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Defense costs Kennedy a no-hitter

July
24

Needing one out to finish his no-hitter and 1-0 win, Ian Kennedy got Richmond’s Barbaro Canizares to ground to second base.

Forget it. Chris Basak’s second error of the night extended the game. Scott Thorman then cracked a double and another error allowed the tying run to score. That is brutal.

Kennedy has pitched very well of late (9 ER in his last 33.1 innings) and could be getting back in the mix.

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 24th, 2008 at 10:17 pm by Peter Abraham.
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63 Responses to “Defense costs Kennedy a no-hitter”

  1. Rebecca--Optimist Prime-Mo for Cy Young 08

    If you think four errors are a lot, check this out

  2. ugh

    that’s too bad…even in a shortened game, it would have been great for IPK

  3. Yankeefanfoev13

    Only if he could pitch like this for Yanks.

    Dang it Rebecca i wanted first comment!

  4. Rishi

    Errors always kill you - Basak ows IPK something…I don’t know what but something.

  5. Dr. J

    Colorado, Pittsburgh, and Texas scouts were hopefully there :)

  6. E-Man

    Just what we need.. 5 inning/5 run Kennedy.

    He’s going to make them look stupid again.

  7. Nick in SF but now in Charlotte

    Did Kennedy say that he just felt like he was going to make them look stupid before the game?

  8. hmmmm

    Oh you mean IAAAAn Kennedy?

  9. Ed - Yanks will be Yanks in the 2nd half!

    Rebecca, only in the minor leagues you would see a game with 10+ errors. imagine, its the big leagues? every player will be booed.

  10. Brandon (R.I.P. Pablo Martinez) (Johan HR count: *17)

    I heard Texas scouts definitely are there from another board. Can anyone confirm ?

  11. Skippy

    Rebecca, was the Uggla family playing for tge Chiefs against the Ottawa Lynx?

  12. PBL

    the dude is 23 yrs old, and was drafted 2 years ago. he has a lot of time to develop and he has the potential to be a legitimate starter for us. it amazes me how shortsighted people are. he pitches well at the end of last season and there is a crowd of people saying he can compete for the cy young this year then he doesn’t pitch well this year, gets injured and all of the sudden there is a crowd of people saying he has no major league future. it’s unbelievable, have some perspective.

  13. for real

    wow…….seriously guys? AAAA Ian? I’m glad we’re giving these kids a chance to succeed. I guess we’re all happy with Ponson and Rasner/Washburn

  14. Skippy

    tge = the

    (look before you hit submit…look before you hit submit…)

  15. Rebecca--Optimist Prime-Mo for Cy Young 08

    Skippy: Wrong franchise. The Chiefs are affiliated with Toronto.

    But IIRC, the errors were well divided among everyone.

    4-1 KC in the late innings.

  16. J-Dawg--Veintisiete en '08, (Santana's not here, he's not coming!!!!)

    The Yankees may be curious enough with Kennedy to keep him and see if he shows the same form as last year if he makes it back from the minors.

    He was terrific in his stint with the Yankees at the end of last season. He was poised, aggressive in the strike zone, and he looked as if he belonged.

    Just maybe, this demotion to the minors has served as a wake-up call and Kennedy will get it together. I honestly don’t know, but my gut feeling says that Ian will not get traded. He makes it back to the rotation and replaces Rasner, because last year’s Kennedy was much better than Rasner has ever been.

    This stint in the minors has probably done him much good from a character standpoint. Many times it does pitchers good to have to overcome adversity, and this has been Kennedy’s adversity. It’s time for him to come back and everyone exactly what he is made of.

  17. Brandon (R.I.P. Pablo Martinez) (Johan HR count: *17)

    J-Dawg I’m sorry w/ IPK I see trade bait.

  18. Someone Else

    To be perfectly honest, I’m not in love with Kennedy as a prospect. I think his ceiling is a 4.00 ERA guy.

    That said, a solid 4.00 ERA guy that is cost controlled can get a solid haul these days.

    I’d rather use a (hopefully) solid Ian Kennedy over the next three years to land 3 prospects than a ‘who knows?’ AAA Ian Kennedy as 1 of 3 prospects to land a veteran rental.

  19. tim boat

    Trading Kennedy to fill a real need like an outfield bat I can understand. But trading him for a catcher is just ridic. Why should they give up the farm for a stud catcher when Posada will be back next year? Then what do you do with Saltalamaccia or whoever. Talk about flying off the handle. If the rest of this lineup hits like it’s capable of it won’t matter who’s catching.

  20. Dan

    Rebecca,

    You sure that’s not a mistake? Wow.

    It is too bad that he has had his no hitter spoiled, but that is really inconsequential. I hope he can keep playing well, get back up to the big club, and perform at the highest level. He was terrific for the Yankees at the end of 2007 and simply brutal to open 2008. Will the real Ian Kennedy please stand up?

  21. Someone Else

    Actually, defense cost Kennedy an f-ing perfect game.

    4 errors. The 3rd error would have ended the game as a no-hitter. No walks, no hits. Wow.

  22. Rebecca--Optimist Prime-Mo for Cy Young 08

    Dan: I was at that game.

    Trust me, it wasn’t a mistake.

  23. tim boat

    To be perfectly honest, I’m not in love with Kennedy as a prospect. I think his ceiling is a 4.00 ERA guy.
    That said, a solid 4.00 ERA guy that is cost controlled can get a solid haul these days.
    I’d rather use a (hopefully) solid Ian Kennedy over the next three years to land 3 prospects than a ‘who knows?’ AAA Ian Kennedy as 1 of 3 prospects to land a veteran rental.

    Are you kidding? A 4.00 ERA guy is better than anything else the Yankees have in the back end of their rotation this year, heck it’s probably better than most of their rotations of years past. Your argument is so short sighted and full of holes I don’t know where to begin.

  24. Buddy Biancalana

    Braun just hit a bomb, damn he is good.

  25. Dan

    Yikes…even for the minor leagues, that’s something else. I might expect that for an independent league matchup, but a minor league game…wow.

  26. Someone Else

    “Are you kidding? A 4.00 ERA guy is better than anything else the Yankees have in the back end of their rotation this year, heck it’s probably better than most of their rotations of years past. Your argument is so short sighted and full of holes I don’t know where to begin.”

    Huh? What argument did I make that’s full of holes? I stated an opinion.

    A ceiling (as in, the best one can expect to be reasonably possible) is not an expectation.

  27. PJH

    Making an error one out from a no hitter/perfect game is definitely a baseball players worst nightmare

  28. Dan

    Let’s pretend his ceiling is a 4.00 ERA. Like Mr. Tim Boat has said, I’ll take that over Rasner. That would be ideal for a fifth starter. Take a look at the fifth starter’s ERAs across the major leagues and it’s probably around 5. That being said, sign me up for that. At least until Phil Hughes (hopefully) returns.

  29. DFox

    Oy, Rays rallying.

  30. Rebecca--Optimist Prime-Mo for Cy Young 08

    Dude, Soria, you’re supposed to, you know, be good

    Tampa has tying man at the plate with no out in the 9th

  31. Someone Else

    Ponson has a 4.00 ERA, and I’ve heard people whining that they’d prefer Washburn. Yeah, yeah, he gives up a lot of hits, but until those groundball hits become doubles and HRs, I think he’ll be fine.

  32. Brandon (R.I.P. Pablo Martinez) (Johan HR count: *17)

    Why should they give up the farm for a stud catcher when Posada will be back next year? Then what do you do with Saltalamaccia or whoever. Talk about flying off the handle. If the rest of this lineup hits like it’s capable of it won’t matter who’s catching.

    Because he has upside at the position, has a gun for an arm it’s just raw. There are thoughts that Georgy might never catch again, you can’t worry about him if your the GM, actually having a 2 catchers that can hit and throw wouldn’t be a bad problem to have.

  33. Brandon (R.I.P. Pablo Martinez) (Johan HR count: *17)

    Tampa has tying man at the plate with no out in the 9th

    I hope his spirit remembers what he did in the All Star Game.

  34. Pat M.

    Ian Kennedy along with Phillip Hughes will join Joba Chamberlain as planned to be 3/5 of the Yankee Rotation for many years….Unless something sick comes along then Kennedy would be moved…..This is a special trio of arms..We’ve only seen brief displays, but they were outstanding for very young and quite inexpierenced pitchers…..

  35. Brandon (R.I.P. Pablo Martinez) (Johan HR count: *17)

    Come on Soria !

  36. J-Dawg--Veintisiete en '08, (Santana's not here, he's not coming!!!!)

    Brandon: Kennedy could easily be on the way out as well. It depends on how much the Yankees want Brian Fuentes. He would probably have to be in any deal for Fuentes. It could be a moot point in a Fuentes discussion, though. Everybody says that Fuentes wants to close wherever he goes.

    On Baseball Tonight they had a phone conversation with Troy Renck from the Denver Post. He said that the Cardinals were hot after Fuentes. He could definitely close there, unless the Cards still like that deadly Russ Springer/Ryan Franklin closing tandem. :)

  37. Fredo Corleone

    “This is a special trio of arms”

    No it’s not. Kennedy is nowhere close to special. It’s a duo of special arms and Kennedy.

  38. Brandon (R.I.P. Pablo Martinez) (Johan HR count: *17)

    That’s a guy I wouldn’t deal IPK for, what the hell do we need Fuentes for at that price.

  39. raymagnetic

    I have to LMAO anytime I see that Brandon thinks that Ian Kennedy and some hack from AA can get Milton Bradley and Salty.

  40. Phil

    They cost him the no-no and the perfect game.

  41. Brandon (R.I.P. Pablo Martinez) (Johan HR count: *17)

    Ray I know it would take more than Ian Kennedy for Bradley and Salty…it could be Kennedy, Horne, Cox, Suttle and Whelan. Something like that can get it done.

    P.S. stop putting words in my post.

  42. J-Dawg--Veintisiete en '08, (Santana's not here, he's not coming!!!!)

    Brandon: I agree, I’ve never seen anything tremendous special about Fuentes in the first place. Though we all know how carried away that teams can get when they feel the need to go after lefty relievers.

  43. Pat M.

    Alright Fredo,,,I’m not certain what you consider special…But anytime a kid pitcher signs and in 12 months the blows through every class of Minor League baseball from The Hawiian Instructional to AAA and ends up pitching brilliantly last September…In fact there was an outcry last Postseson that he wasn’t on that October roster…..I refuse to get into a pissing match, but in time we’ll all know who was right on Ian Kennedy …And that goes for Hughes who has been wriiten off many times in his short tenure…..Look at the Hall of Fame and tell me how many had an immediate impact when they were first called up…..

  44. Fredo Corleone

    Pat M:

    Yo’d never see me selling out on Hughes. But Kennedy is at least a couple classes below Hughes. Stuff is ordinary. Not saying he can’t be a solid #4, but he’s not at all special at the MLB level.

  45. Dan

    By the way, Soria locked it down.

    Three games behind both Boston and Tampa Bay.

  46. Patrick Bateman

    Hopefully “the mix” is a code word for the trade market. I’d love to see this guy get his value up and shipped out of town for an impact player.

  47. Pat M.

    Let me put things into perspective…Had Kennedy stayed at USC, he would have graduated in 07 & if Hughes had accepted his USCride he would have graduated last month…..Kennedy will be a strong 4 and could even be a solid 3…..If the right deal comes by and it blows away Cashamn and his croonies, then Ian could be moved..But I just think it has to be a favorable upsided deal…..As we all know, quality pitchers are as valuable as gold or into toadys market, oil…

  48. PBL

    In reality, none of us really know how much potential kennedy has. even professional scouts are constantly wrong about these things. people say he doesn’t have great stuff, but a lot of pitchers (i.e. jamie moyer, greg maddux) have been able to have great careers without great stuff. the bottom line is he is young and talented and has a lot of time to develop. it would be foolish to give up a prospect like that unless we got something of high value back in return.

  49. Michael Kay's Worst Nightmare

    Oh Alliance Bank Stadium… which used to be P&C, before that MacArthur… oh how i miss Syracuse.

    Not the Chiefs tho… man they were horrible. :P

  50. Jaewon

    I feel for you, Mr. Basak…

    imagine what that must feel like

  51. eric

    Kennedy has no plus pitch- enough said. 4-5 guy, tops.

  52. eric

    PBL- you want to tell me Greg Maddux does not have “great stuff.” The man practically re-invented how to use a changeup, along with 2 fastball both of which move in both directions 2 feet, a show-me curve, and impeccable control. The whole “see- some guys who don’t have overwhelming stuff can be good” is flawed because how many guys with so-so stuff are ACTUALLY good. The answer is a handful at best. If you want to have a long career you need at least one plus pitch or else you’re not long for this league. Kennedy has avg pitches at best. 19 innings in Sept does not a Cy Young make.

  53. CaptainsCorner

    Kennedy was EXTREMELY rushed to the majors. He was only in the minors for 1 year and with his stuff he needs a lot longer to learn how to pitch. The great pitching prospects who are brought up after 1 year in the minors are the ones like Joba and Linoceum who throw in the high 90s, great stuff and can get by with missing there spots. Kennedy really has to pitch. If he misses his spots at all he gets hammered. Exactly what happened with him this year. No matter how well he pitches in the minors I don’t see the Yanks bringing me back this year. Or even havw him in the plans at the beginning of next year. He showed he was not ready and he needs to prove over a couple of months that he is and not scared of throwing strikes and being completely over matched.

    If the Yanks can throw him in a deal for a good pitcher or hitter that they will have for a couple of years then i would trade him. But not for someone like Fuentes who is a free agent after this year…that makes no sense.

  54. Global Warming

    Kennedy played College ball. He wasn’t rushed.

  55. Yazman (David)

    At age 23, IPK has pitched 12 games at the MLB level, 1/2 of them good, 1/2 lousy. His minor league stats this year have been very strong (1.96 ERA before tonight).

    His MLB performance this year was certainly disappointing.

    Let’s give him a chance.

    Some pitchers’ ERAs in their first 2 MLB years:

    Santana: 6.49, 4.74
    Maddux: 5.52, 5.61
    Halladay: 3.92, 10.64
    Haren: 5.08, 4.50
    Harang: 4.83, 5.28
    Rivera: 5.51 (as a 26 yo rookie starter), 2.09

    Not comparing IPK to these guys, but just reminding us that you sometimes have to be a little patient. IPK was a TOP prospect.

  56. eric in australia

    It seemed as if people were happy to overlook Kennedy when the Washburn deal arose. I still think IPK should be in the rotation next year and even this year instead of being on the hook for 10M (+ luxury tax) in 09 with Washburn.
    Youd think that Cash would learn from Pavano and Jaret Wright about committing big dollars to mediocre guys like Washburn

  57. 86w183

    Let’s face it the rush to judgement on these guys is what makes blogs go. But patient, through evaluation is what makes for better decision making. Certainly Kennedy has re-habbed his reputation with the recent performances in the minors, but it’s still a very small sample size.

    I would still include him if necessary to get a big time bat (RH) for now and beyond, but certainly not for a # 2 catcher or Fuentes.

    We need to accept a few realities here, and one of the biggest is that the Yankees are NOT in the market for a starting catcher… NOT, NOT, NOT!

    My guess is that they don’t do anything major… maybe a down the list outfielder like Jason Michaels to serve as an upgrade on Gardner/Christian but we shall see.

  58. zellyanks91

    I still have faith in this guy. I always had. I mean..you don’t go from the “control person” in the organization to a wild pitcher who walks a ton of batters. Baseball America, which is a popular prospect resource stated him as the person in the Yankees organization with the best control. This means that something was wrong. That wasn’t the same Kennedy we expected. I’m really looking foward to seeing the team give him another chance.

    Kevin

  59. Andrew

    This is going to be a stressful week for Darrell Rasner.

  60. leokitty

    eric — kennedy’s changeup is a plus pitch.

  61. leokitty

    er hit submit too soon, that being said i think he’s a #4 ceiling, but i wouldn’t trade him for a lhp relief pitcher OR a catcher right now because i think the acquisition of either is superfluous and doesn’t address any real issues on the team.

  62. Cheesyhoboe

    Uh to that guy who said that he wasn’t rushed because he was in college ball… are you serious? Do you know anything about prospects?

  63. AC

    I say stop trading talent. Kennedy can work out. Hughes can work out. The pitchers in the minors the same. I for one am excited about the possiblity of having young pitching. Also, sign sabathia in the off season. they still need that one guy.

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Peter AbrahamPeter Abraham is the Yankees beat writer for The Journal News and LoHud.com. E-mail me at pabraham@lohud.com

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