Archive for August, 2009
Might the Yankees flip Aceves and Mitre?
Posted by: | CommentsThere was one reason why Mitre’s poor outing didn’t kill the Yankees that night, and that’s Al Aceves. Even though he’d been a bit shaky of late, likely a symptom of his shoulder fatigue, Girardi had the confidence to go to him with one out in the fifth. As he’s done for most of this season, Aceves gave the Yankees a few good innings which allowed them to win a game. It’s time he got to pitch more innings.
Sergio Mitre, it would seem, is not working out. He’s had only four starts, but he’s yet to finish six innings. Last night he again lost Girardi’s trust early, forcing the bullpen to get 14 outs, including the first two with a man already on base. The first six of those outs were recorded by Alfredo Aceves.
Next time around, the Yankees might want to consider flipping the two. Aceves can’t go deep into the game at this point, but neither can Mitre. At least Aceves would be working into a position where he might be able to last six, seven innings. He might never get there, but there’s little to lose in trying. Aceves has pitched well enough this season to earn a shot.
As a friend asked after I proposed this, why let Mitre blow games out of the pen? I’m not so sure he’d be bad out there. Even in the two-run first, the Jays were all grounders and bloops. The result was obviously bad, but I’ll take a guy who can get a grounder out of the pen. Plus the Yanks have him signed through next season, so they might as well give him a shot out of the pen.
If Girardi’s not going to let him work out of jams, Mitre is worthless as a fifth starter. The Yankees clearly aren’t returning Hughes to the rotation, a waiver claim is unlikely, and no one wants to see Kei Igawa’s return, the Yanks have no better alternative than to hand Aceves a rotation spot. The way he’s been pitching most of the season, that’s not a bad alternative at all.
Trenton runs into vintage Pedro
Posted by: | CommentsTriple-A Scranton had a scheduled off day. They did get some help, as Russ Ortiz was signed to aid the thinned out rotation.
Double-A Trenton (8-4 loss to Reading) they faced Pedro tonight, who flat schooled ‘em
Austin Krum, PJ Pilittere & Edwar Gonzalez: all 0 for 4 – Krum K’ed thrice, Pilittere twice, Edwar once
Reegie Corona: 1 for 3, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 SB
Eduardo Nunez: 2 for 4, 2 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 K, 1 SB – took Pedro deep
Chris Malec & Richie Robnett: both 1 for 4, 1 K
James Cooper: 0 for 3, 1 K
Marcos Vechionacci: 2 for 3, 1 R, 1 K, 1 E (throwing) – 17 errors on the year
Jeremy Bleich: 5 IP, 11 H, 7 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, 1 HB, 8-1 GB/FB – he’s at 124.2 IP right now … career high is 98.2 IP two years ago
Kanekoa Texeira: 2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 1 WP, 4-0 GB/FB
Jose Valdez: 1 IP, zeroes, 1 K, 1-1 GB/FB
Game 107: Do not make fun of this man’s last name
Posted by: | CommentsAs someone with a long Polish last name, I sympathize with Marc Rzepczynski. Any time people see more than eight letters and an ski at the end, it’s an opening for 1) gross mispronunciation, and 2) ridicule, because it’s not a good ol’ ‘Merican name — the “I’d like to buy a vowel” line is already old, at least in my mind. Yet I can’t empathize with him. My name is 100 percent phonetic. If you took the time to look at the letters, you could pronounce it with ease (when I took the GREs, the administrator said anyone who couldn’t pronounce it is an idiot…I liked her). Marc? Not so much. So please, for the sake of your host, let’s lay off the guy, at least on his surname.
And, for reference, it’s Zep-CHIN-Ski.
A 2007 fifth-round pick out of UC Riverside, Rzepczynski shot through the minors. He spent a full year at Class A Lansing last season, posting excellent numbers in 121 innings. The most impressive: just two homers allowed. In fact, in 254.2 minor league innings, spanning back to the New York Penn League in 2007 through his stint in AAA this season, Rzepczynski allowed just five home runs. FIVE. In the majors he’s allowed just one homer through 27.2 innings. His 3.1 percentage of fly balls hit for home runs is far, far below the league average of 7.8 percent. Normally I’d say he’s in line for a statistical correction, but it appears this anomaly is part of Rzepczynski’s skill set.
How does he do this? The double threat of strikeouts and ground outs. Rzepczynski has a 1.94 ground out to air out ratio, well above the league average of 1.07. He also gets 1.09 ground balls for every fly ball, again well above the league average of 0.78. He has also struck out 25.4 percent of all batters he’s faced in the majors, much higher than the league average of 17.8 percent. In fact, it seems the only reason he’s not pitching better right now is that he still has a case of the walks: 14.4 percent of major league batters facing him have walked, far above the league average of 9 percent. This could be a boon for a patient team like the Yankees.
Rzepczynski is mostly a fastball-slider guy, averaging 88 mph with the fastball — with considerable sink, of course. He also has an average curve and an average change, which he uses to mix things up. FanGraphs’ linear weighs for pitch types shows his slider to be his most effective pitch. I’m willing to bet that’s how he gets the bulk of his strikeouts.
On the hill for the Yanks is Sergio Mitre, who has supposedly worked out the kinks which hampered him in his last start. The Yanks aren’t asking the world. Just six innings, three runs. Then hopefully the Yanks can get to this rookie starter.
Oh, and as if you hadn’t already heard, the Yankees have recalled RHP Anthony Claggett. To make room for him on the roster, they’ve designated Cody Ransom for assignment.
Lineup:
1. Derek Jeter, SS
2. Johnny Damon, LF
3. Mark Teixeira, 1B
4. Alex Rodriguez, DH
5. Nick Swisher, RF
6. Robinson Cano, 2B
7. Melky Cabrera, CF
8. Jerry Hairston, 3B
9. Jose Molina, C
And on the mound, number forty-five, Sergio Mitre.
Mitre says he’s worked out the kinks
Posted by: | CommentsWhen a pitcher has a poor start, one of many excuses they offer up is that their mechanics were out of whack. We heard this from Joba Chamberlain earlier in the season — that he was working on his mechanics. Whether it’s true or not we can rarely be sure. Each pitcher has his own set of mechanics, so it’s tough to compare one to another. It looks like Sergio Mitre took this excuse after his poor outing on Friday against the White Sox. Via MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo, we learn that Mitre has worked on his mechanics between starts, “concentrating on keeping his right arm and his body synchronized.” That, he says, will help keep his sinker sinking and away from the upper parts of the zone. We’ll see for sure a bit later tonight.
Cuban defectors: an alternative source of pitching help?
Posted by: | Comments
Late yesterday evening we got word from ESPN’s Jorge Arangure Jr. that Cuban defectors RHP Yadel Marti (pictured), OF Yasser Gomez, and RHP Juan Yasser had been declared free agents and are now free to sign with any team. (All three players had defected late last year, so that gives you somewhat of a reference for how long it should take Aroldis Chapman to become a free agent.) The White Sox are at the forefront of the Cuban market these days, but the Yankees are established players with an strongtrack record. They signed Orlando Hernandez back in the day and brought him almost immediately to the big leagues, ditto Jose Contreras. Lesser players like Juan Miranda and Amaury Sanit are just a phone call away from the bigs in Triple-A. And as always, money talks.
Of the three, Marti is the most appealing to the Yanks right now because he’s a veteran guy and essentially ready to contribute to the big league club according to Arangure, plus he fits an immediate need. Gomez could be interesting for next year’s outfield, but there’s no spot for him on the team right now. Their agent, famed Cuban representative Jaime Torres, says that three NL and two AL teams have expressed interest in signing either Gomez and/or Marti for the stretch run this year. With Sergio Mitre presently occupying the fifth spot and Joba Chamberlain eventually having to be shut down due to workload limitations, the Yankees are in need of another starting pitcher. But we know that already.
Going after Marti wouldn’t require any finagling of the waiver system, no hoping that a competing team doesn’t block a player. All it takes is money and a sell job, something that shouldn’t be too difficult considering the team’s track record with Cubans and the fact that well, they are the Yankees. The 30-yr old Marti is no stranger to the big stage, having competed in top international competitions since he was 19-yrs old. He was Cuba’s best pitcher in the 2006 WBC, allowing just six hits and no runs in 12.2 IP with 11 strikeouts. B-Ref’s bullpen says that Marti’s fastball sits around 87-90, relying instead on his sinker, slider and curveball, as well as hitting his spots. This nearly two year old Baseball America article says he has “a pair of quality secondary pitches—a sharp-breaking curveball and a diving changeup,” and also mentions that he has “a pause in his delivery reminiscent of many Japanese pitchers.” You can see that right here.
That’s about all I can tell you about his stuff. I wish I had more, but that’s life. Certainly you can expect the Yankees to be a bit more thorough in their research before deciding to pursue Marti. Timeframe will also be an issue, because he’d have to be on the roster by August 31st to be eligible for the postseason roster. I mean, I guess they could always find some loophole to get him on the roster like the Angels did with K-Rod in 2002, but that’s not something that’s easy to do (the Angels “lucked out” when Aaron Sele blew out his shoulder late in the season). Marti would have to get in game shape before the end of this month, ideally making a minor league start or three before coming up.
By no means am I touting Marti as a rotation savior. I’m just presenting him as an alternative to staking out the waiver wire for a potential fifth starter that would cost money and (most likely) something in terms in players, even if it’s low level filler types. Assuming the money and contract details work out, and the team likes what they see out of Marti in workouts, then maybe there’s a match. It’s a stretch, I’ll certainly admit it, but the Yanks wouldn’t be doing their job if they didn’t at least look into it.
Photo Credit: Ricardo Lopez, Granma
What Is Behind Melky Cabrera’s Turnaround?
Posted by: | CommentsThis is a guest post by Moshe Mandel from The Yankee Universe.
Melky Cabrera is a polarizing figure amongst Yankees fans. While most love his exuberance and obvious love for the game, his talent has been questioned by many, including myself. Even when things were going well for Melky in the past, you always felt like the other shoe was bound to drop. He did not seem to have the swing to make consistent solid contact, and his approach at the plate was often awful. Yet all of that has changed. Melky has an wOBA of .350, which is a career high and 10th among all qualified center fielders. Typically worse from the right side, he is hitting lefties at a .303/.378/.525 clip. In the field, his UZR is -.2, but is .8 in center. Let’s take a closer look at the numbers to identify exactly what is behind the resurgence of Melky Cabrera.
Power: Melky is driving the ball with more regularity, as evidenced by his 20.5% line drive rate, which is the highest of his career. This has lead to an ISO of .169 and a SLG of .457, both career highs by a large margin. While some would suggest that he has been helped by Yankee Stadium, as he has 7 home runs at home and 3 on the road, his slugging numbers are actually pretty similar at home (.463) and on the road (.449), and his OPS is slightly higher on the road(.811 v. .806). Of course, the question remains, what has caused this increase in power? Why is Melky hitting more line drives? I think the next section can help uncover some answers.
Plate Discipline: Melky’s changed approach at the plate has been apparent to the naked eye. He seems less anxious at the plate, and has become less prone to swinging at a pitch near his eyes, something that had plagued him for much of his career. The numbers support this observation.
Melky is walking at his highest rate since 2006 (9.3%), and is seeing slightly more pitches per PA (3.9) than he has in the past. He has also brought his K-rate (12.9%) back to 2006 levels after having it balloon on him last season. His O-Swing % (percentage of pitches a batter swings at outside the zone) is his lowest since 2006 (24.6%). Pitchers can no longer throw pitches in the dirt or at Melky’s eyes and expect him to swing, which makes it more likely that he will see some good pitches to hit.
What do these numbers tell us? They suggest that Melky has become a bit more selective at the plate this season when compared to his last two abysmal seasons. This has lead to more walks, fewer strikeouts, and is allowing him to wait for his pitch and drive the ball with regularity.
Is this turnaround sustainable? Who knows. It is important to remember that he is only 24. We often forget that Melky was in the majors for good at 21, and view him as a finished product. Considering that many players do not even see the majors until they hit Melky’s current age, it is difficult to say that he has reached his ceiling, or that his performance thus far is a fluke. It is reasonable to suggest that Melky could possibly have had another gear than what he had shown prior to 2009, and that he is just now realizing some of his potential.
Melky lost his job at the end of 2008 and was told to work on his plate discipline and approach at the plate. By being more selective, he is eating up more pitches per at-bat and making better and more consistent contact. He lost the job coming out of spring training, but it is hard not to be impressed with the way he handled that situation and prepared himself for his opportunity. He has had a solid season thus far, and his at-bats are no longer a sight to avoid. Another month or two of play like this, and I think those of us who did not believe in Melky will be gladly forced to admit that we were wrong. I look forward to it.
Note by Joe: Ditto those last two sentences.
Patience is a virtue … and a requirement
Posted by: | CommentsAs fans we expect instant gratification, and for Yankee fans that goes double. Whenever a young player comes up a struggles, we’re quick to write them off as busts and include them in trade packages for established players. Major League clubs can’t afford to be so shortsighted and impatient, and as Chad Jennings shows, we as fans need to learn how to deal with the ups and downs of a young player’s development as well. Sometimes you don’t get the desired result right away, and that’s just the way it is.
Preaching patience is one thing. Practicing it is something entirely different all together.
Just 21 days 'til pitchers and catchers report.
