Joba Unimpressive In Spring Debut

Well, we finally got to see one of the Yankees starting 5 today. Too bad the outing was far from impressive. Joba, in my opinion, looked terrible. I wrote the other day that I don't really look at a pitcher's line when judging a spring outing. I look more at their control and their velocity. Joba threw 21 pitches, 11 for strikes, 10 for balls. Not a good strike-to-ball ratio. The Twins were on his pitches and that had a lot to do with Joba's velocity, or should I say lack thereof. His fastest pitch topped out at 90, which I think he hit only once. The majority of the pitches he threw were fastballs and most were in the mid-high 80s, ranging from 85-89, with most being at the lower end of that range. Joba, when in mid-season form, usually has his fastball hitting in the mid-to-upper 90s. He was about 10 mph below what he usually does. That velocity should increase throughout the spring as his arm strength builds up. By the time Opening Day rolls around, he'll have that pop back, and that should lead to better outings.

Jose Veras on the other hand did impress me. His fastball was consistently in the low 90s, hovering around 93. He struck out 2 and should have whiffed the side except the home plate ump called a ball on what was obviously strike 3 to Denard Span. Veras had a nasty hook working today.

Put Dan Giese in the unimpressive category. He didn't do too hot. It's early, he'll bounce back. I still like him for the swingman role.

Kei Igawa had a surprisingly nice outing. He still has no shot at heading north with the club, even he runs the table and pitches a scoreless spring.

The offense had a pretty solid day. Through the 1st two times through the lineup, everyone had reached base via a hit or walk except for Jose Molina, Nick Swisher and Johnny Damon. Swisher did reach on an error and Damon did have a successful sac bunt that eventually led to a run, so I won't hold that against him. They're getting on base. That's a good sign. You can't score runs if you're not on base.

Jorge Posada was scratched from today's game because of "soreness in his right shoulder." According to Bryan Hoch's article, Posada says, "I played yesterday with it, and I could play today. It doesn't hurt me to throw, and it doesn't hurt me to hit. It's just sore. "I knew there was going to be soreness. I was expecting it to be a little bit earlier than now. Since everything was going so well, we kept going. It's just a little bump in the road. I think it's going to be fine." I don't think it's anything to be overly concerned with but it's something to keep an eye on.

And I'm still lovin' Jose Molina's arm!

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie