For his 3000'th post?

We're in a tight spot, eh?

At least it's only the first.

Come on, Chien, regroup.

You can do this.

Indeed.

:)

What a slopfest.

UGH! We may need Kennedy after all. Get you control together Wang! This is no time to go into the tank.

That was a very pretty stroke right there.

He just hit it nice and easy, where it was pitched.

Yep. Right over the plate, where every strike Wang has thrown in the past month has been.

A few runs here would help soften the blow.

43 talk about a truism...

And then he . . .

Don't get me wrong, the HR is nice and all, but we just can't count on the long ball all the time.

how did betemit do on that grounder? should he have turned 2?

maybe Wanger grew a bad habbit a dozen or so starts ago, maybe as a result of the fingernail thing, and it's only gotten worse till it became egregious last start.... who knows... just searchin for straws...

MELKY!

especially since it evolved in concert to an awesome call and response

the band would play the opening notes, the crowd would response by screaming, "Willlllllssssssssooooooooonnnnnnnnn!!!!"

get that going with 50k yankee fans in a big game and WOW!

So there!!!!

Woo hoo! Scott Proctor!!!

We'll see in a minute. Dammit, A-Rod...

70+ pitches for guthrie in the 4th ... bring on the weak underbelly of the bullpen

mmmm ... weak underbelly

104 hey OYF!!! man, i hear ya on that. it's tricky for me, b/c i know about half of the band personally. i can completely see that it could be insipid though. mark quinones, however, is a brilliant percussionist! and it's always an honor to be in the musical presence of Oteil & Derek Trucks. as for the drum solo part, i totally hear ya though. ABB is playing out in Atlanta's 'Central Park' (called Peidmont) w/ dave matthews band in about 3-4 weeks.

cult - Piedmont Park is right up the street from where we watched the Yanks game last week...

LECHE!!! that's 18 games. cool.

looking at the numbers, it melky has been noticeably more patient when batting leadoff rather than 9th (.283 BA, but .368 obp leadoff vs .336 BA and only .358 obp batting 9th) but has much more power (.549 9th vs .424 leadoff) when he's not concentrating on getting on base

i can't find anywhere that i can break down P/PA by lineup spot, but i'd say that double fits the pattern we've seen from melky this year, attacking from the 9 spot ...

I named my daughter Jessica in 1973, although she was born in 1988. Took her to the show. They played a long time, but the sound mix was terrible. Terrible! The song choice was really bad. The did NOT play:
Whipping Post, Trouble No More, Melissa, Blue Sky, Ramblin Man, Jessica, Southbound, Leave My Blues at Home, Statesboro Blues, or Midnight Rider. WTF!

derek is like duane incarnate, so i can't agree there. chuck was very cool. for years, i played in a band w/ Butch's son and he graces the album cover of Brothers & Sisters. not many vocal tunes, huh? i wonder if gregg is not healthy...???

ha, if you come to my gig Saturday night, i'll be playing Whipping Post and Southbound, i'm sure! ; )

let's go jorge, give us some insurance...

king felix vs. supernatural tonite. hopefully we can scoot ahead of the M's and Tigers tonite.

here's to The Hut closing it out and d-rays coming back and winning!!!

Oh well, maybe Gagné will help us out tomorrow.

NOT!

How's the Stadium reacting to Joba? Tomahawk chant?

DO IT YANKEES!!!!

Fucker lives down the block from me. I WANNA GLOAT IF I EVER SEE HIM.

Ahem, no more caps. Sorry.

Well, Mo is coming in. We'll see if yesterday was just a bit of rust.

Did I mention I have a degree in math?

Oh my G-d.

shudder

That was anticlimactic.

After Mo's outing yesterday to bring him in tonight . . .

Feck.

this might be emotion speaking, but i call this a torre loss too - villone should've never been in (viz hasn't worked much, now?), and Joba should'a been left in. christ.

It looks like a good throw from Abreu would have ended the game. Time for some heroics please, Yankees!

And that was a scary route by 'Zilla! Whew!

Now let's launch one and call it a night...

Key question is, who comes in in the 10th if needed?

Seriously?

Because he went to his closer in the 9th inning of a 1 run game?

Rivera wasn't even hit hard...it was all bloops.

Some of you guys are simply too much.

Oh, and some of you guys aren't aware that it isn't exactly a loss at the moment.

Tough call on Villone. I agree that he should not have come in (in that I am not convinced he should even be on the team). But they had two lefties coming up, so in theory he was the right call.

As for Joba going for 2, his going 1 leaves him available for Wednesday which is the Hughes game. The only questionable move was going to Mo after he threw a lot of pitches last night, but he's Mo. Look, that's his first blown save since April 20th. I mean, the guy is going to mess up sometimes.

Now, if Krazy Kyle comes into the game instead of Chris Britton...uhm I mean Edwar Ramirez...uhm...forget about it.

Mo threw 30 pitches yesterday, and didn't exactly shine doing it. Sorry, but even Mo needs a rest.

and i recall my hysterical torre-loss shit - just emotional. fuck me. this is actually a pretty big win - we can even win without Mo being invincible.

totally wrong about the torre stuff - for my complaint about villone, he mixed the position players quite well, and giambino delivers!

Woo-hoo!!

That Derek Jeter, he just knows how to win :)

Rivera hasn't been overworked.

Tonight was his 10th appearance since July 18 (including that night).

That hardly screams overworked.

Tonight was actually his first consecutive game appearance since he pitched three in a row July 14, 15, and 16.

I'm driving home just in time to catch Mo blowing the save and, though it always hurts inside to see Mo fail, I knew this was our game.

We're hot, we're at home.

I knew we'd win.

Sorry I missed the game, though.

Perhaps I'll catch the rebroadcast, if for nothing else than to see Joba, whom I missed again.

I caught his first appearance, but I've missed the last two.

I guess Farns and Viz or pray for rain tomorrow...

Any word on when Brower will be back? Not that he's a savior or anything, but they sorta need someone who can eat up 2-3 innings in a blowout.

I thought they shoulda let Jabba go two. Mariano pitched an exhausting outing yesterday. Joba was already in the Bird's heads...I thought it was a really bad move to go to Mo then (even before the debacle).

Break out the bats, boys!

I loved his comment in the postgame interview about Joba: "Yankee fans know their stuff" or something like that ....

And nice play by Melky!

Damn, look at Betamit.

I don't much care for that golf swing, but it's hard to argue with success.

seattle up 2-0 on santana and the twins ... meh

There's an article on ESPN called:
Jeff Pearlman: Sorry, Mr. Torre
Frustrated fans should not be using this man as a whipping boy.

Oh, man, Abreu should have had that blooper off Mo, no?

It actually looked catchable off the bat.

Captain Clutch does it again, though not in that usual beautiful-liner-to-RF kind of way.

Giambi comes up huge.

Torre PH for Damon with a rookie. Mad props.

And we have a 21-year old setup guy with an ERA+ of infinity and a K/9 through the roof.

It's good to be a Yankee fan today.

What a monster off the bench, like Straw.

Wow.

That's gotta make him feel great, too, contributing like that.

It's all clicking, friends, it's all clicking.

I have to assume it's because the Indians are winning the season series against the Tigers. Is that right?

According to Buster O:
If the Yankees don't make the playoffs, manager Joe Torre may well be dismissed, and Cashman might be shoved out of power -- "tagged out," to use the phrase of the club's executives. But Phil Hughes is here to stay, and so are Joba Chamberlain and most of the other young pitchers who make up what is considered, by rivals, to be the best collection of mound prospects in any organization.

Melky obviously played the previous bloop much better, but in fairness to Abreu, he had to make a perfect throw to get Redman, who was really motoring. I think between the way the ball fell in, and Redman's speed, he just couldn't compose himself to make a good throw the way Melky did.

"Chamberlain is probably wondering how long he has to pitch in this league before he gets promoted again."

That said, I do wish Torre would use the games before off days more strategically. The Wednesday blowout loss was a perfect time to get Mo an inning of work without the risk that it would hurt his performance the next day.

I was in time to catch Joba's eighth (YAY!), Melky's throw (WHEW!) Mo's blown save (NOOOO!), and then of course the Big Exhale.

Melkman was the hero of the game, huh?

And was everyone cursing Joe for yanking Joba after that superb inning?

All kiding aside, what does Britton have to do to get a promotion? I mean Brower?

Jorge said something cool to him as well: "Slow it down; this game doesn't go until you go." Nice...

2006

22 pitches on 4/23
28 pitches on 4/28
1 inning no runs on 4/29

23 pitches on 7/14
26 pitches on 7/16
1 inning no runs on 7/17

2005
7 pitches on 8/8
31 pitches on 8/10
1.1 innings no runs on 8/11

joe has used mo like this before in the past and mo has been successful, i don't have a problem with the decision to bring him in ...

I understand that Joba is practically God, but he does only have a handful of ML innings, and it was his first appearance in Yankee Stadium. Asking him to pitch a second inning and save a 1-run game may have been too much.

I'm not saying that leaving him in would be a bad decision (I do think he could have gotten the save). What I am saying is that taking him out in favor of Rivera is a sound decision.

I'm aware that Joba was not removed for Kyle and that he was removed for Mo!

My point was that by removing Joba for Mo, you force Farnsworth to pitch the tenth if there is a tenth. Are you saying that's not true, or that it's not a bad thing?

40.1 innings
35 hits
7 runs
2 walks
45 ks

i'd say that's right about in line with the mo from the previous 2 years ...

People constantly bitch and moan about Britton's absence, but I haven't seen anyone talk about the nature of his injury and his recovery. I want to see him up here as well, but he seems almost more useful as a symbolic stick to beat Torre and Cashman with, no matter how few innings he's pitched...for several weeks, no one even mentioned he was on the DL.

I think Edwar will be back, and hopefully his second audition will go much smoother (with a more regular schedule), especially with Joba and Hughes greasing the wheels for the new wave. And hopefully Brower doesn't do too much damage (or his damage is contained to a couple of blowouts) before he's shipped out.

361 Tools of ignorance, my azzzz. Catchers rock, and Posada is the most successful since he's been starting. Great line.

The Boids aren't pushovers, but this is winnin' time, baby. Everyone has got to pick each other up. Can't wait 'till "Play Ball" tomorrow night!

So, I'll make an emotional, perceptual argument: he doesn't seem as dominant to me this year. It seems that he has more 2 and 3 ball counts, and that he is giving up more fly balls. His BB and K look really good; his H totals are up some (but overall his WHIP is almost identical).

Yeah, probably not. But not inconceivable.

Similary, on August 2, Mo could have been used against the White Sox when the Yankees were trailing 11-9. He hadn't pitched since 7/29, so that would have been a good spot to get an inning of work. Instead, Kyle gives up two runs in the 8th and then Torre uses Mo the next day in a 7-1 victory (and then again the following day in a 16-8 win).

I'm sorry, but I see no logic in that pattern of use.

Warning--ridiculously small sample sizes:

Days rest/INN/ERA
0 Days 9.2 3.72
1 Day 12.1 0.73
2 Days 8 1.12
3 Days 10.2 6.75
4 Days 5.2 3.18
5 Days 1.2 0.00
6+ Days 1 0.00

how about this guy playing over in the dominican summer leagues:

Jahdiel Santamaria

Smelin Davis

!!! who names their kid "smelin"?!

Does anyone realistically expect Mo to be brought in a game in the 7th inning with his team trailing 3-1, just because the alternatives are so much suckier? This stretches the concept of "high leverage" to the order of a lab experiment. Maybe in the playoffs or in the final week of a pennant race, but not for games in July.

This isn't an RJ or Sheffield type dead horse argument yet, but it's starting to get there.

I'd say that schedule certainly favors the Mariners finishing up pretty strong.

In other words, I thinks we needs to win the division.

Of course I hope I am very very wrong. But if we miss, I'd rather it be Seattle over the fighting Leylands, who couldn't even make a series against a .500 team in the World Series. And it doesn't hurt that they have two huge malcontents in Sheffield and Ordonez. How soon people forget what an utter and complete ass hole he was while in Chicago.

Like I said. I hope I am very wrong, and Boston fades and the WC comes from the Central. The key will be for us to put some distance between us and Seattle, should they faulter for a few games like they did a month ago. We west coast people get to watch Seattle and Anaheim et al., play on a regular basis, and I haven't really seen anything from Seattle to indicate they are going to hit the skids.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Xp2E8yBEzN0

And the Captain:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=vHUjaX0gzCc

Wtf are those?

Those are the most garish things I've ever seen in my life.

If you're going to give the man a portrait, find yourself a real artist.

Also, Yanks and Boston control their respective outcomes.

Relax. Things are just getting interesting, and no one has a clue. Let's just watch and see what happens...

409 Are you kidding me? How f'ing stupid can they be...

Am I making that up, or did he once hit such a shot?

Anyone?

2001 World Series off Kim of Arizona. First home run ever hit in November.

Didn't his only career grand slam go into the black? Or did I make that up.

That was to right.

Ah, that's possible...that's possible.

That was impressive.

(Watching the recast, btw. Bottom 2, no out, Cano at the bat.)

"Take the 2004 Division Series. Leading off Game 2, a night after the team had been shutout by Minnesota, Jeter launched a monster homer into the black seats of Yankee Stadium."

http://tinyurl.com/yu7gck
(article's not really a good read, it's one of those "Jeter has heart so he's better than A-rod" pieces.)

414 My fellow banterer. . . I don't think the words "Good for" should ever be followed by the name of a team that is ahead of us in the standings. Just a thought. It must be the San Francisco fog or something.

Nite nite bro.

He also says that the Yankees don't have any pitching and too much offense, so they won't make it. But yet he claims that Atlanta will make it because they have tons of offense and only two pitchers. There is a reason not one team has offered him a real job since leaving the Mets.

But hey, just be happy they took their lips off Tiger Woods' ass long enough to run something else. Unfortunately, that something else will be three hours of coverage on Vick and the NFL, and I believe it is almost a month before Goodell begins handing out HGH and Steroids like candy. He has to finish up burying all the evidence that professional football has ignored such evidence of concussion related injuries and depression and suicide. Oh shit, I forgot, he has to complete his utter screwing over of former players first. Sorry, it is just so frustrating to watch all the coverage of PED's in baseball while football gets a free pass, while it runs rampant on every team to this day. ESPN did try to illustrate that once, but the NFL threatened to pull their television contract. No more talk of steroids and PED's in the NFL, or else! I about fell off my chair when I saw them run a special on concussions.

It reminded me of a FOX News business program promo I've never forgotten (circa 2003). Voiceover: "Now that Osama Bin Laden is on the run, what stocks should you have in your portfolio? We'll tell you." Really?

Ahh, the fog of a pennant race. Everyone goes sideways, from the first pitch of game one on...

Seattle? They're sitting on a fault line, literally and figuratively. The team has the most brutal schedule of all "remaining contenders" and the city itself is long overdue to rock, so to speak...

Let's revisit things a month from now and see what's what...

372 Sure, because Joba was removed for Rivera we would have been forced to use Farnsworth in the 10th.

But the bigger point, is that no one should expect to need the tenth inning when you are brining in Rivera to protect a 1 run lead.

It is still a sound decision on Torre's part.

428 I don't know what that means, "no one should expect to need the tenth." Do you mean that everybody should assume that there is no chance whatsoever that Rivera would give up a run? Obviously not, that's ridiculous. So, since we all know that even top closers sometimes give up runs, it's relevant and important who will be available for the tenth in the event that the game does get tied up.