Gardner to meet with his biggest fan
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Jun 11, 2009 
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You may recall that Brett Gardner was visiting a hospital the morning of May 15 when a heart patient named Alyssa gave him a bracelet, letting him he would hit a home run if he held onto it.
Sure enough, Gardner had an inside-the-park homer that night. Alyssa had a heart transplant the next day.
Alyssa is doing well. Now New York-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital will reunite Gardner and his biggest fan tomorrow afternoon before the Yankees play the Mets. The meeting will take place at the hospital.
That is so nice to hear! Glad to hear she is doing well enough to meet her fav yankee again.
Great story these are the types of stories that put the losses of the past 2 days in a bit of perspective.
The episode of Seinfeld where Kramer promised a kid that Paul O’Neill would hit two home runs in a game for him was replayed on TV recently. Such a classic.
panic time for the fools. yanks are 1 out and only ahead in the wild card a few games.
oh my god!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
boston is 7 and 0 agaisnt the yanks that is true, it proves very little… they are in first by 1 game, that is the bottom line. forget about what idiots say on nespn or fatcessa, they are not more talented then the yanks nor better. the yanks have some players that need to figure somethings out and some players that will be back from injury soon, again for the 1000th time they are a good team, your eyes are not lieing…
nady back off the bench real soon. bruney back in a week or so.. veras and berroa soon to be forgotten. wang 1 more start or in the pen.. burnett must pitch better, etc..
this is a great story for brett
but i hope she has some more bracelets
I love how Francessa was killing Joe for pushing Burnett into the Sox series
Yeah, because Joe knew Burnett would throw out a gutless performance to a team he historically dominated….
eiland was doing fine with wang until he threw him under the bus with his take it to the mound from the bullpen routine last night.
eiland needs to shut up about that and keep doing what it’s been he’s been doing because wang had close to his normal stuff last night.
eiland needs to look at the video before he throws wang under the bus.
if anyone choked last night it was him with that comment.
Eliand has been a disaster. He talks wayyyy too much to the media too.
You really get the idea he has no idea what he is doing.
“The episode of Seinfeld where Kramer promised a kid that Paul O’Neill would hit two home runs in a game for him was replayed on TV recently. Such a classic.”
Best part of that episode is when the kid only allows Kramer to have a sip of his Juice after O’Neill hits his first home run … hahahahahah
Every now and then real life intrudes. Nicely done, Mr. Gardner. And God bless you Alyssa. Be well.
Girardi refused to commit to Wang for his next start
Eliand throws him under the bus
And Cashman basically washed his hands of Wang onto these guys and neither know how to handle him. His last move was bringing up up here to back up Burnett against the Phillies, before he was ready.
And Hughes is just sitting there in the pen with no real role other than Wang’s caddy.
Just disastrously handled, all around.
“Girardi refused to commit to Wang for his next start
Eliand throws him under the bus
And Cashman basically washed his hands of Wang onto these guys and neither know how to handle him. His last move was bringing up up here to back up Burnett against the Phillies, before he was ready.”
Worse of all, these are the same guys who stood behind Carl “The Thief” Pavano.
Pete does not want mess with his meal ticket Wang in hopes of writing a book about him in the future. So he blames Eiland. I don’t, I think Wang’s performance/conditioning is all on Wang.
I do think he should get one more start, skipped until sat 6/20 against Florida before he is put back into the bullpen for the foreseeable future. Why can’t he build up his arm strenght in 2 to 3 inning stints in the pen?
For the love of god
Wang+prospects to Colorado for Carlos Gonzalez,Houston Street…just please get something for him, get a young 4 to 5 tool OF too.
Cashman is such an anomaly. It seems like half the things he does are inspired genius and the other half are decisions that just boggle the mind. Bringing up Wang not according to plan was some of the worst long term thinking I’ve seen out of this organization.
“For the love of god
Wang+prospects to Colorado for Carlos Gonzalez,Houston Street…just please get something for him, get a young 4 to 5 tool OF too.”
You want him to have that kind of value, the Yankees better fix him.
You ain’t getting jack for him as he is right now.
“Wang+prospects to Colorado for Carlos Gonzalez,Houston Street…just please get something for him, get a young 4 to 5 tool OF too.”
Wang’s value = not much right now
They aren’t trading Gonzalez anyway, but they probably will move Street and they won’t take Wang for him unless he figures it out between now and the deadline.
“You really get the idea he has no idea what he is doing.”
Eiland’s certainly not effective talking to the media – he warms up well in the bathroom in front of the mirror, but just can’t take it into the interview. Zillo said he can’t stand behind Eiland in the interview and speak for him. But if Zillo can’t help Eiland regain his form, then I say bring up a new media flack from AAA and let him try to help.
Sooner or later, Eiland is either going to have to start being effective or they’ll have to send him back to the Connecticut School of Broadcasting.
Wang has been the worst starting pitcher in baseball and all his problems appear to be mental, after a botched rehab
Nobody is trading for him now.
Does Gardner have to catch a ball with his hat now?
(I’d settle for stealing second in a big spot!)
Nice story.
Awwwwwwww….
Zooboy-Ha, I loved that episode!
Funny how the entire organization stands behind the $82 million dollar pie man AJ Bustnett, yet they show no support for our 2-time 19 game winner.
Hey Cashman… we don’t make the playoffs in 07 without him and you’d be out the door along with Torre.
Yeah the 82 million dollar pie man hasn’t done particularly well and he’s STILL outpitching Wang by a huge margin.
If Wang wants the Yanks to respect him, earn it by pitching well. What he did in the past has nothing to do with what he’s doing now.
Eliand is like a broken record.
He has been saying that “He needs to take the bullpen onto the mound” line after every start.
Can he think of something new?
murphydog-
I thought the Connecticut School of Broadcasting was closing….
“Two words: Rick Peterson. Dump Eiland, what has the guy done to merit this kind of loyalty?”
rick petersen would never fit in with the yankees management.
he knows too much about pitching and would demand all kinds of preventative care programs with dr. james andrews prehab programs.
Wang has little value right now. Not getting much back if your trying to trade him.
Tim Redding goes for the Mets today
Hopefully they burn out their entire pen tonight. John Maine throws a ton of pitches so we could be in a good position tomorrow.
“They aren’t trading Gonzalez anyway, but they probably will move Street and they won’t take Wang for him unless he figures it out between now and the deadline.”
throw in Betances
“murphydog-
I thought the Connecticut School of Broadcasting was closing….”
Well that changes everything.
If Wang can’t beat the Nationals next week, they might as well release him
Big game tonight. Wonder if CC chokes again.
The Nationals do not have a bad lineup. It’s their pitching that is, to use Francessa’s words, atrocious.
“throw in Betances”
To iffy. Injured again too as I hear it.
McAllister, maybe.
” he warms up well in the bathroom in front of the mirror, but just can’t take it into the interview. Zillo said he can’t stand behind Eiland in the interview and speak for him.”
murphydog-
now that’s funny
i’m annoyed at eiland right now, but just because he brought out the out “take it to the mound nonsense”.
eiland has him on the brink of being back stuff wise. eiland just choked like a dog last night when he thought everyone was going to blame him.
eiland can’t do the tough guy routine because he’s not a tough guy. guidry was a tough guy. eiland doesn’t have the mlb chops to call out a two time 19 game winner.
that said, eiland is doing all right.
he should have said wang was nasty with striking out bay and youkillis and a ground ball here or there would have changed things.
then he should have said we’ll be looking for more improvement in his next start.
Since when does CC choke? I don’t remember him choking down the stech w/the Brew Crew when hecarried them to the playoffs, unless you count his fourth start in a row on three game’s rest.
Ah yes, the search for the scapegoat. Who was the pitching coach when CMW got bombed in the ’07 ALDS? Not Dave Eiland.
As for his comments, there’s nothing Eiland can say that wouldn’t be picked apart. If he’s too positive, he’s pollyanish; if he says what we all can see for ourselves, then he’s throwing CMW under the bus.
At some point, it’s the athlete’s responsiblity to perform. Does CMW have an effective strategy other than hoping hitters swing at those devastating pitches diving out of the zone? Remains to be seen. I’d like to see him out of the pen.
We had a good thing going with Hughes in the rotation. We were winning games, the pitching was good, Hughes was progressing before our eyes, and the team had great chemistry.
And they had to pull the plug on it. Some of us called it at the time, it was a dumb move.
“Since when does CC choke? I don’t remember him choking down the stech w/the Brew Crew when hecarried them to the playoffs, unless you count his fourth start in a row on three game’s rest.”
He’s counting the actual playoffs I believe.
Steve B, first of all this game is not the playoffs and second of all that start I referred to, his fourth in a row on three games’ rest, WAS in the playoffs.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/.....ings090611
I wonder if the “highly touted young pitcher … who is still having his ups and downs … (the) second ballyhooed young pitcher (currently hurt) who has had a brief and messy big league fling, and … (the) prospect in Double-A” (as mentioned in Stark’s article) would be Hughes, Kennedy & Jackson?
If it is/was, I wouldn’t pull the trigger on that.
I could be wrong … one of them could be Igawa.
Wang/McCallister for Streets/Gonzalez sign me up, he’d be our future RF.
1. Tonight is not a playoff game.
2. That last start I referred too, the fourth on 3 days’ rest, WAS a playoff game.
I’d want to keep Hughes mostly, and Jax.
This mess started when they cut his rehab time short just because Joba got hit with the line drive.
nice to hear that gardy is going to get back to see the little girl…hopefully he plays tomorrow and hits another homerun for her!
“Wang/McCallister for Streets/Gonzalez sign me up, he’d be our future RF.”
Why the heck would the Rockies do that? Wang is FA in a year and a ton of teams would look into acquiring Street at the deadline. Why would they throw one of their best OF prospects in the deal? Makes no sense.
Burnett was great in Fenway too before coming here
You just never know.
I’m sure Wang is a swell guy, which is why many people have resorted to the mind-numbing “It’s Eiland’s fault he sucks” theory.
Lousy mechanics plus a fragile psyche equals a bad pitcher.
One of the most important factors for a starting pitcher to be successful is the ability to repeat his delivery.
If Wang’s delivery is fine in the bullpen and all over the place when he’s on the mound, how is that Eiland’s fault?
Answer, it’s not.
And stop with the “he hasn’t forgotten how to pitch” nonsense. How the hell does that matter?
He’s got a 15 ERA. If he hasn’t fogotten how to pitch, he certainly has forgotten the mechanics that made him successful.
“Wang/McCallister for Streets/Gonzalez sign me up, he’d be our future RF.”
come on brandon..you knw if the rockies did that deal, 28 other gm’s would go over there and beat the living crap out of the rox gm
Per Rotoworld: “Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times reported that the White Sox could trade Jermaine Dye, Octavio Dotel and maybe even Bobby Jenks prior to the trade deadline.”
If I were Cashman, I’d be calling about Dye AND Jenks and see what it’s gonna take.
Matt Lindstrom in a winning situation would be a monster
He is bored in So. Fla. He needs to be with a winnner
rconn23, I agree.
Wang always had shaky mental makeup, even when he was healthy.
He never had good mound presence, could be rattled easily, and he was never able to limit damage or pitch with guys on base.
Not surprising that his problem even now is mental. And if that’s the problem, then no amount of rehab or bullpen sessions can fix it. It is up to Wang to get over it.
Blaming Eliand is a cop out
Did people forget Wang was 8-2, en-route to another 19 win season under Eliand last year before he was hurt?
Wang’s problems right now are ALL mental. Eliand’s quotes about how he needs to carry his pen sessions to the mound are more proof of that. Let him see a Sports Psychologist. There is nothing Eliand can do.
yanks just drafted pat white…
personally I could care less if Wang is a nice guy…I want to see him succeed and get back to his old self because his old self was a pretty important piece to this team and would really help out this season…but you can’t keep trying and getting results like last night.
“come on brandon..you knw if the rockies did that deal, 28 other gm’s would go over there and beat the living crap out of the rox gm”
But it’d make me happy
Cool story. Glad to hear she’s doing better.
maybe Wang has developed a social anxiety disorder…I think a stint on the DL and some rehab in the minors should help with that!
The only thing Wang has “forgot” is the muscle memory of having a consistent delivery. The only way Wang “remembers” how to do that is through repetition.
Repetition, Repetition, Repetition, Repetition.
The man needs innings. Yanks got to bite the bullett and throw him out there every fifth day.
“Matt Lindstrom in a winning situation would be a monster
He is bored in So. Fla. He needs to be with a winnner”
I agree in a way, but he does look Farnsy-ish
Wang’s next start is vs. Washington
If he still is shaky, then Hughes should take his next start in Florida.
“The man needs innings. Yanks got to bite the bullett and throw him out there every fifth day.”
No we don’t, he ain’t a franchise player, like someone said he’s 1 yr. away from FA…we don’t have to bite nothing.
Hoke, if they could do that that would work. The only problem is that Wang would have to admit to a social anxiety disorder. Nothing I have heard from him would lead me to believe he is not confident in himself. The exact opposite actually.
Guzeman, Zimmerman, Nick Johnson, Adam Dunn, Dukes, Gonzo, Will Nieves etc. are salivating right now thinking about facing Wang
Db, preach.
“No we don’t, he ain’t a franchise player, like someone said he’s 1 yr. away from FA…we don’t have to bite nothing.”
Let’s say you DID want to trade him (which you shouldn’t, but that’s another story).
Wouldn’t you want his value to be as high as possible? Rotting in the pen as a long man doesn’t do that.
If Jose Contreras had trade value back when we had him than Wang has trade value.
The problem is the value is so low it would make Cashman look like a major failure to give up on this guy.
The question the organization needs to answer is whether they believe in Wang or not.
He clearly doesn’t believe in himself and he’s a reclamation project right now who is slated to go out every 5 days in search of his old self damning the team to an awful start.
My feeling is this; let him start against the Nationals next week.
If he can’t pitch a quality start against the worst team in baseball then it’s time to either bury him in the pen or attempt to DL him/get him to go down and find himself.
Then the organization has to make sure they have a pitching coach up to the task of rebuilding this guy alongside him at all times.
We can’t afford to let him go out every 5 days in search of himself. Our offense is good and better, but not good enough to cover up for his poor performance every 5th day.
And this whole idea of having Hughes back up Wang feels just silly. It’s basically wasting an important bullpen spot and further hamstrings the team and screws with Phil’s development.
That’s what Wang is doing to the Yankees right now.
No more excuses. Go beat the Nationals next week. If you can’t, then you can’t start for this team.
Until we got to Boston and AJ and Wang spit the bit, we were playing like the best team in baseball and even last night another couple of feet on Jorge’s liner and we tie the game up and possibly win it.
Wang has to prove on the mound in games that he’s capable of going 6-7 innings a start, otherwise he’s Ian Kennedy from last season and we all saw what that did to the team and the pen.
It’s sad to see him struggle like this, but blaming Girardi, Eiland, Cashman, his wife are all cop outs.
He’s a veteran player. He should be able to get past this.
And this clamoring for Guidry? Spare me.
Guidry was right there when Wang was struggling down the stretch in 2007 into the that horrendous playoff performance against Cleveland.
I don’t know if any of you remember, but Mel Stottlemyer (Wang’s previous pitching coach) went public and said that Wang’s delivery was all messed up in those playoffs and it was a simple adjustment that needed to be made in order to get his sinker down instead of floating side to side making it way too hittable for the Indians.
Mel alluded to in the press that Guidry should have seen this and corrected this in game.
Brandon, he is still a Yankee commodity with a proven track record. It’s in the Yankees best interest to straighten him out for now and next year.
Ca$hmoney: His contract says baseball player, not starting pitcher.
“Ca$hmoney: His contract says baseball player, not starting pitcher.”
Simply put, no more special than any other.
Speaking of biggest fans, remember when Peter was Selena Roberts biggest fan and then all of a sudden the support came to a halt? This should shed some light on why.
http://www.mercurynews.com/morningbuzz/ci_12564611
16,000 copies sold. Not on the NY Times Best Seller List. I guess he doesn’t want to be associated with the 15,999 other saps who own the book.
Wang had a chance to pitch consistently in AAA… before they pulled him so he could be a “long man” to Burnett.
Because they couldn’t bring up Claggett or someone else right? They had to interrupt the rehab of our #2 starter just by the off-chance we would need a long man for one night?
The Yankees are the ones who botched this, not Wang.
To have our BEST chance of winning this season, the Yankees have to go through this now with Wang. When he’s right, you know he’s giving you at least 7 strong. His velocity’s almost back. Once he gets his release point right, he’s back. The Yanks need to just make a plan and stick to it. It’d make this argument so much easier!
PS I notice Cena’s still in awe of your greatness. What game are you challenging him in?
We’ve been winning with Phil Hughes. We have absolutelly no idea when Wang is right. Sacrificing games doesn’t give us the best chance to win.
““Ca$hmoney: His contract says baseball player, not starting pitcher.”
Simply put, no more special than any other.”
He defended Carl Pavano, who didn’t do jack for his contract, but derides the team’s best pitcher for the last 3 years and treats him like a spare part.
Brilliant.
Brandon!!! You beat Cena!!!!!!! I had a feeling today’s battle would result in victory for you. Congratulations.
“Wang always had shaky mental makeup, even when he was healthy.”
are you delusional?
he won 19 games two years in a row.
wake up and smell the coffee!!!
Please. I have no fear of the Angels. Their bullpen is the worst in baseball.
What happened before this game does not matter. The future is now, and now we’re playing one game vs. the Boston Red Sox to try and tie for first place. That’s it. We win, we’re tied for first. That’s the only thing that’s important.
Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times reported that the White Sox could trade Jermaine Dye, Octavio Dotel and maybe even Bobby Jenks prior to the trade deadline.
The White Sox were 27-33 and 6 1/2 games out of first place in the AL Central heading into play on Thursday. If Chicago continues to slide– the club is 2-8 in its last 10 games– then changes will be made by an aggressive general manager. “Hard decisions always have to be made, but very clearly, we are in a transitional phase and if this team doesn’t pick it up at some point, I’m going to have to do some things that maybe aren’t the most popular, but in the best interest of the club,” GM Kenny Williams said
I would love to see the Yankees jump on dotel if he becomes available. As long as the price is right. I’m not sure about jenks
O my God if they trade Bobby Jenks we HAVE to get him, he would be too perfect.
Thinking though, I wonder what it would cost to get Jenks I guess it’s for Cashman to decide.
hey if anyone wants to put the season so far in perspective chew on these numbers for awhile:
the dodgers, who are arguably the best team in the NL so far and one of the top 3 in the majors have ONLY 4 less loses than the yankees (yanks are 34-25, dodgers are 40-21) AND the dodgers have played 44 of their 61 games against the padres, giants, rockies, dbacks, nationals, astros, and marlins (going 30 and 14) –
so it ain’t that bad…plus the yankees are 1 game back of the redsox AND the redsox havn’t faced halladay, verlander, nor will they face hamels this weekend – we have(they have faced johan santana, and lost, but we will of course face him this weekend)
i’m a numbers kind of guy and the numbers will eventually even themselves out – so they will face halladay at least 2 or 3 times this year – they will face verlander in the 4 game series in auagust (hopefully) – they will face david price – a more stable david price – at least 2 or 3 more times this year – so the yankees will have their chances of gaining ground as long as they don’t go into a tailspin..
keep the faith – 27 is coming….
Good attitude Sab.
“The problem is the value is so low it would make Cashman look like a major failure to give up on this guy.”
you got it , someone is going to be fred if wang doesn’t come back.
that’s why eiland and girardi were scrambling last night in boston.
cashman is the one who set up the whole fiasco by telling wang to do nothing all winter.
wang needs to come back for alot of reasons.
if he doesn’t make it back a lot of bad things happen .
so it’s real simple , get him back.
start him three more times ad see if that works.
he’s started twice and the yankees won once and lost by a run. it’s not like when wang has started the yankees have had no chance. they have.
so continue the damn plan and give him his five starts.
Duncan, Veras, and Phil Coke for Jenks
you guys would rather have Jenks over Dotel? jenks is good but his price will be too high and in the end, not worth it
Francessa has a pont…We went into this Boston series w/the pitching matchups slanted Boston’s way and with a lot of our players slumping at the exact wrong time.
I don’t know enough about Dotel, numbers?
pont is point.
The guy was throwing 94-95 with late movement and had plenty of swings and misses last night. He is just inconsistent. I’m not saying leave him in there for the rest of the year if he can’t straighten it out. I am saying he deserves at least 2 more starts. So far, he has not had a normal routine for any start besides the beginning of the year.
“Brandon!!! You beat Cena!!!!!!! I had a feeling today’s battle would result in victory for you. Congratulations.”
He can’t see me
Dotel was a Yankee 2 years ago
Used us to rehab from his surgery though
The Wang situation really has me doubting the Yankees decision makers.
Wang should have been priority 1 not an afterthought!
Bozos
FIRE LONN TROST
Jenks will be expensive.
http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.co....._id=136734
Dotel has been lights out
In 2007, the Yankees were 6-0 against Cleveland in the regular season and everyone thought they would breeze right thru them in the playoffs. We all know what happened in the ALDS.
You can’t worry about head to head standings against each team right now.
Brandon in terms of relievers there is Jon Rauch in Arizona who is apparently upset with the D-Backs because they only use him in mop-up situations in favor of Schlereth and Zavada. Might not cost too much in terms of talent, and he has had success out of the pen the last few years, including this year. Granted, NL reliever coming to AL is never smooth, but someone to consider that would not cost a fortune like Huston Street.
Brandon —-> Brandon 4 Cena 0
June 11th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
“Brandon!!! You beat Cena!!!!!!! I had a feeling today’s battle would result in victory for you. Congratulations.”
He can’t see me
*****
Its pathetic how scared he is of you
Okay Dotel would be perfect.
Thanks evolution.
Dotel has been good this year but I don’t like his injury history. Plus I don’t think you either of those guys for the trip proposed.
Randy I — Do you really think Cahsman came up with his own injury rehab plan? Whatever he was told to do or not to do was the recommendation of doctors and trainers. Cashman has made enough mistakes that are legit like Kei Igawa over Ted Lilly, but to blame him for Wang’s inadequate rehab is absurd.
Then Jenks all the way.
Two thoughts about pitching coaches –
1. Wasn’t Rick Peterson the guy who said he could fix Victor Zambrano in 15 minutes?
2. When Jose Contreras got his act together in Chicago, after the trade, Don Cooper was a genius. Now, Contreras is back at the other end of the spectrum, having trouble getting people out. So what happened, did Cooper forget how to coach? Or does the athlete bear some responsibility?
Uncle Ellsworth,
I’m with you completely on doubting how the Yankees handle and develop pitching.
That’s why I’m not optimistic on Wang returning to form. I think Cashman has never been great with the pitching.
I think Girardi and Eiland are coaching for their jobs and security and know what not making the playoffs means this season.
Why would they be more patient with Wang when they know they need to win games in order to make the playoffs and keep their jobs.
There’s a lot of different agendas going on here.
That’s still no excuse for Wang. He’s healthy. He has to perform. He can’t expect the team to sit idle while he pitches like one of the worst pitchers in baseball.
I’d put him back in the pen. That insult, if you will, seemed to motivate him to be effective in short bursts.
I’m at the point where you keep Wang in the pen until you need him in the rotation again and then give him a full off season to come back and reclaim one of the rotation spots next year.
Dotel was injured but he’s fully recovered. he struck out 92 batters in just 67 innings last year.
He’s struck out 28 batters in 23 innings this year, while posting a .198 battting average.
“Its pathetic how scared he is of you”
He’s all hype, he knows it.
nick swisher Alright…enough is enough. Let’s get this one tonight.
Signed autograph of Derek Jeter, Giambi’s used Golden Thong, A-Rod’s used syringes and an authentic water cooler broken by Paulie for Jenks and Dye.
It doesn’t matter whose fault it is that Wang hasn’t been effective, if in fact it is anyone’s. Pinning the blame on someone doesn’t solve the problem.
How can we pin the blame on someone for Wang’s pitching, when we don’t even know what his problem is? It could be strength, it could be stamina, it could be arm slot, it could be the hips, it could be where his foot lands, it could be the sum of a multitude of small changes – I don’t know and evidently no one else knows, either.
The season isn’t a parade. The Yanks aren’t necessarily going to make the playoffs. Tampa is playing well despite their won-loss record. They are going to get their players back, most of them, and will be a factor by the end of the season. The AL East will be a dog fight before it is all over, and we can’t even be sure Toronto won’t hang around.
The best five starters should be starting. Right now, Wang isn’t one of them. He may be at some point in the future, but he isn’t right now. It may not be the best thing for him (or it may be, for all we know), but Wang should be pitching when the game is not on the line, at (IMO) the major league level but you could convince me at some other level if he needs more rehab.
It’s not like Phil Hughes is just some guy on a hot streak. He has a world of talent, and is a long term part of the future rotation. Time to let him assume that role, and let Wang work things out less prime time situations.
The “ I want results now” mentality by SOME media/fans is what’s killing the plan randy. Everyone just looks @ the stats and says, “Oh no, Wang sucks, trade/DFA him now”. If you actually watched him pitch, his velocity + movement was there on the pitches. Its his command on his sinker that killed him. But man, those 2 sliders to Bay and Youkilis were filthy.
Before that, he had Swish miss that fly ball to make it a 2-1 game. Pedroia was on 3rd with 1 out. He had to hold them there to give the team a chance. And he did. Same thing when he walked the bases loaded, then got Kotsay to groundout. He worked into, and out of, a jam. We HAVE to give him a chance to pitch. I don’t understand why Joe took him out when he had just struck out Green. Let him finish the inning. It’d be better if he was left in Scranton, but he’s here now. And needs the work. Gotta keep giving him the ball.
And now that I think about it, Arod should’ve had that groundball that Bay hit for an RBI. Maybe he’s still ginger about diving on the hip, which is understandable. It just bothers me a little that he didn’t even try to get down at all for it.
Uncle Ellsworth (Expert texpert choking smokers don’t you think the joker laughs at you?) June 11th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
The Wang situation really has me doubting the Yankees decision makers.
Wang should have been priority 1 not an afterthought!
===================================
Agreed.
We need to get Wang back on track ASAP because i have no faith in pettitte
Brandon, what are you 4-0 with? Did I read right that you took wins because of no shows?
Jenks is a better pitcher than Dotel. Jenks is a proven closer and is not going to be traded to the Yankees to set up Rivera.
And why go down the Dotel road again when he terrible when he was with the Yankees before?
Does Micheal Kay think the Nats offense sucks, seriously ?
http://www.baseball-reference......;year=2009
Just give Wang his starts 2 to 3 more and then make a season decision what to do with him…..He’ll come around ….Dotle returning to the Yanks would be a very good return indeed…..
A mental health professional checks in on the Yankees struggles against the Sox:
“Rob Gilbert, a New Jersey sports psychologist (and Boston fan), said the losing streak was more difficult for Yankees fans than for Derek Jeter or Alex Rodriguez.
“It’s much more painful for the fans,” Gilbert said. “Listen to WFAN. Some of these people are at wit’s end. The fans have no control over anything.”
The players, with 3 1/2 months of the regular season ahead, are most likely unfazed by the losing streak.
“Whether they beat the Red Sox or some other team, it’s still a win,” Gilbert said. “It’s a marathon, not a sprint.”
I think Jenks would agree to go to the Yanks to be on a contender. Putz did.
Granted Putz has done bad but he’s injured.
“Brandon, what are you 4-0 with? Did I read right that you took wins because of no shows?”
It’s not my fault he’s afraid of me.
“What happened before this game does not matter. The future is now, and now we’re playing one game vs. the Boston Red Sox to try and tie for first place. That’s it. We win, we’re tied for first. That’s the only thing that’s important.”
WORD!
“In 2007, the Yankees were 6-0 against Cleveland in the regular season and everyone thought they would breeze right thru them in the playoffs. We all know what happened in the ALDS.
You can’t worry about head to head standings against each team right now.”
WORD 2!!!!!
I agree with Kay here-Keep him in the rotation and fix him. Do not give up on Wang. Step up
Uncle E., Lisfranc fractures aren’t common with pitchers. I think the whole Wang thing, with the injury and the rehab just created a Perfect Storm for him to look like he was being cast aside. You can’t weight bear on that type of injury. I think the Yanks were right in telling him to lay off the lower body to not risk re-injuring it…no one knew he would be so weak in the lower body that it effected his pitches.
The Nats may beat up on Wang. But that IS a good game to start him in as a last chance start becuse we will certainly beat up on Naats’ pitching.
Thanks Trisha. I always appreciate a thumbs up when I make a rational argument. LOL
I am way too excited about tonight and this weekend to work.
TRADE HIM !
Hey, MY rational arguement was mentioned too you know.
“TRADE HIM !”
Maybe you’ll get Carlos Gonzalez’s jock strap if you’re lucky. That’s how his value is at the moment.
Wow I want to beat them
June 11th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
Hey, MY rational arguement was mentioned too you know.
****
Haha. Thumbs up to you too
Thank you Erica. I feel validated now.
pat
June 11th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
A mental health professional checks in on the Yankees struggles against the Sox:
“Rob Gilbert, a New Jersey sports psychologist (and Boston fan), said the losing streak was more difficult for Yankees fans than for Derek Jeter or Alex Rodriguez.
“It’s much more painful for the fans,” Gilbert said. “Listen to WFAN. Some of these people are at wit’s end. The fans have no control over anything.”
The players, with 3 1/2 months of the regular season ahead, are most likely unfazed by the losing streak.
“Whether they beat the Red Sox or some other team, it’s still a win,” Gilbert said. “It’s a marathon, not a sprint.”
Wow, and who says the craziest people on the planet are the shrinks themselves. This is the most sane comment I’ve heard posted on here in awhile.
Oh and Let’s not start this “mental Make-up” garbage unless you’re going to bring AJ into it – and the countless others who wilted under the Limelight of the Great White Way.
As A rookie Wang helped save our season.
” Do you really think Cahsman came up with his own injury rehab plan? Whatever he was told to do or not to do was the recommendation of doctors and trainers. Cashman has made enough mistakes that are legit like Kei Igawa over Ted Lilly, but to blame him for Wang’s inadequate rehab is absurd.”
he’s in charge. he made the decision.
it was a bad one.
it’s on him.
“I think the Yanks were right in telling him to lay off the lower body to not risk re-injuring it…no one knew he would be so weak in the lower body that it effected his pitches.”
db -
this could be true, but why do the yankees not test him to see if he has his strength back in spring training.
they just assumed he was ok.
it took arod’s rehab guy to tell them what was wrong with wang’s hip.
Clearly Wang shares some of the blame, but your organization should be putting you in a position to be successful.
In the Yankees’ case, they have not. Far from it.
So, Cashman was supposed to decide against medical advise to lay off the lower body risking re-injury to work his lower body? What physician, trainer, guru knew full well that Wang would not have enough strength in his lower body by the end of spring training?
Hind sight is always 20/20
Randy, its all about results. His spring numbers weren’t that bad. Nothing in ST pointed to the debacle of his first three starts. Like I said it was just a Perfect Storm brewing for the guy. It is what it is, let’s move on.
How could the Yankees not have expected Wang’s lower body to be weak?
He had a major foot injury and was told not to do any rehab on it!
Muscles atrophy when not used…
“So, Cashman was supposed to decide against medical advise to lay off the lower body risking re-injury to work his lower body? What physician, trainer, guru knew full well that Wang would not have enough strength in his lower body by the end of spring training?
Hind sight is always 20/20″
Cashman himself admitted he made a mistake with Wang’s rehab regimen.
w/e they do randy, it better result in the old wang, because if not, someone’s head WILL roll because of it.
DB
fair enough
I’m more concerned by what I percieve as a lack of respect from mgmt and the decision to bring him back after Joba got hit.
All that said, I think he’ll be fine on his next start – as a fan I have the luxury of Quixotic thoughts.
What do you do when you find yourself in a hole?
If the medical advice was, in fact, to lay off the lower body, maybe Wang is just trying to come back too quickly. If he had to lay off the lower body, that argues for a serial approach to rehab which just needs more time. If that’s so, then more time should have perhaps been scheduled for Wang’s comeback, but the slow comeback itself isn’t anyone’s fault.
But if rehab is the issue, Wang should not be doing rehab in major league game situations.
Can’t see why Brandon and others are drooling over Carlos Gonzales. In 350 MLB at bats, he’s hitting .240, next to no power and nothing special on defence. He might be 24, but, he’s also been in the minors for 8 years. His defence there was brutal .961 FPct). He also averages a strikeout a game and he doesn’t walk. When he does run on the bases, he’s only stealing safely about 63% of the time. I’m not seeing 4-5 tools.
Randy does have a point about how Cashman/Yankees poorly handle players. Not getting Alex’s hip looked at when he said last year it was bothering him; Posada’s shoulder last year; Wang’s lack of rehab. Hughes pitching with a broken rib….
Let’s just get a win tonight.
CMW will be pitching like his old self soon enough.
quixotic thoughts…
“It is what it is, let’s move on.”
dt-
what’s that mean?
if that means let him start three more games before making any decisions- fine.
otherwise , it’s battle time.
***defense***
Sorry, it was a long night.
“quixotic thoughts…”
By following through on his thoughts, Don Quixote invariably found himself in amusing but deeply embarrassing situations. Surely you aren’t suggesting the Yanks do the same?
“But if rehab is the issue, Wang should not be doing rehab in major league game situations.”
well , he was throwing 7 inning starts at scranton when cashman overreacted and brought him up when joba was hit in the leg.
again, i’m just saying he’s not a head case. he’s rehabbing at the mlb level.
there are going to be bumps in the road.
i haven’t seen anything from management yet.
this is a non discussion if they back off their assertions it’s wangs fault.
eiland created this firestorm by repeating his silliness about taking itfrom the bullpen to the mound.
sabathia wins tonight and yankee management can then think straight. they are just feeling the pressure right now.
randy-
if you are willing to gamble three more starts on Wang’s upside, you must think his upside this season is significantly higher than Phil Hughes’ upside. How much better than Phil Hughes do you think Wang is?
I’m not at all sure that, even if Wang rebounds, he’s all that much better than the Hughes we see emerging. Remember, you could be gambling as many as 5 games on Wang.
New post
Wave Your Hat
June 11th, 2009 at 3:41 pm
“quixotic thoughts…”
By following through on his thoughts, Don Quixote invariably found himself in amusing but deeply embarrassing situations. Surely you aren’t suggesting the Yanks do the same?
Yes I am and admitting I do the same.
and STOP CALLING ME SHIRLEY!
I’m gonna say something I’m sure will rile up someone.
Wang actually HAS forgotten how to pitch.
He’s forgotten how HE has pitched. He is working on remembering how he pitches. Getting the mechanics back. He is actually working on getting his body to remember what it did when it was doing it effectively.
I think it’s unfair after last night’s performance, when they probably knew at the outset that there would be about 3 or 4 starts before they could realistically expect Wang to be “back,” to take him out of the rotation yet. I know they need those 75-80 to 100 pitches to take place over more than 2-plus innings, though. But in for a dime, in for dollar.
I believe Girardi did say post game, when asked about Wang, basically, “hey, it’s 7 minutes after they game, but…”
And even Eiland admitted he’s aware that he sounds like a broken record with the “he has to take it to the mound” statement.
I think everyone is out of whack with this. It is unchartered territory and no one is sure what to do.
If AJ was pitching lights out,or close; if Andy wasn’t walking the ballpark, lasting only 5 innings; if Joba could get at least into the 7th more consistently; I don’t there there is a discussion about keeping Wang in the rotation for at least one more start, if not two. I also think this Boston thing is making everyone overreact to the situation. Instead of looking at one game, everyone’s looking at 7 games.
Because I think, yes, if all the other pitchers are doing what they’re supposed to do, then sure you can “write in a loss” once every five days on Wang’s day. And then, if you get a win, it’s gravy. But with a lot of iffiness lately, specifically with AJ, who hasn’t been giving them the 7 innings minimum they thought they’d get from him, it changes the equation somewhat.
Randy l -
I think they will watch the game over and get a more clear-headed take on what transpired during the game. And I hope they do reach the conclusion that, despite the long counts and getting behind, it wasn’t as bad as first glance and there was some bad fielding behind him that extended innings, forcing his pitch count up, and tiring him out perhaps more quickly.
I don’t think Eiland is the be-all and end-all of pitching coaches, and I’ve had some questions myself about him, BUT that being said, the staff did well under him last season, specifically the relief staff. So, I wouldn’t be too quick to blame him for this season’s failure; just as I wouldn’t be took quick to give him all the credit for last year’s successes.
God bless her.
People not for nothing but talk about your baseball opinions and expertise on another page and have some remorse for this young child. She’s been through an awful lot. It breaks my heart that anyone especially such a young girl has to go through this. What a brave little girl. God Bless her. Here’s to a speedy recovery!
Penny is sporting a 5.85 ERA. That certainly indicates that someone’s hitting him!
Geeze Louise I apologize and thanks! I thought I was posting on the Lineup thread.