Jumping off from the Stat of the Day, I was curious as to which pitcher started off his “Yankees career” with the longest streak of 7+ inning games – since 1954. The answer can be found via the link below. I had forgotten that Ken Holtzman got off to such a hot start with the Yanks in 1976. Too bad he had an ERA of 6.75 in the nine games that followed his blazing pinstripe debut…
Via Bob Raissman with a H/T to BBTF –
The combination of food and security collided inside the Stadium Wednesday night. This had nothing to do with high-profile broadcasters or players’ wives. This was a rebellion of the rich. In that expensive area downstairs – the one with the empty seats – there are seemingly more waiters and waitresses, serving free food, than there are patrons.
On Wednesday, it got so crazy that the fan-elite started tossing ice cream sandwiches over the moat to peasants sitting in the $400 “cheap” seats. This did not sit well with Toastie security forces, who began scolding their most prized customers. The lecture from security prompted a guy in the rich seats to say: “I paid for this food, I can do with it what I want!”
Yeah, let them eat ice cream (sandwiches).
It could have been worse.
Many moons ago – I want to say it was 1984 or 1985, thereabouts – I went to an early season Yankees game with my (then) girlfriend. We were sitting in the lower upper deck along the first base side. At one point, some of the fans there starting tossing “something” back and forth among themselves. (You know, how some fans, at other ballparks bat around a beach-ball?)
Well, as the “object” starting coming closer to us – meaning being tossed among the fans closer to our seats – we realized what it was…it was a huge dildo.
My girlfriend, who was pretty straight-laced, was shocked that someone would bring that to the ballpark. Me? Hey, Yankee Stadium in the early ’80′s? I knew that anything was possible.
After a while, some of the fans started chanting “Over the ledge! Over the ledge!” – again and again. And, then, one of the fans who snagged the flying dildo tossed it over the ledge of the upper deck – down to the box seats, below
To this day, I wonder where it landed and how the person it hit reacted. I mean, truly, when you go to a ballgame, do you ever expect a giant rubber talleywacker to fall from the sky and bonk you off the head?
Worse, what if you had your kids with you and it hit one of them? How do you explain that? Yikes.
A free ice cream is a much better gift from the heavens…every day of the week.
My son turned five last month and my daughter will turn seven next month.
To date, my daughter has been to 22 professional baseball games – major, minor and indy-league games – and my son has been to 21 pro-games. (And, we have tickets for another game this coming Sunday.)
Me? I was 10 1/2 years old when I saw my first professional baseball game.
Related, I thought this might be a fun topic for a Friday before a three-day weekend…
How about you? How old were you when you started going to ballgames? And, did you go often as a very young child?
A friend of a friend, who works with IOMEDIA, recently dropped me a note. His group was responsible for creating the Yankees Stadium 3D Seat Selector which is available on-line – and he was curious if I knew some of the Yankees fan reaction to this tool.
Personally, I know that my season-ticket-mates and I played with this a lot – when we found out where our season tickets were in the new Yankee Stadium. And, I do recall some WasWatching.com readers referencing the locator early in the season.
I love how it allows you to get an idea of what the view might be from seat locations – and how you can pan around from there. I suspect that I will be using this every time I have the need to buy tickets – outside of the ones from my season-tickets.
If you have any comments on the tool – good and bad – please consider sharing them here in the comments section. I’m sure the team at IOMEDIA would be interested in seeing that feedback.
Number Nine…Number Nine…Number Nine…
I missed the start of this game. I had to work late and didn’t get home until 7:45 pm ET. And, I turned it on just before Robbie Cano homered in the second.
You can imagine my shock when the top of the third started and I saw Alfredo Aceves on the mound and not Joba Chamberlain. My initial thought was: “Wow. I wonder if Joba nailed the Mocking Bird with a pitch and got ejected?” And, then, the fellas in the YES booth soon gave an update on what really happened to Chamberlain…and I was up to speed.
Since you can never believe what the Yankees say, and they’re saying that they are “hopeful” that Joba makes his next start, I think we have to wait and see on this one…in terms of how bad it is…
O.K., as I said yesterday, the O’s stink. Now, comes the real test – the Phillies. It will be very interesting to see how the Yankees do in their next three games. It will tell us if this team is for real, or, if the last seven games were just a gift from playing the Twins in New York and playing the Orioles, period.
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I always felt that Adam Lambert, and his patented high note, came across like Mario Cantone impersonating Liza Minnelli doing a cover of Judas Priest’s Sinner. So, I was happy to see Kris Allen get the nod tonight.
Allen was born about 30 minutes away from A.J. Burnett’s hometown. Maybe A.J. can pie him now, or something, for winning A.I.8?
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Playing around, I just noticed how close Phil Hughes’ career big league numbers are, leading into tonight’s game, to the pitching line on Paul Wilson’s 1996 season.
See below:
Paul Wilson: Year Age W L ERA G GS IP BB SO 1996 23 5 12 5.38 26 26 149 71 109 Phil Hughes: Year Age W L ERA G GS IP BB SO 2007-09 23 6 9 5.47 25 25 123.1 56 91 Paul Wilson: Year BF ERA+ WHIP H/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB 1996 677 75 1.53 9.5 4.3 6.6 1.54 Phil Hughes: Year BF ERA+ WHIP H/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB 2007-09 548 82 1.51 9.5 4.1 6.6 1.63
It’s interesting comparing Hughes’ first 25 starts to Wilson’s first 26 starts – considering that they both got that work in before age 24 and were hyped New York pitching prospects.
Of course, this means nothing. No one should take this and run with it saying that Hughes will have a career like Wilson. It’s just a fun compare since Wilson was the “ace” of “Generation K” and Hughes was the “stud” in “The Big Three” (or whatever people were calling Phil Hughes, Joba Chamberlain and Ian Kennedy).
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Via NESN -
Many people would say Keith Foulke is lucky to have a job still playing professional baseball in the Independent League but Foulke isn’t one of those people. That’s because he thinks he deserves more.
The former Red Sox closer is currently closing out ballgames for the Newark Bears but is unhappy doing it. The same person who admits that he doesn’t even like baseball is growing tired of his surroundings and is expecting a call from a big league team in the near future.
“I’m not hoping to lead the Atlantic League in saves,” he boldly predicts. “I hope the phone rings today and it’s the Diamondbacks and I can pack my stuff and get out of here — any big league city is better than being here. I’d even play for the Yankees. I still think I have something to offer.”
Foulke, who is making $3,000 a month, feels like he pitches in front of more people in the dugouts than in the stands, but that doesn’t bother him one bit.
“I knew what I was getting into when I came here,” Foulke says. “I don’t need 30,000 people in the stands. I don’t see the fans anyway.”
The 36-year-old Foulke has seven saves to go with an ERA of 0.82. While few scouts believe he still has a shot in the bigs, one major league scout isn’t as optimistic.
“He’s succeeding with fringe stuff,” said that scout. “An 84-mile-per-hour fastball. Any mistake he makes will be hammered up there.”
…I’d even play for the Yankees. I still think I have something to offer…
Foulke was a huge factor in the Red Sox winning the 2004 ALCS. The guy just keep pitching, and pitching, and pitching…
But, that was over four years ago. At this point, the only way I would let him into Yankee Stadium would be if he bought one of those $1,250 tickets…
Here’s a fun “Who Am I?” for today…
I play for a Yankees rival. Below are my batting stats for the last 100 games that I have played in the big leagues:
G PA 2B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG 100 449 31 13 67 63 78 .248 .355 .445
Hint: I’m under contract with my current team for this season and the one to follow. And, my nickname rhymes with “Pig Crappy.”
Below is Nick Swisher’s 2009 season, to date, with the bat – in terms of his first 49 Plate Appearances this season, his last 49 Plate Appearances this season, and the 57 Plate Appearances in between those two snapshots:
G PA HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG 13 49 4 11 6 10 .333 .429 .810 G PA HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG 13 57 3 8 12 14 .227 .404 .477 G PA HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG 12 49 1 3 7 16 .125 .250 .225
Hey, remember, I warned you, about 5 weeks ago, that this could be coming.
Seeing this trend, I wonder how those sales of “Swisher 33″ T-shirts at the Stadium will be doing next month? And, I’m also starting to wonder if it won’t be long before the Yankees starting outfield becomes Johnny Damon in left, Brett Gardner and/or Austin Jackson in center, and Melky Cabrera in right.
And, if that happens, will Swisher pout the way that he did in Chicago last season?
That was going to be my entry for this game, above. Very laconic, no? And, then, the Yankees went and spoiled it by exploding for seven runs in the seventh inning. (He writes, laughing.)
I wonder what the winning percentage is for teams who score seven runs in the seventh inning? Betcha it’s real high. Somewhere in Lester Grinspoon territory. Just like Teixeira’s blast today…
Yanks have now won seven in a row. (Lots of sevens today, huh?) In my lifetime, the longest Yankees winning streak was 11 games – from August 31, 1985 through September 10, 1985. That one was powered by the likes of Joe Cowley, Ed Whitson, Bob Shirley and Rich Bordi. Ah, good times…
The Yankees almost matched that in 2005 when they won ten in a row during May…powered by Carl Pavano, Kevin Brown, Paul Quantrill, Tanyon Sturtze and others…
So, what do you say Yanks, can you win another five games in a row? That would make it an even dozen “W’s” – something I’ve never seen the Yankees do, ever.
In fact, the last time New York won 12+ games in a row was back in September 1961. Long time, indeed.
Via Yankees on Twitter – have you seen the hat that the Yankees are going to wear this weekend? Crazy lids. Me not so sure me likey…
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The Post is reporting that Joe Torre and his Los Angeles Dodgers will be coming to the new Stadium next season to play the Yanks – as part of the inter-league schedule in 2010.
This leads to today’s wild thought: When L.A. comes to town next year, during the first game of the series with the Dodgers, before the managers/coaches come to the plate to present line-up cards, should the Yankees have some sort of video tribute for Torre and then have the P.A. announcer call him out of the dugout (to come to the plate) – so that the fans can salute him? Or, should the Yankees do nothing and just allow the fans to react on their own, without being primed by a video, to Torre when he appears on the field to hand in his line-up card?
If you had to make the call, what would you do? And, if you do something for Joe, do you also do something for Don Mattingly?
Me? I think it would be a nice touch to do this for Torre – meaning have the video, etc. And, then, maybe sometime during the game, have a little Mattingly highlight video run between innings – so that the fans could start a “Don-e, Base-ball” chant or something…
Things got a little tense there in the 9th inning of this one, didn’t it?
The Yankees out-scored the Twins, 21-16, in this four-game series – taking four wins in the process. I wonder when was the last time the Yankees swept a four-game set from a team where the overall run differential was five runs or less? Has it ever happened? Think about that…the overall run differential in a four-game sweep cannot be less than four runs…and it was just five in this case. Wow.
In his last 14 games, including this one, Mark Teixeira has hit exactly as the Yankees, and their fans, has hoped that he would this season. Batting lefty, Teixeira’s swing reminds me of D. B. Sweeney playing Shoeless Joe Jackson in “Eight Men Out.” Anyone else see that? (And, I don’t mean this as a slap – I actually liked Sweeney’s swing in that movie.)
Yanks have now won eight of their last ten. And, they play their next six games at the Stadium. How sweet would it be if they win five of their next six and string this run out to be 13 wins out of 16 games? Or, is that just getting greedy?
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As some of this blog’s readers have been quick to point out to me, the 2009 Yankees are among the leaders in highest home attendance this season – to date. And, the 2009 Yankees are among the leaders with respect to home game attendance “percentage of capacity.” That’s great. However, sometimes, a picture is worth a thousand words and numbers.
Here’s a snapshot of the seating area directly behind home plate at Yankee Stadium taken during the game of May 17, 2009.
Note: This picture was taken at 2:35 pm ET – less than 90 minutes into the game. At that time, Ramiro Pena was batting for the Yankees in the bottom of the 5th inning – with the game scoreless. Oh, and, by the way, the skies were rain-free and it was Bat Day at the Stadium – where the first 10,000 fans attending the game, ages 14 and under, recieved a free Yankee Stadium Inaugural Season Bat.
[Click on the thumbnail to enlarge the image.]
Just look at all those empty blue seats. And, now, please, tell me how this is not an embarrassment to the Yankees organization? When you’re doing something right, with respect to ticket sales, there’s no way that you should see a picture like this, taken during a Sunday day-game, in May, in good weather, in the middle of a fast moving and close game, on the day of a major fan give-away event. No way…whatsoever…should you see a picture like this one.
Yes…sure…quote the stats. I’m sure Randy Levine and Lonn Trost, in the Yankees front office, are doing the same. But, again, a picture is worth a thousand words and numbers…and this picture, above, tells the story of the new Yankee Stadium…and the poor job the Yankees have done…allowing a visual like this to happen…over and over again.
Via the AP -
Ready to return from the disabled list, New York Yankees reliever Brian Bruney blamed an 8 1/2-minute wait during an umpires’ video review for causing a strained flexor muscle in his right elbow.
Bruney went on the disabled list April 25, six days after he was warming up in the bullpen during the seventh inning when umpires checked video before upholding a home run by teammate Jorge Posada. Bruney then entered in the eighth and got three outs.
“Major League Baseball needs a way to figure out if it’s a home run or not,” Bruney said Monday. “It shouldn’t take 8 1/2 minutes, and I think that’s what screwed me up.”
Bruney pitched just once after the April 19 game, throwing an inning on April 21 before going on the DL. He said it was obvious to him from the first replay that Posada’s drive just over the right-field wall against Indians reliever Jensen Lewis was a home run.
He called the players’ association and learned only then that replays are provided to umpires from a central location.
“I don’t know what the 8 1/2 minutes was all about,” he said. “I don’t know if like somebody was on lunch break or what.”
Bruney kept on warming up, not sure how long it would take for umpires to return to the field.
“I could have quit throwing, I could have waited and started again,” he said. “I don’t know if he’s coming out in 30 seconds or 3 minutes or 8 1/2 minutes. It turned out to be the latter. I mean, that’s a long time for a reliever to be throwing or any pitcher to be throwing.”
Bruney allowed one run in one inning during a minor league rehab appearance Sunday and is slated to be activated Tuesday.
Mike Port, Major League Baseball’s vice president of umpiring, declined comment on Bruney’s allegation.
…I could have quit throwing, I could have waited and started again…I don’t know if he’s coming out in 30 seconds or 3 minutes or 8 1/2 minutes. It turned out to be the latter. I mean, that’s a long time for a reliever to be throwing or any pitcher to be throwing…
Hey, Brian, what if it had been a situation where Posada was hurt, on the field, running the bases – instead of a situation where the umps had to review the video tape – and there was an 8 1/2 minute delay while the Yankees trainers worked on Posada? Or, what if the Yankees just kept getting two-out hits, over and over, for an 8 1/2 minute period? In the case of Posada’s injury, you wouldn’t have known if it would take 30 seconds or 3 minutes or 8 1/2 minutes to tend to him. And, with the two-out hits, you would have not been able to tell if the inning would last another 30 seconds or 3 minutes or 8 1/2 minutes.
Dude, you made the call to keep throwing – assuming that the umpires might make a quick call. Therefore, this is your fault – and not the umpires. Geez…I thought Bruney was better than being a blame-layer. Guess not?
Well, it’s not Spider-Man and the Cast of Saturday Night Live versus the Silver Samurai in a Marvel Team-Up – but, it’s for a good cause! This press release just hit my in-box:
Foley’s NY Pub & Restaurant and NY Yankees’ Nick Swisher Team Up to Launch “Swish & Chips” – Portion of Sales from Popular Menu Item to Benefit Swish’s Wishes™ to Help Make a Difference in The Lives of Children
WHO: NICK SWISHER, New York Yankees & Shaun Clancy, owner, Foley’s NY Pub & Restaurant
WHAT: Launch of Foley’s “Swish & Chips” (*Nick Swisher will be briefly available for interviews about baseball and his national non-profit foundation, Swish’s Wishes™)
WHEN: Wednesday, May 20, 2009 – Noon – 1:00 p.m.
WHERE: Foley’s NY Pub & Restaurant – 18 W. 33rd St. (near 5th Ave, across from Empire State Bldg.)
WHY: Foley’s NY Pub & Restaurant will donate $1 from the sale of each order of “Swish & Chips” (Battered Fish with French Fries) sold from May 20 through the end of the baseball season to Swish’s Wishes. For more info, visit http://www.nickswisher.net
I’m a fan of Foley’s. This just makes me more of a fan. And, it’s always nice to see players, like Swisher, doing good things for the community. Let’s just hope that Nick’s bat stops sleeping with the fishes…and soon.
Below is Robinson Cano’s 2009 season, to date, with the bat – in terms of his first 51 Plate Appearances this season, his last 53 Plate Appearances this season, and the 58 Plate Appearances in between those two snapshots:
PA BA OBP SLG 51 .391 .451 .630 PA BA OBP SLG 58 .339 .345 .518 PA BA OBP SLG 53 .160 .208 .280
Not exactly trending in a nice line for Robbie, huh? Obviously, the first 58 PA were off-the-charts good and not something that one should have expected him to keep up.
The bigger question may be the second and third set of numbers. Many Yankees fans would hope that a .339/.345/.518 slash-line for Cano is what we would see from him this year. Then again, maybe that’s kind of lofty too? Cano’s last 53 PA are “Call Mimi Bobeck – I need a slump buster!” territory. However, there’s no way that he should be that bad for an extended period of time. CC Sabathia could out-hit those numbers if you gave him 50 PA and a box of bats.
Overall, Cano’s slash-line on the season is: .296/.333/.474 (in 162 PA). And, that’s probably the proper level to expect from him. It would just be nice if he consistently produced at this level…instead of running red hot and then ice cold…
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What stands out the most in my mind, this past week, is that, if not for having to face Doc Halladay in one game, this could have been a perfect week for the Yankees. Still, while 6-0 would have been sweet, there’s nothing to apologize about when you go 5-1, right?
Yet, it was a “close” week for the Yankees – three one-run victories and three walk-off wins within those five victories. One could make a case that the Yankees were lucky not to go 3-3 this week. It will be interesting to see how the next two weeks go for New York – and where their record is on June 1st.
It would be nice to have a bit of a cushion in their record by then – as, to start June, the Yanks have to play Texas, Tampa Bay, Boston and the Mets. And, that’s going to be a tough road. Therefore, it would make sense to try and pile on some more wins over the next two weeks.
This makes three walk-offs in a row for the Yankees. First time they’ve done that since 1972:
August 27, 1972 – Game 1
August 27, 1972 – Game 2
August 29, 1972
But, as you can note, in 1972, the three games were broken up by an off-day…whereas this time, in 2009, it’s been three days in a row. Wow.
I was at this one with my son – who turned five last month. It was his first time at the new Stadium – getting even with his sister who had her first trip there two weeks ago.
The first six innings flew by – pretty quick. During those frames, my biggest thrill was the DP the Yanks turned to close out the fourth inning. I just love it, being there in person, watching the Yankees turn-two on an infield grounder, to end an inning. I must be crazy, but, I get off on the way that keeps you on your seat – seeing it unfold – and then it gives you what you want in the end.
For my son, in the first six, his biggest thrill was either the cotton candy that he had in the bottom of the fourth inning or hearing Paul Cartier play “What Shall We Do with a Drunken Sailor?” because he knows that one from being a SpongeBob SquarePants junkie. Hey, when you’re five…
In the seventh inning, he wanted to go for a walk – so, we left our seats in Section 213 (in the Main Level) and headed out to the bleachers. Here we are, below, out in centerfield:
We were in the bleachers when Burnett started to unravel – allowing the Twins to score two. From there, we started to loop back around to our seats – taking a dip down through the field level as the Yankees were coming to bat. As luck would have it, we arrived just behind home plate, at field level, when A-Rod went deep. Man, that’s a nice view. We stayed there to see Matsui’s double, Swisher’s sweet bunt, and Melky’s sac-fly to knot the score. After the end of the seventh, we ran back up to our seats.
During our dash, we saw a lot of people leaving the Stadium. What’s up with that? It was two-two, in the seventh, and not very late in the day. (If I had to guess, I would say it was around 3:30 pm ET.) Sure, it was starting to sprinkle, a tad…but, nothing crazy.
Speaking of crazy, how about that eighth inning? Denard Span and Hideki Matsui would probably like to forget those At Bats. And, that play that Joe Mauer made in the ninth? Dude, that had Thurman Munson, 1971, written all over it. Even as a Yankees fan, you have to tip your cap to a play like that one.
Nice to finally see a regular season game, in person at the new Stadium, that ended up as a “W” for the Yankees. Having been there for Opening Day and May 2nd, and coming home with a loss, each time, this one was sweet – especially since my next ticket is for August. It would have been a long two and a half months to ride that out…waiting for a win.
Lastly, a question for ya’ll. What do you think of the Minnesota Twins this year? They must be a great team, right? After all, the Yankees have barely beaten them now, for three games in a row, no? It’s been tooth and nail playing these Twinkies. Or, if you think Minnesota is not that good, what does that say about New York?
