What's Crazier? Goldstein's Organizational Ranking or Hulet Leaving Gary Sanchez Off His Top 100?

Maybe this is just the homer in me talking, but I'm a little confused by the prospect news today.  First, Kevin Goldstein releases his organizational prospect rankings and places the Yankees 15th, saying:

"There is plenty to dream about in terms of young talent, but other than Banuelos and Betances, the upper levels are bereft of quick help."

First off, I think that statement, while being very accurate on the assessment of the lower levels, criminally undervalues the Yankees' Triple-A pitching depth.  They may not all have future-ace ceilings like ManBan, but every one of the group from him, Betances, Warren, Phelps, and Mitchell could be starting in other teams' rotations this year and there aren't many organizations who can say that about their entire Triple-A staff.  And while they aren't going to gather any All-Star Game votes, guys like Laird, Pena, Maxwell, and Romine are more than capable of filling in as bench players and could also have jobs on other teams were it not for the Yankees' desire to go heavy on veterans this year.  Same situation with Whelan, Pope, and Kontos in the bullpen.  So I would have to respectfully disagree with Mr. Goldstein's statement that there isn't any "help" in the upper levels of the Yankees' system.

As for Marc Hulet, he released his Top 100 Prospects list today over at Fangraphs, and the only thing I can think that makes any sense is that he just forgot to include Gary Sanchez somewhere in the top 75.  Because if he honestly believes that Sanchez is not one of the top 100 prospects in all of baseball, then the only reaction I can have is...

I mean, really? Really, dude?  Really?  Gary Sanchez is only 19 years old, and he turned 19 so recently that he's closer to being 18 than he is to being 20.  He just came off a season where he put up a .364 wOBA while being the 2nd-youngest player in his entire Low-A league.  He's got power (.229 ISO) and plate discipline (10.5% BB rate) well beyond his years, and he profiles as an elite-level power hitter from the catcher position.  Sure, he's got his issues defensively, but what pro catcher his age doesn't?  When you're looking at the type of production this kid is capable of from a premium position and remember that he's still only 19, there's no way you can reasonably leave him off of any top 100 prospects list.

(gif via)

The Official 2012 AB4AR NCAA Tournament Bracket

If you've been an AB4AR reader from the beginning, you know it's been years since I've included non-Yankee sports posts on the site.  But the one exception to that rule is and always will be the NCAA tournament bracket.  My bracket last year was an abomination, so I'm looking to bounce back.  If you haven't had a chance to fill your bracket out yet and are looking for some direction on what to do (or what not to do if you're basing your picks off of mine), check after the jump for the official 2012 AB4AR bracket.

D-Rob Takes The Morning Train

He was off crutches yesterday, his walking boot is scheduled to come off today, and things are looking good for Dave Robertson in terms of being able to fully recover from the bone bruise to his foot and get back into action quickly.  That being said, it would be probably be wise for the Yankees to take it easy on that foot and not have Robertson be on his feet all the time, unnecessarily walking and running around on it and risking a setback.  It's his plant/push foot so it's important that it be 100% before he gets back out on the mound, and since D-Rob has already shown to not be a master of walking down/kicking boxes down the stairs, better to proceed with caution.  And how to do that, you ask?  Simple.  Stair rails.

Install a few of these babies around the Tampa complex and completely eliminate stairs from the equation.  This lessens the wear and tear on that bruised foot, takes away any chance of a repeat of Robertson's previous stair gaffe, and should help get him back to 100% and on the mound quicker.  While we're at it, the Yankees should probably designate a few of the younger, bigger guys in camp responsible for carrying Robertson to and from all team activities over the next week.  And a private handicapped bathroom probably wouldn't hurt either.

A Double Dip Of Good Starts

It was a split squad day for the Yankees today, and CC Sabathia and Phil Hughes turned in a pair of matching solid 3-inning outings, both building on their first starts of the spring.  It was a 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K line for CC against the Phillies, and his fastball command was much better than last time out.  Hughes was even better, going for 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K and sitting in the low-90s all day with his fastball, hitting 92-93 with regularity.  His command of his fastball and curveball was much improved from his first start, and Phil gave Joe a good show after Girardi opted to travel to watch Hughes' start rather than CC's.

Add in three relatively clean scoreless innings from Cory Wade, Boone Logan, and Mo (who went 1-2-3 in his spring debut) backing up CC and the Yankees Major League pitching staff put up a fantastic combined performance today- 9 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K.  Two weeks in and guys are progressing exactly how you want to see them progress if you're a Yankee fan.

Spring Training Injury Update

Dave Robertson's "Boxgate" fiasco had everybody on high alert for the last couple days and justifiably so. If Robertson were to miss significant time and not be ready for Opening Day, the Yankees deep, nasty bullpen suddenly doesn't look so deep or so nasty. But he's not the only one with injury issues. The Yankees have a couple guys dealing with problems that have kept them out for extended periods of early ST who aren't getting the coverage that Robertson is. Here's a quick run through of all the Yankees' current walking wounded.

Robertson- Officially diagnosed with a bone bruise yesterday. He's going to stay in the walking boot through the weekend to allow his foot to heal more, and will likely do some throwing exercises from a chair until Monday to keep his arm strength up. There's no official word yet, but all signs right now point to D-Rob being fine to start the season.

Eduardo Nunez- He was hit with a pitch on the hand in Monday's game and hasn't played since. He has participated in some light drills but hasn't gotten a lot of hitting time in during treatment, so he stayed behind for today's game to get some batting practice in. Not expected to miss a lot more time and no issues on being ready for Opening Day.

Austin Romine- He's been out with the back issues that plagued him late last season since almost the minute he stepped foot on the field this spring, and while he's still not participating in any kind of full team activities, the diagnosis this week was a positive one. He's closer to returning, but will probably miss at least another week.

George Kontos- After missing about a week with a strained oblique, Kontos has returned to full team activities and is back on his regular throwing schedule. He's got to make up a bit for his missed time, but with few relief pitchers having major success early in camp he still has a chance to get that last bullpen spot.

Russell Branyan- Branyan's chances of making the team weren't very good after the Yankees signed Eric Chavez and they certainly aren't being helped by his back injury. He hasn't done anything since first sitting out with the injury on February 29th and there is no timetable for his return.

Manny Delcarmen- Strained his lat on March 1st and hasn't participated in full pitching activities since, but the injury is progressing well. He started playing catch a day or two ago, and if he continues to feel good he will probably start throwing sides next week.

Dewayne Wise- The newest addition to the club, Wise was scratched from today's lineup with a sore hamstring. Early word is that he's not expected to miss much time, but every little bit is precious when you're trying to make the team on a non-guaranteed MiL deal.

The Yankees aren't 100% healthy right now, but they also don't seem to have any serious injuries, and everybody should make it back on the field eventually. Most importantly, the group of older veteran players that the Yankees are counting on this year, guys like A-Rod and Jeter, are nowhere to be found on this list.

Just A Bone Bruise For D-Rob

(Not pictured: walking boot)

Jack Curry first reported it on YES and now it's been confirmed by Joe to the media.  The latest round of tests on D-Rob's injured foot revealed a bone bruise, which is a far better diagnosis than what could have been.

Robertson will still be out of action for a while, but chances are he'll be ready for the season opener once this heals.  No word on whether or not the Yankees plan on hiring a guy to handle disposing of Robertson's corrugated boxes from now on.

Friday Afternoon Linkapalooza: 3/9

No time for talk.  To the links we go!

- On Monday, SJK of NoMaas had this gem roasting Josh Beckett, which is a surefire way to get included in the palooza.  Sadly, I'm also bearded and also getting fatter, meaning I share qualities with Josh Beckett.  When this dawned at me at work the other day, I ran to the bathroom and cried.

- Matt S. of Yankees Fans Unite continued their recent streak of good interviews by scoring this one with David Aardsma.  He still has a long way to go, but it's good to read that he's hellbent on returning to the hill this year.

- The boys over at Respect Jeter's Gangster are ramping up their "Rival Review" series, and on Tuesday they put out my personal favorite to date, the second base comparison of Cano and Dahhston Pedroyahh.

- Also on Tuesday, Brien Jackson of IIATMS put the Michael Pineda changeup hype in context by explaining that he doesn't need to be dynamite with it to succeed.

- Larry Koestler of RAB looked at the recent history of production from the DH spot in Yankees lineups and established a baseline for what we can expect from the Ibanez-Jones duo this year.

- On Wednesday, William Juliano of The Captain's Blog debunked the theories that Michael Pineda is at risk this season because of an "injury nexus" for pitchers under the age of 23 and because he's a young pitcher being handled by Joe Girardi.

- On Thursday, Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus released his top Yankee prospects list for 2012.  It's subscriber-only to get the full post, but you can at least get the list of his top 20 without being a subscriber.  Goldstein ranks Gary Sanchez above Dellin Betances.

- Chris McKeown of Pinstripe Alley ran some numbers to see if the Yankees could still be categorized as an "old team."  His research shows that they've done a good job getting younger since the mid-2000s.

- On Friday, Donnie Collins of the SWB Blog used the recent "Empire State Yankees" name change for 2012 as a lead-in to suggest a future, permanent, non-Yankee name change for the team in 2013.

- Mike Silva of NY Baseball Digest questioned whether MLB's regular season schedule should be reduced from 162 games as part of the new playoff expansion.

- Chad Jennings of LoHud has the latest on the D-Rob foot injury, which becomes more confusing by the minute.  Some reports have him feeling totally fine with no swelling, but others have him showing up today in a walking boot and on crutches.

- Marc Hulet of FanGraphs released his Top 30 Organizational Farm Systems list today, with the Yankees checking in at #10.

- As usual, we close with an offering from my TYA cohorts.  On Wednesday, Alex Geshwind attempted to shine a little sunlight on Phil Hughes by pointing out that there are some pitchers who have experienced career paths similar to the one Hughes is on now.

- And on Thursday, Matt Imbrogno started to lay out the potential early-season starting rotation.

For the Friday jam, it only seems appropriate on the anniversary of his death to play some Notorious B.I.G.  For my money he's the best rapper of all time, so I'm going with a double dip of my favorite Biggie collaborations this afternoon.





Enjoy the rest of your Friday afternoons and the entirety of your weekends, people.

Spring Training Storylines: First Time Through The Rotation

Ivan Nova's start yesterday signified the Yankees completing their first cycle through the rotation this spring, and so far so good for the Yankee starters.  The two big themes since last Friday have been changeups and velocity.  Nova, Michael Pineda, and CC were all working on their changeups in their first outing; for Nova and Pineda that pitch will be important for them this year as they attempt to build on their strong rookie campaigns.  Velocity-wise, the big stories were how little Pineda had on Monday (high 80s) and how much Phil Hughes had in his first game action of the year on Tuesday (low 90s, hit 93 more than once), so expect everybody to be watching the gun during their outings this weekend.  First starts of the spring always come with little to no expectations.  Everybody is just working themselves into game shape and finding their stuff and that's what the Yankee starters did this week.

- CC: Allowed 3 hits and a run with one strikeout in 2 innings of work on Tuesday.  Wasn't particularly happy with anything but also didn't mention any glaring problems.  Just ST business as usual for the big man, who takes the mound again on Sunday as part of a split-squad game.

- Kuroda: Sailed smoothly through his first inning of work on Wednesday, throwing only 9 pitches, and then hit a few road bumps in the 2nd as he tried to work on some of his offspeed stuff.  Still needs to find his offspeed command a bit, but don't worry, he's definitely not Kei Igawa.

- Nova: Solid first start of the year last Saturday, save for some command issues and the HR allowed to Hunter Pence.  Different story yesterday, as Nova really struggled with his fastball command and gave up 6 hits and 5 ER in just 2.2 innings of work.  His fastball velocity has been sitting mid 90s, though, so no worries about lingering effects from his forearm injury that knocked him out of last year's ALDS.

- Pineda: Probably had the sharpest outing of anybody, giving up just a solitary hit and no runs in his 2 innings of work on Monday, striking out 2 and walking none.  He received plenty of praise from everybody for his changeup, which already looks like it has the makings of being a useful pitch for him.  All eyes will be on the radar gun during his next start on Saturday.

- Hughes: The man with the most to prove was up and down on Tuesday when he replaced CC, showing rejuvenated life on his fastball but also spotty command.  Hughes threw a lot of pitches, something that will happen when you give up 4 hits, and only made it through 1.1 innings because of his pitch count.  He pitches again on Sunday.

- Garcia: Rough first inning for him last Sunday, as he also gave up a homer to Hunter Pence, but he settled down in the 2nd and picked up a couple of strikeouts as part of a scoreless inning.  Like CC, Freddy was neither really good nor really bad.  For him it's just a matter of whether he'll be the 5th starter or bullpen longman.

D-Rob Finds His Kryptonite

Dave Robertson gets righties out and he gets lefties out.  Power hitters don't bother him and neither do slap hitters.  He can come in to start an inning and plow 1-2-3 through the heart of another team's order or he can enter mid-inning with the bases loaded and nobody out and not even break a sweat as he works out of the jam without allowing a run.  Hitters are pretty much no match for The Fireman.

Cardboard boxes, on the other hand, are a different story.  Especially those sonofabitch empty ones.

Thanks to them, D-Rob could be on the shelf for some time after his MRI turned up enough to be a "cause for concern" according to Joe Girardi.  Robertson said he doesn't expect to miss a lot of time, but the Yankees have scheduled a CT scan and a weight-bearing X-ray as a follow up, and there's already talk of him not being available for Opening Day.

Sounds like Spring Training just became more important for every reliever in camp.

Kevin Kernan Should Probably Stop Talking

(Pictured: Not Kei Igawa.  Courtesy of The AP)

Normally I leave the guys at The Post alone when it comes to their Yankee coverage. I've found that they don't usually get swept up in the MSM nonsense that good old Wally and friends over at ESPN NY thrive on. That's not the case today for Kevin Kernan, whose piece on Hiroki Kuroda's first Spring Training start reeks of "screw it, I've got nothing good to write about. Might as well try to create false panic amongst the Yankee fanbase for no reason." Come on, Kev. That's not right. 

"In the first inning, new Yankees right-hander Hiroki Kuroda was Hideo Nomo."

Actually, he was Hiroki Kuroda. And I don't think comparing him to a guy with a 4.24/4.23/.4.67 career tripleslash is a good way to express how well he pitched in the first inning.

"The second inning he was Kei Igawa."

No, he was Hiroki Kuroda. And that comparison is even worse. They don't even pitch with the same hand!

"Welcome to the AL East."

Or at least the watered down early-March version of it where you face a Rays lineup comprised of only about a third of their everyday players. Gotta watch out for the Jeff Keppingers and Jesus Felicianos of the world.

"Japanese pitchers have had their troubles pitching in the major leagues, but going from the Far East to the AL East is the most difficult transition of them all."

It's East meets East!

"Never forget the purpose of spring training is to work on your stuff and not get hurt."

Which is exactly what Kuroda did yesterday in his two innings of work, thus making everything else written before that sentence completely meaningless.

"In that respect Kuroda came up aces, ... "

Then what the fuck are you talking about comparing him to Kei Igawa?!?

"... but he is going to have [to have] everything working to come up big in the AL East. There is no room for error in this division."

None. Never mind the fact that Kuroda, and every other pitcher, has 8 guys on the field with him at all times playing defense to help make up for errors he might make in location or pitch selection. If you make one error in the AL East, you DIE!!!

"Kuroda is one of those pitchers who needs all of spring training to get his act together ... "

Him and most every other pitcher who participates in his team's ST activities. That's kind of why Spring Training exists.

“'It’s always important to leave with good results, but at the same time I wanted to work on my pitches and I wanted to make sure I had all my pitches, and I was able to accomplish that today,' Kuroda said."

Good. That's all that matters.

"At this point, all Hiroki Kuroda has to prove is that he’s not Kei Igawa." 

NO HE DOESN'T, YOU FUCKING IDIOT!!! Hiroki Kuroda has never been compared to Kei Igawa by anybody and he never should be. He's already proven that he's not with what he's done in his career and there's no reason to expect him to regress to Igawa's level of ineffectiveness now. The Yankees never would have signed him if they thought he was going to be another Kei Igawa. Stop using flawed logic and shoddy comparisons to create controversy that doesn't exist!

The only thing Hiroki Kuroda had to do yesterday was go out on the mound and work on his stuff, and that's what he did. He was happy with how he pitched, Russell Martin was happy with how he pitched, and Joe was happy with how he pitched. That's all that matters in Spring Training, and to try to stir the pot by playing off the Yankees' recent failure with another Japanese pitcher is lazy and irresponsible journalism.

The Incredible Disappearing Opposite-Field A-Rod

Alex Rodriguez's home run off of Roy Halladay this past Sunday, meaningless as it seemed from a statistical standpoint, was actually more important than you might think because of the swing he took to hit it.  It was a compact, balanced, fluid swing that drove the ball to the opposite field with power, and in terms of the eye test it passed with flying colors as it represented a part of A-Rod's game that has become increasingly absent over the past four seasons.  As he's dealt with his litany of injuries, A-Rod has struggled with his swing mechanics, likely compensating for whatever was ailing him at the time.  As a result, his effectiveness as a hitter has been seriously compromised, most noticeably his ability to hit to the opposite field with authority.  Whether it's been the hip, knee, or groin, Alex hasn't had the same lower body torque and fluid rotation in his swing that he showed on Sunday, and that lack of lower body drive has sapped him of his opposite-field potency.

2007 was the high water mark for Alex in a Yankee uniform from a statistical standpoint (.314/.422/.645, .449 wOBA, 178 wRC+), and sometimes it feels like that was eons ago after watching the past four seasons of injury problems and declining production play out.

(Click to enlarge)

While it's perfectly normal for a 36-year-old professional baseball player to experience some level of age-related decline, it is the dramatic drop in power that is most concerning with Alex and that raises a red flag that his injury problems are also negatively affecting his performance.  That same drastic decline in overall production and power is present in A-Rod's opposite field splits since 2007.  It speaks to the problems that A-Rod's injuries have caused with his swing and where in his swing they are doing the most damage.

(Click)

It's one thing to lose some bat speed and strength and not be able to muscle the ball all over the yard to the tune of a wOBA in the .400s when you get to your mid-30s.  It's quite another to drop off to the point of being below average when hitting the ball the other way, and that's where Rodriguez finds himself after posting back-to-back sub-.300 wOBA values in 2010 and 2011.  This past season, he bottomed out at .280, with a .664 OPS and 69 wRC+.  Remember, this isn't some schmuck third baseman here, this is Alex Rodriguez, the same guy who was the greatest baseball player on the planet for a period of time not too long ago.  Home runs like the one he hit off of Halladay used to be common place for him.  Now they're such a rare occurrence that they inspire blog posts like this one.  It is these types of home runs and line drive hits to right field that need to return to A-Rod's offensive game to help stifle the disturbing downward trend we're seeing in his production.

(Click)

It's easy to forget just how great a hitter A-Rod was and still can be when he's 100% because of how bad he's looked at times when playing through his recent injuries.  Part of what made Rodriguez such an offensive force in his prime was his ability to hit to all fields and hit to all fields with power.  He was, and still is, a more dangerous hitter to the pull side and up the middle; that's where A-Rod makes his living.  But he's always had the ability to muscle a pitch out over the right field fence like he did on Sunday thanks to the power he generates in his swing with his lower half, no matter where the pitch was thrown.  That's what Alex has been losing most over the past few seasons as he's battled injuries, and that's what he needs to regain this year if he can stay right physically.

"Empire State Yankees" Is The New Hotness

(Courtesy of Mike Ashmore)

Real talk, being called the "Empire State Yankees" is infinitely more awesome than being called the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees.  I almost wish I didn't suck so bad at baseball when I was younger just so I could have had the chance to one day be a member of the Empire State Yankees.  As soon as hats with this logo are available to the public, I'm buying one.

But actually having to be a member of the team this year?  Yeah, that's going to suck a little bit.  Playing every game on the road and having your "home" games spread amongst a half dozen ballparks?  Yuck.

And no, Dellin.  That won't be a viable excuse if you don't get your walks under control this year.  Shape up, kid.

P.S.- Only thing cooler than "Empire State Yankees" would be "Gotham Yankees."

Sour Puss Makes His ST Debut Today

And he couldn't be more fired up about it!  See?

(Courtesy of MLB.com)

My man is STOKED!!!

P.S.- Classic busy day post right there.  When in doubt, or when without free time, make fun of somebody.

The Only Thing That Mattered In The Hughes Outing Today

I gave him a little crap earlier on the AB4AR Page for his rough first outing of the season today, but really there was only one thing that mattered for Phil Hughes today and that was the number 93.  As in, his fastball regularly being clocked at 93 miles per hour.  The disaster that was his 2011 started off with him having nothing on his heater and never really finding it.  In 2012, he's coming out in his first start and hitting the mark on the gun where he needs to be to have success.  That's a damn good sign.

Accelerating The Learning Curve With $189 Million

With Hal and Cash making the magic number of $189 million official last week, we now know without a doubt that the Yankees are going to make a concerted effort to get the payroll at or below that number by 2014.  It's an aggressive goal, but a worthy goal in the big picture, and it will certainly come with some casualties as it's already very clear that not everybody on the current roster can be retained while keeping the payroll below the $189 mil threshold.  That being the case, the Yankees are going to have to lean on their young players more in 2014 to help make this goal a reality, and not just as fodder to fill out the 40-man roster or as a placeholder while somebody else is on the DL.  The Yankees' goal every year, regardless of budget, is to win, and to do that while cutting payroll they are going to need some serious production from this current crop of high-level young players.  It's a drastically different approach than the one they've taken with their prospects recently, but one that will help define just how good this farm system is.

A hot topic of conversation before the number 189 became so important was the impressive crop of free agent starting pitchers that will be available after this season.  It seemed like the Yankees were well positioned to add one of these big names and make their days of shallow starting pitching depth a thing of the past.  With the amount of money that is going to be tied up in a handful of players, however, the likelihood of the Yankees adding a big name arm and still staying beneath the $189 million ceiling is incredibly low.  That void in the rotation will have to be filled from a more cost-friendly source, which means plans for guys like Manny Banuelos and Dellin Betances will likely change.  In a perfect world they would spend this entire season in Triple-A, working on refining their mechanics and building up their innings counts, then maybe get a September call up to work with and learn from the big leaguers, and come into the 2013 season with a chance to make the team as the 5th starter to lessen the pressure on them and ease them into their careers.  Now they might not get that luxury.

The reality of the situation is that the Yankees are only going to have three starters under contract in 2014 (CC, Pineda, Nova), and they'll need to get that remaining 40% of their starts from somewhere.  They can probably find a cheap starter somewhere on the market to eat innings, but to keep costs down they are going to need someone from the Minors to step in and pitch, and pitch well.  As the top dogs of the farm system, the pressure would be on Banuelos and Betances to produce in 2013 and show that they're capable of shouldering their share of the load.  The clock is ticking down to 2014, which means it's ticking down faster on Banuelos and Betances to improve as pitchers and be ready to contribute.  If you stop and think about it, that same logic can apply to Michael Pineda.  Cash and Joe can try their hardest to downplay the significance of where Pineda pitches in the rotation, but the fact of the matter is he was brought in to be a top-of-the-rotation starter and he's going to have to develop into that if the Yankees want to stay away from the free agent market and control costs.

Hey, Did You Hear About Michael Pineda Throwing a CHANGEUP Yesterday?!?!

(Here it comes.  The heater.  I dare ya.  Courtesy of The AP)

Seriously, a changeup??  What is that?  Who's even heard of a pitch like that?  Pineda must be some kind of mystical wizard out there on the mound to be able to throw a pitch like that because EVERYBODY was talking about it. 

“I think he’ll be fearless with it." - Larry Rothschild

"I’m not surprised because when I caught him in the pen, he had a good idea of it." - Russell Martin

“You like that attitude. You want a guy that’s willing to work at something and try to get better ... " - Joe Girardi

In all seriousness, yesterday was about as good a meaningless Spring Training debut as you could hope for from Pineda.  His fastball was mostly low-90s, not quite up to its usual heat level, but he threw it for strikes and got swings and misses with it.  He also threw his slider some, and he did throw the changeup a few times, getting a strikeout of Shane Victorino on it and getting another out with it.  Spring Training is the time to work on stuff and Pineda has been doing just that.  The more he throws the change and works it into a usable pitch, the more dangerous he's going to be once the regular season starts.

Quotes courtesy of Chad at LoHud

Early ST Thoughts And Afterthoughts

(Game on!  Courtesy of The AP)

Camp has been in full swing for over a week now, which means there has been just enough activity to start talking about what's been happening.  In no particular order, here are my takes on the early Spring Training storylines in Yankee camp after the jump.

Gitty Up

(Nailed it.  Courtesy of MLB.com)

So The Horse has his most injury-plagued season ever, gets another new offseason workout program, tries some of the Kobe Bryant plasma treatment special on his knee, comes to camp, Tim Brown from Yahoo! writes a story about the impassioned speech he gave to the team prior to their ST opener, I write a piece based off that story yesterday telling people not to forget about A-Rod just yet, and he comes out and goes 3-3 with a monster opposite-field HR off of Roy Halladay on the first pitch he sees.

Is that how it works?  That sound about right?

New Postseason Format: What I Don't Like

Yesterday I touched on the things I liked about MLB expanding the postseason by adding a 5th team to each league starting this season.  But it's not all peaches and cream with this new postseason layout.  There are also some things I'm not a huge fan of with the new format, and here they are.

- Wild Card Round Only Being One Game

As great as the concept of adding a team to the playoffs to reward them for 162 well played games is, setting that 5th team up in a 1-game playoff with the other Wild Card team to determine who advances to face the #1 team in the league takes away some of the rewarding factor by going against the standard structure of postseason series and baseball in general.  The beauty of adding the Wild Card in '95 was that it made the playoffs more exciting, and we've seen that play out plenty of times with Wild Card teams coming into the postseason peaking at the right time and advancing all the way.  Because of the unpredictable nature of baseball, however, that drama is removed in a 1-game format where anything can happen.  One game is not enough for the better team, or a team riding a hot streak, to prove its superiority over its competitor.  Anything can happen in one game, including one team just getting plain lucky and beating another, and to have advancement into the next round riding on one game rather than a series, where teams have a chance to overcome one unlucky play, is counter-productive.  There aren't any 1-game series during the regular season; why should that format go away when the games matter most?

- Scheduling

The schedule changes that will come with the addition of another team and round to the playoffs is also a problem for me, both in the immediate, near, and farther off futures.  In 2012, the format of the divisional round will actually will be affected by the scheduling changes made to accommodate this 1-game round.  Because there will be an extra game, and likely an extra travel day, added once the postseason starts, MLB had to cut a travel day out of the LDS so as not to risk extending the playoffs into November.  To successfully eliminate that travel day, MLB switched the format of the LDS to a 2-3 home-and-home, with the lower-seeded team getting the first two games at home and the higher seed getting the last three.  The fact that the extra days in the Wild Card series serve to potentially give the division winners too much rest before playing again is bad enough, but having the higher seeds then start out the next series after sitting for a few days on the road for two games is just downright unfair.  This will only affect the 2012 postseason, but this setup really rewards the Wild Card teams and potentially hurts the higher-seeded division winners, which should not be the case.

Looking into the future is where I see things really becoming problematic.  It's obvious that the playoffs were expanded because everybody wants to make more money.  Money drives sports, it's no big surprise, and this new wrinkle will almost certainly increase TV ratings and ad revenues.  If and when that happens, though, it's likely that owners are going to want to continue to expand the postseason and increase their bottom line.  This 1-game round could become a 3-game round, which could lead to the LDS going from 5-game to 7-game if ratings and dollar figures continue to increase.  If more games are being played, more days have to be added to the schedule, and I'm not particularly keen on the idea of watching teams play the latest parts of the postseason or the earliest parts of the regular season in wintry weather conditions.

World Series games don't need to be cancelled because of snow in November, something that can happen in New York, Philadelphia, Detroit, Minnesota, Milwaukee, and Bahhston, and guys don't need to be tearing muscles and ligaments playing competitive games in late March when it's still freezing in those areas.  If further such expansion did take place, these are the types of scenarios MLB could be faced with, which would not be good for the quality of the game.

In short, as a Yankee fan I am very excited at the expansion of the postseason as it gives my team another opportunity to make the playoffs and win a world championship.  As a baseball fan, I am concerned about the logistics of this initial expansion and how they affect the other playoff teams, and more concerned about what kind of path this expansion continues down if people decide they want their greed to override their common sense.

The Horse Setting The Spring Training Pace

Among the bevy of labels that have been given to A-Rod since he joined the Yankees, "clubhouse leader" probably isn't one that's been attached to him very often.  Yet this story by Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports paints The Horse as just that; a veteran who has been through the battles before standing up in front of his teammates and rallying the troops, getting them ready for the season at hand.  It's a very interesting image to ponder and one that makes me excited about what this season has in store for A-Rod as it signifies both a change in role for him and a change in mindset.

For years A-Rod was the stereotypical detached superstar, seemingly out of touch with his teammates and the clubhouse environment and always looking out for number 1.  But over the past few seasons there has been a change in A-Rod; he's been more subdued in his superstardom, he's talked more about team-related things, and hasn't drawn as much negative attention to himself with his actions on or off the field.  Perhaps not so coincidentally, this change has occurred over a period of time where he has tumbled from the top of the MLB mountain, spending his last few seasons fighting injuries and watching his OPS and wOBA numbers shrink.  The Horse is now well set in the downside of his career, and he seems to recognize this with what he has been saying this spring, this pregame speech being the latest example.

That's not to say that A-Rod is completely done as a player.  He has shown that when healthy he can still put up well above-average numbers.  But his days of being the cream of the crop and the elitest of elite-level producers at the plate are likely over, and he has to find new ways to contribute to the team.  Filling the void of clubhouse leader could be one of those ways.  Even though he was minimally effective on the field last season, it's almost a sure thing that behind the scenes in the Yankee clubhouse Jorge Posada was still the main vocal leader.  With Posada now retired, somebody has to assume the role and it's a safe bet that it won't be Mr. Cool Derek Jeter.

As a guy with a reputation of being among the hardest working and smartest players in the game, who better than The Horse to become that voice of the clubhouse?  Older or injured or otherwise, his name and reputation probably still carries a lot of weight with his peers and teammates, especially the growing crop of young Yankees poised to take over as the next generation after guys like A-Rod, Jeter, and Mo move on.  He's a guy who has been there and done everything there is to do in the game, and because of that he should be someone that everybody looks up to.  A-Rod might be starting to realize that now, and knowing that he can't carry the team by himself with his bat and glove anymore he's willing to step up and be a guy who can help carry and guide the team with his words.

It's always risky trying to delve into the intangible side of baseball and talk intelligently about it, but I like the idea of A-Rod as the vocal leader of this team.  He still has a lot to offer on the field and if he now recognizes that he can offer just as much off of it, behind the scenes, that should be a good thing for clubhouse culture.  If a guy like A-Rod can stand up and talk about being "all in" during the first week of Spring Training when things have barely gotten rolling, and speak only of his desire to help his team win a championship rather than the individual things that he has to do in order for that to happen when talking to the media, that's a great foot to start this season off on mentally and emotionally.  Even though I can't prove it analytically or statistically, I've got a hunch that this new approach is going to pay off for The Horse on the field this year.  He may be settling into "grizzled veteran" status, but Alex isn't completely washed up yet and I expect him to remind everybody of that this season.

New Postseason Format: What I Like

Major League Baseball made their new postseason rule changes official yesterday, which means the 2012 playoffs will be the first since '95 to have changes made to its format.  As part of the new CBA that came into play last November, MLB had to implement an addition of one Wild Card team to the postseason from each league and they have decided to start that new format this year.  I've thought about this long and hard, and I've got mixed feelings on this new wrinkle.  Rather than try to weave them all into one coherent post, I'll just break it down to the things I like about the new playoff format and the things I dislike.  Today, what I like.

- More Teams Competing in the Playoffs

Of the four major American sports leagues, MLB has the fewest competitors in its postseason with eight total, broken down to four per league, despite having 30 total teams.  And when those teams are playing a regular season schedule comprised of at least twice as many games as the other major sports, that just doesn't add up.  Even without the obvious lack of physicality and body contact, the baseball regular season is a long, grinding affair that takes an incredible amount of skill, strategy, and luck in the right combination in order to be successful.  Whether a team is big market or small, there are tons of things from bad errors to lucky bounces to clutch hits to major injuries to key roster moves to bad umpiring calls and beyond that can affect its ability to navigate the 162-game season and come out of it with a postseason berth.  To reward more teams for making it through that six-month ordeal and still having a chance to win a championship is a good thing.

- The Yankees' Chances of Making the Postseason Increase

People can say what they want about the Angels adding Albert Pujols and the Rangers adding Yu Darvish, but you're out of your mind if you think an additional Wild Card slot hurts the Yankees' chances of making the playoffs every year rather than helping them.  They have made great strides as an organization to better stock themselves for the present and the future, and upcoming budget constraints or not they are still going to be amongst the biggest, if not the biggest, spenders on the block when it comes to payroll.  Combine that with their continued commitment to keep the farm system well stocked with pieces that can help the ultimate goal of winning world championships in one fashion or another, and the Yankee position near the top of the American League only becomes strengthened by adding another opportunity for them to make the playoffs.

The Angels' offense is still spotty at best and their rotation is one injury away from being very shallow.  The Rangers rotation can't be called any better than it was last season and could be worse if Darvish doesn't like up to the hype, plus they always have injury problems.  The Fraud Sawx have just as many rotation/injury question marks as the Yankees do, and potential new clubhouse problems and media firestorms to deal with thanks to Bobby V.  The Rays are going to continue to develop talent, but will also continue to lose it eventually because of their tight payroll limits.  The Tigers are going to own the AL Central and everybody else in that division is a nonfactor.  Anybody who doesn't think the Yankees will be one of the five best teams in the AL this year and over the next couple against this competition is clueless.  In 2008, they broke the long postseason streak they had previously built.  Under the new system, the Yankees will be in a great position to continue the new streak they started in 2009.

** Coming tomorrow- What I don't like. **

Yanks-Phils Grapefruit League Opener Lineup

A bit of a step up in competition today as the Yankees will be facing fellow Major and Minor Leaguers from the Phillies' organization.  Lineup courtesy of LoHud:

1) Brett Gardner- LF
2) Curtis Granderson- CF
3) Nick Swisher- RF
4) Raul Ibanez- DH
5) Eric Chavez- 1B
6) Russell Martin- C
7) Eduardo Nunez- SS
8) Bill Hall- 2B
9) Jayson Nix- 3B

SP) Ivan Nova

Also scheduled to pitch: David Phelps, Manny Banuelos, Dellin Betances, Cesar Cabral and Mike O’Connor.

Friday Afternoon "First Game of the Year" Linkapalooza: 3/2

We got live baseball today, people, and that makes it a good day.  I don't know about everybody else, but I know I've mentally checked out for the week and I'm ready to drink some beer.  Onto the links!

- On Monday, William Juliano of The Captain's Blog (who also happens to be a TYA colleague of mine) argued the case for the Yankees extending the contracts of Robbie Cano and C-Grand now rather than waiting until they hit free agency.  William's argument makes perfect sense for the Yankees from both a baseball and business perspective.

- Brien Jackson of IIATMS joined the party and took his first stab at ranking the Yankee prospects, unveiling his top 30 on Monday.  I have to say, it's a very good list.  Better than my first go at the top 30.

- As you may know by now, Andy Pettitte was at the team workout on Monday, and Chad Jennings of LoHud captured some of Andy's better answers during his session with the media.  The guy certainly sounds like he's enjoying retired life, but it's always a welcome sight to see him with the blue NY hat on.

- On Tuesday, Rob Steingall of Pinstripe Alley posted his list of the top 20 combined Yankees and Mets prospects.  Finally tally: Yankees 11, Mets 9.

- I know it's from last Saturday, but I can't get enough of Sensei John Kreese's "Stealth Bombers" interview series over at NoMaas, and somehow in the course of laying around in my sweatpants doing nothing all last weekend I missed this latest one with Staten Island 2B Angelo Gumbs.

- On Wednesday, el duque of It Is High... recounted his emotional mental confrontation with Buck Showalter at Orioles camp.  Except for the parts where I was reminded of how much I hate Showalter, I laughed my balls off at this.

- Greg Cohen of Sliding Into Home chimed in with his two cents on Bobby V's idiocy, and it's well worth your time to check it out if for no other reason than to laugh at the Photoshop.  Kudos on that one, Greg.

-  Mike Axisa of RAB pondered the idea of swapping Jeter and C-Grand at the top of the lineup.  He points out all the pros and cons of the move, and although I don't think it would be beneficial, it would be worth seeing in ST.

- On Thursday, Lisa Swan of Subway Squawkers gave Jason Varitek a fitting send off into retirement with some real talk about his fighting skills.

- Fishjam25 of Yankees Fans Unite got in on the contract extension talk on Thursday, making his case for why Robbie Cano deserves a contract extension now.  Preach on, brother.  Preach on.

- If you ever wondered what it would be like to hear Rafael Soriano sing "Sweet Caroline," you can find out at Andrew Marchand's latest "Hangin" piece that features Soriano over at the ESPN NY Yankees blog.

- As part of TYA's Prospect Week, Michael Eder presented his breakdown of the top 10 relief prospects in the Yankee system right now.  Part I can be found right here and Part II from yesterday here.

For the jam of the day, I'm going with Foo Fighters.  I saw them once in Worcester, Mass with my college ex-girlfriend and it was one of the best shows I've ever seen.  I would have missed their rumored June 2nd concert out here in Wisconsin because I will be at a friend's wedding that day, but luckily for me the concert wasn't finalized.  Question, talking strictly 90s bands,the Foos have to have the most songs that make you go, "oh yeah, this is the Foo Fighters too.  I love this song," when you hear them, right?  If you don't think you're a Foo fan, you probably are and just don't know it.

Enjoy your weekends, kids.  And go Yankees!

The First Starting Lineup Of The Season

The Bombers take the field for the first time today to face some competition in the form of South Florida University.  Here's the lineup they're rolling with, courtesy of LoHud:

1) Derek Jeter- SS
2) Curtis Granderson- CF
3) Mark Teixeira- 1B
4) Alex Rodriguez- 3B
5) Raul Ibanez- DH
6) Nick Swisher- RF
7) Brett Gardner- LF
8) Eduardo Nunez- 2B
9) Gustavo Molina- C

SP) Adam Warren

Also scheduled to pitch today out of the 'pen: Brett Marshall, Dan Burawa, Juan Cedeno, Graham Stoneburner, Ryan Pope and Kevin Whelan.

Let's play ball, boys.  I'm might be getting 4-8 inches of snow out here in Wisco over the next 36 hours, so at least I have this little slice of spring to keep me sane.  Only thing left to do is hit the music...

Question Of The Day: Teix At The Improv

The Yankees' annual ST team outing was yesterday, and it involved the team going to the local Tampa improv comedy club to participate in some improv skits.  Mark Teixeira walked away with the unofficial MVP honors, which begs the question, did he win because he managed to not take any good joke opportunities and pop them up on the infield?

I keed, I keed.