Baseball Toaster was unplugged on February 4, 2009.
With a big four-game set against the third-place Blue Jays on deck, the Yankees have picked a good time to get hot. This afternoon they go for their second straight sweep in an attempt to avoid their first second half loss.
The man for the job is former Mariner Randy Johnson, who pitched one of his best games as a Yankee last year against his former team and their future ace, Felix Hernandez. That game was a thrilling pitchers' duel in which Johnson held the M's hitless through five innings and the Yankees emerged with a 2-0 victory. That was an emotional game for the big man, as it was the first time he had pitched in Seattle in six years and he was facing a phenom who many believe will challenge Randy's position as the greatest Mariner hurler of all time.
The stakes are far lower today, with the Yanks playing a house money game at home against Gil Meche little more than 12 hours after one of their most improbable wins of the year, but Johnson seems to be back on track, turning in quality starts in five of his last six outings. Here's hoping that trend continues today.
Kelly Stinnett gets his second straight start due to Jorge Posada playing the late innings of last night's game. Melky moves up to the two-spot. Alex Rodriguez returns to third base. Guiel starts in right and bats seventh behind Phillips followed by that man Nick Green (5 for 12 with two doubles, a homer, three walks and a stolen base as a Yankee) at second base. Randy's old nemesis Eduardo Perez starts at DH for the M's.
Meche has had bouts of wildness that are almost unfathomable.
Johnny Damon CF
Melky Cabrera LF
Derek Jeter SS
Jason Giambi DH
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Andy Phillips 1B
Aaron Guiel RF
Nick Green 2B
Kelly Stinnett C
Also, will anyone else be livid if Guiel gets cut before Bubba?
Why was Beltre going, anyway?
One thing though, the harder Meche throws, the farther Giambi and A-Rod will hit the ball...
28 Cliff, maybe you were on to something.
(And yes, I DID put my pinkie to my mouth)
63 By somebody, you mean the Yankees 25-Man Roster?
i mean against Beckett.. (hes given only 200 Hrs all year)..
but how.. i cant i cant predict Baseball
No. Of course not. Mariano looks fine.
Looks like the Yanks are doing what they can to make sure they can be back home by 4pm to catch a nap.
maybe
Great, now the Yanks will trade for Meche AND Sexson!
/pessimism off/
Sorry, had to get that off my chest.
We will WIN..
And every time I do it I do it for yo hood
And every time I do it I do it for they hood
It's understood I do it for the hood
Every time I do it I do it for my hood
And every time I do it I do it for yo hood
And every time I do it I do it for they hood
It's understood I do it for the hood
That's Jeter coming to the plate folks. The perfecto ends here.
The 4th inning isn't even over yet, folks! Two more balls to the Cap'n and this perfect game crap will go by the wayside.
will he booed for that.. have to ask Steve Phillips and Harry Reynolds
I am pleased to say that Mr. Beckett only has a shutout going now, so clearly the old PG/SO/NH thing is working a little bit today.
142 And Cash still has about 2 weeks to check on Ponson.
Boo that!
And A-Rod too. =)
154 The hit that broke it up was Rodriguez's 13th double of the year.
funny thing, right before the pitch that lead to the double, the catcher went out to say something to Meche. Leiter couldn't believe it, what the hell is he doing? one pitch later the perfecto is gone.
Does anyone else get Guile's theme from SFII in their head everytime Guiel comes up to bat?
I repeat.. 108
Let 'em LEAD.. We will WIN.
and AGOD will do it Today..
Stinnet now has 2 CS in the game!
that will make him relaxed.. and feel cocky..
I've been saying ever since Mussina slowed down his breaking pitch that Randy might benefit from something similar...
Cue the thunder and lightning...
Rally time!
That's what I'm talking about, Green! Work Meche over to get to the underbelly of the Mariners' bullpen.
wunder if George knows that..
we wont see anymore annoying "Fox News live" ads or " FOX action series ads" anymore on YES!!
But he's not a .077 hitter. Obviously, there was something wrong with him before.
mL career: .261/.316/.424
ML career: .246/.318/.355 (633ABs)
That's what kind of player he is 242.
Hmm. He's four year's younger than this guy:
ML career: .269/.317/.362
Think Green might have a chance to boot everyone's favorite, Miguel Cairo from this team?
11-pitch, still nice work by JD.
Melkdud swings at the 1st pitch after an 11 pitch AB.
283 I was there last night! I saw the lineup.
I think I would cry.
That would be a sweet thing to have happen!
The little things are important. Hope someone talks to Melky.
2 runs in 7 innings (assuming RJ is done).
Yesterday Lester/paperBum one hit the ROYALS.
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Mariano Rivera remains unparalleled in the ninth inning. They are second in the league in walks and on-base percentage, and surprisingly, stolen bases. They are 17-8 against left-handed starters. MIke Mussina is having a big free-agent season. Robinson Cano is developing into one of the best offensive second basemen in the league.
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The Sox, OTOH:
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They are 12-14 against left-handed starters, and 4-11 on artificial turf. They are last in the league in stolen bases and runners left on base. The last two spots in the rotation have been inconsistent.
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And what's up with 324? Thanks in advance to the folks with TVs in front of them.
A-Rod singles - definitely having his most productive game in a while.
Adam: Why can't Beckett ALWAYS pitch like this?
SportsNation Jim Callis: (3:11 PM ET ) Because he can't face the Royals every time out?
REVENGE IS SSSSWEEEET!!!
Andy's on 2B, game tied.
Big hubbub at third as ump sends Andy back to 2nd base.
#2 - third base ump had no basis to call time on a live play. Phillips should be on third- remember...Knoblauch at first?
#3 - it shouldn't matter- yanks need to get phillips across...if they don't? it's on them. Situation time
"We're gonna win...we're gonna WIIIIN!"
(and I wouldn't even throw a glove at Stillwell Angel!)
Andy shoulda been on 3B, though.
btw - how 'bout these kids...Got Melk last night- phillips has a pair today- looking like need that mix of youth and experience to win.
AL B (NYC): Brett G. in this year's Yankee top 10 prospects yes or no?
SportsNation Jim Callis: (3:20 PM ET ) Brett Gardner: maybe. The Yankees are adding a lot of talent via the draft and international signings, so their Top 10 might be deeper than it has been recently.
i demand his trade, and i want Steve Phillips as my GM and scouting director
WHY?! He had the night off last night too!
Anyway, is it THAT GOD DAMNED HARD to read a ball off a bat? Between the crowd and Kay you would have thought that was anything but a routine fly ball.
Brand new ball game. Let's just hope they can hold 'em.
Damon would have singled not sac flied.. U KNOW
Posada got hit by a ball on the hand last night. That's why he's out of the lineup.
I'm VERY surprised to Unit out there again. I'd have him on a short leash.
thats heavy artillery coming ahead
427 I think Ichiro is a very good hitter, but you're right Ron, its really his speed plus his ability to make contact that allow him to do what he does, not because he's the second coming of Ted Williams.
Now a HP. Trouble brewing.
this is going to be fairy tale or as ugly as Shrek
Whoah. Torre came out to the mound, but left RJ in. Randy must have talked him out of it.
Over 120 pitches. I don't know about this...
463 Damn right.
Plus, Bernie's pathetic at bat with the lead run on third goes down in the annals of this game. I hate losing games like this. It's just UGLY.
I don't care if he's facing his old team. I don't care how much money he makes. I don't care if he's a first-ballot Hall of Famer. His butt ought to be on the damn bench right now!
I don't even care if he just struck out Richie Sexson. Joe ought to stop channeling Grady Little circa Game 7 in '03 fercryin'outloud.
Maybe I was right from the beginning. RJ with 2 runs in 7 innings. I am already scared come next Monday.
1 run should be plenty doable with the top of the lineup next...
I don't understand why Torre pinch hit for Aaron Guiel just so Miguel Cairo could bunt. Give me a break.
i wont till the last strike..
Pinstripes are Pinstripes..
Actually, its nice to see a little piss and vinegar in the old man.
502
Here, here!!!
That could have easily been a three, four run inning.
Mwahahahahaha...
my eyes read 8th
sry 519 523
OT: Did you see Jeter on the ESPN Make-a-wish foundation tearjerker? Bubba Crosby told the kid "maybe one day soon you'll be a Yankee" and the kid told him "maybe one day you'll soon you'll be a Clipper". OK, that didn't happen.
That call cost us a run, and maybe the game. I can't help but think that was 'umpire payback' for last night's blown call at 1st base.
er, I mean...
Obviously, the clutch hitting sucked, and I wish the error didn't happen, but even if we lose, we've lost much more excruciatingly than this. Or has the Nationals comeback from a seven run deficit already been forgotten (can't blame you if it has)?
And this is pretty much over. A heartbreaker of a loss if I've ever seen one.
OT but, what's the record for comments during a 9 inning game here at the Banter? I think we've got to be near it, if we haven't already passed it.
565 Ben, my Gameday screen just changed "Automatic Ball" to "Ball" - and then it showed A-Rod grounding out. D'oh.
Whutauknow? Cairo does it again?
And a great day weather-wise ends with a sour taste. Them's the breaks, folks...this team will be back with more than ever this weekend. Still feel good about them, as long as there aren't any more injuries.
We didn't get it done early against Meche, and the strong Seattle bullpen took over. Nuff said. We'll get em' next game.
1.5 back is still a pretty good place to be!
Tough loss. I'm thinking Joe shouldn't have put Bernie in. Though I guess Cairo worked out.
what more does he have to do..
i blame Jeter n Giambi for mucking this up in the 8th
Bernie for failing to put the ball in play with a man on 3rd and 1 out. Had we taken the lead it would have been Farns to Mo for the last 2 innings.
Giambi for just plain stinking every AB.
Joe for leaving Randy out there and poor PH.
BTW - Jeter RBI after Melky and Damon bit the big one.
and if u r beeing fair.. u gotto put blame on Jeter too..
it was not a bad loss.. certainly not blameable on ARod..
Oh please oh please oh please let that be Matsui's first series back in action...
I know we've discussed why the Yankees bench isn't too great. (It's a bench, the starters are high priced, you're not going to get great bench talent, etc., etc.)
But Bernie should have thought about retiring this past year so that the Yanks could land someone a little more useful off the bench. Now, I love Bernie; in fact, his is the only jersey I've ever bought. But he has an OPS of .740.
It's really too bad signing Beltran didn't work out for whatever reason it didn't work out.
And let's relax w/ A-rod. Sure, he didn't tear the cover off the ball today (who did?)but 2 for 4 is 2 for 4. Hey, Bernie smoked a line drive that was caught to end the game. That's baseball.
I might have taken Randy out once Ichiro got on, or even after Ichiro made it to third, to see if someone fresher could have gotten a K. But Stinnett and Cairo are responsible for the 8th, not RJ.
624 Yeah, I never understood that though. Beltran in CF would have been nice.
On another (somewhat) note: does anyone here really think that the Yanks are thinking of moving Alex this off season, or that he will ask them to? I really hope not, I hope this is all just wishful thinking on Espn's part. The Yanks have a really strong infield that could be together for several more years. It would be a shame to screw it up. I just think that Alex should come out and say "I am the best 3rd baseman in the game, if not the best player. Everyone can get off my back. I don't care what anyone says. I am the man and the 'straw that stirs the drink in NY!'". Then maybe everyone would just shut the hell up.
Oh well, I guess I am done ranting now.
What was it a month ago, ESPN ws saying "why A-Rod should have gone to Boston." This push to get him traded so he winds up in Fenway is 1) transparent and 2) highly annoying.
Jorgie's index finger is swollen, which is why he didn't even pinch-hit today.
And A-Rod says with his sore toe, he doesn't think he'll be able to play all the games on the hard Toronto turf.
Boy, this next series is going to be interesting...
Though it's the time of year when players often start breaking down. Tim Wakefield is headed for the DL with a fractured rib. They're expecting him to be out at least a month.
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