Archive for June, 2009
Game 63 Spillover Thread
Posted by: | CommentsWe’ve missed you, Johan.
Love,
The American League
Game 63: Salvaging a series
Posted by: | CommentsAs lethargic as the team looked yesterday, it’s kinda hard to believe they’re coming into today’s game with a chance to win this edition of the Subway Series. If they’re going to win today, they’re going to have to earn, because the Metsies are sending Johan Santana to the bump. After his amazingly great start that had him sitting pretty with a 0.78 ERA on May 16th, teh Johan’s been rather pedestrian in his last five starts, pitching to a 4.64 ERA and a .848 OPS against.
The Yanks are sending former Mets’ farmhand AJ Burnett to mound, and we all know what happened in his last time out. His last five starts have been very similar to Santana’s – 4.13 ERA, .839 OPSA – but that and ten bucks will get you a cup of “coffee” at Starbucks. Burnett needs to execute, and needs to avoid the ridiculous walk issues that have plagued Yankee pitchers in the first two games of the series.
Meanwhile, Brian Bruney and Francisco Rodriguez almost came to blows and had to be separated in the outfield before the game according to Newsday’s David Lennon. The YES pregame said K-Rod instigated the incident and actually shoved Bruney before cooler heads prevailed. I’m sure MLB will look into that. In a way, K-Rod validated Bruney’s comments by showing that he is kind of a dick.
Here’s the lineup:
Jeter, SS
Damon, LF
Teixeira, 1B
A-Rod, 3B
Cano, 2B – why is his still batting fifth?
Swisher, RF
Matsui, DH
Cabrera, CF
Cervelli, C
And on the mound, Allen James Burnett.
Update 1:04 p.m.: Mark Feinsand has more on the Bruney/K-Rod flap: “Bruney and K-Rod have confrontation during batting practice. Bruney went to apologize and K-Rod didn’t want to hear it. More to come.”
It sounds more and more as though K-Rod just proved Bruney’s point. Way to take the high road there, Francisco.
Joba, Posada acknowledge communication issues
Posted by: | CommentsAs Joba Chamberlain was busy walking everyone and their mother in Friday night’s Subway Series opener, Jorge Posada was busying visiting the mound between what seemed like every pitch. Yesterday, the two acknowledged the obvious: They were having trouble communicating, mostly about pitch selection. Posada said he was trying to speed Joba up to improve his tempo, while the pitcher said he was out of rhythm. As much as we all love you Joba, you’re 23. Listen to Jorge.
A brief musing on the starting pitching
Posted by: | CommentsHeading into this season, the Yanks’ starting pitching was all the rage. Having spent gobs of money on CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett and with Chien-Ming Wang, Andy Petitte and Joba Chamberlain returning to the team, the Yanks’ pitching seemed set for take off. They even had Phil Hughes, Al Aceves and Ian Kennedy in the wings.
While Kennedy is injured, the picture remains the same. The colors however have dimmed significantly. A.J. Burnett has alternated between greatness and awfulness. Joba Chamberlain hasn’t found his efficiency or velocity. Chien-Ming Wang is trying to find himself. And steadfast Andy Pettitte has been terrible lately. How did this come to pass?
Over the next few days, we’re going to examine the state of the Yankees starting pitcher, but for now, I offer up one statistic. Below is a table of four Yankee starters and their pitches per plate appearance. CC Sabathia and, surprisingly, Chien-Ming Wang are the only Yankees better than league average in that category.
| Pitcher | Pitches Per Plate Appearance |
|---|---|
| Phil Hughes | 3.97 |
| Joba Chamberlain | 3.92 |
| A.J. Burnett | 3.89 |
| Andy Pettitte | 3.84 |
| League Average | 3.82 |
So what can this tell us? Well, on the surface, we can see that Yankee pitchers are not making the most of their pitches. While it’s true that some of these differences are rather small, an increase of 0.3 pitches per plate appearances adds up to 30 extra pitches per 100 plate appearances. The Yankees’ starters therefore do not go deep into games, and the bullpen, full of lesser arms, is overtaxed.
For now, I am loathe to draw conclusions based on just these numbers. But chew on them. They do not portend success for a pitching staff expected to excel.
Sublett & Fryer power Tampa to win
Posted by: | CommentsTriple-A Scranton (7-6 win over Gwinnett)
Kevin Russo, Eric Duncan & Doug Bernier: all 0 for 4 – Russo drew a walk, scored a run & K’ed … E-Dunc drove in a run & K’ed
Austin Jackson & Cody Ransom: both 1 for 5, 1 R – Ajax doubled & K’ed … Ransom drove in a run & K’ed twice
Shelley Duncan: 0 for 2, 2 R, 3 BB, 1 K – feared
Juan Miranda: 3 for 3, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 E (missed catch)
Justin Leone: 1 for 3, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K
Kevin Cash: 0 for 3, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K
Casey Fossum: 3 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 1 WP, 3-3 GB/FB – 49 of 83 pitches were strikes (59%)
Romulo Sanchez: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, 1 WP, 3-2 GB/FB – 20 of 42 pitches were strikes (47.6%)
Zach Kroenke: 2.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 2-5 GB/FB – 22 of 35 pitches were strikes (62.9%)
Mark Melancon: 1.1 IP, zeroes, 2 K, 1-1 GB/FB – 10 of 16 pitches were strikes (62.5%) … Mr. Efficiency
Saturday Night Open Thread
Posted by: | CommentsAfter the way the Yankees mailed today’s game in, I wouldn’t hold it against you if you decide to go out and get hammered tonight. Hell, I wouldn’t hold that against you on any night. But if you’re not going out and decided to spend your evening with us, use this thread to talk about whatever you want. Virginia is taking on LSU in the College World Series on ESPN right now, so you can check that out if you don’t find anything else on the tube. Virginia starter Danny Hultzen is a legitimate candidate for the first overall pick in the 2010 2011 Draft.
Anything goes here, just be nice.
Game 62 Spillover Thread
Posted by: | CommentsPettitte gives up baserunners. Omir Santos looks like Ty Cobb. Fernando Nieve looks like Cy Young. We’re surprised about this because?
Game 62: Hoping Veras pitches today
Posted by: | CommentsWhat the Yankees could use today — well, what they could use any day, but today especially — is a good ol’ fashioned drubbing. The kind of game where fans go home in the third inning because the score is 12-0 and the Yanks have runners on the corners with none out. After the last week, which felt more like a season unto itself, I think the team and its fans would feel a lot better after a win in the most decisive manner.
They’ll certainly get the chance to do so, as the Mets trot out Fernando Nieve for his first start this season, which will be the 12th of his career. The other 11 came in 2006 for Houston, where he threw 61.2 innings to a 4.67 ERA. He was far more effective out of the bullpen that year, throwing 34.2 innings of 3.38 ERA ball. He threw just 21.2 innings in 2007, all of which came at Houston’s Round Rock AAA affiliate. His season ended early, though, as he underwent Tommy John Surgery in early May of that year.
Nieve made a surprisingly fast return to the mound, as he tossed five innings in Round Rock’s game on April 6, 2008, a hair shy of 11 months from the date of his surgery. He started six games for Round Rock before the Astros moved him to the bullpen, where he appeared three times before his recall on May 16. After four appearances in which Nieve allowed six runs over three innings, including a zero-inning, four-run performance on May 25, the Astros optioned him to AAA again. They recalled him again on September 1, and he pitched fairly well for the rest of the season.
The Astros brought Nieve to camp in 2009 to see if he could compete for a rotation spot. However, it was all or nothing for the 26-year-old, as he was out of options. The Astros placed him on waivers on March 13, and the Mets claimed him on March 15. The Mets then placed him on waivers after he didn’t make the club, but this time he passed through unclaimed, opening the door for his assignment to AA Binghamton.
After five appearances there, four of which were starts, Nieve moved up to AAA, where he started four games. The Mets recalled him last Friday, and he’s made one appearance since, a two-inning relief appearance against the Nationals in which he struck out two and allowed just one hit. This will be his first major league start since June 15, 2006.
Andy Pettitte will try to give the bullpen a rest today, something he hasn’t been able to do over his past few starts. If there was ever a day to do it, Andy, it’s today.
Note: Brian Bruney pitched a scoreless inning today in Trenton in which he threw 12 pitches, eight for strikes. He was hitting 94 on the gun, another good sign. He could be activated as soon as Tuesday. If Brett Tomko isn’t the roster casualty, I’m not sure what the Yanks are thinking.
Lineup:
1. Derek Jeter, SS
2. Johnny Damon, LF
3. Mark Teixeira, 1B
4. Alex Rodriguez, 3B
5. Robinson Cano, 2B
6. Jorge Posada, C
7. Hideki Matsui, DH
8. Melky Cabrera, RF
9. Brett Gardner, CF
And on the mound, number forty-six, Andy Pettitte.
Observation: Joba should listen to Jorge
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s a common meme in the comments — not only here, but on other blogs and message boards — that Jorge Posada does not call a good game. I admit to having similar thoughts from time to time, but then I think to the pitching staffs Jorge has handled in the past. Few of them had any problems. The problems with the Yanks starting pitching began, without a doubt, when they trotted out an inferior staff, starting in 2004. Jorge, in other words, has worked with lesser pitchers in general since the days of Roger, Andy, Wells, Cone, Duque, Mussina, et al.
We all know Jorge has an abrasive personality. If he doesn’t like something he’s not going to sugar coat it. The media has often observed that while Derek Jeter‘s leaderships stems from the example he sets, Jorge is the more vocal presence in the clubhouse. He will let you know when you screw up, and if you have something coming to you, you can bet Jorge’s the one to deliver it.
Pitchers, it is said, have fragile egos. Clearly that’s a generalization and doesn’t extent to pitchers a baseball species. There are many pitchers, though, who don’t like that tough-minded catcher personality. Hence, a number of pitchers over the years have preferred to work with the backup catcher, whether that be Molina in the last year and a half or Cervelli this year. This isn’t to say that the pitchers in question — most notably Mussina and Sabathia — can’t handle Posada. It’s that their styles don’t exactly match up.
Mussina and Sabathia know what they’re doing. They know their bodies and their know their repertoire. They know situations and what to throw in different ones. Jorge has his own ideas. Jorge has a strong personality. Perhaps Jorge is just a bit over-assertive in these cases with veteran pitchers. It can, after all, be frustrating for both parties when Jorge wants a fastball and the pitcher knows he can bury a curve to finish off the batter.
This leads me to the title of this post. Last night, Joba was shaking off Jorge left and right. Jorge would signal, Joba would shake. That process would repeat a few times. This led to a number of mound visits so the two could talk over the situation. The two went through this a number of times in the super-long third inning. They were not on the same page, and I’m sure that was evident to anyone watching. However, when Joba got his way — which was basically when you saw him throw a breaking ball in a questionable count — he was all over the place.
After yet another walk, you could see Jorge walk halfway out to the mound and say something. I was watching the SNY broadcast so I don’t know if his words were shown on the YES counterpart. However, I imagine he said something to the effect of “now we do it my way.” From that point on we saw Joba throw more fastballs and — surprise surprise — more strikes.
Joba is only 23 years old. He might think that hanging out with vets like CC and Burnett makes him a better pitcher, but all the talk in the world will not make him older and wiser. The idiocy of youth is still present in a 23-year-old, and Joba certainly shows it sometimes. He’s a very good pitcher. We can all see that in his stuff. However, he needs to step back and recognize where he is right now. He needs to listen to his catcher. From the way I watched the game last night, it seemed like he was much better when he did.
This, of course, is just an observation and is not based on some kind of insider knowledge. I do want to foster this discussion, though. Should Joba just listen to what Jorge says? I vote yes. Jorge’s not always right — he called for a curve when Wright was down 0-2, but Robertson knew that an outside fastball would do the trick. In general, though, Joba needs to have more faith in his fastball and throw it when Jorge calls it. Whether the radar gun reads 91 or 96, he still pumps that thing, and it’s a veritable weapon. If he commands that — and to command it one must throw it often — he’ll be fine. If he insists on using his (good) breaking stuff too often, he’ll work up his pitch count as he did last night.
Just 21 days 'til pitchers and catchers report.
