Pinch hitting: Jesse Rosenthal
Posted by: Chad Jennings - Posted in Misc on Jan 17, 2010 
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Leading off the Pinch Hitters series is Jesse Rosenthal, writing about — what else? — pinch hitters.
Jesse lives in Hong Kong, but he was born in Massachusetts to two Bronx natives. “At age 5 I was given the option of either being a Yankees fan or finding somewhere else to live,” Jesse wrote. “I took a fair bit of heat growing up a Yankees fan in MA, but since I was a teenager in the late 90′s, I usually got the last laugh.”
Living in Hong Kong means waking up at 7 in the morning (7 PM in the Bronx) to catch a bit of that night’s — that morning’s? — Yankees game before heading to work. “I took my dad to the last game at the old Yankee Stadium for his 60th birthday,” Jesse wrote. “And we’ll always remember that day.”
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The idea of “pinch hitting” by writing a guest post got me thinking: Why not write a guest post about pinch hitting?
I recently watched Game 1 of the 1988 World Series. Aside from being an all-around classic game, there is no better example of the importance of pinch-hitting than Kirk Gibson’s walk-off home run. The Dodgers were on the verge of losing the first game of the series, but went on to beat the A’s in five games, thanks in large part to Gibson’s pinch-hit home run.
Pinch hitting is a topic we don’t hear much about — especially in the AL where it is less common — but it’s worthy of our attention. The Yankees seem to have a few games each year in which a pinch hitter plays a significant role, sometimes even changing the outcome of the game. What makes a good pinch hitter? Is it the ability to block out the added pressure of the situation? Why are there some HOFers whose pinch-hitting stats are laughable? Mantle had over 100 pinch hit AB’s and hit a combined .235. A guy named Ruth hit below the Mendoza line as a pinch hitter. Sure, it’s likely these AB’s came toward the end of their careers, but the stats are still worse than I would have expected.
Turning our attention to the current Yankees roster, if you could choose any player to pinch hit, who would it be?
I know that Jeter has been clutch throughout most of his career (but he’s 0-for-4 as a pinch hitter). A-Rod and Tex are superstars, but I’m not taking them either (combined 0-for-13 as pinch hitters).
I like Posada (he has 27 hits in including four home runs as a pinch hitter).
In interleague games, the AL team generally calls on the DH as the first pinch hitter in the game — Nick Johnson would be that guy — but what about a tie game in the ninth inning against the Red Sox, when Okajima is brought in to face Granderson. Do you pinch hit for him? If so, who comes in? As the Yankees continue their search for a right-handed utility man, they shouldn’t overlook the value of pinch-hitting.
Nice subject but I think you could have went a lot further into this years team. It’s apparent that we don’t have many options as it stands now with the exception for when Posadas sitting. Good job though.
the possibility of needing a pinch hitter on occasion just adds to the need to balance the lineup with a solid RH bat for the bench and part time LF duty. You just cannot go into the season with a bench of Cervelli, Pena, Russo, Hoffman and Miranda/Rodriguez.
A couple of kids on the bench is okay, but a couple of veterans who know how to stay ready is important.
Our best pinch-hitter just signed with the Angels.
Anybody see the latest from Jose Offerman?
http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/s.....nican-game
I think Hinske ( now with the Braves) had great potential as a pinch hitter- but I like the idea of resigning Jerry Hairston Jr. He can play corner outfield positions, spell the infield on occasion and has shown that he can perform in playoff conditions. If he is still out there he would be a good guy to get. Reed Johnson, another player mentioned, has good splits vs lefties.
Thanks for the post Jesse. While it is possible the Yankees will find a right handed pinch hitter before spring training, I think our next great pinch hitter comes in a mid-season pickup.
Hinske is an Atlanta Brave
Yankees’ PH results from last year:
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/.....8;type=reg
I think part of Matsui’s success comes from opposing managers putting in lefty specialists against him, who he usually kills.
In terms of whether some hitters do better in PH than others, I think it just comes down to experience. Just get a good righty hitter off the bench. If you pinch hit him enough, he’ll get used to it.
Nice job, Jesse. Nice post and nice touch taking the old man to the old stadium.
Truth be told, they really don’t have that veteran pinch hitter on the bench. To me the question finally is whether that can be a mid season pick up since they really won’t need it that much in the regular season.
The Yanks will undoubtedly add a RH bat for the bench/LF before training camp. It’s just a matter or sorting out the market and determining the best fit on the field and in the budget.
There’s still plenty of time to wait for prices to continue to come down. Pretty soon it’s going to start getting somewhat desperate for guys with no job for 2010.
Nice work pinch hitting Jesse. Reminds me a little of Kramer’s coffee table book about coffee tables.
PH’s have had several big moments in the postseason over the years. Gibson’s homer certainly tops the list, but some other big ones over the years include Bernie Carbo’s three run blast against the Reds in Game 6 of the ’75 series(the Fisk game), Francisco Cabrera’s 2 run single in the bottom of the 9th to win Game 7 of the 1993 NLCS, and Gene Larkin’s World Series winning single in the 10th inning of Game 7 in 1991. Jim Leyritz’s 3 run bomb that changed everything in the 1996 Series was technically not a PH effort (O’Neill PH’d for Posada and Leyritz moved to C), but showed the value of having that type of bat on your bench.
Yankees have a pretty nice history of PH’s over the years, including Leyritz (.427 OBP in 130+ PH PA’s), Piniella, and Cliff Johnson to name a few.
Good way to start off the pinch hitting as pinch hitting will be a huge factor in the Yankees season. Granderson can’t hit lefties, you’ll need to pinch hit for him in late inning clutch situations. Swisher can’t hit breaking pitches, you’ll need to pinch hit for him in late inning clutch situations. Gardner can’t hit, period. You’ll need to pinch hit for him in late inning clutch situations. Johnson can’t run, you’ll need to pinch run for him in late inning clutch situations and then bring in a pinch hitter if/when his next turn comes up at the plate. The Yankees will need a deep bench if they want to compete late in games. Losing Hinske hurt. Hairston was someone who could pinch run and then stay in the lineup. If Girardi is forced to go with twelve pitchers, the roster with so many starters with glaring weaknesses doesn’t add up.Hoffman doesn’t show anything in his record that indicates he could be a pinch hitter. With only two catchers, even if Cervelli could hit, you wouldn’t want to bring him in. If Ramiro Pena is your reserve infielder, is he someone you want to bring in for Granderson or Swisher? I’ll leave it as a homework assignment for you guys to figure out who the Yankees can sign that is versatile enough and hits well enough to be a pinch hitter on this club.
* Correction – Francisco Cabrera’s NLCS winning 2 run single was in 1992 rather than 1993.
CAIRO Projected 2010 AL East Standings as of January 16
Team W L RS RA Div% WC% PL%
Yankees 100.3 61.7 864 664 66.4% 24.5% 90.9%
Red Sox 94.9 67.1 861 700 26.1% 44.8% 70.9%
Rays 89.3 72.7 804 706 7.4% 21.9% 29.3%
Blue Jays 70.1 91.9 696 761 – 0.2% 0.2%
Orioles 70.4 91.6 778 854 0.1% 0.2% 0.3%
How do you win three-tenths of a game?
86w183
January 17th, 2010 at 11:12 am
How do you win three-tenths of a game?
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great question
i am still on my calculator
ain’t adding up
Nice post Jessie – succinct and interesting. Old time Yankees like Mantle were never held out of games unless they were seriously injured; I suspect his poor numbers are reflection of hitting while hurt. The best pinch hitter I ever saw was Smokey Burgess of Pittsburgh – he seemed to always be getting a clutch hit off the bench. Here is a trivia question for you all Lo Hud bloggers waiting for football games – who is the only person to pinch it for Mel Ott? (he singled btw).
“At age 5 I was given the option of either being a Yankees fan or finding somewhere else to live,” Jesse wrote.
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“… but what about a tie game in the ninth inning against the Red Sox, when Okajima is brought in to face Granderson. Do you pinch hit for him?”
jesse-
good question.
it’s not optimal to have such a good player be so bad hitting lefties.
this isn’t going to happen that often, but it will happen. righties hit okajima well so the yankees could limit okajima’s effectiveness by putting a good right handed hitter behind granderson.
there’s a trade off there. the yankees have a weak hitter up if granderson hits, but the red sox use up okajima with one hitter if he’s used just for granderson.
it also depends on how many outs there are and home or on the road. two outs and a runner in scoring position at home ,i would think a pinch hitter is in order.
no outs and i’d say no. can granderson bunt well? if he can , he can move runners over.
on another level, i’ve never understood how a cold hitter is worth sending up to pinch hit.
if i’m not mistaken, at places like fenway, there is no place for a visiting hitter to hit pitches before hitting . i think at the new yankee stadium, both teams have in game access to hitting pitches.
anyone who has ever played sports knows not warmed up is very different from warmed up. hitting off the first tee with no warm ups is a very different thing than hitting balls on the range first.
how many times do we see games where pinch hitters come in and are swinging the bat trying to get loose. is this any way for a pro hitter to come into a game in a crucial situation.
as an at bat goes on with a few fouls , as a fan you feel better because the hitter is getting warmed up. but is this anyway to approach a pinch hitting role?
if the yankees are going to send in a cold hitter , i’d rather let the warmed up hitter hit.
bottom line is that there are a lot of variables in deciding to pinch hit for granderson , but it’s a very good question when to do it.
Very nice job, Jesse
Nady and Damon? Would that put us in bankruptcy?
We will eventually need solid backup for Swisher. I don’t see him going the season on his own. The original plan called for a Nady/Swish platoon. Damon ,at 1 year at a time, would solidify the OF. There is just no depth out there.
The best answer to the “Do you pinch hit for Curtis Granderson” question is not to have to – that is, for Granderson to do a better job against LH pitchers.
I don’t know that that is such an impossible thing to accomplish.
CC Sabathia, while being interviewed during the press conference at which Granderson was introduced to the NY media, was asked why Granderson did so poorly against lefties. CC answered that he got worse during his career because he got pull-happy; stopped going the opposite way. CC said getting him out was easy – show him fastballs inside to keep him honest, then get him out with breaking stuff outside and watch him try to pull it.
If Kevin Long can get him to break that bad habit (we can all guess why he started doing it in the first place), then the pinch hitting quandry may become moot.
Melky was a valuable piece last year. He backupped/started at all 3 positions. Nady opened up as our 3-4th OF, when he went down we still had depth with Melky. Who will take his place? Not Hairston. I doubt one of the phantom rule 5/AAA’s. Damon and Nady on the cheap?
In most cases a pinch hitter is called upon with runners on base.
The best case scenario is a contact hitter to keep runners moving. If he has some pop, so much the better.
Pinch-hitting is the least of our problems. Depth in the OF is the first to solve. The job is Damon’s if he wants it. It’s a waiting game.
Damon and Nady on the cheap?
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Is Nady fully recovered from his surgery? Will he be ready for spring training? He could probably be signed cheap with an incentive laden contract.
Where is the action in here? Sleeping late, getting ready for NFL? People have lives? Where has Betsy been?
Fran…did I wake you? Sorry.
the more I think about it with money aside M DeRosa was the perfect fit for this team with a two year contract…would have filled all the needs
They need a LFer. Not convinced Gardner will be the answer. Damon wants 2 years, Yanks have other plans. DeRosa not a big hitter.
mick,
I was agreeing with you about Nady if he is ready for the start of the season.
fran, where’s your friend betsy?
mick January 17th, 2010 at 11:57 am
They need a LFer. Not convinced Gardner will be the answer. Damon wants 2 years, Yanks have other plans. DeRosa not a big hitter.
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he can play every position…last four years average 17hrs,78 rbi’s,80 runs scored with over a .280 BA… in a average of 140 games per season……
mick,
Not sure. Haven’t heard from her this weekend.
I’m lurking, Mick…….
Hi Betsy,
Just sent you an email
Before even reading the post I immediately thought Jorge was the best pinch hitter they currently have.
Which is good because he’s going to have lots of opportunities to do it.
And it looks like Francisco Cervelli’s going to have the opportunity of a lifetime.
The truthers are lurking I’m sure.
Bottom Line. The Yankees, of this generation, will do whatever is necessary to obtain a good PH. ie…spend the additional 2-3 million to get a part time DH through the end of the season to fill any possible voids
Hi Fran!
I’m going to check it out now!
Nice post, Jesse.
Given the choice, I’d say Jeter. Or Posada. Or guess who? Damon!
I always liked Cairo…
And hasn’t Swisher proven he’s an everyday player? And there’s been no quesions about his health/durability.
nice guest post.
man, this blog is slow today. i’m going to have to go buy grand slam tennis for the wii.
Ask Jesse, how do we get a HK Yankees Fan Club going…
David,
Good question. Maybe FB. Else try me at jcr421@gmail.com.
Jesse
Well done, Jesse!