Maahhk Passes Yoouuk

There's really no point in gloating about All-Star balloting since who is leading really depends more on the size of a team's fan base or the effectiveness of their marketing campaigns than who the most deserving candidate is. FOTB Jason did an excellent job of laying out exactly why the voting for the ASG is a joke, just this morning. However, if we are going to maintain this niche of Kevin Youkilis hatred we have going here, we are sort of obligated to point this out:

Mark Teixeira shook off a slow start in pinstripes to begin playing like an All-Star, and the fans have taken notice. A blistering May propelled him past rival Kevin Youkilis in the most recent updates for the July 14 All-Star Game at Busch Stadium, but it's still a very tight race. Teixeira's lead over Youkilis stands at just over 1,000 votes.

After spending the beginning of his career in Texas and splitting time between the AL & NL last year, it will be only the second time in his career Teix has been voted in. I guess it's not that surprising when you consider that Teix is a consistently slow starter and first base tends to house a lot of powerhouse offensive players.

Youk's contract runs through 2012 with an club option for 2013 while Teix is signed through 2016. These guys are going to be in duking it out for that 1B spot on the AL All-Star team for a long time to come.

Fack Youk Exclusive: Phil Mickelson Still Left Handed

This morning, my friend Mike and I had a tee time for 10:12 on Bethpage Red. The forecast looked pretty bleak, but not willing to blow off the time and risk a no-show fee if the course wasn't closed, we worked our way out the Long Island Expressway through pretty thick traffic. We walked into the shop and were told that due to all the rain, the course was shut down for the day. It kind of sucked, but typically when you get rained out of a round of golf, you don't get to walk around the course where the U.S. Open is going to be played in less than two weeks.

It was still raining pretty hard, but Mike and I headed over towards the first tee on the Black Course. An archipelago of umbrellas were lined up along the tee box, and given how poor the weather was, we assumed there had to be something worth seeing.
On the tee was Phil Mickelson, his caddy Bones and short game guru Dave Pelz. Phil hit three tee balls, two of them perfect blasts down the center of the fairway, looked at Bones and said "Okay, that's enough. Let's go inside". The balls were just left sitting in the fairway. Phil wasn't going to be playing golf today either (at least for a little while).

That there is the 18th green of the Black course. If it looks like it's completely covered in a sheet of water, well, that's because it was.

I have plans to go out a practice day next week (Tuesday or Wednesday) and possibly a day of the tournament. If either of those happen I'll get back to you with some pictures and a definitive answer as to whether Vijay Singh is as much of a douchebag as everyone says.

On the Red Sox, SS stands for "Spouse Slugger"

Tonight the Yankees return to Fenway looking for the first victory of 2009 against the Sox. And apparently, the Yankees won't be the only team in the park with a defensively limited shortstop.

With Jed Lowrie recovering from wrist surgery, and Nick Green playing like Nick Green, Julio Lugo has been the Sox' starting SS most of the last month. And the Boston Herald's Sam McAdam has seen enough. Which in turn prompted Deadspin to link to the article under the headline Sean McAdam Is Not A Fan Of Julio Lugo's Defense, which is interesting, because Julio Lugo is not a fan of his wife's self-defense.

Derek Jeter may also have limited range, but at least he can hit something other than a woman.

Rumors abound about the Sox making a move for a SS. Given their affinity for employing men with a history of domestic violence at the position, they may want to consider dealing for the Royals' Alberto Callaspo.

A Lesson in Overmanagement

Jay and I were both fairly busy last night, hence the lack of our usual in depth recap. I hit the road just as the first pitch was thrown and was driving for 2 hours of the 2 hour and 34 minute game. I tried to listen on the radio, but I just couldn't stomach a second straight day of Sterling and Waldman. I made it as far as the Teixeira home run, and was left with no choice but to bail out after Sterling launched into his absurd and self-serving "It's a Teix message. Oh you're on the mark, Teixeira!" call. Besides, I had some catching up to do with Jam_On on XM after it had been replaced by DMB radio for all of last week.

I did turn the game back on in the seventh, just in time to hear Hughes retire the side in order and in impressive fashion and then arrived at my New Jersey destination just in time to see that the Yankees Overmanager decided to remove him for eighth. Let's do a quick recap bullet point style:

• The HRs continue to fly out of the park: Teix, Swish, Damon and Jeter for the Yanks, Kapler for the Rays, running the total to 105 through 29 games. By contrast, last year there were 160 in 81 Yankee Stadium games. Yes it's still early, but it's getting later by the day. This trend has yet to show any signs of slowing down.


• Pettitte turned in what is becoming a characteristic performance for him. As Girardi like to say, he bent but didn't break. We don't know if his back has anything to do with it; there was a trainer's visit to the mound in the third. It could be though, that this is what we're going to see from Andy Pettitte at this point in his career - which isn't the worst thing in the world. He still eats up innings and generally gives them a chance to win. It isn't pretty, but he seems to do enough to get by. That's not the worst thing in the world from a back-end starter.


• Hughes was impressive: a perfect inning on 11 pitches, 7 of them strikes. Facing the top of the order, he induced two groundball outs then blew away Mrs. Tony Parker on a 94 MPH fastball.


• Inexplicably, Hughes did not return for the eighth. I'm furious about this. He's a soon-to-be 23 year-old starter who needs innings. As I've stated previously, I'm not opposed to him being in the pen, but he needs to be used. Otherwise he's going to lose arm strength and be at risk for yet another injury when they actually choose to use him again. I'd rather have him start in Scranton if he's just going to rot in the pen. It's June 9th; Hughes has thrown exactly 11 pitches this month.
• I understand that the dangerous Carlos Pena was leading off the eighth in a one run game. I understand that Joe Girardi has a man crush on Phil Coke. I think Coke is a pretty decent pitcher. But I would have left Hughes in.


• The only possible explanation I can think of is that they wanted to save Hughes in case they needed to piggy-back him on Wang Wednesday. But if you keep saving your bullets, eventually you're left with a loaded gun and a bunch of bullet holes in your chest. If the level of confidence in Wang is that low, it's only further evidence as to how badly his return was botched. And, I think Girardi has show that in the event a starter exits early, Aceves is his pitcher of choice.


• Perhaps more curious than Hughes not getting the ball in the 8th was Mo getting the ball in the 9th for the third straight day. Now I didn't have a problem with Mo coming in Saturday, until it was revealed that he was sick. He had a very efficient ninth on Sunday (1-2-3, 10 pitches, 8 strikes) and was nearly as efficient yesterday: 1-2-3, 11 pitches, 7 strikes. I guess that puts to rest the rumors of his demise. Again. However, he's now thrown 42 pitches over three straight days and will likely not be available for tonight's opener in Boston. Great job Joe.

Aren't You Glad The Yankees Are In The AL?

The Yankees pitchers have started taking BP:

Wang was in the batting cage yesterday, as was accomplished hitter CC Sabathia (.261 average in 88 at-bats with three home runs and 13 RBIs). Sabathia is looking forward to taking his hacks for real.

Joe Girardi? He's not looking forward to any part of it. "It's always fun to watch them take BP," the manager said. "This big thing is to make sure nobody gets hurt in BP and obviously during the games. That's a concern of ours."

It's pretty sad that the discussion immeadetly turns to the possibility of getting injured. They aren't squatting behind the plate for 9 innings.

I enjoy watching pitchers hit. Particularly when they are terrible at it and on another team. It's like watching penguin hobble akwardly on land; they just aren't made to do it and it makes you appreciate all the other creatures who were. It will be worth sitting through two or three at bats a game for three series against the Marlins, Braves and Mets we get to watch big ol' CC hustle into second for just one double.

Strasburg... "What's The Risk?"

Occassionally, I have to park my car on the streets of Manhattan, which can take a while. Once in a while I turn on sports talk radio if I'm tired of scrolling through my iPod and usually end up regretting the decision almost instantly. Yesterday, I got back to the city around noon and turned on 1050AM just in time to hear Colin Cowherd say the dumbest fucking thing you will ever hear uttered about the MLB draft.

He spends a while defending Boras' $50M request (which even Scott Boras knows is ridiculous like the first numbers he threw around when A-Rod opted out), saying that like "John Elway and LeBron James", Steven Strasburg is a "once-in-a-decade type talent" and he can throw 103MPH (which obviously isn't true). The 'Herd then goes on to explain that the Nationals have nothing to lose since the Yankees drafted Brien Taylor in the 90's and still went on to become the team of the decade.

The grand finale occurs when Cowherd compares paying three times more than any other prospect ever for Strasburg is somehow less risky than taking a QB #1 in the NFL draft. Take a look at past #1 draft picks in the MLB. Now take a look at football's and tell me where there is more risk.

Listen for yourself. It's incomprehensibly stupid. Can we have Max Kellerman back, please?PLEASE?

Game 57: Serial Killa(z)

Since dropping both halves of a two game set against the Rays back on May 6th and 7th, the Yankees have won seven out of eight series against their opposition. The only one they lost was against the World Champion Phillies and all three of those games were closely contested. A win tonight could make it eight out of nine.

They done it every which way, dropping the first game of three against Toronto, taking all four against the Twins by a grand total of 5 runs, blasting the Orioles in each of the three games in the Bronx, and taking 2 out of three from Texas both in Arlington and at the Stadium. The Twins and O's were the only two sweeps, the other five have gone 2-1 in favor of the Yanks.

Those three walk off wins against the Twins seem like the obvious turning points in hindsight. Dramatic wins and whipped cream pies in the face have a way of galvanizing teams and making them think they should win every game (or at least every series). Momentum is a fickle mistress, but the Yankees appear to be doing a hell of a job of keeping her around at the moment.

The one player with the most influence on whether the Yanks can notch another series victory tonight will be Andy Pettitte. The 37 year old eclipsed the 2800 innings pitched mark in the fifth inning of his last start, which is a hell of a lot when you think about it. The only problem was that he didn't come out for the sixth. He only allowed one run in the outing before that in Cleveland (where his back problems first surfaced) but that outing was only 5 innings as well. Pettitte went deeper into his previous two but allowed 4ER in each. His last quality start was on May 13th and before that you have to go back to April 26th to find another. It's not to say that Pettitte has been horrible, he's pitched well enough to pick up five wins, but we've come to expect a little more from our lefty.

For the Rays, Andy Sonnanstine will toe the rubber. His two starts against the Yankees this year are the only two in which he has not received a decision. One was a 4-3 victory for the Yanks back on April 15th, and the other was a 4-3 win for the Rays on May 6th. In 11 starts this year, Sonnanstine has a decent 4-5 record but a hideous 7.07 ERA. He's been good against the Bombers so far this year, allowing 2 runs in each of his starts, going 5IP the first time and 7 1/3 the second. He's been decidedly more cold than hot against the rest of the league, however. The other Andy has given up 2 or fewer runs just as often he's given up 5 or more (5 times each), so let's set the over/under at 3.5 and see what happens.

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.

Greetings Misinformation from Asbury Park

So you can't really see what the circled area says since Blogger sucks, but in their Sunday morning edition the Asbury Park Press proclaimed Mine that Bird, rather than his half brother Summer Bird, as the Belmont Stakes winner.

Anyone could predict the race wrong before it happens, but it takes special talent to get it wrong after the fact. No wonder the newspaper industry is going down the tubes.

(h/t Deadspin, where you can actually see the picture without a magnifying glass)

Signing an Autograph Is Not a Charitable Act

Good morning Fackers. It's Monday morning, so you're likely grumpy, as am I. But you know who's really in a bad mood? Alex Rios.

After going 0 for 5 with 5 Ks in last Thursday's matinee, taking the rarely seen platinum sombrero for the second time in his career, Rios headed out for a night on the town at a team sponsored charity function. Let's go to the videotape, which features some NSFW language:



Wow. You stay classy there Alex Rios. I believe the locals would say that you are a hoser. Rios is not performing too well this year and I have him on both my fantasy teams. I don't know if I can tolerate this type of behavior from one of my players. If you're going to play for The Boozehounds or A-Rod's Bitch Tits you have to carry yourself like a professional both on and off the field.

I'd also like the record to show that I departed Toronto Tuesday; so I was in no way a party to this. Schiff on the other hand may have something to add.

That's Mo Like It

For much of the day, Sunday afternoon was a frustrating one. I was frustrated as I struggled through assembling a gas grill. Relegated to the outdoors, I was forced to listen to the game on the radio, meaning hours of suffering through John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman. Meanwhile, between the lines, the Yankees were surely frustrated with their inability to capitalize on a struggling Matt Garza. Garza battled through five innings, laboring constantly. He thrice pitched out of RISP jams, including in his final inning, where he walked the first two batters, #8 and 9 hitters Nick Swisher and Melky Cabrera, and still managed to wriggle out of trouble. He exited having surrended just one run - a third inning solo shot to Nick Swisher, the 100th home run in the brief history of the new Yankee Stadium.

In the other half innings, Joba Chamberlain turned in a representative outing. He wasn't as efficient as he'd been Monday, getting only six innings out of his hundred pitches, but he surrendered only five hits and one BB while striking out four. The one walk is particularly encouraging, as his walks have been up this year. It was his lowest walk total since his first start of the year. He generally cruised, allowing neither a hit nor a walk in four of his six innings and only got into real trouble in his final inning, where he allowed three singles and a walk, leading to two of the three runs he allowed.

Chamberlain gave way to Alfredo Aceves in the seventh. After starting the year in the minors, Aceves has ascended the pecking order in the pen, becoming one of Joe Girardi's most trusted relievers. Aceves once again rewarded that trust, working two innings of one hit ball while stiking out four. He gave the Yankees just what they needed.

In the bottom of the eighth, the Yankees finally broke through. After Derek Jeter led off with a flyout, Johnny Damon and Mark Teixeira hit back-to-back singles, putting runners on the corners. An A-Rod walk loaded the bases. J.P. Howell relieved Grant Balfour and walked Robinson Cano to cut the deficit to one.

Howell then nearly escaped without further damage, as he induced a potential double play ball off the bat of Jorge Posada. But third baseman Willie Aybar, subbing for the hobbled Mrs. Tony Parker, booted the ball allowing the Yankees to tie the score and leaving them with the bases loaded and still only one out. Hideki Matsui followed with a chopper up the middle. Posada was tagged on his way to second, but the gimpy-legged Matsui did his best Jake Taylor impression and beat the throw to first, allowing the go-ahead run to score.

Mariano Rivera returned to form in the ninth, needing just ten pitches to work a perfect frame. It gave Aceves, who wasn't recalled unitl early May, his fourth win on the year good for a tie for third on the team.

About the only remote negative on the day was the continued absence of Phil Hughes. As I stated earlier this week, I have no problem with a short term move to the bullpen for Hughes. However, the youngster still needs to pitch, and he has not appeared in a game now since his start last Sunday. Aceves has done a fine job and deserves to be getting the ball, but I don't see any reason why Hughes couldn't have gotten the call today.

That said, it was a good end to a fine Sunday afternoon. The grill was completed just fine. The Yankees are back to 10 games over .500 and are in position to take the series tomorrow night. Today's win coupled with a Red Sox loss put the Yankees back into first place. Come on back tomorrow; we'll do it again.

Game 56: Do It Again

The nice thing about a four game series is that if you're a good team, it's very hard to lose the series. With Friday's rainout however, this has become a three game series, and with yesterday's loss the Yankees will need to win the next two to take the series. They've won three straight series and seven of eight dating back to A-Rod's return in Baltimore. It'd be nice to keep that momentum going.

In yesterday's game preview, I made an off the cuff, sarcastic remark about the Rays moving David Price to the eighth inning. Then in the recap, Jay offered up the story from the telecast that there was never any consideration from the Rays to do so. It must be nice for the Rays fans, not having to deal with the tired, foolish argument over and over again. I wish we were so lucky.

Joba Chamberlain takes to the mound today, coming off his best start of 2009: 8 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, and 5 K in a win over Cleveland. His strikeout total might be somewhat lower than what we've grown to expect from Joba, but that was functional. Not going as deep into counts allowed Joba to get 8 innings out of his 106 pitches, compared to past starts this year where 108, 104, and 108 pitches netted him 5.2, 6, and 6 IP respectively. Getting deeper into games is certainly one thing upon which he needs to improve and Monday was a big step in the right direction. Starts like that will go a long way towards silencing those who want him in the bullpen.

He'll be opposed by Matt Garza. The lanky righty is off to great start and on pace for the best season yet of his young career. He faced the Yankees way back on April 14th, and held them to 2 runs on 5 hits and 2 BB over 7 innings, while striking out 9. Unfortunately for Garza the bullpen imploded in relief of him and the Yankees took the game 7-2.

So today's game is all about doing it again: getting to 10 games over again, taking the AL East lead again, getting in position to take the series again, and most importantly, for Joba to turn in a dominating performance again. Way back for Joba's first start of 2009 we went with Steely Dan, and today we'll do it again as well.

It's a beautiful Sunday. Enjoy it; I know I'm going to. I'll be back later tonight with the recap. Take it away Steely Dan....



You go back jack, do it again
Wheel turning round and round
You go back jack, do it again

Yankees Games To Be Shown Online, In-Market

Not via MLB.tv, though. From Neil Best, via the Sports Business Journal:

The New York Yankees will become the first MLB team to have its games streamed live online within its home market, thanks to a landmark carriage deal YES Network signed with Cablevision earlier this spring.

The streamed games will begin later this season and will be available via subscription to Cablevision’s TV and broadband customers who subscribe to a tier that carries the YES Network, according to several baseball and cable industry sources.

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The pact also marks the first major effort within baseball for in-market streaming — an issue that has troubled the industry for years. Several clubs that hold equity interest in regional sports networks, such as the Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles, have pressed for in-market streaming to complement MLB.TV’s out-of-market online video package.

Even if you don't have Cablevision, this is interesting news. Although three-way negotiations are rarely simple, I've never understood why teams, networks and the MLB couldn't agree on a revenue split for streaming the games over the internet. It's a legitimate untapped resource. Especially during day games, there are lots of people trapped at work who would love to be able to watch the game but have no access to a TV. Provided the commercials are still present during the broadcast, more eyes means more money, right?

Kudos to the Yankees and Cablevision for finally ironing this out. It seems inevitable that this will move beyond just Cablevision and just NYC to larger cable companies and throughout the MLB.