Results tagged ‘ Matt Joyce ’
Rays Pay Steep Price In 9th On Ichiro’s 2-Run Hit
GAME 18
YANKEES 4, RAYS 3
Ichiro Suzuki entered Tuesday’s game batting just .200 and it was beginning to look as if all those years of playing baseball were starting to take its toll. But the Tampa Bay Rays found out there is no hitter more dangerous than a great hitter in the throes of a horrible slump.
Suzuki slapped a two-out bases loaded single off reliever Fernando Rodney to drive in two runs to break a 2-2 tie in the ninth inning as New York edged Tampa Bay in front of an embarrassingly small paid crowd of 17,644 at Tropicana Field.
David Robertson (1-0) pitched a perfect ninth inning in relief of starter Phil Hughes to earn credit for the victory. Though Evan Longoria greeted him with a first-pitch home run in the bottom of ninth, Mariano Rivera retired the next three hitters to earn his sixth save in as many chances this season.
Robinson Cano started the ninth inning with a single off Rays starter David Price (0-2). Rays manager Joe Maddon then elected to bring Rodney to face left-hander Vernon Wells.
Wells struck out but Cano was able to swipe second base, which forced Maddon to walk pinch-hitter Travis Hafner intentionally to set up a potential double play.
However, Lyle Overbay was able able to draw a walk on a 3-2 pitch from Rodney to load the bases and, after Chris Stewart popped out, Suzuki came to the plate.
Suzuki also was instrumental in allowing the Yankees to tie the game in the eighth with a one-out single and he advanced to third on a single to left by Jayson Nix. He then scored on a infield groundout by Brett Gardner.
Price entered the eighth with a 2-1 lead on a two-out RBI single by Jose Molina that scored Matt Joyce.
Price gave up three runs on eight hits and no walks while he struck out five in eight-plus innings of work.
However, Hughes matched him pitch-for-pitch after a shaky first inning in which he gave up a walk to Desmond Jennings, a double by Ryan Roberts and sacrifice fly to Ben Zobrist that scored Jennings.
Hughes then settled in giving up just two runs on six hits and two walks and he struck out six batters in seven innings. It was his second consecutive strong outing but he has received a no decisions in both of them.
With the victory the Yankees improved their season ledger to 11-8. The Rays fell to 9-11.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- Suzuki, 39, has had the Yankees concerned because he slumped miserably in the final three weeks of spring training and began the season in the same hitting funk. Manager Joe Girardi elected to bench him in favor of Brennan Boesch twice against left-handers in the past week. Hopefully his two hits in the last two innings, scoring the game-tying run and driving in the game-winning runs will get him going.
- In his last two starts, Hughes has given up four runs on 12 hits and two walks and he has fanned 12 in 14 innings. After giving up the sacrifice fly to Zobrist in the first inning, Hughes retired 16 of the next 19 batters he faced until he opened the seventh inning by walking Joyce. Joyce eventually scored on Molina’s hit and it likely cost Hughes the victory. But Hughes is pitching well after two dreadful starts to begin the season. He lowered his season ERA to 5.14.
- Cano was 2-for-4 and both his hits set up runs. After Eduardo Nunez reached first to lead off the fourth inning on a wild pitch on a swinging third strike, Cano advanced him third on a single. Wells then drove in Nunez with an opposite-field single to right that tied the game at 1-1. Cano raised his season average to .342, which currently leads the team.
NAGGING NEGATIVES
- It is just about decision time for the Yankees on Ben Francisco, who started for a second consecutive game as the designated hitter. Francisco was 0-for-3 in the game and he is hitting a miserable .080 on the season after hitting a combined .308 with eight doubles, three homers and nine RBIs for the Cleveland Indians and the Yankees in spring training. The Yankees chose to keep Francisco over Juan Rivera, though Rivera also had a good spring. Rivera is currently a free agent and could be signed by any club.
- The Yankees are finding out their Achilles’ heel is left-handed pitching. With Kevin Youkilis out of the lineup for a third straight game with lower back stiffness, the Yankees were forced to start Francisco at DH in place of Hafner, the lefty swinging Overbay at first and Nix at third. After Matt Moore shut them down on one run and two hits on Monday, Price held them to two runs on seven hits on Tuesday until the ninth inning when they rallied off the right-handed Rodney.
- The Yankees were 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position until Suzuki delivered his game-winning single in the ninth.
BOMBER BANTER
Youkilis was held out of the lineup for a third straight game on Tuesday and he now is not expected to play until Thursday. Youkilis originally injured the back in the fifth inning of Saturday’s game in Toronto against the Blue Jays and re-aggravated the injury on Monday during batting practice in St. Petersburg, FL. . . . Mark Teixeira admitted on Tuesday that he will not meet his stated goal to return to the lineup by May 1. Though Teixiera has been cleared to take dry swings from both sides of the plate, he has not advanced far enough to begin hitting a baseball. Instead of remaining in Tampa to continue his workouts, Teixiera will return with the team to New York after Wednesday’s game. . . . Derek Jeter will be in New York on Thursday and will hold a press conference. Jeter, who found out last week that he sustained another small fracture in his surgically repaired left ankle, has not made any public comment since he learned will be out until after the All-Star break.
ON DECK
The Yankees will have a chance to win the rubber game of their three-game set with the Rays on Wednesday.
Veteran left-hander Andy Pettitte (3-0, 2.01 ERA) will start for the Yankees. Pettitte is coming off another strong 7 1/3 innings in a victory over the Blue Jays on Friday. Pettitte, 40, gave up three runs on six hits and a walk while he struck out five. In his last 10 seasons, Pettitte is 16-5 with a 4.13 ERA against the Rays.
The Rays will start right-hander Alex Cobb (2-1, 2.53 ERA). Cobb also allowed three runs in 7 1/3 innings in a victory over the Oakland Athletics on Friday. He is 1-1 with a 3.15 ERA in three career starts against the Yankees.
Game-time will be 7:10 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast by the YES Network.
Yankees Repel Rays With Walk-Off Homer In 10th
GAME 28
YANKEES 7, TAMPA BAY 6 (10 Innings)
TAMPA - There are times when things may look its bleakest but a proud team decides it needs to make a statement. On Sunday the Yankees made a bold statement that they they will not go down without a pretty fierce fight.
Kevin Youkilis launched a pair of long-distance two-run home runs and Ronnier Mustelier cracked a walk-off homer in the bottom of the 10th inning as New York defeated Tampa Bay in a see-saw affair in front of a paid crowd of 10,894 at George M. Steinbrenner Field.
Youkilis reclaimed the lead for the Yankees in the bottom of the eighth inning with his second home run of the game his fifth of the spring. However, the Rays rallied for a run in the top of the ninth to tie the game at 6-6 on an RBI double by Jake Hager off David Aardsma.
That set the stage for Mustelier’s fly-ball home run off a 3-2 offering from Josh Lueke (2-1) that just cleared in the wall in left-field.
Preston Claiborne (1-0) retired the only two batters he faced in the top of the 10th to gain credit for the victory.
The Yankees improved to 12-17 this spring. The Rays fell to 14-14.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- It appears that signing the Youkilis to replace Alex Rodriguez at third base while he recovers from hip surgery was about the smartest thing that general manager Brian Cashman accomplished this winter. With batting coach Kevin Long’s help, Youkilis has lowered his hands a bit and he’s making solid contact again. With his 2-for-4 day and two home runs, Youkilis now leads the team with five homers and 12 RBIs this spring and he is hitting .262.
- Mustelier, 28, could not have picked a better time to hit his second home run of the spring. Though it appears his chances of making the team out of spring training are near zero, he is making a big impression on the front office with his .324 batting average.
- Other than Aardsma, the Yankees bullpen was near flawless in the 5 1/3 innings they pitched. Vidal Nuno, Cody Eppley, Mariano Rivera, Joba Chamberlain, Boone Logan, Josh Spence and Claiborne combined to give up no runs on five hits and three walks while striking out six batters.
NAGGING NEGATIVES
- Though Youkilis drove in four runs it ended up being a wash because his error on a ground ball off the bat of Jose Molina with a runner on third and two out in the fourth inning opened the floodgates for four unearned runs to score that inning. Youkilis won a Gold Glove with the Boston Red Sox as a first baseman in 2007. However, he is not as accomplished as a fielder at third.
- Aardsma, 31, simply did not get the job done in the bottom of ninth inning. He issued a leadoff single by Ben Zobrist, Jason Bourgeois bunted him to second and Hager scored him with his double. Aardsma’s spring ERA is now to 3.86 and it is unclear if he will make the bullpen coming out spring training.
- There was some bad base-running that cost the Yankees in the fifth inning. After one out, Eduardo Nunez singled but was thrown out attempting to steal by Molina because he got a bad jump off first. Than Ichiro Suzuki rolled a ball down the line in left and was thrown out because he rounded first too far allowing Matt Joyce to gun him down.
BOMBER BANTER
Derek Jeter reported that he was experiencing soreness again in his surgically repaired left ankle and the team has ordered him to rest for at least two days. Cashman said it is looking extremely unlikely that the 38-year-old shortstop will be available on Opening Day. The team likely will place him on the 15-day disabled retroactively so that he could be activated as soon as April 6. . . . Reports indicate that the Yankees and Angels are trying to work out a trade that would send outfielder Vernon Wells to the Yankees. Wells, 34, is a fifth outfielder with the Angels but he was hitting . 361 (13 for 36) with four homers and 11 RBis this spring. Wells has a no-trade clause in his contract but he reportedly would be willing to waive it to get more playing time. The big stumbling block is how much the Angels will pay of the $42 million left on Wells’ contract.
ON DECK
The Yankees will take their third day off of the spring on Monday. On Tuesday they will play host to the Houston Astros.
CC Sabathia will make his final spring tuneup before pitching for the Yankees on Opening Day on April 1. The Astros have not named a starter.
Game-time will be 7:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast live by the YES Network and by the MLB Network.
Yankees Do ‘Little’ Things To Cloud Rays’ Horizon
GAME 146
YANKEES 6, RAYS 4
Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Maddon out of necessity to cover for his team’s weak offense employs a combination of aggressive base-running, bunts and forces the opposition into making mistakes. There also is an old axiom of sports if that a team loves to employ a certain strategy they really hate it when you turn the tables on them.
The Yankees did just that on Sunday by frustrating the Rays with four stolen bases, two sacrifice bunts and they forced two errors as New York played a little “small ball” to send Tampa Bay out of Yankee Stadium with a series loss and pushed them a game further back in the pennant chase.
The Yankees batted around and scored five runs in the bottom of the third inning to send left-hander Matt Moore (10-11) to the showers early using two walks, two stolen bases, a sacrifice bunt, a wild pitch and finally a good old-fashioned home run to put the Rays in a deep hole early.
Eduardo Nunez sparked the uprising by drawing a leadoff walk and stealing second base after Moore had made four attempted pickoffs. Derek Jeter followed with a single into center in which center-fielder B.j. Upton’s throw was off-line, allowing Nunez to score and Jeter to take second.
Nick Swisher, on his own, laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Jeter to third and Alex Rodriguez singled up the middle through a drawn-in infield to score Jeter.
Moore compounded his misery by throwing a pitch in the dirt to Robinson Cano that got past catcher Jose Lobaton and allowed Rodriguez to take second. Rodriguez amped up the pressure by stealing third base and a frustrated Moore walked Cano on four pitches.
Moore then had Russell Martin down 0-2 in the count but Martin battled back to a 3-2 count before he slapped a four-seam fastball to the opposite field and it landed out of the reach of right-fielder Sam Fuld and into the first row of the bleachers in the short porch in right-field for Martin’s 17th home run of the season.
The damage left Moore pitched out, having thrown 45 pitches in the inning. It also gave Hiroki Kuroda (14-10) a nice cushion to work with.
Kuroda came out blazing against the Rays, striking out the side in the first two innings.
But Ben Zobrist nicked him for a solo home run to lead off the fourth inning. From there Kuroda sailed through the Rays’ lineup until the sixth inning.
The Yankees then used an error, two stolen bases, a walk and sacrifice fly to score an unearned run in their half of the fourth.
Nunez reached first after reliever Brandon Gomes misplayed his comebacker to the mound. Nunez then stole second and third base. Jeter walked and, one out later Rodriguez launched a sacrifice fly to the warning track in right-field to score Nunez.
Kuroda, meanwhile, was pitching a gem through five innings, having given up just the one run on two hits and he had walked no one and struck out nine. But he stumbled in the sixth.
The 37-year-old right-hander walked Lobaton to open the frame and Desmond Jennings followed with an infield single. Kuroda then walked Zobrist to load the bases.
Evan Longoria then hit a potential double-play grounder to Rodriguez at third but the ball took a big hop over his glove and two runs scored on the single as Zobrist raced to third.
Matt Joyce followed with an actual double-play grounder to score Zobrist, which drew the Rays to within two runs.
However, the Yankees bullpen shut the Rays down over the next three innings with rookie David Phelps striking out Jennings looking with runners at first and second and two out in the seventh to preserve the lead.
David Robertson pitched a perfect eighth and Rafael Soriano came in to toss a scoreless ninth to pick up his 40th save in 43 chances this season.
How frustrating was the loss for the Rays? They drew two ejections.
Maddon was ejected from the game in the third inning after home-plate umpire Paul Emmel chose to warn both teams after Moore had thrown a pitch that buzzed over the head of Curtis Granderson two batters after Martin’s home run. When Maddon questioned Emmel’s warning he got the heave-ho.
Joyce was tossed from the game by Emmel after he struck out looking on a Robertson curveball to end the eighth inning.
With the victory the Yankees improved their season ledger to 83-62 and they also maintained their one-game lead in the American League East over the second-place Baltimore Orioles. The Rays are now 78-68. They are five games in back of the Yankees in the division and trail in the wild-card standings by four games.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- Nunez has brought back the one element the Yankees have been lacking all season: Speed on the bases. Nunez stole three bases in the game, which gives him 10 on the season. He is second on the team and he trails Rodriguez by three despite the fact he has been at Triple-A most of the season. Nunez is also hitting .294, which means he might be a more viable option as a right-handed DH then a slumping Andruw Jones.
- Martin’s home run is part of a huge resurgence for him since Aug. 21. Martin is 19-for-67 (.283) in that span with four home runs and 14 RBIs. That has finally raised Martin’s season average over the “Mendoza line’ and he is now hitting .209. All Yankee fans can say to him is “It is about time, Russell.”
- Kuroda’s line did not indicate just how well he pitched despite the sixth inning. He did give up four runs in six innings but Kuroda ended up giving up just four hits and two walks while he struck out 10. Unfortunately for him, both of those two walks ended up scoring. The bottom line is Kuroda is the true ace of the staff at this point of the season.
NAGGING NEGATIVES
I have been hoping for a game like this where there was some “small ball” mixed in with some long-ball. It was, for the most part, a well-pitched game and the Yankees were able to keep their lead in the division with the toughest part of their schedule now behind him. Nothing to criticize about that.
ON DECK
The Yankees will get a day to rest their bumps and bruises before resuming their homestand on Tuesday starting a three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays.
The atmosphere will be electric as left-hander Andy Pettitte (3-3, 3.22 ERA) will make his first start since he went on the disabled list on June 27 with a fractured left ankle. Pettitte will be limited to about 70 pitches. Over the past 10 years, Pettitte is 12-9 with a 4.84 ERA against the Blue Jays.
Left-hander Ricky Romero (8-14, 8.57 ERA) will start for the Jays. Romero is in the midst of a 13-game losing streak, which ties him with the franchise record for futility. He is 3-7 with a 5.00 ERA lifetime against the Yankees.
Game-time will be 7:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast by MY9.
‘Little-Ball Yanks’ Use 2-Run Error To Deflect Rays
GAME 136
YANKEES 6, RAYS 4
When things are going bad on the field and nothing seems to help, baseball teams sometimes revert to one tried-and-true method to get back on track: A closed-door team meeting. The New York Yankees held one two hours before the game on Wednesday and it maybe turned their fortunes around.
The Yankees benefitted from a seventh-inning throwing error by Elliot Johnson to score two runs as New York downed Tampa Bay in front of a paid crowd of 16,711 at Tropicana Field to reclaim sole possession of first place in the American League East.
After a slide that eroded a 10-game lead on the second-place Baltimore Orioles on July 18 to a tie going into Wednesday’s game, the players and coaches held a 20-minute meeting in the visitors’ clubhouse to stress what Alex Rodriguez suggested as “doing the little things” the rest of season instead of trying to hit home runs all the time. They then put the new credo into practice and it appeared to work.
With the game tied 4-4 in the seventh, Andruw Jones and Steve Pearce opened the inning with back-to-back singles off Rays left-hander Matt Moore. Manager Joe Girardi then put the team’s new motto into action by having Jayson Nix drop down a sacrifice bunt to advance both runners.
Rays manager Joe Maddon then removed Moore in favor of former Yankee fan punching bag and reliever Kyle Farnsworth.
Derek Jeter slapped a high-hop bouncer into a drawn-in infield and second baseman Johnson fielded it and fired to home plate to nip pinch-runner Ichiro Suzuki. However, Johnson’s throw was high and up the third-base line and eluded catcher Jose Lobaton. Suzuki scored and Pearce also was able to score as the ball caromed along the fence in front of the Yankees’ dugout.
The bullpen trio of Boone Logan, David Robertson and Rafael Soriano blanked the Rays over the final three innings to preserve the victory for starter Hiroki Kuroda (13-10). Kuroda gave up four runs – including a solo home run by Luke Scott in the sixth that re-tied the game – on eight hits and two walks and he struck out three batters.
Soriano hurled a perfect ninth to record his 36th save in 39 chances this season.
The Yankees awoke from their hitting doldrums, which saw them limited to six hits or less in their previous five games, as they trailed 1-0 in the fourth inning against Moore (10-9).
Jeter opened the frame with a bloop single that Johnson actually had in his glove but dropped in shallow center-field. One out later, Robinson Cano drew a walk. Rodriguez then followed with an RBI double down the left-field line to score Jeter and advance Cano to third.
Russell Martin then stroked an opposite-field, ground-rule double to score Cano and Rodriguez.
However, Kuroda could not hold the lead. In the fifth, Sam Fuld drew a two-out walk, Desmond Jennings singled and Ben Zobrist smacked a two-run triple.
Martin regained the lead for Kuroda and the Yankees with a two-out home run, his 15th of the season and with the hit he also raised his season batting average over the “Mendoza line” at .202.
Moore ended up surrendering six runs (four earned) on eight hits and one walk while he fanned nine.
The victory, combined with the Orioles’ 6-4 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays, allowed the Yankees to reclaim first place in the division to themselves, a position they had held for 84 consecutive days until Tuesday. The Yankees’ season record is now 77-59. With the loss, the Rays drop 2 1/2 games back in third place. They are 75-62.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- They finally won a game. Shall we have a ticker-tape parade for them on Thursday?
- Martin, batting fifth behind Rodriguez despite his low batting average, came up with a clutch double and home run and drove in three runs. This season has been very disappointing for the 29-year-old catcher and his contract expires at the end of the season. It is about time he starts contributing to the offense.
- Jeter continues his amazing resurgence at the plate. He was 3-for-5 to raise his season average to .319. He also tossed in a clutch running catch of a two-out flare to shallow left off the bat of Matt Joyce that stranded two runners and perhaps saved the game.
NAGGING NEGATIVES
- Kuroda somehow was unable to pitch as well as he had been pitching for the Yankees. He came in having lost his last two games because he gave up three runs early and the Yankees’ offense could not get back into the game. This time, the Yankees handed him two leads and he handed them right back. The Yankees need Kuroda to pitch great down the stretch to have a chance to win the division.
- Nick Swisher was 0-for-4 with two strikeouts and it appears his recent hot streak has come to an end. He was 0-for-11 in the three-game series with the Rays and he struck out seven times. Perhaps he needs to take to heart the Rodriguez mantra and not try to do too much.
- Curtis Granderson was also 0-for-4 and 0-for-8 in the series. Granderson, all of a sudden, has become virtually useless at the plate. He is 3-for-31 with 10 strikeouts in his last 10 games. His season average has dipped to .231 and it is sinking fast. Granderson seems to have reverted back to his early 2010 form before hitting coach Kevin Long restructured his swing.
BOMBER BANTER
Left-handed pitcher Andy Pettitte threw a short simulated game to hitters at Tropicana Field on Wednesday to get a step closer to rejoining the team. Pettitte threw 15 pitches off a mound in his rehab from a fractured left ankle. However, there is no firm date for his return. Pettitte is scheduled for another throwing session in Baltimore this weekend.
ON DECK
The Yankees open an important four-game series with the Orioles in Baltimore on Thursday.
Rookie David Phelps (3-4, 3.13 ERA) will open the series for the Yankees. Phelps allowed three runs in 4 2/3 innings against the Orioles in his last start. Despite the fact that Phelps had absolutely no command of any of his pitches, he still limited the O’s to three hits and the Yankees won the game. He is 1-0 with a 2.79 ERA against the Orioles this season.
Right-hander Jason Hammel (8-6, 3.54 ERA) will come off the disabled list to pitch. Hammel has not made a start since July 13 because he had surgery on his right knee. His pitch count will be limited in this game, Hammel is 1-3 with a 6.75 ERA in his career against the Yankees.
Game-time will 7:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast nationally by the MLB Network and locally by the YES Network.
‘Super’ Nova Continues His Mastery Over Cold Rays
GAME 55
YANKEES 4, RAYS 1
Through the first third of the season the Yankees have not gotten much consistency from 25-year-old right-hander Ivan Nova, who entered Wednesday’s contest against the Rays with a 5.60 ERA.
Perhaps Nova finally found his groove or the Rays’ offense is in a severe deep freeze. Whatever the reason, Nova looked dominant and he had the Rays in control on the Yankee Stadium mound.
Nova pitched eight-plus innings and just missed pitching a complete-game shutout as New York downed Tampa Bay for the second night in a row and they now have won 10 of their last 13 games.
Nova (7-2) gave up a single to Desmond Jennings to start the game and he did not allow another hit until Sean Rodriguez stroked a one-out double in the eighth inning. In the ninth, Jennings and B.J. Upton hit back-to-back triples to spoil the shutout and end Nova’s evening.
It was the Rays’ first run of the series and their first score in their last 19 innings.
Nova gave up just the four hits, walked one, hit a batter and struck out five to win his third straight start. He faced the minimum in five of his eight innings of work and at one point he retired 13 straight batters.
Rafael Soriano entered the game in the ninth with Upton on third and no outs and he retired Matt Joyce, Ben Zobrist and Hideki Matsui in order to collect his eighth save in eight opportunities.
Meanwhile, Nova received all the support he really needed on a pair of solo home runs.
With one out in the second inning, Mark Teixeira smacked a 0-1 hanging slider from right-hander Alex Cobb into the second deck in right-field for his 10th home run of the season and his fifth in his last 11 games.
Two innings later, Robinson Cano connected off Cobb (2-2) on 2-0 fastball and he lined a rope into the first row of seats over the auxiliary scoreboard in right-center for his ninth home run of the season. It was his fifth home run in his last 13 games.
Those two home runs were only two hits the Yankees managed off Cobb until the bottom of the eighth.
Raul Ibanez led off the inning with a single into right. With Dewayne Wise pinch-running for Ibanez at first, Nick Swisher laced a double down the right-field line that scored Wise easily. Eric Chavez followed with a double off the wall in left-center that scored Swisher to give the Yankees a 4-0 lead.
Cobb left having given up four runs on five hits and one walk and he struck out four in seven-plus innings.
With the victory, the Yankees pulled into second place in the American League East with a 31-24 record, a half-game behind the Baltimore Orioles. The Rays’ season record is 31-25 and they fell into third place in the division.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- Nova was at his absolute best on Wednesday. He retired 13 of his 24 outs on ground balls and threw 69 of his 103 pitches for strikes (67 percent). Nova also has run his career record against the Rays to 4-0 and he is 2-0 against them this season. Nova’s effort lowered his season ERA to 5.09.
- Soriano came to the rescue in the ninth with one run in and a runner on third with nobody out. But he induced Joyce to pop out in foul territory, he fanned Zobrist on a pitch in the dirt and Matsui’s high fly ball to right died at the warning track. Soriano remains perfect in save situations and he lowered his ERA to 1.90. Soriano also has not been scored upon since the Rays scored a run off of him on May 10 at Yankee Stadium, a string of 10 consecutive scoreless outings.
- Teixeira’s return to driving the ball has led to a recent flurry in which he is 14-for-42 (.333) with five home runs and 12 RBIs over his last 11 games. In that span he has raised his season average from .226 to .249.
- Despite being hit on the left forearm in Tuesday’s game, Cano was able to play Wednesday and homered. Cano had been in tailspin that had dropped his season average to .286 but he now has a modest four-game hitting streak and he is 5-for-14 (.357) during that span.
NAGGING NEGATIVES
- The Yankees had a hard time mustering much offense against Cobb, a rookie right-hander. Part of the problem is that Derek Jeter and Curtis Granderson were 0-for-7 against Cobb at the top of the lineup. They were 0-for-8 overall and they only managed to get one ball out of the infield.
- After showing signs of coming out of his season-long funk on Tuesday with a three hits, including a grand-slam home run, Russell Martin was 0-for-3 with a strikeout on Wednesday. That lowered his batting average back to .206.
- Alex Rodriguez committed a stupid base-running play in the fourth inning. He drew a walk from Cobb with one out and Cobb’s second pitch to Cano bounced under the glove of catcher Jose Molina. However, Molina was able to retrieve it with Rodriguez halfway between first and second base. Rodriguez tried to get back to first but Molina gunned him down easily. Cano homered on the next pitch and Rodriguez’s mistake cost the Yankees a run.
BOMBER BANTER
Closer Mariano Rivera learned the issue with a blood clot in his right calf has been resolved and he is scheduled to undergo surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament and torn meniscus in his right knee next Tuesday in New York. Rivera, 42, said he hopes to be able to pitch in 2013. . . . All-Star setup man David Robertson will throw a bullpen session on Thursday at Yankee Stadium and he could possibly pitch in a minor-league game on Sunday. Robertson has been on the 15-day disabled list since May 14 with a strained left oblique. . . . Brett Gardner will play for Class A Advanced Tampa on Thursday and he could be activated as soon as Sunday. Gardner has been on the disabled list since April 18 with a strained right elbow.
ON DECK
The Yankees will be looking for a clean sweep of their three-game home series against the Rays on Thursday.
They will call upon ace left-hander CC Sabathia (7-2, 3.68 ERA) to get that sweep. Sabathia gave up three runs on eight hits and two walks and fanned five batters in eight innings of work last Friday in a victory over the Tigers. Sabathia is 10-7 with a 3.11 ERA in his career against the Rays.
The Rays are countering with left-hander David Price (7-3, 2.44 ERA). Price struck five in 7 1/3 innings last Friday while giving up four hits and two walks in a victory over the Orioles. Price is 5-3 with 4.15 ERA in his career against the Yankees but one of those losses was this season and Sabathia outpitched him in that game.
Game-time will be 7:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast nationally by the MLB Network and locally by the YES Network.
Robertson’s ‘Houdini Act’ Fails In Rays Encore
GAME 30
RAYS 4, YANKEES 1
B.J. Upton lofted a sacrifice fly in the top of the ninth inning and Matt Joyce followed with a three-run home run off new closer David Robertson as Tampa Bay rallied past New York at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday.
The Yankees held a 1-0 lead from the first inning but No. 8 hitter Sean Rodriguez and pinch-hitter Brandon Allen greeted Robertson with first-pitch singles to open the ninth. Robertson then walked Ben Zobrist to the load the bases. After Robertson fanned Carlos Pena looking Upton hit a flyball to right that scored Rodriguez with the tying run.
Joyce then hit an 0-2 pitch into the right-field seats to give the Rays a 4-1 lead.
Reliever Fernando Rodney (2-0) pitched two scoreless innings for the victory. Robertson (o-1) blew his first save of the season and took the loss.
The Yankees season record is now 16-14. The Rays are 20-11.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- The Yankees quartet of starter David Phelps and relievers Boone Logan, Cory Wade and Rafael Soriano pitched eight scoreless innings, giving up five hits and four walks and striking out six. The Rays stranded a total of 10 base-runners and left the bases loaded without scoring in the first and fifth innings. Theses pitchers deserved a better fate.
- Robinson Cano is showing definite signs of coming around with the bat of late. He was 2-for-4 and drove in the Yankees’ only run of the game when he followed Derek Jeter’s leadoff single in the first with a two-out, opposite-field double off the left-field wall that scored Jeter. Cano has at least one hit in nine of his last 10 games and is batting .308 over that span.
- Alex Rodriguez was 2-for-4 in the game and even stole third base the sixth inning for his third steal of the season. Rodriguez is now hitting .279 on the season.
NAGGING NEGATIVES
- Robertson proved he was human on Wednesday. The four runs he gave up broke a string of 26 2/3 innings of scoreless baseball over 13 appearances dating back to last season. Though he blew the save, Mariano Rivera would tell him that in order to succeed as a closer you have learn how to fail. Robertson learned that lesson pretty well on Wednesday.
- The offense after the first inning was horrific. They were 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position. If you want to look at one culprit, look no further than Mark Teixeira. Teixeira is simply running out excuses. It is May and he was 0-for-4 on Wednesday and it dragged his batting average down to .217. He did not get a ball out of the infield, he struck out looking and he grounded into an inning-ending double play in the eighth.
- Curtis Granderson was 0-for-4 with two strikeouts in the game. In 117 at-bats this season, Gramderson has struck out 33 times, a rate just a bit over one out of every four at-bats.
BOMBER BANTER
Rivera was hospitalized this week after doctors examining his torn anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus in his right knee discovered a blood clot in his right calf. Rivera was given blood thinners to dissolve the clot and the condition is not expected to prevent Rivera from pitching for the Yankees next season. Rivera told reporters on Wednesday that he will have surgery to repair his knee when the swelling subsides and the knee strengthens.
ON DECK
The Yankees will have a chance to win the three-game series on Thursday against the Rays.
CC Sabathia (4-0, 4.15 ERA) will start for the Yankees, having won his his last four decisions. Sabathia went a strong eight innings to defeat the Kansas City Royals last Friday. He is 9-7 with a 3.25 ERA in his career against the Rays.
Left-hander David Price (5-1, 2.35 ERA) will pitch for the Rays. He allowed one run and struck out 12 in eight innings to beat the Oakland Athletics last Friday. He is 5-2 with a 3.96 ERA in 14 career starts against the Yankees.
Game-time will be 7:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast nationally by the MLB Network and locally by the YES Network.
Yankees Leave Tampa Bay Area With Blank Glare
GAME 3
RAYS 3, YANKEES 0
This weekend for the Yankees was like it came from the mind of 1970s disaster film king Irwin Allen. The title could be “Voyage to the Bottom of the Division.”
Jeremy Hellickson blanked New York on three hits in 8 2/3 innings as Tampa Bay gave the term “Bronx Bombers” a new twist in a weekend opening series sweep on Sunday at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, FL.
Hellickson (1-0) struck four and walked four before giving way to Fernando Rodney for a one-out save in the ninth.
Phil Hughes (0-1) actually pitched well but did not get any support for his efforts, He gave up two runs on four hits and two walks and struck five in 4 2/3 innings when his pitch count reached 99. The Rays were determined not to swing until at any offering unless they had two strikes on them.
The whole weekend was a series of contrasts. The balls the Yankees hit would either go right to a Rays’ fielder and the long fly balls stayed in the ballpark. But every ball the Rays hit would just elude a Yankee fielder or inch over the wall. Maybe instead of Irwin Allen it was more like a haunting Alfred Hitchcock.
One would guess is that if Rays manager Joe Maddon had stationed a fielder on the Sunshine Skyway Bridge one of the Yankees would have hit it right into his glove.
The Yankees are an early 0-3. The Rays are 3-0. But I seem to remember the Rays starting poorly last season and it did not deter them.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- No Yankees were actually harmed in the production of this disaster.
- The last time the Yankees started a season 0-3 was in 1998 and they happened to win 114 games and went on to win a world championship, So there is a silver lining in the Tampa Bay thunderstorm clouds.
- Hughes actually did pitch well and it bodes well for a bounce-back season for him.
NAGGING NEGATIVES
- On Saturday Jeff Keppinger of the Rays deliberately hit the ball to the right side of the infield to advance Luke Scott to third base. I do not recall a single Yankee “giving themselves up” to advance a baser-runner this entire weekend. All I saw was a lot of weak popups, grounders and strikeouts with runners in scoring position. For the weekend they were 5-for-25 (.200).
- Nick Swisher failed twice in run-scoring opportunities on Sunday and it set the tone for the Yankees’ frustrating day. In the fourth, with one out and Alex Rodriguez on third and Mark Teixeira on second after a double, Swisher messed up a 3-1 count by hitting a weak popup to third. In the sixth, with two outs and Rodriguez on third and Teixeira at first, Swisher was called out on strikes.
- I remember in spring training how manager Joe Girardi was proud of his veteran designated hitters Andruw Jones and Raul Ibanez for their experience in playing the outfield and how it would give the team lots of flexibility. Girardi chose on Sunday to start Ibanez in right-field and Swisher as the DH. However, just because Ibanez “can” play the outfield doesn’t mean he should. In the first inning, Evan Longoria doubled to left with two out. Matt Joyce followed with a sinking liner to right that Ibanez misplayed into a triple and the Rays scored the only run they needed the rest of the day. Ibanez has no business playing the outfield on an artificial surface, period.
BOMBER BANTER
Andy Pettitte will make his first start in a minor-league game on Monday with Class-A Tampa against Clearwater in Florida State League game in Clearwater, FL. Pettitte, 39, hopes to resume his major-league career with the Yankees sometime in May. . . . Despite the fact he was limping after the game, Curtis Granderson said his sore right calf was not a serious injury. Granderson fouled a ball off his right calf in the third inning. He later struck out and finished the day 0-for-3 with a walk. . . . Girardi opted not to rest Rodriguez on Sunday and he said the veteran third baseman likely will DH on Monday. Girardi said there will be focus on trying to keep Rodriguez and Derek Jeter rested throughout the season.
ON DECK
For the first time since they arrived in Tampa, FL., in February for spring training the Yankees will be in Baltimore on Monday to play the Orioles.
The Yankees will start right-hander Ivan Nova. Nova had a pretty forgettable spring after recording a 16-4 record and a 3.70 ERA in his rookie season. He was 2-0 with a 3.55 ERA in four starts against the Orioles last season.
The Orioles will counter with left-hander Brian Matusz, coming of a 1-9 record and 10.69 ERA in 2011. Matusz is 2-4 with a 4.70 ERA against the Yankees in his career.
Game-time will be 7:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast by the YES Network.
Rays End Late Rally, Ruin Kuroda’s Yankee Debut
GAME 2
RAYS 8, YANKEES 6
Luke Scott slapped a two-out bases-loaded single to drive in two runs in the first inning as Tampa Bay built a 8-2 lead and held on late to edge New York on Saturday at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, FL.
David Price (1-0) gave up two runs on five hits and four walks and he struck out five in 6 1/3 innings to pick up the win. Hiroki Kuroda (0-1) surrendered six runs (four earned) on eight hits and four walks and he fanned two in 5 2/3 innings to lose in his Yankee debut.
Fernando Rodney came in to face Alex Rodriguez as the tying run with two out in the ninth and he retired him on an infield grounder to pick up a save.
The Yankees rallied to put four runs on the board in the ninth, including a three-run home run by Nick Swisher off Joel Peralta, only to ultimately come up shorr.
The Yankees are 0-2 on the young season and the Rays are 2-0.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- Not much was positive on this night though Swisher’s first home run of the season did bring the Yankees back from a 8-3 deficit to an within two runs in the ninth. He guessed fastball on an 1-0 count and got it from Peralta and deposited the ball deep into the right-field bleachers. Swisher was 1-for-3 with two walks on the night.
- Pinch-hitting for Andruw Jones in the ninth, Raul Ibanez hit a line drive to center-fielder Desmond Jennings to score Curtis Granderson, who had begun the inning with a triple off reliever Josh Lueke. Ibanez now has five RBIs in the first two games of the season.
- Cory Wade was the only pitcher who seemed to know what he was doing on Saturday. He faced five batters and retired all of them, three by strikeout. Wade had struggled a lot during spring training and it was unclear if it would carry over to the regular season. But based on his first appearance, it looks as if Wade has straightened himself out.
NAGGING NEGATIVES
- Kuroda was very disappointing after having an exceptional spring. His command was off (four walks) and he looked to be pitching tentatively all night. After Scott’s two-run single in the first, the Rays added a RBI single by Carlos Pena in the second, a solo home run by Matt Joyce in the third and RBI hits by Scott and Jennings in the sixth, which finally chased the 37-year-old right-hander.
- Lefty specialist Clay Rapada, who drew raves all spring when he recorded an 0.90 ERA, was ineffective in his Yankee debut also. He walked the lefty-swinging Pena to open the seventh. Then he gave up a disputed home run to Evan Longoria that the umpires used TV replays to change into a double. However, the ruling did not matter when the lefty-swinging Joyce slapped a bloop single to left to score both Pena and Longoria. In the long run, those runs really hurt the most.
- The Yankees are getting frustrated by the Rays’ defensive shifts, which have taken away hit after hit in the series. Rodriguez’s game-ending groundout was stopped by second baseman Sean Rodriguez, who was positioned up the middle, right where A-Rod hit it. A fitting end to a frustrating night.
BOMBER BANTER
Manager Joe Girardi opted to shift his lineup against the left-handed Price. He slotted Swisher in the No. 2 spot and moved Granderson into Swisher’s No. 6 spot. He also played Jones in left and benched Brett Gardner. Girardi said Swisher has a high on-base percentage against lefties and he might be used as the No. 2 hitter against lefties this season. He also said Gardner will still get playing time against lefties this season. . . . Girardi is considering giving Rodriguez a day off on Sunday after Derek Jeter was used as the DH on Saturday and Eduardo Nunez played shortstop. Girardi said Eric Chavez would replace Rodriguez in the lineup. Russell Martin also could sit in favor of new backup catcher Chris Stewart.
ON DECK
The Yankees look to salvage a game on Sunday in their finale with the Rays.
Phil Hughes will get the start for the Yankees. Hughes, 25, is looking to rebound from an injury-plagued 2011 campaign. Hughes is 403 with a 4.01 ERA lifetime against the Rays.
The Rays will counter with second-year right-hander Jeremy Hellickson, who was 13-10 in his rookie season. Hellickson is 2-1 with a 4.10 ERA against the Yankees in his career.
Game-time will be 1:40 p.m. and the game will be telecast by the YES Network.
Rivera Proves He’s Human In Opener Against Rays
GAME 1
RAYS 7, YANKEES 6
Ben Zobrist hit a game-tying double and Carlos Pena stroked a bases-loaded single in the bottom of the ninth as Tampa Bay rallied to defeat New York in both team’s season opener on Friday at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, FL.
Newly acquired right-hander Fernando Rodney (1-0) pitched a scoreless ninth inning to get credit for the victory. Closer Mariano Rivera (0-1) was tagged with both a blown save and a loss.
The Yankees rallied from a 4-0 first-inning deficit to take a 6-4 lead in the third inning on the strength of new designated hitter Raul Ibanez, who had four RBIs including three on a three-run home run in the third off Rays starter James Shields.
Pena, however, also added a grand slam home run in the first inning off Yankees ace CC Sabathia for five RBIs.
Neither Sabathia or Shields were particularly sharp in their first outings, although after the first inning Sabathia gave up only one run (on an Evan Longoria solo home run in the third) on six hits, one walk and seven strikeouts. Shields gave up six runs on nine hits, three walks, one hit batter, a costly wild pitch and he struck out three in only five innings of work.
PINSTRIPE POSITIVES
- Ibanez struggled through most of spring training until the final 10 days and it carried over into the opener. He drove in the Yankees’ first run on an infield grounder in the second and then added his three-run shot into the right-field bleachers that turned a 4-3 deficit into a 6-4 lead the Yankees held until the bottom of the ninth.
- The Yankees turned in a pair of sensational defensive plays and in both instances the victim was Desmond Jennings. In the fourth inning, Jennings lofted a sinking popup into shallow right but Nick Swisher charged it, slid feet first and caught the ball just before it hit the artificial surface. In the sixth inning, Jennings laced a bouncing liner into left that Brett Gardner cut off and as Jennings tried to stretch the hit into a double, Gardner unleashed a bullet on the fly to Robinson Cano to nab a sliding Jennings.
- “Houdini” did it again. David Robertson always seems to be able to get into and out of jams like they are nothing. Robertson started the eighth by walking Sean Rodriguez and Pena followed a single to advance Rodriguez to third. But Robertson then fanned pinch-hitter Stephen Vogt, Jose Molina and Matt Joyce in succession to preserve the one-run lead.
NAGGING NEGATIVES
- It is a shame that Sabathia was so out of sync in the first inning. He walked the right-handed hitting Rodriguez to load the bases to pitch to a lefty in Pena with two out. But instead of getting out of the jam, Sabathai left a 3-2 fastball up and paid the price for it.
- The old runners in scoring position bug bit the Yankees in the rear end again. They were 2-for-11 (.182) with RISP position and they left a dozen runners on base in the game. The Yankees left the bases loaded in second, fourth and seventh innings. So instead of blaming Rivera for blowing the save perhaps it would be more insightful to blame the Yankees for not extending their lead when they had plenty of chances.
- So Rivera is human. He gave up a leadoff single to Jennings and Zobrist followed with his game-tying triple. Manager Joe Girardi chose to walk Longoria and Luke Scott intentionally. Rivera struck out Rodriguez but Pena was able to get a ball into a drawn-in outfield to score the winning run.
BOMBER BANTER
Yankees right-hander Michael Pineda will remain behind at the Yankees’ complex in Tampa, FL., when the team heads north and it is unlikely he will be activated in April. Pineda is recovering from right rotator cuff tendinitis and he was placed in the 15-day disabled list retroactive to March 31. Pineda threw about 25 soft tosses on flat ground on Thursday and reported no issues with his shoulder. . . . Yankees left-hander Boone Logan was available to pitch on Friday despite the fact he was suffering from back spasms on Wednesday. . . . The Yankees plan to start Eduardo Nunez on Saturday against the Rays left-hander David Price. That means either Derek Jeter or Alex Rodriguez will serve as the team’s DH.
ON DECK
The Yankees will continue their three-game holiday weekend opening series with the Rays on Saturday.
Free-agent right-hander Hiroki Kuroda will make his Yankee debut. Kuroda was 13-16 with a 3.07 ERA with the Dodgers last season and he is coming off a very good spring with the Yankees. He has never faced the Rays.
Price will start for the Rays. He is 4-2 with a 4.02 ERA in his career against the Yankees.
Game-time will be 7:10 p.m. EDT and the game will be broadcast by the YES Network.
mlblogsruthianclout
Recent Comments