Daily Archives: March 16, 2009

Here’s a great mega-mix by my friend Steinski.

Quiz: What movie is quoted at the start of the track?

In 1973, just one year before this card appeared, the Texas Rangers initiated the destruction of a young pitcher’s career in an effort to revive a languishing franchise. Team owner Bob Short devised an ill-conceived plan to rush phenom left-hander David Clyde from high school ball to the major leagues as a drawing card for the struggling Rangers franchise. Clyde’s debut season did much to help attendance at Arlington Stadium, but at considerable damage to Clyde’s career, which seemed so promising after throwing nine no-hitters in his senior season of high school.

At onetime a household name, Clyde has become a forgotten man in baseball annals. Here’s what happened. Drafted first in the country out of Texas’ Westchester High School in the spring of 1973, Clyde received a bonus of $125,000 and donned a Rangers’ major league uniform only a few days later. The immediate call-up to Texas was the brainchild of owner Bob Short, which conflicted directly against the advice of manager Whitey Herzog, who believed Clyde needed considerable schooling in the minor leagues.

Equipped with both Short’s blessings and a mechanically sound delivery that some scouts compared to that of Sandy Koufax, Clyde made his highly publicized major league debut against the Minnesota Twins on June 27, 1973. (Only 20 days earlier, Clyde had made his final appearance as a high school pitcher.) That night’s game at Arlington Stadium became such a focal point of local attention that the first pitch was delayed by 15 minutes, allowing more fans to free themselves from the massive logjam of traffic outside the stadium. Perhaps rattled by the late start and frazzled by his own nervousness, the 18-year-old Clyde walked the first two batters he faced—infielder Jerry Terrell and Hall of Famer Rod Carew—before settling down to strike out the side. Clyde went on to pitch a respectable five innings, walking a total of seven Twins, but struck out eight batters while allowing two earned runs and only one hit. Unfortunately, Clyde struggled to match his celebrated debut performance over the balance of the season, posting an ERA of 5.03 and winning only four of 12 decisions with the lowly Rangers in 1973. His pitching only worsened in 1974, leading him down a slippery slope to baseball obscurity.

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Today’s news is powered by a bit of Boss George from 1987:

• Jorge Posada survived his first game action behind the plate on Sunday, catching the first four innings of the Yanks game against the Twins.

“I was really looking forward to catching,” Posada said. “I felt surprisingly good. I just hope next time somebody steals and I’ll throw the ball down there and see how it feels.”

[My take: From the boxscore, it looks like Jorge might have been given only one chance to throw anyone out.]

• Rivera is already stating he’ll be ready for Opening Day.
• Cano and Marte had their MRIs pushed back to Monday.
• Brett Gardner gets a nice write-up in the Times, including this quote:

Gardner’s home runs this spring are a surprise. He hit only nine in his four professional seasons. “People think I’m going to hit for power this year,” Gardner said, “but that’s not something I’m expecting to do.”

Gardner batted .228 for the Yankees last season, but he hit .295 in his second tour with the team, beginning on Aug. 15, the day Cabrera was sent to the minors.

Gardner said he improved by changing his left-handed swing under the instruction of the hitting coach Kevin Long. “I just took the stride out,” Gardner said. “With less moving parts in my swing, less things can go wrong.”

• Mark Feinsand of the News writes about A.J. Burnett’s dominant outing on Saturday:

The righthander cruised through four perfect innings, throwing 40 pitches – 32 of them for strikes – without allowing a single Astro to reach base. He was so efficient, in fact, that pitching coach Dave Eiland sent him to the bullpen after he was finished so he could throw 10 more pitches from the stretch – something he didn’t have to do once during the game.

“I felt pretty good out there,” Burnett said. “Any time you can establish the strike zone and pitch ahead, it makes for a better day.”

• The Times’ Richard Sandomir took the Yankees “select your seat” tour on Saturday.  Here’s a snippet:

The seats on Selection Saturday weren’t the cheap ones out in the bleachers but the unsold premium ones selling for $350 to $2,500 a game that the Yankees haven’t been able to unload. It was easy to find the unsold inventory: affixed prominently to the seat backs, like tiny Fathead posters, were blue-and-white signs that identified price and location.

“Buy me,” these patches of blue seemed to shout, “we’re $850 a game.” …

I did not see any seats outfitted with the $2,500 signs, but I was assured that some of those quite desirable front-row perches were available. …

Our guide/salesman led us on the cushioned-seat excursion of the Legends and Delta Sky360 Suites — behind home plate, along the first base line and into the clubs serving those who can still afford to buy in those areas. In the two-tiered Legends Suite Club, a sign at the entrance promised: “Welcome to the Legends Club Where the Answer Is Yes.” …

Other tours were going on simultaneously as workers were hammering, painting, cleaning, installing and doing what must be done a month before a $1.5 billion stadium opens. But here, even in the worst economy in 75 or 80 years, the Yankees aren’t discounting their real estate even as home values have tumbled nationwide.

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Sure, the Yankees won, 5-1, but the best part of yesterday’s game was having Jorge Posada back behind the plate.

Lineup:

S – Jorge Posada (C)
L – Johnny Damon (LF)
S – Mark Teixeira (1B)
L – Hideki Matsui (DH)
S – Nick Swisher (RF)
S – Melky Cabrera (CF)
R – Angel Berroa (3B)
S – Ramiro Peña (SS)
R – Doug Bernier (2B)

Subs: Juan Miranda (1B), Eduardo Nuñez (SS), Justin Leone (3B), Francisco Cervelli (C), Shelley Duncan (RF), Austin Jackson (CF), Todd Linden (LF), Robinson Cano (DH)

Pitchers: Andy Pettitte, Phil Coke, Jose Veras, Anthony Claggett, Steven Jackson

Big Hits:

Nick Swisher (1-for-3) finally picked up his first extra-base hit of the spring, a double off Bob Keppel. The Yankees had four doubles in all, the others by Jorge Posada (2-for-2), Melky Cabrera (1-for-2, BB), and Angel Berroa (1-for-2). Ramiro Peña went 2-for-3, but was both picked off first base and thrown out attempting to steal second, negating both times on base.

Who Pitched Well:

Everyone really. Andy Pettitte pitched around a double and a single for three scoreless frames. Anthony Claggett threw a 1-2-3 eighth, and both Jose Veras and Steven Jackson pitched around lone hits for scoreless innings.

Who Didn’t:

Phil Coke gave up the only run on three singles and a walk, but that was all he allowed in three innings while also striking out two, so it’s hard to say he didn’t pitch well.

Battles:

Three innings for Phil Coke continues to suggest that he’s in the longman battle, which is otherwise being won by Brett Tomko, who is the type of pitcher the Yankees should be avoiding. Nick Swisher‘s first extra-base hit came before Xavier Nady‘s first walk, for whatever that’s worth. Melky Cabrera had a solid day at the plate with a double, a walk, and two runs scored. Jose Veras dropped his spring ERA below 2.00, while Steven Jackson brought his below 3.00.

Ouchies:

Jorge Posada caught in a game for the first time since July 19 of last year. He only caught the first four innings and didn’t have to throw to second during play, but threw to second between innings and said afterwords that he felt strong. He’ll catch again Tuesday and Thursday, taking the days in between off. Robinson Cano‘s appearance at DH suggests the Yankees aren’t to worried about his tender shoulder. His MRI, as well as Damaso Marte‘s have been pushed back to today. Also, Pete Abe reports that Hideki Matsui beat out a double-play ball, which is a good indication that his knees are feeling good.

WBC:

Derek Jeter, the only Yankee left in the tournament, went 0-for-3 with two walks against the Netherlands as the USA’s DH. The U.S. beat the Dutch 9-3. Check out my SI.com liveblog of the game. I’ll also be liveblogging the USA’s double-elimination game against the winner of tonight’s Venezuela-Puerto Rico matchup, which is scheduled for tomorrow night at 7pm on the MLB Network.