River Avenue Blues

Game 147: A word on the rivalry

by 116 Comments

Blah blah blah Red Sox. Blah blah blah rivalry. Blah blah blah too much media coverage. Blah blah blah AL East. Blah blah blah Yankees. Blah blah blah sweep. Blah blah blah first place.

That being said, here are the lineups.

26 World Championships
Johnny Damon DH
Derek Jeter SS
Bobby Abreu RF
Alex Rodriguex 3B
Jorge Posada C
Hideki Matsui LF
Jason Giambi 1B
Robinson Cano 2B
Melky Cabrera CF
Andy Pettitte P

6 World Championships
Julio Lugo SS
Dustin Pedroia 2B
David Ortiz DH
Mike Lowell 3B
Kevin Youkilis 1B
J.D. Drew RF
Jason Varitek C
Bobby Kielty LF
Coco Crisp CF
Daisuke Matsuzaka P

Against the Yankees this season, Matsuzaka is 2-1 with a 6.98. In 19 IP, have managed 19 hits and 15 ER against the Red Sox’s import. Let’s see how tonight goes.

Jeter, in a bad slump and hitting what must be the quietest .280 since the All Star break, is 4 for 9 off Dice-K with 2 HR. A good game from Derek would be excellent. Here we go.

Don’t throw near the Red Sox, and other lessons from Baltimore

by 5 Comments

Major League Baseball has suspended Daniel Cabrera of the Orioles for throwing behind Dustin Pedroia. Supposedly, Cabrera’s toss behind little Dustin’s head was intentional, but I’m thinking the Red Sox are getting very good at whining about inside (or behind-the-head) pitches. Remember that Joba incident? How many times did Pedro hit members of the Yankees with no ejection or suspension? Grow a pair, Boston.

Abreu likely to remain in pinstripes in ’08

by 13 Comments

To exercise or not to exercise. That is the Yankees’ question. And with regards to Bobby Abreu, it looks like the Yanks are going to exercise.

Bobby Abreu has had one roller coaster ride of a season. One of the main culprits behind the Yankees’ early-season struggles, Abreu really turned it around this season to become a steady number three hitter in the Yanks’ potent lineup.

Through April and May, Abreu was awful. In over 200 plate appearances, he was hitting .228 with a measly .313 OBP and a wimpy .289 slugging percentage. He had 2 HR, 22 RBI and 42 strike outs, and we were writing him off left and right.

Well, one apology and three-and-a-half months later, Abreu has turned in one hell of a season. Since June 1, Abreu has around 400 plate appearances. He’s hit .320/.398/.548 in that span with 14 HR, 27 2B and 72 RBI. When Abreu broke out of his two-month slump, the Yanks started winning. His turnaround was just as responsible for the Yanks’ playoff push as his struggles were for their terrible start.

Now, comes the word on the street via MLB Trade Rumors that the Yanks plan on picking up Abreu’s 2008 option. As Tyler Kepner and Buster Olney both noted yesterday, it’s almost a definite certainty that Abreu will remain with the Yanks in 2008.

I personally like this move. The Yanks have recognized that the 2007-2008 free agent class of outfielders isn’t a particularly deep one. They see that Abreu’s .300/.400/.500 line from June 1 on is more indicative of his perfromance that his .200/.300/.300 line from April and May, and they know they would be hard-pressed to replace Abreu’s production. With Alex Rodriguez’s future in pinstripes fairly uncertain, keeping Abreu’s bat around is a must.

Bad night for a stiff neck

by 33 Comments

My apologies to the five of you who saw my other post. I didn’t hear about Kyle’s stiff neck until a minute ago. That being said, depsite the RAB love for Chris Britton, he shouldn’t be pitching the 9th in a tie game on the road in mid-September. It’s really too bad Torre insisted on using Edwar last night for one out. The Yanks survive another inning with Mr. Ramirez. And Melky’s ball was so close which is after all the story of the 2008 Yankees.

Game 146: IPK looks to keep it going

by 31 Comments

Is it really Game 146 already? Man where does the time go? It seems like just yesterday Carl Pavano was warming up for his Opening Day start!

Anywho, the Yanks are rolling right now, winning their last 7 games and 40 of 59 since the break. Today’s a big game, a win keeps the momentum steamrolling into Fenway, a loss…well hopefully it’d be nothing more than a speed bump.

The lineup, in Roll Call form:

John-ny Da-mon! (LF)
Der-ek Je-ter! (SS)
Bob-by! (RF)
A-Rod! (3B)
Mat-su-i! (DH)
Rob-in-son! (2B)
Wil-son! (1B)
Molina (C)

IPK (RHP)

FYI – No DotF tonight, Trenton is off.