Pitching matchups vs. Baltimore
Posted by: Chad Jennings - Posted in Misc on Apr 12, 2011 
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The Orioles are going to be without shortstop J.J. Hardy this series. Hardy is heading for the disabled list with a strained oblique (the Yankees can relate). Meanwhile, the Orioles have yet to settle on a starter for Wednesday’s game. It will either be Brad Bergesen — who would be called up from Triple-A — or Chris Jakubauskas, who pitched out of the bullpen this week.
Tonight
RHP A.J. Burnett (2-0, 4.09)
vs.
RHP Chris Tillman (0-0, 3.38)
7:05 p.m., MY9
Wednesday
RHP Phil Hughes (0-1, 16.50)
vs.
TBA
7:05 p.m., YES Network
Thursday
RHP Ivan Nova (1-0, 6.10)
vs.
RHP Jake Arrieta (1-1, 8.68)
7:05 p.m., YES Network
Associated Press photo
Pretty good matchups for our side.
Here’s to hoping that Phil shows signs of improvement.
let’s win this series.
This will be a telling series indeed. I’ll be watching every minute. Thankfully, I can watch on the local MASN network and not have to deal with MLBtv’s laggy streaming service.
Cause we have the Texas tornadoes blowin’ in next.
This is the first time this season I actually get to watch AJ. He’s done well with me not watching him though, so if he has a bad game tonight, just blame me.
Yikes! Texas is next? I don’t relish our battle with them right now. They are ON FIRE!
Love how badly the Sox were stomped on the Rays. I almost get as much pleasure seeing that as I do seeing our guys win right now. That’s simply because I was so irritated at all the analysts anointing the Sox World Champions during ST. HAH!
Here’s to AJ staying within himself. We need him to be steady. GO AJ!
I hope we get the game in tonight
Wang-
Yes. That was fun.
I hate to say but I wouldn’t mind if the Sux were swept.
Steady as she goes for AJ.
Back on the beam for SuperNova.
And signs of the old Phil.
That would be the trifecta !
Good morning all.
As far as Hughes is concerned, I believe it to be as simply as not getting enough work in ST, where his innings were limited.
As I’ve said before, last season Phil got an extra 2 weeks of extended ST, because he was the #5 SP, and that all he may need now.
The only other thing I’ve noticed, is Phil does not appear to be using his legs enough pushing off, which if I’m correct, would affect his velocity.
I’ll leave to cure to the pros.
Hey Al-
Morning.
How’s tricks ?
What’s the rumpus daddy-O ?
It appears so many players are off to a very slow start this season.
Felix not pitching well, Pujols not hitting, what’s going on?
Heard anything from our buddy in “spats” and a “zoot suit” ?
Mike -
You’re showing your age, lol.
MTU — fingers AND toes are crossed!
morning all! been away nice to be back.
so when i listened to sterling announcing hughes’ last game he kept saying that phil never hit 90 on the radar but gameday had him as throwing regularly at 91. anybody know anything about the accuracy of the stadium radar vs. the gameday?
Mike -
I sold my camera equipment, now I’m thinking about the new Fujifilm HS 20.
Al-
Odd. Like the world’s weather.
Don’t know. Just a random coincidence most likely.
Or maybe, if you’re into conspiracies, it’s a government plot to destroy baseball and replace it with women’s volleyball.
Montreo is really raking, I wonder, if he keeps going like this in SWB, how long before he gets called up, or do they leave him there until after the AS break.
Great. Sounds like it would have made a good deal for the right party.
Best of luck with your new purchase Mr Gadget.
glad for new post, tired of looking at that mets fan, he looked like some squirrely 80s actor i cant think of..
lets go Yanks, wake up these Os and get the yank bats pounding! any word on A Rod?
Does anyone know if Montero has every played a position other than C?
Al-
It’s nice that the Yankees have those options.
They’re all open. we’ll see how Cervelli does when he returns.
al, i think with montero the defense will decide when he comes up. also, if martin keeps raking it makes more sense to keep jesus catching every day.
Al-
A few reps at 1st I think ? Not very many though.
And DH.
Women’s volleyball, tough choice.
Much like watching the bouncing ball.
Al-
AA looking pretty good so far.
Too bad things didn’t work out between him and us.
Hate seeing him working for the enemy.
i bought $9 tix and went to the mets game last night. it was nice the park was half empty and we were in the lowest row of the upper deck, good game, plenty of room to spread out and enjoy and easy getting in and out of the parking.
i predicted tulo’s homer just seconds before he hit it.
MTU -
The reason I asked was a thought as to how Montero could fit in, and get enough AB’s.
Perhaps C twice a week, DH one game a week, and play 1B once a week.
yeah Al.
Who cares if they really good at the sport or not ?
no reason for montero to only catch 2x/week when he’s not up to snuff defensively. he needs more work than that.
The game is on my9 SMH
Al-
I kind of figured that.
I don’t see it.
Do understand wanting to get his bat into our lineup.
We have plenty of thunder w/o him for the time being.
Among the leaders in dingers so far this season.
SP is my concern. Getting it going and on track 1 thru 5.
Mike -
The bad thing with AA and the Yankees was, he offered to take a full physical to prove he was healthy, and ready to pitch in ST, and Cashman taking a stance, without AA taking a physical, that he wanted him to sign a MiL contract, and pitch in SWB, with no commitment to rejoining the team in NY.
What most people don’t realize, AA had great numbers against LHH, thus you could bring him in to face anyone.
Oh well, water under the bridge.
Sox have a MLB worst -31 run differential. This is more telling as to how badly they’ve been playing than their 2-8 record. ….the next worst is Houston at -21.
Mike -
Have you heard any news, good or bad, on the Fujifilm HS20?
“Oh well, water under the bridge.”
Yes. Unfortunately.
I doubt he stays healthy all season. He has chronic lower back issues.
Should have gotten the surgery IMO.
blake -
Heard congrats are in order. How’s things going, staying up nights?
Wow blake, didn’t realize the disparity between the Sox and the second worst team in baseball was that great. Puts things in perspective for sure. Then again, what would one expect with that starting rotation/pen? The Sox are going to score runs, but they’re going to give up a ton in the process.
Al-
Nope. But there must be some good reviews online.
I love my FZ40. Terrific camera in almost every way.
The Leica lens and zoom really make the camera.
I’m also wondering if the Jays aren’t going to be the sleeper team of our division this year. I know trisha would argue the O’s have a shot with Buck at the helm, but the Jays have been pretty nasty as far as getting on base lately. They keep that up and they’ll definitely be in the conversation come September.
Mike -
The Yankees were against surgery, and 2 of the 3 doctors he saw agreed surgery was not required. If doctor #3 turns out to be right, then he may wind up on the DL. AA says his back is better than its been the past 3 years. Time will tell all.
Blake-
I did some simple math.
If the Rays were to sweep the Sux.
Boston would have to approx. .620 the rest of the way to get to 95 wins.
Pretty daunting task.
I hope it goes down that way, or worse (that they get swept).
Mike -
The FZ40, is that a power lens or manual?
Got to go, catch you later.
Al-
Those things rarely, if ever, go away by themselves.
Like you said we’ll see. How he feels is of little consequence. It’s the stress on the disc that counts.
I don’t buy it.
Time will tell.
Big Al,
Thanks so much….he’s done well so far with the sleeping, hopefully it stays that way
MTU,
it’s only 8 games but the bigger the hole the better you have to play the rest of the way. They are essentially spotting a team that’s better than them 4 games in the standings…..sure there is a ton of the season left to overcome that but it’s better than the other way around from the Yankees POV.
Al-
It’s powered. Voice coil operated. 24X
Smooth and extremely accurate.
The focus system is spot on.
A gazillion modes of operation for shooting. Way more than I will ever need.
Blake-
That’s true.
But sustaining that pace over a whole season is not easy.
Glad it’s them climbing uphill rather than us.
And how sweet is it that Tampa is in a similar position.
Answer:
Very.
The Red Sox biggest issue is the middle of their bullpen and the back of their rotation. The Yankees also have issues at the back of their rotation but the middle and back ends of their bullpen are solid and they have a long reliever that can actually pitch a little bit.
The worst case has been happening for Boston, they aren’t getting length from their starters and their already thin bullpen has been exposed. They need their starters to stay healthy and go deep into games…..so does every team, but the Sox have no margin for error in this area. I expect their offense to come around but these things are real and potentially big issues for them.
Blake-
Looks like the Sux gave birth too.
Only they have laid an egg.
MTU,
I never really thought Tampa would compete this year….I could still be wrong but they went all out last year and fell short. They lost their entire bullpen, their #2 starter, and their 2nd best position player (in addition to other players like Pena). Everything fell into place for them last year and they still only beat the Yankees by 1 game in the standings…..I do think their starting pitching will keep them around .500 but I wouldn’t be shocked at all to see them finish 4th in the division.
i think the socks will right the ship and play well, and i also think they will have no competition for 2nd in the division as the season goes on. the question for them is whether they can catch the wild card spot by the end of the season.
Blake-
Wouldn’t shock me either.
MTU,
they aren’t this bad, they are a good team especially at Fenway but they really need at least one of Beckett, Lacky, or Dice K to have a strong season.
Obviously Beckett is the most likely candidate there……..however I’m not sold that he can sustain that level of performance due to health concerns and the fact that he’s just not pitched consistently like that throughout his career. Also, Buchholtz is likely to have an ERA closer to 4 than 2 this year….he’s pretty good but he’s just not as good as his numbers indicate last year……Lester is the real deal though and him vs Price tonight should be interesting.
I never thought Tampa was a serious contender either. I think the wildcard will come out of either Boston,Yanks,Twins,White Sox or A’s
Anyone who has ever dealt with back issues would be suspicious of Ace’s claims. When you’ve hurt your back, its almost never 100%. It can certainly feel that way for extended periods of time, but the simplest thing can trigger a bout of pain.
Good for the dodger/giant message to fan rivals.
The issue though is savage gang members and their rite of passage. Cant appeal to ignorant savages for common sense..
I didn’t see Ace last night but he looked pretty bad against the Yankees IMO.
With the way Colon is throwing the ball it us really not a big deal either way.
http://www.boston.com/sports/b.....tra_bases/
According to Pete….the time has come to trade Dice K……unless it’s back to Japan I’m not sure anybody would want him.
Blake-
I hear Theo really likes birds.
Loves the Albatross.
Hopefully A.J can continue his solid start and get a win tonight. I’m not feeling good about this week at all. Hughes on Wed could be another disaster. If he has a 3rd straight stinker something really has to be done (maybe a few AAA starts…he has an option or two I believe, or DL and extended ST). Our hitters not named A-Rod, Cano, and Martin are flailing. Garcia (with I suspect Molina catching) Friday throwing against the hottest team in the league isn’t exactly inspiring confidence. I can easily see us below .500 this time next week (or sooner). I don’t mean to be a downer and I hope the Yanks catch fire and make me look foolish for being pesimistic. At least Boston is off to such a bad start.
the abuse of rival fans is a scourge on baseball that’s been going on for years. i’ve been hit with beers meant for a family from toronto who came down to see the blue jays play at YS, and i was assaulted for wearing a cardinals shirt to a met’s game years ago.
its all about the alcohol imo.
Wait.. the Dodger fans that beat the hell outta that guy were gang members? Did I miss this?
i think the phil thing is being blown out of proportion. like i said, sterling must have said 20 times that hughes never hit 90 his last start but gameday had him at 91 constistenly. i would expect him to be more like 94 now. im sure his velocity will improve, probably slowly over his next few starts, and phil needs to get his head around the idea of pitching effectivly with what he’s got and not be freaking out that he’s not being able to blow people away.
i think he’s going to improve slightly each time out.
Blake-
Congratulations again to you and your family on the birth of your baby boy. Name?
I’m not yet sold on the strength of our bullpen. The four losses were not helped by the bullpen either giving up a lead or allowing a close game to get out of hand. Feliciano was overworked the last 3 years. It’s only 9 games so far, so I hope it becomes the lockdown bullpen the Yankees hope for.
BIG AL-
Montero has always been a catcher since signed by the Yankees. I think he was a lineman for the Venezuela peewee football league!!
Trader,
Thanks so much. Joseph. We can say it’s after Dimaggio
Shame Spencer,
Thats what they think. The Dodgers (as does LA as a whole) have a big gang problem
Pat M. hypothesized that Beckett was given an epidural to take the pain out of his back and I would believe that. He hadn’t looked like that for a couple of years. That means, if he did get an epidural, when the shot wears off, old Beckett will return. I’m not sure what happens if you keep getting massive pain shots into your back to pitch, but I hazard to guess it’s not a good thing to keep doing.
What’s fascinating to me is if he didn’t give them length on Saturday night, can you imagine the state of their pen after Dice K’s performance?
As for this week, I’m hoping Hughes shows up and shows something. I think if he goes out and gets blasted and the velocity isn’t there, he’ll be pulled from the rotation. At 5-4 now, the Yankees can’t afford to spot the opposing team a game every time Hughes pitches. If they are not going to DL, then I wonder if they should put him in the pen and let him let loose and try to get his fastball back.
I think it’s possible that Montero could play RF but I really can’t see him being very good out there. He has plenty of arm strength but doesn’t run very well at all. I think he’ll stick at catcher….he could play 1B most likely but we have one of those.
I attached this article before about how Aroldis Chapman achieves his velocity. There is an interesting video comparing him to Barry Zito. Could Hughes improve his velocity with a longer stride length? Is it all mechanical and not arm fatigue?
http://www.pitching.com/blog/p.....f-105-mph/
I really dont understand the Manny defense around baseball. Some think it is less of a crime now because he paid a debt? How is it better to test positive 3 times, two after a policy is in place?
How is Manny getting more sympathy than A-Rod did? At least he was a man and went in front of a camera and took what was sent his way. Manny just laughs it off, and then does it again.
Testing positive 3 times means to me he was likely doing it all along and is 100% tainted. How can anyone be sure any of his numbers were valid?
At least A-Rod has the clean 2007 numbers to show off, and no positive tests once the policy was in place.
i am really beginning to doubt the socks are going to be a great team. they will be better but i dont see any indication that lackey or dice k are going to improve. beckett was horrible all last year and ST, his good start last time doesnt convince me that he is going to be a consistently good pitcher.
they will hit, though, thats a great lineup and it will produce. but the pitching, which everyone pretty much couldnt praise enough this ST is a sham. they will struggle for every win.
id say its 50/50 they make the wild card.
Triple – I know about the gang problems out there, I’m just surprised if its really the case that this was a right of passage. To me, it sounds like someone decided it was more palpable to place the blame on an already troubling issue..
ac1,
same reason Ortiz has never “gotten back to the media” about his use…..
ac1-
Where is Manny getting HOF sympathy votes? Any commentators I have heard who have a vote said they would not vote for him since he cheated and was caught when steroids were officially banned from baseball.
im sorry but why would anybody believe arod when he says he used one year and not another? im not picking on arod, i feel the same about ortiz and several others. i dont pass judgement on why and who did what but when a guy gets caught using then claims he ‘only did it ‘ one time or for one season, i just dont believe them. andy lied about his usage till he was bagged and had to change his story. why would i believe arod when i even andy lied after being caught?
Some folks mentioned Youkalis’s health last night and I agree….I’m not sure he’s 100%….he just doesn’t look right. Maybe he’s still shaking off the rust or whatever….but if he’s not going to be an elite bat then the Sox’s lineup isn’t nearly as good. They need him to hit badly to offset LHPing.
ARod said he used for 3 years in Texas.
There is no way Manny gets in the HOF maybe ever. Guys with just circumstantial stuff like Bagwell are losing votes…..Manny failed a test 3 times…..had to retire to avoid a 100 game suspension.
YankeeTrader – I thought it was interesting to hear Buster talk about how he’d vote for McGuire, Bonds, and Clemens but not Manny based on the fact that there was no real drug policy in place when the former played.
Arod would have put up monster numbers in Texas regardless…..those were his 25,26, and 27 age seasons.
there was no baseball rule against takin PED when A-rod took them…after they were banned he passed all tests…not sayin what he did was right, but there was no rule against them.
Manny gets defended because it helps protect Ortiz.
To the other point about Beckett and the injections for the back issues, they will cause further deterioration and can cause more damage to the problem because pain is no longer felt.
When you feel pain, it causes you to change the pressures you are putting on an injury. Without that, you are continuing to do damage to the area. Its like turning off fire alarms in a building because there is heavy smoke, and yet not addressing the problem of the fire that is underway.
I wonder if Aceves was also treated this way, enabling him to pitch now. A bulging disk isn’t going to heal itself. Never has, never will.
Obviously, I don’t know any of the particulars of what’s ailing Josh Beckett. But, if it is chronic back pain, maybe due to disc herniation, as Pat M. has said his scouting friends believe it is, high dose steroids have sometimes been used to relieve the inflammation around the nerve root.
As Mgumpher says, above, pain is nature’s way of telling you to not do something. All the shot does is mask symptoms.
The Yanks steered away from Ace, I believe, because of their concerns over his chronic back problem. Now, the Red Sox appear to be depending on two such pitchers. We’ll see.
teixeiramark25 More rain in the Bronx today, reminds me a lot of 2009 when we had rain delays almost every day! I’ll take the rain if it means another WS Trophy like ’09!
BryanHoch Yankees.com: Pettitte subpoenaed for Clemens’ trial http://atmlb.com/gQ19rB
Staying healthy is a prerequisite for all teams. Many fans noted this pre-season about the Red Sox; nothing surprising there. Look at how good Pedroia can be when healthy, or Beckett at least the other night.
Joe from LI – I’m really young, but when I was on my high school’s crew team I pulled a muscle in my back lifting a boat. I tried to row through it, didn’t work. I used a heating and tens unit to help relieve the pain. I had the tens unit on one day and couldn’t get it off myself so my mom was helping me. She accidentally pulled off one of the stickers while the unit was still on and a pain like I’ve never felt in my life shot through my back.
Its literally been years.. and I mean YEARS since, but I still manage to aggravate it every now and then. It used to happen occasionally when I would move in and out of my dorm from the heavy lifting, but sometimes I’m totally fine (I shoveled all winter without an issue) and it just flares up from sitting the wrong way for too long. Once I had to have a friend drive me home because out of no where I could barely walk the pain was so intense.
And everything I’ve just described is NOT based on any structural damage, because I have none. I can’t imagine Ace pitching for a full season. And if Beckett’s problems really are back related, I have a feeling he’ll find himself on the DL or ineffective this season as well.
West Coast,
I think Pedroia is definitely healthy although one has to wonder if having a screw in his foot is going to come back to haunt him the way he plays the game.
I’m not sure Beckett is healthy. I think he was shot up on pain killers or steroids as Joe from LI suggested. The guy looked calm, loose and limber and nothing like the pitcher he used to be. In spring training he did not look like that. Of course the team is never going to come out and say that they are giving pitchers epidurals or giant cortisone shots in their backs to pitch, but if Beckett falls off the rails and doesn’t look so smooth and composed on the mound in future starts, I think we’ll know why he pitched like an ace Sunday night.
G. Love I agree. Who knows what the reality is about Beckett. But he hasn’t looked that dominating in years and they could have given him shots last year as well. I just don’t have any idea.
G. love-
Just wanted to thank for posting that article on the therapeutic value of long-tossing yesterday.
I hope it helps Hughes regain his arm strength.
I’m not totally sold on it but I hope it works.
I think its also possible that Beckett sold his soul to Larry Luchino for one more dominant performance against the Yankees.
Question – in the article about trading dice k, the goon journalist states that there comes a time when you have to eat your mistakes and says the Yankees did it last year with javier Vazquez. The Yankees let Javier Vazquez take the ball 26 times in a starting role last year. Not dissimilar to many other back of the rotation starters in baseball. So my question is, how did the yankees “eat their mistake”…..and more directly, how is Javier Vazquez with the Yankees last year at all congruent with Dice K with the Sox ($100 mm wasted) or Oliver Perez with the Mets ($40 mm wasted)?
Sounds to me like he just had to try and liken the terrible mistake they made with Dice K to something the Yankees did and chose Vazquez instead of Igawa to make his point. I wonder if he is reserving the Igawa parallel for when he has to write the same article about John lackey in the not too distant future?
MTU,
I’m hoping what was in that article is what’s happening to Hughes. If that’s the case, a few more weeks of long tossing should fix the problem.
I did find it interesting that Eiland was against long tossing. Almost every young pitcher he touched in the past few years has lost velocity here. I think there may be a common denominator.
Let’s hope it works.
Can’t ask for better matchups against Baltimore.
No Guthrie, Britton, or Matusz.
No excuses if they don’t win 2 or 3 in this series.
lol @ comparing Dice-K situation in Boston to Vazquez in NY last year. Apples and oranges for sure. One was a hugely expensive FA signing that mostly hasn’t panned out. The other was a trade of some spare parts for a 1 year back of the rotation guy that didn’t perform up to expectations. One year later the fallout from the Vazquez mistake is basically over and done with. Dice-K is a multi-year problem both in the monetary cost and the games lost when he doesn’t perform.
This is what I want to see tonight:
A.J. pitching a strong 7 innings
Soriano in the 8th & Mo in the 9th.
I remember an interview with ARod(known for having a strong throwing arm) a couple of years ago in which he said long toss was how he developed his arm. He long tosses before every game.
I was taught that the best way to build your arm was to long toss with someone who had a stronger arm than you……at some point you get tired of bouncing it to your partner while they are getting it to you on the fly.
I’m not sure they are going to get this game in tonight.
Boston can’t just blindly rid themselves of Matsuzaka without disturbing the Asian TV market they’re involved in. Like it or not, they’re stuck for the remainder of his $20 million. It’s why they were hesitant to release Okajima so instead they stash him away in AAA with a $1.8 million salary.
All the hype of Dice-K mania and his so-called gyroball were just a myth. I’ll bet No. 18 shirts are rarely seen anymore at the Green Dump.
“All the hype of Dice-K mania and his so-called gyroball were just a myth.”
A lot of players just don’t translate from one league to MLB, especially, it seems, in the Asian markets. To me its a bit odd, but I’ve read a lot of articles about how the approach to the game can be really different and the training, mechanics, etc are also very different as a result.
New Post: Jorge Posada Foundation to announce new partnership
G.Love-
Me too. We really got blind-sided by this.
Though it wouldn’t be popular at all I am not totally opposed to your idea of putting Hughes into the pen if he fails to perform next time out.
Some would say that would hurt more than help but I don’t necessarily agree.
Hughes gained considerable swagger after his time in the pen and he really learned to let his FB fly.
Right now people are searching for answers so we’ll just see what happens.
I looked up epidurals this morning to see how frequently they can be given. Wiki says you can give up to three within a 6 month period…if more are needed, then they aren’t working. It seems–based on that–that Boston could manage Beckett’s back pain this year with shots, but he will probably pay the price next year.
Oh boy…pitchers we’ve never seen before? Get ready for some frustrating innings.