A-Rod’s impact comes in record, not stats
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on May 25, 2009 
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I started looking at some numbers assuming that the return Alex Rodriguez must have had a significant impact on the offense. Not so much. Check it out:
FIRST 28 GAMES
Record: 13-15
Runs: 158 (5.64)
Team batting: .275/.356/.463.
LAST 17 GAMES
Record: 13-4
Runs: 96 (5.64)
Batting: .277/.341/.515.
Who would have guessed that? But what has changed is that the Yankees are a more confident team offensively. That flurry of walk-off wins is evidence. I realize, of course, that there are dozens of variables including the pitchers they faced, the opponents, the ballparks, injuries, etc. But it surprised me that the offense stats were basically the same. The pitching obviously has improved, that’s why they’re winning.
I would bet the averages with RISP has changed. I need to crunch those numbers when I get a chance.
What counts is the record and the Yankees have been on a tear since getting their third baseman back. Plus he’s turned Mark Teixeira back into Mark Teixeira.
UPDATE, 9:38 p.m.: A ha!
RISP without Alex: 66 of 268 (.246).
RISP with Alex: 46 of 136 (.338).
Alex’s RISP: 7 of 19 (.368).
While Alex has hit in the clutch, the rest of the team is 39 of 117 (.333). His presence clearly has made a big difference. The lineup is settled, Teixeira is so much better, etc.
It’s strange to think that A-rod’s most successful attribute has been clutch hitting.
Viva A-Rod!
The ONLY record that counts is the 13 wins 4 losses. The attempt to diminish ARod’s impact since his return is deluded. Or a continuing sniping away, which is more than a little pathetic.
Interesting observations. The only difference I see is a little more SLG which makes sense considering A-rod has hit a bunch of HRs. I wonder what the difference in hitting with RISP has looked like?
A Rod is back to 2007 form. It’s amazing how every other year he is outstanding. Oh and the in between years he puts up stats that almost any player in the league would die for. A Rod is amazing to watch right now.
Just ask Mark Teixeira how much impact ARod has.
The guys may be producing the same offensive numbers, but it’s *WHEN* they are getting the hits that has changed. Do a comparison of their RISP numbers before and after A-Rod returned. I bet that is where you see the difference.
13-4 is great. awesome in fact. but the biggest thing we should take away from these past 17 games is that we do not lay down and die. we fight back, especially late in games. the scoring in the 7th, 8th, and 9th innings is a very good sign and a stark contrast to last season.
David
May 25th, 2009 at 8:32 pm
It’s strange to think that A-rod’s most successful attribute has been clutch hitting.
====
Except good pitching creates clutch hitting. Give Alex pitching from 2004 on and he is a clutch hitter.
Vrsce:
Read the most again. I said I was surprised the numbers were the same because I assumed there would be a greater disparity. I also credited Alex’s return for their improved record.
If you want to make a foolish comment, good. But read the post first. I’m not belittling Alex. I’m saying I’m surprised the run production is the same because he has been so great since he got back.
There is really no point in doing this thing some days.
“Just ask Mark Teixeira how much impact ARod has.”
This just in: Mark Teixeira has announced that he will be naming his next born son Alexander Rodriquez Teixeira.
The key statistic is hitting with RISP. That metric is up considerably since he returned. Right now the team is batting .268 with RISP. I dont have the numbers as of the date Baltimore returned, but I am confident they were considerably below that and could have been as low as .230 or so.
wow… thats amazing, never would have guessed! Great state work Pete/Elias
Peter A.
Upon reading your response to my post, I took your advice and reread your comments.
You are correct, I apologize. I will be more careful in future and not jump to conclusions.
Once again. I am sorry.
What was that line attibuted to Vin Scully, relating drunks, lamposts, and statistics?
Personally, I think Alex’ return has had a marked impact, for whatever reason. Maybe it is in hitting with RISP. I look forward to Pete’s number crunching. However, the most important numbers are the W-L.
I’m looking forward to Joba tomorrow. Hope his knee is OK.
Swisher was an MVP candidate for the first month AND we had Posada who was mashing the ball.
Now Swisher is hitting .220 and Posada has missed the past 3 weeks. Not surprising that the offense has stayed the same.
The more I think about it, today was probably the best the team has played all year. Dominating starting pitching, great hitting, no mistakes in the field. It was really fun to watch, especially when Hughes is the starter
The offense doesn’t need to mash so much when you’re getting solid starting pitching, which the Yankees have finally been getting.
Good Lord VRSCE, grow up. Nowhere in this post was Pete belittle Arod. in fact he was giving him credit for having the team play the way they are. You are to worried about someone insulting Arod that you arent even smart enough to read through the post before you respond with your nonsense. And if you did read it before you posted, then i would say reading comprehension is not your specialty
The numbers may be similiar but the composition of where they came from has changed drastically in the last 17 games.
Posada, Matsui and Swisher accounted for 51 RBI in the first 30 games. No Posada and diminished production from Matsui and Swisher has resulted in 7 RBI in the last 17 games.
Have to agree, Patrick.
Running on all cylinders this afternoon – impressive, since they had a quick turnaround after traveling and spent yesterday afternoon under the sun as well.
But of course, it all starts and ends with pitching, and Hughes was very sharp.
Here’s hoping things go in a positive direction for PA, as well as the Yankees.
“Peter A.
Upon reading your response to my post, I took your advice and reread your comments.
You are correct, I apologize. I will be more careful in future and not jump to conclusions.
Once again. I am sorry.”
haha. What a bottttch!
No doubt about it RISP averages have changed dramatically.
I’ve been hard on Alex and was in favor of not resigning him, but there’s no doubt that he has helped the team this season.
Of course the pitching has gotten better, but everything else can probably be linked to Alex. Fewer errors, better hitting, better fielding, better clutch hitting.
Amazing to think that he was getting by with a bad hip last season, and we couldn’t even tell.
Just seeing Phil limping around after that offspeed pitch to Tex still scares the heck out of me.
CP,I would say reading comprehension is not your specialty either as VRSCE went back and apologized to Pete
A-Rod in the line-up even not hitting makes it SO much stronger. If I remember correctly coming into today he was at .200 with an OBP of .381!! That is some SERIOUS respect by opposing pitchers. Not only are they not throwing to him, they’re giving Teix MUCH better pitches to hit which is evidenced by his hot hitting now.
The line-up went from a 3 hitter Teix in a big slump to a clean-up hitter of the day and now it is a RED-HOT Teix because of all the extra strikes + fastball for strikes he’s seeing with a #4 hitter in A-Rod that obviously no one wants to face (judging by the .200/.381)
Er, how about this:
First 30 Games: 5.88 ERA
Last 17 Games: 3.53 ERA
A-Rod has really inspired the pitchers, I guess…
Correlation != Causation
Hitting with RISP isn’t a key statistic because the sample size is always going to be too small to be meaningful. It’s a record of what’s happened, not an indicator of what will likely happen in the future like the “better” stats are.
One more thought about Alex – I bet Cano hits 5th for the time being. Someone who scares the pitchers would be tremendous for Alex and the Yankees, and right now, Matsui ain’t doing it.
soon Jorge will be back and maybe Nady. Swish and Matsui?
m, I just played the Lakers plus 4 1/2 points….This is their 5th game in 9 days, so fatigue may come in to play….However they can take 3-1 lead and wrap it up Wednesday at Staples…..
Uncle,
W/Jorge adding more OPS, we are going to be way dangerous. Alex has already given new context to the rest of the lineup. Jorge in there is just going to give opposing pitchers headaches throughout our lineup.
I think the biggest factor is arod’s presence. Even though arod was batting in the 180’s at one point, he makes pitchers pay attention to him because one mistake could lead to a homerun. You could make the argument that everyone of arod’s hits were in “big” situations. I will never forget this past weekend when we were playing the phils. One of my friends said that arod was going to strike out against lidge and alex ends up smacking a 2 run jack in the seats. Afterwards i made him put barbecue sauce on his crow.
Bodi
But they are too old, don’t hit in the clutch and are overpaid! And the defense stinks!
O/T: what an incredible day in the city today. Took my 1-year-old for his first trip to Central Park.
New York, New York. A place so nice, they named it twice.
yankees are also 3rd in al with fewest errors.
Uncle Ellsworth
May 25th, 2009 at 9:03 pm
Bodi
But they are too old, don’t hit in the clutch and are overpaid! And the defense stinks!
====
And have we mentioned that the Red Sox DEVELOP their pitching, while the Yankees have to PAY FOR OTHER PEOPLE’S PITCHING, like today, for instance…oh, wait…
Seriously Bodi
The impact of the C&C boys should not be overlooked either.
“yankees are also 3rd in al with fewest errors.”
Partially because we have a SS that can’t get to balls that most SS reach with ease.
Joba tomorrrow with burnett on wed. I think burnett is do for a win.
Ya mean, players we actually developed in our system now raking on our roster?
Is that even allowed?
Hey Pete,
Thinks to take into account:
Tex going from zero to hero;
Swisher going from hero to zero;
Posada going from catcher to DL;
Melky/Gardner going from nothing to something;
A-Rod, defensively, has been a huge upgrade–mostly because Pena has been allowed to spell Jeter/Cano instead, and A-Rod’s defense is actually fairly good (though the reputation is bad). Offensively, he’s been good, but he’s also got several *lead changing hits* which have a large affect on win-loss record.
Glad to have you back,
Will
bodhisattva – OPPC member
May 25th, 2009 at 9:08 pm
Ya mean, players we actually developed in our system now raking on our roster?
Is that even allowed?
Accidents will happen – the blind squirrel you know
Thats a pretty good thing though isn’t it? He hasn’t been a distraction team-wise since his return, he’s been an addition. Thats what I was hoping for from him.
His contribution via gaudy stats will come. He’s just on the cusp of looking like his usual A-Rod self, which can only be an excellent thing for the tea. It’s good to acknowledge that his return has been good for the Yankees as a team though, and not a negative.
bodhisattva – OPPC member
Wait a minute. The Red Sox develop their own pitching?
You mean like Beckett (Marlins), Matsuzaka (Japan), Smoltz, Penny, and Wakefield (Pirates!)?
The Yankees have Wang, Hughes and Pettitte. And in their bullpen they have Yankee prospects and then pitchers who never made it in their own organizations. Not exactly FA guns who came in to dominate.
Lol. The talking heads will have to genuflect at some point. That will be a fun spectacle.
“What was that line attibuted to Vin Scully, relating drunks, lamposts, and statistics?”
“Statistics are used much like a drunk uses a lamp post: for support, not illumination.”
http://www.baseball-almanac.co.....otes.shtml
Lots of great Scully quotables there.
TEAM I meant, not tea. Joe Torre is no longer in the dugout these days, haha.
Hughes now has a lower ERA than Burnett.
AJ is currently the weak link on the staff, he needs to step up.
Angel:
It makes me think about how Kay,Phillips and others said that the steriod scandal was too much for alex to handle because he wants to be liked and blah blah blah……
Just got in. What a disappointment to see the Twins almost did it but couldn’t quite make it. But oh boy what fun to see that the crapper gave up another dinger!!!! Can’t wait to see the highlights of that.
Only got to read Angel’s comment about Arod so far but it made me delight in the thought that Selena Roberts is somewhere likely very unfulfilled!
Karma is a blitch!
Nice game by our boys.
I’m almost thinking of going and picking up Phil Hughes for my fantasy team!
Gotta go back out for a while. Life’s tough when you don’t have a job. He he
Interesting. As some of the posters above have noted, it’s probably due to Swisher and Posada contributing a lot before A-Rod’s return, and subsequently producing nothing, thereby evening things out.
So, more than A-Rod coming back or Tex getting hot (both of which are important), the recent surge has been helped by the improvement in pitching, both from the SPs and the RPs.
Hey Selena Roberts – tip this!
Later
arod is showing that he is the best player in the game.
if he played all year he would lead the planet in hr & rbi.
his average jumped 70 something points today.
but as somebody mentioned it is the pitching that is making the difference.
Funny. They say that living well is the best revenge. In A-Rod’s case maybe playing well is the best revenge.
I think also the fact that Selena Roberts’ book bombed has played a role too. If it had contained anything of interest, that might have been a distraction for the team. Luckily, the team was not distracted by the fact that Alex leaves bad tips at Hooters.
If the runs per game is identical, how different is the RISP really going to be?
What I’d be curious to see is a comparison between the pitching Before Alex and After Alex. What was the staff ERA/WHIP before and after? What about broken down between starters and the bullpen? What out how deeo starters are going into games?
Maybe that should all be broken down by catcher too, for the various Truther Societies.
Tex should give Alex a very nice gift basket.
This one is nice, it comes in a nice tote bag:
http://tinyurl.com/o5ub2s
damon needs to get on burnett to step it up??
if he can get on hughes who makes five hundred thousand a year he could get on burnett who makes 16 million a year.
How did they get a 13-15 record in 30 games? 2 no decision?
Will Moller
May 25th, 2009 at 9:14 pm
bodhisattva – OPPC member
Wait a minute. The Red Sox develop their own pitching?
You mean like Beckett (Marlins), Matsuzaka (Japan), Smoltz, Penny, and Wakefield (Pirates!)?
The Yankees have Wang, Hughes and Pettitte. And in their bullpen they have Yankee prospects and then pitchers who never made it in their own organizations. Not exactly FA guns who came in to dominate.
====
I am sorry, Will. You will have to be terminated.
Wang is NOT an ace,
Hughes is over rated, and should be pitching on Minnesota’s triple A team
And Pettitte is a holdover from glories past
Lol. But Lester is a good pitcher they developed, to be fair. Same with Papeljuice.
I’m not even disputing that they have a decent development program, but that’s not really the point. When you’re told by ESPN that Lowrie is a “budding star,” it gives you pause.
Meanwhile, you can bank on the qualifiers never ending, when it comes to the Yankees. If and when we win it all, we’ll hear how we have the money, so we can afford to waste huge bonuses on high risk players, and we can just outbid everyone for FAs like CC, Teix and AJ.
Ho-hum.
So who is confident that Jorge can stay healthy? His bat in the lineup is clearly helpful, but I do have my doubts about his durability at this point.
And Hughes did look spectacular today. He’s got great stuff when he’s on.
VT Yankeefan,
2 rainouts.
I think the few things you have to account for though is Cano is starting to heat up but was red hot to start the year and had cooled off. Posada was around and producing. Jeter went into a miny slump for a while. Swisher was hot. Since all these guys cooled off, Arod, Tex and Melky have made the vast improvements to the lineup. The bottom 3 of the order was also becoming an easy inning for most teams. Arod’s balance to the rest of the lineup, lengthening the offense. He’s also not solely responsible for Tex’s production, but he certainly has helped.
It’s all about the pitching if Alex is hitting but if he isn’t, it’s all his fault.
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
yes, damon should get on burnett if he gets bombed in texas on wednesday
i mean, if he can do it to hughes, why not AJ?
great seeing a farm hand have a great performance, I hope Hughes is here to stay and consistantly has solid performances….we don’t know if Wang will ever be the same, a little deflating watching his relief performance against Philly..Great job Phil
ngel:
It makes me think about how Kay,Phillips and others said that the steriod scandal was too much for alex to handle because he wants to be liked and blah blah blah……
************************************************
They obviously missed that he’s fairly used to being disliked regardless of where he goes. Perhaps its helped him deal with this kind of adversity. It also seems that he’s getting a lot of needed support from his team mates. As long as your team is on your side, they’re they ones that matter day in and day out.
He’s hopefully smart enough to realize the way you shut people who say things like that about you, is to put your head down, don’t throw them any bones – and play your heart out.
Trisha – I picked him back up during his last start
Luckily, the team was not distracted by the fact that Alex leaves bad tips at Hooters.
******************************************************
LOL.
I think Hooters food is overpriced and the girls at the one closest to here look like horses. Well endowed, over tanned horses, but horses nevertheless.
“He’s hopefully smart enough to realize the way you shut people who say things like that about you, is to put your head down, don’t throw them any bones – and play your heart out.”
That seems to be what he’s doing. I wonder how much Girardi has to do with A Rod’s public demeanor right now. He’s doing his best to stay out of the spotlight; I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that Girardi sat him down and really hammered into him how to behave. A Rod seems like the type whereby if you can appeal to his ego, and explain how much the team needs his productivity, you could get him to do just about anything.
I’m very pleased with the errorless streak as well – the defense has been much better this year (thanks not just to Tex, but Cano as well).
It’s astounding the impact Alex has had on this team. The HR he hit seems almost to have lifted the cloud that was hanging over the…The scary thing is that Alex is still in his ST mode – imagine how good he’ll be when he’s worked the rust off? He’s healthier now than he’s been in awhile -that’s another scary thing that the AL will have to deal with. Lastly, Alex seems relaxed and happy – being with his teammates has made a difference (plus being out in Colorado and finding some sort of peace).
“I think Hooters food is overpriced and the girls at the one closest to here look like horses. Well endowed, over tanned horses, but horses nevertheless.”
Strangely, I’ve never been to Hooters. Getting served food by large chested women just didn’t appeal to me. Now if they want to create a restaurant where all of the waiters look like Nick Markakis, I’ll eat there every night and twice on Sunday.
There is one other personnel change that coincides with the dramatically improved team won-loss record: Molina going to the DL. When Posada got hurt, we lost three in a row with Molina starting. The Baltimore game that marked Arod’s debut was Cervelli’s as well.
Evidently, the change behind the plate hasn’t hurt the pitching. Cervelli’s relative speed has also helped the offense in key spots in ways that do not necessarily show up in stats.
I’m not looking forward to a slow-footed lineup with Posada at DH and Molina as the regular C.
I think what we’re watching is Alex the ballplayer and not A-Rod the entity….We spoke of this after his ped revelation….It appears that Alex has decided to become one of the guys now that the weight of the failed test is off his shoulders……
Betsy, how come you are always crossing out what you say? Do we need to get you an edit button?
“A Rod seems like the type whereby if you can appeal to his ego, and explain how much the team needs his productivity, you could get him to do just about anything.”
For about a week.
He’s an original, I’ll say that much. One of a kind in many respects. Girardi can’t “dutch uncle” this guy, he does what he wants. Just hope he wants to play ball this year instead of being a celebrity. Early indications are that he will be the devoted teammate in ‘09. Hope so for all concerned.
10-8 Tampa, 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th.
Don’t underestimate the impact a big time hitter has on a pitching staff. It makes them more confident that they can get away with a few mistakes and helps them be more relaxed.
Another thing that doesn’t get enough conversation is how selfless Alex is being by getting back on the field as soon as possible. In the long run, he could have said I have many more years to play and need to do this right immediately…. instead he said, let’s fix what we can now and if we need to do more in November we’ll do it then but I want to play.
Yes, you can say it’s his obligation and that’s true, but he had every right to insist on the full surgery and chose to risk a second procedure in order to play closer to a full season in 2009. I respect that.
I agree with those who think he can be a tool and a drama queen, but he is unquestionably a great player who put team ahead of self this season.
Comedy:
People that think ARod changes everything because the pitcher has fear the HR, yet also think Coors East is a-ok. You figure it out.
bodhisattva – OPPC member
Look. I’m not disagreeing with you entirely. However:
To claim that Wang doesn’t count in this discussion because he’s not an ace is silly. Not one of the Red Sox pitchers (home developed) is an ace.
The concept that Hughes should be pitching in MN’s AAA system is also very silly. Hughes has a good arsenal and has been derailed by injuries. Just as with Hughes, I wouldn’t ever call him a #1 pitcher (regardless of what others say) but he’s certainly solid. He’s been very good this year, so far. His one bad game, he had a lower arm slot (which you can read the analysis of by clicking on my name above).
Pettitte being from ages past doesn’t particularly help your argument, which was that the Yankees don’t develop their own talent. They did with Pettitte. Same with Mo, who is everything Papelbon could ever dream of being.
The Hooters near me which i have been to a handful of times has nice waitresses – most of them don’t have that bimbo quality. It s not such a bad place for a game but the food is not as good as it could be. Last time I was there I watched Melk hit his 2nd Walkoff v Os.
LOL I’ve never eaten there either, they’re overpriced and like you the thought of being served by a woman who is a waitress but wants to be tipped for her hooters puts me off it. I just know a few of the people (horses) who got jobs there, haha.
Someone brought some of their wings to superbowl party and honestly I’ve had much better wings from tons of other places.
There is a place in central NJ near where my SIL lives that has the. best. wings. ever.
I heard we had Greinke’s kid brother in the minors. That true?
I think Betsy needs to change her posting name to “Besty – Queen of Strikethroughs”
Will Moller
I’m pretty sure Bodisattva was kidding about Wang = it is an old joke here
Oops, I meant the HR he hit in his first at bat seems like it lifted the cloud hanging over the team…..
I’m being serious about Greinke’s kid brother.
Pat M,
Good to hear that you’re showing faith in the team. Nice little run to end the quarter there.
Are you as concerned about this offense as I am? I haven’t seen ball movement in months. Literally.
A-Rod’s HR in Baltimore will be the stuff of Yankee legend if they make the playoffs. Opening Day 2.
Thats why I think its overpriced, UE. Not that the food is expensive, its that the food is expensive for what it is. Its just not that good.
Not a regular
I don’t think he signed with the yankees.
The Yankees drafted Luke Greinke last year, I think. As far as I know he’s still in single A.
Now if they want to create a restaurant where all of the waiters look like Nick Markakis, I’ll eat there every night and twice on Sunday.
==============================
I’m all for that type of establishment. I’ll do my part to keep that sort of restaurant open
http://tinyurl.com/qrmclo
~sigh
Laura – how I hate those stupid cross out lines, lol. I have no idea why they pop up – but yes, I probably do need an edit button. I can’t count how many times I’ve made comments that I would love to retract……..lol
yaeh I was dissapponted by Hooters wings in Baltimore – Wings not hard to do get it right
“So who is confident that Jorge can stay healthy? His bat in the lineup is clearly helpful, but I do have my doubts about his durability at this point.”
I am fearful for when Posada returns to the line-up. Captain Buzzkill probably won’t like the pies, the belt, team chemistry, laughter, high fives, congratulating teammates or anything else that shows this team is having fun.
And I have a theory that he is trying to be the unofficial captain of the team. He’ll let Jeter take the lead for the masses, but in the clubhouse, he is going to try and call the shots.
He really is a pain in the ass.
pat
May 25th, 2009 at 9:28 pm
It’s all about the pitching if Alex is hitting but if he isn’t, it’s all his fault.
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
=============
Who said this?
I’ve stated here many times that the Yankees’ pitching will put an end to Alex’s so-called lack of clutchness, because the latter only really happens when good pitching delivers multiple opportunities to hitters for success.
We’ve had mediocre to poor pitching since 2004; Alex’s postseason “failures” are a figment, created by poor pitching.
Now that we actually have it, and better defense, Alex’s contributions offensively will be in greater relief, and his “clutch” challenges will magically disappear.
Of course, the predictable party line will be: ARod owned up to his steroid use and grew up. And now, he’s able to come through in high leverage situations. A crock, but that is how the moral police will skew things.
“I agree with those who think he can be a tool and a drama queen, but he is unquestionably a great player who put team ahead of self this season.”
*This* season.
Jimmy G-Thanks. I heard that he had a chance to be better than Greinke.
Also heard the Sox had Papelbum’s kid brother, who’s supposed to be better. Since the Sox have Paplebon Sr., trade bait?
Bases loaded 2 outs 10-8 Tampa wow lol
Not a regular,
Greinke’s brother was released by the organization over a month ago. No one knows why.
LOL… @ the 9.38pm update with accompanying aha!, Pete.
“I am fearful for when Posada returns to the line-up. Captain Buzzkill probably won’t like the pies, the belt, team chemistry, laughter, high fives, congratulating teammates or anything else that shows this team is having fun.”
That’s probably true. He lives in my buddy’s building on the Upper East Side; I’ll wait for him there and give him a pie in the face if he doesn’t lighten up.
“He really is a pain in the ass.”
With how many rings?
I have zero interest in going to Hooters – it’s a disgusting concept for one…….
The Yankees had a bunch of blowout wins that skewed those stats from the first 30 games. Arod has had a major impact on the kinds of pitches Texiera sees – and that in turn has impacted the kinds of pitches Jeter and Damon see as well. The real difference between pre-Arod and now is that the pitchers don’t feel like they have to be perfect because they have Arod back. A couple of them have even said so in post game interviews. There was a sense in the first month that if the pitchers gave up a lead there was virtually no chance of getting it back. Now with these come back wins I think pitchers feel like they can go for the kill more often know that if it backfires and ends up in the stands it’s not the end of the world.
“UPDATE, 9:38 p.m.: A ha!
RISP without Alex: 66 of 268 (.246).
RISP with Alex: 46 of 136 (.338).
Alex’s RISP: 7 of 19 (.368).”
See, I told you. Alex has had an affect on the RISP numbers. And you people say that I don’t know anything.
Uncle Ellsworth
May 25th, 2009 at 9:46 pm
Will Moller
I’m pretty sure Bodisattva was kidding about Wang = it is an old joke here
=====
Yessir. And it’s a standing joke on other sites, too.
m-Really? Interesting. Thanks.
Posada is one of my favorite Yanks who happens to be ultra clutch.
Yes Zach’s brother is in the system, no, he’s nowhere close to his brother talent wise.
Any fair observer who went through both 25 man rosters would include the 2009 Yankees have vastly superior homegrown talent than Boston.
You wanna compare the Sawx group to Mariano, Pettite, Posada, Jeter, Cano, Cabrera, Gardner, Hughes, Chamberlain, Wang and Coke be my guest.
they’ve done well, but the Yanks seemingly get virtually no credit for what they have done. Granted you take away the long timers Boston wins.
This team just looks completely different since he returned. I think one difference is I remember when we were already losing and then at the end we would add on some runs and the numbers always looked better than the results so I think that’s one way to explain it. The runs are more productive, meaningful, it just feels different.
I have to admit when I first read your post I thought you were taking a swipe at Arod’s impact in a backhanded sort of way. I love your blog, it’s a daily must but the one thing I didn’t miss this past week was the constant Arod “jokes.” I hope we stick more to Yankee baseball and leave personal feelings aside.
Ok I have some numbers. I hope I have this right but the team was hitting .246 with risp before Arod came back. Ransom/Pena/Berrora stats were .202 average, .248 obp, .283 slg…no hrs/10 rbis. Teix had a .198 avg/ .200 risp.
Jorge loves winning, so I think he’ll be fine.
10-9 bases loaded
10-9 now
Is Isringhausen gonna walk in another run?
Holy crap, If Cleveland wins…wow.
I have a kid brother too. He thinks Joba should be in the bullpen and that Josh Beckett is a much better pitcher than Roy Halladay because Halladay has never done it in the postseason.
I can’t trade him and I can’t release him.
Not a reg,
Keep hearing that they want to make Bard the closer and deal Papeljuice. At least, that’s the unofficial scuttlebut making it’s way on PSD.
Last I checked Tampa was smashing Cleveland.
m, They look tired and sluggish, but then again they are the Lakers who play the switch on , switch off game far too often…….They’ll let Denver have their run and then Jackson will tear them a new one and they’ll come back…..
-test-
Betsy – Hooters is really not that bad – really.
Your strikethroughs happen when you do this:
-Yankees are awesome!-
hyphen then no space after it)Yankees are awesome!(hyphen no space before it) is how it happens I think.
Its the way you use your hyphens in your posts that are doing it. Just make you have space on both sides of them when you use them. It shouldn’t do it in future.
Nick in SF-I feel for you.
bodhi-Sox wouldn’t do that, it’d be a huge risk. I think if the Yanks signed Papelbum I’d barf.
btw m: The Mistake By The Lake is not the Jake.
Tampa = fail they blow the lead its over.
Indians beat rays 11-10.
The comped #’s also feature Swisher’s slide, Cano’s stumble, and Alex’s low BA muting the overall picture. SLG went up as did RISP as has been pointed out.
Isring-HAS-BEEN!
Uncle Ellsworth
May 25th, 2009 at 9:57 pm
Betsy – Hooters is really not that bad – really.
*************************************************
Its probably just the one nearest me thats bad like I described.
7 runs in the bottom of the 9th. Sorry for updating this game I thought it was funny. 10-0 come back lol
carl-Tampa lost?
Wow!
Great news!
Rays FAIL
Holy crap. The Indians win
cleveland won
B odi where did you hear that about Papel/bard?
I really don’t think Posada is some ogre a little intense maybe but not a complete grinch
Hey, that’s the Isringhausen I remember from Oakland!
cleveland just laid it on thick with a HUGE comeback win over tampa.
wow
I take it back. Our bullpen is not the worst in the division, Tampa’s is.
Philly has problems. Lidge’s ERA is like 9 and a half.
10 run leads don’t hold as well as it used to…
david price 100 pitches ion 3.2 inn
No way.
Cleveland’s comeback is among the best of all time.
I don’t know about that, Dr. Cox. I’ve seen Jorge in the middle of quite a few of those walk-off pile ons, and while pies are being hurled, and he’s looked like he’s been as amused and has enjoyed it as much as anyone.
OMG what a choke job 7 runs in the bottom of the 9th to lose the game
Way to go, CLE!
DAVID PRICE TO THE PEN FOR THE 8TH!!!!!!!!!!!111111111
lol
Where is Jason Isringhausen these days?
I’m pretty sure the Yankees cut Luke Greinke. Somebody on the blog here mentioned he had arm surgery, I think? I watched a Royals broadcast on mlb.tv recently and they said Luke was thinking of trying out for the Royals since Zack plays there.
86w183
May 25th, 2009 at 9:53 pm
You wanna compare the Sawx group to Mariano, Pettite, Posada, Jeter, Cano, Cabrera, Gardner, Hughes, Chamberlain, Wang and Coke be my guest.
they’ve done well, but the Yanks seemingly get virtually no credit for what they have done. Granted you take away the long timers Boston wins.
===========
Hughes, Chamberlain, Wang trump Lester. Papelbon is obviously better than Coke. I’ll take Cano over Pedroia, and Melky over Ellsbury. Youkilis is a very good player, but he’s 30 years old. If he’s in, so are our older guys. We win
.
Looking at the standings just now to admire the settling down of the AL East… And scanned down… Whoa boy look at the Dodgers.
That Joe Torre.. he’s gotten lucky by inheriting a great again, eh? (sarcasm, dripping sarcasm).
5 walks in the 9th inning
wow
Wow, Rays are not the same as last year. Good, but not the AL champions.
And they said Price was better than Joba! Ha!
“And they said Price was better than Joba! Ha!”
“They” don’t know diddley.
bodhi, I’d absolutely take Pedroia over Cano. I relly like Cano, but come on.
Tex and Youk is a coin flip. Youk is unbelievable though.
Dodgers division is so bad.
Pel (Uncertainty is certain.)
May 25th, 2009 at 10:02 pm
DAVID PRICE TO THE PEN FOR THE 8TH!!!!!!!!!!!111111111
lol
====
Price was interviewed by ESPN Radio a couple of weeks ago and he made it very clear that he does NOT wish to come out of the bullpen. He was very clear about it. He said he’d do it if his team asked him to – like he’d have a choice – but he is vehemently against it.
So Tampa coughed up a 10 – 0 lead.
I guess it’s harder the second time around. Did Price play?
Nick,
I know. But it’s still a mistake.
But not today. I thought the game was over hours ago when Cleveland was down 10-0. What’s with Carmona? Wonder if they raised his arm slot?
Yeah, he started. Looked good when it was 5-0. I turned it off at that point.
The worm has definitely turned in beantown!
I was listening to WEEI in my car and the topic of the night must have been Ortiz because a caller called in to talk about the French Open and when he was done the talk host said “So what’s your take on Oritz?” The caller said “My take on Ortiz? It’s really painful watching Papi off the juice. Then he went on to talk about Oritz coming from Minny hitting .273 and coming to beantown and hitting 54 homers. (Meanwhile I have been using the same example for quite a while now but I guess nobody cared as long as Ortiz was killing the ball.)
The next caller said he agreed with the “previous caller” about Ortiz using. And then the talk host said that Francona said that he would be looking at the possibility of making changes in the lineup. The first caller said that you can’t have a DH hitting .195 and that he thanked Ortiz for the past but it was definitely time for him to go.
AWWWWWW.
WOW. what a great comeback from cleveland. and what a choke for the rays bullpen.
if the yanks bp ever gave up 7 runs in the 9th to lose the game all HELL would break loose in this place lol
The guy who gave up the home run to Joe Carter that works on MLB Network said move Price to the pen lol.
Holy CRAP. They scored all 7 of those runs with 2 outs! That is one of the biggest choke jobs in history. Rays = epic fail.
Not with 2 outs!
Best regular season comeback ever=Indians vs. Rays.
Price threw 100 pitches in 3 innings. Wow!
if the yanks bp ever gave up 7 runs in the 9th to lose the game all HELL would break loose in this place lol
========================================
Oh it would be quite scary around here if that were to happen.
~prays that it never does~
Right now I’m watching the Mets’ bullpen try not to give the game away. They’ve walked 7, apparently. Then, so have the Nationals. So much for middle relief.
Not a regular
May 25th, 2009 at 10:06 pm
bodhi, I’d absolutely take Pedroia over Cano. I relly like Cano, but come on.
Tex and Youk is a coin flip. Youk is unbelievable though.
=====
I absolutely would NOT take Dustin Pedroia over Robinson Cano. Never. The first guy is a very good player, the latter is the most talented hitter we’ve produced since Don Mattingly, and he will have a special career, the likes of which Pedroia will never even approach. Cano is also a very gifted defender. Talk to me in two years on this.
Youk is a helluva player – Teix is better defensively w/more range, but Youk is no slouch. We didn’t grow Teix from within, however, so I didn’t mention him.
Wow, the Indians won?
Phil with the belt over his shoulder, lol……He looks so happy – happier than I’ve seen him in a LONG time, laughing and joking about the belt. Fantastic…..I’m thrilled for him
How’re the Phils doing?
bodhi, you hit the nail on the head. In 2 yrs., if Cano is better, all right.
“That Joe Torre.. he’s gotten lucky by inheriting a great again, eh? (sarcasm, dripping sarcasm).”
Actually my theory is that his players now see him as Michael Corleone, picking up where LaSorda the Godfather left off – and none of them wants to take the chance to be the Fredo in the group and end up being victims of his machinegun-like pen, totally trashed in his next tell all.
So they are working their butts off and sucking up any bad feelings when they are in his presence!
Pete – you gonna give me credit for leading you to RISP or no?
Arliss
May 25th, 2009 at 8:40 pm
The key statistic is hitting with RISP. That metric is up considerably since he returned. Right now the team is batting .268 with RISP. I dont have the numbers as of the date Baltimore returned, but I am confident they were considerably below that and could have been as low as .230 or so.
Does anyone have a picture of Phil with the belt over his shoulder? I wanna make it my wallpaper, lol.
There is no possible way David Price pitched in that game. Neil Allen works for the Rays.
(Insert winky emoticon here)
trisha – OPPC member
May 25th, 2009 at 10:08 pm
The worm has definitely turned in beantown!
=====
Lol. We like that.
Have the Mets/Shea/Citi Field been doing the stupid “Sweet Caroline” singalong thing for a while? I thought that idiocy was reserved only for Fenway, but I just heard it in the background on SNY.
Gotta agree with Bodhi on this one…
I think Robi will end up with better career numbers over the longhaul.
nothing is funnier than people throwing around “epic fail’s” all over the place. thats so 2008
“Pete – you gonna give me credit for leading you to RISP or no? ”
Probably not since it was me who told him to pull the stats.
7 runs with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th? LOL wow – but I don’t want to LOL too loudly in case the Tribe does that to us (and with our pen, it’s possible).
Angel, thanks – I tend to use hyphens a lot, so that makes sense. I will be more careful from now on…
I need to see it before I call Robbie better than the reigning MVP.
AJ owes Victor Martinez a pie when the Yanks get to Cleveland this week.
Youkilis best year was last year. Anyone seen his career numbers before last year? Not really impressive. I’d take Teixiera.
Cano’s defense is underrated. When he’s not asleep in the field he’s very good.
Cleveland can mash the ball… that is not going to be an easy series at all.
We’re going to have to win shootouts with them. And god help our pen without Bruney
AJ needs to worry about getting the Texas hitters out and lowering his 5.32 ERA. He is not carrying his weight. Even Phil is pitching better than him.
Thanks for posting the updated risp stats, was trying to figure it out myself.
I do too, Betsy. You can use them – just make sure you have spaces on either side of using them.
May 25th, 2009 at 10:22 pm
“Youkilis best year was last year. Anyone seen his career numbers before last year? Not really impressive. I’d take Teixiera.”
Youkilis’s lifetime batting average over six seasons I believe is .294.
Texiera’s lifetime batting average over seven seasons is .289.
I will grant you that there are plenty of indicators besides batting average but Youkilis’s stats are not too shabby.
I hate the Mets a little less since they ripped out Papelbon’s still-beating heart on Saturday night.
That was possibly my all-time favorite non-Yankee game.
Kruk just ripped The Flyin’ Hawaiin a new one.
Cano would be considered a God if his hitting ability translated more into HR power.
The thing is, he’s not a speedster, but he has good pace and range. He has the softest hands on the planet – both for hitting and fielding. And he has a fantastic arm. His balance and hand-eye are frankly remarkable. His smoothness works against his being better appreciated, because he’s sometimes so seamless, the perfection escapes people.
To me, the talent gap between Pedroia – a talented player in hs own right – and Cano, isn’t subtle.
Youkilis is a very, very good hitter. Very good.
“nothing is funnier than people throwing around “epic fail’s” all over the place. thats so 2008″
Though I still think you are lying about meeting Jeter disagree with mostly everything you say.. This time you are 100% right.
Everything is an epic fail or “one of the biggest choke jobs in history.” RELAX. Everyones so dramatic.
You want an Epic Collapse that was one of the worst in History? The New York Yankees going up 3-0 and losing 4-3 to the Red Sox.
You want another one? The New York Mets Collapse of 2007
Did I hear you say another?? The Boston Massacre.
THOSE were EPIC FAILURES. Cleveland coming back from a 10-0 deficit on a random night in May is not epic.
Youk’s ability to flick the inside pitch down the 3rd base line is just freakish. It really is.
Zach in Port Jeff May 25th, 2009 at 10:33 pm
Kruk just ripped The Flyin’ Hawaiin a new one.
***********************
What did he say?
“Youkilis is a very, very good hitter. Very good.”
True, but the fact that he is a first class whinny jerk negates that.
The results of Youk mating will probably also be freakish.
I dunno. This looks pretty much like epic fail to me. espn gamecast has an interesting feature that shows the percentage chance the team that’s ahead has of winning. Would’ve liked to see how it went down after each consecutive play after being pretty close to 100% at the beginning of the inning.
Cleveland – Bottom of 9th SCORE
Dale Thayer pitching for Tampa Bay TAM CLE
G Sizemore walked. 10 4
V Martinez popped out to third. 10 4
J Peralta singled to left, G Sizemore to second. 10 4
R Choate relieved D Thayer. 10 4
S Choo grounded into fielder’s choice to shortstop, G Sizemore scored on throwing error by shortstop R Brignac, J Peralta safe at third on throwing error by shortstop R Brignac. 10 5
G Balfour relieved R Choate. 10 5
M DeRosa lined out to third. 10 5
R Garko homered to left, J Peralta and S Choo scored. 10 8
A Cabrera hit for M LaPorta. 10 8
A Cabrera walked. 10 8
J Isringhausen relieved G Balfour. 10 8
B Francisco walked, A Cabrera to second. 10 8
J Carroll walked, A Cabrera to third, B Francisco to second. 10 8
G Sizemore walked, A Cabrera scored, B Francisco to third, J Carroll to second. 10 9
V Martinez singled to center, B Francisco and J Carroll scored, G Sizemore to second. 10 11
7 Runs, 3 Hits, 1 Errors
Jennifer,
Victorino got thrown out trying to steal while down 2 in the 9th with Matt Stairs at the plate. Kruk basically said it was the most asinine thing Victorino has done in a Philly uniform. I’m surprised Ruiz didnt throw out 11 runners today while going 4-5 with 3 rbis.
Not a regular May 25th, 2009 at 10:06 pm
bodhi, I’d absolutely take Pedroia over Cano. I relly like Cano, but come on.
Tex and Youk is a coin flip. Youk is unbelievable though.
———————————————–
I’d like to disagree with EVERYTHING there. Pedroia makes everything look hard. Yeah he’s on NESPN every day making a diving catch – one step and a dive – Cano is in front of every one of those balls that Pedroia makes a “spectacular” diving play on. Cano is also a much better hitter. Pedroia goes up there and swings a tree trunk, I’m not saying he’s not a good ball player, because he definitely is, but Cano is so much better it’s not even funny.
Youk is even better then most non-sox fans give credit to but Teix is also much better. Glove wise their probably about the same but Teix switch hits with power from both sides and his home runs are more then pop flies that go over a tall wall.
Wow, I make a little comment and people pee their pants. No wonder people don’t like posting here with the blog police around. Get over yourselves and stop taking every little thing said so seriously.
Good call Nick, I have a strange feeling that any Youkilis offspring will come out of the womb complaining about balls and strikes.
Rays blew a 10-0 lead. Back to a 100 lost team guess they want that number 1 pick badly
. Back to a boring 2 team race again in the East
Ray (sox fan),
Just out of curiosity, are there any Red Sox blogs that have an active community that hold conversations and posts throughout the night?
Just as you come here to talk baseball, I would love to go to an enemy site
i likesssssssssssss….i kept telling red sox fans/ yankee haters JUST WAIT UNTIL AROD COMES BACK
Uncle Ellsworth
May 25th, 2009 at 10:00 pm
B odi where did you hear that about Papel/bard?
I really don’t think Posada is some ogre a little intense maybe but not a complete grinch
========
Oh it’s just the chit-chat in the Red Sox forum, from time to time. Someone in there paraphrased something they’d heard, so I have no “source.” It might just be their fickle wishes, depending on whether he’s shut the opposition down or blown a save. Y’know – fickle. They all call Papi horrible names, now. I hate that kind of turncoat fan.
As for Jorge, one of the most under appreciated Yankees.
http://users.erols.com/kcoblenz/52509HughesPG1.jpg
Here’s a thrilled Phil with the belt……
finally got back in town… welcome back Pete.
The Cleveland Indians OPPC franchise had a field day today.
(who knew they had an OPPC too? I thought they just banged that darn drum)
Down 10-0, it looked dismal.
Down 10-4 going into the bottom of the 9th – it looked impossible.
Just goes to show, it’s never over until it’s over.
Betsy May 25th, 2009 at 10:50 pm
http://users.erols.com/kcoblenz/52509HughesPG1.jpg
Here’s a thrilled Phil with the belt……
==============================
Aw.
next up for Phil…the intercontinental championship.
Two excellent posts on Dirty Gritty versus Cano. Pedroia plays to the public ala Pete Rose, “look at my dirty uni”. Good player, does the most with what he’s got. MVP – didn’t deserve it – ESPN hype, almost as bad as Rice in the HOF. Baseball is a subtle game, etc, etc.
The Rays were just a fluke.
Not only do Indians fans have an OPPC, I believe there are various Truther Squads in existence.
The Fausto Carmona Truth Squad has much explaining to do.
Ah, so the Phillies lost to the Marlins. I thought they were in a totally different class than the Yankees after yesterday, the way some people were talking. Not so – they aren’t even as good as the Marlins, apparently.
“Glove wise their probably about the same but Teix switch hits with power from both sides and his home runs are more then pop flies that go over a tall wall.”
Just as a point of information to argue that Youkilis gets a lot of home runs because of Fenway just doesn’t hold up.
In his last six seasons he has had 73 home runs.
The home and away break down…almost dead even. 37 at Fenway and 36 in other parks.
Dr. Cox there are some Sox blogs, but I have noted before quite honestly they don’t have the quality that this blog does.
“Wow, I make a little comment and people pee their pants. No wonder people don’t like posting here with the blog police around. Get over yourselves and stop taking every little thing said so seriously.”
Nah. Peoples loves posting here.
Dr. Cox- I am cool with you disagreeing with everything I say but why in the heck would I lie about seeing Jeter at an upper east side starbucks?
“What I saw today was excellent fastball command,” Mark Teixeira said. “When you can command 93 miles per hour on both sides of the plate, up and down in the zone, it’s tough to hit.”
A-Rod said this of Hughes: “That stuff we saw today, that was real stuff there…I thought today was the best I’ve seen him in the big leagues.”
http://weblogs.newsday.com/spo....._wrap.html
Check Youkilis’ scatter chart, he is almost a dead pull HR hitter and as such the vast majority of his HRs are down the line or around 350 Feet. He is aided GREATLY by fenway.
Just because he hits the same amount home or away does not mean anything. You have to look at where he is hitting them on the road, what parks, the distance, etc.
What is Youk’s slugging % home and away?
Doris,
Its not so much that I think you were lying as much as it goes back to one of the original “meeting someone” arguments of this blog. The Fran/Flam Joba at the X-Mas party fiasco.
Basically my point: prove it with a pic.
Otherwise I have no reason to think you’re a liar.
I saw Jeter at a Starbucks in Plano, Texas. Or someone did. Now I forget.
Youkallis also makes about 1\3rd the salary of Teixeira
Betsey the Phils have been horrible at home this year almost directly opposite records
With all due respect, I dont feel comfortable posting a pic of my 19-month old son on the internets.
Youkilis loses about 20 pts of SLG on the road
Price had filthy filthy stuff tonight
Once he figures out how to be economical, he is going to be a monster. That will come as he gets more experience at the ML level
But man, their bullpen is brutal.
I saw Joe DiMaggio dunking his donut in coffee at Dinky Donuts.
Or maybe I was dozing with the TV on again. I can’t be sure.
But for example, last season Youkilis slugged 100 pts higher at home
Youkallis also makes about 1\3rd the salary of Teixeira
===========================
The Yankees also don’t have the luxury of players taking hometown discounts for fear of being called a sellout by the fans/local media.
Doris, I thought you said in that thread that we had caught you in a lie and that it was because it’s near Rego Park or something!
By the way, you can crop your child out of the picture enough to still have it show that Derek Jeter is in a Starbucks holding a child. In fact all you have to do is crop the baby’s face out of it.
Ray – I honestly did not realize that. As I said, Youk is definitely an underrated player by everyone that doesn’t wear Sox goggles…. I guess I’m a victim too. If both were free agents and I could pick one, I would want Teix, but that’s me and I couldn’t argue with someone that would want Youk, either way you’re in good shape.
Doris
Jeter is quoted in the NY Post this weekend that he doesn’t take photos with fans because they could be misinterpretted and end up on the Internet.
Lucky that he made an exception for you.
Zach in Port Jeff
May 25th, 2009 at 11:04 pm
“What is Youk’s slugging % home and away?”
Over his career his slg is about 20 better at home, but I just noticed that in 2008 there was a significant difference.
Home it was .614 and away it was .528 so clearly Fenway made a considerable difference last year.
Frank – True.
It ticks me off that the Sux get their players at such cheap discounts while we have to handout record contracts to everyone.
JoeT 28 in 10!! MELKY FOR MVP!!!!
May 25th, 2009 at 10:43 pm
Not a regular May 25th, 2009 at 10:06 pm
bodhi, I’d absolutely take Pedroia over Cano. I relly like Cano, but come on.
Tex and Youk is a coin flip. Youk is unbelievable though.
———————————————————————-
I’d like to disagree with EVERYTHING there. Pedroia makes everything look hard. Yeah he’s on NESPN every day making a diving catch – one step and a dive – Cano is in front of every one of those balls that Pedroia makes a “spectacular” diving play on. Cano is also a much better hitter. Pedroia goes up there and swings a tree trunk, I’m not saying he’s not a good ball player, because he definitely is, but Cano is so much better it’s not even funny.
Youk is even better then most non-sox fans give credit to but Teix is also much better. Glove wise their probably about the same but Teix switch hits with power from both sides and his home runs are more then pop flies that go over a tall wall.
===============
Yup. You are 100 percent correct. Your ability to “see” this, puts you in the minority, however.
You’ll never convince anyone who doesn’t arrive at this with their own eyes.
I don’t know if anyone here is old enough to remember Reijo Ruotsalainen, the great Finnish defenseman who played for the Rangers, Devils and Oilers.
This guy was such a great skater, he’d mirror the forward moving down his lane to such a degree that the play never reached the threatening stage, therefore, no one remembered it.
There was no thundering bodycheck, just the quiet, clinical rendering of that forward meaningless. In a flash, Ruotsalainen had the puck on his stick and was in retreat, making an outlet pass.
He could also poke check at the blue line and never lose a half step that sinks so many defensemen when they attempt this. It’s an absolute no-no, because once you’ve broken stride, the forward is going to get a step and get around you. It just never happened to Ruotsalainen. The guy was remarkable.
This guy was actually accused of being “lazy” and a poor defensive defenseman.
(In the old NHL, the “lazy” guys who didn’t have the requisite “intestinal fortitude” were the Europeans; in baseball, it’ seems to be the latinos who get accused of this).
He was so efficient, no one even noticed his defense.
Cano is a victim of his own abilities.
Pedroia, as you so wonderfully describe, plays more “memorable” and emotionally satisfying defense.
You will never convince people that Cano’s “effortlessness” is a product of his ability, rather than a conscious decision to “not play hard.”
Trisha- I couldnt even tell you where Rego Park is. I am a born, bred and raised Manhattanite.
“With all due respect, I dont feel comfortable posting a pic of my 19-month old son on the internets.”
yeah, dressing a baby in a Mets hat, can have that effect.
(who knew there was more than one internet?)
Youkallis is a “gamer/grinder”. I hate that term, but Youkallis fits it very well. He is a winning player, competitive as they come.
He’s on the otherside so we hate him, but I’d take him on my team anyday.
JoeT 28 in 10!! MELKY FOR MVP!!!!
May 25th, 2009 at 11:10 pm
“Ray – I honestly did not realize that”
Joel, just so you know I wasn’t at all trying to diss Tex. I think he is a great player and any Sox fan who says they wouldn’t have loved to have on the Sox isn’t being honest with themselves.
NYYanksFan- Misinterpreted how? Thats the dumbest thing I have ever heard
Doris, I don’t remember the thread but if I can find it I’ll post what I was talking about. I thought you said that people had caught you in a lie and you made a joke about it.
If you take contract into account, why would anyone pick Teixeria over Youkallis?
You have to look at the complete package. If both were paid the same, then obviously you would take Tex.
Contract is a huge variable though
Gayle, I didn’t mean to get on the Phillies’ case. My comment was directed at those who completely overreacted to one loss yesterday, trashing the Yankees and claiming that they can’t compete with the Sox (exactly 1 game ahead) or the Phillies……or any elite team. If I were a really good team, I’d prefer to have a record more evenly split between home and road. Good Yankee teams have always been able to win on the road – I think we have a good record this year as well.
Maddon is trying the bullpen by committee deal, but I honestly think you at least some semblance of defined roles. I know there was an error in the inning, but 4 pitchers and 5 walks in a game that you’re up by 6? Uglier than Youk.
Hey DT- Our last president famously called it the “internets”. Get with it, man.
Just in passing – the Yankees have a bad situation in RF as was discussed in yesterday’s posts. Then I look at Washington and their lack of relievers and Lasting Milledge down on the farm. Can he be reclaimed, can something be done? I have had good success with headcases using the tuneup method. What it involves is someone like CC talking gently to the victim while he’s hanging on the wall and his toes are dangling. It goes something like this, “Son, you are on the Yankees and we get upset at stuff like you do. If you upset me, I will rip your arm off so bear that in mind. Nice talking to you.” Then set him gently on his feet. Tuneups work every time.
Trisha- that was me making a joke. I said something like “you caught me- I was really in a Pete’s coffee in Brooklyn (or something)”
Posada – where art thou?
We didn’t beat Philly because we couldn’t hit their 2 best pitchers (and young lefty who we haven’t seen).
When they throw out Blanton, Moyer, and Park… everyone beats them.
Burnett’s crappy performance set the tone for the weekend though.
Time for Damon to put AJ on notice – he better step up
Milledge broke a finger a few weeks ago and is probably out for quite a bit, so trading for him is a no-go right now.
From one born-’n'-bred Manhattanite to another: Rego Park is in Queens. Never been.
If the Yanks acquire Milledge, it would be great for Phil Phranchise. They could be roommates. Lastings could toughen Phil up, teach him about the streets and all, maybe include him on his next gangster rap album, and Phil could teach Lastings some proper manners and etiquette.
ps…wow. denver nuggets.
Bo Knows,
That is hilarious. Gosh, Brandon will love you. He’s been screaming for Milledge for some time, now.
Didn’t the famous Doris from Rego Park pass away a few years back?
Distd:
I don’t think comparing contracts because they are completely unrelated. Tex hit the free agent market, Youkilis gave Boston a home town discount coming off of his best year which is not normal and has nothing to do with his value in a vacuum.
It could also have something to do with Youkilis wanting more security as he has had 1 very good year and is older than Tex.
If he was playing like his line before 2008 he’d be worth probably around his contract (or a couple mil more per year) as an OBP 1st baseman with good defense that doesnt hit for power.
As it stands he probably threw away 100 mil on the open market by signing an extension so soon after his career year. It is also the luxury he had because he is already on a winning team.
Thanks Nick. Did you go to NYU as well? I went west for college
Texeria is going to have a Hall Of Fame career…He’s going to be the 3rd switch hitter with 500 homeruns…I think he’ll pick up 2 MVP’s along the way…..Youklis, no hall of fame
So how is Cashman planning on fixing the bullpen?
All they have is Aceves and Coke, both who have durability questions.
Doris,
Its just very strange. I mean you’re handle is Doris yet you claim to be a man. It says you’re from Rego Park yet you have no idea where it is nor have you ever heard of it. You claim to have taken a picture of someone who has been repeatedly quoted saying that he doesn’t take random pictures with fans because of the internet gossip that it may cause. And on top of it all you refuse to post the pics because you don’t want to put your 9-month old son on the internet when you can EASILY crop his face out. I mean that computers 101, man.
Its just all very, very suspect.
Just post the pics, and all will be over with.
In Scranton Jackson 2 for 4 today, line drive singles – bad news is 2 SOs. 42 in 39 games or almost 30%.
bodhisattva – great looking post. I’m 22 and don’t know who you’re talking about but yeah it sounds like a great comparison. The problem with Cano is really when he doesn’t make a play or if he makes an error. He makes the play 99/100 times going after the ball the same way, but the one time that he does miss it, it looks lazy.
I don’t know if I’m necessarily in the minority though – I think most Yankees fans know just how good he is (as well as people that see him play often)
By the way, Freddie Sanchez is 6-6 today
Speaking of famous WFAN callers, what ever happened to Jerome from the Bronx? I had the pleasure of meeting Al from White Plains once.
Dr. Cox- I never once claimed to be from Rego Park nor did I ever say my name was Doris.
Why are we even discussing this? The notoriously “fiscally prudent” (cheap) Boston Red Sox were willing to sign Tex for big money and quite a few years when they already had Youkilis playing 1B.
Something to think about. Historically the most likely World Series match up is Yankees – Dodgers. With the Dodgers comfortably in first (unless you are worried about the “surging” fathers) and the Yankees gellin’ like Dr. S, it isn’t so far off to envision a New York – Brooklyn world series.
Would the headlines read Steroid Series?
Man, that’d be a funny thing. I wouldn’t care because it was be a bomb ass series.
Youkallis was a late bloomer
Teix was playing everyday in the big leagues when he was 23. He hit 26 HRs and drove in 84 in his rookie year
Youkallis didn’t play everyday until he was 27 and only had his breakout year when he was 29
Youk also deserves credit for being Jewish… thats a few thousand years worth of bad genes he was able to overcome. Trust me, I know.
Jerome from Manhattan or Jerome from the Bronx???
Jerome from Manhattan was the crazy one. I think he calls 1050Espn every now and then…but apparently he was/is in pretty poor health.
That guy was amazing!
JoeT 28 in 10!! MELKY FOR MVP!!!!
Right. How many times does Cano’s “lazy” play cost the Yankees? It’s crap. Again, you’re making much sense.
I think you’re being optimistic on Yankee fans knowing how good the kid is, however.
I honestly don’t think we’d beat Boston in the NLCS, not with this bullpen.
I think the Dodgers will cruise to atleast the NLCS though. Philly might be able to take them out, but they have to improve their pitching.
Zach- my bad, I meant Jerome from Manhattan. I believe he lived with his mother as well
“I honestly don’t think we’d beat Boston in the NLCS, not with this bullpen.”
You’re right, we’ll beat them in the ALCS!
A Jerome from Manhattan favorite of mine… after we lost that game to the Mets 15-4 or something in the 1st game of the doubleheader…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....mp;index=0
I don’t really care if Doris/Boris (or whatever) posts the pic.
I do hope that by the time his 19 month old learns how to read he’ll come up with an alibi why Daddy uses a woman’s name from a place he’s never heard of on the internets.
“I honestly don’t think we’d beat Boston in the NLCS, not with this bullpen.”
Boston wouldn’t beat us in the NLCS either. And it has nothing to do with the bullpen!
Tom,
i know you mean ALCS. and i doubt our bullpen will be the same or at least pitching the same by then, b/c if they were then the yanks wouldnt even be in the ALCS to begin with.
Isn’t Youkilis a Greek name? And now he’s Jewish? In the minors they called him “The Greek God of Walks”.
I’m confused.
Rego Park was also the setting for the sit com “dear John” starring the always likable and eqaually annoying Judd Hirsch.
What people who predict our demise do not understand is that we have OPTIONS.
We are STACKED w/pitching at the minor league level. We have guys who can help us in the BP. We have so much depth, in fact, that I’ve forgotten about Horne, who is now on the comeback trail. We are loaded. No way this current BP is what we go with in the postseason.
Youk is on my Jewish fantasy team along with Ian Kinsler and A-rod.
Dont say Kabbalah doesnt count!
Youk is jewish- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Youkilis
The Greek God of Walks comes via Michael Lewis. The great Greek ballplayer is none other than Mr. Nick Markakis. The Nation of Israel has Youkilis and Kinsler anchoring the right side of its infield.
Doris
Jeter said it, not me.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/05.....170803.htm
Tom,
Well yeah, if Cashman doesn’t fix the pen, then I agree we’re not going to win much in October.
However, I have to believe that he is looking to upgrade the pen. He has to know it is not good enough. as presently constructed.
As is Ryan Braun
Rego Park is also the former home of the defunct newspaper, New York Newsday. Great paper, too.
I’m sure it has been mentioned, but I think a lot of our 13-4 since A-Rod’s return has to do with the improvement of our starting pitching. We have gotten mostly quality outings, or at least outings that have kept us in the game. That to me has more to do with it than A-Rod’s return and Tex’s resurgence because that has picked up what we have lost with Matsui and Swisher being virtually non-existant since A-Rod’s return.
http://www.baseball-almanac.co.....yers.shtml
“I’m sure it has been mentioned, but I think a lot of our 13-4 since A-Rod’s return has to do with the improvement of our starting pitching.”
So, A-Rod for pitching coach it is!
It’s never just one thing
Uhhh, did JR Smith just flash The Crips sign after draining that 3?
Okay sclerosis hasn’t set in yet.
From Wikipedia
His nickname is “Youk” (pronounced /?juk/), and he has also been called “Euclis, The Greek God of Walks” in the book Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game.
trisha – OPPC member
May 25th, 2009 at 11:34 pm
“I honestly don’t think we’d beat Boston in the NLCS, not with this bullpen.”
Boston wouldn’t beat us in the NLCS either. And it has nothing to do with the bullpen!
====
I tend to agree. I think we’d match up favorably. There are other teams who cause me greater concern, although Boston is certainly a very good baseball team.
With the pitching depth we have, however, going forward, I like our team against anyone.
Check this out. If it was posted earlier in the day I apologize. I didn’t join up today until after 2.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/05.....170861.htm
Anyone see frozen river.
One of those movies you KNOW will not end well
I was watching the Lakers-Nuggets game and they said this: “Why is Carmelo still in the game w/ this lead if he’s not feeling well? Answer The Nuggets are not the Yankees, they don’t have Mariano Rivera, Carmelo has to stay in and close it out to get this series tied”
Yeah, I’m with you Trisha, I’d be willing to bet anyone on this forum every dollar to my name that the Yanks and Boston won’t meet in the NLCS.
Okay, I like meeting people who know more than I do. I thought that the maternal line counted in the Jewish family tree.
I’m going to bed.
If Nick claims he really isn’t a guy, and is a born and raised Oaklandite who doesn’t even know where Santa Rosa is – wake me up. I don’t want to miss that one.
the present (posada) teaching the future (montero):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....re=related
Trisha – Thanks for posting that.
Hilarious:
Papelbon screamed, “Don’t take my f- – -ing picture,” according to Causi, before throwing his towel at him
It should be noted: Papelbon missed Causi.
“I guess he missed with two pitches that night,” Causi cracked.
Oh bod, you didn’t catch the joke. Boston and NY would never meet in the NLCS!!!!! It’s the ALCS he meant.
“Yeah, I’m with you Trisha, I’d be willing to bet anyone on this forum every dollar to my name that the Yanks and Boston won’t meet in the NLCS.”
Wait until the Yanks are losing a game, go to the game post and make that bet. One of those geniuses whining and crying would make that bet with you. They have the “brains” or lack of them to fall for it.
“Did you go to NYU as well? I went west for college”
How far west? I went to Cal Berkeley.
UCF!! …. Did I go to the Southern most school on the blog??
I guess I should include that UCF = Central Florida in Orlando
Jose Bautista is Jewish?
You learn something new every day
I don’t think so, JoeT. There’s a guy who posts every onnce in a while who said he went to Tierra del Fuego Tech.
“Wait until the Yanks are losing a game, go to the game post and make that bet. One of those geniuses whining and crying would make that bet with you. They have the “brains” or lack of them to fall for it.”
Maybe that should be my tactic to recover what I have lost from my 401k.
hm…. Southern most American school??
I’ll turn this into modern day stats if I have to… .450 average in day games played on turf indoors after the 7th inning up by 2 against a lefty
Tierra Del Fuego? They are Division II, right?
Joe aren’t there a BUNCH of schools in Florida alone that are south of you??
Ugh, this JR Smith is getting on my nerves. Props for him having the game of his life, but jeez, act like you’ve been there before.
And that Dantay Jones may not be a dirty player, but he’s had two dirty plays in this series. The last one was so bad, he got pulled and lectured by the staff.
Watching the tampa game makes me thank god that we won today…. Lol…
I’m definitely strutting around work tomorrow with that JR Smith walk.
“Tierra Del Fuego? They are Division II, right?”
They play at Notre Dame on NBC this year.
Which is further south, Univ. of Central Florida or Univ. of Southern Florida?
That’s a serious question.
oh yeah – but posting on this Yankees blog…. figured there’s a chance lol
Lets see: FAU, FIU, UM, Florida Gulf Coast are the Division 1 schools more south. USF (south florida) is just a TAD bit south of us but they’re the big rival school so they don’t need to be included lol
hahahahha, and the Lakers are all choir boys.
USF is in Tampa area right?
i don’t know about you people, but i feel pretty confident with coke, tomko and aceves in the later innings..
My guess is UH-Hilo.
http://www.bcca.org/misc/qibli.....tml#HAWAII
Yeah, but I think the southern part of Tampa?
Ok, I have no idea.
Nick – there is Florida Southern and the University of South Florida (USF).
USF is in the big east, has been doing pretty well in football recently. Florida Southern is in Lakeland (where the Tigers have their spring training) it’s between Orlando and Tampa so it’s still pretty central.
lol JR Smith the crip
that was awesome
yes USF is in Tampa…. not very south lol
aaron from albany
May 26th, 2009 at 12:03 am
i don’t know about you people, but i feel pretty confident with coke, tomko and aceves in the later innings..
reminds me of a Meatloaf song
m, we’re talking about Traditional US, not Nuevo US!
http://www.fldoe.org/news/2004.....sities.pdf
I’m gonna go bizarro ESPN on everyone here….
So, Papelbon has given up hr’s in two straight games? Is he done?
Nick in SF,
Certainly not. But did you see the play in question? Like I said, totally it was so bad, he got yanked and lectured right on the spot.
I never said anything about the Lakers. And coincidentally, the dirtiest Laker is the nicest guy on the team, Derek Fisher.
JoeT: yeah, I still remember Grothe’s ridiculous mohawk. And USF being ranked #2 in 2007, when all those #2’s fell and kept falling.
err, that’s ironically.
Are you saying that Hilo is not part of the US, Nick?
I think the dirtiest Laker is Thug Walton.
Are you people for real?
First of all, a gain of .037 in team OPS is not an insignificant gain. The jump in team slg% is huge.
But more to the point, there hasn’t been any real jump in runs per game. So…all that “clutch hitting” (SSS, cough) means is that the Yankees have been scoring the same amount of runs as they were before but doing it more efficiently. This would not explain winning more games since the final score doesn’t really care how you scored the runs — it only cares how many you scored.
Want to know why the Yankees are 13-4 since Alex came back? The Yankees have given up 3.83 runs per game over the last 17. The first 28 games, they gave up 6.36 runs per game. Even if you throw out the outlying 22-4 loss to the Tribe, the difference in runs allowed is a glowing neon sign.
Obviously, it’s Alex’s defense that made the difference! LOL
Seriously folks — Occam’s Razor. If you just thought about this for five seconds it should have been obvious that if the Yankees are scoring the same exact amount of runs per game, but suddenly playing .760 ball (vs. .460 ball)…they are probably giving up a lot less runs over the last 17. ^_^
lol JR Smith the crip
that was awesome
===========================
I’m totally doing the walk tomorrow.
I work in a museum. Not sure how the co-workers will react to it. Hopefully no ex-Bloods members on staff.
If you’re talking white trash, then yes Walton is the dirtiest.
For a guy that’s got great jeans and hi basketball IQ, he sure is dumb.
What a butt-whooping. Yuck.
When did the JR Smith/Crips thing happen?? I just saw the sportscenter highlights and must’ve missed it.
Unless they’re cutting that highlight short to show us more of the Red Sox
Absolutely not saying, that, m! It in one of those Bonus States.
Count Zero: yes, I thought of that.
psst, nba sucks, they’re all punks who think they’re the shi* and this is why coaching is getting difficult now a day because kids see this junk on tv.. it’s disgusting.
wow, NESPN just made a mention that Paplebum isn’t “automatic” …. I never thought I’d see the day
>For a guy that’s got great jeans
Actually, no. They’re wranglers.
The quality of your jeans is really all that matters lol
“wow, NESPN just made a mention that Paplebum isn’t “automatic” …. I never thought I’d see the day”
Don’t worry, someone will at least get suspended for making that claim if not fired.
haha very true Joe – I think it was Scott Van Pelt that said it
Yankees Run Differential now +11
Rays sre +40
Those early blowouts only counted for l loss each.
Profound and enlightening.
“We play today we win today. Das it.”
USF doesnt excell in geography
THIS ARTICLE IS SO STUPID. STOP TRYING TO FIND SOMETHING IN STATS WHEN THEY AREN’T THERE. THE YANKEES JUST WON 9 GAMES IN A ROW. THIS IS NOT HOW THE YANKEES WOULD PERFORM WITHOUT AROD ON AVERAGE. PUT ANY IDIOT IN THAT RECENT LINEUP AND THEY WOULD LOOK LIKE A HERO. DO THE NUMBERS WITH KEVIN CASH IN AND OUT OF THIS LINEUP AND HE WILL LOOK LIKE BABE RUTH. STOP BEING RIDICULOUS.
OK…It all sounds nice. Now let’s get real. A-Rod has tanked and always has tanked when it comes to “clutch hitting”.. He is at this time batting 224..risp..about the same. Please remember he is paid 25 million…Those stats would get a rookie sent back down. Speaking of back down, why hasn’t Girardi dropped him and put Cano behind Tex???. A-Rod is killing this team. He seems to relish taking walks when he should be aggressive at the plate. His job is to “hit”…which he isn’t doing and probably won’t for the rest of the season…Remember he can’t use steroids anymore and that’s steroid use is what got him that high salary…undeservedly. Yankee fans who know, think he is a bum who hits when it doesn’t count.