Game 28: Tigers at Yankees
-
- April
- 29
YANKEES
Damon CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Matsui LF
Giambi DH
Duncan 1B
Ensberg 3B
Cano 2B
Stewart C
Hughes RHP
Notes: As was reported today, A-Rod (quad) is getting a day off and it could be a few more days before he gets back. … This will be the debut of Chris Stewart, who a month ago was out of work after being released by the Rangers. … The Tigers had yesterday off. … Detroit has won 5 of 7 after its horror-show start of the season. … The teams split eight games last season. … Sheff is back in town, so expect some crazy comments. He’s trying to work though a shoulder injury. … Thanks to Brian Heyman for calling in the lineup.
Phil Hughes vs. the Detroit hitters.
Kenny Rogers vs. the New York hitters.
Back later (maybe) with updates.
UPDATE, 4:31 p.m.: Chris Britton (of course) was optioned out and Edwar Ramirez is back. … Brian Bruney was in the clubhouse and said he is going for a third opinion on his foot. The first two docs said he needed surgery. … A-Rod will be evaluated again tomorrow. He is, as they say, day-to-day. … Thanks again to Brian for relaying this information.
UPDATE, 6:49 p.m.: Lots of news at the Stadium tonight. Here is the schedule for Jorge Posada:
Monday: Examined by Dr. James Andrews in Alabama. Had MRI. Results of MRI were also sent to Dr. Tim Kremchek in Cincinnati, a shoulder and elbow specialist.
Tuesday: Examined by Yankees team doctor Stuart Hershon in New York.
Thursday: Scheduled to be examined by Mets team doctor David Altchek.
By the time the week is over Dr. Benjamin Franklin Pierce, Dr. Bones McCoy and Toronto ace Roy “Doc” Halladay will examine Posada as well. I guess the Yankees are being careful.
The Yankees also released a statement they said was from Posada: “Until all the doctors weigh in, I’m not going to guess and speculate. When they give me concrete information I’ll be sure to share it.”
Meanwhile, A-Rod has left the building and will get an MRI on his quad. Joe Girardi said he thinks A-Rod will only miss a day or two. Of course Girardi would have said that about President Lincoln after he saw My American Cousin at Ford’s Theater.
As cautious as Brian Cashman is, Girardi is optimistic. One thing is certain, the Yankees won’t leave anything to chance with these guys.
As we reported earlier in the day, initital reports are that Posada will not need surgery.
UPDATE, 7:48 p.m.: Hey, it’s Robinson Cano. … Meanwhile, they tie it up and Hughes gives up a bomb to Granderson. Phil is really a mystery at this point. He’s not the guy we saw last year for whatever reason.
UPDATE, 8:45 p.m.: Another ugly outing for Phil Hughes: 3.2 8 6 6 3 2. Poor Ross Ohlendorf is left to give them innings in a game that is likely to be lost. Hughes and Ian Kennedy are testing their patience. If the Yankees lose this game, they’ll be 2-9 in games that Hughes and Kennedy have pitched. They’re 12-5 otherwise.
Is Darrell Rasner any better? I don’t know. But they may need to find out. Getting belted around is part of growing up as a pitcher, but at some point it becomes counter productive.
I don’t think the Yankees did Hughes any favor by having him pitch to a catcher he met for the first time 24 hours earlier.
UPDATE, 9:17 p.m.: Great job by Ohlendorf. But Kenny Rogers is killing the Yankees softly. … Meanwhile, some of you people commenting on the blog are foolish. There are 162 baseball games. If the Yankees win, it doesn’t mean they’re winning it all. If they lose, it doesn’t mean the season is over. Did any of you learn any lessons from the last few years? Have some perspective.
UPDATE, 10:06 p.m.: I’m listening to the game on the radio while I do my expenses from the last trip and some other stuff. Here’s my question: Why do they let the “Freddy Sez” guy into the Stadium who bangs on the pan? As John and Suzyn are talking, this guy is pounding away like he’s trying to send Morse Code to Mars. Does this annoying sound add to anybody’s enjoyment of the game? I don’t get it.
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on Tuesday, April 29th, 2008 at 3:46 pm by Peter Abraham.
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Would have been nice to see Molina in there for Hughes to get over the hump with a nice game..
Has Stewart ever caught Phil?
Yeah Hughes really needs to get on track tonight
Was Stewert the one Rasner enjoyed working with in Scranton? If so, hopefully Hughes takes to him as well.
I asked this the other night but didnt get any responses which may mean it really doesnt matter either way lol.
Is it more important for Molina to work with the veterans or to work with the young guns. IN terms of when you give him the rest day. Does it effect younger pitchers more so than veteran guys to work with a new catcher or vice versa.
Because Stewart is catching tonight that may be the answer just not sure.
I agree Chris.
That sucks — A-Rod is batting over .500 against Rogers in 19 career ABs.
Kenny Rogers pitches::Yankees hitters as nails::hammers
I would’ve had Molina in there catching Hughes instead of Stewart, who knows nothing about Hughes.
Girardi has 4 of the first 5 hitters batting lefty, how could you now sneak duncan into the 5 hole there?
Duncan 1B
Ensberg 3B
Cano 2B
Stewart C
.
What is the over/under on total hits by these 4 tonight…something like THREE ???
.
I would think the younger guys need Molina more because they need his guidance more, in terms of pitch selection, location, etc… how to go after the hitters. He also knows the hitters better than they do. The veterans like Pettitte are more likely to have their own game plan and shake off the catcher more. Where the young guys might go with the catchers first choice more often.
Moose just endorsed JOba in thepen this year on WFAN
Moose just endorsed JOba in thepen this year on WFAN….SHOCKING…as it will possibly be MOOSE’S job that Joba takes !
I would prefer that Molina catch Hughes, but I can’t blame Joe – day game after night game for Molina and they got home at 2:30 am. Still, not exactly optimal conditions – Phil is not familar at all with Stewart.
“SHOCKING…as it will possibly be MOOSE’S job that Joba takes !”
seriously.
“Is it more important for Molina to work with the veterans or to work with the young guns. ”
Gayle,
I’d say the kids given how good Molina is. That said given how long posada may be out having molina always catch them might not be possible.
Darrel Rasner spoke very highly of stewart as a receiver.
It might have been a good idea to have Molina catch Phil tonight given Phil’s recent struggles, but overall its something the team is going to have to deal with.
it’s not a day game after night game, it’s a 7:05 start tonight.
When is the last time the yanks have gone with the same 5 starters through April?
Knock Knock
Clearly Moose has no clue.
And we’re sitting Melky tonight for what reason?
I mean it’s not like he didn’t just win a game for us against last seasons LH Cy Young winner the other day or anything.
Melky has not had a day off in a while he deserves it
“Moose just endorsed JOba in thepen this year on WFAN”
Mussina has advocated for Joba to stay in the pen several times including during spring training.
It’s a tough question for him as the implications of joba moving to the pen for mussina are pretty clear.
Fortunately the decision isn’t mussina’s.
Doubly fortunate – it’s also not WFAN’s decision.
Stewart has got to start a game sometime. Maybe Molina told Joe G that he needed a rest.
I wouldn’t pitch Hughes with Molina, at least for now. Remember how much confusion there was between them last time out? Hughes was constantly shaking Molina off and they was lots of confusion about signs with a guy on second. Totally out of synch. I’m sure they can get it together but lets see how Stewart does.
I’m assuming Melky is just getting a day off to rest.
I know he’s only in AA but he’s not a 18 y/o prospect. I would have rather seen them call-up P.J Pilittere at least he’s familiar with Hughes.
I missed Hughes’ last couple of starts. didn’t realize he couldn’t get on same page as Molina. Who was catching him the game he was doing well before the rain delay, Molina or Posada?
From the quotes I’ve seen, many of the Yankee players are endorsing Joba to the pen. They all preface it by saying Joba is a starter but….
I swear some of you just complain to complain.
The Yanks played in Cleveland last night, Molina caught, then they flew to NY afterwards. Molina can’t catch everyday. Today is as goood as any to give him the game off.
Stop over reacting to every single decision Girardi makes.
“I know he’s only in AA but he’s not a 18 y/o prospect. I would have rather seen them call-up P.J Pilittere at least he’s familiar with Hughes.”
I think they want him to get time in AAA before they think about summoning him to the big leagues.
As far as I know he has very little experience beyond AA.
“And we’re sitting Melky tonight for what reason? ”
Giambi vs. Rogers: .435/.567/1.000
if Giambi was playing 1B, everyone would bitch about that.
Giambi owns Rogers. he should play. if he is going to play, than he should DH. right?
that makes Matsui the LFer.
Damon is hitting even better than Melky, so he gets the start.
Hey guys, this is off-topic from Yankee talk but the best place I could think of for a mass collection of people with baseball knowledge…
I have an AL-only keeper league going right now that I just picked up Carlos Quentin in because he’s absolutely mashing the ball now that he’s with the White Sox, but shortly after picking him up I was offered a trade where I would receive Rich Harden & Matt Garza in return for Quentin…
Anybody out there with recommendations would be greatly appreciated…SJ, CB…you seem to have alot of minor league knowledge…does Garza seem like he’ll excel anytime soon? Harden’s injury risk scares me a bit, so I wanna see what I should do here
time to start the all star yankee campaign
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/all_star/y2008/ballot_reg.html
“Stop over reacting to every single decision Girardi makes.”
Who are you to bark orders at people? This is the US where people can say and blog whatever they want. Deal with it.
“SHOCKING…as it will possibly be MOOSE’S job that Joba takes !”
The way I’m looking at it is Moose’s job is far more secure right now then either Kennedy’s or Phil’s. Right now Moose is the third best starter on the team.
No surprise all the veterans want him to stay put in the pen. Like most of the media and fans they never saw him start.
gayle, i say it’s better for molina to work with the young pitchers, if for no other reasons than he knows opposing batters very well and has better defense (esp. important given ian kennedy’s blips here and there).
“Stop over reacting to every single decision Girardi makes.â€
Who are you to bark orders at people? This is the US where people can say and blog whatever they want. Deal with it.
Yes you do have the right to be an uninformed whiner. Deal with people being annoyed with it.
“Who are you to bark orders at people? This is the US where people can say and blog whatever they want. Deal with it.”
Unless you tell people to stop over reacting. Then and only then can someone tell you what to say or not to say.
raymagnetic â„¢
“April 29th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
“SHOCKING…as it will possibly be MOOSE’S job that Joba takes !â€
The way I’m looking at it is Moose’s job is far more secure right now then either Kennedy’s or Phil’s. Right now Moose is the third best starter on the team.”
.
ray, do you really think that can’t change in 2-3 weeks ? ,,,just askin’…
If the players asked said Joba should be in the rotation then a follow up question of who he should replace would be asked, no? That would make for an uncomfortable situation imo.
Am i the only one who laughs when stuff like this comes up?
Law and Order
April 29th, 2008 at 4:16 pm
“Stop over reacting to every single decision Girardi makes.â€
Who are you to bark orders at people? This is the US where people can say and blog whatever they want. Deal with it.
Isn’t it slightly counter productive? you say that thhis is the US and people can say whatever they want. then tell him to deal with it. guess what, he’s got the same right to say what he wants as you do. so as you say…deal with it.
i don’t mean to be snarky, this kind of thing just keeps coming up a lot, and makes me laugh
In Moose’s defense, who would you want pitching the eighth when it’s your win on the line: Joba, or anyone else in the pen? I don’t blame him. I just don’t agree with him.
Nate – Rasner did speak very highly of Stewart.
“This is the US where people can say and blog whatever they want. Deal with it.”
Doesn’t apply to private property; like this blog, for example. There is that handy Terms of Service link right above the comment box…
I have to agree with ray, mooses job is very safe if Kennedy and hughes continue to last less than 5 innings.
wsr: I was gonna point that out too, but I got lazy and settled for just the private property angle xP
Melky sitting. I hope Girardi isn’t getting in the pattern of resting the guy after he gets going, Met fans accuse Randolph of that. I’d rather run a guy out there until a bad day, then give him a day off, but maybe there is some psychology behind this, what do I know?
“ray, do you really think that can’t change in 2-3 weeks ?”
I’m sure it can change. But right now at this instant Moose isn’t worried about his spot in the rotation.
I am not one to go crazy with all star voting, but i think its imperitive that every yankee fan vote as many times as possible to ensure that we get our guys starting in the event this year, especially important is to get jorge at the starter, even though he will be hurt
Pete -
What are the odds Moeller clears waivers and the Yanks recall him?
i hear ya blargh. it sounds like between all of us, we had that post pretty well covered.
Sometimes, you have to think like a manager and you will come up with the logic behind the lineup.
Hmmm posted Giambi’s numbers against Rogers. That causes a domino effect in the lineup.
Without Arod, Ensberg has to play.
They also want to get Giambi off first base. Duncan gives them another RH bat in the lineup and he is MUCH better defensively than Giambi. Matsui and Damon are both hot. You want them in the lineup.
Somebody has to sit and tonight its Melky’s turn.
No Molina? Simple. They have to be careful not to overwork him. He’s going to be playing an awful lot in the coming weeks. They can’t blow him out.
He hurt his hamstring the last time they overdid it with him.
Its a cold night tonight and its the perfect time to get Stewart in the game.
Yes, its the US and you can blog what you want.
Conversely, folks who are sick of the daily whining about the lineup will call you on it. Don’t get your panties in a wad. Justify your complaint with facts.
Thanks Gayle
VOTE EARLY AND OFTEN
(you know our Boston counterparts will stuffing the box)
gayle
April 29th, 2008 at 4:15 pm
time to start the all star yankee campaign
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/all_star/y2008/ballot_reg.html
I have to think that Girardi, a former catcher, knows what he is doing by pairing Stewart with Hughes. Ease up, everyone.
Basically what Moose said like CB said he said that Joba will be a starter in the futre, that he has always been a starter in the past but that with him there right now it shortens up the game for the starters and teams know with he and Mo you have a limited time.
Basically the same stuff that some have been espousing. I just thought it interesting that he would be so forthcoming about it.
I also thought what he said about Kennedy was insightful as well.For those that didnt hear one of the things he thought was that he as most young pitchers are afraid of contact early on so that he is working backwards and instead of working from the inside out he is working outside in and getting hind in the count, giving up too many walks than he needs to and you cannot succeed that way. Basically said that if you get a batter to either swing or hit the first pitch they bat around 200 so you are at the advantage.
Also tidbit was they rehashed the Manny walk versus pitch to and Moose said that he really was not comfortable with either Manny or Youk and that if the count got to 2-0 they were going to intentionally walk him but he just didnt execute and rather than pitch him outside corners he got one right down the middle. He said that having to pitch insice to Youk with bases loaded did not make him comfortable.
“No surprise all the veterans want him to stay put in the pen. Like most of the media and fans they never saw him start.”
It’s going to be really hard for Joba to mentally commit to being a starter if he spends the next two months having his entire team telling him that they want him in the pen. It’s all mindset for him…in the spring, he wasn’t attacking with his stuff when he was starting. Could easily be because he was expecting the inevitable return to the bullpen. If his teammates and all the talk convince HIM that the team is best with him in the pen…it’s going to be a real uphill battle to get him to really commit to returning to the rotation.
It was interesting hearing Mooses talk on WFAN about Kennedy throwing 1st pitch strikes on the center of the plate because batting average against on first pitches is only .200 and it sets up the batter to be behind in the count from the start. I always understood strike one was important but hearing the avg. added into the equation really drove the point home.
Why is Ensberg batting in front of Cano. I know Cano has been struggling but Ensberg hasn’t exactly been hitting the cover off of the ball either.
Jorge has barely played. I’m sure he himself would say he doesn’t deserve to be on the all-start team this year.
Westerner etc if you think I was bashing Molina sitting tonight I asked the question a few days ago when Posada was out it was a philosophical question in trying to figure out when you do sit Molina knowing he will need at least 2 days off a week and if the idea of keeping him with the younger pitchers or vet guys would have anything to do with it.
Stewman 23,
Quentin is a good young player – not great. He’s a tough guy to read as many prospects who play in the PCL are as it’s a real hitters league.
I don’t think he’s going to hit anywhere near what he ’s doing right now. The league will adjust to him and I think he might have trouble making adjustments back.
That said his problems in the past were related to striking out as I understand. This year he’s not doing that – he’s walked more than he’s K’d.
That’s often a big step forward for a young player.
The bigger issue with your trade is the health of the players. I wouldn’t touch harden.
With Garza it’s tough. That nerve problem has a pretty good chance of coming back and there’s not easy way to treat it. Should it bother him more and he needs surgery then he’s done for the year.
It’s a matter of where you want to place your risks and what you have on your team. Quenting isn’t going to be this good – but he’s not going to bomb. Garza is still a first year pitcher and has health risks. Garza’s got a lot of issues to sort through. For whatever reason, so far, his stuff (which is very good) has not translated to major league success.
“For those that didnt hear one of the things he thought was that he as most young pitchers are afraid of contact early on so that he is working backwards and instead of working from the inside out he is working outside in and getting hind in the count, giving up too many walks than he needs to and you cannot succeed that way. Basically said that if you get a batter to either swing or hit the first pitch they bat around 200 so you are at the advantage.”
Stuff moose inside Kennedy’s hat during his next start and have him say this over, and over, and over.
“Look, kid…five years ago I still had stuff as good as yours. I did pretty good. Here’s what I did. Do it.”
but Chris NY, i heard Mike Lowell is already ahead in total votes
molina is suddenly a very valuable member of the team. he’s not used to playing all the time. he needs his rest. girardi also probably wants to see what he has in stewart. one way to find out is start him right away.
lol
‘lol’ looks like a person doing the wave.
It is what it is. The team is banged up and arrived at Newark Liberty at 2:30 AM.
This shows how the team plays under adversity.
lol, whozat. lol.
BTW, quick story on Mariano.
In Charleston over the weekend, I was talking to a scout who was working the game. In the course of our conversation, I asked him about Mariano. Mainly, about how amazing he has looked so far this year.
He told me the advance scout of the team he works for handed in his report and next to Mariano’s name was a one word comment:
“Unhittable”.
I thought that pretty cool.
“Why is Ensberg batting in front of Cano. I know Cano has been struggling but Ensberg hasn’t exactly been hitting the cover off of the ball either.”
who cares?
do you guys know that studies have been done that show that the order in which you put guys in the lineup has minimal to no impact?
obviously you want your best hitters up top, so they get more ABs, but i can’t think of the slighest reason to complain about switching your 7 and 8 hitter.
Ensberg has crushed lefties over his career. Cano currently looks like dogcrap.
that’s all there is to it.
McCarver on Saturday said the same thing Mussina said about Kennedy. He keeps trying to hit the corners so much the ball is ending up outside the strike zone instead he needs to work the middle of the plate.
It really stupid to give Melky a day off today and not tomorrow…unless it is for a injury. Now along with Posada and Arod they have 3 righty bats out of the lineup. I also would of played Gonalez at 2nd instead of Cano. 5 lefties in the lineup against Rogers. Doesn’t make alot of sense considering who knows if Stewart can hit major league pitching and Ensberg 99% of the time strikes out.
RE: All Star voting.
The way i look at it, let the Sox bring all their guys to the ASG and I would love to see Manny, Ortiz and Youk in the HR derby too. They can get the extra three days of work and travel and a good chance to mess up their swings and tweek some bothersome injuries on a useless event. I think it would be best for Arod, Jeter, Mo, Wang, Matsui, Melky, JoPo and everyone else to get the extra rest.
The month of August, with all it’s traveling, will be a grueling one for the Yankees no need to spend energy on the ESPN generated circus that surrounds the meaningless game.
—–/\——-/o_——-
that looks like a guy being chased by a shark.
I thought Jim Palmer summed all this stuff up well when discussing the Hughes and Kennedy.
When it comes to young pitchers, you can talk to them until you are blue in the face.
Until they slow the game down in their minds, stop overestimating the hitters (as in pitching too fine), its going to be a stuggle.
Sooner or later, the guys who end up making it find a comfort zone and they take off.
There is no question both Hughes and Kennedy have the stuff and talent to be successful ML pitchers.
You don’t rise through the system, especially the Yankee farm system, this quickly if you don’t have talent.
Its just a question of those guys (especially Kennedy. I don’t Hughes’ issues involve lack of confidence) getting over that mental hump.
When they do, they will have success.
“5 lefties in the lineup against Rogers. ”
1. Rogers has been awful
2. Johnny and Matsui have been hitting really well
3. Giambi has always done well against Rogers
SJ, Thanks
We are so lucky -Mo, Jorge, Jeter, Bernie all the kids…….
‘ Cano currently looks like dogcrap”
yeah he does. what is up with that? it’s strange how he gets off to such slow starts. it doesn’t matter where they hit him if he isn’t hitting.
girardi is going to earn his money. this is no push button team.
“He told me the advance scout of the team he works for handed in his report and next to Mariano’s name was a one word comment:
“Unhittableâ€.”
I’m hoping this is the year that Mariano finally wins the Cy Young award.
He’s already got 8 saves. 0.00 ERA. The only AL pitcher who has gotten off to a really great start who’s been in the Cy Young race before is Wang. No Santana. Beckett off to a mediocre start. Sabbathia and Verlander off to very poor starts (though Sabbathia’s turned it around).
April is usually Mariano’s weakest month. Hopefully he avoids the mid-summer lull he gets.
Obviously Mariano getting the Cy Young isn’t that important in light of trying to win the series. And it’s early.
But I’d love to see it happen.
ha, whozat.
i voted for all my yankees, and wrote in shelley duncan. you know that if sox fans get all their guys into the all star game at yankee stadium, we will never, ever hear the end of it.
What is Cashman’s beef (no pun intended) with Britton? How come the kid never gets a chance to pitch here?
I agree, SJ re: Hughes and Kennedy. The question is, what changed between last year and this year with Kennedy’s confidence? Wasn’t he more aggressive and confident last year when he came up? There’s obviously more expectations of him this year, but last year, in the middle of a playoff race, wasn’t exactly stress-free..
Hughes’ issues seem to be/to have been more command and movement related. Hopefully that’s in the past and we see him back to being the guy we saw against Toronto.
Bruney going to yet another doctor after 2 have already said he needs surgery sounds a little like trying to find someone to tell you what you want to hear. Feel badly for him as he worked awfully hard this year, this is his last year with the team and will be a free agent coming off of that injury not too good for him
Anybody watching the game last night keep track of Molina’s glove while Mo was on the mound? Jose barely moved the leather – Mo was slinging the cutter with pinpoint control. And the slap of the ball in the glove was audible, too through the TV – really fun to watch and listen to.
“Until they slow the game down in their minds, stop overestimating the hitters (as in pitching too fine), its going to be a stuggle.”
hughes made a quick adjustment in his rain shortened game when he was throwing breaking balls for balls in the first inning and piling up pitches. he came out in the second inning and attacked the strike zone and had a quick inning. too bad the rain came.
you can tell palmer really likes hughes. that’s an endorsement carries some weight. hopefully hughes will pick up right where he left off in his last game.
“What is Cashman’s beef (no pun intended) with Britton? How come the kid never gets a chance to pitch here?”
What’s the point of keeping a pitcher on the roster who the manager is not going to use?
It’s pretty clear than Girardi did not like Britton’s stuff and didn’t trust him. Same thing with Torre – don’t think he liked Britton’s stuff. And right or wrong Britton’s lack of conditioning is also hurting him in the eyes of the yankees.
whozat, I never questioned why those 3 are in the lineup but why Melky and another righty like Gonzalez isn’t. It doesn’t matter if the lefty has been pitching awful or not, Igawa could probably get the Yanks out right now. The Yanks do not hit lefties!! The Indians brought up 2 lefties from AAA and even though the Yanks won yesterday he had a no hitter until the 5th inning.
Melky is hitting .385 lifetime against Bonderman. He’s never faced Kenny Rogers.
If they were going to give him a day off in this series, that probably went into the thinking.
BTW – funny article in last week’s ESPN mag about Maddux throwing 3 pitches to a blindfolded bullpen catcher. Maddux hit the glove 3 times out of 3 – only once did the catcher squeeze and hold onto the ball, though.
(The bullpen coach stood close by and yelled “squeeze” when the catcher should close the glove.)
The bullpen was in hysterics after the third throw. Maddux just stood there with a smirk on his face.
Few are better.
I’m sorry, you have to get Harden for Quentin if that was offered, in fantasy baseball.
What is the deal with sending Britton down for Ramirez? WTF!
Britton must have mentioned someone’s mother in a bad way. Ever since they got him from Baltimore, they have downright screwed him. He has been effective in the minors and never gets a chance up in the big leagues. Feel bad for the guy.
Not the best defensive line up to have on the field for Hughes.
The whole key with Mariano is not to overuse him. He is 37. Its easier said than done because he is throwing so well and is such a weapon, its easy to fall into the trap of overdoing it with him.
So far, Girardi has been smart about Mo’s usage. Only two dry humps (warm up but not put in the game) so far this year.
Sometimes, Mo will get up and throw 10 light tosses. That’s not warming up. Its when he goes full bore and isn’t used, that’s a problem.
So far, that only happened twice. That’s ok.
If they limit his usage, he has a chance to put together a really special season because his stuff and command are so good right now, its scary.
Every time Britton goes to the coffe pot for his cup it’s empty.
Westerner99, wherever you be. Looks like they went with the hot hand theory in terms of Ramirez. (Going back to our discussion about how relief pitcher decisions are made by the organization.)
SteveHoweYouDoin
good story about maddox.
“What is the deal with sending Britton down for Ramirez? WTF!”
I have to think at this point the organization as a whole is just not enamored with Britton.
He’s never gotten a fair chance with the Yankees and he’s pitched well in AAA.
When Hughes and Detroit come to mind, I think of the long drive Mabin hit off Hughes in Detroit last season to the corner that matsui could not get to that went for an inside the park Hr. One Damon would have caught.
I think Ramirez(from what i saw last year)is a AAAA pitcher.
He needs to amp up his fastball.
Solution to two problems.
Have Britton give Ramirez half his food daily. That puts lb’s on Ramirez which increased his fastball and Britton sheds off his gut. Which makes him more appealing to Cash and Girardi. They both stay up. DONE DEAL!
Ever wonder when the American Idle’s uniform No. 45 will be re-issued ?
CB, no love for Cliff Lee? He’s undefeated with a microscopic ERA and WHIP
I apologize if this has been asked/answered already but what were the roster moves to get Stewart on the team? Did he just fill Moehler’s spot on the 40, and Posada’s on the 25?
Question for the Board:
Bottom 9, tying run at 3rd and 1 out, of the 2008 Yankees (and based on 2008 performance), who do you want up at the plate and why?
Britton may have been effective in the minors but, he hasn’t pitched better than Ramirez this year. Look at Ramirez’s numbers. They are pretty impressive and he is has pitched in bigger spots than Britton this year.
He also pitched well in his limited time with the Yankees this month.
I think Britton was called up for a day and was going to go back when Duncan was recalled. Problem was, Traber was so awful, they decided to send him out and wait for the 10 days to expire before they recalled Edwar.
Once the 10 days were up, Edwar got recalled and Britton was the odd guy out.
They aren’t sending down Albie. He has pitched himself onto the roster.
The only other option to send down was Ohlendorf. JMO but, Britton isn’t a better pitcher than Ohlendorf.
“Ever wonder when the American Idle’s uniform No. 45 will be re-issued ?”
When his contract expires after this year… he’s still on the team. Painful as it is to remember that fact.
One last thing I left out re: Ramirez.
Absent a lefty specialist in the bullpen, the next best thing is a RH with a great change up. Its a way to neutralize lefties.
Edwar’s changeup may also be a reason why he got the recalled.
He may be the de facto lefty specialist.
“Britton must have mentioned someone’s mother in a bad way. Ever since they got him from Baltimore, they have downright screwed him. He has been effective in the minors and never gets a chance up in the big leagues. Feel bad for the guy.”
I meantioned last week that they need to trade players in the minors that are good but never get the chance in the bigs. In the dog house. Britton/Patterson and throw in Igawa as well. Just because i dont want to see him called up.
stevehoweyoudoing-
who’s pitching- righty or lefty?
“Britton isn’t a better pitcher than Ohlendorf.”
Doesn’t matter how they look on paper. Ohlendorf has been God awful.
As long as it isn’t first and third- Jeter
“no love for Cliff Lee? He’s undefeated with a microscopic ERA and WHIP”
I’ve been following Cliff Lee. His numbers are past off the charts. His first 30 innings have been a historically great start.
But I just don’t see it lasting. No one is going to continue with a .28 ERA and WHIP of .4.
He just doesn’t have the stuff to come close to those numbers and there’s little indication from what he’s done in the past that he’s going to be a cy young caliber guy, especially so early in his career.
He’s going to come back down to earth.
They guy on cleveland who could challenge for the cy young is carmona. He’s been good overall but having a weird start. He’s had very bad control when he’s usually an extreme control pitcher. Despite that his ERA is like 2.89. No one is hitting the ball off him.
Steve – Melky batting lefty.
So, Mo finishes the season with 0.00 era, could it happen?
uhhhh,naw. To much to even think about.
SteveHowe
Bobbie or Melky (because he delivers)
LH pitcher – Okajima
“Bottom 9, tying run at 3rd and 1 out, of the 2008 Yankees (and based on 2008 performance), who do you want up at the plate and why?”
Captain Clutch. Because he’s Capt. Clutch and will never hit into a double play again.
Steve,
The guy I always like to see in that situation. Hideki Matsui.
Unlike too many American players, Matsui is trained to be a situational hitter in that situation.
In other words, he has no issue looking to lift the ball and hit a sac fly. Or, work the count to a point where you are in position to be a situational hitter to get in the run.
So many players today want the hero shot. The Sportscenter highlight. Its why, IMO, you see so many big swings in those situations.
Its not just the Yankees. I watch a lot of baseball every week and a lot of teams have had trouble getting that runner in this season.
I guess my point is that it’s not the usual suspects. So far this year we’ve seen a real inability to “shorten up” and get the run in. Last night was a fluke – dribblers don’t count. I honestly can’t remember the last time Arod hit a sac fly, for example.
Britton is too similar to the other hard throwers on the roster, Edwar gives them a different look. It’s probably that simple. That said, Edwar was hit or miss last year, so he needs to be much more consistently good to stick around this time.
If it’s the Red Sox then it’s Papelbomb and I think A-Rod deserves that spot.
“Bottom 9, tying run at 3rd and 1 out, of the 2008 Yankees (and based on 2008 performance), who do you want up at the plate and why?”
Cano. all he does is ground out to 2B.
serious answer, probably Matsui so far.
I voted once so far, but will vote to maximum allowed (times 3, with my daughters!). I never used to believe in “stuffing the ballot box” but that’s apparently the game here – they’re allowing you 25 votes, so 25 votes really is equal to 1.
SJ44 –
Loved that report on Mariano. It’s been so amazing to watch him so far this season. Does he really have to wait to be elected into the HOF?????
Bill James put it in his book for a reason – of Arod’s 150 rbi last year, 100 came via the HR. Abreu had a larger percentage of RBIs via single, double, etc.
No one was better at that than Magglio last year – power guy who can, as SJ so correctly points out, make the “situational” adjustment.
I’d like to see more of that from this team.
Right now, my vote is Damon – great at slapping the ball the other way, and he can also beat out the slow roller.
SJ,
Britton hasnt had a fair shot at pitching in the bigs since joining us. Oelendorf hasnt proved much in the bigs and even last year in the minors. Yes he can get his fastball up when he pitches just one inning. I know he he’s thrown alot. But i just dont see much history that tells me that he will succeed. Britton succeeded in baltimore. The least we should do is give his a chance. If they gave fat boy Bruney a chance a couple years ago with his physic. I cant see why they shouldnt.
This is really weird–I just saw Chris Stewart play on Sunday!
I like Johnny Damon. I do not like him in Center, so much.
Also, I will never have to take another final ever again. Well, until grad school.
I guess for me the question is are you playing to tie or to win? A groundout to 2nd still scores the run if the runner’s going on contact (actually I guess the runner on 3rd matters too)…
hmmm…good point, a ground ball to 2nd would do the trick.
Rishi – runner on 3rd, 1 out, bottom 9, you are playing to EXTEND the game.
Now if the winning run was on 2nd, then maybe all bets are off based on who’s at the plate.
I wonder why the Yanks don’t give Heath Phillips a shot. He’s a lefty and seems to have pitched effectively at Scranton.
We’ve seen Edwar Ramirez enough to know that his stuff is just a little below major league material.
Britton doesn’t throw hard. He throws 87-89.
He’s ok. Nothing special. His ball really doesn’t do much. Not a lot of downward bite. He’s far from a dominant arm.
He’s a grinder type of guy.
Ohlendorf has much better stuff. He’s just been overused and used in the wrong role.
Side by side, there is no comparison between Britton and Ohlendorf. Ollie is a better pitcher.
Edwar was throwing his fastball at 91-92 in Baltimore. If the gun was correct, that’s big enough to be effective because of his changeup.
The guy who has been impressive is Albadalejo. He’s got nice downward plane on his pitches and he attacks hitters.
He may be a find for 6th and 7th inning work.
The whole key with guys who pitch in those innings is not to blow them out every week.
Used properly, and that involves starters going longer in games, Albie can be an asset in the ‘pen this season.
Rebecca – congrats on finishing finals. Are you coming back to NJ?
I voted once so far, but will vote to maximum allowed (times 3, with my daughters!). I never used to believe in “stuffing the ballot box†but that’s apparently the game here – they’re allowing you 25 votes, so 25 votes really is equal to 1.
Could not agree more…. Sox Nation REALLY takes this seriosly – they are saying right now “we goota get ah boys to the al sta game this yea.”
I personally witnessed ballot stuffing when they got Okijima in the game last year – my friends aunt actually asked me if she could use my email address…..I said no.
i think dan mccutchen will have an impact on the yankees bullpen at some point this season
steve-
against okajima, definitely jeter.
Congrats, Rebecca!
At least Detroit is throwing two lefties while ARod is out, allowing Ensberg and Duncan better matchups (as well as Molina/Stewart).
Even if the Yanks lose 2 of the 3 games in this series, they will have concluded what has to be considered a moderately successful April.
Who would have though that the big matchup tonight in the American League isn’t the Yanks vs Tigers or the Red sox vs Blue Jays but the 1st place Tampa Bay Rays vs the 1st place Baltimore Orioles??!! lol
Motown: Yes, but not until after graduation (May 10/11th)
Jimmy27 –
Can’t allow for there to be more Red Sox All Stars than Yankees this year, considering the game’s location…
Drive 4-5,
I think predicting Baltimore, Tampa, Oakland, and Florida being in first after April is tougher than a perfect NCAA bracket.
Baltimore and Oakland traded their best pitchers. Florida dumps their best player and one of their starters. They get better.
It’s crazy….
“Bill James put it in his book for a reason – of Arod’s 150 rbi last year, 100 came via the HR. Abreu had a larger percentage of RBIs via single, double, etc.”
This is an utterly meaningless statistic. It’s just an observation – you can’t conclude anything from this.
There’s a saying in statistics – correlation does not imply causality.
That’s pretty much what applies to this bill james observation (and I highly doubt james was trying to imply that because of this observation Abreu was a more “clutch” player than abreu last year or that ARod was only driving runs in via home runs).
Last year Alex his .330 with RISP.
Abreu hit .287 with RISP in last year.
There’s a statistic that looks at how players perform in clutch situation that the hard ball times keeps track of.
Last year Alex was the second most “clutch” player in baseball and by far the best on the yankees in clutch situations.
Abreu was actually slightly worse than league average last year in clutch situations.
do you think joba makes the all star team based on his popularity and success?
Steve
Yup – and you know sox fans will do anything to not let that happen.
This year it is ok to vote with your heart.
This is a night when it is a lot of fun to have the MLB Extra Innings package. My remote will be smokin’!
I did my part in getting the Yankees to the all-star game. Thanks for the link Gayle.
Rebecca – Congratulations!
If looks like a really nice evening out for a baseball game. Let’s go Yankees.
SteveHowe,
care to take a guess at who the all-stars will be from the yanks or sox this season?
ARod, Jeter, Wang, Rivera, Joba
Manny, Pedroia, Ortiz?, Beckett? Okajima?
put me down for some matsui for steve’s survey
and congrats rebecca!
If you think Ramirez’s stuff is below ML material, Heath Phillips stuff is well below Edwar’s.
Edwar has a changeup that is above average. Well above average.
If his fastball location is sharper, and it has so far this year, he is a much more servicable arm in the ‘pen than either Britton or Phillips.
Its not about “giving guys a shot”.
Its about making the evaluation, based on how they are pitching, as to which guy can help the team.
If Scott Patterson was pitching better, he would have gotten a shot. His stuff is much better than Britton or Phillips. He just hasn’t pitched well.
Right now, aside from Jose Veras, Ramirez has pitched better than anybody in Scranton this season.
Trish – Yep.
Even though he hasn’t done well, I still want Patterson to pitch. Its a conscience thing. I still feel bad that they didn’t take him after spring training.
Melky/Ellsbury will vie for an outfield position.
Pedroia will boo coo Sox votes
Some were talking about Maddux earlier.. I saw this story in ESPN the magazine I believe,
“When Brad Penny and Maddux were teammates on the Dodgers, during the last two months of 2006, they had a conversation one day that led Penny to reach a stunning conclusion: This guy knows my stuff better than I do. It was eerie, really, how easily Maddux dissected Penny’s repertoire and suggested ways to maximize it.
“Penny, figuring he’d take advantage of the situation, asked Maddux to call a game for him against the Cubs. And so, on the night of Sept. 13, Penny glanced into the dugout before every delivery and found Maddux, who signaled the next pitch by looking toward different parts of the ballpark. Penny threw seven scoreless innings with no walks and beat the Cubs 6-0.
“Maddux probably won’t tell you that story,” Penny says. “He’s right.”"
Boston Dave –
2008 All Star Reps:
NYY:
Jeter, Rodriguez, Posada, Rivera, Chamberlain, Wang
(what year was it when Torre coached and he had 7 or 8 Yanks on the team?)
SOX:
Ramirez, Beckett, Papelbon, Pedroia
Too much baseball left to determine who the other candidates could be, though you know guys like Youkilis will be on the bubble due to the amount of votes from the Northeast.
“do you think joba makes the all star team based on his popularity and success?”
Yes, on the success part. The managers pick the pitchers, so popularity has (hopefully) little or nothing to do with it. Francona knows how dominant Joba has been. He and Mo will be in the pen at the all-star game.
Thanks guys!
If Melky keeps up the way he’s been performing in April, I’d like to see him on the All Star team.
Big Papi will block Youk.
I would love it if Melky made the all star team, but we’ll have to see. He just doesn’t have the big name notoriety of other outfielders.
Great story on Penny & Maddux.
Maddux will probably be one of the best pitching coaches ever.
Sounds like he has already started. Peavy must be thrilled to have him as a teammate.
JD – there is a DH spot.
Melky WILL be on the team – if we make it so.
If Cano can turn it around he can be there too.
I know he’s at first base Arod could have some competition with Miguel Cabrera in the AL now.
I would hazard to guess Cabrera has zero chance of beating out A-Rod at 3B.
I wish we could vote for pitchers on the ballot…
This is why I hate the fans deciding the all-star team… sure, it’s nice to get our guys in because that’s who we want to see. But, it’s not an all-star team anymore, it’s a popularity contest. The year the White Sox were campaigning to get that last slot and it was Posednik (sp?) or Jeter, was pathetic. Guys that deserve to be there often aren’t because of someone with a bigger name in a bigger market. We shouldn’t be allowed to vote, and definitely shouldn’t be allowed to vote a million times each…
I agree with Westerner99 in regards to A-Rod.
Chris – the same could be said about the Presidency.
Chris NY, that’s the beauty of the All-Star game. When else can you vote 50 times for the same candidate and have it count? Have you ever tried to vote twice in an election? Very difficult.
But, isn’t the whole idea of stardom one steeped in popularity?
You know, as much as I am going to “stuff the box” for Yankees, I think it is rather sad that no one votes for the most deserving players anymore. Everyone (I’m assuming) or at least most people, vote for hometown favorites. And I do understand that, as I am doing that myself, but it’s really not in the spirit of what the game was supposed to be.
It’s become, “The Most Popular Players Play the First Couple of Innings Game,” followed by manager’s picks who may or may not be deserving depending on the integrity of the manager.
And if you go about the voting based on merit, then it’s truly way too early to start voting for this season’s all-stars.
Full disclosure: And does anyone REALLY think Giambi deserves to be an All-Star? In good conscience, he is the only Yankee I could not vote for. I shouldn’t have voted for Cano, but I’m banking that he’s gonna pick things up within the next week or so.
Melky should have a spot on the All-Star team, but I doubt he’ll get voted in. I wish I could give my Giambi non-votes as a double vote for Melky!
The thing that sucks worse is that they now have World Series ramifications. Home field advantage could be left in the hands of someone who’s popular but not necessarily having a good year. That could very easily affect the outcome of the World Series. Pathetic, IMO.
Westerner, scary, but true…
Jimmy,
that’s right. get those votes for Melky in.
it’s almost certainly his only shot.
Manny, Vlad, Ichiro probably get voted in.
Hamilton, Rios, Quentin is playing himself into a spot, Matsui has a shot….
this Yankee team of geriatrics, ex roiders, children and too old ex allstars is beyond repair! Time to wipe the slate clean and stop the bleeding
Me, well I’d like to see a squad of youth take the reigns, no namers who are euphoric and grateful to play, not syngeryless and fragile egos! More like melky heart with canoe bat
And
can we please get speed on the dang bases???? I mean speed I. E gardner
I’m actually heartened to see that at least some of you feel the way I do regarding the voting.
Doreen,
don’t forget that at least one player from each team has to make the team, deserving or not.
We are fans of the team that plays in the biggest city in the country that is also hosting the game.
WE could vote in Stalin if we wanted to badly enough!
Disclosure: usually I’m not THAT big of a homer when it comes to all stars THIS YEAR IS DIFFERENT -ALL BETS ARE OFF!
VOTE YANKEE!!!!!!!!!!!
CB…thanks for the info of Quentin and my trade situation…I had no idea Garza’ injury was one of these nagging types that could lead to future problems…this trade really is very injury prone when you toss harden into the equation
Regards Steve’s question:
Based on this years performance, I’d want Matsui at the plate. He’ll get the job done and not simply try to make the “Touch ‘em all” highlights.
And I’ll admit, I’m as guilty as anyone. In the AL, I always vote for every one of our starters. That’s why I don’t think it should be in our hands. Loyalty to our team doesn’t mean they deserve to be there.
This year being at Yankee Stadium, it would be really nice to see as many Yankees as possible, especially the lifelong guys like Jeter and Mo, Andy and Po… but I really hope this system doesn’t come back to cost us a World Series someday. Next year I start voting for the best players, period.
Chris NY
I still think “home field advantage” in the WS is, if not over-rated, then kind of screwy at the very least. I know you want to have “last licks” at home, and start at home and that seems like a homefield advantage. But the other team, if it goes 7 games, has three games in a row at home. The advantaged team has 2 and 2. I wish there was a better way to apportion the games. Like 3, 2 and 2. THAT would be a home field advantage.
dang it…I’m itching all over…I’ve got fleas again !
“don’t forget that at least one player from each team has to make the team, deserving or not.”
Another flaw in the system…
Boston Dave -
That point (a player rep from each team) would only bother me if it kept a really deserving player off the team. There are usually enough spots available that it’s not a huge issue. But, yeah, what’s the standard??????
Chris NY,
Keep voting for Yankees, even next year. Just because you stop doesn’t mean anyone else will. It just means the entire Red Sox team will make it, along with the popular aging stars of other teams.
It’s a flawed system. Changing the way you work in the system isn’t going to fix much. The only way to change it is to change the system (which isn’t happening anytime soon).
I disagree, Doreen. Especially in the post-season, there is an advantage. Think about how crucial every at bat, every inning, every game can be… Think about how some pitchers pitch much better at home then on the road and things like that. In a close series, home field is very much an advantage.
Got to feel bad for Cano, batting 8th in a batting order filled with fill-ins
I think Matsui is one of the best situational hitters on the Yankees. I’d almost always choose him. Until recenty, I would have said it was a toss-up between him and Jeter, but Jeter’s recent propensity for GDPs is a little unnerving!
Doreen,
There are almost always 1-2 guys who are left off the team, deserving of spots, specifically because the manager had to take someone from every team. It’s not a huge issue, but by no means is the All-Star team ever going to be the team with the absolute best chance of winning.
Good point, Dave.
Doreen, there are deserving guys that get bumped every year, no matter how many spots there are…
I only care because they decided that an exhibition game should “count” in order to get more fan interest (generate more $$$$). The day they decided to do that, they should have re-vamped the system and gotten the best players from each league on the field.
ChrisNY,
I agree. Look at home field records every season. There is a clear home field advantage – not sure what %.
I think home field should simply go to the team with the best record, but that’s boring, so it won’t happen.
IMO, I’d rather have it be determined by a coin toss than the AllStar game, though. The mighty dollar doesn’t agree with that theory.
Chris NY -
My quarrel is not that home field is not an advantage, but that the way games are apportioned don’t necessarily set up an advantage.
Think this way: If you’re the team without “HFA,” which is defined, basically as having the opportunity to play 4 of the 7 games at home, both starting and ending the series at home, all you have to do is split the first 2 games, and you’ve got 3 consecutive games at home. You see, homefield advantage easily switches to that “other” team. If they split it 3, 2 and 2, that’s a true home field advantage to the team with HFA as determined by the All-Star game. You have the advantage of playing the first 3 games at home; you can split the away games or lose the away games and still come home. I know it’s one less game for the “other” team in terms of box office and other revenue, but maybe they could split the returns for a game 7.
Oops –
And one other thing, if you’ve got HFA under the current scenario and happen to win 4 in a row or 4 out of 5, you’re winning ON THE ROAD and not in front of your home fans.
it stinks our young pitchers are always working with a different catcher. i wish little stein and the ny media would realize these kids are 21 and have been working with 4 different catchers this season (posada, molina, moeller, and now stewart)
Don Vito-
Don’t worry, those annoying fleas will be gone before you know it.
Well, actually, the only way you ever win in front of your own fans is if the series goes to 6 or 7 games, so scratch that previous comment!
I agree Dave, going back to using best record makes the most sense. That’s the team that has been the best all year and has earned the right to an advantage.
Westerner – ARod should defintely beat out Cabrera at 3rd base. Actually Cabrera is not even playing 3rd base anymore. He is now a first baseman.
You know, by the standards of this board, I’m a down-right traitor when it comes to All-Star voting!
Also, in 1998, the Yankees had no starting all-stars, or so I remember reading.
I suppose you are right about deserving players always being left off the All-Star team. Why don’t they just expand the roster a bit?
I get what you’re saying Doreen, and the advantage can definitely shift throughout the course of the series. But, you still have the opportunity to play more games at home. The same way you said the other team can split the first two games and steal HFA, all we have to do is win one of the 3 on their field to get it back. The fact remains that the team that starts with HFA still has an edge that should be earned.
Rebecca-
David Wells started the ‘98 AS game.
John Smoltz was at Dr. Andrew’s office too. He also has shoulder inflammation and has been shut down.
Rebecca-
You are correct though b/c no position players for the Yanks started.
“Why don’t they just expand the roster a bit?” Then it would just be a different couple of deserving guys that get the shaft… because there could still be someone on the team that may not even be any good at all, always someone out there that’s better.. It’s a never ending saga unless they remove that requirement.
Plus, only so many guys can actually get in the game.
Sorry if you already talked about it, but I haven’t read the responses…
What’s the weather looking like tonight? Wet and cold?
“SJ44 April 29th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
Britton doesn’t throw hard. He throws 87-89.
He’s ok. Nothing special. His ball really doesn’t do much. Not a lot of downward bite. He’s far from a dominant arm.
He’s a grinder type of guy.”
Pin Stripes Plus:
Britton has nasty stuff. He throws 92-94, but it looks faster because of his deceptive delivery. His massive stomach hides the ball. Ok, maybe not, but Britton is a big guy. He is 6′3″ and reportedly weights 280 lbs. Baseball America reports that the fastball looks more like a 96 mph heater to hitters. Britton complements his fastball with a plus-and-a-half curveball, which is where he gets his strikeouts. Britton also has a changeup, but it’s more of a “show-me” pitch. Britton has excellent command and control of both his fastball and his curveball.
Scouts.com
“Despite essentially skipping two levels from the Carolina League to the Major Leagues, Chris Britton was the second best reliever on the Orioles. That may not mean much considering the state of the Orioles’ bullpen, but Britton certainly didn’t embarrass himself. He was demoted in late August because the organization was concerned that he had become overly reliant on his fastball. The concern was valid, considering that it was actually his curveball that Carolina League hitters had so much trouble with in 2005. Britton nonetheless showed an ability to effectively locate his fastball that can touch 93 MPH.”
Chris NY -
I guess that’s another way to look at it. HFA can definitely switch during the series.
I agree that the team with the best record should have HFA. What the heck else are you playing the season for???
Is it a consideration that if the All-Star game didn’t count for anything, if it was simply an exhibition game as it used to be, it’s the PLAYERS who would shrug it off and not show up? Because they’re making so much money now that a stipend for playing in the All-Star game as weighed against having 3 days off to spend how they’d like (with family?), wouldn’t many players choose to skip it? How else to make it “mandatory” than to make the game count?
Why do the have an all-star game at all? Now that there’s interleague play, and the opportunity to see the “other league” play during the season, what purpose does the all-star game really serve?
It truly used to be the only time you got to see the stars of the “other” league play, except for, maybe, the game of the week on Saturday afternoon. Now, with FOX and ESPN and regional sports networks, it’s not such a problem. Fans are more exposed, if they choose to be, to players in both leagues.
Oh, I used the word Strday and my post got eaten up. I though the rest of you were exaggerating!
Anyway, what I had said was, why is there an All-Star game at all anymore? It used to serve the purpose of exposing the fans to the best players in the “other” league. The game of the week was the only other opportunity fans could see teams in the “other” league play if they chose to watch.
Nowadays, with interleague play, Fox, ESPN and the various regional sports networks, that purpose does not exist anymore.
Question: Is the All-Star Game obsolete?
The specialness of the All-Star game is definitely gone, that’s for sure. I hate to say it, but I stopped watching it in the late 90’s. The allure of NL vs AL was gone for me.
I just hope my name gets drawn for some volunteer work during All-Star week!
Doreen: That’s a good question. I don’t think so, but it’s certainly not the same thing it was when it started.
Throw in the fact that starters routinely leave the park before the game is over…if the players don’t care, why should I?
(I realize there are exceptions, but still.)
Even the HR Derby has been ruined by ESPN, their announcers and the over commercialization of it.
“Bottom 9, tying run at 3rd and 1 out, of the 2008 Yankees (and based on 2008 performance), who do you want up at the plate and why?â€
I’ll tell you who and why. And these will also become your choices!
Bobby Abreu – because in a split called “close and late” he’s hitting 500!; runner up – DA MELK at 400, followed by Johnny Damon at 364
With runners on – Bobby Abreu at 374, followed by Matsui at 355 and the Captain at 353
RISP – the Captain at 429, followed by Abreu at 391 and Jorge at 333
RISP with 2 out – Abreu at 600, followed by the Captain at
429 and Jorge at 333
Interesting note – Chad Moeller actually ended up in several of those mixes but I left him out because of so few AB
Poor Britton, he gets no respect. What’s sad is he’s going to be stuck in the minors until God knows when and is pissing away year after year down there.
Buddy,
…thanks, because they are so annoying, stupid and senseless,,,I can’t stand even the thought of them…
The day it became a pop contest, did it. Some times it is just the wrong players.
specialness is not a word
If you’re on the DL, are you allowed to sit in the dugout/bullpen for the game?
Western…I am joking…it just looks and sounds funny…
Don Vito – thank you for the grammar lesson.
Right back at you as you need to capitalize the first word in your sentence and end your sentence with the proper punctuation.
No grammar police around here.
Britton has never touched 93-94 with the Yankees or with Scranton.
If he did, he wouldn’t be on the Scranton shuttle.
Sometimes, try watching the games instead of reading websites. You might learn something.
Rebecca – Yes.
JGNYC – I have some information about the ASG Volunteer gig. I wrote and asked when we would know whether we had been chosen – I too volunteered – and they wrote me back that they are going to be having two information sessions, June 13th and June 14th, and at that time they will conduct short interviews. They will let us know whether or not we are chosen the last week in June.
Westerner-
There are some grammar police in the hood. Try using the word resign or re-sign or, oh forget it.
Looks like Joe will need to use Proctor a bit more:
Jonathan Broxton is being sent for an MRI due to soreness below his right shoulder.
that would be a big loss if its serious
A quiz
Who has the highest BA when there is nobody on base?
You can give me your top three, in order.
Buddy – towards the end of last season, I thought we ran those people off (their vs there, you’re vs your, etc)?
Boston Dave -
I thought I’d be following the Dodgers more closely because of Torre and all, but I found that all I do is occasionally glance at the standings. My ears might perk up a bit if I hear some news, but the fact that they play way out there on the west coast, practically a world away (or might as well be), I just don’t do it.
Westerner99
Well, I was one of those grammar police. I gave it up.
Look at it another way with Britton.
There is a shortage of pitching throughout baseball.
Everybody is looking for arms.
If he was truly a guy with elite stuff, don’t you think the Yankees would be fielding offers left and right for him?
He’s just a run of the mill guy. There is nothing elite about his arm or his game.
If the Yankees thought he was a guy that could help them, they wouldn’t have made the Albie trade. Essentially, Albie is a guy that takes a spot Britton could have occupied if the Yankees felt he had that type of ability.
Are the Yankees misevaluating him? Only way to know for sure is if he is traded or is called up at a later date and and lights it up.
Westerner, Buddy and ALL….it was a joke…now let’s put down our swords and play nice….OK ???
( oops, i didnt’ doo that write, did eye ! )
Doreen-
I know you (were) one, I was just teasing. You were correct though.
My brother just told me A-Rod is getting an MRI; dunno if this is news to any of you.
Not to pick on the guy, but this is also just not true:
” 107. SJ44 April 29th, 2008 at 5:04 pm
One last thing I left out re: Ramirez.
Absent a lefty specialist in the bullpen, the next best thing is a
RH with a great change up. Its a way to neutralize lefties.
Edwar’s changeup may also be a reason why he got the recalled.
He may be the de facto lefty specialist.”
Edwar career (MLB) (38/46 at bats L/R)
vs left .342/457/658 (yes, lefties slugged 658 against him…current AL SLG% leader is Manny, at .643)
vs right .239/351/478
While 38 bats is a small sample size, it is also neverthless already a trend–lefties have thusfar obliterated edwar at the ML level.
Britton 3 year split (90/158 L/R)
vs left .267/337/367
vs right .196/246/348
Troll alert !
Doreen – as much as I appreciate proper grammar, it would be a losing battle on an open board like this.
Let’s go Yankees!
Let’s go Phil!
Doreen,
I definitely keep a closer eye on the Dodgers but still not too much. They are an interesting team to watch though because of all of their promising youngsters. If they can ever catch up to Arizona over the next 3-4 seasons, they’ll have a good chance of seeing the World Series with all of the high potential young arms and hitters they have. Joe isn’t in bad shape with that team.
When i found baseball, there were 16 teams. what now isn’t it 30? I don’t watch nl games or care about who is who and what is what in the nl. I do feel that the quality of games has decreased exponentially if that is the right spelling since expansion. Imagine the quality of games if half the starters were relegated to backups. I dislike the playoff scenario too. After 162 games someone has to know who was consistently the best in each league. I know its about money now. I also know we don’t get our moneys worth in reality. For me baseball is one of those things that didn’t get better with age. sigh
Rebecca – I hadn’t heard that about Alex. He seemed very concerned last night in the post-game. He has me very worried.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iMxxD1TEULZvwCJ7SHwJrQeKX2vAD90BQ3JG4
.
No worries here…
.
“Sometimes, try watching the games instead of reading websites. You might learn something.”
Very true, if one just learns from the lohud website instead of watching the games…one’d think Wang is and will never be an ace, Hughes was not a major league pitcher last September and in the playoffs and should’ve been in the minors…and edwar should be a left specialist *grin*
Becca – that’s interesting…though the Yanks seem to send a guy for an MRI when he sneezes, so I hope it is just precautionary.
Un importante juego de esta noche, vaya Hughes
Does that get by the language police?
If dare wuz sucha thin az gramir poliz. I wud hav bin arezted bi nhow.
Rebecca-that was news to me. Thanx!
Hope everything is alright with Alex
OT: Doreen – curiously, where do you stand on “irregardless?”
Let’s go Tampa Bay Rays!
Irregardless is a term that has caused controversy since it first appeared in the early twentieth century. It is generally listed in dictionaries as “nonstandard”.
Regardless of what you have heard, “irregardless†is a redundancy. The suffix “-less†on the end of the word already makes the word negative. It doesn’t need the negative prefix “ir-†added to make it even more negative.
If you talk to baseball people, they will tell you a RH pitcher with a great changeup neutralizes lefty hitters. Its why many righthanded pitchers develop a changeup.
Every manager in the game believes a righty with a good changeup can serve as a de facto lefty specialist.
Guys like Keith Faulke and Trevor Hoffman made great livings using their changeup to neturalize lefties.
Am I comparing Ramirez to those two guys? No. But, his changeup is an elite pitch.
He has also outpitched Britton in AAA this year. The guy hasn’t been touched so far this year.
38 AB’s for a rookie is pretty small sample size. Look at his minor league splits. With a much larger sample size, lefties have had a hard time with him.
If Chris Britton is so good, why isn’t there a trade market for him? Let’s say the Yankees are completely off base in their evaluation of him.
Why aren’t other teams jumping on him? You never hear his name in any trade talks.
My point is, if he was an elite arm he would have a market.
irregardless
Is not a word anybody educated should use…. regardless of that people should just use the word regardless
Are you sure about Britton being only a 87-89 pitcher? I cannot find any source to confirm that, nor have I seen differently. Scouting reports put him as touching 93, whereas the others, such as Bruney, Farnsworth, consistently hit 94 and above. His secondary pitches are weaker, but he was formerly highly touted by scouts and Baseball America. That said, his arm is not as good as some that are brought to the bullpen and others have shown they can get outs consistently. Further, something could have happened in the past year to lower his velocity, plus he has never been a fitness buff.
Note: Eric Duncan just hit a homerun and is now batting .281. He is still one of the youngest people in AAA. His back is a serious problem, but he may still be a productive player. If there is someone to root for, he would be the guy. He was rushed and hit a wall, has had numerous injuries, both which stunted his development, but now he might be catching up. Then again, an 0-4 day could end that speculation quickly.
Don Vito A. Bellamo
How about the phrase? “I could care less”, which is used to convey the opposite, i.e. I could not care less.
Pete, what’s the word on A-Rod?
Irregardless is NOT a word. As a poster above said, the ‘Ir’ and ‘Less’ both serve the same purpose and change it into a double negative. Irregarless is like saying it doesn’t matter that it doesn’t matter that _______
There may be no market for Britton (rumours) but there certainly isn’t any talk of Edwar (rumours) either … or is that neither yayyy irregardless go yankees
“Britton has never touched 93-94 with the Yankees or with Scranton.
If he did, he wouldn’t be on the Scranton shuttle.
Sometimes, try watching the games instead of reading websites. You might learn something.”
I watched him a number of times when the O’s actually gave him a shot. He was good. He had a hideous outing or two (against the Sox, sadly) that damaged his numbers, and they still wound up being decent. It seems odd to me that NO ONE wants a guy that had some success in the AL East and has done nothing but put up good numbers at AAA. And it’s not because he’s super familiar with the league. I guess I just haven’t seen anything that indicates to me that he wouldn’t be a solid 6th/7th inning guy. Hawkins’ job, basically. It just confuses me that this organization just won’t give him a shot, despite his having already performed at the MLB level.
Anyhow. Now that Albie pitched yesterday and they sent Britton out, how much you want to bet that Ollie throws 50 pitches again if Hughes comes out before the 7th?
Grammar Police Alert!
Buddy,
re: your post last night? Praying, on hands and knees, for Houston to rally.
FSN Detroit (636 on Direct) has the game for those in need.
Nice update =)
VRSCE,
After someone says “I could care less about so and so “, I often just answer “you could?”
they just look confused for a second and continue speaking.
So many people get that one wrong.
Irregardless is not a word. Regardless – without regard. The “ir-” is not needed.
Met doctors looking at Jorge Posada?
o_O
It’s YANKEE time!
VRSCE…you are too funny….
The expression I could not care less originally meant ‘it would be impossible for me to care less than I do because I do not care at all’. It was originally a British saying and came to the US in the 1950s. It is senseless to transform it into the now-common I could care less. If you could care less, that means you care at least a little. The original is quite sarcastic and the other form is clearly nonsense. The inverted form I could care less was coined in the US and is found only here, recorded in print by 1966. The question is, something caused the negative to vanish even while the original form of the expression was still very much in vogue and available for comparison – so what was it? There are other American English expressions that have a similar sarcastic inversion of an apparent sense, such as Tell me about it!, which usually means ‘Don’t tell me about it, because I know all about it already’. The Yiddish I should be so lucky!, in which the real sense is often ‘I have no hope of being so lucky’, has a similar stress pattern with the same sarcastic inversion of meaning as does I could care less.
We are going to make Kenny Rogers look like Whitey Ford tonight.
Ah – “I could care less” is one of the ones that gets my goat the most! Boston Dave – I think I might adopt your response!
mel-
I heard today that David Stern is going to look at the playoff situation in the NBA. Too bad for Golden State it didn’t happen last year.
Where is this strange stadium? I don’t recognize it?
OMG OMG OMG OOOOMMMMGGGG, A-Rod is out for the season ?!?!
the lineup should be
Damon CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Matsui LF
Giambi DH
Cano 2B
Duncan 1B
Stewart C
Ensberg 3B
Kat O’Brien said that Alex left the stadium a little while ago for an MRI. He will be out at least two days. This is according to Cashman.
Why is the NBA going to look at the playoff situation?
Also, quick lesson for Phil:
balls = bad
strikes = good.
At what point does the learning curve and growing pains end? At what point do you cut the cord and make a trade?
Im all for giving Hughes his chances but if he doesnt succeed in the least its time to send him back down. But then the question becomes, what next?
geO When did you become the Yankees manager
See? Strikes = good.
Joe m
yankees manager no. my opinions yes.
I was gonna go swimming in the lake after the Cleveland game but the water was too cold and Erie guardless is not safe
Dr. Cox: You give it a helluva lot more time than one month.
2-0 Detroit. Bank on it.
I take a bow
Where is Melky?
This is why Melky in center =
, Damon in center = 
Paul, LMAO
Melky makes the catch and the throw.
Nice job Johnny!
“Registration to buy tickets for the All-Star game and Derby began Tuesday on mlb.com, and a drawing will be held June 16.”
I wonder if I should even bother.
With Melky in Center and Molina behind the plate that stuff won’t happen. Oh well
I cant watch hughs pitch, he sucks,thats it.
Well, in between the time I left this room and turned on my tv, the Tigers were scoring on Johnny Damon’s arm. Okay……
Necessity may be the mother of invention but it’s a tough night to have the new catcher behind the plate. Anyone but Phil.
If karma is alive and well we should clean Rogers’ pine-tar coated clock!
2 runs is nothing to the Yanks’ new devestating small-ball offense. The key is that Phil kept his pitch count down in that inning.
Phil is my favorite Yankee outside of Mo – I’m really trying to keep the faith, but it’s hard. Joe is doing him no favors by not playing Melky, but still – at some point, when is this kid going to turn it around? I’m getting discouraged, to be honest.
Buddy,
I heard, he’ll look into but anything’s unlikely to happen.
The great play of the Sixers and Hawks is certainly not helping the cause.
Hope Phil has settled down.
Like a 21 year old kid needs a rest.
heres to not hoping Rogers to throws a 1 hit shutout aganist the Yankees
horrible try by damon
Phil is throwing hard, fastball up to 94mph according to gameday.
Rebecca-
Atlanta made the playoffs 8 games under .500 & Golden State was 14 games over .500 & didn’t make it. Atlanta made it b/c of being in the Eastern Conf.
When does Darrell Rasner get another shot? he’s on a tear in triple a
horrible walk to leadoff also
hughes needs to challenge the hitter
hughes is letting the game speed up on him. he just needs to slow things down and throw strikes.
Big surprise there, Jeter grounds out on the first pitch. Yawn…
It’s been a month.
I’m way more discouraged by our utter lack of offense than I am by Phil, and you know the offense will turn it around.
does anyone have an mlb.tv premium account they don’t mind sharing? mine is locked out for some reason. thanks.
It’s tough to have a new catcher behind the plate period. To have a new catcher catch a struggling young pitcher seems like a potential formula for disaster,
Don Vito A. Bellamo
Pardon me for being obtuse, are you saying: “I could care less?” is the proper inflection?
Alright Bobby
Buddy: Ahh, yes, that…
I don’t think anyone expected Phil to struggle his badly. It’s frustrating to watch, because he shows flashes of what could be. He was not helped out with Damon out there when he should NEVER be in CF will Phil pitching. I think everyone knew there would be ups and downs with Phil and Ian, but damn outside of the Toronto game, I haven’t seen any other ups. Girardi has every right to rest his guys, but you rest a melky or Abreu with Wang on the mound. YOu don’t weaken your average outfield D with a rookie fly ball pitcher on the mound. And now that Kay says the same thing, I may have to re-evaluate my opinion because I NEVER agree with him
Michael and Al aren’t playing nice in the sandbox
anyone knows whats the relative humidity in NY right now?
“Am I comparing Ramirez to those two guys? No. But, his changeup is an elite pitch.”
True but I think few (if any) here has ever doubted his changeup or is anti-edwar. Folks are annoyed b/c they don’t see why Britton doesn’t get the chances Edwar gets and even Bruney/Farnsworth got.
“He has also outpitched Britton in AAA this year. The guy hasn’t been touched so far this year.”
That’s very small (~10ip) sample sizes there for both. One reason folks clamor for Britton, meanwhile, is he has a pretty established ML track record of “goodness”. Both have dominated the minors for some years now (yes edwar much more so, esp last year when he dominated IL, but the stint in the major showed how that doesn’t always translate as ML hitters adjusted to his changeup), but only Britton has fared decently in the major…but never gets an extended shot with the Yanks.
“38 AB’s for a rookie is pretty small sample size. Look at his minor league splits. With a much larger sample size, lefties have had a hard time with him.”
He obliterated both righties and lefties in the minors last year, but than kinda not so well once ML hitters adjusted. Doesn’t mean he doesn’t deserve more shots, but that brings back to the issue–why not Britton? Why hasn’t Britton gotten any shot though every time he has been given one, he’s been decent? Every ML team he’s been, he performed as a well-above ML average reliever with 120+ ERA+
“If Chris Britton is so good, why isn’t there a trade market for him? Let’s say the Yankees are completely off base in their evaluation of him.
Why aren’t other teams jumping on him? You never hear his name in any trade talks.
My point is, if he was an elite arm he would have a market.”
I think most would agree other team’s interest is not always a sound argument for goodness (nor badness). There’s not much of a market for Ramirez either, and Cano and Wang were there for the taking if Arizona wanted him. Cross-town, names like David West, Alex Escobar, Lastings Milledge, have all been bandied and to be made available only for the next superstar; and none have made a dent in the majors (though Lastings still has a chance to Kazmir them). The point being we all know prospects are very much hit-or-miss, and only way to find out is see how they perform in the major.
I don’t think folks here is anti-edwar, but just want to see Britton get an extended shot to see if the Yanks have something on their hands. If he bombs, oh well, at least now we know. But have a potential weapon (with a pretty decent ML track record, no less) on the team’s hands and the succession of Joes just ignore him…that’s a bit aggravating.
Ironically, wasn’t folks rioting to give edwar a chance here last year. History does repeat itself…
Michael Kay just made a good point.. Melky doesn’t need a day off. This is getting ridiculous. You already have A Rod and Posada out of the lineup, why sit Melky? It already cost us a run in the field. It just doesn’t make much sense.
So, what’s the over/under on this game being over by midnight?
Matsui-san!
SD John, you are so right. Girardi has done a **** poor job of putting a halfway decent defense behind Phil when he pitches; he’s outsmarting himself and it’s not helping that Phil has to throw to a totally unfamilar catcher. I find it odd that the team wouldn’t allow Phil to pitch in the bullpen on his throw day so that he could keep his routine, but they don’t mind sitting Molina when Phil could really use his steadiness. Couldn’t Jose have sat tomorrow? I’m sick about this.
That being said, I simply do not understand Phil at all; it’s as if last year never happened and he didn’t learn a thing. This is depressing.
good going Giambalco
Giambi just sucks.
Kay forgot to mention that Melky just died at the end of last year most likely because he was tired
But Giambi popped it up to the left side again. More progress.
hahahaha, oh Jason.
It seems like hitting with RISP has been a serious problem for the yankees for the past 5 years…
Stop hating on Hughes. He gives up runs early alot. We will see how he does once the 2nd and 3rd is over. If he can get through those without a problem, we’ll be fine. Part of the problem is that Stewart might be calling for pitches that Phil isnt very comfortable with. I think its too soon to start Stewart. He should have gotten a few more days to get to know and work with the staff.
Blimpie give me your email address. It’s possible that my account is still active. I only sign up for a month at a time. I think I am active for April.
I predicted a pop up to the third baseman. I was pretty close.
At least we won’t get no-hit by Kenny. That’s quite an accomplishment in itself.
trisha: thank you so much.
sahnia@wharton.upenn.edu
thing i dont get is that when these guys (Giardi) was watching these Yankees play last year on the Yes Network and has to critize how the team plays and there opinion on the team.
now he’s the Yankees manager still he cannot make a right decision in this game?
I just don’t get it. I do not understand why Giambi is not the odd man out, especially against a left hander. What does Girardi see in him? Girardi has done nothing to give any of these guys in the lineup any kind of consistency in batting position, and everyone but the two worst hitters right now (Cano and Giambi) get rested/benched.
I’m praying that come July, I’m proven a fool and Giambi is MVP-like, but come on. You put Damon in center and bench Melky, just to get Giambi in at DH, who, by the way, hit’s worse as DH than as 1B? This is ridiculous. It’s way past “questionable” and into pathological.
Alright settle down Hughes and make this quick
I think Giambi needs 134 games off. Pathetic. It’s comical that Girardi just keeps trotting him out there and we get to watch him pop up, ground out, or hit a homerun once every 25 or so at-bats.
they’re getting slap happy in the booth
Betsy, don’t you think that Girardi, as a former catcher, knows who to pair with Hughes on the mound?
If I’m not mistaken, this is the fourth catcher Phil has thrown to this year (Posada, Molina, Moeller, Stewart)
Is it just me or do others think that Roger Clemons should have been able to do better than Mindy McCready….she only 33 and looks ….welll like Delta Burkeish (-weight) yikes
LOL at Al Leiter and Flash
Giambi is so unlucky,…my foot. He got an 86 mph bp fastball… option him to scranton!
blimpie – on its way.
Oh yeah-I forgot..Let’s go Rangers!!!
slow fastball tonight.
Concerning the job Girardi has been doing, he has not been doing a good job at all. He keeps on putting out out of whack lineups, and puts out terrible defenses. A perfect example is a few days ago when he had Ensberg at DH, while putting Shelley at 1st. I mean, come on. No one in the right micd is stupid enough to do that. I like Girardi, but I think hes doing a horrible managing job so far this season.
bleh, high pitch count again.
…pudge was on the Marlins? Why do I not remember this?
Felix – Clemens has the face of a pig and the body of a cow! That said you have to look at younger pictures of McCready. She was really attractive.
Westerner99, You’d think so. I’m not Girardi bashing but why give Melky the day off with a rookie fly ball pitcher on the mound and put Damon out there? Why not give Melky the day off when Wang is on the mound? Why keep trotting Giambi out there? And finally, why would you NOT have Phil pitch to Jose and have Stewart catch a guy like Pettite who pretty much calls his own game at this point? Forget it, maybe I am Girardi bashing.
The different lineups almost every night is a bit annoying. I know there are injuries and adjustments have to be made. But some things..I just don’t know.
Why no Melky tonight?
The whole Clemens – McCready thing is sick. Clemens picked her up at a bar after she was done performing when she was 15! He then took her to his hotel room. He denies having sex with her..and, even if he didn’t…why is he taking a 15 year-old girl to a hotel room?
this team just doesn’t have a right handed bat tonight. Melky has to be in there. If you are going to sit him do it against a rh pitcher.
Pudge, that was unsporting.
Rebecca, you should he killed us in the 03 series.
catcher stealing on a catcher . ouch.
nasty change up, he lost his bat!
The Yankees are incredibly poor fundamentality…poor defense, poor hitting with RISP, inability to hold runners on, etc…It gets kind of annoying to watch…Hopefully they’ll improve, it is April.
Amazingly sad that pudge just stole 2nd, that said Phil looked better that inning.
That’s a goal! (sorry Rangers game venting)
Yankees arent the only team with poor fundamentality.
actually last year we had no fundamentality.
absolutely sick sequence of pitches from phil to jones. He threw fastball, changeup, changeup, curveball.
still his fastball doesn’t have the life it had last start.
Why or Why does he not throw that change more?
Westerner, I agree the whole thing is sick. It got even sicker when McCready admitted that they had a sexual relationship. Not that there was any question in my mind since Clemens has shown himself to be a total liar. But I didn’t know if she was going to admit the truth.
As expected, Hardin and Clemens continue to deny.
Good to see Hughes trusting his changeup more. That last strikeout was downright nasty.
Rebecca, his tag at the plate in the playoffs that year is an amazing highlight. He just layed on the ground as the rest of the team mobbed him. Not a Marlin fan but it made me jump off the couch and cheer.
but his fb has more movement today.
Westerner, that’s the thing – Joe SHOULD know better, but he’s still wrong.
I appreciate trying to get guys rest to keep them fresh for the long road ahead, but man – he’s got to pick his spots. His choosing Stewart for Molina makes absolutely no sense, but I really can’t express it any better than SDJohn did.
I think you would have to believe that Melky is banged up and not feeling 100% for him to be getting the game off. If that’s not the case, and Girardi is just resting him, then he needs to have his head examined because it was be asinine to send a 21-year old struggling pitcher out to the mound with anything but your best possible defensive alignment.
Yes! 1-1 Rangers game
Nice job by Phil that inning.
Get to work bats
I wish he would mix in that change up more often. Just a fastball and a curve isn’t going to cut it.
Agree on Girardi, I know it’s eary, and I know a lot of guys are stuggling, and we’ve had some injuries but for the time being, I’d like to see pretty much the same lineup every night. Stop trotting Giambi out there all the time, he’s good for maybe one or two meaningless solo shots a week, and he gives up that many runs with his defense anyway. Shelley is here, give him a shot. If he doesn’t work out, Ensberg is there.
How does Al even know the phrase, “French tip” used in beauty salons? That guy.
S.A.-Because Girardi has no clue what hes doing with this team. Im getting to be very impatient over here when it comes to seeing Girardi do something right with the lineup and matchups. Injury adjustments wasnt really a problem with Torre, why is it a problem now? We have the exact same players, except for a few guys. I think Girardi should examine some lineups Torre put out in various situations, and look how they did.Also, when Betemit wasnt on the DL, he should have been used more. I do not know why he wasnt.
I am also still waiting for someone else to get this about Shelley. He is exactly like Adam Dunn. He rarely gets hits. He either hits a home run, or gets out. He is not the type of player I want to be in the Bronx at this moment.
I’m really just venting tonight; I refuse to lose faith in Phil – what kind of fan would I be if I just supported him when he was doing well? I know he has all the talent in the world and the right stuff (makeup wise) to succeed – it’s just frustrating. I always end up worried what people are going to say about him (like he’s overhyped, overmatched, that kind of thing), but I guess I need a thicker skin, lol. Whoever said that watching kid pitchers was easy?
“younger pictures of McCready. She was really attractive”
Not true.
Good eye Shelley!
Nice at bat there by Shelley.
looks like hughes wasn’t able to build on his encouraging two innings last time out. at what point can you start to qualify his season as disappointing so far? young or not, he’s not pitching well.
That pitch Phil threw to Jones where the bat flew out of his hand – that was the first change up Phil threw all night.
Completely bewildered Jones.
Then he had him completely set up and struck him out on a beautiful curve ball.
He’s at 34 pitches after two innings. That’s not bad at all. And of those 34 pitches 23 have been strikes – that’s 67% a very good rate.
He settled down that inning after a tough first. Even in the first he limited the damage and made sure the game didn’t get away.
Overcoming obstacles like the trouble he got into in the first inning – that’s how young pitchers learn.
Throwing a change up when it’s your third best pitch and watching the bat fly out of a guy’s hands – that’s how young pitchers develop and gain confidence in their secondary pitches.
Small steps. That’s just the way it is with when you’re counting on the youngest pitcher in baseball.
Gameday is saying K rogers is throwing changeup after changeup. Is he really doing that, is gameday no reporting it right, or is his fastball as slow as a normal pitchers changeup?
uh, Adam Dunn is a pretty valuable player.
Does anyone else ever notice that Michael Kay thinks every ball hit to the outfield is a home run???
Actually it was pointed out that Molina had been hurt too so they didn’t want to push things.
Maybe Joe wanted to experiment to see how they matched up against each other.
Oh I don’t know. But I do know that Girardi knows a lot more than all of us so I will always figure he has an intelligent reason for doing whatever he does.
Ensberg just missed that!
i’m actually pretty impressed with hughes fastball when he throws it for strikes. hitters don’t square it up that often. even though pudge got a hit on the fastball ,he missed two in that at bat.
Would be nice to see you contribute something Robbie
But Cano didn’t !!!
way to go robbie
Gotta feel good for Robbie!
Wow, the mood is getting pretty ugly here in the comments section of the LuHud Yankees blog. Girardi has no clue! OMG, how can Girardi do this, that, and the other!
Girardi left Cano in the lineup, didn’t he? Girardi is a genius!
yeah robbie! FINALLY!!!!!!!!
Robbie…didn’t
what do ya know, robbie cano!
very nice swing there robby
Didn’t ya know Robby would come through finally?
Baseball 101. When you hit the ball on the screws, eventually the balls will either drop for hits or fly out.
Let’s hope that gets Cano going for good
WAY TO GO cano
Finally Robbie! That’ll give my fantasy team a huge boost tonight with Melky, for some reason, out of the lineup. YES!!!!!!
Thank you Robbie!
nice to see Robby smile again
Trish – once I read about him taking a 15 year old to a hotel room, he was done with me. Any shred of doubt I had about his character was out the window.
Guess Robbie’s happy to be back home.
Yay, Robbie!
awesome to see a smile on canos face again
thank god
now ThAT could be the start of Cano’s hot streak right there !…
….sweeeet !
I’m not watching. Did Robbie survive the Shelly high five?
Hopefully this is the start of Robbie getting hot.
Flippin karma baby. Welcome back Kenny.
CB
Well said.
Hughes is on track, building character and his arm.
CC
Exactly…..she is one of the lee sisters
Motley
Homely
Ugly
You gotta wonder why Andy Pettitte would even bother with Clemens since he appears to be such a classless jerk…
Regards Clemens, and I’m purely speculating here,couldn’t his actions be construed as statuatory rape ? She was clearly a minor.
I just don’t get why Damon isn’t running in this spot? I know it’s Pudge, and Rogers has a good move but you have to put pressure on the D.
When I saw the right fielder slow down I thought for sure it was right to him. Thank goodness it kept going!
Neither he nor she has admitted when the sexual relationship began…just that they had one. But it wouldn’t surprise me if Clemens had sex with a teenage girl.
quick and easy Phil.
Only thing that kept that from being a DP was that there were 2 outs. Great job, captain!
“I am also still waiting for someone else to get this about Shelley. He is exactly like Adam Dunn. He rarely gets hits. He either hits a home run, or gets out. He is not the type of player I want to be in the Bronx at this moment.”
If Shelley ever could turn into an Adam Dunn type they would have a gold mine of a player on their hands.
Dunn is a limited player in terms of defense and athleticism but he is a terrific offensive player.
The fact is compared to most other hitters Dunn makes outs relatively infrequently. He’s career .381 OBP guy and has a career .515 slugging percentage.
If Shelley became an .850+ OPS player after being a career minor leaguer that would be an enormous value for the yankees.
man robbie smoked that.
when the ball left the bat i was telling “get two, get two!” because I thought it was just a double down the line. No way did I think that was out.
whattya’ know, Robbie Cano!
“I just don’t get why Damon isn’t running in this spot? I know it’s Pudge, and Rogers has a good move but you have to put pressure on the D.”
Maybe he doesn’t have a read on Rogers’ move. Running for the sake of running is stupid. Only try to steal when you think you can get there.
Reminder: Yanks are only two ahead of Tigers in loss column. After this series, Yanks could be trailing them.
Come on, Phil keep it going.
Phil, that is NOT what you’re supposed to do when your team just spots you two runs…
Right. Down. The. Middle.
Man, Phil…
That one hurt. Gave the lead right back.
growing pains indeed
Ok, that a TERRIBLE sign that on his first pitch after the Yanks tie it up, Phil throws a meatball that Granderson just rocks. I know he’s 21, but sheesh Phil. Just awfully awful.
Westerner, I have been through with him for a while. The dirty tricks he pulled to try to drag McNamee through the mud and take the pressure off him(self), and the outright lies that he told to the press, trackable lies, made me sick to the pit of my stomach. When the McCready story hit there was not a question in my mind that he did it.
An interesting sidenote here. I am from RI and very familiar with the guys with whom he went into business here when he opened Roger Clemens Chicken. They’re from my town. He was still with the Sux then. He had a reputation for being a moral slimebag back then and going to some very seedy places with those guys. I also heard some pretty nasty stories about things they did having to do with that same kind of thing. So when this stuff came out with McCready it didn’t surprise me in the least. I wanted to vomit when Canseco came out and talked about how Clemens never cheated on his wife and was such a moral family man.
/facepalm.
5-2 ‘Roids bank on it.
So much for Phil’s progress
phil hughes sucks. I want him to be good but he sucks.
This is what happens he 2nd time through the lineup with only 2 pitches. He HAS to throw that change more.
Hughes is having lots of problems locating tonight….
Its been pretty inconsistent. He’ll throw 3 great pitches, then 2 bad ones.
I guess that’s part of the growing pains. Hopefully the bats keep hitting.
Girardi should not be putting a 21 year old pitcher with a catcher he has no familiarity with.
nice going Chris
See you in Scranton, Philly.
LOL omg it came reality
i called it
phil hughes sucks! AGAIN HE SUCKS
Not an impressive outing by Hughes tonight. And to Sheff of all people.
Get two runs and Hughes just gives it away. I’m tired of watching this kid. He was / is overhyped and he stinks. Take the bus back to Scranton.
come on Phil, work your way outta this!
Okay, let’s get out of the third inning…
god blessed… more growing pains???
This guy is just not doing his job. I can’t think of any other way to describe him than su*kish. Just take him out now.
3 outs phil not runs… that is how you get out of an inning
The Sheff is still cookin’.
I’d love to blame this on Stewart but this is the second catcher Hughes has had an issue with when it comes to signs. Phil needs to screw his head on straight and focus.
It really isn’t worth watching when Hughes or Kennedy pitch.
Phil is flustered too. You can see it all over his face. He’s huffing and puffing, sighing, shaking his head..
He’s all kinds of rattled.
I resisted this because I didn’t think Phil had anything to learn by being sent down, but what options does the team have? He’s just awful – Phil is completely regressing. Growing pains are one thing – but he’s thoroughly deserving of his 0-3 almost 8 ERA. I thought maybe he’d settle down and we could take something good from this, but Phil is set for another brilliant 3 inning performance. The bullpen can not withstand more of this and frankly, he can not get anyone out now.
This isn’t growing pains… he sucks
Im all doe giving this kid his chances. But he keeps putting terrible outings like this and setting us up for automatic losses every 5 days while depleting our bullpen, it has to end! Make your adjustments, if he cant, send him down or use him as trade bait.
patience is wearing thin.
im tired of wasting our bullpen keep his a$$ out there until he figures it out.. i dont care if his era goes up to 35… maybe he should be reduced to tears on the mound so he never lets this garbage happen again
CB-Since when does a .247 BA make anyone a terrific offensive player? He averages more than 150 Ks a year. Yes he hit 40 HRs consistently, but other than that hes terrible. Adam Dunn is a horrible offensive player. Believe me, he has no value whatsoever. The reason Cincinnati wants to deal him so badly is because they realize hes horendous. Shelley is exactly like Dunn. He rarely gets hits. He either strikes out or hits a home run. Thats not something the Yankees need.
I don’t know what’s going on with Hughes… He’s got great stuff, we’ve all seen it, he’s just not pitching well. He shows flashes of it, but he doesn’t look anything like dominant.
I think a lot of the impatience with Hughes stems from seeing people like Verlander, and Lester succeed pretty quickly. Even Bucholz has pitched decent games, if he hasn’t gotten the win.
Hughes is getting tagged. He appears hittable. He’s making the same mistakes, and he’s not overpowering anyone.
Two pitches might be succesful once throught the lineup, the seond time through you’ve already seen everything he has multiple times. He must either throw the change more, start throwing the slider again. Either way, I can’t figure out how Yankee management didn’t realize that a 21 year old pitcher could have success with 2 pitches as a starter?????
phil hughes is the biggest suck i have ever seen. him and kennedy would look alot better in minnesota, and santana here.
cashman should be fired for not making that trade
The Yanks can rock the Gambler in this game, keep it together Phil and you can still get a W.
That said, some of the “the Yanks can sweep this series” talk may have been a tad premature.
Where is santana???…
Six Hughes starts and this is his 4th catcher. Not the best way to develop a young pitcher.
Its showing tonight. Hughes is getting frustrated, Stewart doesn’t know how to handle him (since he has never caught him) and that’s not good.
Its more than getting crossed up. They don’t know what to do to attack the Tigers hitters.
At some point, they are going to have to make some tough decisions with both Hughes and Kennedy.
Do they keep getting their brains beat in at the ML level, with different catchers each start, or do you go to a veteran arm (like Rasner) and hope that gets results?
Its a tough call. Its the end of April and the #4 and #5 starters on the team don’t have a win between them.
That can’t last much longer. Not if they are interested in winning.
well this sucks
Rob, you can’t say someone sucks based on a few weeks of performance in their first full year. That’s illogical.
Hughes is a two trick pony, especially if he isn’t going to throw the changeup.
And it, er, probably doesn’t help the situation to grouse about fictional trades. But who knows. Maybe that does help.
Wow guys… Relax… He’s a 21 year old kid standing on a mound at Yankee stadium.
Let him adjust and come into his own.
Besides, send him down? Who do you want to bring up? Igawa? Rasner? Why? Hughes’ numbers are better than their career numbers.
Betsy,
You are right. Phil needs to stick in this game and throw 100 pitches, then be on the next plane to Scranton, It’s obvious he’s not ready to be a major league pitcher yet.
I just got here. Why isn’t Molina catching?
Take 1 win away from Bruney that Kennedy should have… Numbers don’t tell you everything.
phil hughes is a 21 yr old version of mike mussina. they both are huge babies on the mound, someone give phil a tissue he looks near tears giving up bombs left and right.
get this clown out of new york he isn’t gonna make it here
He has to start throwing the change more. Can’t keep throwing 2 pitches and get away with it.
Rubin,
I’m not surprised to see you calling Dunn a “horrible offensive player” and then see “Supporter of Joba in the bullpen” next to your name. You’re apparently a complete moron.
Wow. Ian and Phil are #1 and #2 on pitches per inning according to Kay. Hughes is 3.3 innings per start, lowest in the majors.
There’s growing pains, and then there’s just bad pitching.
I have such high hopes for hughes, but he doesn’t seem to have anything recently.
Come on Phil. Get it together
They got to get him out of there now. He’s just melting down and that doesn’t help anybody.
He may need to go to AAA to get his game back.
He’s only 21 and he is in a pressure cooker and it looks like its taking its toll.
Gonna be a tough call for the Yankees on this one.
“use him as trade bate”
They will still not trade him for anybody, send him down maybe so he cant find it again, but they wouldnt trade him for Johan they arent going to trade him for anybody.
He isn’t getting anyone out… so he sux. He is hurting the team not helping so he sux. He has had 6 starts. Where are the good ones? The first then?………
DMan,
Rasner is MUCH, not a little…MUCH better pitcher than Phil Hughes is right now. The Yanks are doing Hughes no favors keeping him in the majors.
Hughes actually has been mixing in his last two pitches(change and slider) tonight…obviously not getting good results though.
His fastball seems straight as an arrow and doesn’t hit any corners. Where’s all that movement everybody talks about. I haven’t seen it in any of his starts…
And now that he has gotten hit and hit hard, he’s pitching away from contact. It’s a vicious cycle. I love Phil, but it’s in his best interest to be sent to AAA and develop that 3rd and 4th pitch. And Chirs Stewart can’t catch a freakin cold!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This catcher isn’t helping either though….
I just don’t understand why they don’t prioritize constancy for the kids – i think Wang/Pettite would be able to handle newbie catcher better than the kids…I mean, sheesh – how much adjusting can you expect them to do in one year
Get Molina in there and see if it regroups Hughes. This Stewart guy is not helping. Girardi’s bonehead move to pair a rookie with a new catcher.
I’m not giving up on Hughes yet but I do belive he needs to go back to the minors…and yeah, bring up Igawa, he can’t be worse than the kids right now.
“Since when does a .247 BA make anyone a terrific offensive player? ”
When you have a career .896 OPS.
Adam Dunn strikes out a lot – but he does not make that many outs overall.
He takes a ton of walks and gets on base 38% of the time.
Getting on base 38% of the time is very, very good especially when you hit 40 HR/ year and have a .515 slugging percentage.
Over their careers Adam Dunn and ARod get on base at around the same rate (Dunn 38% vs. ARod 39%).
Any player who is a .900 OPS player is an outstanding offensive player.
It’s amazing how some ‘fans’ are jumping off the ship and they haven’t even played 30 games yet. He’s having a bad game. He’ll learn from it. Should he be learning in the bigs? That’s debatable, especially since there isn’t anyone to replace him. But ‘get rid of him’ and ‘he sucks’? You ‘fans’ are amazing. Nice support for your team.
SJ44-
Well they need to figure out what kind of a kid he is. It could really mess with him even more to send him down to AAA.
Tough call is right.
Rasner can do this too. Actually, he can probably do a better job than this. And his future ain’t nearly as bright as Phil’s. Phil isn’t going to learn by getting battered. He needs some success and some low pressure innings to find his command and mechanics.
Kennedy’s actually been better at this point. I’d say of the two, he deserves to stay.
I’m patient. I’m patient beyond belief. I am so patient that I make impatient people want to hurl. I am understanding. I understand for everyone. I am as supportive as you will ever find. You will never see me despair of any of our guys.
But will anyone mind terribly if I say I am getting mighty frickin tired of Phil Hughes? Because I am. I’ll root for him any time he takes the mound and hope that maybe “this is the time” that he looks like a real pitcher. But honest to God, he can be very trying.
And I am also tired of hearing him after the game saying in a monotone that he’ll just have to figure it out. FIGURE IT OUT DAMMIT!
Thanks for letting me emote.
Man, that Santana trade is looking good now, isn’t it.
dontfirecash, he’s thrown 2 change’s and 1 slider, that’s not really mixing your pitches, that’s showing it.
Stewart is not good at all, it was a mistake to put him in there. He’s a young guy and Hughes needed a good start today to gain a little confidence. Simply the wrong decision to start Stewart today.
For all we hear about Hughes’ maturity, this cannot be good for his psyche going forward. In reality, Hughes is just not ready to be in the rotation. He’s here because the Yanks haven’t had another option, NOT because he was ready. ‘
And at 21, you worry about how long this can go on before causing longterm damage.
Y’all weren’t saying he sucks last year in the playoffs.
I can’t wait til everyone here eats their words. Seriously a lot of the people making comments on here don’t know their butt from their face.
I would think Girardi is maybe trying a different catcher to see if he clicks with this one. The others didn’t work, so maybe Stewart would have.
This kid threw about 6 innings of perfect ball at Texas last year. A 4.50ish era at 20 years old in an AL East and a playoff spot was at stake. He should not be this bad. The cross up with Stuart just shows they aren’t on same page and he is flustered.
It sucks but he can’t be this bad.
And that pitch to Granderson? A righthanded pitcher should never ever throw a low inside strike to a lefty hitter.
Again I said earlier call up a catcher that actually knows Hughes and Kennedy.
What about bringing back Will Nieves as WAS is likely to cut him? I know he doesn’t compare to Molina as far as fielding/ hitting, etc, but he’s got to be at least better than the #2 guy they have now.
I think Phil is proving that, in the eyes of some, he’s just not good enough to be a setup man. So I guess he needs to stay in the rotation.
Igawa should get a chance.
This should be games where Phil experiments heavily with his slider and change and shows enough cajones to challenge big league headers like the Tigers have. Get on the mound, battle for another three innings, and save the bullpen. Show us some toughness Phil, everybody says you’ve got tons of it!
What the hell? You guys are fools, they already know what kind of kid they have in him. All young pitchers go through it just deal with it. It will pay off in the long run.
Where’s Santana when you need him?
Peter is right, this is NOT the Hughes we saw last year. This is not the same pitcher who pitched so well in the ALDS for us. Something is going on.
SUCK PHIL.
Why we could not get Johan Santana??
Hughes Suck.
CASH SUCK.
People need to relax.
He through a decent curveball that a good hitter hit, then he got rattled and crossed up with his catcher.
Don’t panic so much.
Wow, SJ44…I remember you mocking me a couple of weeks back saying that Hughes going back to AAA is pointless as he dominated there and will have nothing to gain. And now a new tune from you?
Hahaha. Nice.
It would be interesting to see how that inning would have gone if he and Stewart hadn’t been crossed up on that ball that should have been strike 3 to Sheff. That being said, Phil needs to pull it together. I still think he will eventually be very good, but it is definitely rough right now.
The worst sign of all is that I’m reading from you guys that Phil is completely melting down on the mound……I fear that maybe he’s been completely ruined. Man, I hope not. He’s such a good kid.
Was Ian laughing in the dugout while Phil was blowing up? I read that on another blog…….
Thats it. STOP BASHING PHIL, DAMNIT! YES HES DOING BAD, GIVE THE GUY A GOD DAMN BREAK. IT DOESNT HELP WHEN HES PITCHING TO A CATCHER WHO HE BARELY KNOWS. GIVE HIM A BREAK. HE DID GOOD LAST SEASON. HE WILL TURN IT AROUND. IM SICK AND TIRED OF PEOPLE BOOING AND BASHING ANYONE ON THE YANKEES. IF YOU DO THAT, WHICH IS MOST PEOPLE ON HERE, HERE IS WHAT I HAVE TO SAY TO YOU: GO BACK TO SHEA. NO REAL YANKEE FAN BOOS A YANKEE AND SAYS THAT HE SUCKS. NO ONE DOES THAT. NO ONE! BOOING SOMEONE AND SAYING HE SUCKS IS NOT SOMETHING A YANKEE FAN DOES. THAT SHOULD NEVER BE DONE. ENCOURAGE THE GUY, DONT DISCOURAGE. EXPECIALLY WHEN HES YOUNG. IF YOU WANNA BOO PEOPLE AND SAY THAT THEY SUCK, YOU DONT DESERVE TO BE A BASEBALL FAN, LET ALONE EVEN A MET FAN. IM SORRY, ITS JUST TOTALLY WRONG TO DO!
Sorry about my rant. It just had to be said, and I felt like it was the correct time to say it. Sorry to everyone and especially Pete.
I still don’t understand-why no Molina tonight?
Moving Phil to the bullpen is not the answer. But this can’t go on. It’s hurting the Yankees, and I think Phil has plenty of things to work on. He’s got his major league struggles, now let him work through them at an easier level.
Hughes should be sent down, let him rebuild his confidence.
That will be my last rant of the season, folks.
Rocco,
I’ll give you the 1 win. Now tell me these guys in the #4 and #5 spots in the rotation are pitching well. They aren’t.
In fact, they are pitching very poorly.
Everybody wants them to do well. But, if they are getting their brains beat in and can’t give them length and quality, how long do you keep them in the rotation?
Its not an illogical question at this point. Really, watch the performances. They are ugly.
You have to be in developmental mode with these guys. That said, you can’t have a team full of veterans and tell them these kids are going to stay in the rotation when it seems they may be overmatched right now.
That’s why I said its going to be a tough call for the Yankees. Its not the situation they envisioned when they broke spring training.
Yeah I would certainly worry about long term damage. I mean all things concidered he should still be in AAA, maybe he needs more seasoning. I still think he will be a great pitcher though and am still happy we didnt make that trade….and for those of you who say we need to get rid of him, forget that hes here to stay…Yankees arent that stupid to just throw away a young guy like this..it takes patience, when i was growing up the Yankees sucked…You just have to wait it out
Stewart blows bottom line. Moeller looked better when he was here and he never caught any of the Yankee pitchers before. They need to get him back.
Hughes is just not getting it done on this level. If he is honest with himself, he knows that. He needs a few starts down at Scranton to get his feet back on the ground. When I look around the American League, there are many young pitchers that are pitching better than Hughes with half the talent. Hughes can’t hold a candle to Buchholz right now.
Calm down everyone.
Back to work bats
S.A.
Apparently Molina needs a day off and 21 year old Melky needs one too.
one thing that i do not like about hughes’ routine is that he takes about 16 steps to take his next pitch. that’s a whole lot of walking around. even if things were going well that just seems like too much.
watch rogers. he throws the ball, and steps right back to the rubber. hughes is a third of the way to the plate sometimes to get the ball from the catcher. i realize pitchers have different routines, but hughes walking around seems like a whole lot of nervous energy
Boo Yankees and Rubin.
“Y’all weren’t saying he sucks last year in the playoffs.
I can’t wait til everyone here eats their words. Seriously a lot of the people making comments on here don’t know their butt from their face.”
Thank you!! Phil Hughes doesnt suck, for whatever reason he is just going through a rough spell. I’m not going to make up excuses fo rhim but it seems like every time I see him pitch its in bad/cold conditions. Not to mention the Tigers offense is one of the best in the league (if you look past they’re stats for the season) Dare I ask how many times the Yankees have roughed up a Scott Kazmir? Or a Felix Hernandez?? Do they suck?? I don’t think so. So dont throw Hughes on a bus to Scranton just yet. Its still April my friends.
Ian is laughing because he beat Phil on Call of Duty on Xbox Live this morning
“Phil is really a mystery at this point. He’s not the guy we saw last year for whatever reason.”
That’s an understatement. He has been at best a #5 pitcher. Kennedy is worse. Which means we can’t continue much longer with our starters pitching as poor as these two have been.
That doesn’t sound like the real SJ44 to me.
It would have been nice if Stewart had caught strike three to Sheffield. That would have negated the 2-run homer on the next pitch and it could have remained a 3-2 game.
It kills me because I love Phil – he’s such a good kid; I’m not watching the game now, just going by what I’m reading here It breaks my heart that Phil has basically suffered a complete meltdown on the mound ; that’s the worst thing of all for me. Not his drop in velocity or lack of command. The fact that this very mature kid with the composure of a veteran seems scared and unsure and so frustrated that he doesn’t know what to do is scary……He may need a complete overhaul in the minors – man, it kills me just to say this. I’m not upset at Phil – I’m sad for him.
I’m really surprised Girardi, as a former catcher, wouldn’t help out the kid by putting Molina in there as a calming influence.
And Phil doesn’t SUCK. Please.
I say that if he sucks this bad next time, they send him down and call up either Igawa or Rasner. He’s still only 21 so it’s not career suicide to send him back down to Scranton. If he’s not this bad next time, keep giving him one more try. If you put it on a one game basis, saying if you do well you’re in, but if you don’t do well, you’ve gotta go. If you give him some sort of motive to go out there and pitch well, he’ll do it. Eventually, he’ll ease in. But if in his next start he does this bad, you have to send him back down. This team can’t expect to go out and make the playoffs this year with this kind of Hughes and this kind of Kennedy going out every 5 days.
Is Stewart blind? Or does he have memory issues? That many crossups just isn’t normal
Hughes doesn’t suck but its getting to the point where we have to admit he’s not ready for the majors right now. He was rushed last year and he’s only 21, it would make sense to give him a month or two at Scranton. At this point, Rasner can’t be any worse.
And now other people come and agree with me about Phil. Gotta love what rants can do.
Phil sucks. Look at his results! You like numbers?
Holy crapola.
If you guys are like this now, when we’re one game over .500, what the heck was this place like last April?
Wait. Please don’t answer that. I’m not sure I want to know.
And yet, the Yankees are oddly getting spanked by a 90 year old pitcher with a bucket of pine tar in his back pocket.
Hopefully Cashman can find a diamond in the rough so we can send Kennedy down to the minors and put Hughes in the #5 spot, until Joba comes to the rotation.
We should look at our other options in the minors, 2/3 of the trio suck.
I think that we are all getting frustrated right now watching Hughes and Kennedy. The bar was set very high by the fans and the media (Three Amigos, etc.)Obviously Joba is so far ahead that they should not be mentioned in the same sentence anymore.
Right now I think the Yankees need to give Rasner a chance up here. He is lights out in AAA and has to be better that what Hughes and Kennedy are doing right now.
Becca – oddly it wasn’t bad this time last year. I don’t think many people had found the board at that time.
Rasner come, Igawa NOOOOO!!!!!
this game isn’t over for hughes. he gave up two homers to two very good hitters last inning. lets see what he does this next inning before writing him off for tonight.
And now other people come and agree with me about Phil. Gotta love what rants can do.
You are a dope.
D RAS!
I agree with Westerner that this was probably to see if they matched up since nobody else has been able to help Hughes get the job done.
I’d love to see him sent down for his own good as well as ours. We all know he was rushed up sooner than he should have been. No its not his fault. Since it isn’t working let him go and work his stuff out and let’s get someone up in his place. Maybe for a start or two at least.
About Santana. No, Santana is not looking better and Santana is not the automatic bromide anytime someone is struggling. Santana will do a nice job in the NL. Every time Melky drops one into the outfield, every time Melky throws someone out at the plate, every time Melky sends one out of the ballpark, I say a silent prayer of thanks that he don’t have Johan Santana.
Hughes is throwing the same two pitches like 95 percent of the time and for some reason Stewart is getting crossed up.
SMH
Santana hasn’t been lights out, and that’s in the easy league. His home-run troubles aren’t really a thing of the past, and he’s given up two tonight, and trails the Pirates.
Plus, you do realize that every deal with a chance of going through involved Melky, who leads the team in home runs? Where’d we be without him?
That’s not even going into the risk involved in Santana’s megadeal.
Look at D-RAS’ numbers down in AAA. Its time to send hughsey back down till he is ready.
Betsy your an idiot
C’mon Duncan – get us back in this please
Rubin, your all-caps rant hurt my eyes and I didn’t read it. But I’m just going to assume that I disagree with whatever you said. My apologies if I’m wrong. But April 29 might be a little too early to be ranting about anything with a winning record after the month they’ve had.
3 runs down in the third inning is not insurmountable.
Excuses!
its not the level of baseball. its his focus.
he goes into the game unable to handle the responsibility of being in the rotation and controlling this many games for a high pressure team. the second he makes a mistake in the game hes in a panic.
phil’s fastball is not good enough.
no speed , no location
FYI – Santana is down 2-0 to the Pirates…
IM GETTING SICK OF THIS.
Hughes will become a stronger pitcher for having gone through these rough patches..
Hes was near perfect in the minors. He’s taking his licks now, and he’ll come out stronger because of it.
Westerner: That’s very possible. Or maybe everyone was so numb and disbelieving in the start…
I am mildly amused by it.
“NO REAL YANKEE FAN BOOS A YANKEE AND SAYS THAT HE SUCKS.”
But he is sucking.
Patrick, am I the dope saying the our guys suck and practically booing them. Nope, if I’m not mistaken, that’d be you. Which I come to this conclusion…forget it, its not worth tryping again. Go back and read my little rant. No one should be getting booed, or discouraged.
Scoreless game in beantown. JDScrew out of the game. Injury I guess.
“He’s not the guy we saw last year for whatever reason.”
Perhaps Phil Hughes has been spending too much time on the compute playing with his webpage? This has to be it.
Result? The old man always beat the kid! The devil knows more from old age than from being the devil!
Santana would have commanded another big contract on the books for a pitcher that could theoretically break down in a few years. Personally I’m glad we have Melky and are taking our chances on 2 kids by hoping one or both of them develop.
One more failed outing and the confidence factor of Hughes has to be a concern.
At some point and soon, Rasner has to be considered for either Hughes or Kennedy.
Baptism by fire isn’t always the answer.
Look at D-RAS’ numbers down in AAA. Its time to send hughsey back down till he is ready.
Finally, some sense.
good lord
Nick in SF, im sorry, im not bashing the Yankees in anyway in my rant. Im bashing the people that are bashing the Yankees, and Phil.
Illgrimy,
Stop with the childish name-calling. Betsy is not an idiot, but I have to disagree with her characterization of Phil having a meltdown. He’s pitching to a great hitting team. If it were a real meltdown, JG would have pulled him by now.
Good way to work the count Duncan – !!
Come on ensberg.
Please.
That is two walks for Duncan…maybe he’s tamed his wild swinging bat.
Now Ensberg no tie, ensberg suck!
DMAN, something is wrong with the kid. Until it can be fixed, he should be sent to the minors… at least there he can relearn how to pitch, get his head fixed, and build up his confidence.
Do something positive here Morgan
For you people cheering that the Yankees are doing so well. How much longer will Wang have a perfect record? The top of the rotation can’t keep covering for the two AAA pitchers at the bottom. This will soon catch up with the Yankees if it doesn’t end soon.
what are the odds that ensberg can even this game up??
snort… sheesh – I knew I couldn’t say that without busting a gut.
Rubin, please return to sticking your head in the sand and ignoring reality. Save your Dr. Phil platitudes for another place.
Charming:
Phil’s fastball hit 94 tonight and has good late movement. Just because the results don’t make you happy doesn’t mean his stuff isn’t very, very good. It would be nice to have good catching and defense behind your 21 year old pitcher instead of Johnny Damon’s horrible play in center (where’s Melky?) and a catcher whose been crossed up 5 times & zero idea on how to go after Detroit’s lineup (where’s Molina). Phil needs Jose’s catching more than 39 year old Mussina.
“Patrick, am I the dope saying the our guys suck and practically booing them.”
Oh I didn’t read anything you said, you’re a dope because you think Joba should stay in the bullpen.
Sorry RUbin that was a bit harsh, I was half kidding.
Where did you see 94mph?
Rubin is funny. He trashes Shelly Duncan then says no yankee fan trashes a yankee in a “my caps lock key is broken” tirade.
Tell you what, I much prefer having Hughes in a Yankee uniform than Kenny Rogers right now.
it’s got nothing to do with santana. i’m still in support of cashman’s decision on that deal.
they probably overvalued hughes and kennedy. right now, it certainly looks that way. but this organization hadn’t had a prospect worth a (expletive) in some time, so it makes perfect sense that cashman and co treat every remotely decent prospect – and especially the high-ceiling ones – as untouchables. if you want to commit to building from within, you’re going to end up hanging on to some players who don’t pan out. it could very well be that hughes, kennedy, or both end up being players who don’t pan out.
fact is, right now, neither is helping this team. they’re winning games IN SPITE of these kids, not because of them.
if they’d like to hang around this season, one or both of these kids needs to get sent down. otherwise, they’re going to keep hovering around .500 for a few months.
at some point, trying to develop a pitcher at the major league level becomes counterproductive. it can’t be especially good for hughes and kennedy’s respective developments to keep getting their (expletive) handed to them every time out.
well… at least pine tar head is up to 68 pitches this inning…
Why is the crowd cheering? They should know by now the Yankees will just ground out or strike out with bases loaded..
This is why they call him the Gambler.
And because his name is Kenny Rogers, that too.
But also this. Come on Robby!!!!!!!!!!
So far, and I KNOW I am a Monday AM quarterback, that package of IPK and Phil for Santana looks like we would have made out PERTY good, huh ?…THIS Crapola is tough to watch…who ARE these kids this year anyhow ? ;-(
can cano do it again?!?!
Alright Robbie dear-can we see more good things from you
we might not win this game, MIGHT, but its good to see us work the pitch count for the first time in awhile
If old devil go relief pitcher better, worse for us!
Rob,
According to gameday, Hughes hit 94 with one fastball in the first inning. He mostly was at 90-92.
I would love Cano to make some fireworks here
WHERE DID YOU SEE 94?
Anyone else see Eiland as a target for Hank’s rage/firing? Was he the pitching coach in AA in ‘06 when Hughes was good?
Also anyone else in the Brooklyn area that has Time Warner having trouble with cable reception? I’m stuck with Gameday.
From Pride of the Yankees…”Let him walk you, Lou.”
This is what all you Santana haters get. Serves your right, I just wish you were rooting for a different team.
“Where did you see 94mph?”
MLB Gameday had Hughes 92-94 the first two innings
Strike 2 was total BS.
Memo to Jason: DO NOT GO ANYWHERE.
First inning, first pitch to Magglio Ordonez: 94 mph, and who cares?
Very nice AB by Robby, no matter where this ends up.
The only place Hughes saw 94 was on a thermometer in Spring Training.
Although I think Joba should stay in bullpen, I think we have no choice now. Hughes should be back to minors.
strike out.
Here we go, Robinson…
Westerner – I agree that this game is not over and the Yankees can come back. I, for one, am frustrated watching Hughes tonight. Maybe my expectations were too high. I think that he needs to work it out in AAA for a while.
would be a big let down if we dont score runs
Don Vito, your contribution to the conversation here is wretched. Typing chimps would offer greater analysis. I’m pretty sure you were one of the group last winter pleading to not trade either of these two mound-mounting Shane Spencers.
The good news is that the gambler is not long for this game no matter what happens this inning.
Canò no can do
/facepalm
Wow, if people really are so offended by my rant because they cant believe that a real Yankee fan doesnt boo or discourage someone who is struggling, then I dont know why the hell im still posting on here. It would be nice if someone would actually feel the same way about these stupid people booing and discuraging their guys. This is probably the same group of people that booed A-Rod when he was struggling, then cheered for him when he was doing great.
There are few things in this world I hate more than losing to Kenny Rogers.
Fleas, thank you for that comment, you made me laugh.
Yanks suck Ay caramba! I miss old Joe! Melky wood be playing!
It’d be nice to get some clutch hits. Is Hughes coming back in?
Ah they tease… Cue Pete’s stats on how bad the Yanks are with RISP.
Mr .162 craps out.
if we know one thing about this season’s yankees so far, it’s that we can expect mixed results from pettitte and mussina, awful results from hughes and kennedy, and a ton of men left on base.
at least they’re consistent.
What on God’s green earth was he smiling out?
I don’t know about any of you, but if I were to fly out with the bases loaded and 2 outs down by 3, I wouldn’t be laughing and smiling right after.
That was a good AB, however we needed those runs. I still think we can win this game if Philly Phailure settles down.
cig break.
that sucked.
But Chicken man is up to 75 pitches
This offense is just amazing. Three two-out walks and they can’t score.
Can someone please scream at Cano for smiling after he popped up with the bases loaded. Man that pisses me off. At least A-Rod had the decency to throw the bat at the ground.
I grounded into a DP on my softball game Sunday and was ready to start throwing the base pads like Lou Pinella.
Robby worked the count. No big deal that he didn’t get it done. He’s the reason we’re on the board at all.
About Hughes. To suggest that he be sent down to get more experience is hardly heretical or unsupportive.
It is going to be a Softball game final score tonight….how about 9-8 Yankees ? I’ll take that !
75 pitches through 3 innings…not good…
YES gun continues to be slow. Hughes is 92,93,94 with the fastball.
Who’s the rookie out there? Three 2-out walks?
Hold here, Phil. They’ll get to him at some point.
hughman, I didnt say that Duncan sucked, I said he is exactly like Adam Dunn
How many yankees have a BA of over .300 .. I mean they are the most fearsome offense in baseball right? Not!
ANother disgraceful season so far, and all of you hated on me because I saw it coming and you just didn’t want to admit it.
This team sucks and it will be another 5 – 10 years before this team is replaced.
This team has become all Names with penthouse appartments and millions of dollars .. they do not play with fire anymore, they play with “Park Avenue entitlement”
NO SYNERGY.
Hate on my all you want. I am correct and you are all wrong. Have fun with your optimism this season while Boston takes another one.
“Hughes doesn’t suck but its getting to the point where we have to admit he’s not ready for the majors right now.”
i think i’ll go with jim palmer’s assessment that hughes is the real thing. my eyes tell me he’s close. it like leiter said -he’s got to slow things down. the mixup with the catcher shouldn’t happen , but hughes has to take it in stride and keep doing his thing.
a 1-2-3 inning would show something right now.
Time for Hughes to give up a couple more runs (via walks)
“Ohlendorf has much better stuff. He’s just been overused and used in the wrong role.”
Its amazing how Ohlendorf and Ramirez all get opportunities to “BETTER” themselves or exuses are made to justify their outings BUT Britton, who has played 52, yes 52 plus innings ML–AGAINST the Yankees, Boston etc and held his own. He is steady, not UP and down, steady. I really don’t get it and hope for him he finds a team that will allow him to show he can and DOES belong ML..Apparaently New York is NOT his TOWN..
Please be good here Phil.
I’m pretty damn sure that was a sarcastic smile from Robby. And seeing as I do that all the time, I can’t blame him.
“The only place Hughes saw 94 was on a thermometer in Spring Training.”
Sunny.. go look at MLB Gameday’s readings, the most accurate there is right now and then you can recheck your thermometer
Nasty pitch by Phil…Come on, we’re pullin for ya.
Same old same old……..RISP runners in stranded position…………clutch these guys aint..
JK, you may pucker up now, Mary !
I think some of you guys take this way more seriously than the players themselves.
It’s April, not October.
Our season isn’t on the line if we lose tonight.
Rubin: first of all, I’m pretty sure our discussion here is not affecting the players in any way.
Secondly, for a lot of people here, I take it as the highest sign of passion that they’re so critical. To be as critical as some, including myself, are, you have to be deeply invested, and deeply care about the team, and it’s fortunes. Also, watching baseball with a critical eye is a completely valid, and popular way to enjoy the game. Discussions are not cheerleading sessions. We are not here to speak as one voice and will the ball over the wall. We are here for our love of the Yankees, and our love of discussing, dissecting, and disagreeing about them. If you can’t handle that, maybe the comments section isn’t, in fact, for you.
RISP – RISP – RISP – RISP ……. this is a broken record.
PHIL……….
WHERE IS YOUR GOD DAMN SPEED??
90s-low???????????????????????????????????????????????????
Hughes and IPK for Terry Mulholland, Scott Bankhead, and Josias Manzanillo and a box of fruit by the foot.
Another good curve. Phil’s hanging in there.
And just to clarify, fleas, I was laughing at you.
How many more runs for Tigers? Por Favor, No Mas!
Nick: your welcome.
SJ44: hit us with more of your baseball knowledge please.. how it is just the start of the season, their record is not that bad, they’ll come out of it, this is a great team, etc.. all that other crap you spew..
In fact SJ44, I think I am going to start calling you “Hillary”
Wow, still a scoreless game in craptown.
GO JAYS!
JK meet fleas, fleas meet JK….now both of you go do what you do best … K ?????
Sorry Rubin, you’ll need to find some sycophantic support elsewhere. Perhaps you’d feel more at home on a “Oprah” blog…
Rogers is going to the tip of his cap quite a bit…pine tar anyone?
Phil is pouring in nasty curve after nasty curve. If he can hang in there and give them six that would really show me something.
3-3 in the Rangers/Pens game
YES’s gun is slow. Gameday’s got his velocity where it normally is.
Velocity still has nothing to do with it. It’s about location, and Phil doesn’t have it more often than not.
Nick: That’s why you choose to live in SF. Don’t worry I won’t judge you.. Enjoy the Castro part of town, probably where you apt is.
Wow Damon would have never had that.
If you are concerned about the offense, go vote for the all star team. There is something going on in the American league because all offensive numbers seems depressed. Then again, it is April, and this team is still better than the team from last April.
Thats two missed plays in the outfield that would have been different if it were Melky and Damon in CF and LF
I’m hearing rumors that they’re sending down Hughes and IPK at once, bringing back Willie Banks and Melido Perez; Homer Bush to play 2B and Andy Fox to play 1st. Anyone else heard this?
Damnit Phil, can’t you just get through one inning?
Gotta love Fleas. Your boy is losing to the Pirates tonight. I wouldn’t be so happy.
They aren’t paying him 23 million a year to lose to the Pirates.
The Hughes situation is tough.
He doesn’t suck. Anybody who says that just doesn’t know baseball. Its nice to be emotional little children but, that doesn’t replace baseball knowledge.
If he “sucks”, then every single talent evaluator, GM and scout in the game is wrong about him.
Now, think for a minute. What are the odds of that? I’d say, next to zero.
He’s struggling big time and he’s not the only 21 year old who has ever stuggled at the ML level.
The issue is, how to get him back on track. Keep him in the rotation or send him to AAA?
I have no idea what the answer is. Its a tough call for the Yankees. They can’t keep 2 guys in the rotation who can’t go deeper in games. That can’t last much longer.
They either have to improve or they have to go to Plan B.
Not to harp on Girardi, but if Melky’s playing center, JD makes that play in left.
c’mon Phil
You should obsess less about Phil’s velocity and more about his location and movement. All the velocity in the world doesn’t make you successful…just ask Armando Benitez.
Is Clemens available?
Hey Gang imagine if we could trade Hughes for Santana. Wow. That would be like a dream “THAT COULD’VE COME TRUE”.
Granderson is Grand! Trade for Granderson! Give Hughes and Ian and Igawa and ………..
Ahhhhh 6-2
Get Chris Stewart out of here. This is absurd.
Nope, nope, nope, you keep these kids in the majors they are ready now. Sending them down will only cause them, and the clubs pitiching, more damage.
Frankly, I am satisfied with their progress. I remember Steve Carlton, Nolan Ryan, and others getting rocked early. I also remember wonderkids David Clyde, Wayne Simpson, and Mark Fydrich coming out with all sorts of success, and then floppo. I bet almost no one on this blog remembers Simpson or Clyde. The Atlanta Braves went through a lot of criticism for hanging in their with Steve Avery, Tom Glavine, and John Smoltz, but it looks like they turned out alright.
My worry is Hank! He reminds me too much of his overbearing, bombastic, impatient father. He’s arrogant enough to force Cashman to do something.
Fleas, it’s hard to keep track of people on here, but you’re the guy who told the funny story about meeting Joba at Grand Central Station and wowing him with your baseball knowledge and ace personality and becoming hangout buds, right?
This question is only for those that don’t dwell under things,…. Did the Yankees’ fans at least boo the living HALE out of Chef Selfish the jerk master cry baby after he hit that one out ?
I’m really missing Melky today
PLEASE no more 2-out runs!! ugh!
“UPDATE, 7:48 p.m.: Hey, it’s Robinson Cano. … Meanwhile, they tie it up and Hughes gives up a bomb to Granderson. Phil is really a mystery at this point. He’s not the guy we saw last year for whatever reason.”
It’s not a mystery to me.
His defense sucks.
It’s cold.
He continues to get caught by catchers who have never seen him pitch.
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that his no-hit bid last year was in the heat of Texas.
If you want to give these kids a shot, and the Yankees do, you put your best defense behind them. That’s Damon in left, Melky in center. How many hits to runs off Hughes tonight are based on shoddy defense?
Nick….No, fleas is the troll that propositioned Joba in a dark alley and got the snot kicked out of him…
what a devastating 90mph fastball
A lot of fault for this game lies at Girardi’s feet. Usually the manager plays very little role in results of games but his choice of Damon in CF/Matsui in LF and Stewart behind the plate were AWFUL. Big mistakes that have cost the Yankees runs.
And hey look, Ohlendorf back up in the bullpen.
I am not impressed by Girardi, he’s been a disaster thus far.
It’s the 1-2-3 hitters…so irritating
now they making up a storyline about Hughes mentality
nice way to cheer up the fans
Ok kids, is it possible to give earned runs to the manager? Because Im sure if Girardi wasnt so f’n stupid, and did something smart for once, meaning, having Melky in CF and Damon in LF, that run would have been avoided. Yay for Girardi. If anyone needs to be sent down to AAA its him. He cant manage for doodoo. There I bashed Girardi, but i didnt boo him or say he sucks. You guys should try it some times.
Hughes is the most pathetic phenom since Drew Hansen.
You know Hughes is as good as a prospect as Joba and it’s gonna take some time for Hughes to pitch good.If Joba is in the rotation now you got 4 pitchers who might not pass 5 innings a game.
And no bullpen.
“Is Clemens available?
Hey Gang imagine if we could trade Hughes for Santana. Wow. That would be like a dream “THAT COULD’VE COME TRUEâ€.”
Hey, Fleas, your boy Santana has thrown 88 pitches through 5 innings, giving up a couple homeruns to the PIRATES.
How well do you think he’d do against the TIGERS?
Nick: No idea what you are talking about.
However sounds almost like it could be me. In fact,
http://yankees.lhblogs.com/files/2007/09/mypicture.jpg
that is me. Yes sure as sure.
I might have to switch to American Idol. I bet Jeter is thinking the same exact thing right now.
Fleas,
You are a moron. You really are.
You are a childish reactionary who only shows up when things go bad.
Where were you the last two days? No where to be found.
Only a childish reactionary like you would trash a 21 year old and believe the nonsense you spew.
Its April 29 and they are ONE game out of first place.
In your world, that makes them the “Bad News Bears”.
To people with functioning brain cells, given everything that has happened so far this year, folks would say that’s pretty good.
Continue to be a mindless reactionary. You are comic relief and nothing more.
You certainly aren’t a Yankee fan, that’s for sure.
“You know Hughes is as good as a prospect as Joba and it’s gonna take some time for Hughes to pitch good.”
STRONGLY DISAGREE
If I’m a guess hitter, I’m lovin hitting against Hughes. Fastball or Curve. 50/50 chance I’m getting exactly what I’m lookin for and smokin it. AAA and working on that 3rd or 4th pitch should be happening NOW
How about we trade Phil, IPK and Hawkins for a #3 level starter and a bag of donuts ? ( 99% joke there )
I thought Hughes was a fireballer, but his fastball has been pedestrian.
its time to give darrell rasner aka razzle dazzle a chance to pitch in the big leagues again. he deserves the chance.
SJ44, the problem is that the Yankees apparently tinkered with Phil big time and he is no longer the same pitcher who was so highly thought of. IF you read or listen to the scouts/experts now, they do not feel the same way about Phil that they used to. At this point, he may be projected to be a #3 and that’s not good enough; Phil was supposed to be an ace. I don’t know what the Yankees did, but they messed him up royally. They had no business changing his mechanics when they were fine to begin with. I always thought he was supposed to have such great command; that, along with his very good stuff and makeup, made him a potential ace. Where did his command go? Where did his stuff go? Mentally, he’s out of whack. If Phil is as mentally tough as everyone says he is and as he appears to be, he’ll handle a demotion like a professional. It happens – he hasn’t earned the right to stay up here.
he gets booed by 5 people and Kay makes a big deal of it….Give it a rest Michael
Fleas, I’m suprised at your subtlety.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with San Francisco, the “Castro part of town” that fleas referenced is the biggest gay neighborhood in the city.
So fleas doesn’t limit his idiotic comments to the subject of baseball.
Pitching change already?
“Hate on my all you want. I am correct and you are all wrong. Have fun with your optimism this season while Boston takes another one.”
Lol — no wonder, Fleas = Red Sox fan. Go away, loser.
I would boo the hell out of Phil Hughes if was at this game. He deserves every bit of it. If you’re not going to hit your spots with your mediocre-speed fastball then please go back to the minors. It is really frustrating for a Yankee fan to watch Lester out-pitch “The Franchise”
Rasner and Igawa is not much better. Igawa has proven he can’t pitch in the majors and Rasner was released by the Nationals. Those are not better options in the long run.
Bunch of losers at the stadium booing a 21 year old trying his best…they should be ashamed. Fans should cheer for guys who are trying their hardest to perform.
Meanwhile, if you wanna boo a jerk like Carlos Delgado, I think it’s perfectly OK.
Oh so Santana has to be perfect every game now to be a Yankee.. right.. whatever. Hmm, I don’t ever remember seeing Wang have an off game or two.. but he is an Ace as you know.
I wonder what people will do when Joba is in the rotation and he is pitching like Phil?
ER, your a retard and it was Drew Henson. Learn some baseball.
I don’t care if Matsui used to be a OF. He’s a DH now. He should only put on gloves when everyone else is injured.
“I am not impressed by Girardi, he’s been a disaster thus far.”
Aren’t they 14-13 after a ridiculously long road trip? That’s with losing Jeter, Rodriguez, Posada, Molina, and Joba all for a time? And with kids developing in the rotation?
And another 3inning game 4 hughes, way to go phil.
YEp back to the bullpen.Yeah we don’t need Joba there.I knew we were gonna be looking for a pitcher by JUne.
Lets see there’s BLanton,Harden,I heard Kevin Millwood on Fox Sports might be trade bait.
Ross Odlendorff has a 6 Era great.
hughes got two quick outs and had granderson 0-2 or 1-2. that’s when he has to close the deal. for some reason , he letting it get away from him.
he was one pitch from being out of that inning.
Nick
I believe you are mistaking fleas with flak. Easy mistake though.
It is 53 degrees at the stadium people…as in not that warm…Phil’s velocity was fine this evening.
get this STEWART character out of the game!
Now Ohlendorf having problems with this guy? %*^( the heck??
Agreed, Girardi is not helping the kid by putting two of our worst defenders in the field behind him. Matsui runs like he has suction cups on his feet and Damon throws like a girl.
I would have left Hughes in, he is going to have to learn to get out of jams sooner or later. Let him learn.
Meanwhile, he brings in Ohlendorf who needs rest himself.
SJ44: Hillary stop all that nonsense. Just maybe.. just maybe some of us aren’t blind and pretend we are something they are not.
I have not decided yet if I should call you Hillary or Mitt.
SJ44’s Prognostication Skills
- “Wang will never be an ace.” – SJ44, October 2007
- “Wang is clearly the ace.” – SJ44, April 2008
- “Today we slaughtered them in the airport. They are out of Saddam International Airport. The force that was in the airport, this force was destroyed.” – SJ44, May 2003
- “We’re giving them a real lesson today. Heavy doesn’t accurately describe the level of casualties we have inflicted.” – SJ44, May 2003
- “I will bet you my mortgage, my family and my dignity that Hillary Clinton will be the Democrat nominee for president in 2008.” – SJ44, October 2007
- “The LZ 129 Hindenburg is the most stable and safe flying machine ever crafted.” – SJ44, May 1937
Kenny Rogers is going to be Prime for the Pickin’ in the bottom of this inning….Yankees have many bullets left in the gun, ALL !
Classless fans booing a 21 y/o pitcher. Losers!
No… he got booed by 15,000 people, it is a big deal for a 21 year old.
“Oh so Santana has to be perfect every game now to be a Yankee.. right.. whatever. Hmm, I don’t ever remember seeing Wang have an off game or two.. but he is an Ace as you know.”
Santana has allowed 7 HRs so far this year.
That’s not good.
“emotional children”
shut up old man.
Hughes head is not in there… I remember on his 2nd to last start he’s also having problems with signs…. probably he should concentrate on learning the signs and improving his pitches rather than his BLOG….
Hughes put down to 3A.
Maybe hughes should stop wasting his off days blogging, and figure out how to pitch again?
Rubin it’s not Girardi who’s stinking up the joint, it’s Hughes. Get over your need to convince everyone that they need to get in a kumbaya circle around Hughes. Start accepting that his pitching has been pretty bad. Don’t look for others to scapegoat on the Yankees to take the heat off Hughes.
Hughes is not ready for primetime. Period. My eyes don’t deceive me. It doesn’t mean he won’t be. It means he isn’t right now. What better than to let him get the practice he needs at AAA? I’m all for it.
Pat: it’s hard to keep the lunatic fringe straight. There was a ‘frits’ involved in that too, wasn’t there?
JK’s ability to be the King of all Horse’s Butts ….UNMATCHED !
I keep hearing “with everything that happened so far” and I just think, maybe, just maybe this team isn’t that good. Maybe we will be a .500 team all year long, and it’s not just because of a couple of injuries. Maybe our hitters won’t hit at all this year, maybe our pitching will be bad and probably our fielding will continue to blow. You are what your record says you are. And right now, that means ‘Not that good’
Could be worse. Could be Zito.
I’m not too worried. I know that Phil can get out big league hitters. He’s already proved that.
It’ll come around.
Yankees will win this game.
“hughes got two quick outs and had granderson 0-2 or 1-2. that’s when he has to close the deal. for some reason , he letting it get away from him.
he was one pitch from being out of that inning.”
He got a flyout with a remotely decent left fielder behind him.
I just love our “patient” fanbase
Somebody call the Mets and ask to trade Hughes and two pitching prospects for Santana and his salary and see what they say. I see a lot of laughing.
This was a bad game by Hughes, no doubt about that. But Stewart and Girardi share some of the blame. You have a 21 year old kid who has been struggling. The last thing he needs to be doing is worrying about his catcher too. That’s got to be distracting. Would have made sense to start Molina tonight, and let Stewart go with Pettitte tomorrow.
I’m really hoping Moeller clears waivers.
- “The LZ 129 Hindenburg is the most stable and safe flying machine ever crafted.†– SJ44, May 1937
hahahaha. genius.
you are right KBY send down hughes before he hurts his confidence and the team…… let’s go “K” IGAWA!!!!!!
Moboy, your obsession with Joba in the pen is getting downright aggravating. READ MY KEYSTROKES. JOBA IS STARTING BY 1 AUGUST!!!!!! get it? got it? good.
JK, hilarious.
Something is wrong with Phillip Hughes. I saw him at Trenton in 2006 and he looked nothing like what we saw tonight. If it’s like Betsy says and they tinkered with his mechanics they should be ashamed of themselves because they turned him into a pretty mediocre guy.
I’m not a reactionary. I love(d) Phillip Hughes, but this guy that is here now is not the same guy. 87-92 mph fastball with decent command isn’t what he was and somebody needs to get him back to AAA and give him his old mechanics back.
That wasnt a mediocre outing, that was just plain bad.
“carlo
April 29th, 2008 at 8:46 pm
Hughes head is not in there… I remember on his 2nd to last start he’s also having problems with signs…. probably he should concentrate on learning the signs and improving his pitches rather than his BLOG….
BBall 777
April 29th, 2008 at 8:47 pm
Maybe hughes should stop wasting his off days blogging, and figure out how to pitch again?”
Do you really have to change your name to make basically the same post over again?
He hasn’t been blogging lately.
I wonder if Giambi and Phil can swap positions.
Anyone want my Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy autograph ball.
How about my Joba phone?
I am going to ebay these items before they become worthless.
let the bidding commence.
Oh I also have a used pill container with a certain #25’s name on it.. where did I get it? Uhm, on the floor by the trash in the clubhouse.
I’ll probably be subpoenaed next.
Stewart could have at least picked up his bat lol
Seriously though…. why is girardi playing this joke STEWART.
So … the 3 walks and 2 home runs … were those Damon’s fault? Or Matsui’s?
Oh, must have been Stewart’s. I guess he was setting up a foot off the plate.
“I just love our “patient†fanbase”
The Yankees fan base, other than the Red Sox, has the most idiotic, short-memory, bandwagon fans of any team I’ve ever followed.
The only great thing so far is the Tigers,TWins,REd Sox and even the Mets have many pitching problems.Thats why the Yankees aren’t that bad.I mean do you actually think the RAys and Orioles will stay on top the A.L. East.
Girardi’s best move this season……..Separating Hughes & Kennedy in the rotation to save the pen from overuse…
Quotes that I never made. Nice. Nice to see the trolls out in full force tonight.
Fleas, go back to putting your head under the covers and cry yourself to sleep for another night.
You are a moron and nothing more.
Your comments about Nick seal your fate.
You are first team All-Moron. Congratulations.
Uh, Clay, there’s no denying that when Joba enters the rotation he’s going to give up runs, lose games, etc, but it’s almost impossible for him to be as bad as Hughes just because of the stuff he has. What’s going to happen? His fastball is going to all of a sudden become 91mph? He’s going to lose is control when he never has before? His slider isn’t going to work anymore? It’s pretty dumb to say he can pitch like Hughes when they are a completely different style of pitchers.
Reminder: Once the Yanks lose this game, they would be only one game ahead of the Tigers in the loss column.
Melky should have been in CF tonight that would have saved two runs.
“So … the 3 walks and 2 home runs … were those Damon’s fault? Or Matsui’s?
Oh, must have been Stewart’s. I guess he was setting up a foot off the plate.”
How many of those at bats never occurred if the plays were made behind him in the first place?
A bad play extends an inning. Mussina didn’t have to give up that extra single that gave up a run yesterday, but Giambi making his play keeps that single from occurring.
Nick
I’m not sure if frits was part of the flak showdown.
One April does not a career make. Chill out dudes, it will be ok.
V-Agreed
Girardi is doing a good job so far… I like the way he’s handling tha bullpen… he is really using everybody unlike Joe T. … if you fail just one time you’ll be in the dog house…
Bad as Hughes was tonight, the offense needs to pick it up–four runs is not just not insurmountable; you can get four runs on one swing.
This game is certainly not over yet.
HOW MANY GAMES SHOULD WE WAIT?
CASH SUCK
YANKS HAVE NO TIME TO WAIT
THAT’S WHY WE HAVE RE-SIGNED A-ROD & POSADA & MO
PHIL JUST SUCKS IN THIS GAME
Honestly, listening to you morons, someone would think the Yankees are 5-22.
all these crossed up signals? i say we just put girardi behind the plate to catch these guys.
Pat:
I dont think it was flak. I think it was “Fritz vs. Flam” not Flak.
Phil Hughes was traded and Joba will be a setup/closer!
I think Hughes will be fine once the weather warms up.
When you got two pitchers you can pencil in for a W on most nights (Wang and Pettitte) and two pitchers you can pencil in for an L on most nights (Hughes and Kennedy) and one pitcher who can go either way (Moose) you’re going to be playing around .500 ball – and so far we are.
But it’s a long season and there’s always a chance you find an Aaron Small and squeeze 10 wins out of a guy when you need to.
V –
not so fast… there may be some jumpy fans… but i would be wary of the trolls posting as Yankee fans… its something they like to do to smear the good fans…
David when Joba is in the rotation he’s going to have to mix up his pitches too. He can’t be in love with that slider too much. There is a slight possibility that he might abandon his curve and change. Hughes seems to be too in love with that curve that he doesn’t throw the change and slider enough.
Ironic that V would call ANYONE a Moron !
SJ44, Baghdad Bob, what do you think about rumors of sending IPK and Hughes to the nation of Germany in exchange for Dave Pavlas and some link sausage?
Not that it matters but I think Cashman should just admit that Kennedy and Hughes were EXTREMELY rushed. Kennedy is not ready, and Hughes might be mentally ready but his stuff is definitely not. His fastball is below average at this point to the batters. His curveball is very good but as soon as he throws his fastball it is either not a strike or right down the middle and it gets tattooed. Yanks only have Rasner in the minors to take over for them but Kennedy and Hughes absolutely need more time in the minors. It looks like Hughes is starting to lose whatever confidence he had left.
The time might come soon enough where Joba goes to the minors and gets ready for the rotation. If the Yanks dont have anyone to pitch sometimes 3, 4 and 5 then they aren’t going anywhere this year anyway. They might as well not waste anymore of Joba’s development by being in the bullpen.
Seriously, does anybody have an idea as to why Phil’s command is off? His fastball is terrible compared to who he used to be? He is giving up homers and walks at a clip he’s never been anywhere near? I understand he is young. I understand young guys are going to have their bad nights. But this isn’t one bad night we’re talking about here, it’s a few good innings.
I hate to get flamed because my opinion is contrary to popular belief but i’ll be damned if you can say he has had more than 5 good innings all year. I suppose I just want to know what happened to a guy billed as a top end #1 with a blistering fastball and great command.
weak effort against rogers tonight.
fleas, fritz, flam, flak
I need a scorecard.
“How many of those at bats never occurred if the plays were made behind him in the first place?”
Have you ever heard of a pitcher picking up his defense? Making quality pitches to get out of a jam? A good pitcher can do those things.
If Hughes is going to be a pitcher who needs
a) a game time temperature between 75 and 95 degrees
b) flawless defense
c) the same catcher every time he pitches
in order to be good, then he’s really not going to be that good.
These are the same trolls don’t won’t be here when Hughes finally figures it out.
ohlendorf’s arm will receive the same fate as proctor’s.
I’ve heard people talk about the YES radar gun lately. I think it was slow in the Chicago series (where it seemed no one was over 90 mph), but I think it’s accurate right now. It’s got Kenny Rogers at 87 mph which is about right. He doesn’t throw any harder than that. That means Hughes is really throwing 89-91 mph regardless of what Gamecast says. That is not enough stuff for a kid who has one other pitch and lacks pinpoint control. Maybe he was just overhyped, but he doesn’t really have “plus” stuff at all.
Dr. Cox
I think you’re right. It could have been flam
I get yelled at whenever I suggest this, which seems to be about every 5 days, but why not switch Joba for Phil? It will allow Phil to build up confidence in 1 inning stints. Plus he will only have to see the opposition once a game. Also he can focus on a few pitches. I realize this can’t happen overnight, but at this point, the way I see it, Phil is the weak link inthe rotation, not IPK.
“Ironic that V would call ANYONE a Moron !”
Case in point. Vito, are you out of junior high school yet?
JK
You need to get a life if you have nothing better to do than fabricate made up quotes from SJ44 and attack him.
I don’t always agree with SJ44 but it is obvious that he has a wealth of baseball knowledge. He provides facts and observations to back up his points.
Even though I am not a Yankee fan it is because of people like SJ44 and CB that I visit this blog (I know to the chagrin of some) because I respect and appreciate their opinions and perspectives.
Yeah Rob, something is up here. No one just loses command out of the blue, and loses his pitches. Either Phil has something wrong in his arm/shoulder, or some idiot decided to mess with his mechanics. That idiot maybe Marty Miller dressed up as someone else.
Hey guys.. Over hyped after 5 starts at the age of 21. Why did Roger Clemens and Johan Santana even bother?
As bad as it seems, the Yankees should be at least tied in this game. They have let the Tigers off the hook twice. A pitcher walks the bases loaded and they don’t score. They get two 2-out singles and a nice heads up running play, taking advantage a bad outfield play and then they don’t put it away.
I don’t think Phil had a “meltdown.” It’s interesting. The word appears here and it becomes truth somehow. Some bad plays behind him, a really weird catching situation and a couple of bad pitches.
Not a good night for Phil Hughes. I don’t think he’s a lost cause, though.
Hughes is single-handedly murdering my fantasy team
I’m not making excuses for Hughes, because he didn’t look anything close to “awesome,” but I agree with Peter on putting their new callup catcher out there tonight, with Matsui and Damon in L and C respectively. This is the bad defense lineup. Doesn’t it make much more sense to support the youngster a little more with Melky in center, and damon in left? Granderson’s 3rd hit was a classic Matsui misplay. That gets him out of the inning.
I just do not understand what Girardi is doing with the lineup and defensive positioning. It makes no sense.
My rally cap is on.
Let’s go Yankees! Come on!
Phil Hughes inst good because he only throws two pitches. You cant be a good starter at this leavel with only 2 pitches. Yea he throws a slider and a change but they are really bad.
Jeff NJ,
I support you but I would rather send Phill to AAA than to put him in the pen. He has good stuff but for whatever reason is off track right now. It must be menchanics at this point.
I was all for sending Phil to AAA 2 starts ago but certain posters were all bent out of shape about it.
Jax, that’s definitely true and that’s what is going to make Joba such a great starter. But my point is when Joba goes out there and is having trouble with those other pitches, he’s almost always going to have an over-powering 95mph fastball to go to along with that devestating slider. When Phil’s other pitches aren’t working you see his fastball get slapped around and he relies on getting that huge curve over the plate which this season seems to be happening rarely. When Hughes is pitching it’s pretty much all about location and speeds, that’s why it’s silly to compare what’s happening to Hughes now to what could happen to Joba. Bad games maybe, but Joba’s never going to go out there and look pretty much over-matched like Phil did tonight. And I’m not trying to knock Hughes, I think they should still give him more chances.
Everyone else has been knocking Rogers around. Leave it to the Yankees to make a washed up pitcher look good.
Rasner is 3-0 with a 0.72 era. It sure sounds like a good bet that Phil Hughes heads to SWB to work out the kinks, get his confidence back and makes an appearance later this summer or sooner. Is Rasner the answer? Well he might not be great, but he might be good enough to keep them in games and give them some innings. Hughes has too much talent to give up on, is only 21 YO and has a heck of a future.
Jeff NJ,
IMO, Hughes would be better suited to the pen then Joba right now because he doesn’t have quite the quality pitches yet. It’s something I’d explore.
Hughes is 21, and not a vgrizzled veteran. Right now he needs all the help he can get. Matsui and Damon’s defense certainly didn’t help tonight, but I’ll forgive Girardi on that since he didn’t start Giambi at first.
However, have a struggling kid pitch to a new catcher who has never caught a game for the Yankees before is asking for trouble.
Most of the blame tonight goes to Hughes, but he sure didn’t get picked up by his catcher or defense.
Hughes has not shown himself to be a good pitcher. Period. He is taxing the bullpen every outing. Period. I am hardly panicking. I am making a statement of fact. I believe the Yankees will find a way to win. I don’t see Hughes being a big part of it right now. I hope Girardi ships him to AAA in short order. I don’t think it is going to happen.
Again. I am not panicking. I am not giving up on the Yankees. I am not complaining. I think anyone who knows me knows my style is just the opposite.
But I would be a damned fool to say anything BUT that Hughes hurts the team every 5th game. I believe he has the goods to make it in the majors. Lots of guys down below do. But they are not all ready to be in the majors. That’s why they play down below. My opinion is that is exactly where Hughes needs to be.
Phil Hughes was DOMINANT as recent as this year, his first game out. I don’t know what happened after that game that he’s had so much trouble since, but he dominated a good Toronto team and was very strong at the end of last year. He is and will be a very good major league pitcher. He’s 21, they’ll figure out what’s going wrong and get him back on track.
by the way, 1 game out of first in April, I think we might be able to overcome that massive deficit sometime in the next 134 games. It’s the 5th inning against Kenny Rogers on April 29th and people are whining as much as they did this time last year when our record was MUCH worse.
“These are the same trolls don’t won’t be here when Hughes finally figures it out.”
I can’t wait.
http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1988/Ksmolj0010011988.htm
If all baseball fans are like the bulk of the fans on here, then Twins fans must be booing Liriano, and Indian fans are without a doubt booing Sabathia, and Rockie fans are definitley letting the “boo-birds” loose on Manny Corpas. Im sure these guys arent being booed. There sruggling, and so is Phil. He should not be getting booed, im sorry, he just shouldnt.
bad pitching or not, this offense stinks… this is Kenny Rogers for crying out loud.
http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1995/Kpetta0010011995.htm
That’s my point Rubin. I’m here every night so let’s not just dismiss me out of hand as a troll please. He was a control pitcher. Could work inside and outside on the plate. Threw 91-96 in a game, and got the curveball over consistently for strikes. He had the slider shelved and was working on a change.
Watching him tonight I saw 87-92 and had Al Leiter pretty much calling the kid a dud. (I know Al is a moron but still) I’ve watched every game this year and Phil has been unimpressive, which is really disappointing to me because I anticipated getting some great outings mixed in with the crap ones. I just don’t know what happened to a guy who was THAT good in the minors to come up and really show not much if anything at the majors.
I mean in his defense his worst games are against two of the best hitting teams in baseball (sox, Tigs) but it’s his stuff that isn’t looking that great, aside from his results.
while i love Hughes, it’s time for him to get to where he needs to be to be a member of our rotation through going back to Scranton. the fact the he goes from downright scary to…..downright scary within the same inning shows he’s simply making too many mistakes as a young pitcher.
i believe in him. i 1000% believe we did the right thing in keeping him. it’s simply not easy to go out there as a 21 year-old and dominate. we need to get Rasner up here, who will give us more than the lowest per-inning average of any MLB starting pitcher. hopefully, we’ll see what Hughes is truly capable of later this year, or in 2009.
“Hughes has not shown himself to be a good pitcher.”
Were any of you making comments like that ever Yankee fans prior to this year? He has shown himself to be a very good major league pitcher. He’s also shown himself to be a 21-year old pitcher off to a very rough start.
Kay Just said that one was grounded to Ensberg..Are they Drinking in the booth tonight?????
“Some bad plays behind him, a really weird catching situation and a couple of bad pitches.”
… results in 6 runs?
Isn’t it better to just say he sucked tonight? If you thought he was good tonight and that anytime a few errors are committed behind him or he’s pitching to an unfamiliar catcher he’s going to get tattooed, then you can’t think he’s ever going to be the phenom he’s been billed as.
Ensberg junk!
Rob, youre right, somethings up here. Thats why i put out that Marty Miller joke. He may have struck again with his pure idiocracy.
While everyone is complaining about Hughes. How about this crappy offense that continues to be bad?
Never again should the franchise tag and overhype be applied on a young Yankee but the NYC media being what it is, will always find a way.
Even a street smart kid from Bed-Stuy or Bushwick can get damaged.
Why did Phil not win that first game?
Hey Pete, after the game, can you ask why Melky wasnt in the lineup and why he started Stewart over Molina to catch Hughes?
Chris NY
April 29th, 2008 at 9:06 pm
“Hughes has not shown himself to be a good pitcher.â€
Were any of you making comments like that ever Yankee fans prior to this year? He has shown himself to be a very good major league pitcher. He’s also shown himself to be a 21-year old pitcher off to a very rough start.
Did you ever see him pitch before he pitched against Toronto at the stadium last year? If you didn’t you have no idea what you’re missing. There is being optimistic and there is lying to yourself. He has not been good this year. First start was okay, and since has been bad. Ad hominem attacks don’t address the meat of the argument.
” I don’t think the Yankees did Hughes any favor by having him pitch to a catcher he met for the first time 24 hours earlier. ”
.
Pete, I totally agree with you on that.
‘“Some bad plays behind him, a really weird catching situation and a couple of bad pitches.â€
… results in 6 runs?
Isn’t it better to just say he sucked tonight? If you thought he was good tonight and that anytime a few errors are committed behind him or he’s pitching to an unfamiliar catcher he’s going to get tattooed, then you can’t think he’s ever going to be the phenom he’s been billed as.”
:snort: Go away.
“How about this crappy offense that continues to be bad?”
I agree, they had several opportunities to bail Phil out and came up short, again…
This lineup is sleep walking threw yet another game…It is actually getting hard to believe….and watch them. It is like they are completely lost no matter who is on the mound they are just the easiest outs.
I don’t know what is up with both the Yankees and Red Sox right now. It seems like neither one of them can get their offense going.
Lester has pitched eight innings against the Jays and has allowed only one hit, but Halladay has only allowed two hits.
Confused.
To answer your first question, yes.
And to the rest of your post, don’t put words in my mouth or tell me what I can or can’t think or assume what I am or am not thinking.
I think Phil Hughes will still be a good pitcher; I think he’s had a bad night all around, some of it due to his shortcomings, some not.
How is it “whining”? Are you telling me as a Yankee fan you are satisfied with the results so far? This lineup should not be squeaking out runs. How many weak ground balls have we seen, bases loaded left full, RISP left on base. Getting bested by sub-par pitchers.
Come on, it’s not whining. This team is not living up to it’s potential. This team as is will not make it out of the first round of the PS if they even make it there. I am a Yankee fan & I am not satisfied.
we have 2 runs against kenny rogers. i dont care if hughes did not pitch well. We all know pitching is not our strong point. WAKE UP BATS!!! 2 runs against kenny rogers is totally unacceptable. Hopefully we hold them to 6 runs and our bats can smack there terrible bullpen
“:snort: Go away.”
No.
Nice to see the blog cheerleaders continuing to contribute to that warm friendly atmosphere that us trolls and morons keep trying to disrupt.
Ross looks great. Leiter is right. He’s got great movement on that fastball, and he’s hammering the inside of the plate.
Ohlendorf is good for a hobbit.
I think Joe G. wants Molina to catch Andy and then Kennedy the night after and because Molina couldn’t catch all three games, Stewart caught tonight.
BUT, Melky can play CF until he collapses, he is in great shape, please no more Matsui in LF and Damon in CF.
Rebecca -
I think he got a no-decision because the offense didn’t show up, as is pretty usual.
Every one take a Paxil and breathe deep.
Most young pitchers, and Phil is really young, struggle in the beginning.
ChrisNY -
I’m talking the here and now. Not for the rest of his life. He has not shown himself to be a very good pitcher in the here and now. He needs to go away and get better. He’s killing the team. Can I make it any more plain? He’s a swell guy and some day he’ll be a swell pitcher. I’m not saying kill him, I’m not saying castrate him, I’m not saying boo him, I’m not saying kidnap his mom and hold her hostage til he’s off the major league mound. I’m merely saying let him go and improve. He wouldn’t be the first major league pitcher to go back to the minors to get himself straight.
There may be an “i” in Phil but there is no “i” in team. Let Phil get himself straight and then come back and get a group hug.
I live in Boston as a Yankee fan and I have to say that things are bad up here for these folks. They’re not healthy, they’re not hitting and their bullpen is not up to the job in middle relief.
The Yanks need to send Hughes down for a check up from the neck up. Bring Rasner and Patterson up cause it couldn’t be the worst decision in the world and get the bats going for God’s sake. They should be hitting more than well off of most of the pitching they’ve faced so far.
Cashman isn’t to blame. On paper, they Yanks should be at least five to seven over .500. Unfortunately, they’re not clutch so far and aren’t living up to expectations offensively.
The pitching is no more responsible than the offense thus far.
Wow, Phil got roughed up bad.
What is next? Seems to me like the Franchise is headed to a subsidiary of the franchise, that being Scranton. I think it is safe to say that at this point, Rasner couldn’t really be any worse than Hughes, right?
Stewart is a disaster!!! They cant get the signs right with no one on 2nd base!!?!?!!!
Ugh, Meanwhile this Rangers game is a disaster
Even if they lose the game, they will still be at .500 after a terrible month of travel and injuries to Jeter, A-Rod and Posada. Joba was missing for a spell as was Molina.
Climb off the ledge, folks. That is a great result, all things considered. Look at the whole forest while watching a particular tree each night.
9-8 Yankees is still in the cards….
Trade for Will Nieves!
Phil Hughes will not learn how to get Major League hitters out in AAA.
That’s simple.
If he has mechanical issues, then yes, he should go to AAA to fix his mechanics.
I really don’t know why he hasn’t been throwing his changeup (a good pitch) this season. Is it the cold? Catchers that he’s uncomfortable with? I have no explanation for his MIA third pitch.
Geez…. put Ohlendorf in the rotation!!
Get Stewart out!!! Molina, Moeller, Posada combined have not had as many crossed signals.
Sticky Rogers
I hate the fargen bastidge.
Nice job by Ohllie, now let’s get some runs !!!
ohlendorf is an academic.
Hah, wow, cant believe that no one is getting the Marty Miller joke? Just a random question-Was anyone paying attention to what happened to the pitching staff early last season? If not, then you shouldnt be saying that we’re done and Hughes is terrible, which he isnt at all. If you wanna see a dissapointment see April through May 2007. That was just sad, and rightfully so, blamed on Marty Miller, who refused to condition the players and strengthen them like he was payed to do.
Hows that Santana guy doing?
The offense and Hughes were awful but it doesn’t help that Damon and Matsui are both playing positions that they can no longer play. Matsui has 0 range going side to side or back on the ball. With his knees he just can not play LF anymore…but we knew that already.
OK
My rally cap is back on.
Wake up bats
“I am a Yankee fan & I am not satisfied.”
Nor should you be. My only point is to those that are as ready to jump off a cliff as they were this time last year when things were about ten times worse. That was a huge hole that they dug and they still came back and made the playoffs. Problem is, they spent everything they had to get there, then went flat.
Difference this year is we’ve still had plenty of injury problems, young pitching problems, slow offensive starts, and we’re 1 game out of first.
No-one should be satisfied because if the season continues as it’s going, we won’t be just 1 game out for long. But the reality is, like the Red Sox and other teams that are struggling themselves, things will get going. There’s too much talent on this team not to, and that includes Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy.
“How is it “whiningâ€? Are you telling me as a Yankee fan you are satisfied with the results so far? This lineup should not be squeaking out runs. How many weak ground balls have we seen, bases loaded left full, RISP left on base. Getting bested by sub-par pitchers.
Come on, it’s not whining. This team is not living up to it’s potential. This team as is will not make it out of the first round of the PS if they even make it there. I am a Yankee fan & I am not satisfied.”
ROFL! Because, of course, the team in April is the same team in October.
Were any of you whiners (yes, whiners) here last year?
Rubin in case you are stressing out that people wanting Hughes out of the rotation automatically means they are looking for Joba to be in the rotation, don’t confuse the two. One doesn’t necessarily beget the other. I’m looking for some spot starts from some AAA pitcher. Just to make that clear.
I just have trouble understanding the line of thinking with tonight’s lineup. For example, Girardi has the idea of frequently shuffling his lineup to keep guys “fresh” or whatever. I’ll accept that theory right now, but I am curious to see how it continues throughout the season assuming that’s the logic.
So he identifies Melky Cabrera & Jose Molina to get days off. Why, I have no idea. Molina just had off last Thursday and didn’t play full games in Cleveland. I can understand Cabrera. HOWEVER, if I’m sitting down making the lineup, I realize Hughes is pitching and give those 2 a day off tomorrow with Pettitte on the mound. I need to maximize the potential for my rookies – Hughes and Kennedy – to excel.
Doing so with Damon in CF and a callup behind the plate…well, you see what happened.
Girardi’s smarter than that. I think. Or at least that’s the perception.
Heres an idea
Why not put Hughes in the bullpen and Joba in the rotation?
I will piss and moan about Phil until i’m blue in the fact because the guy has it in him somewhere; but Rock and ROhlendorf shows up for work i’ll tell you what. He puts on his hat and cleats and comes to compete!
to all the trolls
http://sandiego.padres.mlb.com/stats/individual_stats_player.jsp?playerID=118120&statType=2
Maddux was 6-14 in his first full season… it takes some time to figure out.. i guess
Can Hughes learn in the Minors? That’s the question for the FO. If they think he needs AAA for a bit to get it together fine. But maybe he needs to take his lumps in the Big Leagues, and learn to adjust, and hopefully come around.
I’m willing to give Hughes a bit more time. He had horrible luck last start with the rain delay and was clearly not in synch with Stewart. He also should have given up just 4 runs. Either way, we need to see what Kennedy can do next start, since really we can only send one of the kids down.
This offense (or lack thereof) is killing me right now.
This isn’t Fausto Carmona on the mound; it’s Kenny friggin’ Rogers…
So back home, still no offense. What is the line that the old farts in this line up find their bats and learn to hit the ball well by June 1st.
Good to see them swinging early when Rogers is at 90+ pitches.
How many RISP have they had tonight?
There is so much whining going on here…I need some cheese
Face it.
This team is an 85 win team this yr.
They may as well let Hughes and Kennedy get 180 innings and they may as well put Joba in the rotation now for this lost yr.
“Can I make it any more plain?”
No, but you can get over yourself.
I said nothing of what he will do in the future to prove himself. I said he has already proven he can be successful at this level. He has this year and he certainly did last year. Since then, something’s gone way wrong and he’s been terrible. But he’s proven enough to know he is a good pitcher and they’ll get it figured out.
I don’t get where the patience goes. These guys lose their approach completely when losing.
I just want to say that since this is a Yankees blog I do not feel the need to edit my feelings about the Sux. I don’t want any fans of that team who hang out here to feel offended if I come down on them because I truly hate them, as any self-respecting Yankee fan living in their territory should!
I mean if I can’t trash talk the Sux with the people here, where can I? At least I don’t go to their forums and do it. In fact, I don’t go to their forums!
Thanks.
Why not give Ohlendorf a start or two? It couldn’t hurt at this point…
I also don’t understand why Rasner is not on the roster yet. If anything, he should be the long reliever, not Ohlendorf.
Still time to rough up their ‘pen…..4 runs we can easily come back from…..
Well, well, we Yankees fans can sound so spoiled and/or impatient at times
so I haven’t gotten to watch the game because of studying, I know it wasn’t the greatest time for Hughes. How did he look, about the same as the last or worse? I really want him to do good, and know he can.
“Face it.
This team is an 85 win team this yr.
They may as well let Hughes and Kennedy get 180 innings and they may as well put Joba in the rotation now for this lost yr.”
Wanna bet? I say they win more than 93.
ChrisNY -
Here’s a P.S. for you. David Cone was sent to Tampa pal. If Cone could be sent down, Phil Hughes CERTAINLY can be sent down. And should. My fear is that he won’t.
Oh well.
I’m far more upset about the fact that Kenny Rogers has become a Yankee-killer after being Yankee-fodder for years than about Hughes’ struggles. This offense is just aggrevating.
Ah Fausto Carmona. Now theres a young pitcher who stunk it up his first year. How many people here wanted him tortured when he blew multiple saves against the Sox 2 years ago.
V,
Have you seen this team the past 3 years in October?
If you’re satisfied with mediocrity, can’t help you there.
I was in Yankee Stadium Game 4 ALDS watching as my team got beat by Paul Bryd. So yes, I was here last year.
93 wins?
With Hughes Kennedy and Mussina getting 90+ starts?
Are you high?
Ensberg couldn’t catch that thanks to big head in row 1
We didnt get Santana because of these two guys who flat out stink?
Seriously?
Puggy gives up a 2 out double in BoSuxLand !
Ross has been brilliant. At least we can take that consolation.
Aging position players plus multiple young, largely unproven pitchers add up to a classic transition year. Anyone expecting this team to make the postseason is in for a long and frustrating year.
“V,
Have you seen this team the past 3 years in October?
If you’re satisfied with mediocrity, can’t help you there.
I was in Yankee Stadium Game 4 ALDS watching as my team got beat by Paul Bryd. So yes, I was here last year.”
I’m also a Cardinals’ fan. I watched the 2004 World Series. I also saw the 2006 World Series.
The team in 2006 was definitely not as good at the 2004 team.
Take from that what you will.
“I don’t get where the patience goes. These guys lose their approach completely when losing.”
The players or the people on this blog?
Ohlendorf has pitched 2.1 already. Does anyone else think another inning is pushing it?
hey. disgusting game so far. Rogers had nothing but they made him look like he was in the zone. i’m losing patience with Phil as well.
when did I say Phil shouldn’t be sent down? I don’t know if it would help or not because I don’t know what went wrong from his first game this year to the rest of his starts. I said he’s a good pitcher who’s having problems that need to be fixed. If sending him to Tampa or Scranton will fix what’s wrong, send him down.
Is that plain enough for you, pal?
More bad news …. Walk off win by the Sawx.
I’m glad the yankees didn’t sign Johan Santana. The two young pitchers we have will be real good. Our centerfielder could be an all star this year, didnt wanna trade him either. Phil Hughes needs to make some kind of adjustment, because something has gone wrong. When they make that adjustment with him he’ll be just fine. I am just worried that they won’t change whatever they did.
P.S. John Flahrety shut up. Ohlendorf is not a “guy you can stretch out” He needs to be a guy that pitches 1 maybe 2 innings of short relief. UHG for misuse of good pitchers.
Yeah Petes right just because you win a game doesn’t mean you will win them all or lose a game and lose the season.Like The Patriots.Just because they won one doesn’t mean they were gonna win every game after that.THey just lost one of the biggest upsets in Super Bowl history.
Sorry just wanna add some Patriots talk for Pete.He must really miss he’s FAvorite Boston team.
Trisha- The question is can Hughes learn in AAA? Does going down and (hopefully) dominating help him? It might give him confidence. On the other hand, maybe he needs to learn to work out of trouble against big leaguers and do it here. Sometimes adversity is a learning process. I don’t know the answers, just putting it out there.
Santana is giving up HR left and right in the NL, today it took 113 pitches 5 1/3 innings vs PITTSBURGH !!! and he allowed 2 HR, that’s 8 HR already in the NL plus Feliciano had to save him because he left the basesloaded.
“93 wins?
With Hughes Kennedy and Mussina getting 90+ starts?
Are you high?”
Did you watch any baseball last year? At all?
Who did the Yankees put out there? Pavano? Igawa? Karstens? Chase Wright?
And yet, they still won, how many games?
They’ll be fine. Two of Hughes, Mussina, and Kennedy will finish the season with ERAs less than 4.25. The third will lose his job to Joba.
“The players or the people on this blog?”
LOL
Did you idiots not follow this team last season? Jesus christ, SHUT UP.
i’d like to see the yankees send kennedy down, bring up rasner , and have stewart catch him every fifth day until they get a better back up. i think they’re going to need one because i think posada is going to out longer than a month.
i’d like to see hughes have the best lineup the yankees can put behind him. if damon needs to play centerfield once in a while,do it when mussina pitches. if hughes then doesn’t show some progress in his next three starts then the yankees have to think about doing something.
“More bad news …. Walk off win by the Sawx.”
Huh?
Did the game end?
I’m watching it right now. Crisp just popped out.
My only comfort is from this game besides Ohlendorf saving the bullpen is the hope that this is finally the game where Girardi loses it to the media.
Ohllie is ON !…time to make this outing COUNT !
For better or worse, the whole Santana saga is over and done with. What’s the point in endlessly thinking about what ifs? The team on the field is the team we have, so that’s the team you have to root for now.
Although, CB really won’t be liking Ohlendorf being out there as de facto long reliever again
ER lies!
Its time for Hughes to go down to AAA. He’s not the same guy who pitched in last year’s playoffs right now. It might send him a good message – if you don’t get guys out you don’t get to pitch every 5th day. This isn’t even good outing- bad outing – good outing. He’s getting belted every time out. Give Rasner a try – he can do no worse. Let Hughes get himself straightened out in the minors.
Let’s turn Olendorf’s outing into the story of the game with a big rally in the last three innings.
If Damon’s going to play center when a particular pitcher in on the mound, it needs to be Pettitte or Wang, both groundball pitchers.
“I said he’s a good pitcher who’s having problems that need to be fixed. If sending him to Tampa or Scranton will fix what’s wrong, send him down.”
Then we are in total agreement. I too think he has what it takes to really excel in the majors. I just want him to have the time to get it straightened out down below. Don’t forget that both he and Kennedy were rushed up sooner than scheduled. That has probably hurt them both.
come on Yankee offense. Do something. Anything
Dr. Cox – I have to admit, I want to see Girardi blow his top as well. The guy definitely needs to blow…for the sake of his own health if nothing else!
Man, that almost makes you feel bad for Halladay!
We are only behind by 4 runs and there are still three innings left? We still have chance to get back and win… Go Yanks!!!
Incredible game. How about 0-0 in the bottom of the 9th with Doc on the mound and 2 outs?
Here’s hoping.
GO JAYS!
To be fair, Ohlendorf was a starter very recently. If he can hold his velocity for 40 pitches every few days, that has value.
fair enough, trisha…
Jeter just looked foolish.
If only Jeter could catch up to that 88mph fastball.
wow. it’s so unlike yankees fans to be impatient. Go ahead trade the kid away….maybe ken phelps is available…..
No walkoff yet, but the Sox do have Papi and Manny on 1st and 2nd with 2 out in the 9th.
Come on Yanks!
I think they Yankees can come back at any time. It may not always happen but I think they definitely have it in them.
GO YANKS!
c’mon Bobby
Wow – Vernon Wells doing his best Johnny Damon impression gives the Sox a win
Damn. I was hoping the Sux would make it 6 losses in a row.
Poor Doc.
Nobody is afraid of this lineup right now. Opposing pitchers are grooving them in there knowing we can’t/won’t hit their pitches. We had Rogers at 75 pitches through 3 innings and had like 8 baserunners and scored TWO runs. That’s AWFUL. I’ve been saying it for years. The real concern is offense, not pitching. We can’t get hits with RISP!
Now it’s over, Youk singled to center, Wells bobbled it, Papi scored.
The Yankee offense has been putrid all year, but you have to cut them some slack. After all, when you replace the bats of A-Rod and Posada with the likes of Betemit, Ensberg, Gonzalez, Moeller and Stewart you’re surrendering a world of offensive potency. Not to mention the fact that several of the rest of the “key” guys, like Matsui and Giambi, are essentially past their primes.
HOW ABOUT THIS
Yankees stretching out the kid
Zach McAllister
8.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K’s
GO/AO 14-3
John Lester – 8 innings, 6ks, 1 hit
damn I just read Holliday’s lips
Chicago Dave, and add to it that they’ve been on the road the equivalent of three straight weeks.
I think we’ve done really well under all of the circumstances you’ve mentioned to be playing 500 ball!
Do some good Jason. c’mon
ER does not lie! He’s prescient.
Guess not Jason
Wow Just showed last play from Jays/Sox game on YES. Halladay emptied out the swear word library on that last play.
A bomb to score two runs right in this inning… I request!!!
Lots of 2-out hits, but nothing coming of it.
Poor Halliday. Stinks. Does his job, no run support.
If Girardi does “blow up,” it shouldn’t be at the media . There are lots of legitmate questions to be asked (like why is Giambi still playing) and answered. I hope he does something to get this team awake.
I have had an indescribable loathing for Kenny Rogers ever since ‘96. It just keeps growing, too… Man, what a detestable swine he is!
Girardi’s continued use of Ohlendorf is really troubling.
It seems that Girardi is just going to continue to burn out Ohlendorf’s arm until it blows out.
Did he really have to throw 3 innings tonight? Why couldn’t he just thrown 2?
This is his third appearance over the last 5 days. He’s thrown 115 pitches in relief over that period of time.
You look at Ohlendorf’s stuff on a night like tonight and you have to think there’s a very good chance he could be pitching high leverage innings as the 7th or 8th inning guy.
His ball has tremendous movement and great velocity.
But if they keep using him this way he’s just not going to be able to survive the season.
What’s the point of calling up Ramirez. He can throw 2 innings. Albaladejo can throw another inning.
This is just short sighted.
Ohlendorf has a very good arm. If used properly he could be a key part of the bull pen and pitch in key spots.
But that doesn’t seem like its in the cards.
Hey ER, were you here the other night telling us that Chucky Doll Bucholz was going to pitch a one hitter into the 8th and get his butt handed to him by the Rays?
That’s the kind of prescience I’m looking for! Either give it to us both ways or don’t give it at all.
I think the line up should be Damon, Cano, Giambi… get the bad hitters out of the early… That way it will be less likely that they can consistently disappoint by not driving in runs.
Doc is probably furious that the Sux decide to get a run on his watch after losing 5 games in a row!
Tonight would be a good night if Girardi wants to blow. All the regular beat writers seem to have the night off.
Gotta get some confidence back for these guys (Ian and Phil) might be time to move one of them down and try and get someone to fill in.
Aside from that, everybody needs to chill. I’m personally very impressed the Yankees have kept above water during a grueling road trip with 2 unproven starters in the rotation.
CB – Yes, I continue to be confused why Rasner hasn’t been brought up to take that long reliever role. Ohlendorf is wasted in it, that’s for sure…
Hughes 3.2 8 6 6 3 2
Lester 8.0 1 0 0 4 6
LOL. Phil Hughes. Over-hyped Yankee Farm Trash.
I would be shocked if Rasner isn’t up here for Kennedy or Hughes next start. You just can’t keep sending them out there and keep getting tattooed. That is where Cashman made a mistake he didn’t want Santana but the Yanks needed 4 starters and then Hughes as the 5th. I don’t know why Kennedy was assured a spot when he throws 80 mph so he needs to be perfect on every pitch and it is too much to ask of him after only being in the minors for 1 year. Kennedy only made 3 starts last year I don’t know why Cashman assumed that was a good enough sample to show that he would get people out and should be in the rotation without getting any insurance for either of them. Cashman really messed up.
not much else to say about this game. Ohlendorf was great, too bad the damage was done when he came in and the hitters couldn’t help him out.
Hope Pettitte recovers from his last outing tomorrow.
Ohlendorf, when he’s not overused, does a very good job. He didn’t pitch for the last two days. It showed.
Lester against the Blue Jays offense: 8 innings, 1 hit, zero runs, 4 walks, 6 K’s. I have heard from people that the Sox have the offensive prospects and the Yanks have the pitching prospects. Right now, it looks like the Sox have both.
At least we weren’t the only team making a mediocre starting pitcher look like Cy Young tonight. Poor Roy Halladay must have been thinking, “I can’t believe I’m losing to this guy!” all night long. Lester is just not that good…
“Hey ER, were you here the other night telling us that Chucky Doll Bucholz was going to pitch a one hitter into the 8th and get his butt handed to him by the Rays?”
NO. That wasn’t me.
The Yankees paid 40 million to Kai Igawa Have they given up entirely
What is it about the Yanks organization that keeps Ohlendorf in the bullpen? It seems the Yanks keep using him for 2-3 innings right after the starters fail to go 4-5 and he comes in and gets the job done. Why don’t we just start him and see what results come from that?
c’mon Edwar!
Leiters right. Have to throw more then just 3 change ups and 2 sliders after throwing 86 pitches.
Can’t keep throwing only 2 pitches against major league hitters.
Chicago Daveis right, Russell. Lester is just not that good. His ERA is 5.40
“Ohlendorf, when he’s not overused, does a very good job. He didn’t pitch for the last two days. It showed.”
So Trisha, dont you agree we should give him a shot at starting? How many times are we gonna watch “the kids” fail and be stubborn keeping them in?
Russell W – Yes, exactly what I said earlier! Let him have a start or two! Amen!!!
Lol, the Sox trolls are hilarious.
Just remember – you guys will be looking up come September.
92 mph straight fastball with iffy command !? That is NOT Hughes’ game. I just keep coming back to the idea that something is absolutely not right with him right now.
Its disheartening to realize Hughes isn’t that good.
Prospects are just that. Prospects.
Santana was a MUST GET. Going to cost us a few titles here.
Santana-Wang-Pettitte-Chamberlain
WOW
Bucholz did pitch an amazing game. Why are the Yankees and Sox so anemic with the runs.
I really like your blog. Do they sell your paper in NYC.
Attn: Joe Girardi
Re: The Ollie Rules
Please follow them.
I mean that physically he has a problem.
Lets hope so, Trisha. The fact is I would take 1 outing like that from Hughes or Kennedy and neither have had even one close.
Chicago Dave is on the Ohlendorf Train. Everybody hop on board!
cb-
the yankees have some really serious regrouping to do. what to do with ohlendorf is part of that. i don’t know why girardi is playing around with melky in center. i would sit giambi before i sat melky. there’s just a lot of trying out different line ups now.
girardi has watched the team play for a month now. it’s time to make some decisions and have the the use of player personnel make more sense.
time to score some runs
“92 mph straight fastball with iffy command !? That is NOT Hughes’ game. I just keep coming back to the idea that something is absolutely not right with him right now.”
I honestly believe it’s the weather.
When he’s throwing great in June, remember that.
yea, lester stinks. he just 2 hit the Blue Jays.
He stinks!
Geez. I know we got some homers here but get real.
The offense has been offensive lately.
Rob NY – I’ve been thinking the same thing about Hughes. He just can’t be physically 100% right now.
Russell, what would it take to get him stretched out. I sure would love to see him get a few starts.
at what point do we bench giambi.
its been 1 month and he is hitting .150, that is embarrassing.
in the middle of our offense, he is killing us
V,
I know you’re a die hard but get into reality. This isnt a good team.
Actually Lester just 1 hit the Blue Jays.
Is there anyone on the Yankees who can stir them up and get the bats going? Perhaps Girardi should but it would be more effective from a player.
“V,
I know you’re a die hard but get into reality. This isnt a good team.”
Worse or better than last year?
Peter,
I am a big fan of yours and read your blog on a daily basis, but recently I feel you have recently sounded very condescending. You constantly tell us fans to stop complaining, something we have the right to do as fans. In addition, you yourself question players all winter (such as Johnny Damon), but when he had a great game last week, you posted saying that the fans just needed to be patient and we need to stop calling for Cashman to get rid of the older guys. I understand you get a perspective we do not by being around the clubhouse, but you have to realize that like us, you are simply a fan and have no say in what the organization does. There is no need for you to tell us that we are thinking wrong.
-Steve
HEY YOU SUX TROLLS? WHERE WERE YOU THE PAST 5 GAMES?
Just curious. Really I don’t think you belong here at all but what hypocricy to show up only when your team wins.
But wait, that means you ain’t gonna be here much at all!
Never mind.
i don’t know if we’re at the point yet where they should be starting ohlendorf. joba and rasner are likely to get a start before him. i’d rather hughes and kennedy just stopped sucking. i mean, what the hell changed in the offseason? they looked good last year. and it’s getting beyond the point where you can give them a pass saying “oh it’s his 2nd start or 3rd start”. they really need to give the Yanks a reason to keep them in the major league rotation soon. in chicago, Hughes looked good and unfortunately got knocked out by rain after 2. you’d think he would’ve built off of that.
Man. What a crappy day.
Wow – Shelley showing some patience tonight.
If the board is this terrible at .500…can you imagine it if the team was playing .250 ball?
The overreactions are comical. This is not a video game where you play your top 9 every single inning of every game. You also can not ignore the emotional ups and downs of developing players, like in a video game.
Take a step back and look around. This board is unbearable, at times. Tonight I’ve had my fill. Good night, all.
Shelley has really worked some good AB’s tonight. There’s a silver lining.
I think Shelley Duncan has shown more than enough tonight to take Jason Giambi’s job for the rest of the season, and forever for that matter.
Ok Shelley.
Can we get something going here
Trisha,
I was posting this afternoon before either game started just for your information.
They were watching their offense struggle as badly as ours, Trisha. And, not sure if you’ve paid attention, but that team wins a lot.
I missed the game, and aside from the lunatic cliff jumpers here, what happened in a short..
And why the hell did Girardi not start Molina? Why is he here if he’s not going to catch, especially with the younger guys? What the heck?
pinch hitters? who is available and not injured?
Whenever I see Kenny Rogers, all I can think of is that pine-tarred hand in the 2005 ALDS. Too bad Mr. T let that one slide. That and the incident with the camerman. A class act all the way.
Steve, agreed. It’s our right as fans to be frustrated with our team and complain about them. Too bad other fans don’t understand that. God forbid there was any negativity in this world.
Isnt Lester young? shouldnt he need time to adapt to the big leagues? Why is he doing so well? He’s too young to be doing so well.
Career stats for “Cy Young” Lester include a 4.81 ERA in 33 total games. He has allowed 189 hits in 176 innings. He has struck out 126 while walking 93. Tell me again why Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, Walter Johnson, et al. should be frightened for their legacy? “Over-hyped Boston farm trash!” HEHEHE!!!! I love it…
Good at bat by Duncan. Can Yanks build on it?
“I think Shelley Duncan has shown more than enough tonight to take Jason Giambi’s job for the rest of the season, and forever for that matter.”
He walked thrice. Giambi can do that too. He’s hitting under .200. Giambi can do that too. I don’t know man.
The Jays have been struggling.
Lester hasn’t been very good this season.
Yes we know he just one hit the Jays.
Ensberg, not that good of a hitter. There’s a reason you get cut from a team that has no offense whatsoever.
Shelley Duncan 3 walks and a double tonight. Let’s send him to AAA and play Giambi who has no hits in 14 of the 22 games he has played in.
“Whenever I see Kenny Rogers, all I can think of is that pine-tarred hand in the 2005 ALDS. Too bad Mr. T let that one slide. That and the incident with the camerman. A class act all the way.”
2006
c’mon Robbie. Please do something. anything
“Ensberg, not that good of a hitter. There’s a reason you get cut from a team that has no offense whatsoever.”
You really are an idiot.
This yankee team is just sleepwalking thru games. It’s not all the pitchers fault here. What would happen if they actually used the bats they went up to swing with and did something other than fly out or hit routine grounder balls. The yankee offense to me like they are taking batting practice, it looks just like that, take three swings and get out of the way for the next guy. RISP? Its about as pathetic as the Rangers power play 0-11.
Pete is absolutely right. This was NOT the game to introduce Stewart and sit Melky. Phil needed the support of the team and HE DID NOT GET IT.
These kids can’t develop playing with 4 different catchers. Girardi should have given him some help in the form of a decent catcher and outfield.
and cano continues to swing at garbage
Ray, I know you post here. You’ve posted here a lot longer than I have. You are the one I was basically “apologizing” to earlier when I said that I don’t want fans of your team to take it personally when I trash your team nor do I intend to edit my comments about your team because this is a Yankee blog and to me this is the place I should be able to do it.
I said all of that out of respect to you, believe it or not.
Lester include a 4.81 ERA in 33 total games.
Dude, I’m all for jumping at the chance to trash a Sox play prospect whenever possible, but I don’t even need to tell you why that isn’t really applicable. As a person who has lived through exactly the same thing as him, he is freaking amazing to even be on a ML bump, nevermind getting better as time goes on.
It would be funny if not for the very real issue that he took care of in the middle of those games.
The offense isn’t helping. The defense isn’t helping and Stewart isn’t helping though I don’t fault him.
Some of these lineups have made me scratch my head but this one tonight was abysmal and I blame Joe G. for this.
Melky is pinch hitting…..
Let’s go Melky!
I don’t watch the postgame anymore, but does Girardi get asked these pressing questions after a game? Why he shifts the lineup so much? Why he uses such suspect defensive positioning? does he have explanations? I’m BAFFLED.
so we PH now? i just don’t get it…so Molina goes in anyways?
Pinch hitting down by 4 runs with 2 outs.. Molina is going to have to catch an awful lot should of just gave him the whole night off in this loss.
V,
You are the smart one, right? San Diego’s offense blows, why did they CUT him? I wonder.
Alright people…we stage a dramatic comeback here!
“Pete is absolutely right. This was NOT the game to introduce Stewart and sit Melky. Phil needed the support of the team and HE DID NOT GET IT.
These kids can’t develop playing with 4 different catchers. Girardi should have given him some help in the form of a decent catcher and outfield.”
Totally agreed.
Let Pettitte get the backup – Pettitte can call his own game.
Kennedy and Hughes need our best catcher every time out.
Girardi confuses me with this lineup (going over the box score). The Molina thing baffles my mind. He, of all people, should know the importance of letting Molina go tonight.
Ah.. they tease again. I somehow know that this inning will not end well but still I continue to follow the game.
If there’s a positive from this season so far, it’s been Melky’s play so far. He’s doing great.
Totally, V – I said that earlier, Pettite and Wang can essentially call their own games at this point, can’t they?
“V,
You are the smart one, right? San Diego’s offense blows, why did they CUT him? I wonder.”
Because he was recovering from an injury and had difficulty finding his stroke?
His approach looks fine to me at the plate. He just missed an HR on that pitch. He also just missed an HR earlier in the game.
He’s not -that- far removed from playing All Star offense a few years ago.
crappy night for NY fans. Damn Rangers…. i hate the Penguins. it reminds me of playing Wayne Gretzky’s 3D Hockey on nintendo 64 in the 90s..i ALWAYS had to play the Pens in round 2 of the playoffs and it was always really hard.
I have never said that Lester is a fantastic pitcher. He battled through cancer and so I am happy for him right now.
I posted this afternoon that even though I am a Sox fan I do like Hughes and agree that right now he doesn’t seem to be the same pitcher that everyone saw at the end of last year. I actually hope he ends up doing well this year.
It is a long season and it is way too early to give up on anyone no matter whether they be on the Yankee roster or the Sox roster.
I fully expect both teams to be there right at the end of the season.
Paulie – No one was trashing Lester as a person or what he went through in terms of his illness. Stats are stats, period. There was no personal insult implied or intended. Besides, Lester did not pitch during his illness…
YF in Boston, yes they actually do ask him those questions. Kim Jones presses him believe it or not.
We’ll see what he has to say. I feel bad for Stewart too. He should have been able to cut his teeth on one of the vets. That said, Kay said before the game started that since Molina is going to be “it” and since he too had sustained an injury, Girardi probably wanted to give him a night off.
We’ll see Joe’s response. Maybe it’s a combo of that and wanting to see if a different catcher would make a difference with Hughes.
Let me guess a captain special with 2 outs…Oh wait he just needs to ground out….
These long innings are brutal on Leyland, he really needs a smoke.
I love this blog! Seriously. I rarely comment because I don’t get a chance to watch much of the game (I often work at night), but re-reading the in-game comments the next morning is fantastically fun. Passionate fans of a team really to live and die (in a small way) with each pitch, with each inning, with each game.
The beauty of the internet, and of blogs, is that it’s not the next morning’s paper — it’s immediate, reactionary, capturing the emotion of that very moment. If everyone on this blog were “patient,” as some wish, or had true “perspective,” as others wish, it’d be boring as hell here, and I’d read something else.
I love the bickering, the passion, the calls for calm. I love the trolls, and the troll blasters. I love the people who call for a long-run, 162-game view, and the people who are ready to commit suicide with every loss, or celebrate Fat Tuesday style with each win.
All are essential to making the blog just what it is — a great, wondrous mess. I wouldn’t want a thing changed. No registration, no filter. Trust me here — more sobriety, some sort of rules of intelligent discourse, would ruin what’s great about the LoHud blog.
It’s like a really good bar. You can’t go out and open a popular bar. It has to become one through some sort of alchemy. No one knows the formula, and tinkering with a good thing more often than not ruins it.
So — what I trying to say is: Thanks to you all, from SJ44 to Rebecca the Optomist to the trolling Red Sox fans. Reading all of you each morning is way better than ESPN.
Now, for me it’s back to work. Also: Go Yanks! Always and forever. From pitch to pitch and season to season.
Anyone want to guess what happens here? If there was one out, I’d say double play…but with two outs, I’m calling a single to right field to score two.
This team is a friggin tease. I hate this team.
WHat does Jeter do here??
Vamos El Capitan!
Jete’s gonna come through!!!
2nd Grannny coming up
Can captain DP get that illusive Grand Slam?
I had a bad feeling the minute I saw Molina out of the game. I just don’t get how they can put a brand new catcher in with a rookie who is struggling and really needs a win. The crossups were PAINFUL to watch.
I support Joe G. A LOT but tonight I’m criticizing these moves. The catcher move was a bonehead move.
And it doesn’t help Phil’s confidence to be boo’d at Yankee Stadium. I fault Joe for this one. He needed all the A players out there that are not injured and Phil didn’t get that.
BAD MOVE!
We are coming back!!!!!
See, this is more of the Yanks’ brand so ultra-potent small ball from last night.
I got mine in blazing copper!
Awww, I was hoping they’d leave him in!
or a hit by pitch.
Wow. Don’t know what will happen but Abreu is a sweet player to have in this position.
Well, that’s one way to score a run
“V,
You are the smart one, right? San Diego’s offense blows, why did they CUT him? I wonder.â€
Also, they had this guy named Kouzmanoff.
Trisha,
You have every right to be enthusiastic and positive about the Yankees especially on a Yankee blog, and don’t have a problem with that at all.
No offense, Sigmund, but sometimes a troll is just a troll.
Everyone needs to remember that Ohlendorf became a major league option by switching to the bullpen and adding a bit more zip to his pitches. He was not as impressive as a starter after we acquired him.
I agree that he’s being overused.
No problem at all, Dave. I just think that when a young kid goes through something like that, I’ll personally hold off on calling him “trash” – no matter the uniform. Of course the other idiot was out of line as well, too. Lester is amazing to me. So is Phil Hughes. They’re both kids, and are going to struggle, and sometimes struggle a lot. It happens. I just hope that the Yankees (and the Red Sox for that matter) keep giving them the ball and letting them take care of it.
Some posters here need to realize that it takes patience for some. The Papelbons, Chamberlains, and Verlanders just don’t happen out of the gate all the time. Some guys take a season or two. Just calm down.
just need a single for Abreu and we’re right back in it.
How does this guy have a 0.00 ERA?
Damon – why run into the tag there?
Wasted opportunit there. Could have spared Hughes the L if for one good swing.
Why try to run in front of him?
V,
Yeah right, he had one great year, and a bunch of bad ones. You’re right, he’s the man.
“the yankees have some really serious regrouping to do. what to do with ohlendorf is part of that. ”
Ohlendorf has now thrown more innings than any other relief pitcher in all of baseball.
Again, tonight we saw how good his stuff can be when he gets at least a little bit of rest.
It’s just a shame that they’ve decided that Ohlendorf is going to mop up low leverage innings and risk burning out his arms.
I don’t understand why he had to throw 3 innings tonight.
You can’t keep asking a guy to throw 3 innings/ 50 pitches every 2-3 days out of the pen.
No one can hold up under those circumstances.
It’s an absolute waste.
How many total innings can ohlendorf throw out of the pen this year?
Safely – I’d say 70-75. He’s already thrown 20. He’s no pace to throw 115 innings out of the pen.
The most any reliever threw last year was 88 innings.
When they need him later on this year to pitch late in games his arm is going to be shot.
I don’t understand Girardi’s management of the pen. I understand that the starters are giving them no innings but the idea that a guy with stuff like Ohlendorf who was a short reliever and wasn’t stretched out should be the one to absorb the shortfall in innings is an unfortunate decision.
“V,
Yeah right, he had one great year, and a bunch of bad ones. You’re right, he’s the man.”
He had one great year and several good ones.
Idiot.
This offense just sucks to high hell. Someone needs to be accountable and changes made.
They are just ridiculously bad. How many friggin chances are they going to continue to blow?
Our offense has been a bigger concern than the pitching after all these playoff collapses. We’re always in games, but we never can score runs and get the big hit. The offense is awful without A-Rod and Posada. Imagine if we were stupid enough to let him walk.
LOL Eric Duncan hit a HR tonight, still not impressed.
yeah. not gonna do it guys. that about sums up how this whole game has gone. load the bases and get 1 run out of it, and it wasn’t even on their own, it took a crappy pitcher to walk all the guys to get a run in for them.
Teams can pick up guys off the street especially if they are a lefty and they would get the Yanks out.
Ray, but my point in my earlier post and what I said I didn’t want fans of your team to be offended by is not my enthusiasm about the Yankees as much as the joy I take in trashing your favorite team. I don’t feel I should have to apologize for either, and I don’t intend to. That’s why I’d almost feel better if you weren’t around. You appear to be a very level-headed fan. It seems you enjoy discussing things with posters here. I don’t want to feel that I need to edit my comments about your team at all because I don’t want to hurt your feelings. That’s what I was trying to say.
That’s all.
CB – totally agreed. He’s the mop up guy, for no apparent reason. And he will need surgery by year’s end. And it will be a shame.
I am not a fan of Girardi thus far. I’m holding out hope that he’s trying to ’see what he has’ and will be better by mid-May, but if not…
I too think that Hughes being boo’ed tonight was terrible. There is no faster way to turn a kid into a pile of mush than to boo him. He’s a KID! He’s not Carlos Delgado who could give a crap what the fans think of him. With all the hype he’s trying to live up to, did anyone think he was going to do it. I don’t support booing him no matter what he does this year. Now, if May comes next year, and he’s still making the same starts, then I say have at it. But for now, he has a pass from me. I feel as if I’m the only one though, which is sad.
pete i was thinking the same thing i had tro take an advil last inning that damn pan was driving me nuts
Wagner blows a save
That would be funny if he wasn’t my closer in fantasy:(
Come on Pete – don’t get on Freddie Sez. He’s a fixture.
to the Joba must stay in the BP come 2nd half of season crew, quick lets use his 8th inning super powers to save this game !!!
Am I the only guy who recognizes what a sucker Abreu is against LH pitching? He’s just as afraid of getting hit by a pitch as he is of running into an outfield wall.
His front foot is so far out into the bucket it’s a disgrace. Keep your shoulder in and meet the damn ball where it’s thrown.
time to score 4 runs
Poor Freddy. Personally, I am grateful for anything that drowns out Suzyn Waldman. Her cat-stuck-in-a-well voice really doesn’t do much for me.
For some reason, and maybe this is going to sound totally crazy, I don’t think the booing is going to affect Hughes. The double-edge sword to Hughes is that the thing that allows him to blow off the boos is the same thing that almost makes him too confident. He has a total sense of himself because he has been the Yankees grand poobah signing and he has an enormous amount of confidence because of it. That’s probably why he just keeps repeating the same mantra loss after loss: I just have to improve.
I agree. Whoever is making that banging noise should be kicked out of stadium. Now.
what is the deal with Freddy? One would assume he is some long-term, diehard fan the team allows in for spiritual reasons… but this is the Yankees. Surely one of the other beat reporters knows?
Yep. So annoying. 90% of the time he’s not even beating to any chant. He’s just hitting it asynchronously.
I have a feeling that Girardi is going to be very testy with the reporters after the game. He didn’t look happy on the bench and you know they are going to be going on and on asking if Hughes will be making his next start…and what is wrong with him.
Freddy : http://www.freddysez.com/
I was hoping that with Albie called up and a second reliever (whether it was Britton or Ramirez) that Ohlendorf would finally get out of the long man role.
But it’s clear that’s just not going to happen. Girardi “trusting” Ohlendorf is turning out to be a bad thing for the long term.
The idea that Farnsworth is a better bet to pitch high leverage innings than a rested Ohlendorf is just something that’s hard to see.
Booing Phil Hughes is absolutely stupid. It’s hard to believe that happened.
I would not send him down. I’d keep him in the rotation.
Nice, Matsui, work it! 5 more walks, please.
It’ll probably be hard to have a rally with one automatic out in Giambi coming up. Hopefully he can draw a walk like Matsui did.
Big deal with the walk…Jones with his 60 mph fastball can walk the bases loaded and the Yanks still wont score.
Freddy is 83 next month, a legend, and many fans love him.
I know him well.
There’s certainly reason to boo Hughes, though I wouldn’t personally do it. Did you really think that the rabid Stadium fans who booed LaTroy Hawkins for wearing #21 wouldn’t boo Phil Hughes for averaging 3 innings per start? Come on!
Am I the only one disturbed by the fact that Freddy has a wikipedia entry?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freddy_Sez
A sure sign of the apocalypse
http://www.freddysez.com/
Reading this board, I see why so many people hate the Yankees. Lots of crazy fans out there who don’t know baseball. Bottom line.
“Booing Phil Hughes is absolutely stupid. It’s hard to believe that happened.”
CB it’s called being spoiled, see when spoiled Yankee fans …the Santana gang… see a 21 yr. old having problems they automatically say he sucks… it comes w/ the territory and they are a bunch of disgraces.
Girardi is always testy after a loss. That I do notice.
I hope Hughes is physically healthy. I keep hearing Flaherty and Kay say his fastball is straight. Doesn’t he normally have movement on it? Maybe he needs to throw some 2 seamers.
Not only is that Freddy Sez guy annoying to listen to, but try sitting at the game and have him walking around in front of you with people running up and banging that pot.
I know he’s a tradition, but he’s still annoying if you ask me.
pinch run giambi here?
Whats wrong with Freddy? He doesn’t sit in a seat, he just walks around the entire stadium hitting his pan. Its not like he’s hurting anyone.
Its not like a baseball game are the SATs Peter, lighten up a bit.
I really don’t mind John and Suzyn being drowned out..
GUESS NOT
Let’s go Yanks!!!!!
A-ROD – PINCH HIT…. DON’T RUN… SWING HARD
Now now, Basesball 101. Balls that are hit on the screws eventually drop in or fly out. Giambi has been doing a better and better job of getting the job done.
No A-Rod. No Posada. The youngest pitcher in the league struggled against a GREAT offensive lineups. Yanks still have the tying run at the plate.
2 1st pitch groundouts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WTF?????????
I miss Alex
Come on Robbie!
i just don’t understand why shelly and ensberg swung on the first pitch
Have you ever seen a team with dumber at bats with runners on base? Tying run at the plate, the 2 guys before you just worked the count and got on base. What do you do? First pitch swinging. Ground out to 3rd, ground out to short. What a joke.
Do you people really like Freddy or do you just have him on your pots-n-pans fantasy team?
WOW Giambi can hit. Do Duncan or Ensberg have a brain both swinging at the 1st pitch???!!!!! Stupid let him throw pitches. Have to wonder what these people are thinking sometimes.
“2 1st pitch groundouts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WTF?????????”
I don’t get it either.
Walks the leadoff hitter.
Let’s swing early in the count! w00t!
Dumb, dumb, dumb at bats.
Nice job by both Duncan and Ensberg working the count.
Hey, at least we made a game out of it!
(I’m trying to think optimistically)
Down to Cano..
Here comes that big spot I touched on a couple weeks ago and was absolutely killed for even thinking it.
Srike one foul
Strike Two foul
(the guy with the bell is so annoying)
Strike Three swinging.
Man.
well anyone but Cano and this might have been.. tomorrow night
Swing more at the first pitch.
Hey at least we made it a game! Good for us.
Onward and upward.
This offense is terrible.
The yankees lose ! THEEEEE YANKEES LOSE !
Hey, nice AB there by Ensberg. Patience, power, he showed everything on that weak ass grounder to short.
wow.
frustrating game
Absolutely pathetic. Duncan and Ensberg swing at the first pitch and ground out. Unbelievable.
cano swinging at one at eye level. OMG. You made him throw 10 pitches and got a walk, wild pitch, and a single to score a run. You are the TYING RUN. WAIT FOR A PITCH. 2 first pitch groundouts and an awful, pathetic 3 pitch strikeout. If they are too selfish to play team baseball, BENCH THEM. In fact, with Gonzalez on the bench, at least one of Cano and Ensberg should be benched indefinitely anyway. Where is Betemit when you need him? At least he can hit.
now you have to pick on 83 year old freddy sez pete? you’re so bitter. why?
Someone throw Cano a life vest. He’s drowning.
Kevin Long should be working with Cano 24-7. He’s not tracking the ball at all.
Looks like Cano was in a hurry to go home. Pathetic.
You all can complain about Hughes and Kennedy over and over again if you want.
Bottom line though, this offense has been dreadful this season and is more to blame than the pitching.
Really frustrating loss. The Yankees left a ton of runners on base and struggled again with RISP. That has to improve.
Tomorrow is another game. The Yanks will get ‘em tomorrow.
didn’t get to watch the game. guess of all games for me to miss this was it, I really wish Hughes would have done great tonight. It will come soon though! I have full trust in him!
It may be April, but if I’m managing, I pull both of those clowns into my office for a ass-chewing. No excuse for that – AAA stuff.
This offense, and particularly, Cano’s lousy, lazy body language, are pathetic.
Send HUGHES DOWN
the only 2 out RBI was a Hit By Pitch.
Anyone watching CostasNow – they are RAILING on blogs…sheesh dude’s going to give himself a heart attack…
Girardi BETTER rip this team after the game. Just pathetic at bats in the 9th inning. Duncan and Ensberg swing at the 1st pitch and Cano looks like he is blind folded and just swinging wildly at anything he sees. Jones is dreadful and they were the easiest outs you can possibly find. Losing is ok but atleast don’t beat yourself and look like major leaguers out there.
Andy pitches tomorrow night, Molina behind the plate, Arod and Jorge both one day closer to good health, and best of all we have Joba lurking in the pen for that magical 8th inning! Think how awful this game could have been without Joba keeping it close.
get some rest guys that road trip must have knocked you out, god knows you need some sleep…
Todd Jones throws a lot of strikes and a lot of first-pitch fastballs. Why wouldn’t two fastball hitters look for one on the first pitch?
Strange as it is to think, but Shelley Duncan and Morgan Ensberg know more about hitting than the dudes criticizing them on the message board.
Someone needs to be accountable and something needs to be done. This offense is NOT in a funk and it is NOT a long season. These are just terrible AB’s.. they do not understand the strike zone, the situation, what they need to do. Just unacceptable for $200 million.
Might be time to bench some players and just hang your hopes on the future and accept 4th place in the AL East.
Joe, Duncan and Ensberg are not necessarily the face of the franchise. They didn’t get the job done, but they tried.
We made a game of this. Good for the Yankees. Our bullpen was once again stellar. Good for us.
Alex is hurt, Jorge is hurt. We are feeling the loss.
It could always be worse. At least we didn’t lose 5 in a row like payrod’s pathetic rooting interest!
Back to our winning ways tomorrow.
Twice in one game you get the bases loaded on walks and all you have to show for it is one run because of a HBP.
Sorry, but that is unexcusable to me.
April is just about over, it’s about time for these guys to start pulling their heads out of their a**es and start having quality at bats.
But of course everyone will just be complaining about the 21 year old pitcher who is taking the lumps everyone knew he would.
pete,
freddy is pretty much the yankees mascot… so yeha
It’s going to be interesting watching this post game. I wonder what he’s going to say. In some way’s I hope he gets angry and sends a message to Hughes that even though he’s young, he has to do his job. Then I hope that he informs my very intrigued mind as to why in the heck he didn’t start Molina.
more clutch hitting by the Ynaks. really Cano is a mental midget 3 pitches and over.
he has no plate discipline.
Hughes gets 2 more starts and then he should vist SWB if he does not improve dramatically.
they are playing without Mr clutch(arod 125 with RISP) jorge and they sat melky today.
the first 2 runs by Detroit are the reason why Damon cannot play CF…I have no clue what is going on with Hughes but this is not Hughes.
in reality no one is hitting on this team in the clutch except maybe Matsui.
The one bright note is that the pen’s pitched 9 scoreless the past two games.
“Someone needs to be accountable and something needs to be done. This offense is NOT in a funk and it is NOT a long season. These are just terrible AB’s.. they do not understand the strike zone, the situation, what they need to do. Just unacceptable for $200 million.
Might be time to bench some players and just hang your hopes on the future and accept 4th place in the AL East.”
Oh, I didn’t realize that the Yankees deserve wins because of the amount of money they spend.
Well, golly gee.
Those of who keep saying “this offense will score runs” I would love to know when is it going to happen.
With the injuries and the age of some players how great is this offense going to be?
you can’t pick on freddy, he’s an old guy who gets happiness out of going to games and trying to start the rallies with the pan. i say let him stay. plus, he’s better than waldman and the noise that comes out of her mouth. BRING BACK CHARLIE STEINER!
Nick in SF – Yep. Turn the page on this one and look forward to tomorrow.
I hope that Joe says Hughes is going down. But I know it won’t happen. Gonna give him more time for losses.
Joe G a note I wrote to myself, “I really don’t need to Damon in CF anymore after tonight…”
There are a lot of imbeciles that post on this blog. I hope most of them are gone when the Yankees are 1st in the East on June 1st, in the middle of a 10 game winning streak.
“Those of who keep saying “this offense will score runs†I would love to know when is it going to happen.
With the injuries and the age of some players how great is this offense going to be?”
Did you watch baseball last year? At all?
ARod was like the only guy hitting for the first month or two.
Pete,
How can you stand listening to John on the radio? He makes such idiotic comments and repeats himself incessantly — as if he’s just uttered something quite profound.
I actually find Suzyn interesting — especially her pre- and post-game reports. But John? Oh my gosh. He’s terrible. I find myself rolling my eyes all the time over his “no duh” comments especially. Unfortunately, the radio broadcast is my only option at times.
I still think Hughes issues is lack of mixing pitches and mechanical. Looks like he was back to his new mechanics tonight. Wish Eiland would just let him use his old mechanics.
No Molina behind the plate with a young pitcher…no Melky in CF…I don’t get these moves…
Yankees in 2008: 14-14, 2 GB after April 29
Yankees in 2007: 9-14, 6.5 GB after April 29
When Phil Hughes is a big-time No. 2 pitcher and Joba Chamberlain is eating up innings and Ian Kennedy is holding down the number four spot, there are going to be a lot of people wearing their jerseys. A lot of those people are the ones ripping them now.
They just need time. Can’t people give it to them? Or is treating every night like Game 7 of the World Series that important? Get over it, guys. I understand you became fans in ‘98 because your self-esteem was so drained that you needed that feeling of victory every night. But that’s not how baseball is played. Long way til September, folks. Long, long way.
Send phil hughes down!!
“There are a lot of imbeciles that post on this blog. I hope most of them are gone when the Yankees are 1st in the East on June 1st, in the middle of a 10 game winning streak.”
Are you willing to bet your life on that?
Also, you should stop calling everybody here imbeciles and morons and stupid. That’s just not a good way to make your point.
Funny how offended everyone becomes when poor little Hughes gets a few boos…
Never heard this level of outrage when Farnsworth was being mercilessly booed last year.
THIS IS WHY JOBA MUST STAY IN THE BULLPEN
Duncan is great for a laugh and all but he’s not really much of a MLB caliber ballplayer. His approach at the plate is awful. He seems to me like a guy who will mash AAA pitching whe he is 34.
And Ensberg has seemed like a shell of the player he was as
an all star withHouston. Please come back soon A-Rod.
I feel like Cano just needs one multi-hit game to get going, but I fear he’s in big contract autopilot mode.
On plus side, Ohlendorf looked good, soooo… that’s something right?
Dynasty if I had to guess it would be the matchups with Rogers. That at least would make sense. I don’t know if that is the case.
Kay said they wanted to rest Molina since he also had had an injury. A few of us wondered if Girardi wanted to try a different combo with Hughes since no catcher has seemed to be able to get him to do the job.
Girardi hopefully will give all the answers on the postgame show.
Hughes is 21 freakin years old. What were you doing when you were 21?
Give the kid a break.
The vile should be directed at this pathetic offense and their horrible approaches at the plate.
Oh, I didn’t realize that the Yankees deserve wins because of the amount of money they spend.
Well, golly gee.
Listen XX/YY. nobody said they deserve wins but with the money they are spending on people your grandfather watched, there should be more of a return on the investment. And yes, I watch baseball, per your other comment, and their current play is not something that “averages” out. You can’t have a 10 game winning streak when you can’t get more than 1 run with bases loaded twice in the game.
Players are what they are. And right now, many of them are playing to “what they are”, discounting of course performance in a contract year or when they are trying to get traded.
A-Rod on the DL.
Great.
Alex on the 15 day DL
Oh, and I hope Girardi gets KILLED over not starting Molina today. DUMB, DUMB decision! And don’t get me started on giving Melky a day off.
Andy,
People have the right to want the kids to go back where they would still be if they weren’t rushed up, and get their stuff together there. It’s not a cardinal sin you know. In fact it might be very good baseball. And people generally do tend to wear the jerseys of their favorite players. And they get to be their favorite players by doing well.
It really is NO BIG DEAL to want them to get their stuff straight and not do their learning on a major league mound! This is the Yankees, not the Bad News Bears!
They need to send hughsey down to straighten him out.
Alex is on the 15 day DL
Thanks Trisha,
Should be an interesting postgame…
“Oh, and I hope Girardi gets KILLED over not starting Molina today. DUMB, DUMB decision! And don’t get me started on giving Melky a day off.”
your a fool simply demonic is the man !
Well, more “good news” – Alex to DL. Grade 2 strain.
Hughes might need to go to AAA, Chaves did wonders for King Felix and he can do the same for Hughes
Good. Kim Jones asking Cash whether something is going to be done about Hughes. Cash at least said they evaluate every day and if something is going to be done they will tell the players.
I HOPE that is a sign that they are serious about getting this fixed, and hopefully elsewhere.
Brandon who’s Chaves?
Flarhety looks two hundred years old.
Rafael Chaves Pitching Coach R R 6′ 0″ 195 39 Active
I’ve said it for some time I just don’t think Eiland has a grip w/ him. Let someone else get him back to what he can be.
Is chaves the pitching coach in AAA scranton? He worked with felix hernandez?
Every single one of you have yelled at Pete for talking about Freddy Sez. I’m all about fans showing support and being unique in doing so, but this guy makes my life hell. I can’t watch the baseball game on YES because this guy is letting everyone under the sun bang on his stupid pan and its a continuous offbeat rythm that becomes nothing shy of downright annoying. Its loud, its obnoxious and he should not be allowed in with that.
Doing it a few times here and there to get the crowd going is great, but don’t feel obligated to let every person is sections 33-32 have a rip at banging on the pot. Its not exciting, trust me. Yankee security should look into stopping him because he’s simply ruining the ratings on the radio and tv.
Freddy’s pan was really annoying tonight – however, I was watching the Detroit FSN tv feed and Freddy was sitting quietly — with a maniac next to him banging incessantly on Freddy’s pan. Hopefully Freddy isn’t on the DL, because his replacement was ridiculous.
Freddy’s classic.
I trust Nardi more then anyone else in the organization.
Maybe this is just a matter of Phil not adjusting to all the hitters that are adjusting to him. He’s not a hidden quantity like he was last year. The book is out on how he pitches, what he throws, and how fast it’s coming. He doesn’t throw hard enough to get by on just power, and he doesn’t have enough command of other stuff to live there. He’s going to have to learn to confuse guys a little more. Everyone in the box looks too comfortable against him. Whatever it is, I don’t think his leash is much longer.
Trisha, you’re wrong. Phil Hughes would CRUSH Triple-A hitters. Even the way he’s throwing now. He’d obliterate them. Want to know how I know? Because every time he pitched in Scranton last year, I watched him do it. A man against boys. What’s happening now is a 21-year-old getting beat by professionals who are all older than him and SHOULD have an advantage over him. He doesn’t need to be babied. He needs to learn.
The problem is that every time there’s a loss, someone like you panics. Well, let me tell you this: Darrell Rasner and Kei Igawa are going to do no better in the big leagues than Hughes is doing now.
What everyone seems to forget is that the kid had a bad defense behind him tonight, faced a great offense and was probably a huge underdog anyway. He’s thrown to four different catchers this year in six starts. He pitched great in his first start and looked sharp in his last one until the rain fell. I just think you and a lot of the other ‘96ers can cut the kid some slack. Do you have any idea how hard it is to pitch in the big leagues when you have ZERO experience?
I look at the Pan guy the same way I look at the guy with the mullet in Tampa Bay who heckles everyone. Both are equally annoying to me. It’s like YES has a microphone in the seat next to him sometimes. It’s rediculous when your options are Waldman and Sterling, or a guy beating the bejesus out of a freaking frying pan.
Does anyone remember who was catching Hughes in his last start-the one that looked promising but was cut short due to rain?
Both Igawa and Rasner have proven that they’re AAAA players. Neither of them are the answers long term.
Molina
this why Joba belongs in the rotation, we fall behind with the starters and it does not matter who pitching the 8th or 9th inninngs. give a shut down starter. enough of this crap Joba must be made a starter. if it doesn’t happen this year it won’t happen next year because we will be faced with the same innings situation next year. remember how we lost those playoff games in the last few years. BAD STARTING PITCHING
come on, Freddy’s not obnoxiously loud. it’s not like the horrific drummer in Cleveland, or the endless drumming in Oakland, which are head-pounding. or those dopey made-in-China stick things that the Angel fans bang together.
that’s all head-pounding stuff. Freddy’s just got a pan.
ANDY HAWKINS,
I would like to agree with you, but I’m forced to disagree. Phil is not the same pitcher he was last year, even when he was a bad pitcher last year. I think the best thing for him would be to dominate AAA again, even if he can’t “learn” new stuff. He needs to rebuild his confidence.
“The problem is that every time there’s a loss, someone like you panics.”
This line alone tells me you don’t know your ass from your elbow. See ya now.
Andy,
Thanks…so you would think that he would go with him tonight too…I just don’t understand Molina not in there…
Could someone offer a rational explanation?
If he’s going to go down to AAA he better start throwing the change and slider more. Not just curves and fastballs against AAA hitters.
Yankee pitching stinks, period! You can’t give up 6 runs and expect to win many games.
I think I do know where my ass is, Trisha. You’re a pain in it. “I believe in Kyle” tells me all I need to know about you, you ‘96er!
Rob, Hughes would be better working with Eiland. Maybe take him out of the rotation and use him as the long man to work things out. I’m not saying keep him in the rotation. But he needs to stay in the big leagues. He and Kennedy are having the same problems — they aren’t challenging hitters with their stuff. Is that a confidence thing? It may be. But Triple-A is too easy for both of them right now. They get nothing out of it except a place to hide out for a while. And that’s not what they need.
He should go down, and work on locating his fastball, and raising his velocity 1 or 2 mph.
They keep talking about evaluating. I PRAY that’s shorthand for deciding who to call up from AAA and sending Hughes down. This is about winning for the Yankees, not powdering Hughes’ butt.
Singleton was just saying that Ohlendorf looked really good and that it wouldn’t take that much to get him stretched out to 5 innings. He said if they decided to use him as a starter they would probably send him down to WBS to get stretched out.
Cashman didn’t sound like he thought Hughes was an automatic to keep getting sent out there.
Freddy is a staple of the stadium. I’ve gotten a picture with him. He’s a sweet old man. He even publishes a little magazine of sorts on generic printer paper.
Rob – absolutely and unequivocally agree.
I’d have used Molina. Girardi does some questionable things. Tonight, he had his worst defense out there for a pitcher who needed all the help he could get. I’d actually have started Gonzalez at third, Morgan at first, Molina behind the plate and the Melky-Damon-Abreu outfield. One of those runs in the first shouldn’t have scored, because that shouldn’t have been a single.
Jax — he does need to throw the change more. Absolutely right.
Rob — How do you go about raising your velocity 1 or 2 mph in the minor leagues. Please explain.
Funny, lots of people are calling for him to be sent down, but you’re the bomb Andy.
What a joke.
Trisha, who would you call up who’s going to do better? Sending him down for the hell of it is a lousy idea, but you are all about the wins in April, so who here in Scranton is better than Phil Hughes? Who’s gonna get you those wins?
ANDY,
He isn’t locating his fastball. In fact, he is missing badly. His problem is indicative of mechanical issues. He said so in his own interview. “[He] doesn’t know where the fastball is going.” I think dropping hughes to AAA is a smart decision for right now, for about a month. If his problem is indeed mental and not mechanical, then bringing him down to dominate is all the more reasonable. Then he can come up and “trust” his stuff.
I’ll do you a favor and give you the Scranton starting rotation:
1. Kei Igawa — we know what he can do
2. Darrell Rasner — not near Hughes’ stuff, and hasn’t had a great fastball
3. Dan Giese — converted reliever
4. Jeff Marquez — 7.01 ERA
5. Steven White — decent stuff, 3.58 ERA in five starts
Who is going to improve the New York Yankees?
Ha ha ha ha ha. It’s Girardi! It’s the defense! It’s the catcher! It’s the offense! If we could have hand picked an All Star team from around the majors and then an All Star defense to put in the field, and then maybe a manager who favors Hughes, hell, Hughes could have won the game! I just know it.