Mo Sicka Than Your Average Poppa

Via River Ave. Blues, Mariano Rivera was not 100% when got touched up for 3 earned runs in 2/3 of an inning on Saturday. Tim Brown from Yahoo!, would you please fill us in?

For several hours before Rivera took the ball Saturday afternoon in that tie game, he’d suffered with a stomach ailment that brought aches and repeated vomiting, according to one Yankee. Rivera had rolled off the trainer’s table, where he’d hoped to sleep it off, and into the bullpen in the eighth inning, when he began to warm up.

Joe at RAB directs the attention of his post to commending the fact that Mariano stepped up and took the ball, even though he wasn't at his peak and didn't make excuses about it. Although once the information came out, the media was more than happy to make those excuses for him.

The thing I have a problem with is that according to Brown, Girardi knew that Mo was physically ill and laying on the trainer's table until he started warming up into the eighth inning. Mo is a warrior and a consummate professional, but no one is going to be able to bring their A-Game when they are battling a stomach virus.

I first-guessed the decision to take out Sabathia (without knowledge of Mo's condition) on Saturday. It was a borderline call. It's not like the Yanks were clinging to a one run lead and Phil Coke had just pitched the 8th inning. Sabathia, at 101 pitches, was ready to come back out for the 9th but Girardi went with "the book" even though his closer was vomiting a few innings earlier. I'm sure Mo said he was ready to pitch, but it's the manager's job to get the best performance out of his players, and calling on Mo in that spot was a dicey proposition at best.

Hangin' Around

After yesterday's game, I found myself wondering why it feels like it's better when a starting pitcher gives up runs later in the game. Mathematically, it would seem that if you are going to give up 5 runs (4 earned) like CC Sabathia did yesterday, it wouldn't matter very much when they come. You always hear announcers say things like "he's keeping his team in the game", but it hadn't occured to me that there might be some statistical justification for this. 

For my case, I'm going to use the WPA (Win Percentage Added) charts from Fan Graphs that the guys from RAB like to use pretty often. Simply put, these charts estimate the likelihood, based on the score the sitatuion on the field and historical data, of which team is going to win. For further explanation, you can study up here. 

First, yesterday's Yankees game:

The Yanks were leading 1-0 from the bottom of the first to the top of the 6th inning. During that time, their WPA fluctuated between roughly 50-70% in their favor. (The Angels loaded the bases in the second inning with only one out, which explains the dip early on). As I mentioned in a previous post, reacting to something Lar from Wezen-ball wrote, you can't subscribe to the fallacy of the predetermined outcome. At any point, the offense could have helped CC out and threw up a few runs, tipping the WPA in their favor, and changing the whole equation. It's not like Sabathia was destined to give up 5 runs (one unearned). The longer a starter carries a solid performance into a game, the more likely he is to leave the mound having thrown a gem. 

Now let's take a look at yesterday's game between the Sox and Rays:

Boston jumped on Tampa bay starter Jeff Niemann early and were winning by 5 runs in the top of the 2nd. Look at the WPA as a result. During the time of the game when the Yanks were at 50-75%, the Sox hovered in the neighborhood of a 75-90% chance of winning. Granted, Tampa Bay mounted a bit of a rally in the 5th inning and brought the score to 6-5, but the point still stands. 

Keeping your team in the game: It actually does count for something. There's something to be said for Hangin' Around:

[God, that Album Cover is creepy. Why are you such a weirdo, Edgar Winter? I'm sorry, but that's the only version they had on YouTube and I don't have time to upload my own.]

Was yesterday's loss dissapointing? Yes. Has Sabathia lived up to expectations so far? No. Should I stop answering my own questons? Probably. It was a tight contest much of the way, with some great defensive plays by Ramiro Pena, Melky Cabrera and even the Big CCheese. Thanks to CC's strong first six innings, the Yanks had their chances to win, they just didn't capitalize.

The Great Divide(rs)

I didn't take a picture, because that would be weird, but I found out something about the New Yankee Stadium during our descent into Section 112 that really pissed me off (pun intended... wait for it). There are dividers between the urinals on the Field Level, but not anywhere else in the Stadium.

Is it a huge deal? Of course not, but could there be a better symbol of how much the Yankees have bent over backwards to cater to the wealthiest customers and how they could care less about the core fans? By installing the dividers at the field level, they are acknowledging that it matters, but only providing the "luxury" to those purchasing the most expensive seats. It's an issue of simple human decency, and they can't possibly cost that much to put them in.

Have you ever had a friend who desperately tried to date someone who was out of their league while ignoring a person who was legitimately interested in them? The object of their affection was strikingly attractive, but even if they gave them the time of day, it was just to be nice. The second option wasn't as good-looking, but they had actual feelings for your friend and probably would have done anything to be with them. Guess what, Yankees, the corporate guy, who you want to sit in the insanely expensive seats... he's just not that into you.

Forgive the sweeping generalization, but most of the people who could afford the highest priced seats at the New Stadium are not real fans. Here is why: If you have a job that allows you to spend anywhere from $100K to $800K on two Yankees season tickets, you aren't going to have much time in the day to read blogs or listen to sports talk radio. Wealthy folks also go out to dinner pretty often. When do they do that? Probably in the neighborhood of 7-10 at night, give or take, and three or four star restaurants aren't going to have the game on TV. The more money you have, the more options you have, and everywhere you look in this city, companies are bending over backwards to cater to what remains of the uber-rich. The Yankees are just one option; an option that's not in Manhattan and requires an commitment of 81 games and a small fortune.

The people (and corporations) who buy those seats are never going to love the Yankees as much as the average fan, and the direction of the economy has blatantly exposed that. There are still some who could absorb the price increase in the new building, but for them it was a luxury. You can tell by the outrage and disenfranchisement of the people who were displaced from their affordable full or even partial season ticket packages that they thought of it as a necessity.

It's clear that it doesn't make sense to alienate the average fan in the name of the casual but much wealthier fan from a loyalty standpoint. Given the state of the nation's finances right now it doesn't makes sense in the general ledger either. Did it ever? Ben K. from River Ave. Blues doesn't think so.

All you need to know: While the Yankees put art galleries alongside concession stands on the Field Level, Freddy Sez gets shut out of the Stadium. (h/t Jorge Says No)

Humpday Podcast Recommendations

I sort of gave up listening to ESPN Radio after the unceremonious conclusion of the Max Kellerman Show and instead have transitioned over to podcasts. They are great for a couple of reasons:

1. You can turn them on whenever you want
2. You can pause them if something comes up
3. The hosts generally aren't pompous asshats (coughColinCowherdcough)
4. They occasionally allow foul language
5. They are free
6. THERE ARE NO COMMERCIALS

Here are three podcasts that have been produced in the last day or so, that you may or may not enjoy. There's really not a whole lot of risk involved, considering all you have to lose is the time you spend listening to them. On the other hand, if you do like them, you've got a free source of entertainment and something to make you temporarily forget how much you hate your job.

Here you go:

• The Bronx View (51 mins): I've linked to these guys before and they are top notch. The production and sound quality is excellent and they represent the rational and even-keeled Yankees fan in all of us. This show features Dan LaTorraca from Pinstripes PA who writes about the Scranton-WB Yanks at the blog linked above.
  
  
• On the DL (47 mins): They transitioned to a daily podcast back in the beginning of March and have a steady stream of great guests. Today, they have Dan Shanoff and Dan Steinberg from The Sporting Blog and D.C. Sports Bog, respectively. I would recommend perusing their archives for the shows with Steve Phillips, Trey Wingo, Tony Kornheiser, Darren Rovell and Annie Duke. If you are wondering how they get all these awesome guests, I don't know either.
  
  
• The BS Report (w/Rick Reilly) (46 mins): It's just like Jon Stewart vs. Jim Cramer (except not at all). It's pretty congenial and obviously was arranged to quell the rumors in the blogosphere that they hated each other. [Update: More to come on this]
  
  
• Also, The River Ave. Blues Radio Show should be out tomorrow.

By my calculations, taking into account some interruptions, those should get you well into the afternoon.

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And just as a totally random aside: Who gets bitchslapped by an umbrella thief?

I Knew It Was Too Good To Be True

When the initial reports of $6 beers at the New Yankee Stadium came out yesterday, I was thrilled. Even though they only serve schwilly light beer at the Stadium and it's miserably overpriced, it's a lot of fun to hike up to the upper deck and do some day drinking.

Frank, Big Wille Style and I put away our fair share of $9.50 brewskis last year (and $9 the year before) while sitting in our Saturday Package seats in Sec 7, Row M. Despite the fact that we got shut out of our Saturday games this year, I was looking forward to not getting bent over every time I ponied up for a cold one. I thought maybe they were throwing fans a bone because of the economy. Of fucking course not.

As always, New Stadium Insider saw through the P.R. bullshit and discovered that the beers they are offering for $6 are only 12oz, whereas last year it was $9.50 for 20oz. The price per ounce actually increased slightly (from $0.48 to $0.50). Guess we will still be packing a flask of Jameson or Johnnie Walker this year.

Furthermore, our resident Culinary Correspondent HowFresh Eats notified me that Citi Field's food options destroy those at the New Yankee Stadium:

Did you know that that Citi Field is completely outfitted by Danny Meyer? Shake Shack, Blue Smoke and several other spots. While we get Johnny Rockets and Hard Rock. That pisses me off to no end.

Ever heard of Shake Shack? HowFresh did some intrepid reporting on the location near my apartment a few months back. It is out of this world. Take a look at the what fans at Citi Field are going to be able to choose from. Now tell me you wouldn't take those options in a tenth of a second over what they've got in the Bronx.

Like Ben at River Ave. Blues, I'm just not that excited about the food options at the New Digs. I pretty much never ate anything from the Old Stadium (outside of the Stadium Club), but that was because the food was disgusting. They had a chance to start over but kept the same crappy holdovers, I mean... "Traditional Favorites" like Famiglia Pizza, Premio Sausage, Nathan's Famous and Carl's Steaks.

Some new additions sound pretty good, like the Latin Corner (Cuban sandwiches & burritos), Soy Kitchen (sushi), and Noodle Bowls, but I'm probably still going to opt for a quick sandwich from Lenny's and eat it on the subway ride up. When I go to Citi Field though... I'm bringing my appetite.