Pregame notes: Just win today
Posted by: Chad Jennings - Posted in Notes on Oct 20, 2010 
Print This Post
| 
Email This Post
Late last night, when Game 4 was over and the Yankees were officially on the brink, Joe Girardi addressed the team in the Yankees clubhouse. “Whatever happened there, I will never tell you,” Mariano Rivera said. Without getting into detail, Rivera said the tone of Girardi’s message was simple.
“Win today, period,” Rivera said. “Just win today and don’t think about tomorrow. Just have to win today, and the rest, we take care of the rest (later).”
Girardi doesn’t like to say much about what goes on behind the closed doors of the Yankees clubhouse. It was Rivera who revealed last night’s pep talk. Girardi never mentioned it.
As he sat in his office talking to the beat writers at noon, Girardi seemed the same as always. He was loose. He said he didn’t spend much time second guessing himself. “Sometimes your plan doesn’t work,” Girardi said. It’s the way he deals with games like last night. It’s the way the Yankees deal with games like today.
“Looking into their eyes, I believe our guys will be ready to play today,” Girardi said. “… Our clubhouse is upbeat. It’s always upbeat, and that comes with experience and understanding what you have to do. In a situation or tough games, you have to be yourself. Our guys love to have fun and they love to play hard and they love the competition, and they are business as usual.”
That said, there’s no sense pretending that there’s not a little bit of surprise at being in this situation.
“I would not have anticipated being down three games to one,” Girardi said. “I would not have anticipated that, especially after the first game when we came back and won that game and felt like we had some momentum. They’ve out hit us and they’ve out pitched us, and that’s why they’re ahead 3-1.
“But saying that, we’ve got our horse on the mound today, who’s been there for us all year long. When things were down, he was the one constant for us.”
The Yankees need him today.
• The last time the Yankees trailed a seven-game series 3-1 was 1958, when they came back with three straight wins — two of them on the road — to win the World Series. The only other time they’ve trailed 3-1 was 1942, when they lost in five games.
• Girardi said the Yankees called up Eduardo Nunez instead of Juan Miranda partially because of Nunez’s flexibility and speed. Also Nunez was the one actually staying sharp in Tampa. Fact is, even against right-handed hitters, I doubt Miranda would get a start ahead of Marcus Thames and certainly not ahead of Lance Berkman.
• Girardi said, at the time, he did not think last night’s eighth-inning pitch hit Nick Swisher. “No I didn’t,” Girardi said. “I guess it grazed his pants. Swish didn’t really make a huge stink out of it, and you go by the reaction because I definitely can’t see it.”
• Josh Hamilton has crushed the Yankees this season, a combination of his talent and the Yankees mistakes. “That’s execution,” Girardi said. “I can’t tell you what he would have done if we had kept all the balls down and away, but we’ve made some mistakes on him.”
• Girardi said he was not caught up in the moment when he stuck with A.J. Burnett last night. “I’m able to take the emotion out of it,” Girardi said. “That has never been something for me, that I really get wrapped up in emotions or the emotions of the crowd. That was not it. I just felt A.J. was going to get Molina out.”
• Girardi does not expect to use Phil Hughes out of the bullpen tonight, but if he does, Girardi said it’s still possible Hughes would start Game 6 in Texas. If Hughes pitches tonight, Girardi said he would expect either Hughes or Andy Pettitte to get that Game 6 start, depending on how many pitches Hughes throws.
• Rivera said he’s ready for as many outs as necessary: “Hopefully I can do whatever they ask me to do, God willing.”
Associated Press photos of Rodriguez coming out of the dugouts, and Cano and Jeter talking during batting practice
0 Days, 0 Hours, and 50 Minutes until Game 5 of the ALCS
Is this the Joetivator’s last hurrah??
So it’s only possible that Phil would start game 6 tonight if he throws an inning?
Putting aside all of this other bs, today’s game is the only one that matters now.
“Is this the Joetivator’s last hurrah??”
If Cashman is smart, then yes.
Who would pitch game 7 if Andy goes on short rest?
Amen, ZMAN
From the Ledger:
Greenberg says the Rangers’ TV deal will help them make a run at Lee. He thinks they have the resources to get it done.
27 minutes ago via TweetDeck
Reply Retweet . Rangers owner Chuck Greenberg not messing around when it comes to re-signing Cliff Lee: “We’re not going into it with a pea-shooter.”
Someone not named Cano needs to step up today.
Thames had some good swings against Wilson in Game 1. I go with him as my pick for team hero.
TX has a major advantage in that Lee is already on their team……….I think they will go as far as they have to.
YankFanCA – The yankees could lose 20-0 today and Girardi will be back next season. I don’t know why you would think differently.
2/3 seasons in the playoffs, the one out was an 89-win season in his first year, a world series victory and an ALCS appearance… he’d be the only manager in history (?) to get fired for outperforming 27 of his 29 peers over 3 seasons.
The Yankees need to hit. It is really that simple. A BA under .200 is not going to win. Another bad offensive game, and I repercussions in the off-season.
I know that speculation is part of being a fan too, but forget about game 6. Do whatever you need to do to win today, short of hurting guys.
Fat Mike said that Texas would have “$40 million” head start on the Yanks because of the state taxes.
No idea where he got that number. Is it really that high? He’s living in Jersey anyway, not NYC.
Let them give the moon to Lee. I don’t want to see another $150+ million contract next year.
as stated last night swisher is moron he should have complained and argued that he was hit… what a friggin idiot, chokes and does not use his brain.
on the rangers owner and the money issue. shocking a owner of a business pants his postion in the best light and all the lemmings take his word.. wholly moses the rangers are going to try to resign one of the best pitchers in baseball, tweet now………….
You may be right, ID. But then we just get more of what we’ve seen these past two months.
ZMan, that’s true……..but I don’t see Lee making a decision based on taxes.
I’m avoiding sports radio today, but I read he suggested trading Swish and signing Werth. Swish’s post-seasons have been awful and I think that’s not a bad idea.
Yawn, typical Joe, no problem, what me do anything wrong, what me get onto any of my million dollar players. Things happen it’s just the way it is. I guess coming from the corporate world the consequences of not exectuting were quite a bit more draconian.
Betsy –
Don’t fret so much about Lee’s status.
Let it play out.
In the end, Cliff will need to decide from a number of teams.
Playing in 105 degree heat for half of his games in a hitter-friendly park will be part of one of those decisions.
I think he’ll be a Yankee – good or bad for baseball.
If Andy announces his retirement, then I think Lee in pinstripes is a certainty.
Lee is superior to Halladay. Both are superior to CC.
I still don’t see the logic of flip-flopping Andy and Hughes. We have to win BOTH games anyway. Wouldn’t it give us the best chance to win the series if we have both guys on regular rest?
Considering Hughes has to pitch anyway, wouldn’t it be better to line him up against Lewis rather than Lee? At least with Lewis, we might be able to score some runs.
Unless their plan is to go Andy on short in game 6 and Burnett on short in game 7, which would make no sense at all.
Who would pitch game 7 if Andy goes on short rest?
————————————————————————-
Why do you think Joe’s been holding back on Mariano?
108 stitches,
“Even with a broken hand Kevin Brown could be trusted as much as Burnett.”
That is one of the worst things I’ve ever read…you’re trusting Kevin Brown over Burnett in the WS?
Burnett looked great for 5 innings last night. Had that fat id__t let Gardner catch that ball we’d probably be tied 2-2 right now. Little things aren’t going our way and for all of Burnett’s struggles this season, he did reasonably well last night…can’t ask too much more from your 4th starter.
Kevin Brown??? Really?
stuart – chokes and does not use his brain? i assume you’ve never played baseball… because theres next to no way he could have known that ball hit his pants. especially while diving out of the way of it…
its not like he got hit in the head and then didn’t realize it…
posts like that are why people ignore you.
Whatever the Yanks do in the offseason lets hope it’s better than Nick Johnson, Javy and Granderson. Brian please don’t resign any players we already figured out that we needed to get rid of.
http://i220.photobucket.com/al.....laffin.jpg
4time,
If we face Lewis again I have a feeling our offense will be a lot more effective the second time around than they were over the weekend. That guy’s outing was a classic case of overachieving.
ZMAN -
If your paycheck is written by a NY Corp, such as the Yankees, you pay NY State, NY City and NJ income tax, if he were to make NJ a full time residence.
That’s why so many players have established full time home in Florida to escape most taxes.
as stated last night swisher is moron he should have complained and argued that he was hit… what a friggin idiot, chokes and does not use his brain.
————————————————————————————————————–
The ball barely nicked his pants leg. He probably didn’t even feel it.
Goose, I think as soon as the FA clock strikes, the Yankees will get out an offer. I’m sure they’ve thought about and are thinking about this………..they’ll go after Lee the same way whether Andy retires or not because they need him either way. Also, Andy will probably take awhile to make up his mind – I see the Lee thing getting resolved pretty quickly.
Gary –
We won 95 games.
Our team got cold in the ALCS.
No matter what players you acquire in the offseason, they are still responsible for doing their job(s).
Just look at Swisher as one example – regular vs. post-season.
yankfanca – and you think the last 2 months has something negative to do with girardi? clueless.
it couldn’t possibly be because it’s a LONG season and half the team was hurt… girardi must be deliberately tanking it. it’s the only answer.
No , I think it’s better if Joe panics, just like the dopes covering the team.
Betsy,
You ever heard the expression “one game at a time”?
That’s where the Yanks are right now. They should be so lucky to see game 6 or 7, never mind who the starter is.
“I’m avoiding sports radio today, but I read he suggested trading Swish and signing Werth. Swish’s post-seasons have been awful and I think that’s not a bad idea.”
Yeah, he did say that. Said that Reggie and Werth’s family are very close and it would make sense…just to shake things up if they don’t hit again and Swish has been a major culprit 2 years in a row. Said it would be tough though because of how popular Swish is, but despite that, he has to be able to hit big-time pitching in the postseason
I don’t completely disagree with him either. Just don’t see if they have the funds for Lee AND Werth AND re-signing Andy. Will be very interesting to see what they do.
Lets worry about who pitches game 6 later.
Wave, yes – and I don’t disagree. I’m not overly confident about today, so you’re right – no point worrying about a game that might not happen
stuart a October 20th, 2010 at 3:19 pm
as stated last night swisher is moron he should have complained and argued that he was hit… what a friggin idiot, chokes and does not use his brain.
===========
Thanks. Now I know I can ignore you.
does werth have a long history of hitting in the playoffs that the rest of the world is unaware of?
Betsy, I think that Andy can still pitch, I’d like to see him back if he wants to. But if has had enough of baseball that’s fine, he has had a great career and been a great Yankee. More closer to home I think Jorge has become a liability and his skills have eroded significantly both at the bat and in the field. I’m not sure I would want to give him a roster spot next year.
ZMan, that’s interesting about Reggie and Werth’s family, though I don’t think that’s a factor.
I like Swish, but as I’ve said, I think some changes have to be made and Swish is one of the few players who can be moved. That said, Werth is no savior -and there’s no guarantee that he’d be good in the post-season.
Ya, game 6 is irrelevant right now as are conjectures about what offseason moves Cashman will make.
Its still the 2010 season and we are not done yet.
To quote the great Mariano Duncan ” We play today, we win today “
“does werth have a long history of hitting in the playoffs that the rest of the world is unaware of?”
Monster postseason last year -
1.129 OPS, 7 HRs, 13 RBIs, .403 OBP
.969 OPS in 2008
Not doing much so far this one, however.
I like the aspects that Swish brings to the team, he does alot of good things.
The problem is that pitchers know how to get him out especially the good pitchers you see in postseason with pinpoint control and good movemet. The scouting report for him like many others is down and in and high and away. He can extend the AB by fouling a few off, but he can’t layoff especially that pitch up in his eyes. Eventually he gets the K or just hits something weakly. Just like Melky if you swing at balls that’s what they throw you.
Today is the only game that currently matters.
Jason Werth number in PS -
Lifetime: BA .271, OBP .382, SLG 604, OPS .987
World Series Games: BA .351, OBP .500, SLG .676, OPS 1.176
The problem with moving around the rotation for games 6-7 is that I don’t want the rotation to be messed up for the World Series.
What our pitching has done to Vlad and Kinsler, their pitching has done to most of our lineup.
Bad pitches to Molina, Young, Hamilton, etc. all series long.
That’s what it’s about – executing.
Which we have not done.
Gary October 20th, 2010 at 3:35 pm
I like the aspects that Swish brings to the team, he does alot of good things.
The problem is that pitchers know how to get him out especially the good pitchers you see in postseason with pinpoint control and good movemet. The scouting report for him like many others is down and in and high and away. He can extend the AB by fouling a few off, but he can’t layoff especially that pitch up in his eyes. Eventually he gets the K or just hits something weakly. Just like Melky if you swing at balls that’s what they throw you.
**********
You can say the same thing about Teixeira as well..and there is were the problem lies – ALOT of the players that are counted on to carry this team offensively can be pitched to (swisher, tex, arod, posada, granderson , gardner – and especially this year jeter)
I’d like Werth as our RF, have Swish as 4th OF/DH. Get rid of Kearns, Berkman. This winter, Cashman will start cleaning house, bet on it.
“I’d like Werth as our RF, have Swish as 4th OF/DH. Get rid of Kearns, Berkman. This winter, Cashman will start cleaning house, bet on it.”
Would love to see that
Eroc October 20th, 2010 at 3:38 pm
The problem with moving around the rotation for games 6-7 is that I don?t want the rotation to be messed up for the World Series.
*****************
You worry about that when the World Series starts.
If you don’t care of business right now, its a nonissue
I hope Girardi’s message to the team was to just go out there and smile and have fun. They’ve been so tight all series. If this is the last game of the season, and it’s been a great season, they should at least enjoy it.
Next season, if Tex gets off to the same horrible start, Joe has to move him in the order.
Cano has shown he’s now the “Man” on this team, so he should bat 3rd, with A-Rod giving him protection in the line-up. Move Tex to #5 or #6 if he don’t hit. JMHO.
SI_JonHeyman
rangers owner on lee: “he’s going to make a tremendous amount of money. I hope he makes it with us.” on si.com.
JoelSherman1
Can’t ever remember Yankee Stadium being this empty/dead 25 minutes b4 1st pitch. Know it is midweek day gm, but still ALCS
Lets get Crawford in our OF, it gives us a bunch of options for the other positions
You can say the same thing about Teixeira as well..and there is were the problem lies – ALOT of the players that are counted on to carry this team offensively can be pitched to (swisher, tex, arod, posada, granderson , gardner – and especially this year jeter)
———————
Which is why I think the OF will look different next year.’
Really, the OFers are the only one who can be moved and/or replaced this winter. We know Jeter, Posada, Tex, etc. are going nowhere.
Two things:
The pre-game is unwatchable for me today.
and
It doesn’t seem fair that the Texas rangers owner is allowed to make all these pronouncements about signing Lee.
Swisher is not a 4th OF………..he’s a very fine player and should not be relegated to the role.
Swish is going to be making 9 mil next season.
That’s a lot of scratch for a 4th outfielder/part time DH.
CNTG – every player in baseball can be pitched to… guys don’t just come to this team and develop holes in their swings. there is a way to get every guy out, it only comes down to execution.
they have hit some mistakes, balls left out over the plate which are obviously not designed to go there…
they have hit some bad pitches too, pitches they had no business hitting where they did (molina’s HR last night, hamiltons HR off hughes for examples)…
The rangers have had one of, if not the best pitching staffs in baseball this year. There is no shame in how our offense has produced against them. They have not made enough mistakes to make a difference in the games. you can’t fault the yankee hitters for not chasing bad/borderline pitches.
in the end… its about execution. their pitchers have done it this year. ours did it last year. that’s how the playoffs work every year.
Lee is under contract with the Rangers. The Rangers’ owner has the right to pronounce anything of his choosing.
This is my fantasy line-up for opening day next year -
SS – Jeter
CF – Granderson
2B – Cano
3B – A-Rod
RF- Werth
1B – Tex
C – Posada
DH – Swisher
LF – Gardner
P – CC
“It doesn’t seem fair that the Texas rangers owner is allowed to make all these pronouncements about signing Lee.”
I think Christine O’Donnell has come out against self-tampering.
It’s his player – he can say whatever he wants to.
BIG AL October 20th, 2010 at 3:43 pm
Next season, if Tex gets off to the same horrible start, Joe has to move him in the order.
Cano has shown he’s now the “Man” on this team, so he should bat 3rd, with A-Rod giving him protection in the line-up. Move Tex to #5 or #6 if he don’t hit. JMHO.
***********************
Not only that but win or lose this year someone needs to talk to the invisible man (teixeira) and let him know that another slow start in april (and may and june and then again in october and november) and he may (and should) be moved down even lower in the order than 6….you can’t have this guy show up for 2 months and then go into his disappearing act for the rest of the year – i know his glove is nice – but you can go out and sign carlos pena for 8 million a year get the same offense from him and just as good a glove – and save 12 million dollars a year…
Doreen October 20th, 2010 at 3:47 pm
It doesn’t seem fair that the Texas rangers owner is allowed to make all these pronouncements about signing Lee.
========
I thought there were rules about that. Maybe I’m thinking of a different sport.
I still think that Lee is going to stay with Texas. I have no doubts that they will go as far as they have to for him……..and this team is a good young team, possibly a WS winner.
“doesn’t seem fair that the Texas rangers owner is allowed to make all these pronouncements about signing Lee.”
why not? Lee is his property until mid-November
George made similar comments about how much they want to keep A-Rod during the 07 ALDS.
Cashman needs to go October 20th, 2010 at 3:49 pm
***************************************
I’m with you, this is not Little League, you must earn your spot in the order, by your current performance, not your past deeds.
See my fantasy line-up above.
Tex, in theory, should have been the perfect Yankee.
Gold-Glove 1B, switch-hitter, 40 HR power, high OBP, high average. Conditioning freak, tireless work ethic, and is well-spoken and conducts himself well.
It’s just a shame that he is so streaky, doesn’t hit till the summer, and then falls asleep once fall arrives.
I got the impression that Lee wasn’t happy pitching in the TX heat…none of us really know where he will end up…probably to whatever team offers him the most money/years. I know they like him in TX (who wouldn’t) but they liked him in Seattle as well.
I know he probably has the right to do it; I have the right to not want to hear it.
Irreverent Discourse October 20th, 2010 at 3:48 pm
CNTG – every player in baseball can be pitched to… guys don’t just come to this team and develop holes in their swings. there is a way to get every guy out, it only comes down to execution.
***********************
I agree with what you said – and i haven’t watched much of other teams this year – but who on this planet doesn’t know that a breaking ball is coming to tex and swish when they have 2 strikes on them – who doesn’t know that a high fastball is coming to jeter (or a ball out away and low) with 2 strikes, who doesn’t know that arod swings at the first pitch with runners on base – it looks to me that the yankee hitters are much easier to get out (they strike out even when they know whats coming for christ’s sake)
i’ve seen enough of youkilis and pedroia to know that those motherbleepers are very hard to get out with RISP….
game thread up
Hi all –
So, we went to the game last night, and for 5 innings, the place was rockin’. Then, Tex got hurt, and AJ let one leak over the plate, and the combination of being outplayed and not getting the breaks on hard hit balls got the better of them.
There’s not much else to say. Either they get it done today, with the big guy on the mound, or winter begins, and we think about next year.
Winning it all is tough. To go thru three rounds of the toughest competition – that take a lot of good play and having the breaks go your way.
Bye for now. Can’t stand the psychopathology here during the games.
Let’s go Yankees.
If we win today, all we have to do is beat TX 2 straight. How is that impossible? Remember 2001? We got it game 7 and… uh, well let’s hope it goes differently this time