Results tagged ‘ Joba Chamberlain ’
This one had all the earmarks
In a word, this one was pathetic. I told my son in the fifth inning when it was 2-1 that this was one of those games that the Yankees would find a way to lose. At that point, I believe that the Yankees had about 10 hits and five or six walks and only two runs to show for it. When you waste that many opportunities to score, you will inevitably lose. I went to bed in the 10th and was not the least bit surprised to find out that the Yankees had in fact lost 4-3. I looked at every story I could find this morning and could not find one mention of why Joba was not used last night instead of David Robertson. I for one, am not buying Robertson’s “escape artist” reputation. The fact is that he was inconsistent last year and has been inconsistent this year. That is not the mark of a good reliever. I still would be interested to know why no Joba if someone could enlighten me. Terrible, terrible performance by almost everyone not named A.J. Burnett and he wasn’t exactly stellar with his lack of control.
One in the books, 161 more to go
So finally, something real to write about. I have refrained from writing for several weeks, because there was really nothing to write about. All of the spring speculation that I read in the newspapers and online seemed like drivel to me. Most of it was nonsense about how Jesus Montero failed to win the backup catcher’s job and other BS written by people who seem to have no understanding of what spring training is for. The fact is, Montero hit well enough to win the job and his defense was certainly as good as Jorge Posada has been the past few years. The reality is that the Yankees thought he could use some more seasoning at Triple A and in the end, that’s what he’ll get.
As for the first game, you could not have asked for a better ballgame. Curtis Granderson was huge with his defense and that game winning home run. I think there may have been a bit of extra incentive since they were playing the Tigers and he hit the home run off Phil Coke, who was part of the deal when he was traded. Once the Yanks got the lead, Joba, Soriano and Mariano did exactly what they are supposed to do and that is to shut the opposition down. It was a perfect blueprint for a win and I believe we will see many more like this one this year. That Yankees bullpen is going to be incredible. Sure they will have bad days, but I believe that most of the time, it will be like today. If they have a lead after six, it will be all over. Today it was tied after six, but you get the idea. So buckle up folks and enjoy the ride. It will be a long season full of ups and downs, but I for one am sure glad Yankee baseball is back.
The one that got away and thoughts about the non trade
Well, after seven straight wins, I guess the Yankees were due for a loss. This one just slipped away when Joba Chaimberlain couldn’t get through the eighth before giving up a grand slam, the lead and the game. Joba has been a bit erratic this year. My personal feeling is that he doesn’t get enough work. I believe he needs to pitch multiple innings like he did when he first game up. I’m not saying three or four innings, but two inning outings would be a way to get him a bit more work. I believe he is more effective when used that way than he is currently. Can’t complain too much though. They still have a two game lead with one to play before the All Star break. All things considered, that ain’t too bad
On another note, although I would have loved to see Cliff Lee in the Yankees rotation this year, I am glad that they didn’t trade Jesus Montero. I saw him play last week and this kid is the real deal. At 21 years old, he has adjusted well to AAA after a rocky start. He currently is heating up and even at 21 he looked like a man among boys when I saw him play. This kid is going to be an All Star some day and I hope that it is with the Yankees. Cliff Lee can wait and as we saw last night, Javy Vazquez is every bit as capable of putting up zeroes as Cliff Lee is on any given night.
Joba the nut
That was brutal. Blowing a 5-1 lead in the eighth inning is simply inexcusable. Joba seems to me to have a poor mental approach. Whenever he gives up a hit or a walk he seems to unravel a bit. Last night was a good chance to sweep this short series and go 5-2 on the Sox. Instead the Yankees gift wrapped this one and gave it away, much as they tried to do the night before. More importantly, Tampa won again and the Yankees are 3 games back. It is time for this team to pull itself together and start playing good baseball again. They gave away one against the Twins on Sunday and tried to blow up on Monday before managing to squander a four run lead in the eighth innning last night. Now Tampa is in town and it’s time to right this ship in a hurry. I know it’s early and overall the team has played well, but the past few days have been particularly ugly.
A-Rod, A-Rod, A-Rod
Well if that wasn’t a pleasure to watch, I don’t know what would be. The Yankees dominated this game and ran at will against Varitek. It couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. I am still steamed at him for not taking off his mask while starting a fight with A-Rod a couple of years ago. As for A-Rod, he almost single handedly beat the Sox last night. That home run to the second deck in left was smoked and how about him stealing three bases with a bad hip? My hope is that the Yankees sweep to clinch, while preventing Boston from celebrating making the playoffs in Yaneeland. So far, so good. Joba was his old self last nght as well and looks like he could be alright for the playoffs. Today it’s CC against Dice-K and I like our odds in this one.
Lost weekend in Seattle
Well Joba stunk up the joint again when they needed a win. After blowing the lead on Friday night, they needed to win the next two before heading to Anaheim. They took care of business on Saturday, but Joba was horrible again. Now the lead is down to five and it’s off to Anaheim for three and then four against Boston. This will be a pivotal week for the Yankees. They really need to buckle down in Anaheim, because as good as this season has been, they haven’t won anything yet and if Boston is within striking distance next weekend, look for a bloodbath. Anaheim has had the Yankees number for years, particularly at home, so this series will be a tough one. Can’t say enough about what a dissappointment Joba’s effort was. They really needed him to step up and he was off the charts bad. The only thing worse is that he doesn’t seem to realize how badly he’s been pitching. All he could talk about afterward was how good his delivery was and how good his changeup was. News flash Joba, you gave up seven runs in the first two innings. We need much better than that from him. If I were the Yankees, I would leave him off the post season roster for the first round.
Back on Track
Well, at least Joba looked a bit like his old self last night. That is what they will need from him in the post season, whether it be from the pen or as a starter. It was good to beat the Angels as well. This team needs to believe that they can beat LA because they have had a hard time doing it the past few years. This time they beat them at their own game, with Brett Gardner stealing third and scoring on the errant throw to third. It also allowed A-Rod to move to third and score on the next play. And seeing Freddy Guzman with the big club was a surprise, but an intriguing one. He could potentially provide some spark off the bench in the playoffs as he looks to be just as fast as Gardner. Speed puts pressure on the defense and it’s interesting to see the Yanks with a couple of burners for a change. Next up are the Jays and they can be tough at times, but I expect the Yanks will sweep the two games.
Joba Rules
Lots of talk today in the NY area press about the new Joba rules and whether they are good or bad. I see that Pete Abraham over at LoHud Yankees is on Joba’s case. Man that guy is brutal. If he doesn’t like they way a guy is playing, he just constantly rags on him. Right now it’s Joba’s turn, in between swipes at Robinson Cano for not hitting with RISP. Joba wasn’t great yesterday, but he wasn’t that bad either. If limiting his innings keeps him from getting injured, then I am all for it. They won the game for crying out loud, so what’s to complain about? Alfredo Aceves looked awesome for three innnings, so maybe that barking shoulder is feeling a bit better. Who knows what the future holds for Joba, but limiting his innings to try and protect him makes perfect sense to me. Increasing his innings total each time out to build him up for the playoffs seems like a smart idea to me. But then, that’s just me. Who am I to let logic get in the way of emotion?
Break out the Brooms
Well they swept Ozzie and the White Sox out of town. Once again, they broke it open with a big inning late. This seems to be a pattern with this team. Joba was so-so for three and Aceves was dominant for three. Robertson and Hughes took them through eight and once again Phil Coke coughed up a gopher ball in the ninth. He can get you through an inning with a big lead, but I do not want him having the ball in a close game. And what can you say about Mark Texeira? Mr. Consistency does it again with his 32nd dinger to break it open and six straight seasons with at least 30 HR’s and 100 RBI. What an addition this guy was. I look forward to watching him in pinstripes for many years to come. Overall, not a bad homestand at 4-2, but I’m sure they’d like to have at least one of those two losses to Texas back. Now it’s on to B-more and Toronto. I wonder if Aubrey Huff is still laughing? I bet he gets plunked at least once in this series. And thanks to Toronto for laying down in Boston this weekend. Wish they had some heart and could have at least won one game in Boston, but they couldn’t do it. More tomorrow.
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