Tagged: Tony Sipp
Yankees Sting D-Backs On Hafner's Pinch-Hit Blast
Raul who?
In a very short time Travis Hafner, nicknamed "Pronk" for "Project Donkey," is making fans in The Bronx forget all about Raul Ibanez and his trademark clutch home runs in 2012.
Hafner carved out his own niche on Wednesday with two out in the eighth inning when the pinch-hitter grabbed a piece of lumber that looked like a maestro's baton in his beefy hands and swatted the first pitch he saw from David Hernandez (0-1) and sent the ball into a high-arcing orbit into the right-centerfield bleachers to give New York a dramatic 4-3 come-from-behind victory over Arizona at Yankee Stadium.
Hafner's fourth home run of the season followed a dramatic three-run rally in the seventh inning against Diamondbacks left-hander Wade Miley and reliever Tony Sipp.
CC Sabathia (3-1) was looking like a sure loser trailing 3-0 heading into the bottom of the seventh inning. The Diamondbacks jumped on him in the first inning for two runs on a leadoff single by A.J. Pollock and a two-run opposite-field home run by Paul Goldschmidt.
The D-backs added another run in the fifth on a leadoff triple off the bat of Josh Wilson and a sacrifice fly by Pollock.
Miley, meanwhile, kept the Yankees off-balance all evening with his assortment of tailing fastballs, sliders and change-ups. Through the first six innings, the Yankees had just two hits, a walk and a hit batter to show for an offense. Miley retired 17 of the 20 hitters he faced after Brett Gardner led off the game with a single.
But Miley appeared to run out of gas and lose his control in the seventh.
With one out, Ben Francisco singled down the left-field line and one out later Brennan Boesch hit an opposite-field, excuse-me-swing double into left to advance Francisco to third.
Miley then walked Eduardo Nunez on a 3-2 pitch and he followed that by issuing a bses-loaded walk to Jayson Nix that scored Francisco and put the Yankees on the scoreboard.
Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson removed a spent Miley in favor of the left-hander Sipp and Gardner greeted him with a two-run single to left to score Boesch and Nunez and tie the game.
Sabathia pitched a scoreless eighth and he left the game having given up three runs on six hits and one walk while he struck out four.
Miley also yielded three runs on four hits and three walks and struck out three in 6 2/3 innings.
Mariano Rivera pitched a perfect ninth inning and earned his fourth save of the season and his second in two nights against Arizona.
The Yankees have now won eight of their past nine games and they are 8-5 on the season. The D-backs fell to 8-6.
It was Hafner's fourth career pinch-hit home run and he became a big hero to the most of the paid crowd of 34,369 at Yankee Stadium. Hafner, who is hitting .342 with four home runs and eight RBIs, was held out of the lineup with the left-handed Miley on the mound. But when the Yankees tied the score on Gardner's two-run single, the D-backs elected to use the righty Hernandez in the eighth. That gave manager Joe Girardi the perfect opportunity to use Hafner to pinch-hit for Francisco with two out and Hafner delivered a huge hit.
"The Replacements" did it again. Francisco and Boesch singled in the seventh. Then Nunez, who is subbing for Derek Jeter, and Nix drew walks to score the team's first run. Gardner drove in Boeasch and Nunez and Hafner won the game with his big home run.
Sabathia did not look good at all in the first inning. He gave up the single and the two-run home run to Goldschmidt and then gave up a walk and single before retiring the last two hitters. He threw 31 pitches that inning. Yet he settled in and retired 23 of the last 26 batters he faced to earn his third victory. So many times Sabathia has rescued the Yankees but this time the Yankees' late offense rescued him.
It is very odd but Robinson Cano and Kevin Youkilis were a combined 0-for-7 with two strikeouts between them on Wednesday. They managed to get only one ball out the infield. Cano and Youkilis have been the heart and soul of the team's recent run of success and they are human after all.
Francisco Cervelli also struggled in this game. He was 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. He also committed a throwing error in the sixth inning but it did not cost Sabathia and the Yankees a run. It appears that Cervelli has taken the reins of the catching duties away from Chris Stewart because he is hitting .310.
Injured first baseman Mark Teixeira received clearance on Wednesday to start swinging a bat and he is cautiously optimistic that he will be able to rejoin the team in May. Teixeira is on the 15-day disabled list with a torn sheath in his right wrist, an injury he suffered working out with Team USA before a an exhibition game in March. . . . Cano and Teixeira were presented with trophies before the game for winning Gold Gloves from Rawlings at their respective positions in 2012. Cano won his second award within the past three seasons for his fielding at second while Teixeira collected his fifth award as a first baseman.
The Yankees can earn a sweep of their three-game inter-league series with Arizona on Thursday.
The Yankees will start right-hander Phil Hughes (0-2, 10.29). Hughes has shown signs of obvious rust in his first two starts of the season after missing all of spring training with a bulging disk in his upper back. In his last start the Baltimore Orioles clubbed three home runs off him and he left the game in the fourth inning. Hughes has never faced the D-backs.
The Diamondbacks will start left-hander Steve Corbin (2-0, 1.50 ERA). Corbin outdueled fellow lefty Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers in his last start, pitching six shutout innings in a 3-0 victory. Corbin has never faced the Yankees.
Game-time will be 7:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast by the YES Network.
Written by mlblogsruthianclout Leave a comment Posted in Baseball, Dailies, Uncategorized, Yankees	Tagged with "Project Donkey", "Pronk", "The Replacements", A.J. Pollock, Ben Francisco, Brennan Boesch, Brett Gardner, CC Sabathia, Chris Stewart, Claton Kershaw, David Hernandez, Derek Jeter, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Eduardo Nunez, Francisco Cervelli, Gold Glove, Jayson Nix, Joe Girardi, Josh Wilson, Kevin Youkilis, Kirk Gibson, Mariano Rivera, Mark Teixeira, Orioles, Paul Goldschmidt, Phil Hughes, Rau Ibanez, Rawlings, Robinson Cano, Steve Corbin, Team USA, Tony Sipp, Travis Hafner, Wade Miley, Yankee Stadium, Yankees, YES Network
Soriano, Yankees Save Face By Defeating Indians
Lately it seems the Yankees are having a tough enough time scoring runs as it would be for them to toss manhole covers. Fortunately, on Sunday they managed to use the "Goldilocks" approach to scoring by putting up a number on the scoreboard that was "just right."
Curtis Granderson homered in the sixth inning and Nick Swisher contributed three hits and an RBI as New York held down punchless Cleveland at Progressive Field to win the three-game series two games to one.
The Yankees did most of their damage in the second inning off Cleveland right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez (9-13).
Eric Chavez started the uprising with a leadoff opposite-field single to left. Raul Ibanez followed by drawing a walk and Ichiro Suzuki lashed a line drive that caromed off Jimenez's glove and rolled into center-field to score Chavez easily with the game's first score.
Chris Stewart then advanced Ibanez and Suzuki one base with a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt.
Derek Jeter ended the day hitless but he still contributed with a infield bouncer to third that scored Chavez. Swisher then laced an opposite-field single to left to score Suzuki, staking Yankees right-hander Freddy Garcia with an early 3-0 lead.
The Indians, however, got to Garcia with two out in the fifth inning with an Indian uprising of their own.
Jason Kipnis sliced a double to the wall in the right-field corner and Garcia, trying to pitch Asdrubal Cabrera inside, hit him with a breaking pitch. Garcia then walked the base loaded by missing on a 3-2 pitch to Shinn-Soo Choo.
In the third inning, the Indians loaded the bases with two out when Garcia missed on a similar 3-1 pitch to Choo. However, Garcia escaped by getting Carlos Santana on a routine fly to right.
The fifth inning was a different story. Santana lined the first pitch up the middle into center-field to score Kipnis and Cabrera.
Yankees manager Joe Girardi pulled Garcia in favor of Boone Logan, who ended the threat by retiring Michael Brantley on a routine groundout.
Garcia pitched 4 2/3 innings and gave up two runs on four hits and two walks and he struck out six batters.
Jimenez gave up three runs on eight hits and a walk and he fanned four.
Granderson greeted left-hander Tony Sipp with his 33rd home run of the season and the 200th home run of his career to lead off the sixth inning. He smacked a 1-2 slider just over the wall and into the first row of seats in the right-field bleachers.
Granderson becomes the eighth current Yankee to have 200 or more home runs, joining Alex Rodriguez, Andruw Jones, Mark Teixeira, Ibanez, Chavez, Jeter and Swisher.
Logan (5-2) then combined with David Robertson and Rafael Soriano to pitch 4 1/3 scoreless innings the rest of the way to earn his fifth victory in relief this season.
Soriano pitched 1 1/3 innings of scoreless ball to earn his 33rd save in 35 chances this season.
Soriano actually also literally saved face. With Ezequiel Carrera on first and one out in the ninth, Soriano used his glove to deflect a line drive off the bat of Kipnis that was headed for his face and threw Kipnis out at first to help preserve the victory for the Yankees.
With the victory the Yankees improved their season ledger to 74-53. They also picked up a half-game on the idle second-place Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East. They now lead the Rays by four games. The Indians, meanwhile, have now dropped 10 of their last 11 games and are 55-72.
Swisher was easily the Most Valuable Player of the series. Back in his native Ohio, Swisher was 7-for-11 (.636) with a home run and four RBIs against the Indians. Since Aug. 7, Swisher is 28-for-74 (.378) with five home runs and 19 RBIs. The hot streak nearly exactly corresponds with his shift to the No. 2 spot in the batting order, which came on Aug. 8.
Soriano has now converted his last nine save chances dating back to July 23 in Seattle. Over that span Soriano has given up just two runs on nine hits and two walks with 11 strikeouts over 12 2/3 innings of work. That is an ERA of 1.42 and a WHIP of 0.87. Soriano is 2-1 with a 1.57 ERA and 33 saves on the season. Mariano who?
Granderson's home run was his 33rd of the season, which is fourth-best in the American League. It also was his first round-tripper since an Aug. 18 game against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium. It was also his 12th home run this season off a left-handed pitcher.
This was a big victory considering the Rays and the Baltimore Orioles did not play and the Yankees were able to salvage the final road series before returning home for six games at Yankee Stadium. Garcia could have pitched a little longer and the Yankees should have scored more runs in the series but the bottom line is they won a game they needed to win.
The Yankees return to the friendly confines of Yankee Stadium on Monday to begin a three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays.
Rookie right-hander David Phelps (3.4, 2.69 ERA) will open the series for the Yankees starting in place of Ivan Nova, who is on the disabled list with right shoulder inflammation. Phelps lost his last start on Aug. 18 against the Boston Red Sox despite giving up three runs in 6 2/3 innings of work. Phelps has never faced the Blue jays.
The Blue Jays will counter with right-hander Henderson Alvarez (7-11, 4.84 ERA). Alvarez surrendered a career-high eight runs and 12 hits in his 4 1/3 innings in his last start against the Texas Rangers. he has not won a game since July 28. He has no record and 5.25 ERA lifetime against the Yankees.
Written by mlblogsruthianclout Leave a comment Posted in Baseball, Dailies, Uncategorized, Yankees	Tagged with Alex Rodriguez, American League, American League East, Andruw Jones, Asdrubal Cabrera, Blue Jays, Boone Logan, Carlos Santana, Chris Stewart, Curtis Granderson, David Phelps, David Robertson, Derek Jeter, Eric Chavez, Ezequiel Carrera, Freddy Garcia, Goldilocks, Henderson Alvarez, Ichiro Suzuki, Indians, Ivan Nova, Jason Kipnis, Joe Girardi, Mark Teixeira, Michael Brantley, MLB, MLBlogs, Most Valuable Player, Nick Swisher, Orioles, Progressive Field, Rafael Soriano, Rangers, Raul Ibanez, Rays, Red Sox, Shinn-Soo Choo, Tony Sipp, Ubaldo Jimenez, Yankee Stadium, Yankees, YES Network
Tribe Gets Their 'Phil' Of Red-Hot Hughes, Yankees
In his last outing, Phil Hughes gave up six runs on four home runs in 4 1/3 innings to become the first Yankee starter to fail to pitch at least innings in June. He made up for that poor showing in spades on Tuesday in the Bronx.
Hughes scattered six hits and blanked Cleveland over eight innings to win his fourth game in his last five starts as New York pummeled the Indians for the second straight night to maintain the best record in the major leagues.
Hughes (8-6) was in complete command throughout, walking one and striking out four, mixing an effective curveball with his 94-mile-per-hour fastball to keep the Indians off the board. In the last two nights, Hiroki Kuroda and Hughes have given up just one run on 11 hits and three walks and struck out 11 in 15 innings.
At the same time, the Yankees managed to strike early against Indians right-hander Justin Masterson, using two weapons the Yankees have been terrible at this season: two-out hits and hitting with runners in scoring position.
Masterson had Nick Swisher on first on a fielder's choice with two out in the second inning when Dewayne Wise singled to right-field to advance Swisher to third. Chris Stewart, starting his third straight game behind the plate, followed with a soft liner that bounced off the glove of Jack Hannahan and rolled behind him into foul territory.
Swisher scored and Indians manager Manny Acta argued that the ball appeared to be foul when Hannahan touched it. However, replays on MY9 showed third-base umpire Mike DiMuro had made the correct call of a fair ball.
Derek Jeter, celebrating his 38th birthday, then hit a hard ground ball off the leg of Masterson for an infield single that loaded the bases.
Curtis Granderson capped the inning with an opposite-field two-run single to left and the Yankees had another early lead on the Tribe at 3-0.
The Yankees tacked on single runs in the fifth, the seventh and the eighth innings to extend their margin to 6-0.
Mark Teixiera's sacrifice fly in the fifth scored Granderson, who had walked to leadoff the inning. Alex Rodriguez smacked a long line-drive home run – his 13th of the season – into the second deck in left-field in the seventh off reliever Tony Sipp. In the eighth, Stewart, who entered the game with only seven RBIs all season, knocked his second run of the night with a sacrifice fly of his own.
Masterson (4-7) was tagged with the loss, giving up four runs on seven hits and three walks and he struck out two in six innings of work.
The Indians, meanwhile, took out their two nights of frustration on Yankees right-hander Cory Wade in the bottom of the ninth. With two out and Jason Kipnis on third, Johnny Damon looped a dying quail single just in front of Granderson in center to end Hughes' shutout. After a Casey Kotchman single, Jose Lopez, who was only in the game because Hannahan was ejected in the 8th inning by DiMuro, blasted a three-run home run.
Manager Joe Girardi then brought in closer Rafael Soriano to retire Lonnie Chisenhall on an infield grounder after just two pitches and earn his 16th save of the season.
The Yankees improved their season record to 45-28 and they have now won 14 of their last 17 games. They also increased their lead in the American League East to four games over the second-place Baltimore Orioles. The Indians have lost four straight games and are 37-36.
Hughes pretty much proved that his June 20 start against the Braves was an aberration from the positive work he has been doing since he was 1-4 with a 7.48 ERA on May 5. Since then Hughes is 7-2 with a 3.44 ERA. He finished June with a 4-1 mark and a 2.97 ERA.
Russell Martin's pain was Stewart's gain on Tuesday. Stewart's two-out single scored the first run and he drove in the Yankees' last tally of the night with a sac fly. Stewart was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and he is hitting a respectable .258 on the season as the backup catcher. That is not too bad.
Granderson's two-run single set the tone for the rest of the night because Hughes was in such total command the Indians seem demoralized after the lead got to be 3-0. Granderson has been struggling at the plate over his last nine games. He was 5-for-35 (.143) with one home run and two RBIs entering play Tuesday. In 13 of those at-bats, Granderson had struck out.
The only downer on the night was the shoddy relief effort from Wade. He was tagged four four runs on four hits and his ERA shot up from 3.34 to 4.45. But Wade has been struggling a lot lately. In his last five appearances, Wade has given up seven runs on 10 hits and two walks over just three innings. His ERA on June 11 was 2.63. With former Seattle Mariners closer David Aardsma expected to be ready to come off the disabled list just after the All-Star break, Wade best clean up his act soon.
DiMuro had an interesting night as the third-base umpire. After correctly ruling Stewart's soft liner a hit, Wise went leaping into the stands behind third base to catch a foul pop off the bat of Hannahan in the seventh inning. The ball hit into his glove but rolled out as he fell into the first row. A fan a few seats down held up the ball. However, Hannahan was ruled out by DiMuro. The umpire owned up the mistake after the game, but he was not pleased when Hannahan told him the replays showed he blew the call. DiMuro immediately ejected Hannahan before the start of the bottom of the eighth inning. . . . Martin took batting practice for the first time since suffering stiffness in his lower back. But Girardi chose to give him another day of rest so he can receive further treatment. Martin said he hopes to be able to play on Wednesday.
Because MY9 was broadcasting the game locally in New York, I was forced to listen to the Indians broadcast of Tuesday's game and I was not happy with what I heard.
The play-by-play man Matt Underwood and color man Rick Manning are naturally looking at the game from the Indians' perspective. But I do not understand why these broadcast teams have to openly root for their team on the air.
In the top of the third inning, the Indians were trailing 3-0 and they managed to start the inning with back-to-back hits from Hannahan and Chisenhall. As Shin-Soo Choo stepped to the plate, Manning says, "Come on, hit one out and tie it up."
I know the team is in the midst of fight for the Central Division and they have been slumping at the plate and losing a lot. But do you have to go to the trouble of donning saddle shoes and shaking pom-poms to blatantly wish the Indians to win instead of just calling what happens like most professional broadcast teams do?
In the second inning, Manning and Underwood were throwing daggers at DiMuro for calling Stewart's soft liner a fair ball. Manning looked at one inconclusive replay and said, "That ball was definitely a foul ball." The next half-inning Underwood sheepishly admitted that after looking at the "down-the-line" shot the Yankee broadcasters showed him it appeared that DiMuro got the call right. Oops.
Of course, Manning never apologized. He said squat.
Then in the seventh inning when DiMuro did make a mistake on Wise's play, Manning pounced. They showed the replay several times and complained about DiMuro. Heck, the fact the Indians were flailing at Hughes' pitches and looking like a high school baseball team doing it had nothing to do with it. It was all DiMuro's fault.
Manning got in one last dig in the ninth when Rodriguez caught a foul pop navigating the tarp near the stands. Manning said: "Well, we know that if it hits leather it is out tonight."
In the second inning, after DiMuro's call, Underwood said "Well, you know other teams who come here say it is impossible to get a call in this stadium."
I am sick of broadcasters making these types of comments because they not only are stupid, baseless and unprofessional, they also foster the hostility the Yankees receive in visiting ballparks.
Just face it, the Yankees are just a good baseball team. They play the game right and they do respect their opponents. Jeter is the perfect ambassador for the way the Yankees approach the game and the team follows his lead.
So finding scapegoats for why their team loses is just what a Bush League broadcaster would do. The real culprit for the losses is in the mirror when the Indians look at themselves. It is not the umpire, the fans or some weird karma at the stadium. If the Indians stink it is because they stink.
The Yankees will go for their fifth straight victory and a sweep of the Indians on Wednesday.
Left-hander Andy Pettitte (3-3, 3.29 ERA) will take the mound for the Yankees. Pettitte suffered through a five-run first inning and lost in his last start against the the New York Mets on Friday. He is 5-4 with a 3.97 ERA in the last 10 seasons against the Indians.
The Indians will counter with right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez (7-5, 4.59). Jimenez gave up four hits and four walks and struck out eight in holding the Houston Astros scoreless over 6 2/3 innings in his last start. He is 1-0 with a 2.57 ERA against the Yankees lifetime.
Game-time will be 1:05 p.m. EDT and the game will be telecast nationally by the MLB Network and locally by the YES Network.
Written by mlblogsruthianclout Leave a comment Posted in Baseball, Dailies, Uncategorized, Yankees	Tagged with Alex Rodriguez, American League East, Andy Pettitte, Astros, Braves, Bush League, Casey Kotchman, Central Division, Chris Stewart, Cory Wade, Curtis Granderson, David Aardsma, Derek Jeter, DeWayne Wise, Hiroki Kuroda, Indians, Jack Hannahan, Jason Kipnis, Joe Girardi, Johnny Damon, Jose Lopez, Justin Masterson, Lonnie Chisenhall, Manny Acta, Mariners, Mark Teixeira, Matt Underwood, Mets, Mike DiMuro, MLB, MLB Network, MLBlogs, MY9, Nick Swisher, Orioles, Phil Hughes, Rafael Soriano, Rick Manning, Russell Martin, Shin-Soo Choo, Tony Sipp, Ubaldo Jimenez, Yankees, YES Network
Yankees In Market For Some Lefty Relief Help
With the disappointing loss to the Detroit Tigers in the American League Divisional Series a distant bad memory, the New York Yankees will look to reconstruct a championship caliber team for the 2012 season. To that end let's look at what possible moves the Yankees might make to improve their roster. It might seem like a daunting task. But it sure could be worse. Think how tough a time the Boston Red Sox will have rebuilding without general manager Theo Epstein and manager Terry Francona.
PART 2 – Relief Pitching
PRIORITY NO. 1 – Finding a second left-hander or two
NOTE: As I predicted, the New York Yankees were able to keep CC Sabathia off the free-agent market by signing him an one-year contract extension that will pay him $122 million over the next five seasons and the Yankees will control an option to bring him back in 2017. This means the Yankees can turn their sights to Priority No. 2 (Fixing A.J. Burnett and Phil Hughes) and Priority No. 3 (signing or trading for another starting pitcher). Sabathia's signing is double bad news for the Texas Rangers. They were looking to add Sabathia to their rotation and now they face the prospect of losing C.J. Wilson to the Yankees. That would be enough to send Rangers manager Ron Washington back on drugs.
The Yankees, simply stated, had the best bullpen in the major leagues in 2011.
The proof is in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series with the Tigers. The only run given up after Ivan Nova left the game with an injury after the first inning was off of Sabathia. The bullpen itself kept the Tigers within striking distance for a comeback that never came.
Looking at 2012, the Yankees can again point to their bullpen as being the strongest part of this team.
At age 41, Mariano Rivera showed no real signs of aging by saving 44 of 49 games and becoming the major-league leader in all-time saves with 603. For the fourth straight season and the eighth season out of the last nine, Rivera recorded an ERA under 2.00. Rivera is under contract for another season and that is just fine with the Yankees because having the greatest reliever in major-league history in your bullpen is a huge plus.
The Yankees also have managed to shorten games by the use of their setup men.
Nobody did that better than David Robertson last season. With injuries shelving both Rafael Soriano and Joba Chamberlain, Robertson, 26, stepped up his game to go 4-0 with a 1.90 ERA and strike out 100 batters in 66 2/3 innings. He also tied Daniel Bard of the Red Sox for the American League in holds with 34 and he earned a selection to pitch in the 2011 All-Star Game.
Robertson's best work, though, came in pressure situations – either ones he inherited or those messes he created for himself. Robertson was able to wriggle out of bases-loaded situations with amazing regularity.
The Yankees also will have 32-year-old right-hander Rafael Soriano back for the 2012 season. Soriano has elected not to opt out of his three-year contract and remain with the Yankees for $11 million this coming season and $14 million for 2013.
Soriano, who led the major leagues with 45 saves in 2010, was 2-3 with a 4.12 ERA and two saves in a season plagued by elbow soreness. Soriano pitched exceptionally well after he returned from the disabled list in July. He was 1-2 with a 3.33 ERA and he ended up with 23 holds.
The only question is will Soriano regain his eighth inning role from Robertson in 2012? Either way the Yankees know that most teams will have to obtain the lead by the sixth inning or face the prospect of losing the game because Robertson, Soriano and Rivera are pretty tough to beat when they are all healthy and pitching well.
The Yankees also possibly may have Joba Chamberlain back healthy again.
Chamberlain, 26, missed most of the 2011 season to undergo Tommy John surgery on his right elbow. He was effective in the 27 games he pitched. He was 2-0 with a 2.83 ERA and he recorded 12 holds.
Reports indicate Chamberlain is ahead of schedule in his rehabilitation and he hopes to be ready to go once spring training begins in February. But with Robertson and Soriano filling the setup roles in the bullpen, the Yankees can afford to be cautious with Chamberlain. They will gladly start the season with Chamberlain on the disabled list and bring him along slowly to make sure he is 100 percent.
The rest of the Yankees' bullpen in 2011 was pretty good. The Yankees got good work out of right-handers Cory Wade and Luis Ayala.
Wade, 28, was 6-1 with a 2.04 ERA after being acquired off waivers from the Tampa Bay Rays in June. Ayala, 33, made the team out of spring training after being signed as free agent and was 2-2 with a 2.09 ERA.
Wade is likely to be retained for 2012 as insurance policy on Chamberlain but Ayala likely will not return.
That leaves the only left-hander the Yankees had in 2011, Boone Logan. Next to A.J. Burnett, the 27-year-old Logan is the pitcher Yankee fans love to the hate the most.
At times, Logan can be brilliant. Other times, Logan can be awful. Overall, Logan was 5-3 with a 3.46 ERA for the Yankees. However, he is terribly miscast as "lefty specialist." It is sort of like asking Owen Wilson to play the part of Tony Soprano in the "The Sopranos." It just doesn't work.
Left-handed hitters hit .260 off of Logan while right-handers hit .262 off him.
That points up the Yankees' biggest need in 2012: Looking for a reliable and effective lefty specialist.
The Yankees ignored my pleas to go all out to sign free-agent lefty Scott Downs last off-season. Downs ended up signing a multi-year deal with the Los Angeles Angels and he was 6-3 with a 1.34 ERA with 26 holds for the Angels. Instead, the Yankees overpaid Soriano to accept a setup role.
The Yankees did sign left-hander Pedro Feliciano from the New York Mets. But the 35-year-old free agent developed a shoulder soreness in spring training and ended up undergoing rotator cuff surgery without ever throwing a pitch for the Yankees in 2011. He likely won't pitch in 2012 and his two-year contract with Yankees will end with him very much a question mark as a free agent in 2013.
The Mets abused Feliciano by pitching him in a major-league high of 344 appearances over the four previous seasons, including 92 in 2010. Feliciano paid the price for it and he likely will never be the same pitcher he was.
The Yankees also hoped to have veteran left-hander Damaso Marte back in 2011. But the 36-year-old hero of the 2009 postseason championship run for the Yankees has not be able to recover from left shoulder surgery he underwent in 2010. The Yankees have since declined an option on him and released him.
So the Yankees are in the market for a lefty specialist in 2012 who can either augment or replace Logan.
There are no other left-handers listed on the Yankees' 40-man roster. There no lefties who would be of much help in the bullpen in the minor leagues. So general manager Brian Cashman must look to acquire several candidates to audition in spring training.
One pitcher the Yankees would love to have is Rafael Perez of the Indians. Perez, 29, was 5-2 with a 3.00 ERA and 12 holds with the Indians in 2011. Perez was replaced as the primary lefty in the bullpen by 28-year-old Tony Sipp.
But Perez can still get out left-handed batters. They batted only .237 against him last season.
The Yankees also might be interested in Eric O'Flaherty, 26, of the Braves and Sean Marshall, 29, of the Cubs. Both of them had excellent 2011 seasons. But they would cost dearly in a trade.
Guillermo Mota, 38, could be a big free-agent target. He was 2-2 with a 3.81 ERA in 52 appearances with the Giants. More impressive was his 77 strikeouts in 80 1/3 innings. Lefties hit just .234 off him in 2011. His age might be a concern but, given the strength of the Yankees' bullpen, he might be worth an offer.
Look for the Yankees to bring in at least two left-handed relievers to compete for a spot in the bullpen in spring training.
Of course, the Yankees' right-handers do have an ability to get out lefties.
Left-handers hit only .240 off Rivera, .156 off Robertson, .250 off Chamberlain, .246 off Wade and .250 off Ayala. They only feasted on Soriano, who was hit for a .302 by left-handers last season. The effectiveness of the right-handers against left-handers is one reason why the bullpen was such a strength in 2011.
Given the depth here, it looks like the bullpen – barring injury – looks to be just as strong in 2012.
NEXT: PART 3 – STARTING LINEUP
PRIORITY NO. 1 – Who will the Yankees keep at catcher?
Written by mlblogsruthianclout Leave a comment Posted in Baseball, Dailies, Uncategorized, Yankees	Tagged with Angels, Boone Logan, Braves, Brian Cashman, CC Sabathia, Cory Wade, Cubs, Damaso Marte, David Robertson, Eric O'Flaherty, Giants, Guillermo Mota, Indians, Ivan Nova, Joba Chamberlain, Luis Ayala, Mariano Rivera, MLB, MLBlogs, Owen Wilson, Pedro Feliciano, Rafael Perez, Rafael Soriano, Rangers, Scott Downs, Sean Marshall, Tigers, Tony Sipp, Tony Soprano, Yankees
Yanks Receive Delayed Tex Message To Rally Past Tribe
What is the worst drought in history? Is it the 12-year drought that plagued Africa from 1968 through 1980 or is it Mark Teixeira's 12-game RBI hit drought dating back to May 17?
Opinions from climatologists and Yankees fans might vary slightly.
But Teixiera finally ended that 12-game drought with a two-out, three-run home run on Sunday that rallied the Yankees from a 3-0 deficit in the seventh inning to a 7-3 victory over the Cleveland Indians.
Teixeira's first home run since May 15 (a span of 14 games) followed a key two-run single by Derek Jeter with two out in the bottom of the seventh inning that chased Indians' starting pitcher Justin Masterson.
Curtis Granderson then greeted reliever and losing pitcher Tony Sipp (0-1) with a double that advanced Jeter to third and Teixiera blasted a 2-2 hanging slider into the third deck of the left-field bleachers to give the Yankees a 5-3 lead.
Teixiera's blast also made a winner out of A.J. Burnett (6-2), who pitched exceptional baseball for eight innings. Burnett allowed three runs, however, only one of those runs was earned. He gave up only five hits, walked none and struck out eight Indian batters.
The combination of he Yankees' victory and the 8-5 loss of the Tampa Bay Rays to the Chicago White Sox on Sunday brought the Yankees to within 3 1/2 games of the Rays in the A.L. East. The Yankees are 30-20 on the season. The loss dropped the Indians' record to 18-30.
YANKEE POSITIVES
Burnett is having an exceptional season in 2010 after struggling with a 4.04 ERA last season. Burnett has allowed two or fewer earned runs in seven of his 11 starts this season. He also has helped the bullpen by pitching into the seventh inning in eight of starts. Burnett is 6-2 with a 3.28 ERA.
Jeter's clutch two-out, two-run single in the seventh inning proves that he is on a real tear at the plate. In his last seven games, Jeter is 15-for-32 (.469) with two home runs and six RBis. He has also raised his batting average 30 points to .297.
Teixeira's three RBIs on Sunday was his first three-RBI game since May 12 at Detroit. It is only the third time this season he has driven in three or more runs. It is hard to believe, but Teixiera is hitting .189 with the bases empty and .259 with runners in scoring position this season.
Robinson Cano and Nick Swisher continue to deliver big hits in May. Both were 2-for-4 in Sunday's game. Cano's batting average dropped from .400 on May 1 to a season low of .322 on May 17. In his last 12 games, Cano has gone 24-for-50 (.480) with a home run and 13 RBIs. In his last five games he has two or more hits in all of them and he is 12 for 20 (.600).
Swisher began May hitting .250. In this month he is 32-for-86 (.372) with seven home runs and 17 RBIs. He also has collected two or more hits in four of his last five games. Swsiher has raised his batting average to .315.
Juan Miranda might be overlooked in Sunday's heroes. Miranda was 2-for-4 including a ringing RBI double in the eighth inning.
It was not a save situation but Mariano Rivera looked like his old dominant self in the ninth inning by striking out Russell Branyan and Jhonny Peralta. He also showed at age 40 he can still be nimble by leaping over the shattered bat of Luis Valbuena and still have the presence of mind to stop his come-backer and throw him out for the final out.
THE NEGATIVES
Things looked really bleak for the Yankees when they were down 3-0 to start the bottom of the seventh inning because of the pitching of Justin Masterson. Masterson, who has not won a decision since Aug. 20, 2009, was breezing with a four-hit shutout for six innings with a walk and seven strikeouts. Masterson entered the game with an 0-5 record and a 6.13 record. But you would never have known it if you watched the Yankee offense flail away at his sinkers in the dirt for six innings.
The usually reliable captain at shortstop made a costly error in the top of the seventh inning that really hurt the Yankees and Burnett at same the time. After two outs, Burnett hit Valbuena with a 1-2 pitch, Valbuena later stole second and scored on Jeter's throwing error on a grounder off the bat of Lou Marson. Marson reached second and scored on a triple by Jason Donald.
Alex Rodriguez also is struggling in May. He was 0-for-3 with a walk and did not hit a ball out of the infield. De
spite driving in three runs in Saturday's game, Rodriguez has only one other RBI since his four-RBI game against the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium on May 17.
Swisher banged his right shoulder into the right-field wall in right-field trying to catch Donald's triple in the seventh inning. He stayed in the game and singled in his next two plate appearances. Swisher said the shoulder was still sore but that he hopes to be able to play on Monday. . . . Rodriguez was relieved on Sunday after talking with Indians left-hander David Huff. Huff told A-Rod he was fine despite being struck above the left ear by a wicked line drive off Rodriguez's bat on Saturday. Tests on Huff at New York-Presbyterian Hospital were negative and Indians manager Manny Acta says the pitcher may make his next start. . . . Jorge Posada, who was placed on the disabled list May 16, took batting practice on Sunday and said he is close to being ready to return to action. Posada is eligible to be activated on Tuesday but manager Joe Girardi has not indicated when he will return. . . . Reliever David Robertson, who left Saturday's game with pain in his lower back was held out of Sunday's game and is listed as day-to-day. Robertson said he believes the pain may be associated with the lined shot he took off his back off the bat of Joe Mauer on Wednesday.
THE NEXT GAME
The Yankees have clinched a tie in their four-game series with the Indians and they can win the series outright with a win on Monday afternoon. They will send to the hill left-hander Andy Pettitte (6-1, 2.62 ERA).
Pettitte held the Twins to two runs on eight hits in eight innings on May 26. He walked none and struck out four in a crisp 94-pitch effort. Pettitte is 3-1 with a 3.33 ERA in four starts in May. Pettitte is 7-8 with a 4.41 ERA in 19 career starts against the Indians.
The Indians will send rookie right-hander Mitch Talbot (6-3, 3.73 ERA) to the mound. Talbot needed just 77 pitches to get through seven innings against the White Sox on Tuesday. Talbot gave up two runs on six hits and struck out four batters. This will be his first start against the Yankees.
Written by mlblogsruthianclout Leave a comment Posted in Dailies	Tagged with A.J. Burnett, Derek Jeter, Indians, Jason Donald, Justin Masterson, Lou Marson, Luis Valbuena, Mariano Rivera, Mark Teixeira, Nick Swisher, Rays, Red Sox, Robinson Cano, Tony Sipp, Yankees
Cano Slams Door On Indians In Grand Fashion
It's been a given for years that pitchers had very little to worry about with the bases loaded and Robinson Cano at the plate.
But this 2010 version is not your father's Robinson Cano.
With the bases loaded and no outs in the seventh inning, Cano blasted the first pitch he saw from Tony Sipp into the second deck in the right field bleachers of Yankee Stadium to give the Yankees an 8-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Friday night.
Sipp's slip turned a shaky 4-2 Yankees' lead into a comfortable margin as Phil Hughes (6-1) recovered from two subpar outings to win his sixth game of the season. Hughes gave up two runs on only five hits and one walk and he fanned eight batters.
Indians starter Fausto Carmona (4-3) took another hard-luck loss.
Combined with the Yankees' victory on Friday, both the Rays and Red Sox lost. The Yankees are 29-19 on the season and are 3 1/2 games in back of the first-place Rays in the A.L. East. The Indians are 17-29 and 10 games back in last place in the A.L. Central.
Cano is on another hot streak at the plate. He was 3-for-4 on Friday with a two singles and his third career grand slam. He drove in four runs and scored three. In his last 10 games, Cano is hitting a sizzling .452 with 10 RBIs. Manager Joe Girardi may have had a inkling of what was to come when he decided to put Cano in the cleanup spot for the first time in his career with Alex Rodriguez taking a night off.
Nick Swisher is also in the middle of a hot streak. His two-run home run that clanked high off the right-field foul pole in the second inning gave the Yankees a lead they did not relinquish the rest of night. He is hitting .333 in his last eight games.
Hughes started off like he was going to have a "Roger Clemens-type" night when he struck out the first five batters he faced. But he started struggling with command of his curveball and the Indians made him pay with an RBI single by Jhonny Peralta in the fourth inning and a solo home run by Russell Branyan in the seventh. But Hughes had four 1-2-3 innings and he pitched into seventh inning for the fifth time in his nine starts this season.
Derek Jeter was 2-for-4, stole a base and scored a run for the Yankees. In his last 10 games, Jeter has at least one hit in nine of them and he is batting .358 over that stretch.
The Yankees welcomed back Curtis Granderson to the lineup and in center field. Granderson was on base three times in five at-bats, scored a run and he handled all five chances in the outfield flawlessly. He also ran the bases with no sign of the groin injury that forced him to miss 24 games.
Mark Teixeira is showing signs of coming out his second prolonged batting slump of the season. He did single and walk twice and scored two runs. However, in the eighth inning with the bases loaded and no outs he grounded into an embarrassing 1-2-3 double play. Teixeira has not driven in a run since May 17, a span of 10 games.
Ramiro Pena was given a rare start at third base in place of Rodriguez and he did not take advantage of it. He was 0-for-4 with a strikeout and he hit into two double plays. Pena is struggling at the plate this season, batting just .190.
The Yankees hit into three double plays on the night with seven runners on base. The team stranded nine runners in the game.
The Yankees activated Granderson and shocked some media by announcing they were designating Randy Winn for assignment. The 35-year-old outfielder was hitting .213 with one home run and eight RBIs this season. This means 25-year-old utility man Kevin Russo impressed the coaches enough to remain with the team. Russo is hitting .250 in just 20 at-bats with the Yankees. . . . The Yankees made a point of saying that Rodriguez was getting a routine day off. The team did not get in to New York until 5 a.m. on their flight from Minneapolis so they decided it was a good time to rest the third baseman. In his last four games, Rodriguez was 2-for–15 and he has not driven in a run in his past nine games. . . . Minor-league right-hand reliever Amauri Sanit has been suspended for 50 games by Major League Baseball for testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug. Sanit, 30, is 1-2 with a 8.69 ERA for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. . . . Jorge Posada had the protective boot removed from his fractured right foot and hopes to be able to resume baseball activities soon. He has been on the 15-day disabled list since he was he was struck on the right foot by a foul ball on May 16. The Yankees originally said it would be three to four weeks before Posada could return. . . . Reliver Alfredo Aceves, who is on the 15-day disabled list with a lower back strain, had a second epidural injection in hopes of avoiding surgery on a bulging disc in his back. It will be a week or two before the Yankees will know the effectiveness of the shot. . . . Francisco Cervelli also received a night off. It was his first night off si
nce Posada was placed on the disabled list. Chad Moeller took his place and, in his first start of the season, Moeller was 1-for-3 with a double. He also missed a home run down the left-field line by about 15 feet.
The Yankees will play the Indians on Saturday in the second game of their four-game Memorial Day weekend series with the Indians. They will send to the mound former Indians ace CC Sabathia (4-3, 3.86 ERA).
Sabathia is coming off four consecutive winless starts. In his last start against the New York Mets on Sunday, Sabathia was rocked for 10 hits and six runs (five earned) in five innings. After not giving up a home run in his first three starts, Sabathia has been tagged for 10 home runs in his next seven starts. Sabathia is 1-0 with a 2.84 ERA against his former team.
The Indians will throw left-hander David Huff (2-6, 5.25 ERA). Huff allowed three runs on six hits and a walk in six innings against the Cincinnati Reds. He earned his first victory of the season since April 15.
Written by mlblogsruthianclout Leave a comment Posted in Dailies	Tagged with Curtis Granderson, Derek Jeter, Fausto Carmona, Jhonny Peralta, Joe Girardi, Nick Swisher, Phil Hughes, Rays, Red Sox, Robinson Cano, Russell Branyan, Tony Sipp, Yankees