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Yankee fans welcomed home Bronx Bombers with open arms

Posted by on 14 April 2012, 2:55 am

OPENING DAY WAS A GEM….

Welcome home Yankees!!

It was another Opening Day for the books at Yankee Stadium, as fans got to welcome the players, say goodbye to a legend and watch the Bombers beat the Angels 5-0.

After a terrible first start against the Rays, pitcher Hiroki Kuroda took to the hill and he was brilliant.

Kuroda didn’t allow a run to score, pitching shutout ball into the ninth inning. He gave up five hits, walked two, struck out six and got a well-deserved, roaring ovation from Yankee fans.

Kuroda got insurance from the Yankee bats early, as Nick Swisher hit a three-run scoring double off Ervin Santana in the first inning. Than A-rod tacked on another run with a bomb to center field in the third inning, the 660th of his career; and Granderson went deep in the fifth, his second on the season. Continue reading ‘Yankee fans welcomed home Bronx Bombers with open arms’ »

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Do you think the Yankees are in trouble?

Posted by on 9 April 2012, 2:50 am

Joe Maddon

Joe Maddon (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Do you think the New York Yankees are in trouble?

Well, the Yankees are off to a horrid start to the 2012 season, as they got out pitched, out hit and out managed by the Tampa Bay Rays who swept the Bombers right out of Tropicana Field this past weekend.

Even though it is the beginning of the season, I was embarrassed for the Yankees, as it seems like the same old story from the end of 2011 to many men left on base, 26 in total.

Since there are 158 games left to play to say anyone is in trouble would be ridiculous but getting swept to start the season certainly doesn’t feel good.

Here are two things to ponder over in the wake of this semi-concern:

1) Anyone watching the three games will tell you that Rays skipper Joe Maddon might have just taught the rest of baseball how to beat the New York Yankees by employing defensive shifts.

Righty or lefty bat didn’t matter, as the Rays scouting reports had an answer for almost every Yankee hitter as they kept hitting right into the shifts.

All I can say is that Joe Maddon’s moves from this past weekend were the most successful at stopping the Yankees from scoring runs.

I can promise you it is a blueprint that the other 28 managers in baseball will certainly get copies of even if it doesn’t work as well because it probably won’t.

The counter to this argument is that the Yankees could start hitting home-runs and unless Maddon hangs Rays players from the rafters at the Trop there is not shift that can block knocking it out of the park. Continue reading ‘Do you think the Yankees are in trouble?’ »

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2012 MLB Team Preview: Tampa Bay Rays

Posted by on 8 March 2012, 12:16 am

Tampa Bay Rays logo.

The Tampa Bay Rays had a typical quiet off-season, as they don’t have the money to be flashy or newsworthy but you wouldn’t know it from the way this team competes.

Through utilizing high draft picks after years of losing as the Devil Rays, the franchise has built a team that is a force to be reckoned with. The Rays have proven this by playing in the postseason three of the last four years and ironically it all happened the day the word devil came off their jerseys.

The youngsters have a few years under their belts now, including losing to the Phillies in the 2008 World Series and evidently they are hungry to get back there after watching them fight their way into October last season.

The Rays have made the AL East a three-team race and have certainly earned the respect of the Red Sox and Yankees, as well as being now considered one of the élite teams in baseball.

So, will 2012 lead to another postseason berth for Tampa Bay?

Let’s take a look…

THE POSITIVES:

The Rays starting rotation features young and electric arms that only look to be getting better. In 2011 the starting five held batters to a .234 and averaged a 1.24 WHIP, which was second best in all of baseball in both categories. Expect James Shields and David Price to be bigger studs this season, as neither of the two has even peaked yet. Following them is Jeremy Hellickson who had a great rookie campaign last year, making 29 starts, and finishing 13-10, with a 2.95 ERA and pitching just shy of 190 total innings. After Hellickson comes Wade Davis and Jeff Neimann who won a combined 22 games, as the duo is one of the more solid four and five in baseball. The real buzz everyone is watching is 22-year-old Matt Moore who is one of the most promising pitching prospects.

In my opinion the Rays batting line-up will be better this season, and that they are getting undervalued. Led by homegrown star Evan Longoria who at just 26-years old is already deemed one of the best hitters in baseball. The Rays need big seasons at the plate from BJ Upton who hopefully can stop free swinging at everything. And I like that they brought back Carlos Pena, who played for the Cubs last season, as he should bring some added power. They need solid performances from Matt Joyce, Ben Zobrist and xxx. Also, expect big things from rookie Desmond Jennings who finally provides the team with the everyday leadoff hitter they have needed.

The biggest strength that the Rays hitters have is speed, as they stole the second most bases in baseball in 2011 with 155 in total. Nothing irritates or agitates an opposing team more than pesky base runners, as it can be a game changer. The Rays should focus on stealing bases more successfully this Spring, as they also got caught 62 times last year.

THE NEGATIVES: Continue reading ‘2012 MLB Team Preview: Tampa Bay Rays’ »

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New York Yankees: Losing But Not The Losers

Posted by on 29 September 2011, 4:01 am

No baseball fan could dream up a better finish to the regular season that is unless you are a Boston Red Sox, or Atlanta Braves fan.

Over the last month we saw the mighty Red Sox go from leading the AL East to destination unknown. It was hard to watch, even as a Yankee fan because truthfully I felt bad, the same way I did for the Mets in 2007.

This was the Red Sox team that Sports Illustrated proclaimed would win 100 games, on route to winning another World Series Championship in the magazine’s annual Baseball Preview issue.

Just try to conceive the mutiny that must be going on at ESPN?

ESPN is the sports equivalent of CNN, and minus my favorite expert Skip Bayless, the kitten caboodle made up of ex-players and the game’s most respected analysts must be in shock. Just Gordon Edes’ bold predictions alone are enough for any network to hang their heads in shame.

And let’s not forget about ESPN’s predicting machine that simulates a full season of 162 games, for all 30 teams and it picked the Red Sox too. Just read my preseason article, ESPN’s Baseball Machine Even Hates The Yankees to see exactly what a robot that was MADE IN BEANTOWN forecasted for this 2011 MLB season.

Truthfully, at the start of this historical Wednesday all my pity and heartfelt sentiments for my Yankees hated rivals had still not completely out the window.  The real moment it did was at the top of the 2nd inning; with two outs on the board and the bases loaded, Mark Teixeira had to go to hit a grand slam of ace David Price. And suddenly the scoreboard read 5-0; and I wanted the Yankees to lose.

Call me whatever you want because I deserve it. Anyone with a brain knows that the Yankees would be better off in the ALCS playing a team who went 7-20 in September, over a hot team like Tampa Bay who went 17-10 respectively; but during this game I did not care. Continue reading ‘New York Yankees: Losing But Not The Losers’ »

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2011 MLB Predictions: Is the AL East a 3-Team Race Again?

Posted by on 25 January 2011, 1:00 pm

Last week the Tampa Bay Rays reunited two old pals, but will it feel good enough to make the Rays legit in 2011?

The Rays are now proud owners of Johnny Damon‘s and Manny Ramirez’s talents heading into the season.

Veterans, who both have two World Series rings (Manny’s are both with the Boston Red Sox, and Damon has one with Boston and the other with the New York Yankees). The two were teammates on the historical 2004 Red Sox, who broke an 86-year-old curse.

Now, as part of the Rays organization, the two 38-year-old stars have a chance to stick it to their old teams, but is it enough to help Tampa Bay finally beat their two division rivals?

Not necessarily, but it does give the Rays something they have been missing the last few seasons, and that is experience.

Even with Manny being Manny, his power bat gives the Rays a solid DH. Over his 18 seasons, Manny has 555 home runs and 1,830 RBIs. Manny only played in 90 games last season, with nine home runs and 42 RBIs as part of the Dodgers and White Sox organizations.

Damon is a solid clubhouse guy and he will play everyday as an outfielder. Damon is not physically close to making up for Carl Crawford, both on the field and on the bases, but he can get the job done.

In 2010, Damon played in 145 games posting his lowest numbers with eight home runs, 51 RBIs and 11 steals.

Still, nothing calls for motivation more for these two than sticking it to both the Red Sox and Yankees. Continue reading ‘2011 MLB Predictions: Is the AL East a 3-Team Race Again?’ »

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ALCS 2010: The Yankees’ Cliff Lee Conspiracy Theory

Posted by on 12 October 2010, 2:10 am

There is not much going wrong for the New York Yankees, after sweeping the Minnesota Twins easily to advance to the ALCS.

However it happened, this is not the same team who finished off 2010 regular season barely breathing.

Resembling championship form almost overnight has caused rumors to swirl for the sudden upgraded play.

Maybe it’s just pure postseason rush?

Possibly. Imagine getting a step closer to the World Series as a player. It’s inevitable that you acquire some adrenaline from winning.

Also, it could have been a contrived plan to lose the division. Any team without Cliff Lee is a better option and an easier opponent, particularly in the postseason.

Everyone knows the Yankee captain (Derek Jeter) can act to win so why wouldn’t the team lose a few to defend their crown? Looking at the bigger picture it makes sense.

Struggling and after spending months on the DL was not the Andy Pettitte who looked great in Game 2 of the ALDS. It was the southpaw at his best.

Followed that outing was Phil Hughes, who was even better and during the team’s September slump Hughes only came out of the bullpen. Maybe Hughes hasn’t learned to fake being bad as well.

In turn Yankees can blame it on the ‘Hughes Rules’ also known as Hughes’ innings limit. Hughes is 90+ innings over that limit and that was before his ALDS start so it would be presumed that he was not getting pampered months ago. Nice try with that one.

Could it be possible that all the fuss to win the AL East was BS, and the Yankees had no intention to go that route?

It makes sense for any team to try and avoid having to face Lee twice in a five game series because odds are you will lose the short series.

This is not fate but the reality facing the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night, where Lee holds the destiny of the game on the mound.

If Lee were going to get hit, the best team with the odds to beat him would be the Rays because they have done it all season. Not just once this season, but all three times the Rays made the great Lee into a loser. Lee gave up 15 hits, 12 earned runs, two walks and 25 strikeouts in the three losses against Tampa Bay.

In Lee’s six postseason starts he has a 1.52 ERA, given up just 11 hits, eight earned runs, six walks, 43 strikeouts and one home run over 47.1 innings. He still has not lost in October, making the reasons to steer clear more obvious.

Postseason Lee has yet to fail. His last victims were the Rays; in their own house just four games ago. Tuesday night will be different because the Rays are hot again and this will make Lee’s night not an easy one, but the Rays bats will have to be perfect.

Kind of makes sense for the Yankees to lose the division on purpose, even if they never admit to it.

Related articles
  • ALDS 2010: Five Things We Learned (bleacherreport.com)
  • Underestimating Underdogs: New York Yankees Beat Minnesota Twins Again (ladylovespinstripes.com)
  • New York Yankees: Stop Losing, Start Playing (ladylovespinstripes.com)
  • New York Yankees-Minnesota Twins ALDS Series Breakdown, Part 2 (ladylovespinstripes.com)
  • New York Yankees: The Cliff Lee Conspiracy Theory (bleacherreport.com)
  • MLB Playoff Predictions: Can Andy Pettitte Save Yankees’ Postseason Pitching? (ladylovespinstripes.com)

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New York Yankees Vs. Tampa Bay Rays: Vazquez Faces Garza

Posted by on 31 July 2010, 12:08 am

The New York Yankees Javier Vazquez will face Tampa Bay Rays Matt Garza on Saturday night at Tropicana Field.

Let’s take a look at game two’s match-up:

Tampa Bay Rays: Matt Garza (11-5)

Fresh off throwing the franchiser’s first no-hitter in its 13-year history, SP Matt Garza’s overall outlook doesn’t change much. Garza is still trying to get back to his 2008 form.

Garza likes pitching at home, even if home is Tropicana Field. At the Trop Garza has a .230  OBA against batters with runners in scoring position.

This season Garza has a 4.06 ERA in 128 innings. He has allowed 118 hits, 58 earned runs, giving up 18 homeruns and 41 walks. Four of the homeruns were given up on July 20 against the worst team in baseball, the Baltimore Orioles. Garza has also thrown two complete games and a no-hitter.

Garza relies a lot on his fastball, as he threw it 99 out 120 pitches during his historic no-hitter. Well, why stop what seems to be working as in his last three starts Garza 2-0, going 21 innings, with a 2.95 ERA with 13 strikeouts and only walking two batters.

Garza might not find success against a hot Yankees line-up, who tend to hit fastballs out of the park. Garza needs to throw a variety of pitches to keep the Bombers on their toes, or it will be ugly.

New York Yankees: Javier Vazquez (9-7)

Javier Vazquez has turned his season around after a horrible April. Finally, Vazquez is that durable pitcher the Yankees wanted in the rotation.

Vazquez’s 4.54 ERA for the season is not reflective of how he is currently pitching. He has pitched 107 innings, giving up 92 hits, 54 earned runs, 118 homers and 41 walks. Vazquez and Garza are well matched looking at stats only. Continue reading ‘New York Yankees Vs. Tampa Bay Rays: Vazquez Faces Garza’ »

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