Heartland Pinstripes

I had the misfortune of listening to a good deal of the game while calculating and submitting final grades for my students this semester, and there just wasn’t much to hear as the Yankees dropped the series finale, 5-2, losing the series 3 games to 1. The Yankees scored six measly runs in the four games. I know the Rays’ pitching has improved, but six stinking runs in four games?!? Horrible. Ian Kennedy wasn’t good, but wasn’t shelled nearly as badly as Igawa. But he sure still has a lot of learning to do. Where that will be is a good question if he continues to struggle, for although Kennedy needs experience to grow, the Yankees need to stay in and win games. Quite a conundrum the Yankees face, the Catch-22 of inexperienced youth combined with a languishing offense.

The Yankees got behind early and, as is usually their wont, stayed right there, threatened later yet still lost. Iwamura led off the first with a homer and, after a 1-2-3 second from Kennedy, the Rays added another in the third when Riggans singled, Kennedy hit weak hitting Zobrist, Iwamura worked an eight-pitch walk, and Crawford hit a sac fly to left, 2-0 Rays. But Kennedy held it there, briefly enticing Yankees fans that they could stay in the game and that he could be quite effective. Kennedy got Upton on a 4-3, and fanned Pena after being behind 2-0 in the count. As I made my final calculations, I felt this wasn’t insurmountable despite their recent offensive woes. Two runs is two runs.

Except when it’s four. In the fourth, Kennedy surrendered a two-out double to Hinske, and Riggans walloped the first pitch from Kennedy deep to left, 4-0. But wait, there’s more. I’m not sure if it was at that moment, when I tabulated and recorded grades on Excel, when Suzyn Waldman said that the Yankees really have to consider David Wells. Suzyn, please! The guy is going to be 45 May 20, struggled badly his last few years, never stayed in shape, refused to listen to Stottlemyre of all people about having a regular throwing routine between starts, loved the sauce, and got into some off-field trouble. Yes, bring in Wells, the role model. Why, so he too can have a high ERA but for a bloated salary? Forget it. I’d rather see Kennedy struggle but learn from the experiences and possibly grow than watch a puffed-out has-been whose best days with the Yankees were ten years ago. The Rays added another in the fifth when Iwamura doubled, moved to third on Crawford’s F8, and scored on Upton’s sac fly.

Meanwhile back in Snoozeville, the offense mustered little off Kazmir despite working the count fairly well. I was briefly hopeful when it was 4-0 in the top of the fifth that the Yankees could chip away, but that didn’t happen. I know, I too was shocked. Ensberg and Gonzo reached via walk, but Molina flew out to move Ensberg to third, and Damon’s 4-3 ended the fifth-inning threat. In the sixth, Jeter singled with one out and Shelley with two outs, but Ensberg’s F8 stranded two more. They scored two in the seventh when Cano led off with a single, Abreu “hit” for Gonzo and popped to third-base foul territory, Molina at long last singled, JD flew out to left, Melky the Clutch singled to center to score Cano, 5-1. Jeter did the same to score Molina, 5-2 with Giambi stepping up as the tying run. But his liner to center ended the rally and in effect the game. The Yankees limped into the clubhouse with 1-2-3 eighth and ninth innings, giving the Rays the series win.

Melky and Jeter were each 2-4 with an RBI, the 19th for each. Melky is up to .268, Jeter .302. Shelley was 1-3, Molina 1-4 with a walk, and Cano is still in the territory where going 1-4 will raise his average, moving him up to .207 as he slowly but surely improves. But JD was a big 0-5 at the top, and is now 2 for his last 23 and 5 for his last 37, plummeting his average to .255. Giambi was 0-4, hitting .181. Abreu was 0-2 after hitting for Gonzo. The Yankees left eight on, four in scoring position, though their two runs did come with two outs. Still, too little too late, yet again. Welcome to last place, Yankees.

Kudos to the bullpen for throwing three perfect innings, with Hawkins striking out the side in the sixth, and Veras and Edwar helping hold it at 5. But Kennedy again struggled. He only allowed five hits and a walk, but made a mess in the third that he narrowly escaped, and his two-out struggles cost him dearly in the fourth. He absolutely grooved that pitch to Riggans, leaving a hanging slider belly-high and over the plate and Riggans creamed it ten rows deep in left, no doubt about that shot.

Thankfully the Yankees sent Igawa back to the minors. Hopefully his next move is being shipped out in a crate to the NL. But the problems in the fifth starting spot remain. Sterling was probably right in suspecting that Kennedy will get another shot, since there was some improvement in efficiency if not runs allowed. I imagine they don’t want to smash his confidence. Yet the Yankees have gotten nothing from Kennedy and Igawa. While the latter’s gone, the former can’t be on a very long leash. Don’t be surprised to see Kennedy get one more start and, if the results don’t change, watch the Yankees try someone else such as Dan Giese from SWB or Daniel McCutchen from Trenton. I feel for Kennedy and want to see him develop, but losing is losing and the Yanks have had more than their fair share of that this year. They need to win ball games.

It’s made all the worse that the offense simply cannot score. I know A-Rod and Posada are out, but I’ll say it again–the team still has loads of talent in the lineup. JD, Jeter, Abreu, Matsui (who sat today against the lefty Kazmir, and is only 4-20 off Kazmir in his career), Giambi, Cano, Melky the Clutch–those seven should be enough to score seven a game. A-Rod is due back Tuesday after three extended Spring Training rehab games, and none too soon. But this team has more than enough to get it done and hasn’t for beans in his and Posada’s absence. This team completely lacks the ability to come back in games. Once they’re down a few, they’re dead. They have not won a single game when trailing entering the eighth and ninth innings–not one late-inning comeback regardless of the score. Not one big swing, not one manufactured rally, not one late-game charge to put a long-awaited charge into fans. Nothing. Disgraceful.

The Yankees stagger home to face the Mets for three, with Santana (4-2, 3.10 ERA) facing Rasner (2-0, 3.00 ERA) tomorrow night as the Yankees hope to climb out of the cellar. Great. Facing Santana is never a picnic, but the Yanks are hitting .229 against lefties. Rasner might need to allow nothing. I’ll be en route to the beach tomorrow and Saturday, so I’ll probably not be in touch between Noon tomorrow and Saturday night. Don’t forget about the beach-front HDLR Sunday and Wednesday nights. Keep smiling, people. Let’s Go, Yankees!

Mike Mussina was yet again excellent, the bullpen was very good especially Joba and Mariano, and the bats still did little but enough to eke out a 2-1 win. Cano looked the best he has all year, the Yankees rightly had Molina bunt, Girardi at long last called a team meeting, both runs were scored via two-out RBIs, and the team got some clutch plays in the field to creep back to within one game of .500.

After Mussina and Shields worked 1-2-3 in the first, each faced down threats in the second. With two out, the Yankees threatened in the top of the second when Cano singled, Melky reached second on Pena’s error, but Ensberg’s ground out ended the rally. In the bottom of the inning, Pena led off with a single that was erased on Longoria’s grounding into a 6-4-3 DP. Floyd singled and Navarro’s single to center enticed Floyd to try Melky’s arm going to third, and Melky made him pay for two of the cardinal sins–don’t test Melky’s arm on a play to a base, and don’t make either the first or the third outs trying for third.

The Yankees worked a successful two-out rally in the fourth when Matsui doubled and Cano singled him home, 1-0 Yankees. Mussina worked around Pena’s two-out single in the bottom of the fourth to hold it. The Yanks added another in the fifth when Ensberg led off with a single, Molina bunted him over to second [it's about time!] and, with two down, Abreu hit a bloop double to make it 2-0. Mussina stranded Gross after his two-out double, then worked a ten-pitch 1-2-3 sixth, holding the lead very well. He went batter-to-batter in the seventh, getting Pena looking on a slow curve but walking Longoria, ending his night. Ohlendorf entered and surrendered consecutive singles to Floyd and Navarro to cut the lead in half 2-1, but got help from Jeter. Stationed perfectly closer than usual to second, Jeter snared a hot liner from Gross, then flipped it to Melky to double off Floyd, ending the threat and in effect the game tonight. Joba allowed a walk but fanned the side, and Mariano was The Man yet again, going 1-2-3 in the ninth on a mere nine pitches to cinch the one-run win.

Cano erupted today, going 4-4 to break through the Mendoza glass ceiling, hitting .205 and knocking in his 12th run. Abreu’s double produced his 24th RBI. Two sac bunts from the slumping Molina were a welcome sight given that he’s now 3 for his last 42. Lots of 0-for’s, but a win is a win is a win.

And it was a win thanks to Mussina, who earned his fifth straight win and is now 6-3, going 6 1/3 really strong scattering five hits, allowing the run earned, a walk, and fanning four on 87 pitches/52 strikes to lower his ERA to 3.99–clutch start yet again, Mussina. Who would have thought that he’d be out-performing Pettite, Hughes, and tomorrow’s starter Kennedy? Not I, but I’ll surely take it. Ohlendorf wasn’t at his best but got defensive help from Jeter. Joba was excellent, and I’m not surprised in the slightest that Mariano bounced back after last night’s setback, earning his 11th save this year and 454th of his illustrious career.

Kennedy (0-2, 8.37 ERA) faces tough lefty Scott Kazmir (1-1, 2.70 ERA) tomorrow afternoon at 4:10 EDT as the Yanks try for the series split. I’m far from panicked after one-fourth of the year. I was pissed yesterday to be sure, but this team will bounce upwards, I just know it. They need the bats and, while A-Rod and Posada are big losses, this team has enough talent and experience to get the job done. They’re no slouches. Today wasn’t a great offensive effort, especially when 4 of the 7 hits came from one, long-overdue hitter in Cano. But a win is a win, and it moves them to within two of Boston in the loss column. This team has not yet begun to hit; look out when it does.

Frank The Sage’s phone call during extra innings spared me the need–and quite frankly I had little desire–to write yet another wrap-up about how the Yankees are in a futile and fairly brainless slump right now. An object lesson in that is the eleventh inning of last night’s 2-1 loss. After mustering nearly nothing all night, especially off starter Edwin Jackson, save Matsui’s game-tying homer in the ninth off closer Troy Percival, Abreu worked a one-out walk. While I was talking with The Sage about the upcoming vacation we have, for which I cannot wait, I was thinking, steal a base here Abreu. For goodness sake, can we manufacture a run, please? What happened next? Matsui swung at the first pitch and grounded into a 4-6-3 DP to end it just like that. Yet right away in the bottom of the 11th, the Rays inflicted upon Mariano his first run and loss of 2008, with Cliff Floyd singling–on the first pitch up–past a seemingly immobile Giambi. Gomes entered as a pinch-runner and promptly stole second off a terrible throw by Molina, then came home on Gabe Gross’s single to center. 2-1 Rays, the direct result of the willingness to manufacture opportunities, the ability to cash them in–both of which the Yankees woefully lack.

You want more lessons in futility? Chien-Ming Wang struggled a bit early but really buckled down to keep the dormant Yankee offense in the game, going seven strong and allowing only one run earned on seven hits, three walks, two K’s, and a remarkable 16 groundouts on 101 pitches/67 strikes. Yet his excellent start went to waste, since the offense couldn’t score. For example, in the top of the sixth, the Yankees had a golden opportunity to at least tie the game when Jeter’s hard but diving liner skidded past the diving Eric Hinske in right, going to the wall and giving The Captain a stand-up triple with one out. Yet Abreu grounded to short–horrible–and Matsui popped to short, ending the threat. The same result occurred in the second, when Giambi and Melky singled back-to-back to start the inning, but Cano’s force and disgraced former attorney general Alberto Gonzales grounded into a double play. Disgraceful situational hitting yet again. While they had few such chances, the Yankees had no hits or productive outs with runners in scoring position. None.

There were some moments when the Yankees hit the ball hard but right at people–Jeter for example lining a hard shot to Pena at first–for some bad luck. However, this slump is largely of their own doing, I’d contend. The Yankees are neither good nor smart right now. Yes, Matsui hit the game-tying homer in the ninth. But that’s no excuse for his impatience in the eleventh, none whatsoever. This team cannot get out of its own way right now. The 1-0 lead that the Rays held from the bottom of the fourth to the top of the ninth felt like an anvil on the chest, like a hundred-run deficit simply because the offense is doing nothing good or right. It should never have come down to Mariano pitching a second inning, much less suffering his first loss. The Yankees aren’t hitting in key situations. Nor are they manufacturing runs through a stolen base, advancing runners via grounding out or a deep fly ball, or [GASP!] a bunt. It doesn’t help that in five innings last night–the third, fourth, fifth, eighth, and tenth–the first two Yankee batters made outs, drastically reducing their margin for error and opportunities for various means of productivity. They can’t have a productive out in those situations when the next one always seems to end the inning.

Giambi appears to be coming out of his month-long malaise, going 2-2 with 2 walks to raise his average to .194, still sad but better. Matsui’s homer gave him five on the year with eighteen RBIs. Jeter’s triple went unrequited, as did JD’s and Melky’s singles. They left six on, two in scoring position, and grounded into two double-plays. Frank The Sage made a good point–several really–in our confab that the Yankees lack a good bat off the bench in addition to lacking many in the regular lineup. That is, they lack the grab-the-bat-cold guy like Fielder and Sierra who can come in and stand a good chance to rip an RBI single or double (or dare I say homer). I’ll add that the Yankees’ continuing to play Giambi and Cano through horrific and prolonged slumps (out of which they might be finally emerging) deprived us the chance to see if Shelley could be that on a semi-regular basis.

Vacation looms in two days, and it couldn’t come at a better time. Usually I watch very little live baseball or even catch many highlights while on vacation for the week, whether or not the Yankees are playing well, because I treat the time and space as a real time and space away. Although I’ll have a couple HDLR sessions next week, I’ll otherwise very likely be absent from the blog. Frank The Sage will be in the HDLR with me, so feel free to drop in as I type his typically witty and salient observations. However, given the team’s poor play, I wouldn’t be surprised if I were the only one not around much after Friday.

Hi everyone and welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and chicken wings are always fresh, the beverages are always cold, and the chatter is always brisk. Tonight the Yankees try to reach .500 for the billionth time this year while atoning for their embarrassing, limp-to-the-finish performance last night. They send Wang (6-1, 3.12 ERA) to the bump against hard-throwing righty Edwin Jackson (2-3, 4.04 ERA). Last night was a weak, pathetic non-effort, and the Yankees can ill afford to take such games off as they finish the first quarter of the year. 2005, 2007, and now 2008, injuries notwithstanding. Come on in, grab a digital leather recliner and a cold coldie, and enjoy the game. As per Pete Abraham, the lineup is below.  With the exception of Girardi’s flip-flopping JD and Matsui between DH and LF, and Molina and Gonzo between 8th and 9th, it’s the same players and places as yesterday. Let’s Go, Yankees!

Damon DH
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Matsui LF
Giambi 1B
Cabrera CF
Cano 2B
Gonzalez 3B
Molina C

I’ve decided to open the HDLR tonight for anyone interested in dropping by for the game against Tampa Bay. It starts at 7:10 p.m. Also, below is a list of several more HDLR games in the next couple weeks. All times are EDT.

Sunday May 18 vs. Mets, 8:05 start

Wednesday May 21 vs. Baltimore, 7:05

Sunday May 25 vs. Seattle, 1:05

Saturday May 31 @ Minnesota, 7:10

Wednesday June 4 vs. Toronto, 7:05

That’s about it for this so-called effort tonight, a big, stinking pile of refuse masquerading as a professional game as the Yankees dropped a thoroughly uninspired 7-1 loss to Tampa Bay tonight. Pettite wasn’t sharp, giving up five runs earned in four innings, surrendering four in the fourth to end his evening. The offense was torpid, shut down by Matt Garza, grounding into three double plays, and getting more from the bottom of the lineup than the top. Gonzo got a couple hits, Cano got one to continue his hit streak, Molina “legged” out a double late, and Melky got a hit, making the 6-9 hitters 5-13. Conversely, the 1-5 hitters were a combined 1-17, a sure-fire way to lose.

Although I watched all the game that I could around shuttling GLG to and from soccer as well as bathing and chattering with my son, I quite frankly won’t spend any more time writing the wrap on this. What can I say that hasn’t been said in the last season plus a dozen times over? How many more adjectives must I trot out to describe slothful play from a lineup that, even without A-Rod (through this week as he continues to rehab his quad) and Posada (the guts of the team, as I called him last year), still has a lot of talent? How often can I–and others, for it’s far beyond only my observations–exhort the team to play with some fire instead of wilting?

I’ll end on this note: the most putrid sight I saw all night was the FAUX Sports camera panning over the Yankees dugout when it was 6-0 Rays in the sixth, and seeing a bunch of guys sitting around silently. What an embarrassment–no cheering others on, almost no one hanging on the rail to yell encouragement or pay up-close attention to the game, no one talking to each other on the bench. More than the loss itself, that bothers me most of all. This team looked resigned to the loss, and that’s an abject disgrace.

Wang (6-1, 3.12 ERA) faces Edwin Jackson (2-3, 4.04 ERA) tomorrow night. Redeem Yourselves! Thankfully we won’t have to hide the children Thursday night for another Igawa start, for Ian Kennedy is being recalled and will face Tampa Bay in the series finale as Igawa is hidden away in the bullpen closet. I’m not sure that Kennedy has everything sorted out yet, but he has to be better than Igawa. Just get out there Ian, challenge batters, and throw strikes. How sad it is that the highlight of the night is not having Igawa start later this week. An improvement over that would be trading him away as soon as possible, perhaps for a few boxes of balls and some line chalk. Miraculously, the Yankees are only four games behind first-place Boston despite yet again falling under the .500 mark.

The rainout of the series finale in Detroit yesterday provided a couple important benefits for the Yankees, primarily for the pitching staff. For the starters, the postponement allowed Girardi to shuffle the rotation to keep Pettite, Wang, and Mussina together.  I personally like that sequence–the lefty Pettite throwing fairly hard but with the tough slider; Wang mixing the heavy sinker with improved slider and breaking pitches; and Mussina keeping this slow and slower–three very different looks for opponents on consecutive days.

It also gives him the flexibility to skip Igawa’s next start Thursday against Tampa in favor Rasner, pitching either Igawa Friday against the Mets (GULP!), to replace him with Kennedy or another call-up from the minors, or keep him Thursday against the Rays. If the Yankees are for some reason committed to giving Igawa a second start (which I’d question), I’m slightly partial to it being Thursday and not Friday against the Mets in what is always a very intense series and atmosphere. He just doesn’t seem to handle pressure, and there would be pressure by the boat load Friday. Yet the Rays are no picnic, as was discussed on Yankee Fan Club Radio last night. Pitching Igawa Thursday would as of now mean he’d face tough lefty Scott Kazmir. The Rays might or might not crack .500 this year for the first time in franchise history, but they’re no pushover and, as we discussed on the show last night the Rays’ staff is stronger than in years past. While I’d hate to see Igawa (if he pitches at all) against the Mets, it’s unlikely he’d fare much better facing Kazmir and the Rays. I just don’t have confidence in the guy regardless of whom he faces. If he goes, the offense better score a lot of runs.

Back to what the Yanks gained from the rainout–a day of rest for the bullpen, which has been very good but overworked even with most of the recent Yankees starts being pretty good. Though the Yanks’ relievers have logged the second-most innings in the AL (just behind Texas) their bullpen ERA is third in the AL at 3.34, third in batting average allowed (BAA) at .228, and second in WHIP at 1.20. That’s pretty impressive given not just the overwork (mainly from lack of long starts from Kennedy and Hughes) but also the injuries to Bruney and Albaladejo, and Traber’s inefficiency leading to the lack of a lefty arm. The bullpen is a real strength for the team this year, and will be even more so when the offense comes around to consistently produce.  Nuke has been Cool Hand Nuke, allowing only 2 earned runs (on two solo homers in different games), eight hits, and three walks while fanning 12 in his last 11 2/3, helping smooth over the absence of Bruney quite well in the last month.  Importantly, Ohlendorf has been very good lately, throwing 6 1/3 innings of scoreless, three-hit ball with seven strikeouts in his last three appearances.  While still the de facto long reliever given the current composition of the pen, I’d be interested to see Ohlendorf get some short-stint work now and then provided the starters carry the ball through at least six.  He’s bounced back well from his earlier struggles.

The Rays have jumped out to a good start this year largely on the strength of their pitching staff for a change. While the offense ranks sixth in runs scored and eighth in both batting average and OBP, the staff is fifth in ERA and BAA, and fourth in WHIP. As the guys on YFCR said last night, their bullpen is much improved, ranking second in ERA and BAA, and third in WHIP. Troy Percival has rebounded well from forearm troubles that forced him to retire in 2006, saving 9 out of 10 chances. It remains to be seen how the team will fare in the next 3/4 of the season but, based on the first 1/4, the team is playing well and with confidence, but with stronger pitching than they’ve had before. The Yankees’ taking three of four is doable but a real challenge.

The game today has been postponed, with rain falling and in the forecast for the next day in Detroit. No make-up date has been announced.

Tune into Yankee Fan Club Radio this and every Sunday. The show tonight starts at 6 EDT, and I’ll be on around 6:30 EDT.

Hi everyone and welcome to the Heartland Digital Living Room, where the hot dogs and chicken wings are always fresh, the beverages are always cold, and the chatter is always fast and furious.  Today in a Mother’s Day special, the Yankees look for the series win against Nate Robertson and the Tigers.  There is rain in the Detroit area, so hopefully the game will be played sometime today, sooner or later but before 6 p.m. EDT, when I will be on Yankee Fan Club Radio.  Come on in, grab a digital leather recliner and a cold one, and enjoy the game.  Below, as per Pete Abraham, is the Yankees lineup.  Gonzales is playing third, a good move.  Jeter is batting cleanup as Matsui sits, with Melky the Clutch in the two-hole.  Let’s Go, Yankees! To all mothers out there, Happy Mother’s Day!

Damon LF
Cabrera CF
Abreu DH
Jeter SS
Giambi 1B
Duncan RF
Cano 2B
Molina C
Gonzalez 3B

To all the mothers reading this, have a great and enjoyable Mother’s Day.  This is your well-deserved day.  I’ll have a present and a clean house waiting for my wife when she gets home from her sister’s today, with some dinner later before Yankee Fan Club Radio at 6 p.m. EDT.