Was This The Best Play Of The Season?

(Russell Martin is a boss.  Courtesy of The AP)

The inning-ending double play in the 7th yesterday, Garder-to-Martin on a caught flyball/throw out at the plate to preserve what, at the time, was a 1-run lead was an absolute thing of beauty.  And when you consider how the Yankees mucked things up to even get in that situation, bases loaded and 2 outs thanks to a couple of sloppy errors, and you consider that the offense had once again been able to chip away at Cub pitching all day without being able to break through for more runs, I don't think there's any question that the plays by Gardner and Martin were the best of the season so far.

The throw by Gardner was textbook, and all set up by perfect positioning on the catch.  He transitioned so smoothly and quickly into the throw that anybody watching should have known that Pena was going to be meat at the plate.  Watch the replay.  By the time Gardner makes the catch and unleashes the throw, Pena is only a few steps off third base.  And then the job by Martin to make the catch, secure the ball, take a brutal hit without getting seriously hurt, and hold onto the ball?  Incredible.  The extra little dose of swag on the show to Pena after he got up was a nice touch too.  I haven't looked up the WPA of that play yet, and I don't want to.  Given the situation that it took place in, the execution of the play by both parties involved, and the fact that it held a slim lead in the late innings on the road, that's #1 for the season in my book.

P.S.- I was watching the 2nd half of yesterday's game at Hooters with a few people for a friend's going away party.  In typical Yankee fan fashion, I made one of the waitresses change the channel from the Sawx-Brewers game just so I could watch.  After the collision at the plate, I let out a couple of loud yells and started pounding the guy sitting next to me on the arm.  I got a couple of dirty looks from other restaurant goers and waitresses alike.  I'm a classy guy.

Yanks Somehow Lost To Doug Davis

I can't believe it either.  Doug Davis sucks.  Ask any Brewers fan out here by me and they'll tell you the same.

I'll chalk today's performance up to the situation.  Day game after an extra inning game in another time zone (I know, I know.  It's just one hour difference) is certainly a little different than the usual player routine.  There better be a little more life in those bats tomorrow.

Friday Day Game Linkapalooza

Here's some stuff to take up your time at work before the game starts:

- SG at RLYW examines the last 3 years of AL offense and adjusts the Yankees' 2011 output accordingly.  Maybe it's polishing a turd, but the numbers don't lie.  And they look better adjusted.

- Larry Koestler of TYA goes back to the ZIPs projections for 2011 and checks how the Yankees have been stacking up so far.  Things look good moving forward.

- Bronx Goblin proposes an alternative surgery option for Joba.  Who knows?  It could work.

- Lucas at Don't Bring In The Lefty makes some quick observations about the "new" Ramiro Pena.

- Mike Axisa of RAB continues to search through the scrap heap in the never-ending hunt for lefty bullpen help and uncovers the recently DFA'd J.C. Romero.  Hopefully Boone Logan reads that post and decides to start pitching well.

- Vizzini at NoMaas makes another desperate plea to Joe to stop platooning Brett Gardner against lefties.  .350 OBP against LHP shouldn't be that tough of a sell.  Wake up, Joe!

- And a nice little jab at Fraud Sawx Nation and a shout out to my original home state to cap things off.  The yearly Quinnipiac poll results are in and the Yankee fans have it over Bahhston, 43%-38%.  So suck it, Sawx fans.  Suck it long and suck it good.  At least something good comes out of CT.

For those who are able to watch this afternoon's game, enjoy.  For those like me who are stuck at work and can't, at least we can suffer together.

Brien Gordon: Hollywood Story

One man.  A man with a dream.  A dream he's waited 15 long years to live out.  And now his dream has become a reality.  At 32 years of age, Brien Gordon gets his chance.  The chance to be a starting pitcher for the New York Yankees.

/cue the dramatic music

This summer, Brien Gordon is...

Coming soon to a ballpark near you.

A Swanny Duckson Production

Non-Baseball, Anti-Boston Sidebar

Dan Shaughnessy, you unbelievable front-running douchebag: 

"Today would be a good day to call your out-of-town friends and tell them you live in a city that just won its seventh championship in 11 years. You live in the only hamlet that’s won the Grand Slam of North American trophies within seven years."

Because the "Grand Slam of North American trophies within seven years" is something that only became a relevant point to mention after the final horn sounded last night in Game 7.  It's not like there was a running ticker at the Elias Sports Bureau headquarters counting how long it had been since an American sports city pulled that feat off.  But yeah, go ahead and call your out-of-town friends.  Brag to them about how big a fan you are after you just purchased your 6th different off-colored Boston sports hat on Monday morning.  Openly flaunt your bandwagon jumpy-ness the same way you did in '04.  People respect that.

Not that I need to, but let me remind you that this is the same guy who spoke of a meaningless mid-March ST game like it was the fucking World Series.  And the same guy, who less than 2 weeks ago, wrote this in a piece for SI.com after the Canucks had gone up 2-0: 

"This beautiful city deserves a Stanley Cup and it certainly feels like the chalice will be delivered sometime soon.

I just spent five days in Vancouver last week and it's hard to carry a grudge against the city and it's great fans.

Sure it would be nice to see my hometown Boston Bruins win their first Cup since Bobby Orr and Co. hoisted the grail on the Madison Square Garden ice in the spring of 1972... But let's face it: Vancouver is no less deserving."

Shut the fuck up, Shaughnessy.  You are insulting to sportswriters and sports fans everywhere.  Of all the horrible things I think of when I think about Bawston and Fraud Sawx Nation, you might very well be the most horrible.

Hate Shaughnessy.  "Like" AB4AR.

The Impact Of A Jeter-less Infield

(Never a good expression when you're running to 1st.  Courtesy of Getty Images)

In terms of star power, name recognition, and MSM talking points, Derek Jeter's trip to the DL is a bummer for the Yankees and Yankee fans.  But realistically, it may not be all that bad of thing.  Jeter was hitting .260/.324/.324 before the calf strain, good for a .298 wOBA,  83 wRC+, and a ranking near the bottom of any statistical measurement system.  His range at short has also been suspect at best, and all indications were that the decline we saw at the end of the 2010 season was what the real Derek Jeter is and will be moving forward.  In the 2 games since his being placed on the DL, the Yankee lineup has been just as good, if not better, than when he was in it.  Now of course 2 games isn't enough to make good predictions about anything, but knowing what Jeter had been contributing and knowing there is another 2 weeks without him, I think it's worth taking a look at how things could change without him.

#1 Spot in the Batting Order- Brett Gardner won this job out of ST, but lost it almost immediately after a slow start.  To Jeter's credit, he has actually hit better as a leadoff guy, (.270/.336/.345 in 226 ABs as the #1 hitter, .344/.410/.456 in 90 ABs leading off an inning) but there is still room for improvement.  Jeter is averaging 3.85 pitches/plate appearance, 3rd lowest amongst Yankee regulars.  His replacements over the past 2 games, Brett Gardner and Nick Swisher, average 4.20 and 4.19 respectively.  They are working counts, setting up better hitting opportunities, and giving the guys behind them more chances to see the pitcher's stuff, all beneficial to offensive success.

Then there's the whole production thing.  Gardner went 3-4 with 3 R, 1 RBI, and 1 BB on Tuesday night from the 1-spot and Swish went 1-3 with 1 2B, 1 R, and 2 BB last night.  The nights of Jeter producing like that have been few and far between.  Both of these guys have been seeing and hitting the ball well lately, better than Jeter has at any point this year, which creates more opportunities for the offense as a whole to score.  Gardner sees more pitches, draws more walks, and has better speed than Jeter, and Swish sees more pitches, has more power, and also draws more walks.  Adding those factors into the offense over the next few weeks is an upgrade from where it was with Jeter in the leadoff spot and could provide more support for Joe changing things up and moving Jeter down in the order when he returns. 

Production/Performance from the SS Position- This will be the area affected the most by Jeter's absence, SS being his position and all, and just like the leadoff spot, early returns are looking good.  In the last 2 games, Eduardo Nunez has gone 4-8 with 2 R, 2 RBI, 1 HR, 1 BB, 0 K, 2 SB, and a hard hit ball almost every time up.  He's shown good patience and discipline at the plate, taken good swings, and hit the ball with more authority than Jeter has.  In the field he's still a bit of an adventure (see last night's botching of the in between ball in the 5th inning), but he does have a good arm, range at least as good as Jeter's, and he looked good turning the plays he did make last night.

Joe has all but said that Nunez is going to be the everyday SS while Jeter is out, so he's getting his first chance to show what he can do with regular playing time.  The Yankees have already held him out of some past potential trades, so they clearly think that Nunez has a chance to be a good player.  He doesn't have to go 2-4 with a homer and a stolen base every night, but if he can continue to show some pop in his bat while at the very least replicating Jeter's defense in the field, he can go a long way in proving he belongs and deserves more playing time regardless of Jeter's health situation.

Too Many Home Runs!

The Yankees hit too many home runs AGAIN tonight.  That kinda stuff might work now, but sooner or later they are going to have to start manufacturing runs without the long ball and play the hit-and-run game and blah blah blah sacrifice bunt blah blah blah stringing hits together blah blah blah A-Rod needs to pick it up blah blah blah the mainstream media doesn't know shit blah blah blah suck it, haters.

P.S.- Teix and C-Grand in a one-on-one duel in the HR Derby final?  That'd be cool, right?

P.P.S.- Back-to-back 2-4, 1 R, 1 RBI nights for Eduardo Nunez, including one of the too many home runs that were hit.  I know it's the smallest of small sample sizes, but you can't say the kid doesn't look good out there.

An Issue With Swish's Splits

While reading the always excellent Mike Axisa game recap on RAB of last night's ass whooping of Alexi Ogando, I was struck by this particular bit on Nick Swisher: 

"I thought Paul O’Neill did a fine job of breaking down Swisher’s left-handed swing during the broadcast, showing how he was opening up early and getting off balance. He hasn’t had those same problems from the right-side, which is why he went 2-for-3 with a double and a homer off lefties Michael Kirkman and Arthur Rhodes while drawing just a measly walk off righty Alexi Ogando. Swish is now hitting .176/.315/.284 off righties but .356/.439/.576 off lefties. That has to fix itself at some point, right?"

For one, I had no idea that Swish's splits were that awful.  Admittedly, I had never checked them in great detail this season, so I just assumed he was equally awful from both sides of the plate early in the season and had been hitting equally better from both sides during his recent resurgence.  To justify my ignorance to this situation, I will point out that Swish hit .286/.330/.549 from the left side of the plate in 384 at-bats and .291/.414/.429 from the right side in 182 at-bats just last year.  Why should I have expected anything different this season?

But the second thing that struck me about this bit of info was Mike's assumption that this issue with Swish is something that should/will fix itself as the season moves along.  We're talking about an over 400-point difference in OPS from what is typically Swish's stronger side of the plate in 2.5 times more ABs.  This isn't just something that should be expected to work itself with a little BABIP luck here and there. This, to me, represents something fundamentally wrong with Swish's mechanics and approach as a left-handed hitter right now.  If Paul O'Neill can call it out clear as day on the TV broadcast, then surely other people can recognize it too.  And when it comes to recognizing problems with a swing and correcting them, there's one man on the Yankee staff that needs to be involved in fixing them.

"Paging Dr. Long.  Dr. Long, you have a patient suffering from a severe case of lefty-swinging unbalance waiting for you in the lobby.  Dr. Long."

Methinks that Swish and Dr. Long need to get together for a quick checkup on that lefty approach and get things straightened out, especially considering they've already put so much time and work into retooling Swish's approach that got him the career-best results he's already had as a Yankee.  And sooner rather than later.  He's going to face a lot more right-handed pitching this season than he is left-handed.  Getting that swing fixed against those righties will help get Swish's production back to where it should be a lot faster.  They didn't sit back and wait for Swish's approach to fix itself when he first got to New York.  Why wait for it to fix itself now?

Ladies And Gentlemen, Brien Gordon

(Photo courtesy of the Lehigh Valley IronPigs.  Awesome name)

I don't know how or why the Yankees came to this decision, but yesterday afternoon they signed 32-year-old Brien Gordon, a former Phillies Triple-A pitcher, to take Bartolo Colon's spot in the rotation tomorrow.

Now Gordon has been lighting the world on fire this year, posting a 1.14 ERA and a 2.55 FIP for Lehigh Valley, the Phillies' Triple-A affiliate, and he's also struck out 56 batters to just 7 BB in 55.1 IP.  But the guy is 32 years old and in his 15th MiL season, way past the point of being a hot prospect, and he is still pitching in Triple-A.  So spare me the "he's a converted outfielder" talk and just say that if he were that good of an outfielder or a pitcher he probably would have made the show for more than 3 appearances with the Rangers back in '08.

And another thing that concerns me is what kind of effect, if any, this move has on guys like David Phelps and Adam Warren.  They have both been fantastic of late and for their organization to sign another outside guy to make a spot start over them is kind of like saying that the organization didn't trust them to come up and pitch well.  It doesn't pop quite as much as Gordon's 9.11 K/9, 1.14 BB/9 rates, but Phelps' 7.78,2.36 rates are nothing to sneeze at.

Basically, this deal is in the same vein as the Garcia and Colon signings in the offseason, a low-risk, high-reward move for the Yankees.  They're putting minimal money in a guy who has been on fire this season to make a few spot starts.  If he has any kind of success, the deal is a plus.  And if he bombs, then you just cut his ass and go to one of your group of internal youngsters until Colon comes back.

A Quick Dose Of Perspective

Just for the record, the Yankees came into last night's game with the following players on the DL:

- Pedro Feliciano
- Phil Hughes
- Eric Chavez
- Rafael Soriano
- Joba Chamberlain
- Bartolo Colon

And in addition to that, they now have Russell Martin and Derek Jeter banged up and possibly heading for 15-day stints themselves.  Essentially, the Yankees have been playing and are continuing to play winning baseball without 40% of what would be their starting rotation, 3 of their top 5 bullpen guys, their best bat off the bench, and their starting catcher and shortstop.  For all the bitching and moaning that I and others around the blogosphere have done about the negative aspects of the Yankee play lately, I have to admit that it's pretty damn impressive that they've been able to stay competitive and right at the top of the AL.

Lord knows the Fraud Sawx haven't had to deal with any issues to their catchers other than the fact that they both suck.  And Carl Crawford doesn't have any injury excuses to explain his still sub-.300 OBP.  So sorry if I've been unnecessarily harsh on you over the last month or so, boys.  You're doing a damn fine job with whatever 25 you've got on the active roster.

Except you, Cervelli.  You still suck.

The Yankee Catching Conundrum

For a team that's catcher-heavy from the top of the organization to the bottom, the Yankees sure are having problems with the position this year.  From free agents to backups to top prospects, everybody seems to be struh-gull-ing in one way or another.

Single-A: Gary Sanchez- He's started to come around with the bat lately, but Sanchez has lost a little bit of his preseason luster after being demoted to ExST because of reported "character issues," and he also has 18 passed balls on the season after last night's game.  It's only fair that some of the questions surrounding Jesus Montero and his defensive ability would also be asked about Sanchez.  And yes, I know the guy isn't old enough to legally drink, but this season still hasn't been as positive as last year was for him.

Triple-A: Jesus Montero- Speaking of The Chosen One, Montero is also experiencing some growing pains at Triple-A this year after not making the MaL team out of camp.  His mighty bat is not quite as powerful as it has been, as his tripleslash sits at .289/.333/.408 right now.  That's not bad by any means but not what we're used to seeing from Montero.  His defense is still not winning him any praise and he's dealt with injury issues and questions about whether or not he's pressing at the plate to prove he belongs on the big league roster.

Majors: Russell Martin- He hit .292/.378/.597 in April, .200/.333/.347 in May, and so far just .111/.200/.111 in June while missing 7 out of the last 10 games.  Obviously it would have been insane to expect Martin to keep up his torrid April pace all season, but I also didn't expect him to bottom out this badly over the last 6 weeks.  His back has been a lingering issue and can almost certainly be a contributing factor to his problems at the plate and kept him out of last night's game.  He needs to get that taken care and get back to 100% ASAP.

Majors: Francisco Cervelli- The biggest problem that Martin has, besides the bad back, is that Cervelli is his backup.  Allow me a quick rant here.  Francisco Cervelli is fucking terrible.  TERRIBLE!  His calling card his whole career has been a no-hit, solid-defense catcher who pitchers like to work with and who brings energy to the team.  He's certainly living up to the no-hit part with a .191/.250/.298 line in 47 at-bats, including a 29.79% K rate, but now he isn't even bringing anything to the table defensively.  He's allowed a couple of passed balls and thrown out just 2 of 20 base stealers.  The guy has been a black hole of baseball skill anyway you look at it.  These numbers wouldn't cut it in Triple-A let alone the Majors, but for some reason the Yankees continue to roll this guy out there, watch him contribute negatively to the team, and probably force Martin to get back into the lineup before he's physically ready because he sees how pathetic Cervelli is.

I like Cervelli as a clubhouse guy.  The energy and spunk and all that is a good thing to bring to a clubhouse.  But when that's ALL you're bringing as a professional athlete, and you don't have any positional skills to offer, then that just doesn't cut the mustard.  Francisco Cervelli straight up sucks as a baseball player and he shouldn't be on the active roster any more than Billy Crystal should.  Period.

Luckily it's not all bad attitudes, lack of production, and injuries for the Yankee catching team.  Austin Romine looks much improved at Trenton, hitting .298/.362/.421 with a career-high .357 wOBA and solid defense, and in limited time behind the plate J.R. Murphy has hit .297/.343/.463 with a .360 wOBA in A-ball.  But the biggest issue is the lack of depth and production coming from the Major League level right now.  And age, defensive skills, and years of team control aside, it's time to kick Cervelli to the curb and bring up The Savior.

Jeter Update

The official word on The Captain (not me) is that it's a Grade 1 calf strain, which is the lowest level of calf strain that one can suffer.  That's the good news.  The bad news is that it's unlikely Jeter will play tonight against Texas and even more unlikely he will be able to get his 3,000th hit at home during the rest of this homestand.

While the low level strain and Jeter's toughness are positives, the Yankees also have to be realistic about the situation.  The Horse missed 14 games with a similar injury last season, Jeter is 37 years old, and he plays a position that requires lots of movement and range, something his UZR stats show he already doesn't have.  Add in the fact that he's a groundball machine hitting leadoff, so the chances he'll be trying to leg out infield hits are high, and this is the type of thing that could linger all season long if it isn't allowed to completely heal.  It sucks, but the best thing to do is put Jeter on the 15-Day DL and see how it feels when he comes back.

Yanks Waste A Good A.J. Outing

It's not often that you get to see A.J. pitch into the 8th inning while giving up just 1 run on 6 baserunners allowed and striking out 8.  That's the type of game you HAVE to win and it's the type of game that good teams consistently DO win.  Unfortunately, the Yankees couldn't scratch together a run to help Good A.J. out tonight as they fell victim to their arch nemesis: the no-name pitcher with whom they aren't familiar.

In the bottom of the first, it looked like Carlos Carrasco was going to be in for a long night.  He gave up back-to-back singles to Jeter (more on him later) and C-Grand and then walked Teix.  But the Yanks could get nothing out of it and then stranded another 2 in the 2nd inning.  From then on, Carrasco seemed to calm down and he dominated the Yankee O through 7 shutout innings.  The Yankees certainly did their best to help him out, though, thanks to 0-7 with RISP, 8 men left on base, Brett Gardner's mind boggling decision to bunt with a full count on a pitch that was damn near over his head to lead off the 7th, Robbie Cano's continued unwillingness to take strikes early in the count, Francisco Cervelli's downright awfulness as a baseball player, and letting themselves get K'd in the bottom of the 9th by somebody named Chris Perez to end the game.

The loss sucks bad enough, but what makes it even worse is the real story of the night, that being Jeter leaving in the 5th inning after appearing to strain his calf on a swing.  No official word on what the injury is yet, but he was in pain almost immediately as he hobbled down the 1st base line and it looked like the type of tweak that will lead to at least a 15-day DL stint.  At this point, the Yankees pretty much have their own wing in the hospital.  Too bad for Jeter and all the fans.  I don't think I'm alone in saying I was getting excited about the possibility of him getting 3,000 at The Stadium.

More on Jeter's injury and Cervelli's suckiness tomorrow.

The Joba Chamberlain Experiment Has Officially Failed

( I miss these days.)

Now that I've had time to digest the Joba injury, accept that he's done for the season and some of next season, and think about his whole career as a Yankee up to this point, I think I can write this post without sounding like an angry, unintelligent fan who's just looking for someone to blame.  The bottom line is, regardless of whether people wanted him to be a starter or a reliever, regardless of what everybody thought about him as a pitcher, the Joba Era has been a complete failure.

Now I don't think there is one particular thing that can be called the reason for it being a failure.  There have been many missteps along the way, from the limited MiL experience (just 83.1 total IP through 3 levels in '07 before being called up), to the Joba Rules, to the transitioning of him and his approach back and forth from the rotation to the bullpen from 2008-2009, to the token "competition" for the 5th starter's spot that he was included in during ST 2010, to the bringing in of Kerry Wood and Rafael Soriano to hold down the setup role that had been his.  All of these things have added up to 3 years of good but not great results from Joba and the constant reminder of what could have/should have been after he burst onto the scene in 2007.

Because of the organizational mismanagement of his career, Joba has never really been given a fair shake at being a full-time starter or a full-time reliever/setup man since 2007.  The team didn't know how they wanted to use him, he didn't know how he was going to be used, and the injuries along the way only served to intensify that confusion about just where he belonged and where his skills could best be used to help the team.  And now that Joba has suffered an arm injury so severe that it requires Tommy John Surgery, it can be said with complete certainty that all the time spent vacillating on whether he should be a starter or reliever was a waste because in the end he still ended up never being able to replicate the explosiveness he had in '07 and he still ended up hurt.  Maybe he was just bound to have this injury occur eventually, and if that was the case then it would have been better to either commit fully to him being a starter or reliever, keeping him in that role, and getting the most of out him that could be gotten before the injury occurred.

It's impossible to say what kind of starter Joba would be today if the team would have stuck with their plan in '08 and given him the time to develop his secondary stuff and his approach.  It's also impossible to say if he would have been able to maintain the 11.00 K/9 rate that he held through his first 2 seasons if he would have been left in the 'pen.  Maybe we would be talking about the team's #2 starter right now or maybe we would be talking about the best reliever in the game not named Mariano Rivera.  We'll never know.  What we do know is that Joba was never given a chance to fully realize the potential he showed in either role, which was unfair to him as a player and unfair to us as fans.  The last 3 seasons spent drifting along the sea of uncertainty have essentially been a waste now that he'll spend the next year on the shelf.

For all the discussions about Joba and his role, and all the complaints about the player he's been since the beginning of 2008 (admittedly, some of those complaints coming from me), the numbers show that Joba has been a solid pitcher in his time as a Major Leaguer.  He has an ERA/FIP/xFIP tripleslash of 3.70/3.62/3.64 for his career, with 9.09 K/9 and 7.7 WAR accumulated in what equates out to about 3.5 years of baseball played.  He is still only 25 years old, and yet I can't help but feel like his best days are behind him and always will be.  As good as his numbers are, they could have been better if he would have been given a chance to live up to the expectations that the organization and the fans had for him.  I know I would feel a lot better about this upcoming TJS if I would have at least gotten to see him be fully committed to one role and watched that process play out over the last 3 seasons.  At least we would have known exactly what kind of pitcher he was and how good he would have been.  Instead, we still don't know and now we may never know.  And that's a damn shame.

Kei Igawa: Record Setter

AB4AR would like to be the first to congratulate Kei Igawa for setting the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankee all-time record for more innings pitched and most home runs allowed.  These records are a testament to Igawa's pedestrian stuff and dedication to being mediocre that have allowed him to be a constant staple of the Triple-A roster over the years.

So congrats, Kei.  I hope your teammates gave you the proper champagne shower in the locker room after the game.  You earned it, buddy.  I think we can now safely say that this was $46 million well spent.

/throws up

What To Do With The Roster?

The injury bug sucks, and it's been biting the Yankees hard over the last week.  The Yankee pitching staff was already hurting without Damaso Marte, Pedro Feliciano, Phil Hughes, and Rafael Soriano in the ranks, and then earlier this week they lost Joba Chamberlain, yesterday they lost Bartolo Colon and Amaury Sanit, and possible Triple-A replacement Tim Norton was also put on the DL earlier in the week.  Now Sanit is probably addition by subtraction, but it's a fair statement to say that the Yankee staff is in tatters right now and they need to get creative to stem the tide.

Coming into yesterday's game, Joe was carrying 13 pitchers, which was a ridiculous move when you consider that those 13 included Sanit, Jeff Marquez, and Lance Pendleton and not Hector Noesi, and even more ridiculous when you consider the fact that it left the Yankees with just 2 non-catcher bench players in Andruw Jones and Eduardo Nunez.  Things have already gotten straightened out a bit today with Noesi and Chris Dickerson being called back up to replace Colon and Sanit on the active roster and add a little more bench depth, but things still need to be figured out.

Noesi is the most likely choice to replace Colon in the rotation, but that isn't 100% certain.  David Phelps has been very good all season, Adam Warren has been great recently, and D.J. Mitchell pitched a pretty good start yesterday and is on the same schedule as Colon, making him the easiest to drop in.  If one of them gets called up to take Colon's spot instead of Noesi, then Noesi gets put back into the 'pen as the long man and somebody else has to go down.  That guy should be Marquez or Pendleton.  And the Yankees definitely don't want to play with fire by only having 2 available bodies on the bench, so Dickerson should stay.

It's a shitty situation to be in right now, but the Yankees have to figure out a way to make it work.  If it were up to me, I'd give Colon's rotation spot to Noesi, even if he can only work a short outing this next time out.  He has the highest ceiling of any of the candidates and has already shown he can get it done at the Major League level in his previous appearances.  I'd also think about strengthening the bullpen by swapping out Marquez and/or Pendleton for George Kontos a/o Ryan Pope from Triple-A.  You'd be upgrading the stuff and velocity of 2 middle relief options whose roles become more important with Joba and Soriano down while still having the option of carrying guys who can go more than 1 inning if needed.  Kevin Whelan was a good start, now it's time to get rid of the rest of the crap in there and at least have some solid arms.

My New Rotation: CC, A.J., Garcia, Nova, Noesi

My New Bullpen: Mo, D-Rob, Boone Logan, Ayala, Whelan, Kontos, Pope

Thank You, Fausto Carmona

(HELLOOOOOOOOOOO!!! Courtesy of The AP)

Thank you, Fausto.  Thank you for dragging the Yankees out of the zombified state they've been in for the last handful of days after enduring another asswhooping at the hands of the Fraud Sawx.  Thank you for reigniting a fire within the offense that had seemingly been blown out, had a bucket of water dumped over it, and then covered in sand since about halfway through Wednesday night's game.  It was only one game, and sure, the Yanks could come out tonight and lay another egg, but it was good to see guys fired up again, it was good to see the lineup be patient and then string hits together to make pitchers pay for making bad pitches, and it was good to see home runs get knocked into the deepest parts of the park.

And thank you, Fausto, for waking Joe up.  Tt was especially good to see that he still has a pulse there in the dugout.  He's been just as MIA as the rest of his club lately, still clinging to the "we gotta make plays/one game at a time/come out tomorrow" cliche rope as the performance and health around him has been faltering.  It's a manager's job to get his guys ready to play and to keep them up, and you could hear in Teix's voice in his postgame interview that he was fired up after watching Joe go face-to-face with Manny Acta.  Hopefully that energy is still there in the clubhouse today and hopefully it carries through the rest of the series.

And thanks, Fausto, for giving Ivan Nova such an easy situation in which to work on fixing his issues and throwing strikes in a low-leverage situation to build some confidence.  2 runs and a season-high 6 Ks in 7 strong innings?  That's as good a performance as Nova has had all year, and he probably earned himself another 2 starts at least in the rotation as the Yankees continue to wait for Phil Hughes to return.

So thank you, Fausto.  Thank you for waking the sleeping giant, even if it was just for one night.  If they're all still awake and still remember your shenanigans from last night when they get to The Stadium today, then I feel bad for your starting pitcher today.

Bartolo Colon Is The 900,000 Dollar Man

** CAPTAIN'S NOTE- This post was originally posted on 5/18 and got deleted during the little technical issue that Blogger had a few weeks ago.  But since it's all sadness and rain clouds in Yankeeland today and I don't feel like talking about any of that, I decided to brighten things up with a little comedy and re-post this gold.  A "Six Million Dollar Man" reference AND more Bartolo Colon fat jokes in the same post??  GodDAMN, I am hilarious!**

Nothing like getting some stem cells from your own fat hips injected into your shoulder to rejuvenate your career, huh? 

"According to a story in the Dominican daily Dairio Libre, the new life in Colon's arm could be partially attributable to two treatments of stem cells - or "células madre" as they're called in the Dominican Republic, where Colon had the procedures. The doctors, Sergio Guzman and Leonel Liriano, told the newspaper they... sent "an invitation" out to Colon, which he accepted in March 2010. Guzman was quick to insist, though, that when they took fatty tissue and bone marrow from Colon's hip and injected it into injured tissues in his rotator cuff and elsewhere in his right shoulder, they weren't doing anything revolutionary." (via MLB Trade Rumors)

I don't know what was a more genius move, Colon opting for this treatment to try and bring some life back what was his completely dead arm or the Yankees for picking him up.  And if you don't think Cash knew that this had happened before he even started watching Colon in the Dominican winter league let alone before he decided to sign Colon, then you are just a dope.  Once again, Cash was playing chess while other GMs were playing checkers.

Apparently MLB is now looking into this situation after the report came out yesterday, but as Ben from RAB wisely pointed out, there really isn't much they can do and nothing illegal happened, so this was a calculated risk that has seemingly paid off for Colon and the Yankees.

Announcer: "Bartolo Colon.  Pitcher.  A man barely alive."

Cash: "Gentlemen, we can rebuild him. We have the technology. We have the capability to inject stem cells from the butt into the shoulder to create the world's first 38-year-old man-titted effective starting pitcher. Bartolo Colon will be that pitcher. Better than he was before.  Better...stronger...faster.  But still pretty fat."

Speechless

I really don't know what to say.  I really don't.  I had all the confidence in the world that the Yankees would sack up, rally behind CC last night, and at least salvage a win and a share of the division lead from this series last night.  I was so confident that I even broke out the sarcasm before the game when I made fun of the MSM and their collective hand wringing after the first 2 games.

Unfortunately the Yankees didn't hold up their end of the bargain, bowing down again last night 8-3 to Fraud Sawx Nation.  They led 2-0 after the first 2 batters in the bottom of the first and then managed to get nothing off of Josh Beckett for the next 7 innings, even when they had the bases loaded in the bottom of the 2nd.  That's just horseshit, no other to say it.

I'm well aware of the insignificance that this series will most likely hold in the grand scheme of the 162-game season, hence the aforementioned sarcasm yesterday.  But losing still sucks, losing to your biggest rival still sucks, and the sucktitude of any loss gets magnified when it comes as a result of playing piss-poor baseball.  This team still can't hit when it has to, it still plays sloppy defense, it still has questions in the rotation, and its bullpen is in complete tatters after yesterday's bad news about Joba.  I don't know when things are going to start turning around, and I'd like to say it will happen when the plummeting Indians come into town, but with the way the Yanks are playing right now, that's far from a certainty.

The best thing you can say about this series was at least somebody finally hit this asshole:

(Screen cap used courtesy of RAB)

Unfortunately, that doesn't do nearly enough to ease the sting of another beatdown.

The Early-Season MSM Panic Meter Is Rising Rapidly

"There are Yankees killers and then there are Yankees killers and then there is Ortiz, who is a serial murderer of Yankees pitching." (Vaccaro, The Post)

"The Yankees are a second-place team now after falling 11-6 to Boston. Heck, they are just 4 1/2 games ahead of last-place Baltimore in the congested AL East." (Sherman, The Post)

"At this moment, just a game separates the teams ... Still, it feels like Boston is ascending, distancing themselves from their distasteful start to the season." (Sherman again)

"There are a thousand ways to look at the Red Sox domination of the Yankees, but start with the fact that when the Yankees need A.J. Burnett the most, he comes up small." (Kernan, The Post)

"Say the Yankees face the Red Sox in the ALCS. Who are they going to pitch in Game 2 of that series?" (Kernan again)

"It's becoming the first half of 2009 all over again, and right now the Yanks can only hope this season ends the same way that one did. But after an 11-6 Yankee loss Wednesday night, the Red Sox clearly have the Bombers' number, beating them for the seventh time in eight games." (Feinsand, The Daily News)

"It could have been a wonderful night, the best of the season at Yankee Stadium, a comeback to talk about all season. Are you kidding? After being 7-0 down against the Red Sox? It was right there in the bottom of the sixth, all over the bases and all over the place. Gardner didn't score. Jeter didn't hit. Red Sox win again." (Lupica, The Daily News)

As you can clearly see from all the literary mass hysteria, these are trying times in Yankeeland.  We're at DEFCON 2 here, people.  Another sweep at the hands of the Fraud Sawx is imminent, nobody can pitch, nobody can hit, Joba is staring down the barrel of TJS, and the Yankees are already screwed in the hypothetical 2011 ALCS showdown they will have with the Fraud Sawx.  And there is only one man who can save us.

(Courtesy of The AP)

That man is you, Carsten Charles Sabathia.  Your team needs you.  The NY sports writers need you.  We the fans NEED you, Carsten.  We need you to rise up, put the team on your back, and help salvage this all-important regular season series in June.  The Sawx are ascending, like majestic flying unicorns, towards the sun and their inevitable World Series trophy.  They are dominating your team, they have your number, and the last 2 days have shown that there is NOBODY on this team except for you and you alone who can turn out a good start.  For God's sake, you're 1 game back of the division lead, man! ONE WHOLE GAME!!!  IN JUNE!!!  DO YOU NOT SEE THE IMPORTANCE OF TONIGHT'S OUTCOME?!?!?!?!

The fate of the team, nay, the fate of the entire UNIVERSE may very well hang in the balance tonight.  Because I think we all know that if the Yankees lose tonight, and go down a whole 2 games to Fraud Sawx Nation, 1 in the loss column, then the season is basically over.  And even if it isn't, clearly the last 2 games have proven that this dominance will carry over for the rest of the regular season and into the hypothetical ALCS.

So save us, CC.  Save us from this terror and this misery.  Give us something to believe in.  Don't let the doom and gloom that has crept over all of us after these last 2 "do or die" June games engulf us all.

No, Really. Can Somebody PLEASE Hit This Asshole?!?

"I don't care what Joe Girardi says.  Take it like a man.  I'm done with that shit."

Seriously, fellas.  If you aren't going to make pitches, limit damage, or get hits with the bases loaded, can somebody at least put this clown in his place?

Bad Day At The Office

In case you missed any of it, here's how the Yankees' day went yesterday.

- Joba was put on the DL with a strained elbow flexor muscle.

- To replace him on the roster, the Yankees claimed former MiL batting practice pitcher Jeff Marquez off waivers from the White Sox.  Then they optioned Hector Noesi down to SWB and replaced him with Amaury Sanit.  All that added up to a bullpen last night that consisted of Mo, D-Rob, Boone Logan, Luis Ayala, Marquez, Sanit, and Lance Pendleton.

- Not long after that, Russell Martin's back acted up on him and he was scratched from the lineup in the afternoon.

- A.J. was the worst version of Bad A.J. we've seen all year, giving up 7 earned runs on 7 hits and 4 walks in just 5.2 innings, and generating just 4 swings and misses on his 105 pitches thrown.

- A.J. compounded his ineffectiveness by not hitting or buzzing any of the Red Sox batters, neither early in the game as retribution or late in the game after they had shelled him to send a message.  But he did intentionally walk J.D. Drew.

- Francisco Cervelli airmailed 2 throws on attempted steals into the outfield.

- Curtis Granderson went 0-5 with 2 Ks.

- Brett Gardner failed to score on a wild pitch in the 6th that went all the way back to the wall behind the plate, despite Jeter waving him home almost as soon as the ball got away.

- Jeter followed that up with an inning-ending and rally-killing GIDP.

- Eduardo Nunez managed to successfully foul a ball off his own face.

- The Yankees lost their 7th out of 8 against the Fraud Sawx so far this season, 11-6, and lost the lead in the AL East.

Just a complete shit pile anyway you look at it.  Somebody hit the music...

Nick Starting To Be More Swisher And Less Punto Lately

(Are there any pictures of this guy NOT smiling?  Courtesy of The AP)

On May 26 Nick Swisher was at his lowest statistical point of the season.  He had just gone 0-3 against the Blue Jays and his tripleslash for the season was .204/.321/.289.  The .321 OBP wasn't horrible considering how low the BA was, but a .289 SLG is unfathomably bad.  I don't want to say that I could do that, because it's a well known fact to anybody who reads this blog on a regular basis that I was a horrendous player in my Little League days, but I think I could have closed my eyes on every swing, run into a few misplaced pitches here and there, and put up a .289 SLG.  The worst part about this was the fact that it was the 2nd game after Joe gave Swish 2 days off to get his shit together and the 2nd of the 2 games after the mini-vacation that Swish didn't collect a hit.  He was lost at the plate, sinking in the batting order, and the unintelligent portions of the Yankee fanbase had already written him off for this season and exercised their right to not pick up his option for 2012.

Since then, however, we've seen signs that the Swish we've come to know and love over the last 2 seasons is re-emerging from his 2-month slumber.  Since that fateful May 25 game, Swish has 10 hits in his last 33 at-bats, 6 of them for extra bases (3 2B, 3 HR), 4 runs scored, 7 RBI, and 9 walks to just 5 K.  His tripleslash has risen to .222/.345/.357, his OPS has crept above .700 for the first time since April 5, and his wOBA is back up above .300 at .315.  It's still a bit early to call him officially "back," but that undeniable positivity that I talked about when he came back from his benching on May 24 appears to have gotten Swish back on the right track.

My favorite stat out of all that is the 9-5 BB-K ratio.  We saw a lot of swinging and missing from Swish in May, even while he maintained a solid BB rate, so it's good to see him get back to seeing the ball, squaring up on it, and putting good swings on hittable pitches, all while not sacrificing his trademark patience and good eye at the plate.  If he can keep doing that and putting himself in good hitters' counts, this recent resurgence should continue.  And with the continued inconsistency of the heart of the order, that would be a welcome sight for Yankee fans.

Can Somebody Please Hit This Asshole?

(No, really.  Somebody needs to hit this asshole.)

Seriously, dude.  Why don't you stand and admire it a little longer?  Dick.  And then to say this after the game:

“I’m a home run hitter. It’s not like I do it all the time. But it’s part of the excitement. What can I tell you? I just went deep. You want more emotion than that. I just went deep. It’s another homer for Papi.  That was one of the Papi good ones."

“That’s Papi style.  You saw that before.” (via The Post)

Jesus Christ, bro.  Try not to sprain your AC joint patting yourself on the back.  Yes, you're a home run hitter.  And that's EXACTLY why you shouldn't have standing there like Barry Bonds hitting his 73rd admiring the fucking thing.  Let's review; you hit a home run off a rookie pitcher in what, at the time, was a 3-run regular season game in June.  Not September, not October, June.  You want to celebrate that?  Be my guest.  But don't be surprised if A.J. or CC stick one in your or one of your teammates' ribs before the series ends and don't bitch about it afterwords.  See how you feel about "Papi style" then.

Oh, and tell your buddy Papelbon to calm down with his celebration too.  Dude, you're coming off a game where you completely imploded  and got yourself suspended and then you allowed a run to score and had the tying run at the plate last night before getting off the hook.  Not exactly worthy of yelling and screaming like you just saved Game 7.

But hey, if the Sawx want to treat their typical early-season dominance like it matters, be my guest.  Just don't make excuses when you get swept in September again and don't bitch and moan when Joba buzzes Youk's tower again.  You want to make yourselves targets?  Don't be offended when the hunters shoot at you.

(Photos courtesy of Anthony J. Causi at The Post.  Crosshair Photoshop work by Swanny Duckson.  Douchebaggery courtesy of Fraud Sawx Nation.)

The Fraud Sawx Have Freddy's Numbah

(Yeesh.  Courtesy of The AP)

Freddy Garcia has now made 10 starts this season.  In those 10 starts, he is 4-5 with 60 hits, 22 walks, and 9 HR allowed in 58.1 innings, equaling out to a 3.86 ERA, 4.74 FIP, 4.20 xFIP, and 1.41 WHIP.  For the most part, he has been serviceable as the 4th/5th starter, if not downright good at times.  But after last night's gong show at The Stadium, it's clear what his Achilles heel is and it really comes as no surprise.

In 2 starts against the Sawx this year, Garcia's line looks like this:

7 IP, 10 H, 5 BB, 8 ER, 3 HR, 5 K, 10.29 ERA, 2.14 WHIP, 0-2

Now when he's been on this season, Freddy has pitched effectively against most offenses.  His movement on his off-speed stuff and his pitching intelligence have been enough to allow him to get by with a heater that has about as much zip to it as your average Little Leaguer's.  But against a good hitting team, that dog just don't hunt and last night the Sawx, a very good hitting team on a very hot hot streak,  just punished Garcia and got enough off of him early before Joe pulled the plug to hold on.

You look around the AL and you don't see many teams with lineups half as good as that of Bahhston, or the Yankees for that matter.  As long as he stays healthy, we can expect to get the same marginal service from Freddy against the rest of the league with a good start thrown in here and there, and with the Yankee offense that should be enough to be successful.  But if this is the best he can do against Bahhston, then Joe might want to think about juggling the rotation to keep him out of it the next time they come to town instead of Nova.