Ok, all you Montero lovers may not like this, but the Yanks have agreed (pending physicals) to trade Jesus Montero and Hector Noesi for about to be 23 year old Michael Pineda and 19 year old Jose Campos! The Yankees also signed Hiroki Kuroda (36/37) for 10 mil in a one year deal.
So, outside of the fact we now have more starters than positions, what do I think about the trade and signing?
Montero - I have written about him and I like the bat speed and I really like the raw power, which is something you just can't teach. But, I did not like what I saw defensively and while he may be as good as Victor Martinez, you better hit with an OPS of .850 plus to even consider getting behind the plate and you probably need to be above .900 to be a positive. The real questions were whether he would be a fantastic hitter and whether he could improve defensively. He had a very odd swing, but he clearly has power with a quick bat. I would not expect such a high average from him, but the power will be there and he did seem to walk a decent amount. He has a huge ceiling and could become great, but should be a very good hitter, but I do not think he will ever be even an average defensive catcher so I understand moving him...if you got the right price. Felix Hernandez was the right price, is Pineda? Pineda will turn 23 next week and has excellent stuff. He has a legitimate mid 90's fastball. I saw him pitch once or twice (He faced the Yanks once last year) and he threw 98 but mostly was about 95-96. He has a legitimate heater with nice movement as well. His off speed stuff is average, but with the heater it is hidden well in his big body so it is more effective than if someone else threw it. I have NOT scouted him heavily so I look forward to watching him. He is an excellent young arm. The concerns are only that he faded the 2nd half after an amazing first half. At such a young age, I am not that concerned though. His OPS last year in his 28 starts was only .621 (.584 1st half and .688 in the 2nd half); that is outstanding. BTW, Pineda is listed at 6'7" and 260. Perspective - CC has an OPS against of about .660 in his years with us.
Montero straight up for Pineda is a good trade for the Yanks; it is a trade that is probably good for both teams, but at the end of the day, a good DH is not worth as much as a good starter and they should both be at least good. Plus with the Yanks needing a spot for their older starters, that is a good thing. I also like that the Yanks didn't trade Montero for a 30+ year old good starter.
Everyone knows I talked about how much I liked Nova before he did much and I did say that I felt Noesi had a lot of potential also. I like Noesi's stuff, but he did make too many bad pitches. I don’t like giving him up in the deal, but the word is that the 19 year old Campo was a top 5 prospect in the Seattle organization. He started 18 games for Seattle's A team and had a 2.32 ERA with a 66 hits and only 13 walks in 81 innings while striking out 85. Those are excellent numbers, but he is only in single A so he has a few years before we will see him. I would rather Noesi than Campo so it was obvious we had to give more than just Montero for Pineda...overall, I think it was a fair trade that gives Seattle needed offense and the Yanks needed pitching.
I like the trade!
Yanks sign the 36 year old Kuroda. I wish I could say I have seen him pitch, but I know nothing about him other than he throws strikes and has good command of his pitches. He has been pretty durable averaging 29 starts in his 4 years with the Dodgers. His last year, he had his best ERA (3.07) and had a 3.45 ERA for his 4 years with the Dodgers. His OPS against does not agree with the ERA though, (not unusual and would indicate he was a little lucky last year) last year it was .716 and his overall for the four years was .673). Kuroda received roughly 12 mil the prior year so a one year deal for 10 mil seemed in line and is good for the Yanks as they don’t tie up long term money. From what I see, Kuroda should be a guy we can feel comfortable with and with our offense we should win a lot of games he starts.
I like these moves and think the Yanks still need a lefty and I would like to see them trade Burnett for a lefty specialist and we can throw in half him money. Further, while we have an abundance of capable righties in the pen, I would like to see us bring Colon back for 2-3 million as a reliever and occasional spot starter if needed. I know he ran out of gas last year, but he still had good peripherals in his stats and he still threw ok; I think he just got tired. The Yanks should have a lot of chips to move if they play their cards right. Remember, we still have Joba who hopefully will pan out better than he has so far. Imagine if Hughes could keep his velocity up at 94? I feel good about Nova, although it seems like I am the only one as others have suggested he stay in the minors until needed (I don't have a clue what those writers are seeing).
Our rotation is very solid now and we haven’t given up any future in the process; great job Cashman! Pitchers and catchers...get ready!
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Thursday, December 8, 2011
The Genius Maker - Off Season
Next year is supposed to be a very strong year for free agent year compared to this year. I do not want the Yankees to spend big money on above average pitchers and that is all I see this year. The Yankees need to wait and get the studs as I have said over and over. Yu Darvish will be posted today, and again, while I have never seen him pitch, the word is that he is better than above average and is still young (25). The Yankees should make a strong play if their scouts feel he is as good as advertised - people think he is. The Red Sox posted 51.1 million for Matsuzaka and while that seemed outrageous to me at the time, they then signed him for only 8.5 mil a year which made it more reasonable, but, still the total was about 16 mil a year (in the AJ range). I would expect Darvish to be in the same area. What I like about Darvish is that he is a mature 25 in that he has a lot of experience in tough spots and also he is 6'5" and the height is a positive in my eyes.
The Yankees did win negotiating rights to shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima from Japan (Lions) on Wednesday. The posting fee for the 29-year-old was $2.5 million. His batting numbers should translate into a 800 OPS type of middle infielder (hard to gauge though) but what iI didn't like was Girardi seemed to indicate he wasn't a great defensive SS. Overall, this is a small signing that gives some more depth. It also shows that Pena is probably done in the Yanks eyes.
I would not be spenders for this MLB free agent group though and I am glad the Yanks are letting the "Mark Buhrle's" go to other teams... Wait until next year and get the better players.
The Yankees did win negotiating rights to shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima from Japan (Lions) on Wednesday. The posting fee for the 29-year-old was $2.5 million. His batting numbers should translate into a 800 OPS type of middle infielder (hard to gauge though) but what iI didn't like was Girardi seemed to indicate he wasn't a great defensive SS. Overall, this is a small signing that gives some more depth. It also shows that Pena is probably done in the Yanks eyes.
I would not be spenders for this MLB free agent group though and I am glad the Yanks are letting the "Mark Buhrle's" go to other teams... Wait until next year and get the better players.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Happy Birthday to the Genius Maker!
Happy Birthday Mariano Rivera! Number 42 turns 42 today! Rivera is the last player to wear this number, which is fitting. I also think it is fitting that when Jackie Robinson is honored and everyone wears #42, I (and hopefully you) will think of Rivera as well.
I never thought he would still be pitching, let alone be so effective at this age. This is the last year of this contract, but if I am the Yankees I let him know that as long as he wants to pitch (Mo won’t stay if he is not effective) we will pay him. I get the feeling that going out at the age of 42, his and JR’s number, might be the way he wants to go out?
As for how effective Mo was this year, he was still one of the best closers in the game. His OPS against was 2nd best in baseball behind a NL pitcher Craig Kimbrel from Atlanta. First, while Kimbrel had a great year (46 saves and a 14.84 K/9 ahead of Robertson) he did have 8 blown saves (but only 3 losses). Mo had 5 blown saves but only 2 losses so both these guys did blow some games, but gave their teams chances of winning after the blown save. While Valverde had a great 49 saves without a blown save, he did have 4 losses along with getting pummeled in the playoffs even if not losing to the Yanks.
Bottom line is Rivera is still at the top of the position and just like other years, there may be a person or 2 who has better/similar years, they come and go while Rivera is always at the top…pretty amazing. Mo had his worst year from an OPS standpoint in 2007; his worst could have been many guys best. 30 saves with 4 blown and an OPS of .644. For perspective CC’s OPS against for the 3 years with the Yankees is about .660.
To give you an idea of how dominant Mo has been I was trying to find some stats about OPS against for pitchers for their career; I would bet he is #1 (I should be able to get this but for some reason I am having trouble – if anyone has it please send it)
The best I could do was Adjusted ERA+ per the below…Almost comical how great he is and has been…and we are not even discussing the amazing post season numbers.
For instance, if the average ERA in the league is 4.00, and the pitcher is pitching in a ballpark that favors hitters, and his ERA is 4.00, then his ERA+ will be over 100. Likewise, if the average ERA in the league is 3.00, and the pitcher is pitching in a ballpark favoring pitchers, and the pitcher's ERA is 3.00, then the pitcher's ERA+ will be below 100.
As a result, ERA+ can be used to compare pitchers across different run environments. In the above example, the first pitcher may have performed better than the second pitcher, even though his ERA is higher. ERA+ can be used to account for this misleading impression.
Minimum of 1000 IP, 3000 PA, 500 games (fielding), 200 stolen base attempts (catchers) or 100 decisions for career and active leaderboards for rate statistics.
| Rank | Player (yrs, age) | Adjusted ERA+ | Throws |
| 1. | Mariano Rivera (17, 41) | 206 | R |
| 2. | Pedro Martinez (18) | 154 | R |
| 3. | Jim Devlin (5) | 151 | R |
| 4. | Lefty Grove+ (17) | 148 | L |
| 5. | Walter Johnson+ (21) | 147 | R |
| | Dan Quisenberry (12) | 147 | R |
| | Hoyt Wilhelm+ (21) | 147 | R |
| 8. | Ed Walsh+ (14) | 146 | R |
| | Smoky Joe Wood (14) | 146 | R |
| 10. | Roger Clemens (24) | 143 | R |
BTW, Bobby Valentine appears to be the Red Sox manager; I am good with that as I am not that impressed with him. I don't think he studies the statistical side of the game enough. The Red Sox will be a force for the same reasons the Yankees are (payroll) though.
Friday, November 18, 2011
The Genius Maker - Playoff System and More
I am glad the Yanks worked out the deal with CC - it is in line and we are better with him than without.
People have asked me who I want the Yanks to go after and without copping out, I can't give an answer without knowing the range/cost of the players. While many people say the Yanks have no budget, this is simply incorrect because if they didn't they would sign Pujols for 30 mil a year to be a DH and PT 1st baseman. BTW, if I could trade Texiera or even have someone take his contract, I would and sign Pujols.
As for one area I would put a lot of interest in; I would make a very hard run at Yu Darvish based on what I have read (not seen). He is 25 years old and one of the best pitchers in Japan. He is 6'5" and 220 with a 93 MPH fastball that he can increase in key spots up to 97. He also has a cutter to go along with a very sharp breaking ball. I also think he has a splitter...again from what I have read. 25 year old pitchers would be very much worthy of a large contract and he would fit in perfectly to our team.
The title of this post has to do with playoffs and I will get to that, but as I was going through my old posts, I came across my ARod contract posts. In a nut shell I wanted the Yanks to sign ARod, but under no circumstance would I have gone beyond 8 years and I also would have stuck to 25 mil a year. Here is what I wrote (the exact terms of the deal were not disclosed and in a later post I was more critical):
People have asked me who I want the Yanks to go after and without copping out, I can't give an answer without knowing the range/cost of the players. While many people say the Yanks have no budget, this is simply incorrect because if they didn't they would sign Pujols for 30 mil a year to be a DH and PT 1st baseman. BTW, if I could trade Texiera or even have someone take his contract, I would and sign Pujols.
As for one area I would put a lot of interest in; I would make a very hard run at Yu Darvish based on what I have read (not seen). He is 25 years old and one of the best pitchers in Japan. He is 6'5" and 220 with a 93 MPH fastball that he can increase in key spots up to 97. He also has a cutter to go along with a very sharp breaking ball. I also think he has a splitter...again from what I have read. 25 year old pitchers would be very much worthy of a large contract and he would fit in perfectly to our team.
The title of this post has to do with playoffs and I will get to that, but as I was going through my old posts, I came across my ARod contract posts. In a nut shell I wanted the Yanks to sign ARod, but under no circumstance would I have gone beyond 8 years and I also would have stuck to 25 mil a year. Here is what I wrote (the exact terms of the deal were not disclosed and in a later post I was more critical):
“I would have stuck with an 8 year deal at 25 mil a year and then gone up to 26 maybe 27 a year. What if ARod breaks down at 38 or sooner? They should make him really show he wants to come back….I mean doesn't giving a guy a 10 year contract when he is 31 or 32 seem nuts to you?
I am glad he probably will be back, but I would have stuck it to him and risked losing him if I were running the show. I would have stuck to 8 years and not moved above 27 mil a year.”
In retrospect, I might have been too generous; 38 still is a long way away. I like to go back and see what I was wrong and right about. I will find my Cano posts at some point as I was adamant they don’t trade him, but I was willing to trade Soriano.
Back to the Playoffs. Some of you veterans remember my yearly post about the playoffs. I stopped writing it a few years ago, but have been talking about this for 15 years. I am bringing it back because I read that Selig said it looked like they would add one WC team and have a one game playoff…just as I had been asking for over the past 15 years. The funny part is that I remember Mike and the Mad Dog criticizing this idea (yes, when they were together) as crazy. Then again, I waited to get on a call with Mad Dog so he could tell me that the “Sabermetrics stuff is silly.”
Anyway, this is what I wrote a little over two years ago (10/7/09) and I had written for 12 years before that:
“I have written this many few times over the years but after the great game yesterday it lends itself to bring it up again as it has been awhile. The idea started back around 1995 when the wild card was brought into baseball and I don't think (I really don't remember) I can take all of the credit for this idea, in fact it probably was mostly from my brother or maybe us just talking it through?...Either way, we didn't like the idea of putting in another wild card team. Our feeling was after 162 games, if you don't finish in 1st place then what does it matter if you are better than a team in another division? You aren't the best so you shouldn't be in the playoffs to prove it. This thought is even more true with the unbalanced schedule where you play the teams in your division 19 times; you can't say you didn't have enough opportunity to prove your superiority and any short series won’t prove anything.
In coming up a playoff scenario that works there a lot of factors to take into consideration. Some of these would be:
1) Having more teams keeps the interest of more fans/teams because of the greater chance for the post season
2) More playoff games means more revenue
3) More teams in the playoffs means a longer season and you don't want it going too long
4) Not turning the regular season into games that don't mean anything as "everyone" makes the playoffs (See hockey and basketball).
5) Reward a team that wins the division with more than just home field.
Cut to the chase already...what is your playoff idea!
It is really simple...
Keep everything as is, but add another wild card team. Yeah, I know that contradicts my opposition to the wild card to begin with but here is why. You don't add the 2nd wild card to extend the series' in baseball, you add the extra wild card so that they could play the other wild card in a one game "series." The winner of that one game moves on to the 3-5 series (I would also make each series 4 out of 7).
So why is this a good idea?
1) Having the extra team makes the playoffs keeps more fans/teams interested
2) More playoff games means more revenue
3) You get a ton of excitement in a one game playoff...it is great
4) Most important: You would never have a situation of indifference of whether you win the wild card or win the division; it makes a huge difference as you reward the 3 division winners by not having to play/travel/risk that one game playoff. I think this is a critical component that is missing now.
Some other items for discussion:
1) Shorten the season back to 154 games or some number that works based on the amount of teams. I don't like playing playoff games in the cold as most of the year is not played that way.
2) Keep very little rest between the end of the season and the wild card single game; keep things moving. Division winners should start their post-season 2 or at most 3 days after the end of the season.
3) Stop with so much rest between post-season games. It is absurd that in a 5 game series a team can throw their top 2 guys for 4 (80%) of the games and in a 7 game start 5 of them. While I would have nothing but 7 game series' with one day of rest only, if the 5 game series stayed, there would be no rest.
So there you have it…they take a long time to come around, but at least they eventually do. In recent years people had talked about 3 game series’ but I am MUCH more in favor of the one game playoff game…
Hope everyone is doing well.
Saturday, October 29, 2011
The Genius Maker 10-29-11
Let’s have a little fun with CC opt out. He has a 4 year deal worth $92 million ($23/year) that he can stay and accept. I believe the question is what does as an excellent 31 year old pitcher who is very overweight, has logged 2364 innings and struggled the 2nd half of last year and in the postseason -Career 4.81 ERA) worth if he went on the open market?
Let’s compare some pitchers. Beckett, who is 31 has logged only 1721 inning, 643 less (about 3 years). He is getting $15.75 mil a year for the next 3 years.
Cliff Lee got 5 years at the age of 31 and had only 1409 innings before signing a 5 year 120 mil deal. ($24/year). He also received a $27.5 mil option if he pitches 200 in 2015 or 400 in 2014/15 combined. There is a $12.5 buy out also.
The Lee is the most recent deal and gives perspective, but what CC has is not far off and while CC is a horse and hasn’t had the down turns Lee (or even Beckett) has had, CC hasn’t had the dominance either. Postseason CC has an ERA about 2 runs higher also…and while he is not a choker, his stuff is not as dominant. He throws harder than Lee obviously, but Lee has better control and movement.
The Yankee will be a much worse team without CC. This is without question, but the Yanks need to be careful with all the other bad contracts they have. ARod’s is looking like it may be bad for 5 years right now, Tex’s isn’t looking too good either. Jeter’s contract is also a bad value one as well. Adding another one that ends up bad will tie the Yankees hands. CC has thrown a ton of innings and with his weight (which will be harder to control) could start getting knee issues let alone mileage issues on the arm. In terms of mileage some guys can throw a lot and perhaps CC won’t have any problems? Hard to predict the exact issues but the Yanks have to think about who would give CC a lot of money?
CC loves NY and the Yankees and when he originally put in the opt out it was setup only to give CC an out if he didn’t like NY. I think he should stay for the money which is in line with what he gets and the Yanks could “help him” with 2 one year options based on whether he pitches 200 innings the previous year. The salary should be the same. This way if CC is still effective he gets a 5th and possibly 6th year. The dollar amounts should be remain in my opinion, but I hope the Yankees don’t bid against themselves again as there is risk here.
I know people say CC needs to take advantage of the situation, but it would be nice if people also had some loyalty in the process. Jeter took some hits in my eyes the way he handled his negotiations and tried to make the Yankee look like the bad guys. Jeter is an icon, but he surely is not worth what he is getting on the field (perhaps off the field maybe – but my feeling is that a winning team gets the fans to spend more)
I usually don’t ask for people to respond, but feel free to post a comment or email me.
Next up is Swisher...This is interesting because Beltran is available. I think Beltran would play better than Swisher and has less holes in his swing to perform against the better pitching (in the postseason), but re signing Swish is not a bad move as he could be traded as he has some value at the price range (even if we chipped in a little money. I don;t think it is bad to let him go either, but you need to have Beltran signed. We really don't have any minor leaguers who we have seen who could take over. Dickerson is mediocre and is more of a reserve.
Next up is Swisher...This is interesting because Beltran is available. I think Beltran would play better than Swisher and has less holes in his swing to perform against the better pitching (in the postseason), but re signing Swish is not a bad move as he could be traded as he has some value at the price range (even if we chipped in a little money. I don;t think it is bad to let him go either, but you need to have Beltran signed. We really don't have any minor leaguers who we have seen who could take over. Dickerson is mediocre and is more of a reserve.
Friday, October 7, 2011
Off Season #1
I am not sure why I feel I need to write this, but ARod is taking more abuse about this loss than I feel is justified. I am not an ARod apologist as I think he stunk this post season and last. But, the choke comments and all that BS are coming about and the comments like ARod just can't deliver when you really need him to are just off base. I made the comments about the people who say Jeter comes through when you really need him, yet Jeter was bad this postseason also and surely didn't come through when we really needed him. My point is that people have a bias about players they like and dislike and it clearly impacts their judgment. ARod has a postseason OPS of .884! This includes the terrible series this year and the poor ones last year. The year before he carried the entire team on his back to win the World Series, knocking in around 16 runs and walking around 12 times with 6 homers! He also did great against Minnesota and Boston until Boston won the 4 in a row. Overall, he has been good in the postseason...much better than most people who have any track record in the postseason. Jeter has been good also with an .839 OPS in the postseason.
The point is that ARod did stink, but a lot of other players did a poor job as well (Tex, Swisher and even Jeter). CC also didn't get it done for us and that might have been the biggest blow.
ARod has been good in the postseason for us, the real issue is this contract for the next 6 years will be an albatross; just as predicted when he signed it. As I mentioned before, I would look into getting his contract voided or have a candid conversation with ARod so he can take the graceful way out of this because I think the steroids he did are making his body break down. Man, I wish he could have that pitch he had with the bases loaded that he fouled straight to the fence behine him back as the inch he was too low would have changed the series and everyone's perception...until next year.
The point is that ARod did stink, but a lot of other players did a poor job as well (Tex, Swisher and even Jeter). CC also didn't get it done for us and that might have been the biggest blow.
ARod has been good in the postseason for us, the real issue is this contract for the next 6 years will be an albatross; just as predicted when he signed it. As I mentioned before, I would look into getting his contract voided or have a candid conversation with ARod so he can take the graceful way out of this because I think the steroids he did are making his body break down. Man, I wish he could have that pitch he had with the bases loaded that he fouled straight to the fence behine him back as the inch he was too low would have changed the series and everyone's perception...until next year.
POST SEASON Game 5
Just got back from the game and I am very disappointed in the offense. I felt that we had some very hittable pitches this series that we just didn’t get after. It is one thing when Verlander is throwing 101 and then dropping a good curve in there, but many 3-2 pitches that were very hittable.
Falling behind 2-0 set us back, but I would have bet a lot we would have scored more than 2 runs.
We ran into some tough breaks with Tex and Jeter hitting balls to the fence, but we didn’t get any big hits with the bases loaded and one out.
We left 11 men on base. We had 9 hits and 3 walks and scored only one run (the 10th hit was the HR).
Overall, I thought Girardi handled the pitching pretty well, but I would have let Hughes pitch a little more and was surprised he went to CC in the spot he did as it seemed like we should either let Hughes pitch or let Logan go another batter or so or bring in Wade against the righties. CC should have been used only if needed, not as just another guy. Not a terrible idea but CC didn’t look good again and he allowed the game winning run and didn’t do the job.
Using Soriano was good, but going to Rivera in the 8th would have probably been the smart move as Rivera would pitch the 8th and 9th and if we took the lead in the 8th he would close it out for the win. When Robertson came in, he definitely should have pitched the 9th also, but Girardi went to Rivera (which was very dumb). What if the Yanks tied it, you would want another inning out of Robertson…poor job there.
The big issue I had with Girardi was his lack of using Montero. In the 4th inning Martin was up with the bases loaded and 1 out and we are down by 2. I could see not pinch hitting there because it was so early, but in the 8th inning with 1 out, you MUST pinch hit Montero for Martin; this is a no brainer. As it turned out Martin got out and then Gardner got on. I will say the same thing I said previously, you have to use your best pinch hitter when you are in a tight game; you must shoot that bullet. Girardi failed to do it on all 3 losses.
I know Gardner didn’t go in Jeter’s previous AB, but he went on the first pitch with Benoit on the mound and Jeter needed to let him steal in that spot. Jeter did get that double but he struggled in the series with a .572 OPS.
ARod was terrible and while Tex had a good game today, he and Swisher were poor also. Martin had some walks, but only hit .176.
Jorge, Gardner, Granderson and Cano did well, but it was tough to overcome the very poor series from so many.
We outscored Detroit in the series 28-17!
The Genius Maker pitched to 4 batters and got all 4 out throwing 8 pitches that were all strikes!
I will make some updates and some more thoughts.
Thanks for reading!
Falling behind 2-0 set us back, but I would have bet a lot we would have scored more than 2 runs.
We ran into some tough breaks with Tex and Jeter hitting balls to the fence, but we didn’t get any big hits with the bases loaded and one out.
We left 11 men on base. We had 9 hits and 3 walks and scored only one run (the 10th hit was the HR).
Overall, I thought Girardi handled the pitching pretty well, but I would have let Hughes pitch a little more and was surprised he went to CC in the spot he did as it seemed like we should either let Hughes pitch or let Logan go another batter or so or bring in Wade against the righties. CC should have been used only if needed, not as just another guy. Not a terrible idea but CC didn’t look good again and he allowed the game winning run and didn’t do the job.
Using Soriano was good, but going to Rivera in the 8th would have probably been the smart move as Rivera would pitch the 8th and 9th and if we took the lead in the 8th he would close it out for the win. When Robertson came in, he definitely should have pitched the 9th also, but Girardi went to Rivera (which was very dumb). What if the Yanks tied it, you would want another inning out of Robertson…poor job there.
The big issue I had with Girardi was his lack of using Montero. In the 4th inning Martin was up with the bases loaded and 1 out and we are down by 2. I could see not pinch hitting there because it was so early, but in the 8th inning with 1 out, you MUST pinch hit Montero for Martin; this is a no brainer. As it turned out Martin got out and then Gardner got on. I will say the same thing I said previously, you have to use your best pinch hitter when you are in a tight game; you must shoot that bullet. Girardi failed to do it on all 3 losses.
I know Gardner didn’t go in Jeter’s previous AB, but he went on the first pitch with Benoit on the mound and Jeter needed to let him steal in that spot. Jeter did get that double but he struggled in the series with a .572 OPS.
ARod was terrible and while Tex had a good game today, he and Swisher were poor also. Martin had some walks, but only hit .176.
Jorge, Gardner, Granderson and Cano did well, but it was tough to overcome the very poor series from so many.
We outscored Detroit in the series 28-17!
The Genius Maker pitched to 4 batters and got all 4 out throwing 8 pitches that were all strikes!
I will make some updates and some more thoughts.
Thanks for reading!
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
POST SEASON Game 4
Don’t fall off your chairs, but Girardi managed the game extremely well! He did a great job having an incredibly short leash on Burnett, having Wade up in the first inning and then later with just a hint of trouble Hughes and then possibly even one batter earlier than I would have (although I also said I was fine with it) he took AJ out! Very good job Girardi.
Not as much to write about from a strategy standpoint in a game like this, but Joe also had Jeter bunt at the right time, although Jeter bunted terribly. Jeter did have the huge double that Austin Jackson just missed. Jackson has just missed about 4 balls and then we had Granderson make one good leap after a bad jump that was critical in the 1st inning…and then made a simply phenomenal catch after an even worse jump. I don’t know if he didn’t see the ball off the bat, but it was pulled and he reacted like it was almost at him. Regardless he closed and made as good a dive as you can make.
ARod was very solid in the field as well and Tex made a great scoop on a terrible throw by Jeter on the DP.
I didn’t like the home plate ump and felt we got the short end of calls, but we kept tacking on runs.
Great job by AJ, he really came through when we needed him! He had a good fastball and a good curve, but his change was worthless. Overall, a huge game giving us a chance to take the series at home. Girardi needs to keep a short leash on Nova as well as Robertson and Rivera could probably go at least the final 3 and Soriano who was very effective tonight could pitch at least an inning. All we need is 5 innings out of everyone else. Seriously, that should be the mindset.
A couple of other notes.
Detroit seemed like they left some plays in the field tonight.
Since when did Phil Coke throw 98 mph?
The TBS broadcast is simply awful…and their strike zone box is not even close to being correct. They should stick to drama. The announcers stink too.
Montero has never made an out in the postseason. Makes you think he might have helped one of the two losses
Great job again AJ!
Not as much to write about from a strategy standpoint in a game like this, but Joe also had Jeter bunt at the right time, although Jeter bunted terribly. Jeter did have the huge double that Austin Jackson just missed. Jackson has just missed about 4 balls and then we had Granderson make one good leap after a bad jump that was critical in the 1st inning…and then made a simply phenomenal catch after an even worse jump. I don’t know if he didn’t see the ball off the bat, but it was pulled and he reacted like it was almost at him. Regardless he closed and made as good a dive as you can make.
ARod was very solid in the field as well and Tex made a great scoop on a terrible throw by Jeter on the DP.
I didn’t like the home plate ump and felt we got the short end of calls, but we kept tacking on runs.
Great job by AJ, he really came through when we needed him! He had a good fastball and a good curve, but his change was worthless. Overall, a huge game giving us a chance to take the series at home. Girardi needs to keep a short leash on Nova as well as Robertson and Rivera could probably go at least the final 3 and Soriano who was very effective tonight could pitch at least an inning. All we need is 5 innings out of everyone else. Seriously, that should be the mindset.
A couple of other notes.
Detroit seemed like they left some plays in the field tonight.
Since when did Phil Coke throw 98 mph?
The TBS broadcast is simply awful…and their strike zone box is not even close to being correct. They should stick to drama. The announcers stink too.
Montero has never made an out in the postseason. Makes you think he might have helped one of the two losses
Great job again AJ!
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
POST SEASON Game 3
While there were offensive players who did little, this game was lost by CC, Soriano and Girardi.
CC simply did not have good command of his pitches and he struggled all night. This was a night of our best against theirs and one would expect a close game and possibly one that would decide the series; Verlander was better.
Soriano did a good job in the 6th inning, but made the fatal mistake of throwing a first pitch fastball to a notorious first ball fastball hitter. Young poked it over the RF wall for the game winning HR.
Girardi had a lot of decisions and once again most were not correct. It might even be that none were correct if you don’t count bringing in Soriano (which worked as a good move) considering he was late at bringing Soriano in as CC probably should not have started the 6th, but Girardi sent him out anyway. After allowing a bunt single Girardi could have taken hi out, but he left CC out there to allow a double to Peralta to make it a 4-2 game. CC was left in to face Avila (which was probably why the Girardi made the wrong decision) and Avila sacrificed the runner over. After the damage, was done Girardi made the move to the well rested bullpen. Soriano did get out of the inning.
In the top of the 7th, Girardi was smart enough to realize what an idiotic move he made going to Chavez was and Gardner came through with an amazing 2 out 2 strike 2 run double! The inning was started with 2 outs on another good AB by Posada who worked a walk (he has been playing great). Jeter K’d with Gardner on 2nd to end the inning.
Adding on to the 3rd paragraph, it was a decision to let Soriano pitch after getting 2/3 of an inning out of him already. Honestly, I didn’t have any issue with it and I think the main issue was the pitch selection in giving Young the fastball, but Girardi could have gone right to Robertson there and it could not have been a bad move either.
I had a huge inning with how the Yankees handled the top of the 3rd inning when Gardner led off with a bunt single. You must steal, run and hit, hit and run or bunt, but under no circumstance should Jeter be swinging and Gardner not be moving. Of course, Girardi does not force anything and Jeter hits into a DP. I think this was a huge moment in the game. Verlander seemed to be struggling more from the stretch and we had an opportunity to either tack on runs or wear him down some more and neither was accomplished.
Also, one again Girardi does not go to Montero in the 9th with Martin up. I know Montero is there for the lefties but they are not about to allow the situation to happen where he will be used (maybe at all) against a lefty. Martin is not a real good hitter and you must pinch hit for him in the 9th. Ironically, Girardi allowed Jones to hit in the “Montero spot” last night and he hit the ball fairly well to RF and Martin did the same thing…either way, it was yet another move that didn’t work out. Why is Montero up if he won’t be used in those situations…when would you use him?
I will say that Girardi pinch ran for Posada in the 9th correctly and did get Nunez running, but I would think my 7 year old son would realize Posada is slow and should be run for.
The Yanks missed a lot of hittable pitches today; some were because they were 100 MPH, but they also just missed a few, especially on Valverde. Granderson had a good cut on a few. Swisher missed some very hittable pitches as did Tex who seems like he only wants to go to LF. He should be looking to drive and pull pitches when he is ahead in the count. Right now he is trying to do something he has not worked on and the results are horrific.
The ump expanded his strike zone late and Cano got called out on a fastball at the bottom of the letters. Overall the ump did not favor them though as Jeter really struck out twice to end the game. I was hoping I could make the joke that he always comes through when you REALLY need him.
If anyone cares here are our OPS numbers right now
Posada 1.417
Granderson 1.156 (2 RBI)
Cano 1.049 (6 RBI)
Gardner .844 (4 RBI)
Swisher .705 (he had a lot of pitches to hit tonight)
Martin .556
Jeter .533
Tex .348
ARod .231
Chavez 0-1
Montero (getting splinters)
Should make a line below Gardner and then again under Swisher.
At the end of the day I think 4 runs should have been enough to win this game…and while the outcome stunk (watching Valverde and his arrogant $%# cheering ticked me off) it was a great playoff game.
Time for a Burnett gem…If Girardi doesn’t have a quick hook he should be fired before the end of the day. If AJ is allowed to allow more than 3 runs he should be terminated. I would have Hughes ready to warm up in the first inning.
CC simply did not have good command of his pitches and he struggled all night. This was a night of our best against theirs and one would expect a close game and possibly one that would decide the series; Verlander was better.
Soriano did a good job in the 6th inning, but made the fatal mistake of throwing a first pitch fastball to a notorious first ball fastball hitter. Young poked it over the RF wall for the game winning HR.
Girardi had a lot of decisions and once again most were not correct. It might even be that none were correct if you don’t count bringing in Soriano (which worked as a good move) considering he was late at bringing Soriano in as CC probably should not have started the 6th, but Girardi sent him out anyway. After allowing a bunt single Girardi could have taken hi out, but he left CC out there to allow a double to Peralta to make it a 4-2 game. CC was left in to face Avila (which was probably why the Girardi made the wrong decision) and Avila sacrificed the runner over. After the damage, was done Girardi made the move to the well rested bullpen. Soriano did get out of the inning.
In the top of the 7th, Girardi was smart enough to realize what an idiotic move he made going to Chavez was and Gardner came through with an amazing 2 out 2 strike 2 run double! The inning was started with 2 outs on another good AB by Posada who worked a walk (he has been playing great). Jeter K’d with Gardner on 2nd to end the inning.
Adding on to the 3rd paragraph, it was a decision to let Soriano pitch after getting 2/3 of an inning out of him already. Honestly, I didn’t have any issue with it and I think the main issue was the pitch selection in giving Young the fastball, but Girardi could have gone right to Robertson there and it could not have been a bad move either.
I had a huge inning with how the Yankees handled the top of the 3rd inning when Gardner led off with a bunt single. You must steal, run and hit, hit and run or bunt, but under no circumstance should Jeter be swinging and Gardner not be moving. Of course, Girardi does not force anything and Jeter hits into a DP. I think this was a huge moment in the game. Verlander seemed to be struggling more from the stretch and we had an opportunity to either tack on runs or wear him down some more and neither was accomplished.
Also, one again Girardi does not go to Montero in the 9th with Martin up. I know Montero is there for the lefties but they are not about to allow the situation to happen where he will be used (maybe at all) against a lefty. Martin is not a real good hitter and you must pinch hit for him in the 9th. Ironically, Girardi allowed Jones to hit in the “Montero spot” last night and he hit the ball fairly well to RF and Martin did the same thing…either way, it was yet another move that didn’t work out. Why is Montero up if he won’t be used in those situations…when would you use him?
I will say that Girardi pinch ran for Posada in the 9th correctly and did get Nunez running, but I would think my 7 year old son would realize Posada is slow and should be run for.
The Yanks missed a lot of hittable pitches today; some were because they were 100 MPH, but they also just missed a few, especially on Valverde. Granderson had a good cut on a few. Swisher missed some very hittable pitches as did Tex who seems like he only wants to go to LF. He should be looking to drive and pull pitches when he is ahead in the count. Right now he is trying to do something he has not worked on and the results are horrific.
The ump expanded his strike zone late and Cano got called out on a fastball at the bottom of the letters. Overall the ump did not favor them though as Jeter really struck out twice to end the game. I was hoping I could make the joke that he always comes through when you REALLY need him.
If anyone cares here are our OPS numbers right now
Posada 1.417
Granderson 1.156 (2 RBI)
Cano 1.049 (6 RBI)
Gardner .844 (4 RBI)
Swisher .705 (he had a lot of pitches to hit tonight)
Martin .556
Jeter .533
Tex .348
ARod .231
Chavez 0-1
Montero (getting splinters)
Should make a line below Gardner and then again under Swisher.
At the end of the day I think 4 runs should have been enough to win this game…and while the outcome stunk (watching Valverde and his arrogant $%# cheering ticked me off) it was a great playoff game.
Time for a Burnett gem…If Girardi doesn’t have a quick hook he should be fired before the end of the day. If AJ is allowed to allow more than 3 runs he should be terminated. I would have Hughes ready to warm up in the first inning.
Monday, October 3, 2011
POST SEASON Game 2
Our offense did not get the job done, but our skipper messed up and clearly limited our chances of winning this game. Before I go through the game and some of the issues I had with Girardi, it should be noted that Scherzer was a little lucky in his wildness (“effectively wild’). He missed his target an awful lot, but instead of being low and outside he hit the inside corner, instead of a fastball inside he painted the top of the strike zone with his fastball and on and on. The ones that are probably the easiest to remember are the two changeup strike outs he got on Swisher and Granderson, but this happened on at least 20 pitches. That was just unfortunate for us. That being said we didn’t swing the bats well at hittable pitches.
Garcia did OK, but the HR by Cabrera was just a great hitter doing enough to hit out at the small section of the field…it happens…but Girardi let Garcia stay in a little too long…more on this as I discuss Girardi doing a terrible job in the postseason again.
First to the 2 glaring mistakes Girardi made:
Pinch hitting for Gardner was just flat out stupid. There was no rhyme or reason to do it in that spot. The Yankees are down 4-0 with 1st and 2nd and one out. If the Yankees had the bases loaded and you wanted to take a chance on hitting a HR to tie the game, I could see that maybe you roll the dice, but Chavez is NOT a big HR guy for one, that should be reserved for Montero, but this was not the spot as you need base runners and to chip away at the lead. Gardner got the huge 2 out hit in game 1. This move was so bad because we didn’t gain anything with Chavez, Chavez could have been used later for either Martin or Jones who had to play LF (thankfully no balls got hit his way) and then came up in a crucial spot late in the game. It was really inexplicable to me as it didn’t help short term and hurt us all long terms a lot because this spot was going to come up again if we were going to win. The fact it didn’t work is not justification of anything except Joe making a terrible move and showing him he pushed the wrong button.
The 2nd glaring mistake was Girardi giving up on the game in the top of the 9th inning. He started Ayala which was questionable as Soriano and Robertson are almost too fresh, but once the guy is in scoring position (after Ayala hit the batter and then they sacrificed him over, you have to try and stop another run from scoring and keep the game at a 3 run deficit (it was 4-1 after Granderson homered). Girardi gave up on the game and Ayala allowed a single to put the game even farther out of reach.
Other Girardi issues…After Jeter made another lousy throw that tex couldn’t handle, but probably should have (this was one of those plays where he makes the dramatic scoop play and I just want the play made, it was pretty much a short hop that should be made most of the time), Garcia allowed a single to Ordonez (who was all over Garcia) and it was 1st and 3rd with nobody out. With the score 2-0, Garcia got Young to strike out. Now up came Cabrera, walking him is a possibility, but honestly as good as he his, that is a tough one because he is a DP candidate. The matchup is bad though and going to someone in the pen like Wade was a possibility as well. Joe had options and just decided to pitch to Cabrera (who had homered off of him). He got a single and made the score 3-0. I think it was now time to make move with Garcia as they had seen him enough times and it was time to use the huge bullpen we have in this series. Joe decided to stick with Garcia and once again pushed the wrong button, as he singled to make it 4-0. With the damage done and the lefty Avila coming up Girardi went to Logan, who got the job done with no further damage.
In the 9th, After a HR by Swisher and an amazing triple by Posada and a walk to Martin, up steps Andrew Jones. Here is where I could have seen pinch hitting for Gardner in trying to tie the game, but letting Gardner hit wouldn’t have been a terrible move either (the options are not great). However, because the move was made already you had Jones up and Chavez out of the game…I would have gone to Montero in this spot. Jones has been awful all year against righties and while he did end up hitting a nice drive to RF, it was on the type of pitch that Montero could have homered to right. If you are looking to hit a HR, how is Montero not stepping to the plate in that spot? Fastballs are what he hits best and Valverde was grooving them. Girardi once again pushes the wrong button and Jones gets out.
No more mistakes at this point by Girardi, but if it wasn’t Jeter stepping to the plate and it was someone else with Jeter’s numbers stepping to the plate, Montero could have pinch hit in this spot as well. In fact, Jeter’s swings were so feeble (not sure why as he hasn’t been swinging so badly) that we all said, I just hope when he makes an out he doesn’t hit into a DP (this is true). So the guy who “always comes through when you REALLY need him” strikes out. BTW, I hate when people say comments like that because they are simply not true…for anyone – Jeter has been great, but he isn’t better in clutch spots. Anyway, after a Granderson walk (and a lucky dropped popup) we had our best guy at the plate. Shockingly, Valverde gave him a lot of good pitches to hit, but Robbie couldn’t center them and then grounded out on a splitter to end the game.
It was shame that every big AB it seemed the rains were pouring down and outside of if the pitcher slips when he throws, it is a big advantage to the pitcher.
Last point was to reiterate I would have pinch hit Montero…the guy has a .996 OPS and all 4 of his homers have been against righties; I can’t believe that weapon was not attempted to be used. Jones OPS against righties was .709 this year and Montero’s .878. FWIW, Chavez’ OPS against righties is only .687…yes, Chavez is worse than Gardner (.738) yet Joe made the inexplicable move.
This team is so talented that we can overcome Girardi, but I would be on the phone talking to the X Boston manager to be at least a bench coach and maybe a manager…I like Francona…and Girardi rubs me the wrong way. Just to be clear, Girardi is not a horrible manager, but mediocrity is not what we want as a Yankee skipper.
Garcia did OK, but the HR by Cabrera was just a great hitter doing enough to hit out at the small section of the field…it happens…but Girardi let Garcia stay in a little too long…more on this as I discuss Girardi doing a terrible job in the postseason again.
First to the 2 glaring mistakes Girardi made:
Pinch hitting for Gardner was just flat out stupid. There was no rhyme or reason to do it in that spot. The Yankees are down 4-0 with 1st and 2nd and one out. If the Yankees had the bases loaded and you wanted to take a chance on hitting a HR to tie the game, I could see that maybe you roll the dice, but Chavez is NOT a big HR guy for one, that should be reserved for Montero, but this was not the spot as you need base runners and to chip away at the lead. Gardner got the huge 2 out hit in game 1. This move was so bad because we didn’t gain anything with Chavez, Chavez could have been used later for either Martin or Jones who had to play LF (thankfully no balls got hit his way) and then came up in a crucial spot late in the game. It was really inexplicable to me as it didn’t help short term and hurt us all long terms a lot because this spot was going to come up again if we were going to win. The fact it didn’t work is not justification of anything except Joe making a terrible move and showing him he pushed the wrong button.
The 2nd glaring mistake was Girardi giving up on the game in the top of the 9th inning. He started Ayala which was questionable as Soriano and Robertson are almost too fresh, but once the guy is in scoring position (after Ayala hit the batter and then they sacrificed him over, you have to try and stop another run from scoring and keep the game at a 3 run deficit (it was 4-1 after Granderson homered). Girardi gave up on the game and Ayala allowed a single to put the game even farther out of reach.
Other Girardi issues…After Jeter made another lousy throw that tex couldn’t handle, but probably should have (this was one of those plays where he makes the dramatic scoop play and I just want the play made, it was pretty much a short hop that should be made most of the time), Garcia allowed a single to Ordonez (who was all over Garcia) and it was 1st and 3rd with nobody out. With the score 2-0, Garcia got Young to strike out. Now up came Cabrera, walking him is a possibility, but honestly as good as he his, that is a tough one because he is a DP candidate. The matchup is bad though and going to someone in the pen like Wade was a possibility as well. Joe had options and just decided to pitch to Cabrera (who had homered off of him). He got a single and made the score 3-0. I think it was now time to make move with Garcia as they had seen him enough times and it was time to use the huge bullpen we have in this series. Joe decided to stick with Garcia and once again pushed the wrong button, as he singled to make it 4-0. With the damage done and the lefty Avila coming up Girardi went to Logan, who got the job done with no further damage.
In the 9th, After a HR by Swisher and an amazing triple by Posada and a walk to Martin, up steps Andrew Jones. Here is where I could have seen pinch hitting for Gardner in trying to tie the game, but letting Gardner hit wouldn’t have been a terrible move either (the options are not great). However, because the move was made already you had Jones up and Chavez out of the game…I would have gone to Montero in this spot. Jones has been awful all year against righties and while he did end up hitting a nice drive to RF, it was on the type of pitch that Montero could have homered to right. If you are looking to hit a HR, how is Montero not stepping to the plate in that spot? Fastballs are what he hits best and Valverde was grooving them. Girardi once again pushes the wrong button and Jones gets out.
No more mistakes at this point by Girardi, but if it wasn’t Jeter stepping to the plate and it was someone else with Jeter’s numbers stepping to the plate, Montero could have pinch hit in this spot as well. In fact, Jeter’s swings were so feeble (not sure why as he hasn’t been swinging so badly) that we all said, I just hope when he makes an out he doesn’t hit into a DP (this is true). So the guy who “always comes through when you REALLY need him” strikes out. BTW, I hate when people say comments like that because they are simply not true…for anyone – Jeter has been great, but he isn’t better in clutch spots. Anyway, after a Granderson walk (and a lucky dropped popup) we had our best guy at the plate. Shockingly, Valverde gave him a lot of good pitches to hit, but Robbie couldn’t center them and then grounded out on a splitter to end the game.
It was shame that every big AB it seemed the rains were pouring down and outside of if the pitcher slips when he throws, it is a big advantage to the pitcher.
Last point was to reiterate I would have pinch hit Montero…the guy has a .996 OPS and all 4 of his homers have been against righties; I can’t believe that weapon was not attempted to be used. Jones OPS against righties was .709 this year and Montero’s .878. FWIW, Chavez’ OPS against righties is only .687…yes, Chavez is worse than Gardner (.738) yet Joe made the inexplicable move.
This team is so talented that we can overcome Girardi, but I would be on the phone talking to the X Boston manager to be at least a bench coach and maybe a manager…I like Francona…and Girardi rubs me the wrong way. Just to be clear, Girardi is not a horrible manager, but mediocrity is not what we want as a Yankee skipper.
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