A.J. implodes in the seventh inning; Yankees lose 6-3

15 Responses to A.J. implodes in the seventh inning; Yankees lose 6-3

1. T.O. Chris says:

   July 5, 2011 at 8:12 am

   If you have to lose 2 straight games you want it to be done leading up to a Sabathia start. Almost no pitcher on the planet is as good coming off of team loses as CC.

   For my part I think the Mariano “soreness” is almost a non-issue. He goes through this same thing every year around the same time, takes a couple games off, and ends up pitching like before hand as soon as he comes back into a game. I’ve heard this spur some Heath Bell rumors, and honestly the only way I could see that happening is if Mo hit the DL, which never happens.

   I keep reading about a starting pitcher in connection with the Yankees which I don’t think any of the staff here has covered yet. Forgive me if someone did and I missed it. Anibal Sanchez’ name keeps getting thrown out there with us attached, and while I don’t think it’s at all likely it might be a good conversation peice if someone felt like doing a write up on it.

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   Duh, Innings! Reply:
   July 5th, 2011 at 9:53 am

   Wow, are you obsessed with me or something you Canadian twit (if the “T.O.” in your username is short for Toronto)? I can insult you in this post because you wanted me to in the other one you dogged me in and I didn’t take the bait.

   Mo’s soreness is not a “nonissue”, it is a very real issue and hopefully one that doesn’t snowball into something worse.

   The Yankees should get Heath Bell to not only strengthen the bullpen, but to be insurance against Mo going on the DL. But I guess you think a bullpen of Ayala, Logan, Wade, Pendleton, Noesi after Mo and D-Rob is good enough to get through a little less than half a season’s worth of games. I hope it is, but it most likely isn’t.

   The Yankees don’t need a starter, they need a reliever who can close if needed. A bat would be nice but not really necessary since Posada hit .382 in June.

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   Eric Schultz Reply:
   July 5th, 2011 at 10:50 am

   Chill out, I don’t think Chris’ comment was directed at you.As for Mariano’s soreness, it’s too early to panic. As Chris pointed out, he does often have an episode such as this, so until we have more information, I think it’s premature to relegate Mo to the DL.

   As for Heath Bell, of course it would help the bullpen to bring in a top 10 closer in the game (maybe even top 5). However, the cost is likely going to be too high to be worth it. If Mariano does hit the DL then I agree the calculus changes somewhat. But at present, the bullpen is not a major problem, and I would hesitate to give up good prospects (which Bell would likely require) to acquire a closer when we already have the GOAT in Mariano, a dominant setup man in Robertson, and another good closer on his way back (Soriano).

   If Bell’s price is reasonable (I’m not sure what I would consider reasonable yet), I would consider a trade. Mid-level prospects could be replaced by draft picks when he leaves as a FA. Out of curiosity, what would you be willing to give up for Bell?

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   T.O. Chris Reply:
   July 5th, 2011 at 5:14 pm

   Thank you Eric, I was in no way responding to or thinking of the other poster. Simply using this thread to to address 2 issues from yesterday, and one from the post itself.

   I also didn’t “dog” anyone, I disagreed with your assesment, and then gave you permission to insult me. Because whether I do or not, you will anyway.

   No I’m not from Canada, but it’s nice to see you degrade an entire country of people over something as simple as baseball. Have a wonderful day, sir.

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2. Mike Jaggers-Radolf says:

   July 5, 2011 at 9:21 am

   I’m with you. The Yankees have lost two in a row and are still a game and a half up on the Sox. That’s a strong place to be.

   Mo is also fine. I’ve not heard anything more sinister and his numbers are stellar as ever. If this constitutes some kind of a down season, sign me up.

   I also haven’t read anything more than speculation about the Yankees getting a starter. At the moment, why would the team do that? They had to send Ivan Nova down to the minors because the team has six eligible starters already. Furthermore, Bartolo Colon as pitched well enough to serve as the critical second ace for the post season.

   Provided everyone stays healthy, considering the thin trade market this year, I don’t foresee the Yankees making a move anytime soon. There’s no need.

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   Duh, Innings! Reply:
   July 5th, 2011 at 10:02 am

   I wouldn’t say “a strong place to be”. The Yankees are barely ahead of Boston and TB. They have eight games against TB from 7/7 to 7/21 with a series in Toronto sandwiched between those games after Cleveland. First place could turn into third place and an official three-team dogfight for the division and wildcard very quickly if the Yankees are not careful. One could argue it’s that now with the Yankees leads over Boston and TB.

   The Yankees should be ahead of Boston by at least 6.5 games when you consider they pissed away two solid starts Garcia had against the Mets, AJ’s 7-inning, one-run, one-hit gem, and two solid starts by CC early in the year. There are other games but those stick out the most to me. And if they had just won even two more games out of the first nine against Boston for 3-6, it’d have been an 8.5 game lead on Boston. So many games lost where the starter gave up 3 or fewer earned runs.

   The Yankees have let Boston and Tampa Bay hang around wayyy too long and it is time the Yankees put some distance between them and TB. I expect 3 out of 4 from TB this weekend then at least a split in TB, with 3 out of 4 over Toronto in between. Time to kick AL East ass which the Yankees haven’t really done yet!!! I just realized the Yankees have played only one game against Baltimore since 4/24: 5/18 cuz 5/19 was rained out LOL.

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   Cris Pengiuci Reply:
   July 5th, 2011 at 11:04 am

   If you were a Red Sox or TB fan, you could say something similar. With all the injuries the Yankees have had and the retreads they’ve used as starting pitchers, Boston and TB should hve been ahead of the Yankess by 10 games, yet they’re not. So, I agree, a 1.5 game lead is a good thing right now.

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   T.O. Chris Reply:
   July 5th, 2011 at 5:47 pm

   I could see the Yankees trading for a starter if they felt the guy was a strong candidate to be the number 2 starter not only this season, but going forward as well. I imagine any deal of the sort would have Nova in it. Realistically I don’t really expect any moves at the deadline either though. You obviously can’t rule anything out, but at most I think they’d add a lefty to the pen, and maybe someone like Jerry Hairston Jr.

   Adding someone like Bell is going to be expensive, consider he may be the only real impact player traded at the deadline, and the number of teams that would be in on him. Plus you probably end up at some point with Bell pitching 8th innings, and Soriano pitching in the 7th inning. While strong, it could cause problems.

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3. Phil C says:

   July 5, 2011 at 9:30 am

   I wouldn’t be surprised if Cashman acquires a reliever. Also, I think he will add something to the bench. I just don’t believe he’ll stand pat.

   I look at the Yankee lead as 2 games. I only pay attention to the loss column. That’s what really matters.

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   Mike Jaggers-Radolf Reply:
   July 5th, 2011 at 10:48 am

   I wouldn’t be surprised if the Yankees traded either for a relief pitcher or bench help. I just don’t see them trading for a starter right now.

   Fair enough regarding the lead. All the better!

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4. smurfy says:

   July 5, 2011 at 11:00 am

   AJ pitched very well last night, until the regrettable 7th. Zippy fastball, well spotted, and a curve that he was throwing for called strikes. Did he add some speed to it, that kept it from breaking so much?

   I was feeling this (generally) good roll coming for him, and I’ll bet it gets better.

   In that category of feelings, I worry about Alex, who shows awkwardness in both swinging at outside pitches, and stepping sideways. His hip may need r&r or worse. Chavez, hopefully, would be available to cover, and I wouldn’t mind somemore Nunez flubs cum whacks, either. But Andrew Jones hasn’t done too much, competent but not thrilling, so I wonder … DeRosa, Figgins?

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   Phil C Reply:
   July 5th, 2011 at 11:37 am

   RE: Andruw Jones: Mike Axisa over at RAB makes an interesting case for Juan Rivera, if he clears waivers. Not sure I agree with him but Jones has dramatically underperformed. At least versus expectations, I’m not certain he’s capable at this point of doing much better.

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   Eric Schultz Reply:
   July 5th, 2011 at 11:43 am

   Rivera has been better against lefties this year, but Jones was better over the last two seasons (I believe). For both guys, the sample this season is small enough that I’m willing to stick with Jones.

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5. A.J. implodes in the seventh inning; Yankees lose 6-3 | New York … | Yankees News Source says:

   July 5, 2011 at 12:02 pm

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6. nyyankeefanforever says:

   July 5, 2011 at 4:53 pm

   I’ve posited the following thought several times here before and have been hooted down like I was an ignorant nimrod by a choice few posters, but here I go again into the jaws of the their conventional wisdom:

   Using Mo in a day game after a night game NEVER results in a smooth outing for him, and always results in some repercussion manifesting itself in either his performance or his availability soon thereafter. Late last season we lost him for nearly a week and half with “soreness” after several such outings and, even though he didnt go on the DL and his unavailability over the stretch was never formally announced, the result was the same: unavailable. (Note: Joe G never mentions Mo’s condition or if availability is an issue with him in advance of games, yet never hesitates to pronounce others in our rotation as unavailable before game time. The strategic value of this isn’t lost on me, but it’s an incongruity and a fact nevertheless.)

   I’ve been chastised and lectured to (again, by just a certain posting pair here) about how Mo’s overall season-long usage by Joe is in line with past seasons and pointed toward his total innings compared to past seasons as a measure of the flaw in my position. But I submit that it doesnt matter at this point in his career what his accumulated season workload is anymore; he is now feeling the effects of even warming up with six pitches (that’s the maximum he himself says he “needs” to throw before going into a game), and whether he pitched 2 outs, three or four the night before is immaterial.

   Mo is like a god to me, but for the better part of a year now it’s been obvious to me (and others elsewhere who have kindly checked the game logs on my behalf) that Mo should be sat in days games after night games — even if he only threw six warmups and pitched to a single batter.

   This isn’t a slam on Joe, and it’s not a red alert that Mo’s slipping or any such nonsense. Just saying our BP, like our SP, has been incredibly outperforming all expectations in its current stripped-down mix-and-match form, and it’s just common sense to take some reasonable care in how we use our anchor on a game to game basis. Keep him out of non-save situations and never ever use him in day games after night games. He’s still the best there is and ever was, but he’s not an iron man physically anymore, and I don’t see how some real-world accommodations recognizing that fact are all that out of line.

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