River Avenue Blues

Down on the Farm

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Gonna take the easy route today, and instead point you here. The notables:

Triple-A Scranton
Bronson Sardinha: 0 for 1, 1 R, 3 BB
Steven Jackson: 3.2 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 6-2 GB/FB, 3 HR allowed

Double-A Trenton
Shawn Garrett: 4 for 5, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 2 RBI – triple in the first, double in the fifth, single in the 6th, homer in the eight makes the good ol’ cycle
Chase Wright: 6 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K

High-A Tampa
Reegie Corona: 0 for 5, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K – 4 errors, all fielding
Jose Tabata: 1 for 4, 1 RBI, 3 BB, 1 K

Low-A Charleston
Mitch Hilligoss: 2 for 5, 2 R
Brian Aragon: 4 for 4, 1 R, 2 2B, 2 RBI

 

Igawa fuels Yanks victory

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Julio Lugo’s first-pitch comebacker off of Jeff Karstens’s leg end up fracturing his fibula. He stayed in to face Youkilis, but after that, it was apparent that he couldn’t continue. Yankee fans then collectively sighed as Kei Igawa was summoned from the bullpen. Our most recent memory of him was his 4.1 inning, seven earned run mess from Monday against the Devil Rays. Only the most optimistic of fans thought he stood a chance against the Red Sox. His wildness surely would have been his undoing.

Baseball is a funny game.

After somehow inducing a double play ball off the bat of Ortiz, Igawa went up 0-2 on Manny Ramirez. But, just as we thought Igawa was dealin’, he freaking walked him. Ten pitches just to put the guy on first base. If Igawa gained any fans with the double play, they were gone by the end of that at bat. J.D. Drew’s at bat involved plenty of grumbling on my part, but it ended with a swing and a miss. Go Kei.

We’re now at the part of the recap where I question a Joe Torre decision. With Jeter on second, Senor Hustle at first, and a full count on Alex with one out, Joe tries the play I despise the most: the hit and run. Well, I certainly hope it was a hit and run. Otherwise, Jeter got such a terrible jump that he should have just put on the brakes. But I digress. Alex Rodriguez has struck out in 17 of his 63 at bats vs. Wakefield. He has reached base safely 23 times. There are few times, if any, that a hit and run is a good idea. But to do it even when the numbers aren’t flush is just moronic.

So either Joe called a hit and run in a terrible station, or Jeter got a piss poor jump on a steal, and we’re into the second. Before I could say, “man, Igawa is fuckin’ us up,” he has two down. Five pitches, Lowell and Crisp. Not the best hitters in the order, but hey, you gotta get the bottom of the order out, too. But, as if he’s incapable of getting through an inning without pissing off an increasing number of fans, he walks Doug Mirabelli, a guy who walked 15 times in 202 plate appearances last year.

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King: Torre’s job in jeopardy

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So it looks like seven losses in a row — four of them to the Red Sox — were enough to bring out the ire in George Steinbrenner. George King reports today in The Post that the Boss is considering replacing Torre. Over at ESPN, Buster Olney believes this report to be coming from the mouths of influential higher-ups in the Yankee organization. In other words, the Yanks better start winning of Torre wants to stick around much past April this year.

Down on the Farm

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I understand it’s only April and it’s only A-ball, but it’s hard not to get excited about what Ian Kennedy is doing this year. And what about that David Robertson kid? Man is he dealin’ or what.

Hey look, at least the minor league squads won…

Triple-A Scranton (4-3 win over Columbus)
Kevin Thompson: 2 for 3, 1 2B, 1 E (fielding)
Andy Phillips: 3 for 3, 2 R, 2 BB
Bronson Sardinha: 0 for 5, 2 K – is it too soon to start thinking demotion to Trenton?
Shelley Duncan: 3 for 4, 1 R
Alberto Gonzalez: 2 for 4, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 K, 1 E (throwing) – is it too soon to start thinking utility role in the bigs?
Raul Chavez: 2 for 3, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 BB – catcher picked a runner off first
Tyler Clippard: 5.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 5 K, 3-6 GB/FB – best start since Opening Day, and that’s not saying much
Ron Villone: 1 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K – that’s a funny line…here’s what happened: Kevin Thompson committed a 3-base error (I’m guessing a ball went under his glove and back to the wall), and the runner was driven in by a sac fly
Chris Britton: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K – 4 for 4 in save chances

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Tonight’s lineup

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Damon CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Rodriguez 3B
Giambi DH
Matsui LF
Posada C
Cano 2B
Mientkiewicz 1B

Is it okay to hate Doug Mientkiewicz? I mean, it’s not his fault he’s starting — it’s Torre’s. But he’s a backup first baseman at this point in his career, and if the Yankees wanted an efficient roster, Jason Giambi would be the backup first baseman.

Not saying Phelps is the answer by any means. However, he’s a much better option at this point, regardless of which hand the opposing pitcher throws with.

Is it too much to ask a team with a $190 million payroll to go find a league average first baseman? Chris Shelton is rotting away in Detroit’s AAA system. That’s a start. Follow that lead.

More on Hughes’ debut

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So I’m digging through the pitch-by-pitch recap of last night’s game, and I noticed something: of the 7 hits Hughes gave up, only 1 came after he was ahead in the count – Frank Thomas’ single in the first, which came after Hughes had the Big Hurt down 1-2 in the count earlier in the at bat. What does that mean? Two things actually:

  1. He needs to do a better job of getting ahead in the count (duh, that’s pretty much the key to being an effective pitcher), and
  2. He knows how to put guys away with 2 strikes.

Most young pitchers have trouble putting guys away with 2 strikes, often nibbling at the corners when they should be attacking the zone. Heck, some young guys don’t even have a legit put-away pitch, which often leads to their downfall. Hughes didn’t show that tendency last night, which obviously is a positive.

It looks like Hughes’ next 2 starts will be at Texas on Tuesday, then home against the Mariner’s next Saturday. The Rangers and Mariners both have lineups full of undisciplined hitters (both clubs have a team OBP of .304, tied for second worst in the bigs), and if Phil can keep up his “get ahead and finish’em off” routine, and limit how much he falls behind in the count, these next 2 starts could do wonders for his confidence. Assuming they keep him in the rotation of course…