Hip Hip.... Jorge!

As John Sterling would say, Jorge Juiced one!  Last night Posada hit his 4th home run of the season.  Normally I would be excited with a stat like this, but it seems to be a cause for concern instead.  Jorge isn't hitting the ball well.  In fact he only has 6 hits on the season.  4 of those hits are from home runs though.


It's a super small sample size, but Posada is hitting .182 over 9 games.  He doesn't look particularly sharp at the plate either.  Maybe it's a slow start or maybe he is struggling in his adjustment as the DH.  I think this could be cause for concern as the season plays out.  Eric Chavez may be a decent replacement as the DH if Jorge doesn't start swinging the bat better.  Having Posada on the bench could be a nice spot for him especially if he continues hitting home runs.  Nothing is better than a bench player who hits big home runs.  


I doubt Girardi is planning on making any changes, but it would be worthwhile to allow Chavez to get more at bats.  Chavez had a great spring and is batting .444 through 9 at bats.

Who Is Hector Noesi ??

The Yankees reported that Luis Ayala (25^th spot on the roster) was placed on the DL with a strained lat.  The Yankees used caution and decided to place him on the DL rather than just sitting him for a week.  Ayala made the roster last minute when Feliciano went down with a shoulder injury late in spring training.  It seemed the Yankees wanted a 2^nd lefty in the pen because Logan can be a bit inconsistent….. or so Girardi could micromanage every at bat late in the game, to purposely lengthen the games so none of us can get to sleep at a decent hour.

To replace Ayala, the Yankees called up Hector Noesi.  Hector Noesi is 23 years old and ready to pitch in the majors.  A few years back he had Tommy John surgery and since 2009 has been on a tear through the minor leagues.  Last season was his most dominant and Baseball America placed him in the top ten prospects in the Yankees system.

Although Ayala was a lefty, the Yankees shied away from bringing in another lefty to fill his role.  In fact, Noesi isn’t even a relief pitcher.  The Yankees may just be preparing themselves for a situation where a starting pitcher (Hughes/Garcia??) may need to take some time off, and they can just plug in Noesi for a start or two.  Noesi also makes a lot of sense for a 5^th starter spot as he threw a lot of innings the past two seasons (160 in 2010 and 117 in 2009), and wouldn’t be burdened by a “Joba Rules” situation where the Yankees limit his innings.

Noesi relies upon two pitches, his fastball which is mid 90’s and his changeup down in the low 80’s.  He throws a slider and curve, which have been inconsistent.  The best part about Noesi is his control, as he barely allows any walks.

In 2009 he appeared 26 times, with 20 starts over 117 innings.  He only allowed 15 walks in this period and struck out 118.

2010 is the year Noesi really made progress though, starting in Class A Tampa.  He only had 8 starts in Tampa but his ERA was 2.72, striking out 53 batters over 43 innings.  Noesi then was called up to AA Trenton and pitched well over 98 innings, allowing 18 walks with 86 strikeouts.  The opposing batters in AA only hit .243 against him.

Noesi was eventually called up to AAA Scranton later this season and pitched in only three starts.  He fanned 14 batters over 18 innings, but did allow 23 hits. Batters hit .311 against him in these three starts.  Although Noesi’s numbers declined in AAA, it was only through 3 starts which makes the numbers difficult to gauge.

He has only pitched once this season so far in AAA last Saturday.  He allowed 2 Earned Runs over 5 innings and struck out 4 batters.  Since he pitched last Saturday, he is ready to start pitching today if necessary.  This could be the reason why he was called up over Andrew Brackman, who started yesterday’s game for AAA, and wouldn’t be ready to pitch again until this weekend.  On a side note, Brackman pitched 5 innings allowing 3 ER’s, 5 hits, 3 BB’s & 2 K’s.

The Yankees haven’t said whether they plan to use Noesi as a starter or a relief pitcher.  I would say start him.  Could it be any worse than Hughes right now?  Hughes will need to work on something, whether it is mechanics or just building arm strength.  Throw Hughes in the pen and allow Noesi to take his next start.  Either way, it should be something to keep an eye on.

Who is Lance Pendleton ? 

The Importance of Winning Games in April

After this past weekend in Fenway and with the 1^st place Baltimore Orioles coming to Yankee stadium for a three game set, it will be very important to set the tone.  The Yankees need to play consistently and win.  The Rangers are coming to the Bronx this weekend, and every game this week will prove to be difficult, especially with the starting pitching being in a state of disarray.  The Yankees must capitalize now!

The easiest month of the season for the Yankees is April.  The Yankees have more home games in April, than any other month of the season.  They play 27 total games in the month of April.  Of those 27 games, 19 are in the Bronx.  No other month of the season even comes close to this very favorable schedule.    That means the Yankees must take advantage now and get as many wins as possible before the season really begins.

So far the Yankees are 4-3 and are coming off a tough weekend in Fenway.  Of those 27 total games in April, 1 game was rained out against the Twins.  This game will have to be made up at sometime during the season, which will ultimately be played on one of much needed off-days later in the summer.

The last two months of the season are the most difficult part of the Yankees schedule, making those early season wins more important.  In August & September, the Yankees play 3 series against the Red Sox and Rays.  It does not help that two of the three series against the Red Sox are up in Fenway.  These last two months in the season won’t be easy especially if the AL East is a tight race, as the Yankees play 30 total divisional games during this period.  6 of the 10 teams the Yankees play during this two month span had a record of .500 or better last season.  This does not include the new and improved Baltimore Orioles who look like a totally new ball club under Buck Showalter.

The toughest month of the season by far is August.  During August, the Yankees play a total of 29 games with only 2 days off.  20 of those games are on the road!  The Yankees will also have to face Boston twice this month.  If the Yankees can get as many wins now during their favorable schedule, August will be somewhat manageable to protect any lead they have in the AL East.

The final month doesn’t fare much better for the Yanks as they will play a total of 24 games, plus whatever games need to be made up.  We already have one game against the Twins that was rained out, and tonight could be rained out  as well.   Of the 24 games during September, 13 are on the road and 18 are divisional games.  The Yankees will also have a tough 10 day road trip to the west coast to face the Angels, Seattle and then Toronto.  They come back from their longest road trip of the season and face division rivals Boston & Tampa to close out the season.

Grabbing as many wins during the first month of the season could be a deciding factor as who wins the AL East.  This division may be the toughest in the MLB, and nearly every year produces the wild card.  Last year the AL East was decided by one game, and the division didn’t get much easier this offseason.  Every game the Yankees play this first month is important if they want to make the postseason this year.

Newbies behind the plate for the Yankees & Red Sox

YANKEES

This past offseason, the Yankees made a decision that Jorge Posada could no longer be the starting catcher.  This was partly due to his aging skills, along with a severe concussion he suffered last season.  Posada was reluctant at first, but once he realized the severity of last season's concussion and the potential long-term problems, he accepted his role as the designated hitter.  

The Yankees decided to gamble and picked up Russell Martin, who a few years ago was the Dodgers rookie phenom catcher.  Since 2007 though, Martin has suffered his share of injuries and has not lived up to his expectations especially offensively.  Defensively though, he's a stud.  Last year Martin only hit .248, but he threw out 30.6% of base stealers, which was the 7th best in the majors!  His defensive skills will drastically improve this team. The Yankees actually had a 88.8% stolen base success rate against Yankee catchers in 2010.  This was the highest in the majors AND 5th highest in the wild card era.  Martin was necessary for this team, even if just for the defense.

Surprisingly enough though, Martin is having a great offensive start to the 2011 season, as we saw yesterday with his two home runs against Boston!  He is hitting .321 on the season with 3 home runs & 8 RBI's.

UPDATE:  The NY Times reported today that Russell Martin actually trained this offseason by incorporting mixed martial arts (MMA).  Pretty interesting article can be found here.


RED SOX

This year the Red Sox let Victor Martinez slip away in free agency and named Jarrod Saltalamacchia as the starting catching for the Red Sox. This should be cause for concern to any Boston fan as Saltamacchia can lead to the downfall of their team.  As we have seen in the past two games against the Yankees, he struggles offensively.  Although he caught Jeter stealing yesterday, he hasn't been terribly effective behind the plate either.  In fact, he could be the reason why the pitcher's are struggling so much.

In 2010 he only had a 17%  caught stealing percentage. Over the past few seasons, he has been on the leader board for errors as well.  In 2009 he committed 7 errors and tied for 5th highest in the AL and in 2008 tied for 2nd most in AL with 9.  In 2008 he also played first base, and had the most errors of any first basemen in the AL with 9.

Defense isn't his biggest struggle though as this season Saltalamacchia has struck out in every game he has started!  He has already struck out three times in the Yankees series already, and there is still a game to play today.  Salty (as they call him in Boston) has struck out 9 times for the season and is hitting a mere .182.  He went 0-10 in the opening series in Texas last weekend.  The scouting report on him says he will swing at everything!  On the bright side for Boston, he did hit well against the Yankees on Friday, driving in an RBI to break a 6-6 tie. 

Boston's starting pitchers on paper should be the best rotation next to the Phillies but they are not getting the job done.   I can't help but wonder if putting a young kid behind the plate has anything to do with this.  Varitek was one of those catcher's that could call a game better than nearly any catcher, and Victor Martinez was a seasoned catcher as well.  Varitek is such a heady catcher that he has been the catcher in 4 no-hitters!  Now the pitchers, especially the younger ones, must rely upon themselves more.  Lester & Buchholz have struggled this season so far and Lackey hasn't done much better.   The starting rotation for Boston so far in 2011 is 1-5 with a 7.46 ERA.  Take John Lester out of the mix and the ERA jumps to 9.10.  Hopefully the Yankees will capitalize on this tonight when they face off against Josh Beckett.  Beckett allowed 29 earned runs against the Yankees last season in 26 total innings!!!

Overall, I think the Yankees were more successful in the offseason, behind the plate.  Martin was a bit of a gamble with his numbers declining, but he's a great defensive catcher putting up strong numbers this season.  On the other hand, it should be interesting to see how the Red Sox can make this adjustment to a young catcher behind the plate this season.  Definitely something to keep an eye on!

Another Low Risk, High Reward Gamble for Cashman

The Yankees signed Carlos Silva yesterday to a minor league contract.  Silva who was cut by the Cubs during spring training is a veteran righty pitcher picked up by Cashman to add a little extra depth.  Silva made some headlines this spring after getting into a fight with Aramiz Ramirez (his own teammate), in the dugout.  He eventually was cut by the Cubbies after Andrew Cashner beat him out in the 5th pitcher competition.  Last year, Yankees pitching coach Larry Rothschild worked with Silva and claims that Silva pounds the strike zone.  Let's wait and see.

Silva is going to pitch down in Tampa, along with another couple veterans, Kevin Millwood & Mark Prior.  All these guys were picked up as insurance.  Fortunately, Silva is being paid 11.5 million from Chicago for this season.  Neither Silva nor Millwood is being paid more than minor league contract numbers, so there is very little risk involved.  Both provide depth presumably in the dog days of summer when other players get injured or Girardi needs to rest the bullpen.  Silva and Millwood seem to fit the Yankees, Plan B, from the offseason.  Plan A was to get Cliff Lee, and Plan B is to fill up the bullpen with big names and sign veterans to minor league contracts.

Plan B seems to be working for now, but I still have a funny feeling that Cashman is going to sign or trade for a big name, before the all-star break

Silva's numbers

2010: 10-6  with a 4.22 ERA.  His first half was better though with only a 3.45 ERA.  He went on the disabled list for a heart problem, which does not seem to be an issue any longer.

Career: 70-70 with a 4.68 ERA in 180 starts.

Shipping Up to Boston

The Yankees are taking their first road trip this weekend to Fenway Park for the Red Sox home opener.  After the first week of games, the Yankees are 4-2 winning 2 series against the Tigers & Twins.  The Red Sox who were touted to be the best team in MLB for 2011, have had a terrible start and have lost every game they have played so far.  (It's the curse of Sports Illustrated predicting they would win the World Series)   But now they are going back home for an 11 Day homestand.  I'm sure with their poor start they are itching to play in Boston.... it should make for an interesting series!


The Yankees have overall looked pretty solid.  They are hitting the ball well especially for power, and the pitching has been everything they were hoping for.  The Yankees are 463-446-4 against Boston in Fenway, all time.

I just couldn't resist throwing this pic in!  Still my favorite game!

The Red Sox have looked awful.  This season they are 7-44 with runners in scoring position, and have only scored 16 runs in their last 6 games.  They are coming off their road trip in Texas and Cleveland, back to Fenway.  Boston hasn't been swept by the Indians since August of 2001!


In the offseason, Boston lost their catcher, Victor Martinez to free agency.   This was quite a gamble for the Red Sox as they were left with the aging Jason Varitek and Jarred Saltalamacchia as the starting catcher.  Saltalamacchia has had a very poor start to the season.  In his first three games of the season, he went 0-10 with 5 strikeouts.  He is batting .071 over the last 6 games.  He swings at Everything!  Saltalamacchia has not been much better behind the plate either.  He caught Lester's first appearance against the Rangers, when Lester allowed 5 ER over 5 innings without one strikeout.  He wasn't much help to Lackey either in game two when Lackey allowed 9 runs over 3 innings.  This was followed up by Buchholz's game when he allowed 4 runs over 6 innings.  Of course it comes down to the pitchers, but I believe that if Varitek was behind the plate things wouldn't gotten so out of hand.

The Red Sox did make some good moves this offseason by aquiring Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez.  Crawford was a great pickup for left field.  He is a quality outfielder who is only 29 years old, and left field in Fenway is small to begin with.  He should have no problems adapting to the new ballpark.  Although Crawford is off to a slow offensive start, his 2010 numbers are impressive.  He had a .307 batting average with a .495 slugging percentage, driving in 19 HR's with Tampa.

Adrian Gonzalez helps fill the middle of Boston's batting order as the cleanup hitter.  His numbers for 2010 are impressive as well.  Gonzalez hit .298 last season driving in 31 home runs with a .511 slugging percentage. 








 Pitching Matchups


Friday (2PM Game): Phil Hughes vs John Lackey

 -This should prove to be a good matchup for Hughes who is coming off a tough start.  Hughes only lasted 4 innings giving up 5 runs on 5 hits.  Hughes' velocity was down which should be a concern going into Fenway.  Fortunately, Lackey is coming off an even worse start.

-The middle of Boston's order could have a field day with Hughes if he isn't sharp today.  Hughes gives up a lot of home runs, and both Crawford, Gonzalez, Youkilis and Ortiz are home run threats.


-In Lackey's start he allowed 9 runs on 10 hits against the Rangers.  He only lasted 3 and 2/3 innings.  He looked terrible and paid for it.



Saturday:  Ivan Nova vs Bucholz


Sunday:  CC Sabathia vs Josh Beckett


Side Notes

Yankees skipped Freddy Garcia's start after the rain out Thursday.  Garcia won't pitch again until April 15 against the Rangers.  His last start was the final spring training game.


The Yankees played the Red Sox on Opening Day last season in Fenway.  The Yankees loss that day taking a 9-7 loss by Chan Ho Park.  The Yankees came back to win the next two games.  Chan Ho Park redeemed himself getting the win in Game 3 of that series.

QUICK UPDATE @ 12:30PM

The Red Sox just activated Felix Doubront from the disabled list for today's game.  They have released Denny Reyes.  Both are left handed relief pitchers, but Reyes has been horrible through the first 6 games allowing.  It comes as no surprise that Reyes will be designated for assignment.  He has faced 10 batters in 5 games and allowed 6 to reach base.  That is not what anybody is looking for in their bullpen.

This was kind of surprising though after Reyes' spring.  He pitched very well during spring training and even beat out Alfredo Aceves for that last bullpen spot.  But this once again proves that spring training numbers mean nothing.
Countdown for Jeter

• Jeter only needs 69 more hits before he hits 3000!

Soriano Struggles

The big story the other night was Rafael Soriano blowing a 4 run lead and the Yankees ultimately losing the game 5-4.  Although I tend to me overly optimistic when it comes to the Yankees, I don’t see much concern about Soriano (or Girardi) at this point in the season.  So fine, Soriano blew a lead and the Yankees lost the game.  It happens!

Soriano led the league in saves last year and he hasn’t done anything different this year.  In fact, the lead he blew the other night was the biggest lead he has ever given up in his career.  This was a fluke.  He looked extremely sharp on opening day against the Tigers and on Monday against the Twins (round 1).  He is so dominant against the AL central that prior to Tuesday’s game, he had only allowed 1 Earned Run in his last 18 innings against AL Central opponents.

The media seems to be playing this up more than anybody and it’s because they were pissed off at Soriano for not fielding questions at his locker after the game.  Bottom line is the guy is an awesome pitcher who had one bad outing.  The media can analyze his body language all they want, but one bad inning isn’t cause for major concern, especially when the wind chill that evening was 36 degrees!  If the Yankees have a close lead in the 8^th inning, they are still giving Soriano the ball.

The bigger story was CC Sabathia.  He pitched great and didn’t get the win.  His fastball was down and had movement.  He pitched 7 scoreless innings and even retired the last 17 batters he faced!  Hopefully this second no-decision for CC will keep him fired up for Sunday night in Boston.  The Yankees will need a quality start as Beckett is on the mound.  Regardless of Beckett’s numbers this season or last season, he is a Yankee killer

UPDATE @ 6:20 PM

Soriano pitched this afternoon for the 8th inning in the final game against the Twins.  He pitched 1 scoreless inning, allowing only a leadoff single.  He threw a total of 11 pitches - 9 for strikes.  I wouldn't be too concerned with Soriano at this point.

Side Note

Brian Duensing seems to have some bad luck when he faces the Yankees.  On Tuesday he pitched very well after the first two innings.  Both Arod and Texeira are red hot right now and hit home runs early, but Duensing didn’t let it bother him and continued pitching into the 7^th Inning allowing only 6 total hits and striking out 7.  Even though the Twins won the game, Duensing didn’t get the win.

Last year Duensing pitched in Yankee stadium on May 25 and faced off against AJ Burnett.  Duensing only allowed 1 run against the Yankees and again, didn’t get the win.  AJ actually pitched a shutout against the Twins.  This was the last win Burnett got until July as he didn’t win one game for the entire month of June.

Not The Same Old Twinkies

While watching last night’s game, I noticed the Minnesota Twins made some moves this offseason.  It seems Gardenhire was frustrated after the 2010 postseason and had the front office make some deals. This may be the result of the team moving to Target Field.   

The move to Target field allowed them to improve their payroll to $115 Million this season.  The drawback of Target Field though, is the lack of home runs in the new stadium.  They dropped from 96 total home runs at home in 2009 in the Metrodome, to 52 at Target Field last season.

Gardenhire wanted to make the team faster and more versatile.  It’s a nice way of saying the Twins could no longer wait for the home runs from Morneau, Mauer & Cuddyer.  Although Denard Span has some speed, the Twins only had 68 stolen bases all season. (Twins lowest in franchise history)

During the offseason they signed 26 year old Tsuyoshi Nishioka to a 3 year deal from Japan’s Pacific League.  Nishioka was named their starter second baseman, when the Twins allows Orlando Hudson to enter free agency.  They also traded JJ Hardy and replaced him with a 26 year old shortstop, Alexi Casilla.  Although it could be dangerous to replace the middle infield, the Twins needed to take a risk in order to score more runs. 

The AL Central is shaping up to be a battle between the Tigers and Twins with possibly the White Sox in contention.  The AL Central now has three teams with payrolls higher than 100 Million!  (Only division in MLB)

Side Notes

• In a battle of lefties, CC Sabathia gets the start tonight against Brian Duensing.  Tonight would be Freddy Garcia’s opportunity to pitch but Girardi bumped Garcia until tomorrow night instead.  Presumably, to allow CC the start on Sunday night in Fenway.
• Even with the Opening Day loss, CC boasts the highest winning percentage of any starter in MLB at home, over the last two years - - .818!!!
• Duensing did not have much success with the Yankees last season.  He took a loss on May 25, when AJ Burnett threw a shutout, although Duensing only allowed 1 run.
• Duensing pitched game 3 of the 2010 ALDS against Hughes and again took a loss, allowing the Yankees to sweep the ALDS.
• The Twins have won the AL Central in 6 of the last 9 seasons.

Things Going As Planned

The bullpen situation for the Yankees has gone pretty much as planned.  Plug Joba in to fill the 7th inning, then Soriano for the 8th and Mo to close it out.  Last night Joba looked sharp and didn't allow any hits in the 7th inning.  Soriano continued to prove himself as a great signing by Cashman and Mo continues to be.... Mo!  With three relievers to dominate the last three innings of a game, the Yankees have essentially created a game that lasts 6 innings.  As long as the Yankees can take a lead early in the game, there is little chance they will lose the game.


Side Notes

Ivan Nova looked sharp last night.  His fastball had movement and was always down in the zone.  He had no problems the first time through the order, and although he got himself in a little jam in the 4th inning (Jim Thome is still a threat!), he pitched himself out of trouble, causing Mauer to ground out on a curveball to end the inning.  If Nova continues to battle batters the second and third time through the lineup, he will have a great season.  We already know how dominant he is the first time through the batting order.

The Yankees have now won the last 18 of 20 games against the Twins.... poor Gardenhire!

Tonight they play again and it looks like Jeter will get the leadoff spot in the order as Andruw Jones will be starting in the outfield giving either Granderson or Gardner the day off.

Arod is continuing the hot streak from spring training, hitting another A-Bomb last night.  I think I speak for most fans when I say..... Save a little for October!!!

The Twins Are In Town

Tonight the Twins come to New York for a 4 game series.  The Twins, who were nearly swept by the Blue Jays this past weekend, seem to be struggling.  Even with their win yesterday, Nathan came awfully close to blowing a save.  It doesn’t help that they lost Jesse Crane, Matt Guerrier and Jon Rauch, as their relievers from last season.  The depleted bullpen doesn’t fare well for them against the Yankees, whose offense has been explosive over this last weekend. 

The Twins have dropped the last 17 of 19 games against the Yankees.  This includes both 2009 & 2010 Divisional Series which they were swept.  The Twins only have one win in the new Yankee stadium so far.  Last year the Yankees went 2-1 at home against the Twins.  The Yankees went 4-2 against them on the season.

Pitching Matchups

Monday/Tonight:  Ivan Nova v. Scott Baker

                -Nova has had a terrific spring which included a no hitter over 6 innings against the Orioles.   I saw his final start of the spring against the Astros and although he wasn’t as sharp, he pitched very well.   He seems to have problems the second and third time going through the order.

-Nova’s ERA in spring training was 1.80   over  5 starts. 

-As long as he keeps that fastball down, he will dominate! 

                -Nova will pitch again on Saturday in Boston against Bucholz

                -Baker faced the Yankees last years on May 14 and took the loss. 

Tuesday:  CC Sabathia  v. Brian Duensing

                -It looks like Sabathia is being lined up to face Beckett on Sunday night in Boston!

Wednesday:  Freddy Garcia v. Carl Pavano

                -I am still living up that glory from the ALDS when Pavano got shelled by the Yanks!  

                -Pavano gave up 10 hits over 6 innings  taking the loss in Game 2.

Thursday:  AJ Burnett v. Francisco Liriano

                -1PM Game…. Anybody need a ticket?  I can’t miss work for the Yankees….. or can I?

                -Liriano had second best strikeout rate in AL in 2010 (9.4 per 9 innings)