Tagged: Sergio Mitre
Is This The Most Depressing Post Or What?
From today’s LoHud Blog….
“So what should the Yankees do about this rotation problem if Andy Pettitte indeed retires? There’s a lack of depth since the top prospects like Dellin Betances and Manuel Banuelos almost assuredly need more minor-league time. Can the offense compensate? And why would Larry Rothschild be able to make A.J. Burnett consistent when Dave Eiland couldn’t? Questions, questions.
Even if Pettitte does come back, they still need depth in case of potential injuries. But CC Sabathia, Phil Hughes, Pettitte, Burnett and Ivan Nova could be wild-card worthy, not that there aren’t questions about most of the group.
If Pettitte doesn’t come back and Sergio Mitre is next in line, they have to make a move. The thing is, the alternatives, possibly Joe Blanton, Freddy Garcia or Jeff Francis, aren’t particularly appealing, either, at least to me. How about to you? The Phillies could move Blanton after investing so much in Cliff Lee. Both Garcia and Francis have had shoulder problems in the past. Anyway, it will be interesting to see how this plays out.”
I’ve decided there’s only one thing to do when contemplating the Yankees’ rotation issues and their possible solutions: bring back Laughing Lady.
Sergio Mitre will be starting a crucial game against a division rival?
AJ will continue to have third-inning meltdowns, despite our new pitching coach?
We sign Freddy Garcia and his arm falls off during his first appearance in the Bronx?
It’s all fine. Why? Because it’s the season to laugh and make merry and look forward to the new year. That’s what I’m planning to do. I’m off to LA tomorrow to spend a couple of days with friends. If Cashman decides to make a move while I’m busy enjoying myself, can somebody please find me and let me know? Thanks. 🙂
‘Twas An Apple Christmas
And I’m not talking about this kind.
I live in a Mac household and Santa usually brings me some assortment of accessories for my MacBook Pro, my iPhone or my iPod. Like the nifty dock below that allows me to play music through my stereo speakers.
I went to our local Apple store this afternoon to add to my loot and the place was mobbed. People weren’t just exchanging gifts either; the line for getting new stuff trailed all the way around the store. But instead of total chaos, there was customer service help everywhere you turned – bright-eyed men and women wearing red shirts and earpieces who not only wanted to answer questions but actually knew the answers. This is all my long-winded way of saying I think Steve Jobs is a genius who could probably make me buy anything he’s selling.
What does this have to do with baseball? Stay with me.
I have no idea if Jobs is a fan of sports in general or baseball in particular, but I can’t help wondering what a guy with his intelligence, marketing savvy and bank account would do with a major league team. I’ll tell you what he wouldn’t do if he owned the Yankees; he wouldn’t start the season with a rotation of CC, AJ, Hughes, Nova and Mitre. Nope. He’d engineer some sort of big signing – keeping his plan secret and then announcing the deal at a news conference that would whip the media into a frenzy. “Yankees Rotation Version 2011” is what he’d call it and then he’d list all the reasons why it represented a much improved formula.
I’m not saying the Yankees won’t still go out and get a pitcher before the season starts or that we’re not okay with the arms we already have (Mitre excluded). Maybe our new pitching coach will have a sensational session with AJ this week or whenever they’re meeting up. Maybe Pettitte will decide to come back for another year. And maybe Ivan Nova is the next King Felix.
A girl can hope. That’s what the holiday season is all about, isn’t it?
Look What Brian Cashman Sent Me!
Really thoughtful of the Yankees’ GM to put me on his holiday cards list this year – a card featuring our starting rotation for 2011. And what surprises his card contained! Who knew, for example, that Phil Hughes had “lead singer” in him even with CC around or that AJ was such a wild man (well, we kind of knew that). Also, what a clever way of letting me know that Pettitte has decided to pitch another year for us. But the biggest surprise of all was seeing Felix Hernandez in the band. I had a hunch we wouldn’t be stuck with Mitre filling out the rotation or even Nova; Cash had much more lofty ambitions and I’m very grateful for that. Rock on, Yankees.
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Oh, My
I know my job here is to try to cheer everybody up after a loss and I’ll do my best, but let’s be honest: tonight was a major league bummer. And the bummer-ness can be summed up with two photos. This one:
And this one:
When I saw Tex grab his hammy in the fifth, I went numb. I think I even stopped breathing (sort of). You just never want to see an injury to one of your best players. Not anytime, but especially not when you’re fighting for a chance to get to the World Series. And while I haven’t heard the results of the MRI, I can’t imagine they’ll bring good news for him or the team.
Onto the photo of AJ after he gave up the homer to Molina in the sixth. How did things go so horribly wrong? The Good AJ had shown up after all, and I was so relieved to see him pitching well with the crowd cheering his every strike. But – and cover your eyes if you don’t like me second guessing our manager – I wouldn’t have let him go back out for the sixth. He hadn’t pitched in forever and five innings of two-run ball would have allowed him to feel somewhat vindicated, to have 50,000 people on his side and, most importantly, to notch the win. Instead, Grady Little Joe Girardi pushed it and the result was awful.
And speaking of awful, what happened to Boone Logan all of a sudden? (I won’t even get into Joba or Mitre.)
All this agony might have been avoided if the hitters had done their job. They kept letting the Rangers’ pitchers off the ropes, and it was frustrating to watch.
So we lost. And now it’s up to CC to save us tomorrow – and for me to end this post on some happy notes.
* The pizza wasn’t lucky but it was delicious.
* There was more thunder and lightning here but my power didn’t go out.
* A Red Sox fan called me bad names on Twitter and I took the high road by not calling him bad names back.
* Patrick Wilson, the actor who sang “God Bless America,” is very handsome. (I loved him in the movie “Little Children.”)
* There’s a very good chance we’ll win Game 5.
Good night.
Yeah, We Lost, But I Feel Strangely Better About Things
Just got back from a concert and it’s late, so I’ll keep this post short. The game tonight was actually uplifting. For me, anyway. Pettitte was horrendous and the Yanks were taking a 10-1 beating and Beckett looked more like the Beckett of old. And then a miracle: We ended up scoring eight runs, homering off every pitcher the Red Sox threw out there except Bard. The power surge was encouraging. The fighting spirit was a good sign. The fact that we almost came back and tied the game after being down by nine runs was positive. Even Mitre’s outing was impressive. (Don’t get me started on Albaladejo.)
We’re not in first place tonight. That’s not wonderful. The fact that time is running out for Pettitte to be stretched out isn’t great. But I’m not panicking. I’m just not.
OK, so the concert I went to helped me forget this little losing jag we’re on. Even if you’re not into jazz, which I’m not, I recommended the music of Charles Lloyd and his quartet, including his new recording called “Mirror.”
Charles Lloyd “Mirror” from Dorothy Darr on Vimeo.
Here’s hoping tomorrow is a better day, baseball wise.
Yanks-Rays Round 3: Death By Bullpen
Ring…Moseley…Gaudin…Albaladejo. Thanks, guys. I appreciate it.
Actually, Ring can be forgiven. It was his Yankees debut and he gave up a walk. Not a criminal offense. But the others? Please. All we needed to complete the parade of mediocrity was Mitre, but he must have been busy toweling off after the rain or something.
The rain. I forgot to blame it too. For all we know, A.J. would have had a nice outing and we wouldn’t have had to use our D-list relief corps. On the other hand, the offense was getting no-hit until Berkman went deep. I guess it wasn’t the Yankees’ night, except for the defense; there were some terrific plays by Tex, among others. He can hardly hold a bat but he still shines at first base. Now for the Big Question: Did our friends Peggy, Melissa, YankeeCase/Eddie and Ladyjane/Jane stay through the long rain delay? Did they meet up as planned? Did they get drenched?
I hope they’ll check in and tell all. Meanwhile, I’m counting on CC to wrap up the series tomorrow night with a dominant performance. Like a complete game shutout performance. Like a no-doubter that sends me into the weekend feeling better than I feel right now.
Update: Right after I hit “publish,” an email from Melissa floated into my inbox with a photo of our “core four” at the game tonight. Without further ado, here are (from left to right): Jane, Melissa, Eddie and Peggy.
And take a look at the buttons the gang is sporting. Melissa made them and here’s what they say…
How cool are they? I love them!!!!!
Touching Down To Disappointment
My flight landed at Burbank airport tonight and the first thing I did once I got to baggage claim was flip on my iPhone, click on my MLB app and listen to Yankees-Rays. They were in the 4th inning and there was no score. For the next couple of hours, as I made my way up to Santa Barbara on the freeways, I sat there glued to the game wondering which team would score first. What a pitchers duel – the two best teams going at it as if it were a postseason contest. The car finally pulled in my driveway with the game in the 11th. I dropped my luggage at the front door, ran inside the house like a crazy person and turned on the TV – just in time to see Mitre serve one up to Brignac. For the first time this season I was glad I don’t get the postgame shows on YES; my Extra Innings package cuts off the broadcasts as soon as the games end, and the screen shows nothing but the words “Good Night.” It was not a good night for the Yankees, and I’m too tired and heartsick to do anything but say “Good Night” myself.
Nine-Run Innings Work For Me
I was hoping to go to the Stadium for today’s finale against the Tigers, but my husband Michael said he was “too tired.” So what did he do about an hour before the Yankees took the field? This.
At first, it looked like he wouldn’t make it out of the dock area, but off he went.
I walked inside the house and turned on the game. He was back by the third inning and got to see all the fun. And what fun it was. I really do love it when the boys are spanking opposing pitchers.
Nine runs in the sixth? Sweet. Huuughes? Another win. Tex? A couple of amazing defensive plays. Cano? Just plain sick at the plate. The only sour note was Mitre’s ineffectiveness. Well, and the fact that Granderson and Gardner could have had a horrible collision (scary moment). But mostly, I was just thrilled that we won a series. It’s been awhile.
Bombed
Maybe it’s the Blue Jays who should be called the Bombers, since they were the ones doing the bombing tonight. Every time I turned around, Wells or Bautista or one of those guys was hitting the ball out. Clearly, Moseley isn’t CC and Wood isn’t Mo. And Mitre? Why even bother. Just DFA him already and call up one of the kids.
Offense is still AWOL. Third loss in a row. No longer in first place. What’s a Yankee fan to do? I’ll tell you what this Yankee fan did: watched the clip of the Red Sox and Indians going at it tonight.
Josh Beckett looks really, really mad at Shelley Duncan, doesn’t he? All I can say is that their game must have been way more entertaining than ours.
This game gave me acid reflux
Actually, it’s Brett Gardner who has it and was, therefore, unavailable today. Reports say he went to the hospital to have his gut checked. I sure hope everything is OK because this lineup missed him – and Swisher. But the real problem was Mitre. I know it was his first start coming off the DL, but isn’t he supposed to be a sinker ball pitcher? Did anyone see a ball that sunk? The only bright spot in the game was Moseley. Well, and Tex’s two homers. Otherwise, the Yankees looked wilted from the heat, including Mr. #599.
I really hope Cashman will step up his talks with the Diamondbacks about Dan Haren. Wouldn’t he look good in pinstripes?
Yeah, he’d have to get a haircut and lose the beard, but he’s kind of adorable. And more importantly, he strikes guys out.
Oh, before I forget, have people heard about the new sports site for fans, uberfan.com? It’s this really cool site where you can keep track of the games you watched and the corresponding stats for how your team did on those days. Check out their press release about it, and you’ll get the drift. It’s perfect for us superstitious fans. You’ll see.
Confessions of a She-Fan 