Will Joe Girardi's Protest From Last Night Be Successful?

Via Marc Carig, in order for the Yankees to win their protest of last night's game, the commissioner's office would have to rule that the Manny Delcarmen getting unlimited time to warm up "adversely affected" the Yankees' chances to win the game:

In all protested games, the decision of the League President shall be final.
Even if it is held that the protested decision violated the rules, no replay of the game will be ordered unless in the opinion of the League President the violation adversely affected the protesting team’s chances of winning the game.

If the league does determine there was a detrimental effect, the game could be restarted from the point of the infraction. Considering that the Yankees were sitting on a five run lead at the time, there's a good chance that they could lock down the victory if given a second chance.

It's pretty clear that Sox pitching coach John Farrell signaled to the bullpen before telling the umpire that Beckett was hurt. Girardi isn't disputing whether the injury was valid, just that the call was made before the umpire was informed of the injury.

There is a ton of subjectivity involved here. How will the league interpret the word "adversely"? Delcarmen getting as much time as he needed to warm up obviously wasn't the reason that the Red Sox were able to come back, but it definitely helped them stop the bleeding to some extent. Getting to face a guy who was only allowed to throw eight warm up pitches would certainly have been an advantage for the Yankees, particularly if Francona chose to temporarily insert a position player instead. So by a strict definition, it did "adversely affect" their chances of winning the game, however infinitesimally.

Although it doesn't say it in the rule book, I'm guessing the commissioner will have the latitude to determine degrees of adversity. In other words, was the advantage the Yankees lost enough to warrant restarting the game from that point? Will Bud Selig take into account that the Yankees were winning by five runs at the time? Will he note that the Sox came all the way back and won by just one run? It's a logistical mess to restart the game and you'd have to assume that the league would lean towards avoiding it if the decision is close.

Bud Selig works in mysterious ways, but unfortunately, I'm pretty sure this one isn't going to get overturned.

Monday Afternoon Linkdown

Yesterday would have been Billy Martin's 82nd birthday. Even if he didn't die in a car crash back in '89, you get the feeling he wouldn't have made it this far. Some people just live too hard to see their 80's.

Yankees Magazine is 30 years old and Martin was the first person to grace the cover once it switched from a newspaper to a magazine. Does anyone actually buy these at the Stadium? They sold 250,000 of them last year so I'm guessing some people do.

The Reds signed Cuban outfielder Felix Perez, a player who the Yankees were in discussions with last year. The Yanks eventually found out that he wasn't 20 years old, as he had claimed, and steered clear. The MLB suspended Perez for a year for lying about his age but he's eligible again and headed for a Reds' minor league affiliate somewhere in the near future.

Marc Carig took a look at Brett Gardner's patient and effective approach and shows that he's basically the anti-Vlad Guererro. The article is complete with quotes Carig got from Kevin Long and stats fetched from FanGraphs. Not many writers combine analysis and reporting like that, but Marc does (and does it well).

If you've read our interview with The Yankeeist, you know why Matt and I write, but what about Craig Calcaterra? He does it for the ladies, of course.

Via Tango, ESPN stats guy Mark Simon ranks the most valuable players of the Yankees-Red Sox series since 1995 by WPA. Would it surprise you if the Youkstah came in above David Ortiz? How about Paul O'Neill still being second among Yankee hitters and Derek Jeter coming in at 13th?

According to MLBTR, Javier Vazquez is still a Type-A Free Agent, but just barely.

R.J. Anderson at FanGraphs investigates Mark Teixeira's slow start and fingers the prime suspect: a low BABIP. Same as last year.

Aaron Gleeman celebrates the Twins long-awaited victory over the Yankees and examines just how poorly the Twinkies have faired against the Yanks - as opposed to basically every other team in the AL - in the Ron Gardenhire era.

Justin Sablich of the New York Times finds that you can make a team out of the players the Yankees have parted ways with in the past few years. It would totally suck, but you could do it.

Three of the guys in that bullpen, Edwar Ramirez, Brian Bruney and Chad Gaudin were all released from their teams over the weekend, so if you want to starting putting that squad together, now might be a good time.

Sean from Pending Pinstripes looks at LSU pitcher Anthony Ranaudo, a high risk, high upside arm in this year's draft, as a possible target for the Yanks.

Tyler Kepner revisits the deal that very nearly made George Steinbrenner the owner of the Indians back in December of 1971.

The Trenton Thunder have won 10 straight. Boom!

Yesterday's grand slam means that Mariano Rivera will be forever tied with Eric Gagne for the longest streak without blowing a save at home (unless of course he rips off 52 more before he retires, which isn't totally inconceivable (okay, yeah it is)).

The Yankess just donated a display with seven World Series rings to the Hall of Fame. Also, May 22nd and 23rd is World Series Weekend in Cooperstown. The trophy will be there and they'll be giving a special "Yankee-centric" tour of the museum.

Diane Firstman from Bronx Banter talks triples.

Baseball-Reference.com now has WAR.

Sawx reliever Ramon Ramirez walked in the winning run against the Tigers. That video never gets old.

Matt Klaassen at FanGraphs teaches the lesson of Pat Burrell. No, it doesn't have anything to do with sleeping with a porn star.

It turns out that baseball wasn't universally on board with integration after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. I blame Bud Selig.

It's that time of year. Over at Deadspin, Drew Magary delivers an unsolicited address to the class of 2010. It's good but, 2008 remains the best. An excerpt:.

"You think you’re gonna make a difference? You got some nerve, asshole. You’re just part of another class going through the same routine as the class before you. You’re no different. You’re just as full of douchebags and shitheads as any other class. In fact, given the rising popularity of lacrosse, your class is probably even worse. The rest of us eventually had our dreams crushed by the cruel realties of the world. I see no reason not to burst your bubble right here and now. Heed these words, then fall in line like the rest of us."

Here's 2009's as well.

Back with the preview in a few.

New York Already One Up On Boston This Weekend

We're still about four hours away from the first pitch of game one of this weekend's series, but New York has already notched is first victory over Boston on the weekend. This morning, the annual media game was held at Fenway, with the New York writers laying a 20-3 beatdown on Boston.

Congrats go out to LoHud's Chad Jennings, the offensive star of the morning with a two run inside-the-park homer. The New York Times' Tyler Kepner hurled the first five innings, then Bryan Hoch of yankees.com/MLB Advanced Media played the role of Mo with a scoreless final frame. Friend of the blog Marc Carig had the hardest hit ball of the day, but flashed only warning track power. I've yet to see any reports on how old friend Peter Abraham did after pulling his reverse-Johnny Damon last year.

Kepner was the Times beat writer through last season, but was promoted to national columnist after shortstop Jack Curry took a buyout and joined the YES Network. No word on whether Boston will protest Kepner's eligibility.

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More links? Why not?

According to this tweet and this grainy photo, David Ortiz was grilling for students at my alma mater earlier today. I'm dubious about the picture, but if anyone should know when something is totally cooked, it's gotta be Big Papi, amIright?

After touching on the same topic twice already today, let's go for three. RAB passes along that AAA Scranton has activated catcher P.J. Pilittere, possibly indicating that Chad Moeller could be on his way up. Or since Posada is out taking earlier BP, maybe he's fine.

If you never want to think of Joe Torre in the same light ever again, read this story passed along by Deadspin's Drew Magary.

And with a tip of that to Moshe Mandel from TYU, Mystique and Aura has a post on 2008 first round pick Gerrit Cole, the one that got away.

Back with the preview in a bit.

Saturday News, Notes, & Links

Tomorrow may be Easter, but I'm feeling like a kid on Christmas Eve knowing that Opening Day is just one sleep away. Here are some news, notes, and links on the one year anniversary of the first game ever played at the new Yankee Stadium. I had great seats for that game, my father, brothers and I were in the second row on the field level, directly behind the left field foul pole. Cody Ransom rang a dinger off that pole later in the game; sadly that was the high water mark of his 2009 season. Still, I'll never forget walking onto the concourse and getting my first glimpse of the new Stadium.

• As we mentioned earlier, the Yankees have essentially finalized their roster, and it's no different than what we thought a week and a half ago. Marcus Thames was officially added the 40 man roster this morning, and Boone Logan was optioned to AAA. All the players who have been nursing injuries: Posada, Cervelli, Aceves, Marte, and Johnson, should be ready to go tomorrow night.


• Also, as we mentioned earlier, the Yankees signed Chad Moeller to a minor league deal. Moeller lost out on the back up job in Baltimore and asked for his release rather than go to the minors. He's not as good offensively as Mike Rivera, but he has the reputation of a solid defender. He should be a good mentor to Jesus Montero. I'm hopeful that Moeller's contract does not include the opt out clause that many veteran players get on minor league deals. I think it's important the club have a good mentor for Montero all year, as well as a viable emergency option should Posada or Cervelli get injured.


• The Yankees added another player to the Scranton roster today, when they acquired Robby Hammock. Chad Jennings reported it as a free agent signing, but The Times Pat Borzi says Hammock was acquired via a trade with Colorado for a player to be named later. Hammock has 180 games of Major League experience over five seasons, but none since 2008. He's capable of playing behind the plate and at the infield and outfield corners. He's reportedly ticketed for Scranton, where Jorge Vazquez will start the season on the DL.


• With the addition of Hammock, Scranton's roster is jam packed with guys who should be playing nearly everyday. Juan Miranda will be the first baseman, but Vazquez will see some time there as well. Kevin Russo, Reegie Corona, and Eduardo Nunez will make up the remainder of the infield, and they should be rotating through the positions to increase their versatility as utility options. But Vazquez and Hammock will also presumably see time at third. In the outfield, Colin Curtis, Jon Weber, Greg Golson, Reid Gorecki, and David Winfree all figure to be on the roster, and Russo may also see time in the corners. Monetro and Moeller will be the catchers, and P.J. Pilittere may also see time behind the plate.


• The Yankees have officially lost both their Rule Five picks. Kanekoa Texeira used an impressive spring to win a spot in the Mariners' bullpen. The Diamondbacks waived lefty Zach Kroenke, but he went unclaimed and accepted an assignment to AAA in exchange for keeping his spot on the 40 man roster. By right, the Yankees could have brought him back for $25K once he cleared waivers, but as a two time Rule 5 pick Kroenke had the right to declare free agency if that happened. By going unclaimed on waivers and keeping a 40 man spot with the Dbacks, he likely got the best possible deal for himself.


• For the second time this spring, things got a little heated between the Yankees and Orioles yesterday. As Marc Carig points out, these two clubs have built up a bit of a history over the last year, from Aubrey Huff's fist pumps to A.J. Burnett gesticulating in the general direction of Felix Pie. The Girardi Yankees haven't been shy about coming inside over the past two seasons; this will be something to watch as 2010 unfolds.


• Jack Curry of the YES Network has a story on Andy Pettitte in which Pettitte drops some more retirement hits. Nothing to see here folks. Firstly, Pettitte says nothing definitive. Secondly, this is no different than anything Pettitte has said each of the last four off-seasons as he's done the Brett Favre dance. Thirdly, there's no reason to believe that it won't continue. The guy can still pitch, and if he didn't want to go out on top after winning each of the three clinching games in the 2009 post-season, there's no reason to believe that this year is any more likely to be his last than 2009 or 2008 or 2007 was. Let's wait until a few pitches are thrown first.


• Finally, Fangraphs has completed their organizational rankings series, with the Yankees taking the top prize. Here's Fangraphs' look at both the current talent and future talent.

That's it for today Fackers. We'll be back in the morning with all sorts of Opening Day goodness.

Midday Odds & Ends

Here are a few items of note, mostly from over the weekend:

A rainout down in Florida forced the Yankees to schedule an intrasquad game today to ensure that all their pitchers stayed on their respective schedules.

Hearing that, Jon Heyman busted out his jump to conclusions mat and declared that since Joba Chamerlain was not playing against the Phillies in Clearwater that he was no longer in the race to be fifth starter and can take his rightful place in the bullpen. (/rolls eyes and makes wanking motion)

Where does Joba belong? The chronically uninformed and impatient contingents of the interwebz have spoken loud and clear.

Alfredo Aceves had a bad outing against the Astros (4.1 IP, 5R). HE'S OUT OF THE RACE!!!!!

Chad Jennings profiled Ace in the Journal News on Sunday.

While the primary topic of the Yanks' Spring Training continues to focus on who will be the 5th starter, Marc Hulet at FanGraphs contends that the role is something of a myth. He instead suggests a three-headed approach to soaking up the last 25 or so starts the top four members of the rotation don't make.

Mark Teixeira (somewhat understandably) doesn't understand why UZR categorizes him as a below average first baseman. Joe Pawlikowski explains what UZR might be missing, to which I will add the fact that the metric totally disregards infield line drives which go a long way between determining which first baseman are good and which aren't. Joe also leaves open the possibility that we are giving Teix a little too much credit.

Marc Carig has a video interview with Phil Hughes wherein Phil demonstrates and discusses the different grips he uses for this 4-seamer, cutter, curve and change.

Carig also caught up with Kevin Towers over the weekend who explained how his background helped him as GM in San Diego:

Because I wore several hats, I probably had a greater appreciation for all the different roles. I knew what it was to be a player, to be a prospect, how difficult it was being a prospect and going through the different levels of the minor leagues, what goes through a player’s mind. As an area scout, how difficult and lonely a job that is... You feel like you’re kind of off there on your own, especially when I was doing it. There wasn’t cell phones, there wasn’t computers, there wasn’t voice mail. You were really kind of a nomad out there trying to find players.

Before Jesus Montero was assigned to minor league camp, Chad Jennings sat down with him for 5 questions.

Austin Romine, Colin Curtis, Reid Gorecki, Dustin Mosely, Jason Hirsh also got the boot from the Big Leauge camp.

Tyler Kepner caught up with Chein-Ming Wang.

'Duk from Big League Stew checked in on Rinku and Dinesh, the winning contestants from the Indian reality show Million Dollar Arm.

Robert Cribb of the Toronto Star did a piece on the mysterious man that is Tom Tango, who helps the Blue Jays' front office in an advisory capacity.

Jeff from Lookout Landing ran some data in an effort to see how much LASIK surgery benefited the players who had it done and came to a somewhat unexpected conclusion.

If plan on visiting Citizen's Bank Park anytime soon, you might want to vote for their signature hot dog. My vote would certainly be for the The South Philly, which is "all-beef and topped with broccoli rabe, spicy roasted peppers, and sharp provolone on an Italian roll". They had me at "broccoli rabe".

This suspect's second biggest crime was wearing a green Yankees hat.

Morning Linkaround

Back by popular demand....

While many of the original reports indicated that Cuban shortstop Adeiny Hechevarria chose the Blue Jays over the Yankees because he would have an easier path to the Majors sans Derek Jeter, it turns out that the extra $1.5M that the Jays offered might have had a little something to do with that as well. River Ave. Blues notes that the $8.5M the Yankees offered would have been by far the largest signing bonus they've ever given to a prospect. One one hand, it's a little disappointing to see a good player slip away, but on the other, the non-stop media chatter about when Derek Jeter is going to move off shortstop with Hechevarria nipping at his heels would have been played out by the end of the week.

Over the weekend, our pal Marc Carig asked Mark Teixeira what he would do improve sports on an executive level. In Sunday's paper, they talked about a College Football playoff, NFL overtime, the International Olympics Committee, Boxing, March Madness and Interleague Play. Yesterday, Carig ran the leftover questions on his blog. Teix has some intelligent opinions on all of the above, so be sure to check them out.

Cliff Corcoran at Bronx Banter has been doing an admirable job of keeping up with the goings on down in Tampa by recapping the games. Yesterday he offered a Status Report detailing the the performances of the players so far. If you haven't been paying attention, it's a nice cheat sheet.

Will Leitch previews the Yankees over at Deadspin.

A-Rod is sick and tired of being asked about Anthony Galea. So sick and tired that he apparently got up and walked away form reporters when someone said the words "Canadian doctor" yesterday. Can you blame him? Nothing new has come up and as Moshe Mandel pointed out last week, he has legitimate reasons for dealing with Galea.

I'm pretty sure that this means that Ronan Tynan will never be setting foot in Yankee Stadium again.

Our old buddy Chien-Mind Wang threw his first bullpen of the spring.

At FanGraphs, Matthew Carruth explores the differences between the Vegas over/unders and the win totals extrapolated from their site's Fan predictions. Of course, Vegas makes their odds on how people bet, not how they think the teams will do. So in comparing Vegas to FanGraphs readers, you get a contrast between how educated fans feel about a team versus how the betting public does. It will be interesting to revisit those at the end of the season.

Morgan Ensberg gives his side of the Lidge vs. Puljos story in much more depth than you usually hear from a player.

The newest Jim Bowden video is out and in it, the former Nats GM discusses the Roy Halladay trade with Ruben Amaro, Jr., Alex Anthopoulos, Jack Zduriencik and Billy Beane. I find these videos especially amusing because Bowden looks like a C-grade actor hired to play the part of a bad GM. And for all we know, that might have been the case.

Speaking of Roy, he bought a new house in Philly.

Finally, this is good for a couple of laughs:

As Jonah points out, Fernando Perez isn't your average baseball player.