Pregame notes: “Ride it out and hope that it starts to turn around”
Posted by: Chad Jennings - Posted in Notes on May 03, 2012 
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UPDATE, 7:18 p.m.: I have no further details, but Mariano Rivera was just taken off the field on a cart during batting practice. He was shagging fly balls in the outfield.
Joe Girardi said today’s lineup switch had as much to do with the Royals starting pitcher as the Yankees struggling lineup. Against a left-handed starter — with multiple left-handed relievers in the Royals bullpen — Girardi wanted to put a few different hitters between Curtis Granderson and Robinson Cano.
Fair enough, but the bottom line is, the Yankees need something to click with their supposed-to-be-high-powered middle of the order. Line them up whatever way you’d like, Mark Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez and Robinson Cano need to be more productive than they’ve been so far.
“You got to trust that the history is going to repeat itself,” Joe Girardi said. “You could look at different options if other people were hot. That’s not what we have right now. We have some guys that are really scuffling offensively. So you ride it out and hope that it starts to turn around on this road trip.”
With Nick Swisher and Brett Gardner on te disabled list, the most productive Yankees have been Derek Jeter and Curtis Granderson. Those two are staying together at the top of the order, but the Yankees lineup is really built around the idea of Teixeira, Rodriguez and Cano being an overwhelming trio in the middle.
They’ve combined for eight home runs, one less than Granderson has by himself.
“It’s not rare for me (to get off to a slow start),” Teixeira said. “But for all of us together, it is rare. We all have track records – Alex longer than me, and me a little longer than Robbie — but we all know what we have to do to get back to producing. … The last couple years, whenever Alex has been banged up, Robbie and I have really picked it up. We carry each other. It’s going to happen. Like I said yesterday, you’ve got to give their pitchers credit the last three games, but we expect a lot more out of ourselves, and hopefully we’re not going to have a lot more stretches like this.”
• Eric Chavez was released from the hospital today. He went there last night after experience whiplash and concussion symptoms following a diving play at third base. He went on he seven-day DL this afternoon to open a roster spot for Jayson Nix to be called up from Triple-A (Joba Chamberlain was moved to the 60-day to open a 40-man spot for Nix).
• When Nix found out about the call-up, he was told that the Yankees might use him right away, so he showed up today expecting to be in the lineup. This will be his sixth Major League start in left field. He also played a game out there in spring training and played a game there just a few days ago in Triple-A. “I don’t have a whole lot of experience,” Nix said. “But every time I’ve been out there, I’ve been comfortable and had no problems.”
• Girardi said he wanted to call up a right-handed hitter because the Royals are starting lefties the next two days. The only right-handed outfielder in Triple-A is Cole Garner, who just came off the disabled list yesterday.
• Brett Gardner took today and yesterday off. He’ll hit in the cage again tomorrow and hopes to take batting practice on the field Saturday. “I guess it just depends on how the cage goes tomorrow,” Gardner said. He still needs a rehab appearance, so Tuesday is the absolute earliest he could be back.
• Nick Swisher might be ahead of Gardner at this point. Swisher hit in the cage today and will try to take batting practice on the field tomorrow. He’s not on the disabled list, so Swisher can’t go on a rehab assignment.
• Andy Pettitte’ next start will be on Sunday, giving him an extra day between starts after this week’s time in Washington for the Roger Clemens trial. Girardi said he’s still not sure whether this will be Pettitte’s final tuneup. Sounds like it depends on how he does on Sunday. Girardi said it will be up to those people who actually see Pettitte pitch.
• David Phelps walked into the clubhouse with his earbuds in, then gave a playful shove to D.J. Mitchell. He looked fairly relaxed heading into his first big league start. “For me there would be more (nerves) if he hadn’t pitched here yet,” Girardi said. “But because he’s pitched here yet, I think some of that would be gone. There could be some just because he’s had five days to think about it, but hopefully he got all that out of him when he pitched in relief.”
• Phelps is expected to throw 75-90 pitches. “I would love five or six shutout innings,” Girardi said. “I’d sign up for that right now.”
Associated Press photos
You’ve gotta be kidding me.
David Phelps… your life is calling.
Oh F*8ck. Just seeing those tweets.
Just threw an update into this post. No clue what’s happening with Rivera, but he was just carted off the field during BP. He was shagging in the outfield.
What happened to MO? Heard on SWB broadcast that he got hurt in BP. Anyone have info?
MLB network showed Mo getting carted off after running into the wall. He couldn’t or wouldn’t stand on one of those legs. Doesn’t look good.
pcaldera Mariano Rivera taken off field in groundskeeper’s cart after mishap shagging fly balls in BP. Seemed to have hurt right knee.
2 minutes ago · reply · retweet · favorite
That’s the plant leg too. Yikes.
YFM, did the show the actual collision w/the wall or just the carting him off? If the former, how bad did it look?
Great just great Wtf
this is definitely bad news.
let’s all hope it’s minor
david robertson, come on down, you’re the next contestant on ‘most scrutinized yankee’
please ask arod for some advice
Smh damn it
Say a prayer.
I didn’t see anything with him and the wall. MLB network might have been speculating. All I saw was him laying next to the wall and then them picking him up but him not putting the injured leg down.
All you can do is just laugh right now. Murphy’s law. Just gotta get through it. Hopefully Mo is ok.
Thanks, YFM.
Reading this breaking news…..why do I feel like someone just pushed my mother down a flight of stairs?
The Yankee Universe is now holding their collective breaths.
This is awful. Hope it’s just something that needs healing up time. Not his arm, thank God. He’s Mariano Rivera – nothing can happen to him, he’s protected by Divinity. Nothing bad can touch him.
Phil Hughes, the bullpen is calling. Robertson now gets a preview as closer. The BP should survive, but nobody’s Mo.
He’ll be fine. It is written.
Nate Bukaty ? @nate_bukaty
Asking Yankees players coming in from BP what happened. One of them said “he slipped on the warning track.” #Rivera
Retweeted by Buster Olney
Imagine he tore his ACL or something?
He always wanted to go out playing CF.
They are showing it on YES
MLBN will have video after the break supposedly.
They just showed a replay of the injury on a local broadcast. Mo tried to make a jumping catch near the wall and seemed to hurt himself on the jump. He was in significant pain lying on the warning track. Doesn’t look like he slipped, more like he did something when he jumped.
Here’s to hoping against hope that it’s a sprain and not an MCL or ACL. That looked ugly.
#fingerscrossed
Oh no, not Mo!
It looked like he landed wrong on the right foot, lost his footing and the leg bend under him when he fell. Grabbed his knee. Ugh.
SMH
Crap…..terrible terrible turn of events…..
Hopefully everything is ok
Jeez.
Well, it could like this now: Robertson is the new closer, Soriano moves to the 8th inning role, Hughes gets moved to the 7th inning role after Andy comes back.
Or you could gamble and try Soriano as the closer like he was in Tampa, and leave Robertson in his familiar 8th inning role.
Terrible to lose Mo but we have guys that can step in and do the job.
Wow.. Not even in the game and players are falling like flies. Shagging balls of all things..
Check the user name.
May 2nd as the last day your Yankee God was available out of the Bullpen.
Karma is a B!tch Yankees fans.
I want no part of Soriano closing for this team. That shouldn’t even be discussed.
Karma if you believe in such nonsense would seem to indicate Mo doing something to deserve this.
Ignore him.
Rivera wears the stigmata. He was expected, and he is protected.
Raphael
(or: God has healed.)
If Mo is seriously hurt then you have to close Robertson and let Hughes set up…..keep Soriano in the 7th…..maybe its not serious with Mo.
Yeah you’re a regular Nostradamus. Get a life and grow a pair loser.
You see when they carted him off, he was smiling. That is Mo, he gets hurt and already he’s trying to make everyone else feel better.
He’ll be fine. He has to be fine.
Part of the reason that Soriano hasn’t lived up to expectations is that he was used to closing & the hype and adrenaline that came along with it. He just wasn’t getting up for pitching in the 8th or 7th. The intensity was not there. I would be confident he’d return to basically what he was for Tampa if we made him closer.
I’m not saying I’d do it. I would probably just make Robertson the closer. But to say it shouldn’t even be discussed is a joke. You discuss all your options and figure out which one is best.
There’s also no way I would just hand Hughes the 8th inning job over Soriano. Hughes hasn’t proven crap lately. I’d make him earn the 8th inning job & if he performs, fine.
Wow. Thats fantastic Mo. Play around and hurt yourself, the backbone of our organization for the last 15 years.
Mo shags balls in BP all the time.
DFTT again DFTT
This is I get for laughing at Junior Seau yesterday.
He’s been seen by KC doc. Twisted right knee. Going for MRI.
So now we wait a couple of hours.
Yet another disaster that cashman is to blame…how so?
1) he signed eric chavez knowing full well that the man is made of glass and would eventually go on the DL
2) he didn’t bother to stock up the minors with legitimate replacements once chavez inevitably went on the dl so he had to call up
3) jayson nix
4) who hit the ball that hopefully didn’t end rivera’s career…..yup – jayson nix
just kidding i don’t really think cashman is to blame…or am i….
Be clean, MRI.
# Against All Odds May 3rd, 2012 at 7:50 pm
DFTT again DFTT
///
You can say that again
Not only laughing, but celebrating it. What a fool I am.
Daniel Barbasi of the Wall Street Journal reports that Rivera was “smiling and laughing” as he was being carted off, but that the all-time saves leader needed to be helped into the Yankees clubhouse by manager Joe Girardi and wasn’t putting any weight on his right leg. We’ll pass along an update as soon as it’s made available
Put the Rivera update in a new post because, let’s face it, it’s the biggest story of the day…
Right now the preliminary diagnosis is a twisted right knee, but he’s going for an MRI at a local hospital. Might know more during or after the game.
Leaving all poetics and silly other things I have written aside – I am sick to just hear this. Don’t worry posters – the only thing that could ever get me to go away for good is a Mo injury – and just the thought this could be it – I am gone – and everyone have a good rest of it. Peace.
Mo-twisted knee, reported by YES
Honestly, why is MO allowed to shag balls at his age? When he was 35 maybe, not when he is 42. He is our most valuable commodity, he should be put in glass
Id’ trust Hughes a lot more right now as a reliever than Soriano….
This way to start the winter of our discontent…
soriano-hughes-drob=depth
just say the replay. oh my.
Every play with Nunez at SS is an adventure…
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