Yankees Deal For Curtis Granderson

Well, that didn't take long. The reported 3-team blockbuster deal that's been swirling around the rumor mill all day is apparently a done deal. The deal as it's being reported is as follows:

From Yankees to Detroit: Phil Coke and Austin Jackson
From Yankees to Arizona: Ian Kennedy
From Detroit to Arizona: Edwin Jackson
From Arizona to Detroit: Max Scherzer, Daniel Schlereth
From Detroit to Yankees: Curtis Granderson

I think I have the moving part right. From a Yankees standpoint, the deal breaks down to be Ian Kennedy, Austin Jackson and Phil Coke for Curtis Granderson. The Boogie Down gives the deal a thumbs-up.

I wrote in mid-November that if the Yankees had the chance to make a deal for Granderson they should go after it. I wrote that I wouldn't give up Hughes/Joba and Austin Jackson. Kennedy and Jackson is definitely a downgrade over that tandem. Phil Coke is garbage so throwing him in to get it done works for me. But, I also wrote in November that I didn't want them to give up Jackson at all. Apparently, I re-thought that stance this morning when I saw the proposed deal.

As I wrote this morning, I'm ok with dealing unproven prospects for proven players. You never know what is going to become of a highly touted prospect. A lot of them flame out and never amount to anything. That possibility exists with A-Jax. He could be a HOFer. He could be nothing more than a AAAA OF. Who know? Time will tell on that. With Granderson, we know what to expect. He has speed, has a good bat with some pop, struggles against LHPs, and plays a great CF. He has a few shortcomings, but I like what he brings to the table and I think the pluses out weight the minuses.

So it looks like the OF right now is Swisher in RF, Granderson in CF, and Melky in LF. The question now becomes what to do with Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui. I'd have to think that the Granderson deal means Matsui is as good as gone. I think if the Yankees wanted to still bring back one of them, Damon makes more sense. I think there's still a good chance that the Yankees will bring back Damon. Personally, I would prefer to see Damon in LF, Melky in RF, and Swisher can DH. Damon brings flexibility to the team because he can play the field and can DH. I also think the Yankees need him at the top of the lineup. Granderson whiffs too much and has too low an OBP to hit 2nd. I think the Yankees are still in on Johnny Damon.

I think this deal also probably closes the door on dealing for Roy Halladay and rules out signing Jason Bay or Matt Holliday. There's a chance they could still be in play for Halladay but I think without A-Jax and IPK to deal, it means that Hughes or Joba AND Jesus Montero would have to go. They'll have to get creative though. I'd like to see them hold onto Montero and Hughes. i'm more than OK with them dealing Joba. We'll see. Ideally, Doc stays in Toronto and the Yanks nab him as a FA next year. Fingers crossed.

So what do you guys think? Thumbs up or thumbs down on the Granderson deal? Any other thoughts about how things are shaping up? Still 2-plus days left until Winter Meetings wrap up. I'm sure there's still a lot to come.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yankees Involved In A Potential Big Trade

I went to bed last night around 10:15 and woke up today around 6:30. Within 5 minutes from waking up, I was on MLBTradeRumors, checking to see if any late-night action went down at the Winter Meetings. Apparently, the Yankees were involved in a potential 3-team "blockbuster" that would have landed the Yankees Curtis Granderson. It's being reported today that the deal is unlikely and it mentions that the Yankees felt the price was too high. I'm all for bringing in Curtis Granderson, but the reported "blockbuster" was a little too costly in my opinion.

If you break down the "rumored" deal, the Yankees were getting Granderson from Detroit and some unnamed prospects from Arizona in exchange for Ian Kennedy, Austin Jackson, Phil Coke and Mike Dunn. It's a little costly for the Yankees. Not much, but a little. I'm a little on the fence but my initial reaction was that the price is too high. I'm all for dealing prospects for proven talent. With Granderson you know what you're going to get. Despite his shortcomings against lefties, CG is a really good, and proven, player. Coke and Dunn are expendable middle relievers. Kennedy has the stuff but hasn't been able to put it together on the big league level. Austin Jackson is probably the best prospect the Yankees have but again, he's just a prospect. He could easily prove to be a big bust.

So it'd be Curtis Granderson ( a good and proven player) for 4 guys that may or may not ever really contribute at the big league level. If the deal happened, I'd be fine with it. But if you ask me, the Yankees should be able to get a lot more for that package than Curtis Granderson and some prospects. I'm sure if you pulled out Kennedy and added in Joba, you might have something decent in terms of a Halladay offer. I doubt Coke and Dunn are of interest to the Jays but the foundation of a deal (Joba and Jackson) is there. Who knows? I think the Yanks could get a little more for those guys if they're truly willing to part with them.

If the Yanks happen to bring in Granderson, it's a safe bet that Damon and/or Matsui won't be back. Maybe one will to DH (I prefer Damon), but there would be no chance that both would return. With Granderson, the OF would be Swisher in RF, Granderson in CF, and Melky in LF, with Gardner likely being the 4th OF. Trading for Granderson also likely means no Matt Holiday or Jason Bay. But who knows? Last year we all thought there was no chance they'd sign Mark Teixeira after signing A.J. and CC, but they did.

Buster Olney is on XM radio right now. He didn't call the trade talks dead, but refereed to them as "dormant." I wouldn't be surprised if this deal picks up some steam. It's not a horrible deal. Perhaps they'll rework it. Stay tuned.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

It's Back To The Bronx For Game 6 As Yankees Fall To Phillies 8-6

Well that was fun, wasn't it? I'm going to save a lot of my comments for tomorrow. I could use some sleep so I'm going to keep this one real short. Yeah right.

A.J. Burnett was terrible. Beyond terrible. He had a chance to bring it home and he couldn't even make it out of the 3rd inning. It was a gamble going with him on short rest and it backfired. I'm not saying it wasn't the right move but it certainly didn't work out as we envisioned. I'm watching the postgame show on YES and Girardi sounds non-committal about using Pettitte in game 6. My buddy dropped a rumor on me that Pettitte told the team he had nothing left. I think that came via Jon Heyman. I'm inclined to think it's true after listening to Giradi say he wanted to ask Andy how he felt before announcing the game 6 starter. If there was any question about Pettitte being able to go in game 6 , then Chad Gaudin should have started tonight and they should have saved A.J. for game 6. I'm going to be highly ticked if Pettitte is toast.

I'm not sure how many of you guys follow me on Twitter. If you do and were following me last night you know I didn't have some nice things to say about Phil Coke. The bullpen needed to shut the Phillies down and for the most part they did. Until Coke came along anyway. I've been wondering since the ALCS why Girardi was using Damaso Marte over Phil Coke and now I have my answer. If Coke could have kept the ball in the park then maybe the 9th inning rally would have tied the game. I wouldn't be surprised if we've seen Phil Coke pitch his last pitch for the Yankees. I have no problem with that if that's the case.

Has anybody seen Mark Teixeira, one of the favorites to win the AL MVP? If you see him, tell him to show up in the Bronx. He's been missing all series. He had a big chance to atone for all of his shortcomings there in the 9th and he whiffed. The team needs you Mark. Please be in the Bronx on Wednesday.

I can't be overly disappointed because this wasn't a game I expected the Yanks to win. It would have been nice to close it out but what can you do? Philly is a good team and we Yankee fans should be happy they took 2 of 3 there. It is going to be real tough for Philly to win 2 straight in the Bronx. I don't see it happening, but who knows? I'll be back tomorrow with more.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yankees Fail To Close Out The Angels, Back To The Bronx For Game 6

Ok. I've slept on it and I don't feel as bad about last night's loss as I did right after the game ended. I had a gut feeling during the 7th inning meltdown that I was watching the Yankees season come to an end, meaning that I had the sinking feeling that this was the beginning of the end for the Yankees. Those feelings have subsided. The Yankees are up 3 game to 2 and are headed home to try and finish it out. While it would have been nice to wrap this up in Anaheim, I didn't think they dispatch of the Angels in 4 or 5, so before the series even started, I felt it would finish in the Bronx. Since that hasn't changed, I don't know what I was so worried about. It's hard to say with a gut feeling. I just felt off.

A.J. Burnett battled last night. He was absolutely horrible in the first inning, but settled down and somehow managed to hold the Angels scoreless for the next 5 innings. A.J. was on the verge of being one of the game's heroes. His performance, in innings 2-6, kept the Yankees in the game and allowed them to eventually take the lead in the 7th. Then all hell broke loose. Now before I get into that, I'll finish with my thoughts on Burnett. A.J. needs to be better than he was last night. He's terribly inconsistent. He's either really good or really bad. That usually works out to a guy being a ,500 pitcher, which for the most part, is what A.J. is, or was prior to the start of last season. He's got a find a way to harness his control. I am still a proponent of him pitching to Jose Molina. The two have worked well together but there seems to be a slight disconnect here in the postseason. They're a little off. If the Yanks reach the next round, I wouldn't mind if Girardi has him pitch to Posada, especially if he pitches in Philly. Girardi will prove to be a bigger moron than I already think he is if he has Molina catch him in Philly. Which brings me to my next topic.......

Joe Girardi is driving me crazy. I cannot understand why he does what he does. I understand the reasoning behind letting A.J. start the 8th, and in normal circumstances, I'd be all for it. But last night wasn't a normal circumstance. A.J. should have never started the 7th inning after sitting for as long as he did while the Yankees scored 6 in their half of the 7th. The smart move would have been to go to a fresh arm. That would have also allowed the RP to start the inning from the windup. There's a benefit to having a RP start with no runners on then with runners on. Girardi should have gone to Joba or to Phil Hughes to start the 7th. I'd have had no problem with that. I don't blame Joe for Phil's breakdown either. That's all on Phil for not executing.

I'm also puzzled why Girardi didn't go to the pen after A.J. allowed a leadoff single. Joe's management of the bullpen is totally puzzling. He over-manages one day and under-manages the next. Both have resulted in Yankee losses. I don't get why he brought in Damaso Marte over Phil Coke. Coke has been the go to lefty all season. Why in game 5 of the ALCS does he decide to abandon that and use the struggling Damaso Marte? I'm going to guess that he got the answer from his "book." To Marte's credit, he didn't implode like I thought he would, but that's not the point. Girardi totally abandoned his "bullpen formula" and started making up new rules on the fly. It should have either been Joba, Hughes and Mo for the last 9 outs, or Hughes and Mo. I really think his decision to let A.J. start the 7th was the big reason for the loss. I'm pinning both Yankee losses on Joe Girardi. They're not 100% his fault as there are certainly other contributing factors, but by and large, it's all on Joe.

One of those other contributing factors is the performance of Nick "The Rally Killer" Swisher. I had no confidence whatsoever in his 9th inning AB with the bases loaded. Swisher has been awful all year in big spots. Here's a look at his situational stats in case you haven't been watching:

Runners on: 50-203 (.246/.402/.453) 9 HR, 62 RBI, 52 K
RISP: 27-119 (.227/.380/.361) 3 HR 48 RBI, 27 K
RISP w/2 outs: 8-49 (.163/.379/.204) 0 HR, 14 RBI, 13 K
Bases Loaded: 3-19 (.158/.280/.211) 0 HR, 13 RBI, 4 K

Not too good, eh? Swish definitely kills a lot of rallies. I wonder what his deal is. I have a theory and it goes beyond that he's not very good. I think when Swisher sees all of these ducks on the pond, he gets excited at the thought of knocking in runs and he tries too hard. Normally in baseball when a guy tries too hard he ends up failing more than he normally might. Just a theory. Or possibly, like I said, maybe he just sucks. A little from column A and a little from column B, maybe? Either way, "The Rally Killer" needs to be removed from the lineup. That's another beef I had with Girardi last night. I get starting Nick in RF, but why leave him in the game after he made the last out of the 7th? Girardi typically inserts Brett Gardner in as a defensive replacement late in games. That was the perfect time if you ask me. When you're 9 outs away from the World Series and you have a 2-run lead, you shore up the defense. Swisher should have been lifted. My friend, and sometimes commenter, Danny Mac, has a good analogy when it comes to "The Rally Killer." Here it is:

Having Nick Swisher in your MLB lineup in the post season is the same as a bar league softball team fielding a 9 - man roster because someone couldn't make it; when his spot in the lineup comes up, it's an automatic out.

That sums up Swisher pretty nicely.

So it's back to the Bronx for game 6. Andy Pettitte versus Joe Saunders. Pettitte has been much better on the road but AP is a big-time pitcher when it comes to pitching in the postseason. Much like last weekend, the weather forecast isn't very encouraging for tomorrow's game. I think the worst thing that could happen is if that game gets postponed. What do you do then? The debate on the radio is do you start CC in game 6 if there's a rainout. Basically, do you start CC in game 6 on regualr rest and push Pettitte back to game 7? I see pluses and minuses to both. If CC starts and the Yankees win, they don't play an elimination game and the team gets 2 days off before the World Series starts and CC will likely start game 2 of the World Series on 3 days rest. If CC pitches and loses, you then need Pettitte to win , and if he does, CC pitches game 2 on 3 days rest. If Pettitte starts and they lose, then CC pitches Monday and you lose him for the 1st 2 games of the World Series. Best case scenario would be Pettitte pitching, the Yanks winning, and CC starting game 1 on plenty of rest. I'm signing up for Pettitte pitching. Pitching CC basically says to me that they don't trust Andy to win. You also have to do everything you can to get CC to start game 1 of the series. Pitching him in game 6 pretty much makes that impossible. Andy starts game 6 you hear me Girardi. Andy starts game 6. The other drawback of a rainout is it means that John Lackey likely is available if needed. I don't see him pitching at all if the game is tomorrow. Hopefully, like it did last weekend, the weather holds off and they get the game in as scheduled.

This has been a crazy series. With the exception of game 4, they've all been nailbiters. I fully expect the next 2 games to pretty much follow suit. It's going to be tough for the Angels to win 2 straight in the Bronx but it's not out of the question. Pettitte and CC have had great postseasons and I don't see them tanking now. The offense needs to score early. Get 'em on, get 'em over, get 'em in. No more of this getting the first 2 guys on and leaving them there. Start early and don't let up.

My big fear is WWJD. What will Joe do?

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Joe Girardi Is A Big Fat Idiot

Tonight's loss to the Angels has me so frustrated. I had to go to the store to pick up a few things right after the game and the whole time I was there I kept uttering some not so nice things under my breath while shaking my head in disbelief. Tonight's loss was purely on Joe Girardi and his over-managing of the Yankees' bullpen. What he did in the 11th, pulling Robertson for Aceves, made absolutely no sense whatsoever. Even if it worked out it was a horrible move. I think there was only one person out there who thought it made sense and that was Joe Girardi. As soon as the move was made the entire Yankee "Twitterverse" was questioning the move. I got several text messages questioning the move. It made sense to no one. I'm still ticked about it. The guys over at Nomaas had the perfect tweet. It read, "When Tim McCarver actually makes sense, you know you made an idiotic move." If you're familiar with McCarver, you know he's often wrong and makes no sense. Even he questioned the move as soon as it happened. Un-friggin-believable. It was stupid, stupid, stupid.

Girardi said he made the move because he liked the matchup better with Aceves facing Kendrick. Robertson in his career had faced Kendrick twice. Aceves had never faced him. How can you think an Aceves/Kendrick matchup is more favorable than a Robertson/Kendrick matchup when Acevss has never faced him? It doesn't make any sense. Aceves and Robertson are both righties so it's not like there was an advantage of having one over the other. I can see it if Robertson was struggling and had thrown a lot of pitches but he was pitching well and retired the first 2 batters on only 11 pitches. He certainly had some gas left in the tank. It was a very short-sighted move. It was a tie game. The Yankees had lost the DH. If Aceves happens to get out of the inning and then the Yankees don't score, then what? The only RP left was Chad Gaudin. In a situation like that you have to prepare for the long haul. You can't pull RPs like that and leave yourself short-handed. It was stupid, stupid, stupid.

But that wasn't Girardi's only boneheaded move. He brought in Damaso Marte, a lefty, to pitch to one hitter. Marte threw one pitch for the 3rd out of the inning. The Yankees didn't score in their half of the inning and Girardi brought in Phil Coke, a lefty, to start the inning. Why wouldn't they just keep Marte out there since they were both lefties? Instead they burned through a reliever that could have helped them out later. It was stupid, stupid, stupid.

Girardi definitely over-managed this game. If the Angels come back and win the series those boneheaded moves are going to seve as the turning point. Girardi's idiotic moves though weren't the only reasons why the Yankees lost. The offense, despite their 4 solo HRs, was horrible. Mark Teixeira went 0-3 and lowered his postseason average to .077. He's a had a few big hits but he needs to step it up.

The worst though is without a doubt, Nick "The Rally Killer" Swisher. Is there anyone worse than Swisher when it comes to hitting with guys on base? I don't think so. He was horrible in the regular season. He's horrible in the postseason. Here are his regular season numbers in different situations:

• With runners on: .246.
• With RISP: .227.
• With RISP and 2 outs: .163.
• With the bases loaded: .158.

That's pitiful. Here's how he's done in the postseason (I pulled these from the game logs)

• With runners on: 1-7, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 4 K
• With RISP: 0-4, 3 K
• With RISP and 2 outs: 0-1, 1 K
• With the bases loaded: 0-2, 2 K

That's why I call him "The Rally Killer." He's the last guy I want up with runners on base. I'd almost rather see Brett Gardner get a start over Swisher. I'm about 50/50 on that one. I have no faith in Swisher whatsoever.

It would have been nice to steal this game and take a 3-0 lead in the series. It would have been all but over. Now it's 2-1 Yankees and they're still in a good position. CC Sabathia pitches tomorrow on short rest. I'm expecting him to continue with the good pitching. The team is pitching very well and CC's the ace of the staff. He can handle the short rest. CC needs to pitch deep into the game. The longer he pitches the better. It's really the only way to ensure Joe Girardi doesn't make any more stupid moves. He's already cost the team one game. We don't need him to cost them another one. A little offense wouldn't hurt either.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yanks Drop 2nd Straight To Rays

The Yanks lost for the 2nd straight time to the Rays tonight. I don't really care. I can't put a lot of stock in these games. The only thing I've been keeping my eye on is how the pitchers are doing. CC pitched last night and we all know how he did. I'm sure it wasn't the type of start anybody wanted to see from CC in his final start. He pretty much had nothing all night. I hope it's not a sign of what's to come in the postseason. His start after all was in October and he hasn't exactly been a strong October pitcher. I think he'll be fine.

Andy Pettitte pitched an OK ballgame tonight. I don't think it was bad. I don't think it was good. I wish it were a little better, but like with CC, I'm not worried about it. He got better as the game went on. There's a positive

The bullpen was solid. Well, those that are likely to pitch in the postseason were solid. Phil Hughes was a little shaky but I don't see that carrying over. David Robertson is on the bubble and he was a little rough around the edges but it was only his 2nd appearance since September 5th. If Robertson does make the postseason roster, I don't think he'll be used all that much. Maybe in blowouts or in extra inning games. I don't really see him pitching otherwise. Gaudin, Aceves, Coke and Bruney all looked good to me. I'm not concerned there either.

So they lost 2. Big deal. They're actually winning while they're losing. The Tigers have squandered their lead and they're now headed into the final day tied with the Twins. That's great news for the Yankees. The Tigers are in a position where they're going to have to use Justin Verlander tomorrow. That pretty much knocks him out of game 1 of the ALDS. I can't see the Tigers bringing him back on 2 days rest. The best thing that could happen now is that the teams finish tied and then have to play a 1-game playoff on Tuesday. That's pretty much going to knock the Tigers 2 best pitchers out of game 1 and the Twins best pitcher out of games 1 and 2. The pitching matchups would heavily favor the Yankees. I'm definitely pulling for a playoff.

1 game to go and then it's playoff time. I don't care if they win or lose. I'm just hoping they leave Tampa Bay healthy. If they do that, I'll be a happy camper.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Breaking Down The Postseason

The ALDS kicks off a little less than a week from now. The big unanswered questions left are who will the Yankees play, which series will they take, and who will be on the playoff roster? Let me address those one-by-one:

1)Who will the Yankees play? The smart money is on Detroit as they're up 2 with 3 to play. I'd much rather see the Yankees play the Twins though, purely because in a short series, Justin Verlander, Edwin Jackson and Rick Porcello could easily beat you. I think they match up better against the Twins pitchers. The Tigers offense however isn't on par with the Twins. The Tigers OPS is about 19 points lower than that of the Twins. The Yankee pitchers would obviously fare better against a weaker lineup. I guess it doesn't really matter which team the face. I think there are pluses and minuses for both and the Yanks match up well either way. But if pitching wins championships, I guess I'll skip Verlander thank you very much. What would be ideal would be if the AL Central came down to the final day. Justin Verlander's turn is Sunday I think. If they're tied or if it's a 1-game playoff, the Yanks would see him later in the series or possibly on short rest.

2)Which series will the Yankees take? Since the Yankees have the best record, they get the choice of which ALDS schedule they want. They can take ALDS series A, which has games on 10/7, 10/9, 10/11, 10/12, and 10/14 or ALDS series B which has games on 10/8, 10/9, 10/11, 10/12, and 10/14. It's thought to be advantageous to take ALDS series A because of the added off-day. I agree with that. If the Yankees choose ALDS series A, they will be able to go with a 3-man rotation and still have guys pitch on regular rest. CC pitches tonight and would pitch again on 10/7, which gives him 5 days rest. He could come back and pitch game 4 on 5 days rest. If the Yankees played in ALDS series B, CC would start game 1 on 6 days rest and would pitch game 4 on 4 days rest. Andy Pettitte is slated to pitch game 2. He would be lined up to pitch game 5 in ALDS series A and would only pitch game 5 in ALDS series B if Sabathia pitched game 4 on short rest. It's advantageous to the Yankees to keep guys on regular rest. But if there is anyone who can pitch on 4 days rest, it's CC Sabathia. I don't think there's any advantage in taking ALDS series B. Series A keeps the rotation at 3 (no Joba or Gaudin) and everyone pitches on regular rest. It also frees up a roster spot since only 3 SPs are needed. An extra hitter could be key. Series A also means A-Rod can get some extra rest.

3)Who will be on the playoff roster? As I mentioned above, if the Yankees take ALDS series A they'll only need 3 SPs. That would allow them to carry an extra hitter on the roster. I think there are several players who are a given so let's just get them out of the way:

• Hitters: Jorge Posada, Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano, Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Nick Swisher, Melky Cabrera, Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, Brett Gardner, Eric Hinske, Jose Molina and Jerry Hairston, Jr.
• Pitchers: CC Sabathia, Andy Pettitte, A.J. Burnett, Alfredo Aceves, Phil Hughes, Mariano Rivera

Those 19 guys are definitely a given. The breakdown right there is 13 hitters and 6 pitchers. I think the team would be best off if they carried 10 pitchers. The choices are Joba Chamberlain, Chad Gaudin, Phil Coke, David Robertson, Brian Bruney, Damaso Marte. You have to have a lefty and Phil Coke gets the nod over Damaso Marte. I don't see them carrying both Chad Gaudin and Joba Chamberlain. I'm not sure that either would make the ALDS roster. Both are candidates to start in the ALCS. I think if you put one in the pen, you're committing him to the pen for the duration of the playoffs. If the Yankees want Joba to start, I think Gaudin doesn't make the playoff roster for any series. Personally, I'd prefer to see Guadin get a start in the ALCS and Joba to join the pen for the playoffs. Joba was electrifying as a RP. I think the Yankees would have a lights-out back of the bullpen with Joba, Hughes, and Mariano. I leave Gaudin off for the ALDS and throw Joba in the pen (for the entire playoffs). Bruney and Robertson get the final 2 spots. So spots 7-10 go to Bruney, Coke, Robertson and Chamberlain,

13 hitters and 10 pitchers leaves 2 open spots. The choices to round out the offense for my money are Francisco Cervelli, Ramiro Pena, and Freddy Guzman. It makes sense to carry a 3rd catcher. If the team faces a lefty, they could sit Matsui and DH Posada. The 3rd catcher would allow them to make a defensive substitution late if need be. For that reason, I'd put Cervelli on the roster. Which brings me to Ramiro Pena and Freddy Guzman for the last spot. Whoever gets this spot is going to see little playing time. In my opinion, this guy's role would probably be as a pinch-runner. Guzman is definitely quicker than Pena. I've got to go with Freddy.

Here is my roster for the ALDS:

• Hitters: Jorge Posada, Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano, Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Nick Swisher, Melky Cabrera, Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, Brett Gardner, Eric Hinske, Jose Molina, Jerry Hairston, Jr., Francisco Cervelli and Freddy Guzman
• Pitchers: CC Sabathia, Andy Pettitte, A.J. Burnett, Alfredo Aceves, Phil Coke, Brian Bruney, David Robertson, Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes, and Mariano Rivera

When the ALCS rolls around, I add Gaudin to the roster and take Guzman or Cervelli off. I'm not sure which I prefer. Guzman would be nice to have as a pinch runner against the weak-armed Red Sox. Yeah, I think I keep Guzman either way.

There you have it. What do you think? What changes would you make? I think no matter how it gets sliced the team is going to have a great shot to win it all. I'm liking their chances.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

A Better Late Than Never Post About Last Night's Game

I wanted to post something about last night's game during my lunch today but work was pretty busy and I didn't have the time. Since tonight's game is a little less than 2 hours from now, I don't want to write a full post. Here are some really quick little notes:

• A.J. Burnet looked really good.
• Phil Coke looked really bad. He's lucky they came back.
• Kyle Farnsworth looked worse than Phil Coke.
• Juan Miranda looked like he enjoyed his pie.
• Walkoffs never get old. I'm glad to see the team still get fired up about winning what's technically a meaningless game.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

John Henry Can Suck It As Yanks Sweep Boston To Clinch Division And Home Field

Start spreading the news. The New York Yankees are the 2009 AL East champions. The New York Yankees clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs. The New York Yankees will be the only team this year to reach 100 wins. The New York Yankees are the best team in baseball. Deal with it.

Today's victory versus the Red Sox was great on so many levels. Division clinched. HFA clinched. 100 wins. Red Sox swept. Celebrating in from of the Red Sox. After losing the first 8 games to Boston the Yanks came back to split the season series. Get the picture? It was a great day for the Yankees. It was a great day for Yankee fans.

I'm actually watching the replay of the game right now on ESPN. Phil Coke is about to whiff David Ortiz to finish off the 8th inning. I should be getting ready for bed but I think I'm going to stay up and relive today's highs all over again. The game today was great, wasn't it? Andy Pettitte had a rough start but settled down and pitched a pretty good game. Andy has been awesome this year. I'll admit it. I wasn't a big fan of Andy returning to the Yankees this year. (Teixeira just hit a Yankee Stadium special on the replay. Suck on it John Henry). Those feelings about Andy had more to do with how much money he wanted over anything else. I'm so glad he came back though. He's been great this year. He's always been a better pitcher in the 2nd half and this year, unlike last, isn't an exception. In his last 11 starts, Andy is 6-1 and the team is 8-3 in his starts. I think we can all forget about Andy have arm/shoulder issues. His last 2 starts were really no different than his first 29. He'll be primed and ready to pitch this postseason. There was a lot of talk on the ESPN broadcast today about how the Yankees should set up their rotation in the ALDS. They liked Burnett starting game 2. I like Andy. If the ALDS happens to go 5 games, the Yankees would likely bring back their game 2 starter to start the game. I want the 2nd best pitcher the team has starting that ball game. Right now, that pitcher is Andy Pettitte. CC in game 1. Andy in game 2. A.J. in game 3. That's how I do it. What say you?

Another great job by the bullpen again. Brian Bruney really surprised me. He took on the meat of the Red Sox lineup and sent them down in order. he looked a lot like the Brian Bruney from earlier in the season. Bruney lost his way for a while. I hope he's back on the right path. Phil Coke also looks to be his old self. Coke has not given up a hit in his last 9 outings, a span of 5 innings. His ERA has dropped from 5.13 to 4.68 in that time frame. The Yankee bullpen is awesome. 'Nuff said. And the man at the back end of that bullpen is the most awesome of all. I wouldn't be worried about his last 2 outings. Mo's outings were a little shaky but were they really? I don't think so. The tying run would have never reached base today had Robbie Cano not tried to make some impossible play at 2nd. That was an easy out at first. Robbie should have been smart enough to know that. He got Kotchman on a weak grounder and Ellsbury on a comebacker. Ironically enough, that comebacker just happened on the replay. The division is ours baby. I'm smiling from ear-to-ear. Awesome. Totally awesome. Way to go guys. Back to Rivera, if you're worried about him, don't be. He's the GOAT. October is Mo-time!

Congrats to Robbie Cano for picking up his 200th hit. Cano, in my opinion is a special player. I can't believe some Yankee fans were giving up on him after last season. Last season was a rough one for Robbie. The big difference this year is that his head seems to be in the right place. He doesn't come off as lazy anymore. Not to me anyway. I'm a big Cano fan. I think he's going to have a great career. I wouldn't be surprised if he makes a run at the HOF. I know it's early but the talent is there. As long as Robbie stays focused, he'll do great things.

Mark Teixeira's 8th inning HR, a cheapie in my opinion, gives him 38 on the season, 1 shy of league leader Carlos Pena. If Teixeira can connect for 1 more HR, he might finish the year with the most HRs and the most RBI, better known as 2/3 of the triple crown. Mark has been bringing it lately. He's got the average up to .294, which is 15 points higher than it was 3 weeks ago (.279 on 9/6). Teix could make a run at .300. I don't think he'll make it but he could pull it off. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised. Guess what guys? Texieira is a Yankee for another 7 years. I know. Awesome, right? And I didn't even mention his Gold Glove defense. Suck it John Henry. For those who forgot or didn't know, after the Red Sox won their 8th straight game against the Yankees, John Henry, owner of the Red Sox, tweeted, "The MT curse?" The MT stood for Mark Teixeira. Since that tweet, the Yankees won 9 of 10 from the Red Sox. This bears repeating: Suck it John Henry. What a douche.

A common thing I heard on the postgame show was there is still more business to attend to. The rest of the regular season may be meaningless but there is a lot of important baseball ahead. The team needs to stay focused over the next 7 days. They need to remember that all of this means nothing if they punk out in the postseason. I'm sure Joe Girardi is going to be resting a lot of the regulars over the next week and I don't have a problem with that. These guys should be very well rested when the ALDS starts. I love October. It is without question my most favorite time of the year. I can't wait for the postseason to start.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yankees Pitching Staff Comes Through In 3-2 Win Over Angels

I got a text alert from the Yankees an hour or so before the game started. It said that Girardi was keeping A-Rod, Damon, and Swisher out of the lineup. When I read that my first thought was, "Well I hope A.J. is on because it'll be a weak lineup." The offense hasn't exactly shown up when they play in Anaheim. At first I was puzzled as to why Girardi would sit those guys in what I thought was a big game. It wasn't a must win, but it was still important nonetheless, in my opinion anyway. Besides getting one step closer to winning the AL East, the Yankees could get one step closer to wrapping up home field advantage throughout the playoffs. I didn't quite get the move, especially with tomorrow being an off day. Then I read how poorly A-Rod, Damon, and Swisher have performed against Scott Kazmir. The move then made more sense. I still didn't like their chances. With 1/3 of the regular lineup riding the pine, the pitching had to be there. As you all should know by now, it was.

I had my doubts with the wildly inconsistent A.J. Burnett getting the start but he got the job done. He allowed a few too many baserunners for my taste but his 11 Ks neutralized any real threats. A.J. pitched pretty well. 3 of his last 4 starts have been pretty good with one being really bad. Throw out the bad start and we're looking at: 18.2 IP, 18 hits, 9 walks, 17 Ks, and 4 ER (1.93 ERA). Not bad but he needs to bring that WHIP (1.45) down a little bit. Allowing so many baserunners will eventually catch up with you. I'm really hoping Burnett has his stuff together. He's going to be a big part of the team in October. The Yanks need him if they want to go deep into the playoffs.

Big up to the bullpen for pitching 3+ scoreless innings. Marte picked up 2 huge outs. He got Yankee killer Chone Figgins to fly out with 2 on to end the 6th. He then got himself out of a little jam by getting Bobby Abreu to ground into a 4-6-3 DP. Phil Coke bailed out Albaladejo. That was big. Ian Kennedy even got in on the action. IPK was a little shaky. Scratch that. IPK was a lot shaky. That was scary. Kennedy seems to forget how to have control whenever he pitches at the big league level. 2 walks and a hit-batter. 15 of 28 pitches for strikes. He's got to be better than that. But he didn't allow any runs, so I can't speak to ill about his outing. But like with A.J., allowing too many baserunners will eventually catch up with you. So watch yourself IPK. And what would a 3-2 win be without Mariano Rivera picking up the save? He's the GOAT. 'Nuff said.

As expected with that lineup, there wasn't a lot of scoring. It all came at once with the big knock coming off the bat of Robbie Cano. Robbie may not come through a lot with RISP but his hit today was clutch. He seems to be doing that more and more lately, though still not nearly at the level he needs to. Robbie's buddy Melky came up with the other big hit and I hope that snaps him out of his slump. Melk was in a God-awful 1 for 21 slump before that base knock. He then followed that double with a single in his next AB. Slump over? I hope so.

The win today has to be a huge confidence booster for the Yanks. They finally won a series in Anaheim. I don't remember the last time they did that. The Yanks could very well find themselves playing the Angels in the ALCS. These 2 wins hopefully got that monkey off their back. The win also puts the Yanks one step closer to clinching the division (magic # is 5) and one step closer to clinching HFA throughout the playoffs. Their magic # to clinch HFA over the Angels is 4. They very well could wrap both up this weekend against the Red Sox. The magic # to clinch the East could be as low as 3 by the time the Yanks take the field again. All I can say about that is, go Royals!

Off day tomorrow as the team flies back home. Enjoy it while you can because the real fun is about to start.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Burnett Brutal But Bombers Beat Birds

Ok, time for another lunch time post. Today's time limit is 18 minutes. Start your stopwatch now.

A.J. Burnett was again awful yesterday. He did everything is his power to lose that game. Lucky for us, the offense and the bullpen bailed him out. A.J. allowed 11 hits and 2 walks in his 5.1 inning outing. That's a WHIP just under 2.50. That is horrible. As I wrote yesterday, Burnett has been inconsistent lately and he hasn't really been good since the beginning if August. Sure he's had a good outing here and there, but by and large, he's been pretty bad. He's now 0-4 in his last 7 starts with an ERA of 6.54 and a WHIP of 1.59. He hasn't been getting the job done.

It was really frustrating watching him relinquish lead after lead yesterday. He gives up a 1st inning HR and immediately out the team in the hole. The answered back with 3 runs in the next two innings and Burnett blew that lead. He got the lead back in the 5th and gave it right back. The Yanks tied it up and then A.J., through no fault of his own, left the game with 1 out and 1 on in the 6th. The bullpen brought it home pitching 3.2 scoreless innings. Well done fellas. Damaso Marte has looked good since being activated from the DL, pitching 3.1 hitless/scoreless innings. David Robertson continues to impress. D-Rob is a K-machine, eh? 58 Ks in 38 innings for the kid. Impressive. Phil Coke even managed to get some outs, something he hasn't done lately. The game was turned over to the legend (Mo Rivera) and that was all she wrote. Take it away John Sterling.

6 minutes to talk about the offense. Cano has been tearing it up lately, going 3 for 4 last night with a double and a jack. He has 9 ribbies in his last 5 games and is 10 for 22 (.454) in that span, raising his average from .314 to .320. Robbie is having a great year. Shame on you if you wanted him traded. He's definitely a HOF-caliber player. He just needs to keep his head straight. They busted out the power sticks yesterday, launching 5 longballs. Posada went deep twice and is now sitting on 19. He hits 1 more to become the 7th Yankee with at least 20 HRs. Jeter will become the 8th if he hits 3 more, which is doable. Crap, I'm out of time. I'll have to go into OT for this one. What's up with Nick Swisher loving Camden Yards? He's hit 4 HRs there and only has 3 at home. That's really odd considering how hitter-friendly Yankee Stadium is. Somebody needs to figure that out.

CC goes tonight for win #16 tonight. The Yanks are facing Jason Berken and his 6.33 ERA, 1.67 WHIP, and .314 OBA. The Yanks faced him and beat him back in July, battering him for 5 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks. The game is a total mismatch on paper. The Yanks are playing well, winners of 5 straight and owners of a 6.5 game lead. I can't think of a reason why they'd lose tonight. Can you?

4 minutes over my limit. D'oh.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yanks Cap Off Series Sweep Of White Sox With 8-3 Win

You know things are going well when Sergio Mitre and Chad Gaudin combine for a 1-hit shutout. I got to see most of the game before we had to leave for my wife's family reunion (thanks son for taking an extra-long nap). I made it through the top half of the 8th before we had to go. The game was well in hand but that didn't stop me from logging onto the Internet with my cell phone (something I had to pay for) about 30 minutes after we left to check the final. I have to say it. I was impressed with both Mitre and Gaudin. I definitely did not see that coming.

Mitre looked pretty solid. It's a shame he got knocked out of the game though. He was cruising and could have gone the distance as he was only at 73 pitches when he left with 1 out in the 7th. It definitely helped Sergio that the Yankees offense staked him to an early lead. Sergio could afford to be more aggressive and let the Yankees defense back him up. I guess you could say the same went for Gaudin. The offense came through in a big way, scoring runs in every even-numbered inning. It was a pretty good game all-around. Well played.

The series finale was close until the offense exploded for 5 in the 7th. After that it was smooth sailing. I'm not a fan of these new "Joba rules." I get wanting to limit his innings to save his arm but it seems like such a waste to have him start and throw 3 innings. Maybe I'm old school but I think pitch counts and inning limits are ridiculous. I also don't get why it's an inning limit and not a pitch count limit that they're concerned with. It's not the # of innings that affects one's arm, it's the # of pitches they throw. Joba threw 35 pitches today. Seems like such a low amount. Typically, he'd throw that in 2 innings. I wonder what their plan was, 35 pitches or 3 innings? I'm not advocating putting him in the bullpen but they might as well if the plan is to use him for so few pitches. But that's just me. I haven't fully processed it yet so maybe I'll change how I feel about it.

Great game from the Yankee pen, except for Phil Coke, in relief of Joba. Joba left with a 3-2 lead and the pen kept it there until the offense broke through. Phil Coke's slide down the ladder continued today. I wanted to smack him when he pointed up on the HR he gave up. I've written that before about Coke. He points up to indicate a pop-up on deep fly balls. You don't do that, especially on HRs. I vaguely remember reading that Coke got "fined" for doing that when the Yankees' Kangaroo Court convened earlier this year. Coke, unless he pitches tomorrow, is going to finish the month with an ERA of 11.17. That's a quick way to get relegated to mop-up duty. With Damaso Marte back and pitching well so far (no hits/runs in 3 appearances), Coke is probably going to be used very sparingly and not in any big spots. At least I hope that's the case. Phil Hughes continues to dominate as a reliever. He made his 30th appearance out of the pen today and had another great outing. It's been one solid performance after another. As a RP, Phil has allowed only 5 ERs in 38 innings. That's a 1.18 ERA. Talk about being the man. 38 innings, 22 hits, 10 walks, and a whopping 48 Ks. Hughes and Rivera are probably the best bullpen combo out there right now. It's pretty much game over.

The offense again had a nice day at the plate. They were 9 for 23 with RISP over the last 2 games. Derek Jeter continues to stay hot picking up another 2 hits and raising his average to .335. His average for the month of August is .381. Talk about being en fuego. Jeter has to be the Player of the Month, right? Mark Teixeira picked up 4 RBI today and had the big 3-run HR that broke the game open in the 7th. The 4 RBI give him 101 for the year, which is best in the AL by 5. Teixeira and Jeter should each get some serious consideration for the MVP award. They're both very deserving.

The Yanks are 6 games up on the Red Sox. The Yanks are off to Baltimore while the Red Sox are headed to Tampa Bay. The Yanks play their next 7 games on the road, 3 with the Orioles and 4 withe the Blue Jays. The Red Sox also play their next 7 on the road, 3 with the Rays and 4 with the White Sox. It's a good time for the Yanks to put a little more of a cushion in between them and the Sox. Even if they just maintain their 6 game lead, they'll be 6 up with 25 to play. Not a bad place to be. Andy Pettitte starts the road trip off tomorrow. He's been pretty darn good this year in the 2nd half and he's done better on the road than at home. His ERA is over a full point lower on the road, 3.58 (away) to 4.65 (home). AP is rocking a 2.84 ERA in August and it's 2.79 since the ASB. That's pretty good. Let's hope he kicks the roadie off right and does what we expect him to do and that's pitch a beauty.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

One Mistake Will Kill You, Yanks Lose Series With 7-2 Loss To Rangers

I didn't get to follow along with much of the game today. I never fare well with staying up on weekday afternoon games. This thing called 'work' usually gets in the way. I had a meeting today from 1-2 so that killed the 1st hour. I'm in a training class also and that kills my chances to listen to it on the radio. My only option is to follow along online. That gets tricky in a training class. I saw my first update at 2pm when it was 1-0 Yanks. The next time I looked it was 3-1 Texas and Ian Kinsler just went deep. It looked like A.J. Burnett was cruising along up until that point. The HR was the 1st hit A.J. gave up but it came at just the right time, as he just walked two straight batters. From what I've gathered, it sounds like the bomb to Kinsler was A.J.'s one big mistake. And it was a doozy. As a pitcher, you can only hope your offense is there to pick you up. Today, it wasn't.

A.J.'s final pitching line looks pretty damn good. Anybody that whiffs 12 guys in 6 innings has some pretty dominant stuff working for him. If only he could have finished off either Josh Hamilton or Nelson Cruz. I heard on the post-game show he had 2 strikes on both hitters and ended up walking them. I think I heard he had Cruz down 1-2 and ended up losing him. That hurts right there. It's a little Joba-esque, no?

Phil Coke is starting to wear on my nerves. My friend Nick has been saying for months that Phil Coke sucks. I was always defending him. As I thought about him today, I'm wondering why and what Coke was doing that had me fooled? Perhaps I was stuck on how well he pitched in June, posting a 0.71 ERA. Perhaps it's that he tends to be better more often than when he's bad, but when he's bad, he's really bad. He's allowed earned runs in 15 of his 59 games this season. That doesn't sound too bad, especially when I see that 2 of them were in his 1st 3 games of the season, and 6 came in July. He's given up earned runs 3 times in August. He's very hit and miss. I can't really call a relief pitcher with an ERA over 5 good by any means. Right now, I'm still trying to justify that he's good and I'm hating myself for doing it. Back in the day you called a relief pitcher with an ERA over 5 a minor leaguer. Nowadays it's almost par for the course. My advice for Girardi when it comes to Coke: use him for a guy to two and try to keep it to lefties. Anything other than that and it's asking for trouble.

A new series starts tomorrow. The White Sox are coming to town. The big man is going for the Yanks. CC has been pretty awesome lately. He's won 5 straight 8 of his last 10. He's given up only 6 earned runs in his last 4 starts, a span of 30.1 IP. The Pale Hose are sending Mark Buehrle. Buehrle is winless since he threw a perfect game. He's lost 4 of his last 6 starts and has an ERA of 6.21 in those games. The Yanks bombed him the last time the two teams met. They pounded him for 7 runs on 12 hits in 4.1 IP. What's that all mean? Absolutely nothing, as baseball games aren't played on paper. I like our chances though with CC going. But that goes without saying.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

The Red Sox Catch A Boogie Down Beatdown

I don't know about you guys but I slept extremely well last night. It could have been from the lack of sleep I've gotten recently. It could have been because the Yankees swept the Red Sox. I'll go with the latter. I was asked several times at work today how my weekend. My response was always along the lines of "it was the best weekend ever." When asked what made it so great I'd reply that the Yankees swept the Red Sox. They would chuckle and say, "I should have known." I don't want to say I'm the office's biggest Yankee fan, wait, yes I do. I can't remember the last time I went to work when I wasn't rocking a Yankee shirt. My wardrobe is chock full of Yankees clothes. Some say I have a problem. Those people can suck on eggs thank you very much.

I don't think the "Boogie Down Beatdown" (or Bronx Beatdown, you pick) could have gone any better. I would have been very happy had the Yankees won last night's game 1-nothing but I like the fact that the Sox, and their fans, had their joy from V-Mart's HR yanked away from them 10 minutes later. I love that the Sox had a glimmer of hope and had it snatched away moments later. I take great joy in that. When the Yankees were down 2-1, I tweeted (you can follow me if you want, click here) that the greatest ending to the series would be if the Yanks won on a walkoff and beat that ass clown Papelbon. Damon and Teixiera going back-to-back (and belly-to-belly) off Daniel Bard will have to do. Different Sox reliever. Same result, sans walkfoff.

The Yankees pitching was absolutely dominant. CC kicked some serious tailfeathers on Saturday. Andy Pettitte, not to be outdone by CC or A.J., pitched a gem of his own. It's too bad last night's win went to Phil Coke. I can't stand when a guy comes in and gives up the lead only to pick up the win because the offense picks them up. Brian Bruney got a win like that on June 30th. I feel bad that Andy didn't get the win. He definitely deserved it. I know a lot of people were hammering Girardi for not bringing in Phil Hughes. I understand why he didn't as it would have been Phil's 4th outing in 5 days. But, I still would have gone to him. He pitched to 2 batters in 3 days, throwing only 9 pitches. I'm pretty sure Phil had a few pitches in him. I would have gone to him, but again, can understand and respect why they didn't.

The Yankee pitching staff held the Sox scoreless for 31.2 innings (if you count the final out of Thursday's game). If not for Anthony Claggett, a pitcher who had 1.2 major league innings under his belt, it would have been longer. Feel proud Sox fans. Your offense is absolutely terrible. The Sox offense is pretty potent though. They've scored the 5th most runs in the AL. For my money, and I'm not saying this because I'm a Yankee fan, all of the credit goes to the Yankee pitching staff. They kicked some major ass. I think it's safe to say that both CC and A.J. were well worth the money. Just like.......

Mark Teixeira. Despite going 0-6 on Friday, Teix had a great series, going 6-17 with 2 2B and 2 HR. His HR last night was just the icing on the cake. Suck on that John Henry. I've also got to give it up to A-Rod. He's been pretty clutch this year. Pete Abe blogged this yesterday and it bears repeating: Alex Rodriguez has 20 home runs this season. Eleven of them have tied the game or given the Yankees the lead. Of his 62 RBI, 33 have tied the game or given the Yankees the lead. Add another HR and RBI to that total. Despite the low average, Alex is having a pretty solid year. Not quite the MVP-type of year Teixeira is having, but he's getting there.

It's a good time to be a Yankee fan right now. The team has won 7 straight and have the best record in all of MLB (2.5 games better than the Dodgers). The lead in the AL East has grown to 6.5 games. The Red Sox are plummeting and their fans must be miserable. The Rays are 8 games back. The pitching staff is kicking butt. David Ortiz was outed as being on "the list" (release it already). Life is good. Life is sho nuff good.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yankees Pitching Implodes (Again) In 14-8 Loss To Angels

Today's game pretty much went the same as yesterday's. A great start and then all of the sudden, KABLAMO! So if you're interested in reading my thoughts on the game, scroll down to my last post and replace the names Joba Chamberlain, Mark Melancon, and Brian Bruney with Andy Pettitte, David Robertson, Brett Tomko, and Phil Coke. The guys sucked yesterday. The guys sucked today. Same story, just different names. I'd sprinkle in something about all the Yankee homers (5) today, but why bother? They were all for nothing.

Boston is up 6-0 in the 3rd. Consider the Yankees 2 games back.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Happy 4th!

Sorry for not posting after yesterday's game. My friend Joe and I took a little road trip to Erie, PA to check out the Trenton Thunder. They crushed the Seawolves 10-1. I also got Jesus Montero's autograph. Good times.

Yesterday's game in a nutshell: A.J. was again the man. Hughes is in, Bruney is out. Mo picked up another save and A-Rod hit another homer. Yankees win. Thuhhhh Yankees win. I like the fact that Hughes is now pitching the 8th. He's been pretty dominant as a reliever and has been extremely consistent. The Yankees wisely replaced Bruney with Hughes. I like Bruney and all, but I'm a Hughes guy. I guess we can start the "Hughes to the bullpen" debate now. Like Joba, he's going to excel as the set-up guy and then move to the rotation next year. It isn't even a question. Hughes is a starter and will be in the future. It would be a waste to have him pitch out of the pen in the future. Same as it is with Joba.

Enjoy the 4th!

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yanks Use The Longball To Drop Rays 5-3, Bring On The BoSox

OK. I'm having a total writer's block moment as I try to figure out how to open this post. I've been staring at my laptop for a good 10 minutes now and nothing is coming to me. Probably a sign of being tired. I have the sneaking suspicion that this post won't be my best work. Let's see how it goes.

The Yanks took full advantage of the new Yankee Stadium tonight, belting 4 dingers en route to a 5-3 win over the Rays. They took 2 of 3 from the Rays which means another series win. They've won 8 of their last 9 series and are now 11 games over .500 at 34-23, a full game ahead of the Red Sox. They didn't exactly dominate tonight, but it was enough to get the job done.


Andy Pettitte didn't have the sharpest outing but he did pretty well. As I watched the game I kept expecting the wheels to fall off. I'm still wondering how Pettitte fared as well as he did. I also can't believe Pettitte leads the team with 6 wins. Amazing. I'm now sure why I'm so underwhelmed by Andy. He is after all 4-1 in his last 6 starts. But his line over those 6 games is pretty bad: 35.2 IP, 40 hits, 21 walks, and 16 ER. That's an ERA of 4.04 and a WHIP of 1.71. How the hell is he doing it? He's battling through these games and he's coming out on top. So whatever he's doing, I hope he keeps it up. Andy is one helluva 5th starter I'll give him that. Anybody else feel underwhelmed when it comes to Andy?

Despite going deep 4 times, the Yankees offense was again a little lacking today. Rays pitcher Andy Sonnanstine is having a pretty bad year. His ERA is over 7 and opponents were hitting .329 against him coming into tonight's game. The Yankees offense managed only 6 hits in 26 at-bats (.231). Thank God they were playing at home as all 5 runs came courtesy of the longball. June is being very kind to Nick Swisher. He's hitting .500 (9-18) this month. Swish needs to keep it up as the team is really going to need that bat, especially with the slumping bat of Hideki Matsui in the lineup. It's becoming painfully obvious that Matsui's best days are long over. Matsui is hitless in his last 5 games (0-14) and is 0 for his last 17. He put together a nice string of games before this slump so the potential is there but he has this mechanical flaw at the plate that he just can't seem to shake this year. It's as if he's falling out of the batter's box on each swing. Maybe "falling out of the box" isn't the best way to describe it, but if you pay attention to him you'll see what I mean. Get on that Kevin Long.

The bullpen tonight was rock solid. Phil Hughes looked really good. Really really good. His fastball seemed to have a little extra zip to it. But as I blogged earlier today, he needs to pitch more than 1 inning. I'm all for him pitching in the majors but not if he's going to top out at 3 innings a week. With Wang starting Wednesday, perhaps there are some more innings in the cards for Philly Boy. If not, then I hope they consider sending Phil back to Scranton so he can pitch regularly. The Yankees need him to pitch if they want to keep that arm strength up. Phil Coke scares me every time he pitches. I was getting all fired up after he walked Zobrist. I fully expected him to blow it and that's not good. The Yankees have too many relievers that I feel that way about. Thankfully, they're not pitching that often. Yeah, I'm talking about Jose Veras, who hasn't pitched since June 2nd. I think it's safe to say he's at the bottom of the pecking order. That's exactly where he belongs.

Oh yeah, and Mariano Rivera is still awesome.

Bring on the BoSox. The Yankees are winless against the Sox this year but they're a much different team then they were when they last faced them. A-Rod is back. Teixeira's average is 88 points higher. The Yanks are 21-10 since the teams last played each other. The Yanks have the best record in the AL and are playing some great baseball. A sweep of the Sox would be nice, but I'll settle for 2 of 3. I'm ticked that tomorrow's game is on My9. If you've been reading the blog regularly, you know that I don't get the My9 games here in Buffalo. I'm hoping for a miracle tomorrow night when I turn the TV on at 7pm. Gimme my My9!!

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Never Say Die, Show Me The Pie

One word: wow! The Yankees win another exciting game in their final at bat. Today's win is the 4th walkoff win this homestand. I love it. Best of all, both the Red Sox (suck it Johnny) and the Blue Jays lost. The Yankees have won 10 of their last 11 and are now tied for 2nd with the Red Sox, and only a half game out of first. Things are good right now in the Yankees Universe. Things are very good. Question: Name the only AL team that has a winning record both at home and on the road? Better question: Name the only with a winning record on the road? If I have to tell you the answer, you shouldn't be here.

I'm pretty exhausted right now so I'm going to write this post a little differently than I normally do. The 2 kids are running me ragged and sleep is hard to come by. It's my own fault, so don't feel sorry for me. I'm a night owl. I like to stay up late (midnight - 1am), even though I know full well that I'm going to have to get up between 6-7 when my 21 month old wakes up. I put a self-imposed bedtime on myself tonight and it's coming up in about 15 minutes. So here goes:

Mark Teixeira: Another multi-hit game! That makes 8 this month, 6 of which have come in the last 10 games. I think it's safe to say that his slump is gone. It's long gone.

A-Rod: He has 10 hits this season. 7 are HRs. Alex has come up huge this season with 2 clutch dingers. His average may be crap but he's kicking some ass. He's going to have a monster year.

Nicky Swish: Hit the freaking ball already. You have 7 hits this month. Brett Gardner has 8. My love affair with you is rapidly coming to an end. Swisher has struck out 43 times in 42 games. Which brings me to.....

Joe Girardi: I don't understand why they had Melky lay a sac bunt with no outs and a runner on 2nd? You're giving up an out and relying on Swisher (who Ks a lot and isn't hitting) to get the runner home from 3rd with 1 out. I didn't get that. Sure it worked out, but the odds were against it. I thought it was a head scratcher.

T-minus 5 minutes til bedtime....

Melky: Way to come through, again. I'm not your biggest fan, far from it, but you're earning that playing time. Maybe you can be more than a 4th or 5th OF.

Phil Coke- Stop pointing to the sky on deep fly balls.

Andy Pettitte - When I looked at Andy's final line I was surprised to see he only walked 2. Andy threw a lot of balls. Despite that, he pitched a pretty decent game, making one mistake to John Mayberry. Which brings me to...

Fox: Nice job finding the "real John Mayberry." Classic.

I'm 1 minute past my deadline. I'm really looking forward to tomorrow's game. CC vs Cole Hamels. CC has been getting progressively better. His ERA has gone down after each of his last 3 starts. I really want to see him end this homestand on a really high note. Win the game, take the series, and hopefully move into sole possession of 1st place. And just like that, it's 6 minutes past 11. I suck at this.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yanks Keep Rolling Rolling Rolling

I wrote in my post yesterday that I wanted to see the Yanks start rolling teams and stop winning the close ones because eventually those games will start to go the other way. I was real excited when they put 6 on the board in the first, thinking they were well on their way to a blowout. Last night was the season finale of 24. Normally, I would have DVR'd it and watched it later but I knew if I didn't watch it, I'd have it spoiled for me. So I didn't see much of the game. I saw the first inning and I saw the last inning. Lucky for me, that was where most of the game took place.

Mark Teixeira is finally looking like Mark Teixeira. He's been on a tear since A-Rod returned to the lineup. In those 10 games, Tex is hitting .342 (13-38) with 5 HR and 13 RBI. His average has jumped 41 points (.198-.239) and his OPS has jumped 138 points (.735-.873). I think it's safe to say that the slump is behind him. Thank God Alex is back.

Speaking of Alex, to quote my friend Tom via a text message, "Wow. A-Rod heating up." A-Rod has now homered in 3 straight games. A by-product of hitting in the new Yankee Stadium? Possibly. But I'll take it. The only thing that's not there right now with Alex is the average. His .395 OBP is ahead of his career average (.389). His .563 SLG percentage is just below his career average (.578). He's only hitting .188. He's definitely heating up, or at least warming up. It won't be long before that batting average is on par with what's on the back of his baseball card. Once that starts happening, it's over. The Teixeira/A-Rod tandem is going to be unstoppable.

Finally, congrats to Phil Coke on picking up his 1st career save. It was scary for sure. Saying I was worried was an understatement. I was fully prepared to see him blow that lead. I thought for sure we'd see another Yankee walkoff. I'm glad though he got it done. Hopefully, that's his one and only save. That job needs to be Mo's and Mo's only. I don't trust anyone else. I'd be OK with Brian Bruney doing it once in a while. Bruney is expected to be activated off the DL today. The million dollar question is who gets shuffled off to Scranton. I'm hoping it's Edwar Ramirez or Jose Veras. As much as I dislike him, I think I'd rather see Veras stick around. To me, he's the lesser of two evils. I think Veras's stuff is better than Edwar's. If Jose could just get the ball over the plate, he'd fare much better. But I could live with either one going down. I'm curious to see who gets the boot.

The Yanks look to continue the winning ways tonight against the lowly Orioles. I'm a little worried that the offense will go missing because they're facing someone they've never faced before, and they often struggle when that happens. Good news is CC Sabathia is on the mound for the Yanks. If there is anyone that can keep a struggling offense in a game it's CC. CC was awesome in his last 2 starts, winning both games, and allowing only 2 ERs in 17 innings. He pitched a CG SHO 2 starts ago against this same Orioles team. I'm expecting him to continue his hot streak.

Sadly, I won't get to watch tonight's (or Thursday's) game because it's on My9 and for some insane reason Verizon FIOS doesn't carry the local affiliate that shows those games. I'll be following along on the gamecast or I'll be listening to Sterling and Waldmyn (ugh) on XM. i hope those of you that get to watch it, enjoy it.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie