Posts Tagged ‘Orioles’

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Ugggggg

Tuesday, May 15th, 2012

And I’m not talking about these.

I’m talking about the Yankees and their peek-a-boo offense. Sometimes you see it and sometimes you don’t. Tonight was evidence of the latter. Where was it hiding? Was the O’s pitcher really that good or were our boys just in a hurry to get back to New York? So odd how meekly they went down one after the other.

And then there was CC. I was finishing my afternoon beach walk when the game started at 4 o’clock here, so I was listening to John and Suzyn on my iPhone for the first inning before switching to TV. John kept saying how CC had shaken off his slow start to the season and really come around. Oh yeah? He came around all right – throwing balls the Orioles hitters had no problem knocking around. He wasn’t bad, as in AJ bad, but he wasn’t very ace-like.

His valet catcher wasn’t helpful either, not when Sweaty Freddy was on the mound. I think the Chris Stewart Experiment might need a re-evaluation.

I know I sound crabby but with Robertson on the DL, along with those I need not mention, things are feeling a little precarious right now. Girardi seemed testy too, didn’t he? I think the injuries are getting to him, whether he admits it or not.

 

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She’s Laughing Again

Sunday, May 6th, 2012

There was a lot to smile about during today’s game. Not only did I get my 10 Runs, but I got them in Bronx Bombers fashion. Small ball is swell, but I do love homers.

Lots of applause to go around.

* Kudos to Hughes. During the first inning I said out loud, “Here we go again.” He didn’t look great and I figured we’d be in for another short outing from him. Wrong. It turns out he was great. If he can continue to pitch like he did today, I’ll feel a whole lot better about our rotation. But in the meantime, clap clap clap for Hughes.

* Kudos to Cano. He looked like a different person today and not just when he hit the granny. His swing was smooth and Cano-ish, like we’re used to seeing.

* Kudos to A-Rod. That homer into the fountains or whatever they are was fun to watch.

* Kudos to Swisher for coming back from his injury and making his presence felt.

In truth, the game that really interested me today was Red Sox-Orioles. I was at a party late this afternoon and started listening on the way home. (I think it was the bottom of the ninth.) Once I realized we were talking about extra innings yet again between those two teams, I was glued. What fun that they both had to bring in position players to pitch – especially Chris Davis, who’d been like 0-for-100 at the plate. Who could have guessed that he’d get the win. Baseball is one amazing sport. Kudos to him too.

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Happy NOT Birthday To Me

Wednesday, May 2nd, 2012

Michael and I aren’t celebrating my birthday until Saturday night, so I was home tonight and saw most of the game. Losing the series to the O’s? Seriously? Where do I start with this rant?

With Chavez, I guess. It’s my fault he got hurt. I actually said, earlier in the day, “I’m so glad Chavez has been able to stay healthy.” Jinx. That’s what I am. I was upset when he had to leave the game because he’s been one of our best players lately and because our guys are dropping like flies.

Then there’s Nova. He wasn’t very Nova-esque.

But mostly I’m worried about the offense – or lack thereof. I know I’ve been saying, “They’ll come around. Everything’s fine.” And I do believe it’ll come around/be fine. But ever since that game in Texas when the hot bats were cooled off, there’s been a drought of runs, no matter who the opposing pitcher is.

Are they all in a stupor because the weather’s been cold? If so, how come the other team isn’t too cold to hit the ball?

Are they all suffering the creakiness of old age? I wouldn’t call Cano or Tex “old,” would you?

I never thought I’d see the day when not having Swisher’s bat in the lineup would make or break this team, but at the moment he’s sorely missed. Gardner too.

Slow starts are okay if a team gets hot eventually and goes on a tear, but slow starts put you in a big hole really fast. If I were the Yankees, I’d do everything humanly possible to take the series in KC.

 

 

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Yup, Another Post About Eduardo

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

Here’s the thing. I like Nunez. He seems like a good guy and he can hit and run the bases. It’s not his fault that the Yankees are trying to turn him into a sometime outfielder; they pulled the same trick with Ramiro Pena for awhile. But as anyone who saw tonight’s game will attest, he’s not good in left field – not even in an emergency.

Yes, I realize that the injuries to Gardner and Swisher have altered the landscape. I also realize that we need to carry a ton of pitchers on the roster. But isn’t there someone – anyone – in the system who has actual experience and expertise in the outfield? This is the New York Yankees we’re talking about, not some team from Oshkosh. (Not that I have anything against Oshkosh.) It’s not befitting a championship team to have an amateur out there.

Okay, I got that off my chest.

On to Phil Hughes. He was better. Not exactly a ringing endorsement, but maybe it was an outing he can build on. Does he inspire confidence? Hardly. But he’s got the job for the moment so all we can do is hope for the best from him.

I thought Granderson’s homer would be the start of something big. I was wrong. It was the start of something small. We didn’t put runs on the board. While I thought A-Rod’s bunt was “interesting,” he doesn’t bat cleanup to bunt.

Needless to say, I hope we win tomorrow.

 

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Eduardo Scissorhands Didn’t Make An Error!

Monday, April 30th, 2012

Photo: Jim McIssac/Getty Images

I couldn’t resist. Sorry.

The truth is Nunez handled his outfield duties without incident, and I have to give him props for that…for now. I’d just really like to have both Gardner and Swisher back out there.

Meanwhile, the Yankees played a crisp game tonight against the red-hot O’s with a heartening performance by Kuroda, saving the bullpen. I only watched the game intermittently (I’ve got a work deadline this week, so my observations will be spotty), but I did see that great play at the plate with Martin flipping to Kuroda. (I have no evidence to back this up, but I think pitchers from the NL have better defensive skills than those in the AL.)

I love that Chavez is doing well in his limited role, and am so glad Cashman brought him back for the bench/DH role.

What else? Tell me what I missed….

 

 

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The Broom Is Back – In A Good Way

Wednesday, April 11th, 2012

This time it was the Yankees who did the sweeping. (Thank you, O’s.)

But, of course, it wasn’t easy – or quick. Instead, tonight was the second loooong nail biter in a row that featured a faltering starter, an offensive comeback, superb relief work, a hitting hero and a brilliant job by our one-and-only closer.

It also featured more bad umpiring (Eduardo Scissorhands looked safe at first to me, for example).

What to make of CC these days? He does seem to have his April slumps and maybe his first couple of outings are just that: April doldrums. I sure hope so.

I questioned a few of Girardi’s moves (what else is new), but they turned out okay so I’ll shut up.

Soriano finally got into a game and after a hairy situation threw absolute gas to end the inning. But the surprise was Boone Logan. I never expect him to be any good and he was tonight.

I have to give the prize to Swisher though. His homer allowed me to breathe, so here’s to him.

P.S. Friend of the Blog Peggy has surfaced following her daughter’s wedding, and she sent along some lovely photos, including this one of the bride and groom cutting their Yankee pinstriped cake. Health and happiness to them.

 

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We Have A New Hero

Tuesday, April 10th, 2012

Photo: Getty Images

Actually, the entire Yankees bullpen was the hero of tonight’s wild, wild game that lasted nearly five hours. Whew, what a crazy one. I’m exhausted.

Sweaty Freddy got the start and did his best impersonation of this guy.

Photo: Nathan Denette/Associated Press

Five wild pitches and a bunch of hit batsmen? Not good. Not good at all.

But the Yanks played catch-up and clawed their way back to tie the game, and the bullpen was tremendous in shutting the Orioles down until Ibanez could knock in the winning run.

I’m talking about David Phelps….David Robertson…Cory Wade…Clay Rapada…and Mo looking like Mo. Great job by all of them.

Jeter has been hitting so well and A-Rod has been so not hitting well that I’m thinking Jeter should hit cleanup and A-Rod should spend more time with Kevin Long.

But the fact is that despite all the stranded runners – and there were way too many of them tonight – the team showed a lot of heart, coming back and getting the “W” in extras.

A very enjoyable evening, although I was a nervous wreck from the sixth inning on!

A quick P.S. about Ozzie Guillen’s suspension.

He was incredibly stupid in making his Castro remark, given his team’s market. But I’m not the speech police and I’d say to the Marlins: “You hired Ozzie Guillen. Did you really expect him not to say crazy stuff?” Still, they’re a private organization and they can hire, fire or suspend anybody they want – and should. What puzzled me the most was Ozzie’s “apology,” in which he said it was all a misunderstanding because of his poor grasp of English. Yeah, uh-huh.

 

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That Was More Like It

Monday, April 9th, 2012

Jeter was very Jeterian with his four hits, setting the tone for a tidy win over the O’s.

Big hand for Nova, who may have been the worst pitcher at spring training but has been the ace of the staff so far. If he keeps throwing like he did tonight, he’ll slide into the #2 spot and give Kuroda a shove down the ladder.

Andruw Jones belted one out. He’ll never inspire confidence in the outfield at this stage of his career, but he’s still got the power swing.

What was up with using Mo in the non-save situation? Did he really need the work? Or was he brought in to nail down the win? Either way, he got the job done but didn’t look comfortable doing it. If Gardner hadn’t caught that shot to end the game….Well, I won’t go there. I’m just saying that Mo isn’t Mo-ish yet.

I don’t get the YES postgame show, but there seems to have been a tiff between Martin and Andino over tipping pitches in the ninth inning. I don’t know how you “tip” Mo’s pitches – they’re all cutters – but there was definitely some yammering going on between the two. Will it carry over into tomorrow night’s game?

Photo: AP/Winslow Townson

Oh, wait. Wrong team.

 

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On The Edge Of My Seat

Tuesday, September 27th, 2011

No, I wasn’t sitting in front of the TV with cleavage showing, but that woman’s expression pretty much sums up how I was feeling tonight. Once again, our game against the Rays was more about the Rays than it was about the Yanks. I didn’t love that our offense was asleep for the second night in a row (A-Rod? Helloooo? Are you in there? ) or that Martin hit into the triple play or that Soriano coughed up the three-run homer, but I went with the old “Everybody’s just getting their work in” rationale and forced myself not to worry about any of it. Colon’s already proven his worth and he’s not anybody’s idea of a playoff starter, so whatever he can give us at this point is, well, you know.

More exciting was what was going on in Baltimore. Man, those Fighting Showalters were fun to watch. Just when I thought the Red Sox would coast to the win, they came back and nearly tied the score against Papelface.

So now the Rays and Sox remain tied going into the last game of the regular season. Will we see a one-game playoff on Thursday? That would mean either both the Rays and Sox win tomorrow night or they both lose.

Girardi hasn’t announced our starter as of this writing. For all I know, it could be Scott Proctor. The Rays, on the other hand, will be playing like it’s the seventh game of the World Series. I like their chances. I think the Red Sox will prevail too, and that’ll bring us to Thursday’s head-to-head.

One way or another, baseball wins.

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I Had Such A Split Personality Tonight

Monday, September 26th, 2011

Or maybe I should say I had a split attention span.

I sat down to watch Yankees-Rays, but in no time I was switching back and forth between our game and Red Sox-Orioles. At one point, Michael said all the switching back and forth was making him crazy and I said, “That’s what you get for letting me control the remote.”

The game in Baltimore was far more exciting, as it turned out. Beckett gave up six runs and Vlad Guerrero stole a base (I saw it with my own eyes) and Andino hit one to center that popped out of Ellsbury’s glove for an inside-the-park homer. Pure entertainment.

Back at the Trop, the Yankees offense was asleep against Shields, not counting Cano. Posada made a couple of nice plays at first, but otherwise the game was uneventful. Well, there was the ejection of Russell Martin.

Which brings me to the subject of umpires. What in the world was Schrieber, the home plate ump, doing? After Martin grumbled about the strike zone while Hughes was on the mound, Schrieber literally walked in front of the plate and got in Martin’s face. I’ve never seen that in all my years of watching baseball. Was Martin supposed to say nothing? I get that there’s a rule about not arguing balls and strikes, but for an ump to incite an ejection was just plain weird.

My big question about this series with the Rays is how much should Girardi rest the players and how much should he maintain their intensity? I worry about layoffs. I worry that it’s the team that comes barreling into the playoffs without a rest but with momentum that wins it all. I don’t want to risk injury or fatigue, but I want the Yankees to show up in the Bronx on Friday ready to do battle, as opposed to ready for a nap.

Photo: Al Bello/Allsport

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