Slip sliding away
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Aug 21, 2008 
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Joe Girardi gave his nightly “I believe in my guys” speech after the game. But it lacked the usual energy. Even he knows that it’s a long shot at this point.
A five-man rotation that includes Sidney Ponson, Darrell Rasner and, yes, Carl Pavano can’t be expected to win the number of games needed to overtake Boston and Minnesota.
The Yankees also have lost the ability to win on the road. They’re 4-10 in the last 14 games away from the Bronx, getting outscored 84-53.
Good take from Hideki Matsui: “I don’t look at it as something difficult. It’s the reality right now. You have to accept it.â€
In other words, play the game the next day. Looking at the big picture is not going to help.
It’s off to Baltimore tomorrow. Mike Mussina was the lucky one, he got to fly ahead of the team and get some sleep. I would imagine he turned the game off early tonight.
———
This press release from Scranton if you’re interested in playoff tickets:
The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees will put tickets for all possible 2008 Governors’ Cup playoff games at PNC Field on sale Saturday, August 23rd beginning at 12 p.m. Fans can also charge tickets with any major credit card by calling the SWB Yankees Box Office at (570) 969-2255 or on line through Ticket Master at www.swbyankees.com. Tickets for the 2008 Governors’ Cup Semi-Finals and Finals will be on sale for $10 per ticket.
The 2008 International League Playoffs (all series are best 3 out of 5) will begin on September 3. If the Yankees finish the season in first place in the IL North, they would host Game 2 and if necessary Games 4 and 5. Game 3 would take place on September 5 at 7 p.m., Game 4 on September 6 at 7 p.m. and Game 5 on September 7 at 5 p.m.
If the Yankees finish as the IL wild card entry in the Governors’ Cup Playoffs they would host the first two games of the opening round series on September 3 at 7 p.m. and September 4 at 7 p.m. Gates will open one hour before first pitch of all potential Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees 2008 Governors’ Cup playoff games.
If the Yankees win the opening round of the playoffs and advance to the Governors’ Cup Finals, the team would be at PNC Field for Games 1 & 2 of the Governors’ Cup Finals on September 9 and 10 with both games starting at 7 p.m.
OX -
Arod, Abreu, Posada, Cano, and MO all gave their support of the deal to acquire Santana.
Posada and MO’s deals got done right around that time and they commented on it. Posada said we needed a #1 –
http://www.nj.com/news/index.s.....o_get.html
Cano advocated it too – http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com.....8;c_id=nyy
Abreu commented as well – http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com.....y=news_nyy
Couldn’t find the links for Arod, but I remember he was asked about him during his conference call when he signed his new contract. If someone can find that, it should be there.
MO advocated the trade as well after he signed his extension
Throwing the same lineup out there every night is not gonna change things.
Damon is not a CF
At this point there is nobody to blame except Cashman. He should be fired when we miss the playoffs.
Isn’t Michael Phelps in Baltimore now? He already left Bejiing.
Bob nice well thought out comments and your point is they are suppose to make the playoffs forever? How many years straight? 20, or 25? How many years?
another foolish fan, don’t worry bob you have a lot of company.
Peter yeah Girardi is suppose to tell you the truth ; giambi stinks, arod is a lunatic, there pitching stinks, and they have no players with any clutch ability.. All managers say the same rah rah BS, you have to believe blah blah blah, the offense has blown this season and they should make changes in rf, cf, and 1b for next year, not real complicated….
I can’t wait to see what Johnny does in CF tomorrow.
I called this on August 3rd when Joba hurt his shoulder. This team is dead I hope we just fade quickly so I can focus on football already. It would be best if that game against the Sux next week didn’t mean much. I am a Twins fan down the stretch this year. The problem with this team is 1) Devastating injuries,2) Players headed for free agency who have given up,3) Young players not living up to the hype. Thats it in a nutshell the 08 Yanks.
Girardi is in BIG trouble after this season
How hard can it be to put together a decent team with 200+ million dollars? There’s no way around it, Cashman has done an absolutely awful job. If Billy Beane were the Yank’s GM, we’d have a way better team. I wonder what it would take to get Beane away from the A’s.
Who needs to go? Giambi, Pavano, Pudge, Abreu??, Cano(for the right price)and IPK.
Cash/Hal have a lot of work to do this off-season… signing CC to a mega-contract won’t be enough.
AL, nobody should be untouchable this off-season aside from Joba and the untradeable guys (Jeter, Arod, MO, Posada etc.).
Cashman needs to explore every deal out there. Whether it is to dump veteran players or acquire young players. No stone should be left unturned.
A-Rod looks like God in odd numbered years. At least were looking at a big 09 from the A-bomb.
“AL, nobody should be untouchable this off-season aside from Joba and the untradeable guys (Jeter, Arod, MO, Posada etc.).
Cashman needs to explore every deal out there. Whether it is to dump veteran players or acquire young players. No stone should be left unturned.”
I absolutely agree man. A lot needs to be fixed on this team.
Yeah BIlly Beane is a god.. The A’s have not won a playoff series in most of our shrewd posters life’s and this years high powered A’s offense is the envy of all baseball. . the frank thomas and emil brown 3 and 4 hitters scare the heck out of AL pitchers…
Yeah Billy Beane has snookered more into believing his hype, he can find pitchers but name the last good hitter they had? It has been 7 years since they developed any hitter….
Yeah, Beane is great. His team wins every year despite the lower budget they have. Right? Just like your handle, clueless.
Hank speaks… again.
“Most of the national media is full of Yankee haters.”
“That’s why I have to point out the injuries,” Steinbrenner writes in his column in the magazine’s relauch issue, dated Sept. 1. “Because the media sweep that under the rug and say we’re playing poorly.
“But next year, in a new stadium, we’ll be much better.”
“We’ll add players,” Steinbrenner writes. “We’re gonna be very tough (next season).”
http://www.nypost.com/seven/08.....125470.htm
Well at least it will be an exciting hot stove this winter.
I feel like for some reason Cashman gets a pass from some fans, media and a “we are like family” pass from ownership. He has been with the Steins for so long that even if they thought he did a decent job they would bring him back because they are comfortable with him and it would be easier then bringing in someone new. Cashman has been given WAY too much money to build a team and he hasn’t done a good job the last couple of years. It is time for someone new. His free agent pitching signing have been horrible and inexcusable.
Getting rid of people to just get rid of them is foolish.
If Cano & Abreu go, who plays 2nd base and RF? I’m not saying that they DEFINITELY need to be here next year, but who are their replacements?
“Hank speaks… again.
“Most of the national media is full of Yankee haters.â€
“That’s why I have to point out the injuries,†Steinbrenner writes in his column in the magazine’s relauch issue, dated Sept. 1. “Because the media sweep that under the rug and say we’re playing poorly.
“But next year, in a new stadium, we’ll be much better.â€
“We’ll add players,†Steinbrenner writes. “We’re gonna be very tough (next season).—
Hanks speaks the truth. No team could have survived these injuries. The above statement basically means CC and Tex get ready for some big money.
Couple of random thoughts:
Girardi changed the line-up regularly for most of the season and was royally criticized for it. Now he’s using a consistent line-up and being royally criticized for it. Funny thing is, it doesn’t matter anyway. They all stink, so what’s the difference what order they go up there? Strike out, GIDP, or pop up, does it really matter in what order?
I feared the season was lost when Wang got hurt. I knew the season was lost when Joba got hurt. So why do I keep watching? I don’t really know, but I guess that’s what fans do. This season has been like one long heroin addiction. Started fun, developed into a problem, and now it’s killing me but I can’t stop.
Everyone seems to need to place blame. It’s nobody’s fault. All teams get old and need to revamp from time to time. We all knew 2008-2009 was going to be a rebuilding period, or at least we should have known. Look at the bright side, at least Cashman and Girardi seem to have a vision. It may be good or bad, but there is a plan. Teams like Baltimore and Pittsburgh have been rudderless for years!
Agreed. The hardest part about this is that it’s happening in the Stadium’s last season. That and the team not having missed the postseason since 1993/94 (including the strike year). Sorry to see them close out the old house this way, but baseball and life don’t always work out the way one would hope. In the meantime, one game (no matter how badly played) at a time.
Random good things I take out of this calamitous mess of a season: Moose 2.0 (ace redux and braniac dreamboat); Mo (ageless, peerless, and just about flawless); the bullpen (young, cheap, and on the rise); Chien Ming Wang (absence makes the heart grow fonder); the X-Man (gamer); Godzilla (gamer); Sir Sid (rough time tonight, but has more than done his job); the Core (the shortstop, the closer, the catcher and the big lefthander – OLD SCHOOL); Phil (still think he can do it); and Joba (no explanation necessary). There are more, but it’s late. BlogMaster Pete: thanks for enduring the substandard service horror that is all things Rogers to keep this site informative and very entertaining. As always, you rock. Nighty night.
“Agreed. The hardest part about this is that it’s happening in the Stadium’s last season. That and the team not having missed the postseason since 1993/94 (including the strike year). Sorry to see them close out the old house this way, but baseball and life don’t always work out the way one would hope. In the meantime, one game (no matter how badly played) at a time.”
Indeed very sad to see the stadium go out with a wimper, but thats baseball. This will teach us Yankees fans to appreciate the playoffs hopefully this years futility lights a fire in this team next year.
Hey Pete
If you really want to rub it into the doomsday Yankees fans… then check this out.
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.....pid=467798
Don’t look now but Jose Tabata is KILLING THE BALL for the Bucs. Looks like getting traded lit a fire under that boys ass.
“Don’t look now but Jose Tabata is KILLING THE BALL for the Bucs. Looks like getting traded lit a fire under that boys ass.”
I’d still rather have Nady. Tabata showed a lack of caring and that is the last thing you want from a prospect. I’ll sit back on my laurels and wait for Ajax.
You’re nuts. Looks like he cares plenty as that trade really seems to have him on fire. Like he wants to prove some people wrong. Those numbers are insane. He’s back to stealing bases and everything.
Hal speaks too.
http://www.newsday.com/sports/.....649.column
Hank and Hal both need to put their money where their mouths are this off-season.
I’M GOING F’N NUTS HERE !!! Hank saids season over we’ll be better next year…Hal sayin “I believe in you keep gutting it out !”
WTF DO I BELIEVE..WHAT ! God please tell me Hal runs this ship ! That way I know rebuilding starts sooner instead of later.
You mean Hank brandon? or Hal? lol
your all moronic. First of all there arent major changes that need to be mad they are minor compared to teams with the same record i.e. the rangers. The yanks need a front of the rotation starter and a 1B. Blaming Damon for his play in CF is also not th reason this team will miss the playoffs, its just one of those years thats not meant to be, too many players having bad years just like last year when many players had career years.
I agree with the statement made about this season being like a heroine addiction… At least I get to see Pavano pitch Saturday live? Last year I went to see them play Baltimore and it was a game in which Pettite blew… Joba was an unbelievable reliever (that did not pitch in this game).. Duncan homered.. We had at least an 8-run comeback… it was good.. So I hope for at least a Pavano no-no or maybe if not him Rasner sunday… (if you do not realize I am being sarcastic you are probably one who also believes that we are making the playoff’s this year). At least I have a shot at maybe seeing the Jete 2,500 hit? (bearing an ofer tomorrow night..) Or maybe a Pavano strike out? I wonder if there is some sort of Innings pitched to injuries attained ratio? Pavano would have to be leading that… Maybe I will be one of the fortunate people to see Pavano get through 6 without an injury.. Whatever happens.. It’s going to be a good Yankee’s baseball weekend..
I doubt we sweep Baltimore.
you and i both…
“…Even Girardi knows it’s a long shot at this point.”
Huh?
It was a long shot a month ago, Peter.
Now?
Fuggeddaboutit
“Joe Girardi gave his nightly “I believe in my guys†speech after the game.”
Even Yankees suck,he always says the same words.
Don’t cheat yourself,Joe.
Fire this guy…trade that guy…Yankee fans on THESE boards calling each other idiots and what not. Know what I call it as a Yankee fan since the 60′s? People that aren’t old enough to deal with the fact that you are going to go through this as a fan of this team. Toronto has been playing very good baseball over the last few weeks. Them beating up on the Yankees in this series past is no surprise to me at all. And yeah, I know the Jays hosted some patsies such as the Oakland A’s…but people on OUR TEAMS BOARD here are calling for Billy Beane? GIMME A BREAK! I’m not going to crucify Cashman…there are far more people than him alone that got us into this mess in the first place. If you are a fan…a TRUE FAN of this team…be prepared for the losing as well as the winning. And for Christ’s sake…wear that shirt and/or that hat like you are PROUD of being a Yankee fan. Stop trying to solve things you can’t possibly solve. We have 26 World Titles! I bet if we had 50 people would still be whining. it makes me so digusted when I see all the negativity here. Are we Yankee fans or what? If the season is done with…it’s done with…we’ll be fine. I’m not happy about it either. But as a life-long fan…I love the Yankees…and I can tell you this witout reservation…when I go for my dirt nap…my Yankee hat will be with me! Let’s just keep rooting for them and hope for the best.
We are 9-15 since the day of the so-called “House Money Game” in Boston by everyone in here…yep, that’s right, 9-15 since we mailed in that game. Habits are addictive.
I’m just seriously baffled how Giardi can keep putting Giambi out there night after night in the 5 hole.
It’s just mind boggling to me.
Maybe Giambi has naked pictures of Girardi’s wife or something. This is borderline self destructive.
I know Arod is playing like a mental patient and doing nothing, but Giambi has done nothing for months and he’s still right there in the 5 hole.
I understand why you don’t drop Arod — you stand a better chance he does something positive than Giambi.
If Giambi’s not going to be here next season why in God’s name is anyone in this organization trying to show him respect and cow tow to his reputation?
Seriously. I can’t fathom it.
If I were Cashman and the Steins, I’d waive Giambi tomorrow, give him his 5 million buyout and call it a day so I can stop Girardi from this madness.
This is akin to making Melky Cabrera your 5 hitter. It just makes no sense.
I look at it and I wonder are they intentionally trying to throw games or something? Seriously. I’m at that point in this season where I’m seeing conspiracy theories.
From all accounts in the press, the veterans on the team came to management/Girardi and expressed dissatisfaction with all the lineup changes.
Why would he listen and let the inmates run the asylum? He took a huge step back as manager and a huge step back as far as power in that locker room when listened to the vets about the lineup.
He should have to told them to shut up and play and if they don’t like it, they can sit.
I would dump Giambi and call up that Miranda kid who can hit with RISP and has some pop.
If Girardi can’t stop himself from using this louse in the 5 hole, then someone in management needs to do it for him.
6 games behind Boston with 6 games against them doesn’t mean the season’s over.
But seriously, why is Girardi all of a sudden managing like he’s going down with the ship/vets who don’t deserve this kind of respect.
I’m down on him as manager. I’m down on the front office. I’m down on the players with a few exceptions.
What a garbage year and a colossal waste of time and money this year.
It’s one thing if we were challenging and getting beaten by better competition, but we’re not. This team has quit on themselves, each other, their manager and NY.
Pathetic.
A-Rod always can’t defeat the better pitchers,and Giambi can’t either.
1.Damon:(old but do his best)(worry his defend)
2.Jeter:(old but do his best)(often play DP)(expensive)
3.Bobby:(old but at least remain his level)(expensive)
4.A-Rod:(can’t get scores at the right moment)(expensive)
5.Giambi:(old)(serious toward games but decline)(expensive)
6.Matsui:(old but always do his best)(worry his injury)
7.Cano:(loose and has a terrible season)(may be to set too high a value upon his ability)
8.I-Rod:(old and decline)
9.Posoda:(old and decline)(seem need to strengthen his communication with pitchers)
10.Gardner:(young but has potential and momentum)
11.Nady:(good and useful)
12.Pettitte:(old but has a rigid will to battle for win)
13.Mussina:(old but has intense self-esteem to battle for win)
14.Joba:(good so far but still need to observe)
15.Rasner:(not good enough for a start pitcher )
16.Britton:(terrible)
17.Bruney:(so so)
18.Marte:(so so)
20.Ramirez:(sometimes good,sometimes bad)
19.Robertson:(young but has potential)
20.Traber:(terrible)
21.Veras:(sometimes good,sometimes bad)
22.Wang:(always do his best to win but fortuitous instable)
23.Hughes:(has a terrible season)(young and has potential but need much time to steel himself)(not ready on mlb yet)
24.IPK::(has a terrible season)(may be to set too high a value upon his ability)(always said too much but couldn’t prove himself)
25.Giese:(good but not enough to be a Yankees starter)
Decisions Decisions!
Giambi – Wave Bye bye. Do not offer arbitration unless he agrees to decline it.
Abreu – Offer arbitration so we get 2 draft picks for him
Pettite – Offer arbitration. probably resign him to 1 year deal. He keeps saying he wants to pitch in the new stadium.
Moose – Same deal as Pettite.
Pavano – I think we all know the answer to that one.
Marte – Need to keep him. He deserves another chance. Offer arbitration.
Damon – Shop him. Might be tradeable, even if they have to pick up some salary.
Betemit – Dump him. He’s useless.
Matsui – Keep him. DH + split time in LF.
Pudge – See Giambi
Did I leave anyone out?
The main problem with the Yanks,as I see it,is that there is no leadership from the owners.The following yes men seem to be always elbowing themselves into a position of power.And thats what I believe is happening at the top levels,a power struggle.It would be best,and will probably come true,that the Steins will establish hugh profit margins with the new(and totally unnecessary)Stadium, and then sell the whole kit and kaboodle,when Papa spins off this mortal coil.Greed will dictate this decision,as the heirs will not want to pay the hugh inheritance(sp) tax,and will go happily into retirement.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: make a deal with someone to trade A-Rod and get 3-4 MLB-current/ready studs who are young, under salary control for 2+ years, to get younger and better. The Yanks need a transformational move, and this is it. It’s the only chip currenly on the roster not named Chamberlain that can do that.
^^I’m with Paulie. I think the Yanks should have stuck with their original guns and not re-signed him once he opted out. The albatross that is ARod AND his contract is beginning to show.