E-mail of the year (so far)
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Apr 12, 2009 
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This calm, reasoned note from Bill:
Tomorrow is a goner with Kazmir going for the Rays, and then a losing streak is likely, and then the next thing you know, April is a disaster and the Yanks are out of the race already like last season. Just win the damn games you should win and things would have been fine.
April 12 and the season is over. Nice to see the team having such good fans.
Thanks for calling him out, Pete. If you’re going to freak out about the season now, you don’t know anything about baseball
Ignorance
It’s one FAN peter. Fans is plural.
Oh well. The same guy will be on the bandwagon when they do well.
Forget this – we are all going to have to read the Joba should be in the pen columns.
Holy heck in a handbasket tell me i did not just read what I think I just read…
Chris, the sad thing is that it isn’t just one fan, it is indeed many FANS. It is so ridiculous that people are complaining so much after 5 games. Do you guys really think the Blue Jays and Orioles are going to be the top 2 teams in the AL East?
Yeah I’m waiting for the Joba belongs in the pen calls/emails/columns. We’ll hear how if Joba pitched the 8th than todays game would have been a win.
That is what you would call a bandwagoner.
Is this real? LOL – April 12 is the date the Titanic started on her maiden voyage and Fenway Park opened. Maybe that explains the fans’ angst…….holy.
Let’s just give up on the season now. It’s pointless to suit up tomorrow because they may lose. Forfeit the season now and save ourselves the grief and aggravation to come.
Chris – have you seen the game threads here?
I WISH it was just one rogue fan,lol – but its sadly not. That very attitude expressed by “Bill” appears to be rampant on this board at times.
It’s embarrassing.
Yes, Joba could have pitched the eighth, and Phil Coke could have pitched 1-6. I’m sure they would have been MUCH better off with that arrangement.
/sarcasm.
I just saw the Beckett pitch – I’m sorry, he knew exactly what he was doing. I can’t believe he wasn’t thrown out, yet Yankees pitchers have gotten thrown out for not even hitting batters. When pitchers throw at hitters heads, that’s attempted murder in my book.
From prior thread:
CB, I agree. I know I’ve been very skeptical of this offense (mainly because of problems with RISP), but I saw a lot to like in the last few games. They did a great job, even with a very depleted lineup, battling back against a good pitcher. This team is not complete without Alex and it sure misses Tex (please let it not be serious), but when they are both in the lineup, it’s going to be very good. With our SP, they should score enough. The only concern is whether they can score enough off of other teams’ good pitching (can’t keep wasting chances).
Coke is going to be very good, but these expectations for him based on 16 innings last year and ST are unfair and now people are killing him. He’s human – he’s going to struggle sometimes. These struggles could have easily been anticipated – he’s basically a rookie.
What the heck? Bill needs to run to his local pharmacist and refill his prescription of chill pills. Like right now.
I have no problem with pulling Joba and holding off on Mo, 2nd week of April. But I almost choked on my Cadbury egg when I saw Larussa Jr. pull newly minted multi-millionaire Marte for the horrible Jose Nervas.
The lefties Butler hits aren’t as good as Marte; the righties who give him trouble aren’t as crappy as Veras. He’s not taking Marte out of the park there and if he gets on, you have your best lefty turning around the next batter, not your second best lefty.
Until proven otherwise, Marte is the No. 2 arm in our pen. Unless Mo is available, he should not be pulled from a game until he’s given up at least one baserunner or he’s out of gas. Period.
It’s not the end of the world, I know, but it’s one of those ten games that’ll stick in your craw at the end of the year if things don’t go as planned.
Kazmir hasn’t pitched as well at Tropicana as he has on the road…..the Yanks can get to him and most likely it will have to be early, he has the tendency of running up the pitch count the first few innings and risking disaster then is settled in by the 3rd and will give them at least 5…..at least that was his story last year. So that’s how it may play out….I think Wang will have a great night, the defense behind him needs to deliver(Pena 3b?)
Wow. I can’t believe that e-mail. So many run-on sentences! (Actually, I feel sorry for the person who sent that. Nobody wants to be embarrassed like this, Pete.)
GB7,
Saw your reply. Thanks for that. Hope that Duncan can progress through the system like he was supposed to.
It was a tough loss today. It’s a game the Yankees should have won.
Still, they won the series in KC.
Go into Tampa and win the series and make winning series a trend and this team will be more than fine.
I liked how the team came from behind in the 7th to retake the lead although Melky’s GIDP killed a rally. At least he got the run in.
You want to hem and haw and go post how Bret Gardner (who scored the first run of the game based just on his talent) and Ransom and Coke should all be benched and not used, go right ahead.
Just makes me laugh that people focus on the smallest things on this team to get up in arms over.
Coke got smacked around. It’s going to happen.
Veras’ walk was what started it all.
The team will be fine. It’s showing the ability to come from behind in late innings something it couldn’t do last year.
Unless you believe in your heart that Toronto is running away with this thing 6 games into the season…if that’s your thinking, you need help.
I think the Yankees should forfeit the game tomorrow to preserve the already-depleted bullpen.
By forfeit I mean call up Igawa to take the start. Call up Shelly Duncan to play all three outfield positions. Whatever. Just don’t waste anyone good on a game that we cannot win.
It’s now or never.
I don’t think there will be an extended losing streak. Today was a loss, but we still played well.
With the lineup that was out there today I’m surprised the Yankees came as close to winning as they did. This rotation (as long as they stay healthy) won’t allow a losing streak to happen.
Joba looked good, the offense put forth a solid effort, and the bullpen will get better.
Horse’s ass.
The run Brett Gardner scored in the 1st, is a run no one else on this team, and very few in the league would have scored. I have never seen anyone score from 3rd on a pass ball, 4 feet from the plate. His speed is such a weapon. It’s sad that people think the wet ball had nothing to do with his throw to the plate. While he does not have a huge arm, it is certainly better than the throw he made today.
m
April 12th, 2009 at 11:31 pm
GB7,
Saw your reply. Thanks for that. Hope that Duncan can progress through the system like he was supposed to.
————————————————————
I’d like to think that this switch will help his hitting, but, can’t tell. He’s still pretty young at 24. It used to be that players were still in the minors, but, now, they’re burned out flops. He’s got a lot of power, but, now, it’s up to him to progress and show everyone that he can hit and stay healthy.
How are we gonna beat Kazmir with Wang he’s to inexperienced
1 Andy Pettitte 216 wins
2 C.C. Sabathia 118 wins
3 A.J. Burnett 88 wins
4 Mariano Rivera 68 wins
5 Chien-Ming Wang 54 Wins
Those Sox fans and their crazy emails.
Veras when he come into for his career will put the first batter on base better then 40% of the time. This is very poor managing as Girardi should know these numbers.
Come on. We’re six games into the season. And let’s assume for a second that Kazmir beats Wang tomorrow – are you saying Burnett, Pettitte and Sabathia won’t be able to pick them up? That’s the difference between this year’s team and the last few years – every single starter can be a stopper (except possibly with the exception of Wang – I’m still not sold on him being able to keep the sinker down – didn’t see it in spring or in the game vs. the O’s).
The likelihood of this team ever being in a significant losing streak is slim becuase of the talent in that rotation.
I do have to say that I think we have to win games like the one we lost today. I feel Girardi was a part of the reason we lost today. Im not going to go as far as this guy and say the season is over though..haha. Lets hope tomorrow we just show up like we did the previous 3 games.
Veras when he comes into a game will put the first batter on base better then 40% of the time. This is very poor managing as Girardi should know these numbers.
Sorry forgot a word lol
GreenBeret –
The issue with Eric Duncan is that he has holes in his swing – holes that will easily be exploited in the major leagues.
His power has not fully developed – at this point, he’d be a marginal power hitter that pitchers would exploit with relative ease. He wouldn’t hit for average, and he doesn’t take enough walks to support the rest of his game.
He’s pretty much a failed prospect at this point – playing left field is not likely to change that. Teams sometimes do put a little stock into players who can play several positions poorly, of course – but I wouldn’t count on Duncan becoming useful.
Every team, player, sport, league, organization, entertainer (or anything else you can think of) that has ever had fans has had fans who knee-jerk when things don’t go their way.
It’s always been that way, and it always will be that way.
Ironically, Peter’s reaction to the email could be considered a knee-jerk reaction, as well.
The Rays had an improved pen last year, but I am not sure if that’s going to hold this year. Get Kazmir out early (sometimes, you don’t even need to try very hard to accomplish that) and see what you can do with their pen.
And let’s never underestimate Wang – he may be a bit rusty, but he can spin one of his 8-inning, 95 pitch masterpieces at any time.
“Veras when he comes into a game will put the first batter on base better then 40% of the time. This is very poor managing as Girardi should know these numbers.”
True, but somewhat misleading. His numbers aren’t great against the first batter; the 2:1 K:BB isn’t bad, although his HR rate is a little high. The two problems come from the facts that A) We’re talking about an 84-plate appearance sample here. Impossible to draw any conclusions from that, and B) he’s got a .397 BAbip against the first batter he faces. That’s unsustainably high.
http://www.baseball-reference......;t=p#leado
“Veras when he comes into a game will put the first batter on base better then 40% of the time. This is very poor managing as Girardi should know these numbers.”
True, but somewhat misleading. His numbers aren’t great against the first batter; the 2:1 K:BB isn’t bad, although his HR rate is a little high. The two problems come from the facts that A) We’re talking about an 84-plate appearance sample here. Impossible to draw any conclusions from that, and B) he’s got a .397 BAbip against the first batter he faces. That’s unsustainably high. BAbip is dependent on luck and defense, neither of which can be blamed on the pitcher.
:: Channelling Bill Shattner ::
Knee….jerking….can’t….control…over…reaction…
Just watched a clip of the pitch that sparked the brawl. Okay, let’s give Joshie Boy the benefit of the doubt and he was in his wind up. Where was that pitch? Abreu was out of the box and he still almost hit him. He should’ve shut his trap and stayed on the mound, but HE was the aggressor. If a Yankee does that, he’s tossed. And you’ll never see a Yankee disrespect an opposing manager like that. Never.
I still smile when I see orange Gatorade coolers. And I still smile when I think of Joshie’s f-bombs in the post-season when asked about his ex-girlfriend singing the anthem.
Great, the season is over and we haven’t even played a home game yet.
The Yankees will be the last team in the majors to open at home this year.
Tomorrow is Tampa’s home opener, I wonder if the Yankees will have to watch them get their AL rings?
I’m not sure what’s worse. Bill’s dumb email or Pete criticizing an entire fan base because of one dumb email.
Pete’s not criticizing the entire fan base, he’s criticizing the numerous fans who think like Bill, and he’s spot on in doing so.
Is Bill conjoined at the hip or something? He referenced one email from one person. Then Pete used the plural of “fan”. Who are the other “fans” he’s referencing if not the entire fan base?
Kevin what about the fact that Veras throws less then 52% first pitch strikes and overall throws less then 60% strikes. Veras is not a reliever to be relied upon in a close game and to due so is poor managing.
Veras as a major league pitcher will put the first batter he faces on base 40% of the time. This is his track record.
Kevin
B) he’s got a .397 BAbip against the first batter he face
__
Where is that data available?
Granted they never ever should have lost the game today. As long as they don’t lose many more games like this one and continue to win series’ they will be fine. And I’m glad to see that it’s so easy to just give up on tomorrow’s game just because Kazmir (OMG!!!!) is pitching. Last I saw, the Yankees had a pretty damn good rotation too.
This team will actually rocket come May. What a stupid email.
Jeter in LF, Baseball Reference under Veras splits.
One of the reason Veras might have a high Babip is because he does not throw enough strikes. If he is behind in the count he has to come in with his fastball and hitters know this.
First-pitch strikes is kind of far down the line in the significance pecking order. Obviously, one would like him to throw more strikes in general, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be useful.
Again, does the phrase “Statistically significant sample size” do anything besides tickle an alliteration fetish for you? Because, if so, you’d realize that Veras doesn’t have one when it comes to first batter faced. To attempt to claim that this “track record” is indicative of what he WILL do in the future, based on 84 plate appearances, is stupid. It gets even stupider when you realize that he’s been highly unlucky with balls in play. Normalizing his BAbip down to a typical number (somewhere between .290 and .305 is generally accepted, using .293 gives us a whole number for hits) tells us that based on how he has pitched, his OBA for the first batter he faces SHOULD be .333. Again, 84 plate appearances isn’t enough to be predictive going forward, but if you insist on using it, you should at least normalize out luck.
Thanks, dan I
Jeter in LF, I tried direct linking to it, but for some reason it wouldn’t let me post.
“One of the reason Veras might have a high Babip is because he does not throw enough strikes. If he is behind in the count he has to come in with his fastball and hitters know
this.”
Please show me some shred of research that backs up this assumption at all. If strike percentage affected BAbip, then we wouldn’t say that pitchers can’t control it. We do have lots of research that says they can’t, though, so don’t just make things up and think it will fly.
Pete –
On behalf of sane, reasoned Yankee fans everywhere: do not lump us in with them. Please.
Erik
SJ
Any inside information on the surgery Tex is likely gonna need? Any possible way he can have partial surgery and come back in 6-9 weeks then have more surgery after the season?
Thanks for any insider info. you can provide
Ps your the best
Kevin I realize it’s a small sample size but it’s all we have at the major league level.
Now Veras has a career minor league whip of 1.50 for his 11 year minor league career. Veras posted a whip last year after the all star break of 1.75. I think that teams facing Veras know him and realize that you have to wait him out by making him throw strikes. If Veras can throw strikes his stuff is unhittable but he can’t do this with any regularity.
For Girardi to put Veras into that spot today was terrible managing.
If it’s all you have to go by, then you don’t have anything to go by.
Now, I’m not saying that Veras’ control issues aren’t a problem. I agree with you there. My issue was your selective use of splits, and some questionable conclusions you drew from them.
Kevin I am just pointing out that if Veras can’t throw a first pitch strike to the first batter he faces he is behind in the count and very vulnerable to issuing a BB or having to come in with a very hittable pitch. Now to me this seems reasonable.
Also, if small sample sizes don’t bother you, then why would you ignore his “track record” of having more control against righties? You should at least strive for consistency, if you aren’t going to go for accuracy.
yanksfanmc
SJ
Any inside information on the surgery Tex is likely gonna need?
__
What’s your background in radiology?
“Kevin I am just pointing out that if Veras can’t throw a first pitch strike to the first batter he faces he is behind in the count and very vulnerable to issuing a BB or having to come in with a very hittable pitch. Now to me this seems reasonable.”
OK, but that wasn’t what you were saying. You were saying that he will allow the first batter to get on base more than 40% of the times. I took issue with the predictive value of his track record there.
Kevin I am saying that If I was managing I would never want Veras on my team. I think he will be gone very soon. The more you look at Veras’ numbers the more you don’t want him.
When you say he has a high babip do you also agree that his LOB% of 82% is also high?
Bad lose for the yanks. Too bad they couldn’t sweep, that would have made up for losing the series to the O’s. But the good news is they won 2 of 3 from Royals. Most importantly we are healthy and our starters are throwing strikes with good command. Let’s learn from our mistakes and play fundametal baseball. When October comes around as long as our guys are healthy, count on it!, we will be there. Count on it! Enjoy this special season……
yanksfanmc = Troll
Kevin I don’t have data for first batter faced for Veras against lefties and righties do you?
Pete,
I’m more suprised that people actually email you with that sort of stuff.
I thought those types of comments were meant for posting on the blog, not a direct email to you.
I guess when someone has something really really really important to say, they email it to Pete, clearly.
has anyone checked on Bill to make sure he hasn’t jumped off a bridge?
Worrying about the Yankees digging another hole in April is not really something I would call ignorant. This has killed us in recent years, and the road in the coming weeks is looking long.
Sure it is early, but we have already lost several games we should have won. And as we all know, the key to a long season is winning a majority of the games you are supposed to win.
Buddy B, how was your game at San Quentin? Please share.
Did you guys hear about what should have been the 4 out play in the Dodger game? Pretty wild. From ESPN – http://espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=290412129
“Trailing 1-0 in the second, Los Angeles had Andre Ethier on third base and Juan Pierre on second with one out when Wolf hit a line drive that was caught by Arizona starter Dan Haren (0-2). He wheeled and threw to second baseman Felipe Lopez, who tagged Pierre a few feet off second base for an inning-ending double play.
Ethier was running on contact, and he crossed the plate before Pierre was tagged out. The Diamondbacks left the field, apparently thinking the run didn’t count.
But the umpires said it did after meeting with Dodgers manager Joe Torre and Arizona manager Bob Melvin — and by then it was too late for the Diamondbacks to appeal that Ethier had failed to tag up. Had they done so, they would have recorded a fourth out and erased the run.
“They could have gotten the fourth out with an appeal at third base, but they didn’t do that before leaving the field,” umpire Charlie Reliford told a pool reporter. “We had about six rules involved here.”
Torre’s bench coach, Bob Schaefer, knew the rule, and he pointed it out to Torre as the play unfolded.
“When it happened, Bob Schaefer said, ‘That’s the four-out play,’” Torre said.
Reliford said the run wouldn’t have counted if Lopez had stepped on second instead of tagging Pierre.
“If [Lopez] had touched the bag, and we determined that that was an unmistakable act of an appeal, the run wouldn’t have counted,” Reliford said. “The extra time it took Lopez to tag the runner allowed the run to score.”
Melvin did not argue the decision.
“They did get it right,” Melvin said. “That is the call: if you tag the runner at second, you have to go to appeal before you come off the field to get the runner at third.”
Wolf was credited with an RBI on the play, which was recorded as a 1-4 double play.”
Oh yeah, that “fan” is a dolt.
Whoa whoa whoa since when did Teixeira go from sore wrist to surgery?
Nick-
It was great, we lost 18-0. The guy with glasses in this trailer threw a CG SHO against us.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oav5i7ZpmUY
The whole experience was exhilarating. A couple of us had never played there before including me. I was really apprehensive but the inmates AKA the SQ Giants were really friendly & wanted us to win. We all had conversations with them, but it was hard not to think about asking them what they did to end up there.
We played in the “Yard”, which was like a scene right out of Escape from Alcatraz. There were inmates all around the field , walking, jogging, lifting weights etc… One guy actually told us he bet a case of Top Ramen that we would score a run, which cost $7.30 in “prison money”.
We lost the bet for him, our defense was terrible, but the Giants are really good, but of course they have all the time in the world to practice.
They were all really thankful for us coming in to play & they have night games planned for us in the future. All in all, a pretty cool experience.
Being only the 6th game of the season, was it really necessary to rest Damon on a day when Arod, Tex, and Posada were already out?
That’s my biggest problem with Girardi. There were already enough questionable to mediocre hitters in the lineup with Ransom, Gardner, and Molina. Adding Melky to that mix at the expense of Damon is a stupid move.
Also, why is Melky still on this team??? He’s proved over the last few years that he can’t hit in this league. Let’s cut him and bring up another reliever.
Wow, Buddy – what an awesome experience that must’ve been… and one hell of a cool story.
Buddy, thanks for that, sounds very interesting. A few months ago there was something on ESPN about a San Quentin tennis team and matches vs. a local hoity-toity tennis club. You can read about it here:
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn.....id=3847276
I’m putting on some Johnny Cash Live at San Quentin now in honor of your trip there.
Buddy.
Great story and video. Thanks for posting. Very cool.
-dennis
Buddy: Wow. I wish i got the chance to do things like that.
It was an experience that has changed me. The initial intimidation was crazy, but all the inmates have stories to tell about their lives & what they have gone through.
Awesome video Bubba, I’ll be on the lookout for that. I saw something similar about country club people coming and playing tennis against inmates. Very interesting/emotional story.
Pete, this call out is legit. And the sad thing is, there are PLENTY of fans like this. Good thing we haven’t even played our first game in the new stadium, yet the season is over. These are the kinda people that make baseball people hate Yankee fans.
And by Bubba, I meant Buddy, my bad haha.
The thing that upsets me is that Yankees have talent all over but not on the coaching bench. Girardi is a loser, he doesn’t have an idea how to coach. He should be gone after last season. What the hell was that lineup and pitcher matchups Today? Guy has no clue.
I agree with those who agree with PeteAbe on the Mo/Coke points but disagree with many aspects of Girardi’s managing today. Last year PeteAbe pointed out that the Yankees problem last year was NOT TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS AGAINST BAD TEAMS. I thought then that it was the players not showing up to play, but today we saw a lot of the same dumb stuff we saw last year–unwatchable lineups and poor use of splits. If we were playing the RS, there is no way Veras would have been put in with a one run lead. There is absolutely no reason Veras should ever be put in any game with a one run lead regardless of what hand the batter uses. Marte (or Coke) had a far better chance of getting that guy out than Veras.
We’re already a game out of first this season is over and why wasn’t Sabathia starting again today he threw 7.2 scoreless last night you gotta start that guy again, and the pen please those guys are all bums they should just release all of them and bring up Hughes to take over the 8th inning.
Tex should have just played through the pain, what a bust. This was a must win game I don’t know if they will recover from the losing streak that is comming in the next few days
All right, finally got my thoughts on paper (keyboard)
Dear Yankees’ Fans: It’s April. You don’t need to freak out. No, seriously.
http://tinyurl.com/denbfp
Well, sure. But a loss in April is no less important than a loss in September. And you do not want to lose to the Royals after a quality start with the game in hand in the eighth inning. You just don’t.
“When you say he has a high babip do you also agree that his LOB% of 82% is also high?”
Actually, his overall BAbip is a little low, and would suggest that, *overall*, he’s been lucky, yes. My point was that he’s been unlucky against the first batter he faces, and I was attempting to qualify your stat. Look, I’m fine with saying that Veras shouldn’t be pitching leveraged innings. He shouldn’t. You were using flawed arguments, though. As to your question about the lefty/righty splits against first batter faced, even if I could find them, they’d be utterly worthless, given the lack of sample size. Looking at his overall platoon splits still isn’t that reliable due to SS issues, but it is more representative than looking at first batter faced. There’s also the fact that while there’s very little evidence that pitchers do worse against the first batter by anything other than luck, there’s a lot of evidence that pitchers’ abilities different depending on the handedness of the batter, and the (limited) data we have would seem to indicate that Veras does better with righties than lefties.
abilities differ*
You guys do realize that some fans feel this way because of the experiences in recent seasons, where this team continually and consistently get off to slow starts and then have to make up those same “EARLY GAMES” in June/July/August, because in April and May they were around or below .500.
I think its just the frustration of continually having to catch up every season because of the slow starts. If this team is the real deal then let them go out there and be consistent over the course of the season. Enough of the sub .500 Aprils already.
We won 2 of 3 in KC, fair enough, but we lost 2 of 3 in Baltimore, so the KC loss stings a little bit more because of losing the series in Baltimore. If we had taken 2 of 3 in Baltimore it would have been much more easier to say whatever, because yes the goal is to win the series. Truth be told I don’t know what to expect from Wang tonight, which only makes yesterday’s loss with 2 out in the 8th, grrr.
Geezz its Kazmir . .not NOLAN RYAN .. lets calm down and hope Wangs sinker is hitting the turf ! .
i’ve never had the urge to bother Pete with an email, yet people bother him with this dribble. good lord.
if i were Pete, i’d probably do mass deletes of my inbox from anyone i didn’t recognize.
Keep up the good work Pete. You’re a better man than me…
Commenters like “Bill” are the reason I’ve largely given up on reading the comments, despite there being some really good insights from the more rational readers of this blog.
It’s only April, calm down, because, at least we aren’t in the Indians or the Nationals, who are 1-5 and 0-6, respectively. And like this article below says:
http://nyyankeesrumors.com/dud.....ill-april/
We are still producing runs, even without Teixeira and A-Rod. We are still producing runs, even with an ice-cold Matsui, Melky, Molina, and Ransom in the lineup. CALM DOWN!!!!
My only question:
Which Yankee Stadium luxury box holds Bill’s seats?
Yesterday was a bummer, but I agreed with the moves Joe was making. Who knows if Mo could have gone or not, but being a little cautious on a cold day in April with Mo is not a bad thing. I also thought that Veras got squeezed a little on two of those strikes. Gameday seemed to agree (whatever that is worth?!)
Yesterday we put up our weakest lineup yet and were still in a position to win the game…lets hope we get Tex back for at least two of these games with Tampa and Arod back near the end of the month.
IN WANG WE TRUST.
Here are some things we can count on during the 2009 season.
- Mariano Rivera will give up a few leads in the 9th inning leading to loses where the Yanks led heading into the 9th.
- EVERY member of the bullpen, regardless of overall performance, wil give up some leads that lead to a loss.
- The difference making run in losses will be put on base by WALKS… a LOT of the time.
- The Yankees will lose games on runs scored by their opponents on errors, plays that should have been made that were ruled hits, and boneheaded plays.
- The Yankeess will leave runs on base that could have made the difference in losses via bad baserunning, not advancing a runnner, leaving a guy stranded on third with less then 2 outs, hitting into rally-killing double plays, and outs made by bench players resting regulars.
- The Yankees will occasionally swept by a bad teams, and lose several series to teams with inferior records.
NONE of these things preclude the Yankees however, from winning 95 to 100 games.
ALL of these things are ALWAYS a large part of how even good teams lose 62 to 70 games a year.
No team plays “clean” baseball all year, even in losses.
Just want to say that I’m not that “Bill”; I’m cranky and churlish one not the despondent and dispirited one.