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5/28-5/30 Series Preview: Anaheim Angels
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(Photo Credit: Flickr user redheaded_pirate via Creative Commons license)
Things have gotten better in recent years, but Angels Stadium in Anaheim still isn’t a comfortable place for the Yankees. Not like Oakland, where they just took care of business by sweeping the Athletics. The Yankees took two of three from the Halos at Yankee Stadium in their home-opening series back in April.
What Have They Done Lately?
The Angels have been one of the most disappointing teams in baseball this season, but they’ve started to turn things around. They just swept a four-game series in Seattle and have won six straight overall. Anaheim is still one game below .500 at 24-25, but they’re now in second place in the AL West.
Offense
(Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)
At 3.67 runs per game, the Angels are a bottom five offense. Ironically enough, they were scoring 3.71 runs per game before firing hitting coach Mickey Hatcher. They’ve dropped down 3.55 runs per game since. Turns out scapegoating the hitting coach doesn’t actual improve things.
Anyway, Albert Pujols (77 wRC+) has turned his season around just in time for the Yankees. He didn’t hit a lick for the 35 games but has clubbed six homers in 14 games since, including four in his last six games. Pujols isn’t walking as much these days (5.8 BB%), continuing a trend that started way back in 2009. Still, he’s incredibly dangerous and the Yankees would have had to be careful with him even if he hadn’t broken out of his slump these last two weeks or so.
Aside from Pujols, the biggest threats are rookie Mike Trout (141 wRC+) and second-year man Mark Trumbo (160 wRC+). Trumbo is the power guy but Trout does everything, include steal bases and hit the ball out of the park. Kendrys Morales (105 wRC+) has been okay but hasn’t returned to his previous level of production following the leg injury. Howie Kendrick (81 wRC+) is in a season-long funk, plus Chris Iannetta (94 wRC+) and Vernon Wells (95 wRC+) are hurt. Torii Hunter (107 wRC+) is away from the team dealing with his son’s legal problems.
The rest of the position player crop is just bad. Infielders Erick Aybar (44 wRC+), Alberto Callaspo (63 wRC+), and Maicer Izturis (88 wRC+) haven’t hit, ditto outfielder Peter Bourjos (50 wRC+). Rookie Kole Calhoun (110 wRC+ in very limited action) is up to help fill out the outfield during the injuries. Catching duties belong to Bobby Wilson (11 wRC+) and John Hester (81 wRC+ in limited time) with Iannetta out. Infielder Andrew Romine — Austin’s brother — is on the roster due to the injuries and has yet to appear in a game.
Pitching Matchups
Monday: RHP Phil Hughes vs. RHP Jered Weaver
The Yankees are going to see the best of the Angels’ staff this week. Weaver has a 2.61 ERA and a 2.94 FIP with peripherals that are almost identical to last season — 7.43 K/9 (21.6 K%), 1.96 BB/9 (5.7 BB%), and 37.2% grounders. Jeff’s little brother throws six distinct pitches but uses four heavily: upper-80s two and four-seamers, low-80s slider, and upper-70s changeup. He’ll also throw the occasional upper-80s cutter and a low-70s curveball. The Yankees have hit Weaver kinda hard in the past, but I wouldn’t put much stock in that.
(AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Tuesday: LHP Andy Pettitte vs. RHP Dan Haren
Haren may have a higher ERA than usual (3.76), but his underlying performance is still stellar (3.28 FIP). He’s striking guys out (8.21 K/9 and 22.2 K%), isn’t walking anyone (1.95 BB/9 and 5.3 BB%), and is giving up a bunch of easy-to-catch fly balls (40.8% grounders). Haren uses two different upper-80s fastballs (two and four-seamer) and two different mid-80s fastballs (cutter and splitter) almost exclusively. A mid-70s curveball is his rarely seen fifth pitch. Like Weaver, the Yankees did not see Haren at Yankee Stadium earlier this season.
Wednesday: RHP Ivan Nova vs. RHP Ervin Santana
Santana drew some attention for getting zero run support a few weeks ago, and I mean literally zero run support; the Angels were shut out in five of his first six starts. He hasn’t pitched all that well though, with a 4.45 ERA and a 5.52 FIP. His strikeouts are down (6.68 K/9 and 17.3 K%), his walks are up (3.76 BB/9 and 9.8 BB%), and he’s giving up a ton of homers (1.81 HR/9) despite a career-best ground ball rate (53.0%). Santana is primarily a two-pitch pitcher, living off his low-to-mid-90s four-seamer and low-80s slider. He’ll occasionally throw a mid-80s changeup to lefties, but it’s a distant third pitch. The Yankees have historically crushed Santana whenever they’ve faced him.
(REUTERS/Alex Gallardo)
Bullpen Status
The bullpen has been a big weakness for the Angels this season, but they got some big time help by acquiring the unheralded Ernesto Frieri (2.51 FIP) from the Padres. The right-hander has thrown eleven hitless innings for the Halos with 22 strikeouts and seven walks. Yeah, he’s been quite good and that’s why the Yankees are lucky he’s appeared in each of the last two games. They won’t see him more than twice in this series, so consider that a win.
Left-hander Scott Downs (2.50 FIP) shares eighth and ninth inning duties with Frieri depending on the matchups. He’s appeared in three straight and is unlikely to pitch tonight. Ex-closer Jordan Walden (3.54 FIP) has appeared in two straight and is the seventh inning guy nowadays. Jason Isringhausen (4.14 FIP) is still around and kicking, ditto the left-hander Hisanori Takahashi (3.75 FIP). Youngsters Bobby Cassevah (3.66 FIP) and David Carpenter (2.55 FIP in limited action) fill out the bullpen. The Yankees are in pretty good shape after getting eight innings out of Hiroki Kuroda yesterday and seven innings each out CC Sabathia and Ivan Nova the previous two games. Check our Bullpen Workload page for exact reliever usage.
Fan Confidence Poll: May 28th, 2012
Posted by: | CommentsRecord Last Week: 5-1 (28 RS, 16 RA)
Season Record: 26-21 (217 RS, 198 RA, 26-21 pythag. record), 2.5 games back in AL East
Opponents This Week: @ Angels (three games, Mon. to Weds.), Thurs. OFF, @ Tigers (three games, Thurs. to Sun.)
Top stories from last week:
- The Royals came to town to the start the week, and they handed the Yankees their third straight loss in the series opener. Joe Girardi and Brian Cashman held a team meeting after the loss. Derek Jeter and Phil Hughes helped the Yankees to a much needed win on Tuesday, then Alex Rodriguez homered twice in the series-ending win.
- Following Thursday’s day off, the Yankees opened a West Coast swing with a win over the Athletics. Mark Teixeira homered twice in Saturday’s win and Hiroki Kuroda dominated to complete the sweep yesterday.
- Injury News: A surgery date is still not set for Mariano Rivera‘s torn ACL. David Robertson (oblique) will start a throwing program this week. Brett Gardner (elbow) will try to hit today. Austin Romine (back) is out until July. Eduardo Nunez (thumb) is on the minor league DL. Ivan Nova is fine after a minor hamstring issue. Top prospects Manny Banuelos and Jose Campos do not have any structural damage in their elbows but will miss time.
- Reports surfaced that the Steinbrenners were exploring the idea of selling the Yankees but the organization has vehemently denied everything. Of course, the team is not for sale until it actually is.
- The Yankees signed John Maine to a minor league contract. Tim Norton has officially retired as a player and now works as a coach in the minor league system.
- Mason Williams ranked 24th on Keith Law’s midseason top 25 prospects list.
Please take a second to answer the poll below and give us an idea of how confident you are in the team. You can view the interactive Fan Confidence Graph anytime via the nav bar above, or by clicking here. Thanks in advance for voting.
Mitchell strikes out nine in extra-innings loss
Posted by: | CommentsTriple-A Empire State (1-0 win over Buffalo)
LF Kevin Russo, 2B Matt Antonelli & 3B Brandon Laird: all 0-4, 1 K
1B Steve Pearce: 2-3, 1 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 BB — there’s the only run of the afternoon
DH Jack Cust: 0-2, 2 BB, 1 K — 53.7% of his plate appearances this year have ended in a walk, strikeout, or homer
CF Colin Curtis: 0-3, 2 K
C Frankie Cervelli: 0-2, 1 BB, 1 SB
RF Cole Garner & SS Ramiro Pena: both 1-3 — Garner doubled … Pena struck out twice
RHP Ramon Ortiz: 6.2 IP, 8 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 8/2 GB/FB — 65 of 83 pitches were strikes (78.3%) … two runs and one walk allowed in his last 21.2 IP
LHP Juan Cedeno: 1 IP, zeroes, 1 K, 1/0 GB/FB — nine of his dozen pitches were strikes
RHP Kevin Whelan: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 1/2 GB/FB — 15 pitches, nine strikes
Sunday Night Open Thread
Posted by: | CommentsEat your heart out, Joe Maddon. Vanderbilt pulled off the rare triple-steal against Florida yesterday, and it was basically a straight steal of home with the trail runners advancing as everyone stood around in surprise. One-run lead, bases loaded with two outs in the ninth … that’s a gutsy call. Really gutsy. Hard to see a big league team ever attempting that given the risk, both in terms of outcome and injury.
Anyway, here’s your open thread for the evening. The Nationals and Braves are the ESPN Sunday Night game with a primo pitching matchup: Gio Gonzalez vs. Brandon Beachy. There’s also some NBA playoff action going on as well. You folks know what to do here, so have at it.
Game 47: The Drive for Five
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(Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
The Yankees have won four straight for the third time this season but they’ve yet to win five in a row. All that stands in their way is a soft-tossing rookie left-hander they’ve never faced before. Might as well be Sandy Koufax in his prime, amirite? Here’s the lineup…
SS Derek Jeter
CF Curtis Granderson
1B Mark Teixeira
3B Alex Rodriguez
2B Robinson Cano
RF Nick Swisher
DH Andruw Jones
LF Jayson Nix
C Chris Stewart
Today’s game starts a little after 4pm ET and can be seen on YES. Enjoy.
Russell Martin Update: Martin is out with a stiff neck but it’s nothing serious. It shouldn’t keep him out more than a day or two.
2012 Draft: Shadowing the Sickels’ Mock Draft
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My first rounder. (Randy L. Rasmussen/The Oregonian)
Every year over at Minor League Ball, John Sickels hosts a community mock draft. I acted as the Yankees mock scouting director way back in 2007 and while that was fun, it was incredibly time consuming. For the last few years I’ve just shadowed their mock draft, meaning I’ve gone back after the fact to look at who I would taken with each of the Yankees’ selection. This isn’t any kind of serious analysis or projection, it’s just for fun.
They used to do the first five rounds but have since knocked it down to three for what I assume are time-related reasons. Seriously, it sucks up the entire afternoon. The mock was conducted yesterday, so here are the links — first, sandwich, second, third — and here are my selections…
First Round (#30 overall)
Mock Draft: RHP Shane Watson, California HS
My Pick: 3B Carson Kelly, Oregon HS
Kelly is a big personal fave and I reached for him based on consensus rankings and the mock draft — he went 57th overall to the Reds. I really like him though. Here’s my write-up. Watson is one of the better prep pitchers in the class and a true back-half of the first round talent. He’ll sit anywhere from 90-96 with the fastball and can snap off nasty curveball every so often. Like most high schoolers, he’s working on a changeup and you’re dreaming on him adding velocity as he fills out. It’s worth noting that the Yankees have been connected to Florida HS SS Addison Russell in various mock drafts and he was still on the board for this pick.
Second Round (#89 overall)
Mock Draft: C Dane Phillips, Oklahoma City University
My Pick: RHP Duane Underwood, Georgia HS
This is the compensation pick the Yankees received after failing to sign second rounder Sam Stafford last season and I feel like I got a steal. Underwood’s a borderline first round talent and there’s a chance he’ll go in the back-half of the first round next week, so nabbing him nearly 100 picks in is a coup in my eyes. Between him and Kelly, I feel like I’ve got two top 30-35 talents. I wrote Underwood up last week, so check that out for more info. Phillips has climbed up draft boards as the spring has progressed because he’s crushing weak competition, though his ability to remain behind the plate is uncertain. A team would really have to believe in the glove to take him this high. Here’s my write-up on Phillips.
Second Round (#94 overall)
Mock Draft: OF Preston Beck, UT-Arlington
My Pick: LHP Alex Young, Illinois HS
Although the franchise’s history is littered with quality left-handers, the Yankees have done a pretty poor job of carrying on the tradition in recent years. Young has already shown three pitches — low-90s fastball, curveball, changeup — and has lots of room to grow in his 6-foot-3, 190 lb. frame. He has a strong commitment to TCU and is expected to be a tough sign, but with more than $500k in slot money to work with, I’m not going down without a fight. Young is the kind of kid that will come out of school in three years as a first round pick, assuming his coach doesn’t shred his arm first. Beck’s a solid selection; a corner outfielder with a strong left-handed bat and defensive skills. He had hip surgery last summer and there is some question about his power potential, so he’s a ‘tweener risk.
Third Round (#124 overall)
Mock Draft: Young
My Pick: RHP Zack Quintana, Nevada HS
Well, I jumped the gun on Young a bit. I like him though and didn’t want to miss out, plus we’re talking about a difference of $130k in slot money. Anyway, Quintana is an undersized kid that runs his fastball up to 95 with a power breaking ball and a changeup that is advanced for a high schooler. He strikes me as very undervalued because of his size (5-foot-11, 180 lbs. or so) in a draft class that is light on quality prep arms. I also considered Tennessee HS SS A.J. Simcox with this pick, a true shortstop who has grown up around the game because his father has coached at Tennessee for nearly two decades. He’s raw but has exciting power-speed potential.
* * *
I’m a high school prospect guy as you can tell. I’ve always felt that getting players under professional instruction as soon as possible is the best thing for their development because bad habits are easy to develop in college, where winning is the priority. Not development and growth. Had the mock draft continued for another round or two, I probably would have looked for a college relief arm or two to not only balance things out, but to also save some draft pool money to use elsewhere and perhaps get decent value relative to round.
Homers rule the day in the minors
Posted by: | CommentsVoting for the Triple-A All-Star Game is now open. 1B Steve Pearce, DH Jack Cust, RHP Kevin Whelan, and LHP Juan Cedeno are all legit All-Star candidates and deserve your vote.
Triple-A Empire State (8-7 loss to Buffalo)
CF Kevin Russo, LF Ronnie Mustelier & 3B Brandon Laird: all 1-5, 1 K — Laird doubled and scored a run
SS Matt Antonelli: 2-5, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 K — only his 22nd career game at short
1B Steve Pearce: 2-4, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K
DH Jack Cust: 3-5, 2 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 K – three homers in the last two games and four in the last six
RF Cole Garner & 2B Ramiro Pena: both 2-4, 1 K — Garner doubled and drove in a run … Ramiro scored a run
C Gus Molina: 1-4, 1 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 K — picked a runner off second with a snap throw
RHP D.J. Mitchell: 6 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 4 BB, 6 K, 1 WP, 8/1 GB/FB — 60 of 104 pitches were strikes (57.7%) … hooray for strikeouts and grounders, boo for runs and walks
LHP Justin Thomas: 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K — seven of his 12 pitches were strikes
RHP Manny Delcarmen: 2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 1/1 GB/FB — 16 of 27 pitches were strikes (59.3%) … blew the one-run lead in the eighth
Saturday Night Open Thread
Posted by: | CommentsYou may have seen it already, but if not, that video of Lower Columbia College outfielder Derrick Salberg making a game-saving catch has been circulating through the netweb. It helps that the fence is like, two feet ball, but Salberg gets an A+ for effort. Had his feet not still been in the field of play at the time of the catch, it would have been a homer. Dude really sold out for it.
Anyway, here’s your open thread for the night. The Rays and Red Sox are your FOX prime time game (Price vs. Beckett) though some of you may have another game depending on where you live. MLB Network will air a late West Coast game tonight as well. Apparently there’s also an NBA Game Seven tonight, and Game Sevens are always fun. Talk about whatever you want here tonight. Have at it.
