Baseball Toaster was unplugged on February 4, 2009.
The Yankees will close out their season-opening homestand tonight by trying to salvage a series split against the Rays and thus a winning mark on the homestand. The buzz around the team this first week of games has concerned the poor performance of the offense, which has scored just 2.83 runs per game, the fifth-work mark in baseball at this absurdly early stage. Me, I'm more interested in the excellent performance of the pitching staff.
All three of the Yankees' wins have been close, low-scoring games, the type of games a team has to be able to win in order to advance in October. The Bombers have scored no more than three runs in any of their wins thus far. Last year, they were 5-35 in games in which they scored three runs or fewer and their third win of that kind didn't come until after the All-Star break. This year they're out to a 3-2 start in such games in the season's first week. Call me crazy, but I see that as a positive.
It could be that runs have just been down all over in the cold, windy Bronx this week, but for those worried about the offense, consider what the pitching staff has done. Removing the performances of Ian Kennedy and LaTroy Hawkins, who allowed 13 of the 28 runs given up by the Yankees thus far in Friday's ugly series-opening loss, the remainder of the staff has compiled this line:
2.17 ERA, 49 2/3 IP, 40 H, 15 R, 12 ER, 4 HR, 10 BB, 42 K, 7.61 K/9, 1.81 BB/9, 1.23 WHIP
Of course, that doesn't include the three inherited runners that were allowed to score in Friday's game by Jonathan Albaladejo (1) and Kyle Farnsworth (2), but were charged to Kennedy and Hawkins, respectively. Still, even if you add those three runs in above, the non-IPK/Hawk staff still has a strong 2.72 ERA.
This is all slightly meaningless, of course, given the small sample (only Chien-Ming Wang has pitched more than six innings thus far), but it's certainly encouraging.
At the same time, one could argue that the concerns about the offense are legitimate. Look at who's hitting and who's struggling. Melky Cabrera, a young player primed for a breakout, is leading the team with a .364/.417/.636 line despite missing two games due to suspension. Alex Rodriguez and Hideki Matsui are both making strong contributions. Bobby Abreu is doing fine. Jason Giambi, Jorge Posada, Johnny Damon, and Robinson Cano, however, are full-on struggling, going a combined 10 for 71 (.140) thus far. You can be confident that Cano will get hot, though given his history it might take until after the All-Star break, but both Giambi and Posada are in their late-30s and have already missed games due to aches and pains (Posada's throwing shoulder, Giambi's groin). Neither is in tonight's lineup. Damon, meanwhile, is a very old 34 and struggled mightily for the first half of last season with a variety of aches and pains of his own. As meaningless as the above pitching stats are, however, these first-week hitting slumps are even more so.
Tonight the Yankees face Jason Hammel, who is only in the Rays rotation because Scott Kazmir is on the DL once again with an elbow strain. Hammel hasn't pitched since spring training. He had a 6.23 ERA in the spring, has a 6.70 mark in the majors, and a career 6.41 ERA against the Yankees. That is to say, he's reliably terrible, and is the first pitcher who meets that description that the Yankees will have faced this year (Edwin Jackson isn't much better in terms of results, but has the raw stuff Hammel lacks). All but one of Hammel's confrontations with the Yankees (three of four starts and both relief appearances, the latter totaling just one inning) occurred last year. In the best of them, an early September start at the Stadium, he held the Yanks to one run on five hits, walked none, and struck out seven, but he only lasted five innings as he needed 97 pitches to get that far. It's likely that Joe Maddon was thinking of Hammel yesterday when he used J.P. Howell to eat up three innings, thus saving the rest of his pen for tonight.
Hammel's mound opponent is Mike Mussina, whose 5 2/3-inning/four-run outing in his first start is about all that can be expected of him at this stage of his career. Certainly, Girardi will need more than just Joba and Mo tonight, fortunately they were the only relievers he used yesterday. It could be that we'll have our first high-scoring game of the year tonight. Or maybe the crisp Bronx night will keep the bats of both teams frozen for one more game before the Bombers head out to play 18 of their next 20 games on the road.
That said, here's to the hope for another A-Rod grand slam on my birthday (quaffing root beer) >;)
I wonder what the weather is like in KC?
0 I didn't realize just how well the non-IPK and Hawkins staff was doing. Thanks for the info, Cliff. I really like how the non-Hawkins/Farnsworth portion of the pen has performed so far. I hope Bruney, Traber, and Princeton Dorf keep it up. Not least because, the better they pitch, the easier it becomes to move Joba into starting when the need arises.
Mine was Monday. I didn't get a W for my birthday. But, Clay Buchholz did give me a nice present.
I'm not concerned about Giambi, frankly I was never really counting on him for anything. To me, anything he delivers is bonus. Posada though is a bit worrying. I hope he's ok, otherwise this is going to be one longgggg four year contract.
1 Fingers and toes crossed fer you and A-Rod, Chyll. Go crazy, make it a root beer float, as long as you're not driving.
Also, because we're likely to see him tonight, I'm putting my full support behind Latroy Hawkins tonight. He's a good guy, and as much as I may be against the signing, I feel bad for him.
Plus, unlike Kyle Farnsworth, he seems to realize he pitched poorly.
But this is over a number.
Well, GOM (Ghost of Moose) is off to a good start.
His ab's have been bad.
Why is it worth saying this? They play 4 teams 19 times a year, and since Matsui came to the US Tampa has had the worst pitching out of the 4...
Hey Chyll, "Tanjobi Omedeto-gozaimasu!" (Happy Birthday in Japanese)
(Good to be back, btw... my computer died and I could only read for awhile... Happy Birthday Chyll!)
Curve looks sharp and he seems to be commanding it.
Oooh, nice hit by CAno!
Fuck, Hinske.
Damn it.
Those seem to be our choices.
Here comes Gomes.
Too close.
Nice job, Mike.
Hopefully Moose will exceed expectations tonight.
All righty, then.
Plus, he's hitting the ball hard these past couple of games, no?
Nice hit, Johnny.
:)
A beautiful fucking 3-1 change by Mike.
Oh, that was sweet.
Noooo!!
An error.
The last thing Mike needs.
Oh, God, I have a bad feeling about this.
2-0.
Nice job, Mike, nice job!
Ok, Team, let's get our old sourpuss some insurance.
7 from moose
1 from Ross/traber
1 from month
Anyway if moose can pitch like tonigh and like last week he will eat 175 innings easy and have a low 4 era and win 13 games. I could handle that.
Bobby!!!
Yaaaayyyy!!!
Man, he's on fire.
BOBBY!
OK, let's not waste a lead off triple. I hate that.
Thank you, Alex!!
NIce!
Let Mussina lose it, not BB.
You gotta put it in play.
Could we go to Joba for like two outs or so?
Bobby has a shot at the cycle today.
Holy fuck!!
That's what I'm talking about!!!!
Wow, a thing of beauty!!!!
Just in time!
This run must be cashed in.
I was also thinking this, as I read through the comments: why is everyone so eager for Hammel to leave the game?? This is just the kind of pitcher we destroy the third time through the line-up.
Fire this guy.
That was abominable.
At least he hit the baseball.
1 more inning for moose
What kind of leash with Bruney?
We can't lose this game because Joba didn't pitch...
That's two.
Now, who pitches the 8th (unless the bats bring the bombs)? Joba? Farnsworth?
Nice job, Bruny, nice job.
For the 8th? Start with Farns but have Joba throwing before the first pitch is thrown.
Nice one there, Morgan Ensberg.
Can we at the Banter have a group hug for the Moose? Only 2 bad pitches the entire game.
Gentlemen. Meet ARod.
God, he just missed that.
Damn it.
Ya think?
Just slap it into left!
Yessssss~!!!!!!!
Ripped that baseball!!
Haah ah hah !!!
Yaaayyy!!
Matsui proving me wrong. NICE!
C'mon, they need to get A-Rod back up so he can hit a homer for Chyll's birthday!
Moose = good
Yaaayyyy!!!
What a beautiful ab!
Yaaayyy!!!
Now Farns can pitch.
When he's on, there's no one better.
Hmm, strained left quad, wheres Marty Miller to blame?
Fastball mixed in and the change did him great service at least once.
I love it when that pompous douche gets showed up on national tv. Thanks Robbie!
Ha ha ah a a hah aha h ah ah ah h ah ah!!!
270 IIRC, the DT folks told us that Betemit would be really annoying some times, because he'd K on ridiculous pitches, but to ignore those times, because he really is a good hitter. I wouldn't judge him too harshly.
Not someone I'd ever hope was coming to the dish, though.
Although this went well, I have to say.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqiWrKkILOU
If you take out the few ABs this year and in his two cups of coffee early in his career, he's never had a season with an OPS+ under 100. How many BUIF do you know who've never had a season under 100 OPS+?
I love when Flash gets wry.
I'm a big Mac supporter, but these are hilarious.
Chyll, are you out there? Abreu's home run was pretty sweet, right?
295 That's exactly what the DT guys said - it wouldn't be easy. But like markp lays out in 298 - BUIF who hit like Betemit don't grow on trees.
Good, good, Hawkins for the 9th. Another nice, easy 1-2-3 inning please. And another sub-3-hour game!
His fastball is eminently hittable.
Ok, nice change there.
The umpire has 10:30 dinner plans
I bet this is the only time this happens this year, but that might just be the ledge talking. Now let's go Sweep dem Royals.
Hawkins seems extremely hittable.
But not right there!
Yay!!
Nice job, Hawkins, nice win, Team!
Put the man in the Hall.
Well, at least the ump is calling the ball 3 inches off the plate a strike for everyone.
And, of course, now LTH strikes Gomes out. On a foul tip, but still.
Phew! nice to get another win! 2 in a row for the first time all season!
318 Agreed. The one advantage to the Yanks losing for a couple of years in a row would be that maybe, just maybe, those idiots would go away.
Maybe next year!
Off topic - a 5-point plan?! Governors?! What's next, Red Sox Nation Currency? Secession from the Union? http://tinyurl.com/57jphn
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