Manager: Fredi Gonzalez General Manager: Michael Hill
Home Ballpark (Park Factors): Dolphin Stadium (99/99)
Who’s Replacing Whom:
Emilio Bonifacio replaces Mike Jacobs
Chris Coughlan replaces Josh Willingham
Ross Gload and Brett Carroll replace Luis Gonzalez
Ronny Paulino replaces Matt Treanor
Alejandro De Aza is filling in for Alfredo Amezaga (DL)
Josh Johnson and Chris Volstad inherit the starts of Scott Olsen
Sean West is filling in for Anibal Sanchez (DL), who inherits the starts of Mark Hendrickson
Leo Nuñez replaces Kevin Gregg
Dan Meyer, Kiko Calero, and Brian Sanches replace Doug Waechter, Joe Nelson, and Logan Kensing
Cristhian Martinez is filling in for Renyel Pinto (DL)
25-man Roster:
1B – Jorge Cantu (R)
2B – Dan Uggla (R)
SS – Hanley Ramirez (R)
3B – Emilio Bonifacio (S)
C – John Baker (L)
RF – Jeremy Hermida (L)
CF – Cody Ross (R)
LF – Chris Coughlan (L)
Bench:
L – Ross Gload (1B)
R – Wes Helms (3B)
L – Alejadro De Aza (OF)
R – Ronny Paulino (C)
R – Brett Carroll (OF)
Rotation:
R – Josh Johnson
R – Chris Volstad
L – Andrew Miller
R – Ricky Nolasco
L – Sean West
Bullpen:
R – Matthew Lindstrom
R – Leo Nuñez
L – Dan Meyer
R – Kiko Calero
R – Burke Badenhop
R – Brian Sanches
R – Cristhian Martinez
60-day DL: RHP – Scott Proctor (Joe Torre surgery), LHP – Dave Davidson (shoulder)
Typical Lineup:
L – Chris Coghlan (LF)
S – Emilio Bonifacio (3B)
R – Hanley Ramirez (SS)
R – Jorge Cantu (1B)
L – Jeremy Hermida (RF)
R – Dan Uggla (2B)
L – John Baker (C)
R – Cody Ross (CF)
by Bruce Markusen |
June 19, 2009 12:13 pm |
60 Comments
It’s time to take the gloves off.
The Yankees should feel thoroughly humiliated after losing two of three games to the worst team in baseball. It is unfathomable that the Yankees could muster a mere seven runs in three games against the poorest pitching staff in the major leagues and arguably the worst bullpen that has ever been assembled in the history of the game.
If this atrocity of a series against the Nationals, who had a won a total of six road games prior to this week, had been an isolated development, I would have been willing to cast it aside as a blip on the screen. But it is not an isolated occurrence. When attached to a lackluster series against the Mets, another sweep at the hands of the Red Sox, an embarrassing 0-8 record against Boston, mediocre play against the Orioles, and another abominable April, it becomes a symptom of a larger disease.
So what exactly is wrong with the Yankees? Having followed them closely through their first 66 games, I’m not convinced that the real problem is a lack of talent. Oh sure, their bullpen and bench could use upgrading and the absence of overall depth remains a concern, but those are problems that can be fixed relatively quickly from within. I’m afraid that the Yankees’ malaise has roots in other areas, principally a low baseball IQ, a lack of toughness, and a general complacency that can happen when too many players have multi-year contracts and no fear of losing their status on the team. (more…)
In three of the last four games, the Yankees have been squelched by starters who they had never faced. John Lannan allowed two runs in eight and a third innings in powering the Washington Nationals to a 3-2 victory on Wednesday. Shairon Martis permitted one run in six innings as the Yankees halted Washington, 4-3, on Tuesday. And, on Saturday, Fernando Nieve surrendered two runs in six and two-third innings to help the Mets stop the Yankees, 6-2.
The only time that the Yankees opposed a familiar pitcher in the last four games, they destroyed Johan Santana for a career-worst nine runs. So how can the Yankees batter Santana and get baffled by pitchers with lesser pedigrees?
“I don’t really have any concrete theories,” Girardi said. “We talk about it as a staff. I think everyone loves to see something that they’ve seen before because they’re used to it, in a sense, no matter what walk of life you’re in.”
After review, Joe Girardi’s ruling from the field stands. Chien-Ming Wang will remain in the Yankees rotation.
Girardi caught a television re-broadcast of the right-hander’s start following his five-inning outing on Wednesday, confirming what the manager believed he had witnessed from his vantage point in New York’s dugout.
“I thought he threw some really good sinkers,” Girardi said. “His slider was really good last night. He mixed his pitches well. I thought he threw the ball pretty well. I just wanted to watch it on video to make sure I was seeing what I was seeing.”
[My take: Having been at the game, I’m left to wonder if Wang’s extremely slow pace leaves his defense a bit “back on their heels”. If Wang pitched as quickly as his opponent that night (John Lannan), maybe his defense might be a bit more alert.]
Rodriguez has seen his average dip to .219 with nine home runs and 26 RBIs, and he has looked progressively worse during the past few weeks. He has clearly been favoring his hip while running the bases and playing third base lately, and he has been seen limping around the clubhouse after games.
Rodriguez has not had more than one hit in a game since May 25, when he went 5-for-5 in Texas. Since then, he is 13-for-70 (.186) with two homers and nine RBIs.
“I’m seeing the ball well. The big issue is the body and responding,” Rodriguez said on Wednesday. “I can hit. I’m always going to be able to hit, I know that. … There are some days where your body’s just not bouncing back the way I like it to.”
The injury may have affected the Yankees’ strategy in Wednesday’s 3-2 loss to the Nationals. Rodriguez was on first with one out when second baseman Robinson Cano bounced into a game-ending double play. It seemed that it might have made sense for Rodriguez to try to steal second in that situation to try to stay out of the twin-killing.
The Star-Ledger’s Steve Politi didn’t appreciate the playing of Thursday’s game after an all-day rain:
Despite a forecast that showed no signs of letting up during the afternoon, the team kept its fans waiting. At least they could say they were almost part of something historic: The delay apparently was the second longest in baseball history, behind only the 5 hours, 47 minutes on Oct 3, 1999, for a Reds-Brewers game.
That was the final game of the season to force a one-game playoff for the National League wild card. This was a mid-June interleague game that has absolutely no significance, and the Yankees fell back on the excuse that the two teams did not have mutual off days the rest of the year.
The Cubs and Rays are not the only teams in contact with free-agent right-hander Pedro Martinez.
Those clubs, plus the Yankees and Angels, will watch Martinez throw on Friday in the Dominican Republic, according to major-league sources.
. . . (however) The Yankees, too, would benefit more from the addition of a reliever. They believe Chien-Ming Wang made progress in his start against the Nationals on Wednesday night, and currently have an extra starter, righty Phil Hughes, pitching out of the bullpen.
