The end begins in Texas
Posted by: Chad Jennings - Posted in Misc on Sep 10, 2010 
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It’s Texas. Why not start this post with a picture of Andy Pettitte?
Down here in Pettitte’s home state — also the birth place of Kerry Wood, Lance Berkman, Greg Golson and Boone Logan — the Yankees are about to begin the final stage of their season. The last three weeks tend to take on added significance most seasons, but that’s especially true when the Yankees are two and a half games up with 22 games to play and a beast of a schedule ahead of them.
• Three games against Texas, the first place team in the West.
• Three games against Tampa Bay, the team chasing the Yankees in the East.
• Three games against Baltimore, the team that just took two out of three in the Bronx.
• Four games against Tampa Bay, possibly the most important series of the year.
• Three games against Boston, I’m sure those won’t mean anything.
• Three games against Toronto, a team that would be competing in any other division.
• Three games against Boston, in Boston.
The season ends with three games at Fenway. It’s that kind of year. These are big games coming up, but the division is in the Yankees hands.
“I know we’re in first place, so if we win our games, we don’t have to worry about anybody else,” Derek Jeter said this week. “That’s always the approach I’ve taken. If you’re trying to catch someone, then you look at the scoreboard and hope you get some help. In our situation, we play the teams that are close to us, so if we win our games, we’ll be fine.”
Associated Press photo from Pettitte’s rehab start last night.
2 of 3 at Tex, 1 of 3 at TB, and 2 of 3 at Baltimore would be an acceptable result IMO and would probably be good enough to go back to NY with a lead. The Rays are at Toronto while the Yanks are in Texas so hopefully those bothersome Blue Jays will hit lots of homers this weekend.
If the Yanks go 5-4 on the road trip then Tampa would need to really play well over the next week and a half to overtake them.. That 4 game set with the Rays at the stadium will be huge.
In some ways, I like it that the Yankees have a tough schedule coming up to close out the regular season.
While it might be nice to have a fluffy schedule, as it allows resting of players and so on, it can make a team lose some of its edge. Fighting through the end of the season can put them in fighting shape for the post season.
No letting up off the gas pedal.
The biggest series is the 4 game set against the Rays. If they split its good.
If they are still ahead and split then that’s good. It will be a huge series because if they are behind it will give an opportunity to gain ground back and if they are ahead it will give them an opportunity to add more distance or maintain with a split.
It looks funny to see Andy in a Trenton uniform.
Tough pitching match up today. Wilson is good but you can run his pitch count up and get him out early….hopefully Javy can keep them in the game through 5 or 6 and give the pen and offense a shot at winning the ballgame.
Hamilton is still on the DL, isn’t he?
11-11 almost certainly gets them into the playoffs but probably wont be enough to win the division. the mindset, however should never change and that’s to win each series as it comes along.
Sure the schedule is tough. It’s up to the Yanks to be tougher.
The Rays remaining games:
3 @ Toronto
3 vs Yanks
3 vs LAA
4 @ Yankees
3 vs Seattle
3 vs O’s
1 vs KC
I’d say if the Yanks win 13 of the next 22 they win the division. 12 more wins will get it done if they win 5 of the 7 remaining with Tampa. Right now Tampa has the tie breaker I believe.
I can’t say I like the 4 game series.
And I recall that they had a 2 game series against the Rays back in May.
Why not just two – three game series?
Playing with a sense of urgency kicks in with the Texas series. The Yankees can’t underestimate just how much Toronto, Baltimore, and Boston can play spoilers. In the Rays series at Tropicana, winning 2 of 3 is acceptable. In the 4-game series with the Rays at the Stadium, a split sees the Rays just spinning their wheels.
The Rays otherwise appear to have a soft remaining schedule :
- home vs. the Angels, Mariners, and Orioles.
- aways vs. the 4 games at the Stadium and 4 games at K.C to finish out their schedule.
The Rays schedule isn’t a cake Walk either until that last week….they finish very light with 3 of the worst teams in baseball at home. A cushion would be nice going into that final week and the Yanks will have a shot to give themselves that over the next couple weeks.
I’ll be rooting for the Yanks to win the division, but I honestly don’t think it matter whether they win the division or the Wildcard. The advantage/disadvantage is so slight.
See my analysis here: http://mrblogtober.fantake.com.....-wildcard/
Will CC and Andy open up the TB series at home?
Depends on if Andy has another Trenton game to throw next Tuesday and if CC goes this Sat. in Balt. and they skip whomever.
Making the playoffs in the primary goal but I do think winning the division and securing home field is important. I’d rather play Minnesota than Texas in the 1st round and if this this is to end with the Yanks and Rays facing off in the ALCS then I’d certainly like to have home field in that as well……Sure they could still go to the WS as the wild card and the degree of advantage that home field would provide is debatable, but I’ll take every advantage I can get….
All things being equal, if we take 1 of 3 in TB and split at home, we are still 1 up in the all-important loss column.
Interview with Tino…anyone interested in providing feedback
:
“Q: Are you interested in becoming a full-time analyst?
A: I know I am kind of a work in progress and I am trying to get better at it. I get to watch the Yankees play and talk about it. I like it, and if the people above me feel that I am good enough to continue on, then I will. And if not, I will figure out another way to help out. I really would like to hear feedback from fans to let me know how I am doing.”
Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports.....z0z8NQh761
Is it required that all GMs use the word “process” or is Gammons quoting Cashman?
pgammo Three Gms insist D’Backs- Kevin Towers deal is set, but “process” has to be completed before it’s offiicial. Great man.
“Making the playoffs in the primary goal but I do think winning the division and securing home field is important. I’d rather play Minnesota than Texas in the 1st round”
Better have the “lefty lineup” ready to roll for the ALDS. As it stands now, I think both Minnesota and Texas could feature lefthanders in Game 1 and 2 (Lee and Wilson for Texas…..Liriano and Duensing for the Twins).
A 5-4 road trip would be acceptable to me…doesn’t matter how that comes.
A 5-4 road trip would be acceptable to me…doesn’t matter how that comes.
================================================
Wouldn’t being swept by TB preclude that?
Bill D,
Yea I agree. Either way, they are going to face a tough lefty in Game 1 of the ALDS….luckily the Yanks have a pretty good lefty of their own to counter with.
Russ,
I think you make some excellent points but I just think the players would really like to wake up in their own beds the morning before any possible game 5/7.
And I really like the Yanks playing those first 2 games against Tex/Minny in the Bronx.
Minny’s had some real problems winning here over the last few seasons. Texas is actually 3 games under .500 on the road this season.
Bottom line is who ever plays better wins but I think everybody at least feels better with HFA. More ticket opportunities for us as well!
I actually like Tino’s analysis. But he needs to slow down his speech. I think that would help immensely.
?First SJ wrote that even with a down year Jeter is one of the top 3 SS’s in the league?
He?s 5th among AL shortstops with a 1.6 WAR. It?s been a tough year, and a particularly tough last 75 days or so days. Still, the guy is now and always has been a winner. He remains a guy I wouldn?t mind seeing at the plate for the Yankees in a key spot.
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1.6 WAR is not good. Anyway, while I love Jeter, you have to be honest in the evaluations. He is a “winner” comments strike me as without substance; don’t you think any good player on the Yankees as a career would be a winner? It is not like he is so much better in clutch spots? His postseason numbers were identical to his regular season before last year and now they are slightly better with an OPS of .863 compared to an OPS of around .845 at the start of the year. Pretty close, but very good. Point is that he is has been a great person, and a really good and consistent player for a long time, but this clutch thing reminds me of the people who called ARod a choker because of a 35 AB stretch that has since been wiped out and now Mr. choker has a better OPS in the postseason that the regular season and better than Jeters. ARod has an OPS of .977 in the post season compared to .958 in the regular season. So not only is ARod much better in the postseason than Jeter, he is also just as clutch compared to what you would expect…so is ARod more clutch than Jeter or are they just really good players that when you get about a seasons worth of postseason stats you will be pretty close to your regular season numbers?
“Wouldn’t being swept by TB preclude that?”
who said they were getting swept by Tampa? I’m just saying a 5-4 road trip would be acceptable, however they get to that……means Tampa would have to go 7-2 against Toronto, NY, and LAA to tie them in the loss column. Obviously doing better than 5-4 would be great…..
I like Tino. His analysis is usually good, altho the last game he did all I remember him talking about was his daughter going to college and his son playing LAX. He does sound like he has a mouth full of marbles sometimes
and where is Al Leiter lately?
It looks like Texas in the ALDS, 6 games behind Minn right now.
Would be best to win it in 3 or 4 , so no Lee in 5th.
At this point, I think it’s safe to say that winning the division means facing Cliff Lee and the Rangers in the ALDS, right?
blake September 10th, 2010 at 9:59 am
“Wouldn’t being swept by TB preclude that?”
who said they were getting swept by Tampa?
==================================
I never said you said that or implied it for that matter.
Just saying there’s a difference between going 5-4 with 3 of those losses coming against TB.
upstate kate September 10th, 2010 at 10:00 am
and where is Al Leiter lately?
*******************************
kate, I was just thinking about that the other day. It seems like it’s been a long time since he’s done a series.
Doreen,
I saw your post in the previous thread.
I don’t know exactly where our friend lives in SF but I know it’s not in San Bruno which is very close to the airport.
I like Tino in the booth but he might benefit from taking a voice or acting class.
I know some find Ken Singelton bland but he’s really got a great broadcasting voice.
The tough schedule is good. As a fan, you like seeing the Yankees face real good teams and pitching. Good way to size up the competition in the playoffs.
“At this point, I think it’s safe to say that winning the division means facing Cliff Lee and the Rangers in the ALDS, right?”
You’re right. It probably would…either way, I’d like to have that home field all things being equal. Can win without it, but every little bit helps in the post season. It will be interesting to see what value Girardi puts on WC vs division down the stretch.
I wasn’t crazy about Tino in the booth at first, but he’s grown on me.
Combine Tino and Singleton!
Tino sounds like he has been drinking Red Bull non-stop for hours when he is on. He is just tough to listen to for any length of time.
I like Singleton far better than Kay. Too many games Kay drives me to mute the sound. It shouldn’t be that way.
“It will be interesting to see what value Girardi puts on WC vs division down the stretch.”
I’m guessing he’s putting some sort of premium on winning the division, but no so much so that he’d do something ridiculous to make it happen. I think that come the last week or ten days of the season, his primary concern will be having the postseason rotation lined up the way he wants it, regardless of whether they go in as division winners.
How does Kay get away with it?
His sole purpose is to act as a catalyst to whatever former player is in the booth with him.
Listening to the constant conversation grates on my nerves.
Bill D,
I agree. I think he will obviously try to win the division but not at the risk of having the team as ready as possible for the postseason…that’s just not how he seems to operate. Hopefully they can accomplish both.
The East winner is almost certain to get Texas since the Twins are now 6 games better than the Rangers. Minnesota is a better team, but they also are spooked against the Yankees. I don’t think it matters a great deal, but you do want the decisive game at home if it comes to that.
The Yanks are virtually identical against LHP and RHP so that really doesn’t matter. In fact they are slightly better against LHP (.802 OPS) than RHP (.789 OPS).
If TB is the WC vs Minn, with Minn having HFA, they could give TB a run for the money.
A lot would depend on if Morneau is back.
after the 07 series, when I wished for Cleveland over the Angels, I no longer hope for a specific opponent!
TB’s lineup has looked weak. Lots of hitters in the low to mid 200′s.
“The Yanks are virtually identical against LHP and RHP so that really doesn’t matter. In fact they are slightly better against LHP (.802 OPS) than RHP (.789 OPS).”
But, it matters very much who the lefties are. In this post-season, the lefties are very, very good.
singleton is excellent. kay must have dirty photos of someone to have the job of play by play for the yankees. flaherty is good, a bit serious, Coney was awesome. Coney and Singy were as smoooth as silk
By the playoffs hopefully we have a complete lineup with Posada catching everyday.
Price is the key for TB.
The rest are hittable.
Other than Longoria and Crawford , TB is having an off year hitting, but so are we.
yeah, I was surprised how bad Garza was against the sox…he usually owns them
But an off year for the Yanks is still leading the league in runs scored.
An off year for TB is getting no-hit twice and a lineup full of hitters hitting less than .250.
other than Jeter, I wouldn’t say the Yanees are having an off year hitting
Robbie is better, GGBG and Swish are better, Tex has been hot lately
Wave — It doesn’t matter in terms of Minnesota or Texas… both have better LHP than RHP, but the Yanks are good against LHP. It’s just silly to worry about the pitching match ups in advance. They are getting tough LHP in the first round no matter what
Flaherty is ok, but he sometimes goes too overboard with the plays of the opposition and he is voice is pretty dull.
Singleton and Cone were very good. Both enjoyable to listen to.
The only good thing I can see about Kay is that he gives a nice excited call of big plays, though I hate it when its the opposition that gets the hit/play. Far too often he goes overboard with fairly routine plays, and at least every other game he claims its the greatest or one of the greatest plays he’s ever seen. With his years in the business you would think he wouldn’t have to ask stupid moronic questions to illicite conversation.
Jeter has it right. Just win. They do that, and it doesn’t matter what anybody else is doing. Just win. They are more than capable of that.
Just take care of your own business.
GF, trouble is though the Yankees don’t have a lot of hitters that are sporting great Batting Averages either.
Probable opposing pitchers:
Fri. CJ Wilson
Sat. Tommy Hunter
Sun. Cliff Lee
Mon. David Price
Tue. Matt Garza
Wed. James Shields
If the playoffs started tomorrow, shudder the thought of Burnett in Game 2. Phil Hughes will be skipping a start soon. Hopefully it’s to align Phil as the No. 2 starter.
86-
Without checking, I believe the Yanks have beat up on mediocre LHP and been shut down by good LHP. I could be wrong.
But of course, it doesn’t matter because, as you say, with the emergence of Duensing as a force both Minn and Tex will have two good LH starters.
CC, Andy and Hughes in TB sets up the ALDS rotation.
http://espn.go.com/blog/dallas.....ees-series
Who doesn’t struggle with the best pitchers whether is a LH or RH?
For the most part most teams struggle against the best playoff caliber pitchers.
If Tino becomes a full time analyst, I might have to hit the mute button. I loved him as a player, but he stinks as an analyst. He sounds like he’s talking with a full mouth of cotton.
My favorite is Singleton. The rest I can take them or leave them. Kay doesn’t bother me as much as he bothers some others here although I do wish he’d learn how to judge a fly ball better. He makes it sounds like every ball is on it’s way out of the park.
I like Singy and Flaherty. They are both always well prepared. Flaherty may sound dull, but he has a dry wit and takes some good shots at Kay. I miss Leiter’s animation and I miss Coney.
Curtis Granderson’s Yahoo Blog ont he September Crunch
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/bl.....mlb-268559
(I posted it late last night, but I thought the morning crowd would like it)
40% of Grandy’s hits are for extra bases.
The only one that I don’t like is Kay, everyone else I appreciate for what they offer. I agree that Tino needs to work on his annunciation but that can come with time/work. Kay gets so excited when the other team does something that I want to kick him in the grill!
I like Flaherty because he hates Kay.
Kay is a self promoter, encouraging fans to bring posters with his name on it to get on TV.
One of these days he will get himself fired.
Phil is pitching next Tuesday the 14th, right?
That would have him following CC on Monday.
Joe and Dave are lining them up already.
Playoff rotation will be:”
CC, Phil, Andy, AJ or JV.
Phil is Wed.
Phil at home has been disaster.
Anybody see Jay-Z is promoting his concert using the #4 as his number?
First, he’s the new Sinatra, then he made the Yankee cap famous, now this.
The ego.
My computer is going in and out and driving me crazy.
Someone suggested that Tino take classes in acting or broadcasting. I couldn’t agree more. I also think as a layman(woman) that Tino has sinus problems. I would love to see him get better because I do like him.
Michael Kay is awful and every night is publicizing his radio show on ESPN…not cool in my opinion. He knows precious little about baseball for a man doing this job for over 15 yearsl
A guy like Winfield would be good in the booth.
Mick,
I thought I read that Phil is being skipped this go round. I may be mistaken.
Time to go out. Later all.
sas
phil is being skipped this weekend but is going on Wed. vs TB
I always wanted to hear Sutcliffe after hearing everybody in here dog him. ( I have a thing about really bad announcers. I just want to feel the suckitude.)
So I’m watching the Sox-Rays the other night and I’m laughing over the announcer just laying this really high praise on Scott Atchison. A 34 year old reliever with 120 total MLB innings.
And then the cameras cut to the booth and who is it waxing pooh? Sutcliffe!
What a nice surprise. And he didn’t disappoint.
I thought Phil was going on Tuesday.
I’d rather they split the lefties in the playoffs, we’ll see.
One thing you can count on for game 4; if the Yanks are down 1-2 CC is coming back on short rests.
The Yanks are going to go with 4 pitchers this year though; no way any of the other guys go on short rest.
While I kind of liked Empire State of Mind simply for the fact that the NYY are the focal point and it was a cool anthem for the post season last fall, Jay-Z is all commercial BS. Real hip hop is rarely on commercial radio, he’s a fraud IMO.
The best part of Empire is Alicia Keys.
New York, New York will always be the anthem.
And New York State of Mind is a much better song.
Why not name the song something more original?
Define “Real Hip Hop”.
I’m not saying that it replaced NY, NY because obviously that’s THE anthem, just meant it was cool to here something more updated that can be played in conjunction with the classic. Totally agree that NY state of Mind is much better, but let’s be realistic, if you want a song that the younger generations, plus most of the players, can get into at a game, or watching from home/bar Billy Joel isn’t at the top of the list. It was a brilliant move by Jay-Z, perfect timing for him.
# Jason Voorhees September 10th, 2010 at 11:19 am
Define “Real Hip Hop”.
————————————————————————-
Anything by Biggy-Smalls, Gangstar, Wu Tang Clan, Slick Rick, Snoop etc…
I always found it hypocritical that the squeaky clean Yanks had Jay-Z perform that song before a World Series game.
Did he change the lyrics for them? He sings them so quick you really can’t make them out but they’re quite far from family-friendly.
I think Empire State of Mind is a great song, and whatever you want to say about Jay-Z, he is pretty electric in concert. Saw him at All Points West last year and he was by far the best thing at that festival, and I’m not a fan by any means. That being said, I have no desire to go see the Eminem/Jay-Z show at the stadium. Figure bad sound and bad sightlines….Just hope they don’t mess up the outfield too much like they did when they had the boxing match there.
mick September 10th, 2010 at 11:15 am
And New York State of Mind is a much better song.
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Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem did an awesome version of “New York State of Mind” on the Muppet Show.
where has Al Leiter been, on the DL ?
Erin September 10th, 2010 at 11:27 am
mick September 10th, 2010 at 11:15 am
And New York State of Mind is a much better song.
**********************************
Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem did an awesome version of ?New York State of Mind? on the Muppet Show.
________________
Sorry I missed that one!
Since when are the Yankees “squeaky clean”?
New Post: Pitching matchups in Texas
Sinatra’s version was played after a Yankees win, and the Minnelli version after a loss.
This is random but…..
Joey Votto on Cincinnati has not hit an infield pop-up YET this season.
How amazing is that?
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/bl......rvxQRvLYF
Tonight will be one of the last attempts for Javy Vazquez to make a case for his postseason status.
Billy Joel?
He was my first concert and I like him but he’s a better fit for the Mets.
Then again as a kid I always thought it was cool that in the photo found on the back of “The Stranger” one of his band members was wearing a Yankee jersey.
Constantino Tino Martinez: “I really would like to hear feedback from fans to let me know how I am doing.”
Dear Tino:
In the words of the immortal Bob Sheppard, no matter how slow you think you are speaking, slow down. That was the advice he gave to everyone. You are in no hurry to beat Michael Kay or anyone else to the punch.
You have forgotten more baseball than the majority of your listeners, and one of your broadcast partners, will ever know. Remember, you have the insights and stories and fans are dying to hear them.
Listen to tapes of The Greats, like Vin Scully, Red Barber, Mel Allen. They did play-by-play but they are/were world class communicators. That said, be yourself. If you try to be anyone else it won’t work. (There’s only one Tino Martinez and that’s plenty good enough).
If you are prepared and have fun, it will come through and the viewers will have fun with you. It’s a fun game. Keep the broadcast that way.
GM guys!
Tino does NOT want to hear feedback from the fans. It will be crushing..
We have to think of winning series, not splitting them. TB wants HFA, too.
Cito hates the Yankees, so much I wouldn’t he surprised if he rolled over for Tampa Bay.