While Joba Chamberlain is eligible to come off the bereavement list today, he will be missing the series against the Red Sox, according to the Yankees. Manager Joe Girardi said yesterday than Harlan is feeling a little better but is still awaiting more tests in the hospital. Yankee fans all over continue to hope for the best for the Chamberlains.
Hawkins rewards Yankee fans’ maturity
Nice work, folks. We’ve booed LaTroy Hawkins into submission. I hope everyone feels good about that. Hawkins, previously wearing number 21, will switch to 22 tonight after fans couldn’t deal with someone else wearing the number seven years after Paul O’Neill retired. No word yet if the Omar Moreno or Jimmy Key fans plan on booing Hawkins for the switch.
Yanks nail down first sweep of the year
It’s a sweep. It may only be two games, but hey, a sweep is a sweep is a sweep. And the Yanks come back to the Bronx to face the Red Sox riding a two-game winning streak.
Overall, tonight’s game wasn’t the best game. Andy Pettitte didn’t have his best stuff but persevered. The Yankee offense didn’t come through too often, but their five runs stood up. And Mo — good ol’ Mo — nailed down this one for his fifth save in five chances this year.
Since a lot of little things struck me during this game, let’s break it down bullet-point style:
- Derek Jeter sure didn’t like missing games. He went 5 for 9 in Tampa. He’s recorded just one extra-base hit this season, but I’m not too worried about that quite yet. The leg will turn some doubles into singles for now.
- Jason Giambi wuz robbed! With A-Rod on third, the Rays drew the infield in during the fourth inning. An Edwin Jackson wild pitch allowed A-Rod to score and the infield to move back to normal depth. Giambi scorched a ball that, two pitches earlier, would have been an RBI double, but Carlos “Vacuum” Peña turned it into an out. Maybe Giambi’s coming out of it.
- Hideki Matsui looks very comfortable at the plate no matter his defensive role. I like his as the long-term DH this season.
- When I saw Kyle Farnsworth warming in the pen, my heart dropped. But then he nailed down a 1-2-3 eighth for a huge hold. That’s about as surprised as I’ve ever been during a Farnsworth inning.
- The Yankees left eight runners on base during the last three innings of the game. That’s an alarming stat that will be forgotten because they won. At some point, the Yanks have to start driving in runners.
- On the season, Mariano Rivera has thrown 6.1 innings over six appearances. He has allowed 3 hits and no runs or walks while striking out seven. He has five saves. Rivera did not pick up his fifth save last season until May 3 when he was 0-2 with two blown saves. What a difference a year makes.
The Yanks are now 8-7, and the sky isn’t falling. They’re one game out of first and are playing better as a team. It’s funny how fan attitudes can shift after seeing the team go from a 1-2 weekend in Boston to a 2-0 swing through Tampa. It’s a marathon, folks, not a sprint, and today was another good leg of the race.
Somebody finally figured out how to contain Jesus Montero
Triple-A Scranton (6-2 win over Charlotte)
Brett Gardner: 2 for 4, 1 3B, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 SB – check out this guy with his .694 SLG
Bernie Castro: 3 for 5, 1 K, 1 SB
Juan Miranda: 1 for 4, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K
Shelley: 0 for 4, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K
Jason Lane: 3 for 4, 2 R, 2 2B, 1 BB, 1 K – he’s been raking this year
Eric Duncan: 1 for 3, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB
Steven White: 6 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 2-14 GB/FB, 1 E (missed catch)
Sean Henn: 2 IP, zeroes, 1 K, 0-5 GB/FB – his rehab time is going to be up soon, so a decision will need to be made about his roster spot since he’s out of options
Jose Veras: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
End the season now
Kyle Farnsworth just threw a 1-2-3 8th inning in a two-run game. I know the Pope is in America; I wasn’t expecting the End of Days at the same time.
Game 15: Well, that was a quick series
Second of two against the Rays tonight. The lineup, despite the absence of Jorge, doesn’t look too bad. Actually, put Molina in that 9 spot — or put him at 8 and Melky at 9 — and it looks pretty formidable. Not that I in any way want Jorge out of the lineup. Just saying…
Don’t let Johnny Damon’s poor line fool you. He got off to a slow start, but he’s racked up six walks and seven hits over the past seven games. Yeah, he’ll have to do a bit more in the hits department, but at least he’s getting on base. It’s still early. I wouldn’t write off Damon so quickly.
You know what I loved about last night? That there were three shots that I could yell “gone!” right off the bat: A-Rod, Ensberg, Cano. Maybe we get a couple tonight off Edwin Jackson. He’s been top-flight in his first two starts of the seasons, as we witnessed first hand two weeks ago. But he has a history of control problems. Let’s hope those resurface tonight.
Now, onto your lineup:
1. Johnny Damon, LF
2. Derek Jeter, SS
3. Bobby Abreu, RF
4. Alex Rodriguez, 3B
5. Hideki Matsui, DH
6. Jason Giambi, 1B
7. Robinson Cano, 2B
8. Melky Cabrera, CF
9. Chad Moeller, C
And on the mound, number 46, Andy Pettitte
Saber-Scouting on Scott Patterson
The stupid internet topic of the month appears to be pitching mechanics (next month, pickoff moves!), but amidst the crap comes this gem about what makes Scott Patterson effective, courtesy of Frankie at Saber-Scouting. Frankie details how Patterson uses not only his size, but general quirkiness to create massive amounts of deception. Check it out.