The Long Winter Begins

So it's been quite some time since I've posted on this blog, but since the Yankees' season is now over, I feel like I want to write about what went wrong, what went right, and what they need to do in 2011.Brian Cashman held his post-season press conference today and the first casualty of the early end to the year is Dave Eiland. Cashman claims this decision was made outside the poor performance of Yankee pitching in the Texas series. 

In the meantime, I'm starting to think about what the team should look like next year.  I'm envisioning a few guys named Carl and Cliff helping from the outside and maybe a call-up or two to bolster bench depth. As I work out my thoughts I'll post them here.

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One thing to note.  In writing this post I had a hard time really saying anything because above all I'm in this state of anger/depression about the Yankees losing that will take a few weeks to shake. This loss stung as much, if not more than some of the recent early playoff exits. I think a big part of it stems from the listless play of the team in September.

Yankees to Add Cliff Lee?

It's possible that the Yankees are on the brink of getting Cliff Lee from the Mariners for Jesus Montero and another prospect. I've seen some reaction that's worried about giving up a "can't miss" prospect to having too many starters.  I think that for once the Yankees are trading for a veteran with an eye on the future.  If Andy Pettitte does retire this year, this deal would leave the Yankees with a rotation of CC, AJ, Lee, Phil Hughes. Essentially the team would have to determine if they want to bring back Javy or go out and find another 5th starter. The Yankees are setting the rotation up to win in 2010, 2011, and maybe 2012.  It puts Jeter in position to chase after Yogi in terms of rings.  

The biggest downside? A prospect who has underperformed at AAA and was benched earlier this year for lack of hustle. Too many starting pitchers. This move is worth the risk and could prevent Lee from going to the Red Sox in free agency.  

Shortstop of the Future?

The Yankees took a shortstop with their first pick in this year's baseball draft. Cito Culver, from the Rochester area, is a 17 year old kid who by all accounts has a good arm, good bat, and can run on the bases. Considering the Captain is getting up there, this kid might be the shortstop of the future. Considering that the kid has gone through to get to this point, you have to root for him. Check out the Star Ledger's coverage and The New York Times' coverage. 

Now For Something Different

I know that this is primarily a baseball blog, but today is the 16th anniversary of the greatest moment I've ever witnessed in sports: Stephane Matteau's goal in the second overtime to beat the Devils and go on to the Stanley Cup Finals.  Enjoy

Scranton Yankees

I've been a little lazy at posting lately and after an exhausting, baffling two game series with the Red Sox I don't know if I have anything to say.  The team is playing well but is a mess. It feels like the bullpen might dazzle or fall apart at any point. Who knows where the next big hit will come from.  So, instead I'm going to share some of the photos I took when the Scranton Yankees came to Durham to play the Bulls.  

We got to see one at bat for Jesus Montero before he was pulled for the rest of the weekend due to lack of hustle. Other highlights included Kei Igawa getting shelled, Mark Melancon pitching on Sunday (and looking intense during his warm up), Golston and Miranda getting called up. It's tough to beat a beautiful weekend of beer and baseball.

DBAP on a Sunny Saturday

Durham Skyline

Warm Ups on Sunday

Jon Weber

Kei Igawa before he got shelled

Montero warming up the bullpen

Bullpen on a lazy Sunday

Melancon warming up

Day Night Double Header and Some Reading for a Rainy Day

So thanks to the weather, the Yankees played a day-night double header yesterday. They lost the first game 2-0. The good news for this game was that Javy Vazquez looked more like the Javy Vazquez we've seen on other teams and less like the one we've seen pitching for the Yankees. He threw 7 innings, giving up 2 runs, and striking out 7. He took the loss, but if he continues to pitch like this he'll likely win more than he loses.

The nightcap was Phil Hughes' time to shine. After losing three in a row for the first time this year, Hughes looked like the stopper. Hughes threw 7 innings as well, giving up 5 hits, no runs, and striking out 8. Hughes' record is 5-0 and his ERA is 1.38. I always hoped he would turn into a reliable starter but the kid has been electric lately. It's really great to see. The other fun part about last night's game was the top of the ninth inning. Jim Leyland left his young pitcher Figaro out on the mound to see if he could get out of the jam. His line (2/3 inning, 3 hits, 2 walks, 2 runs) doesn't look as bad as the performance. Phil Coke earned 4 of the runs but Figaro couldn't find the plate, eventually throwing fastballs in the heart of the strike zone after going 3-0 a few times.

Today is get away day before a series against the Twins in the Bronx. It's raining again, so they might not get the game off (or it might turn into a night game). In the meantime, check out some light reading:

First is the 2010 Ex-Yankees. I think this lineup might finish with a better record than the 2010 Current Mets.

Second is some thoughts on the Yankees' Three-Home Run (in one game) hitters. The Iron Horse continues to be the only Yankee to hit four (4) home runs in one game.

Weekend Series at Boston and some Minor League Notes

So the Yankees take 2 out of 3 against the Red Sox this weekend. I followed most of the games on my phone as I was watching the AAA affiliate play in Durham this weekend. The big disappointment for me was the fact that Jesus Montero was benched the entire weekend for lack of hustle. The good news is that yesterday I was able to get his autograph. I also got to watch Mark Melancon warm up (we were sitting right in the Yankees bullpen area) and work his magic last night. This kid is going to be good, despite his bad outing in the ninth against Baltimore last week.

Getting back to the big league club, the Yankees go into Boston and take 2 of 3 in convincing fashion, even with the plethora of injuries. Nick Johnson joins Granderson on the DL. Pettite and Posada are dinged up. Aceves hurts himself on the mound. All that talk about the Yankees avoiding the injury bug can know be shelved. 

The good news is that the team got contributions from Mark Teixeira this weekend and continues to see production out of Cervelli and Gardner. While AJ's start last night was a little disturbing, I'm more interested to see if Mitre can have a quality outing tonight and if Vazquez can get his act together. One bad start by AJ isn't the end of the world, but a lack of a reliable fifth starter could burn out the rest of the staff over the long grind of the season.

Though I still have to say the highlight of my weekend (besides the beautiful weather) was watching Kei Igawa go out and get pounded. For some reason that just makes me smile.

Baltimore; May 3 and 4, 2010 (Win/Win 4-1)

The last two nights, the Yankees have battled hard to beat the Orioles at home, winning each game 4-1. There were some key similarities for both nights that I found interesting:

Pitching:
Both starters pitched very well:
  • Sabathia threw 8 innings, giving up 6 hits and 1 run.
  • AJ threw 7 1/3 innings, giving up 5 hits, striking out 8, and the only run was unearned
  • Joba closed out both games
Position Players:
As has been the case all year, the bottom of the line up played great. The first night was the Wynn/Gardner/Swisher show. Tuesday night was the Gardner/Cervelli/Pena show. Young players (well maybe not Wynn) have been making key contributions in the field, at the plate, and on the bases. Even Golston who was called up from Scranton made a nice defensive play.

Overall the thing that is impressing me the most is the starting pitching. Besides Vazquez, the starters are lasting late into games, limiting mistakes (or at least the damage from mistakes), and preventing too much reliance on the bullpen. I'm sure that each of them will have a some rough patches, but overall, this is what you want from the team.

Another great thing is Girardi and the little touches. I really like how he is doing things like having bunting lessons before games. It's all about moving guys over, scoring runs, and creating havok in the mind of the pitcher.

Finally, all the talk about young Yankees catchers doesn't give enough respect to Cervelli. The guy is calling good games, hitting, and as last night showed, hustling like crazy. As this picture from today's New York Post shows, he's doing the little things to help the team win.

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One more game against the O's today at 1:05 before the team heads back to Boston to face the Red Sox who are showing a little life.

White Sox; May 2, 2010 (Win 12-3)

Yesterday each of the Yankees' key flaws were exposed. Guys didn't hit well, Vazquez didn't pitch well, an injury made the team look thin, etc. Sunday (the 73rd anniversary of Lou Gerhig's streak ending) comes along and its like night and day. The Yankees got production from almost everyone on the field today including:

  • Phil Hughes who cruised, throwing 7 innings, allowing 4 hits, and striking out 6. His ERA is down to 1.44
  • Teixeira hit today, going 4-5, scoring 2 runs,and driving in another 2
  • Cano went 2-3 with a walk, scoring 2 runs and driving in another 3
  • Swisher went 3-4 with 3 RBIs
  • Gardner had 2 hits,a walk, drove in 2 runs and hit his first homer of the year. He also broke up a double play to help load up the bases in the 7th.
Getting back to some of the problems the team is facing. Somehow, the team needs to figure out how to get Vazquez back on track. Whether its a trip to the DL, a stint in the bullpen, etc. It doesn't matter, they need to figure out how to fix his issues so he can eat up innings.

With Granderson going down, the team loses a little flexibility in the lineup. Johnson isn't hitting at all either. I'd love to see Juan Miranda or John Weber get the call up.  Even a guy like Colin Curtis who is hitting .339 would be interesting to see for a stretch. By calling one of these guys up now, the Yankees will have a better idea of who will get the job done and whether or not they need to make a trade later this summer.

I suspect that Nick Johnson will start hitting again, but if he doesn't and Jesus Montero does start hitting in AAA, you might see him come up and DH.

One of my favorite moments came in the bottom of the 7th when Guillen came out to argue balls and strikes and was ejected. He barely got worked up. I suspect that he had early dinner plans he wanted to get a jump start on.