Results tagged ‘ Boone Logan ’
What happened to the Yankees’ Arms Surplus?…
Locked and not loaded?…
Worst case scenario seems to be playing out with news that Michael Pineda’s shoulder is cause for concern. Everybody has wondered who would be the odd man out of the rotation, given the strong spring performances by Freddy Garcia and Phil Hughes. There’s been talk of moving either of those two or Ivan Nova to the bullpen, but all things considered, that’s not an ideal spot for any of the three. I was hopeful that Yankees could find some trade value in Garcia to move him and make room for the others, given that Andy Pettitte looms on the not-so-distant future. Yesterday, there were indications that Michael Pineda needed to have a strong performance to nail down his much anticipated spot in the rotation. I didn’t watch the game, but I checked the box score in later innings with the score tied 7-7 only to see that Pineda had given up 6 runs in the first two innings. Not exactly a strong performance. Then, this morning, there were reports about Pineda’s shoulder. He’ll be going for a MRI, but this could get worse, much worse.
Hopefully, the problems with the shoulder are minor and Pineda can recuperate with some rest.
Even though the Yankees ultimately won the exhibition match-up with the Phillies, it was a very costly game with the possible injury to Pineda, as well as reliever Cesar Cabral (elbow). Both injuries make Joe Girardi’s decisions for the starting rotation and second lefty in the pen much easier. At this point, it would appear that the rotation will be CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda, Ivan Nova, Phil Hughes, and Freddy Garcia. There could be some shuffling of the last three, dependent upon who’s ready when based on how they’re currently lined up with their respective pitching schedules. If Cabral is out, it opens the door for Clay Rapada to take the second lefty role behind top lefty Boone Logan.
I prefer striking out the opposing team…
I didn’t fully understand the move with Russell Branyan. He was released from his minor league deal, and then re-signed to a new minor league deal at a savings of $100,000 to the Yankees. The money would seem inconsequential, so I wonder if there had been an opt-out clause or something else in the contract that would have been triggered causing the need for the re-negotiation. It’s not exactly like I’m expecting much from Branyan at this point of his career. It’s hard to get expected about high strikeout guys like Branyan, but of course, the Yankees added to the fodder with the signing of Jack Cust. I do not see either as a viable alternative to what the Yankees already have.
Is bashing the Yankees the only way to be beloved in New England…
Enough about the recent tie between the Yankees and Red Sox recently. I don’t blame Joe Girardi for his decision not to play extra innings in their game with the Red Sox, resulting in a tie. After the game, Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine ripped the Yankees, saying that it cost a minor league pitcher, Clayton Mortensen, his opportunity to impress in an effort to make the team. Subsequently, Mortensen has been making disparaging remarks about Girardi and the Yankees. Seriously? The guy’s career is going to be determined by one inning of pitching in a meaningless exhibition game? Yeah, it was the Yankees, but guys don’t make major league rosters just because they play the Yankees well. I think the other teams in the league have something to say about it. If Valentine felt that Mortensen had a legitimate shot to make the roster, then he would create the opportunity in the spring schedule to showcase Mortensen. His only opportunity to impress the Red Sox wasn’t that meaningless game with the Yankees. For so much ink to be devoted to the unhappiness of Valentine and Mortensen is absolutely ridiculous.
There’s room in the Bronx for Maxwell…
I am hopeful the Yankees find room on the roster for outfielder Justin Maxwell. Hopefully, with fourth outfielder Andruw Jones slated to share some DU time with Raul Ibanez, there will be the need to carry a fifth outfielder. I like Maxwell’s athleticism in the outfield, and he is a good role player.
Have Bat, Will Travel…
Speaking of Ibanez, he is finally starting to hit, but I still can’t get his slow start with the Phillies last year out of mind. I know that he had decent numbers by the end of the year, but I don’t like streaky players and at 40, Ibanez is not going to improve with age. It’s too bad that Jorge Posada was not able to more fully embrace the DH role. If he had, he probably would not have been put in the position of having to retire in the off-season. But that’s water under the bridge, so I hope the Yankees find a suitable and consistent bat at DH as early in the season as possible. If Ibanez surprises me, and is the guy, so be it. Just be prepared to bring the bat every day, that’s all I ask.
Finally…
Good luck to Joba Chamberlain on his recovery. I do hope that he is able to achieve his goal of pitching this season. Who knows if he’ll ever be the pitcher we thought he would be, but we surely won’t know if he’s not pitching…
Well, the new baseball season is upon us. Best of luck to everyone and their respective teams. At this moment, we all have the chance for October glory. Well, not really, but the standing don’t know any differently. May the best team win!
–Scott
Take two aspirin and call me in the morning…
It was a great win by Freddy
Garcia on Saturday (six innings, two hits and no runs) in the Yankees’ 5-2
victory over the Texas Rangers. The
superlatives about Garcia poured in after the game including one comment that
compared Garcia to David Cone in terms of the latter pitcher’s ability to find
ways to win when he didn’t have his best stuff.
Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
I do not doubt Garcia’s
ability. I can recall many times over
the years when Garcia completely shut down the Yankees. It didn’t matter if he had been struggling at
the time or was fighting some ailment.
He always seemed to shine in the most difficult moments. My concern with Garcia is his ability to
sustain the effectiveness he showed yesterday.
There’s no doubt, in my mind, that we’ll see Kevin Millwood and/or
Carlos Silva in the rotation at some point.
I am not trying to be
pessimistic, but rather just a realist.
With Phil Hughes on the DL, it is not an automatic that he’ll regain his
velocity by simply receiving rest and treatment. A.J. Burnett showed that he is still
vulnerable after giving up two home runs in one inning against the Baltimore
Orioles last week after pitching so well in the prior six innings. We’ll have the opportunity to see what
Bartolo Colon can do, but my concern about him is not with his arm. His weight and ability to stay healthy are
the key issues.
It was disappointing to hear
that reliever Pedro Feliciano will need season-ending surgery. Given that lefty Damaso Marte is also on the
shelf, the Yankees will need to find another lefty to complement Boone
Logan. Unfortunately, the rest of the
league knows that and they’ll be looking for a King’s ransom in any potential
trade.
At this point in the season,
it’s nice to see the Yankees in first place with an 8-5 mark, while the Boston
Red Sox sit in last place at 3-10.
However, with just under 150 games still remaining, I would be very
foolish to think that the current standings will stay unchanged. The Red Sox will figure it out and they’ll be
an offensive force through the summer. I
am concerned that the key reason the Yankees have been winning is their home
run production (24 homers in 13 games).
Hopefully, they’ll begin to find other ways to win as the season
progresses.
It bothers me that the
Boston Red Sox will avoid a luxury tax penalty by delaying the announcement of
Adrian Gonzalez‘s extension until this week.
Perhaps they did the same thing with Clay Buchholz, but the Gonzalez
signing was a foregone conclusion. It
was obvious that the Sox had reached an agreement with Gonzalez before the
start of the season. It was clear they
simply circumvented the system to avoid paying the additional tax.
To go a bit off topic, I am
excited about the upcoming NFL Draft despite the current lockout. I remain hopeful that the owners and players
will reach an agreement before the loss of any games. With the draft, I really hope the Minnesota
Vikings can find a quarterback. However,
their draft position at #12 is not ideal for their search for a franchise QB. The top tier QB’s, like Blaine Gabbert and
Cam Newton, will be gone and it will be too early to take somebody like Jake
Locker. It will be interesting to see
what the Vikings can do. The Vikings
chief rival, the Green Bay Packers, seem to have a knack for finding QB’s. They coaxed one great season out of Don
Majkowski. They traded for Brett Favre after
they missed out on the opportunity to draft Troy Aikman. They drafted Aaron Rodgers despite having
Favre and a few other highly touted former college QB’s on the roster. Hopefully, the Vikings can replicate the
Packers blue print to find their next great QB…
–Scott
The Perfect Formula…
8th inning relief…
I was so relieved (no pun intended) when the
Yankees went with David Robertson and Boone Logan in the 8th inning
as a bridge between Javier Vazquez and Mariano Rivera in New York’s 3-2 win
over the Cleveland Indians. Both Robertson
and Logan did their respective jobs with no drama (unlike recent escapades with
Joba Chamberlain).
This game was about redemption. Javier Vazquez continued to show that he has
moved well past his early season struggles and has perhaps shaken, for the now,
the tag that he is purely a NL pitcher.
Of course, he hasn’t pitched a big game yet, but he continues to pitch
very solidly while the other starters have taken their turns with issues. Hopefully, this is the Javy that we’ll see
now through October.
Theodorakis/NY Daily News
As recent as this weekend, Curtis Granderson was
viewed as a failure in New York.
Everyone has waited for Curtis the Tiger to show up, and finally, in the
last couple of games, he has. On Sunday,
in the Yankees’ 12-6 romp over the Kansas City Royals, Grandy had two home
runs. Tonight against the Indians, and
unlike Alex Rodriguez, he hit another one.
With the homer, Grandy finally broke into double digits with his 10th
of the season. It is a far cry from the
guy who was predicted to hit 40 home runs in New York but still, it is great to
finally see Granderson as an offensive force in the lineup. As with Vazquez, Grandy is a key to the
second half.
Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
Nick Swisher hit another home run. I regret ever having preferred Xavier Nady
over Swish in right. Swisher has been
terrific this season and with his 18th home run of the season
tonight, he is just a mere two homers beyond team leader Mark Teixeira. Hey Swish, maybe you could give hitting
lessons to A-Rod! 
I will also put both Robertson and Logan into the
redemption category. Logan has seen his
share of the Bronx-Scranton/Wilkes Barre Shuttle, while Robertson has struggled
at times to match the success of last season.
Tonight, they were perfect in the 8th when anything less
could have been disastrous given the one run margin.
It was nice that on a night when the big guys
(Jeter, Teixeira, A-Rod, and Cano) went a combined 0-for-14 with 3 strikeouts,
the Yankees could still emerge with the victory. Some
great pitching, a few key hits, and Mariano Rivera are the perfect formula for
success!
Apparently, the Yankees made a big, but
unsuccessful, push for Royals closer Joakim Soria. Soria would have made a great bridge to
Mariano Rivera, but it doesn’t appear that the two teams match up
trade-wise. The Yankees were rumored to
be the frontrunners for Cliff Lee and Dan Haren, yet they lost out on both
pitchers. I was more disappointed about
Lee, who I am still hopeful the Yankees will pursue in the off-season.
The Canadian Press
I had mixed feelings about Haren, and I felt that
his salary would have been problematic in the Yanks’ chances to pursue Lee
during free agency. So, all things
considered, I am glad to see him go to the Los Angeles Angels. I don’t think the Angels will catch the Texas
Rangers so it will be an uphill battle for the Angels to make the
play-offs. Of the remaining pitchers on
the market, I’d probably rather go after someone like Ted Lilly than Roy
Oswalt. Lilly is a good pitcher and
knows how to pitch in New York.
This week should be interesting with all the trade
speculation and actual trade results as we move toward the end of the
week. Of course, this is probably another
case of ‘all bark, no bite’ as the speculation will exceed the actual
results. With so many teams unwilling to
add to payroll, there should still be decent trading activity in August as
players clear waivers. Still, I am
anxious to see what player will get the tag of being the first post-George Steinbrenner
Era Yankee.
In a note of good news, manager Joe Girardi has
announced that Dustin Moseley will start Thursday’s game in place of Sergio
Mitre. I am anxious to see what Moseley
can do in his first start for the Bronx Bombers. Anything has to be an upgrade over Meat Tray…
Mike Stobe/Getty Images
I know that everyone is entitled to their opinion,
but I’d like to say that Bill “The Spaceman” Lee is a jerk. According to the USA Today Sports Weekly, Lee
told WMUR-TV (New Hampshire) “As far as Steinbrenner’s passing…good”. He went on to say, “If hell freezes over, he’ll
be skating”. Hey Lee, how did you enjoy
that World Series Championship? Oh yeah,
you never won one!
–Scott
So Close Yet So Far Away…again…
A wasted Phil Hughes performance…
From the movie, Hangover
Hughes did his part. Unfortunately, no one else did. Pitching into the 6th inning with only one run allowed, Hughes saw a potential victory evaporate in the hands of relievers Boone Logan and David Robertson.
Thanks, in part, to a throwing error by Jorge Posada in the 8th, and a subsequent hit by Cesar Izturis, the Baltimore Orioles had the insurance run they would need to hold off a late rally by the Yankees.
A fielder’s choice groundout by Alex Rodriguez in the 9th inning ended the game after two runs had scored in the inning to bring the Yanks within one run, 5-4. The blazing hot Robinson Cano was left standing in the on-deck circle.
Charles Wenzelberg/NY Post
This was a very disappointing performance by the Yankees, who have been very uninspired of late in losing four of the last five games. Not even a Monday trip to Washington to meet President Barack Obama helped motivate the squad.
AP
After a terrific start, the Yankees are now 12-7, 2 ½ games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East. The Boston Red Sox have won two straight to pull within 3 games of the Yankees and into third place.
Boston Globe
In typical Curt Schilling fashion, controversial remarks were abound as he indicated Yankees pitcher Javier Vazquez was not an American League guy. Manager Joe Girardi defended Vazquez. “Guys are asked to analyze situations, and so they make their analysis. We still believe Javy’s going to be successful, and he’s going to pitch at a very high level for us.” I hope Joe’s right, but I have to admit I had the same reservations when I first heard the Yankees had re-acquired Vazquez. His greatest successes have come in Montreal and Atlanta, both National League cities. I am still hopeful Javy will succeed in the Bronx but the concerns and fears will remain until he proves me wrong…
Bazemore/AP
Hats off to San Francisco pitcher Jonathan Sanchez for outdueling the great Roy Halladay in the Giants’ 5-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies last night.
Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP
You Traded Me for Randy Freakin’ Johnson?…
The answer to the question is an old friend from the past…
Bill Kostroun/AP
It was no secret that the Yankees were actively seeking to fill an open spot in the rotation and the word was that it would be accomplished by year end. As it were, the Yankees wrapped the package up prior to Christmas. The result is the return of Javier Vazquez….
When I first heard the deal, I was a little upset at what the Yankees gave up (Melky Cabrera, Michael Dunn, and Arodys Vizcaino). However, after having time to let it sink in, I am okay with it so long as the Yankees can come up with a decent alternative for left field. Brett Gardner is not an every day player, and at this point, neither is Jamie Hoffmann. Perhaps Gardner can be part of a platoon, but the other half is not currently on the roster.
Vazquez was a Yankee for one brief season. But it was a very painful season. For years, we had grown up knowing that the Boston Red Sox had been suffering from the Curse of Babe Ruth prior to our own births. However, in 2004, the Red Sox finally shook the curse and defeated the mighty Yankees despite being down 3 games to none in the American League Championship Series. The defining moment occurred in Game 7 when Johnny Damon hit a grand slam off Javier Vazquez. The win propelled the Red Sox to the World Series and an eventual championship that could have belonged to the Yankees. After the season, the Yankees packaged Vazquez in a deal to Arizona that netted Randy Johnson. At the time, Vazquez didn’t want to leave the Yankees but “public opinion” was clearly against him and the Yankees fans didn’t cry too much as Vazquez headed for the Sonoran Desert.
Nevertheless, spin forward 5 years, and Vazquez has proven consistency and durability. 2009 was perhaps his finest year with Atlanta Braves as he went 15-10 with a 2.87 ERA. Injuries, including pink eye, kept 2009 from being even more successful. When you are throwing around names like Ben Sheets, Justin Duchscherer, Aaron Harang, and others, I have to admit that Vazquez is the best case scenario. Admittedly, I would have preferred a Bronx return by Ted Lilly but there probably wasn’t any way that the Chicago Cubs were going to let him go. The Yankees tried hard for Cliff Lee, but the Phillies felt they needed to send Lee as far from Philly as they could given the backlash they’d receive by dealing him. Understood. So all things considered, Javier Vazquez as your number 4 starter is a pretty good situation. I’d take Vazquez in a head-to-head match up against John Lackey so I think the move was a good counter to Boston’s free agent signing.
Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal Constitution
It is ironic that Damon’s departure is met by Vazquez’s return. It is equally ironic that Vazquez and DH Nick Johnson will be teammates given they were once traded for each other. Hopefully, this ends the Yankees’ attempt at a 2003-04 reunion tour. We really don’t need to see a return performance by Jason Giambi. Sorry, G, I loved you in pinstripes but that day has passed.
AP
The Yankees did manage to secure a bullpen part with the Vazquez trade. They also acquired pitcher Boone Logan. Gotta love the name. Logan is a lefty but is probably more of a one batter specialist. The Yankees are hopeful that Damaso Marte will continue at the level he displayed late in the season. Logan was acquired by the Atlanta Braves in the same trade that brought Vazquez from the Chicago White Sox. So, once again, Logan and Vazquez are intertwined…and hopefully the duo will prove to be very successful in the Bronx. Vazquez is a free agent after 2010, so it’s possible that this is another one-and-done Yankee performance, but it is my hope that he proves he belongs in pinstripes.
The Yankees also signed free agent catcher Mike Rivera (formerly of the Milwaukee Brewers). So long as Rivera is slotted for the third catching spot, I am okay with the move. I feel that Francisco Cervelli deserves the primary shot to be Jorge Posada’s backup, but a veteran influence like Rivera can’t hurt.
So, now the question is what the Yankees will do about left field? The Vazquez trade brings the payroll to nearly $200 million which is the alleged budget for 2010. Perhaps they’ll need to offload Chad Gaudin and/or Sergio Mitre (among others), but room can be made for a capable left fielder. Alas, it won’t be Matt Holliday or Jason Bay (or even Johnny Damon), but I have confidence that GM Brian Cashman won’t leave the team shortchanged.
All these moves do have the potential of disrupting team chemistry so I am hopeful that the team is able to mesh in spring training. From a character standpoint, I have no reservations with Curtis Granderson, Nick Johnson, or Javier Vazquez, so I think they’ll be fine. But as they say, the proof is in the pudding…
Fid
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