, plus come on man, if you’re gonna drill someone you’d better make it hurt as much as possible.
  - mooks
    
    Actually Farnsworth might be the perfect guy to do the beanball thing.
    
    He throws hard, and if someone is stupid enough to charge the mound against him…..well, take a look at whats Farnsworth has done in the past in fights.
    
    He did some damage to Paul Wilson and Jeremy Affedlt.
    
    However, Giradi when he was a catcher, was never to keen on calling for the ole beanball.
    - barry
      
      sometimes you gotta take things into your own hands
    - LiveFromNewYork
      
      Yeah Farnsworth has his own issues and I think rage is one of them.
      
      I also agree that Roger would take someone’s head clean off to stick up for his players and I loved that about him.
      
      I hope someone let’s them know what’s up. And I hope it’s Farnsworth.
      - http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
        
        As an added bonus, if Farnsworth retaliates and gets suspended, who’s going to miss him?
        
        Barry
        
        I will, and many of us will, who do we have to blame without farnsworth?
Rich

Still pissed.
JimB

Gee what a shame…how dare somebody play aggressive baseball against the big, bad Yankees. Johnson is a young player hustling and fighting for a place on the team and the Yankee manager sanctions retaliation…terrific. What would Girardi say if one of his players showed a little guts instead of just behaving like a bunch of spoiled hot dogs?
- dan
  
  You do realize that it’s spring training, right? When this happens during the season, no one complains because you do whatever you have to do to win. When someone wrecks the catcher, his own manager will be mad because the player doesn’t have the sense to realize the ultimate goal– which is certainly not winning ST games.
- mooks
  
  Most managers have the common sense to see hustle.
  
  This was bush league, it wasn’t needed.
  
  And yea, before you ask, I thought what Pete Rose did in that all star game years ago, was also stupid.
  
  This was crap, and Giradi already stated what he told his guys before spring training…it was the same thing every manager tells their players.
  
  You do not do something like this, you do not risk injuring someone else.
- Chip
  
  Let’s say that a Yankee no-name rookie decided to take-out slide Longoria at third base to break up a double play during spring training and broke his leg. Then Longoria decides to pull a Jermaine Dye and never be the same again. You don’t think the entire Rays organization would blame the Yankees for the next ten years about why they suck?
Mike D

Stupid play on the part of the Rays’ rookie. He was being overly agressive. It wasn’t intentional, but it was stupid. I’m sure there will be some retaliation at some point, but it may not be on a bean ball. The Rays’ catcher may get blasted by some Yankee during the season, and that’s why it was a stupid play on the part of Johnson. He’s not putting his own team mates at risk.
- Barry
  
  hopefully shelley will unleash on his ass
zack

Would have been nice to at least see a little remorse on the part of the Rays…
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=56352514 Jamal G

Im not surprised at the fact that there is no remorse. I believe it was Carl Crawford who was involved in a home plate collision just a couple days ago and Joe Maddon backed him up when he ran over a catcher on the Astros team. ( I believe it was the Astros).

I cant believe Maddon is allowing this kind of crap but hey, his players follow him so I believe the blame is on that guy.
- Rich
  
  Throw a pitch at him sitting in the dugout.
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RollingWave

GAHH… he’s one of the guys i was really hoping to see this year arragh

hope this doesn’t hurt his long term progress, i really like what i saw from him in ST. patient. atheltic, good swing.
Jeb

Whoever derisively referred to “the big bad Yankees” is full of it. The kid doesn’t have to barrel over a catcher to show hustle; sliding can be hustling too. If you think that it’s a fine thing to do in a Spring Training game, then certainly you won’t have a problem with someone on the Yankees injuring him later….perhaps when he’s back on his AAA roster. What really sucks about this is that Cervilli needs the time and seasoning to make a run at BUC next year or in 2009. It will take him 4 months to be as good as new, which sets back his development.

I agree with whomever said that Pete Rose went too far. Rose is an idiot. That was an All-star game and Ray Fosse was never the same after hurting his shoulder. I hope Rose cries a river about the HOF and NEVER gets in. (And yes, I realize that Fosse is not the reason that Rose isn’t in the HOF, but sometimes karma is sweet).
- Whitey14
  
  You make a great point about sliding showing hustle as well. It would have certainly made more sense with hindsight being 20/20. This kid is trying to make the team, or be placed at a higher Minor League level and this action may cause those in his own organization to feel he doesn’t have a great mind for the game. However, if there is retaliation for this play later, it would make the yankees look like shit because the action taken would be with the intent to injure. I’m all for an eye-for-an-eye when it comes to pitchers hitting batters, but not for a play that was within the rules, no matter how stupid. Now if he slid way out of the baseline going into 2nd to break up a double play and had broken the 2nd baseman’s leg, I would feel differently because that’s just dirty. Catcher’s know they will occasionally get popped at the plate, it’s just unfortunate this happened to the kid in a Spring Training/meaningless game.
  I wonder how much Joe’s fine will be for speaking of future retaliation?
Alvaro

Torre wouldn’t have said squat about this and would have had no idea who Cervelli is.
Dimaggio5

The Yankees have to retaliate, under Torre stuff like this went unchecked. Time to show MLB that Girardi’s Yankees are different. He should not have whined to the press though and should have simply made sure one of their players gets taken out next time the two teams meet.
GrowUp

Are you kidding? If the Yankees did this you homers would be saying “this is the toughness of Girardi showing” Get a grip, it was a kid trying to impress during spring training. Speaking of Girardi, I would’nt bet on the future of Joba, Hughes, or Kennedy. The guy destroys pitchers like Dusty Baker, except it only took him 1 year to do it. Just ask Josh Johnson and Anibal Sanchez, you can find them in rehab still.
Dave

Call me crazy, but I really don’t ever remember a time when Clemens would stand up for his fellow teammates…..Or maybe I just have Pedro on the brain and can think of all the times Soriano or Jeter got plunked and nobody and I mean nobody ever buzzed Ortiz’s or Manny’s tower.
- J.R.
  
  Last year Clemens plunked a guy after A-Rod was plunked and remember him and Piazza? Enough said. But the best retribution guy was Paul Quantril back in the day. One of his teamates got hit, so Quantril throws behind the batter, gets warned and then plunks the guy dead in the back. Badass.
Rob

Well I don’t know how Girardi will react but if it were up to me, I would advise Maddon to start this guy on Wednesday so he pays for his own unnecessary actions rather than Crawford or Upton or Longoria…
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Dave

J.R.,

Thanks. I told you I had Pedro on the brain…I remember that last season….But the Piazza thing had nothing to do with retaliation…That was about Piazza owning Clemens.