Yankees avoid sweep; win series finale
Posted by: Chad Jennings - Posted in Misc on May 31, 2012 
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The Yankees managed to get out of Anaheim with a win, fending off two late Angels rallies to win tonight’s series finale 6-5. Cory Wade struck out Howie Kendrick with runners at the corners in the seventh, then Rafael Soriano left two stranded in the ninth to close out the win. Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson each homered in a five-run third inning that gave the Yankees an early lead, but the Angels came right back to tie it with four-runs in the fourth. The biggest blow, it turned out, was a triple by Raul Ibanez, who scored the go-ahead run on Nick Swisher’s sacrifice fly. Ivan Nova allowed five runs through 6.2 innings but picked up his second straight win and sixth of the season.
Associated Press photo
Untuck
That’s as hard as Sori threw all year. Great job by him.
sori!!!
Sor-i-ano!
Can’t much complain about 4-2 west coast trip and it was nearly a 5-1 trip. Now go to Dertoit, take two there and maybe we’ll be in first by the weekend.
Soriano treads thin ice there. Had a feeling he would get out of it. Too damn close for comfort. He has gotten it done though. However need D-Rob back just to add another really good arm back & provide even more insurance.
Haha. The bait is untouched. Good one.
Maybe that 1.16 WHIP is true in the past 30 days. But watching him pitch, feels like a 3.00WHIP to me. Now, if you want to argue that Mo spoiled me, just maybe. I’m more apt to let Sorianos roller coaster ride off the hook in the 7th, but there is no room for it in the 9th!
The other positive is that Nova bent but didn’t break.
Have to get used to mortal closers after so many years of Mo.
“The other positive is that Nova bent but didn’t break.”
No doubt. Now that was a battling performance. 2.2 clean innings after his bad 4th inning
Really, Robertson does the same thing and no one doubts him. People are just really anti-sori because he is such a sullen guy. There was a good article about him I believe in the NYT which painted him in a different light and makes him more likable.
luis May 31st, 2012 at 1:20 am
you understand how that makes no sense, correct? It only “almost” got passed him because of the range. he created the problem you say he helped to kinda solve.
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I am just expressing what a money player Jeter is…He knew that ball was probably the game, and kept it on the infield. Maybe it wasn’t pretty, but he did his job preventing Cayaspo to reach third base.
luis May 31st, 2012 at 1:17 am
4 NYY May 31st, 2012 at 1:15 am
luis May 31st, 2012 at 1:11 am
Just one comment:
Jeter may have no range, but if that ball gets passed him, this game might have been tied. So regardless, it was a heads up play, and probably the game winning play.
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I know you didn’t mean “no” range. He’s not what he was maybe, but still damn good because he’s smart and has learned to play hitters like any good SS.
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Actually i was answering to a previous post. Even giving him that Jeter has no range, it was the game winning play in my view. But you are right, he is not what he once was, but it is still plenty good.
TheStraw,
You make a good point. It may also be that Robertson is homegrown and we want to only dream of his perfections and dismiss his imperfections.
Robertson has still been better though.
TheStraw May 31st, 2012 at 1:19 am
Really, Robertson does the same thing and no one doubts him. People are just really anti-sori because he is such a sullen guy. There was a good article about him I believe in the NYT which painted him in a different light and makes him more likable.
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You may well be right. I admit he scares me.
This is the one I said we would win, but I really thought it would be even more high scoring. Especially the way Nova started. I knew ( as much as one can ) that we would get to Santana, we usually do. Was totally dependent on Nova’s pitching. Not great, or even real good, but good enough. Relief saved us again.
Not an easy 6-2
Winning-
DRob is only better because he has swing and miss stuff more often than Sori. Their results this season have been pretty much the same. Don’t forget Sori was hurt last year, also.
Don’t forget Ibanez and Swisher…They manufactured the winning run…Swisher is swinging the bat very well and Ibanez has been a very unexpected success.
Soriano is a different pitcher as a closer than as a set-up reliever. I think that’s what we are seeing.
Sweet booty victory. Pretty good game thread tonight. Some definite weak spots here and there but overall it was a nice night.
Straw, absolutely right about Sori.
He may appear sullen (I know he does) but he’s a religious guy. Maybe he’s just a hard read.
I love the guy, I really do.
Winning, DRob and Sori have different styles. DRob is really exciting to watch. Sori is very measured. But they are both extremely effective.
Soriano seems to flourish in the 9th.
Hey, as Straw said, 6 out of 6 saves. He’s earning his money.
As much as Sori scares me, he’s done the job.
oldest guy in mlb gifted the win for nova with the triple. he is the crappiest 6-2 pitcher in baseball. got to be. maybe his head isn’t so big now.
Wonder if Sori was scary like this when he got those 45 saves with TB ?
“Soriano is a different pitcher as a closer than as a set-up reliever. I think that’s what we are seeing.”
rich, couldn’t agree more.
And last but not least Nova….After the ugly fourth inning, he kept his cool and rebounded fairly well…The guy has true grit.
4 NYY, Sori was pretty automatic with the Rays.
I don’t know how scary this was. He was facing the top 3 of a team that has been very hot. He’s not God!
Yeah, Nova has been lucky, but I think he’ll get better simply because he has the stuff and is hungry to do so. And he WANTED to be a Yankee bad.
“And last but not least Nova….After the ugly fourth inning, he kept his cool and rebounded fairly well…The guy has true grit.”
luis, absolutely.
That’s the dilemma you face with developing young pitching in NY – how much can you tolerate from Hughes/Nova before trying out Phelps/Mitchell or something? Then when you go to Phelps/Mitchell, how much rope do you give them? If they start out 1-2 in their first 4 starts with a 4.95 ERA and averaging 5 innings a start, do you go back to Hughes/Nova?
Reminds me of 08 when they removed Rasner from the rotation after weeks of ineffectiveness, brought up Kennedy, then Kennedy had a bad start and he was sent down and Rasner was re-inserted into the rotation.
Ohh! Wade!! how can i forget him…..4 batters faced, 4 k’s….Picked up Logan’s mess…Have to say that Logan has been very good all season long, so it was bound to happen at some point.
Night to all you good Yank fans. Especially you know who ! LOL
Night 4 NYY!
Good night guys…
Trisha & all a very good night. See you Friday in Motown.
Beating this team in LA is like getting teeth pulled. Give Nova credit for battling. I still don’t think he is 100%, something just doesn’t look right.
Night luis, night jackamir!
Sleep well.
“Beating this team in LA is like getting teeth pulled. Give Nova credit for battling. I still don’t think he is 100%, something just doesn’t look right.”
I do think the same thing.
RMike May 31st, 2012 at 1:33 am
That’s the dilemma you face with developing young pitching in NY – how much can you tolerate from Hughes/Nova before trying out Phelps/Mitchell or something? Then when you go to Phelps/Mitchell, how much rope do you give them? If they start out 1-2 in their first 4 starts with a 4.95 ERA and averaging 5 innings a start, do you go back to Hughes/Nova?
Reminds me of 08 when they removed Rasner from the rotation after weeks of ineffectiveness, brought up Kennedy, then Kennedy had a bad start and he was sent down and Rasner was re-inserted into the rotation.
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That’s why I don’t like when people judge after a few starts here and a few starts there. Kennedy having that bad start after being called back up hurt Hughes’ chance to come back up. He did at the end of the season to make 1 more start. But I thought he should had come back in July.
Can’t forget about Wade tonight. That dude pitched his tail off. Coming back down 3-0 to Kendrick to K him in the 7th was sweet.
Nova is still giving up too many hits right now though. He needs to keep the ball down more. A lot of solid contact.
trisha – true pinstriped blue May 31st, 2012 at 1:38 am
“Beating this team in LA is like getting teeth pulled. Give Nova credit for battling. I still don’t think he is 100%, something just doesn’t look right.”
I do think the same thing.
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If there is something wrong. He needs to say something. Could very easily be 2-6 if not for the offense, defense, and the bullpen. Could end up hurting us in the end.
For all of the issues NYYs have had, in May, they still finished as a .500 team for the month and a west coast swing at 4-2.
Obviously Soriano is going to allow runners on base. The question is do they score. From the closer role they have not been scoring. However from his old set up role they were scoring.
Leave the Wild Thing in the 9th change his number to 99 whatever it takes. The guy gets the job done. So its all good by me.
He had one mission tonight: Get 3 outs before giving up a run and he did that.
igotid, I certainly agree. I can only hope that if something is wrong, he owns up to it.
GreenBeret7 May 31st, 2012 at 1:43 am
For all of the issues NYYs have had, in May, they still finished as a .500 team for the month and a west coast swing at 4-2.
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Very well said. Like I said all day today. Get a win tonight and everything looks better. This team is right in the thick of things. And I still believe will win the East.
You have to figure that they have yet to really start playing like they are capable of playing. Plus you get Gardner and DRob back. Look out, this team is going to be tough when the summer starts to heat up.
As usual!!
Nova is a toss up at this point. It seems there is no in between for him. Keep the ball down and he’s a good pitcher who can survive with lower strikeout rates because he induces so many ground balls. However, his K rates are well up this year. Walk rates are actually down. Line drive rates are more or less the same. He is getting terribly unlucky with his BABIP. That will certainly come down, but HR’s have bloated that ERA sky high. If he doesn’t keep the ball down, he is useless for the Yankees right now. It’s the rare case where the strikeout stuff has made him a less effective pitcher, because he isn’t pitching low in the zone to contact. Strange, because I would rather have a strikeout pitcher 9 times out of 10. But this guy hasn’t learned how to do that. If he learns how to harness both versions of himself, look out. He is perplexing.
Somehow the yankees are 8-2 when he pitches this year. It makes absolutely no sense and it’s complete coincidence for the most part, but i’ll take it. Wouldn’t mind seeing him sent down though.
And the Sux are still all alone in last. Nice night of ball.
I wasn’t aware that “vaunted trolls” cried so much. Must be that west coast inbreeding. You’re now able to crawl back under your rock, Troll Boy.
a serious baseball analysis discussion is trolling? tough crowd. You realize we both root for the same team? If you don’t understand, it’s ok to admit it..Or maybe just stay quiet.
the vaunted chris May 31st, 2012 at 1:57 am
a serious baseball analysis discussion is trolling? tough crowd. You realize we both root for the same team? If you don’t understand, it’s ok to admit it..Or maybe just stay quiet.
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BS. I don’t root for the Angels, and all you’ve ever done on here is troll. You wouldn’t know serious baseball discussion if it hit you in the mouth.
You are hopeless, man. It really is a shame there are people like you on these boards. I don’t understand what’s going on in your head that you choose to respond to my post that way. You offer nothing of value and seem to attack anyone who uses facts that might disagree with your meathead logic of baseball. It just isn’t worth it, and that’s why the smarter fans who could contribute here probably go elsewhere. I assume you push them away so they don’t expose your shortcomings with the game. I get it. But you hit the nail on the head about crawling back under a rock….because a rock would offer more baseball discussion than you. Enjoy your night.
Bullpen era in Nova’s starts is 0.99. And the offense scores 6 runs on average. That helps you get to 6-2 with a 1.58 whip, a 5.60era, and a .313 baa.
igotid88 May 31st, 2012 at 2:12 am
Bullpen era in Nova’s starts is 0.99. And the offense scores 6 runs on average. That helps you get to 6-2 with a 1.58 whip, a 5.60era, and a .313 baa.
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straight luck..and the chance of that continuing is not good..that’s what worries me. Things could get ugly quick
the vaunted chris May 31st, 2012 at 2:14 am
igotid88 May 31st, 2012 at 2:12 am
Bullpen era in Nova’s starts is 0.99. And the offense scores 6 runs on average. That helps you get to 6-2 with a 1.58 whip, a 5.60era, and a .313 baa.
……
straight luck..and the chance of that continuing is not good..that’s what worries me. Things could get ugly quick
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He can also improve. We can only hope for the latter
Pete Caldera ?@pcaldera
Mariano Rivera’s blood clot (lower right leg) has been resolved. No scheduled date for ACL surgery just yet.
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Best news of the day. Glad that now MO can move on to surgery and rehab. Be great to get him back on the mound again next year.
Credit Cano for getting out and taking extra BP today. It seems like whenever he does his HR Drill with K Long he goes yard later that night in the game and igotid gets to drop the Ca-YES.
Love that.
igotid88 May 31st, 2012 at 2:22 am
He can also improve. We can only hope for the latter
……..
His babip and era will definitely improve, no doubt. But if you look at his periphs, he’s not even the same type of pitcher as last year. He’s better in the ways that he can actually control. But if you watch his starts, it looks like more than just the bad luck. It’s tough for me to analyze him. I’d love for someone over at BP or Fangraphs to really dig deep into what is going on with him.
the flyball rate and homeruns are killing him..That’s why I’m saying he’s almost more effective trying to get ground balls over striking people out. Because trying to strike people out is resulting in fly balls that go deep when he misses. And you don’t have to miss that much for it to kill you.
the vaunted chris May 31st, 2012 at 2:07 am
You are hopeless, man. It really is a shame there are people like you on these boards. I don’t understand what’s going on in your head that you choose to respond to my post that way. You offer nothing of value and seem to attack anyone who uses facts that might disagree with your meathead logic of baseball. It just isn’t worth it, and that’s why the smarter fans who could contribute here probably go elsewhere. I assume you push them away so they don’t expose your shortcomings with the game. I get it. But you hit the nail on the head about crawling back under a rock….because a rock would offer more baseball discussion than you. Enjoy your night.
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You’re a crashing boor, Vaunted Troll. Produce one positive post of yours that didn’t contain you not whining about something. You’re toast, Chauncey.
6 out of 8 are wins, and people can’t even enjoy that.
It’s time for MLB to clean up and get rid of Diaz and umpires like him….those with an attitude and believe they are the gate attractions.
http://www.nj.com/yankees/inde.....tin_6.html
Greenberet7,
I can’t even believe I’m going to keep doing this with you, but here goes..People who like dissecting the numbers that make up baseball are usually more drawn to discussions when things go wrong. They like to figure out exactly why a pitcher or hitter, or even team, is struggling. They want to talk to other smart people who understand the numbers to see if they are missing something. They want to know if it’s luck or if someone is a lost cause. Because let’s face it, you and I aren’t major league scouts. I cannot break down a pitcher’s mechanics. But I can dive into the numbers to see what’s going on. Doesn’t mean I’ll be right or even accurate, but it’s interesting. That type of analysis usually centers around players that are doing bad over players that are raking. If you take that as negative, that’s your issue.
I’m sorry you have made it your mission to call this trolling. I post on zero forums. Zero. I might post here once every 4 months if the feeling hits me. It’s perfectly fine to ignore these types of posts, but you just can’t seem to. You are the internet tough guy here, I guess. This is your place to throw around your fake muscle with people who you’ll never meet. It makes it easy to spout nonsense. But at least make some sense with your insults. You’ve told me I’m trolling..false. You’ve told me I’m an Angels fan…false. You told me I’m negative…which I explained above. So who’s the one having a bad night so far? C’mon man. It’s not worth it.
GreenBeret7 May 31st, 2012 at 2:33 am
6 out of 8 are wins, and people can’t even enjoy that.
……..
Who isn’t enjoying it? Is everyone supposed to stop talking about future issues that might pop up with a 6 era pitcher whose whip is through the roof? Those 6 wins have nothing to do with him. You are really reaching here.
It might not be poliically correct, but, it’s funny.
Marc Carig?@MarcCarig
Russell Martin just called Laz Diaz a jerk. Except he didn’t use jerk. Rhymed with “click.”
Marc Carig?@MarcCarig
Rafael Soriano nails down save, then jokes that Pujols should take it easy on him now and again “because I’ve got a family too.”
Seems like some people who are old f$#ts and who claim to have been in the Corps think that makes them God’s gift to baseball blogging.
Why is it that Marc Carig’s twittter has a picture of Reggie Jackson donning an Angel cap and uni ????? Isn’t Marc a Yankee beat reporter ????? GB, Martin will at some point this season get tossed by Diaz for arguing about a ball that should have been a strike…….Martin is right of course
Pat, Good evening. Oh, yeah, I’m sure that he’ll get run, but, Diaz is in a long line of umpires that sem to have an agenda and a floating strike zone. Martin will also draw a fine, I’m sure. At some time, these umpires need to be wired to see how much they actually instigate this stuff.
Niblick May 31st, 2012 at 2:59 am
Seems like some people who are old f$#ts and who claim to have been in the Corps think that makes them God’s gift to baseball blogging.
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What is “The Corps”? Not me. Never have been in the Marines. Learn something and then talk, junior.
Pat, Carig is an Oakland fan from his youth in that area. He changes Icons, depending on where he’s at. He’s had Mounties for Toronto…etc. Guess he didn’t think Mickey Mouse was appropriate, but, myself, I would have used one of The Cowboy.
Hey old man, whatever you pretend to be, everyone on this board is sick of your act.
Sorry, junior, but, I don’t pretend to be anything. I don’t have to.
GB……It’s my feeling that ever since Bud Selig broke the Umpire’s union the quality has gone in the tank…..I knew Jim Evans quite well and the old school of umpiring the games is long gone…..There’s a few good guys left ( Jim Joyce ) comes to mind but most of them are out of control…….
An aside:
Went to the Pirates-Reds game last night, where AJ Burnett was pitching. Seven innings, one hit. He’s 4-2, with an ERA of 3.68. Take away one game this year where he blew up, and his ERA would be 1.52.
Yes, its the NL, and yes its the Reds, but isn’t this the same Reds team that took 2 of 3 from the Yankees this year?
What is it about the Yankees and borderline pitchers that make them suck only in pinstripes?