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New York Yankees Get To The King

Posted by on 13 September 2011, 5:38 pm
Safeco Field in Seattle.

Image via Wikipedia

September baseball is tough for everyone, from players to fans to owners and it is grueling.

So imagine how good it felt for the Yankees to finally stick it to last year’s CY Young Winner, King Felix out in Safeco Field on Monday night.

Felix Hernandez has owned the Yankees, literally. Maybe that is why Yankees GM Brian Cashman has droold over the 26 year-old since he stepped on the bump, but the Mariners are not willing to part with their King.

With the Yankees coming off a rough couple of games, where their bats went dead this 9-3 win came in perfect time.

Look, it is no secret that the New York Yankees are old, so relaying on natural adrenaline high is harder to fuel.

It was the perfect excuse to have even lower expectations on a night when the King was on the hill.

And don’t forget that the Tampa Bay Rays, who also won Monday night and are moving in on the Wild Card.

With the Rays are breathing down the Boston Red Sox’s backs to a tune of three games, the Yankees need to put as much distance between the rest of the AL East division as possible.

What I like most about this 2011 Yankee team is that they fight, and it reminds me a lot like the 2009 team.

Still, with 16 games left to play including seven vs. Tampa Bay and three against Boston, the Yankees have their work cut out for them.

The Yankees always like to win in October, and haven’t forgotten the embarrassment felt from last season.

The Yankees tossed in the towel against the inferior Texas Rangers in the ALCS and that just will not cut it two years in a row.

Yankees Nick Swisher said it best after dethroning King Felix:

“You’ve got to give credit where credit’s due and our guys did a great job tonight.”

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Yankees-Mariners: Pitching Match-up To Watch Burnett Vs. Seattle’s New Prince

Posted by on 27 May 2011, 2:45 am

The New York Yankees start this nine-game road trip with a three-game set in Seattle against an improved Mariners team.

SEATTLE MARINERS BABY STEPS:

The 2010 Mariners had one weapon, pitcher Felix Hernandez (aka King Felix) who barely brought relief every fifth day behind a dead offense.  Considering King Felix took home the 2010 CY Young Award, pitched 250 innings in total, with a 2.27 ERA and only finished with a 13-12 record explains just how bad things were going in Seattle.

This season the Mariners offense, while not comparable to the Yankees line-up, has slightly improved and I guess they have Cliff Lee to thank for that.

When the Mariners traded Lee to the Texas Rangers, they acquired rookie first baseman Justin Smoak. After a mediocre 2010, the 24-year-old Smoak seems to be developing posting a .263 batting average, with six home-runs and 24 RBIs.

The Mariners have such quality pitching they can get away with less stellar bats and still be a decent team, but they are still a bat or two away from being a playoff team. Even with Smoak providing some life to the line-up, he is still a season or two away from making a real impact.

Seattle still gives up a ton of runs, as the offense has the third lowest batting average in baseball with a .232; have the fifth lowest RBIs total with 170; are tied with Oakland for last place with just 27 home-runs on the season.

Still, for a team that finished with the worst record in baseball, 61-101 to be a game away from sitting at .500 is a marked improvement. The Mariners are not the same blasé opponents because if the pitching can shut down an opposing line-up, and if their little step forward offensively can score a few runs they can beat you.

MICHAEL PINEDA VS. AJ BURNETT:

Michael Pineda is a 22-year-old, right-handed rookie who is as tall as CC Sabathia and has been outstanding in his debut season.

The youngster has a 6-2 over nine starts; he is posting a 2.16 ERA, allowing 41 hits, 15 earned runs, three home-runs, walking 14 batters and fanning 61, in just over 58 innings pitched.

Pineda has pitched six innings minimum in all nine starts. Pineda’s last two starts were his most impressive, as he pitched seven solid, giving up no earned runs, allowing just one walk and striking out 16 batters. Mind you it was against the Twins, and Padres, who are two of the worst performing teams in baseball but Pineda won both the outings, and that is what counts.

Overall, Pineda is turning into a future ace very quickly and the Mariners would not be hanging on in the AL West without his young arm.

The Seattle Times reported that the Mariners do have Pineda on an innings limit, which most think is somewhere between 160-170 but skipper Eric Wedge stated that the number will not change pending on how the team is doing.

It is no secret that I have been watching this kid from the beginning, as in a recent post about Pineda as a trade option brought on a lot of angry comments from Seattle fans. I still think it would work for both teams, but that is for another day.

The Yankees will counter with AJ Burnett, who has been good this season.

Burnett’s mental game has vastly improved, as he doesn’t implode after giving a hit or a home-run like in the past because he seems to have more control.

Burnett is 5-3, with a 4.02 ERA so far in 2011.

Assessing Burnett it is pretty easy, he is a veteran that knows what he needs to do and with as weak an offense as the Mariners have; he should not have a problem holding them.

The Yankees will look for him to go deep into the game. This is something he has been doing this season, as he has gone minimum six innings over his last 10 starts.

MY PREDICTION:

Comparing the two teams line-ups is purposeless, with the Bombers leading baseball in home-runs with 75 and RBIs with 244 and the Mariners posting the lowest in home-runs with 27 and fifth worst in RBIs with 170.

The Mariners only scored five runs in their last two games and their decent walk rate has tumbled as well, which is not good heading into any series. Continue reading ‘Yankees-Mariners: Pitching Match-up To Watch Burnett Vs. Seattle’s New Prince’ »

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New York Yankees: Keep This Seattle Pitching Prince On Your Radar

Posted by on 3 May 2011, 4:58 am

Where there is a King, usually more royalty can be found. And in Seattle, the Mariners are forming a nice little pitching kingdom of their own.

Back in 2005, Pitcher Felix Hernandez was dubbed ‘King Felix’ down in A-ball for his dynamic arm, made his debut at age 19.

Seven seasons later, this King has earned the title; as King Felix is one of the most lethal pitchers in baseball today. Unfortunately, the 2010 CY Young winner plays for the Mariners who have been the bottom feeders of the AL West, a place they still remain today.

Over his career, King Felix has a 3.20 ERA, over 179 starts, posting a 74-59 record, with 1087 strikeouts, 14 shutouts and has clocked 1202 innings total. Keep in mind that if he played on any other team the King’s wins-loses and ERA would be much lower.

Now, you can only imagine the New York Yankees along with every other team in baseball have been drooling over King Felix for some time now.

Presumably the Mariners front office has listened to numerous offers to obtain the King, especially before they signed him to a four-year extension. I can assure you that a few calls came from the Yankees who would love to get their claws on the 25-year-old, who has yet to reach his prime.

Over this past winter, Yankee fans were hoping for a King under their Christmas tree, but Seattle GM Jack Zduriencik made it clear that was never going to happen. Zduriencik had already screwed the Yankees in Cliff Lee trade, by using New York as leverage to bait the Texas Rangers to get Seattle even more players.

That did NOT fair well with Yankees GM Brian Cashman, but it didn’t stop him from pursuing Felix.

Even though the 2011 Yankees are off to a hot start, reloading mid-season if a top pitcher is available is almost guaranteed.

With the Mariners standing at 13-16 and sitting pretty in a familiar last place in the AL West, trading for some young minor leaguers would be a smart move to build for the future. Continue reading ‘New York Yankees: Keep This Seattle Pitching Prince On Your Radar’ »

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MLB Hot Stove: New York Yankees Are Pitching With What They Got Not By Choice

Posted by on 22 December 2010, 2:32 am

It is no secret that the New York Yankees are winning the biggest losers contest by a landslide this off-season.

As they cross their fingers hoping Andy Pettitte sends word he wants to play, the waiting is making things look less hopeful.

GM Brian Cashman made it clear:

“He’s not in it. He’s told me not to rely on him, so I’m focusing on what he’s told us.”

Not great news….but let’s look at the situation for what it really is, as the Yankees head  into the New Year:

Off-Season Pitchers Who Passed:

  • Cliff Lee brought his talents back to the Phillies.
  • Zach Greinke wasn’t worth the price, as the Royals tacked on serious demands.
  • Veteran and member of the Yankee core-four, Andy Pettitte has turned into as subtle version of Brett Favre.
  • Felix Hernandez would rather stay on the Mariners than pitch in the Bronx, as the Yankees are in his no-trade list.
  • Marlins Josh Johnson was a long shot, but worth a try.

Outlook Heading Into New Year

The Yankees are not accustomed to leaving gaping holes open via rejection.

So, don’t think for a minute this was Plan B, as Brain Cashman had one plan and it was Cliff Lee.

Now it is look internally or bust to complete the gaping hole in their starting rotation. Continue reading ‘MLB Hot Stove: New York Yankees Are Pitching With What They Got Not By Choice’ »

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New York Yankees Are Complete Losers Again

Posted by on 1 July 2010, 1:41 am

How are the Seattle Mariners in last place?

The Mariners have the best one-two punch on the mound with Cliff Lee and Felix Hernandez. Add players like Ichiro Suzuki, Milton Bradley, Chrome Figgins, Jose Lopez, and that makes a valid, post-season contending ball-club.

The group the New York Yankees have faced the last two nights is not the Mariners who are 13.5 games out in the AL West.

Not only did Lee pitch a complete game in Tuesday’s win, his teammate King Felix followed his lead by going all nine innings to defeat the reigning World Champions, again.

The King ruled more like a dictator against such a tough Yankees line-up. Allowing only two hits, walked three and fanned 11 Yankee bats, who each resembled a deer in headlights. The Yankees did not score a single run.

The Mariners bats certainly did not slack-off because of who was on the mound. They complimented the pitching. Scoring seven runs on both nights against starters Phil Hughes, Javier Vazquez and the Yankees weakest link (aka. the bullpen) is a tremendous deal.

Tuesday night, the Mariners had 12 hits off Hughes. Ichiro and Johnson had two RBIs a piece and Gutierrez hit one home-run. Mariners over Yankees 7-4. Continue reading ‘New York Yankees Are Complete Losers Again’ »

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Baseball Bloggers Alliance Predicts World Series Rematch

Posted by on 7 April 2010, 3:35 pm

Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 8 AM EDT, April 7, 2010


Baseball Bloggers Alliance Predicts World Series Rematch

The World Series will have a familiar look in October, according to the Baseball Bloggers Alliance.

For the first time, the membership of the BBA was polled for their preseason predictions, with the New York Yankees and the Philadelphia Phillies being the most common selections for World Series participants.  The Yankees received 36 votes to easily outpace Boston’s 18, while the Phillies’ 31 votes edged out St. Louis’s 24.  The rematch ends the same as last year, with New York being the choice of 20 of the 75 that cast ballots. Continue reading ‘Baseball Bloggers Alliance Predicts World Series Rematch’ »

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