Today in The Journal News
Posted by: Sam Borden - Posted in Misc on Oct 12, 2009 
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The Yankees advanced to the ALCS for the first time in five seasons after completing a sweep of the Twins last night in the final baseball game at the Metrodome. Alex Rodriguez and Jorge Posada hit big home runs, and Andy Pettitte got his 15th career playoff win to send the Yankees into a match-up with the Angels. Chad Jennings was in and amongst the clubhouse bubbly.
Posada’s go-ahead blast was a fitting climax, as the catcher capped off an emotional week with a stirring performance. There’s more on him and the “old guard” Yankees in my column. For those who are interested (or looking to waste a little more time at work), you can also check out a piece I did for SNY.tv on the key to the Yankees’ success in this series (and beyond): pitching.
A-Rod’s second game-tying homer in as many games was the capper to a great three-game run, and his six RBI set a career high for a postseason series. Chad’s notebook also has details on the Yankees’ next opponent and yet another costly baserunning blunder for the Twins.
If you haven’t already, check out some of the clubhouse audio posted last night. We put up a ton of stuff and it’s pretty compelling to hear the celebrating going on as guys are talking about what the Yankees accomplished. Imagine the whole place smelling of Champagne and you’ll get a good idea of the general ambiance.
Chad and I are headed back to New York today, as are the Yankees. Look for the team to take a day or two off, then have a couple of workouts ahead of Friday’s Game 1. Be sure to stay with us all week as we have loads of coverage – and even more blogging – about the Yankees-Angels showdown.
Thanks for all the great coverage of the ALDS. Looking forward to the ALCS.
I don’t know but this series confirmed my pick of MVP.
Terrific coverage – no stone unturned, no story untold! Thanks, guys.
I really hated hearing all the Pavano palaver during the broadcast last night. But I remember watching Carl pitch in Baltimore late last season, after coming off the DL, off the surgery. He was impressive. My husband and I talked about the idea of Cashman re-signing him. We came to the conclusion that because of all the baggage of 4 years of disappointment, he probaby would/should not. In a way, I feel like at least last night showed why Pavano got the contract he did from the Yankees. It didn’t go well here, but at least finally people could see that Cash was not crazy.
All that being said, I am SOOOOO glad that Alex and Jorge got the two big hits off him last night. That’s all that was needed, and all’s well that ends well, right?
What a great win. I’m glad that got a couple of insurance runs, since it allowed for somewhat easier breathing in the ninth. I had not wanted for the Yankees to face the Twins because they were so hot coming into the playoffs. And they played tough. Just not tough enough – a mistake here, a mistake there, that the Yankees were able to capitalize on, and PITCHING was the difference.
I am hoping for an exciting and hard-fought ALCS against the Angels. It’s a tough matchup. This is a tough team.
Can’t wait to watch the replay of the post-game on YES later. (I couldn’t stay awake for all of it last night. But I did hear AJ’s “What about the Yankees?” – BEST post-game answer of the year!)
What a sports weekend! It couldn’t have been better.
It has got to be all smiles in this place.
“What a sports weekend! It couldn’t have been better.”
Well, if Ole Miss hadn’t stunk it up against Alabama… but God, the Yankees came through. Thank you, Mr. Steinbrenner.
Well, if Ole Miss hadn’t stunk it up against Alabama
Yes, that was not a good showing. Sorry bout that
Nice work Chad and Sam. I thought the blog would falter with Pete leaving, but man, the blog is better than ever. Thanks for all the coverage.
I hope the Yankees go with a three man rotation against the Angels. I rather have CC going three times with Pettitte going twice against Angels with their switch hitters and Abreu. Figgins and Morales are better hitters from the left side.
Jon Lester will have lots of rest for his next start …… in April of 2010.
Matsuzaka still available to be used out of the bullpen but will need a wood burning stove to keep warm in the Boston bullpen.
No tears shed in NYC.
Chad and Sam have made this blog the “in” place to be. Many props for their solid updates and contributions and the best is yet to come.
Sam, Josh, Chad – you guys have done an AMAZING job. Thank you!
I am unbelievably proud of our core. How lucky did the Yanekes get? Andy, Mo, Jeter, Jorge – they are all incredible talents and terrific people. Not only that, but they are still remarkably productive at a time when most players are either retired or clearly on the downswing.
I’m watching a replay of the post-game show – they haven’t gotten up to it yet, but I can’t wait to see the champagne celebration again. It was so much fun to see these guys enjoying themsevlves and there were some hilarious moments: Jeter getting a mighty hit of champagne during his interview, AJ pouring beer into Swish’s mouth, Tex looking ridiculous in his goggles – I just love seeing these guys having a good time.
I’d also like to give a shout out to our FA and Swish. Amazingly, NY didn’t pose any problems for them – they handled the media and the pressure beautifully. They fit into the clubhouse ridiculously well…….
What a team.
The only thing I’m concerned about is Phil’s performance. He has not been good at all in his last two outing – we were not counting on him struggling. The Yankees need to get him straightened out in the next few days.
“All that being said, I am SOOOOO glad that Alex and Jorge got the two big hits off him last night. That’s all that was needed, and all’s well that ends well, right?”
doreen-
i say no to any more pavano . he’s just not yankee material. there’s something in him that he pitches well against them ,but not for them.
watching the highlights and speed up game on mlb network, i really liked seeing a lot of players participating by playing solid defense in a tight pitching battle with the yankees coming out on top.
even though a lot of players didn’t get hits, they were all battle tested in a game like last night. swisher, melky, cano all made the plays they had to which isn’t always easy under the pressure of a big postseason game.
“team” is the feeling i’m getting. jorge and molina both did their thing. the starting pitchers all pitched well. the big guns of arod and teixeira came through. jeter is jeter. mr intangible.
the bullpen was good. hughes has had some hiccups but he hung tough. joba battled and looked good. mo is mo.
all in all, great playoff series. the twins never give up and the yankees really earned this one by playing great together as a team .
This from Pete Abe’s twitter.
It’s evident that an IQ test is not a requirement for a Twitter account based on some of the comments received today. Yikes.
about 15 hours ago from TweetDeck
It’s not Red Sox fans. RT @mlbnotebook: @PeteAbe Welcome to Red Sox nation
about 15 hours ago from TweetDeck
Another shot at Yankees fans.
Deal with your bigger paycheck and shortened season, Pete.
Fun/interesting Tweets from Sweeny Murti from ALDS
Moron runs onto the field. ARod ran to the mound to protect Mariano. I like it.
If Pavano pumped his fist like that as a Yankee he would have torn his rotator cuff.
Pavano takes the mound to “Know Your Enemy” by Green Day.
The “big screen” at the Metrodome looks like an IPod Nano next to Yankee Stadium’s board.
How much would you have given me in March if I said Robertson/Cervelli was Yanks battery in 11th inn of playoff game?
AJ Pies Teixeira with a decoy from Posada! Honest.
Gardner PR for Posada. Haven’t anticipated SB like this since Willie Mays Hayes in 1989.
Wow, what a great series! Now what the heck am I going to do until Friday???
I am in no way rooting for the enemy, but I do hope that Abreu has a good series. I always liked him as a Yankee, despite his fear of the wall.
A great start to the postseason, Yankees have great momentum, Arod is hot…and it is 4 days until they play again! Then they have an off day in between the 3 games in Anaheim. Even if the NLCS goes 7 games, the NL team will have 3 days off before the WS. If there is an LCS sweep, there is a 7 or 8 day break before the WS. Total momentum killers. It totally changes the game from the game they play all year, not to mention the harsher weather they get to because of all these off days.
I seem to remember baseball having a more flexible PS schedule in case of dual sweeps, but they have to do something about the playoffs going so deep into the fall, and the excessive off-days.
Mark, in today’s game, the post season schedule is dictated solely by television contracts and greed. So’s the regular season, now that I think about it.
Maybe they planned on Global Warming kicking in a little more this year. Guess they misread that one!
Doreen, AJ’s “how about the Yankees” said it all. What with he and Andy’s post-game interview after the division clinching and his pithy comment last night, AJ is becoming a veritable quote machine.
LOL I will be on vacation for some of the ALCS, so maybe that will help the Yankees…..unlike Friday, where I was at my friend’s house and yet continued to check on the computer, I won’t be able to do that.
Pat, thanks for the info. Jorge deked for Ninja AJ? I didn’t know that…….cool stuff.
I really wish MLB would give the starting times for the ALCS. Not sure why this is a big secret.
In the meantime, If I guestimate a 7pm start-
105 hours and 41 minutes until Game 1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Erica, did you enjoy the 6:07 start times for games 1 and 2? I thought they were great.
Yesterday’s game was almost anti-climatic compared with Friday’s game, but it was still very enjoyable. Mo’s cutter to Mauer had a little extra on it. Not easy to shatter the bat of one of the best hitters in baseball.
Yankee fans need to step back and appreciate this team. They do the little things very well.
Posada, Andy, Jeter, Mo, Joba and Hughes-all homegrown guys who are the lifeblood of this team.
Listening to the guys on MLB network, they commented on how Jeter slowed the game down on the play to get Punto. He took his time, set his feet and one hopped the throw to Posada to be sure that it was an easy pick up for Jorge.
The twins made mistakes and the Yankees took advantage of them.
Combined with the epic meltdown by Papelbuckner, it was an all around great day.
The Angels are good, but it is time for the Yankees to take down their nemisis.
Great game last night. I was watching with my dad and he got really nervous when the Twins took the lead. I told him, don’t worry the Yankees will come back and tie it in the next inning. It seems like it’s gone that way every time they play the Twins!
Sweeny’s Tweets are awesome. I noticed how Alex and I believe Jeter went to the mound after that idiot ran out on the field. Must protect Mo at all costs! LOL
ditmars1929
October 12th, 2009 at 9:26 am
Erica, did you enjoy the 6:07 start times for games 1 and 2? I thought they were great.
***
Actually, I thought they were perfect. It was a little bit of a mad rush home to make sure I got there in time. I’d usually make it with about 5 minutes to spare. But I really liked that the games didn’t end too late. Especially since it usually takes me a while to calm down from them. LOL
I have become rather superstitious with my countdowns though, I am going to keep them going
Well, Erica, if I see some early info on ALCS start times, I’ll let you know.
Being a NYer, I wish they’d have the 6:07′s for the World Series, but that wouldn’t be fair to the west coast.
ditmars1929
October 12th, 2009 at 9:33 am
Well, Erica, if I see some early info on ALCS start times, I’ll let you know.
Being a NYer, I wish they’d have the 6:07’s for the World Series, but that wouldn’t be fair to the west coast.
****
Thats why I am afraid some of the ALCS times might be later. They need to accomodate the Angels fans on the west coast
being a bakery manager who goes to work at 4 a.m., 6:07 starts are damn near perfect!
I think the ALCS is starting at 730 on Fox….
The only question left is:
What are you going to write about for five days? This upcoming series with the Angels will get as over-dissected as the Superbowl normally does!
Like the guys said, this is step 2. Halfway to glory. ALL my teams won this weekend: UF, Cowboys, Yankees. I wish more weekends were like this
Interesting stat: Yankees had 3 players who batted over .222 in this series. Arod, Jeter and Posada.
“Jorge wants to win,” said Derek Jeter, his best friend on the team. “That’s it. He just wants to win.”
everyone should do themselves a favor and read sam’s article on posada.
there should never have been any conflict with the posada /molina controversy.
they’re both important in the role they were each signed for.
this playoff series demonstrated how they are both valuable in their roles.
posada is really the co captain of this team. he just has that drive to win. it may not always be pretty , but he almost always shows up in big games.
Watching the YES postgame coverage for maybe the 5th time.
You gotta a**ume that either the clubhouse access was limited or there were other issues preventing more of the champagne celebration being shown.
Erica, I heard that since the games were back to FOX, they’d be 8pm starts again. Yuck.
However both series are being played on Friday, Monday and the following Saturday (10/24) so some concession to that will have to be made. Maybe it’ll be the old 4pm/8pm split as in past years…
Either way, why is it such a closely guarded secret???
Lee23-
I agree, an 8pm start on Friday seems more likely. I will adjust my countdown guestimates accordingly.
Funny note- filters do not let you post the word a–ume anymore. LOL
Randy-
In his postgame last night, Girardi had a great line when asked about Posada. “I don’t want him to ever be happy he’s not playing”.
And that is 100% correct. If Posada had said, “Gee, I am getting the game off and that’s going to be great”, he would not be the fiery Posada we love. We’d be screaming he has no heart.
Randy, the real hidden story of this series to me is how Girardi had the balls to stand up to Posada and tell him he was sitting for Game 2 because that’s what he feels is best for the team. I think a young Torre had that kind of balls but an old Torre was reluctant to damage a trusted relationship. This is Girardi’s team and he sent a message that no one is above the team. I think when bench guys like Molina, Cervelli and Gardner feel like they are integral parts to the team that’s when a team does special things.
“Interesting stat: Yankees had 3 players who batted over .222 in this series. Arod, Jeter and Posada.”
With the extended break, that could all change. The cold players may find something that was missing, unfortunately, though, it is going to be very difficult for Arod to maintain this groove.
Mark, you sound like Betsy. Try not to think of things to worry about for the next five days. It’s not healthy.
According to today’s NY Post game 1 is at 5:07.
Well, the Yankees pitchers had an ERA of 1.55. When you picth that well in October you’re going to win some ballgames, a lot of ballgames.
Please don’t say that! I’m not worried, this is the best sports Monday in many years. Yankees sweep, Red Sox get swept, and the Patriots get shown up by their 32 year old former OC.
I love Girardi’s attitude about competitive players. He liked Phil not wanting to give the ball back in Texas, he liked AJ not wanting to come out of the game in Anaheim and he likes Jorge not being happy about the situation. The point is, Girardi is not that far removed from being a player and he understands how they think and feel. That can not be underestimated.. Girardi knows that his players are not disrespecting him when their competitive fires are burning – he doesn’t get hung up on stuff like that.
Angela
October 12th, 2009 at 10:00 am
According to today’s NY Post game 1 is at 5:07.
****
Interesting. Every other source including mlb.com has TBA. I wonder if the Post made it up. LOL
Tom, I knew the pitching was outstanding, but being caught up in just whether or not they won, I didn’t even notice the 1.55 ERA. Man, that is most impressive. Thanks for the stat.
Mark, I was just kidding, really, and having a little fun at Betsy’s expense. She cares so much that she worries too much. Quite a fan.
I think Teix has the most valuable .167 performance I have ever seen in playoff history. He made half a dozen fantastic plays look routine and his only 2 hits were important and timely.
The Post is probably just guessing. But they should have the times ready since the NLCS first 2 games will be in LA regardless of the PHI/COL result.
Funny, I had to write OC, since *ssistant didn’t make it through.
Betsy, isn’t it interesting that Joe is so understanding of players not wanting to sit when he was about the most congenial player during his time as a Yankee – basically grooming Posada to the point he took his job away.
Mark, one would think the Post would be accurate, since they and Fox are owned by the same company. A 5:00 game would be excellent, but I’d still bet on 8:00, with 8:00 being the listed start, but the actual first pitch being closer to 8:30.
http://www.fox.com/schedule.htm
Fox says 7:30 pm on Friday. That might be pre-game hoopla start. I would guess 8:00 – 8:15 start time.
randy l -
Agree about Pavano.
Agree about this having been, all 3 games, a total team effort. With the defense and the pitching, there is no sweep, and who knows? The hits were not plentiful, but they were timely and powerful. In each game, you go to point a finger toward the most important player, and ultimately, there is no ONE important player. Each contributed. It, was good, clean, exciting and mostly crisp baseball. Pitching rules the day. If you pitch, you can afford Mark Teixeira getting 2 hits in 3 games, and Damon going 0-4 last night alone. Having a shut down (albeit a little shaky) bullpen really helps out.
The bullpen wasn’t as sharp as it had been, but they got the job done, bending but not breaking, because the defense was on its toes. Some great plays.
I’m excited for the Angels series. I think these Yankees can go toe-to-toe with that pesky team.
I really don’t understand why they can’t move the LCS up when both teams involved have gotten it done in 3.
Now, what does CC do to keep sharp? He would have started today. Does he work out – do a simulated semi-game, just throw – what? Anyone have an idea?
Wow, Joe and Evan are RIPPING Girardi and they went as far as to say that Yankee fans should be scared of him against the Angels. They are saying that he COMPLETELY overmanaged:
1) taking Andy out
2) taking Joba out for Coke after he gave up one little hit to Mauer
3)Damaso Marte
Basically, they are ripping him for his use of the pen. I had to shut it off……..
An observation from last nights game on something that could have hurt the Yanks, but luckily didn’t: On Cano’s hit, Matsui had no chance of scoring, but Gardner probably would have tried. However, it appears Girardi is going to use Gardner mainly in situations to replace Swisher or Damon for defensive purposes, particularly with a slim lead. However, if they had the second runner(Guzman) he would certainly have been in there for Matsui.
It was a moot point because of Mariano, but I will be interested to see what they do for the ALCS. With possibly needing a 4th starter, and more back to back games, they probably just replace Marte with Bruney. But, if all Hairston is going to do is pinch run, I would rather see Guzman.
“one would think the Post would be accurate, since they and Fox are owned by the same company.”
“Fox says 7:30 pm on Friday”
Apparently, the right hand is not talking to the left hand.
DT – OPPC member
October 12th, 2009 at 10:12 am
http://www.fox.com/schedule.htm
Fox says 7:30 pm on Friday. That might be pre-game hoopla start. I would guess 8:00 – 8:15 start time.
*****
In light of this information, I will continue my tradition of counting down until the start of the broadcast. 7:30 it seems to be
Ditmars, lol – I can take it. I’m terrible, really – that’s why I am enjoying the time off between series. It gives me a chance to recharge my batteries and calm down.
Ghost, Girardi as a catcher/mentor to Jorge was wonderful – he handled that situation beautifully…..not every veteran would, knowing that the youngster was eventually going to supplant him.
Doreen, as I posted earlier, the schedule is dictated by television contracts. That’s why there is limited flexibility. What’s best for baseball (and fans) isn’t always best for the network, in this case Fox. I could rattle off a couple of reasons for you (full disclosure, I work in advertising) but I don’t want to bore you.
As for what CC and the rest of the team should do to stay sharp for the next few days, a friend of mine suggested the Yankees play a few short inning practice games against Scranton. At first, I thought he was kidding, but he was serious. Now, I actually think that might be a pretty good idea. A little far out, but not a bad idea.
105 hours and 7 minutes until Game 1!!!!!!!
If it goes seven games there are three off days in this next series. They are Sunday, Wednesday and Friday which means they play Friday, Saturday, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
“Yankees play a few short inning practice games against Scranton”
If they want to play a minor league team, why not just have the Mets travel crosstown instead of having Scranton bus 3 hours?
Doreen, you can’t move the games up (and I’m fine with that) because then the AL and NL are completely out of whack with regards to the WS. The AL teams would finish way earlier than the NL teams (who haven’t even finished playing the NLDS) and the winner would be sitting around even longer than normal for the NL winner to emerge.
I’ve no problem with the days – I can now relax, lol. Both teams have to deal with the time off -who knows how that will manifest itself in game 1?
“Ghost, Girardi as a catcher/mentor to Jorge was wonderful – he handled that situation beautifully…..not every veteran would, knowing that the youngster was eventually going to supplant him.”
Not according to Francesa and his sources. He says Torre and Girardi held Posada back in 98 and 99 which is why there is some issue with Girardi and Posada’s relationship today.
Take it for what’s it worth.:)
Betsy, Expect to hear more of the same all week. It’s their job to stir up fear and angst. People don’t call in if they go on and say “everything is a O.K.” They need a topic so Girardi is it.
“Yankees play a few short inning practice games against Scranton”
If they want to play a minor league team, why not just have the Mets travel crosstown instead of having Scranton bus 3 hours?
________________________________________
Mark, the Mets are busy warming up my son’s t-ball team. And they are losing pathetically.
Andy did get a quick hook.
No matter though. It worked.
It’s tough to understand ripping a guy when he just managed his team to the ALCS but we are talking about talk radio right?
anyone else worried about hughes?? He was a little shaky this series.
Craw, it’s not worth very much, lol. I know Mike keeps saying that, but my sources say he’s a blowhard who repeats bad information in the hopes that it will become true. Jorge and Joe had a brotherly like relationship – Jorge is a tempermental guy, so I’m sure they had their moments, but overall, I believe they were close.
Tom, I admit that taking Andy out is sketchy..and I think Joe may have an itchy trigger finger when it comes to his pen. I mean, think of it – they were down to Gaudin in game 1 if the game went much further. To be fair, Joe had been this way all year – he rarely pushed his starters due to the fact that he trusts the pen. So, for Joe and Evan to say that he panicked is ridiculous – panicking would imply that he went against what he normally does because he was scared. No, Joe was very consistent here.
Crawdaddy, can you disagree with the way Torre handled things between Posada and Girardi? However it played out behind the scenes it never got outside the coaches room.
The fact remains that Posada is one of the top 10 best hitting catchers in history but his pitch calling as always been a question. Look at what happened to Boston when they decided that offense was more important in their series vs. the Angels. They traded Varitek’s legendary pitch calling for 2 hits and 2 rbi over 3 games. Pitching is ALWAYS parmamount in the post season.
“Mark, the Mets are busy warming up my son’s t-ball team. And they are losing pathetically.”
Re: Posada/Girardi. I don’t remember all of the particulars, but I got the impression that the Yanks let Girardi go so that Posada would be forced to step up and be the guy. I thought they felt Posada was using Girardi as a crutch, and not fully growing into the role. But I could be wrong.
Not worried about Hughes, but I think he is going to have to mix in the breaking ball just enough to keep the hitters honest on his fastball.
I really don’t see the problem with Girardi taking out Andy. Heck, Joba, Hughes and Mo didn’t cough up the game last night, did they? Girardi went with the formula that got him and his team here.
Betsy -
Ah, yes, eventually it would end up unbalanced (off-days wise) anyway. I guess ideally, in the first round, you want to go 4 games – ha ha.
I do understand about tv as the driving force behind scheduling. Just wish it could drive it with a tad more flexibility.
Mark in Tampa -
My husband and I talked about Girardi not pinch-running for Matsui earlier, especially in light of the fact that once Matsui reached third, he put Hairston in to run for him. The only thing I can think of was at that point if was still close enough so that if it was a tie game, he’d still want Matsui’s bat in there. But this morning, I’m thinking, well, that’s what they have Hinske for, right? That was the only move that Girardi made that I’ve questioned.
Mark in Tampa, agree regarding PH needing to throw offspeed more. His FB command is off a little, looked like he was overthrowing, that can be corrected. But he is throwing almost all FB on the outside part of plate. Hitters see that. MLB showed Papelbon’s meltdown. He did same thing, almost every pitch was a 95 FB on the outside, Angels hit it other way. Even if you throw 95 you still have to pitch. PH has gotten away from that. His breaking stuff isn’t sharp because he hasn’t thrown it much lately. He should throw it early in count. He should also move hitters off plate with FB. Mixing location and mixing pitches will get hitters off his FB and open up outside corner. I’m not worried about him. He’ll be fine.
Haha yeah Girardi is so bad that his team had the best record in all of baseball this year. He’s so bad that his team just swept the Twins in the ALDS. Jeez this guy is in way over his head, Cashman should probably fire him right now before the big bad Angels take advantage of his stupidity!
“Crawdaddy, can you disagree with the way Torre handled things between Posada and Girardi? However it played out behind the scenes it never got outside the coaches room.
The fact remains that Posada is one of the top 10 best hitting catchers in history but his pitch calling as always been a question. Look at what happened to Boston when they decided that offense was more important in their series vs. the Angels. They traded Varitek’s legendary pitch calling for 2 hits and 2 rbi over 3 games. Pitching is ALWAYS parmamount in the post season.”
If you want to buy that crap about the catcher calling the game instead of the pitcher then go ahead, but I’m not buying it.
“Randy, the real hidden story of this series to me is how Girardi had the balls to stand up to Posada and tell him he was sitting for Game 2 because that’s what he feels is best for the team.”
ghost-
i can’t disagree with that.
… but after a game like last night by posada, no one is going to say with that fresh in everyone’s mind that he’s not a good defensive catcher in addition to his clutch bat.
at the same time, molina did a good job in his role.
girardi did put team first, and he defended posada’s right to be ticked off.
somehow it does all come out with the team being stronger.
very good analysis by o’shaugnessey and bob ryan on boston.com about why the socks lost.
bottom line was pretty much what everybody on here has been saying: going 16-2 vs. the orioles is the only reason they made the PS to begin with, and the lineup is getting old and has never replaced manny.
oh, and letting teixeira slip away to the yankees is going to haunt the socks for years to come.
Doreen,
I don’t feel comfortable second-guessing Girardi on the non-running for Matsui since I didn’t question it before the Cano hit. I didn’t even think about it, actually. But I do wonder if that play may influence the roster makeup for the ALCS. Also, Girardi may have simply forgotten that he should pinch run for Matsui, as evidenced by running Hairston later. If you run for him when he is on third, why not second, unless the thought never even occurred to him.
I read in the post 5:07 which seems odd.
Mark in Tampa
October 12th, 2009 at 10:58 am
Doreen,
I don’t feel comfortable second-guessing Girardi on the non-running for Matsui since I didn’t question it before the Cano hit. I didn’t even think about it, actually. But I do wonder if that play may influence the roster makeup for the ALCS. Also, Girardi may have simply forgotten that he should pinch run for Matsui, as evidenced by running Hairston later. If you run for him when he is on third, why not second, unless the thought never even occurred to him.
*****
I would think that it was still too early (and close) in Joe’s opinion to remove Matsui’s bat from the line up
gardenhire is a
c
l
a
s
s
act
i couldnt say anything bad about the twins if i wanted to
john
October 12th, 2009 at 10:59 am
I read in the post 5:07 which seems odd.
****
Fox.com has ALCS Game 1 on its Friday night Schedule at 7:30. That is good enough for me
Does anyone else think its pretty funny that we can’t say words like cla-sy and as-ume anymore? LOL
c
l
a
s
s
is getting stuck in the filters
Questioning Joe’s decision to give AP the hook is just ludicrous. I was ready to take him out after they scored the 1st run but everyone I was with said no stay with him. fine, they did and he was in line for the win by the time he came back out, awesome. He pitched a hell of a game but he was clearly getting hit hard the last inning plus. That’s what you have the pen for, pitch count is meaningless in the post season.
Like someone stated earlier, this is just radio loud mouths reaching for something.
I agree with you about Gardenhire as he said a lot of great things about the Yankees last night in his post game interview.
The NLCS’s first two games are in L.A.-including game two which is on Friday.
I doubt the networks or the MLB want a 10pm EST (especially if the Phils make it.) start for that game. Which is why I can see a 5 o 6 pm start for game 1 of the ALCS.
Hubby thought Matsui should have been pinch run for right away. Erica, I tend to agree with you – it was still too close a score to take Hideki’s bat out.
Not really second guessing. Just discussing one move that my hubby and I talked about at home.
“Fox.com has ALCS Game 1 on its Friday night Schedule at 7:30. That is good enough for me”
The game won’t start until after 8:00 due to the pregame stuff.
“In the recent past, some players were concerned to be seen fraternizing too much with Rodriguez out of fear of falling into disfavor with Jeter. That is gone. The new, high-profile Yankees have helped make the clubhouse looser. But mainly this is about Rodriguez figuring out that a team sport is more enjoyable when you are fixating on the team aspect rather than trying to place all the glory – and subsequent pressures – on yourself.”
http://www.nypost.com/p/blogs/.....Ixv63rreVI
If this is true, A-Rod’s character problems have been obvious but Jeter seems to have a few of his own.
Further proof Torre’s time in NY was past due. Allowing fear of Jeter to run a clubhouse is not the personality manager we are led to believe Torre is.
id say questioning any of joes decisions at this point is just stupid. he’s got the mojo working all year this year. i think we underestimate, and sometimes even mock joe’s (over-) preparedness, but he really has the feel of running this team right now and he’s pushing all the right buttons.
im not a nascar guy, but id expect there are times when a driver just has the feel of his car, the horespower, the grip of the wheels and the angles on the turns and just knows exactly where and whn to make his moves. in the end its the car thats going faster than everybody else’s but a man at the wheel who’s ‘feeling it’ puts the team over the top.
Doreen,
I was just saying I wasn’t comfortable second-guessing. I only am if I said or thought something different than the manager did at that time, not after significant time to think about it.
If you and your husband were thinking about it before it happened, that is perfectly fine. Not that you need my blessing.
An utterly ridiculous quote/sentiment, NYYanksFan. Don’t be gullible. It’s another storyline and ridiculous effort to make someone only look good at a teammate’s expense. Fear is not how Jeter demonstrates leadership. Be sensible.
Crawdaddy
October 12th, 2009 at 11:06 am
“Fox.com has ALCS Game 1 on its Friday night Schedule at 7:30. That is good enough for me”
The game won’t start until after 8:00 due to the pregame stuff.
****
Thanks for pointing that out. I don’t usually watch baseball
As I have said like 20 times, I always countdown to the start of the broadcast
Mark in Tampa -
I hope I didn’t come across as being snarky. Not meant that way at all. Even after the fact, I think it’s a legitimate topic to discuss. Not that you need my blessing, either.
I’m just happy that everything discussed here today is really just fodder for the blog. They won. They SWEPT. They did themselves proud.
Dah-dah-dah-dah-dah, I’m lovin’ it!
Crawdaddy wrote:
If you want to buy that crap about the catcher calling the game instead of the pitcher then go ahead, but I’m not buying it.
———-
I think it’s difficult for a pitcher to be objective about what is working that night because what might be best might move them out of their comfort zone – so in that case it is of paramount importance that they trust the catcher’s judgment that they are throwing to. I think a guy like Varitek has built up a resume that virtually no pitcher questions his pitch calling. I can’t verify this but I’ll bet there are less than a handful of pitching meltdowns that have been blamed on Varitek during his career. Posada has had dozens – it stopped being a coincidence long ago.
randy I, Posada is an enigma behind the plate. His pitch calling, ability to throw out runners and ability to block balls in the dirt have been erratic throughout his career. Great sometimes, not so great others. He always seems to rise to the occasion though. He never blocks the plate on throws home but his hands have been the softest I have ever seen at being able to catch a short hop and apply a tag. I can only think of a handful of times he has dropped a throw or lost a ball during a tag. I will always agree with a manager going with the strongest defensive lineup during a playoff game because as we have just witnessed in this past series. Defense and pitching win championships, not bats.
The only thing better than watching the Yankees clinch,was watching….. PapelBOMB !!
paps looked like he had been crying when they caught him for the postgame interview.
What a great weekend!!
Yankees Sweep!
RSox get swept! Loser Papelbon gets blasted(1.0In,4H,2BB,3R)
Hokies clobber Boston College!
The Cheats Lose to the Broncos!
NY Giants win! Carolina Panthers win one!
Dodgers sweep the All-American Cardinals team!
The only way CC pitches game 4 is if he wins game 1 and then the yankees lose 2 and 3. Otherwise, they will not burn him out with the 3 day rest stuff.
feelin that yankees/dodgers world series.
“I hope I didn’t come across as being snarky”
Not at all.
I just hate to read people(not you) question moves based on results, not on pre-results thoughts. Mainly the media types. So, to be consistent, I try not to second guess unless I had those thoughts before the results.
I don’t know if this has been mentioned already, but there was another blow call by the umps in the PHI/COL game. When does it end? When will these umps be held accountable for these mistakes? People don’t want to expand Instant Replay, but when umps are making mistakes in big time playoff games, how can you not be in favor for some change?
tex’s friend
October 12th, 2009 at 11:23 am
feelin that yankees/dodgers world series.
****
Not me. I am nervous in these games enough without adding extra melodrama
i did love watching paps blow up and the fenway faithfull get smaked down. i would have loved it more had the yankees been the ones knocking them out but it was still fun watching the angels do it.
big props to bobby abreu once again.
funny how defense wins & posadas defense played a big role.
his offense also & what a beauty andy pitched with posada catching
the only umps change that would solve problems like last night would be endless replays, which would be more accurate but push the already way to long gametimes even longer.
“the only umps change that would solve problems like last night would be endless replays, which would be more accurate but push the already way to long gametimes even longer.”
Not if they implement the challenge system that I recommended a few threads ago. Give each team 2 challenges to use anyway they see fit except for balls and strikes. Once those challenges are done, then the ump calls stand. It wouldn’t add that much time to the game.
the challenge system like the nfl, with 2 challenges per team per game would add about 20 minutes to a game in my estimation, about 5 minutes per challenge, (which in the PS will happen every game) that would be extending each game by another 10%. PS games already get finished hours after the casual, (and especially the younger) fans have gone to bed.
and that doesnt even take into account that once a team has used its challenges, another ‘blown’ call will occur and people will be calling for ‘booth reviews’ in the 9th inning and beyond, which you know will happen just like the nfl.
we could be talking an extra half hour added to these already over 3 1/2 hour games. we are coming close to doubling the average game time over the last 40 years.
another thing about posada.
he’s 37 years old.
does anyone have any idea what a young 37 he is for a catcher ?
he ‘s still git a very good arm.
his body is in great shape.
behind the scenes that guy must pay his dues in the gym.
how many other catchers do you see who are in the shape he’s in ?
why don’t they pay the price in the gym, in the cage, and doing long toss etc ?
players that are obsessed with winning put in the time long before the big game comes around.
posada is obsessed with winning and he’s long paid the behind the scene’s price and it shows.
Paperlbomb,is a free agent I believe,at season’s end and may have given the socks/Theo more leverage than they would’ve had.Socks are slowly accepting the fact that former (roider)teammate Manny was a valuable loss to their line up.
On one of the Socks blog’s, commenter’s liken it to trading the Babe,and all the negatives that brought Beantown’s winless drought.
“Defense and pitching win championships, not bats.”
Another comment I don’t agree with because it takes all three to win a WS championship. If the Yankees didn’t hit those homers this past week, the Twins might have beaten them or at least be up in series right now.
Laura, not a bad idea but why not start with 1 challenge per game, this way a manager will be reluctant to use it on anything but what he considered a game changing call. I really don’t see what baseball is waiting for on this. Getting the call right has made the games of football and hockey better in my opinion.
Good points, randy. Also, Posada came up relatively late, so even though he’s 37, he’s still a bit young for catcher standards.
the nfl, in order to make time for the reviews went to starting the clock after incompletions and out-of-bounds plays except at the end of each half. the average game times seem to be almost exactly the same as they have always been.
i think burnett has trouble with posadas personality
& can work through it but does not know how
this explains his meltdowns to every catcher that has caught him
he is the same pitcher regardless of who catches him
we gave up like 5 runs in the whole series & posada caught all but about 5 innings & one of those runs i believe he wasnt catching
the pitcher has to execute
“we could be talking an extra half hour added to these already over 3 1/2 hour games. we are coming close to doubling the average game time over the last 40 years.”
Well, these games would be shorter if the umps didn’t let guys take so many time outs and step out of the box after every pitch. There are ways to cut the time down and add the challenge system. This year, the umpiring has been unbelievably bad. Something has to be done about it.
imo pitchers prefer certain catchers based on their personalities rather than ability
I think Papelbon is a FA after next season. This year was just his 5th. Of course, they could always trade him and go with Wagner as their closer, Steve Phillips’ theory.
“Laura, not a bad idea but why not start with 1 challenge per game, this way a manager will be reluctant to use it on anything but what he considered a game changing call.”
I could go for that. I like the idea of 2 better because we’ve seen the umps blow 2 or more calls a game, but starting with 1 wouldn’t kill me.
BOS’s love affair with Papelsmear is over. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s dealt over the winter.
RayVT
Didn’t the Pats lose yesterday too?
I hope they do trade Papelbon because it would weaken the Red Sox, but I don’t think Theo is that dumb. Bard nor Wagner can fill his shoes next year, one is not ready and the other has seen his best pitching days and is rather questionable when it comes to playoff games.
congrats to pete, he gets the short postseason and the long offseason again!
more time to watch boston’s football team get left in the dust by ny’s 2 teams!
The NFL replay system has not significantly added to game times, which was the initial fear. The NFL has more leeway to manipulate their gametimes, however.
What replay has done is lead to way too much over-interpretation of the rules, particularly on what is or is not a catch. It has also led to non-calls in which referees rely on replay to make the for them, particularly on fumbles. I think the game is worse for it, and I have no desire to see an expansion of replay in baseball.
make the *call* for them
i also think the officiating in the nfl has gotten much worse in the replay era. it may have been inevitable with the explosion of wall to wall tv coverage, but the refs seem to be anicipating what thier call will look like when reviewed instead of just making the instincual call of what your gut tells you you just saw.
“I think the game is worse for it, and I have no desire to see an expansion of replay in baseball.”
Everyone has an option about it and you most certainly are entitled to yours. My fear is that one of these blown calls is going to come against the Yankees and end up costing us a game. I guess it’s just a risk we’ll have to take.
I could have lived without Sherman’s blather about Alex, Jeter, but everything else was spot on. I understand the pain of the AL Exec who asked if the core guys “ever get old”. LOL, remarkably they don’t. They are in their upper 30s and they are still playing like they are in their primes.
I also liked the part about the Yankees playing sound, fundamental baseball – they did, and that is in large part why they won. Given how many big HRs they had, it’s probably gone unnoticed but their defense has been terrific.
LOL I really look forward to Michael Kay spending 5 hours (as he said he would a few minutes ago) on how badly Joe managed the pen……He also doesn’t think Damon and Matsui will be back. I know Matsui wont, but I thought for a long time Damon would if he would accept a 1 year deal. However, Brandon Tierney mentioned that Johnny hit .235 in September and didn’t have a particularly good July – he had an ok August. That’s concerning – I’m not sure the Yankees can afford to go with Damon in LF next year, not when he appears to be playing to his age.
Crawdaddy, of course you need all three but many a team has made it to the post season on the strength of the hitting alone – but are almost invariably exposed in the first round when those bats get silenced by superior pitching. I’ve seen many superior hitting Yankee teams make it to the post season relying on the 3 run hr as their soul source of offensive success only to end up with blank stares when they end up leaving dozens of runners on base when those hr’s don’t materialize against good pitching. This Yankee team is amazing because not only do they have the ability to hit more hrs than any Yankee team in history – but they did it without relying on the HR to score runs. This Yankee team leads with small ball and falls back on the HR. Incredibly dangerous and that’s what makes me think they might not lose a game this post season – they are impossible to game plan against. They have the skill to move runners, the pop to blow you out, the starters to get you to the 7th inning and the bullpen to put you to sleep. No holes – well maybe their corner outfield defense but Swisher has really stepped up (Damon looks lost). They even had an extended hitting slump during this series yet they didn’t break stride because they moved runners when they needed to and used their defense and pitching to hold off the opponent until they inevitably got a timely hit. No panic. They have been a pleasure to watch.
Ghost you’re not saying anything I don’t already know as I attended my first ballgame in 1961.
Further, I am so glad to be done with TBS. Their pitchtrax feature was very bad, IMO. ESPN’s, for all their faults, seems to be much better. Ron Darling even admitted early in last night’s game that the pitchtrax box doesn’t adjust for height with each batter! What a joke. It is one thing to use technology to enhance the game, quite another when that technology misleads.
If you have a challenge system you need the one in college football where the replay official makes the call. It’s much faster and professional than having the referee climbing into a tent or three of the four (five of the six?) umpires leaving the field of play.
Just don’t do the college football mistake of putting former (retired) officials in the box. Instead train replay umpires as a completely different specialty and keep them separate from umpires so there’s no “loyalty” issue.
Jorge has had a fine career and probably has two more years left in him (the Yankees hope), but there’s no such thing as a “young” 37 for a catcher who has caught almost 15-hundred games in the regular season and another 99 in post-season.
The Sawx turning to Wagner would be fine by me, but I can’t see that happening.
Since MLB already knows that the ALCS will start in NY and the NLCS will start in LA, there is no reason for them to not announce the start times for the games.
Hughes will be fine. He was opening up his shoulder and his fastball was running back over the plate to LH hitters(see Punto’s hit for example)and running off the plate to RH hitters when he attempts to go inside. Since he is relying so heavily on his fastball, even at 94 mph, he has to be able to spot it on both sides of the plate. He has lost the inside part of the plate at the moment. That is easily correctible. No, I am not a pitching coach, but I play one on the internet.
It’s incredible that in just a short amount of time what a breath of fresh air this board has become thanks to Sam Borden and Chad Jennings.
If a better financial move is what the thin-skinned Pete Abe wanted then he got his wish but he’ll never get the knowledgeable likes of what SJ44, GB-7, G.Love, CB, and so many others too numerous to mention can contribute.
He’ll find delusional posters thinking that the Sox can actually find takers for such bloated contracts as those of Ortiz, Lowell, and Drew and get qualiity in return.
He won’t get close to the volume of posters as here and find very few interested if and when he goes to a Springsteen concert.
There’s good things on the horizon in coming days and the offseason promises to be very interesting for this board.
MarkTampa
Papelbomb contract according to mlbcontracts.blogspot.com
says 1 year (2009) So,at seasons end this year, they will have to negotiate.Unless I’m reading it wrong.Not next year.
Also on nesn.com they address this in an article,that he’s one of many concerns to address by the Socks,for next year.
Further, I am so glad to be done with TBS.
*****************
Me too. On Time Warner TBS HD kept freezing. It was quite annoying.
What makes this team different than recent Yankee teams, aside from the pitching, is their ability to play small ball. Well, not quite small ball the way the Twins or even the Angels practice it (all the time), but enough so that there is a balance on this team. Other Yankee teams really thumped, but they usually did it against bad teams in the regular season (like most slugging teams) – the post-season is a different story. This year, they played a lot of close games and they won games late – in essence, their season was a practice run for the playoffs. Therefore, unlike past years, this team didn’t have to alter it’s style – it’s style was already well-suited for post-season baseball.
“Me too. On Time Warner TBS HD kept freezing. It was quite annoying.”
So did mine, on Brighthouse Florida. I thought maybe it was Brighthouse, but apparently the problem was TBS. Maybe the gerbils they have powering their transmitters got tired.
Is everyone still basking in the afterglow?
So, anyway I set my 2nd alarm to wake up my daughter only to find out she didn’t have school today. I felt sorry that I interrupted her sleep until I remembered that she failed to remind me that she doesn’t have school today. We don’t have Columbus/Discovers Day, so I’m thinking (can’t use the right word cuz it gets caught in the filter) that it’s Admission Day.
Regarding the team, every team has their problems, their cliques, their issues. What makes this team a champsionship calier team is that they rise above it. An they may even be better for it. The all don’t fit the corporate Yankee mold, players, yes even the vet can be themselves. Can you believe the amount of stubble Phil and Andy have going?
Last night some yahoo named John Rook was covering for Jason Smith on late night espn radio.
The stuff that came out of his mouth was ridiculous. He thinks the Angels will be the last one standing. Not because they have the best pitching and lineup (he gave the nod to the Yankees). He just has a feeling. Why? Well his answer was a little fuzzy, but here’s some key words: spirit, ghost, Nick Adenhart, mojo, and destiny. Oh! And he said if they’re down 2 runs to Mariano Rivera it won’t bother them because the figured it own this weekend by overcoming a 2 run deficit in the 9th to Boston. You can’t make this stuff up. I mean he did, but I was incredulous.
http://nymag.com/daily/sports/ — in case this is not a regular stop for you…Deadspin founder, Will Leitch & Co. do such a good job with New York sports. Check it out.
Wow. Lots of dropped letters. Sorry about that. It’s not written in code, just didn’t realize that this keyboard was that sticky.
This article is one of the most ridiculous I’ve ever read.
OF COURSE it’s Papelbon’s fault the Red Sox lost. Who else would it be?
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/articl.....8;c_id=mlb
Crawdaddy, if you want to have a pissin contest I played high school and college ball against many players talented enough to make it to the majors and my first game was in 1973. Every team I won a championship on was built on defense and pitching – every team. When you say that they need all three it seems like you are saying all three are equal and they are not (correct me if I’m wrong). Too many teams sacrifice good pitching and fielding for superior hitting. Those teams can have great success in a season but rarely become champions.
“Jorge has had a fine career and probably has two more years left in him (the Yankees hope), but there’s no such thing as a “young” 37 for a catcher who has caught almost 15-hundred games in the regular season and another 99 in post-season.”
i gotta disagree.
posada is in really good shape. he’s kind of a funny looking guy with the ears and all, but he’s physically a very strong guy. and he has had no slowing down of his bat speed.
i think people really underestimate what good shape posada has maintained at this stage of his career.
Hitting is definitely superior to fielding. Definitely. It’s almost impossible to argue, every stat you’ll ever find will agree with that.
The mosst important elements of a baseball team, in order, are pitching, hitting, THEN defense. Sports Illustrated did a study where they said that defense is worth only half as much as offense. I’d take poitching over offense, but offense over defense any day.
Not that defense s unimportant. Far from it. Just that offense is more important.
Neil,
I gotta admit, at the back of my mind when the Sox lost yesterday, I thought about how Peter gets to write about nothing exciting whatsoever relating to Boston baseball for at least the next month or two. Granted, he gets to see his beloved Pats more often.
Then again, it couldn’t have been too exciting writing about the Yankees over the past 3 seasons insofar as playoff success is concerned.
But yes, Chad, Sam, and Josh have all done a GREAT JOB with their coverage. It begs the question: exactly WHY was it only Peter who was covering the Yankees? The Globe has like 3 or 4 contributors to Extra Bases…provides a lot more material and perspective instead of JUST Pete…which got very old at times. By and large I loved what Peter did, don’t get me wrong.
By the way, I haven’t read any Boston papers yet, but I wonder if Dan Shaugnessy has finished eating his plate of crow. How’d it work out, Dan, the Yankees apparently burning up their veterans while Tito rested his guys for the post-season? He’s doing a fantastic job now – his team will be well-rested for ST.
m,
I’m basking in NOTHING until I see the Yankees storm the mound after Rivera has recorded the series winning save in the World Series.
Its great we swept the Twins, but a lot of work is to be done. We got our hands more than full with Anaheim, make no mistake.
One game at a time. One win at a time.
M, lol…..
Seriously, the Angels are probably feeling like a team of destiny and perhaps they feel that they have Nick Adenhart looking over their shoulders. If that’s how they feel, then they are entitled…….and if it’s helped get them this far, then that’s good for them. I don’t believe in destiny. I realize that many mediots and some fans think the Yankees have some kind of magic going on……but for me, it’s just darn good baseball. I would hope the team does not believe in destiny – just hard work and execution should be good enough for them.
The Angels are a tough out, but I seriously doubt they want to put destiny to the test with a 2 run deficit against Mo.
Wait til ALDS, was that study done of the regular season or post season? If it was done during the regular season then I agree with it. I think talented pitchers are much more rare than talented hitters so over a long season a team with a talented hitting lineup will win more games than less talented hitting teams. Where I question this study is when talented pitching meets talented hitting. Just because of the fact that talented hitting just doesn’t see talented pitching as much as talented pitching sees talented hitting gives the talented pitching the advantage in the matchup. Say that 5 times in a row!
i started saying on here weeks ago, johnny damon is finished. i mean i love the guy, but he’s done
he has no speed left, none. he barely covers any ground in the OF, and whats worse, he doesnt have the sticky glove he used to have. alot of balls have bounced off, gone over or under his glove this year. he also has no speed on the bases.
he develped that homer swing ealy this year, but pitchers figured out not to throw him offspeed pitches he could pull, and that was that.
he still has clutch ability and he will make his presence felt this offseason, because he’s a winner and thats what winners do.
the contract that everyone at the time said was way too long turned out to be just the right length. you couldnt ask for more heart, husle and cla ss of a player and the yankees and baseball are much better off for having had johnny be a part of thier teams, but i believe johnny’s given baseball all he has to give.
Espnews has been running some postgame stuff. Some observations:
-Papelbon did everything but say “I blew it”. He did say it’s probably his fault. His eyes were red around the lids and it was obvious he was upset. I felt mad for a millisecond until I saw a glint of a dollar sign in his eyes.
-Girardi was soaked on the podium. I loved it! He was very emotional.
-Andy was Spartan in his own aw-shucks way. He was fabulous last night, perfect into the 4th.
(btw, I’d like to see Girardi trust his starters more, I don’t know if he doesn’t like bringing guys in the middle of an inning or what, but the starters have been on low pitch counts and going to the bullpe has been too adventurous for my liking. Yes, he wants to show off his bullpen, but his starters have been pretty good, too)
“Crawdaddy, if you want to have a pissin contest I played high school and college ball against many players talented enough to make it to the majors and my first game was in 1973. Every team I won a championship on was built on defense and pitching – every team. When you say that they need all three it seems like you are saying all three are equal and they are not (correct me if I’m wrong). Too many teams sacrifice good pitching and fielding for superior hitting. Those teams can have great success in a season but rarely become champions.”
Ghost,
Wow, I’m impressed thanks for sharing your baseball exploits with us, but your attempt to downplay hitting has me questioning your prior playing experience.
Wait til ALDS, I’m sorry, I got off on a tangent on that reply and forgot to make my point about defense – My point is that most teams that make it to the post season are good hitting and pitching teams so the defense because a bigger factor since the good hitting and pitching neutralize each other. That’s why I think it becomes more important than it seems.
I felt “bad” for him for a millisecond.
lol. Betsy. There’s a lot of ex-Yankee players up there pulling strings, too. We have so many ghosts we had to build a new stadium.
Damon has to pick up his offense,against the Twins he was
1-12,struckout 4 times against Pavano and Twins pen last night.
He ended the season 17-79 slide and hit just .215/.319/.278
over his last 92 plate appearances.He struck out 17 times,knocked out just 5 extra-base hits,and never reached 25 home runs.
This is his contract year and he’s making it easy for the Yankees,plus he turns 36 in a few weeks.He is in a slump,
it’s about to end soon.Yankees really need his bat down the
stretch.
Johnny has played hurt and been a great Yankee.What will Cashman do?
m,
Totally agree on Pettitte…he looked GREAT last night. Toe to Toe with the Idle and then some.
That has got to be a breath of fresh air for the team to see how well CC, AJ, and Pettitte performed.
The real question now is what the Yankees do with Game 4. I guess it depends on what the series is like at that point.
Okay Ghost, I think I get what you’re saying. Yes, that study was done in the regular season. In the postseason you’re facing better pitching (ANd better hitting for that matter) so defense has to be better.
Come to think of it, now that you bring it up I beleive that pinstripedbible had an article called “The Secret Sauce”, where they said that the three most important components of a scessful WS team (figured out by studying the WS winners) are power pitchng, defense, and a lockdown closer (Lidge got so lucky last night, Tulo just missed that meatball he threw). Offense wasn’t on the list; I’ll see if I could find the article.
So yes, you have a point. Defense is more important in the playoffs.
all this talk about Posada’s ‘deficiencies’ are so stupid it’s beyond belief. He is a borderline Hall of Famer who is average to above average defensively and the 2nd best offensive catcher in baseball.
he just caught 23 innings in the ALDS where the pitchers allowed 4 earned runs.
the team’s record with Jorge as a starting catcher in 2009 was 64-34 (Molina’s was 23-19).
he made an excellent throw to nail Punto in the 8th inning
he hit the game winning HR in the 7th
he knocked in an important run in the 9th
last night, when Mo threw a bad first pitch to Mauer (and fortunately got away with it) Jorge walked out in front of the plate and made sure Mo knew the next one needed to be better-they’ve worked so well and so long together it was no surprise the next one sawed off his bat for the biggest out of the game.
the whole idea of a catcher being the cause of a pitcher getting hit hard is the stupidest contention I’ve ever read on this blog (and there are so many other stupid contentions making the #1 spot is noteworthy). The catcher doesn’t throw the ball-over half the hits are the result of missed location, something clearly on the pitcher (many are just good hitting, like the single by Cuddyer that broke up Andy’s no hitter last night). I doubt that any pitcher would ever tell you that the catcher caused them to give up hits and runs, they are pros who are responsible for their own results.
the Yankees can’t win the World Series without Jorge being the starter-Girardi can do whatever he wants for the rest of the post season when AJ pitches but he’s great when he hits the target and, like we saw in game 2, when he starts missing he either gets hit when the misses are in the strike zone or walks a ton of batters when the misses are outside the strike zone. How that is a Jorge problem is beyond me.
the funny thing with pitching is lackey,weaver,cc,burnett,pettitte,becket,lester might be good enough one year to win the ws but not other years
the yankees on paper are better than the angels but it will come down to pitching,offense & defense in that order
what good is playing great defense when you cant score
our offense has to hit lackey & weaver just enough
True, M, lol… we don’t have a monkey, but we used to have a squirrel….
Mad Prince,
Yes, I hope that Girardi doesn’t announce his decision until the last possible moment.
I’m still not 100% behind giving Joba the ball for a game 4 a start. If they do, Just have Aceves come in at the first sign of trouble.
If it’s 3-0, it doesn’t really matter who the starter is. Anything less than that, then the game takes on more importance depending on the what the series record is.
BTW, it worked out that the Angels swept. I’d rather line up the starters and have CC face Lackey than Lackey face AJ or Andy. May the best team win (yes, the Yankees are the best team).
“last night, when Mo threw a bad first pitch to Mauer (and fortunately got away with it) Jorge walked out in front of the plate and made sure Mo knew the next one needed to be better-they’ve worked so well and so long together it was no surprise the next one sawed off his bat for the biggest out of the game.
the whole idea of a catcher being the cause of a pitcher getting hit hard is the stupidest contention I’ve ever read
“
Cashman said in an interview that aside from Alex, the Yankees really didn’t hit that much in this series. I think they batted .225. That’s not good. It’s a good thing our pitching carried us through because the bats did not.
The Yankee hitters have got to get it going against the Angels. Damon has got to turn it around. Matsui isn’t doing much either. It puts too much pressure on the pitchers when the hitting is lacking.
this series is gonna be a war
very even
pitching will decide it
oops, sorry about that first one, chief…
“last night, when Mo threw a bad first pitch to Mauer (and fortunately got away with it) Jorge walked out in front of the plate and made sure Mo knew the next one needed to be better-they’ve worked so well and so long together it was no surprise the next one sawed off his bat for the biggest out of the game.
the whole idea of a catcher being the cause of a pitcher getting hit hard is the stupidest contention I’ve ever read
”
so basically posada gets credit for mo getting the biggest out of the game but couldnt possibly be a contributing factor when a guy pitches poorly?
http://pinstripedbible.mlblogs.....l#comments
The article from pinstripedbible.
bru,
I like our chances against Weaver and Lackey in NY.
I let Pettitte pitch on the road in Anaheim.
Our offense is better than Anaheim, no question. I definitely respect Anaheim’s gritty, small ball theory, but when you have a guy like Cano and Swisher hitting in your 7 and 8 spot mixed in with legit speed in Melky, ARod, Jeter, and Damon, you have tremendous balance.
With that, I think that from an offensive POV, Cano has to make a statement of some kind in Game 1. On top of that, Damon has to figure out how to get on base and advance Jeter when he is on. Mind you, that double play he lined into in Game 2 was a LAZER. If we didn’t have a guy on 1B, Cabrera very well may have been unable to make that play.
It doesn’t matter that everyone didn’t hit – the fact is, they got the big hits when it counted. The Angels didn’t do anything against Beckett until late in the game and they didn’t do anything yesterday until late in the game……..
While it’s true that any pitcher can muster up a great performance, the Angels rotation doesn’t scare me. I think that Lackey, Weaver, Kazmir and whatever other bum they want to throw at us can be gotten to. If our pitching holds up and we keep the Angels off of the bases, we should prevail. That being said, my prediction is still a 7 game series with us being the victor.
Crawdaddy, I think a lot of people tend to look back at big games and remember the big hits that won them. I look back and think of the pitching and defense that kept them close enough so the big hit can happen. I read an article today about the last HR Posada hit in the post season. It was a 2 run hr in the ninth inning in game 4 against the Tigers in 2006. It turned an 8-1 game into an 8-3 game and they lost the series in the next AB. If Yankees had better pitching and didn’t make an error in the 3rd inning of that game maybe that HR would have been more meaningful.
Looks like people are trying to get others to eat crow.
I hope no one is looking for me to say anything because I won’t.
I don’t have any problem with Jorge’s defense, and I still like an AJ/Molina battery. And I wouldn’t be surprised to see an AJ/Jorge battery because it’s a longer series.
i dont see damon or matsui coming back
pettitte yes
we need a lf,dh
another cf would be nice 2
“It doesn’t matter that everyone didn’t hit – the fact is, they got the big hits when it counted. ”
True Betsy, but the big hits all came from the same guy. We can’t expect Alex to repeat this performance against the Angels. Someone else has to step up and contribute.
Ghost,
Well to be fair 3 runs still isn’t great offense.
Peter Gammons is as believable as Santa Claus.
Betsy,
Highlights the inferiority of Boston’s bullpen, huh?
I gotta tell ya, I LOVE the idea of keeping Joba in the pen the rest of the post season. 7, 8, and 9 are pretty well locked up with Hughes and Rivera after Joba. Although I must say, Hughes has kept me on the edge of my seat on more than one occasion this postseason.
BOSTON — Jonathan Papelbon sat in front of his locker, staring at nothing in particular. His legs were crossed, his face motionless as stone.
You mean he wasn’t up for doing the Irish jig?
Here are my predictions on the current “controversies” that seem to occupy this board 99% of the time.
1)Molina will catch AJ in Game 2
2)Joba will remain in the pen
3)Gaudin will start Game 4
4)Yankees win in 7 on a walkoff HR to RF by Jeter
There, I’m done.
any coincidence that varitek didn’t get an at bat or a defensive play and the red sox swept ?
probably.
papelbon probably doesn’t get lit up with varitek in there to call something beside just fastballs to the way martinez did when papelbon melted down yesterday.
the red sox have a real catcher problem because victor martinez doesn’t throw well.
and varitek can’t throw and can’t hit.
unlike girardi, francona just plugged martinez in there and left him.
girardi took the much more difficult road of mixing and matching and making tough decisions.
francona probably lost a game somewhere by not playing varitek at all.
now maybe he had a sore arm and couldn’t throw and we don’t know about it, but it’s very strange that varitek is probably done as a red sox player and never saw the playing field at all.
Randy you may disagree but I think the factual evidence backs me up.
Jorge hit .285 this year, but he only caught 100 games. That’s more than 30 fewer than any other full season this decade. I believe his bat is as quick as it is because he catches fewer games. Thus he is typical of a 37-year old catcher — he has to catch less frequently to be effective.
I suspect he’ll catch about 100 next year and maybe 80 in 2011.
as far as im concerned, the only weak part of jorge’s defense is his blocking balls. his arm is very good, i know the stats werent as good with him coming back from shoulder surgery, but he seemed to throw out the runners he needed to this year and he’s been pretty clutch at it over the past 3 or 4 years.
id go with the same thing as this series, put molina in for burnett. burnett pitched great and jorge still got 3 ab’s.
did anybody else think jorge got a little extra fun out of hitting one off idle? i always felt that of all the yankees posada was the one who really didnt like pavano the most.
V-Mart’s going to be the primary catcher next season anyway right? Is Lowell still under contract? If not, then Youk can go to 3B, V-Mart to 1B, and the Shell can go behind the plate (both sides have an option) and they can get a real catcher (even though they’ve been trying for 2 years).
Hey! Henry loves the new technology. Why not look on Craigslist for a real catcher and a shortstop that can hit?
i think that theo knows he needs a big shakeup next season, people are going to move. they cant roll out with papi, lowell, drew and tek on the team next year and they have to replace or resign bay.
i think you are going to see big changes in beantown this offseason.
86w183rd-
i think most average 37 year old catchers are at home watching on tv, and that posada is such an exception to the rule that all of us have taken him for granted.
imo the rs get rid of tek & lowell,move vmart to 1b,youk to 3b & get a catcher,ss,pitcher
The Red Sox will most certainly sign Jose Molina next year to split time with Martinez behind the plate and then we can hear Gammons wax poetic about Molina’s game calling and how Theo find this undiscovered gem the Yankees foolishly let slip away not to mention how all the Yankees pitchers secretly preferred to throw to him over Posada.
You can put that one in stone. I don’t see the Yankees resigning him with Cervelli ready to fill his slot at a fraction of the cost unless Jorge really is the DH next season and Cervelli backs up Molina which would be a black hole offensively in the lineup.
Laura, not true. Swish and Matsui had big hits in game 1, Tex had a big 9th inning hit before his bomb in game 2 adn Jorge/Robby had huge hits last night.
I’m tired of AJ/Jorge/Molina. This is on Joe because Joe has so little faith in AJ that he actually thinks AJ needs a security blanket. AJ pitched brilliantly in July and August to Jorge; his slump in August was on him, not on Jorge. Then again, this isn’t just about AJ. Anytime a pitcher slumps, the lions’s share of the blame (actually, all of it) should go to the pitcher. AJ pitching well or badly has nothing to do with the catcher. There is no way Joe is removing Molina/AJ batter if AJ pitches well – doing so would contradict his reasons for putting them together in the first place.
In any case, AJ deserves credit when he pitches well and I think he’s going to continue to pitch well. This is a guy that signed here because he wanted the big moment – and it’s obvious how much he’s relishing this.
espn keeps running the ad where they fire the rally monkey.
its a cla ssic!
Besty-Don’t forget Jeets.
G. Love,
That Lori R. thinks that the Mets should sign Jose Molina and get a power bat. I felt so sorry for her, oblivious to the fact that her favorite team needs an “EXtreme Makeover” top to bottom. Especially at the top!
oops, that’s Lori R. from WFAN.
Mad Prince, I hope Phil straightens himself out……his struggling in two games was not a good sign and it’s not something I ever considered, lol
if a good 3b is out there they might leave youk at 1b,vmart catching,get a 3b,ss,pitcher
Wait, oh wow, lol – I can’t believe I forgot Jeter. Poor cap………..Ok, add Jete to the list. The Yankees didn’t get a ton of hits, but when they did, they made them count.
Just read Bob Shepard is 99 years young today.
I never heard anything…did Sheppard ever make it back to the Bronx?
Ham Fighters
I think Jorge and Mussina hated Idle the most. They thought he dogged it, and never really tried to come back.
bru,
I hope they leave Vmart back there. He’s not a good catcher.
It would be in their best interests to let Youk play 3B, Vmart 1B or DH, and get another corner infielder when (if) Lowell (how’s his bat speed away from Fenway?) is gone and a real catcher. Isn’t Blalock a FA? I bet they go for someone cheap who can do the 1B/3B/DH thing.
Wait no
But I hope if the Yankees make the WS they bring Bob onto the field to announce the Yankees roster, than bring him home! I think the place would shake if the did that!
G. Love
October 12th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
The Red Sox will most certainly sign Jose Molina next year to split time with Martinez behind the plate and then we can hear Gammons wax poetic about Molina’s game calling and how Theo find this undiscovered gem the Yankees foolishly let slip away not to mention how all the Yankees pitchers secretly preferred to throw to him over Posada.
You can put that one in stone. I don’t see the Yankees resigning him with Cervelli ready to fill his slot at a fraction of the cost unless Jorge really is the DH next season and Cervelli backs up Molina which would be a black hole offensively in the lineup.
———————————————————-
would it suprise me ?
no but to say they will most certainly sign him is a stretch considering he is terrible offensively
they probably want a better offensive catcher
Thanks jennifer.
Somehow I doubt it, but I miss Bob and hope he comes back.
All this Posada talk about only catching 100 games this season……Keep it mind Jotge missed a good chunk of May because of a hamstring pull…..Also what many forget is that he’s not the typical 37 year old catcher…..He came up as a 2nd baseman and then was converted, so his legs are not that of a 37 year old catcher, actually there several years younger than what the typical backstop has on his odometer…..
Responding to Doreen’s post at the top of the thread….
Pavano did exactly what he wanted to do in the season.. Stayed healthy.. pitched more than 200 innings.. had a decent win/loss record… Pitched well down the stretch.. And when called up in the playoffs he pitched pretty well.. You always see this kind of baseball players who perform well beyond their capabilities in their contract season.. Once they sign a huge contract they go into oblivion.. I don’t think any team will offer Pavano more than 2 seasons in any contract.. I think he’s a good fit for any team in the AL central.. I would expect a losing team like baltimore or Kansas city to give him a big contract based on this year’s performance.. I doubt if the sox would go after him.. even if he wins the cy young award the next 2 seasons, yanks won’t sign him at all.
Pat M.-Significantly younger…he lost time to Joe G too.
I don’t see Molina going to Boston.
Varitek has a 3 mil. player option in 2010.
The NESN talking heads were discussing 2010 last night. (their what until next year segment)
They fear Bay going to NY. They were resigned to the fact that he won’t get the five year deal he is seeking in Boston.
They said Dice-K might be dealt. But his stock his dipped so much in the last 12 months – they might have a hard time.
Tek would be back in 2010 as a back-up. Not sure if Martinez would catch or play first.
Ortiz has one more year left and his contract is prohibitive to sending him elsewhere.
They gushed over Abreu and Figgins as potential free agents.
From Crasnick’s article on the bejeweled dynasty players, Andy moved past Glavine for most postseason IP.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/.....id=4552759
Hopefully, Andy breaks the postseason wins record very soon.
bru,
To get an offensive catcher the Red Sox are going to have to trade the farm or Papelbum which I don’t see them doing.
Martinez is their offensive catcher. They need a defensive specialist and who is a better one than Jose Molina who is also a free agent and AL East battle tested?
The Red Sox would not sign Bengie Molina since while he can hit, he is not the defensive player Jose is.
The young Texas catchers are now a bit of a mess. Salty is a huge question mark. They are now talking about resigning Pudge in Texas.
Who else is going to give up a good hitting catcher for the prospects the Red Sox would offer?
No one in my mind.
They are going to try to sign Jose Molina and they will probably succeed and quite frankly, it’s fine with me.
Cervelli deserves his shot and if they play Jose too much he gets run down and exposed.
His best role is as Jorge’s caddy with Jorge playing the brunt of the games.
The Red Sox can’t afford to try to get another offensive minded catcher when they already have one who is not great defensively and can’t throw people out.
“The Red Sox will most certainly sign Jose Molina next year to split time with Martinez behind the plate and then we can hear Gammons wax poetic about Molina’s game calling and how Theo find this undiscovered gem the Yankees foolishly let slip away not to mention how all the Yankees pitchers secretly preferred to throw to him over Posada.”
so why don’t the yankees pay the extra million and keep molina as the back up and have a cheap third string catcher at triple a not using up service time .
chances are posada or molina will be disabled at some point ant cervelli still plays some.
i think this is the strongest position for the yankees plus it has the added benefit of keeping molina away from the red sox as a back up.
The Sox reporters are already blaming their quick exit on Theo’s inability to sign Teixiera in the offseason, hopefully in two weeks the Angels reporters will be doing the same. The single signing of Mark Teixiera by the Yankees weakened their two greatest rivals considerably. I would love to hear an in depth interview with Cashman on the cloak and dagger behind it all because if the Yankees beat the Angels it’s going to go down as the biggest free agent coups in baseball history.
Ok Randy, change your point to justify your inaccurate premise.. whatever.
The discussion was never about whether Jorge is a very good catcher. It was the idea that he’s a “young 37″ for a catcher. Seeing how he caught far fewer games than he did two years ago and his BA, SLG, OPS were all down the facts show he is clearly slowing down.
You claimed his bat was not slowing down and you are incorrect, sir.
You want me to concede he is the best 37-year-old catcher in MLB you got it.
m
they can do several things
there is no way of knowing
it will depend on who is available & how things develope
they can get a 1b & catch vmart with youk at 3b or move youk to 3b,keep vmart at 1b,sign a catcher or two, ss
catchers are cheaper so dont be suprised if the rs move youk to 3b,keep vmart at 1b & sign a catcher or 2 because they alredy have a 1b & a 3b in house with vmart & youk
also trading for a catcher will not cost as much in prospects
if they get a catcher,ss & maybe a pitcher with vmart at 1b,youk at 3b they are ok
Lowell ($ 12 M) and Ortiz ($ 12.5 M) are not going anywhere with those salaries so extreme makeover, Boston edition might be tough to pull off until 2011.
If they go for a # 1 catcher they’ll have four guys (Lowell, Ortiz, Youk and V-Mart) sharing three jobs (1B, 3B, DH) for more than $ 40 Million. More likely they’ll grin and beat it and hope Mauer is interested in another year.
Boy is Damon looking old lately. He’s changing my mind — a bit — about bringing him back.
Alex Rodriguez: A sincere heartfelt, thank you. I am still in shock over what I have seen from this player, this series. AMAZING.
Derek Jeter: proving why he’s the Captain time and time again. Still can’t get over that play last night, another classic.
Just want to remind, it was ANDY Petttite who put the best start together this series and I am not the slightest bit surprised.
So help me, I don’t know what I would have done had they been beaten by Pavano. THANK GOD.
The Sox making an early exit was a gift and a curse as
The Yankees have some serious work cut out for them starting Friday. It would have been fun to watch Yanks/Sox now its going to be just plain nerve-racking! The bats are going to have to wake up and pitching has to be flawless. The Angels will not make the mistakes the Twins made. This series is a long-time coming and I definitely think it could go 6 or 7 games.
Sam, Chad, Josh – thanks again for the fantastic coverage.