I’m calling it now. Oakland is going to sweep the Yankees this weekend. I’ll be pleased if I’m wrong, but before last night’s game I predicted a Yankee win followed by a pair of weekend loses. After seeing the way they performed in the most favorable pitching match-up of the weekend, I would be downright shocked if they won one of the remaining two.
For those who were privileged enough not to witness it, here’s what went down:
Oakland A’s
2004 Record: 91-71 (.562)
2004 Pythagorean Record: 86-76 (.531)
Manager: Ken Macha
General Manager: Billy Beane
Ballpark (2004 park factors): McAfee Coliseum (101/101)
Who’s replacing whom?
Jason Kendall replaces Damian Miller
Nick Swisher replaces Jermaine Dye
Mark Ellis returns to take playing time from Marco Scutaro and replaces Eric Karros
Keith Ginter replaces Mark McLemore
Charles Thomas replaces Eric Karros and Billy McMillon
Jermaine Clark last year’s spare parts
Joe Blanton inherits Tim Hudson’s starts
Dan Haren replaces Mark Mulder
Kirk Saarloos inherits Mark Redman’s starts
Hudson Street replaces Chad Bradford (back surgery)
Kiko Calero replaces Jim Mecir and Arthur Rhodes
Keiichi Yabu replaces Chris Hammonds
Current Roster:
1B – Scott Hatteberg
2B – Mark Ellis
SS – Marco Scutaro
3B – Eric Chavez
C – Jason Kendall
RF – Bobby Kielty
CF – Mark Kotsay
LF – Eric Byrnes
DH – Erubiel Durazo
Bench:
R – Keith Ginter (IF)
S – Adam Melhuse (C)
L – Charles Thomas (OF)
L – Jermaine Clark (UT)
Rotation:
L – Barry Zito
R – Joe Blanton
R – Rich Harden
R – Kirk Saarloos
R – Dan Haren
Bullpen:
R – Octavio Dotel
R – Huston Street
L – Ricardo Rincon
R – Justin Duchscherer
R – Kiko Calero
R – Juan Cruz
R – Keiichi Yabu
DL:
R – Chad Bradford [60-day]
R – Bobby Crosby (SS)
S – Nick Swisher (OF)
Typical Line-up
L – Mark Kotsay (CF)
R – Jason Kendall (C)
L – Eric Chavez (3B)
L – Scott Hatteberg (1B)
L – Erubiel Durazo (DH)
R – Mark Ellis (2B)
S – Bobby Kielty (RF)
R – Eric Byrnes (LF)
R – Marco Scutaro (SS)
Hey, this just in: the Yankees are terrible. But guess what? So are the A’s.
I don’t think much about the Red Sox this early in the season when they aren’t playing the Yanks. I’m actively avoiding thinking about them these days, just imagining how delighted Sox fans must be at how poorly the Bombers are doing. That said, I just felt the need to state that I miss Edward Cossette.
In “Annie Hall,” Woody Allen’s character complains that in Los Angeles all they do is give out awards (“Greatest Fascist Dictator: Adolph Hitler.”). These days, all the Yankees do is lose and have meetings. The back cover of the New York Post says it all. There is a photograph of frowing Joe Torre, and the headline reads “Stinko De Mayo.” The Yankees lost to the Devil Rays, 6-2, and are now tied with Tampa Bay for last place in the American League East.
Chien-Ming Wang allowed five runs in his second start but from top-to-bottom, the Bombers looked defeated. Gary Sheffield hit a two-run home run; otherwise, the Yankees are playing like a stunned team, unable to get out of their own way. They hit a half a dozen balls on the screws over the past few innings but had nothing to show for it. (The Devil Rays infield made plays the Yankees haven’t been able to convert.) Even worse, there were a few mental errors that suggested just how lost the team is. Jorge Posada doubled with one out in the sixth inning. Matsui followed and hit a sharp ground ball to third base. Posada got caught well off second base and was tagged out, an inexusable error. With two outs in the eighth, Aubrey Huff stole second base, and Posada’s throw bounced into center field. Why? Nobody covered the bag. The run didn’t score, but it was an embarassing moment for Jeter and Cano. One that summed up another awful night for the team.
