West Coast Boogaloo

Thank God it's Friday. The work week is winding down and nothing makes me happier. I felt like utter dookie last night. All day at work I had this throbbing headache that settled in my right eye. I get them every now on then, but this one put me on my keester. I hit the wrapper last night at 9pm and didn't wake up 'til almost 7 this morning. I didn't eat dinner. I just flopped out on the couch and zoned in and out for a few hours and then finally crawled into bed. It was the perfect night for an off day because I definitely wouldn't have made it for a west coast game. I'm feeling much better and I'm looking forward to watching the Yanks kick some tail tonight in Oakland.
I'm most interested in seeing how Igawa bounces back from hist less than stellar first start. I didn't think he pitched poorly the first time around. He definitely wasn't as bad as his line indicated. He had a few ball fours that could have been strike threes, and I still can't knock him for Melvin Mora's 3-run double that dropped in between Cano, Mientkiewicz and Abreu. Kei needs to be effective with the off-speed stuff. I don't remember the exact stat but I want to say he only got like 3 of 28 off-speed pitches over for strikes against the O's. He's definitely not going to last long if he has to live on the fastball. If he can get the curve over, like he did in spring training, he'll fare much, much better.
Dan Haren is on the hill for the A's tonight and he always seems to give the Yankee bats fits. It's weird that Haren is 0-2 this year with a 0.69 ERA. He's getting no run support from his lineup and when you face the Yankees, you need all the run support you can get. Right now the A's are getting great pitching with sub-par offensive production. The Yanks are getting great offensive production with average pitching. It should be a good series.
Good news today was Wang and Karstens appear to be close to returning. Both are slated for returns in a few weeks. It'll be good to get the band back together in its intended lineup. Knock on wood.
J-Boogie

Twins Wrap Up

It looked for a while that the Yankees had a shot at sweeping the Twins. Moose feels a pull in the hammy and takes himself out of the game (smart move). Ortiz stifles the offense. And then there's Kyle Farnsworth. Ugh. What a pathetic performance. Dude didn't even looked like he cared he was getting knocked around. It's painfully obvious that if Farnsworth doesn't have his velocity up, he's not going to be effective. His arm strength isn't fully there yet, which is the main reason why he was so ineffective. Get out there and do some long toss bro. And the last thing any pitcher wants to do is walk the leadoff batter, especially when said leadoff batter is a speed demon like Luis Castillo. The whole world knew Castillo was running on the first pitch. Where was the pitch out? You'd think after Rivera walked Kevin Millar in the '04 ALCS and watched Dave Roberts swipe second, that a lesson would have been learned. The last thing you want to do is walk a leadoff batter when the game is close and then have speed on the basepaths. They always seem to come around to score. Thankfully, the Yanks won games 1 and 2 of the series so they leave Minnesota with a series win. If you can consistently win series, you're playoff bound.
A-Rod didn't go yard, but he still put the Yanks in position to win. He could have folded in the 9th but kept things going with his automatic double. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, A-Rod was the 4th player in the last 50 years to have an extra-base hit in hist 1st 7 games. His 9th inning double ran that streak to 8 and if my research is correct, he's now the only player in the last 50 years to have an extra-base hit in his 1st 8 games, leaving Phil Nevin, Ken Griffey, Jr., and Larry Walker in his wake. A-Rod is off to a monster start. He's having one of the best April's of his career. Maybe it's the odd numbered years he really excels in. He was the AL MVP in 2003 and in 2005. 2007 is off to a similar start. Another MVP for A-Rod, maybe? He's definitely playing like one. He's by far the Yankees MVP so far.
How impressive was the defense this series? Wow. Last night was much like the first 2 games in the Metrodome. Jeter going back to get the pop fly in shallow left-center. Cano's leaping grab. Dougie's diving stop. This is the type of defense I was expecting. Mientkiewicz is one of the best defensive first-basemen in the game. Cano is on the verge of winning numerous Gold Gloves. Jeter is a 3-time Gold Glove winner. And A-Rod may have had a bad year at the hot corner last year, but he showed in 2004 and again in 2005 that he can handle third base. The defense is perfect for ground ball pitchers like Pettitte and Wang. And I know the Yankee rotation has a lot of questions, but they've stepped up over the last 3 starts. If you were doubting the rotation's ability, you have to be encouraged by Pavano, Pettitte, and even with Mussina's abbreviated outing. I still think the Yankees have one of the better rotations. Pitching and defense wins championships. I think the Yankees have both pieces of that puzzle.
They just need to stay healthy.
Peace, love and Pinstripes.
J

Farnsie Farnsie Farnsie

Leadoff walks kill.
J

Manhandled

There's no better word to describe what the Yankees did to the Twins last night. The Twinkies got absolutely manhandled. Yankees roll 10-1.
It was good to see Andy Pettitte bounce back from a so-so first start. It's looking like the weather had a definite impact on things. You could tell yesterday that he and Jorge were more in sync. Jorgie still had the white-out manicure so I'm inclined to think the issues from his first start were possibly related to seeing the signs. I wouldn't say AP ever got into trouble, but if he needed the outs. He got 'em. In the 2nd inning, Cuddyer reached 3rd with 1 down. Pettitte followed up by whiffing Torri Hunter and Josh Rabe. In the 4th, the Twins leadoff the inning with back-to-back singles. Pettitte induces the DP and the Twins don't score. You have to love ground ball pitchers. Only 2 of Pettitte's 18 outs came on fly balls. With a solid defense behind him, he's going to continue to have outings like that. His struggles in his first outing were in large part to the shoddy defense. We all know the Yankee D is better than they played that night. The rotation is returning to form, as I expected. You couldn't really put much stock in the first 5 games. I'm too lazy to retype why, so just click here if interested.
Another A-Bomb from A-Rod. Dude is on fire. Many predicted he'd have a monster year as it's almost like it's a walk year for him. He's not disappointing. 6 HRs in his first 7 games. That's a Yankee record. If he had hit a 2nd HR yesterday he would have tied the MLB record held by Mike Schmidt. I have something I want to say, but for fear of jinxing Alex, I'll hold my comments. The Yankee lineup now features 6 regulars hitting above .300, the lowest being Cano at .312 and the highest being Johnny Damon at .429. Damon appears to be fully recovered from the calf cramps. 1000 runs, here we come.
The bullpen again looked sharp. Proctor is really the only who has struggled. He almost escaped his inning unscathed, but when you walk the first 2 batters of the inning, you're in trouble. Vizcaino again looked sharp and Mo, well, he's just Mo. 3 up, 3 down.
Tonight's the big matchup between Dice-K and King Felix. This game has Dice-K written all over it. The Mariners are the worst hitting team in the league, batting a ******** .167 as a team. How they are 2-2 is beyond me? Even Ichiro is striking out 3 times a game. Unheard of. This game is tailor-made for Matsuzaka. Combine the M's weak offense with the fact they they've never seen Dice-K before, and you've got the potential for a no-no. Nobody should be surprised if Matsuzaka turns in a dominant performance. It's a no-brainer.
Moose gets the ball tonight. It's his turn to one-up his predecessors. It'll be hard to top Pettitte, but Moose is more than capable.
Peace, love and Pinstripes.
J-Boogie

Stat Line Of The Day

After 6 games:

1. David Ortiz: .217 (5-23), 2 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 3 BB, 6 K, .333 OBP, .565 SLG
2. A-Rod: .360 (9-25), 3 2B, 5 HR, 13 RBI, 3 BB, 3 K, 1 SB, .448 OBP, 1.080 SLG

This reminds me of the McDLT. One side's hot. The other is cool. Like McDonald's, bah-da-bah-bah-bah, I'm loving it.
J

Great Win In The Land O' Lakes

Finally, a Yankee starter racks up a quality start. Who would have guessed it would be done by Carl Pavano? Not me, but I'm glad he did. I thought that the second go around through the rotation would fare much better than the first, and so far we're off to a good start. Maybe the weather did play more of a factor than we thought? Pavs stepped up his game, going 7 strong. This is the type of outing that the Yankee rotation needed to get the ball rolling. They need to try to 1-up each other and play "anything you can do, I can do better." If the Yankee rotation can give up 4 runs or less, even 5, then the Yankees are going to roll over teams with their offense. You can afford to give up 5 runs a game if you can score 6+. Right now the Yanks are averaging 6.8 runs per game, while giving up 5.5. You can have the greatest rotation in the world and still lose most of your games if you can't score. Take the Red Sox. They've been outscored through their first 6 games, 19-21. What good is having a staff that gives up only 3.5 runs per game if you can only score 3.2? More often than not, you'll lose. The Yankee rotation and the Red Sox lineup are both playing below their potential. If you think that either will continue to do so, you're crazy.
The Yankee D looked sharper than cheddar yesterday. There were a few plays I thought might go for a hit, but the boys got to the ball, fielded it cleanly, and Dougie M took care of the rest. Smooth and sharp, like I expected.
This offense is sick. The Yankee O is currently on pace to score 1100 runs. 1100 runs! A-Rod is in the zone. 3 straight games with a dinger. That should be enough to silence his critics. And half the lineup hasn't even found their groove yet. Once the Yankee O is running on all cylinders, watch out.
The bullpen pitched another 2 scoreless innings. Gotta love it. There numbers as a unit are pretty impressive: 24.1 IP, 11 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 10 BB, 17 K, 1.11 ERA, 0.86 WHIP. Out-freakin-standing. If the pen keeps it up, which I think they can, the Yankees are going to be in every ball game.
Am I the only one who thinks that the team looks loose, like they're having a lot of fun? I like it.
Pettitte's on the bump tonight and he'll be pitching in much better conditions than in his debut. God bless domed stadiums, even if it is the Metrodome. No offense Minnesota.
J

Stat Line Of The Day

After 2 starts:

1. Curt Schilling 1-1, 11 IP, 12 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 3 BB, 11 K, 1 HR, 4.91 ERA
2. Carl Pavano: 1-0, 11.1 IP, 12 H, 7 R, 6 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 4.76 ERA

Right now Curt Schilling is no better than Carl Pavano. That's got to sting a little RSN. Ouch.
Peace, love and Pinstripes.
J

The Boogie Down Baby

The next generation of Yankee bloggers is on the way. Yours truly is going to be a dad. In a few short months (mid-August), the wife will be giving birth to a bouncing baby boy, who will henceforth be known as "The Boogie Down Baby." Look for his very own MLBlog in the coming years.
I wrote a while back that I wanted to somehow incorporate some Yankee lore into the baby's name, with the name "Mattingly" as my top choice. Originally, the wife was sold on the name, but has since changed her mind. We are keeping it baseball related, as we're going with the name Cooper, as in Cooperstown. These were my choices for middle names, all got vetoed: Cooper Stown, Cooper Ific, Cooper Fect, Cooper Nicus. Can you believe the wife didn't like the name Cooper Stown? The nerve. As I was cycling through the mental rolodex of Yankee greats, none seem to fit. As I was driving home, I thought of the name Clemens. That made me think of Nolan Ryan. And from that, we chose the middle name Ryan.
I've already bought plenty of Yankee gear for him. I can't wait to plop down on the couch with him and watch games. I'm very excited!
J

How Do You Spell Relief? P-A-V-A-N-O

7 strong innings from the starter. 8 runs from the offense. Flawless defense. That's what I'm talking about. Now that's Yankee baseball.
J

Rotation Woes Are Of No Concern

Back from Syracuse. Went to see the fam for the holiday. We made our annual trip to the same old same old Easter day buffet my Aunt and Uncle enjoy taking us all too. I stuffed my face with ham, roast beef, turkey, mashed potatoes and stuffing. It was about 2 o'clock on the Swatch watch when we left. I flipped my mom's radio to the Yankee game and lo and behold, 2 seconds into the broadcast I hear Sterling calling Paul Bako's 3-run HR off Rasner. Here we go again.
These Yankee games have been pretty much following the same formula. The starters fail to get out of the 5th, the bullpen does it's thing, and the offense has to bail the team out. I thought we might have a repeat of yesterday when the Bombers juiced the bases in the 8th, but the runs didn't materialize. Close, but no cigar.
After the post-game show I flipped my XM over to MLB Home Plate 175 for the rest of the ride. The host of the program, Mark Gray, made a comment that Yankee fans have to be worried about the performance of their starting rotation. Now it's no secret that the rotation has failed to deliver, but I don't see anything to worry about at this point. Looking back at the week that was, we had Pavano who pitched decently and likely would have lasted a little longer had the Yankee defense shown up. Errors change the course of a game and can over change a pitcher's fortune. Pettitte was pitching in the blistering cold and while he wasn't masterful, he left with a lead and was also the victim of some shoddy defense. Mussina just didn't have it. But he was arguably the 3rd best pitcher in the AL last year and there's no chance that he continues to flounder. Igawa pitched much better than his final line indicated. His off-speed pitches weren't working, but he was victim of a few ball fours that could have been strike threes and Mora's bloop double that scored 3 didn't exactly help him out much. That was a bad break. Had the Yankees gotten Mora out at second, the O's only score 2 and the inning ends. Perhaps his fortunes change. And then there's Rasner. Admittedly I didn't hear or see much of his outing. On the post-game show they mentioned that he was pitching with an open blister on his index finger, which was preventing him from finishing off his pitches. All things considered, I don't think the Yankee rotation, as a whole, pitched poorly. It's the first 5 games of the season. Factor in the cold weather and the canceled game, and you've got some pitchers who are already starting behind the 8-ball. There's no reason for concern.
The Yankees are now off to a domed stadium in Minnesota, and then to a warm weather climate in Oakland. This road trip is going to tell us a lot about the make up of the current Yankee rotation. There will be no adverse weather. I fully expect to see some quality starts from the guys this week. If not, Cashman better get on the phone with the Hendricks brothers and offer the whole farm to the Rocket.
The Yankee offense has been outstanding. And considering that they've yet to play a complete game with their entire lineup, it's even more impressive. It looks like Damon will be back in CF tomorrow. Unfortunately for the Yanks, Matsui is going on the DL. The cold weather hasn't been too kind to the hamstrings. Minnesota, her we come.
Peace, love and Pinstripes.
J