Baltimore Orioles
2008 Record: 68-93 (.422)
2008 Pythagorean Record: 73-88 (.451)
Manager: Dave Trembley
General Manager: Andy MacPhail
Home Ballpark (multi-year Park Factors): Oriole Park at Camden Yards (103/104)
Who’s Replaced Whom:
- Cesar Izturis replaces Juan Castro, Alex Cintron, Freddie Bynum, Luis Hernandez, and Brandon Fahey
- Gregg Zaun replaces Guillermo Quiroz
- Matt Wieters will replace Ramon Hernandez, though for now Chad Moeller has his roster spot.
- Felix Pie and Ryan Freel replace Kevin Millar
- Ty Wigginton replaces Jay Payton
- Robert Andino replaces Luis Montanez (minors)
- Koji Uehara replaces Daniel Cabrera
- Mark Hendrickson replaces Garrett Olson
- Adam Eaton replaces Brian Burres
- Alfredo Simon replaces Radhames Liz (minors) and Chris Waters (minors)
- Chris Ray replaces Chad Bradford (DL) and will soon replace George Sherrill as closer
- Danyz Baez replaces Lance Cormier
25-man Roster:
1B – Aubrey Huff (L)
2B – Brian Roberts (S)
SS – Cesar Izturis (S)
3B – Melvin Mora (R)
C – Gregg Zaun (S)
RF – Nick Markakis (L)
CF – Adam Jones (R)
LF – Felix Pie (L)
DH – Luke Scott (L)
Bench:
R – Ty Wigginton (UT)
R – Ryan Freel (UT)
R – Robert Andino (IF)
R – Chad Moeller (C)
Rotation:
R – Jeremy Guthrie
R – Koji Uehara
R – Alfredo Simon
L – Mark Hendrickson
R – Adam Eaton
Bullpen:
L – George Sherrill
R – Chris Ray
L – Jamie Walker
R – Jim Johnson
R – Danys Baez
R – Matt Albers
R – Dennis Sarfate
R – Brian Bass
15-day DL: LHP – Rich Hill
Projected lineup vs. RHP:
S – Brian Roberts (2B)
R – Adam Jones (CF)
L – Nick Markakis (RF)
L – Aubrey Huff (1B)
R – Melvin Mora (3B)
L – Luke Scott (DH)
S – Gregg Zaun (C)
L – Felix Pie (LF)
S – Cesar Izturis (SS)
Projected lineup vs. LHP:
S – Brian Roberts (2B)
R – Adam Jones (CF)
L – Nick Markakis (RF)
L – Aubrey Huff (1B)
R – Melvin Mora (3B)
R – Ty Wigginton (DH)
S – Gregg Zaun (C)
R – Ryan Freel (LF)
S – Cesar Izturis (SS)
Notes: There are 26 players listed for the O’s 25-man roster because fifth starter Adam Eaton, who was signed to a minor league deal this offseason, won’t be added until just before his first start next week.
While the Yankees’ pennant chances are driven by their impressive starting rotation, the Orioles’ starting rotation is the primary reason that Baltimore is all but guaranteed to turn in a twelfth-straight losing season. Best described as Jeremy Guthrie and staff, the Baltimore rotation is among the worst in baseball. Newcomers Mark Hendrickson and Adam Eaton are well-established last resorts, neither of whom made 20 starts last year. Alfredo Simon is a soon-to-be-28-year-old rookie on his fourth organization who spent most of 2008 in the Mexican League after being dropped by the Dodgers in spring training. Japanese import Koju Uehara is 34 and made just 12 starts over the last two seasons for the Yomiuri Giants, in part because he was their closer in 2007.
On top of that, Guthrie, who starts today, had an awful spring, giving up ten runs on 14 hits in just 3 2/3 innings for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic, then yielding 18 more runs on 24 hits in 15 1/3 innings in Orioles camp. Given the (admittedly limited) history of starting pitchers struggling coming out of the WBC, Guthrie and the Orioles could be in for a rough season.
That’s unfortunate, because the O’s have made positive strides elsewhere. The bullpen is getting Chris Ray and Danys Baez back from Tommy John surgery, and the former was flat-out dominant in camp. Rays reemergence should allow George Sherrill to slip back into a lefty specialist role, thus improving the pen in two places.
Behind them, the O’s have improved their defense, which was roughly league average last year according to defensive efficiency, by signing an actual major league shortstop in Cesar Izturis and acquiring Felix Pie from the Cubs and making him the strong-side of a left-field platoon. Izturis and Brian Roberts will cover a ton of ground in the middle of the infield, and Pie, Adam Jones, and Nick Markakis give the O’s a superior defensive outfield.
On the other side of the ball, the Orioles had an offense roughly equivalent to the Yankees’ in 2008 and are hoping that toolsy youngsters Pie and Jones will help compensate for the likely regression of Aubrey Huff, who at 32 is unlikely to repeat his production spike from 2008, and 37-year-old Melvin Mora. Ty Wigginton should form a strong DH platoon with lefty-hitting Luke Scott, something Jay Payton failed to do last year, as well as provide solid insurance at the corners. Brian Roberts and Nick Markakis are stars at opposite ends of their primes, and überprospect Matt Wieters should take over as the starting catcher before midseason and rake from Day one, resulting in a lineup that looks like this:
S – Brian Roberts (2B)
R – Adam Jones (CF)
L – Nick Markakis (RF)
R – Matt Wieters (C)
L – Aubrey Huff (1B)
R – Melvin Mora (3B)
P – Scott/Wigginton (DH)
P – Pie/Freel (LF)
S – Cesar Izturis (SS)
There’s certainly potential there, but it won’t much matter if that offense has to score six runs a game because of the team’s utter lack of reliable starting pitching.
Lefty-hitting Scott is starting over righty Pie against the lefty Sabathia today and hitting seventh in front of switch-hitter Zaun. Righy Mora is hitting fourth in front of lefty Huff.
The Yankee lineup is the same as in the two games against the Cubs.
Hooray! A game thread! Is the game going to start on time, or is the rain holding things back?
I see that Texas has torched Cliff Lee for 7 runs. It took Lee until May 18 to give up that many last year.
Ceremonies are starting now. So maybe a 15-min delay, tops.
Hmm, maybe not even that. Might be right on time.
Is this??
can it be??
it is!!
GAME THREAD!!!
R - Adam Jones (CF)
L - Nick Markakis (RF)
R - Matt Wieters (C)
is mighty nice.
Happy Baseball! Whoo!!
60.3 degrees with scattered clouds. Play ball!
This is kinda high school pep rally-ish, no?
Not getting shown on ESPN. Is it raining or not?
Peter's site seems to be down at the moment.
i think it's delayed a little, isn't on gamecast either.
Clap - Clap - Clap !!!
I never thought I'd be so happy to hear Suzyn Waldman's voice
LET'S GO YAN KEES!!!!!!!
Let's Git This Party Started RIGHT
RIGHT ON
mlb.com Gameday is still reporting "warmup" status. Probably just some pre-game ceremonies.
Spoke too soon.
[10] Damn Muts game taking too long. i'm missing Opening Day. Boo!!!
there we go...
Jeter's taking this leadoff thing seriously. Works the count to 8 pitches, then gets one down the pipe.
is anyone else using ESPN gamecast and getting this "Advertisement: GameCast will continue in ..." mess?
Heard the Jeter AB on the radio. Sounded good.
GameDay's doing fine. It's just not showing enough Yankee hits. :-(
[20] yes! frustrating as hell!!! : /
In case anyone wanted to know what Kay's annoying Sabathia story is, going to be, its going to be the complete games. If he pitches 35 games, we'll hear it 140 times.
This could be going better.
mlb.tv sucks today.
hard.
I signed up for mlb.tv premium this year, with the promise of high def and it being cheap, and thus far its nearly unwatchable. At least extra innings is doing its free preview!
Wow, CC looks huuuuge
Isn't this supposed to be on ESPN? I'm not seeing it here at work.
Oh well, quitting time in 20 minutes, then walk the dog (short block today) and catch the last half.
mlb.tv looks pretty good to me. Maybe because I wasn't expecting much.
Ohhhhhh crud.
Oh boy
Ah, nice play. Whew.
a-who?
A-who?
Best 3B-man in the business, no doubt about it.
I can't handle 6 months of this
uh oh why is he looking at his fingers?
And our superb defense comes through!
Man, I have jitters, seriously. That was a tough couple of outs for me.
[29] it's on now. commercial break. it's john & joe, so you're not missing much! mute button is your friend...
2 wild pitches already? It's gotta simply be Opening Day jitters. Yeah, that's it, Opening Day jitters, nothing more.
I like that CC got through that. Hopefully it puts the jitters to bed.
c'mon ripper!
Are we talking about Michael Kay?
[40] That last one was Posada's fault, actually.
[40] I'd say so. He's got 2.66 strikeouts for every walk in his career, and last season only had 2 WP all year.
[44] i think there's some fault to go around when a fastball is 3 ft from its location, but i agree he could/should have caught that
we want swisher!
I just don't like watching Nady play baseball.
[46] True. It was a pretty wild pitch, even if the advance was Posada's fault.
[48] he just personifies "meh" to me
The whole Nady over Swisher decision makes me question Girardi's thought process.
These are the Orioles announcers on mlb.tv, right?
[51] while i expect swisher to eventually replace nady, i think girardi's thought process was pretty simple and not crazy: nady had a better year last year and neither of them showed anything special in spring training.
[52] you can choose home or away feed.
Very nice inning for CC.
[51] [53] There's also the issue of Nady's type-A FA status. Presumably Nady wouldn't be able to garner type-A status as a part timer, hence the decision to start him. So it may be choosing between starting swisher vs starting Nady + draft picks. I believe Nady was a type-A last year; i think RLYW had a bit on this.
So, the Cardinals are opening up against the Pirates, and LaRussa is protecting Pujols in the lineup with ... Khalil Greene.
i agree on Swish over X-Man.
this time, CC looked at his glove and not his throwing hand. more betterer!
[54] Oh, thanks!
How? (That is, now that I'm listening to the O's announcers, how do I switch?)
Hey, that's my extra lead-off guy! Go, Brett!
slappy!
Yeah, Brett! Dag, I've got split from woik and will miss the remainder of the game. But I'll be sure and come back through and dig em smack yer comments to see wha' happen.
Go Git 'em Boys!
Small ball!
Where's Weeping For B. today?
[59]
go to audio/video off the main mlb.com page.
should be able to get to the broadcast options (audio & video)
select the YES feed.
Man Derek Jeter sure is washed up.
Did Jeter hit that right where the SS was before he broke to cover 2nd? Looked like it.
What is Luke Scott thinking with that hairdo
Oh, come on, they weren't gonna get Brett anyway.
[65] Yes, it was a perfect DP ball... or would have been.
Oh, they love Teixeira here.
i really don't understand the tremendous booing for Tex. i know he's a Baltimore native and all that, but it's not like he's evil and dragged them through offseason negotiations...
Imagine the nerve of Tex for not taking $30MM less to play for a crappy team. The nerve!
[63] Thanks, cult, got it.
[68] It may have been the perfect DP ball; the SS wasn't there cause Gardner was running - but then again Jeter was swinging cause Gardner was running. Neither the ball nor the hole may have been there if the baserunner wasn't on the move.
CC ain't got it today, eh?
carp.
ugh
hmmm ... their CF leads ours, 3-1
Nady thought that ball was going out so he started fucking looking up and jogging as the ball landed three feet away from him.
Watching our ace get slapped around by one of the worst teams in baseball isn't much fun. Let's hope he turns it around.
see what i mean about nady?
[77] i don't think that's true
also Adam Jones may be on a crap team, but he's got some skills. CC hasn't really had his command today but i would say they've slapped him around. Nady coulda got to that ball.
wouldn't.
Look at it this way bartap. We know Sabathia will bounce back. Indians fans are going to have to slowly accept that this is probably closer to the real Cliff Lee than last year was.
[80] If you ahve a better answer for why he stopped running and let the ball drop, I'm, listening.
[84] it would have been a very good play. normally when a ball is going to bounce against a wall and the outfielder knows he won't catch up to it he backs up a little bit. the ball then took a very high hop off the wall making it all look weird. i don't think many outfielders make that catch, it was a well hit ball in the gap.
Hey look, Nady walked
[56] Furthermore, Nady has the extra incentive to give his all every day.
[83] I studiously avoided Lee in all my fantasy baseball drafts this year, sure that last year was a fluke. One game isn't going to prove that, but there's really no way he's contending for the Cy Young again.
Ugh...I thought we spent all this money to stop watching our pitchers throw a million pitches and give up hits.
[89] Anything less than 30+ perfect games = wasted money.
CC really does have poor fastball command today - missing small, missing big, missing for a ball, missing down the middle...
Jeez, I guess I better not walk the dog anymore. When I left, it was 1-0.
Sorry, Sparky.
[90] I know its a long season, but I was really hoping to come out of the gate better than last year (though we did win the opener last year in a beautifully pitched CMW 3-2 game).
[91] He's not missing many of the bats. Hey, Koufax had bad days, right?
inducing a GIDP from the 9 hitter would be nice right now
yrrrrrr welllllcome!
Game Thread! Got on mlb.audio, hope to watch the archived game tonight (if it ever starts working..) How does CC look? 35 strikes, 32 balls..yikes.
[94] Just remember how badly CC started last year and how amazing he was down the stretch. He's allowed a so so start.
well, he got outta that jam. ty cobbington does not score!
[97] He looks like he's got some jitters. Poor fastball command, and a lot of bad misses down in the zone. All that said, he's given up 3 ER. If he gets into the 7th without giving up any more runs, I'll be happy with it.
The CC injury speculation is starting to scare me a bit.
oh wow - 1-0 when i was in the car - now 3-1.
i take it cc's control/command is not so sharp.
[98] yeah he said he was a bit pumped to start the year last year - am sure he is quite pumped today too - should settle in soon.
Adam Jones, you are no Willie Mays.
c'mon Tex. now's your time!!!
Three-bagger for Johnny D! The pride of Thailand comes through with the XBH!
[101] I'm on the orioles feed, what speculation?
Jerk one out Tex!
So why the hatred for Tex?
that's a strike
wow, that pitch was too close to take.
At least the ump has a tight zone for both pitchers
terrible, Mats. just awful.
O's announcer just said "O's fan continue to get on Tex, and he continues to not get it done" as Matsui pops out with Tex on first...
oh matsui!
am finding greg zaun even more annoying as an oriole.
Greg Zaun is Rick Dempsey's nephew or something. Believe he came up with the Os.
[112] You're in mid-season shape already my friend! I hope we won't be seeing a whole year of Popsui..oh Hideki, a nation turns its lonely eyes to you over here..
old friend Tony Clark has hit 2 homers for the Snakes today.
According to GameDay, Damon's triple was right at the 410 mark in dead center. Did he crush it?
[106] YES has had a couple of shots of CC applying a hot water bag to his ribs in between innings. Kay and Singleton have been talking about whether this could mean a possible injury. Singleton points out that when CC's right, he's striking people out, and he doesn't have a single K yet.
christ, another leadoff man on base. i hate that.
oh no, Leatherface!
oh no, CC!!!
So far the 2009 Yankees look a lot like the 2008 version. Crappy starting pitching and inability to hit with RISP.
These guys are just absolutly teeing off, have there been any swings-and-misses? Velocity seems fine... WTF
damn brian roberts picked up from last year.
[119] I have to believe that if there was even the slightest inkling that something was wrong with CC, they would have yanked him faster than you can say "highest paid pitcher ever."
[123] joe morgan thinks there is not much movement on his fastball.
anyone warming in the BP? all these throws over...
[127] no
bollocks.
I'm listening on the radio.
Scuffling Yankees + extended interview with Wild Joe Biden = radio turned off.
Seriously, I tune into opening day and I get John Sterling asking Biden about America "voting for a black man."
Not happy with this game so far....
back to back infield singles to short? can someone 'splain?
[130] on espn, Biden said the words "hell" and "man" umpteen times.
CC just looks uncomfortable out there today.
albaladejo now warming in the pen...
[130] Only good thing about mlb.com, listening now to the Orioles radio team!
[132] one was a ball off ransom's glove, the other was when jeter was covering 2nd on a hit and run
oh man
three frigin straight infield singles...
Boo, A-Rod sucks! Its all his fault!
and another off ransom's glove. unfrickin-believable...
well, this is certainly a shitty start to the season
[139] should be error
Hey everybody! Just got back from work in time to fire up mlb.tv Premium! Oh wait, I still live in Durham, which is still inexplicably "Oriole Country." So, audio it is... currently complete with vice president Joe Biden... Is CC Sabathia punishing me for drafting him in fantasy baseball?
Every game we lose this year I take out on the cat.
Hear that, Yankees? Don't win for me. Win for the cat.
joe should probably go get him.
Sabathia, 90 pitches, 48 strikes. that ain't right.
aaaaaaaaaaaaaah!
go get 'em, joe.
well, *that* was a fugly start.
christ almighty.
Chompin' at the bit to come to this. Bollocks indeed.
Phil Hughes, come back! All is forgiven!
wow. walked in a run. very not groovy.
Ugh. All right offense, time to step up.
[154] That's the spirit. I think Joe shoulda yanked CC after the Markakis AB.
Maybe we should have signed that pitcher that was so good for the Brewers down the stretch last year...
SLAPPY!!!
On the other hand, Gardner's looking great out there.
Way to go Brett!
Guess we didn't need Melky's arm in center after all...
Booya Gritty Gutty brett Gardner!!!!!
nice job, gardner! albaladejo, too. i didn't realize how big he was...
not sure about that call
I'm not gonna put any stock in one clunky start. But the lack of Ks and the almost total lack of swinging strikes does have me a bit perplexed. I can only remember one swinging strike.
[152] i was thinkin' more about Moose...
[i]not sure about that call[/i]
i'm sure the ball beat the runner, other than that ... ssssssh!
Atta boy, Jorge.
HIP! HIP!
Nice shot by Jorge.
Hip Hip!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Two steps by Jones, fugedaboutit
And Posada rewards my fantasy baseball faith in him (and helps the real Yankees too)...
Hey, welcome back Jorge! 4 more runs boys, lets go.
nice swing Jorge ...
Sabathia looked so bad that if he isn't injured I'll consider it a moral victory.
[163] Yeah, on the replay, Mora was clearly safe.
Randy Marsh ..... should stick to "South Park"
[174] It does sort of lend a bit of credence to the idea CC doesn't command his emotions (and therefore pitches) in big games...
A walk by Cano! That's another silver lining.
Cano walked! They must with a game in which CC starts and both Cano and Nady take walks... (and also when Georgie Juices One)
[177] I don't know...I watched Sabathia pitch in a lot of big games down the stretch last year and he did ok.
[179] errrr "with" = "win"
3 runs
Yay! Some offense!
6-3 is much better than 6-1.
fan should be shown out of the park ...
X marks the spot!
That shmuck fan interfered and didn't even get the ball.
A fan did the same thing last night during the Atlanta-Phillies game.
So wait, the Orioles get rewarded for one of their jackass fans grabbing the ball in play?
[188] You're right, I remember that - and he was playing it like he didn't do anything wrong...
Teams should really have a staffer walk up and down the lines reminding people not to screw around.
Slowly coming back. . .
Are we missing A-Rod yet?
Not a great opener for Ransom.
[189] Umps didn't call it, actually.
dammit, slappy.
pushups!
OK Cap'n. Clutch time.
Good thing they didn't send Cano back to 3B.
[192] Yes...or should I say HA!
[190] After the fan interfered last night they put a ball girl with a chair right in front of him.
I've never sat in seats where I could reach down and grab a ball in play, but I would hope that I would be able to restrain myself.
wow, CC had an in-game WHIP of like 3.00. yikes!
c'mon Cap'n...
Sabathia threw 50 strikes and 46 balls.
WTF?!?!?!?
that just fuckin' blows.
Nady, Nady, Nady.
Yeesh!
Nady jackass
Are you effin'' kidding me?
what happeend with the X-man?? mis-read the play??
that's not the way to end the inning!!
Bobby Meacham is smiling somewhere ...
pastadivingje ... oh wait, jeter was at the plate.
the Xman giveth, the Nady taketh away.
I can understand being caught there, but how do you wind up simply standing still awaiting a tag? Is Nady not interested enough to try a run down? That was pretty awful.
why do i have to press "show all" every time the comments hit 50-100? shouldn't pressing it once suffice?
He could have at least tried to run.
[211] yeah, that's been frustrating since the move from the toaster. glad someone brought it up!
nice curve!
Did the 3B coach tell him to stop/get back?
I'm just trying to figure out who's to blame for that foul up.
wow, i just got a "word press error". said: 'Whoa, you're posting comments too quickly. slow down.' WTF?!
roberts is a freaking pest...
Baltimore's Pedroia. Roberts pisses me off.
Swisher woulda put Zaun into the first row.
[216] Are you serious? I haven't been a big fan of Word Press, but that would be another story altogether...kind of like restricting access to the Field Level ;)
[216] perhaps it didn't like you bringing up our previous home
[218] I don't think Swisher would have quit on the play...I can't fathom why Nady decided to just stop.
[219] yeah man. it was weird.
that was a nice fastball by A'lejo. we need a nickname for him. great location.
beautiful thing picking off that little runt!
Wow...a Yankee 1B who didn't throw the ball away on a run down!!
A well executed pickoff and pickle! It's always so embarrassing when they jack that up
[223] i think that's what roberts is thinking
[220] ah, must be! i brought up the toaster yesterday too, methinks. word press is onto me!!!
From a roto POV, Jones' 3 for 3 pleases the owner of "Homer Bailey and the Bailouts"
wordpress blows.
also, these orioles hitters are not bad.
More annoying commercial:
GEICO googly eyes wad of cash ... or ...
Precocious red-haired "a very SMART girl" in Howie Long's Ford pitches
[229] I am just happy we wont be seeing Giuseppe Frano anymore.
The "money you could be saving" campaign is atrocious. i hate it almost as much as I hate the Baby teaching me how to invest with e-trade.
have a coke ... and a smile!
[229] Can I vote for the ridiculously homoerotic Quiznos commercial?
"Put it in me scott."
"Say it sexier."
Weird.
[231]
The e-trade commercials are at least funny .... for the most part.
[229] Generally I like the Geico ads (hate the e-surance ones), but yeah, the wad of cash ones stink
C'mon, three measly runs this inning, Yankees.
[232] I've been high on coke since late last season.
[229] That red haired girl is the pits. I hope her folks aren't on here reading this. : )
[233]
Well .... you DID remember the company .... so it did its job, right? :-)
[234] I don't find them funny, primarily because I hate babies. Also, given the current state of the world's finances, maybe I don't want to joke around about best practices when it comes to investing.
But I am for sure in a minority on both those things.
Wow I hope most of the Chicken Little comments are tongue in cheek ... It's one game guys! Does anyone really think Sabathia's gonna pitch like this all season? Maybe opening day at the stadium and every playoff game and every other game where he feels a little pressure but not every game! ... I'm just kidding. I think he'll be fine. I was hoping he'd dominate right away but I had a feeling he'd have a rough start, based on last year.
Oh I also love the "if A Rod were here, none of this would be happening" sentiment. Hilarious!
Could have used a big hit from Tex there.
[241] Matsui picked him up!
BANZAI!!!!!!
Godzilla!
hell yeah!
Godzilla!!!
GODZILLA!!!!
Set your Ray to 2 run hr.
That blown call on the play at the plate is starting to loom large.
[239] Hate babies??!! I agree with you about how those commercials epitomize everything that is wrong with the brokerage industry.
Right back in it! Now here's some fight!
And the goats in this game are:
CC - who will get better for sure
Nady - replacement at the ready if he doesn't get motivated
Ransom - to be replaced by the best at his position soon enough
This could be a memorable 'scrappy' win
i'm happy that mats and jorgie have gone yard and that cano walked...
Sweet. Let's see if Cano can get us another.
Chris Ray always brings back happy memories of Arod's walkoff in April 2007.
does Tex have some blonde frosting in his hair? i sincerely hope his lips don't all of a sudden become purple...
Will the Swish hit for Gardener?
[239] I hate "talking" babies. Just really gets on my nerves. I also hate using babies to sell things that aren't for babies. Like that old tire commercial that used a baby. Implication that if you didn't by this particular brand of tires then you want your kids to die in a car crash.
[250] I don't really hate them, but I hate how everyone sucks up to them like they're so cute an awesome. They never say anything interesting, and they cry when they don't get what they want, and they crap their pants all the time. I would never be friends with a baby.
[251] well put!
[258] Sounds like a lot of adults I know!
[258] I'm a bit grumpy about babies, but that commercial where the baby answers the cellphone: "yo girl can i hit you back" is hilarious. Not that it would encourage me to put my money with a company that's so cavalier about it...
Keep in mind CC might have gotten away with having given up 3 or 4 runs with a little luck ... He was terrible but might have fought through it without all those infield singles.
Also, how is Nady a goat? He hit an RBI double when they really needed it.
the baby is cute but all i think about is the tool whose voice we hear
If Cano had walked twice in a row, I would have started heading for higher ground.
DY-NO-MITE!!! Cano looks comfy up there.
[261]
Well .... e-trade is NOT AIG, in that e-trade isn't providing customers with the opportunity to take on mortgages they (know they) can't afford ....
but I digress ...
My fave commercial of late is the Cingular one where the daughter puts her stuffed monkey in daddy's briefcase, and daddy takes pictures of the monkey in the different cities on his business trip
I've enjoyed Cano's last two PA more than I can say.
Will the Swish hit for Gardener?
i'd pinch hit here for Nady, or for Ransom.
[263] You're probably right, I'm just annoyed by the lackadaisical fielding on the hit to the wall and getting caught on the bases. Mostly the latter.
[262]
a little luck ..... you mean that "midget" on the NY Lottery commercials? :-)
[267] You old softie!
[267] Guess again...E*Trade does have a mortgage division.
I like that Cingular commercial too...I also like the rollover minutes yard sale.
[269] We'll find out soon enough how Joe handles his toys on the bench.
[267] Cingular has some great ads. There was one a few years ago, similar theme to the one you're talking about. There was a guy in a business meeting and he got a text message and got up and did the whole "planes trains and automobiles routine" and then raced into the hospital to meet his pregnant wife. And when he walked in the wife looks up at him with this unbelieveable look of love and relief on her face, and all the while Melissa by the Allman Brothers is wailing in the background.
Choked me up everytime.
i hate all commercials. why should we ever listen to the people selling the product to find out whether we should get it or not? but aside from that, there are really never any actually funny commercials, which is kind of weird but i guess if you can actually think of funny ideas you wouldn't be making commercials.
That pitch was well off the plate...that's a killer.
if we're handing out goat horns, Tex and his 0fer are in the running. Then again we still have a bit of baseball left to go.
[276] Yeah but babies are way worse than commercials.
just back from morning activities, Matsui with the tater!!!
Swisher......
Like I said, goat....
ugh
Rally killer...hopefully Girardi will be more willing to play match-ups with Swisher sooner than later.
Also, how is Nady a goat? He hit an RBI double when they really needed it.
Xman hit that double.
Nady got caught off third, misplayed the flyball AND just hit into that double play.
One run down and nothing standing in their way but Baltimore's lousy bullpen. They've still got a shot at this...
[278] He gets a pass in my book for not throwing the ball into the outfield during the rundown... Hopefully he'll get a chance to turn the tide soon enough
Why does it seem all the old sitcom husbands worked in advertising? Maybe I just watched
too many Bewitched reruns.
I hear John Denver's "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" in the background of the radio broadcast..did Baltimore become a small country town since I've been away???
[289] That's been a Baltimore staple for some time now.
[289] By the way...thanks for the intro to Paco earlier this morning.
[285] No fair bringing up the DP that happened after my post!
[290] Beginning to understand my father's reluctance to ever leave NYC..
walking Melvin Mora?? yuck...
just lovely, a lead off walk.
[291] Sure, glad you liked it! He's amazing for sure.
Double Play, no pasta in sight!
and what do people think when the yankees play "cotton eye joe"?
[295] Yep...nice to have some musical middle ground. Jeter is 3-3 and playing a good defensive game. Maybe we should keep him around for another year or two after all.
Alright. Score 5 here. No one wants to lose on Opening Day.
[296] Or YMCA...I am not a big Pete Abe fan, but I agree with him that the Yankees between inning entertainment is pretty weak.
looks like swisher is warming to hit this inning.
it should be for ransom, but i bet it'll be gardner, which is sub-optimal.
Thank god they didn't try to force a long reliever onto the team and just went with the best pitchers regardless of pigeon hole.
[299]
G-d Bless America is SO 9/11-ish .... let it rest already.
[301] Yep...a long reliever would have probably wrapped this game up in the 5th.
Yes, Swisher!
Line drive smash down the line. Real nice.
I love Nick Swisher's energy...he needs to play more...and I am very sure he soon will.
Joe Girardi is a genius!!
Swish!!!
Yep…nice to have some musical middle ground. Jeter is 3-3 and playing a good defensive game. Maybe we should keep him around for another year or two after all.
DIDN"T YOU SEE THE WBC!?!?!?! LOOK AT THAT BAT SPEED!!! SLOOOOOOOOOOW!!!
CAN"T YOU SEE?!?!!?
/ early leader for the most annoying meme of the '09 season.
meanwhile, little joe listens to me and bammo!
the swish!
I know he advanced the runner this time, but I just don't like the bunt and never will.
[299] Amen. It went from a touching moment to jingoism very quickly, and that scratchy Kate Smith recording is dreadful. I usually mute it.
3-run homers are nice, but small ball is fun too ...
I approve of this smallball - with the bottom of the lineup hitting, and out BP way better than theirs, JoeG couldn't have drawn this up much better. Now Jete get the man on 3rd with less than 2 out home!
This ump's zone is freakin' tight. Holy smokes.
Two run homers are the reason this game is close.
At least it wasn't GIDP...
Who does Jeter think he is ... A-Rod? :-)
ugh.
captain, oh my craptain.
Captain Clutch fails to get it done.
Also, Pena looks like he's 14.
Yuck...not cashing in those runs with a man on 3rd is a theme I'd like to leave in 2008.
jeter's not clutch.
[319] While Greg Zaun looks like he's 50.
I'd love to see Pena double-switch with Jeter for the rest of the game.
redemption time fo sho
C'mon, Tex. Get it done.
damnit!
Carp.
Grrrrrrrrrrr.
Grumble grumble grumble.
not a good day for the new guys.
DId the O's fans boo Tex as much when he was with the Angels? Or Rangers? Mopes.
Well the big money imports aren't having the best opener so far.
Not scoring against Jim Johnson kind of feels like a major wasted opportunity. The bunt isn't always a bad play, but against a pitcher like Johnson, I'd really hate giving away outs.
Holy shit, gotta get rid of Jeter ASAP. He's obviously lost it and oh yeah he was never that good to begin with.
well, that Mohegan Sun commerical ought to get annoying quickly.
[332] Having Jeter up with a man on 3rd, 1 out, with a 1 run deficit ought to have turned out differently...
Coke has a nice and easy delivery doesn't he.
Fuck.
Instant replay.
Frak! Freaking frak frak!!!!
izturus? christ. game over. i can't stomach 6 months of this shit...
well, that turned to shit in a hurry.
Ya know I was going to post that after getting Scott out Coke should be relieved.
How do they not use reply on this, where clearly the fans interfered!
That fan definitely interfered.
Jeffrey Maier's alter-ego ..... ?
Ok..they're even now.
Girardi probably pushed Coke too far. I think he also left CC in too long. Some hiccups from Joe today.
I just don't understand how they're not looking at the replay.
[346] The replay wouldn't have changed anything. It is too hard to tell whether Damon's glove was over the wall or not.
sigh..time to head out to the office. bummer to start a sunny day like this..Izturis?!?!?!
[347] O's broadcast had a shot from behind the fans that seemed to show pretty clearly a fan impersonating Jeff Maier
The worst part of an Opening Day loss is that damn day off that follows.
Looked to me like Damon's glove went a bit back into the stands.
sloppy sloppy sloppy. me no likey.
Yikes...didn't this team roar through Spring Training? It's getting ugly out there.
evidently, BBruney has returned.
lovely.
i really hope brian bruney has not reverted to bb - as st was not very promising and today he has not been sharp.
[355] If he has, then the Yankees should be prepared to dip into their righty reliever depth.
holy jesus. this fucking sucks ass.
Well that's the ballgame.
Uh oh...2008 Marte is in the building. I have a feeling that Marte is not going to be a reliable member of this pen.
say g'nite gracie.
pitching implosion a nice way to start the season.
catch the fucking ball, jorge!
[339] Is your name short for "the alarmist"?
; )
What, are the Yankees reverting to spring training form?
Well, a few years ago we started the season with Carl Pavano on the mound and won. I'd rather have this team. Still, my hopes of going 162-0 for the regular season are probably dashed.
[359] i thought that signing was dumb. in other news, i found an old Buddy Rich CD in my collection that has "Frim Fram Sauce" on it! i haven't listened to that disc in many many years. don't recall that version at all. i'll have to spin it, at some point...
Jorge, Matsui and Cano all had very good ABs, so there is a silver lining.
Tex saves Jetes and error...nice scoop.
all the "experts" who contended that the yankee bullpen would be problemtaic must be gloating on day 1.
agreed william - cashman and girardi have to treat the pen as a performance based, what have you done for me lately area.
wow, Tex saves some more disgrace there. jeter can't throw, jorge can't catch, pitchers can't throw strikes, nady can't run the bases. looking forward to another 161 games! : /
[364] my hopes for the Shit Sox going 0-162 are still alive! unfortunately, the Muts ruined that for me today...
[365] Never heard that version either...it probably can't beat the Nat King Cole version, I would think.
Marte is going to be the new Farnsworth. I can feel it in my bones.
Marte and Nady are going to be this season's whipping boys, mostly because they are miscast in their roles.
Final score will be 10-8.
[370] oh, i've heard it. it's just that it was probably 18 years ago and i didn't even know that tune then! i know - and love - the diana krall version. her tribute album to nat king cole is really terrific.
Tigers down 4 to Halladay in 2nd .... consider that a loss.
[375] Consider that a reoccurring theme.
and Sori has gone yard.
looking forward to the King Felix - Liriano matchup later. should be a doozie!
Cano walking for a second time gives me chills.
another walk for robbie. color me impressed...
Just remember, in 1998 they started out 0-3 plus a chunk of concrete fell off the old stadium.
Hey look, Cano walked again. golden lining.
Oh well...hopefully the Yankees didn't use up their wins in Spring Training. Now everyone will have two days to panic...should be lots of fun!
well, that sucked.
[372] I sort of think it would be easier to just have neither guy.
well. that blew.
It was great to see some SLG from Posasa and Matsui, and some OBP from Cano, as well as Jeter's offense.
But they really need to move on from thinking Nady and Marte can play key roles.
[386, etc] Sorry, I tuned out after the Joe Biden show began. I see that I missed the Banter shaping up into midseason form already in the first game. I probably agree with you, but do you think that one game might be, perhaps, too early to write off players.
Ugly first loss for sure..some good points: Matsui dinger, Cano with the "goodeyegoodeye", Jeter with the bat, Jorge with the dinger..
CC will be there over the course of the season, no worries about him. It's all about the bullpen today..
[387] I'm basing it on their respective careers.
[387] haha, was Biden that bad? I don't mind the occasional politico dropping by the booth. The cross-promotion of tv shows with a "star" in the booth is much more annoying.
btw..why IS there aa day off after Opening Day??
[390] Maybe b/c there are so many rainouts early in the season?
Big G back to wearing # 16 w/ the Green & Gold...
[390] Clifford Brown's great! listening to him right now w/ an all-star cast - Lou Donaldson, Elmo Hope, Percy Heath & Philly Joe Jones.
Junior laced a liner off Liriano right over the baggie in Minny. it was beautiful seeing him in a Seattle uni, wearing #24 and hitting a homer. good for him! too bad it wasn't in the pacific northwest. that's #612 on his career. i love the Kid!!!
Meanwhile, the polite Canadian fans at the Rogers Centre are close to causing the Blue Jays, up by 7 runs in the 8th inning, to forfeit by throwing stuff on the field. Sweet.
I just wanted to say hi to everyone. I got busy when the misery began and got home to find out just how uglee it was. Well, um, oh well! Not what I expected but I'd still lay money on the Yanks to take #27 this year!