ALDS Game 2: Positively 4th Street

Good afternoon Fackers.

We're breaking nearly two months of radio silence to come back today. Before we get into it, Jay and I would like to thank all of you who have still been checking back and leaving comments over the past couple months. We're thankful that you're still checking in. We're both still alive and well, but unfortunately neither of us are in a position to keep Fack Youk updated with even semi-regular content. But for today at least, it'll be like old times as we're bringing you one of our signature game previews.

Tonight's pitching match-up is a rematch of Game Three of last year's ALDS: Andy Pettitte against Carl Pavano. The two hurlers are a contrast in reputations. Pettitte is widely considered both a gamer and big game pitcher, a player who learned early in his career the difference between pitching injured and pitching hurt, and who's known to battle through and find a way even when he doesn't have his best stuff. Pettitte has been the winning pitcher in six series clinching games, including all three series enders in the 2009 post-season. Pavano on the other hand, is thought to have a glass jaw, easily injured and quick to hop on the DL at the slightest ache or pain. His four years with the Yankees were filled with a litany of injuries, but just 26 starts (not counting 14 rehab starts), and he has not recorded a win in any of his three career post-season starts.

Yet, this year it was Pettitte who missed two months of the season with a groin injury, while Pavano made 32 starts, finished sixth in the AL in innings pitched, and topped 199 IP for the second straight post-Bronx season. He led the AL in both complete games and shutouts, was second in BB per 9, and seventh in wins. It was the type of high-quality season Pettitte seemed on pace for prior to a pulled groin knocking him out his July 18th start. Instead, Pettitte sat on the shelf for nearly two months, made two Pavano-like rehab starts for AA Trenton, and was knocked around in three September starts back with the big club.

There's also some question as to whether either pitcher is his team's ideal started for Game Two. Many Twins pundits preferred to see Pavano, with his nine career post-season games, get the Game One nod over the inexperienced and often excitable Francisco Liriano. Meanwhile many Yankee observers wanted to see Phil Hughes, who has been markedly better on the road than at home this year, start in homer-suppressing Target Field rather than homer-friendly Yankee Stadium. But in the end, Liriano's superiority earned him the Game One nod, while Minnesota's vulnerability to left-handed pitching and Pettitte's big game experience earned him starts in Game Two and a decisive potential Game Five.

If The Yankee Years is to be believed, Joe Torre and several Yankee players had no problems holding Pavano's feet to the fire over his injury history. The Yankee fanbase has no shortage of blood-lust for Pavano, but in the two years since he's left New York, they've yet to be satisfied. The Yankees did not face him this season and managed just four runs and twelve baserunners over 13.1 innings regular season innings last year. Pavano held them to just five hits and two runs over seven innings in last year's ALDS Game Three. While he was the losing pitcher, he certainly wasn't knocked around in that start as solo home runs by Alex Rodriguez and Jorge Posada were just enough to hand Pettitte and the Yankees a 2-1 victory and a three game sweep.

Revenge aside, today's twilight tilt is big game for both pitchers. Pavano is looking to snap the Twins' ten game post-season losing streak and avoid falling in an 0-2 hole as the series shifts to New York. Pettitte is looking to shake off the rust that plagued him in his three September starts, reward the club's faith in him, and give the Yankees a commanding 2-0 lead to take some pressure off Hughes when he makes his first post-season start Saturday.

Will today be the day Yankee fans finally get to see their team slap Pavano around the yard? The numbers don't favor it. Target Field has suppressed power all year, yielding the fourth fewest home runs of any park. Further, Pavano doesn't put the ball in the air very often, his 51.2% groundball rate ranking fifteenth in the Majors thanks to both his sinker and changeup. He doesn't walk many either, just 1.5 per nine, so if the Yankees are going to put up any crooked numbers they'll likely have to come via a string of hits. Game Three of last year's ALDS showed that a little could go a long way when it comes to getting to Pavano, so perhaps the Yanks can beat him without bludgeoning him. At this point in the year, Yankee fans will take a win however they can get it, but I have a feeling that the vitriol towards Pavano isn't going anywhere regardless of today's result.

You got a lotta nerve
To say you are my friend
When I was down
You just stood there grinning

You got a lotta nerve
To say you got a helping hand to lend
You just want to be on
The side that’s winning

You say I let you down
You know it’s not like that
If you’re so hurt
Why then don’t you show it

You say you lost your faith
But that’s not where it’s at
You had no faith to lose
And you know it

I know the reason
That you talk behind my back
I used to be among the crowd
You’re in with

Do you take me for such a fool
To think I’d make contact
With the one who tries to hide
What he don’t know to begin with

You see me on the street
You always act surprised
You say, “How are you?” “Good luck”
But you don’t mean it

When you know as well as me
You’d rather see me paralyzed
Why don’t you just come out once
And scream it

No, I do not feel that good
When I see the heartbreaks you embrace
If I was a master thief
Perhaps I’d rob them

And now I know you’re dissatisfied
With your position and your place
Don’t you understand
It’s not my problem

I wish that for just one time
You could stand inside my shoes
And just for that one moment
I could be you

Yes, I wish that for just one time
You could stand inside my shoes
You’d know what a drag it is
To see you

[Song Notes: One of my favorite Dylan tunes, his bitterness seethes through the lyrics of this one. Forty-five years after the song's initial release, no one is quite sure what had the man who was born and raised in Minnesota so fired up. Perhaps the most popular theory is that "Positively 4th Street" is Dylan firing back at his Greenwich Village neighbors, specifically the folkies who lambasted his going electric at 1965 Newport Folk Fest (which, incidentally, we touched upon in one of our playoff previews last year). Another theory posits that the song references Dylan's time as a student at the University of Minnesota, where Minneapolis' 4th Street S.E. is the main road through the part of campus where Dylan lived.

Whatever Dylan's motivation, I've spent the past two seasons waiting for a Pavano start against the Yankees so I could use this song for the preview. The lyrics read like an airing of grievances between the fans and Pavano, or alternatively, Pavano lashing out at those who questioned the validity of his injuries.]

-Lineups-

Yankees:
With a righty on the mound tonight, the hot-hitting Curtis Granderson slides up to the two spot. Nick Swisher drops down to the middle of the order, replacing Marcus Thames in the six hole, while Lance Berkman takes Thames' spot as the DH and will bat eighth.

Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Robinson Cano 2B
Nick Swisher RF
Jorge Posada C
Lance Berkman DH
Brett Gardner LF

Twins:
No changes for the Twinkies

Denard Span, CF
Orlando Hudson, 2B
Joe Mauer, C
Delmon Young, LF
Jim Thome, DH
Michael Cuddyer, 1B
Jason Kubel, RF
Danny Valencia, 3B
J.J. Hardy, SS

Pettitte, Posada, A-Rod Key Sweep

It wasn't quite as overwrought with drama as Friday's Game Two, but the conclusion to Division Series between the Yankees and Twins was certainly an exciting, nail-biter of a game.

The game began as a fast moving pitchers' duel. For Andy Pettitte, it was like old times, as he was perfect through four and carried a shutout through five and two thirds. For Carl Pavano, it was bizarro world, as the maligned pitcher was perfect through two and two thirds, didn't allow a ball out of the infield until the fifth, took a shutout through six and a third, threw first pitch strikes to seemingly every batter, struck out nine, and walked none over the course of his evening.

Once the game finally saw some offense in the bottom of the sixth, the pace of the evening ground to a halt. As they did Friday night, the Twins did their damage with two outs, starting with a Denard Span single. As Pettitte worked to keep the speedy Span close to first base, he seemingly lost focus on Orlando Cabrera at the plate, falling behind 2-0. Span finally swiped second on a 2-1 pitch that narrowly missed being called a strike, and a pitch later Cabrera had drawn a free pass, bringing Joe Mauer to the plate. The probable AL MVP wasted no time in delivering, driving the first pitch to left field to score Span and give the Twins a 1-0 lead. Pettitte got out of the jam by striking out Michael Cuddyer, but he was none too pleased with surrendering the lead after getting two quick outs.

Just as in Games One and Two, and throughout the season series against Minnesota, the Yankees answered after falling behind. With one out and no one on, Alex Rodriguez was in an 0-2 hole, battled back to work a full count, and then delivered once again, destroying a Pavano offering deep to right field to tie the score. Two batters later Jorge Posada stepped to the plate and took a 1-0 offering the opposite way, just clearing the left field wall. Despite an outstanding pitching performance, two solitary pitches put Pavano and his Twins behind 2-1.

Staked to a lead, Andy Pettitte took the mound to start the seventh and fanned Jason Kubel yet again. Despite pitching masterfully and needing just 81 pitches (58 strikes) to get through six and third, Joe Girardi decided to turn the game over to his bullpen. Pettitte finished his night with a brilliant line: 6.1 IP, 3 hits, 1 ER, 1 BB, and 7 Ks.

Girardi turned to Joba Chamberlain. After allowing a double to Delmon Young, Chamberlain left the potential tying run in scoring position, getting Brendan Harris to bounce to third and striking out Jose Morales. The Yankee bats went quietly again in the eighth, and Phil Hughes took the ball in the bottom of the inning.

With Joe Mauer due fourth in the inning and the lead still just a single run, it was a safe bet that Hughes was facing just three batters no matter what. He had another somewhat rocky outing, allowing a leadoff double to number nine hitter Nick Punto. When Denard Span followed with a bouncer up the middle, the Yankees were the beneficiaries of yet another Twins baserunning blunder.

Derek Jeter fielded the high hop on the outfield turf on the second base side of the bag. After the game Jeter said he didn't think he had a chance at the speedy Span, but as he glanced back to third base, he saw that Punto had failed to pick up his third base coach. Most likely assuming that the hopper had made it through to the outfield, Punto was attempting to score the tying run. By the time he threw on the brakes and dropped into a slide to stop himself, Jeter had astutely thrown a one hopper home to Posada, who in turn fired back to third in time to get Punto. Rather than the potential tying run on third with no one out, he was on first with one out.

Hughes got Orlando Cabrera to fly to center for the second out, and as expected, Girardi called upon Mo to face Mauer. One the second pitch of the at bat, Mo got his trademarked cutter in on Mauer's hands, shattering his bat and getting an easy hopper to Mark Teixeira to end the inning.

The Yanks added a couple insurance runs in the ninth, as four different Twins relievers walked four successive Yankee batters before Jorge Posada and Robinson Cano picked up RBI singles. Mo allowed a lead off single to Michael Cuddyer in the ninth, then struck out Kubel (again), Young, and got Harris to bounce to Jeter to end the series.

The Yankees have advanced to the ALCS for the first time in five years and won their first post-season series since beating the Twins in the 2004 ALDS. The sweep allows the Yankees to enter Friday's ALCS Game One as well rested as the Angels, and to set up their pitching staff with Sabathia, Burnett, and Pettitte taking Games One through Three again.

Just as in the season series, this ALDS against the Twins was far closer than the ledger indicates. The Yankees caught a few breaks, but more importantly, they got the top notch starting pitching that they've so sorely missed in their recent postseason appearances. They also got big contributions from Jeter, Mo, Posada, and Pettitte, just as in the dynasty years, not to mention huge hits from Hideki Matsui and A-Rod, the other holdovers from the last Yankee squad to win a postseason series. It's going to be a slow, torturous wait until Friday, but it's far better than having to wait until April.


(Photos)

ALDS Game 3: Idle Time

When the Yankees left the field victorious exactly two weeks ago, they had just clinched the AL East and the best overall record in the American League. In doing so, they rendered the season's final six games, split by another Thursday off day, as essentially meaningless. It also gave them the right to choose which ALDS schedule they wanted to play.

When the Yankees left the field victorious exactly one week ago, they had just finished the regular season. They were off the next two days, still not knowing who their ALDS opponent would be, as the Twins and Tigers needed one extra game and three extra innings to decide the AL Central.

In order to allow themselves the option to use only three starting pitchers in the ALDS, the Yankees chose the "A" schedule. So, after playing Game One on Wednesday, the Yankees sat through the extra off day on Thursday, and then enjoyed an off day for travel yesterday following Friday night's Game Two thriller.

All of which is a long way of saying that by the time the first pitch is thrown tonight, the Yankees will have played just eight games in the last fourteen days, six of them meaningless, and just two games in the last seven days. In other words, they've had a lot of idle time on their hands of late.

Tonight it will be Idle Time of a different sort at the Metrodome. Carl Pavano, infamously dubbed the "American Idle" by The Post's George A. King III during his four injury plagued years in New York, takes the hill for the Twinkies. While no Yankee fan is fond of Pavano, we may have something of a debt of gratitude to him at present. In un-Pavano-like fashion, he asked for the ball on short rest on the season's final day. While Pavano didn't have a good start (5.2 IP, 8 H 4 ER), it was enough to keep the putrid Royals at bay, and he picked up the "W" in what was essentially a must win game for the Twins, forcing Tuesday's one game playoff and further depleting the Twins' starting staff heading in to the ALDS.

The Yankees had two shots at Pavano this year, both coming while he was still with Cleveland, and both times they failed to extract their pound of flesh. In 13.1 innings of work against the Yanks, Pavano pitched to a 2.70 ERA and allowed just 12 baserunners, but didn't record a decision. Less recently, Pavano made two appearances against the Yankees in the 2003 World Series, one start and once in relief, and allowed just one run and nine baserunners in nine innings of work. Despite his reputation of lacking in intestinal fortitude, Pavano pitched 19.1 innings in that 2003 post-season, going 2-0 while posting a 1.40 ERA and 1.03 WHIP. Here's hoping those small trends get derailed tonight.

Opposing Pavano will be a far more experienced post-season starter, the third and final different starting pitcher the Yankees intend to use in this series. Andy Pettitte will make the 36th post-season start of his career tonight, all but four of them coming with the Yankees. He's 14-9 with a 3.96 ERA in those games, but has shown a knack for coming up big in the biggest games. He's made nine post-season starts (eight with NYY) with an opportunity to end a series. In those games, Pettitte is 3-2 (his teams are 5-4), with a 4.47 ERA and 1.50 WHIP. Subtract out his disastrous pitch-tipping start in Game 6 of the 2001 World Series, and Pettitte is 3-1 with a 3.58 ERA and 1.37 WHIP in those games. Pettitte faced the Twins in Game 2 of 2003 ALDS. With the Yankees in an 0-1 hole, Pettitte gave up one run and allowed seven baserunners while fanning ten in seven innings of work and earning the victory.

The Yankees return to their normal line-up tonight. For the Twins, Brendan Harris replaces the injured Matt Tolbert at third base. Tolbert has been removed from the Twins' roster all together. Jason Kubel returns to RF after DHing Friday, Denard Span slides back to center, Carlos Gomez goes back to the bench, and Jose Morales enters the line up as the DH.

When the Yankees left Minnesota in July, we bid a premature adieu to the Metrodome. The Twins were a .500 team following that Yankee sweep, and were four games back in the AL Central with a little less than half the season to play. The Twins certainly weren't out of it at that point, but it did take a historically unlikely late season comeback for them to reach the post-season. They now return home with their backs to the wall. While the Metrodome has been lauded as one of the biggest homefield advantages in all of baseball, the Twins have lost seven straight post-season games there, four of them against the Yankees. With any luck, the Yankees will give the dome its final send off tonight.

A game like Friday's has the potential to suck the life out of the losing team; I'm hopeful the Yanks can put them to sleep for good tonight. With the Angels completing an improbable sweep of the Red Sox this afternoon, they have the luxury of being off until Friday, when the ALCS begins. As such, they'll be able to rest up and set up their pitching as they see fit. It would behoove the Yankees to wrap up their ALDS business tonight as well, as it would allow them the same benefits the Angels are currently enjoying. Another four days off would be quite boring, and wouldn't exactly be ideal after all the down time in the past two weeks. But those would be awfully nice problems to have right now given how the Yankees' last three Division Series played out. Time to shake out the pain of the past three post-season series and ensure a little more idle time.



I might need some assistance if I don't get my pass
Looking for some time off to shake this pain out of my past
That island's not too far away, I think that I can swim
Maybe I'll just stick around and sift through this trash bin

Let 'em dance, let 'em sing
There'll be time enough for me
Daylight colors off the shore, I lay silent on the floor
Slowly sipping on my tea

Idle time brings idle wind
Ease your mind
Fall asleep again

The Twins & Tigers Tied, Time To Tango

After catching the better part of the Twins and Royals game yesterday, my time watching baseball last night was evenly divided between the Yankees and the Tigers/White Sox game on the MLB Network. I guess I might be doing some advanced amateur scouting in advance, but I'm really just enjoying the drama of this AL Central race which has, against all odds, come down to the wire. No team has ever failed to make the playoffs after holding a three game lead with four to play. If they aren't careful, the Tigers might be the first.

Clearly in desperation mode, Jim Leyland pulled his starter after surrendering only 2 runs in 1.1 IP last night, but no amount of damage control could make up for the fact that his offense only scored one run off of Freddy Garcia in 7 innings and nothing more off of the bullpen after that. The Tigers looked to be set up, trailing by 3 with men on first and second with no one out in the 8th inning with a run already in, but Magglio Ordonez lined out to short and Miguel Cabrera bounced into a double play to end the inning.

Dead even heading into the last day of the season, the Tigers start at 1:05 while the Twins go an hour later. Carl Pavano starts on three days rest for the Twinkies, which he specifically requested after getting tagged for 7 runs against the Tigers his last time out. Pavano has only started on such short rest of rest once in his career, way back in 2004 for the Marlins against the Expos, the last game he started before signing with the Yankees. I have no idea why this happened because the Marlins were nowhere near the Wild Card race, but he was solid, throwing 7 innings of one run ball. This over-extension in a meaningless outing didn't have any ill effects on him going forward because he was nothing short of a horse for the Yanke... HEY, WAIT A SECOND!

Maybe it's because my judgement on this subject is clouded with bitterness and hatred, but I can't see this ending in any other fashion than a visit to the mound by the Twins trainer and a showering of boos.

Upshot: If the Twins and Tigers don't end the season tied (which would be awesome for the Yankees for reasons previously discussed), it's almost a given that we can blame Carl Pavano. If he throws a gem and the Tigers lose, "Damn you Pavano, you worthless hack! Where was this when you were on the Yankees!". If the gets shelled and the Tigers win, "What the FUCK Pavano? Can't you ever deliver when there is something on the line, you human fucking Ponzi Scheme! You just haaaad to take the ball on three days rest, didn't you?"

Amazingly, if the Twins, Tigers and Yankees lose, the Rays will have the same number of wins (85) that the two teams from the Central do (in an infinitely tougher division), except they will have missed the playoffs by 9 or 10 games.

Whichever way it shakes out, this should make for some furious sports action starting at 1:00, with the Giants and Yankees both in action along with the Twins with the Tigers close on their heels. Gotta love Sundays in the early Fall. Buckle your seatbelts, crack a beer, fire up your fantasy football stat tracker and get ready to hate Carl Pavano.

Go Yanks, G-Men and Twins/Tigers -OR- Royals/White Sox! Woohoo!!!

Game 88: C.C. Rider

The Yankees haven't done well in symbolic games this year. They got shellacked on Opening Day in Baltimore, they lost the opener at the New Stadium, and they are 0-8 against the Red Sox. A.J. Burnett lost his match ups against former teammates Josh Beckett and Roy Halladay, and the Yanks couldn't get to Carl Pavano in either of the games he started against them. They've lost series against the lowly Nationals and Marlins.

Today is another game that will seem to represent more than just a tally in the win or loss column. The Yanks send their ace to the mound to avoid a sweep against their achillies heel: The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in Californa on Planet Earth or whatever the fuck they call themselves. CC Sabathia hasn't fared well in day games this year (including both of the openers mentioned above), failing to notch a win in 6 starts mostly due to a 5.49 ERA in those outings. The seven innings of one run ball he threw last week against the Twins lowered his ERA to 3.70 on the season and earned him win number 8 on the season.

John Lackey goes for the Angels. After spending time on the DL to begin the season, Lackey return to the Angels on May 16th but hasn't been the ace they have known in previous seasons. In 11 starts, he has a 5.18 ERA, a 3-4 record and 79 hits in 66 innings.

A win today would erase some of the shame of the last two days of blown leads and sloppy play, ease the cross country flight back home and send the Yanks into the All-Star break on a somewhat positive note. The right guy is on the mound, looking for his 9th win of the season. Although we are past the first half mark, the All-Star Break is typically seen as the midway point of the season. There will be much pontificating about the state of the team and and their #1 hurler based on where they leave off this afternoon, so here's to hoping the big fella can find his day game stride.

We'll now see, C. C. Rider,
We'll now see, see what you have done.

Wasting Time On An Off Night

Tonight is the first of three Mondays that the Yankees will have off in a row. It's probably a welcome relief for the players and beat writers, who have only had two days off (not including rain outs) since April 23rd. For most fans, the void of not having a game to watch on a weeknight is not as highly anticipated. One of the things that's great about baseball is that's it's there almost every night. When you come to the realization that you might have to find something else to do or watch on a weeknight, it can be a bit of a letdown.

The NBA Finals just wrapped up, the Stanley Cup finals are over and baseball finally has the summer all to itself. And on the first night that is the case, there are a whopping two MLB baseball games to chose from and one from the College World Series.

• Brewers vs. Indians - 7:05 - ESPN - Carl Pavano starts for the Cleveland against David Bush. This is a tough sell for Yankees fans, or anyone who isn't a fan of these two teams for that matter. It's not a natural rivalry and although the Brewers are in first place in the NL Central, it's hard to get excited for this one.
  
  
• Angels vs. Giants - 10:05 - MLB.tv, MLB Extra Innings or a couple of stations in California that I'm not going to bother to look up because if you get this broadcast you already know what they are - John Lackey vs. Barry Zito. Another not-so-appealing match-up for East Coasters but might be worth your while if Zito gets shelled in the first few innings.
  
  
• Arkansas vs. LSU - 7:00 - ESPN2 - Tune in to probably see some player(s) who will make the major leagues one day who you will never remember.

Perhaps you would like to avoid sports all together for one night? How about:

• No Reservations : Peru, Hong Kong - 7:00, 8:00 - Travel Channel - A show about traveling by the seat of your pants and eating great food. Yes, I am a fan of Anthony Bourdain.
  
  
• If shitty reality TV shows are your thing, Uproxx's Warming Glow has some recommendations for you.
  
  
• Real Time With Bill Maher - 8:00 - HBO - A re-run from Friday night, but it's a solid episode. First guest is Larry King and the panel consists of Chris Matthews, a former homeland security advisor and the head of the NAACP.
  
  
• Joe Buck Live - 9:00 - HBO - Just in case you didn't hate this show just because Joe Buck is hosting it, Brett-fucking-Favre is his first guest.
  
  
• Weeds - 10:00 - Showtime - It's an entertaining show that's a little bit over the top at times, but still a lot of fun to watch. It's amazingly already in it's 5th season and feels like it still has some plotlines to explore.
  
  
• Nurse Jackie - 10:30 - Showtime - Piggybacking off of an established show is a pretty good way to develop a viewership. Snagging Edie Falco from the Sopranos doesn't hurt either.

Or, if you happen to be kicking around the Upper West Side of Manhattan this evening, stop by the Amsterdam Ale House for an event that The Bruery is hosting. That's where I'll be wasting time.

Game 50: You Don't Know Me

Who is Carl Pavano?

I pose this pseudo-existential question because he was on the Yankees for four years and I don't feel like I actually know anything about the guy. I'm aware that he at one time drove a Porsche, dated Alyssa Milano, and at various points injured his ass, elbow, shoulder, neck, back, ribs, collarbone, big toe, inner ear, heel, scalp and gall bladder.

All of his defining moments for the Yankees came in The Post. After a while, even his teammates supposedly despised him. If the Yankees had dated Carl Pavano, they would have vast sums of money on him ($40M) and had sex roughly once every two months (26 starts in 4 years). And only a handful of those times (8 wins) would have been any good. Please see the Sports Hernia's heartfelt adieu for some more poignant thoughts on the matter.

After spending so much time on the DL and becoming a complete pariah to the team, he wasn't even allowed to have a personality. If he seemed happy or outgoing, everyone in the clubhouse probably would have wanted to punch him in the face. He was openly maligned by the media, the fans and became such a punchline that if he did avoid pitching towards the end of his contract, I would almost understand it. Almost.

It's okay though, because now were on to bigger and better things. Carl and the Indians look like they are happy together as they have won five of their last six starts. If you are of the vindictive ilk, perhaps you will take solace in the reality that the Indians are destined to suck this year and even if Pavano has a good season, it won't really "count" for shit. 

Opposing the face of all that went wrong with mid-to-late-2000's Yankees baseball will be Phil Hughes, who has already had his fair share of injury issues as well. Since being summoned from Scranton this year, Hughes has been great at times, decent at times and downright terrible once. Here are his earned run totals in order of appearance: 0... 3... 8... 3... 3... 0. Predict the next number in that secquence there Fibonacci. Even with two short shutouts, Hughes' ERA still sits at 5.16 due to that 8 run blow up against the Orioles and the fact he's averaging just under 5 innings per start.

Our understanding of Phil Hughes is still pretty fuzzy, but the anecdotes that the beat writers dig up always frame him as a pretty cool kid who seems to "get it". We don't know you yet either, Phil, but hopefully that will change over the decade or so.  

I wanna ask, you,
Do, you, ever sit and wonder,
It's so, strange,
That we could be together, for,
So, long, and never know, never care,
What goes on in the other one's head?

Not A Bad Place To Be On A Night Off

(Photos via Yahoo)

Man, being a professional athlete sure has it's perks, doesn't it? They may have gotten shut out of the Ritz Carlton last night in favor of a Saudi princess, but several Yanks caught the Cavs vs. Magic game in style. That's Robby Cano and CC checking in with Jay-Z pictured above. Even some of the beat writers got in on the action.

In addition to the Yanks, Jigga and the LoHud of the Rings, "Ben Roethisberger", errr, Brady Quinn (the real Big Ben was there too), Kerry Wood and Carl Pavano all saw the Cavs crawl back to 3-2. Only 4% of NBA teams who get down 3-1 in a playoff series come back to win, but I can't bet against LeBron. I think it's his time. 

Sager: CC, the year you won the Cy Young, your team, the Indians, were up on the Boston Red Sox 3-1 but couldn't close them out. How much do you think a championship would mean to this city?

Sabathia: I'm sorry Craig, could you repeat the question? I couldn't concentrate because I was fighting the urge to strangle you with your ridiculous tie.  

Isn't it amazing how often A-Rod gets a picture taken of him where he looks like a complete and total douche? Would you even want to hang out with him for a night if you could? I'm assuming he'd pick up the tab which would make it significantly more tempting. 
 Mo, on the other hand, looks like he's walking in to "Enter Sandman" no matter where he goes. I would kill with hang with him for a night at his restaurant and talk baseball. 

Which Yankee would you most like to chill with? One night out, on them, your choice of activities. Ladies, it can't be Derek Jeter and "rolling around in bed", okay?

You Know What They Say About All Good Things...

Sorry guys. My first night back in town and the Yanks snap their longest winning streak since the one that ended on June 15th, 2007. That loss same during an interleague game as well (against the Mets) with Roger Clemens on the hill. I know the Rocket's playing career is aging in dog years at the moment, but doesn't that see like forever ago? The last time they won 10 straight was in 2005, after starting 11-19. The winner of the 10th game? Carl Pavano.

When the streak began, Roy Halladay had just beaten the Yankees into submission and A.J. Burnett had left the mound to a Rogers Centre with a sneer on his face, to a distinctly Canadian chant. It ended when Burnett gave up 3HR and 5ER against the Phillies last night. He didn't collect a win in his start during the streak, either, although he pitched pretty well against the Twins. Despite the fact that Burnett snipped the streak on both ends, he will be most remembered for delivering three consecutive pies in the face after the Twins games walk-offs, which is fine by me. 

It was the best of times, friends. I wish I could have followed the games more closely from the road, considering I have the MLB.tv package, but I was basically never in the hotel room from 7-10 (which one really shouldn't be when they are on vacation). But I'm back now, and the streak is at zero. 

I also want to take a second to thank Matt, Boston Bren and Joe for keeping the site afloat while I was away. They put up more content that I would have during the course of a typical week and I'm guessing that you didn't really miss me too much. As you've probably gathered by now, Matt is going to be a big part of the site going forward, which I'm sincerely looking forward to. 

Now get out and enjoy the weather before the game starts. 

Game 13: Sunday Kind Of Love

So... how about yesterday?!??! That atrocity belongs right alongside the time that Sampson and I witnessed the worst loss in Celtics history. Or when I spent $300 on Giants tickets, drove down from Boston and saw the Giants lose to the Vikings on punt, kickoff and interception returns all for touchdowns. Yesterday, I had a morbid, perverse sort of feeling watching it unfold. At a certain point you knew they were going to lose by a shitload and just wanted to see how much worse it could get. After the second inning, the only cheers you heard were sarcastic ones. 

The most amazing part? They actually had the number 14 for the manual scoreboard in the outfield. Really? How high do you think those numbers go?

Reading this yesterday from PeteAbe's fill-in, Kevin Devaney, Jr., at LoHud hit me:

Second, Claggett deserves a little slack. Yes, eight runs in 1.2 innings is dreadful. But we spoke to the kid before the game and he was clearly wide-eyed. He talked about driving into the city last night and seeing the New York City skyline and how “it hit me” that he was in the majors. I’m not saying you should ease up because he’s a nice guy. But he got thrown to the wolves in the second inning in a total no-win situation.

If you were pissed at Anthony Claggett to begin with, you just might be an asshole. The kid got his first chance at the Bigs and got rocked in historical fashion. He's probably more upset with himself than anyone else could possibly be. If you are still pissed at Anthony Claggett after that, you more certainly are an asshole.

The only upside is that we figured out a way to finagle our way into Field Level sections, just so as long as there are some open seats. I have a few pictures and comments that I'll probably throw up later tonight about the Field Level in relation to the rest of the Stadium, also. 

Anyway, let us never speak of that game again. Life goes on, Fackers.

-----

Today, we'll see if A.J. Burnett can continue where he left off in Tampa Bay and once again clean up after Chien Ming Wang's mess. Once again, the bullpen needs him in the worst way. 

When Carl Pavano makes his glorious return to the Bronx and is undoubtedly hailed as a hero and showered with praise and adulation, I will be here, trying to dust off my golf game and keep it under 80 (unlikely). I'll just be happy if I don't have to buy a sleeve of balls at the turn. Text me some updates if you are so inclined. 

It's Sunday. Grab a cup of coffee and let Etta James take you away. 

Only 3?

Tim from MLBTR put together a list of the 45 worst contracts in baseball. There are three Yankees listed:

• Jorge Posada, Four years, $52MM ($13MM per year). Signed November of 2007.
• Hideki Matsui, Four years, $52MM ($13MM per year). Signed November of 2005.
• Kei Igawa, Five years, $46MM ($9.2MM per year). Signed in December of '06, this was a clear and poorly thought-out response to Boston's Daisuke Matsuzaka signing.

Should A-Rod be on there? If you are talking about deals the teams wish they could tear up, light on fire, and shoot the ashes into outer space, don't you think that would be right up there? Would any team want to take it off the Yankees hands for free? Name one.

In light of what has happened, he'd be looking at some paltry offers on the open market nowhere near what the Yankees paid him and those milestone incentives look pret-tay, pret-tay, pret-tay bad. The PED use makes you doubt the validity of his past performance to some extent too. Wait until the Selena Roberts' book comes out and see what else she has to say. She has already indicated that there will be information on his "non-steroid" drug use. It could get worse.

Posada's deal is already bad because in what was likely to be his most productive year of the four, the Yanks didn't get much out of him. Parts of 51 games and a 103 OPS+. His production (while on the field) was not terrible considering he's a catcher, but that doesn't account for the slacking defense caused by his shoulder injury. The Yankees can't afford to have too many games with Kevin Cash and Jose Molina behind the dish this year if they expect to return to glory.

It didn't seem like it to me, but Hideki Matsui has only played an average of 96 games over the past three years. When he has appeared, he's been above league average, but for a corner outfielder that's not all that remarkable. Still, I think a team would take Matsui's contract over A-Rod's in a heartbeat.

If Kei Igawa's contract was a method of birth control, it would be a coat hanger abortion. No objections there.

After shedding Jason Giambi and Carl Pavano contracts, the Yanks are heading in the right direction. The 00's will be remembered for the Yanks' exorbitant spending and in some cases, minimal returns, unless they go out with a bang this year. No pressure guys.