2010 Projections: Outfield

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

As we approach Opening Night which is just three days away, we will be giving you our predicitions on the Yankees players this season. Yesterday Jim gave his infield/catcher projections, and on Tuesday I gave my pitching projections. Today we move to the outfield.



Outfield

Curtis Granderson: .280, 33 HR 80 RBI, 22 SB

Nick Swisher: .257, 26 HR, 75 RBI

Brett Gardner: .261, 5 HR, 57 RBI, 40 SB

Randy Winn: .247, 7 HR, 54 RBI

Marcus Thames: .254 14 HR, 59 RBI

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Hughes' First Start To Be April 15

Phil Hughes' first start of 2010 won't come until the end of the second week of the season. Because of the off days early in the Yankees schedule, they can afford to use a four-man rotation for the first time around this year. Hughes will pitch an extended spring training game on April 5, and another extended spring training game on April 10 before he makes his first start of the regular season on April 15 against the Angels of somewhere in California. The Yankees are doing this because a.) the schedule, and b.) it limits Hughes' innings.

Check back tomorrow for our 2010 outfield projections.

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2010 Projections: Infielders and Catchers

We're continuing our projections for 2010. Yesterday John outlined his predictions for the pitching staff and today I will be looking at the infielders and catchers.

Infielders:
Mark Teixeira: .301, 45 HR, 130 RBI's
Robinson Cano: .327, 30 HR, 97 RBI's
Alex Rodriguez: .305, 42 HR, 140 RBI's
Derek Jeter: .310, 16 HR, 60 RBI's
Ramiro Pena: .275, 1 HR, 11 RBI's
Nick Johnson: .287, 13 HR, 65 RBI's

Catchers:
Jorge Posada:.280, 23 HR, 90 RBI's
Francisco Cervelli: .255, 3 HR, 20 RBI's

Tomorrow we will give you our outfield projections. Then we'll have our playoff predictions and Award picks on Friday and Saturday.

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5 days until Opening Day

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

The Yanks are just fine tuning some things before Sunday's opener, and here's some links to some interesting stories out of the Grapefruit League as camp winds down.

Make sure you check back tomorrow for our projections on the Infielders and Catchers.

And make sure you vote on our poll on the right before the game on Sunday.

SEE YA!
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A few Yankees battling injuries

One of the most important things heading into Spring Training is to keep everyone healthy. But, inevitably, there are some injuries.

Alfredo AcevesImage via Wikipedia


Alfredo Aceves is day-to-day with a back injury. It is apparently a flare-up from injury that was bothering him last September, so this may be cause for concern. And the Yankees have not ruled out starting Aceves on the DL.

Mark Teixeira was hit on the right elbow with a pitch in a Spring Training game against the Orioles yesterday. He left the game and experienced soreness, but should be in the lineup on Thursday.

Check back tomorrow for my predictions on the Yankees infielders and catchers.
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2010 Projections: Pitching

Monday, March 29, 2010

Every year since about the sixth grade I have wrote down the list of players on the Yankees and predict their stats for the upcoming season. We'll break it down over the next couple of days before we give you our regular season and postseason predictions as well as our predictions for awards. These are just predictions and don't usually mean anything (last year I wrote that Chien Ming Wang would win 18 games) but it's fun and everyone else is doing it. Today we'll start with pitching.

Starters
CC Sabathia-- 18-6, 3.23 ERA, 209 K's
A.J. Burnett-- 15-9, 3.75 ERA, 198 K's
Andy Pettitte--13-10, 4.03 ERA, 163 K's
Javier Vazquez-- 13-8, 3.90 ERA, 185 K's
Phil Hughes-- 10-9, 4.23 ERA, 160 K's


Relievers
Mariano Rivera 3-3, 41 saves, 1.91 ERA, 73 K's
Joba Chamberlain 5-4, 4 saves, 3.47 ERA 80 K's
David Robertson 6-2, 2.92 ERA, 87 K's,
Damaso Marte 3-5, 4.01 ERA, 40K
Sergio Mitre 3-4, 4.87 ERA, 52 K's
Alfredo Aceves 5-4, 4.46 ERA 48 K's


Tomorrow we will have our infield/catcher projections.

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How do you think the Yankees will do in 2010?

Buster Olney has the Yankees facing off with the Colorado Rockies in the World Series this year - and losing.

I'm sure I don't have to tell you that I respectfully disagree with his opinion. (Translation: That's a load of crap, Buster!)

What do you think? Take a look at our poll on the right and tell us how you think the Bronx Bombers will fair this season.

The poll will close at 8 pm on April 4, so get your votes in before the first game!

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News and Notes

We are now days - not weeks - away from Opening Day and the excitement is building towards the season. Joe Girardi only has a few decisions to make regarding the bullpen and the bench, but the roster is almost finalized.

  • As John talked about earlier, Joba seems like he is going to be the headline for a little while, at least until the beat writers actually have games to write about. Over the weekend, Director of Professional Scouting Billy Eppler stirred the pot a little more saying that the Yankees were leaving Joba in the bullpen for good. Brian Cashman later said that wasn't an official team decision and just Eppler's opinion. Now Cashman may have used "opinion" instead of "Eppler's running his mouth without listening to the people in charge," but he is the Pro Scouting Director, so he's pretty high up there. Cashman's statements lead us to believe that Joba will be reevaluated as a starter at the end of the season. So two important Yankee officials talk about 2 of the 3 options I presented last week, but still leave out what I believe to be the best option.
  • According to our friend over at LeNYy's Yankees, the fans agree that Phil Hughes should be the fifth starter.
  • After being released by the Yankees last week, Chad Gaudin wasted no time in finding a new home with the Oakland A's.
  • President Barack Obama will throw out the ceremonial first pitch at Nationals Park on Opening Day when the Phillies play in Washington. They should leave him out for the real first pitch too, since left-handed Commander-in-Chief (get the parallel?) will probably be better than anyone the Nationals can run out there.



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Jobamania

You know the baseball season is among us when the Joba Chamberlain starter or reliever question is the hot topic of the past couple of days. As you all know, Phil Hughes was named the fifth starter last week, and questions arose about the status of Joba Chamberlain. Should they put him in the bullpen as a setup man? Or do they send him down to AAA to log in innings and work on becoming a starter for next year?


Joe Girardi said Thursday that Joba was going to pitch out of the bullpen. Debate over, right? Well, not quite. Brian Cashman has publicly said that his long-term role is undetermined. In the article Cashman said, "He's going to be a starter pitching out of the pen." Ok, that doesn't make much sense. Girardi has already said if a starter is injured Sergio Mitre or Alfredo Aceves would be the backups. So are the Yankees really developing a starter by putting him in the bullpen to pitch 80 innings this year, and 180 the next?


Honestly, I feel bad for Joba. He's got a lot of talent and a lot of potential, but it seems to me the Yankees don't know what to do with him. If they keep moving him back and forth from starter to reliever he's never going to fully develop into the pitcher he can be. The Yankees need to sit down and determine what their future plans are for Joba, because if they don't know, they might as well trade to a team that's going to have a plan for him.

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Friday night links

Friday, March 26, 2010

It is now officially baseball season in the Geant world, as my Syracuse Orange entered Heartbreak City last night. (That link is to a Gus Johnson soundboard. Have fun.) And that is the only mention of them I will make until I can do it without crying, so give me about 6-8 months.

But, as I said, baseball is right around the corner! We're just about 9 days away from Opening Night against the Red Sox as the World Champs head to Fenway to supply a Boston Beatdown.

It's been a uncharacteristically quiet spring in Tampa. But, as they say, no news is good news.

There are a few links to some interesting stories:

  • A-Rod may or may not have been questioned by Federal Investigators in regards to Dr. Anthony Galea. If he was, he is back and in the lineup for tonight's spring training game against the Phillies. (How many times have the Yanks played the Phillies this year in spring training? And I thought we played the Red Sox a lot.) And as I was writing this A-Rod has told reporters that there was no meeting today.
  • If you hadn't heard, Michael Jordan has become the principle owner of the Charlotte Bobcats in the NBA. Apparently, Derek Jeter wants to follow in his footsteps, and own a professional baseball team. Now, I know we would all love it if after his playing days were over Jeter would one day become the owner of the Yankees. In my mind, that would be the only person I would feel comfortable owning the Yankees besides the Steinbrenner family. But, when you look at it realistically, I don't see how it could possibly happen. According to a Forbes report from last year, the Yanks are worth $1.5 billion. That's a lot of money. Now, Jordan can afford to do it because 1) the Bobcats are worth $278 million. If Jeter wants to buy the Marlins (valued at $277 million) it might be possible. And 2) He's Michael Jordan. You know those shoes Jeter endorses? The Air Jordans? Guess who those were named after. And guess who gets a royalty every time they're sold. Though, I don't think Jeter has gambled away as much of his money as Jordan did.

Also, late Wednesday night, John and I drafted in our Fantasy Baseball league. It's a 12-team 5x5 Rotisserie league. His team, SwishHawk, is led by Prince Fielder, Troy Tulowitzki, Nick Markakis, Tori Hunter, Chris Carpenter, and Matt Cain. My team, A Deuce for the Cuse, boasts Matt Kemp, Mark Reynolds, Ben Zobrist, Roy Halladay, Ryan Zimmerman, Josh Johnson, and Jonathan Broxton. Of course, I think I have the better team, but I'm sure John thinks otherwise. We'll keep you updated throughout the course of the season on which Michael Kay's Successor is faring better in the league.

SEE YA!
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Hughes gets the nod; what to do with Joba?

Thursday, March 25, 2010

So, as John reported earlier, this morning Joe Girardi announced that Phil Hughes is the fifth starter.

Phil HughesImage by alexabboud via Flickr


According to Joel Sherman, this was Hughes's job to lose since February and he didn't lose it. This ends the spring of speculation about who will take the mound on April 17, the first time the Yankees need a fifth starter.

The next thing that gets talked about any time you mention Hughes or Joba Chamberlain (more on him later) is the innings limit.

Since Hughes has thrown more innings over the course of his career, he will have a higher innings limit than Joba did last year. Initial estimates put that limit at around 170 innings. Girardi said that they have not come up with the plan on how to work around that, but expressed that he would like to do it at the beginning of the season and not the end.

Hopefully Hughes can stay healthy and put up the kind of season we've all expected since that would-be no-hitter in Texas a few years ago. He's going to have a little less pressure on him as the number 5 starter in what is one of the best (and, in my humble opinion the absolute best) rotations in baseball.

Giving Hughes the chance to start this season is not only because the team thinks he gives them the best chance to win this season, but because he could very well slide into the number 3 spot in the rotation next year. Javier Vazquez and Andy Pettitte are free agents after the season so it is unclear whether they will be back. If they do not come back, Hughes will be ready, and without an innings limit.

Now, what does this mean for Joba Chamberlain? When asked if this meant Joba would go to the 8th inning, Girardi said "If he earns it." Ok Joe, say Joba earns it. Then he goes to the bullpen and pitches 80 innings, at the most. Then when Andy and Javy leave, you need two more starters but one of them can only pitch 130. So there's only a couple of options here with Joba.

  1. The Yanks do what a lot of people (including the extremely loud guy on WFAN in the afternoons) want and say the Joba will be in the bullpen and is the successor to Mariano Rivera at closer. I've never been a B-Jobber, but it is an option.
  2. They put him in the bullpen this year, and then stretch him out and go through the Joba Rules all over again next year. I really hope this isn't an option, because I don't know if I can go another 3 years listening about the Joba Rules.
  3. This is the most jarring, but I think it's the best option: Girardi, Cashman, and the rest of the Yankee brain trust goes to Joba and says, "Look Joba, we want you to be a starter, but there isn't the room in the rotation this year. We're going to send you down to AAA so you can throw a lot of innings and work on a few things so you can be ready for next year. And after the minor league season is over, you can come back up here and help us win a World Series out of the bullpen." This has to be the best option. This is the first year Joba has no innings limit, and you're going to waste that in the bullpen? Do I think the Yankees have the cojones to do it? I don't know, only time will tell.

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Phil Hughes Named Fifth Starter

Joe Girardi has announced that Phil Hughes will be the fifth starter to open the season. We'll have more from Girardi once the beat reporters update their blogs with details. Joel Sherman of the NY Post wrote about how the Yankees can use Hughes regarding innings limits. I've got class soon so either me or Jim will write about what we think about this decision and what kind of limits Hughes will have, if any, when we find out more.

Photo via Google Images

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The five battling for fifth

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

We are now less than two weeks away from the first pitch of the Major League Baseball season. 12 days to be exact. 12 more days until Derek Jeter walks to the plate taps the plate with his bat while he holds his arm held up to the umpire. 12 more days until we can just watch baseball everyday instead of the normal crap that is on TV.

Before we get to that point, however, the Yankees have some decisions to make. The most pressing issue, is the decision for the Yanks fifth starter. This despite the fact that the Yankees only need to use CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, Javy Vazquez, and Andy Pettitte until April 24th because of the schedule.

But Joe Girardi will announce his decision Thursday about who will win the job, so I thought it would be a good idea to take a look at the competitors

Sergio Mitre- (14 IP, 3.21 ERA, 14 K)
Mitre has pitched very well this spring, as he now seems to be completely healed from Tommy John surgery. He is throwing harder and has better command. It will be interesting if the Yankees, as an organization, are willing to give Mitre the spot over two of their most higly-touted prospects in Hughes and Chamberlain.

Phil Hughes- (13 IP, 4.15 ERA, 10 K)
After being extremely effective out of the bullpen last year, Hughes is vying for a spot as a starter, which he has been throughout his entire career. He gave up 3 homeruns to the Phillies yesterday, but both Girardi and Hughes said that he was throwing his best stuff yesterday. He hasn't proven himself as a starter yet in the majors, but this may be his shot.

Joba Chamberlain
-(6.2 IP, 16.20 ERA, 5 K)
He hasn't had very good stats this spring, but spring training stats aren't worth the paper they're printed on. He pitched well as a starter last season, until the Yankees started limiting his innings, but there are no inning restrictions this year, so they may finally just hand him the ball and say "go get 'em."

Chad Gaudin- ( 9.1 IP, 8.68 ERA, 5K)
This name on the list has a little bit of an asterisk next to it, because, according to some reports, Gaudin was placed on waivers, but Chad Jennings reports he's still in camp and there's nothing official on the Yankees website, so I'll at least mention him. He pitched very well last season, but he is out of options and due almost $3 million this season.

Alfredo Aceves-(14.1 IP, 3.77 ERA, 7K)
Aceves was impressive out of the Yankees bullpen last year, winning 10 games as a reliever. I think it is unlikely that he gets the nod as a starter, but he is in the mix. he's had one of the best springs of any of the candidates, which I'm sure is making Girardi's decision much tougher.


We're all waiting to hear Giradi's decision, as well as waiting for the roster to be finalized as we move closer to the season, so make sure you stay tuned for all that news.

SEE YA!

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ESPN Sunday Night Baseball Commercial

Thought this was funny and definitely put me in the mood for opening day. It features Clay Buchholz and Nick Swisher....12 days.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZ5a09TWFpE

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Chad Gaudin Placed On Waivers

So just a couple of days after I speculated Mitre being traded and the Yankees keeping Gaudin as their long man, Gaudin has been placed on waivers. Gaudin is out of options so once he clears the Yankees could send him to AAA and pay the rest of his salary or release him pay a fraction of it.

Gaudin has been the least effective fifth starting candidate in spring training so it doesn't come as much of a shock. I do think this increases the chances of Mitre being kept on the team for the start of the season.

Chad Jennings of the LoHud Blog has a nice article about Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain's battle for the fifth starting spot. He mentions how despite Hughes giving up a walk-off home run eysterday he and Girardi feel he threw his best. The article also discusses Chamberlain's progress this spring from some dismal performances early on.

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Sergio Mitre: Possible Fifth Starter, or Trade Bait?

Sunday, March 21, 2010

While March Madness has taken over everyone's lives the past week, all is relatively quiet in the world of baseball. The Yankees made cuts today, sending Jesus Montero, Austin Romine, Colin Curtis and Reid Gorecki to the minor league complex. But the big question is, who will be the fifth starter?

Sergio Mitre has caught the attention of everyone, especially after his stellar performance against the Tampa Bay Rays, in which he allowed two hits and struck out seven in five innings. But there has been some rumblings that either Mitre or Chad Gaudin will be traded at the end of spring training. Now if you look at spring training stats, Mitre seems to be the better pick. But if you look at spring training stats, Jon Weber should be the next Babe Ruth.

In a case like this you need to look past the spring training stats. Gaudin may have an ERA around 8, but his track record is much better and he is more reliable than Mitre in the long-run. If you're looking at Mitre as the fifth starter, you have to compare him to Hughes. Hughes has been the face of the Yankees farm system the last few years, and he has been groomed to be the next starting pitcher.

I think, in the end, what will benefit the Yankees in the long run is that Gaudin stays and Mitre gets traded, while Hughes gets the fifth spot in the rotation.

Today's game was rained out, but they will have an intrasquad game tomorrow because they need several pitcher to throw.

Just saw this on espn.com: Joe Mauer of the Twins has agreed to an 8-year $184 million contract extension.

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News, Notes, and a chance meeting

Monday, March 15, 2010

Little bit busy for us the past few days but I thought I'd just share a few stories from Spring Training.

  • CC Sabathia had a rough start against the Pirates, going 4.1 innings, 3 hits, 3 runs, 2 walks, 2 runs, 2 Ks and surrendered a home run. He threw 57 pitches, 29 of them for strikes. Not good, but it is only the third start of spring training, and Girardi wasn't concerned, "He was very sound today. He was good. He was really good today."
  • It's just a rumor about a wild discussion, but there are reports that the Phillies have discussed trading Ryan Howard for Albert Pujols straight up. As John said to me, the Phillies would be the one to get the best player at a position, and then trade away the second best player at the same position.
  • Washington Nationals phenom Stephen Strasburg has been lights out in spring training, fueling speculation about whether he will open the season at AAA or with the big club. Personally (and selfishly) I hope he starts in AAA because the National's top club is in Syracuse,NY, so I would get a chance to see him up close.
  • Speaking of Syracuse, the NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament bracket was announced. I've got my bracket all filled out. You'll never guess who I picked to win it all.
And, I almost forgot to mention this, but I have a good story from my trip home for spring break. I took the Amtrak down from Syracuse, and it arrived late (surprise, surprise) so I missed the earlier NJ Transit train home. With a 45 minute wait, I grabbed a bite to eat and sat across from the Hudson News stand in the station. One second I looked up and walking by was none other than Michael Kay. It took me a couple of seconds to recognize him, and then I heard him talk to one of the people he was with, and that confirmed it was him. He was too far away by the time to say anything by the time I realized it was him (but I did get a few suggestions from friends, none of which I can repeat). But we will meet again one day.



That's all for now, but we've got less than THREE WEEKS until opening day!!!

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March Madness (and it's not about Syracuse)

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

I know we are a Yankees blog, and since Jim is always, always, talking about Syracuse basketball, I need to step in with my college basketball's team. Tomorrow is a big day for Quinnipiac basketball because we will actually be on national television tomorrow, at 7 pm on ESPN2 for the NEC Championship game against Robert Morris. We are on Spring Break but I will be going up to the game so I won't be blogging tomorrow. Tickets are already sold out, which never happens, so it is going to be crazy. We have never made it to the NCAA Tournament and a win sends us dancing. Sure, we'll probably be a 16 seed (maybe even have a possible matchup with Syracuse), but it's about getting to the dance for us.

If you're bored on Wednesday night, turn on ESPN2 to watch a team and its fans try to will itself to the big dance. It's going to be a crazy atmosphere and the stakes are a lot higher and the game means more to the players and fans than any other conference tournament game you will watch.

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A-Rod Drama

It isn't spring training unless there's A-Rod drama involved. Yesterday, the Canadian doctor who is under investigation for having the drug Actovegin, which is not approved for sale in Canada and is illegal in the United States, said that he had treated A-Rod after his hip surgery. Dr. Anthony Galea, who was also found with HGH at the US-Canadian border, said he had only given A-Rod anti-inflammatories, which of course, is legal.


However, the Yankees along with Dr. Marc Philippon, never gave authorization for A-Rod to seek medical attention from this doctor. This presents a problem for the Yankees. This could result in a void in A-Rod's contract, but some think the Yankees would not let that happen. There is also the possibility of fining A-Rod, but I'm sure the player's union will step in if that happened.


If I'm a member of the Yankees front office, I'd be pretty ticked off at A-Rod because he went behind the Yankees and their doctors backs. A-Rod has yet to speak to federal investigators, but if what has been said is true, the Yankees and A-Rod have some trust issues they need to work out.

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Fight for the Fifth Spot, Round 1

Saturday, March 6, 2010

I wanted to put this up yesterday after Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain pitched, but I didn't get around to it. The big question this spring training is who is the fifth starter for the Yankees? Hughes and Chamberlain are expected to be the front-runners, but after their performances yesterday, and the performances of some others this spring, it can easily be said that it is wide open. Now that the Yankees have played four spring training games, and each has gotten roughly 35 pitches in, let's breakdown how they have looked and the chances each have.

Chad Gaudin:
2 IP, 1 H, 1 K, 0 ER, 34 pitches, 23 strikes.

Sergio Mitre
2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 K

Alfredo Aceves
2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 K

Phil Hughes
2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 33 pitches, 18 strikes.

Joba Chamberlain
1.1 IP, 3 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, 33 pitches, 14 strikes.

Kei Igawa (Yeah, I know. But Girardi has said not to rule him out)
1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 2 K

Analysis: Obviously it's still very early, but, there should be some cause for concern with Chamberlain and Hughes. All candidates had similar lines, with the exception of those two. My theory is that Hughes and Chamberlain could be putting a little more pressure on themselves whereas the others are pitching with no pressure at all. What really bothers me is Chamberlain's performance. Maybe it was because he was coming back from having the flu, but 14 strikes out of 33 pitches? Sounds like the exact same Joba from last year that we know.

On the other hand, the darkhorse of this group is Gaudin. He has the most experience out of anyone in this group, and pitched well for the Yankees at the end of last year. He went 2-0 with a 3.43 ERA in 11 games (6 starts). If Gaudin remains consistent and efficient for the rest of the spring, he has a legitimate chance of being the fifth starter. The the question becomes, do you put both Hughes and Chamberlain in the pen? Or one in the pen and the other to the minors to work as a starter?

There is still plenty of time left for decisions to be made, but this gives you a good idea of where the competition is at the first mile of a five mile race (yes I run cross-country I must make a running reference).

Other Yankees news:

  • The Yankees lost 9-1 to the Toronto Blue Jays today. A.J. Burnett pitched, working out of a first inning bases loaded jam, but couldn't get out of the second, giving up 2 doubles and a single, surrendering 2 runs on 5 hits . His main concern was developing a changeup since he is only a two-pitch pitcher. He said that it's "only going to help."
  • Francisco Cervelli was hit in the head today by a pitch and suffered a concussion. It was his second concussion in four months, so you know they will be careful with him. Girardi said that Mike Rivera is the third string catcher, not Jesus Montero, should Cervelli not be on the team come April.
  • Gaudin and Mitre will pitch tomorrow against the Twins in Fort Myers, Florida. Andy Pettitte will pitch a two-inning simulated game.
  • Mariano Rivera, Damaso Marte, and Chan Ho Park are the only pitchers who have not faced live hitting and will throw a batting practice session Monday.
That's it for today...See Ya!

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Yankee Stadium Music Turns it Up to 11

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Latest Image on the new Yankee Stadium.Image via Wikipedia

Well, I'm in the same boat as John with a bunch of school work to do in the next week in a half before my spring break. I like to listen to music while I work and it got me thinking about the music they play at Yankee Stadium during Yankee home games. Here's some of the ones that came to mind quickly.

Black Betty- Ram Jam


This one's sure to get the head bopping and the feet tapping, plus you've got to love the hair/beard combo going on there.

Get Ready for this- 2 Unlimited


Much like the next one, I associate this more with basketball, most likely because it appeared in Space Jam. (Awesome movie, and I'm not just saying that because I'm part of a Sport Management Department named after Jordan's agent and executive producer of the film, David Falk. Ask any one who grew up in the 90's, and they'll tell you they love the soundtrack.)

Sirius-Alan Parsons Project


Considering I live just outside of Chicago from 1997-2000, this song will always be the Chicago Bull's intro. ("Annnnnnd now, the starting lineup for yoooour Chicago Bulls... from North Carolina, Six foot Six, Number Twe-nty Three, Mich-ael Jordaaaan.)

For those About to Rock- AC/DC


The guitar part at the beginning and the drums throughout the song make this the perfect stadium song. The lyrics ("For those about to rock") also lend themselves to being used prior to the game.

Cotton-Eyed Joe-Rednex (that pretty tells you all you need to know about the song)


YMCA


I lump these two together because they fall under the "give fans an opportunity to look stupid on the jumbo-tron" category. Some people love them, some people hate them, some people don't really care, but they are played.

The "Yankees Score a Run" Chimes


A lot of fans will recognize the sound, but few know its actually the intro to the song Workaholic by 2Unlimited. (If you don't want to pursue that link, trust me, you are not missing anything.)

Empire State of Mind- Jay-Z featuring Alicia Keys


We heard this song about a million times during the playoffs last year, and I guess it's possible Derek Jeter can still use it as his intro music this season, so we could hear it some more. Nice beat, solid vocals, and lyrics relevant to the Yankees means this song will be around for a while.

Enter Sandman- Metallica


This one goes without saying, as it's Mariano Rivera's intro music. Hearing the entire Stadium sing along as Mo ran in from the 'pen against Boston to finish off a sweep last season sent chills down my spine. Personally, I think this song is retired from the Stadium whenever Mo hangs 'em up, because there is just such a close connection between the two, you can't have one without the other.

Welcome to the Jungle- Guns 'N' Roses


This is my favorite stadium/arena song of all time, and maybe even my favorite song period. The guitar intro is awesome and the beat gives the fans something to clap along to. I can't remember the first time I heard this song, but I remember it was playing when I was on the line for my last high school track race, and it just got me so in the zone and I ran my best time ever. Then, it furthered cemented itself into my life this year, as it's played before every Syracuse Orange basketball game at the Carrier Dome. And last Saturday, when we had 34,616 people (the largest on-campus crowd ever for an NCAA basketball game) for a win over Villanova it was just breathtaking.



I'm sure I missed a few, especially since I didn't even go into other player's intro music. Let us know your favorite Stadium music, either with a comment or an email.

Oh, and if you don't get the movie reference in the title, I feel bad for you, but I'm sure I'd feel much worse if I weren't under such heavy sedation.
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Should it be retired: Number 51

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Last week, I debated whether Paul O'Neill's jersey number 21 should be retired, and this week I'll go into Bernie Williams and number 51.

Bernie Williams at the plate, His Birthday, Se...Image via Wikipedia


Bernie is an interesting case considering that, despite having not played since 2006, he has never officially retired. When he returned for the ceremonies prior to the closing ceremonies at the old Yankee Stadium, he said he "may never retire officially." Nevertheless, the number has not been reissued. There was a little bit of friction between Williams and the Yankees after the 2006 season; he thought he could still play, but the team only gave him a non-roster invite to Spring Training. I think that should be water under the bridge since he came back for the final game and then a few times last year.

So, let's get into it:

The case for retiring the number:
  • Career Yankee
  • 5-times All-Star
  • 4 World Series Championships
  • 6 Top-20 finishes in MVP voting (Highest was 7th in 1998)
  • 4 Gold Gloves, 1 Silver Slugger
  • Position on All-Time Lists: 6th in home runs, RBI's, runs, and games played, 5th in hits and extra-base hits, and 2nd in doubles.
  • Everyday centerfielder for 13 seasons.
The case against retiring the number:
  • Most likely will not be enshrined in the Hall of Fame
  • Most of statistics came from a peak period, and he faded quickly at the end of his career.
  • When compared to the other center fielders who have their numbers retired, Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle, Williams does not compare favorably. That, however, is a pretty unfair comparison.
I think it is pretty safe to say that the number 51 will hand in Monument Park some day.The bigger question is probably whether Williams gets a plaque as well. That is probably a closer debate, but I can see that happening as well.


In some actual news, the Yankees won their first spring training game today against the Pirates. The 2010 Yankees won in 2009 style with a 3-run walk-off homerun by Colin Curtis. They take on the Philadelphia Phillies tomorrow in a rematch of the World Series.

SEE YA!
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A-Rod Investigation and Some Spring Training Fun

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Sorry for not posting much lately. Technology has not been on my side this last week and I've been busy. Just when you thought it would be a quiet spring training for Alex Rodriguez, A-Rod was contacted by the FBI yesterday regarding an investigation of Canadian doctor Andrew Galea who is accused of selling unapproved drugs. A-Rod did not comment about whether or not he was treated by Dr. Galea, but the Yankees released a statement saying that they were never in contact with Dr. Galea and was not suppose to be treating A-Rod.

On a lighter note, Joe Girardi called off practice today and took the team to an arcade where they participated in games such as skee ball, Pop-A-Shot and Indy Car. A.J. Burnett won the Indy Car game, while pitching prospect Andrew Brackman won Skee Ball and left handed reliever Royce Ring won Pop-A-Shot.

If you remember last year, Girardi took the team to play pool which Mariano Rivera was the winner. The point of this activity is to get the teams mind off baseball a little and get to know one another.

I'll try and get a trivia question up. It's the last week before Spring Break so I'm pretty busy with work right now.

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Also, anything written about broadcaster/on-air personalities is all in good fun and meant to be taken as a joke.


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