Tag Archives: network

Countdown: 4 days to spring training

Posted on February 8, 2013 by admin

We’re practically in the trenches now — just 96 hours until pitchers and catchers report to Yankees spring training in Tampa on Feb. 12. Every day between now and then, Andrew Marchand, Mark Simon and I have been presenting a list concerning a specific issue facing the Yankees this season. Today’s list may not pertain to the upcoming season, but it involves an issue that could have profound long-term effects on the team: the question of whether Hal Steinbrenner should sell the Yankees and put the club into new ownership for the first time in 40 years. Continue reading →

Posted in Giants, Jets, Knicks, Local, Mets, Yankees, Yankees Gossip, Yankees News | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Red Sox 2, Orioles 1: The Right Stuff, The Wrong Time?

Posted on September 23, 2012 by admin

Today had all the makings of a good Red Sox win–one that could make it worthwhile to drop a game in the draft standings in exchange for the performances involved. Cody Ross hit a go-ahead double late, driving in Dustin Pedroia from second after a double of his own–each went 2-for-4 on the day–and Felix Doubront was exceptional. The problem is that it came against the Orioles , and while that does enable a fun hat trick doled out to Robert Andino , it also means that, with Oakland finally getting it together and taking a game over the New York Yankees , the Red Sox played heroes to the team their fanbase would love to watch crash and burn more than anything. We’ve discussed the value of a win at this point–or perhaps the damage of one–plenty of times, but this is the first time we’re left with a win that actually provides our worst enemies with relief and only hurts a team that only a few really hold grudges against for Game 162 last year. If the Athletics had gone nuts in New York and taken all three, and this was just a matter of one or two games ahead for Baltimore, then it wouldn’t be such a big deal. But with the Yankees facing one of the toughest matchups remaining to them and Baltimore facing one of the easiest, the Yankees gave no ground, and this game is a part of that. This to us meaningless win held first place for the New York Yankees. There are positives to be had from Doubront’s start. Perhaps he has gained confidence from the two decent-but-lucky performances that preceded it, and that allowed him to come in and dominate tonight. 11 strikeouts in seven innings strikes me as something more than just confidence, but this is similar to how Clay Buchholz got his act together midseason, and it would be nice to see Doubront at least end positively. But, frankly, when Ryan Flaherty struck out, and the Orioles had wasted their bases loaded, one out opportunity against Andrew Bailey , it felt a little bit like a midseason loss would if we were on the other side of things, wasting a late-game chance. And should it come down to the Yankees barely beating out Baltimore for the AL East crown, it’s this game I’ll be looking back at with a grimace. What strange times when a good win can produce such aggravation. Continue reading →

Posted in Giants, Local, Mets, Yankees, Yankees Gossip, Yankees Rumors | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Yankees 2, A’s 1: Sabathia Shines, Martin Walks It Off

Posted on September 22, 2012 by admin

Yesterday afternoon the A’s scored 12 runs off a bunch of Tigers pitchers who are not Justin Verlander . Later that same day, the Yankees put up 10 runs to cap off a sweep of the Blue Jays . Momentum stops with the next day’s pitcher, but tonight momentum stopped, locked the brakes and sent everyone into the windshield, making that weird squishy faced face. It happened more than once, too. Russell Martin played the role of hero with a walk-off homer in the tenth inning; one of only three swings that actually mattered in the game. Tonight belonged to the pitchers, with CC Sabathia returning to form and Jarrod Parker continuing an impressive rookie campaign. Sabathia was dominant, pitching an eight-inning shutout while allowing only three and striking out 11. It was probably the best game he’s pitched in a couple months, showing off a fastball that hit 96 a couple times and a wipeout slider that fooled hitters all night . It was the ace-like performance they needed from him with just days left in the season. Parker was dominant as well, shutting down the Yankee offense save for a lone run on a Curtis Granderson sac fly in the fourth. That run held up well enough until Rafael Soriano threw a poorly placed slider to Brandon Moss in the ninth. He hit it for a home run. Of course he hit it for a home run. A poorly placed slider in that situation wouldn’t be important unless it made the one run not hold up anymore. It was a bad pitch to call (inner third at the knees righty on lefty) and it was executed even worse. All was, or will be, forgiven as the aforementioned Martin hit his second walk-off home run of the year. The Yankees only have three walk-off wins on the year and he’s responsible for two of them. Doesn’t it just figure that the most maligned player on the team has the flair for the dramatic? While it only goes in the books as one win, Martin’s swing kept the Yankees alone in first for another night, gave the team their sixth straight win and knocked their playoff magic number down to seven. Sabathia and Martin coming up big when they have to. Now they just have to avoid hitting the brakes again. Box Score . Math Class . Play of the Game: Guess. (+35%) Ivan Nova gets the ball tomorrow afternoon against Travis Blackey. And since I had this song all picked out before Soriano went all Ctrl-A+Delete on my post, here’s metal . It’s too good not to share. Continue reading →

Posted in Giants, Local, Mets, Yankees, Yankees Gossip | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Friday’s Saber-Links

Posted on September 21, 2012 by admin

Here’s Friday’s edition of Saber-Links: Russell A. Carleton of Baseball Prospectus proposes a fun twist on game theory, tiebreakers and the Wild Card play-in game: Baseball Prospectus | Baseball Therapy: Wild-Card Game Theory Even throwing those objections away, there’s another more logical reason why a team would never actually do this. Suppose the Orioles telegraphed their intentions, most likely through announcing their starting pitcher. Suddenly, the Yankees are looking at “wasting” Sabathia’s start on a game where the other team is clearly not even trying and the game is not really a must-win. The Yankees might figure that they can get by with some other starter, hold Sabathia back a day, and get him some extra rest. In some sense, the Yankees might be seen as punting here. But now, if the O’s play their “real” team, the game looks a lot more winnable—maybe a better bet than going to Oakland, even with the extra rest. But, if the Orioles are going to play their real lineup, the Yankees might go back to Sabathia. Which could lead the Orioles to go back to their Triple-A lineup. This turns into a bizarre cat-and-mouse game really quickly. We’ve entered the land of game theory. Also, I somehow forgot to link to the awesome new PITCH f/x leaderboards courtesy of Brooks Baseball and BP: Baseball Prospectus | BP Announcements: PITCHf/x Leaderboards Have Arrived These leaderboards draw on the same dataset you see at Brooks Baseball, custom classifications and all. So now it takes a couple of clicks to look up which pitchers throw hardest or softest, which pitches are hardest to hit, and a whole host of other interesting insights. Alex Remington of FanGraphs questions why the Pirates never do well down the stretch: Why the Pirates Always Limp to the Finish | FanGraphs Baseball This year isn’t the first time that the Pirates have come tantalizingly close to a good season only to come up disappointingly short. You only have to remember back to 2011 for another example of that. But it’s remarkable how robust the pattern has been over the past 20 years: the Pirates play decently for a while, and then they fall off a cliff. Rinse and repeat. Kyle Boddy of The Hardball Times gives us an interesting study into pitching biomechanics, PITCH f/x and injuries: Getting out of the injury zone, part one–THT The reason for this is fairly simple: More pitchers than not stay healthy throughout a given year! You don’t get to pick a matched group of 50/50 when using a neural network for real-time classification; you get the whole population. So, if you used this network to predict who would be injured, you’d be pulling healthy starters way more often than you’d be pulling injured starters, even if on a percentage basis you’d be right. However, that doesn’t invalidate the model. And here’s what’s easily the best link of the day. The full-length trailer for the Jackie Robinson biopic, 42, has been released: ’42′ Official Trailer [HD]: The Real Life Story Of Jackie Robinson, Baseball Legend – YouTube Harrison Ford plays Branch Rickey!! Enjoy your weekend, folks! Continue reading →

Posted in Giants, Local, Mets, Yankees, Yankees Gossip | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Sports On TV, 09/21: Both New York Teams Host New Opponents

Posted on September 21, 2012 by admin

Both New York baseball teams find themselves in action Friday night, let’s take a look at their matchups: New York Yankees : vs. Oakland A’s, 7:05 p.m. ET, YES Network: The Yankees have a one-game lead in the AL East, but if that doesn’t pan out, this is a preview of the potential AL Wild Card one-game playoff. Every game is obviously vital for the Yankees as they hope to beat out the Baltimore Orioles for the division title. CC Sabathia hasn’t been at his best lately, losing his last three decisions. His opponent, Jarrod Parker , has really had a nice rookie season and will play in Yankee Stadium for the first time since holding the Yanks to one run in an eight-inning outing in July. New York Mets : vs. Miami Marlins , 7:10 p.m. ET, SNY: Not much at stake for either team here, although they are only a half-game apart in the fight for fourth place in the NL East. It’s also a good pitching matchup, as Jonathon Niese has impressed all season long with a 3.46 ERA while his opponent, the rookie Jacob Turner , has been alright since the Marlins acquired him and pitched seven shutout innings against the Reds his last time on the mound. Continue reading →

Posted in Giants, Jets, Mets, Yankees, Yankees Rumors | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Recapping The Yankees’ Minor League Season: The Good

Posted on September 21, 2012 by admin

The minor league season is finally over for all the little Baby Bombers. From here, some will head to the Arizona Fall League to keep playing, others will spend some quality time in the instructional league, and the precious few that were lucky enough to get a major league cup of coffee will be hanging around to watch (keyword!) the big league club chase a spot in the postseason. It was kind of a crazy year for the Yankee farm system. They traded their top prospect in the offseason, their two top pitching prospects battled ineffectiveness and injury all year, and their AAA affiliate spent the season traveling around the state of New York without a real place to call home during their stadium renovations in Scranton. Even with all that, there were certainly some great moments too, so here’s the first of a three-part breakdown of the year that was. Today, the good parts! It’s hardly an all-inclusive list, so feel free to chime in with your own thoughts on players I may have left out. Tyler Austin – Austin hadn’t popped up on a ton of radars, even after smashing his way through the New York-Penn league in 2011, but there is no way that he doesn’t fly up the Yankees ‘ top prospect list this offseason. After beginning the year in Low A Charleston, where he made the All-Star Game and was selected for the home run derby, Austin made it all the way to the AA lineup for their Eastern League playoff series. His 17 homers easily eclipsed his 2011 total of six, and he was named as the lone Yankee representative in this year’s Futures Game. He has a realistic shot of starting the 2013 season in AA Trenton, and if he continues to hit like he has, he could be knocking on the door of the majors sooner than later. Mark Montgomery – Drawing favorable comparisons to David Robertson , Montgomery has kept hitters searching for answers with his slider that is already being labeled as a plus major league pitch. In 40.1 innings this season at High A Tampa, Montgomery struck out an absurd 61 batters. If it weren’t for the fact that he hovered around a career-high innings count and was ticketed for the Arizona Fall League, the Yankees may have found a spot on the 40-man roster for him this September. As it is, he could be making a major league impact as soon as next season. The Yankees don’t seem to be holding him back at all, and they have no reason to. Hitters at every level he’s been to are just not prepared for what he’s throwing them. AAA Empire State Making the IL Playoffs : No Manny Banuelos , no Austin Romine , no Jesus Montero , an ineffective Dellin Betances , and no home ball park doesn’t sound like a recipe for success, but the AAA affiliate managed to win the International League North division to earn a spot in the playoffs. Though they were eliminated in the first round, it’s amazing that they were able to make it as far as they did with the roster they had under all those circumstances. They did it without many flashy names and with their players mainly living out of a suitcase for months. They should definitely be commended for that. Gary Sanchez – After a horribly rough defensive season in 2011, Sanchez improved his game all around after repeating Low A to begin this season. He finished the year with 18 home runs to lead all minor league catchers, and drove in 85 runs between Charleston and Tampa. He also tightened up his defense that was called into question after allowing a number of passed balls that would make Jesus Montero blush the season before. He’s the next real hope the Yankees have for a catcher who can actually hit within the system, and it’s comforting to see him put together a better season. The Yankees are in love with defense-first catchers, so he’ll have to do more than just hit to be a real part of their future plans. Zoilo Almonte – He made people take notice of him with a strong showing in Spring Training, and his season in AA didn’t disappoint. The 23 year old hit .277/.322/.487 on the year with an easy career-high in home runs with 21. He kept up his hot hitting in the Eastern League playoffs, accounting for a majority of the team’s offense in those games. The Yankees have tough decisions to make on their outfield this offseason, and they may need a homegrown outfielder to present himself as a viable threat to take the job so that they have a bargaining tool in negotiations with Nick Swisher and eventually Curtis Granderson . A good year from Almonte doesn’t mean they will be ready to start him in right field next season, but they will at least have to look his way a little harder when they are deciding exactly how much money they are willing to part with for the impending free agents. Corban Joseph and David Adams : The pair of second basemen really flourished offensively this season; Joseph bringing a much-needed bat to the AAA lineup, and Adams managing to both hit well and stay on the field for Trenton. The unfortunate reality for both these guys is that they are playing a position blocked by a superstar that is likely to remain with the club for as long as his career lasts. The Yankees did the smart thing by trying to see what Adams could do at third base, and the results were mainly positive. If they are to have a future with the Yankees, they are both almost certainly going to need to find a new position to play. Joseph was originally drafted as a shortstop, but hasn’t played there since. Maybe it’s time to, like was done with Adams, see if he can hack it at a position the Yankees will need to fill before the better part of the next decade. Poll Who from this list impressed you most this year? Tyler Austin Mark Montgomery Gary Sanchez Zoilo Almonte Corban Joseph David Adams   3 votes | Results Continue reading →

Posted in Giants, International, Local, National, Yankees, Yankees Gossip, Yankees News, Yankees Rumors | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Yankees Reassign Billy Connors, Possibly in a Stalinist Purge

Posted on September 19, 2012 by admin

Via the New York Post and George King , Billy Connors, who has been part of the Yankees organization forever as a coach and adviser–he was pitching coach in 1989-1990 and 1994-1995–has been informed that his role is changing, whatever that means. “GM Brian Cashman refused comment when asked if Connors was fired, demoted or re-assigned.” That doesn’t leave much; apparently Cashman has sent Connors to the gulag, or wished him into the corn field . I interviewed Connors on MLB Network Radio earlier this year, and he said at that time he wished the Yankees would more aggressively promote their pitching prospects rather than sign more aging veterans. I didn’t think he would agree so readily when I asked the question that prompted that answer, but give the coach credit for not being a yes-man (or a YES man). I guess that’s one voice for change the Yankees won’t be hearing anymore. Continue reading →

Posted in Giants, Local, Yankees, Yankees Gossip, Yankees News, Yankees Rumors | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Melky Mesa to be Called Up on Tuesday in Wake of Mark Teixeira Injury

Posted on September 10, 2012 by admin

The New York Yankees announced through the team’s Twitter account that they would soon recall Melky Mesa , a 25-year-old outfielder who split time between AA Trenton and AAA Scranton this year. This news was released the same day that the Yankees learned first baseman Mark Teixeira would miss at least 10-14 days recovering from his irritated calf strain. The horrible call at first base ending Saturday night’s game in which Teixeira dove into first base because he could not run any more undoubtedly helped aggravate the calf. The lineup will sorely miss Tex’s presence in the middle of the batting order and deal with some combination of Nick Swisher , Eric Chavez , Steve Pearce , and Casey McGehee at first base until he returns. On the bright side, Mesa’s promotion to the major leagues is the final step of a very successful season for Melky 2.0. He has been protected on the 40-man roster for a few years now, and the team’s patience in him finally paid off. Mesa hit .251/.329/.404 with a 99 wRC+ in 105 games with Trenton last year, but he improved to .277/.344/.464 with a 130 wRC+ in 88 games with the Thunder in 2012, hitting 18 doubles and 14 homers as the team rolled toward a division title. The slugging numbers, which include a .372 wOBA, are especially impressive since it is notoriously difficult to hit for power in Trenton’s Mercer County Waterfront Park. The Yankees promoted Mesa to the Traveling Circus in AAA on August 2nd, and he hit .230/.271/.524 with a 119 wRC+, impressing with power through his nine homers in only 33 games. Mesa strikes out like a bandit (118 in 504 plate appearances against pitching not yet suited for the big leagues), but his power certainly shows potential. Mesa also has a good arm in the outfield and could be used as a pinch-running threat since he stole 22 bases between Trenton and Scranton in 2012. He will probably find his way into a few games as the Yankees test him out against the best pitching in baseball. Continue reading →

Posted in Giants, Local, Mets, National, Yankees, Yankees Gossip, Yankees News, Yankees Rumors | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Yankees 8, Orioles 5: Bats Alive

Posted on September 8, 2012 by admin

The Yankees are back in sole possession of first place. Go nuts, everyone! It’s been a long time in waiting! Those 24 hours without being alone in first felt like an eternity, but after some agonizing minutes, that’s all over. Obviously it’s all sarcasm, except for the first place thing, but it’s needed sarcasm. There hasn’t been much to joke about for awhile now, but after a night a big offense, there’s a small window to laugh about the recent struggles. Given the time of the season and how competitive the stretch run figures to be, take the chances when you get them. There will be plenty of time for doom and gloom and excessive nail biting. For a second straight night, the offense showed signs of coming out of their recent coma. The Yankees jumped out to a big lead behind home runs from Russell Martin, Steve Pearce and Alex Rodriguez . Martin ending the game above .200 two nights in a row and Pearce managing to be something other than a non-factor are reasons to celebrate on their own, but A-Rod’s homer might be the biggest reason for jumping up and dancing out of sight of other people. It was a 400-foot glimpse of what the offense can look like if he stays healthy and productive. With Mark Teixeira on target to play tomorrow, feel free to hope tonight was more than a glimpse. Phil Hughes held a streaking Orioles offense largely in check, giving up his only three runs on a long home run to Adam Jones . In yet another biggest game of the season, Hughes gave the Yankees six innings, allowing six hits, striking out five and walking none. Nothing spectacular, but they didn’t need him to be. With a seven run cushion, all he had to do was keep the O’s in the ballpark. Outside of the one mistake, he did just that. Cody Eppley gave one back on a homer by Robert Andino , but the Yankees got it back a few innings later on a Derek Jeter single. Rafael Soriano gave up a one-out home run to Manny Machado to cut the lead to three, but was otherwise great. Since blowing a save against the Blue Jays , Soriano has looked great, albeit in only a few appearances. The only thing to really complain about is that their most reliable reliever is the closer when the bullpen has been a mess. You really have to be looking for something to complain about for that be an issue, though. The Yankees won, they looked impressive, they’re in first place by themselves again and it’s Friday night. No need to keep people reading. It’s a good night, go nuts. Box Score . Math Class . Play of the Game: Russell Martin’s three-run homer (+25.1%) CC Sabathia goes tomorrow against Joe Saunders . Continue reading →

Posted in Giants, Local, Mets, Yankees, Yankees News, Yankees Rumors | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Daily Red Sox Links: Continuing the Bobby V Show

Posted on September 6, 2012 by admin

Yesterday on WEEI, Bobby Valentine took part in quite the interview. Ben covered it very well soon after it happened. Due to the unusual content, the interview became a big talking point around Boston. Amongst other highlights, after host Glenn Ordway asked if he had “checked out,” Valentine responded, “if I were there, I’d punch you in the mouth.” In Rich Levine’s opinion, Bobby V was just being honest throughout. ( Rich Levine; CSN New England ) As expected, Valentine had to answer to those comments after the game. He pointed out that while he was trying to prove a point to the media, he was definitely joking with his comment about punching Ordway. ( Brian MacPherson; Providence Journal ) While the big league squad has struggled this season, and all hope of postseason play is gone, Pawtucket made their way into the AAA playoffs. To commemorate the occasion, Larry Lucchino visited the team, but had no comments on Bobby Valentine. ( Joe McDonald; ESPN Boston ) Yesterday Baseball Nation posted the latest edition of their Youtube show. They touch on many topics that are captivating the baseball world lately, including the continued demise of the Yankees . ( Rob Neyer, Grant Brisbee; Baseball Nation via Youtube ) This year has been especially notable for MLB because of the unexpected contenders, including Baltimore, Oakland and Pittsburgh. Over at Hardball Times, Chris Lund looks at whether or not the extra wild card has added anything to this season’s excitement. ( Chris Lund; Hardball Times ) Despite our favorite team being out of the race, the AL East has still taken on the expected three-team race. Baltimore has replaced Boston in that equation for this year, but the stretch run should be a fun time for this division. ( Jay Jaffe; Sports Illustrated ) Continuing the Bobby Valentine theme from earlier, there were rumors swirling of his seemingly imminent firing even before that interview. Rob Bradford thinks the Red Sox should again look to Toronto to bring John Farrell in to manage this team next year. ( Rob Bradford; WEEI.com ) Growing up, the Braves were always my second favorite team, as my granparents lived in Atlanta and shared my passion for the game. Javy Lopez used to be my favorite player in baseball, but Chipper Jones was always the guy to watch on that team. After this year, he’s finally calling it quits, after having a storybook career entirely with the Braves. ( R.J. Anderson; Baseball Prospectus ) Continue reading →

Posted in Local, Yankees, Yankees Gossip, Yankees News | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment