The End Of The Road

Well, Yankees fans. Here we are again. The curtain has dropped on another season and unfortunately things didn't end up going our way. Mission 28 will have to wait another year.

As I was getting condolences today from friends and family members on the loss, I tried to explain that it actually wasn't that bad. Sure the loss hurts but it's a manageable pain. I think it's easy for me to get past the pain of the season ending because we've been here so many times before and we've been fortunate enough to walk away on top. I think winning has made the sting of losing easier to deal with, if that makes sense. Either way, it still sucks. I definitely wasn't ready for the season to end last night.

I spent much of last night and today digesting the loss. I read through a ton of Twitter comments and listened to a good amount of sports talk radio. I've come to a conclusion: There are a great deal of smart Yankees fans out there but Good Lord there are a lot of dumb ones. I have to wonder if I'm watching the same games as everyone else.

For starters, I saw and heard a lot of blame being thrown on Joe Girardi for over-managing last night, specifically with the use of the pitching staff. That couldn't be further from the truth. Let's take a look at his moves. Ivan Nova gets hurt and gets replaced by Phil Hughes. Logical move in my opinion. The team needed to eat some innings and who better to use than a starter turned reliever to do that. Hughes following Nova was the right call. Girardi lifted Hughes after throwing 21 pitches. That made sense to me as Hughes had only pitched a total of 3.2 innings since September 12th. Phil wasn't stretched out to throw much more. Boone Logan came in to face the lefty and lasted for 2 hitters, which is about what he normally does. I think here is where it got interesting. In came CC.

Using CC in that spot made perfect sense. Continuing with Logan made no sense and in an elimination game you want your best pitchers pitching, right? Other than Mariano Rivera, who's better than CC? Nobody. I understand the confusion because he was pitching on 2 days rest. I think a lot of people didn't get or didn't know that starting pitchers normally throw a bullpen session at this point during their rest. The bullpen sessions, as I understand them, usually lasts for about 40 pitches. It makes perfect sense to have CC get the preparation for his next start in during the game rather than before it, like the Tigers did with Verlander. CC's outing lasted 37 pitches by the way. He wasn't overused. I think many people also thought that since he pitched in game 5 of the ALDS he couldn't pitch in game 1 of the ALCS. I'm pretty sure had the Yankees won last night that we'd have seen CC start game 1. Like I said, it's not uncommon for a SP to throw 40 or so pitches at that point during his rest. It's actually the opposite. It's part of the prep work. What surprised me the most is that there were a lot of people that are supposed to be "in the know" (beat writers, Ken Rosenthal) who were pointing out that the move to CC would prevent him from starting. CC pitching in relief last night was the right call. Who else did you want to pitch there? I'll take CC all day.

There was no reason whatsoever to blame Girardi's management of the pitching staff for last night's loss. That's just dumb. The pitching staff had absolutely nothing to do with losing last night. That blame lies strictly with the offense. I can kind of blame Girardi for that.

Girardi should have recognized that certain people in the lineup were struggling and he should have done something about it. The 4-5-6 hitters in the Yankees lineup (A-Rod, Teixeira, and Swisher) were absolutely brutal. Beyond brutal even. That trio combined to go 9-for-55 (.164). You can't expect to win when you get that from your 4-5-6 hitters. Girardi should have recognized the struggles and made an adjustment. Personally, I would have moved Teixeira to the 3rd spot, Cano to the 4th, A-Rod to the 5th, Posada to the 6th, and Swisher to the 7th. The lineup would have looked something like this: Jeter, Granderson, Teixeira, Cano, A-Rod, Posada, Swisher, Martin, Gardner. That in my opinion, is a much better lineup.

I like Cano in the 4-hole for several reasons. One he's the best hitter on the team. Just like it did last night the game often comes down to A-Rod. A-Rod usually hits 4th. If the game often comes down to that spot in the order who do you want hitting there? Your best hitter, right? If you weren't aware, that is without a doubt Robbie Cano. He's the guy I want up with the game on the line. And let's face it, Robinson Cano doesn't need protection in the lineup. He's better at giving protection that getting it. Mark Teixeira could have used better protection. If you hit in front of Cano you're going to see better pitches compared to what you'll see hitting in front of Swisher.

Girardi should have also moved Jorge Posada up a spot in the order. Girardi should have recognized he was swinging a hot bat and moved him up ahead of Swisher. I'm not sure why Joe stuck with that lineup. Not changing it is the biggest criticism of how he managed that series. But it's not his fault that those guys didn't hit.

So why didn't they hit? I have a theory on why Teixeira and Swisher didn't. I'm not going to try and dig through numbers to validate it either. I don't have that kind of time. But here's my theory: good pitching shuts them down. There's no doubt that Swisher and Teix put up good numbers throughout the season. Over the course of 162 games you're going to come across quite a few subpar pitchers. Those guys feast on that. But I think they struggle against the cream of the crop. How else can you explain their postseason struggles at the plate? Wouldn't you agree that the teams that make the playoffs have better pitching than those that don't? I think those guys don't do well against good pitching. I don't know how else to explain it. If anyone has theories my ears are open.

After Girardi, A-Rod was receiving his fair share of criticism. While I think he deserves it to an extent, it's evident that Alex isn't 100%. I think I heard today that he was hitting .190 after coming of the DL in August. Alex was hitting .299 right before going on the DL. He finished the season with a .276 average. He definitely wasn't himself and I'm inclined to think that was a big reason why did so poorly at the plate. To his credit, he played outstanding defense the whole series. He made several great plays and I don't think you can begin to measure exactly how valuable his glove was in the ALDS. I'm not going to crush the guy over his ALDS performance.

Wow, I've been at this blog post for about an hour. I've got a little bit more to say and I'm just going to bullet point it out. Enjoy!

• I'm pretty sure Jorge Posada's time with the Yankees is over. I don't think it makes much baseball sense to bring him back. It's obvious he's not going to catch. The only role he fills is as DH or maybe even at 1B. The plan should be to have Jesus Montero DH full-time. I don't see a spot for Jorge. I'll miss Jorge. He was a gamer and he always, as he put it, just grinded it. Thanks for everything.
• I love Nick Swisher. I do. I think he's a great clubhouse guy but let's face it, he's not a clutch performer. I don't call him "The Rally Killer" for nothing. The Yankees will have a decision to make when it comes to whether or not they should pick up his option. My gut says I hope they don't but he does ring value to the team. My main concern is how he fades in October. I'm indifferent on Swish. Would be fine if he stays. Would be fine if he goes.
• I fully expect CC to exercise his opt-out clause. He'd be dumb not to. Having said that, I fully expect him to resign with the Yankees. He's made it known several times that he loves pitching in New York. He's done very well here and he has to know that the club is committed to putting a winner on the field. He should op-out and renegotiate the next 4 years of his deal. The Big Man deserved more dough. The only way he gets it is to opt-out.

I'm sure I've got more to say but I'm running in fumes so I'll save it for later. I'll close with saying that despite the Yankees failing in their mission to win, it was a really great year. Derek Jeter joined the 3000 hit club. Mariano Rivera officially became the man. We saw the emergence of Ivan Nova. We saw David Robertson step up and become an 8th inning guru. Brian Cashman's "scrap heap rejects" performed above everybody's expectations. It was a great year with a lot of great memories. It's sad that we reached the end of the road.

Speaking of reaching the end of the road I'm not 100% sure what the future holds for this blog. I really enjoy doing it but it's becoming harder and harder to keep up with. When you have 3 kids aged 4 and under it's tough to free up the time for blogging. I want to keep it going but I'm not sure what commitment level I can make to it. If this ends up being my last post (I doubt it will be) the blog will kind-of live on through my Twitter account. If you're not on Twitter you're missing out. It's a great place to connect with people that share your passion. I'll always be on there talking Yankees. That you can count on.

Until next time......

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

I'm Baaaaack (Sort Of)

Well hello there. Long time no blog. As promised, via Twitter, I'm back. I hope you guys have been well. I'm well. Can't complain. Just wish there were more hours in the day. Oh my Mariano it's been awhile, hasn't it? Just checked and it looks like my last blog entry was in mid-May. May 16th to be exact. The Yankees had just lost their 6th straight game, were sitting on a 20-18 record, 2 games behind Tampa in the AL East. Here's what I blogged:

Not much is going the Yankees way right now. Not much at all. Nobody is hitting. The pitching is suspect. It's not a good time to be a fan of the Yankees. I'm not worried though. well, I'm a little worried but not much. Every team has these funks. If you remember, the Yankees lost 5 straight back in 2009 and went on to win the World Series. There is a lot of baseball left to play. There's plenty of time for these guys to right the ship.

Fast forward now almost 5 months. The Yankees just ended a 6 game win streak. They are 87-54 and 2 games up on the 1927 Yankees, err I mean, the Red Sox in the AL East and they have a 9.5 game lead in the wild card race if they were to fall behind Boston. They lead the league in runs scored and have the 3rd best team ERA in the AL (9th in MLB). Looks like the ship has been righted. It's a good time to be a Yankees fan.

Sorry I've been away so long. It became increasingly tough to find time to blog with 3 kids at home, all under the age of 4. I could barely find time to watch the Yankees play. My wife is a teacher and when school ended our kids stayed up later, usually until around 8:30, sometimes even later. By the time we got them to bed and I did what I needed to do (shower, etc), the games were usually in the late innings. I felt extremely disconnected from the Yankees Universe. When I had the time, I usually took to Twitter for talking about the Yankees. I stayed up on things as much as I could but they didn't get as much attention from me as i wanted to give.

Now that school has started up again the kids are getting back to their 7:30 bedtimes which should allow me to catch most of the game. I'm hoping that everything else in my life cooperates and I'll be able to fire off posts with somewhat regularity. It may not be daily. There may be a day or two that goes without a post. But you definitely won't see another 5 month hiatus. At least that's the plan.

Before I get back into talking about the Yankees I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who's ever frequented the blog and/or interacted with me on Twitter. You guys make being a Yankees fan more fun than it already is. Thanks for that. Special shout out to a few people: Susan, Sara, Lorenzo and Timmy. I appreciate the support and the conversation. There are definitely more people to say thanks to and more people to appreciate. I don't mean to offend by leaving names off. Those 4 just immediately popped into mind. If you feel slighted by being not being named personally, please don't. I didn't intend to offend.

I'll close this return with some Yankee thoughts:

• I owe Curtis Granderson a lot of money. I pledged to give his charity $15 for every of his HRs. He currently has 38. Yeah, I didn't see that coming either. I'm currently in for a $570 donation with 22 games to play. When I was deciding how much to pledge I was thinking he'd hit maybe 25 HRs. Definitely wasn't expecting 40+. CG has to be the current favorite to win the AL MVP. He currently leads the league in RBI, he's 2nd in HR, and what I find most impressive is he's leading the league in runs with 126, which is 26 more runs than the 2nd most (Ellsbury w/100). I'll be shocked if he doesn't win that award. Props to CG and K-Long for turning things around.


• Do people still think Brian Cashman is an idiot? Almost every move he's made this year has panned out: Russell Martin, Freddy Garcia, Bartolo Colon, Cory Wade, Eric Chavez and Andruw Jones have all made significant contributions to the team. Low risk, really high reward. Step off his frankfurter if you're still hating.


• Derek Jeter has had quite the season. It looked like 2011 was going to be a repeat of 2010. The he got hurt and he came back a new man. I don't think anyone saw DJ getting his average up to the 300 neighborhood.


• Welcome to NY Jesus Montero. You haven't disappointed. I'm looking forward to great things during your tenure in Pinstripes.


• Poor Jorge Posada. The only thing he has to blame for his fall is his abysmal performance. It's evident to me that this is his last year in Pinstripes.


• Move over Trevor. 4 more saves and Mariano is officially the king of the hill. He's the G.O.A.T. With any luck I'll get to see him break that record in person when the Yankees are in Toronto. I won't complain if he breaks it sooner. Saves mean wins. I'll take those.


• A.J. Burnett is (mostly) terrible.


• Ivan Nova is not terrible. Can you say Rookie of the Year?


• CC is still the man.


• I did not think David Robertson would pitch as well as he has. Dude truly is Houdini. He does need to cut down on the walks.


• LOL @ the Boston Red Sox. Better than the 1927 Yankees? How dumb does that guy look now?

I'm sure there's more to say but that's enough for now. We're in the home stretch and as I wrote above it's a good time to be a Yankees fan. Enjoy the last 3 or so weeks. October baseball will be here before we know it.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yankees/Rangers Weekend Wrap-Up

Am I the only one out there who is beyond exhausted? It's been a rough few days and the lack of sleep is catching up with me. I'm pretty sure I fell asleep a few times today while driving to work. I'm also pretty sure that I dozed off once or twice on the way home from the office. I spent the last half-hour sleeping in my kid's bed. I was tucking him in and next thing I knew a half-hour passed. I didn't want to go three days without blogging about the Yankees. I've done a good job of keeping up with it this year and I want to keep that going. I feel asleep on my feet right now so this won't be my best blog ever. Consider yourself warned.

• It was nice leaving Texas with a series win especially after dropping 3 of 4 to Detroit. It made the road trip a little nicer.
• How good is it to see Derek Jeter stinging the ball? He's been swinging a much better bat lately. His grounders are becoming line drives and his line drives are becoming home runs, or at least they did yesterday. Derek all of the sudden has the 3rd highest batting average on the team at a respectable .276. A 6-game hitting streak will do that to a guy. DJ had a nice little road trip going 11-28 (.393). He rose his average 34 percentage points in the process. Is the Captain back? Maybe, but I'm not 100% ready to declare his return just yet.
• CC Sabathia impressed me a little bit yesterday. He was by no means sharp as he walked 4 and threw only 58.7% of his pitches for strikes. He struggled out of the gate, settled down, and battled his way to a decent start. It's nice to know he's effective even when he doesn't have his best stuff.
• Curtis Granderson is bleeding me dry. I pledged to donate $15 to his charity for every HR he hits. I was banking on maybe 25 dingers. He's leading the AL with 11 and we're only a month into the season. Smack my head. I'm glad he's doing it though. Kevin Long definitely knocked it out of the park with CG. Wow. He's been on a tear since last last season. I'm not going to be surprised if he belts at least 50 HRs this year. I'd hate to part with that much money but I won't mind because it will probably mean the Yankees are doing very well if I do.
• Despite the 12-run outburst on Sunday I'm still concerned about the offense. Averages for the most part are going in the wrong direction. There currently isn't one .300 hitter in the bunch. That's surprising to me.

Well, I'd like to keep writing but the wife just dropped a bunch of jobs on me. I was hoping to go to bed in about a half-hour but I'm at least an hour away from sleep city. This is going to be a weird week for me. I have to travel for a training class and I'm not sure if I'll get to see much baseball in the latter half of the week. I would much rather chill in my hotel room watching the Yankees each night than having to go to dinner and all that jazz. I think I feel a cold coming on. *cough cough wink wink* I'm interested to see how the next couple of days play out. If I'm not blogging that's why.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

The Bats Wake Up, The Pitching Stays Hot, The Yankees Roll The Pale Hose

Now that's what I'm talking about. The Yankees had it all working tonight. A great outing from the starter. An offensive explosion. It's good when everyone is on the same page and they fire on all cylinders.

CC Sabathia pitched a great game. Typical CC. I got a late start on giving my kids their baths tonight. I walked by the TV in the top of the 1st and saw runners on 2nd and 3rd with no outs. I was a little surprised when I turned on the MLB At-Bat app and saw that CC go out of the inning without allowing a run. I love it when these guys pull a Houdini act. CC's start makes the 7th straight outstanding start from the Yankees. Over the last 7 games, Yankee starters have thrown 50 innings, giving up 8 earned runs on 35 hits and 11 walks while striking out 38. That works out to a WHIP of 0.92 and an ERA of 1.44. Out-freaking-standing. I take great pleasure in putting those numbers together each night. I hope it continues.

By the time I got all the kids to bed it was the top of the 5th. The Yankees were up 2-0 and to my surprise they scored those runs without having a hit. What what what? That soon changed with a 5th inning hit parade. That was fun to watch. Nick Swisher went 3-4 with his 1st HR. What what what? Brett Gardner went deep. What what what? Jorge Posada went 0-4. Figures. Half-kidding on that last one.

Man Jorge is struggling. He's not even hitting the ball hard. That's kind of sad. I thought the DH role would suit him well but so far not good. It just doesn't look like there's anything there. How long can they go with him in the lineup when he's doing that poorly. I don't even see any good contact. I'm very concerned about Jorge. I think he'll snap out of his funk. When is the question?

Overall, great night for the offense. Any night you score 12 runs on 13 hits and 8 walks is a great night. It was nice to see after several games of futility. I'm hoping the bats stay hot and the starting pitching gets hotter than it is already. It was nice to see greatness on both sides of the field tonight. It will be nice if they can keep that going as the Blue Jays are coming to town and they always seem to give the Yankees fits. It should be a great series. It would be nice to see a sweep and end April on a really high note but I'll settle for a series win. Take it to 'em guys.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Somebody Call The Baltimore Police Because The Yankees Just Murdered The Orioles

Somebody needs to call the Baltimore cops because a crime was just committed in Camden Yards. Wow. Talk about a massacre.

CC Sabathia was on cruise control tonight. Despite scoring 3 runs the Orioles couldn't really touch him. It was a very free and easy outing for CC. Had the Yankees not tore the roof of the mother in the late innings he probably would have gone the distance. It pretty much was a lights out performance. Exactly what you'd expect from the ace. Apparently, when you go winless thru your 1st 4 starts the only way to guarantee yourself the win is to take care of it yourself. CC was a man on a mission tonight. He pitched most of the game with a pitch count well below 10 pitchers per inning. His control was excellent. He threw 73.8% of his pitches for strikes, walking one and whiffing 7. Great job by the big man.

You could slice this 2 ways but you could make a case that CC is off to his best start as a Yankee. It's a close call between this year and last. Thru his 1st 5 starts this year, CC has pitched 33 IPs to a tune of a 2.73 ERA. He's allowed 31 hits and 10 walks (1.24 @WHIP), while striking out 30 and allowing 2 longballs. Last year in his 1st 5 starts, he threw 34.2 IPs with a 3.12 ERA. His WHIP was better at 1.07 (25 hits and 12 walks). He struck out 28 and allowed the same number of HRs. I know it's not a true comparison due to the many different factors between the seasons, but either way you go, he's off to a good start. It's probably a little behind last year but not by much.

The entire offense, with one exception (Nick Swisher) had at least one hit tonight. The biggest blasts came off the bats of Russell Martin (what's new?), Alex Rodriguez (what's new?), and Brett Gardner (say what?). Yeah, that last name is a surprise. BG chipped in with a double and a 2-run HR. His HR was surprising but it came at the perfect time. The O's had just intentionally plunked Martin. And I say intentionally because you don't just happen to hit 2 HRs and get hit right near the head on accident. Gardner avenged that HBP by going yard. Nothing beats that kind of retaliation. Suck on that Showalter.

What is going on with the power surge, right? The 2011 Yankees are definitely Bronx Bombers. They belted another 5, count 'em 5, HRs tonight. They've now hit 35 on the season which is a team record thru their 1st 17 games. They have 4 guys with 6 HRs a-piece (Posada, Martin, Teixeira, Granderson). The biggest surprise though is that Nick Swisher hasn't hit any. It's probably because I'm not dropping $$ to his charity this year. Granderson is getting that love and he's earning it. I was anticipating donating like $300 or so. He's on pace to take about $850 from me. Yikes. Don't quote me on this stat because I'm sure I don't have it right but Granderson has hit the 3rd most HRs in all of MLB going back to some point in August 2010. Wow. Props to Kevin Long. And not just for working his mojo on Curtis but on all of the guys. Now if only he could fix Derek Jeter. That should be his priority numero uno.

Great win tonight. The Yankees handles things on both sides of the field. They came. They saw. They murdered the Orioles. The Yankees don't have an off day until May 9th. They play 15 straight days, get an off day, and then play another 16. Baseball is in full swing. I love that.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

The Bronx Bombing Continues As The Yankees Down The Rangers 6-5

I'm having some serious writer's block right now. I don't know if it's caused by lack of sleep or what, but I'm blanking on how to open this post. I just let out a huge yawn so it's probably due to a need for sleep. I'm going to try and keep this post short and sweet. Whenever I say that I end up writing a book. Let's see how this goes. Hope it's coherent.

It was a great come from behind win tonight against the Rangers. CC Sabathia wasn't sharp but he pitched well enough to leave with the lead. He battled his way through 6.1 IP and was in line to pick up his 1st win of the season when Joba blew the save. I wrote yesterday that my confidence in Joba was increasing. Today he took 2 steps backwards in that department.

Despite blowing the lead, the "formula" of using Joba, Rafael Soriano, and Mariano Rivera to close the game worked out. Those 3 make up quite the tandem, don't they? Just imagine if Joba and Soriano could be more consistent like Mo.

Man, how good is Mo? It truly is a gift to watch him pitch, isn't it? I have never laughed out loud watching Mo strike out a hitter but I did tonight. He made Ian Kinsler look absolutely stupid. And when I say stupid, I mean stoopid. That was unreal. Vintage Mo. Now in case you didn't know this, Mo's 1-2-3 inning tonight dropped his career WHIP to 0.9997. It's unreal to think that Mo has a career WHIP below 1. It seems like he's getting better and better as he gets older. If only he'd sign a lifetime contract. Somebody make that happen.

This year's offense is definitely worthy of the Bronx Bombers moniker. Three more HRs tonight, which puts the team total at 27 thru 13 games. There was a stat flashed during the ESPN broadcast that the Yankees have scored 61.1% of their runs via the longball. Five of the six runs tonight came off the HR so that percentage went up. The crazy thing about that stat is that it's almost double the league average. Unreal. Now, I don't know why people make such a big deal about them scoring so many runs via the HR. Last time I checked HRs were a part of baseball. Who cares how the runs score as long as they score?

Curtis Granderson is going to ruin me financially. I pledged to donate $15 to his charity for every HR he hit. Curtis is on pace to hit about 50 HRs. That'll cost me about $750. I'd be happy to pay it.

How smart does Brian Cashman look right now? All of his "scrap heap rejects" are doing rather well for the Yankees. And the "rejects" I'm referring to are Eric Chavez, Andruw Jones, Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia. Tonight it was Chavez's turn to do his part. He made a few slick plays at 3rd but the big moment came in the 8th when he singled home the game-winner. EC is swinging a sweet stick so far. His 2 hits tonight raised his average to .467. Granted 15 ABs a small sample size but he's already paying dividends, on both sides of the field.

I'd end the post here but I again want to give a little praise to Brian Cashman. Eric Chavez is hitting .467. Andruw Jones is hitting .333. Freddy Garcia pitched 6 shutout innings in his first start. Bartolo Colon has been more than effective on the hill. Heck, if you want, add in Russell Martin. Russell Russ has been a huge surprise for the Bombers. He's now hitting .289, has 4 HRs and 11 RBI. Boom. Let's even take this one step further. Cashman spoke publicly about not wanting to sign Rafael Soriano. Sori isn't exactly lighting the world on fire. Point Cashman. Show him some love haters. He deserves it.

Off day tomorrow. Correction, the clock just flipped to midnight so off day today. Next stop, Toronto. Toronto is basically in my backyard. I've got something going on Tuesday so I won't be making it up there for the series opener but as of now, I'm going to Wednesday. Can't. Freaking. Wait.

That was not short and sweet.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Double Plays, Walks And Wild Pitches Do In Yankees

The Yankees lost what I think was a very winnable ball game tonight. It was frustrating to watch and there really isn't a whole lot to say about it. It was a sloppy game to say the least.

The Yankees tied a record tonight and unfortunately that's not good. They grounded into 6, count 'em 6, double plays. Talk about rally killers. Hat tip to Matt Harrison for inducing so many DPs. If you can induce that many you're doing something right.

Ivan Nova was well, Ivan Nova. Did alright early but then the wheels fell off around the 5th inning, which pretty much happens in most of his starts. I didn't think he started too poorly but popular opinion said he was a little less than decent. In his 4.1 innings he allowed 4 hits, 5 walks, 1 HBP and a wild pitch. That's not going to get it done. Nova needs to be better, much better.

I'm a little concerned about the Yankees rotation. Phil Hughes hasn't been effective at all and is now on the DL with a dead arm. I didn't know ineffectiveness was a reason to DL a guy. Everyone has maintained Phil's not hurt so I'm not sure how they pulled that off, but whatever, it works. Phil's DL stint means Bartolo Colon now moves into the rotation. That's a move I'm a fan of. Bartolo has pitched well this season and he can easily slide into the starter role. But I'm not sold on him just yet. And we haven't even seen Freddy Garcia yet. Right now the Yankees have 2 reliable SPs and that's all dependent on A.J. Burnett continuing to pitch well. I have confidence in CC Sabathia and that's about it. I'm worried about everybody else, to varying degrees.

The positive tonight was the bullpen. 4.2 innings of hitless/scoreless ball. The highlight was the debut of Lance Pendleton. He faced 9 batters and retired them all. The kid looked good and I was impressed. But it's 3 innings. I'm not ready to crown him the second coming of Mariano Rivera just yet. Who am I kidding? There will never be a second coming of Mariano Rivera. Best there is, was, and ever will be. He's God.

Congrats to Curtis Granderson for hitting his 3rd HR and banking another $20 for his charity. I think we're up to $65. At this rate Curtis is going to break my bank. He's on pace to take $600+ from me. If anyone is wondering what I'm talking about, every time Curtis goes deep, I donate $$$ to his charity, the Grand Kids Foundation. If you're interested in donating along with me, please feel free to do so. If you're ever curious about how much is getting donated, just check out the total in the upper left. To learn more about the "pledge drive" click here.

The Red Sox just lost, again. They're now 2-10. Talk about pathetic. Wow. They're terrible.

Freddy Garcia makes his first start of the season tomorrow. There's rain in the forecast. Wouldn't that be something if he got skipped again? Weather is supposed to be bad so it could happen. 1:05pm start. Hope they play.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yankee Bats Absent In Loss To The Sad, Sad Red Rox

I'll give credit where credit is due. Hat tip to Josh Beckett on pitching a masterpiece. 8 innings pitched, 2 hits, 1 walk, 10 Ks, no runs. That's a shutdown performance right there. As they say, good pitching beats good hitting, and that's exactly what happened tonight. Josh Beckett was everything the Red Sox needed him to be. And that's a good thing because if not for Josh Beckett, the Red Sox probably don't win that game.

The fact that the Red Sox won tonight does not change the fact that they're a sad, sad team. CC Sabathia for all intents and purposes was ineffective tonight. He allowed 9 hits, 4 walks and hit a batter. And somehow, he managed to leave the game down 1-0. The Red Sox managed to put 14 runners on base against CC and they scored once. That is terrible. I'd like to give CC credit for getting himself out of jams but he showed me very little tonight on the hill. The Sox were 3-14 with RISP and left 16 men on base. CC got out of the jams because the Red Sox offense is terrible. Bad pitching apparently beats bad hitting. And that sums up the Red Sox offense. Bad. Very bad.

If I was a Red Sox fan, and thankfully I'm not, I wouldn't be super-excited about this win. Sure I'd be a little geeked up but I wouldn't take this win as a sign that the tide has turned. Again, as I said, the Red Sox are a sad, sad team. It's very laughable, and kind of sad, that the Fenway Faithful bust out the "Yankees Suck" when they're team is 2-7 and playing so poorly. But I guess with a sad team you get sad fans. They've got to hang their hats on whatever they can. The Sox now have the good fortune of getting to play another sad team in the Tampa Bay Rays. It should be an interesting series to say the least.

Not much else to say about this loss. It sucked but what can you do? Josh Beckett was on his game. All you can do is tip your cap and get past it. Consider it done.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Joe Girardi Done Messed Up, Costs Yankees Game #5

Yeah, I'm all kind of pissed right now. Freaking Joe Girardi. What the heck are you doing my man? His bullpen management cost the Yankees the game tonight! And I don't want to hear from anyone that it's only April, or that it's the 5th game of the season, or that it's only one game or only one loss. Divisions are lost and playoffs are missed because of one loss. Every game matters and every loss counts, regardless of when the game is played. Tonight's loss didn't need to happen. If the Yankees miss the playoffs by one game this will be one of the losses that could have changed their fate.

I'm putting this loss on Girardi's bullpen management because he made a move that shouldn't have been made and it came back to bite him in the ass. Joe never should have opened the 8th inning with Rafael Soriano on the mound. The right play was open with David Robertson and go to Soriano if Robertson gets into trouble. That's how I would have managed it. Here's why: The Yankees were up 4-0. Soriano had just pitched the day before. Freddy Garcia is starting tomorrow and who knows what you'll need from your bullpen. I would have tried to save his arm as much as I could. David Robertson is a quality RP and has the stuff to get hitters out. Girardi should have let him take a shot.

The thing that makes me the most annoyed is how Girardi responded to questions in his post game press conference? When asked why he went to Soriano he responded because Soriano is "our 8th inning guy." Umm, what? Last time I checked every game has an 8th inning. What are you going to do Joe? Use him every game? You've got to be smart and pick your spots. Tonight wasn't the right spot. Many factors need to be taken into account. The biggest factors: What's the lead? (4 runs) When did he pitch last? (yesterday) When will he be needed again? (possibly tomorrow). Add all that up and your answer should be: open the 8th with another pitcher. Girardi also comment that he didn't want to bring Soriano in during the middle of an inning? Why not Joe? Soriano is a closer by nature, not a set-up guy. Everybody knows that closers do better when something is on the line? We've all seen Mariano Rivera falter in non-save situations. Maybe bringing Soriano in with a 4-run lead isn't a good idea. I'm sure he'd do better with a little pressure. Who knows? One last question for Joe: who's your 8th inning guy tomorrow?

Aargh. It's late and my brain is fried. I want to blog a little more but I still have some stuff to do before bed and in addition to being pissed I'm dead tired. Here are the rest of my game thoughts in quick-hit fashion:

• Great outing by CC. He was in mid-season form. He'll only get better. Too bad the pen couldn't hold it. CC deserved the win.


• Mark Teixeira hit another 3-run HR. Doesn't look like he'll struggle this spring. He's locked in.


• Andruw Jones. Welcome to NY. Nice first AB. He hits LHPs rather well. Keep it up.


• I hate lefty specialists. I've said it for years. Boone Logan didn't get it done tonight. He's there to get out Denard Span and Joe Mauer, not issue leadoff walks and singles. Shape up or you're getting shipped out.

After ranting about Girardi, let me add this: I know it's not all his fault. Players still need to execute. It was Rafael Soriano's job to get those guys out, He failed in that. But again, he shouldn't have been in the game to implode like that. Aargh.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Curtis Granderson's Bat And Glove Propel Yankees To Opening Day Win

Happy Opening Day Yankees fans! I'm sure I can speak for all of us when I say that today was a truly awesome day. Baseball is back. The Yankees won. All is right with the world.

As I do every year I took time off from work to watch the opener. I got together with a couple of buddies at a local watering hole for the game. You can't go wrong with beer, burgers and baseball.

The Yankees didn't play their best baseball today and quite frankly I didn't expect them to. I was pleased with what I saw and what I saw was good enough for the win. CC Sabathia was far from mid-season form but he was effective. Things could have got real bad real fast there in the 2nd inning when CC loaded the bases with no outs. But like a good pitcher does he got out of the jam with little damage. Overall a very solid 1st outing for CC. The big man usually gets better as the weather gets better. If that holds true, based on today's start he's going to have one heck of a year.

Great job by the Yankee bullpen. I guess we know now how Girardi is going to play it. It looks like the blueprint is Joba or David Robertson in the 6th/7th, Soriano in the 8th, and the great one to bring it home. My buddies and I were a little nervous when Joba took the mound. He kind of looks like a fat Sergio Mitre, doesn't he? Am I the only one who thinks that? Anyway, he had a solid inning. Half of us were expecting a meltdown. Joba has a lot of work to do to earn back our faith in him. Today was a step in that direction. I think Rafael Soriano is going to have a lights out year. He looked pretty sharp today. He could represent the most solid bridge to Mariano Rivera that we've seen in awhile. Speaking of the great one he's still the man. As if there was any doubt. I can't think of a better way to end the home opener than with Mo picking up the save.

It was good to see Mark Teixeira get off to a good start. Hopefully he can keep it up. I'm cautiously optimistic that he can. Pretty good day for A-Rod. On base 3 of 4 times and he came a few feet from going to deep. You know things are working for Alex when he hits the ball with power to right CF. I thought for sure that ball was gone and on a better day weather-wise it probably would have been. My only criticism of A-Rod is that he should have been busting it out of the box on that shot. He should have been standing on 3rd.

I think the biggest surprise today was the play of Russell Martin. I was shocked when he stole 3rd. I was more shocked when he scored from 3rd on a shallow sac fly. Who knew the dude had such wheels? He was quite the catalyst today.

Player of the game honors goes to Curtis Granderson. He came through with the big swing and picked up $20 for his charity. Allow me to explain: like I did last year with Nick Swisher's charity, I'm donating $ to Granderson's Grand Kids Foundation every time he goes deep. $15 per HR. Others have joined in to donate as well. You can check our progress in the upper left and if you want to chip in you're more than welcome. CG was also pretty slick in the field too. I thought there was no way that he was getting that ball that was hit over his head. He definitely had the best day in my opinion. Looks like his oblique is fine. Thank God and knock on wood.

Overall a great day. A great win. 1 down, 161 to go. I really wish there was a game tomorrow. I'm kind of bummed there's not. Oh well. There's a lot more baseball left to be played. Giggedy giggedy giggedy.

Did I just write my 3rd post in 3 days? Yeah, I think I did. Wow.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Goodbye Andy Pettitte, Hello Officially Crappy Offseason

Ladies and gentleman, the dookie has hit the fan. I didn't think this day was coming but it has and I am totally bummed out. Andy Pettitte, aka one of the greatest Yankee pitchers ever, aka one of the greatest Yankees ever, aka one of the Core Four, aka one of if not the best big game pitchers EVER, is hanging up his spikes and calling it a career. And now a moment of silence.....





As I tweeted earlier today this sucks balls. I thought for sure Andy was coming back for one more tour of duty. When I heard he was working out I was further convinced. When the news broke today I felt I got punched in the head, slugged in the stomach and kicked in the balls all at the same time. It was not a good feeling and it hurts on many different levels.

For starters, it pretty much makes this a terrible offseason. I had blogged after Cliff Lee signed with the Phillies that it wasn't a big deal that the Yankees didn't land him. I stated that the real key to the offseason was the return of Andy Pettitte. Had Andy returned the Yankees would have pretty much had the same team as last year. A team that won 95 games and made it to the ALCS. They would have gone into 2011 with the same squad and same chance for success in my opinion. Pettitte's retirement coupled with the offseason moves by the Yankees, or better yet lack of offseason moves, might make for a pretty rocky 2011. The starting rotation right now is the biggest weakness. After Sabathia and Hughes there are a lot of question marks. Which A.J. Burnett will show up? Who will fill out the back end of the rotation and will they be serviceable? Right now none of the candidates (Sergio Mitre, Ivan Nova, Mark Prior, Bartolo Colon, Freddy Garcia and possibly Joba Chamberlain) instill a lot of confidence. I saw a tweet today that read, "CC and Hughes and then we lose." Confidence levels aren't high on starters 3-5 that's for sure.

I think the Yankees will still be competitive. Their offense is stacked. The bullpen is rock solid. They will win their fair share of games. Hopefully they'll win enough. Hopefully Brian Cashman has a trick or two up his sleeve and can bring in a starter via trade before the season starts. The Yankees do have a highly thought-of farm system that can certainly be used to land a top-flight starter. Fingers are crossed because I'm not liking what they've got after Burnett. I don't though think it will be as bad as "CC, Hughes and then we lose." Burnett will bounce back in my opinion. I don't think it's all doom and gloom. At least I hope it's not.

I'm really going to miss watching Andy Pettitte pitch. I was fortunate enough to see him pitch several times in person in Toronto. It was always a treat, whether it was in-person or on TV. I have a lot of fond memories.

I'll always remember his trademark stare to the plate. I'll always remember 2009, when he pitched the clinchers. I'll always remember the home opener in 1996 against the Royals when Andy took the mound while it was snowing. I'll never forget the several times I got his autograph in Toronto. He was always so nice. I'll never forget how crappy I felt when he left in 2004 and how great I felt when he came back in 2007. I'll never forget when he beat John Smoltz in game 5 of the 1996 World Series. I'll never forget the 19 postseason wins and the 5 World Series titles he helped win. I'll never forget how he would say the word "y'all." I'll always remember Andy Pettitte.

There is a press conference scheduled tomorrow for 10:30am, which I believe is going to be broadcast on both the YES Network and the MLB Network. I have the DVR set up to tape both channels. I would love nothing more to have Pettitte pull a fast one on everybody and say something like, "I'm here to announce that I'm retiring from baseball........after this season. Let me sign the contract." Doubt it will happen but I'm holding out hope. I also wouldn't mind if he at some point pulls a Brett Favre and unretires. There's no doubt in my mind he could still pitch at a high level.

I'll miss you Andy Pettitte. Hopefully I'll see you (thought I doubt I will) see you in Cooperstown. Take care and best of luck to you. Thanks for everything.

Peace, love and thank you Andy,

J-Boogie

Cliff Lee Went To Philly, B.F.D.

Greetings everyone. Long time, no talk. I have no good reason to explain my absence. I've just been super-busy with work, life, and all that jazz. I've been meaning to blog an entry here and there but it's been hard to find the time. I told myself I would when the whole Cliff Lee drama resolved itself. So here I am.

I can sum up my feelings about Cliff Lee signing with the Phillies in 2 simple words: don't care. Would it have been nice if Cliff Lee signed with the Yankees? Abso-freaking-loutely. But is it the end of the world that he didn't? Not even close. Adding Lee to the Yankees rotation would have been a huge improvement to the team. No doubt about that. But they're still fine without him, as long as one thing happens, and that is Andy Pettitte returning to the Yankees.

Had Lee signed with the Yankees it would have made losing Pettitte not such a big deal. Lee would have been like a super-awesome insurance policy. The fact of the matter is that last year's Yankee rotation, which included a horrible A.J. Burnett and a revolving door of 5th SPs, won 95 games and made the playoffs. If Pettitte resigns, the rotation, is for all intents and purposes, the same as it was last year. Sure the 5th spot is open but let's face it, anybody could step into that spot and do as well as Vazquez, Moseley, Mitre & Nova. A rotation of Sabathia, Hughes, Pettitte, Burnett and Lee would have been awesome. A rotation of Sabathia, Hughes, Pettitte, Burnett, and ?? would still be pretty damn good. Again, that tandem won 95 games last year. They'd be formidable enough to win that many again. Right now, Pettitte is the key to that happening. If he retires, then we have a problem.

It seems pretty clear to me that Lee never wanted to be a Yankee. If anybody out there is blaming Brian Cashman for messing things up, and there are people saying he did, they need to stop. Silly irrational fans. There isn't anything he could have done, except for mortgaging the entire future of the franchise, to sign Lee. He was never coming here. I can understand why he went to Philly. I think it gives him the best chance to win. The NL East pales in comparison to the AL East. The Phillies should pretty much roll over that division with ease. Their rotation is pretty sick and is arguably the best in MLB. I'd give that nod to the Giants. They did after all beat Halladay, Oswalt, Hamels and Lee in last year's playoffs. If Lee comes out and says he chose Philly because it gives him the best chance to win, I can kind of respect that. But, it's kind of a wuss move. The AL East is without question the toughest division in baseball. Maybe Cliff was afraid of a little tough competition? Everybody knows NL pitchers have better numbers. I can't blame him for not wanting to face the teams in the AL East 19 times each per season. That's my slightly-irrational view on that. I can admit it.

I also get that Lee loves the city of Philly. I know he has a child with cancer and the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, aka the CHOP, is one of, if not the, best cancer center for children in the country. Makes sense that he'd want to be close to that. Signing with Philly was a good move for Lee. Even at what could be $40-50 million less in guaranteed money.

And those are my thoughts on Lee. Again, not a big deal to me. Assuming of course that Andy Pettitte comes back. I'm inclined to think he will but who knows. The Yankees have been down this road with him before. He'll be back. I hope.

Tomorrow, I'll have up a post about the Red Sox and their fans' misguided confidence about next season. I'm going to write it now and have it come up about this time tomorrow. I also hope to blog more regularly but I make no promises.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Knee Surgery For CC

Story this morning from the NY Post dropping the bomb that CC Sabathia needs knee surgery. When I saw the headline I was like, "Woah." When I read the article I was like, "Eh, that's not so bad." According to the report, CC has a minor meniscus tear in the right knee. Per the article, the Yankees don't feel it's a significant procedure and recovery should take about 3 weeks. If the recovery time is indeed that short CC will be ready in plenty of time for Opening Day. Hopefully this is a no harm no foul type of situation.

Two questions immediately come to mind. How long has CC had knee trouble? Will this have a lingering effect on a guy of CC's size? Answer to first question: probably a while I would guess. I'm sure it had some impact on his postseason. Not saying it's the reason he didn't pitch as well as expected but I'm sure the problem didn't sprout up after the ALCS. The answer to the 2nd question we might not like the answer to. There's no real way of knowing. Odds are that CC will be perfectly fine. But he's a big dude and his right knee is on his landing leg so it's going to get pounded. The article talks a little about CC's "weight and workload." Both certainly will have an impact on the long-term effects this knee problem has. Do the math: 200+ innings at 290 or so pounds can certainly equal knee problems. It's amazing he hasn't had any yet. Prediction: it will be a non-issue. Though I'd be lying if I said wasn't a tiny bit concerned.

This also makes me wonder who else was playing hurt??

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yankees Take Game 5 To Stay Alive, ALCS Heads Back To Texas

If you're a Yankee fan, or a Yankee for the matter, you have to be relieved that the Yankees won today and will live to fight another day. Elimination games are always tough and extremely tense. I wonder who it's more tense for, the players or the fans? I, for one, was extremely nervous even though I was confident that they'd pull out the W. I think it was more tense than normal because I didn't get to see much of it on TV. I caught most of it on the radio and some of it on the MLB app on my phone. I've got to say there is nothing as nerve-racking as following along with MLB gameday. But more on that later.

Big up to CC Sabathia for battling his way through that start. It could have been an ugly game. It's not often you see a pitcher give up 11 hits and only 2 runs. CC made the pitches that he needed to when he needed to. He didn't issue any walks and he got some big DPs. That combination will definitely neutralize a lot of baserunners. It definitely wasn't his sharpest outing but it got the job done. I hope his next start is better than this one. Yeah, I'm confident we'll see him get the ball again. But more on that later.

The Yankees offense wasn't anything to brag about today. They weren't bad. They were definitely better than they've been recently. But it still felt off. But only a little. When they hit the ball they hit it well, racking up 9 hits, 6 of which went for extra bases. But they were 2-11 with RISP. They're not getting the big hits. I'm hoping today is a building block for game 6. Bottom line for me is they need to improve. Great job by Granderson. Ever since he worked with Kevin Long he's been doing fairly decent against the LHPs. The Yankees MVP of this series has to be Robbie Cano. If they pull this off he's a shoe-in for MVP. I'm liking him in the 3-hole too.

Great job by Kerry Wood and Mariano Rivera. I turned the game on just in time to see Wood pick off Elvis Andrus. That made me very happy to see. I don't know what it is about Andrus but he's quickly becoming my least favorite player in MLB. I think it's because I find the whole "antler" thing to be beyond stupid. Just looking at him kind of annoys me. I took great pleasure in seeing Yankee fans mocking the antlers when TBS went to commercial after that pickoff. So glad I caught that. Who knew Kerry Wood was so adept at picking off runners?

So the series is headed back to Texas and the Yankees have another must-win game staring them in the face. As I wrote yesterday they need to worry about game 6 and only game 6. Phil Hughes gets the start and I feel pretty about it. I wrote before the series started that I thought the Yankees had the advantage in the games Hughes started against Colby Lewis. Despite Phil's terrible game 2 start I still think the matchup favors the Yankees. Hughes is better than that and I think he's going to pitch with a lot of confidence in game 6. The real worry is will the Yankee bats be able to hit Lewis? They should be able to and I think they will. Can't wait until Friday.

When I got home from work today my wife immediately sent back out to go pick up some prescriptions for our 2 sick boys. I could listen to the radio on the way there but inside the store I was relying on MLB's app to keep me informed. I had the "gamecast" on while I was filling the order and "saw" Sabathia whiff Vlad Guerrerro. I then took a seat and while I waited I turned on the WCBS feed to listen to John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman. I turned it on and was greeted with 3 straight singles. Being the superstitious guy that I am I turned off the audio and went back to the gamecast. Bases loaded and 1 out and I'm following along on gamecast. That was incredibly tense. First of all, when you don't have picture or sound and you're not getting updates you have no idea what's happening. You wait anxiously for it to tell you the result of the pitch. So with bases loaded and 1 out I get this, "in play, run(s)." So now I'm anxiously awaiting the update to tell me what happened. I'm having thoughts like, "please don't be a grand slam," "aw man here it comes," and other thoughts of that nature. So I wait, and wait, and wait. Give me the update already. What's going on? Tell me!! Ground out, run scores. Phew. Incredibly tense. Thankfully, they filled the order right after that and I got out of there and back to the car. I don't think I could have taken much more of that.

Game 6 is Friday. Let's worry about that and not loom ahead to Cliff Lee. One game at a time. Win and then worry about game 7. Can't wait until Friday.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Why A.J. Burnett Should Start Game 4 Of The ALCS

There's a lot of discussion going back and forth about who should start game 4 for the Yankees: A.J. Burnett or CC Sabathia on short rest? I personally think it's a no-brainer. They have to go with Burnett. Follow me if you will.

To win the ALCS the Yankees need to win 3 of the next 4 games. Here's a question for you: Do you think the Yankees better off trying to win those 3 by starting Burnett in game 4 and then CC, Phil Hughes and Andy Pettitte on regular rest, or, are they better off trying to go after those 3 wins by pitching just CC, Hughes and Pettitte, with each pitching on short rest? CC I'm sure could handle it, but I'm not so sure that Hughes and Pettitte could.

A.J.'s start is being viewed in the same manner as Cliff Lee's start. Everyone was assuming Lee's start was a slam dunk win for the Rangers, and it was. Everyone is assuming that Burnett's start is going to be a slam dunk loss for the Yankees. Now if that's the case, the Yankees still need those 3 wins to come from the other 3. I think their chances to win those 3 are higher with Hughes and Pettitte pitching on regular rest, than with all of them pitching on short rest with CC getting 2 starts, the last being against a freshly-rested Cliff Lee.

Here's another question for you: Are you confident that CC, Phil and Andy could rattle off 3 straight wins on regular rest with the Yankees being down 3 games to 1? I sure as hell am. I feel so much better about that then having them all go on short rest. Am I alone on this? Maybe not alone but I feel in the minority.

Now, what if Burnett happens to steal game 4? It's certainly possible. He has the stuff to win games. It's by no means a slam dunk that the Yankees will lose game 4 if Burnett starts. I'm totally on board with them using A.J. to win this game and then using CC, Phil and Andy on regular rest to take 2 out of 3. I'll take that over the other option.

Also, just think, if CC pitched and happened to lose tonight, we'd be faced with having a fully-rested A.J., or Phil Hughes on short rest, pitching to keep the season going. No thanks. Now on the flip CC could of course win tonight. Then what? Burnett vs C.J. Wilson or Hughes (short-rest) vs C.J. Wilson? If you say Burnett then you're still probably thinking the Yankees leave NY down 3-2, same as you're thinking with Burnett starting game 4 and CC starting game 5. I wouldn't like the Hughes/Wilson match-up either if they skipped A.J. altogether.

Bottom line, the Yankees need to pitch Burnett this series. It provides them with their best chances to win the series to do it in game 4 than it is to pitch everyone on short rest. As nice as it would be to have another option, they don't. Again, A.J. could surprise and steal this game. The series would be knotted at 2 with a fully-rested Sabathia starting to send it back to Texas. If the Yankees win tonight, they have the momentum back.

that all said, I hope A.J. gets the job done tonight. And if he doesn't I'm still not sweating it. CC, Andy and Phil are very capable of pitching this team to 3 straight victories. I'm confident that whether they're tied at 2 or down 3-1 after tonight they still get it done.

Please let it be 2-2 though.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

I Hate It When I'm Wrong

After the Yankees came back from 5 runs down to beat the Rangers I blogged that the series was pretty much over and that the Rangers were done. It was such a devastating way to lose that I was sure that the Yankees were going to walk all over them. I was wrong. Today's Rangers victory pretty much wiped all of that out. The momentum has definitely shifted. The Rangers are very much alive. The Yankees have a fight on their hands.

I was also dead wrong about how I viewed the pitching matchups. CC Sabathia and Phil Hughes have both looked terrible. I thought the Yankees had the distinct advantage in this series when it came to the pitching matchups. So far, not so much. I'm hoping that the trend of me being wrong continues for at least one more game. I blogged that the Rangers had the advantage in game 3 with Cliff Lee starting. Maybe the Yankees will put a hurting on him. Fingers crossed.

All things considered I'm pretty happy that the Yankees are leaving Texas with a split. Leaving up 2-0 would have been ideal but winning one on the road is still big. You can't win the series if you don't win on the road. The Yankees have done that. The Rangers haven't. Advantage Yankees. The boys could also very easily be down 2 games to none. I'll happily take 1-1. Even if the Yankees lose in game 3 I'm still feeling confident they'll put this one out. Hopefully I'm right on that one.

A lot of wasted opportunities today. There's a lot of room for improvement across the board. They've got a day to figure it out. I'm really looking forward to game 3. I'd love for the Yankees to sweep these next 3. It would mean that they'd be back in the World Series and it would mean no more frigging antlers. Yeah, I'm sorry. That's pretty dumb. Real teams don't need gimmicks and real fans don't need props to support their team. Last year it was the thundersticks, this year it's the towels. Very lame. Use your hands and your mouths like real fans.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yankees Comeback And Pull Off An Improbable Game 1 Win

Like the Goonies, the New York Yankees never say die. What an incredible Yankees victory! Unbelievable. I'm still kind of shocked that they pulled it out. If you told me before the game that CC Sabathia was going to get pulled after 4 innings I'd have thought that the Yankees would have been blown out. I'd have to think that tonight's come-from-behind victory took all of the wind out of the Rangers' sails. I wouldn't be surprised if the Yankees sweep this series now. CC Sabathia was terrible. C.J. Wilson was awesome. Yankees have a 5-run 8th inning and win 6-5. Sorry Texas. You guys are done. You can't beat up CC like that and lose the game. Again, you're done.

Play of the game had to be Brett Gardner's leadoff single in the 8th inning. That was a great heads up, or should I say heads down play. They always say that diving into first base is not as fast as running through the bag. If GGBG doesn't dive there he's probably out. If that had happened this would be a totally different blog.

The 8th inning was a great inning. After Jeter doubled Gardner home I said to myself that if Cano made it to the plate that the Yankees would win this game. I would have tweeted that but I had my hands full. Literally. Stay tuned for the story. The back-to-back walks by Swisher and Teixeira were almost as huge as Gardner's single. Those were two great ABs. I loved seeing the Yankees hammer one Texas RP after another. A-Rod sees 1 pitch and knocks in a run. Cano sees 1 pitch and knocks in another. When Robbie was up I said to myself, "C'mon Robbie. One pitch, one out. I mean one pitch one hit." Thank God I corrected myself. Cano had a monster game. M-V-P! M-V-P! Robbie is quickly becoming my favorite Yankee. I hope he's a Yankee-for-life.

There were a lot of huge contributors in tonight's win. The bullpen came up big. Joba, despite looking like he's packed on a few pounds, looked good. Dustin Moseley, of all people, looked phenomenal. He had a huge 2 innings. Kerry Wood had a HUGE pickoff of Ian Kinsler to wipe out a leadoff walk. For shame Ian. Talk about a boneheaded mistake. You can't be doing that at this level and in the ALCS. But thanks for doing it. I think I speak for Yankee fans everywhere when I say, thanks! And as we've seen so many times before in October, the Almighty Mo picks up the save. Mo is a God and I worship him. I think that statement violates one of the 10 Commandments. I think God would agree with me though. Mo is God.

The worst part of this great Yankee victory was CC's performance. He looked downright awful. It could have very well been his worst start of the season. Had the Yankees lost it definitely would have been. Let's chalk this one up to rust and inactivity. Everyone knows pitchers are creatures of habit and pitching every 5 days is what they're used to. It's been 10 days since his last start. I won't worry too much about it. But if his next start isn't vintage CC, I'll begin to worry.

The real hero of this great Yankees win is my little 2 year old daughter. I originally put her to bed at about 10pm. She woke up at around 10:35 or so. My wife wasn't home so I was on a solo mission with her. I went up to get her and brought her back downstairs to get her back to sleep. I brought her down right before Brett Gardner's 8th inning leadoff single. I stood there in our dark living room, holding her and rocking her back-and-forth. Jeter doubles. Swisher walks. Teixeira walks. A-Rod singles. Cano singles. Thames singles and the Yankees are winning. It was during that rally that I dubbed my daughter "The Rally Baby." Being a baseball nut I'm very superstitious. I stood in my living room, holding and rocking her until Mo got the final out. There was no chance I was putting her down. My arm was killing me when all was said and done. But no pain no gain, right? LOL.

Phil Hughes gets the start tomorrow, err, I mean later today. I'm expecting big things tomorrow. The Yankees have all of the momentum right now and the Rangers have to feel defeated. I'm confident the Yankees will be leaving Texas up 2-0. 4 down, 7 to go.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yankees Announce ALCS Pitching Rotation, Matchups Favor Yankees

Both the Rangers and the Yankees announced their starting rotations for the ALCS today. In my opinion, I think the matchups favor the Yankees in potentially 5, if not 6, of the games. Let's take a look:

Game 1: CC Sabathia vs. C.J. Wilson - A perennial Cy Young Award winner vs a pretty decent 1st year SP. Wilson had a pretty good year but let's face it, he's not CC Sabathia nor is he close to being CC Sabathia. The Yankees faced Wilson 3 times this year and he didn't fare very well. In those 3 starts Wilson 15.1 IP, allowing 11 R (9 ER) on 18 hits and 9 walks. Yeah, that's not spectacular. CC only faced the Rangers once this season and it was his 3rd start of the year. 6 IP, 3 hits, 1 ER, 0 BB and 9 K. Not too shabby. And again, it's CC Sabathia. Advantage = Yankees

Game 2: Phil Hughes vs. Colby Lewis - I think starting Hughes in game 2 is an extremely wise move by the Yankees and it may prove to be why they win the series. Hughes, albeit in a small sample size, pitches lights out in Arlington and he absolutely owns the Rangers. In 3 games against Texas, Hughes is 2-0 with 15.1 IP and get this, he's only allowed 3 hits and 4 walks. That's a WHIP of 0.46! Amazing. But again, small sample size so take it for what it's worth. PH is also better on the road than at home. On the road this year he's 7-4 with a 3.47 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. He keeps the ball in the park also, having allowed only 5 of his 20 HRs on the road. Colby Lewis, like C.J. Wilson, had a decent year. He didn't match up against the Yanks this year but against them historically, he's been God-awful, allowing 12 ER in 15.2 IP. I'm not putting a lot of stock in that as again, small sample size. It should be a decent match up but again I have to give the advantage to the Yankees.

Game 3: Andy Pettitte vs. Cliff Lee - This is the match up I want to see. The advantage in this game goes to the Rangers but I don't think it's by a really large margin. Despite having only pitched in the postseason, Cliff Lee could already be the best postseason pitcher ever. In 7 starts, he's 6-0 with a 1.44 ERA and 3 CG. He's been the man. Andy Pettitte though warrants being near the top of that list. Andy holds the record for most postseason wins and he's 7-1 all-time in the ALCS. Both are lefties and both should pitch well in Yankee Stadium. The advantage in this game clearly goes to Lee. But I wouldn't be surprised if Andy figures out a way to make this a close one.



Game 4: A.J. Burnett vs. Tommy Hunter - Yeah, I have no clue in this game. It's a total toss up. It really depends on which A.J. Burnett shows up to pitch. A.J. can be flat out unhittable. He can also be a head case that shouldn't be anywhere near a pitcher's mound. Hunter is a decent pitcher but is also hittable. The Yankees went 6-20 against him back in September and they've hit him well in the past. This one could go either way.

Game 5: Sabathia vs. Wilson - see game 1

Game 6: Hughes vs. Lewis - see game 2

Game 7: Pettitte vs, Lee - see game 4 but for me it's almost a toss-up. Lee doesn't like pitching in Texas. He's pitched decently there this year but his career ERA pitching in Arlington is 5.07. If there is a start he could falter in it could be this one.

I think the only game the Rangers have a clear advantage in is game 4. The Yankees in my opinion have the advantage in 4 of the games, with the other 2 being toss-ups. I think this is going to be a great series but I think when the dust settles the Yankees will be advancing to another World Series. If they do, I've got tickets to game 3. I hope I'm right.

Yankees in 5.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

The Better Late Than Never Yankees ALDS Game 3 Post

I had every intent on blogging right after the series-clinching victory the other night but I fell asleep with the game on sometime in the bottom of the 8th inning. I woke up sometime a few minutes later, fired off a tweet, and then unintentionally fell asleep on the couch with the TV blaring and the lights on, for the next 4 hours. When I woke up I was in an incredible daze. It took me a second to figure out where I was and what was going on. It was an odd feeling to say the least. Sunday got away from me because it was my birthday and we also had to take a road trip to a birthday party for our friends' two-year old. Next thing I know, here I am. Better late than never, right?

Huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuughes! Man, he was awesome in game 3, eh? Count the Us and you'll get 19. One for each victory, both regular season and postseason. Hughes is the man. I think his outing on Saturday turned everybody into believers, something I've been since before day 1. I've maintained all along that Phil was going to be the man. People were (prematurely) shouting Joba's praises while I was singing Phil's. People were killing Brian Cashman for not dealing Hughes to Minnesota for Johan Santana. I saw a lot of tweets and whatnot during Saturday's game about that. My how things change. I went back through all of my posts tagged with "Phil Hughes" to see what I wrote about that proposed deal between Minnesota and New York but I couldn't find it. But I did find this, from a post dated April 3, 2008:

For those of you that don't know me or are new to this blog, likely don't know I'm a big Phil Hughes guy. I frequent his blog. I drove 5 hours just to watch him pitch in Scranton (only to have it rained out). I have a Phil Hughes BP Jersey. I have a Hughes 65 t-shirt. I drove to Erie, PA two years ago just to try and get his autograph, which I did. I also bought one of those "I Want To Thank The Good Lord" Joe DiMaggio signs that they sell on Steiner Sports that's signed by Phil. I got it from MLB auctions for $100. I was biting my nails all off season while rumors were flying about him going to Minnesota for Johan. Thank God the Yankees were smart enough to hold onto Phil.

I bolded the last statement because I'm 99.9% sure it's how every Yankee fan is feeling about PJH right about now. Just imagine if the Yankees pulled that deal. Hughes would be a Twin, Johan would be a Yankee, and CC wouldn't. Thank God (and Brian Cashman) that it all worked out. Phil is going to be an integral part of this playoff run. Any doubts on how he'll perform should be tossed out the window.

Overall it was a pretty great ALDS for the Yankees. I can't believe how much they dominate the Twins come October. It's unreal. I had to fire off another e-mail today to our sister site in Duluth, Minnesota. This one provided the staff out there the suggestion that they contact our Employee Assistance Program if they needed to discuss the sweep with a trained grief counselor. I also suggested they use their Homer Hankies to wipe away the tears and the shame that comes with another ALDS meltdown. Good stuff.

I really should have blogged sooner than now. I'm struggling to remember what I wanted to blog about. Phil Hughes love-fest? Check. Big series win? Check. What am I leaving out? Hmmm. Maybe it was how great the bullpen was during the series? Rivera, Wood, Logan and Robertson combined for 7 innings of 1 run ball. Or maybe it was about how the Yankees apparently do have pitching after CC Sabathia? Pettitte and Hughes = 14 IP, 9 H, 2 BB, 10 K, 2 ER, 1.29 ERA. Or could it have been that the offense was running on overdrive? The lineup went a combined 33-105 (.314) with 11 XBH, 4 SB and 17 runs scored. Everyone had at least 1 RBI and everyone with the exception of Derek Jeter scored a run. How surprising is that? Take your pick. It could have been any of those topics.

And now we wait. We wait to see who the Yankees will meet in the ALCS. We wait to see them take the field again this Friday. I really don't care who the Yankees meet in the ALCS. If I had to go with one team over the other I probably go with the Rays. Call it nothing more than a gut instinct. I really have no preference. I like Tampa because they don't have a guy named Cliff Lee and for the most part, Tampa is like New York south. The Rays won't have a tremendous home-field advantage. The Yankees win either way however because both Lee and Rays' ace David Price will pitch Tuesday night. That means they're out for game 1 of the ALCS and likely out for game 2, unless they pitch on short rest. Advantage = Yankees. But we've got lots of time to discuss that. The series doesn't start for another 4 days. Be back later.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yankees Take Game 1 Over Twins In ALDS

It's late and one of my kids will without a doubt be waking me up by 5:30 so I'm making this quick. here goes, buckle up.

• Big win tonight. Huge to take a game on the road especially in game 1 against their ace.
• CC wasn't great but he was definitely good. Not vintage CC but he pitched well enough and deserved the W. He almost blew it in a painful 6th inning but the team picked him up.
• Mariano Rivera is God. Do I need to expand on that? No.
• Took awhile for the offense to get going but they came through and picked up CC. Teixeira's blast sealed the deal. Gotta love getting a Tex-message.
• Can't believe how bad the umpires continue to be. They want nothing to do with instant replay but you wouldn't know it from the terrible calls. That non-out in the 9th was an obvious catch. Can't believe a 6-man crew couldn't get that one right. Actually, I can.
• TBS is terrible. Can't stand their broadcasts. Craig Sager has to be color blind, right?
• Pettitte vs. Pavano tomorrow. Last thing that can happen tomorrow is Pavano pitching a decent game. I'm hoping Yankees made right call by starting Pettitte over Hughes. We'll see. I would have gone with Phil.
• Roy Halladay is the man. Best pitcher in the game without question.

First pitch tomorrow @ 6pm. Leaving Minnesota up 2-0 would be killer. Take it to 'em Andy.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie