Wrapping it up from the Rogers Centre
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Sep 04, 2009 
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This will be quick because I’m about to fall asleep.
• Jorge Posada’s homer in the ninth inning gave the Yankees seven players with at least 20 homers. That ties the MLB record also held by the 1996 Orioles, the 2000 Blue Jays and the 2005 Rangers. Derek Jeter has 17.
“I don’t care if I hit another one,” he said with a little grin.
• The Yankees also have seven players with at least 70 RBI. Jeter has 61.
• Alfredo Aceves leads the majors with 10 wins in relief.
• A-Rod has hit in 12 straight at 20 of 47. He is up to .276.
Alex also ran into a female police officer while chasing a foul ball in the fifth inning. The two became briefly tangled up. “I’m just glad she didn’t read me my rights,” Rodriguez said. “Only me. How embarrassing.”
• The Yankees have had five win streaks of seven games or more this season. That’s the most in the majors since the 1998 Yankees. That bunch won 114 games and then the World Series.
• In the current seven-game win streak, the Yankees have outscored their foes 57-19.
• Toronto has dropped 15 of 19 and is 32-60 since May 19. They’ll run Roy Halladay out there against Joba tomorrow.
That’s it for me. Catch you tomorrow … but not too early. Thanks to everybody for reading tonight.
thanks pete…get some sleep…im gonna do that too right now!
if the yankees win every single remaining game… they will tie their 1998 record. That’s how good that team was.
Jeremy September 4th, 2009 at 12:41 am
They should just put Melancon on the postseason roster because Bruney is a mess. I rather have a young kid with talent and fire.
————
But that’s not even logical. You have to use common sense.
I’m as big of a fan of Melancon as anyone, but it would be foolish to think they are just going to put him on the postseason roster over Bruney.
Earlier in the season, Girardi didn’t even trust Melancon very much. There were a lot of opportunities he could have used Melancon and just didn’t do it.
We fans don’t run the team. Girardi does. And he’s going to keep going to Bruney whether the fans like it or not.
Was she even a real cop or was she really a musclebound stripper???
Thanks, Pete.
You were right about the bad fans, but man, don’t get so worked up about the bunting.
I have a feeling that the Yankees are working all aspects of their game.
There will come a time in the postseason when small ball will be called upon. I wish more players on this team knew how to bunt.
Can you imagine if Tex bunted to keep defenses honest?
Can you imagine if Nick could actually bunt runners to 2nd & 3rd?
I don’t know why people can’t appreciate the bunt. It’s a lost art in the AL.
From the previous thread. Two pitchers, one spot: Melancon v. Bruney.
Got to say Bruney at this point. Like others have said, it’s not pretty but he gets the job done.
Here’s another trick question. How do you trust more? Coke or Bruney?
First 45 games after the all-star break:
1998 Yankees 33-12
2009 Yankees 34-11
Not too shabby.
GB, Great post on Sandy…..Your analogy of 6 Guidry 1978 seasons puts Koufax’s accomplishments into perspective….And he called it a career at the age of 30……I missed baseball tonight, who said what was the Bronx Bombers weakness ????
Uh, no one appreciates bunting because the value of a successful bunt is low. Ceteris paribus, it rarely increases the odds of a big inning because of the sacrifice of an out to advance runners. Realistically, with the current Yankee lineup, you don’t want anyone besides possibly Cabrera (and definitely Molina, if he’s playing) to give himself up.
In the 1960s, it was a much better play, because the value of a marginal run was higher. With higher scoring, though, the value of the marginal run is lower.
Well I hope Girardi only uses Bruney in a blowout game because you can’t trust him with the game on the line.
Jeter bunted because the Yankees are working on all aspects of their game?
don’t look know but melky is hitting .277
another 2-4,. double for him
quietly solidifying the CF spot for the playoffs.
m, I think it’s about time that Giradi starts having the pitchers taking cuts in the cage…..Making bunting a priority……Melancon is not even an option for October…..K-Rod pulled it off in 2002 for the Angels, and at this point in time, there’s no fair comparison…..It’s Bruney, all we can hope is that he continues to improve….BB’s are an issue
“Here’s another trick question. How do you trust more? Coke or Bruney?”
Coke.
Coke gives up HRs
Bruney gives up HRs AND walks.
Nick- Looks like I split on U/USU. I think the amount of points scored just showed 2 defenses that hadn’t shaken all the rust off.
bruney is nothing. the guy cannot throw strikes he is moving way down in the pecking order. give melancon a chance and if he succeeds bruney may be watching from the stands in the playoffs. he will not be back next yr. no way…
hughes and mo, marte,aceves and robertson, on the post season roster for sure…that is 5……coke probably he is a lefty and only gives up a hr every game.. that makes 6, bruney stinks and he cannot give them any length that is also a problem….
arod has been a pleasure this year, his HR tonight was a rocket. the only problem is arods range in the field has been down, probably because of the injury
Who is the MVP of the Yankees’ bullpen?
A) Alfredo Aceves
B) Phil Hughes
C) Mariano Rivera
Tough choice, isn’t it…?
yes…only you, A-Rod.
ESPN breaking news: Alex Rodriguez been charged with assulting a police officer during the yankees vs jays game tonight…30 game supsension starting tomorrow. ESPN’s own John Kruk is calling for the lifetime ban of A-Rod, while baseball tonight contributer Peter Gammons is calling for A-rod to be taken to the gallows at dawn.
Copelius: it’s mostly been a good night for the under. I didn’t play the total in the Utah game anyway, I was just happy that the middle hit on a couple teasers.
lol @ Arod’s comments. I hope his teammates gave him a good ribbing.
Nick.
I am sweating this one out…Did you take Ore? Or are cheering for the PAC10 only? I need Boise!
-dennis
Pat M.
September 4th, 2009 at 12:49 am
GB, Great post on Sandy…..Your analogy of 6 Guidry 1978 seasons puts Koufax’s accomplishments into perspective….And he called it a career at the age of 30……I missed baseball tonight, who said what was the Bronx Bombers weakness ????
————————————————————
When Koufax banged his left elbow on the ground while sliding into 2nd base, that was the beginning of the end. What a real pity. Can you imagine just how good those seasons really could have been with a healthy elbow? Absolutely those most perfect mechanics I’ve ever seen. 300 wins, 4,000 strikeouts were a real probability, and that was by age 35-36.
I haven’t watched ESPN in over a year, except for the ball games without voice.
Dennis, no worries……
GB7.
Hope you are well! Happy Friday.
-dennis
that female police officer actually looked kind of pissed at the whole situation. I mean lighten up a little, it was an accident. She was the one in the way anyhow
Pat M.
I am a Sox fan, I have been worried since the 2nd grade!
-dennis
What inning was it when that fan through the foul ball back onto the field? Anyone know?
dennis, I have Oregon in a few teasers (currently in the money) and I also took them in the 2H +0.5 bet (currently in the money). I’d be ok with this being the final score.
I’d be happier if they scored another 6 or 8… seems unlikely.
GB, I watched game 7 of the 1965 WS vs The Twins….He pitched on 2 days rest, had only a fastball and breezed through a very powerful Twins lineup in a bandbox ballpark……..Stuart, You are aware of the fact that once the drawn out first round of the playoffs are over, it’s nonstop baseball…..Your bullpen gets exhausted quickly, so you need more than just Hughes & Rivera….Power arms are a key to success…..Having Bruney in tune gives the Yanks an advantage over every team they’ll face…..He’s needed, and he’s a difference maker…Got to get him back in form….
I am ok with 6. 8 makes for some work this weekend..
-dennis
Bruney is the new farnsworth- has the potential but sucks !
Joe better not use him in the ALDS if the Yankees have a small lead especially games 1 and 2.
RKZ
September 4th, 2009 at 12:55 am
“Here’s another trick question. How do you trust more? Coke or Bruney?”
Coke.
Coke gives up HRs
Bruney gives up HRs AND walks.
————————————————————
All of those Bruney homers total up to 5. He had one game on 30 June and his July was bad. The rest of the year, he’s allowed 6 runs. Nobody is saying that his walks aren’t an issue, but, at least check out the numbers in April, May, June, August. Not just July. Guess you’ll need to whine about Rodriguez and Cano.
Whew. At least they won’t score again. Take a knee, Ducks!
Bruney facing Mauer and Morneau in the 1st round will be trouble
“There is less chance to score with a runner on third and one out then there is with a runner on second and no outs”.
————————————————–
Now that is just wrong. Billy Ball must have been a sham. The Angels are screwing up, how come they don’t know this. They’re winning all those games under a false premiss. I will have to recant forever.
Montreal Expos of the great fans and terrible management.
Raines works walk, Raines steals second, sac to third, Dawson sac fly. Over and over and over. And I thought it was great baseball.
Wow, Blount is out of his mind. Suspend him for a month!
Who knew a Duck could be so violent!
dennis-Costanza
September 4th, 2009 at 1:11 am
GB7.
Hope you are well! Happy Friday.
-dennis
————————————————————
Evening, Dennis. Hope all is well with you and Ms Amy. I’m thinking about starting a petition to have her elevated to sainthood. To deal with you and the Red sox in one lifetime is truly a miracle.
All is well here with me and the twins. Sidney was born to be a yankee fan. She already perks up at the sound of Michael Kay giving the lineup….especially the name “Derek Jetahhh”. Strange part was that she throws up at the mention of Red Sox. Do you think that means anything?
If we’re talking about cute things that really young kids do, I was at a minor league game in Reno a few nights ago with my 2 year old nephew.
He pointed to several players and said “Derek Jeter”. I didn’t have the heart to say “No, that’s just Eric Byrnes.”
It’s a travesty that the Yanks haven’t won a title in my nephew’s short life, that must be remedied!
Blount is gone …..The NCAA will toss him, and the University will ax him…..He’s been a problem child….He’s a thug….
RKZ
Do you still think the Twins can win the Division ?
even though they are 5 games out.
What happened? And is it any coincidence his name is Blount?
So the Ducks couldn’t beat the Smurfs. Thank goodness we don’t travel to the hellhole this season.
GB7.
The poor thing is YEStose intolerant..
Try putting on ESPN with the volume. She will fell much better.
-dennis
Two days ago my brother was talking up Oregon big, both in this game and in the Pac-10… I notice my phone is devoid of text messages from him right now…
I will not miss Blount when the Bears visit Eugene later this month.
“feel” better. typing too fast.
-dennis
m, the Rainbows have way too much integrity to visit Boise.
m, Let me guess, You’re a Rainbow Fan……Truth is I’ve made some serious coin since June Jones took over…..
Hawaii, the degenerate gambler’s best friend.
Home of the Pro Bowl.
-dennis
That too, but you know what I meant.
Thank’s Nick in SF…..I love that 11:00 start, the last game of the day……I like the Washington Huskies at home vs. LSU…..A new era begins Saturday….18.5 looks good to me….Too many points for Maryland to start the season….
I know. Just trying to get a cheap laugh as always.
Nick, PatM, Mel.- Have a great night.
-dennis
Hardy har har. I don’t get it.
One of the many gripes about UH is that they don’t have one name for all the men teams and one for the women teams. There’s probably as many names as there are teams.
Some incarnations that include “Rainbow” are the Rainbow Wahine (all women sports), Hawaii Rainbows (men’s basketball), and the Rainbows (men’s baseball).
But they all have integrity, especially current #4 Women’s volleyball, and the golf team is tied for 2nd at some big tourney on the east coast.
What don’t you get?
nothing…anything…everything…
Whoa. Just saw the punch. What’s with that?
Didn’t know that the Sox haven’t won a series at the Trop since 2007 until tonight.
Too bad, I thought Price would be able to outduel Buchholz.
I knew this season would turn out like this. Can’t wait until October!
Sorry, I just can’t assume that Bruney is ever going to get going again. His period of dominance – April – was a long time ago. I think it’s absolutely foolish to count on Bruney…….and if the Yankees don’t give anyone else a chance to shine, if they keep going to Bruney in the hopes that he gets going, what do they do in case he doesn’t? At some point, the Yankees have to have a contingency plan because there is a very good possibility that this Bruney is the one we are stuck with.
M, I can live without Tex keeping the defenses honest – I do not want him bunting, ever.
Dennis, I’m not sure if you saw my posts to you earlier yesterday (in response to your comments about my going to Savannah)?
Tonight:
I expect that Halliday always tough on the Yanks will get by his recent funk and give the Yanks a tough time. On the other hand we have the uncertainity of the latest chapter of the Joba Rules, Ace got the win yesterday and I suspect that he can’t pitch tonight. Then we are into the Bruney, Coke, Robinson and others leading the charge. Looks like it could be a tough road here tonight.
Betsy
I think Joe has done enough good with this team to allow you to trust him to make the right choices in regards to the bullpen.
MY:
I agree, Girardi needs to be trusted at this point. I had no problem with Bruney in that spot last night. People have to come to grips with the idea that Bruney is probably going to be on the postseason roster and Melancon most certainly will not be. Given that, why not use Bruney in late in a fairly tight game? It’s those types of situations that he’s going to occasioanlly be asked to pitch in this October.
Maine, I don’t get that comment…….I should trust Joe on everything because he’s generally done a good job this year? This has nothing to do with Joe and everything to do with Bruney……I don’t get how people assume that Brian is just going to “find it” again when his “it” was back in April……..that’s a long time ago. What happens if he doesn’t find “it” and you’ve not given opportunities to other people?
Betsy – Bruney has very little chance at the postseason roster. Yanks will have CC, AJ, Andy, Joba, Rivera, Hughes, Aceves, Coke (who stinks), Marte (bc Girardi wants 2 lefties and he has been good since his return), Robertson (clearly ahead of Bruney), and a long man – Mitre or Gaudin. That’s 11. Even if Bruney is the last man on that pitching staff are you really worried about it? I mean, please, you always find something to complain about or not trust. The last guy in the pen who Girardi is smart enough never to use in a big spot??? The only time to worry would be in a really long extra inning game at which point I’d trust Swisher more. But please relax. Jeez. You make it hard to read comments on this blog.
“Didn’t know that the Sox haven’t won a series at the Trop since 2007 until tonight.”
They had lost 15 of 17 games and 5 consecutive series down there before this week. Last series win was late 9/2007.
off topic, like to point out the yanks lead baseball in run differental at plus 146
While Bruney most probably will be on the postseason roster, he should by no means be guaranteed anything. I think you have to trot him out there pretty often during the next month to see if he rights himself. For the most part, his velocity is there…actually, he’s overthrowing. The movement on his fastball, however, seems to be gone. I have no problem having Bruney fight it out with Melancon to earn the spot. Make him earn it.
“I don’t get how people assume that Brian is just going to “find it” again when his “it” was back in April”
Bruney isn’t exactly killing ‘em, Betsy. Over the last month, he’s allowed 1 ER in 10 innings over 10 appearances.
Melancon has done nothing to earn a postseason spot. Bruney will be the last man in the pen and be used only in 1 inning mop up spots. Might as well give him a lot of work in these meaningless september games.
“I have no problem having Bruney fight it out with Melancon to earn the spot.”
I don’t think he’s fighting it out with Melancon. Melancon’s not going to be on the roster. Bruney’s fate most likely hinges on whether Girardi feels he needs a long guy from the Guadin/Mitre duo.
While I am certainly no pitching coach, Bruney’s problem seems to be this: When he is going well, you can very obviously see him getting on top of the ball and throwing it on a downward plane. This gives him good command and decent movement in addition to the velocity.
Lately, and last night was the most clearly I have seen it, he was getting under the ball, and pushing it a bit, or a lot, on some pitches. This causes him to throw it very straight, and lose command, because he doesn’t have enough of his body driving the ball. The velocity is still good because the arm speed is still there, which is a good thing.
The question is, is this something the Yanks have seen and tried to fix, but it doesn’t happen in the games? Or is he throwing this way because some part of his body/arm is injured?
Kind of late for contingency plans when it comes to Bruney. I think some of you are overestimating the importance of Bruney’s role in the playoffs. With built-in off days in the playoff schedule, I don’t see Girardi deviating from using Rivera, Hughes, Aceves, Robertson, Marte and Cone. They will most likely have Joba available for the first round which gives them seven relievers right there. Bruney or Gaudin will be the after thought addition to the playoff roster.
Furthermore, if the Yankees finish with the best record in the AL they get the choice of having an off day between most of their first round playoff games which means they can go with CC, AJ and Pettitte as the three starters and use all their top relievers in every game. Again, the AL team with the best record will be offer the choice of having an off day between just about all of their first round playoff games.
Last year, every AL playoff team used only five relievers in the first round. When it comes to the second round, teams might use 7 relievers, but the 7th reliever might pitch 1-2 innings at the most for the entire round. If you get as far as the WS, some teams revert back to 5 relievers while the other team might use 6-7 guys, but again, the 6th and 7th reliever innings are very limited.
IMO, you guys are worrying too much about Bruney’s very limited role in the playoffs as Girardi will go with the hot hand and give the ball to his best relievers which are Rivera, Hughes, Aceves, Robertson, Marte and Coke in certain situations.
Yanks are playing boring baseball by crushing every team that i don’t even feel like watching these games.. no matter whom the other team throws on the mound, the offense keeps hitting and hitting.. it feels like watching spring training and no i’m not being c*ocky… I have hardly seen a scenario in the last month or so when its bases loaded in the 8th with 2 outs and hughes or mariano getting the strike out.. They are keeping the game close and then in the 7th, 8th or 9th inning they keep tacking on runs.. I dont remember in the last few games of coming back after being down 1-2 runs in the late innings because the yanks always seem to have the lead.. its a good problem to have though..
Bruney’s post-season work, if he is on the post-season roster at all, will be minimal.
Its like worrying about Jerry Hairston Jr or Eric Hinske in the post-season. In other words, its a non-issue.
Betsy,
Joe Girardi has done more with the Yankee bullpen in 2 years than Joe Torre ever did with less talent. If Girardi was managing the bullpen in 2004-2007, the Yankees would have had 1 or 2 more rings. Its his greatest strength as a manager.
The guy knows what he is doing running a pen.
He’s trying to get Bruney going because he would like to have another experienced arm out there in the post-season.
As it is now, Hughes, Aceves, Coke and Robertson have little or no bullpen experience in the post-season. Another veteran arm out there helps.
He’s going to use his 7 1/2 game lead to give Bruney a chance to right himself. That’s the smart thing to do at this point of the season.
I did not see his entire appearance, but Bruney seemed to look better last night than he had in prior appearances. His command is still off, and that is a concern.
On the other hand, Marte looks very good. Hopefully Joe will use him in some high leverage situations and see if he can handle the pressure, although I am not sure how many high leverage situations will come up until the playoffs. Perhaps the series against the Angels would be good.
I wouldn’t mind seeing Marte close a game or two while Mo is getting healthy.
Re: A fan throwing the ball on to the field and towards Aceves: I have seen that their fans have gotten really nasty over the past 5 years toward yankee fans and the Yanks. I’ve noticed this as we’ve gone to many games from upstate NY to Rogerscentre. Witnessed drunk kids/guys Heckling ladies wearing Yankee t-shirts, not nice or classy. Very surprising when Canadians have a reputation for politeness but there has been a lot of ugly jays fans lately.
Cash,
Exactly. Bruney won’t throw 5 post-season innings, if they go all the way, unless its in blowout situations.
Unfortunately for Bruney, David Robertson has taken his role. Robertson is going to have a key role in the post-season.
For some crazy reason, his velocity has increased during the year. He is consistently throwing 93-94 for strikes, and that makes his curveball even more dangerous since hitters can’t sit on it.
You could see a lot of games in the post-season where Girardi goes to Robertson in the 7th, Hughes in the 8th and Mo in the 9th, with Coke and Marte mixed in to get tough lefty hitters.
That may end up being the “formula” for a lot of the post-season games.
This team’s ability to tack on runs is impressive. It is not exciting, but hitting singles and doubles while mixing in the occasional bomb is the way to win a lot of games.
The past few years the Yankees were overly dependent on the long ball. This year’s team has hit a lot of homers, but you don’t watch games and wait for the homer.
A-Rod seems to be hitting a lot of low line drives and grounders lately. I think that he feels less pressure to hit homers. This increases his ability to get timely hits. Of course, the laser that he hit out last night was amazing. It was kind of like watching some of the oversized kids hit in Williamsport, except A-Rod did it over a 320 ft fence. What a shot.
I’m more worried about the starting three in the short series. CC, AJ and Pettitte; CC, Pettitte, AJ?
In a short series the second game is pivotal, so I’m leaning toward Pettitte for game 2 in the ALDS. While it would be two lefties in a row, CC and Pettitte’s stuff are pretty different so it would still be two different looks to the opposing side.
And what do you do with Joba in the ALDS to keep him sharp for – let’s hope – the ALCS and beyond?
Glad everyone ripping on Betsy for her ridiculous concerns regarding Bruney!
If Bruney is the only issue I can’t wait for the parade. Betsy – take a month’s break and come when the Yanks are behind in a postseason series.
Until then please keep your absolutely ridiculous concerns to yourself!
Yanks Probably won the most important game of this series last night. You have to be happy with a split with Doc and Jobber toeing up tonight.
You Figure Andy wins on Sat, and the Sunday game is kind of the swing game. Keep Rollin
But what if the Yankees lose game 2 of the ALDS ? Do you really want A.J. starting game 3 in Detroit when he has a better ERA at Yankee stadium, then the road. And Andy has a better ERA on the road then the stadium, plus Andy has experience.
I think game 2 is important but the most important game is game 3.
Murph,
I think you have to keep AJ in Game 2, have a short leash for him (Aceves) if the meltdown begins, and hope for the best.
Andy pitches better on the road. In a big ballpark like Comerica, that may fit Andy better than AJ at this point.
Its a tough call either way though.
The way this team can tack on runs, you don’t need much from your starters. You just need them to keep the game close and cut out the walks.
That’s what was so frustrating with Gaudin last night. Five run lead against a dead team and the guy simply wouldn’t throw the ball over the plate. He continued to work the edges. No idea why since he’s not exactly facing Murderers Row.
He should have been able to get into the 6th inning last night in a breeze. 3 2/3, 3 walks, 2 HBP and 4 hits against that team? Completely unacceptable. Especially with a 5 run lead.
The post-season, it all changes. You play 2, and then have a day off. You can go all out to win those two games and not worry about bullpen fatigue. That is of course, if the starters can go longer than 2 or 3 innings.
The post-season really plays into the strength of this team as long as they don’t get tight.
Bill
The Blue Jays fans shouldn’t blame the Yankees and their fans for their pathetic organization. Their team and organization sucks ! If they don’t like then they should stop going to the games and complain about the management of the team.
From watching some of Gaudin’s short performances this year, he seems to be completely obsessed with throwing his slider, to a fault. It is a great pitch against right-handers but he seems to suffer from the same disease as Joba, where he doesn’t use his fastball enough to set the slider up and instead relies too heavily on the breaking ball. That seems to contribute to both guys’ control problems and why they end up laboring against lineups.
Halladay is not the threat he was before. Yankees have hit him hard the last two times, Boston crushed him twice and Tampa crushed him. Halladay sems to be ready to leave Toronto.
As for a-rod, he seems to be having fun and they even showed him and jeter joking around last night. it seems like a better, more relaxed a-rod and we should all be happy with him as he is now. no need for 55 homruns every year as long as the ones he does hit are clutch.
The post-season, it all changes. You play 2, and then have a day off. You can go all out to win those two games and not worry about bullpen fatigue. That is of course, if the starters can go longer than 2 or 3 innings.
–
Schedule A we even get a day off after game 1, so Girardi can match up all he wants depending on how deep CC goes to slam the door.
And while everyone is talking about Sabathia and his postseason numbers and how they need to improve, a pitcher the yankees might be facing in the ALDS does not have the best postseason numbers either. 1-2 win- loss record with a 5.82 ERA overall in postseason play. 5.73 era in the world series, 6.75 era ALCS, and 5.06 era ALDS.
The pitcher with that record is Justin Verlander.
“Under Torre, players could bring their sons into the locker room only after wins, while daughters of players were not allowed in the room at all. Girardi’s rules allow players to bring their sons into the clubhouse before and after games, win or lose.
“I think it’s important that your children know what you do, so they have an understanding of what work is,” Girardi said. “We’re not just going away to just go away, we actually have a job to do. I also think our kids shouldn’t be punished for us losing. It’s not their fault. Our guys are real good when we have a loss, their kids are respectful.”
The manager even has implemented special days for daughters to visit the locker room, not wanting to leave them out.
“Girls shouldn’t be punished for being girls,” Girardi said. “Once or twice a month, we let the girls in the clubhouse and tell all the guys to make sure to shower and get dressed in the back.”
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/spo.....z0Q90ulAUS
sj44-
was that you on the game thread last night talking about gaudin and bruney?
“Under Torre, players could bring their sons into the locker room only after wins, while daughters of players were not allowed in the room at all. Girardi’s rules allow players to bring their sons into the clubhouse before and after games, win or lose.
“I think it’s important that your children know what you do, so they have an understanding of what work is,” Girardi said. “We’re not just going away to just go away, we actually have a job to do. I also think our kids shouldn’t be punished for us losing. It’s not their fault. Our guys are real good when we have a loss, their kids are respectful.”
The manager even has implemented special days for daughters to visit the locker room, not wanting to leave them out.
“Girls shouldn’t be punished for being girls,” Girardi said. “Once or twice a month, we let the girls in the clubhouse and tell all the guys to make sure to shower and get dressed in the back.”
____
That Joe Girardi is HORRIBLE. Should we start the we want torre chants now or later?
http://www.baseball-reference......reer.shtml
Sandy: 2.76 ERA, 131 ERA+
Pedro: 2.92 ERA, 154 ERA+
Pedro pitched with a lower mound, in smaller Ball parks, to much better overall lineups.
Sandy was league averageish in first 6 years (102ish ERA+) and great his last 6. He had a run of 5 years with an average ERA+ around 170.
Pedro had a run of 7 years with an average ERA+ well over 200!!!
Pedro also has a better career WHIP (which is NOT adjusted to reflect he pitched in the AL East during the steroid era).
I’m a Jew and love Koufax… but Pedro was MUCH better.
Santana is a GREAT Pitcher with an ERA+ of 143. Predo had ELEVEN years with an ERA plus better then 143.
Stats are NOT the end all to be all, but looking at CAREER ERA+, no starter is even close to Pedro (and his career includes his last 2-3 years of underwhelming pitching).
Randy,
I was in the game thread until the 7th inning last night.
The Yanks being 35-11 since the all star break is pretty hot. That’s better than a .750 win pct. Actually it’s .761 pct.
The 98 team spent a significant part of the season flirting with a .750+ win pct too.
In 98 the .750 pace they had going when September rolled around was from the beginning of the season though. At 120 games they were exactly 90-30. They won the next two games too, before going on (gasp!) a 2-game skid, winning only 2 then going on a 4-game skid.
http://www.baseball-reference......ores.shtml
Wow, even the 98 team went on a 4-6 stretch. Those bums. If the blog existed back then, I’m sure the bridge jumpers woulda been out en force by the 6th of those losses.
There are some general & statistical similarities in the makeup of the team but of course it’s not the same. Still, with Alex having an off year its fun to imagine how good the team would be if he was healthy and had a normal Alex year. Add an Alex MVP year to this team and look out.
last nights game thread had a lot of discussion about the ability of pitchers to throw strikes when they want to. often the pitchers with the most stuff have the most problem with throwing strikes. gaudin seems like he’s that kind of guy. burnett is often that guy.
pressure certainly adds to the problem with any pitcher and control. a pitcher who’s tight has trouble releasing the ball consistently and that’s going to make the command very erratic.
part of the audition with new pitchers like gaudin is to see if they can be who they are and who the gm thought they were. the audition is to see if they can relax and be themselves and do what they normally do. no one is asking guys to be better than they are, but with the yankees it’s sometimes hard to be who you are with the pressure added.
Chad Gaudin is a good example of why,the AL should never believe all the hype about NL pitchers.They can’t handle the AL,ESPECIALLY the AL East.These guys are good for long relief
3 or 4 innings tops.
When are we going to start counting down the magic number?! its about that time!