twilightdawning

A writer's thoughts – mainly about music, sport and theatre. Shakespeare, Bob Dylan, live shows, New York Yankees

July in the Bronx – Part 2 – The pitchers

Posted on August 18, 2009 by twilightdawning

Today, I turn my attention to the pitchers who have graced the New York Yankees in July. Again, my apologies that this is so late.

New York Yankees – Pitching – Month – July
Name	GP	GS	GF	IP	H	RA	ER	BB	SO	W	L	Sv	ERA	OBA
Rivera, Mariano	12	0	11	11.2	3	0	0	2	9	0	0	10	0.00	.081
Hughes, Phil	11	0	2	14.2	10	1	1	3	16	1	1	1	0.61	.192
Burnett, AJ	5	5	0	33.1	27	10	9	16	21	4	0	0	2.43	.220
Chamberlain, Joba	5	5	0	29.2	26	15	9	10	24	3	0	0	2.73	.232
Melancon, Mark	3	0	2	6.0	5	3	2	0	4	0	1	0	3.00	.217
Albaladejo, Jonathan	4	0	1	4.2	5	2	2	2	5	2	0	0	3.86	.278
Tomko, Brett	3	0	2	4.1	4	2	2	1	1	1	0	0	4.15	.250
Sabathia, CC	6	6	0	39.0	45	21	20	12	31	3	3	0	4.62	.300
Pettitte, Andy	6	6	0	37.1	34	21	20	11	32	1	3	0	4.82	.241
Coke, Phil	12	0	2	9.2	9	6	6	2	8	1	0	0	5.59	.250
Robertson, David	9	0	3	11.0	10	8	7	7	13	0	1	1	5.73	.233
Aceves, Alfredo	9	1	2	15.0	14	13	11	4	10	1	0	1	6.60	.237
Wang, Chien-Ming	1	1	0	5.1	6	4	4	1	1	0	0	0	6.75	.300
Mitre, Sergio	3	3	0	13.2	24	13	12	3	6	1	0	0	7.90	.400
Bruney, Brian	7	0	2	5.1	11	7	7	3	7	0	0	0	11.81	.423
	96	27	27	240.2	233	126	112	77	188	18	9	13	4.19	.254

Positives

Mariano Rivera. Every year, the baseball experts decide that Mariano’s career is finally fading. Every year, he bounces back. In the second half of June and the whole of July, he didn’t give up any runs. In July, his OBA was an amazing .081. He added another 10 saves to his total during the month.

A.J. Burnett. Of the 5 starters, during July, Burnett gave most innings per appearance and produced the best ERA. His walk total was a little on the high side but he produced 4 wins and 1 no decision. No losses.

Joba Chamberlain. The debate over Chamberlain as starter or Joba as reliever is pretty much over. Even Jorge Posada says he misjudged the situation. His figures for the month were good and solid. He may never over-power as a starter as he first did when he appeared as a reliever and there’s no question that his larger-than-life persona does even irritate this Yankees fan when I have to watch it for six innings but there is no question that he is very valuable to the Yankees in this role.

C.C. Sabathia. Sabathia has been inconsistent. But he has been good enough. When he is in the zone, he looks like our best starter. When he is not, he usually gives us the innings.

Negatives

Brian Bruney. General Manager, Cashman has basically said that Bruney lied to the coaching staff when he said he was ready to pitch so off-the-field and on-the-field, it has been a bad time for Bruney. In April, he was one of the teams best relievers but April seems a long time ago. He had the worst ERA and worst OBA on the team during July.

Sergio Mitre. The Yankees are really scratching around to find a fifth starter and Mitre is their latest great idea. He looked below par at triple-A Scranton and promoting him to the Majors didn’t seem likely to make him look better. It hasn’t.

Chien-Ming Wang. Wang is gone for the season but it is hard to believe he was ever really here. His one start in July was not memorable.

Andy Pettitte. Pettitte is giving up too many hits, too many home runs (particularly at the new Stadium). In July, he produced only 1 win and 3 losses, 2 non-decisions.

Surprises

Phil Hughes. Hughes has been a revelation in relief. He has been so good that even though the team desperately needs a fifth starter, they have chosen not to return him to his previous role. For most of the month he matched Rivera performance-for-performance as the two did not give up a run. The one run he did give up (towards the end of the month) gave him his only loss in July.

Mark Melancon. Melancon finds himself back in the minors in August but it is hard to see why. He gave the team 6 innings over 3 appearances in July and was solid most every time.

Jonathan Albaladejo. Like Melancon, Albaladejo looks likely to spend the forseeable future shuttling between Scranton and New York. In limited useage, he managed to maintain runless performances for much of the month. It is hard to see what he has to do to earn a regular spot on the roster.

Alfredo Aceves. Aceves does well most of the time but most of July doesn’t fit into that category. Despite a respectable OBA, his ERA for the month was closer to 7 than 6.

July in the Bronx – Part 1 – Batters

Posted on August 17, 2009 by twilightdawning

New York Yankees – Batting – Month – July
Name	G	AB	R	H	RBI	2B	3B	HR	BB	SO	SH	SF	SB	BA	SLG	OBP
Jeter, Derek	27	112	19	40	11	4	1	2	15	16	0	0	1	.357	.464	.438
Hinske, Eric	7	21	5	7	8	0	0	5	1	6	0	0	0	.333	1.048	.417
Cano, Robinson	27	103	20	34	14	8	1	4	6	9	0	0	0	.330	.544	.373
Teixeira, Mark	27	112	14	33	15	6	0	6	10	23	0	0	0	.295	.509	.358
Matsui, Hideki	24	75	10	22	19	5	0	5	15	13	0	1	0	.293	.560	.407
Cabrera, Melky	27	76	10	22	5	6	0	2	10	5	0	0	0	.289	.447	.372
Rodriguez, Alex	25	97	19	28	18	3	0	7	12	25	0	1	5	.289	.536	.369
Posada, Jorge	24	82	13	23	15	7	0	3	6	22	0	1	0	.280	.476	.333
Cervelli, Francisco	3	11	1	3	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	.273	.364	.250
Swisher, Nick	24	73	8	18	15	4	0	3	12	20	0	2	0	.247	.425	.352
Damon, Johnny	24	85	16	20	12	3	0	3	17	16	0	0	0	.235	.376	.369
Gardner, Brett	18	41	4	9	7	0	2	0	4	9	0	0	3	.220	.317	.304
Ransom, Cody	12	20	5	4	2	3	0	0	4	7	0	0	1	.200	.350	.333
Molina, Jose	5	11	2	2	0	1	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	.182	.273	.250
		919	146	265	143	51	4	40	112	174	0	6	10	.288	.483	.370

So July seems a long time ago now but here are the Yankee batters who made their mark for good or bad during that month.

Positives

Derek Jeter. Jeter has simply been the most consistent offensive player on the Yankees this season – and in a time when there is such turmoil in the sport, he is a gentleman and a role model. .357 on the month. And improved in the field.

Robinson Cano. Cano has recovered from last seasons set backs and has shown himself to be a solid consistent player. That word “consistent” explains why the Yankees have risen to the top this season.

Mark Teixeira. The term “MVP” is already been used about Teixeira but I don’t think he’s quite there unless he has an outstanding last two months. What he has achieved is a solid performance after a slow beginning in April.

Melky Cabrera. When Gardner went on the DL, there was a general air of expectancy that Cabrera’s comeback season would begin to buckle. It hasn’t happened in July (though August is proving a very quiet time so far).

Negatives

Cody Ransom. Ransom just can’t hit singles. You know that when he comes to bat, he is either going to hit a double or better (20% of the time) or he is going to be an easy out (80% of the time). He should have gone to Scranton instead of Pena.

Johnny Damon. Damon looks tired and old in the field. He can just about get away with this when he’s hitting. In July, he wasn’t hitting.

Jose Molina. Molina was fortune to get his spot on the roster back. Cervelli was unlucky. Experience counts for a lot and he always looks solid behind the plate but he needs to raise his average by at least 20 points.

Nick Swisher. Swisher hit .247 in July and that was one of his better months. We’re very glad that we signed Teixeira.

Surprises

Eric Hinske. The fact that Hinske is a Yankee ought to be enough of a surprise. But to see him hit .333 in his first 7 games is another thing again. It won’t last but it’s nice for now.

Hideki Matsui. .293 and 5 home runs in July. Matsui has settled into the role of everyday DH very well. His legs might not last the distance even with a light load but so far, so good.

Jorge Posada. Posada played 24 games in July. He hit .280. After a very difficult 2008, he’s bounced back well. Now if he can add a little more power……..

Alex Rodriguez. July might be the first sign of light at the end of the tunnel for A-Rod. He led the team in home runs and produced his best hitting performances of the season. He’s still not worth the money, the emotional investment and all the circus that goes with him but better this than the way he was earlier in the year.

June in the Bronx – Part 2 – The Pitchers

Posted on July 8, 2009 by twilightdawning

Of the 4 New York Yankee ERA leaders for June, 1 is a left-handed specialist, two were not on the roster in April and one will not be in the roster for July. And none of them are starters or Mariano Rivers. Suprising? I’ll say so.

New York Yankees – Pitching – Month – June
Name	GP	GS	GF	IP	H	RA	ER	BB	SO	W	L	Sv	ERA	OBA
Coke, Phil	14	0	2	12.2	5	1	1	3	14	0	0	0	0.71	.122
Aceves, Alfredo	9	0	2	13.2	11	2	2	4	10	2	0	0	1.32	.224
Hughes, Phil	8	0	2	13.0	5	2	2	3	16	0	0	0	1.38	.114
Veras, Jose	3	0	2	5.0	4	1	1	0	2	0	0	0	1.80	.211
Burnett, AJ	5	5	0	30.0	23	10	7	16	35	3	2	0	2.10	.209
Robertson, David	10	0	6	10.0	7	4	3	5	16	1	0	0	2.70	.194
Rivera, Mariano	11	0	10	11.0	7	5	4	2	14	1	1	9	3.27	.175
Sabathia, CC	5	5	0	31.0	23	14	13	7	22	2	1	0	3.77	.205
Chamberlain, Joba	6	6	0	35.2	33	16	15	15	27	2	1	0	3.79	.244
Pettitte, Andy	5	5	0	26.2	34	19	15	13	27	2	2	0	5.06	.306
Bruney, Brian	6	0	0	4.2	4	3	3	5	3	1	0	0	5.79	.250
Tomko, Brett	7	0	2	12.0	10	8	8	4	10	0	1	0	6.00	.222
Wang, Chien-Ming	5	5	0	22.2	28	17	16	10	19	1	3	0	6.35	.298
	94	26	26	228.0	194	102	90	87	215	15	11	9	3.55	.228

Positives

Phil Coke. Coke is beginning to look like the pitcher we saw at the end of 2008. And that is good news indeed. Only one walk in every 4+ innings, leading on the month in ERA, seconding on the month in OBA.

Alfredo Aceves. Aceves has had a sensational season in long relief. This month was no exception. With Wang headed for the DL, Aceves is the obvious man to head to become the fifth starter. I think he can do a job as a starter but he needs to know what his role is and not be jerked about.

Phil Hughes. Hughes led the team in OBA for June and he has settled into his role as a reliever just fine and dandy. With a couple of the starters not producing there has been enough work for Aceves and him but hopefully it will not always be this way. Consequently, the Yankees need to make some decisions during the All-Star break about that crucial fifth starter role. What they decide will have a significant impact on the pitching staff for the rest of the year and their chances of making the playoffs.

A.J. Burnett. The starting rotation has lacked some consistency this year and its Burnett’s chance to return to the top of the heap. He’s seldom been bad and when he’s good he’s capable of being very, very good – and so far those nagging worries about injuries have proved unfounded.

Negatives

Chien-Ming Wang. He looks much better than he did a month or two ago but you still feel you’re going into a game hoping that he will reach the fifth innings and that if he gets there, he might have done enough to have kept the team in the game. The goals of a fifth starter have to be higher than that if you’re going to contend. However, he has done sensationally in previous seasons and it is a difficult conundrum. This latest injury just convolutes the problem.

Brett Tomko. "Tomko" ought to be an alternative for journeyman in the thesaurus. Some games he is good and others he is not. And at the moment the "nots" have the majority. The form pattern suggests he should be due for another purple patch but when he goes down for the third time……

Andy Pettitte. Inconsistent starters indeed. Pettitte looks healthy in the wins column, on the season, but he puts too many batters on base and gives up way too many hits. He’s getting more run support than anyone else and at some point that is going to balance out and then he will be in trouble if he hasn’t improved.

Brian Bruney. When he pitches well, he is prone to injury. At the moment, he’s not so hot but he’s staying fit. He’s giving up too many walks which is leading to too many runs but its difficult to identify what has changed.

Surprises

Jose Veras. Veras was having his best month of the season which, of course, led to him being designated for assignment and leaving town in exchange for cash. He was pretty good in 2007 and 2008 and he looked like he was coming around again. They should have shown more patience.

Mariano Rivera. It’s difficult to tell which Mo is going to turn up at the moment. Some nights he is still capable of being lights out but earlier in the month he developed a tendency to blow the big game. Last season, it was the non-save situation he struggled with, this year it has been the game when the spotlight is brightest. This current good run should help settle him down.

David Robertson. Robertson has had a tendency for his ability to strike opponents out to wither the longer he stayed at the major league level. So far this time around, he’s avoiding that problem and he could be about to become a fixture.

June in the Bronx – Part 1 – The Batters

Posted on July 7, 2009 by twilightdawning

Any month that includes as much inter-league play as June did, is always going to be a difficult – particularly in estimating how much it impacts the season as a whole. The month included bad streaks for the Yankees as a team and as individuals. Here’s hwo it went for the batters:

New York Yankees – Batting – Month – June
Name	G	AB	R	H	RBI	2B	3B	HR	BB	SO	SH	SF	SB	BA	SLG	OBP
Ransom, Cody	2	5	2	2	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.400	.600	.400
Gardner, Brett	24	48	10	16	5	0	2	1	9	4	1	0	8	.333	.479	.439
Pena, Ramiro	11	21	4	7	3	3	0	0	1	5	0	0	1	.333	.476	.364
Jeter, Derek	22	87	17	27	7	3	0	2	12	9	0	0	7	.310	.414	.394
Damon, Johnny	24	85	16	23	15	7	1	4	13	17	0	0	3	.271	.518	.367
Cano, Robinson	25	100	14	27	11	5	0	3	5	10	0	1	2	.270	.410	.308
Teixeira, Mark	25	95	14	25	16	10	0	4	17	12	0	0	1	.263	.495	.391
Swisher, Nick	25	79	12	20	10	8	0	4	16	14	0	0	0	.253	.506	.379
Sabathia, CC	5	4	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	.250	.250	.250
Cervelli, Francisco	7	25	5	6	3	1	0	1	1	5	1	0	0	.240	.400	.269
Posada, Jorge	21	73	11	17	12	1	0	4	11	15	0	1	0	.233	.411	.329
Cabrera, Melky	26	80	11	18	11	6	0	2	11	14	1	2	1	.225	.375	.312
Rodriguez, Alex	25	82	13	17	22	2	0	5	22	17	0	0	2	.207	.415	.387
Matsui, Hideki	24	54	7	11	9	2	0	3	12	9	0	0	0	.204	.407	.348
Burnett, AJ	5	5	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	.200	.200	.200
Pettitte, Andy	5	5	1	1	1	1	0	0	0	2	1	0	0	.200	.400	.200
Berroa, Angel	7	10	2	1	1	1	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	.100	.200	.182
Chamberlain, Joba	6	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	.000	.000	.000
Aceves, Alfredo	9	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	.000	.000	.000
Wang, Chien-Ming	5	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	.000	.000	.000
Rivera, Mariano	11	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	.000	.000	.500
Tomko, Brett	7	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	.000	.000	.000
Coke, Phil	14	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	.000	.000	.000
		868	140	220	130	51	3	33	131	141	6	4	25	.253	.433	.354

Positives

Brett Gardner. Gardner remains something of a conundrum. When he is giving a regular job in the starting line-up, he flounders. When there are no guarantees, he show himself as a feisty player who can get the hits. Of course, his speed is always an asset. As Cabrera had a quiet month, Gardner flourished. Best on the month in batting average and third of the regulars in slugging.

Derek Jeter. The captain continues to be a solid and consistent presence. His place on the All-Star team is a deserved one and as you see the mess so many players have put themselves in, you have to admire how he handles himself, on the field and off. He’s proving to be the consummate singles hitter, not a lot else but at the top of the line-up that is vital!

Robinson Cano. Cano continues to be a steady presence with the glove and with the bat. .270 on this month which he can improve on a little but his performance is so much more convincing and effective than in 2008.

Mark Teixeira. After a disappointing April and a mind-blowing May, Teixeira had a steady June. He looked great in the field and he continued to have some power (although this certainly wasn’t May in those terms).

Negatives

Angel Berroa. Berroa finally got a hit in June. That’s one more than he got in May. Thankfully, the Yankees have designated him for assignment.

Alex Rodriguez. On the month, .207 with 5 home runs. It seems he hits for power or he doesn’t hit at all. There were, to be fair, one or two exceptions to that rule. Did he come back too soon? Will the promised rest days help? Do the Yankees wish they’d stuck to their guns during the Boras debacle at the end of 2007?

Hideki Matsui. Matsui had a difficult month. Too many interleague games at the National league ground which makes him redundant as they won’t risk him in the field. When he was in the line up, his figures didn’t even match those of A-Rod. .204 with three home runs on the month.

Melky Cabrera. Melky Cabrera has had a good season so far and whilst his work in the field was good in June, his performance with the bat drifted back to the dark days of 2008. He was second in the team in doubles and he still looks good in the clutch but he’s going through a barren spell.

Surprises

Cody Ransom. Nice to see Cody back in the line-up. There was a time when I wondered if the Yankees placing him on the 60 day disabled list might mean he was done for the season. In his first five at-bats back in the team, he hit .400 and this, if nothing else, will be a substantial improvement on Berroa who he matches in the field also. Only time will tell if he can gain some consistency.

Ramiro Pena. Ramiro Pena is headed to triple-A Scranton in a decison which makes no sense to me. In June, he hit .333. He isn’t the most patient at the plate but he has proved a reliable bat off-the-bench and he is as good and better in the field than anybody else in that category. His July in Scranton is dictated by the arrival of Eric Hinske, who is another one of those journeymen big bats that the Yankees tend to pursue at this time of the year. Surprise and mistake.

Johnny Damon. Damon is holding up much better than I would have predicted. His slugging leads the team on the month, and he was tied second in home runs on the month. His fielding is never going to be that good again but he has managed to get this far without any serious injury.

Jorge Posada. Now back to full fitness apparently, Posada’s bat is not quite what we’re hoping for. 4 home runs on the month is fine but he isn’t hitting for average.

May in the Bronx – Part 2, the Pitchers

Posted on June 6, 2009 by twilightdawning

Well, the Yankees game last night was rained out. As Boston lost, the Yankees were elevated to first place again – making today a good day to reflect on the pitching that got them there and that which didn’t live up to expectations…..

New York Yankees – Pitching – Month – May
Name	GP	GS	GF	IP	H	RA	ER	BB	SO	W	L	Sv	ERA	OBA
Bruney, Brian	1	0	0	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0.00	.000
Robertson, David	7	0	5	5.0	2	2	1	4	6	0	0	0	1.80	.118
Wang, Chien-Ming	3	0	2	8.0	9	2	2	2	7	0	0	0	2.25	.300
Rivera, Mariano	10	0	5	11.0	9	3	3	1	13	0	1	5	2.45	.214
Sabathia, CC	6	6	0	45.2	34	14	13	10	37	4	1	0	2.56	.204
Aceves, Alfredo	9	0	3	19.2	16	6	6	3	18	3	1	0	2.75	.219
Albaladejo, Jonathan	9	0	2	10.0	11	6	4	6	7	1	0	0	3.60	.282
Ramirez, Edwar	8	0	0	9.0	7	4	4	7	8	0	0	0	4.00	.212
Tomko, Brett	5	0	3	4.1	5	2	2	2	0	0	1	0	4.15	.313
Burnett, AJ	5	5	0	32.1	30	15	15	18	32	1	2	0	4.18	.248
Chamberlain, Joba	5	5	0	22.1	24	12	12	12	29	1	1	0	4.84	.286
Pettitte, Andy	6	6	0	36.1	46	21	20	17	18	3	0	0	4.95	.309
Coke, Phil	11	0	3	11.0	9	7	7	5	4	0	2	1	5.73	.237
Hughes, Phil	6	6	0	28.2	35	22	21	13	25	2	2	0	6.59	.307
Veras, Jose	13	0	4	9.2	13	9	9	8	6	2	0	0	8.38	.325
Melancon, Mark	2	0	0	0.1	1	2	2	4	0	0	0	0	54.00	.500
	106	28	27	254.1	251	127	121	112	211	17	11	6	4.28	.259

Positives

C.C. Sabathia. As CC Sabathia heads into today’s start against Tampa Bay, it is that .204 OBA that shows that it is not only his top-rank wages which makes him stand out amongst the other starters. Sabathia typically makes a slow start to the season and bearing this in mind it seems that he’s ahead of schedule for another examplary season.

Alfredo Aceves. When a Yankees starter goes down early in the game – and it does happen, Hughes and Wang take a bow, then Aceves is the guy that they can depend upon. He has given us two or three solid innings in every relief performance. This is a team that went without a long reliever on their opening day roster. This was obviously a major mistake and not having someone like Aceves to turn to in those early weeks lost us several games.

David Robertson. Robertson is another who didn’t make the opening day roster but who is making a sizeable difference now he is part of the bullpen. He still needs to gain a little in the consistency stakes but when he is good, he will do very nicely.

Joba Chamberlain. Chamberlain still isn’t the complete package as a starter but he is ahead of where I expected him to be at this stage and the voices (including mine) asking for him to be returned to the bullpen are dying down. He is ahead of Pettitte and Wang in his recent starts and May was a good month for him.

Negatives

Edwar Ramirez remains part of the 40-man roster so the Yankees aren’t finished with him but his form has been a big disappointment so far this year and he is learning to make his home at Scranton / Wilkes-Barre (AAA). During May, he averaged nearly a walk and a hit in every innings pitched and whilst the Yankees might have been a little premature in demoting him, it looked as though it was always heading that way.

Phil Hughes. The Yankees seem quite pleased with him and said he was unlucky to lose his starting job but the reality is that he is averaging less than five innings per start and that is ERA for the month was 6.59. We have to put this in context. This is one of the two guys who were going to be a mainstay of the rotation in 2008 and really messed up. Now Hughes is the best of the two (even when Kennedy is fit) but he looks like he will make-do as a number five starter. This is no longer a surprise to me but I’m not expecting a noticeable improvement and this isn’t good enough.

Jose Veras. Last year, Veras was a very important part of the bullpen. This year it is probably only his level of experience which is keeping him in New York. His ERA for May exceeded 8 and this is even considering that he occasionally does give us a good performance.

Jonathan Albaladejo. Another early-in-the-season reassignment. Last year, he started the season well and then got injured. This season he started well and then the hitters figured him out. Like Ramirez, I think he perhaps deserved another week at the top level to see if he could gather himself but really he can have no complaints.

Suprises

Chien-Ming Wang. The guys on the team who still have to communicate through an interpreter are in a difficult place when their form falls apart. Given all the psychological pressure the fact that Wang has taken some major steps towards comeback at all is quite an achievement. He has some distance to go and I thought it was too early to restore him to the rotation but this is so far-so good.

Brett Tomko. I was not alone in shaking my head when I heard that Tomko had been promoted to the Bronx, I’m sure. Another journeyman pitcher, who is likeable but struggles to maintain a high enough level of performance in the top flight. So I’m not expecting this to last but he has put in some creditable innings so far and deserves a nod for that alone.

Phil Coke. Coke is the guy we must go to when we need a left-hander out of the bullpen but whilst his performances have been adequate, he has looked a shadow of the pitcher he was in his appearances at the end of last year. He is simply giving up too many runs – too often in tight situations that can cost us a game.

Mark Melancon started his major league assignment well but then he stopped throwing strikes. He was a surprising call-up who took advantage of his chance but ultimately couldn’t maintain it. His ERA at AAA is less than half of what he produced at the major level and he needs some months at that level under his belt before he is giving another chance in the Bronx.

May in the Bronx – Part 1, the Batters

Posted on June 5, 2009 by twilightdawning

The New York Yankees had a poor start to May but by the halfway point of the month they had really hit their stride. During the second half of the month they began the move towards setting a new record for games without a fielding error and began the long haul towards first place in the American League East after occupying third for most of the season to that point. Since May turned to June, an error by Jorge Posada on a throw to second base and a loss to the American League West-leading Texas Rangers has seen the errorless run come to an end and the Boston Red Sox tie the Yankees for first place in the East but May sure was a month in which the Yankees got hot. Who was repsonsible?

New York Yankees – Batting – Month – May
Name	G	AB	R	H	RBI	2B	3B	HR	BB	SO	SH	SF	SB	BA	SLG	OBP
Posada, Jorge	6	18	4	8	7	1	0	3	3	3	0	0	0	.444	1.000	.524
Teixeira, Mark	28	115	25	38	35	9	0	13	10	24	0	1	0	.330	.748	.391
Gardner, Brett	22	52	13	17	4	1	2	2	7	6	2	0	4	.327	.538	.417
Jeter, Derek	26	112	17	36	13	8	0	3	12	15	1	0	6	.321	.473	.397
Cabrera, Melky	24	84	9	27	10	6	0	1	4	11	2	1	2	.321	.429	.348
Damon, Johnny	27	115	25	35	21	10	1	6	9	22	1	0	2	.304	.565	.355
Cervelli, Francisco	15	42	4	12	4	1	0	0	1	6	3	0	0	.286	.310	.302
Cano, Robinson	28	114	17	31	15	8	1	4	4	6	0	0	1	.272	.465	.297
Molina, Jose	5	15	3	4	1	2	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	.267	.400	.313
Rodriguez, Alex	22	77	11	20	17	4	0	7	18	12	0	0	0	.260	.584	.412
Matsui, Hideki	25	87	8	21	10	6	0	5	5	18	0	1	0	.241	.483	.295
Pena, Ramiro	19	39	7	9	2	1	1	0	1	8	0	0	2	.231	.308	.250
Cash, Kevin	10	26	1	6	3	2	0	0	0	5	0	1	0	.231	.308	.250
Swisher, Nick	27	80	9	12	10	1	0	3	19	29	2	3	0	.150	.275	.311
Berroa, Angel	9	4	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	.000	.000	.000
		980	155	276	152	60	5	47	94	170	11	7	17	.282	.497	.349

Positives

Mark Teixeira. In April, Teixeira batted .200 with 3 homers. His average was so outstripped by the hot-hitting Nick Swisher, it began to look like we could have saved an awful lot of money in filling the first-base hole left by the not overly missed Jason Giambi. In May, whilst Swisher cooled right down, Teixeira found his swing and looked like the best first baseman since Tino Martinez. In May, he hit .330 with (count ’em) 13 home runs and a mammoth .748 slugging percentage. This raised him to .279 on the season which shows not only how much he has improved but just how bad that first month in pinstripes was.

Derek Jeter put together a good long hitting streak in May. He didn’t match Ichiro but there was no-one else to match him for second place in hitting safely in consecutive games. His .321 in May is solid form and he deserves his first place ranking in the American League All-Star voting for shortstop.

Melky Cabrera missed the last few months of the month after slamming into the outfield wall as he attempted a catch but those absent days aside he matched his April performance, hit-for-hit. He has proved an amazingly successful clutch hitter and he has put his 2008 form well behind him.

Johnny Damon. Damon is not great in the field and his throw from the outfield leaves a lot to be desired. However, his hitting in April returned to a level of form that he hasn’t been able to consistently produce since he joined the Yankees.

Negatives

Angel Berroa. Berroa is really just making up the numbers on the roster. Since A-Rod’s return, he has no hope of being an everyday player. In the field, he is adequate. With the bat he is simply horrible. He didn’t manage to get to base safely once in May and it becomes more and more apparent that Pena is a much better option as infield backup.

Kevin Cash. It’s never easy being an ex-Red Sox in pinstripes but Cash really didn’t take best advantage of his opportunity. With Posada and Molina injured and Cervelli having so little Major League experience, Cash should have been the obvious choice to be the team’s first choice catcher during May. Instead, he showed himself to be no more than adequate behind the plate whilst Cervelli excelled beyond expectation. By the time that Cash began to hit, towards the end of the month, the battle was already lost and with Posada fit again, he was the obvious demotee.

Hideki Matsui. Matsui is the everyday DH but he is doing his best to lose that position. He is really not achieving the kind of batting average we expect from him. He strikes out too much and doesn’t gain enough walks. He needs to improve.

Nick Swisher. Last year when I saw Swisher playing for the White Sox, he looked extremely poor. When the Yankees signed him in the close season I couldn’t understand it. I wondered why they hadn’t waited for Teixeira and made an effort to re-sign Abreu. Then when they also signed Teixeira, it made even less sense. However, in April, I became a believer. Swisher was magic and his hitting in the clutch was examplary. And then in May, the guy I saw for the White Sox last year showed up. At this moment, he may be a great clubhouse presence but he is streakiest hitter anywhere and when his head goes down, he really, really struggles.

Surprises

Brett Gardner. The speedy Gardner is another conundrum. Last season whilst the Yankees brass sounded optimistic, the fanbase wondered when he was going to hitting safely often enough to make that speed a real threat on the bases. In April, chosen over Melky Cabrera, he quickly lost the ascendancy with a very ordinary month. But like Teixeira he bounced back to the kind of form he showed in Spring Training during May. The difference is that for Teixeira that is a return to usual form. For Gardner, this month may prove to be a fluke.

Francisco Cervelli. There was a day or two in May when Cervelli led the team in batting average. He was always going to do reasonably well with the "tools of ignorance" but he also showed he can bat at this level which was far from a given. He ended the month on .286. He needs to work on his patience at the plate and he’s not going to be a power hitter but this guy has a future.

Alex Rodriguez. I’m not sure whether this is a positive or negative surprise. For most of May, A-Rod either swung for the fences or got out. His ability as a singles hitter seemed to have deserted him. But he kept going and the home runs kept coming and then on the 25th against Texas, he went 5 for 5 with 3 singles and 2 doubles. Go figure!

Jorge Posada. Posada’s injury seemed to come from nowhere but his damaged hamstring put him out for most of the month. However, either side of his time on the DL, he has still managed to produce with the bat and for that he earns my commendation.

April in the Bronx (part two) – the Pitchers

Posted on May 4, 2009 by twilightdawning

Last season, the Yankees had one of the most consistent bullpens in baseball. This year, essentially the same bullpen staff has reported but with a stronger (on paper) starting rotation than last year. Having added CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett, and with a fit-again Chien-Ming Wang and with Andy Pettitte without last year’s off-field distractions, what could possibly go wrong:

New York Yankees – Pitching – Month – April
Name	GP	GS	GF	IP	H	RA	ER	BB	SO	W	L	Sv	ERA	OBA
Hughes, Phil	1	1	0	6.0	2	0	0	2	6	1	0	0	0.00	.100
Swisher, Nick	1	0	1	1.0	1	0	0	1	1	0	0	0	0.00	.250
Melancon, Mark	2	0	1	3.0	1	0	0	1	2	0	0	0	0.00	.100
Rivera, Mariano	10	0	8	9.2	12	3	3	0	13	0	0	5	2.79	.293
Pettitte, Andy	4	4	0	27.1	24	10	9	6	16	2	1	0	2.96	.240
Chamberlain, Joba	4	4	0	23.0	22	11	8	13	17	1	0	0	3.13	.265
Bruney, Brian	9	0	1	8.0	3	3	3	2	12	2	0	0	3.38	.111
Coke, Phil	11	0	1	9.2	7	7	4	4	8	1	1	0	3.72	.206
Robertson, David	2	0	2	2.1	3	1	1	1	4	0	0	0	3.86	.300
Sabathia, CC	5	5	0	32.1	31	18	17	14	19	1	2	0	4.73	.256
Burnett, AJ	5	5	0	31.2	29	19	19	13	25	2	0	0	5.40	.257
Veras, Jose	9	0	4	11.0	6	7	7	6	10	1	1	0	5.73	.154
Ramirez, Edwar	7	0	0	8.1	11	7	6	8	8	0	0	0	6.48	.306
Albaladejo, Jonathan	9	0	0	11.0	13	10	10	4	5	1	0	0	8.18	.317
Marte, Damaso	7	0	3	5.1	9	9	9	3	6	0	1	0	15.19	.360
Wang, Chien-Ming	3	3	0	6.0	23	23	23	6	2	0	3	0	34.50	.622
Claggett, Anthony	1	0	0	1.2	9	8	8	2	2	0	0	0	43.20	.643
	90	22	21	197.1	206	136	127	86	156	12	9	5	5.79	.273

Positives

Mariano Rivera. No surprise to see Mo at the top of my list but it hasn’t been without a wobble or two. But for most of the month there looked to be no chance of him giving up a run. And then came a tight game against Boston. One of Mariano’s strong suits has always been his mental toughness. After last season’s tendency to come up short in a tied game and having blown this particular save, there will be those who claim to have spotted a chink in his armour. Don’t know but at the moment he still looks the best closer in MLB.

Andy Pettitte. I expected Pettitte to be stronger this year and so far that is the story. Two wins and a 2.96 ERA in amongst a staff that hasn’t yet found its direction. It’s good to have this veteran around.

Brian Bruney. So I know that Bruney is on the DL (again) at the moment but this is based on his form prior to that. He had a dreadful first appearance but after that he looked basically unhittable. That .111 OBA speaks volumes. Time will tell whether his "rest" is a temporary glitch or something more substantial but fit, he looked one of our best options.

Joba Chamberlain. Just. Of the remaining starters Joba just comes out on top. In his last start, he finally looked dominating. Prior to that he had looked just enough – at least to keep us in the game. At the moment, the great experiment seems to be working. I’d rather see him in the bullpen and, boy, does the bullpen need him. But for now it seems to be working out. Just.

Negatives

Damaso Marte. What do you do with a left-handed specialist who can’t get left-handers out? Marte didn’t look the real deal last season. This year he hasn’t shown up at all. 15.19 ERA and more than a third of the batters he pitches to are getting on base. Horrible.

Edwar Ramirez. Last year, Ramirez looked dependable. This year, his ERA is 6 and a half. ‘Nuff said.

Jose Veras. Last year, Veras looked dependable. It is hard to track the cause of all these sudden down turns. More peculiar, that most of these guys looked good in Spring Training. Girardi needs to lift some heads that have fallen. His ability / inability to instill confidence in the roster members may be the defining issue of his tenure as manager.

Jonathan Albaladejo. There’s not much to say that you couldn’t also say about Veras and Ramirez. There are simply too many members of the bullpen who are ragged and under-performing. These guys need to find some consistency.

Surprises

Chien-Ming Wang. Nobody knew quite what to expect from Wang in April. He was coming off a serious injury and his innings in the Spring had been few and their quality indecisive. Nobody expected him to be as bad as he has been. 34.50 ERA and an OBA over .6. Now he is on the disabled list again. This is quite a nosedive. Hope he can pull out of it.

Mark Melancon. Melancon didn’t even make it in to the 2009 Yankees media guide but here he is in the Majors and so far he is holding his own. Whether this can continue is debatable but as out of bullpen options as they have been (can you say "Swisher?"), it has been a pleasure to see him.

AJ Burnett. Burnett looked strong in his first two starts and it was encouraging to see a big money signing so strong straight out of the blocks. He hasn’t maintained that and he has a reputation for injuries. I don’t want any more nasty surprises.

Anthony Claggett. Claggett was a bright hope for the future. Claggett was called up when the pitching staff was particularly horrible in mid-April. Claggett was brought into a game that was already lost. Claggett only had to make some outs and get us through a few innings without further humiliation. Claggett looked worse than Chien-Ming Wang that had preceded him. That’s a lot of baggage for a bright hope to carry as he headed back to the Minors.

The pitching has not been good in April – in the Bronx and on the road!

April in the Bronx (part one)

Posted on May 2, 2009 by twilightdawning

A new baseball season wouldn’t be quite the same without some interesting stories surrounding the Yankees. And 2009 has provided a plethora! We went into the season with the cloud of misdemeanours hanging over Alex Rodriguez, a drunk-driving charge for Joba Chamberlain, a new Stadium and an even more expensive roster than usual waiting to persuade the fans that they really had the goods. The month has been mostly successful but when the Yankees lost, they really lost. The lowlight was a 14 run innings given up for the first time in their history. Here’s how the batter’s shaped up in that first month:

New York Yankees – Batting – Month – April
Name	G	AB	R	H	RBI	2B	3B	HR	BB	SO	SH	SF	SB	BA	SLG	OBP
Cano, Robinson	22	93	18	34	16	5	0	5	6	9	0	1	1	.366	.581	.400
Cabrera, Melky	20	49	11	16	9	0	0	4	6	8	0	0	2	.327	.571	.400
Swisher, Nick	22	77	21	24	19	8	1	7	15	19	0	0	0	.312	.714	.430
Damon, Johnny	20	78	15	23	10	2	1	4	11	11	0	1	3	.295	.500	.385
Matsui, Hideki	19	65	8	19	9	5	1	2	12	9	0	0	0	.292	.492	.410
Jeter, Derek	22	94	14	27	12	4	0	4	9	13	0	0	4	.287	.457	.350
Nady, Xavier	7	28	4	8	2	4	0	0	1	6	0	0	0	.286	.429	.310
Molina, Jose	11	29	2	8	5	0	0	1	3	4	1	0	0	.276	.379	.344
Posada, Jorge	20	69	7	19	14	6	0	3	10	18	0	2	1	.275	.493	.366
Pena, Ramiro	16	26	2	7	2	1	0	0	3	4	0	0	1	.269	.308	.345
Berroa, Angel	4	8	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	.250	.250	.250
Gardner, Brett	21	59	9	13	4	3	0	0	3	11	2	1	5	.220	.271	.254
Teixeira, Mark	19	70	11	14	10	3	0	3	17	12	0	1	0	.200	.371	.367
Ransom, Cody	15	50	4	9	6	5	1	0	3	15	1	0	0	.180	.320	.226
		795	128	223	118	46	4	33	99	139	5	6	17	.281	.473	.362

Positives

Robinson Cano is not the indifferent player he was a year ago. Then his mind seemed to be elsewhere and his stroke had disappeared. Now he leads the team in batting average, he has 5 doubles and 5 homers. He has looked strong in the field.

Hideki Matsui has overcome some early days of discomfort and water on the knee following on from surgery to see his batting average climbing the list and with some work on his stance he is starting to see some power too.

Derek Jeter has answered some of his critics with some solid performances at shortstop. He’s never going to be the best shortstop in the league but he’s way better than some voices were suggesting. His performance with the bat has been solid and he’s settling into that role at the top of the line-up.

Jorge Posada. Mostly solid behind the plate and producing numbers that are a step-up on last year. The Posada – Molina tandem will serve us well for another year.

Negatives

Mark Teixeira. We need much more from Teixeira. At the moment, he is not giving us more from the position than Giambi did last year. Giambi was supposed to be at the end of his usefulness (he was). Teixeira is supposed to be the future (at the moment he isn’t). .200 with 3 home runs simply isn’t good enough.

Cody Ransom. Ransom was never going to fill A-Rod’s shoes but he was meant to be an adequate replacement without the baggage. Prior to his stint on the DL, he simply didn’t deliver. This wasn’t the young man who delivered two home runs in his first two at bats as a Yankee. Hey, he didn’t manage one in fifty! Can anybody say "Shane Spencer", "Shelley Duncan"?

Brett Gardner. I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so. Gardner’s substandard April doesn’t qualify as a surprise. He’s a little down on what I expected but he was always going to be a .240 hitter with speed, a useful arm in the field but no power. He doesn’t walk much so once his singles production had dropped with his confidence, he was never going to survive as the everyday centrefielder.

Xavier Nady. This injury to Nady and the very non-specific way in which the Yankees detailed it in press reports is worrying. Behind the scenes issues aside, Bobby Abreu was the obvious player for the Yankees to re-sign for 2009. Damon is not the player he once was and is legs are always going to cause him problems. Nady has one bout of serious arm trouble behind him. When we didn’t chase Abreu, there was always the caution that trouble could come back. The team just has to hope it hasn’t

Surprises

Melky Cabrera. The hope was that Cabrera would bounce back strong enough to challenge Gardner and maybe platoon if Brett didn’t work out. So far, Cabrera is the guy from 2007 that we thought we’d never see again. 4 home runs, .327 batting average, good in the field, some speed. Hey, what’s not to like!

Nick Swisher. During the torrid first weeks of the season, Swisher was our best hope. Things have settled down a little now – for him and for the team but, for someone I would have traded away before the season began, he has been simply great. He looks twice the player I saw playing for the White Sox last year. He has energy, power and enthusiasm.

Jose Molina. Last year when Posada was injured and Molina was bearing the whole weight (let’s not talk about Ivan Rodriguez), he was pretty horrible at the plate and had some substandard games behind the plate. As much as I am sure that he would like to be the everyday player, I think it all got on top of him. This year, he has been his usual self behind the plate but his ability to hit for average has returned.

Ramiro Pena. Pena was going to be the scrappy, little, throwback of a player, who would provide back-up for Ransom until A-Rod was fit and then return to the minors to continue to learn the game. For three weeks that is exactly what he was and then he began to hit and look confident at the plate. Well, I’m surprised.

It will be some months before I get to New York but those horrible glitch days aside I can feel reasonably comfortable that the Yankees can remain in contention until I get there. Looks like another fascinating season ahead. I’m enjoying it. Next, we look at the pitchers in April.

Yankees – one out of leftfield

Posted on December 9, 2008 by twilightdawning

In 2008, the Yankees used 6 players at left-field. Here’s a summary of how it all went:

Johnny Damon (143 games) . Of those 143 games, 86 included time in leftfield. On the whole, injuries aside, this was a good year for Damon and a distinct improvement over 2007.

	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	AVG
2007	141	533	93	144	27	2	12	63	211	66	79	27	3	.351	.396	.270
2008	143	555	95	168	27	5	17	71	256	62	82	29	8	.375	.461	.303

This can be seen in the way that almost every column on the comparison, above, shows an increase for 2008. However, he had some months when he was well off the pace. He opened the season with an April average of only .276 and it seemed like he was going to struggle to improve on his 2007 standard. But May was a step up (.306) and June proved a high month of the season for him, batting .363 albeit mainly hitting singles. He missed a dozen games in July and the enforced mid-season rest set him back a little. July and August were months when he set his benchmark for the season showing .304 and .306 averages respectively. September proved to be his worst month offensively and his season rather tailed off just as the rest of the team were putting together a winning sequence.
So a successful but uneven season for Damon offensively. In the field, he made few errors and continues to show amongst the best ranges of the everyday leftfielders.
It seems 95% certain that Damon will be one of the starting Yankees on opening day. Despite being an ex-Red Sox, he has been accepted by the fans and that would not be many ways to replace him and improve. A good 2009 for him will definitely help the team.

Xavier Nady (59 games). He played in leftfield in 46 of his games after arriving in mid-season. 2008 was pretty much a career year for the X-Man albeit that his better figures were put up before he left Pittsburgh. Nady previously had had a short tenure with the Mets but moved on after only 75 for the other New York team. At the moment, the Yankees seem to like him a lot and it seems likely that he will last much longer in this part of town. He batted .305 and slugged .510 across the season. It was .268 and .474 whilst wearing the Bronx pinstripes. At the moment the inclination seems to let Abreu depart and make Nady a fixture. Nady played only 7 games in rightfield and Damon played none. It will be interesting to see how one of them works out playing the whole season in that corner which seems likely as things stand. Look for Nady to be in the line-up on opening day but not necessarily in leftfield.

Hideki Matsui (93 games). Injury meant that Matsui played only 21 games in a position where earlier in his career, he had been a fixture. I’ll say more about his season when we get to the designated hitters which is where we are likely to see him in 2009.

Brett Gardner (42 games). This young outfielder played 17 games in leftfield. I’ll say more about him in the discussion of centrefielders.

Justin Christian (24 games). He played 9 of those games in leftfield which was his most appearances at any one position. There were times in the season when the Yankees hierarchy seemed to regard Gardner and Christian evenly in terms of their becoming a fixture on the Bronx Bombers. At one point Christian seemed to have edged ahead. By the end of the season, it seemed like Gardner was a firm choice and Christian was all but forgotten. Defensively, he did well. Like Gardner, he has speed and can steal bases. His .250 average included very little power hitting but Gardner is weak in that area too. I’m guessing that the difference between the two players is in those legendary indefinables that baseball experts sometimes talk about because otherwise I can see little to choose. Gardner looks likely to be on the opening day roster and has a shot of the centrefield job, Christian must be wondering where his future lies. I don’t get the feeling it will be in the Bronx.

Melky Cabrera (129 games) Played only eight of those in leftfield. I’ll say more about his "difficult season" when we get to the centrefielders.

So my feeling is that Damon is likely to the starting leftfielder come April but there is time for that to change. We’ll see how things shape up in Spring training but I expect that’s how it will be.

Yankees…. A short stop at Shortstop

Posted on November 28, 2008 by twilightdawning

The Yankees only used 4 players at shortstop during 2008. This was pretty much as expected. Derek Jeter OWNS this position and its pretty much guaranteed that he will continue to do so for the rest of his career. Here’s a survey of the performances at that position.

Derek Jeter (150 games). Jeter played 148 games at ss and 2 at DH. By his own standards this was a quieter year offensively.

Year	Team	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	OBP	SLG	AVG
2006	NYY	154	623	118	214	39	3	14	97	301	69	102	34	5	.417	.483	.343
2007	NYY	156	639	102	206	39	4	12	73	289	56	100	15	8	.388	.452	.322
2008	NYY	150	596	88	179	25	3	11	69	243	52	85	11	5	.363	.408	.300
Career		8025	8025	1467	2535	411	57	206	1002	3678	813	1376	275	75	.387	.458	.316

In fact, it was more an inconsistent year than anything else. By September, he was batting .378 with a .425 OBP. The fact that his stats improved throughout the year bodes well for 2009. He is a certainty to be in the starting lineup on opening day.

Wilson Betemit (87 games). Betemit played 14 games at shortstop. The White Sox will have a good player in 2009. See my first base analysis for some comments on his season.

Alberto Gonzalez (28 games). Gonzalez played 14 of his games at shortstop. In both 2007 and 2008, he was a solid defensive player for the Bronx Bombers but he was a lightweight with the bat. By July 2008, his average had dropped to .173 and there were several other good defensive players available to back-up Jeter so the Yankees allowed him to depart for the Washington Nationals. Whether it was something to do with the drop in pressure in being away from New York or something else, his batting performance picked up in the limited time he saw at the plate for the Nationals. He collected his first major league home run and batted .347 in 49 at bats. He looks likely to continue with the Washington team in 2009.

Cody Ransom (33 games). Ransom played just 9 games at shortstop. See my first base analysis for some comments on his season.

Jeter is, injuries aside, certain to be the mainstay at shortstop during 2009. Predicting his back-up is more problematic. Betemit and Gonzalez are gone and Ransom looked more confident in other fielding positions. Hopefully all will become obvious in spring training.