Baseball’s Savior

A Biased Look at the New York Yankees, the Greatest Franchise in the History of Sports

[powered by WordPress.]

October 31, 2007

Joe Girardi Is Your New Yankees Manager

by @ 10:54 am. Filed under 2007 Season

It’s funny how Joe Girardi has this golden reputation because he had one good year for the Marlins organization.  I’m not knocked the choice because I think out of the three guys the Yankees looked, Girardi was probably the best guy but you also don’t want to latch onto a guy who blows his wad in his first a la Lou Piniella.  I love Lou too and he’s a Yankee but he’s been riding that 1990 Reds championship (and Pete Rose actually built that team) and while he’s been successful, he hasn’t taken a team to the promised land since.

A-Rod is gone too so that’ll be one less distraction to deal with.  It also frees up some money to get Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada back into the fold.  Yeah, they’re up there in years but they were all there when the Yankees were winning.  It’ll just be interesting to see how Girardi, who couldn’t get along with ownership in Florida, copes with George Steinbrenner.

I’m also going to do something I don’t normally do and that’s give the Red Sox props.  They’ve won two World Series in a time where the Yankees haven’t even played in one and this Red Sox team looks like it’s going to be good for quite some time.  That just makes Girardi’s job that much tougher and will put him under the spotlight a bit more.

And it looks like Joe Torre already has found a home.  Former Red Sox manager and now former Dodgers manager Grady Little stepped down as the team’s manager and the rumor is that Torre is the number one target.  It also looks like Don Mattingly is going to follow him there.  Good luck to Joe because he’s a class act.  That is, I wish him luck up until we face him.

October 22, 2007

Manager Merry Go Round

by @ 11:26 am. Filed under 2007 Season

Well, it’s begun.  Joe Girardi was in for an interview and I like him, but I could see the relationship being a little Billy Martinesque.  Girardi got in trouble for running his mouth (in a good way) for the Marlins and they showed him the door so you wonder how George would deal with that.  Of course if he puts the Yankees back on a playoff series winning track, I’m sure he’d be able to tolerate him.

Tony LaRussa took himself out of the running as he’ll return to the Cardinals while Don Mattingly gave himself a vote of no confidence.  Tony Pena would be an interesting choice and he’s put in his time the past couple of years with the Yankees.

The manager can only do so much though and the Yankees will have to have a solid offseason to get back to the promised land.  Alex Rodriguez should be a priority as should getting another pitcher or two.  And you also wonder why Brian Cashman hasn’t taken more heat with his expanded role this year.  Maybe he gets a free pass this year but if he can’t get it done in 2008, it could be a GM search next year.

October 9, 2007

Yankees Season Ends Early Again

by @ 2:43 am. Filed under 2007 Season

Well, the Yankees are done and like the last several years, we look back and try to find answers.  The players were there, they just didn’t get it done.  I’m usually on George’s side but blaming Torre is a little comical.  This is the kind of team that should coach itself and the fact that he brought the Yanks back from the grave should warrant something but I think Steinbrenner wants a fresh start.  He’s been right before,  I just hate to see Torre go because he’s been so good for so long.

Brian Cashman also has to share some of the blame although the big offseason move this year, Andy Pettitte, turned out to be a good one.  The Roger Clemens one was a deal that had to be done even though it looks foolish now.  There’s no way we could have let the Red Sox get their hands on Clemens and the only way to guarantee that was to sign him ourselves.

I don’t even know if I’ll watch any of the remaining series.  I’d like to see the Red Sox get squashed but it’s hard to root for the Indians when they knocked your team out.  As far as the Diamondbacks and Rockies, who cares.  Sigh, Fox has to be scrambling because just about any matchup that doesn’t involve the Red Sox will be a ratings disaster.

October 8, 2007

Johnny Damon Drives in Four, Yankees Still Alive

by @ 2:10 am. Filed under 2007 Season

Well, we paid Roger Clemens all of that money to get us to the promised land and he fell on his face last night. Fortunately, the hitters and the pen didn’t and Yankees managed an easy win to turn a near hopeless situation into a more realistic one.  Clemens gave up three runs and he left in the third with the Yankees down 3-0.

Johnny Damon put the Yankees on the board in the bottom of the third.  He singled home Hideki Matsui before the Yankees exploded for four runs in the fifth to open the game up.  Melky Cabrera singled home Matsui to make it 3-2 before Damon struck again with a three run blast to give the Yankees their first, only and last lead of the of the game.  The Yankees scored three more in the sixth on a Robinson Cano single/error but those runs turned out to be unnecessary.

Give some props to the rookie Phil Hughes.  He relieved Clemens and got the Yankees back on track with 3 2/3 innings of shutout relief.  Joba Chamberlain gave up a run in the eighth but by that point, the game was set.  It just made the game the 8-4 final that it was.  Mariano Rivera continued his post season dominance with a perfect ninth and two strikeouts.

Game four is tonight.  It’ll be Chien-Ming Wang going on short rest against the Indians Paul Byrd.  At stake is the 2007 season.

October 5, 2007

Yankees Lose Game Two in Eleven Innings

by @ 5:44 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

I love Joba just like every other Yankees fan and I think he’s going to go on to great things but that eighth inning was just a train wreck.  Walk, wild pitch, bunt, wild pitch is how the Indians scored their tying run.  I can’t blame Torre for bringing in Mariano Rivera either because it was the right move.  Unfortunately, he just couldn’t keep pitching.

You also have to feel for Andy Pettitte because he pitched his heart out.  And where are you Alex Rodriguez?  We need you.

It’s all up to the Rocket on Sunday.  If he doesn’t earn his money, the season is over.

Yankees Blown Out In Game One Of ALDS

by @ 2:16 am. Filed under 2007 Season

Well, I really hope this isn’t happening again.  Chien-Ming Wang was blasted and the offense picked up all of five hits.  Hopefully Andy Pettitte can do a better job this afternoon.  Sigh.

September 6, 2007

Playoff Bound?

by @ 5:57 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

Just because I haven’t been writing, doesn’t mean I haven’t been watching and you have to be impressed with what the Yankees have done in the second half.  Since the All Star Break, the Yankees have gone 35-18 and that’s the best record in all of baseball.  The only other team above .600 in the second has been the Diamondbacks.  It probably won’t be good enough to catch up the Yankees, but it should be good enough to win the Wild Card, and we all know, once the playoffs start, all bets are off.

Even better, the Tigers and Mariners square off.  One team has to lose so by the end of the weekend, there’s a chance the Yankees will have to deal with just one team.  And assuming the Yankees take care of business in Kansas City, they very well should pick up a game in the process.

A-Rod has to win the MVP this year. With his numbers, it’ll be hard to deny him considering he could even make a run at 60.  Magglio Ordonez is playing for a failing team and while he’s done a nice job in Detroit, there’s just no comparison.  Jorge Posada should get some votes as well.  You have to love that .420 OBP.

And I’m a believer in Chien-Ming Wang.  I thought last year was a good, career year but it’s followed it up with an equally solid season in 2007.  He has 17 wins and that was after missing most of April.  And he hasn’t lost back to back starts since his first two in late April.

So I’m back for the playoff run.  No excuses on the abscence other then it’s been a weird year.  I have tried to keep up with the 1977 Diary over at Yankees History though so if you want to follow them down the stretch, that’s the place to go.

July 20, 2007

Gaining Ground

by @ 4:56 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

Alright, the Yankees picked up a few games after a series win over the Jays and with the benefit of a three game losing streak by the Red Sox, the Yankees now sit a much more manageable seven games down.  We’re also going to see what Shelly Duncan can do at the big league level because he just got a bump and Philip Hughes has to be getting close.  Help is coming just in time.

And with the trade deadline coming up, you know the Boss is itching to make a move.  Starting pitching is the priority but it’ll be interesting to see who’s giving what up.  Dontrelle Willis would look good in a Yankee uniform.  Adam Dunn would also be a nice pick up.  So far, it looks like the Yankees aren’t biting with Andy Phillips doing a nice job at first base but Dunn would be a huge addition, you just have to consider the price.

Chien-Ming Wang is making a believer out of me.  I thought his 2006 season was a bit more then what we should expect from him but he’s come back this and done a very nice job.  He has ten wins and that’s after missing close to a month.  He doesn’t strike people out, but he doesn’t walk anyone either and he keeps the ball down and doesn’t normally get tagged with a big inning.

A-Rod is already coming up on 100 RBIs and if he doesn’t win the MVP, it’ll be a tragedy.  He’s three short of last year’s total and four short of hitting the 500 milestone.

The Yankees go up against the Rays again, and they’re down 4-0 in the opener.  If the Yanks can’t come back, it’d be nice if they took the last two and have something to build on heading into the new week. 

July 15, 2007

On Scene Report Of This Afternoon’s Game

by @ 5:02 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

A friend of mine who lives in Tampa went to the Yankees/Devil Rays game this afternoon.  Here’s what he had to say about the game…..

In front of a pack house at the Trop–estimated by RB to be 20,000 Yankees fans and 15,000 Devil Rays fans.  The Yanks fans were a lot louder too!

It was a fantastic game. The Rays got out to a quick start, jumping on Mussina. They scored 2 runs in the
first inning and 1 the next inning, while the Yankee bats were stagnant. A-Rod continued his terrible ways
as of late by watching a fastball down the middle blow by him. Edwin Jackson looked good early on.

Moose hung in there on the mound just enough to enable the Yanks to mount a comeback. The combination of Edwin tiring on the mound in my opinion, and Yankee determination opened things up for the Bronx Bombers.

The game moved into a seesaw affair starting in the 5th inning.  In the fifth, Robinson Cano started things off with a nice hit. Andy Phillips then came to the plate and was very aggressive, hitting the snot out of the ball–a triple. I was impressed with him today. He didn’t back down at the plate, and made two fabulous plays at first, one a game-saver. He looks like the real deal to me. The heck with that back-stabber Giambi. He’s DONE.

After back-up catcher Will Nieves knocked Philips in, the Yanks were down 3-2. Then came Jeter to the plate.  As usual, the crowd went ballastic, blowing the roof off the place in support. Jeter could run for
mayor in St. Petersburg and win easily. He doesn’t even have a residence in that dump either–it’s in
Tampa. Well, Jetes blasted a 2-run homer to right field. The crowd could barely contain itself. The
Yanks were up 4-3.

The Yanks trailed, 5-4, with one out in the eighth, when a Robinson Cano hit a solid sacrifice fly to deep
left field, scoring Alex Rodriguez to tie the game. Alex finally got a hit, but is 1-10 as of late, and
looks bothered by something–hopefully not all the media talk about his contract. He botched a weak hit
to him earler in the game. Once again, Andy Phillips came up big, smoking a single to left and advanced to
second as teammate Hideki Matsui beat the throw home for the go-ahead run. Derek Jeter then showed why he is all-world by beating out a bases-loaded single for an insurance run before the inning was over.

Joe Torre pulled a bone-head move by brining in lame Kyle Farnsworth in the 8th. The result was a run and string of nervous energy by the 20,000+ fans. Luckily, the Rays couldn’t muster anything else, leaving the Yanks up 7-6.

Mariano came in the 9th and made it interesting. If it were not for a great double play by A-Rod on 3rd to
Phillips on first, who knows what would have happened. But the end result was a save and 7-6 Yankees
victory! The boys are now +1 above .500 since June 22 with an 8-game homestand on deck.

July 11, 2007

Yankees Have Ten Games to Make Up

by @ 7:37 am. Filed under 2007 Season

Ten games.  That’s a nice even number and that’s how many games the Yankees have to make up in the second half of the season to catch the Red Sox.  More importantly, they’re just nine games back in the loss column so one of those games the Yanks can make up just by winning.  A big reason the deficit isn’t larger is because the Tigers helped us out by sweeping the Red Sox heading into the break.

The team MVP is a no brainer and that’s A-Rod.  In fact he’s the league MVP right now and he’ll need to keep up his current pace if the Yankees are going to make a run.  Jorge Posada is probably a close second with his best season of his career.  The guy who has to step it up is Bobby Abreu.  A .725 OPS isn’t going to cut it and we all know Abreu has it in him to put together a solid second half.  He may not provide the power, but he can provide a great secondary table setter to Derek Jeter.

Johnny Damon also has to step it up, although we all know he’s been playing through an injury.  His OPS is .683 and he’s hitting just .245.  If there’s one positive, it’s that he’s stolen 15 bases without getting caught but even turning some singles into doubles probably doesn’t even get his slugging up to .400.

Here’s one odd thing in looking at the Yankees’ team statistics.  You have A-Rod at 30 homeruns and no other then Hideki Matsui with 11, no other Yankee has more then nine.  Last year, the Yankees had four players with 23 or more.  One guy the Yankees are missing is Gary Sheffield, who’s shining at DH for the Tigers.

And we haven’t gotten to the pitching.  I’ll give them a chance to shine in the Yanks upcoming series before getting on them.  Anyway, I really enjoyed Bronx is Burning.  A little overly dramatic but it’s a cool hour of television especially after following the team over at Yankees History.

Next up is four against the Devil Rays.  Three of four is pretty much a neccesity and sweep would always be nice.  The Red Sox take on the Blue Jays so the Yanks will either pick up ground on the Red Sox along with the Jays or pass them up in the standings.  One of them has to lose, which is a good thing.

June 25, 2007

Yankees Slide Into Third With Rough Week

by @ 4:39 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

This is the problem when you dig yourself a hole.  A stretch where you lose four in five days can be brutal and all of the ground you made up over the past week goes up in smoke.  That’s what happened to the Yankees.  They were swept by Colorado then they lost two of three to the Giants.  Those are both teams the Yankees should take care of while a lot of people will look at our head to head record against the Red Sox, it’s series like these that make or break your season.

So the Yankees site 11 1/2 back now but there’s some hope because the Yankees start a three game set with the last place Orioles beginning tomorrow.  Two out of three is critical and a sweep would be nice.  The Red Sox play three at Seattle beginning tonight and it sure would be nice to have that lead back into single digits heading to a weekend where a tough Oakland team rolls into town.

While the Yankees had a tough week, Alex Rodriguez didn’t and while he had only one homerun, he had two four hit games in the Giants series alone and he had three doubles and seven runs in the six game stretch. 

Last night’s game made news because Roger Clemens came out of the pen.  Maybe he should stick to starting because walked Bonds and he eventually came around to score after a single and a sac. fly.  The run didn’t matter much but it made for some talk around the water cooler.

Here’s some interesting stuff from the Hardball Times team page.  The Yankees have underperformed their expected win/loss by six games and the Red Sox have overperformed by two.  So that turns that 11 1/2 game lead into a 3 1/3 game lead.  I know it means squat but it goes to show you that the Yankees just haven’t gotten it done, especially in close games (6-22 in games decided by two runs or less).  So the Yankees blow a team out when the win then lose a few by a run or two.

They still have the second best offense in the American Leauge with 5.45 runs per game.  In fact they’re second to those Tigers in just everything on offense.  And they’re pitching isn’t bad, it just seems to be good on the days the Yankees put ten runs on the board.

It’ll be interesting to see whether the Yankees revert to sellers at the trade deadline.  If we’re at 11 1/2 games at the trade deadline, it’s worth considering.  You wonder if this is some sort of Curse of Bernie Williams or something.  We dump him like yesterday’s garbage and now it’s coming back to haunt us.

Andy Pettitte versus some Orioles pitcher I’ve never heard of.  Roger Clemens against Erik Bedard should be a fun matchup on Wednesday.  Wonder if that game will be ESPN.

June 18, 2007

Yankees Take Care of Ailing Mets

by @ 10:38 am. Filed under 2007 Season

You have to hate when the Yankees win two of three over a weekend series, yet lose a game in the standings because some team didn’t show up against the Red Sox.  Still the Yankees took care of business against the Mets and now it’s off to Denver for three games against a mediocre Rockies team.

Chien-Ming Wang is starting to catch his groove.  He’s won his last four starts and six out of last seven and over those last seven starts he’s given up three runs or less in all of them.  I wasn’t a big believer in Wang and I thought he’d come back down to earth after his Cy Young caliber season last year but he impresses me more and more every time he goes out.

Alex Rodriguez of course has caught fire again.  Since June rolled around, he’s hitting an impressive .393/.500/.893 with 28 RBIs in just 16 games.  In fact June is shaping up to be a better month then A-Rod’s historic April and there’s a very outside chance that he could be at 100 RBIs by the break.  In fact, if the season ended today, his 1.111 OPS would be a career best.

Derek Jeter has put together a twelve game hitting streak and he’s right there in the mix for the batting title.  It’s hard to believe he’s never won a batting title although he has six top five finishes and he’s fifth amonst active players with a career .318 batting average. 

It’s Mike Mussina versus Josh Fogg in the opener tomorrow.  In the meantime, the Red Sox will be going up against a decent Braves team.  Hopefully we can pick up the game we lost over the weekend.  And the Yankees site just 3 1/2 back for the Wild Card so there’s always that to fall back on.

June 13, 2007

Yankees Continue Ascent With Eighth Straight Win

by @ 7:13 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

Alright, I knew the Yanks had it in them.  A couple of sweeps and just like that, the Yankees are above .500, in second place, and just 8 1/2 games back of the faltering Red Sox.  The rotation is starting to square away and even guys like Mike Mussina, who had struggled almost as much as he’d pitch effectively, is getting it done.

One of the guys a fire is Bobby Abreu.  He’s scored fourteen runs in the eight game winning streak and he’s seen his batting average climb from .234 on June 1 to .272 after tonight’s game.  A twelve game hitting streak will do that as will a game like he had a few days ago where he went four for four. 

And Abreu is making a nice table setter for a guy like Alex Rodriguez, who hit homerun number 25.  His three RBIs give him an impressive 66 on the season and while names like Magglio Ordonez get thrown around for MVP, when the dust settles, my money is on A-Rod winning his third with his first 60 homerun season.

So the Yankees are relevant.  The Red Sox comfortable is less so and the Yanks are back in the haves for the Wild Card.  Tomorrow it’ll be Andy Pettitte going up against Doug Davis and my bet is on nine in a row.

June 4, 2007

A-Rod Salvages Split Over Red Sox

by @ 8:02 am. Filed under 2007 Season

This was more of a moral victory of sorts because the Yankees needed a sweep.  Yeah, it’s nice to make up some ground but there’s not a big difference between a 12 1/2 game deficit and 14 1/2 game deficit.  They both suck.  So while Alex Rodriguez hit the game winner in the ninth, there’s still a whole lot of work to do.  Heck, even in the Wild Card, we’re seven games back with a ton of traffic between the Yanks and the Tigers. 

Triple A pitcher number five gets the start tonight, which we’ll all get to watch on ESPN.  Matt DeSalvo has been roughed up so far this year.  He is consistent though.   He’s given us five innings and three runs in most games.  Still a 15/6 walk to strikeout ratio blows and the White Sox have some solid hitters so we’ll see how this one goes.  Of course DeSalvo gets the start for Roger Clemens, who has a fatigued (WTF?) groin.  At least we’re not paying him while he’s on the shelf.

Jorge Posada has been a man on fire.  While you’d expect a guy like Derek Jeter to be hitting .363 in early June (and he’s right there as well), Posada is doing it while providing some punch as well.  You could be looking at your MVP if the Yankees can get rolling.  Oddly, he’s not walking as much as he usually does but his .997 OPS would be a career high.  And it couldn’t be a better time for the catcher because it’s a contract year, meaning Steinbrenner will have to pony up a few more bucks to sign him.

Speaking of George, he is the king.  Something will happen in July.  Either he’ll deal a guy or two to set us up to win next year or he’ll make a deal to get us the Wild Card.  It’s hard to be a Yankees fan and not be optimistic.  It’ll also be interesting to see what happens to Cashman.  I think he’s gone if the Yanks don’t make the playoffs.

June 2, 2007

Out of the Cellar

by @ 4:22 am. Filed under 2007 Season

I know, it’s been a while again.  But there’s not a lot of excuses other then I’m splitting time between my other site , which I’m way behind on, and the Yankees just plain sucking.  They did take it to the Red Sox last night though with both benches clearing at one point because of all of the bean balls.  It’s just been a rough season because everytime it looks like the Yankees might be pulling themselves together (like right now), they go and lose six of seven and fall further behind.

The big story down in the minors is Mitchell Hilligoss, who now has a 38 game hitting streak.  If he gets to 40, he’ll match the hitting streak by Frosty Kennedy back in 1953.  Hilligoss was a fringe prospect and you have to be careful because he’s a college hitter playing in Low A so he might be ahead of the curve.  This is very cool though and I’m interested to see what he’ll do once they move him up the ladder (maybe when his streak is over).

It’s Mike Mussina versus Curt Schilling on FOX’s game of the week.  It sure would be nice if they can make it three in a row.

May 20, 2007

Joe Torre, Jason Giambi Under Fire

by @ 10:39 am. Filed under 2007 Season

The Yankees look like a sinking ship but guys, it’s really early to start worrying.  Yeah, a ten game deficit is tough but an extended winning streak could cut that in half in a hurry and put the Yankees into striking distance.  In the meantime, Joe Torre’s name has come up as the possible first manager fired this season.  I’m not sure what the problem is, but I don’t think it’s Torre.  I mean, one of the manager’s primary goals is motivation and I don’t see how that applies with all of the stars in this lineup.

The other guy who could be gone is Jason Giambi for using performance enhancing drugs.  I’m not sure if you want to bail on a slugger of his caliber but then again, he’s hardly lit it up this year.  This all came about because Giambi more or less admitted to taking steroids when he said the league should apologize for the PED fiasco.

One guy who hasn’t taken much heat is Brian Cashman.  While Gary Sheffield is having a good but not great season, the main part of the trade that sent him to Detroit is out for the season with an elbow problem.  That’s not what I’d call an effective deal.  And the big signing up until the Clemens show coming to town was Andy Pettitte, who’s had a hard luck season with little run support.

And while it’s hard to focus on one game, tonight’s nationally televised game against the Mets seems to be a big one and could be used as a springboard to turn the season around.  It could also be the final straw for guys like Joe Torre.

May 15, 2007

Back At It

by @ 12:13 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

So did you miss me?  Of course the big news while I was struggling with the network wide net problems we had at Baseball Historians was the Roger Clemens signing.  He’s thrown a simulated game and he makes his minor league debut at Tampa on Friday.  Just what the doctor ordered because while I have been writing, the Yanks have been pretty mediocre.  They still sit just below .500 and they’re an even 5-5 in their last ten.  The good news is, they’re still in second place while the bad news is, they sit 8 1/2 games back of the first place Red Sox.  So there’s a lot of work to do.

And there’s no better time then the present.  The Yanks play three in Chicago against the White Sox and they’ve been about as mediocre as the Yankees have.  To finish up a tough week, the Yankees play three against the Mets at Shea Stadium.  The sooner the Rocket can get here, the better.

And while Alex Rodriguez has cooled off, Derek Jeter has caught fire.  In May, he’s hitting .431 and in the last seven days, he’s hitting a nice, even, .500.  He’s also gotten in done with men in scoring position.  David Ortiz, eat your heart out because Jeter is hitting .500 with runners in scoring position and .625 with two outs and men in scoring position.  While a lot has been made to dispel the fact that Jeter’s a clutch hitter, he’s definitely getting it done this year. 

I have a lot of catching up to do, especially at Yankees History, so please bear with me.  It’ll get done, I just can’t say when and I know it defeats the idea of the diaries when you fall behind but there was nothing I could do.

May 6, 2007

Roger Clemens, New York Bound

by @ 5:23 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

Roger Clemens is coming to the Yankees, which isn’t a surprise because he wants to win.  And winners play for the Yankees.

Also want to apologize for the lack of content.  We’re having network/blogging software issues and I’ve been told it could recrash at any time so quick posts are best.  It should be resolved this coming week sometime and then I’ll give the Clemens signing it’s proper due.

May 2, 2007

Philip Hughes Picks Up First Major League Win

by @ 2:56 am. Filed under 2007 Season

Now this was a little better.  Rookie phenom Philip Hughes bounced back from a rough start in this debut and threw 6 1/3 innings of no-hit ball as the Yankees topped the Rangers 10-1.  He walked three and struck out six and he picked up his first major league win in the start.  Congrats kid.

Alex Rodriguez picked up in May where he left off in April and he went three for four with a run.  Robinson Cano was the hitting star though.  He went four for five with three RBIs and two runs scored.  Jorge Posada also had a nice game and he went three for four with two RBIs and three runs.

It’s Andy Pettitte versus Robinson Tejada tonight.  And with everybody else losing in the AL East, the Yankees are starting to make up some ground.

April 29, 2007

Chien-Ming Wang Can’t Get It Done In Yankees Loss

by @ 4:00 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

The Yanks lost the rubber game in their three game series with the Red Sox 7-4 and it was Chien-Ming Wang who dropped his second straight start of the season.  He gave up four runs on six hits and three walks with strikeout in six innings.  Scott Proctor gave up a run as well and Sean Henn was tagged for two.

Alex Rodriguez didn’t go yard and he didn’t drive in a run but he went two for four to cap off a historic April.  Doug Mientkiewiecz and Derek Jeter both hit the ball over the fence though and Mientkiewiecz did it with two runners on. 

So the Yankees start the new week in last place, but don’t expect it to last.  Next up is three against against the Rangers in Texas.  Phil Hughes get his second start in the opener on Tuesday in the opener.  The Rangers have struggled of late so hopefully they can use this series to get back on track.

April 28, 2007

Yankees End Skid

by @ 3:54 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

First off, the bad news.  Jeff Karstens was hit by a comebacker to leadoff hitter Julio Lugo and after a single by Kevin Youkilis, he was taken out of the game.  The good news is, Kei Igawa shut the Red Sox out through six innings and he picked up the win in a 3-1 Yankees win.  He walked four and struck out six.  Mariano Rivera finally picked up his first save with a shutout ninth.

Jorge Posada provided most of the offense with a two run homer.  He also scored on Melky Cabrera’s double and Derke Jeter finished with three hits in the game.

Chien-Ming Wang gets the start tomorrow in the rubber game.  It’s about time to put the Red Sox in their place.

Yankees Drop Seventh Straight Game

by @ 4:07 am. Filed under 2007 Season

Yawn.  Yeah, this is getting old, but look back at the last couple of years and see when the Yankees didn’t go through a stretch like this early.  And guess where they ended up folks??  Yeah, that’s right, they may not have made it to World Series but they made it into the dance.

Yawn again.  The Yankees lost their seventh straight.  Andy Pettitte was roughed up, Derek Jeter had three hits and Johnny Damon drove in two.  Revenge is today as the Yankees will take all of their frustrations out on Tim Wakefield.

April 26, 2007

Phil Hughes Hit Hard in Debut

by @ 6:40 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

Welcome to the show kid.  Phil Hughes took it on the chin today and lost his first career start to the Blue Jays.  He gave up four runs on seven hits and a walk with five strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings.

Oh yeah, the awesome Yankee offense was shutout on four hits too.  Jason Giambi had two of those hits and Derek Jeter was out after getting beaned last night.  Hideki Matsui walked three times.

So not a lot to talk about, considering it’s the Yankees sixth straight loss.  This is really starting to piss me off and you wonder how long it’ll be until the Boss speaks out.  Hopefully he doesn’t wait too long.

And this weekend it’s three against Boston.  This would be the time to turn things around.

April 24, 2007

Chien-Ming Wang Loses Season Debut to Devil Rays

by @ 6:52 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

This losing streak is starting to suck.  Mike Myers gave up a grand slam to Carl Crawford that ended up being the difference in the Yankees 6-4 loss to the Rays.  Chien-Ming Wang took the loss, but he definitely had some help in this one.

Hideki Matsui homered, drove in two and scored twice in the loss.  A-Rod was hitless. Yeah, I know it’s hard to believe.  Almost as hard to believe as this five game losing streak.  Yeah, that’s the Yankees in last but don’t get to used to it.  What’s nice is, the Jays beat up the Red Sox so the total to get back on top is still what it was when we started the week.

Speaking of the Jays, they roll into town for two games.  A win, or two, would be nice.

Alex Rodriguez Hits Two Homeruns in Yankees Fourth Straight Loss

by @ 4:07 am. Filed under 2007 Season

Anytime now guys.  While A-Rod and the offense have done their job, the pitchers need to step up.  I found it interesting that now Philip Hughes is going to get his chance on Thursday.  At this point, I’ll try anything.

Alex Rodriguez, yawn, hit two more, yawn, homeruns.  He now has fourteen and I think that ties the record for April.  With about a week left, I see that record going down.  He also now has 34 RBIs and he’s hitting a nice, even .400.  Yeah, Albert Pujols may be the man, but A-Rod is showing him how it’s done in the American League.  Robinson Cano also went yard and Jason Giambi finished with three hits.  Plenty of offense in this one.

Then there’s the pitching.  Kei Igawa was roughed up for seven runs on eight hits and three walks in just 4 1/3 innings.  Brian Bruney gave up three and Mariano Rivera actually got his ERA down below eight with a shutout eighth inning.

The bad news here is that the Yankees now sit at 8-10 and if they lose today, even the Rays will pass them. Yes, I know it’s temporary and that the Yankees will be in first place, most likely by the break, but it’d be nice if they just won the games early and let us relax.

April 23, 2007

Yankees Drop Third Straight With Sweep at Boston

by @ 2:47 am. Filed under 2007 Season

Man, they’re probably happy in Boston this morning.  The Yankees dropped their third straight game at the hands of the Red Sox and we now sit four games back in third place.  Heck, even the Orioles are in front of us.   The Yanks have been there before and I’m confidant the end will be the same (i.e. playoffs), but it sure would be nice to do a wire to wire thing like we got used to in the late 90s instead of this come back from several games down stuff.

Anyway, Chase Wright was bombed in the the third inning and he gave up four homeruns in succession.  This would be a big deal but it just happened last year with the Dodgers  Anyway, the Yankees actually took the lead back until the Red Sox scored three in the seventh and that pretty much finished things up. 

Scott Proctor gave up the three seventh inning runs and he took the loss.  Wright lasted only three innings and now the pen is going to be stretched.

Jason Giambi had a nice game and he drove in three runs on a double and a single.  Derek Jeter hit his first homerun of the season and Alex Rodriguez went one for four and he was hit by a pitch and he scored twice.

Just what the doctor ordered, we get two against Tampa Bay.  If we drop either one of these, I’ll be bummed although tomorrow’s matchup could go either way with Scott Kazmir throwing against Chien-Ming Wang in his first start of the start.  Let’s just hope the boys bring their bats.

April 21, 2007

Yankees Lose Again in Boston

by @ 5:36 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

I’ve said this quite often, but I hate playing in the shit box.  Most of the time, bad things happen there.  Yeah, I know there was the five game sweep last year, but if you play out that series 99 more times, in none of them do you get a five game sweep in Boston.  Anyway, today’s loss was just a beatdown. No ninth inning heroics by anyone.  The Red Sox just outpunched us.

Jeff Karstens was really pummelled.  He gave up all seven runs on nine hits and two walks in 4 1/3 innings.  The pen threw pretty well from there but the deficit was just a touch too much as the Yankees could only pull it to 7-5.

Derek Jeter had two hits and two runs while Alex Rodriguez racked up two more hits and one more RBI.  The loss pushed the Yankees back to .500 at 8-8 and we now trail the Red Sox by three games.  Hardly insurmountable especially this early but tomorrow’s game is a pretty big one.  And it’s a battle of rookies as Dice-K will throw against Chase Wright.  Hopefully this Wright kid can get it going and pull this one out and the Yanks can pound Dice-K in the process.  The over/under for homeruns by A-Rod is two.

April 20, 2007

Yankees Lose Ugly

by @ 6:36 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

Now this was a kick in the you know what.  The Yankees were just cruising.  Alex Rodriguez hit two more homeruns and the Yankees had a nice, comfortable 6-2 lead.  Then similar to what the Yanks did to the Indians yesterday, things just turned around all at once.

Double, walk, ground out, single.  Now it’s 6-3 and Mariano Rivera is brought in to stop the damage right?  You wonder if something is wrong with Rivera because he gives up single, triple, single before Alex Cora is caught stealing for the second out.  By this time, the Red Sox have the lead.  Rivera strikes out Julio Lugo but by this time, the damage has already been done.

I hate giving the Red Sox hope too, especially when they’re playing in the shit box.  And it’s Jeff Karstans versus Josh Beckett tomorrow and that doesn’t give me a warm fuzzy feeling. And what can you say about A-Rod.  Only two other players have ever had 12 homers and 30 RBIs in April and A-Rod has done it with nine games left in the month.  I’d say he deserves a day off, but all he does is walk around the bases.

April 19, 2007

Alex Rodriguez Hits Homerun Number Ten In Yankees Come From Behind Win

by @ 3:02 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

Now this is what’s it about.  The Yankees turned a 6-2 deficit into an 8-6 win by blasting the Indians so called closer.  Josh Phelps started the inning off with a solo homerun and then the hero, Alex Rodriguez, hit a walk off three run shot to win it.  The homerun was his tenth of the season.  All if a days work for A-Rod.  Bobby Abreu had a nice game and he went four for five with two RBIs and a run and Jason Giambi also went yard.

Sean Henn picked up the win in relief.  It was his first career win.  Darrell Rasner threw only 4 1/3 innings but it wasn’t all bad.  He gave up one run on four hits and a walk with three strikeouts.

The Yankees sit just one back of the Red Sox and two square off in a huge three game series at the shit box.  I don’t particularly care for the pitching matchups but that’s what happens when you have a guy who was throwing in Double A last week in your rotation.  I still say Yanks win two of three and they score 30 runs doing it.

April 18, 2007

Alex Rodriguez Homers Again in Win Over Indians

by @ 6:07 pm. Filed under 2007 Season

Alex Rodriguez is getting kind of boring.  Homeruns every day, and all of those RBIs.  I mean c’mon, mix it up.  Belt a triple now and then or something.  And he’s only scored 16 times versus the 23 RBIs.  He needs to score more.  And maybe steal a base or two, which he can’t do if he’s trotting around the bases.  Or maybe he should start bunting for his hits, just to make it fair.

Hah, A-Rod is on a tear.  He belted his ninth homerun tonight in a 9-2 win over the Indians.  Derek Jeter finished with three hits and two runs and Jason Giambi went yard for the third time this season.

Kei Igawa picked up his MLB win with a solid outing.  He held the Indians to two runs on five hits and a walk with five strikeouts in six innings of work.  Then three relievers held the Indians hitless in the final three frames.

Tomorrow, Darrell Rasner will try to follow up on a solid start last week to finish off the Indians in their three game series.  The Yankees will get to dismantle Fausto Carmona as the Yankees will hopefully finish up the sweep.

[powered by WordPress.]

Yankees Resources

Baseball Historians

Minor League Blogs

GetMeIn.com

Yankees World Series Retrospectives

Yankees Links

General Baseball Links

Other Team Blogs

internal links:

categories:

search blog:

archives:

other:

Add to Google Subscribe in Bloglines

Coast to Coast Tickets


Be a fan of Coast to Coast Tickets on Facebook or follow @CTCTickets on Twitter for giveaways and discounts on a wide selection of baseball tickets for sale including Yankee Stadium game tickets and Yankees opening day tickets, Mets tickets, Red Sox tickets and Cubs tickets. We carry event tickets to see great New York teams such as New York Knicks tickets, New York Rangers tickets and New York Islanders tickets. Our selection of NFL tickets includes New York Giants tickets and New York Jets tickets, and we also carry New York concert tickets including The Who tickets, as well as Broadway tickets such as Jersey Boys tickets and The Producers tickets.

14 queries. 0.569 seconds