Andy scares up a Halloween victory
Lefty survives rough start to notch 17th post season win

Once again the Yankees turned to “Old Reliable.” In one of the linchpin games of the 2009 edition of the World Series Joe Girardi handed the ball to the elder statesman of his pitching staff.

Andy Pettitte has taken the hill in the post season more than any other Yankee pitcher not named Mariano Rivera. Whitey Ford has the major league record for most wins the World Series with 10, but Pettitte had the most victories in the post season with 16. Last night he was going for his 17th.

The Philadelphia Phillies countered with last year’s World Series MVP, Cole Hamels, and the Phillies were banking on the Hamels of 2008 showing up. As Game 3 unfolded it appeared that the boys from the City of Brotherly Love were going to get their wish.

In the first 3 innings Hamels completely shut down the Yankees. The only flaw in his game up that point was hitting Alex Rodriguez in the top of the second, but he quickly erased that situation by inducing catcher Jorge Posada to hit into a force at second, striking out Robinson Cano and getting Nick Swisher to fly out to right.

Pettitte also looked like he was ready for the evening. After giving up a leadoff single to shortstop Jimmy Rollins in the first Pettitte retired the Phillies big bats by popping out Shane Victorino, then striking out Chase Utley and Ryan Howard to end the inning.

The game appeared to be shaping up to another pitching duel, but things got dicey for Pettitte and the Yankees in the second. In a script tailor made for Halloween Pettitte served up a leadoff home run to Jason Werth before striking out Raul Ibanez. Catcher Pedro Feliz followed with a double to right and Carlos Ruiz walked. With runners at first and second Hamels laid down a bunt single to load the bases. Rollins walked to force in a run and then Victorino hit a sacrifice fly to left scoring Ruiz. Pettitte finally escaped further damage by striking out Utley for the second time to end the inning.

The teams traded zeros in the 3rd inning, but it wasn’t looking great for the Bombers as Hamels hadn’t given up a hit and appeared to be cruising through New York’s lineup.

That all changed in the top of the 4th.

Hamels started the inning like he had the entire game by getting Johnny Damon to fly out to right field. He walked Mark Teixeira and up to the plate strode Alex Rodriguez.

Rodriguez, who had had stellar division and league championship series performances was hitless in the Fall Classic. In eight official at bats A-Rod had recorded six strikeouts conjuring up memories of his preceding post season woes.

A-Rod put a charge into an 0-1 fastball and sent it down the right field line. Initially, it looked like the ball hit the top of the wall and came back onto the field, causing Rodriguez to stop at second and Teixeira at third. However, the strange way the ball bounced back onto the field caused Girardi to ask for a video review of the ball’s flight. All six umpires retreated to a viewing room and in a very quick reversal ruled that A-Rod’s shot had hit a FOX camera located just behind the wall in the right field corner of the park. It was now a 3-2 Phillies lead.

"I think it was a big hit," Rodriguez said to reporters after the game. "I think it woke our offense up a little bit. It felt really good."

Added Girardi about A-Rod’s breakout swing, "It was a big hit for us because it really got us going. He has been so good for us in the playoffs. He's a big reason we're at this point."

Pettitte pitched a scoreless 4th and then the Yankees went back to work in the top of the 5th inning.

Swisher finally got to the party by doubling to left to start the inning. After Melky Cabrera stuck out Pettitte helped his own cause by blooping a first pitch curveball into center as Swisher came around and beat the throw to home with a hard slide into Ruiz.

With the score tied Jeter singled to left, moving Pettitte to second. Johnny Damon doubled to right center scoring Pettitte and Jeter. Rapidly the game unraveled for Hamels and the Phillies. After walking Teixeira manager Charlie Manuel took his staggered starter out of the game.

J.A. Happ quickly restored order by getting A-Rod to line out to center and Posada to pop out to second to shut down the Yankee threat.

Leading 5-3 Pettitte faced the heart of the Phillies lineup. However, as he had done so many times in past post season games, Pettitte came up big getting Victorino to line out to center, followed by Utley grounding out to first and Howard popping out to short.

Both teams traded home runs in the 6th as Swisher recorded his first knock in the World Series and Werth hit a monster shot over the left field wall for his second round tripper of the game.

In the seventh with two on and two out Posada got on the ledger by hitting a soft single to left scoring Damon as the Yankees took a 7-4 lead.

Pinch hitter Hideki Matsui, substituting for reliever Joba Chamberlain (who pitched a scoreless 7th inning) finished up the Yankees scoring by hitting an opposite field home run off Brett Myers to make it an 8-4 ballgame.

With the Phillies down to their last 3 outs and the Yankees holding onto a 4-run lead Girardi elected to go with the erratic Phil Hughes to close out the game. Unfortunately for Hughes, after Feliz grounded out, Hughes threw a 1-1 four seamer to Ruiz over the plate and Ruiz launched it over the left center field wall. Girardi wasted little time finding his hook and pulling the beleaguered reliever out of the game.

For the third straight game closer Mariano Rivera was given the ball and asked to end the game. Rivera did so on 5 pitches. He induced pinch hitter Matt Stairs to ground out to second and Rollins to hit a soft pop up to Rodriguez at third. Ballgame over.

Losing Game 1, and knowing the last 6 World Series runner ups lost Game 1 the Yankees knew they had a steep, but not impossible mountain to climb.

"We feel like we've got a real strong team," Pettitte told reporters. "Obviously, losing that first game, we weren't happy with that. We were upset about it, but we feel real good about what we're doing and we felt good about coming in here."

Pettitte critiqued his pitching performance as a rough one. One that came after an 80-minute rain delay.

"It was a battle tonight -- I wasn't able to get ahead," Pettitte said in the clubhouse. "I wasn't able to get my breaking ball over. I was able to get some outs when I needed to get some, but it was a grind tonight for me."

More from Pettitte on Pettitte:

"You're out there and you're by yourself," Pettitte admitted to reporters. "There's not a whole lot of anything that can help you except just trying to just keep battling and keep trying to get it there and keep trying to get it there, and hopefully, it'll come around."

Luckily for the Yankees Pettitte did come around, and so did the Yankees offense. Although happy with the outcome the Yankees know the battle isn’t over.

"We feel good about being up, 2-1," Pettitte mused afterward. "But we know there's a lot of work left to do."

New York hopes to put the Phillies on the brink of elimination today in Game 4 as their ace CC Sabathia takes the hill on three days’ rest. The Phillies counter with RHP Joe Blanton. Game time is 8:20 pm EST. As usual the broadcast will be carried by FOX and anchored by Joe Buck and Tim McCarver.

2 to 27.

© 2009 Yankees Talk Shop @ yuku.com

Redistribution, rewriting, rebroadcast, or republication of this story without the prior written consent of Yankees Talk Shop, Pride in the Pinstripes or its affiliates is strictly prohibited

BoSox KO Yankees with early season sweep
Bronx Bummers go 3 and out

If this weekend proved anything it proves the 2009 version of the New York Yankees isn’t very good. At least they’re not good right now and not good in the State of Massachusetts.

The Boston Red Sox shredded the Yankees starting rotation of Joba Chamberlain, AJ Burnett and Andy Pettitte, along with a shoddy bullpen, for 25 runs on 34 hits, five of which were home runs to sweep the Yankees. With the weekend losses the Yankees dropped to 9-9 on the year, and they landed into third place, four games behind the front running Toronto Blue Jays. The Sox improved to 12-6 and moved to within one game of the Jays.

This was the first major test for the Yankees who, along with the Tampa Bay Rays and Red Sox, were considered by most experts to be one of the three best teams in all of baseball. Unfortunately for New York fans the Bronx Bummers didn’t live up to the hype.

On Friday evening, with the Yankees leading the Sox 4-2 going into the bottom of the ninth, Yankee manager Joe Girardi handed the ball to his star closer, Mariano Rivera, with the confidence Rivera would close the door and secure victory for the pinstripers.

It’s no secret Rivera has had difficulties from time to time in Fenway Park and this night proved no different. The inning started off well, as Rivera struck out David Ortiz, but then gave up a single to Kevin Youkilis who just happens to be the hottest hitter in the American League at the moment. He moved to second on JD Drew’s ground out and came home after Rivera threw a ball down the middle of the plate, which was promptly deposited into the deepest part of center field by outfielder Jason Bay. Rivera surrendered a single to third baseman Mike Lowell, but ended the inning by striking out catcher Jason Varitek.

Predictably, the damage was done.

The Yankees failed to score in the 10th and 11th innings and with Dámaso Marte on the mound Youkilis ended the game with a walk off home run as the Sox edged the Yankees 5-4.

The following afternoon bore out the Yankees inability to maintain a lead or get off the canvas when knocked down.

New York starter AJ Burnett cruised through the first three innings as the Yankees built a 6-0 lead in the top of the 4th inning. However, in the bottom of the frame Burnett unraveled and the Yankees allowed Boston back into the game. The Red Sox scored 5 runs, capped by Varitek’s grand slam, which by the way, doubled his RBI total for the year. The Sox scored 3 more runs in the 5th to take an 8-6 lead.

The Yankees scored 2 runs in the 6th and 7th innings, but the Red Sox answered with a run in their half of the 6th and 3 more in the 7th. The Yankees got a run in the 8th, but Boston ended it with a knockout in the bottom of the frame scoring 4 runs to make it a 16-13 victory in a slugfest that saw the two teams combine for 28 hits.

It seemed no matter what the Yankees did the Red Sox countered with greater ferocity.

Hoping to avoid the brooms leaving town the Yankees put their hopes in the left arm of Andy Pettitte. Pettitte has always been the Yankees slide stopper, and he has had a lot of success pitching in Fenway Park. Pettitte came into the game with a 2-0 record and a decent 2.53 ERA. Things were looking good, because the Red Sox had to counter with a kid by the name of Justin Masterson who was making an emergency start. Masterson had thrown just 11 innings in 5 previous appearances, and he was facing off with one of Baseball’s best gamers.

There are reasons teams play 162 games on the field and not on paper. Masterson mastered the Yankees, keeping them off balance in his 5.1 innings of work. Masterson allowed 6 measly hits, while striking out 4 and walking one. He did not give up an extra-base hit. Boston’s bullpen picked Masterson up after he exited the game by not allowing a run to help the young gun improve his record to 2-0.

On the other side of the mound Pettitte didn’t pitch bad, but he made a huge mental error in the game, which shifted momentum to the Red Sox side of the ledger. In the bottom of the 5th with Pettitte locked in a 1-1 ballgame he walked Varitek to start the inning. He struck out Ortiz, and then walked Jacoby Ellsbury, who is a blur on the bases. Pettitte induced Dustin Pedroia to fly out and it looked like he might get out of the inning, as he faced the struggling Ortiz.

Ortiz spoiled Pettitte’s attempt to get out of the inning unscathed by hitting an opposite field double into left field scoring Varitek and putting Ellsbury at third. Pettitte intentionally walked Youkilis to load the bases. While facing Drew, Pettitte and Posada neglected to check Ellsbury at third. Pettitte wound up and delivered a slow breaking pitch. While Pettitte was in his windup Ellsbury broke for home and slid head first across the dish before Posada had a chance to receive the ball from Pettitte and apply the tag.

The Yankees were stunned.

To add insult to injury Drew doubled to score Ortiz to make the score 4-1. New York was unable to overcome its mistakes and only collected two insignificant singles (Robinson Cano – top 6th; Melky Cabrera – top 9th) the rest of the way.

The Yankees who broke spring training camp in Tampa with two new arms (Burnett and CC Sabathia) in the starting rotation and a new power hitting, defensive first baseman (Mark Teixeira) had hopes for a fast start. After losing 2-of-3 in Baltimore where they were expected to win the Yankees went to Kansas City and won 2-of-3 to even their record at 3-3. They went home to open up their new $1.5 billion palace against the Cleveland Indians.

With the new digs as a backdrop, an enthusiastic crowd and their ace on the mound the Yankees opened their home stand with a 10-2 loss. Sabathia, who had been signed in the off-season for $161 million over 7 years had a good start, but was betrayed by his bullpen who gave up 9 runs to blow the game for the big lefty.

The Yankees won the following game 6-5, but were embarrassed by Cleveland in Saturday’s matinee game by coughing up 22 runs on 25 hits. It was one of the most lopsided losses in Yankees’ history. In fact New York, who owned a 2-0 lead after the first, gave up 14 runs in the top of the 2nd inning to break the MLB record for most runs scored by a team in a single inning. The old record was 13 previously held by--you guessed it--the Yankees.

Finally, in Sunday’s get away game the Yankees finally played solid baseball all the way around and beat the Indians 7-3 to unrighteously earn a split in the 4-game series.

The Yankees took a rain shortened, 2-game series against the visiting Oakland Athletics by beating the A’s 5-3 and 9-7 respectively, then headed into Boston with a 9-6 record and tied with the Red Sox for second place.

The Yankees, with their tails between their legs, head for Detroit where they will play the Tigers in a 3-game series before traveling back home to open their stint against the always dangerous Los Angeles Angels.

This team, so far, has been a huge disappointment. They have been grossly overrated at this juncture and have underperformed given their expectations. Mark Teixeira, although putting on displays of defensive genius, has been a mess at the plate. As one of the big winter signings Teixeira is expected to provide a lot of offense in replacing the aging Jason Giambi.

A notorious slow starter, it was hoped Teixeira would mash out of the gate, but true to form he has achieved little in the month of April. He is batting just .218 with 3 home runs and 10 RBI. In 55 at bats he has struck out 11 times.

He isn’t the only underachiever on the team. Cody Ransom, who is standing in for Alex Rodriguez until A-Rod returns in May, was only hitting .180 with no home runs and 6 RBI in 50 at bats before he injured his right quadriceps sliding into 2B on April 24. Center fielder Brett Gardner beat out Melky Cabrera for the starting job in spring training by swinging a hot bat, but has fallen off the radar screen with a .220 BA, 0 HR, 4 RBI and only 9 runs scored. Not a power hitter Gardner was expected to get on base and use his unbelievable speed to create scoring opportunities. So far Gardner is sporting an OBP of .254, which is not getting the job done.

There have been some bright spots though. Newcomer Nick Swisher has carried the team for much of the month of April. He is currently batting .286 with 4 HR and 13 RBI. With Xavier Nady on the disabled list Swisher has been able to play daily and has made the most of his opportunities.

The biggest surprises have been Robinson Cano and Cabrera.

Cano, who started the 2008 season as an undisciplined hitter, had a terrible first half season, and even though he warmed up in the second half of ’08 only batted .271. He had 14 HR and 72 RBI. This season Cano came out of the spring with a renewed purpose. He is the Yankees hottest hitter. Cano is batting .373 with 5 HR and 15 RBI. If nothing changed Cano would project out to 45 HR and 225 RBI. Obviously, that won’t play out, but you get the picture. Cano has completely turned his game around since the end of last season.

The same can be said for Cabrera who is hitting .303 in April. Melky has 4 HR and 7 RBI in limited playing time. Beat out of the center field job, Cabrera is showcasing his talent at the plate in hopes of possibly moving Gardner to the bench.

Up to now the Yankees have played rag-tag baseball. They are not getting timely pitching, nor are they getting timely hitting. The Yankees can’t expect to get 10-15 runs per game in order to win. They seem to have lost the killer instinct that marked the great Yankees teams of the ‘90’s. They get leads, lose them, and then lose the game. They’re not answering the bell when they get hit on the chin. In order to compete with other teams in their division the Yankees are going to have to get tougher. Now with Nady, set up man Brian Bruney, starter Chien-Ming Wang, Ransom and Alex Rodriguez all on the DL, it is up to the rest of the team to suck it up and get after it. Somebody is going to have to step up and put the team on his back, otherwise, the Yankees will fall further behind the front runners.

The Yankee organization spent a ton of money on marquee free agents to help this team get back into the winner’s circle. It also spent megabucks on opening a new citadel. But, unless the new stadium has a winning team in it the fans are going to find other things to do with their time. Yeah it’s early, but to me, the games in April and May mean just as much as those in August and September. A win is a win no matter when you get it.

If the Yankees can’t get off the deck when floored, then when that hot streak comes sometime during the season it’s going to be used in getting closer to the top, but not over it. And, as we all know the measure of a successful season for the Yankees is capturing the World Series trophy and taking a trip down the Canyon of Heroes. Anything less is considered failure.

Failure is not an option.

© 2009 Yankees Talk Shop @ yuku.com

Redistribution, rewriting, rebroadcast, or republication of this story without the prior written consent of Yankees Talk Shop, Pride in the Pinstripes or its affiliates is strictly prohibited

Waiting in the Wings
Up and Coming Prospect confidently waits his turn







Special to Yankees Talk Shop
February 23, 2009


So far this spring the sports sections of New York’s various newspapers have been filled with articles about the troubles of Yankees’ third baseman Alex Rodriguez. Has it dawned on anyone that spring training has officially started and the start of the regular season is less than two months away?

Although we haven’t reported or read the last about A-Rod’s quagmire it is time to turn the corner and get our collective focus back on baseball. The Yankees have the usual cast of characters adorning George M. Steinbrenner (formally Legends) Field, but there are also some unfamiliar faces around as well; hoping to catch the attention of the coaching staff and manager in anticipation of having their names filed away in the backs of minds to be recalled at a later, more opportune date.

One of these players is RHP pitcher Mark Melancon (pronounced Muh-lan-son). Melancon, at 6-2 and 215 lb. has impressed the coaches, manager Joe Girardi and GM Brian Cashman early with his ability.

Melancon was drafted in 2006 out of the University of Arizona, where he still holds the school’s single season and career marks for saves, by the Yankees in the First-Year Player Draft.

Melancon was assigned to the Class-A Short-Season Staten Island Yankees where he made seven relief appearances, amassing a 0-1 record, with two saves, and a 3.52 ERA. He helped the Yankees capture their second consecutive NY-Penn Championship.

A successful debut took a back seat for Melancon as he underwent Tommy John surgery on October 31st, which caused him to miss the entire 2007 season.

The 23-year old pitcher returned to the mound in 2008; starting with Class-A Tampa. Although rusty at the outset of the season Melancon was a respectable 1-0 in 13 appearances. He threw 25.1 innings, striking out 20 while walking six. Opposing hitters had a .265 B.A. against Melancon, as he only surrendered eight earned runs for a 2.84 ERA.

The right-hander was promoted to the Class-AA Trenton Thunder in mid-May where his numbers continued to improve. He accrued a 6-0 record and 2 saves, while fanning 47 hitters in 49.2 innings. His SO/BB ratio was nearly 4-to-1 as Melancon gave out no more than 12 free passes. In 19 appearances opposing hitters could only manage a .183 B.A. against him and his ERA plunged to 1.81.

At the end of July Melancon jumped up to Class-AAA Scranton Wilkes-Barrie. There, Melancon made 12 appearances; piling up 20 innings of work. He made the most of his opportunities as he struck out 22, and walked only 4 while going 1-1 with a save. Opponents could only hit .162 against Melancon. He helped the SWB Yankees to the 2008 Governors’ Cup Championship.

According to an article in today’s New York Daily News, Melancon is rated as the no. 9 overall prospect at the start of 2009 by Baseball America.

In an interview to the News Melancon gave out a ray of confidence, but not arrogance as to how good he is.

Asked if the thought he was ready for the majors Melancon replied, "I think I'm ready. I still think I have a lot of learning to do. I'm definitely not at the level I want to be at."

Although Joba Chamberlain’s name is the one that's most often discussed as the closer when Mariano Rivera retires, Melancon is also being mentioned as another candidate who could be closing out Yankee games in the future.

However, as of now, the big reliever is taking such talk in stride. "It's not overwhelming, because I know it's not true unless I make it true," Melancon told reporters. "I think it's able to be done, so I'm excited for that. I'm excited that people are throwing that out there, but I know it's not true until I make it true."

One thing Melancon and Chamberlain could have in common is the way Chamberlain debuted in 2007. He was a late season addition to the 40-man roster and sparkled out of the bullpen to help the Yankees return to the playoffs for the 13th consecutive year. Melancon could see that scenario happening as well.

"I can picture that," Melancon said. "I think I have a lot to offer - my competitiveness and my ability to get it done. I feel that in any situation I come in to I have a chance to get outs and win."

Right now Melancon has no expectations of making the opening day roster. However, in a long season where injuries do occur Melancon knows he has to be ready at any time to fill a spot on the big club.

Girardi told reporters Melancon is “in the mix” with the other relievers, but Cashman anticipates the right-hander starting the season in Triple-A.

Nonetheless, no matter where he ends up to start 2009 Girardi complimented his young star. "You don't want to make too much of what you see right now because his stuff is going to get better as he goes on in spring training," Girardi said. "I love his arm."

Nice praise to build on for sure.

Sources: NY Daily News, ESPN, Minor League Baseball website, Scranton Wilkes-Barrie Yankees website



© 2009 Yankees Talk Shop @ yuku.com

Redistribution, rewriting, rebroadcast, or republication of this story without the prior written consent of Yankees Talk Shop, Pride in the Pinstripes or its affiliates is strictly prohibited