Heading down to our nation's capital with a four-game lead courtesy of lights-out pitching by Revolver Beckett Saturday night and Sunday's walk-off by Nick Green.
Maybe the latter will shut up Suzy Waldmann -- a certain Connecticut broadcaster, too, who sarcastically referred to our shortstop as "The Immortal" Nick Green in a recent telecast.
"The Immortal."
I like that. A better nickname than, say, "Greenie," performance enhancers of choice back in the now seemingly innocent 70s and 80s
And I like how, on the same afternoon, the Immortal hit a walk-off home run and Derek Jeter grounded out to end a game.
That's OK, though. Maybe the Yankees will still get that Sunday win courtesy of their protest.
Other than that, brethren, the necessary and the obvious has finally taken place. After Friday's disaster, management knew it had to do what we knew had to be done all along: Get Dice out of the way.
Dice: Whose 18-3 record of 2008 must go down as the eighth wonder of the world.
Perhaps he can be reclaimed. Let's hope so. $100-million-plus is an awful lot to eat, even when you're selling out 500-plus times in a row.
For now, however, we've got too many options (Smoltz, Masterson, Buchholz) to continue wasting a start.
Actually, we could say Dice's starts have also been Masterson's, seeing how Masterson usually enters the game in the fourth or fifth inning.
Looking for another strong start tonight by Penny. You've got to like a guy who takes a line drive off the chest and doesn't flinch.
How durable, how immortal.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
More the Merrier
I've got two eyes on baby watch, two ears on the radio.
Chiming in just to say this: I like the idea of initially going with a six-man rotation to accommodate the return of John Smoltz.
Or arrival, I should say.
A fair deal all around.
Take a spin or two around the six-man block and see who earns keep and who earns a push to the bullpen.
Because it's not a given that Smoltz is going to tear it up, though with his track record you've got to believe that he will.
Tell you another thing, I'm really starting to like Brad Penny. He's throwing too well to just trade off to free up roster space. Remember '06 and the lesson of Bronson Arroyo.
You can never have too much pitching, and the last thing I want to see is some half-assed deal that brings in another Wily Mo Pena.
The front office is to sharp to make the same mistake twice.
Chiming in just to say this: I like the idea of initially going with a six-man rotation to accommodate the return of John Smoltz.
Or arrival, I should say.
A fair deal all around.
Take a spin or two around the six-man block and see who earns keep and who earns a push to the bullpen.
Because it's not a given that Smoltz is going to tear it up, though with his track record you've got to believe that he will.
Tell you another thing, I'm really starting to like Brad Penny. He's throwing too well to just trade off to free up roster space. Remember '06 and the lesson of Bronson Arroyo.
You can never have too much pitching, and the last thing I want to see is some half-assed deal that brings in another Wily Mo Pena.
The front office is to sharp to make the same mistake twice.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Three Nights in Boston, Pt. 3
Sox 8, Yanks 0 is the frequency, Kenneth.
And the immediate response is, How does this keep happening?
Yeah, yeah, OK, the obvious: Our starting pitching's been better, our bullpen's been better and last night we got the sort of late-game pluck and timely hitting that the Yankees have been heaping on the hapless heads of everyone else in the Western hemisphere.
You know what, too? Our manager's better.
In the big picture, though, here's what I'm seeing: one team that's an ideal blend of home-grown talent and smart trade/free agent acquisitions enjoying a deserved upper hand on a team that's a Frankenstein, lumbering around and terrorizing the countryside until inevitably being laid low for the affront to nature that it is.
At least I'd like to think that.
We'll have to wait until all is said and done in October (and it will come down to that) to give the final assessment.
For now, it it is interesting to note that, this week in Beantown, the Yankees were not the team hitting on all cylinders that they were coming into the series.
To wit:
*Mark Teixeira tears it up one night, but the bats behind him are quiet.
*The bottom of the order and Jeter at the top hit well the next night, only to have Damon and Teixeira fall silent or hit long, harmless outs.
The Sox, on the other hand, had that pick-me-up Mojo, particularly when it came to the vaunted relief pitching that hardly was lights out across the board.
*Ramirez bombs on Wednesday, Oki bails him out.
*Delcarmen struggles Thursday, Saito saves the day.
And Pap closing both out was a welcome sight.
As was Papi hitting two home runs.
And here's one other thing: Is it a given that we must deal Penny? The dude's only shown a steady arc of improvement. Six scoreless last night.
Question is, did Penny feel like he was pitching for his Boston job or auditioning for his next employer?
Hate to beat a tired drum, but Penny is not the guy to come out of the rotation upon the arrival of John Smoltz.
But, hey, this issue of excess pitching is a good problem to have on June 12, sitting at 36-24 and two games up.
And the immediate response is, How does this keep happening?
Yeah, yeah, OK, the obvious: Our starting pitching's been better, our bullpen's been better and last night we got the sort of late-game pluck and timely hitting that the Yankees have been heaping on the hapless heads of everyone else in the Western hemisphere.
You know what, too? Our manager's better.
In the big picture, though, here's what I'm seeing: one team that's an ideal blend of home-grown talent and smart trade/free agent acquisitions enjoying a deserved upper hand on a team that's a Frankenstein, lumbering around and terrorizing the countryside until inevitably being laid low for the affront to nature that it is.
At least I'd like to think that.
We'll have to wait until all is said and done in October (and it will come down to that) to give the final assessment.
For now, it it is interesting to note that, this week in Beantown, the Yankees were not the team hitting on all cylinders that they were coming into the series.
To wit:
*Mark Teixeira tears it up one night, but the bats behind him are quiet.
*The bottom of the order and Jeter at the top hit well the next night, only to have Damon and Teixeira fall silent or hit long, harmless outs.
The Sox, on the other hand, had that pick-me-up Mojo, particularly when it came to the vaunted relief pitching that hardly was lights out across the board.
*Ramirez bombs on Wednesday, Oki bails him out.
*Delcarmen struggles Thursday, Saito saves the day.
And Pap closing both out was a welcome sight.
As was Papi hitting two home runs.
And here's one other thing: Is it a given that we must deal Penny? The dude's only shown a steady arc of improvement. Six scoreless last night.
Question is, did Penny feel like he was pitching for his Boston job or auditioning for his next employer?
Hate to beat a tired drum, but Penny is not the guy to come out of the rotation upon the arrival of John Smoltz.
But, hey, this issue of excess pitching is a good problem to have on June 12, sitting at 36-24 and two games up.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Three Nights in Boston, Pt. 2
This one seemed to have Yankees' comeback written all over it. Who knows? Maybe we're immune to what the rest of the American League is susceptible to.
Don't normally end sentences with prepositions, but I'm gaga over Oki's work. The Bridge of Sighs.
Truth is, we should have had a much bigger lead in the early going. Should have really stomped on Wang Dang Doodle right there in the first as he struggled to find the plate.
Youk's shot proved to be the game-winner. Actually got a smile out of J.D.
That's a special moment.
My little bambina started kicking when Youk went deep. She's still got two weeks to go. Tonight, though, would have been a fine night to come into the world.
Don't normally end sentences with prepositions, but I'm gaga over Oki's work. The Bridge of Sighs.
Truth is, we should have had a much bigger lead in the early going. Should have really stomped on Wang Dang Doodle right there in the first as he struggled to find the plate.
Youk's shot proved to be the game-winner. Actually got a smile out of J.D.
That's a special moment.
My little bambina started kicking when Youk went deep. She's still got two weeks to go. Tonight, though, would have been a fine night to come into the world.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Three Nights in Boston, Pt. 1
I told Pettit he could write from home today.
His little ones are under the weather.
So was his ballclub.
Don't want to say you could see it coming, but with the way Beckett's now pitching, you could see it coming.
Plus, I didn't want to see John suffering along with the Yanks. I like him too much. Mark Teixeira, on the other hand, is a different story.
Official hatred has set in.
Nothing specific to set it off. You know how the antipathy is just suddenly there, brethren.
Good to see Papi pop off again. The biggest hit, though, was that two-out, 0-2 double off the wall by Drew. Deepest dagger, the true point on which the game swung into the realm of rout.
You know, just before the game, a fellow Red Sox fan here at the office who shall go nameless was babbling about which young pitchers the Sox might trade to bring in another left-handed bat.
Bowden? Bard? Buchholz?
How about none of the above.
We've got holes -- holes like everybody else -- but we're sitting tied for first with the Yankees. No need to panic and make a bad move.
His little ones are under the weather.
So was his ballclub.
Don't want to say you could see it coming, but with the way Beckett's now pitching, you could see it coming.
Plus, I didn't want to see John suffering along with the Yanks. I like him too much. Mark Teixeira, on the other hand, is a different story.
Official hatred has set in.
Nothing specific to set it off. You know how the antipathy is just suddenly there, brethren.
Good to see Papi pop off again. The biggest hit, though, was that two-out, 0-2 double off the wall by Drew. Deepest dagger, the true point on which the game swung into the realm of rout.
You know, just before the game, a fellow Red Sox fan here at the office who shall go nameless was babbling about which young pitchers the Sox might trade to bring in another left-handed bat.
Bowden? Bard? Buchholz?
How about none of the above.
We've got holes -- holes like everybody else -- but we're sitting tied for first with the Yankees. No need to panic and make a bad move.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Tumbling Dice (Exile on Matsuzaka Street)
Well, brethren, I believe I'm well prepared for the Diceman's start tonight against Detroit. I got a massage and I am at this moment listening to Gordon Lightfoot.
"Sometimes I think it's a shame when I get feeling better when I'm feeling no pain..."
I could make a Keith Richards reference here, but it might be taken the wrong way, and I want it to be known that, contrary to occasional appearances, this is a drug-free blog -- unless, of course, the very act of following a professional baseball team so passionately at any age beyond 12 is proof of addictive behavior, which I firmly believe it is.
So, on that note: What's the score, man?
I'll tell you what. One-third of the way through the season, we seem to have a good team, a contending team, but one operating below full potential. Not all the parts, but some -- and those parts are key parts.
You know that, I know that, the whole Nation knows that.
Pedey's been solid, Bay's been great, Youk is elite, Lowell is the Working Class Hero with prematurely bum hips.
But Papi looks like he's done.
And we have big issues at shortstop.
And J.D. Drew makes a helluva lot of money for what we get out of him.
But the biggest key of all, of course, is and always will be pitching. We must pray that Beckett and Lester have turned the corner and will be their solid selves from here on it because, if not, the Yankees are going to run away with the AL East and we're going to be scrapping for a wild card.
The bullpen has been mostly solid save for (how the sands do shift): Pap. How many 1-2-3 innings has he had this season? Yeah, he's like the real estate market. No gimmie closings these days.
Thank goodness Delcarmen has improved, Okie has returned to '07 form and Ramirez was acquired (best pickup of the offseason so far).
There's still a ways to go, but I sure would like to end this spell where we hit the final game of a series having to win to salvage something.
The Yankees, meanwhile, are cooking, all their high-ticket, market-spree parts blending quite nicely in the pot. Still, they strike me as a team that could toggle back and forth between unbeatable and abysmal. You know how the media circus just feeds the negativity -- that "dwelling on the mole on the belly of an exquisite whore."
Patti Smith sang that. It sure wasn't about the Empire, but it sure seems to apply now that I think about it, now that my perfectly mellow mood has been utterly shattered.
Huh, shidube: Bring on Dice, bring on the Tigers.
"Sometimes I think it's a shame when I get feeling better when I'm feeling no pain..."
I could make a Keith Richards reference here, but it might be taken the wrong way, and I want it to be known that, contrary to occasional appearances, this is a drug-free blog -- unless, of course, the very act of following a professional baseball team so passionately at any age beyond 12 is proof of addictive behavior, which I firmly believe it is.
So, on that note: What's the score, man?
I'll tell you what. One-third of the way through the season, we seem to have a good team, a contending team, but one operating below full potential. Not all the parts, but some -- and those parts are key parts.
You know that, I know that, the whole Nation knows that.
Pedey's been solid, Bay's been great, Youk is elite, Lowell is the Working Class Hero with prematurely bum hips.
But Papi looks like he's done.
And we have big issues at shortstop.
And J.D. Drew makes a helluva lot of money for what we get out of him.
But the biggest key of all, of course, is and always will be pitching. We must pray that Beckett and Lester have turned the corner and will be their solid selves from here on it because, if not, the Yankees are going to run away with the AL East and we're going to be scrapping for a wild card.
The bullpen has been mostly solid save for (how the sands do shift): Pap. How many 1-2-3 innings has he had this season? Yeah, he's like the real estate market. No gimmie closings these days.
Thank goodness Delcarmen has improved, Okie has returned to '07 form and Ramirez was acquired (best pickup of the offseason so far).
There's still a ways to go, but I sure would like to end this spell where we hit the final game of a series having to win to salvage something.
The Yankees, meanwhile, are cooking, all their high-ticket, market-spree parts blending quite nicely in the pot. Still, they strike me as a team that could toggle back and forth between unbeatable and abysmal. You know how the media circus just feeds the negativity -- that "dwelling on the mole on the belly of an exquisite whore."
Patti Smith sang that. It sure wasn't about the Empire, but it sure seems to apply now that I think about it, now that my perfectly mellow mood has been utterly shattered.
Huh, shidube: Bring on Dice, bring on the Tigers.
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