Archive for July, 2009
What the umpires said
Posted by: | CommentsPreviously on What the umpire saw: Derek Jeter tries to steal third base with no outs in the first inning. While the throw beat him to the base, his hand touches third before the tag. Umpire Marty Foster calls him out. “I was told I was out because the ball beat me, and he didn’t have to tag me,” Jeter alleges, and crew chief John Hirschbeck, who called Jeter “the classiest person I’ve been around,” promises an investigation….
When last we saw Monday’s umpiring crew, things were looking bleak for Marty Foster. Hirschbeck had refused to make him available to the media, and Derek Jeter was adamant in his critique. I blamed Foster for the bad call at third, and Cliff Corcoran slammed the umps for four bad calls. The men in blue were on the wrong end of a lot of scorn.
On Tuesday, though, this story took a turn for the bizarre. With the same crew working the Mets-Dodgers game, New York reporters had their second crack at Hirschbeck and Foster. Again, Hirschbeck declined to make Foster available to the media. The beleaguered umpire refuses to face the fire. Meanwhile, Hirschbeck has apparently changed his story after speaking with Foster.
According to the 25-year veteran, Foster told him that Jeter was wrong. According to Hirschbeck, Foster said, “The ball beat you, and I had him tagging you.”
To reporters, Hirschbeck defended Foster without reneging on his praise of Jeter. “I don’t see a problem with that,” Hirschbeck said. “Sometimes when tempers flare, you don’t hear everything that’s said.”
Tempers, though, didn’t flare until after Foster allegedly told Jeter that he would be out as long as the ball beat him regardless of the tag. Meanwhile, prior to the game — and prior to Hirschbeck’s discussion with the media — Jim McKean, an MLB umpire supervisor who liaises between MLB and the umpires, spoke with the crew. Do I sense a conspiracy afoot?
Right now, this story is just plan weird. Two members of the Yankees — their widely respected captain and manager — claim the umpire said something outrageous while the crew chief, after having enough time to get his story straight, said the polar opposite. We still haven’t and probably won’t hear from Marty Foster.
The calls for instant replay aside, this is a prime example of a problem with the current system. The umpires have become the story. ESPN has rebroadcast Jeter’s slide hundreds of times by now. The entire nation knows that he was safe. Yet, Marty Foster called him out, and John Hirschbeck seems to be sweeping this story under the rug.
We don’t need a full investigation. We don’t need some Watergate-level special prosecutor to turn up. What we need is for Marty Foster to step forward and tell us the honest-to-God truth. If he really thinks that Scott Rolen placed a tag on Derek Jeter, then so be it. He missed the call, and bad calls are just a part of the game. If he actually said that Jeter was called out regardless of the tag because the throw beat him, he shouldn’t be umping Major League Baseball games.
Either way, this has devolved into a “he said, he said” battle. Right now, I believe Derek. This latest development from Hirschbeck is far too convenient for my tastes.
Added by Joe: Since this is probably the last we’ll hear of this, I figured I’d add this tidbit. Apparently Joe Girardi didn’t get tossed on Monday for arguing the Jeter play at third. Erik Boland says it was because of a call from Sunday. Marty Foster was at home plate on Sunday for the play where Raul Chavez tagged Mark Teixeira with his glove, but the ball was in his other hand. Personally, I find that call more egregious than the one at third.
Mitre strong in latest audition
Posted by: | CommentsTwo years ago today on DotF, Mighty Matt DeSalvo threw 100 pitches in seven one-run innings against Ottawa.
Make sure you scroll down for tonight’s game thread.
Triple-A Scranton (5-1 win over Buffalo in 11 innings)
Kevin Russo, Austin Jackson & Doug Bernier: all 1 for 5 – Russo K’ed once, Bernier twice … Jackson doubled & was caught stealing … Ajax has three homers & two doubles in his last eight games, so the power’s coming
Ramiro Pena: 0 for 4, 1 BB
Shelley Duncan: 1 for 4, 1 R, 1 Bb, 1 K – hasn’t hit a homer since June 22nd … what’s up with that?
Juan Miranda: 3 for 4, 2 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 BB
Yurendell DeCaster: 0 for 2, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 2 HBP
Colin Curtis: 0 for 5, 2 K
Chris Stewart: 2 for 5, 1 R, 1 HR, 4 RBI – 11th inning grand slam FTW
Sergio Mitre: 6.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 10-3 GB/FB – 60 of 100 pitches were strikes … another quality outing
Zach Kroenke: 3.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 4-5 GB/FB – 29 of 40 pitches were strikes (72.5%)
Anthony Claggett: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 2-1 GB/FB – 10 of 13 pitches were strikes (76.9%)
Game 83: Last trip to the Hefty bag
Posted by: | CommentsThis is last series the Yankees will ever play in Minneapolis’s Metrodome, which will be replaced next year by the brand spankin’ new Target Field. How the people of Minnesota will ever bear an early season or late October game without a roof, I’ll never know. The Yanks are 74-64 all-time in the big garbage bag, so they’re guaranteed to walk away from the place with a winning record.
CC Sabathia didn’t face the Twins when they came to the Bronx for a four game set in mid-May, but the Yanks still swept the series thanks to a trio of walk-off wins. After an ugly outing last time out, Sabathia will look to right the ship tonight. He’ll be opposed by Scott Baker, the Twins incumbent ace who didn’t face the Yanks earlier this year. Baker’s overall numbers aren’t anything special, but his last six starts have been outstanding. They’ll have to earn this win tonight.
Here’s the starting nine:
Jeter, SS
Damon, LF
Teixeira, 1B - I’m calling it, he hits one out tonight
A-Rod, 3B
Matsui, DH
Swisher, RF
Cano, 2B
Gardner, CF
Cervelli, C
And on the mound, big bad CC Sabathia.
Oh, and Angel Berroa was released today. Forgot all about him.
Aceves to start Thursday
Posted by: | CommentsPer the Yankee beat writers on various blogs and Twitter, the Yanks have told Alfredo Aceves that he will start on Thursday in place of the injured Chien-Ming Wang. It will be Aceves’ first start of the season after he has appeared 21 times out of the bullpen. On the year, he is 5-1 with a 2.02 ERA in 40 innings. He has struck out 34 while walking just seven, and opponents are hitting just .208/.252/.354 off of him.
For now, Aceves’ start is a one-time event. The Yanks will not need the fifth starter again until well after the All Star Break, and the roster could look quite different by then. I had hoped to see Phil Hughes transition back into the rotation, but Aceves is more stretched out right now. He threw four innings with a low pitch count of 43 on Sunday and could probably go five or six innings if he again keeps that pitch total down.
Kei Igawa sets his very own record
Posted by: | CommentsIn a rather dubious fashion, Kei Igawa tied a Scranton record yesterday, and in a few days, he’ll be the sole owner of the mark. PeteAbe with an assist from Chad Jennings, reports that Kei Igawa’s 26th win of his three-year stint at AAA Scranton ties the franchise record. He and Evan Thomas, a career minor leaguer with the Phillies organization, share this dubious distinction.
After the game, Igawa, stuck at AAA forever, kept his achievement in perspective. I can’t tell if he’s being somber or sarcastic. “As long as there is a record that I have chance of setting, it’s something the process to get through,” he said. “It’s a stepping stone, not a final goal of mine.”
Got that? Kei Igawa’s final goal is not to be the most winning Japanese pitcher in the history of the International League or Scranton’s most successful starter. I’m glad he cleared that up.
For his in-progress AAA career, Igawa is now 26-13 with a 3.56 ERA in 51 starts. He’s striking out over 7 per 9 innings and has a WHIP of 1.21. These decent minor league numbers though have not translated into Major League success. With the Yanks, he is 2-4 with a devilish 6.66 ERA in 16 games. Opponents have hit a stunning .302/.386/.549 off of the lefty. He was removed from the 40-man roster in 2008 and hasn’t seen Yankee pinstripes since a one-inning cameo last June. He is still under contract for the next two seasons.
At this point, there’s no real way to sugar coat the Yanks’ decision to sign Kei Igawa. They forked over $46 million for his services, and I doubt he’ll pitch another Big League inning before his contract ends following the 2011 season. While Peter Gammons once blamed Ron Guidry for tinkering with Igawa’s motion and alleged that the Red Sox would put in a waiver claim, that statement seemed more delusional than ever when Igawa passed through waivers last year.
Meanwhile, it is accepted knowledge that the Yanks decided to sign Igawa instead of taking a shot on Ted Lilly for four years and around $40 million. Lilly is third in the Majors in victories since then and 12th in strike outs. Ouch. This might just have been one of the worst Yankee decisions of the last five years.
But as we wait for the game to begin in a few hours, we will tip our caps to Kei Igawa. He now owns an American baseball record. It might be a dubious one, but it is a record indeed. The sad part is that he’ll probably have another two and a half seasons during which he can build on it.
Injuries up 26% since 2006
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The Yankees have dealt with more than their fair share of injuries this season, having lost their two primary setup men, number two starter, starting third baseman, backup third baseman, and top two catchers at various points this year. The Yankees aren’t alone though, because injuries around Major League Baseball increased 26% from 2006 to 2008 as Michael S. Schmidt, writing for The NY Times, shows. The number of injuries in 2009 is similar to those in 2008 midway through the season.
Jeff Zimmerman at Beyond the Box Score recently put together a database of players that went on the disabled list from between 2002 and 2008, which also shows that injuries have gone up over the last three seasons (see graph below). The Yankees are actually near the bottom of the league in the number of total trips to the disabled list and total days lost due to injury since ’02, but their average DL trip was among the longest in the league (thanks, Carl).
So why have the number of injuries gone up? Well no one knows for sure. “There are a lot of theories around about why it has gone up, and a lot of them make sense, but I am not convinced that it’s one thing,” said Stan Conte, the director of medical services and the head athletic trainer for the Los Angeles Dodgers. “Anyone who thinks they have the one answer is lying or wrong.”
That doesn’t stop anyone from formulating theories however, but in all likelihood there”s more than one thing at work here. Coincidentally, or maybe not, amphetamines were added to Major League baseball’s banned substance list in the ’05-’06 offseason. It’s no secret that players have long relied on “greenies” to help then battle through the 162-game grind, and now that they’re unavailable players are finding out that they can’t play hurt as frequently any more.
Better medical technology may also be contributing to the increase in injuries. Torn hip labrums – which have shelved Alex Rodriguez, Mike Lowell, Carlos Delgado, Chase Utley and Alex Gordon within the last 12 months along – are not a new injury, they’ve just become easier to diagnose through technological advancements. Then you have the possibility of teams abusing the disabled list, or players not willing to play hurt because it could cost them a big payday down the road. There are plenty more potential reasons that I won’t even begin to try to touch on.
Peter Nash, director of underwriting for a syndicate of Lloyd’s of London, a firm that insures contracts for both teams and players says “We believe that injuries move in five-year increments: they go up for five years, then plateau, then go up for five years, and plateau, and over time, they are going higher and higher. As long as athletes are pushing themselves as hard as they can, the number will continue to go higher and higher.”
What do you think is the cause behind the increase in injuries? Is it PEDs? Better technology? Something else? A fluke?
Seventh-inning stretch can now be used as intended
Posted by: | CommentsWay back in RAB’s infancy, we were a bit miffed at restrictive policies during the seventh-inning stretch. Namely, that security guards and police officers would prevent people from entering the concourse during the daily rendition of God Bless America. In April we learned of a fan filing suit against the team. Today we learn the result.
Yes, it has taken a court settlement to determine that fans have the right to move about as Kate Smith’s voice blares over the PA. The settlement came down with the help of a federal judge in Manhattan. No longer will we worry about harassment when we just want to hit the head while there’s a slightly longer mid-inning break.
Of course, there were ways before to circumvent the policy. At the game last Wednesday, I started my walk to the bathroom as Andy Pettitte recorded the second out in the top of the seventh. Risky, of course, because the inning could have gone a bit longer. But in the end I relieved myself at the perfect time, returning to my seat just in time for Take Me Out To The Ball Game.
Hat tip Pinto.
Jeter wants to stay at short, but should he?
Posted by: | CommentsAs the years have worn on, Derek Jeter‘s defense has been the topic of many an argument among Yankee fans. Some see his strong throws from the outfield grass and willingness to sacrifice his body on foul balls as a sign that he knows how to field his position. Others die a little on the inside every time Michael Kay says that the ball goes “past a diving Jeter.” He is not, critics contend, a very good defender.
For the most part, those critics are right. Jeter has never been a particularly stand-out fielder. His range has generally been below-average, and he has been able to compensate for his weak fielding by flashing above-average arm strength and a top-notch offensive prowess. The Yanks are OK with putting him at short because he has a career offensive line of .316/.387/.458 and over 2600 hits.
As Derek crept past his 35th birthday 11 days ago, the debate over his place on the field continues. At some point, he’ll have to move off short to a less important defensive spot on the diamond. With third and first base held down for the better part of the next decade, what that spot will be is anyone’s guess.
Jeter, though, will have none of it. In the Sunday conversation with Post writer Steve Serby, Jeter unequivocally objected to switching positions:
Q: Can you envision yourself playing another position for the Yankees than shortstop?
A: Can I envision? No.
Q: What if they asked you?
A: You’re speaking in all hypotheticals.
Q: I know.
A: I can’t answer that question.
Q: Anyway, I was listening to radio, and they were talking about maybe . . .
A: I don’t listen to the radio, so . . . wherever you’re going with that question, I don’t even want to hear it.
Q: But your last day as a Yankee, whenever that will be, you want to be at shortstop.
A: You asked me, “Can I envision myself playing another position?’ My answer to that question is no, I can’t envision it,” so . . .
I could almost read Jeter’s patience evaporating before my eyes. For now, though, Jeter can stay at short. Per Fangraphs, Jeter is having a decent-for-him defensive season. He has a positive UZR, and while his range factor is still at the bottom of the bunch, he defensive metrics are far better than they were a few years ago. (For more on these advanced defensive stats, review the Fangraphs Glossary.)
There is, however, one question to ponder: Should Yankee fans expect to win with a 35-year-old short stop? A few months ago, David Pinto tackled just that question and produced the following graph. It shows the total percentage of all plate appearances by age and position. Click it to enlarge.
As Pinto pointed out in April, it’s been a while since a team won the World Series with a 35-year-old short stop. Larry Bowa was 34 in 1980 when the Phillies captured their title, and he’s the oldest short stop on a World Series winner in the last 54 years. You have to go all the way back to the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers and 36-year-old Pee Wee Reese to find a short stop older than Jeter who captured a ring.
That isn’t to say the Yankees can’t do it. As long Jeter hits as he’s been doing and plays at least close-to-average defense, the Yanks have as good a short as ever. After all, their title hopes rest more with their pitchers than with the short stop. As Jeter protests moving positions, though, history is not on his side.
Just 21 days 'til pitchers and catchers report.
