Results tagged ‘ Luis Ayala ’
Yankees In Market For Some Lefty Relief Help
With the disappointing loss to the Detroit Tigers in the American League Divisional Series a distant bad memory, the New York Yankees will look to reconstruct a championship caliber team for the 2012 season. To that end let’s look at what possible moves the Yankees might make to improve their roster. It might seem like a daunting task. But it sure could be worse. Think how tough a time the Boston Red Sox will have rebuilding without general manager Theo Epstein and manager Terry Francona.
PART 2 – Relief Pitching
PRIORITY NO. 1 - Finding a second left-hander or two
NOTE: As I predicted, the New York Yankees were able to keep CC Sabathia off the free-agent market by signing him an one-year contract extension that will pay him $122 million over the next five seasons and the Yankees will control an option to bring him back in 2017. This means the Yankees can turn their sights to Priority No. 2 (Fixing A.J. Burnett and Phil Hughes) and Priority No. 3 (signing or trading for another starting pitcher). Sabathia’s signing is double bad news for the Texas Rangers. They were looking to add Sabathia to their rotation and now they face the prospect of losing C.J. Wilson to the Yankees. That would be enough to send Rangers manager Ron Washington back on drugs.
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The Yankees, simply stated, had the best bullpen in the major leagues in 2011.
The proof is in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series with the Tigers. The only run given up after Ivan Nova left the game with an injury after the first inning was off of Sabathia. The bullpen itself kept the Tigers within striking distance for a comeback that never came.
Looking at 2012, the Yankees can again point to their bullpen as being the strongest part of this team.
At age 41, Mariano Rivera showed no real signs of aging by saving 44 of 49 games and becoming the major-league leader in all-time saves with 603. For the fourth straight season and the eighth season out of the last nine, Rivera recorded an ERA under 2.00. Rivera is under contract for another season and that is just fine with the Yankees because having the greatest reliever in major-league history in your bullpen is a huge plus.
The Yankees also have managed to shorten games by the use of their setup men.
Nobody did that better than David Robertson last season. With injuries shelving both Rafael Soriano and Joba Chamberlain, Robertson, 26, stepped up his game to go 4-0 with a 1.90 ERA and strike out 100 batters in 66 2/3 innings. He also tied Daniel Bard of the Red Sox for the American League in holds with 34 and he earned a selection to pitch in the 2011 All-Star Game.
Robertson’s best work, though, came in pressure situations – either ones he inherited or those messes he created for himself. Robertson was able to wriggle out of bases-loaded situations with amazing regularity.
The Yankees also will have 32-year-old right-hander Rafael Soriano back for the 2012 season. Soriano has elected not to opt out of his three-year contract and remain with the Yankees for $11 million this coming season and $14 million for 2013.
Soriano, who led the major leagues with 45 saves in 2010, was 2-3 with a 4.12 ERA and two saves in a season plagued by elbow soreness. Soriano pitched exceptionally well after he returned from the disabled list in July. He was 1-2 with a 3.33 ERA and he ended up with 23 holds.
The only question is will Soriano regain his eighth inning role from Robertson in 2012? Either way the Yankees know that most teams will have to obtain the lead by the sixth inning or face the prospect of losing the game because Robertson, Soriano and Rivera are pretty tough to beat when they are all healthy and pitching well.
The Yankees also possibly may have Joba Chamberlain back healthy again.
Chamberlain, 26, missed most of the 2011 season to undergo Tommy John surgery on his right elbow. He was effective in the 27 games he pitched. He was 2-0 with a 2.83 ERA and he recorded 12 holds.
Reports indicate Chamberlain is ahead of schedule in his rehabilitation and he hopes to be ready to go once spring training begins in February. But with Robertson and Soriano filling the setup roles in the bullpen, the Yankees can afford to be cautious with Chamberlain. They will gladly start the season with Chamberlain on the disabled list and bring him along slowly to make sure he is 100 percent.
The rest of the Yankees’ bullpen in 2011 was pretty good. The Yankees got good work out of right-handers Cory Wade and Luis Ayala.
Wade, 28, was 6-1 with a 2.04 ERA after being acquired off waivers from the Tampa Bay Rays in June. Ayala, 33, made the team out of spring training after being signed as free agent and was 2-2 with a 2.09 ERA.
Wade is likely to be retained for 2012 as insurance policy on Chamberlain but Ayala likely will not return.
That leaves the only left-hander the Yankees had in 2011, Boone Logan. Next to A.J. Burnett, the 27-year-old Logan is the pitcher Yankee fans love to the hate the most.
At times, Logan can be brilliant. Other times, Logan can be awful. Overall, Logan was 5-3 with a 3.46 ERA for the Yankees. However, he is terribly miscast as “lefty specialist.” It is sort of like asking Owen Wilson to play the part of Tony Soprano in the “The Sopranos.” It just doesn’t work.
Left-handed hitters hit .260 off of Logan while right-handers hit .262 off him.
That points up the Yankees’ biggest need in 2012: Looking for a reliable and effective lefty specialist.
The Yankees ignored my pleas to go all out to sign free-agent lefty Scott Downs last off-season. Downs ended up signing a multi-year deal with the Los Angeles Angels and he was 6-3 with a 1.34 ERA with 26 holds for the Angels. Instead, the Yankees overpaid Soriano to accept a setup role.
The Yankees did sign left-hander Pedro Feliciano from the New York Mets. But the 35-year-old free agent developed a shoulder soreness in spring training and ended up undergoing rotator cuff surgery without ever throwing a pitch for the Yankees in 2011. He likely won’t pitch in 2012 and his two-year contract with Yankees will end with him very much a question mark as a free agent in 2013.
The Mets abused Feliciano by pitching him in a major-league high of 344 appearances over the four previous seasons, including 92 in 2010. Feliciano paid the price for it and he likely will never be the same pitcher he was.
The Yankees also hoped to have veteran left-hander Damaso Marte back in 2011. But the 36-year-old hero of the 2009 postseason championship run for the Yankees has not be able to recover from left shoulder surgery he underwent in 2010. The Yankees have since declined an option on him and released him.
So the Yankees are in the market for a lefty specialist in 2012 who can either augment or replace Logan.
There are no other left-handers listed on the Yankees’ 40-man roster. There no lefties who would be of much help in the bullpen in the minor leagues. So general manager Brian Cashman must look to acquire several candidates to audition in spring training.
One pitcher the Yankees would love to have is Rafael Perez of the Indians. Perez, 29, was 5-2 with a 3.00 ERA and 12 holds with the Indians in 2011. Perez was replaced as the primary lefty in the bullpen by 28-year-old Tony Sipp.
But Perez can still get out left-handed batters. They batted only .237 against him last season.
The Yankees also might be interested in Eric O’Flaherty, 26, of the Braves and Sean Marshall, 29, of the Cubs. Both of them had excellent 2011 seasons. But they would cost dearly in a trade.
Guillermo Mota, 38, could be a big free-agent target. He was 2-2 with a 3.81 ERA in 52 appearances with the Giants. More impressive was his 77 strikeouts in 80 1/3 innings. Lefties hit just .234 off him in 2011. His age might be a concern but, given the strength of the Yankees’ bullpen, he might be worth an offer.
Look for the Yankees to bring in at least two left-handed relievers to compete for a spot in the bullpen in spring training.
Of course, the Yankees’ right-handers do have an ability to get out lefties.
Left-handers hit only .240 off Rivera, .156 off Robertson, .250 off Chamberlain, .246 off Wade and .250 off Ayala. They only feasted on Soriano, who was hit for a .302 by left-handers last season. The effectiveness of the right-handers against left-handers is one reason why the bullpen was such a strength in 2011.
Given the depth here, it looks like the bullpen – barring injury – looks to be just as strong in 2012.
NEXT: PART 3 – STARTING LINEUP
PRIORITY NO. 1 - Who will the Yankees keep at catcher?
Cano’s Slam, 6 RBIs Declaws Tigers In Game 1
AMERICAN LEAGUE DIVISION SERIES – GAME 1
YANKEES 9, TIGERS 3
When managers and coaches get together with their pitchers to discuss a game plan to how to attack the hitters on the New York Yankees they all say “Do not let Robinson Cano beat you.”
Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland, pitching coach Jeff Jones and the Tiger pitching staff got a close-up view on why they say that about Cano on Saturday night.
Cano absolutely crushed two doubles as well as a majestic grand slam homer and drove in a franchise-tying record of six RBIs in a postseason game to back the strong “relief” pitching of Ivan Nova as the Yankees took the fight out the Tigers for a Game 1 victory in their American League Division Series.
Nova (1-0), meanwhile, picked up for CC Sabathia in third inning and only allowed two hits and three walks before faltering in the ninth inning. The rookie 24-year-old right-hander came into the game having won 12 consecutive decisions and had not lost a game since June 3.
The Yankees and Tigers played to a 1-1 tie on Friday before the game was suspended after an hour and 17 minute rain delay. So Game 1 resumed in the bottom of the second inning at Yankee Stadium with nary a drop of precipitation but a brisk was blowing in from right and the temperature dipped into the mid-50s.
However, the weather did not deter 50,940 fans from showing up to watch the completion of Game 1, the largest crowd to ever see a game at Yankee Stadium, old or new.
It was Cano and the Yankees who struck first off the Tigers’ right-hander Doug Fister, who in a sense was coming in relief of likely American League Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander.
With none on and two out in the fifth inning, Curtis Granderson singled to right field off Fister. Cano followed with a deep line-drive to left-center that either hit off the top of the wall, caromed off a fan and fell back onto the field for a home run or a double that hit the top of the wall and just spun back into play to score Granderson.
Crew chief Gerry Davis immediately took his umpires into the replay room off the third-base dugout and came out shortly signaling Cano had indeed hit a double. Although the Yankees had taken a 2-1 lead, Fister and the Tigers felt they were lucky to have just allowed a run in that situation.
However, luck turned into unmitigated disaster for Fister in the sixth inning.
Mark Teixeira greeted Fister with a first-pitch, opposite field double to left. One out later, Fister appeared content to pitch around Posada by walking him on a 3-2 pitch well out of the strike zone. Russell Martin then dribbled a slow grounder to Jhonny Peralta at short and Peralta’s only play was to first to retire Martin.
Fister then went after Brett Gardner to end the inning.
He immediately jumped ahead on the count 0-2. Fister then opted for a curve to finish Gardner off. But, instead, Fister hung the pitch and Gardner squirted a roller to the right of second baseman Ryan Raburn and on into centerfield to score Teixeira and Posada, giving the Yankees a 4-1 lead.
That proved to the key at-bat of the game because Derek Jeter followed with a single to right-center to advance Gardner to third. Jeter later stole second and Fister ended up losing Granderson by walking him to load the bases.
Leyland opted to make a move to the bullpen, where he had left-hander Phil Coke and right-hander Al Alburquerque warming. Most managers in this situation would bring in the lefty to face the left-hand hitting Cano. But Leyland must have made a wrong turn at Alburqueque because he did the opposite.
On Alburquerque’s second offering, Cano uncoiled his familiar picture-perfect swing and connected solidly and decisively. Despite a brisk breeze blowing in from right, Cano’s drive cut through the wind to land in the second deck of the right-field bleachers. Suddenly, the Yankees’ slight 4-1 lead had turned into a decisive 8-1 margin.
Alburquerque had the entered the game coming off a season in which he was 6-1 with a 1.97 ERA. he had allowed only three inherited runners to score all season and he had not allowed a home run in the major leagues. Cano took care of all of that with just one beautiful swing.
But the big loser in this Alburquerque mess was Fister (0-1).
Despite pitching well early and escaping trouble, he was charged with six runs on seven hits and two walks in 4 2/3 innings. He came into the game with an 8-1 record and 1.79 ERA since the Tigers acquired him from the Seattle Mariners at the trade deadline. He also had not allowed more than a run in his last 55 innings during the regular season. The Yankees ended string that with six runs in the sixth.
The Yankees added a run in the eighth off lefty reliever Daniel Schlereth. And as with all the runs the Yankees scored in this game, it came with two outs.
Jeter stroked a single and that same guy Cano laced a double over the head of Jackson in center for a double that scored Jeter easily. That gave Cano his sixth RBI of the night to tie him with Bobby Richardson, Bernie Williams and Hideki Matsui for the franchise record for RBIs in a postseason game.
Nova, meanwhile, was able to escape some trouble of his own with a little help from his defense.
After retiring the first seven batters he faced, Nova walked Alex Avila on a 3-2 pitch. Raburn followed with an opposite-field single to right. Peralta then laced a line-drive single that fell just in front of Granderson in center. Avila got a slow read on the ball and, as he headed for home, Jeter took the relay throw from Gramderson and fired home to Martin. Martin caught the ball in the right-hand hitters’ batters box just as Avila lunged into him.
Home-plate umpire Tony Randazzo called Avila out and the Yankees kept a big run for the Tigers off the board.
To open the sixth, Nova walked the only Tiger hitter with speed in Austin Jackson. Leyland figured it was time to send Jackson to second to get something started for the Tigers with then down 2-1. Jackson broke for second on a 1-2 pitch to Magglio Ordonez and Ordonez hit the ball right to Cano, who was covering second waiting for a throw to nab Jackson. Cano merely scooped the grounder, stepped on second, avoided Jackson’s slide and flipped to first to double up Ordonez.
Nick Swisher then laid out to catch a liner to right off the bat of Delmon Young to end the inning.
However, Nova was unable to escape the ninth.
With one out, Young lined a ball of Nova’s backside for an infield single. Miguel Cabrera coaxed a walk on a 3-2 pitch and Victor Martinez singled sharply to right to load the bases.
Manager Joe Girardi, hoping to avoid using Mariano Rivera, selected right-hander Luis Ayala instead. Ayala was coming off a rough outing against the Rays on Thursday in which Boone Logan and he had combined to give up six runs to the Rays in the eighth inning with the Yankees holding a 7-0 lead. That led to the Rays’ eventual 8-7 victory in 12 innings to allow the Rays to make the playoffs.
For Yankee fans it was almost deja vu all over again.
Ayala induced Avila to hit into a fielder’s choice that allowed a run to score. But he compounded the problem by giving up a single to left by Raburn that scored another run and Peralta followed with a bloop single to center reloaded the bases. Girardi mercifully pulled the plug on Ayala and Rivera was forced to come in as Ayala was showered with a chorus of Bronx jeers – well-earned, too.
Rivera came in to face former Yankee infielder Wilson Betemit. But if any Tiger fans had gone to the kitchen for a bag a chips, they would have missed Rivera blowing three pitches past Betemit for the final out to give the Yankees an important 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series with Verlander unable to pitch again until Game 3.
It is funny how in a regular season in which the Yankees were plagued by 22 rain delays and nine postponements that forced so many doubleheaders and lost off days and yet the rain that fell on Friday actually worked so greatly to the Yankees’ benefit on Saturday.
Rain, rain, don’t go away.
Yanks Lower Rays’ Shields To Clinch Playoff Spot
GAME 154
YANKEES 4, RAYS 2
The Yankees have earned so many postseason invitations that the 2010 version did not carry any special meaning for the players. No hoopla, no high-fives and no hollering. Just handshakes.
But the team’s 16th postseason berth in the last 17 seasons was made possible by a dramatic three-run eighth inning rally off James Shields and Tampa Bay as New York clinched at least a wild-card spot with a victory over the Rays on Wednesday in front of a Yankee Stadium crowd of 42,755.
Manager Joe Girardi and the Yankees would have been forgiven if they had mailed the game in when they found out scheduled starter Phil Hughes was unable to pitch due to recurring back spasms. That forced Girardi to press into service reliever Hector Noesi and he was on a pitch count of about 60 pitches.
The Yankees, in turn, were facing Shields, the Rays ace right-hander, who entered the game with a 15-11 record and a 2.91 ERA.
But the Yankees held the score to 2-1 beginning the eighth inning. Shields had only been touched by a Derek Jeter single and an Alex Rodriguez double off the wall in straightaway center that scored Jeter easily in the first inning. In the next six innings, Shields had given up only an infield single by Jeter with two outs in the third and a one-out single to Eduardo Nunez in the fifth. He had struck out six and walked one, relying mostly on his changeup.
However, Shields paid dearly for throwing one too many when Nunez connected with one on an 0-1 count to lead off the eighth inning and he lined it into the first row of the bleachers in left to tie the game at 2-2. Shields knelt to the left of the mound and bowed his head in frustration.
One out later, Brett Gardner stroked a 3-2 pitch for a single to the opposite field in left and Jeter drew a four-pitch walk, which ended the day for Shields.
Manager Joe Maddon summoned left-hander J.P. Howell to face Robinson Cano. Cano entered play with a .315 batting average against lefties this season, but Maddon made the move anyway. He also paid a dear price for it.
Howell fell behind Cano at a count of 3-1 and Cano laced Howell’s next offering over the head of Upton in center-field to score Gardner and Jeter and allow the Yankees to regain the lead late.
Mariano Rivera, fresh off his record-setting 602nd career save on Monday, tossed another dominant 11-pitch perfect ninth inning to wrap up the victory with his 45th save of the season to put the Yankees in the playoffs once again.
The defeat really hurt Shields (15-12) and the Rays. The Rays started the day 2 games in back of the slumping Boston Red Sox in the wild-card race. The loss dropped to them 2 1/2 games back.
The win was improbable for the Yankees because Noesi, making his first major-league start, had a hard time commanding his pitches. In the third inning, Elliot Johnson led off with a ground-rule double to left. He advanced to third on a groundout and then Desmond Jennings blasted a high 2-1 fastball into the left-field bleachers to give the Rays the lead.
Girardi almost treated the game like a spring-training game, running in a total of seven relief pitchers starting in the third inning to replace Noesi. It almost seemed as if they were coming off the No. 4 train, entering and then exiting the game before you could look them up in your program.
From Noesi to Raul Valdes to George Kontos to Aaron Laffey to Cory Wade to Boone Logan to Luis Ayala and finally to Rivera in the ninth. Ayala (2-2), who struck out the only two hitters he faced in the top of the eighth got credit for the victory. The relievers pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings on five hits and one walk and they struck out eight batters.
Girardi, mindful the Yankees would be playing the Rays in an evening doubleheader nightcap, also used the occasion to rest starters Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira and Russell Martin.
But the Grapefruit League lineup and pitchers were still able to bring the Yankees on the verge of clinching the American League East title, which is something the Yankees will celebrate with more than handshakes.
The Yankees improved their season record to 94-60. The Rays fell to 85-69.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- Jeter is making a nice a last-week push to bring his average to .300. He was 2-for-3 with a walk and scored two of the Yankees’ four runs. In his last three games, Jeter is 7-for-12 (.583) and has raised his average from .292 to .298. Jeter has failed to hit .300 or better in only four of his 16 major-league seasons.
- Cano’s two RBIs give him 115 on the season and he trails his teammate Granderson, the major-league leader, by only four RBIs. In his last nine games, Cano is 12-for-33 (.364) with a home run and nine RBIs. It may be too late to earn him the MVP award over Granderson but he is entering into the discussion.
- Give Girardi a lot of credit for this victory. He kept bringing in lefties to face Rays lefties and then summoning righties to face Rays righties. Maddon mistakenly left his lineup lopsided with three right-handed hitters at the top of the order and then three lefties, two switch-hitters and one lefty at the bottom. Girardi took advantage of it by being able to mix and match the whole game with his bullpen.
NAGGING NEGATIVES
The Yankees clinch the wild card by beating Shields and the Rays with a bunch of Scranton/Wilkes-Barre pitchers and a spring-training lineup? Why complain? This was a nice victory.
The BOMBER BANTER and ON DECK reports will be contained in the next posting.
Jesus Saves: Montero’s 2 HRs Key Yankee Victory
GAME 139
YANKEES 11, ORIOLES 10
Some rookies arrive in the major leagues with so much hype they can never seem to be great enough to measure up to it. In just four games, Jesus Montero is writing a whole new chapter of his own greatness and nothing appears overhyped.
Montero, 21, hit his first and second major-league home runs and they proved to be the margin of victory as New York edged Baltimore in a Labor Day slugfest in front of 45,069 fans at Yankee Stadium on Monday.
With the game tied at 8-8 in the bottom of the fifth inning, Montero greeted Orioles reliever Jim Johnson by swatting an 0-1 fastball to the opposite field in right for his his first major-league home run. Yankee fans got on their feet and demanded a curtain call from their rookie power-hitting designated hitter. Montero complied and the Yankees had a 9-8 lead.
Before facing Montero in the fifth, Johnson had allowed only three home runs in 76 2/3 innings this season.
Two innings later, Johnson faced Montero again with one out and Russell Martin on first with a single. Johnson tried to pitch in to the rookie but on a 2-2 fastball, he missed over the plate and Montero hit an even longer blast into the right-field seats.
Yankee fans got on their feet and requested an encore curtain call from their new hero and Montero obliged. After four games, Montero is hitting .385 with two home runs and three RBIs.
Meanwhile, a fellow rookie Brett Lawrie of the Blue Jays made his impact on the 2010 division title race by cracking a walk-off solo home run with two out in the bottom of the 11th inning off Red Sox reliever Dan Wheeler as Toronto blanked Boston 1-0. The Yankees, who have won eight of their last nine games, have extended their lead in the American League East to 2 1/2 games over the Red Sox, who have dropped five of their last seven games.
The Yankees received a rare poor start from 34-year-old right-hander Freddy Garcia, who lasted only 2 2/3 innings and he gave up seven runs on nine hits. Garcia entered the game having thrown 15 quality starts in the 22 games he started this season. But he was victimized by four-run second inning and Mark Reynolds added a two-run home run in the third inning that drew the Orioles back to a one-run game at 8-7.
The Yankees pretty much did the same damage to the O’s’ young lefty Brian Matusz by scoring two runs in the first and adding six runs in the second inning.
Curtis Granderson chased Matusz in the second inning with a one-out, two-run double that drew the Yankees back to a one-run deficit at 5-4. However, Orioles reliever Chris Jakubauskas threw gasoline on the fire when he entered the game and walked Mark Teixeira, who hit his 36th home run of the season in his first at-bat, and hit Alex Rodriguez in the left arm on an 0-2 pitch to load the bases.
Jakubauskas paid dearly for his lack of control by giving up a grand slam home run to Robinson Cano, which landed well into the bleachers in right-center and gave the Yankees an 8-5 lead in an inning in which the Yankees sent 11 batters to the plate.
Matusz was touched up for five runs on five hits and two walks and he fanned three in 1 1/3 innings. Jakubauskas was charged with three runs on two hits and two walks in two-thirds of an inning.
However, Garcia could not keep Baltimore from scoring. Reynolds’ home run drew the Orioles back to within 8-7 and Garcia was removed after giving up a single to Ryan Adams with two outs in the third inning.
Newly signed and recently called up lefty Aaron Laffey surrendered a one-out solo home run to Robert Andino in the fifth inning that drew both teams even on the day.
But Montero’s two home runs provided the Yankees with a margin they actually really needed badly because their bullpen continued to crack.
Luis Ayala was touched for a run in the eighth on a one-out double by J.J. Hardy and a single to right by Nick Markakis that scored Hardy. Markakis took second on an error by Chris Dickerson, who was inserted into right as a defensive replacement for Andruw Jones when the inning started. However, Markakis was thrown out on a relay from Dickerson to Derek Jeter to Rodriguez, who applied the tag on Markakis at third base.
The Orioles added another run in the ninth off future Hall-of-Fame closer Mariano Rivera.
Reynolds stroked a one-out single and reached second on a stolen base. One out later, Ryan Adams delivered a single to center to score Reynolds to make it an 11-10 game.
Rivera then hit pinch-hitter Nolan Reimold on a 3-2 pitch. Reynolds and pinch-runner Matt Angle then moved up a base on a double steal. However, Rivera ended the rally right there by striking out Hardy looking on a 2-2 pitch on the outside corner. For Rivera it was a very shaky 38th save in 43 opportunities this season.
Rivera now has 597 saves in his career and he soon could pass all-time saves leader Trevor Hoffman, who has 601.
Laffey (2-1) got credit for the victory in relief. Johnson (5-5) took the loss.
With the victory the Yankees’ season record stands at 86-53. The Orioles fell to 55-84 and they 31 games out of first in last place in the division.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- When the Montero legend grows to epic proportions over the years you can say you were there to see the first two home runs and three RBis. When Montero was recalled on Sept. 1, manager Joe Girardi made it clear that Montero would start as the right-hand DH against left-handers. After this Labor Day exhibition, teams may revise their rotations to make sure they throw just right-handers. Montero easily blasted two long home runs to the opposite field in two at-bats. That is some major-league skills for just a 21-year-old rookie. General manager Brian Cashman better not trade this guy. It will be over my dead body. He is a keeper.
- Cano extended his hitting streak to nine games with a single in the first inning. In the second inning he launched his third grand slam of the season. Before his nine-game hitting streak started, Cano had a 17-game hitting streak snapped at Baltimore on Aug. 28. Over his last 27 games, Cano is 39-for-112 (.348) with six home runs and 30 RBIs. With Cano’s four RBIs he passed Adrian Gonzalez for second place in the A.L. with 105 RBIs. Cano trails teammate Curtis Granderson by four RBIs.
- Granderson took over the major-league lead in RBIs with his two-run double in the second inning. Granderson leads the Brewers’ Cecil Fielder by two and the Phillies’ Ryan Howard by three. A few weeks ago it seemed Granderson’s competition for MVP would come from Adrian Gonzalez and Jacoby Ellsbury of the Red Sox. It appears that Cano is entering the discussion now.
NAGGING NEGATIVES
- Brett Gardner was the only Yankee starter without a hit. He was o-for-4 with two strikeouts looking and two routine infield grounders. To show how bad Gardner’s day at the plate was he made two of the three outs of the second inning. He started the inning out by striking out looking and ended the inning with a groundout. Gardner’s season average is down to .266
- Garcia was unable to keep his pitches down and it cost him dearly in this game. Of the 18 batters he faced, 10 of them reached base. This also refuels the discussion from so-called”experts” who say that the Yankees will regret using Garcia and Bartolo Colon in the playoffs because they will not pitch as well as they did during the regular season against inferior offenses. Garcia entered the game with the second-lowest ERA of the Yankee starters at 3.09. After this game it is now up to 3.50.
- Rivera did not look sharp in his inning of work. After giving up two hits, he hit Reimold on a 3-2 pitch to load the bases. In the 27 pitches Rivera threw, 12 were balls. That is not the usual Rivera. Let’s hope it is a hiccup and not a trend going forward.
ON DECK
The Yankees continue their three-game series with the Orioles on Tuesday.
The Yankees will start or audition, if you prefer, Phil Hughes (4-5, 6.75 ERA). Hughes allowed six runs on eight hits and two walks in 5 2/3 innings against the Red Sox in a 9-5 loss last Wednesday. However, Girardi saw enough positives in the effort to give Hughes another shot to stay in the rotation. Hughes is 4-2 with 5.51 ERA in his career against the Orioles.
The Orioles will throw right-hander Tommy Hunter (2-1, 6.21 ERA). Hunter has gone at least six innings in his last six starts for the Orioles. He is 1-1 with a 6.06 ERA in his career against the Bronx Bombers.
Game-time will be 7:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast by the YES Network.
Yanks’ Offense Erupts For 18 Runs To Bury Chisox
GAME 109
YANKEES 18, WHITE SOX 7
The Yankees’ offense is lot like a volcano. It can lie dormant for days at a time, spew a bit of fire suddenly and then it finally erupts. On Wednesday night, the 23,873 in attendance at U.S. Cellular Field witnessed an eruption of Mount St. Helen’s proportions.
Curtis Granderson produced four hits and five RBIs and Robinson Cano and Eric Chavez each contributed a home run among their three hits and four RBIs apiece as New York terrorized Chicago pitching for a season-high 18 runs and their second-best season hit total of 23 to win their sixth game in a row.
The onslaught began very innocently in the very first inning with back-to-back bunt singles by Brett Gardner and Derek Jeter, who ended up with five hits in a game for the fourth time in his career and the first time since he collected his 3,000th hit on July 9. Cano punctuated the inning by launching a three-run home run off White Sox starter and loser Gavin Floyd (9-10).
Granderson added two runs off Floyd in the second inning with a two-out, two-run triple. Chavez added a two-run home run in the third and Jeter later that inning rolled a two-run single up the middle off reliever Will Ohman. After hitting a sacrifice fly that scored the game’s first run in the first inning, Mark Teixeira lined a ball that center-fielder Alex Rios misplayed into a triple that scored two runs as the Yankees erupted for seven big runs in the third inning alone.
Floyd, who entered the game as the hottest pitcher in baseball since the All-Star break with a 3-0 record and a 0.81 ERA, was blasted for 10 runs on nine hits, a walk, a hit batter and he struck out two in 2 1/3 innings. It was his shortest outing of the season.
By the time Ohman struck out Nick Swisher looking to end the third inning, the Yankees had a 13-1 lead.
This is where the Yankees’ story takes a very odd turn.
Veteran right-hander A.J. Burnett for some reason was unable to pitch effectively enough to last the necessary five innings to win what would have been his first victory in August as a Yankee. He entered the game 0-6 in his last two seasons with the Yankees. Burnett also has not won a game since June 29.
After giving up a solo run in the first on a Carlos Quenton sac fly, Burnett was touched for five runs in the fourth on RBI singles by Brent Morel and Juan Pierre and a three-run home run by Quentin.
Alexsei Ramirez opened the fifth inning with a double and A.J. Pierzynski scored him with a double of his own. One out later, Alejandro De Aza stroked one of his four hits on the night to advance Pierzynski to third and De Aza took second on the throw from Nick Swisher.
Manager Joe Girardi had seen enough and pulled Burnett, who gave up seven runs on 13 hits and he struck out three in 4 1/3 innings. Since July, Burnett has an ERA of 6.00.
Cory Wade (2-0) pitched 1 2/3 innings of perfect relief and was credited for the victory. Wade, Luis Ayala and Rafael Soriano combined to pitch 4 2/3 innings of scoreless one-hit relief to allow the Yankees to tack on four runs in the seventh and one more in the eighth to put the game out of reach.
Granderson drove in three of those runs with a two-run single in the seventh and a RBI double in the eighth for a huge five-RBI night.
Each Yankee starter recorded at least one hit and each also were able to score a run. The Yankees have now scored 10 or more runs in four games since July 22.
With the victory the Yankees have already clinched the four-game series with the White Sox and they ran their season record to 67-42, a season-high 25 games over .500. The Yankees also remain a game behind the Boston Red Sox in the American League East. The hard-luck White Sox have now lost five in a row and they are sinking fast in the A.L. Central with a 52-57 season mark.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- The top of the batting order — Gardner, Jeter and Granderson — were 12-for-17 (.706) with 10 runs scored and seven RBIs. Gardner and Jeter quickly set the tone by getting aboard on bunt singles off Floyd. The Yankees just steamrolled the veteran right-hander until he was removed from the game in the third inning.
- Granderson’s five RBIs give him 84 on the season, which is one behind Teixeira, who drove in three runs himself on Wednesday. Teixeira and Granderson are third and fourth in the majors in RBIs, respectively. Granderson needed only a home run to hit for the cycle.
- Jeter’s five hits give him 3,027 for his career, moving him past Lou Brock into 23rd place on the all-tie hits list. Jeter’s five hits raised his average to .280 on the season which is three points below his season high of .283 he was hitting on May 10.
- Wade has pitched exceptionally well since he was brought up on June 15. He is 2-0 with a 1.89 ERA in his 16 appearances. He has not given up a run in 13 of those games. His most impressive statistics are his 0.95 WHIP and his 13 strikeouts with only four walks in 19 innings of work.
SPECIAL COMMENT
Rather than report on the negatives, which are pretty few in a rout like this, I would rather comment on the huge problem A.J. Burnett is now becoming. Last year, Burnett was 10-15 with a 5.26 record on a team that won a division title and made the A.L. Championship Series. It was the highest ERA ever for a Yankee starter on a championship team. So A.J. was supposed to work with new pitching coach Larry Rothschild this spring to improve his mechanics and get a more consistent release point. The idea was we would see more of “Good A.J.” and much less of “Bad A.J.” Well, the wheels fell off the Burnett wagon after his last victory on June 29. He was 8-6 with a decent 4.05 ERA then. After that, he has been a disaster. He is 0-3 with a 6.00 ERA in his last six starts. The Yankees currently have six starters on the roster. Ivan Nova is 9-4 with a 4.01 ERA and he was poised to replace Phil Hughes in the rotation until Hughes pitched six innings of brilliant shutout baseball in 6-0 rain-shortened victory over the White Sox on Tuesday. So Yankee fans are probably thinking that Burnett should be shifted to the bullpen and Nova should replace him. Alas, it will never happen. Burnett makes $82 million through the life of his contract with the Yankees and they will not take him out of the rotation for any reason. They can’t trade him through waivers either without picking up almost all of the tab. And if you think Burnett is shaky as a starter, imagine how bad he could be out of the bullpen. So with the Yankees at a critical juncture of the season and with them breathing fire down the necks of the Red Sox, Burnett will remain a thorn in our sides the rest of this season. It was a mistake that general manager Brian Cashman made in believing a .500 career pitcher could be a No. 2 starter for the Yankees. It may prove to be the most costly mistake Cashman has made. It also really stinks that Nova may be sent back to the minors or the bullpen because of a underachieving starter like Burnett. The Yankees will remain cursed as long he stays in pinstripes.
ON DECK
The Yankees can sweep their four-game road series with the White Sox on Thursday.
The Yankees will start Nova, who is unclear what his role will be with the Yankees should he pitch well. In his last start, he gave up only two runs over seven innings in a huge rout against the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday night. It was his first major-league start since July 1. Nova is 1-0 with a 1.50 ERA against the White Sox.
The White will counter with right-hander Philip Humber (8-7. 3.44 ERA). Humber gave up four runs in the fifth inning and was chased by the Red Sox in a loss on Saturday. Humber has given up 14 earned runs in his last 14 innings, spanning his last three starts. He is 1-0 with 0.00 ERA against the Yankees.
Game-time will be 8:10 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast by the YES Network.
Yankees’ Dazzling Nova Leaves Cincy Red-Faced
GAME 71
YANKEES 5, REDS 3
Ivan Nova realizes that the Yankees will get starters Phil Hughes and Bartolo Colon back soon and that could mean he could lose his spot in the rotation. On Monday, he seemed to be making a bold statement that he is not coming out of the rotation without a fight.
Nova (7-4) pitched a career-best eight innings, gave up only one run on four hits, walked none and struck out seven as New York swept into Great American Ballpark and downed Cincinnati to win its ninth out of their last 11 games.
Nova threw 70 strikes out of 105 pitches thrown (67% strikes) to tie Michael Pineda of the Seattle Mariners with the most victories by a rookie pitcher in the major leagues.
Nova got all the run support he really needed in the first inning as the Yankees tagged substitute starter Travis Wood (5-5) for four runs on five hits. Wood was moved up a day because right-hander Johnny Cueto had to be scratched from his start because of a stiff neck.
It looked as if Wood would end up with a stiff neck of his own as he kept turning to watch Yankee hits flying past him. Nick Swisher led off the game with a single and Mark Teixeira followed with a single one out later. Alex Rodriguez then opened the seal on the scoring with a single to left to plate Swisher. Robinson Cano followed with an opposite-field double to score Teixeira. Russell Martin’s groundout brought in Rodriguez and Andruw Jones followed with an RBI single to cap the four-run explosion before some of the sellout crowd of 41,173 had sampled their nachos.
The Reds looked as if they were going to answer back quickly when Drew Stubbs singled and stole second and Brandon Phillips singled Stubbs to third. However, Nova used his sinker to induce Joey Votto into a double-play in which Stubbs scored. But Nova stopped the Reds cold after that.
Stubbs reached on a swinging third strike wild pitch from Nova with two out in the third, Paul Janish stroked a two-out single in the fifth and pinch-hitter Fred Lewis singled with two out in the eighth. Nova retired the rest of the batters he faced on 17 groundouts, seven strikeouts and only three fly balls.
Wood, however, did settle down after the first inning and he retired 15 of the next 20 batters he faced. But Nova would not give in to the Reds.
The Yankees scored a run in the seventh inning due to the very giving nature of the Reds. Reliever Jose Arredondo walked Curtis Gramderson. Granderson stole second but was able to take third when Janish dropped a throw from catcher Ryan Hanigan and the ball rolled past him into shallow center-field. Granderson then scored on an Arredondo wild pitch.
The Reds did take advantage of Nova’s departure in the ninth when Phillips singled off Luis Ayala to begin the inning. Boone Logan was summoned to face the lefty Votto but Logan plunked Votto with his first and only delivery. Manager Joe Girardi then decided to go to Mariano Rivera with the tying run on deck.
Rivera retired Jay Bruce on a grounder that moved Phillips to third and Votto to second. Scott Rolen scored Phillips on an infield single and Chris Heisey then scored Votto by beating out what could have been a 1-6-3 double play. But Heisey was ruled safe. But Rivera ended the Reds faint comeback hopes by fanning pinch-hitter Edgar Renteria to notch his 18th save of the season in 21 chances.
With the victory, the Yankees improved their record to 42-29 and they remain 1 1/2 games in back of the first-place Boston Red Sox in the American League East. The Reds are 38-36 on the season.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- Nova was never any better this season than he was on Monday night. He had only three three-ball counts and he did not walk any of them. Nova also lowered his ERA to 4.13. It is obvious that when Colon and Hughes do return they will be starters. The question is what will happen to Nova when they come back? On the basis of this effort, it would appear inconceivable they would put him in the bullpen.
- Rodriguez continues to hit with a 2-for-4 night with a run scored and an RBI. Though Rodriguez admits he is nursing a sore shoulder it is not interfering with his play at all. He also made a nice diving stab to rob Heisey of a hit in the second inning. Rodriguez is hitting .292 with 13 home runs and 44 RBIs.
- Cano is beginning to get his average back over .300. He also was 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. Cano now has a nine-game hitting streak in which he is 15-for-38 (.395) with two home runs and six RBIs. He is now hitting .295 on the season with 14 home runs and 47 RBIs.
- Swisher is doing his job in the leadoff spot against left-handers. He was 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored against Wood. He is 4-for-13 (.308) from the leadoff spot since Derek Jeter was injured.
- With David Robertson unavailable to pitch, Girardi decided to close the ninth with Luis Ayala and Boone Logan. However, Ayala gave up a leadoff single to Phillips and Logan hit Votto with a pitch to put the Reds in position for their major league-leading 23rd comeback victory. Fortunately, Rivera restored order. But it does show the Yankee bullpen does have a soft underbelly than can be exploited. The Yankees would love to have a healthy Pedro Feliciano and Rafael Soriano back soon to shore up the bullpen.
- Andruw Jones had a severe brain cramp in the third inning and it short-circuited a potential big inning. With one out, Cano and Martin hit back-to-back singles. Jones then sent a slow bouncer to Rolen at third. Rolen forced Martin at second but Martin was able to upend Philips. However, Jones did not run the grounder out because he thought there were already two outs. Phillips got back up and threw Jones out by 50 feet. Jones is already on thin ice with the Yankees with his lack of production. Now it looks as if he is going to be a bit lighter in the wallet.
- Eduardo Nunez got caught leaning after he singled to lead off the fourth inning and Wood picked him off first. These silly mistakes allowed Wood to survive that shaky first inning and pitch seven innings.
ON DECK
The Yankees will play the second of their three road contests against the Reds on Tuesday.
The Yankees will start veteran minor-league right-hander Brian Gordon (0-0, 3.38 ERA) in his second major-league start for the Yankees. In his first start, Gordon, 32, gave up two runs in 5 1/3 innings against the Rangers on Thursday. He did not get a decision but the Yankees did win the game. The former outfielder will get to test his hitting skills against the Reds.
The Reds are starting right-hander Johnny Cueto (4-2, 1.68 ERA), who could not pitch on Monday due to a stiff neck. He has been the Reds best pitcher since being activated from the disabled list in May. He is 0-1 with a 1.80 ERA against the Yankees in his career.
Game-time will be 7:10 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast nationally by the MLB Network and locally by MY9.
Yankees’ Dazzling Nova Leaves Cincy Red-Faced
GAME 71
YANKEES 5, REDS 3
Ivan Nova realizes that the Yankees will get starters Phil Hughes and Bartolo Colon back soon and that could mean he could lose his spot in the rotation. On Monday, he seemed to be making a bold statement that he is not coming out of the rotation without a fight.
Nova (7-4) pitched a career-best eight innings, gave up only one run on four hits, walked none and struck out seven as New York swept into Great American Ballpark and downed Cincinnati to win its ninth out of their last 11 games.
Nova threw 70 strikes out of 105 pitches thrown (67% strikes) to tie Michael Pineda of the Seattle Mariners with the most victories by a rookie pitcher in the major leagues.
Nova got all the run support he really needed in the first inning as the Yankees tagged substitute starter Travis Wood (5-5) for four runs on five hits. Wood was moved up a day because right-hander Johnny Cueto had to be scratched from his start because of a stiff neck.
It looked as if Wood would end up with a stiff neck of his own as he kept turning to watch Yankee hits flying past him. Nick Swisher led off the game with a single and Mark Teixeira followed with a single of his own one out later. Alex Rodriguez then opened the scoring with a single to left to score Swisher. Robinson Cano followed with an opposite-field double to score Teixeira. Russell Martin’s groundout scored Rodriguez and Andruw Jones followed with an RBI single to cap the four-run explosion before some of the sellout crowd of 41,173 had sampled their nachos.
The Reds looked as if they were going to answer back quickly when Drew Stubbs singled and stole second and Brandon Phillips singled Stubbs to third. However, Nova used his sinker to induce Joey Votto into a double-play in which Stubbs scored. But Nova stopped the Reds cold after that.
Stubbs reached on a swinging third strike wild pitch from Nova with two out in the third, Paul Janish stroked a two-out single in the fifth and pinch-hitter Fred Lewis singled with two out in the eighth. Nova retired the rest of th ebatters he faced on 17 groundouts, seven strikeouts and only three flyouts.
Wood, however, did settle down and he retired 15 of the next 20 batters he faced after the first inning. But Nova would not give in to the Reds.
The Yankees scored a run in the seventh inning due to the giving nature of the Reds. Reliever Jose Arredondo walked Curtis Gramderson. Granderson stole second but was able to take third when Janish dropped a throw from catcher Ryan Hanigan and the ball rolled past him into shallow center-field. Granderson then scored on an Arredondo wild pitch.
The Reds then took advantage of Nova’s departure in the ninth when Phillips singled off Luis Ayala to begin the inning. Boone Logan was summoned to face Votto but the erratic lefty plunked Votto with his first and last delivery. Manager Joe Girardi then decided to go to Mariano Rivera with the tying run on deck.
Rivera retired Jay Bruce on a grounder that moved Phillips to third and Votto to second. Scott Rolen scored Phillips on an infield single and Chris Heisey then scored Votto by beating out what could have been a 1-6-3 double play. But Heisey was ruled safe. But Rivera ended the Reds comeback hopes by fanning pinch-hitter Edgar Renteria to notch his 19th save of the season.
With the victory, the Yankees improved their record to 42-29 and they remain 1 1/2 games in back of the second-place Boston Red Sox in the American League East. The Reds are 38-36 on the season.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- Nova was never any better this season than he was on Monday night. He had only three three-ball counts and he did not walk any of them. Nova also lowered his ERA to 4.13. It os obvious that when Colon and Hughes do return they will be starters. The question is what will happen to Nova when they come back? On the basis of this effort, it would be inconceivable they would put him in the bullpen.
- Rodriguez continues to hit with a 2-for-4 night with a run scored and an RBI. Though Rodriguez is nursing a sore shoulder it is not interfering with his play at all. He also made a nice diving stab to rob Heisey of a hit. Rodriguez is hitting .292 with 13 home runs and 44 RBIs.
- Cano is beginning to get his average back over .300. He also was 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. Cano now has a nine-game hitting streak in which he is 15-for-38 (.395) with two home runs and six RBIs. He is now hitting .295 on the season with 14 home runs and 47 RBIs.
- Swisher is doing his job in the leadoff spot against left-handers. He was 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored against Wood. He is 4-for-13 (.308) from the leadoff spot since Derek Jeter was injured.
- With David Robertson unavailable to pitch, Girardi decided to close the ninth with Luis Ayala and Boone Logan. However, Ayala gave up a leadoff single to Phillips and Logan hit Votto with a pitch to put the Reds in position for their major league-leading 23rd comeback. Fortunately, Rivera restored order. But it does show the Yankee bullpen does have a soft underbelly than can be exploited. The Yankees would love to have a healthy Pedro Feliciano and Rafael Soriano back soon to shore up the bullpen.
- Andruw Jones had a severe brain cramp in the third inning and it short-circuited a potential big inning. With one out, Cano and Martin hit back-to-back singles. Jones then sent a slow bouncer to Rolen at third. Rolen forced Martin at third but Martin was able to upend Philips at second. However, Jones did not run the grounder out because he thought there were already two outs. Phillips got back up and threw Jones out by 50 feet. Jones is already on thin ice with the Yankees with his lack of production. Now it looks as if he is going to be a bit lighter in the wallet.
- Eduardo Nunez got caught leaning after he singled to lead off the fourth inning and Wood picked him off first. These mistakes allowed Wood to survive that shaky first inning and pitch seven innings.
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