Things to Think About

The Yankees have announced their rotation and it is as follows:

Sabathia
Hughes
Pettitte
Burnett

Now a couple of posts ago someone commented that it made sense to match up Burnett with Lee, since if we're going to take an automatic loss anyway, it doesn't really matter what Burnett does. This seemed pretty sensible, and I wondered why the Yanks didn't go that route. The main reason, I would guess, is that you want CC, Hughes, and Pettitte set up for games 5, 6, and 7. That may mean burning one of Pettitte's starts if Lee does his usual playoff thing of going 8 or 9 innings and giving up almost nothing, but it also means only having to start Burnett once.

Another issue is why pitch Hughes second. My guess is that the Yankees are aware of how much better Hughes has pitched on the road, and as good as he pitched at home in game three, why gamble?

The Rotation

With the Yankees announcing that they will carry four starters in the ALCS, we can now discuss how we think the Yankees should line up their pitchers and who their fourth starter should be. One suggestion, made in the comments section of the previous post, was to line up Burnett with Lee or Price, so that it doesn't really matter what happens when he pitches. That seems a sensible plan, but I'm not prepared to accept that Burnett should be in the rotation over, say, volunteers from the crowd. I'd still line up that volunteer against Lee or Price, but I think choosing a fan at random gives us the best chance to compete. There will be no advanced scouting, and the Rays' hitters won't be used to the inevitably slower pitches. It will also give the bullpen an advantage, as their pitches will be harder to pick up after a few innings of having to swing at fifty-something mph pitches. As far as I know, there is no rule banning volunteers from the stands from starting a Major League playoff game. You can't do it in the regular season, but I think it's okay in the playoffs. Clearly, that is our best option.

The Good Ol' Days

I remember the good ol' days. The smell of the fresh cut grass, pine tar placed expertly by the on deck circle, playing games that really mattered. It seems like a lifetime ago, but it was two days ago. If you're like me, you're already in withdrawal. The Yanks don't play again until Friday. We're still waiting for the rest of these no-talent, unable to sweep their opponent teams to finish their series so we can move on to the League Championships. This sucks. As much as I appreciate that our older guys can use the time off to nap, rant about hippies, and complain that us young'uns don't show them enough respect, this sucks.

As a public service I've decided to give some tips for how we can all manage through the malaise of six days without Yankees baseball. You're probably thinking I should write a game review instead. But I have writer's block right now and that's not going to happen. Besides, you should know by now how it all turned out. Unless, of course, you blinked and missed the entire series (way to put up a fight Minnesota). Just in case, I will give the following quick review: we won.

Now, most of us have jobs or other responsibilities to attend to during the day, so wandering around in a drunken stupor for a week is a no go. You could watch other teams play baseball. This will give you an advantage when yelling at the screen during Yankees' games against those other teams. You'll know the opposing players' names, some of their positions, maybe even some strengths and weaknesses.

Another option is to read a book. It's okay if it has pictures in it, and it will help kill time.

You could also spend inordinate amounts of time on baseball blogs leaving comments regarding your predictions for upcoming series. Granted, you're probably already doing that.

You could try writing the next great American novel. You won't succeed. In fact, you won't even get past the first two pages, but it will kill your week long wait real fast.

Now that you've got some good, nay, great ideas for how to spend the next week, go ahead and get hammered anyway. It's just easier.

Updates

I just wanted to post a quick note on the lack of game updates recently. My brother is away on vacation and my internet the last few days has been acting up. I rarely get more than a few minutes at a time of working internet, and so I will return to posting regular updates once the issue is resolved.

Uh-oh . . .

That's what I would be thinking if I'm any team that might have to face the Yankees after Pettitte's performance last night. With CC out front, and Pettitte back to form, the Yanks may be looking like front runners once again. It's funny how different this team looks in the playoffs. Assuming CC is CC and Pettitte continues to pitch like he did last night, we may have a date with Philly coming up. (And yes, I think Philly takes the NL).

The Sabathia Factor

Much has been made about the Yankees desire to avoid Cliff Lee in a short series during the ALDS. But not as much attention has been paid to the Sabathia factor. Sure, everyone acknowledges he is our best pitcher, and probably our only sure thing in these playoffs. No one, however, has seemed to mention that Sabathia is about as close to a guaranteed ALCS appearance as one can have. In a short series, he almost guarantees you two of the three wins you need. That leaves one victory to be garnered by Pettitte or Hughes. Maybe we never get that victory, but I would not like to be the team that has to face Sabathia twice in a short series.

The Three Amigos?

Many are suggesting the Yankees will go with a three man rotation in the first round. This year's playoff schedule won't be quite as amenable as last year's, which enabled the Yankees to use CC Sabathia on three days rest every single game of the playoffs and World Series, so the Yankees are going to have to be creative.

Clearly, in a short series you can't afford automatic losses, so Vazquez and Burnett are both out. That leaves Pettitte, Hughes, and Nova as potential starters behind CC. It seems the Yanks are inclined to go with CC, Pettitte, and Hughes, but I do think Nova deserves consideration. Sure, you have to limit him to no more than five innings, since he implodes late in games, but with AJ and Javy in the 'pen you should be able to get around that. I'm sure the Yanks won't risk Nova in the first round, but he should be on call in case Hughes struggles in his start, and on tap for the ALCS. He is clearly our best fourth option.

Public Apology and Red Sox Series Review

First off, let me apologize for the lack of game updates this weekend. My brother is now on a cruise and I have been fighting ninjas for the better part of the weekend. These scheduling conflicts inevitably happen and I apologize that you, the loyal reader, have to suffer for it. Here's the belated series review:

The Good

The best thing about this weekend is that we are now set up to play the Twins in the first round. Sure, home field would've been nice, but playing the Twins instead of the Rangers in the first round is nicer.

The Bad

I'll go with 1-2 record over the weekend. That said, I can't feel that bad. Not surprisingly, we split the double header. Both games went into extras and it's tough to win both games of a double header. Maybe we're more competitive on the last game if we don't play two the day before. No excuses, but for a team already guaranteed a playoff spot, you can't blame them for not killing themselves to win an essentially meaningless series in Boston.

The Ugly

Remember April? Remember how fresh everything was? Weather turning, birds chirping, AJ pitching well? Remember when AJ had his first bad game in five starts and everyone started writing about his inconsistency and I jumped all over them for getting on a guy who had pitched four straight really good starts and one bad one? Oh how sour those words taste now. AJ has been awful for pretty much the whole season. April and June were exceptions I suppose, but they don't make up for how poorly he's pitched overall. It's been, to say the least, ugly.

The Final Count

Cano and Swisher each had one home run in the weekend series. That brings the total home run count to 201, making for a $402 donation from RJG.

Posada 18hr = $36
Granderson 24hr = $48
Cano 29hr = $58
Swisher 29hr = $58
Jeter 10hr = $20
Johnson 2hr = $4
Rodriguez 30hr = $60
Teixeira 33hr = $66
Thames 12hr = $24
Gardner 5hr = $10
Winn 1hr = $2
Miranda 3hr = $6
Curtis 1hr = $2
Kearns 2hr = $4
Nunez 1hr = $2
Berkman 1hr = $2
Total = $402

Yanks Rained Out

The Good

The visiting clubhouse at Fenway has a sound roof, and the Yankees were able to stay dry despite the rain.

The Bad

I'm sure every contending team loves a double header just days before the playoffs begin.

The Ugly

With an off-day between the Toronto and Boston series, many Yankees took the opportunity to go to their local cinema. At least one Yankee was not happy.

"I went to go see 'The Other Guys'," explained Jeter. "They cut all my best stuff out of the movie. Nobody cuts Derek Jeter! Nobody!"

Andy Pettitte was also less than pleased.

"I saw a preview for Tron Legacy," said Pettitte. "Apparently I'm supposed to care about a second Tron, but I'm pretty sure the first Tron's only Legacy is that you vaguely remember a brightly colored motorcycle race but don't actually have any idea what that movie was about."

The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same

No home runs during the rain out.

Posada 18hr = $36
Granderson 24hr = $48
Cano 28hr = $56
Swisher 28hr = $56
Jeter 10hr = $20
Johnson 2hr = $4
Rodriguez 30hr = $60
Teixeira 33hr = $66
Thames 12hr = $24
Gardner 5hr = $10
Winn 1hr = $2
Miranda 3hr = $6
Curtis 1hr = $2
Kearns 2hr = $4
Nunez 1hr = $2
Berkman 1hr = $2
Total = $398

Off Day Post

Tampa lost yesterday to KC and are now tied with the Yankees for first place in the AL East. The Yanks now head to Boston, while the Rays continue their vacation . . . I mean, series against KC. Personally, I hope the Rays take the division. I say this for two reasons. First, I'd rather play Minnesota in the first round than Texas. Second, I like the idea of the Rays wearing themselves out for a division title that is basically meaningless. We have playoffs now, not just a regular season and a World Series, so winning divisions only matters to the extent it gets you in the playoffs. Reaching the playoffs, however, is a non issue for both the Yanks and Rays, so if the Rays want to expend a bunch of energy for a prize they've actually already achieved (since what is important is the playoff berth, not the division), I say go for it.

These next three games in Boston will be played up because of what happened 6 years ago. Of course I'm referring to Bush's reelection, which was precipitated by Boston winning the World Series. Sorry, it had to be said. But it also must be said that what happened 6 years ago has nothing to do with this team. Every time we play Boston now we have to hear about the ghosts of 2004. But there are no ghosts. Boston is not in our head. They haven't dominated us or anything like that. And while there is still a rivalry there, you don't worry about how you're going to take a series from a team that in a few days will be watching you play from their luxurious leather sofas in some swanky condo or Vegas hotel room with whatever 18-22 year old company they've paid for for the evening. We've already failed to line up our pitchers just the way we want so the important thing right now is to rest our guys, especially those who have been hurt recently, and be prepared to enter the playoffs rested.

Sure, we need to worry about momentum. After all, you cannot play successful baseball without momentum. That's why if you even have the slightest of losing streaks, your season is over. Oh, wait. That's bull$#!%. Never mind. With a team this old, rest is a greater concern than momentum. These guys know how to win, but they don't know how to be 23 again.