You might want to sit down …
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- March
- 24
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It looks like the Opening Day pitcher for the Yankees could be the Rajah of Rehab himself, Carl Anthony Pavano.
Mike Mussina pitched today and will start again on Thursday. Joe Torre just said they would not start him on April 2 on three days’ rest.
Andy Pettitte (sore back) needs another bullpen and a start before he’s ready. There is little chance he will be ready for April 2.
That leaves Pavano, who is scheduled to make his final start of the spring on Tuesday. That would line him up to face Tampa Bay at Yankee Stadium.
Torre said the staff would discuss the situation on Monday. But right now, it looks like Pavano.
What a shocking turn of events.
The good news is Pavano would be pitching on 643 days of rest.
This entry was posted
on Saturday, March 24th, 2007 at 5:02 pm by Peter Abraham.
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Chad Jennings
Sam Borden
Hahahaha, great title for this post Pete.
Nice one on 643 days’ rest.
Pete,this is so true.I can’t believe what i read about this message you just send out.I remember I read an article on yesnetwork.com.They said this will give Pavano confident and he can show they he is the one to trust.
One more thing,Pete.Hopefully,you get the message i wrote on another message.Yes.I am in Taiwan and just went home after studying in America.You can find more than in preview two I post.If you have more things you want to know,I will do my best to answer for you.
Man, what kind of odds could you have gotten on that in Vegas last month? Or even yesterday. Hopefully, by the end of the season we’ll have forgotten all about it.
On the plus side for Carl, with a psyched-up opening day crowd, he probably won’t be booed before he takes the mound.
And in other news, thousands are reportably selling their April 2nd tickets.
Anyone wanna buy my OD tickets?
Sorry,Pete.I have a question.Maybe someone can help me as well.I think my English is probably very poor.What does “You might want to sit down …” mean?
Jessica — we use “You might want to sit down” as an expression that means “get ready for some shocking news.” If you’re sitting down, you’re less likely to hurt yourself whn you faint.
How about Vegas odds on Pavano being tied for the A.L. lead in victories after next Monday?
Peter, since we are at our computers when we’re reading this, of course we are sitting down…
I’m down.
btw, When Carl takes the mound, the PA should be playing “Truckin’,” starting with the part: “What a long strange trip it’s been.”
Well I know the bullpen will be pitching one heck of a lot in April – at least on 4/2.
Thanks,Thurman.Your explanation is very clear.Thank you for your English lesson.You may consider to be a English teacher one day.I learn one more English stuff today which is good.I am very appreciated.
Anyhbody remember the 1950s comedy series “The Life or Riley”? William Bendix had an appropriate response for this state of affairs:
“What a revoltin’ development this is!”
A challenge can bring out the best in a player. If this happens, I think it would be a good thing. Hand Carl the ball and say, “This is your game.”
amazing
I would rather watch Peter’s pitch rather than Pavano.. Hey Peter, Can you pitch at all?
I’m so bummed! The Diva of Derrier on Opening Day!…Say it ain’t so, Joe!
LathamJoe,
I do believe you are dating yourself with that. Didn’t Bendix once play Babe Ruth?
Phil: Perhaps you can pick up a sense of humor at Wal Mart. Beyond that, I know plenty of people who check out this blog on their Blackberrys.
A smell a book deal for Pavano…
I think we all know what the A in Phil A stands for now.
Pete:
When I saw the headline I was afraid he was injured again and scared to read the entry… man you gotta be careful when posting about that guy. Great work on the blog though! Keep it up!
Lets reactivate Gator!!!
so down on this team right now.
Wang is injured.. the ace is injured. We had pitching problems BEFORE the injury.. now we’re going to be without the ace of this staff.. and possibly andy pettitte to with the back spasms…. not to mention Mike Mussina has looked horrible this spring and he’s barely throwing 84 mph… In past years the Yankees would always have that 6th start ready just in case whether it was a Jon Lieber or Jose Contreras.. the staff is so thin.. Pavano has to be healthy now or we’re dead…. I knew we should have went harder after a Zito or Matzuska.. or heck.. even Freddy Garcia would have been an excellent addition.. I’m really dissapointed in Brian Cashman.. he seems so obssessed with making the minor league system better and reducing payroll, that he’s completely ignored what’s important.. THE NEW YORK YANKEES MAJOR LEAGUE TEAM. What did we do in the off-season really? We barely made any improvements.
Pettitte is not an upgrade over Randy during the reg season… he’s only an upgrade in the playoffs.. if we get there.
Igawa and Wright are honestly probably around the same.. no upgrade there.
so what have the Yankees done? They lost Sheffield……… I don’t expect as many comebacks this year if we fall behind early… 4-0 deficits… 6-0 deficits.. we may have come back in past years, I’m not expecting that this eyar…. especially with 2 automatic outs in the order on some days.. Mienkiwtz and the back up catcher… HORRIBLE HORRRIBLE HORRIBBBLE… it’s like having a pitcher hitting 8th and 9th.
which brings me to my next point.. the bench! it’s a freakin disaster. have you ever seen a worst bench in your life… ? and why isn’t cashman more embarassed? cashman! you said when you took back the organization that you would take the heat for all that goes wrong.. WELL SO TAKE THE HEAT!!!! your bench is disgusting…. I think the Devil Rays have a better back up catcher with a payroll that is 1/8th of the Yankees. Melky Cabrera is too young to be in the role he’s in…..had Cashman used his noggin he would have relized Melky has already reached his highest potential… last off-season was the time to trade him… for somebody decent… we should be stocking the bench with experienced professionals like we had during the dynasty years.. not 22 year olds!
why was Miguel Cairo re-signed? He can’t field and he can’t hit.. and he’s done neither of those things since 2004.
The fact remains, the guy stinks. If the Yankees sign me, I’ll be great in the clubhouse, christ, I will even shine the guys shoes for them between innings, that doesn’t warrant me getting a paycheck from the Yankees. Joe Torre loves the guy, the guy is going to play all the time just like last year.
He has NEVER played catcher in his career, he stinks at third (can he ever throw the ball that far?), he stinks at first, he can’t throw from the hole at SS, and he is beyond awful in the OF.
The guy just stinks, there is NOTHING about his game that is good. I would compare him to Bubba Crosby, but at least Bubba could run, and play his position above league average.
now on to the first base situation…signing mienkiwitz was a horrible decision and I am suprised by Cashman.. because I frankly think Cashman has alot of potential… but has done a terrible job this past off-season.
His D can’t make up for his awful hitting now matter how many ways you slice it.
This signing is going to be a complete disaster. There is NO WAY the yankees should have the worst 1B in baseball in ANY situation.
and mark my words.. once the season starts Josh Phelps will return right back into what he was before.. . a guy with a long swing who has trouble recognizing pitches… and is strikeout prone.
now on to the bullpen.
Why is Mike Myers still on this team???? if you polled 1000 Yankees fans, 900 of them would tell you.. MIKE MYERS HAS WORN OUT HIS WELCOME ON THIS TEAM… yet he’s still here… he’s old… ineffective since the all star break last year (including spring training this year)…and is pretty much useless on a roster that has better candidates in its farm system.
Same goes for Ron Villone who again is suffering from the Tanya Sturtze, Paul Quantrill disease… era over 7 in the 2nd half last year…. horrible spring training.. and yet somehow I think Torre is going to pick him because of loyality..
meanwhile Henn, Bruney, Rasner, Karstens continue to put up ZERO’s in spring training… they have all earned a spot yet thanks to Torre and Cashman.. have no spot on this team. I am so dissapointed in Brian Cashman… he’s done alot of good this off-season improving the farm system.. but you know what? HE HAS TO TAKE THE HEAT FOR HIS MISTAKES.
now on to Arod..
Arod is as good as gone and the yankees made a HUGE mistake not trading him this past off season.
A-Rod said himself he will leave if he has another year like last year.
They had to go to him and tell him we want you out of town. If that was done the right way he would’ve probably accepted a trade. If not at least you tried…
the yankees should’ve gotten value for him while they could.
-1st base- a DISASTER
-the bench
-back upcatcher- a DISASTER
-utility infield- a DISASTER
-utility outfielder- AN UNKNOWN.. but I’m expected Melky to have a bad year in a role he’s not comfortable with.
-the starting rotation- VERY SHAKY.. and injury prone.
-and AROD.. a pending disaster.
I think Pavano is our only “healthy” “established” starter to have broken 90mph on the gun so far this Spring.
No more voting, the post of the year has to be Gloomy’s.
I say the Yankees ask MLB to suspend the season.
wow, somebody took this pavano news hard
Hey Peter, I love the Yankees I am just disgusted with their off-season and saying what’s on my mind because I believe in it.. no mnatter how much it hurts.. I am telling the truth!
Very observant, Todd Drew! Bendix did play The Bambino in the 1948 Film “The Babe Ruth Story”.
And you win today’s Grand Prize for your accurate guess:
An autographed heating pad from the Rajah of Rehab himself, as well as an Opening Day Upper Tier box seat – right next to the upbeat Blog Poster -”Gloomy”!
Thank you LathamJoe…
I thought about the situation for a moment, and came to the conclusion…Carl Pavano is going to throw a perfect game on opening day. Can this end any other way?
[...] Wow! I just finished doing a fantasy draft and saw this enter my feed reader from Peter Abraham – It looks like the Opening Day pitcher for the Yankees could be the Rajah of Rehab himself, Carl Anthony Pavano. [...]
I was going to say that this is proof that there is a Supreme Being and that He does have a sense of humor…But,
MAN, some people need to be on anti-depressants!
Gloomy should be on suicide watch. Geez man, its not even April. I’d love to see your post when Sheff and Matsui went down last year.
Ca$hmoney will get it done, you watch.
holy wall of text batman
Anyone want to give me the cliffnotes on gloomy’s post?
Somebody hand Gloomy the cyanide.
LathamJoe is a kind and gracious host. I think Gloomy will be feeling better by Opening Day.
2005 — The Year of Injuries to Yankee Pitchers
2006 — The Year of Injuries to Yankee Hitters
2007 — (back to) The Year of Injuries to Yankee Pitchers
It’s nice to know misfortune and misery are predictable nowadays.
Pete = Gloomy’s post is only the worst until Pavano gives up a run or two in the top of the first. Then you’ll see some real negativity.
I’m with Jonathan C – what better way to start the season than a Pavano perfecto – get Yogi and Don Larsen ready for the ceremonial first pitch
:):):):
Gloomy, quit beatin ’round the bush. Tell us what you really mean!
Pekeris,
The season hasn’t even started. If a mild hamstring strain is our biggest worry, it’s going to be a great year.
It is going to be a great year.
Oh my lord.
First, you need to take some Valium or something. Second, you need to get a clue.
The Yankees didn’t add starting pitching, besides Pettitte and Igawa because there wasn’t anything out there. Garcia is not a very good pitcher, the ChiSox wanted a lot for him, and as a fly-ball righty he’s not suited to Yankee stadium. The AAA rotation is absolutely loaded, what with Clippard, Olendorf, Hughes, Rasner, Karstens, Sanchez, White…most of them will need some time, but we aren’t talking about Scott Erickson here. Zito is horribly overrated, the Giants paid an absolutely absurd amount of money for him, and the Yankees weren’t going to match that because Cashman isn’t as stupid as Brian Sabean. Giving seven-year deals to pitchers is absolute madness, no matter if he’s Johan Santana or Josh Towers.
Pettitte is not an upgrade? WHAT? Randy, he of the 5.00 ERA last year, a gazillion homers, maddening inconsistency, absurdly bad numbers with men in scoring position…how can Pettitte NOT be an upgrade? Johnson is cooked, and he’ll get lit up in that launching pad in Arizona like he got lit up in New York. He’s not even going to be ready to start the season.
Somebody has a mancrush on Gary Sheffield, and an irrational one at that. The Yankees won a ton of come-from-behind games last year, and Sheffield was on the DL. He complains endlessly, he’s a nightmare in the outfield, and he’s on the decline. Cashman was brilliant to get value for him.
Melky is in the role he’ll most likely be in for the rest of his career, and one he’ll be very good in. We have an aging outfield, so Melky will get his 400 ABs. He’s a defensive upgrade and can play all four spots. Just because he’s cold in Spring Training isn’t a reason to bail on him. He’s 22 frickin’ years old.
John Flaherty was a horrendous hitter. Absolutely putrid. When a man fails to get his SLG over .300, he shouldn’t be playing in the majors. Nevermind that Posada is the most durable catcher in baseball, and had a stellar season last year. He’s also young in catcher years.
You are vastly overestimating the impact of Minky’s bat in the lineup. I expect something like .265/.345/.400, which isn’t great, but isn’t bad for a nine-hole hitter. Phelps kills lefties, and he’s better than Giambi at first. Both were low-cost, efficient options. For what it’s worth, Minky is one of A-Rod’s best friends, and his presence will probably give him more confidence. Oh, and Kevin Millar is the worst regular 1Bman in baseball. Can’t hit, disaster afield, and has a huge mouth. Or maybe Rich Aurilla/Ryan Klesko. Minky doesn’t need to carry his weight with the bat. He might have declined, but he’s waaaay better than Giambi.
Cairo is complete and total garbage, and Torre and the Yankee front office continues to be hynotized by that fluke 2004 season. No disagreement here. However, he’s also a utility infielder. He can field decently. That’s all that’s needed. Find me a team with a really good hitting utility infielder.
Mike Myers isn’t really needed, but he was a perfectly good pitcher last year when asked to do what he was signed to do. Torre is a complete airhead, and thinks that Myers is a long reliever suited to facing rigties. He’s still better than Felix Heredia and Gabe White, not to mention the immortal C.J. Nitkowski.
Don’t blame Cashman for Torre’s managerial incompetence. Torre has his favorites, bizarre as they may be. Cashman acquired Britton because he believed that he could help the team. He snagged Rasner off waivers and he promoted Karstens for the same reason. He yanked Bruney off the scrap heap when Arizona was dumb enough to let him go. He’s made two key errors, and those are trading for Javier Vazquez and signing Carl Pavano. Those are the two guys he believed in and fought hard for. Tony Womack and Jaret Wright were Steinbrenner moves, something easily recognized because both of them had sucess against the Yankees in the postseason. Torre has seniority and a great deal of the say in who makes the roster. If Bernie had showed up, he would have made it. And we would have continued to marvel at his spectacular decline.
Did you know that Alex Rodriguez is hands down the best 3rd baseman in the American League? No, I didn’t know that either. From the coverage he gets, I would have though he was Drew Henson. A-Rod is primed for a bounce-back year (which is saying a lot, considering that he led American League third baseman in most statistical catagories, was no less unclutch than Robinson Cano (if one believes in the validity of such things, which I don’t) afield and with the stick. He’s lost some of that muscle he didn’t really need, so he’ll be more mobile and his bat looks fine. The Yankees would never have gotten a suitable replacement or fair trade value, because the best trading partner, the Angels, don’t want to give up their best prospects.
When we’re leading the division in July, then you’ll look back and see how silly you were. I eagerly anticipate Curt Schilling’s post All-Star Break struggles as his massive bulk catches up to him.
Great headline, Pete. Let’s hope Carl makes it past the 1st inning without an injury.
april is the cruelest month. but we will survive and even look back with mirth at these crazy days. good thing they don’t decide pennant races in april.
Gloomy, are you really Jerome from The Bronx?
No, Sorry
I think Gloomy’s gloom is best left ignored. Although, it was hilarious to read. I hope your room is on the first floor.
I think it’s a hysterical turn of events. You can’t create pure irony like that.
Rich – love the suggestion for music as Pavano takes the mound. Great thinking.
Take it easy Peter…I love the info you supply on your blog, just being literal…I’ve never been to Wal-Mart
Gee Whiz.
I wonder what Gloomy would have thought of:
A first baseman who hits .258
A second baseman who can’t throw to first.
A third baseman who hits .230
A utility man who hits .207
A backup C who hits .236-1-7
A starting P (the #4) who goes 4-14 with a 6.91 ERA
Another starter (the #3) who goes 12-13.
Relievers with ERAs of 4.10, 4.25, and 5.04.
This team won the World Series.
They were the 2000 Yankees.
what a day…wang out now pavano on opening day: awful.
Interview with Mark Feinsand of New York Daily News – neilkeefe.com
Has it occured to anyone that this news isn’t any worse than when we found out Wang would be out? Pettite isn’t seriously hurt and will make his first regular season start. Moose isn’t hurt at all and is only not doing opening day because it’d be on three days rest. They’re playing the Devil Rays! The Yankees have all season to set the rotation in order. Whether the first three days are Pavano-Pettite-Moose or Moose-Pettite-Pavano is hardly a meaningful change.
I’m not going to say it’s not bad, but the opening day starter is more of a symbolic title than anything else. How is the opening day game any more important than any of the other 161? If Carl Pavano is our opener for the playoffs, then you should worry.
I’ve read Proust, but Gloomy and Ron’s posts have defeated me.
Gloomy:
Cashman has done a fine job retooling the farm and positioning this team for another dynastic run. Cashman has both accomodated Joe and forced his hand in many situations. Cash excommunicated Bubba last year. Bernie was kept out of Joe’s loving embrace in the offseason. Phillips will be cut finally. Villone will not make this team. Myers will be dealt as soon as somebody offers to take his 1.25 mil salary. Bruney will make the team. Britton will be called up when Myers gets dealt. Alberto Gonzalez is breathing down Cairo’s neck. Cashman has stockpiles of young pitchers to deal for a future catcher.
My point is, the roster today isn’t the same roster you will see for the playoff push in the second half. Cashman’s patience will not go unrewarded. Cashman didn’t deal Karstens in the offseason and now it looks like we just might need him. His added velocity translated into very impressive ST peripherals. I’m not too worried.
PS
Melky Cabrera will be our starting CF by the time Damon’s contract expires.
take it easy boys…the Bombers will manage..Roger will be here mid to late June and solidify the staff. Yanks just need to stay around the top slot and come June all will be good….
Thanks Todd Drew I feel a lot better. I’ll go eat my happy meal now.
I guess the silver lining is that the Yanks will be 6 to 8 games behind the Sox by the end of April/May, but will win came back to take the division in the end — just like the script from previous seasons.
At least pavano hasnt been terrible this spring.. I was watching all the hits he gave up last time out, most were well placed base hits rather than the result of bad pitches.
Let’s pray for rain when Pavano pitches
I have to say, this has been extremely entertaining, and I just had the best laughs.
Pekeris — I especially liked what you said about misery and misfortune being predictable — I would add to that and say that I hope they have not replaced “magic” and “mystique”!
But Gloomy’s post — I agree, Pete, hands down, the best of the year, going both backward and forward!
Ron, nice synopsis.
Gotta love the irony in Carl starting the opener…
I am actually looking forward to seeing how he performs. I may have to up the beverage intake while watching the game though.
biz, i’ll be drinking guinness when pavano takes the mound on opening day. this will be a special occasion.
i say he rises to the challenge. here’s a guy who worried about how his teammates would accept him and now he’s in a position to help the team in a big way.
If you would’ve told me last december that Carl Pavano might start on Opening Day I would’ve collapsed in laughter.
[...] Nope, that’s not a typo. By many accounts, Carl Pavano — the missing-in-action Carl Pavano — is going to start Opening Day for the Yanks. With Wang landing on the DL, Pettitte needing a few more days to get ready, and Mike Mussina’s starts not lining up right, Pavano may be the one to take the ball against the Devil Rays on Monday, April 1 at Yankee Stadium. This goes to show that it really doesn’t matter who symbolically gets to pitch game 1 of 162. And as Peter Abraham noted, “Pavano would be pitching on 643 days of rest.” [...]
Irony of ironies. Injuries force Yankees to use “Bubble Boy” Pavano on Opening Day.
There is a real upside to this. Igawa will get the work he needs. Were it not for Wanger going on the DL, Iggy would be the fifth starter and get only one start in April, or he would be in Scranton. Now he will get the work he needs and get it at the MLB level. Admittedly, without Wang, April has the potential to be rough. But your April record is usually pretty meaningless come September.
Pettitte, Moose, and Pavs, along with ever improving Iggy, will just have to hold the fort. Who knows, maybe Udog will go on a clutch hitting streak and win enough games with his HOF bat to offset Wang’s absence (OK, I’m dreaming).
Note to Gloomy: There’s no crying in baseball.
Well, it’s definitely going to be interesting seeing who gets more boos on opening day…Pavano or Arod.
And I just hope I’ll be watching the game on MLB Extra Innings and not via a hopelessly grainy picture from MLB.TV hooked up to my television set.
[...] After last year’s disappointing (if not shocking) ALDS loss, if I had told you that Crutch would start the home opener, most Yankee fans would buy me a straight jacket and drop me off at Bellvue. On one hand, a strong opening performance from Pavano could start the troubled righthander on the road to success. Contrarily, an April 2nd beatdown could have Yankeeland working out trade proposals involving Sammy Sosa. Overall, having Crutch take the ball to start 2007 should not equal widespread-panic, but it would be a pretty sobering initiation into the new season. As Everyday Abe submits, at least he’d be on 643 days rest. [...]
Gotta love the pessimistic atmosphere around the Yankees forums/blogs
I hope he starts opening day and gets the W, can u imagine what that would do for his confidence?
I can’t wait for opening day when Bob Sheppard announces the opening day starter for your USS Titanic, er New York Yankees … Carl Pavano.
And the Yankee faithful respond with dead silence.
It’s Glenn Giangrande’s fault, he wished for it
http://www.yesnetwork.com/news.....amp;vkey=4
03/20/2007 11:30 AM ET
“Grand Opening for troubled Pavano?”
Can we stop linking to other blogs this isnt a (bleeping) ad campaign geez. And there should def be a limit on characters to enter into a post. Stuff is ridiculous.
I’m drunk and it took me forever to read all these post. Jessica these fans are crazy, don’t take english lessons from this board. Only listen to me and Pete, me know whats goin down. Pete gives me the info and I interpret it for the fans. Hey Pete u need an unpaid intern?
Pavano will either shine or get shelled. Which means he is going to be on this team or not based on 1 performance. He could be gone by 4/3?
Ron, that was helpful. Thank you for the long (but comforting) post.
Just wanted to get in on the fun. The most ironic turn of events “Pavano opening day starter”. Maybe he gets injured and keeps it quiet and realizes he cant pitch with a bruised stirrup bone. Karstens replaces pavano and shows up with a stellar outing. Karstens success will keep him in the ace role being our 2007 suprise.
Well, you’ve brought good news to my neighborhood – the Pavanos live a couple of miles away from here. Never thought he would be the next in line with this Pitching Staff – just hope he doesn’t trip off the mound again.
Have you thought of limiting the length of our comments? If not, you should.
Annie Savoy:
Must be a “real downer” watching the wheelchair van pass your neighborhood so often.
Another crazy fan here, again, it’s not the end of the world!
Lighten up, son, its only good natured banter!
I’ve/We’ve had the pleasure of rooting for the greatest franchise in sports history!
Pavano is at best a No. 4 starter (when he’s healthy) and should be reasonably good against second division teams – like the Devil Rays. With top flight lefty Kazmir going in Game 1, runs may be hard to come by. That said, it will likely cme down to bullpens this early and you gotta like the Yankees.
My concerns come later in April when Pavano may have to face Boston and Toronto due to Wangster’s injury.
wow, my head hurts from reading that post by Gloomy. i couldn’t even make it though b/c my braincells were dying left and right.
it is obvious you know very little about baseball and your post is an embarassment to this blog, b/c it implies that this is the level of baseball discourse that takes place here. in other words, complete and utter idiocy.
one point, it’s hilarious that you cite Freddie Garcia as a guy Cashman should have targeted for depth when HE IS INJURED right now.
also, you do realize the Yankees scored 930 runs last season and won 97 games without Sheffield, right?
oh, whatever, i think i have been fooled by a clever troll. i mean, a full page rant on miguel cairo, the backup catcher, and mike myers for why the yankees will stink? there is no way that wasn’t a joke.
right?