Monday, August 17, 2009

I Don't Mind That They Lost, It Was The Way They Lost That Bothers Me

The Good

Derek Jeter went all out to tie, and pass hall of fame shortstop Luis Aparicio for all time hits by a shortstop. When you think about it, its truly amazing. Back in the 90's wouldn't you have thought that A-Rod, Tejada, and Nomar would be right there with him? But alas, two were on 'roids, and the other probably was too.

The Bad

Joba was back in pre all-star game form, going 5 innings and giving up 4 runs. His last two games would appear to be a digression from the dominance he was previously showing.

The Ugly

Aceves and Gaudin combined for 4 innings of 6 run ball. I'm kind of glad we lost though, because we were starting to rely heavily on late game offense, which is a good tool to have, but we can't rely on it. We need to learn how to take the lead early in a game and hold it. Against a team like the Mariners it shouldn't be too hard. The problem comes when we face actual contenders. When we face a team with an actual bullpen I'm afraid the late inning heroics will diminish, and we won't be able to rely on the walkoffs like we have been.

Respect Jeter's Gangster is for the Children

The "Respect Jeter's Gangster" blog joined Johnny Damon's home run club, which raises money for the Children's Health Fund. We are pledged to donate $1.00 for every homerun the Yankees hit this season. Yesterday, it was Nick the Swish who fought the campaign for Children's Health with his 20th homerun of the season.

Jorge Posada 15hr = $15.00
Hideki Matsui 19hr = $19.00
Derek Jeter 15hr = $15.00
Mark Teixeira 30hr = $30.00
Nick Swisher 20hr = $20.00
Robinson Cano 18hr = $18.00
Johnny Damon 22hr = $22.00
Melky Cabrera 11hr = $11.00
Jose Molina 1hr = $1.00
Alex Rodriguez 21hr = $21.00
Brett Gardner 3hr = $3.00
Francisco Cervelli 1hr = $1.00
Eric Hinske 5hr = $5.00
Jerry Hairston Jr. 1hr = $1.00
Total = $182.00

If you are interested in Johnny Damon's Homerun Club or the Children's Health Fund you can find links to both at the top right hand corner of our page.

7 comments:

Jon Roberts said...

The issue with the comebacks is not that you need to worry about teams with better bullpens, the Mariners have a decent bullpen if not a true closer. The real problem is that they have almost no offense where as the contenders do. The hole might get too big to climb out of against say the Angels who are pretty potent this year.

That said, this team is really good. The comebacks say more about the Yankees bullpen and the ability of the offense to keep grinding to the last out. 3 out 4 isn't bad though. The Mariners aren't a playoff bound team, but they have a winning record.

Fernando Alejandro said...

Yeah, no complaints about this series. Well, one complaint, Joba needs to get back on track.

Anonymous said...

Think maybe Joba's getting too much rest?

Joe

Fernando Alejandro said...

No, I think Joba's still learning how to pitch. He's trying to be too fine with his pitches and hit corners that he simply can't hit. Throws way too many balls as a result, and is forced into hitters counts.

hunter said...

i fear that if joba doesnt get it together within the next start or so, the starter/reliever debate will rise again in full force. and its unfortunate too... we saw joba after the all star break where he looked like a number one. right now he looks like a spot starter. i really hope he does get it right!

Fernando Alejandro said...

I hear you Hunter. Its bizarre how inconsistent Joba's been. If he doesn't pull it back together this next time out, we'll definitely be hearing the bullpen/rotation argument again.

bigjf said...

Joba's inconsistency doesn't surprise me. It's just all part of the plan they had mapped out.

Step 1: Tell Joba he's starting in Fenway.

Step 2: Change your mind 2 days before his actual start in Seattle.

Step 3: Joba only throws 5 innings in Seattle, thus keeping him from approaching his imprecise innings limit too quickly.

Step 4: Rest him a week and a half so that he forgets everything he's learned about pitching.

Plan was executed perfectly.