Game 127: Chip Away

August 22, 2013 by Mike Axisa 327 Comments

The Yankees have done exactly what they needed to do these last two weeks as they try to climb back in the postseason race. They took two of three from two good teams in the Tigers and Red Sox while beating the crap out of a pair of non-contenders in the Angels and Blue Jays. They’ve shaved four games off their wildcard deficit and three games off their division deficit with their recent strong play, but they’re only halfway there. Lots more winning has to be done. Finishing off the sweep of Toronto this afternoon is the next step. Here’s the lineup that will face left-hander J.A. Happ:

RF Ichiro Suzuki
DH Vernon Wells
2B Robinson Cano
LF Alfonso Soriano
3B Alex Rodriguez
CF Curtis Granderson
1B Mark Reynolds
SS Eduardo Nunez
C Chris Stewart

And on the mound is lefty Andy Pettitte, who is coming off a pretty good start against the Red Sox. He ran out of gas in the seventh inning but looked better than he had in a long time for the first 6+ innings. The Yankees need a repeat showing of that Pettitte today; he’s got to pitch better if they’re going to make a serious run at a playoff spot.

It has been pouring in New York all morning. Real heavy, nasty rain with lightning and loud thunder. Not exactly baseball weather. That is supposed to clear up early this afternoon however, so we’re probably going to have a game today. The Blue Jays do not come back to the Bronx at all this season, so expect them to wait it out as long as necessary. No one wants to forfeit an off-day to make a game up this late in the season. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05pm ET but I’m not sure that will happen. They might start in a delay. Whenever they do play, it’ll be on YES. Enjoy.

Update (12:58pm): The game will not start on time, the Yankees announced. No word on a tentative start time or anything. It’s still raining outside. Not hard, but raining enough.

Update (1:32pm): Dan Barbarisi hears it might be a while until the game begins, something like 3-5pm ET. Yikes.

Update (3:44pm): The tarp is coming off the field and the team says they are shooting for a 4:30pm ET start time.

Update (4:32pm): We have baseball. The two teams have taken the field.

the Real Greg

The main problem is that if they have to stop the game in the middle of it and it’s early, where do the Yankees go for long relief?
- King of Fruitless Hypotheticals
  
  Preston can throw two can’t he?
  - King of Fruitless Hypotheticals
    
    Wow. The new Joba rules…go with the emergency DL-enabled call up before Joba for rain relief…
  - the Real Greg
    
    He can throw two but then after that?
    
    I don’t think Girardi wants to use everybody leading into the Trop
Darren

I assume Vernon Wells has amazing numbers against Happ. Otherwise, why the F is he hitting second? Shit, I’d rather see Reynolds in the 2 hole before Vernon.
- trr
  
  That does seem odd. Even Nunez might be a better choice at this point. Well, let’s hope Wells proves us both wrong…
- the Real Greg
  
  He does not. 0-6 with a walk
  
  Well Brett has been struggling (again) and he needs a day off and Ichiro is forced up to the leadoff spot. That kind of set the chain reaction.
  
  And don’t BS about having Mr. Three Outcome batting second. Because you know its BS
  - the Real Greg
    
    I also think another reason is that Wells is 10-28 in August or .357
  - Darren
    
    I’d rather see Reynolds in there because one of those outcomes is a homerun. Notwithstanding last week’s explosion of power for Wells, I don’t see him doing much damage in that spot. I hope I’m wrong. Honestly, part of my reaction is that it reminds me of the bad old days of like, 3 weeks ago, when our lineup was so bad Reid Brignac was batting cleanup.*I just don’t want to be reminded of hoe exposed we were.
    
    *Did not actually happen, but felt like it did.
  - Jim Is A (Bored) Peckerhead
    
    Must be BS if you say so.
  - forensic
    
    And don’t BS about having Mr. Three Outcome batting second. Because you know its BS
    
    Like Granderson did most of last season? I’m not a huge fan of it, but it’s not like it’s unheard of or automatically hurting them.
- Kramerica Industries
  
  Wells is 0-5 with a walk against Happ.
  - the Real Greg
    
    You’re right. Read the numbers wrong. sorry
- Need Pitching & Hitting (but mostly hitting)
  
  Wells 307/357/450 vs. LHP this year.
  It’s the one thing he actually still does pretty well.
  - the Real Greg
    
    And as for Happ, RH are only hitting .237 off of him but the OBP against him is .340.
    
    Of the 31 hits he’s given up to right handers, 16 of them have gone for extra bases.
  - steve (different one)
    
    Wells 307/357/450 vs. LHP this year.
    
    This. Wells has been an ok fit for this role. The problem wasn’t so much Wells, it was that Granderson got hit again a week after coming back. If he comes back normally, Wells goes back to the bench and gets used only in the right spots.
Kramerica Industries

I hope there’s no delay. I don’t exactly have a huge window I can watch this game in…
Robinson Tilapia

Sunny with clouds in Brooklyn right now. There’s a line of yellow and red coming on the radar, though. Nothing seems to be behind that line. Somewhat slow-moving, though? Worst looks like it’ll be more closer to Pat D’s neck of the woods than NYC, though.

I do weather too, you know.

I’m in meetings from about now until 3, so I’m fine waiting. :)
- Pat D
  
  It’s been overcast here all day but it hasn’t rained yet. There’s a 30% chance.
  
  Luckily this means I don’t have to help power wash the house.
- MannyGeee
  
  Thank you Doppler ~~Dan~~ Fish Fingers!
- I’m One
  
  “I do weather too, you know.”
  
  Are you as good as Al Sleet? (“Your hippy dippy weatherman, with your hippy dippy weather, man.”)
Jim Is A (Bored) Peckerhead

Sweep the ~~leg~~ jays!
- Pat D
  
  Town? Burn the church!
  
  ………………
  
  Wrong movie.
nsalem

Would a rainout have been the worst thing. No Mo today. Would be playing them with hopefully a healthy Jeter next time.. Jays would be traveling back to us for the game. Fully rested BP going into the Trop which may be the toughest series remaining on the schedule. Plus this has (but probably will in the future) have the earmarks of a trap game.
- the Real Greg
  
  I know what you mean, but you want to keep those positive vibes going.
  - MannyGeee
    
    THIS. Momentum is much more important than making Toronto travel here and potentially Mo & Jeter.
- Wheels
  
  Yeah, but they’re on a roll.
- nycsportzfan
  
  I don’t think this is a trap game at all. I said before Andy’s last start, i expected him to go on a run starting in Boston a few days back. Happ isn’t that good, and our offense is really doing well. Step on em now. I like this matchup today. It’d be tough beating them every game in back to back double headers.
- Jim Is A (Bored) Peckerhead
  
  How can it be a trap game? The Yankees aren’t in first, have no reason to be coasting, or to expect anything to come easy.
  - nsalem
    
    I see Bautista is not in the line-up so it is better to play today. I think of a trap game is when you have a big series coming up against a strong team and you are playing a weak team the game before. I never heard anyone mention your place in the standings has anything to do with it.
    - Darren
      
      Regardless of the standings, a game can’t be a trap game unless you have a reason to be complacent. I don’t think this team fits the bill. Not a trap game. Maybe if they continue to bash for another week, you could say that, but we;re still in the early stages of being a real team again.
      - Jim Is A (Bored) Peckerhead
        
        Yup. I mention standings because 1st place teams have much more reason to be complacent than a 4th place team.
      - Robinson Tilapia
        
        Andy Pettitte is also not pitching in dominant enough a manner that you take a start of his for granted right now.
        
        Not a trap game.
  - Vincent Vega
    
    He meant to say it was a tarp game
MannyGeee

In fairness to Wells, he is actually hitting well over the past few weeks. .357/.438/.714, just with not much power. I am OK with a one game experiment with him in the 2 hole.
- Jim Is A (Bored) Peckerhead
  
  .714 slugging is not much power? Or did you do a weird triple slash?
  - MannyGeee
    
    Yeah, I guess thats a valid point. 1 homerun and 2 doubles. And JUUUUUUUST missed another the other day as well.
  - Revan
    
    The beauty of the short sample. Why is it being used exactly? Can I do the same thing for someone who’s struggling then? But I very much doubt that.
- the Real Greg
  
  Well he hit there on Tuesday night, but that was mainly because he had dominated Mark Buerhle in his career.
Kramerica Industries

3-5?

Damn. Might as well just make it a 7:00 game in that case. Too bad it’s the final Jays game in the Bronx for 2013, because otherwise this could easily be eschewed and allow these teams to get out of town.
the Real Greg

They really want to get this game in if they’re going to wait 2+ hours.

Don’t know if Andy can start then.
- Kramerica Industries
  
  Why not? It’s been raining all day, so it’s not like Andy has warmed up and then had to sit back down.
  - the Real Greg
    
    That’s true, I guess.
the Real Greg

The Rays have picked up former prospect and player Delmon Young. Which means he will go bonkers over the weekend.
- Need Pitching & Hitting (but mostly hitting)
  
  Minor league deal.
  He can go bonkers in AA.
  - Robinson Tilapia
    
    Poor umpires.
- Mandy Stankiewicz
  
  Dude’s a scumbag.
http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso

What the crap?

I played hooky from work today & it looks like it was for naught.
- Jim Is A (Bored) Peckerhead
  
  Hell no. Playing hooky from work is never for naught.
Wheels

Rain, rain, go away.
Eddard

I hope they don’t start for a couple more hours. Then I can watch the 2nd half of the ballgame instead of listening to John and Suzyn.
- forensic
  
  I thought you loved listening to John and Suzyn?
YankeeFan91

Thanks to the Mets us Yankee fans can finally see our minor league team play tonight on SNY Staten Island Yankees Vs Brooklyn Cyclones. I wish the Yankees would air minor league games when the Yankees are off instead of showing these dumb soccer games they usually program.
- wedge
  
  the soccer broadcast is revenue generating. Its all about the money remember?
  - YankeeFan91
    
    True but I prefer 100 times watching our minor league system like the old days.
    - Robinson Tilapia
      
      I’m honestly afraid that would be TOO addicting. I need Centerstage re-runs in order to maintain Dr. Tils’s sanity.
    - vicki
      
      get the milb package. it’s only $40/year or so.
  - Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)
    
    Actually, they get Manchester, right? I may start watching them soon.
- Robinson Tilapia
  
  Thanks for the heads up.
  - forensic
    
    Ditto, now I have another thing to add to the 700 DVR’d games I’m still trying to catch up on.
Wheels

The tarp is off the field.
RetroRob

Update on the start of the game? It’s approaching 10pm in my timezone so hoping to catch part of the game.
- Wheels
  
  Looks like pretty soon.
- Robinson Tilapia, Weatherman
  
  Radar says we’re out of the worst of it, but there’s still some unsettled weather in the area. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s another interruption at some point.
  - RetroRob
    
    Thanks. Since this is the last game between the two in NY, and it’s still early in NY, I can see them waiting into the night.
Robinson Tilapia

So much talk radio time given to Ichiro’s 4000 hits, and I just couldn’t give a bigger crap. Non-issue to me.

At one point today, a caller absolutely schooled Lupica on utilizing advanced stats in evaluating Ichiro. You could literally hear Lupica’s eyes spinning on the radio before he dismissed him with “I like the way you talk baseball. Call me anytime, but I still disagree with you.”
- Eddard
  
  Excuse me but 4,000 hits is a huge issue. Only 3 men have ever done it in the history of professional baseball. Ichiro is a first ballot HOFer and when he does pass Rose he’ll be the undisputed baseball hit king. I know Pete Rose says stats in Japan shouldn’t count but none of his stats should count since he cheated the game.
  - Robinson Tilapia
    
    Eddard, does your mother know you’re speaking in a gruff tone to grown men?
    - RetroRob
      
      Almost sounds like a line Peter Graves would deliver to a little boy in Airplane. Almost.
      - Robinson Tilapia
        
        Eddard, have you ever been in a Turkish prison?
        
        trr
        
        That’s nuts, but he did say “Gladiator” was his all-time favorite movie
        
        Robinson Tilapia
        
        Eddard, do you like movies about gladiators?
  - Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)
    
    What would we do without you Eddard.
- RetroRob
  
  People haven’t felt so moved since Jigger Statz rang up 4,000+ ‘professional’ hits.
  
  Seriously, I’m with you on that. Nice personal accomplishment. I would have cheered him like crazy if I was at the game. He is a HOFer. The number, though, does not compute and more than I noted in this morning’s thread that Andy Pettitte has 315 professional career wins.
  - Robinson Tilapia
    
    It just seems so cut and dry to me. Great accomplishment. Great player. I don’t even speak badly of his Yankee contract. I like the guy.
    
    The MLB record is for things done in the MLB. That’s it. Doesn’t make anything he’s done less impressive. It just doesn’t belong in the MLB record book.
    - JLC 776
      
      I’m with you, too. I mentioned to a few friends of mine the other day that I couldn’t care less about it (happy for him, but I wasn’t ‘tuning in’ the way I was for DJ3k) and they almost punched me in the face.
      
      Maybe I’d feel different if he spent the last twelve years with the Yankees… don’t know though.
      - Robinson Tilapia
        
        Oh, I’ll tune in. I’ll cheer. I’ll be happy for him. It’s awesome. It really is. What he did and what Pete Rose did are different things, though.
        
        OldYanksFan
        
        However, Ichiro did get his 2700+ hits in MLB in the fewest ABs in MLB history. And he was probably even better in his first 8 years. It’s a great accomplishment.
- forensic
  
  Francesa was really going off on it too. I understand to a point, it’s a very Yankee-centric and manufactured thing, but I don’t think it’s that big a deal to go crazy about.
Mandy Stankiewicz

Clear skies in downtown as of 15 min ago…
JLC 776

Thank God… I’ve got my slingbox streaming and was going to hang myself if subjected to more Francesa.
- Robinson Tilapia
  
  I’m going to get to listen to about 10 minutes of this before I go home.
  - JLC 776
    
    Same. I have about ten minutes before my wife gets home and I have to check out from work and take the kids.
    
    Man… I was really looking forward to wasting a day watching the Yankees. Instead I spent it looking up Adrian Beltre gifs.
    - Robinson Tilapia
      
      Well I’ve got ten minutes before I get home to my wife and get about 2 1/2 hours with my son before bedtime.
      
      Right now, he can definitely recognize the Yankee logo, reads most of his “Yankees A-Z” board book, and goes “Yankees! Boom!” when he sees them playing before running away to something more exciting…..like trucks.
      
      We tried working on “Red Sox! Boo!,” but it sounded too much like “Red Sox! Boom!” We’re switching to “Red Sox! Eeeew!”
      - JLC 776
        
        I live in Philly, so there’s a war for my 5-yr old’s soul, but he definitely sings “root for the Yankees” during “take me out to the ballgame” and is far more interested in what dad likes as opposed to mom.
        
        Plus the Phillies are embarrassing these days, so no one cares anymore.
      - dkidd
        
        my three year-old loves his yankee a-z book!
        
        my only beef: has anyone ever referred to an erratic throw as a “zigzagger”?
      - JLC 776
        
        Nothing beats the Jorge Posada book.
        
        Thanks to it, my son is now a switch-hitter in tee-ball.
the Real Greg

So Kay says they can’t be satisfied with just winning series. Then he praises the Yankees for winning series right now
wedge

just put davis on first every time so we dont waste pitches
Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)

Nunez is the gift that keeps on giving.
- the Real Greg
  
  It’s amazing with him.
  
  Earlier in the year he wasn’t hitting but his defense was good.
  
  Then when began to hit a bit better, his defense went down the tubes.
  - vicki
    
    it’s physics.
Pasta Stumbling Sojo

That was a great catch from Reynolds given that he’s completely blind in both eyes: http://www.baseballprospectus.com/a/19409
- Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)
  
  I think it actually makes a better real case than they think that Reynolds has vision problems (blind is ridiculous, of course, though the article is awesome).
- OldYanksFan
  
  Saw that. Tremendously funny!
http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso

How could anyone ever think, “Two bosses, two paychecks?”
Cy Pettitte

hooray for no runs allowed in the 1st inning
http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso

Seriously? Was that a “Lets go Blue Jays” chant?
- JLC 776
  
  I’m assuming it was in mock.
  - http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso
    
    Mock. YEAH! Ing. YEAH. Bird. YEAH! Yeah. YEAH!
    
    Mocking bird, have you heard….
http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso

Happ is going to plunk Cano today. Gut feeling.
forensic

How does a team find it acceptable to play a guy with a .248 OBP? Catcher or not (and he’s bad defensively iirc anyway), 18 HR or not, that’s amazingly bad.
- the Real Greg
  
  When your backup catchers are Josh Thole and Henry Blanco and they just traded away their best catching prospect, the team is up the creek without a paddle
- Brian Cashman
  
  Ummm, is he available?
- vicki
  
  cough higher ops than chris stewart cough cough.
  - forensic
    
    And we all know how we feel about Stewart being the starter here. But still, they’re almost even in wOBA and wRC+ (though there’s a slight bit more separation in OPS+) and Stewart at least has a positive WAR, while Arencibia is sitting on 0 WAR.
    - forensic
      
      Plus, I often prefer the higher BA/OBP to a one-trick power-pony, as it can impact more games, more consistently, over a longer period of time. It’s also part of why I preferred Cervelli over Martin.
      - RetroRob
        
        Martin’s OBP this year, as well as for his career, is right about .352. He hit into some bad luck last year based on BABIP.
        
        I do understand your point, though. One of the reasons I was okay with Cervelli is he would work the count (and Martin was one of the better Yankees at that) and seemed to be able to hit for some average. I say seemed simply because he has never caught 130+ games in the Majors. Odds are his BA would have sunk over the course of a full season.
        
        forensic
        
        I’m not concerned about his career numbers, since they’ve changed so much since his early years. And his .350 this year is his highest since 2009. Would he have done that as a Yankee? I don’t know, but I certainly wouldn’t have bet on it.
        
        All things considered (including price), I was perfectly fine with Cervelli (even in his first full season as a starter, if Girardi would’ve taken that many starts away from Stewart) over Martin.
      - vicki
        
        i’m not arguing with you. only seizing the opportunity to dog stewie.
        
        forensic
        
        Ah, my bad. Always a good time to dog Stewart, except for maybe Tuesday afternoon.
  - the Real Greg
    
    But that’s only because of his power. Stewart has the higher OBP.
    - the Real Greg
      
      and batting average.
      - vicki
        
        chicks dig the long ball.
Wheels

Andy looking pretty good.
RetroRob

So the Yankee game on MLB.tv just ran an advertisement for a job in the Red Sox organization. WTF?
- the Real Greg
  
  As a Yankee spy?
forensic

Reynolds is now 0-10 with 7 K’s against Happ. Yuck.
http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso

Mack Reynolds
the Real Greg

Yankees are hacking a lot, mainly because Happ is pounding the strike zone
Wheels

Mattingly?
Leg-End

Davis camped on first base this series.
- the Real Greg
  
  He is 5-13 in the series with 3 walks
  - Leg-End
    
    It feels like he’s been there even more than that.
- RetroRob
  
  If only he would stay camped.
forensic

It would never be called, but technically Davis was out since his hand hit the base and went past it while A-Rod still had the tag on him before his leg got there. Oh well…
Kevin G.

Someone please GIF that A-Rod backwards somersalt
- Kevin G.
  
  *somersault
- Cy Pettitte
  
  http://thefundamentalsblog.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/clip0121_1.gif
Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)

A-Rod has a Hell of an arm.
forensic

Thank you 3rd base bag, and thank you Lawrie for just standing there instead of trying to go get the ball. I don’t know if he beats the LFer and Ichiro, but he’s gotta at least try.
the Real Greg

He’s a pinball wizard….
- forensic
  
  Nice.
forensic

That was pitiful, Wells.
- Wheels
  
  yup
  - forensic
    
    I’m waiting for RAB’s wordpress to tell me “Duplicate comment detected. It seems you’ve said that 300 times already this season.”
    - Wheels
      
      heh
forensic

Now Reyes has to have eye black all over his face? As if only having hair on the bottom of the front of his head and the top of the back of his head wasn’t bad enough.
Gonzo

CY Happ is going to get burnt soon.
forensic

Come on, A-Rod!!!
forensic

He was safe, but it sucks that he seems like he’s running in slow motion sometimes.
Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)

Looked safe to me.
Wheels

safe.
RetroRob

Ball looked like it was going up the middle for a hit. Bad luck deflection. Then a bad call by the umpire on the throw.
forensic

Figures, right after the blown call at 1B too. And of course, it’s Arencibia just to rub it in my face a little. Thanks Pettitte.
Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)

Fuck. We should at LEAST be tied right now.
the Real Greg

This is why it is hard to sweep a 4 game series.
- Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)
  
  …Because winning a game is difficult anyway?
  
  That’s the equivalent of saying, “This is why it’s difficult to win every single game”.
  - the Real Greg
    
    Correct.
    Because there will be games where nothing goes your way. And so far today nothing has gone their way
    
    And that’s why Kay has to shut up about getting greedy. Because luck does not factor into desire
    - vicki
      
      branch rickey might disagree.
    - forensic
      
      Nothing has gone their way? They got a ball of the 3rd base bag going far enough away to become a double to set-up that whole rally. They got an unusual catch from Soriano just now. They got a nice play (moderately similar to that one) from A-Rod to get Lawrie earlier to keep a run from scoring.
      - the Real Greg
        
        Offensively, nothing has gone their way to score.
      - Deathstroke Heathcott
        
        He meant not everything has gone their way.
        
        the Real Greg
        
        Yes. Not in the key moments, although that play might
        be something
    - Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)
      
      Not exactly a rocket science observation then.
      - the Real Greg
        
        I never said it was. I was just pissed about it
- Deathstroke Heathcott
  
  We’re only down 1-0. I have faith.
  - the Real Greg
    
    I’m not saying they are going to lose. I’m just angry at Kay for implying that they need to win this game. That’s BS.
    - forensic
      
      He’s not saying it’s a need as in if they lose then they’re eliminated. But, with the position they’re in, you’re facing a last place team who hasn’t been playing well, and those are games the Yankees “need” to take advantage of and win.
Deathstroke Heathcott

Defense!
forensic

Now it’s no longer even an absurd 110%? Now it’s and even more absurd 190% according to Cone???
Mickey Scheister

I guess safe calls aren’t as sexy as out calls.
dkidd

kawasaki = ciriaco
- the Real Greg
  
  Nope. 8-44 against the Yankees
forensic

That sucked.
- forensic
  
  and That was awesome.
Wheels

Yeah A-Rod!
Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)

Okay Kay, that was a very good play. Don’t cream yourself, it wasn’t THAT great.
- True Pinstriped Blue
  
  You’re watching again?
  - Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)
    
    You’re obsessively watching my comments again?
    
    Once again: I watch when it’s fun to watch. It’s not that complicated. Right now they’re fun to watch, so here I am.
forensic

Nice Grandy!
SDB

The Grandyman can!
Deathstroke Heathcott

Revenge homer.
Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)

Grandyman showing off.
Leg-End

Granderson!
the Real Greg

Okay. NOW things are going their way
- Deathstroke Heathcott
  
  Yup, amazing how quickly things can flip.
  - the Real Greg
    
    Frickin’ roller coaster, man
    - Deathstroke Heathcott
      
      Is it just me, or is the timestamp on my reply earlier than your comment?
      - the Real Greg
        
        This site is screwed up with times and where the comments are being placed.
        
        forensic
        
        Yeah, it’s been like that for awhile, I think since the last time they ran an update. The number of comments at the top of the screen also doesn’t always match the actual number of comments, which is annoying for those of us who sometimes use that to see if there are any new comments that we haven’t seen yet.
Deathstroke Heathcott

I predict…RBI double for Stewart.
- the Real Greg
  
  At least it was a hit
forensic

Lets go Ichiro!
Cy Pettitte

what the fuck?
Leg-End

Bases loaded, Wells probably the last man on earth you want up.
the Real Greg

Spare Girardi, Vernon!
forensic

Every so often he comes through (like any major leaguer), but I hate seeing Wells in important spots like this.
the Real Greg

CHAOS
- Deathstroke Heathcott
  
  This is why it’s easy to sweep a 4-game series?
Cy Pettitte

I would love to hear Sterling try to explain this, anyone listening on radio? I’m sure it’s hilarious
- forensic
  
  I’m sure it’s something like this:
  
  http://riveraveblues.com/2012/08/perhaps-the-greatest-john-sterling-call-in-history-73754/
Cy Pettitte

I literally have no idea what happened but they’re winning so I’m happy
- the Real Greg
  
  Davis caught the ball, but the umps completely blew it
forensic

No Michael, he called Ichiro safe (whether he was or not is debatable). They weren’t both tagged.
- Deathstroke Heathcott
  
  It looked like Ichiro might’ve just gotten back under the tag. But Michael isn’t really even giving that a chance.
Pasta Stumbling Sojo

After all that, it didn’t really matter except for an extra pitch thrown.
RetroRob

Did Nunez cross home plate before Stewart was tagged? If so, even if the umpire correctly called the out on the batted ball, he still scores.
forensic

Regardless, what the hell was Stewart doing just running on contact there? Terrible baserunning in a couple of ways.
Leg-End

Well I’ll take it.
SDB

Good grief, I turn away for 3 minutes and chaos ensues.

Can someone explain what the hell just happened?
- RetroRob
  
  The Blue Jays’ defense recorded four outs on a single batted balls but none of them were called outs.
  
  Okay, that is not quite true.
  - SDB
    
    I was hoping it might be something like when Mr. Burns was the sickest man in the world, and all the outs cancelled each other.
  - Winter
    
    Three outs and only one counted, as far as I can see.
- forensic
  
  Davis caught the ball, but the umps said it bounced. Runner scored. Stewart has no idea what he’s doing and was off on contact then after they called it a hit he went back to 2nd and was tagged. Ichiro practically did a split just barely touching 2nd base safely before also being tagged for what would’ve been a DP.
  
  Then Cano takes a horrible swing at a pitch in the dirt, then grounds it weakly to 2nd and walked over to 1st base…
Mickey Scheister

That was a clusterfuck.
- SDB
  
  I blame Cashman.
  - True Pinstriped Blue
    
    Surely you mean A-ROID
the Real Greg

If Instant replay was involved, I think the run would still count, Wells would be out and it would be first and second with 2 outs. I don’t want to punish Stewart for the umps incompetance
- forensic
  
  How is calling Stewart out, when he clearly was, punishing him for the umps?
  - the Real Greg
    
    Because I believe the reason he ran is because the umpires did not make a definite call on the catch. He saw the ball come out of Davis’s glove and thought that it was a hit.
    
    If that had been ruled a catch immediately, then Stewart wouldn’t have gone off the bag
    - forensic
      
      You could clearly see he was running on contact when they showed the view from the home plate camera. He was nearly on 3rd base while the runner was just leaving after the catch/non-catch. The umps call had nothing to do with what caused Stewart to be so far away.
      
      He might’ve ended up in a rundown or no-man’s land anyway, but he really made it much worse by going on contact for no reason.
      - the Real Greg
        
        Okay. So part of it is Stewart’s fault.
        
        The only thing I can guess is that he lost track of how many outs there were.
- Pasta Stumbling Sojo
  
  They didn’t really show what Stewart did, did they? If he was running on contact and then ran back but didn’t get back to 2nd because he thought the ball was caught, then the umps call had nothing to do with it and he would’ve been out anyway.
  - the Real Greg
    
    The key is that the umpires did not make an immediate definite call. That leads to chaos.
  - forensic
    
    They showed him on the home plate camera, and he clearly took off on contact.
Anderson Silva

Pettitte had him struck out. Ump must be blind.
RetroRob

Is that scoring correct, ignoring the multiple blown calls by the umpires? Wells reached first, Ichiro second and Stewart was tagged out on a run down play? I guess because he never touched third that’s what it’s scored a force. A mess. Yet the Yankees have an RBI, so all good.
- Adjective noun is adjective
  
  I don’t think what Kay is saying is right. It was a force play at third, whether or not it was made by touching the base or tagging the runner shouldn’t matter.
  
  Just think if the force was at second on a ground ball the second baseman tagged the runner on the way to second. Even if the runner touched the plate before the out, the run wouldn’t score.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/roadgeek Roadgeek Adam

Boom.
Wheels

Feeling good. Let’s get an insurance run or two.
RetroRob

Yes, Michael, we figuerd all that out an hour ago. Thanks for the non-help, though.
SDB

Claiborne for one inning, Kelley/Logan for another, and D-Rob to close tonight?
- http://www.flickr.com/photos/roadgeek Roadgeek Adam
  
  Claiborne 7th since its the bottom of the order. Logan 8th for Reyes, Kelley for Banzai and E5?
Deathstroke Heathcott

Is everyone in the pen available except Mo? (And Huff and Warren)
- SDB
  
  Joba isn’t, not when there’s a lead to protect.
RetroRob

Hey, Cone, why don’t you have a dance? Still a funny commercial.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRMJQvSJyQg
- Deathstroke Heathcott
  
  One of my favorites all time. Made me love those two pitchers even more.
  - http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso
    
    And Sojo
Deathstroke Heathcott

Man, imagine if we had an offense like this all year. We could be sitting in first for all we know.
the Real Greg

Now you pinch hit Overbay for Reynolds.
- the Real Greg
  
  Oh Joe….
  - Wheels
    
    I guess he thinks Overbay has been too cold lately.
    - Deathstroke Heathcott
      
      I think he’s saving Reynolds in case Nunez picks up an injury.
      - Deathstroke Heathcott
        
        or A-Rod for that matter.
        
        the Real Greg
        
        That’s a good point.
        
        Deathstroke Heathcott
        
        Also, did the Jays have a lefty ready in pen? Girardi could’ve burned a bench player and still ended up with lefty on lefty and I’d honestly probably rather have Reynolds vs a righty than Overbay vs a lefty right now.
    - the Real Greg
      
      And you guys know how staunch a supporter of Girardi I am. But some of his decisions of late have irritated me a bit.
      - Deathstroke Heathcott
        
        Not this one for me. In this case, unless you’re pinch-hitting with a really good hitter, it’s not worth it to give up a bench player for that small upgrade with Nix out.
        
        the Real Greg
        
        I didn’t take into account that Reynolds might have to play short.
        
        But it worked.
- SDB
  
  that didn’t work out too badly.
- forensic
  
  I hate when Girardi doesn’t make moves just because he has the smallest of leads.
  
  The one thing I’ll give him though, is that you’re short IFer’s and might need to keep Reynolds in to move to 3B just in case, but still not a big fan of it.
  - RetroRob
    
    I think you’re right and that is the exact reason Reynolds was not removed from the game. He also got on base.
  - Deathstroke Heathcott
    
    The IFs thing is pretty important in this case. Could go extra innings, especially with no Mo available, you don’t wanna burn bench players unless you really have to in this case.
  - the Real Greg
    
    Yeah.
    
    Well in the end Reynolds walks so now its up to Eddard’s boy
- Rolling Doughnut
  
  Reynolds never platooned I don’t think. I confess I haven’t looked up his splits.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/roadgeek Roadgeek Adam

Nunie!
Wheels

Come on Nunez
- Wheels
  
  yes!
RetroRob

Nice!
Rolling Doughnut

Stonehands! Never met a pitch he didn’t like.
http://www.penuel-law.com/ Cuso

Nnnnnnice hit!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/roadgeek Roadgeek Adam

Sucky break.
Anderson Silva

NUNEZ!! That was very nice!
- nycsportzfan
  
  Nuny always could hit.
the Real Greg

And Eddard just had an orgasm
- Deathstroke Heathcott
  
  BGEN!
SDB

Well done Nuney!
stuart a

not much to bitch about the last few days but I will figure something out.

nunez would have scored on the botched call.. it cost toronto a batter…

aroid was safe at 1st would have been bases loaded and 2 outs…

lawrie is a great fielder..
- Oy
  
  I will now picture Heathcott as future Lowrie. Except as a CF.
Deathstroke Heathcott

Let’s Joba-proof this lead.
- RetroRob
  
  They’re not even close to that yet!
  - Deathstroke Heathcott
    
    Another 14 runs should do it I think.
    - http://www.flickr.com/photos/roadgeek Roadgeek Adam
      
      3 grand slams in one inning would be Joba proof.
- Rolling Doughnut
  
  Next to impossible.
Eddard

This is why I voted Youk/A-Rod in today’s poll, because we have Nuney! Came through in the clutch yet again. Now that he’s finally healthy he’s showing what a great ballplayer he is. As soon as A-Rod returned the club started winning.
- ropeadope
  
  So how to utilize Jeter in September? Late inning defensive replacement?
  - Deathstroke Heathcott
    
    Designated lineup card delivery boy.
- Deathstroke Heathcott
  
  Big Game Eduardo Nunez!
the Real Greg

Oh Kelley why?
Wheels

C’mon Kelley. Bear down
Mickey Scheister

C’mon now! A triple play please.
Rolling Doughnut

Oh fuck.
Wheels

shit
SDB

Joba in the pen. Oh dear…
Eddard

Kelley is imploding. Bring in Logan or Drob to stop the bleeding.
Mickey Scheister

I need a drink or four. Real men know no moderation.
the Real Greg

FAILURE KELLEY
Dicka24

Rafael Betancourt just got placed on waivers by the Rockies. He has a $4.25 million option for next year. Wouldn’t he make sense for the Yankees? $4 million for a quality reliever isn’t too pricey, especially when it’s for one year and the player is a proven closer. He’d be nice to have now, and he’d represent some insurance for Mo’s retirement after the season. I’d imagine he wouldn’t be too expensive to acquire. Thoughts?
- SDB
  
  The bullpen’s the least concerning thing with this team. Cashman’s done a good job in the past putting together a good BP off the scrap heap (with guys like Eppley, Rapada, and this year Kelley), and I’d like to see D-Rob get a decent go in the closer role before people hit the panic button.
  
  Save that money for offense or starting pitching, which is a bigger issue.
  - Deathstroke Heathcott
    
    Agreed. Bullpen help is always available at the trade deadline as well. Don’t waste too much money on it preseason and see what Cashman and Girardi can put together first.
Need Pitching & Hitting (but mostly hitting)

Might want to try somebody else.

And why is it Joba?
Eddard

Do NOT bring in Jobber Chamberlain. Where’s Robertson?
- the Real Greg
  
  You need him to close the game.
Rolling Doughnut

Jobber is up. Gulp.
- Darl
  
  Yikes
http://www.flickr.com/photos/roadgeek Roadgeek Adam

2 bad luck hits really. Reyes’s wasn’t and Sierra shouldn’t have been walked.
JGNYC

Ichiro!
Wheels

Unbelievable. This is big, gotta minimize the damage
Pasta Stumbling Sojo

Not that most (or any) managers generally do this, but this is clearly where you should have Robertson warming up. He’s obviously best utilized here, instead of in the 8th inning after the lead may be blown.

That being said, I still have confidence in Kelley and his K rate.
- the Real Greg
  
  The problem is Mo is not available and Robertson is the closer today
  - Pasta Stumbling Sojo
    
    That’s an even worse reason. There’s no game to close if you give up the lead. You should use your best pitcher in the most important situations in the game. In this case it was in the 7th inning. I’d rather have Robertson helping to preserve the lead in the 7th when there are runners on and have others try to close the game with no runners on, than to have the worse relievers try to keep the runners from scoring in the 7th and then have Robertson available to possibly close or possibly pitch after they’ve blown the lead.
    
    In this case I don’t mind what they did because like I said, I trust Kelley, and I was also fine with Logan coming in once it was 1st and 2nd and 2 outs. But if things had escalated, I’d way rather Robertson try to clean it up than preserve him for later.
    
    And again, I know managers don’t do this, but they should because it would lead to more wins.
    - the Real Greg
      
      Somebody still has to pitch those 8th and 9th innings though Robertson doesn’t go 2 innings.
      - Pasta Stumbling Sojo
        
        Yeah, which is what I said. I’d rather Robertson pitching in high leverage spots and other guys pitching in low leverage spots in the 8th/9th than vice versa.
        
        VT Yankee Fan
        
        I’ve been saying that for years. This is a serious blind spot for managers.
the Real Greg

You need Robertson to close the game.
Anderson Silva

What happened? How did they score 2?
- the Real Greg
  
  Kelley imploded a bit
- http://www.flickr.com/photos/roadgeek Roadgeek Adam
  
  Sierra walked after going 1-2. Pillar pulled a hit out of the dirt instead of strike 3. Kawasaki got a blooper that Soriano couldn’t reach. Reyes hit a hard single.
Oy

It’s elementary folks. You don’t bring in the 8th inning guy into the 7th. Duh.
Rolling Doughnut

They’re not going to let Kelley pitch to Encarnacion are they?
stuart a

kelly not good today.

never easy with this team.

logan better not give up a jack…
Wheels

Could’ve been worse.
Eddard

Boone did his job for once. Now they have to get through the next 2 without Mo. They need to tack on another run or two.
Rolling Doughnut

Boonie!
mt

If Robertson is closer today (ninth) but Joe brought Kelley in to pitch seventh, who was originally going to pitch eighth in Joe’s mind? A Logan/Joba combo?

I would have preferred he had brought in Joba with a four run lead and then Kelley and Robertson. I don’t want to see Joba pitching any important inningswith a narrow lead – Girardi’s recent comments that Yanks need Joba topitch well down the stretch nothwithstanding.
- the Real Greg
  
  With Joba a 4 run lead is a narrow lead.
dkidd

“in play, insurance runs” please
Eddard

Is Girardi really going to go with Jobber Chamberlain in the 8th? Isn’t Preston out there?
- the Real Greg
  
  There’s Claiborne
lee

where was Claiborne in the 7th? i thought the whole idea of recalling him to replace Nix was to bolster the bullpen for this game. seeing Joba warming was scary.
- lee
  
  interesting — obviously Girardi didn’t want Claiborne coming in with runners on base.
  - the Real Greg
    
    That probably explains it.
acb

how many infield hits do the bluejays have during this series???? it seems like they have had 3-4 every single game.
the Real Greg

That throwing angle off the mound is kryptonite to pitchers
- lee
  
  exactly — and so many announcers don’t seem to understand that.
dkidd

nice job, preston

now let’s make this a non-save situation
the Real Greg

John Wetteland time
Leg-End

That Cano arm.
Leg-End

“Nothing stops this train” – Walter White.

/sweep
Improbable Island’s Dirty Midget Whores (formerly RRR)

Sweeps are fun.
pat

Daaaaaaaaaaaaa Yankees win.
Anderson Silva

they really own the Jays this season
dkidd

we play today, we sweep today

on to tampa!
MB923

On that bizarro 5th inning play, it turns out that if the correct rule was made (a catch, not a trapped ball/dropped ball), Stewart caught tagged up at 2nd base is Not a force out. It is a tag up. A tag up is not a Force out, it is considered a “Timed play”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tag_up

The very last sentence shows that Nunez’s run would have counted even if the ball was considered a catch in CF :

Doubling a runner off is considered a “time play” (as opposed to a force play), which means that even if the doubling-off is the third out of an inning, any runs which score before the double-off will count (unless the run was scored by the same runner that was doubled off, in which case the run will not count in any situation).
- forensic
  
  Stewart hadn’t tagged up. He was off the base the whole time and it would’ve been considered a force out and doubled off of 2nd base.
  - MB923
    
    Doubled off, for some reason or another according to the rule book is not a force out. Kay even mentioned that the official scorer said it.