Pregame notes: Burnett’s foot passes bullpen test
Posted by: Chad Jennings - Posted in Notes on Jun 19, 2010 
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After taking a ground ball off his right foot on Wednesday, Yankees starter A.J. Burnett came through this afternoon’s bullpen session with no problems.
“It was a good day today,” Burnett said. “It didn’t bother me. I was worried yesterday and the day after my start, but not today. I’ll be good to go for Monday.”
Joe Girardi was late to his pregame press conference because he was watching Burnett in the bullpen. The injury was a mild concern for the Yankees, but Burnett said he’s now confident he’ll make his next start. It feels “night and day different” since Thursday. Girardi said he’s confident Burnett will be able to pitch as scheduled in Arizona.
“I woke up, took my next step and almost went down,” Burnett said. “I’ll never laugh at hitters again when they foul a ball off their foot because it’s no fun.”
• Alfredo Aceves said he felt good after roughly six minutes throwing off a half mound. He will find out later today whether he’ll make the Yankees west coast road trip, but Aceves seems to think there’s a chance he will instead go to Scranton for a rehab assignment. That’s just Aceves guessing, though. Scranton/Wilkes-Barre is home next week, but the Yankees have announced no plans and Girardi said it’s too early to know when Aceves will be ready to return.
• Girardi plans to have Alex Rodriguez back in the field tomorrow. “I just thought we would be a little bit conservative and DH him today,” Girardi said. “Hopefully we’ll have him back on the field tomorrow.”
• I know there have been a lot of calls for Mark Teixeira to move down in the lineup, but Girardi said he has not been tempted to make that sort of change. “I know people ask about Tex a lot,” he said. “He has a track record. This man is going to hit. I really liked his at-bats yesterday, and we’ve seen him go on long runs when he’s very good and can carry a ball club. It’s going to happen.”
• Plus, Girardi likes the idea of finally having a set lineup now that Rodriguez and Jorge Posada are healthy. “I think what you’re looking for is consistency in your order, and that’s the one thing we haven’t been able to do a whole lot this year,” Girardi said. “You’d like to be able to put guys in the same place almost every day, but it seems things have arose from some injuries and we haven’t been able to do that.”
• Good to see Mike Ashmore at Yankee Stadium today. Check out his story on the development of Phil Hughes’ cutter.
METS
Jose Reyes SS
Angel Pagan CF
David Wright 3B
Ike Davis 1B
Jason Bay LF
Chris Carter DH
Jeff Francoeur RF
Alex Cora 2B
Henry Blanco C
Associated Press photo of Burnett with Girardi
Good news on AJ and Aceves
y’all want to see video of Babe Ruth hitting a 500 foot bomb for the Boston braves in an exhibition game?
http://www.thoughtequity.com/v.....745_019.do
Listen to the crack of the bat. Crazy.
Girardi is nothing but not stubborn. Ok, he’s downright stupid too. To be here, 67 games into the season, with Tex hitting like a AAA reject, without doing anything about it is ridiculous. Tex is the only player who hasn’t had a day off this year, and he needs one far more than anyone else on the team. At some point, Girardi is going to have to realize that blind faith is simply not good enough.
# mick June 19th, 2010 at 12:25 pm
# Carl June 19th, 2010 at 12:14 pm
# Erin June 19th, 2010 at 12:13 pm
Ledger_Yankees AJ says he feels better. Expects to make his start.
I must have missed something along the way-what was wrong with AJ?
Hit on the foot by a come backer
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Maybe his ego was bruised.
# mick June 19th, 2010 at 12:30 pm
# G-C June 19th, 2010 at 12:24 pm
What would you guys do if you were Baltimore Orioles fans?
Seriously?
This team is in first place. They are in the midst of a three game losing streak in JUNE. They are well ahead of last year’s pace and had far worse losses to date last year. I remember the uproar when they got swept by Anaheim going into the All Star Break.
They won the World Series. Pretty easily, I may add.
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That was last year. This is a different team, people seem to ignore that.
Whether it’s a better team remains to be seen.
I’d like to thank the Yankees for playing their games at 1:00 on Saturdays lately so that Fox can’t black them out.
By the way, I’m reading the new book on Steinbrenner ” The Last Lion of Baseball ” by Bill Madden ( yeah I know ) but it’s a good read for any baseball fan, especially a Yankee fan………A historical journey in modern Yankee history……Maybe some will appreciate todays edition of the Yanks…….
“Offer Jeter just two years at his current salary this year and tell him he’ll be the LF for 2011-12. What’s he gonna do, collect his 3000th hit somewhere else? I dare him to. He’s not good enough to get three or more years”
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well 2 years will not happen. However, i would draw the line at 3
with Arod, Tex, CC, Burnett, on board, the Yankees don’t need to be on hook for another long/overpaid contract
prediction: Rivera will have a longer career then Jeter
AJ needs to have the foot removed from his arse. Good news on Ace. But backs can be very tricky. I would count on him maybe 25% to come back, and make it to the end of the season. Tex is my guy, but maybe this is just an off year for for him? Maybe Robbie hitting behind him would help?
@Flash – I don’t think it’s his foot that’s there. It’s another part of his anatomy, on the other end. The one with all the empty space.
Chris, stupid ???? Mgr.’s like to have their players work their way out of slumps….Besides considering how the lineup is short on starters, is it really stupid to remove one more starter ????? Let’s see, Giradi has won a World Series, is a former Manager of the year……Now who is really the stupid one here ??????
great post, Carl.
thanks.
to be honest, Texeria needs to receive a free pass, based on last night.
he did what he should do: Hit the ball hard up the middle
you cannot control what happens after that. Texeria’s approach last night, was excellent.
Pat M. June 19th, 2010 at 12:33 pm
By the way, I’m reading the new book on Steinbrenner ” The Last Lion of Baseball ” by Bill Madden ( yeah I know ) but it’s a good read for any baseball fan, especially a Yankee fan………A historical journey in modern Yankee history……Maybe some will appreciate todays edition of the Yanks…….
*******************************
Pat M, I just picked up a copy the other day for my dad for Father’s Day. Good to know it’s a good read.
@Pat M. Ok, insane, then, as Einstein defined it: doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Tex has established quite a “track record” this year over the 67 games that he has played and batted third. The record: the Yanks have the 10th best OPS for the #3 position, and the 9th best OPS for first basemen.
http://www.thoughtequity.com/v.....141_088.do
Here’s a video of Lou Gehrig taking Carl Hubbell deep in game 4 of the 1936 world series. He hit 2 that day.
Swisher made his changes in the offseason and they were really more related to shortening up his stroke and decreasing head movement as said last night. Relatively minor but very effective changes. I?m also convinced that him dropping 10 lbs has helped as much as anything.
Teixera?s swing is much more complicated than that and would take a total overhaul to change it IMO?.I don?t think you can do that in season and at age 30 I?m not sure you can even do it at all?.I think you just have to hope that the swing he?s been so successful with over the years will start to pay dividends again at some point.
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I’m a total fan of the quiet approach to the pitch. Hate any extra movement. So when I watch Swisher at bats now, I’m a one man cheering section.
Agreed on Tex. But Long doesn’t have a set “System” and his approach seems to be “less is more”. Maybe a five game set of “Hit it up the middle” is all that’s necessary.
# BD (Boston Dave) June 19th, 2010 at 12:36 pm
great post, Carl.
thanks.
np
vinny-b
Teixeira will be facing a righty and the shift today.His batting average is 20 points lower from the left side. Do you think he could occassionaly bunt up the 3rd base line when the shift is on?
“I’m a total fan of the quiet approach to the pitch. Hate any extra movement. So when I watch Swisher at bats now, I’m a one man cheering section.”
Me too….I was quite the Paul Molitor fan (his hitting style anyway). Swisher deserves a ton of credit for trying to better himself….I think he wants to stay a Yankee after next year.
They could maybe make small adjustments with Tex but his swing (especially from the left side) is so unfundamental that where do you even start?….I guess thats what “the mastermind” is for.
“Teixeira will be facing a righty and the shift today.His batting average is 20 points lower from the left side. Do you think he could occassionaly bunt up the 3rd base line when the shift is on?”
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yankee trader:
I do.
however, i expected Giambi would do the same. And he would never try it. Don’t know what it is, maybe MLB players are stubborn.
@BoKnows and Blake – I agree. Someone should let Tex look at video from his sucessful seasons. His stance wasn’t nearly as open as it is now. It seems his bat “waggle” is more extreme than ever. It would be nice to see him try to hit where his bat was actually in a good hitting position when the ball arrives. But, since Joe G thinks there’s nothing wrong and Tex is magically going to regain his touch, then we all better be hoping for a miracle. And quick.
FINALLY smoeone sees the same thing I do: THE OFFENSE IS STRUGGLING. everyone on here is like “Yankees are the leading offense in the AL blah blah blah” but we score them all in one game! It’s like, we other score 10 runs, or no runs. That’s not a good offense. That’s an inconsistent offense!!
And Joel Sherman of the NY POST finally realized that. WE DONT NEED PITCHING (aka Cliff Lee).
Read: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports.....lUNc0AldVP
Carl, great stuff…..The Babe had extraordinary hands and such a quick bat…….See all after the game
Could today be the day that Hughes takes another step in his evolution and becomes the “stopper” ?
“I was quite the Paul Molitor fan (his hitting style anyway)”
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blake:
didn’t know you and Molitor had a history.
he is the best hitter i’ve ever seen. Ted Williams paid him the ultimate compliment, when citing: “Everytime Molitor is at the plate, i see Joe Dimaggio”
Np Pat M.
vinny,
just loved watching him hit…no wasted motion, everything already in hitting position. About as textbook as you could get.
Vinny-b,
Tex has one decent at bat last night, the rest he looks absolutely lost and was way out in front. What game were you watching? Just like Joe G saying that Tex has “I really liked his at bats” last night.. BS, he has been lost all dang season and Joe is blind.
This is absurd. Tex has not hit since October.. he’s gonna hit? Yeah, probably but based on what I am seeing he’s not even close from turning that corner.
I’ll say it again.. not sure who is frustrating me more right now.. Tex and his bat, or Joe G. and his blatant BS. I sure hope Joe is gone this year!
pistol pete June 19th, 2010 at 12:20 am
Do you ever think other teams play the Yanks like it appears Detroit did last year. First they complain they can’t afford Granderson’s $5.5m and Leyland cries that they have to trade him. What they didn’t tell us is that they were tired of him and thought he’d peaked and were dying to trade him. He stunk last year hitting only 248 and 182 vs leftys while striking out an alarming 140 times. Cashman bites, takes the progressive contract that goes like 5.5m, 8m, 11m etc, gives up A Jax our best outfield prospect who’s hitting over 300 as leadoff for Detroit, gives up Coke who’s 5 and 0 as a lefty set up man and better than our 2 lefty set up guys, and gives up Kennedy a solid back of the rotation young starter making nothing. Then Detroit who told Cashman they didn’y have any money, signs Damon for 8m. For $8m Detroit gets a 1 and 2 hitter and a good lefty and dump a progressive contract on a player who’s going downhill. Granderson stinks, he’s a bottom of the lineup hitter no better than Melky was and gave up a lot. His Nick Johnson signing left us with no DH and we now have to give up money and prospects to fix this mistake. Cash had a bad off season and needs to fix it now. We need a bat, badly and it can’t get done soon enough. And the pen need s help, now.
_____________________________________________________
Thank God, I thought I was the only one that believed Detroit was laughing their heads off on the trade they pulled off.
Cashman has made some mistakes in the past, but, this off season is a life’s time worth of blunders!
Let’s bring up Nova from AAA, and see if he can contribute in the pen. At some point you have to mix things up if players are not performing. A shake-up might wake up some guys that are just showing up and going through the motions (Tex & A-Rod) and others. Sit Granderson, move Tex to #7, put Cano in #4 – do something!
I thought Larussa took a narrow minded view to his line up, but Joe’s is etched in stone, it’s not budging.
The Cardinals just finished a 1-6 road trip. This one sports host called him out on his concrete line up. Matt Hilliday can’t hit RISP, move him to 2nd, move Ludwick behind pujols, bench Winn, and Shummaker.
GUESS what, Larussa did, and the Cardinals won 2/3 from the Mariners, and won last night against the A’s.
Joe had better get real, or in these recessionary time be looking for a job.
I’m curious to see what Gardner does with leadoff. I hope he gets on base every inning to wake Joe up to possible change.
P:
Tex hit the ball very hard up the middle, at least 2 times last night.
Hey Cashman, put on some steel toe boots, walk into the locker room, and kick some ass!
If George was still healthy, he’d have given this team a reason to show up and play the way their being paid to long ago.
Big Al:
the Yankees are in 1st place.
Molitor – yeah.
Tex – This refrain keeps repeating – Six years left, oy. Maybe he’ll adopt Long in the off season. It strikes me as too many corrections to the corrections.
vinny b Not for very long at this pace, and only because the Rays have been losing, not because of their play. Look over your shoulder, the Sox are back, and coming hard!
@vinny-b : That and a buck won’t even get you a cup of coffee anymore. I, too, am tired of hearing Joe G. say what great at bats Tex has. He must be smoking something powerful. Either Joe G. is not qualified to manage (which I doubt; I think he is qualified), or he’s just blowing smoke up Tex’s you-know-what. There’s been 67 games of him doing that. It’s time for him and Tex to realize that Tex just isn’t doing the job.
@BIG AL: You’re right. This was Cashman’s worst offseason ever. He got taken to the cleaners. On the other hand, given how poorly Tex and Burnett are doing, the previous offseason is looking worse and worse. At least Sabathia is pitching well enough to win, and they didn’t give up players to get those 3.
however, i expected Giambi would do the same. And he would never try it. Don’t know what it is, maybe MLB players are stubborn.
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The Big G did it at least 3 times. You can’t ask him to but every time. A power hitter’s value is in hitting the ball hard. If only we could convince other teams that Gardner is a dead pull hitter.
Catch you all later – got to go. GO YANKEES!
Chris:
overall, you are right.
however, last night Tex did have the proper approach. He hit the ball up the middle – hard.
it was bad luck. Which you and i know when you’re batting .225, is what normally happens.
granderson stinks
Yeah, moving Tex would’ve have prevented his garbage DP with nobody out on first and third..
YEAH JOE, HE HAD GOOD AT BATS! I HATE YOU.
vinny-b
he hit the ball hard twice last night, so he is coming around? Wow. The guy has been worthless since last October and 2 hits he hit up the middle hard means diddly.
He is lost and really hurting this team in the 3 spot. Joe trying to sugar coat it, is not helping him at this point either.