I'll take the Andy with the GIANT honker for $300, Alex!

[1] Clearly Pettitte's nose would qualify as a "Daily Double!"

I mean, no wonder he's got a bad back and all, hauling that thing around everywhere he goes...

: )

[3] OYF will tell me i'm spelling it wrong, but Andy's got a "gazunta" nozel !!!

Good start!

Less good.

more less good

I guess 4 infielders ins't enough company for Andy

Whew!

yes, nice play jeter - now more good and lees not good andrew eugene

Oooooh.
I think Dillon was safe by a couple of inches.

[10] looked out to me but they showed a bad angle replay

Missed it by that much.

damn - where was that joke rf then?

[13] It's complicated. How much fluid dynamics do you know?

yeah tex - smoked it

Woohoo Tex!

The man can hit.

Wow.
I'm glad Andy Sonnanstine isn't on our team. He's Mr. Scary Fly Ball pitcher.

A-Rod didn't get the Tex(t) Message.

[14] only a little, to the chagrin of my dad who is a physicist. took a few undergrad physics classes -

[21] Slacker : )

[20] jk, jk.

[21] Nevermind. Oy!

[21] Excellent self-reference!

Just F., you can redeem yourself if you cash this one in:

[89] Wow, Just Fair, good call!

man, Tex sure hits 'em far!

that was a nice charge and throw by alexender emmanuel.

much better andy - that's how to do it

Wow Andy!

that was a much smoother inning!

i don't know if i'll be able to stomach chris berman for a full 9 innings...

Cone getting all HistoricoCerebral on us! I could practically hear Michael Kay rolling his eyes, but I thought it was cool.

hey nostralarmis, you see my last post in the "Cafe" thread?

that was pretty great of Cone

is anyone else really not looking forward to the Winfield Yankeeography?

i love it when the RIPPER is slashing!

oppo field robbie. me likey!

Herb Pennock's is one of the autographs on my "one of a kind" ball... among others...

: O

Cano always makes good contact

[29] Oh, can you get the YES feed? Cone is in fine form.
He just gave us a lecture on the similarities between Andy Pettitte and Herb Pennock at age 36.

[32] winfield was one of my favorite Yankees when I was growing up. Wore his number in high school.

[32] The least they could do, since they already finished it, is show Mr. Steinbrenner's on July 4TH!

i wish i could hear coney. i got boomer and orel instead...

[31] yeah, cult! it's just that i very rarely watch videos on my little laptop. i'll have to see if my brother has any of their cd's. i'm sure a buddy of mine who writes reviews for a metal cd site and likes doom metal does...

[25] I'm all for redeeming myself. I will try my best.

[37] that sounds awesome! instead, i've got chris berman talking about Swisher's hair. : /

Some fly balls are longer than others.

swish hitting again yeay!

holy crap, that was SOLID!!!

Yay Spanky McSkittles!

Another Swish swat!!

HEAP BIG STICK!

Swish stylin' at the plate. Just run, brother. : D

[42] Anyway, the sound of the ball of Swisher's bat was glorious, no matter whose feed you're getting!

86, down the middle. he needed to mash that...

[40] i was just saying that's a way to hear what they sound like to see if you like them.

well even as *brilliant* as the rays front office (and they have been very good) they seemed to have made the wrong choice on edwin jackson as odd man out - cause andy sonnastine has never been that good

[52] oh yeah, i know! i might see if they have soundbites over at The End.

Just love Teixeira. What a good feeling that is when a ball is smacked up the line.

Oh, I don't like that at all. Andy would send them back even if he felt bad...

Andy beat Upton to 1B by a nose...

[57] a regular nose or a gazunta pettitte-like honker?! ; )

cone uses baseball-reference

[57] [58] Grindstones everywhere are shivering. : /

where was that pitch?

[57] yeah... 9" is about right,
Swisher w/40 RBI already, That is not bad for a Betemit.

Andy Pettitte with 6 K in 3 IP??
Just sayin'.

That's as much responsible for the high pitch count as that bad first inning was.

[63] yeah, matched his season high! let's hope he gets thru at least 6. his ERA stands at 4.14 right now.

what's with all the andy big nose talk? it's big but not obscene like nomar or something

[58] Nose... foot... same thing with Andy...

: )

[65] PJ and I were joking a bit about it in the last thread. it is pretty big, man. somewhat Zappa-like! : )

ooh, check swings like that could hurt the wrist. careful tex!!!

[65] If we get production like this from him while making fun of his nose, get used to it!

heh heh

With that high pitch count, we'll need some serous long relief, I think. No Ace, for sure. Phil Hughes for three innings?

[65] if you'd like, we can switch to his John Travolta-like chin cleft! ; )

WOW......
Mariano reported to have diareah, swollen wrists and the shakes!
...
I suspect we'll see him in the 8th.

[69] yes, this game seems tailor made for us to see Hughes. which means, what - we'll see everyone but?

oh, Alex. feh!

bollocks.

Hey, Swish hit a cutoff man.

[69] we'd better see hughes in this game, there's no point in putting him the bullpen and then never using him.

Crap. E5 run scores.

Cone is truly excited by the nature of baseball.

Goddamit. That sucked.

well, that was teh suck.

fucking christ.

another former shit sock steroid using fuckhead. dammit!

Launching pad?

Bollocks, indeed. Shite.

McClellan is a piece of shit!

Just Fair, I hope you're paying close attention...

[83] looked outside to me

Swinging K for the 7th strikeout.

i hate this inning.

Okay, so Pettitte has trouble in the square numbered innings.
Better not let him pitch the ninth. Or the sixteenth.

i thought that pitch was close.

Just Fair - you're up!

[88] well a leadoff error doesn't help in any inning

[89] crap. sorry guys. : ~

A third hit for Crawford. : (

I blame A Rod.

um, boomer - that's melky, NOT damon. eediot.

Just Fair, nice try!

Pettitte is what he is...

The trouble is, he's been horrid at home when compared to on the road.

Too bad that was the friggen bottom of their weak ass order!

[96] pity this isn't 1955 anymore.

we could have Pettite start on the road and Hughes start at home.

meanwhile, Michael Kay with a "won't somebody please think of the children" moment.

tool.

[95] I feel like an expired coupon. : )

keep it on the hush-hush, but take a gander at the 6'8" marlins rookie Sean West and the Giants game. shhhh....

Kay's calls on any fly ball are getting rather intense. It gets kind of old - the outfielder standing still, waiting for the ball to come down; Kay shouting excitedly.

[98] we'll just start callin' ya "Raincheck"!!! ; )

Nice bounce back inning by the Yankees batters. In an alternate universe, that is.

christ. a 4-pitch leadoff walk to a cat you struck out twice already.

that's 84 pitches thru 3+

LOL @ Kay being the "Snuff Police!"

They should shove him down onto any MLB, Minor League, or NCAA dugout floor after nine innings have been played...

Then he would get a clue as to just how prevelant snuff is to this day!

hell yeah Captain Jetes!!!

whew.

phew.

jeter *just* beat him to 2nd.

That was a damn fine play by Jeter.

Nice "jump throw" turn by the Captain!

why the hell is chris berman doing baseball. not enjoyable...

holy crap, brian mccan has SUCH a beautiful left-handed swing. wow! he just crushed that ball... (commercial break)

[104] Hey... some blogs don't allow cursing because they are 'family' sites. Applying the same logic to a deadly habit ain't a bad idea. I'd vote for it.

[109] Why the Hell is Chris Berman still on television? Not enjoyable...

: )

alright yanks you are facind one andy sonnastine - don't forget

3-3..is Andy going to land on the DL soon with a swollen uvula?

good eye, Mats. nice start to the inning!

jesus michael you are naive that is dip - though besides being unhealthy it is gross

[114] hey buddy - you got some nice pub earlier today! good for you : )

shut up Kay.

seriously, just shut up.

chewing tobacco is one of the nastiest, grossest habits around, but christ, give it a goddamn rest.

[116] what player is he talking about?

crapola.

[111] i think all baseball players should chew tobacco. It's cool and manly, and makes me want to chew too so I can be just ilke them.

another lame inning. boo.

[117] yeah, our host AB hooked me up! thelarmis, when I am home I'll write you about the talks-in-prgress with this jazz internet radio site, we're trying to work on some cross promotion, NYC-Tokyo..hoep it works out!

[119] first bj upton - then swisher

[111] Far more folks die every year in traffic...

I am anxiously awaiting Kay's diatribe on terrible drivers!

: )

Evening, Team.

Looks like we've got ourselves a ballgame.

Oh my God. That centerfield screen really is an abomination.

[122] good luck with that! i wish we could come to you and play. the venue where my jazz trio had a weekly monday night steady for EIGHT years, just closed its doors last week. that's why i'm home - and quite depressed - tonight. work is completely brutal right now. : (

[127] damn, sorry to hear that bro.

[127] Oh man..that is awful..when the jazz clubs start going under too...yikes..

Yeah, get your trio over here! I'll hook you up with some great joints you can play at, pay is low of course but worth the journey.

Chris Berman..i have no comment..was his schtick EVER amusing?

Nice job, Andy. Good off speed stuff.

nice inning andy -

Guess the wrong Andy is going for the CG with only 61 pitches so far. Seems like the yanks are already thinking about the boston series...

[125] Hiyas Weeping! Pettitte is hangin' in there like a hair in a biscuit tonight!

: )

[127] Oh, man. My heartfelt condolences.

[133] Is that a Coneism?

hughes is up.

i'd better see him top 7.

[128] thanks man. i really don't wanna talk about it. i lost the ONLY gig i truly enjoyed and ONLY one that leaves me musically satiated. it's only compounded by the fact that in the summertime, i have VERY little teaching opportunities. all summer tours are pretty much already booked. losing that jazz gig, kills my finances and thoroughly crushes me musically. things are really rough right now.

weh!

anyway, nice inning by andy. he's done after 6. i saw Robertson warming up. we should be seeing Hughes though...

and, yes, chaw, is THE grossest thing imaginable. ick!!!

I suppose few here have thrown in an upper lip rally dip.

[133] he was 'leakin' oil' in the 4th, though ...

[135] LOL no... That saying goes waaaaay back 'round these parts... long before Coney or even I was born...

[138] *raises hand*

johnny damon!!!

Man, Damon's bat is quick these days.

Dude can really hit when he's healthy.

[137] a shot of JD ought to ease the pain!

Woohoo Damon on the hanger!

Hell Yeah, Johnny!!! i really needed that! : )

Dear Bullpen,

PLEASE let that stand up.

sincerely,
thelarmis

[137] That's rough, man..well, on the bright side, you won't miss many Yankees games this summer...

[138] NEVER! but, hell, i've never even been stoned before. i did smoke cigarettes for waaaay too long. but that was ages ago...

I am baffled at all these beautiful replay shots of the homers with the folks in the $2,500 seats not even watching. (hollering down well)

[134] thanks, weeping. worst thing is, there wasn't any warning. we played there last monday and wednesday they called me. i'm still in shock. it's devastating news. didn't even give us 2 weeks professional notice, or anything. we had 4 more Monday's booked this month and then beyond. it's all over now, baby blue... : (

[147] yeah sorry thelarmis - your passion for your music is vey cool - we'll enjoy your presence at the banter - but yakking with us won't pay the bills - hopefully something good will come soon

(hollering down well)

is Tikki Tikki Tomko down there?! ; )

[149] I thought those folks were at the games just to "be seen in those seats"...

"What game?"

: )

here comes Hughes!!!

damn they had robbie played up the middle - seems lots of teams are starting to shade him up the middle these days

[150] That's rotten. Best of luck to you. "Strike another match, go start anew"

Phil is another hurler struggling at NYS... I hope he can spot number one tonight!

*fingers, toes, and eyes crossed*

[151] thanks, ms. october! i have a half decent week this week and have put out a lot of feelers. i might have some networking/connections going on tomorrow night at a drum clinic, after i teach. something always comes up...

Cult - thanks for the text, bro. i'm sorry i can't text back right now. i'm waaaay over and won't get a new set until Thursday (i think). i really have to pinch my pennies for the moment.

i think it's gonna curb my crazy jazz collecting. thankfully, i already have a few transactions in the works, but i'm gonna have to cool it... : /

[156] thanks man. i just have to hope that my last check comes through... : ~

phil is *bringin'* it!

ah, the marlins kid lost his no-no in the 7th. oh well...

that was a *wicked* breaking pitch!

[150] I know the feeling. I had a shock a few weeks ago when I was informed I didn't have a teaching gig this fall. I had about 24 hours of sheer terror wondering wtf I was going to do. Fortunately everything worked out but I know, it's a harrowing feeling. Here's hoping your guardian angel's watching over you.

WOW!!! : O

The gas-face. : D

wow, looking godd philly hughesie

HUGHES DA MAN!!!

Oooh, damn, how gutsy!

He went right back with the same pitch!

Nice job, Philip.

I just don't see it.
Let's trade this kid for a vet... like Betemit.

8th inning guy!

Wow Phil!

Wow!

That's puttin' some hair on it!

Wow, he whiffed Gabby Solis there? Got to watch that tonight..

nice inning there by Hughes. he's gonna be a real weapon for years to come in whatever role they choose for him.

[171] His future is so bright, I'm wearin' shades right now!

: )

Tack on time!

[161] my guardian angel is my grandma and she's ALWAYS watching over me!!! i had minor eye surgery 2 weeks ago and when i looked up she was right there. i knew i was fine. : )

the music business is really tough and unfair. i still have some private students and gigs with a coupla other bands, but it's gonna be a rough summer. i wanna move into a house too, but real estate may not be realistic right now...

my public school teaching gig status is up in the air also. fall semester is all about marching band and i'm a Classical music teacher, so i might not have that until the very end of the year, beginning of '10.

my mom's a school teacher and the dean of a private school in NY and they might CLOSE the entire school down. my brother's business in brooklyn is collapsing and he's got 3 little kids. double plus ungood.

weh! (sorry guys, didn't mean to vent here...)

[174] Zero apologies necessary.

i wish Swish beat out his double play ball the other inning...

wow not only is he hitting, i think swisher even ran faster there!

5 hits, including Swish's cheapy, agains Andy S. is suboptimal.

I think the offense wanted a quick inning to watch Phil again.

[151] ms october - i have a gig booked in your home state in August. as luck would have it, i'm double booked with a gig in Atlanta the same night. i'm taking the Birmingham gig. unfortunately, i can't maximize my opportunities and play 'em both.

i was supposed to have a little reunion w/ my college friends at Penn State this summer, but i have to cancel it to play ONE crappy little gig here in town. thing is, i really really really NEED that crappy gig!!! oy yuy yuy...

ummm..why is Hughes out of the game??????

wait... wha? huh? is phil COKE in to pitch? um...WHY?!?!?! wrong Phil, Joe!!! : /

No Phil. WTF.

Could Hughes really not have gotten three more outs with more reliability than Coke?

i don't think i like this matchup. WTF, is right!!!

grrrrr.

i've got a bad "joey joe joe making a move for the sake of making a move" move here.

clueless joe

ugh why is hughes out for coke??

[180] that's cool - hope it goes well

Please don't let's piss this thing away.

Nice.

Way to go, Cokehead.

phil hughes is not so fragile he needs to feel good about his outing michael - jesus your inaneness is high tonight

I'm not a Girardi basher, but WHY THE F is Phil out of the game?

whew. i'd still rather see the "other" Phil in there...

Bad, BAD move taking Hughes out.

I feel ill...

[191] the stupid is strong in that one tonite ...

[187] i thought the same thing. good to see ya again, tocho!

[190] cokehead. haha. thanks for making me laugh!

great, a 4-pitch walk. awesome. just awesome.

4-pitch walk... why? why?

Somebody do something.

Is Mo available? He went Sat. and yesterday.

[197] Heh hehe heh

nice gun, Alex!

[197] thanks man... good to see you too. hope things get better in the music industry soon. I'm a lawyer and things are r-e-a-l-l-y-s-l-o-w....

Good Lord, are they doing the wave?

WTF???

it would be nice if there were better options than coke, but i'm not totally against the idea of getting phil out after that nice inning.
doesn't matter anyway.

Pfew.

well the outcome was good - still not that thrilled with the process

not what i would have done, but it worked.

ok, let's get some runs here.

sounds like Mo is still a bit shaky.

nice play, jetes!

well, that went as well as could be expected. still, i would've MUCH rather have seen the "other" Phil. i have NO idea why Joe pulled hughes. i guess to face the lefty Pena and turn Zobrist around. anyway, Hughes was *dealin'* and shoulda stayed in.

top of the order. let's get some insurance runs. thank you, please!

I'll see your Sonnanstine and raise you two Phils!

: )

3rd time's a charm. Word.

yeah jeter - take that fluid dynamics!

that's my captain!!! : )

that'll do, lads, that'll do ...

Nice, Derek. Nice.

you kiddin' me with the wave. what is this, killing time at fantasmic? unbelievable. get into the game!!!!

Woohoo Derek!

Apparently they are doing the 7TH, 8TH, and 9TH different alternating armed young hurlers tonight in rehearsal for our collective future!

: )

CHOATE!!!!!!!!

[214] That sounds like a cross between the farmer (James what's-his-name, the actor) talking to babe and George Martin talking to the Beatles.

[203] thanks man. i hope things pick up in your field, too! i've had a really good run of things the last 3 years. it caught up to me as soon as the calendar flipped to June. i've got a lot of projects to take care of this summer, so hopefully i'll be productive...

i'd have NO issues with scoring many more runs and saving Mo! : )

[219] kinda had a "Babe" thought going on in my mind ... and I ain't talking George Herman ...

[219] ah, i see you had it the 1st time ... James Cromwell is the actor.

Wtf was that, Johnny?

[222] Cromwell, thank you! :)

this is the last kind of pitcher i'd throw against teixeira

Izzy into face Alex...

Another HR--launching pad???

Somewhere Ichiro and Weepingforbrunhilde sigh adn ahske their heads.

mike gonzalez has such a weird routine on the mound. i'm glad we didn't get him from the Bucs a coupla years ago...

(i'm switch to the local braves games here on commercial breaks, if my atlanta based comments seem to come from left field...)

[227] Somewhere, indeed. Evening, mp.

[227] don't forget Tyrus Cobb!

I see on gameday and by reading the thread that Hughes was pulled after one inning?? I take it is being groomed to be the eighth inning guy???

god izzy has ballooned up

[227] awesome, man! : )

hey, what's league average IsoD and what's elite?

[227] Yikes, that was a lot of typos! Just got back from work and feeling a little woozy.

bollox.

Let Mo be Mo.

[233] I never had a chance to look it up. Let's see if I can get motivated here.

[232] heh, I was thinking the same thing!

[231] that would be my guess, and i think it's a pretty good idea. though eventually i'd hope he can be the 7th/8th inning guy.

[230] there's a museum for him about an hour.5 north of here. i've never been though...

[231] 7th inning, apparently...

[237] oh, no worries, man...

[231] Honestly they couldn't do badly with Hughes, Coke, and Robertson before Mo... really...

Swish outta the game...

ah mo time

heh ... Hughes AND Coke are The Players of the Game ...

they should have given it to the "Philthys"!

[242] and eventually Bruney and maybe Melancon.

1 down.

nice stretch Tex.

boomer called that a "bounder". sure, whatever, dude...

[245] Philthy Animal Taylor! (old Motorhead drummer for the uninitiated...)

1 more. let's make it quick, baby!

beautiful mo!!

Mariano Rivera, ladies and gentlemen.

Mariano Rivera.

PERFECT MO.

hit the glove!

not bad for someone with swine flu

Clappity-clap. Bring on the Fens.

first pitch had some nice spin action on it.

2nd pitch was tough to take.

3rd pitch = simply beautiful

4th pitch = I LOVE YOU, MO!!!

game over!!! 1st place!!!

thanks for the well wishes, everyone! you all ROCK!!!

: )

[253] : )

Well that was a good win! The future sure looks good for them from here!

Great fun to watch!

I'm sorry how things are going for you currently, Thelarmis! I hope they get better for you very soon!

Have a great evening folks!

: )

[253] Heh heh heh heh.

andy's 6-2 w/ a 4.22 era. had a good in-game WHIP, but i don't like the 3 walks. 7 K's. a lot of pitches thru 6. i'll take it for a 4th starter against a good team. we still have Hughes & Wang as rotation backups...

Tues/Wed pitching matchups should be quite interesting:
Burnett/Beckett
Wang/Wake

[241] Well, the AL average for ISO (not ISO-D) is .159. Ichiro is #70 in the AL at .125. Teixera is #2 at .325.

[259] And now we have the new secret weapon: Hughes in the seventh inning!!!!!

[260] i think i'm confused. (remember: i'm an idiot drummer, who's essentially out of work!). i'm looking for the iso-discipline, which i thought was OBP minus AVG. like the difference between Ichiro's avg & obp was less than 50 (iirc, from last night's post) and A-rod's is like over .150. i would guess around +80 would be average and +100 or +125, would be elite, but i could be waaaay off.

does any of that make sense? btw, thanks for lookin' stuff up!

it's not ideal, but i'm glad i get to see BBTN. i don't have MLB network, so...

[262] Ah, I see. I was looking up isolated power. I'm not sure where to find isolated siscipline. I will say, in Ichiro's favor, that he is #20 in Offensive Win Percentage.

[264] acha. i'd be interested in knowing more about isolated discipline and the lines of average and elite...

i believe around .333 is average OBP, for each league, give or take a few 10th's...

but i guess, that's different from knowing the lines in regards to Iso...

I see on ESPN.com that Big Papi's slump is not because of his eyes. That's heartening, because I though I read somewhere that using steroids (which we all know have no positive effect on batters) can mess up a person's eyesight.

[267] You're baiting me! We don't know WHAT effect streoids have on batters OR pitchers..there is no tangible evidence no matter what people speculate...

[266] According to baseball-reference, so far in 2009 the American League has a .336 OBP and a . 265 BA. So I guess the average isolated discipline would be .336-.265 = .071. I'm not sure what elite would be, but Swisher right now is at .140 or so. Ichiro is at around .040.

[268] That's exactly what I wrote.

Phil Hughes needs to remain on the 2 man roster. That is all.

^25 man

heh

[269] awesome, good thinkin'! i was just looking up stuff and, of course...failing. okay, so .071 is average. .100, is probably good, .125 very good and 140/150+ is elite. that'd probably work. swish, a-rod, tex are all doing great in this category. i think Ichiro at .040 really helps your point of him not being elite...at least in this area. and on-base IS pretty much the most important offensive stat. even moreso for a fast guy, probably...

[272] Yes. He is an indispensable weapon in seventh inning every six days.

hey, here's gammons and his "inside pitch." guess who he's talking about? first ellsbury, now ortiz's eyes. boston sticking with the fat god!

[273] But to be fair, OPB is OBP. If he gets .380 using a high average, that is not worse than Swish using lower average and more walks. However, it does make Ichiro's OBP more BA dependent, which means it will tend to vary a lot from year to year (which it has).

Actually, I am coming around to the idea that I have undervalued Ichiro...but I am still convinced that most everyone else overrates him.

But, dead horse or not, this is the most fun I've had discussing/debating baseball in a long time. It beats steroids (which we all no do not help players, especially Big Papi) and/or bitching about various Yankees' managers named Joe.

[274] i vote for every other thursday.

[276] Fun here too..be interesting to pick someone completely the opposite of Ichiro and look deeper into their advanced stats...someone like..Greg Luzinski..

"But to be fair, OPB is OBP."

that is awesome, monkeypants!!! ; )

no, i totally hear you about that point and i thought of that, too. high average + high IsoD, would rock. i haven't looked, but Boggs was probably doing well in this dept. of course, not a lot of power...

Phil Hughes performance tonight showed us exactly why he is better off in the bullpen than being in the minors. Unfortunately, Girardi's usage of him showed us exactly why he may be better off in Scranton.

I am going to assume that Girardi either just wanted to get his feet wet with a great outing and/or wanted to keep him fresh for the Red Sox series. Hopefully, the plan for Hughes isn't to turn him into a one inning pitcher. Not only would that limit his impact, but pretty much ensure that he'll be on another low innings limit in 2010.

With Hughes and Aceves, the Yankees seem to have two pitchers that can give you 2-4 quality innings at a clip. Even if they each only pitch twice per week, that would cover 4 of 7 games in which you should be able to provide a quality bridge to Mo. Hopefully, Girardi will maximize the usefullness of both. He seems to have the right idea with Ace; now he needs to do the same with Hughes.

[280] nice on all that. where do you thing CMW fits in there?

[272] Yes. He is an indispensable weapon in seventh inning every six days.

Two points:

1) He is probably their third best starter, but because this organization isn't smart enough to understand that you can develop and win at the same time, he's not in the rotation.

Nonetheless:

2) I can't control how Girardi uses him, but as David Cone has repeatedly pointed out, a young pitcher can learn more in the pen than he can in the mLs. Plus, Hughes has nothing left to prove at AAA.

If Girardi doesn't realize how big a contribution Hughes can make, then he doesn't deserve to keep the job, but it still makes sense to put the best players on the 25 roster.

[279] Actually, Boggs hit for a lot more power than people realize, at least in his peak years. Here are his SLG frm 1983 to 1992: .486, .416, .478, .486, .588, .490, .449, .418, .460. He led the league in OPS twice!

40 or so doubles a year help.

[282] I agree with you entirely. I was just being sarcastic about Girardi. Yes, he should stay at the MLB level--I argued that before. But I fear he will be squandered in the pen AND have his development slowed again, through piss poor use.

I just don't understand why this organization can't log onto to baseball-reference and look up Santana, Johan. The game logs for his first couple of years are quite revealing.

well, Boggs had a high lifetime batting avg (.328) and high career OBP (.415). so, his IsoD was .087.

Tex's career IsoD right now is .089, plus a MUCH higher SLG.

A-rod's at .084 with a SLG even higher than Tex...'

yeah, this is FUN!!!

i'm thinking .140 IsoD, is insane and elite is probably lower than that. who knows what it'll look like at the end of the season for these guys...

in A-rod's amazing MVP season of '07, his IsoD was .108

[280][281] In my version, CMW would be in Hughes' spot in the BP, pitching two or three innings a time until he proved that he had the stamina to start. Then, if I needed to limit Hughes' innings, I would swap the two of them later in the year.

[283] oh yes, i saw that and remember he did have pop...when he wanted. and 578 doubles! 757 XBH. he had ELEVEN seasons of .400 OBP or better, including eight in a row to start his career!

boggs had that 1 season of 24 homeruns. only one other time did he reach double digits (11). he, like ichiro, was one of those guys that had power and displayed it in BP, but just went for basehits...

[285] I wonder if there is some sort of tendency to diminishing returns. It *seems* that the guys who have super isolated discipline all have low BAs--Giambi-like .250/.400 guys (I'm leabing out freaks like Bonds). Guys with higher BAs (like .300 or .320) seem to max out at around .420 OBP. If my instinct is correct, then players like A-Rod and Teix must on some level trade a few walks for a few hit...but with their power that means higher SLG.

[288] HIs big HR season was 1987, right? When there were rampant rumours that the ball was juiced. The balls were supposedly juiced, not the players (and in any case, we all know that "juice" does not help batters, including Big Papi).

[281] I am not ready to give up on Wang as a starter. Unfortunately, I still think he as another start or two to go before reaching full strength (and even more unfortunately, one will come against Boston), but I do believe he'll get there.

[282] I am not sure how you can say he IS the third best starter. He has the potential to be the third best starter, but he isn't yet. Furthermore, the Yankees have been trying to develop and win at the same time. This is, after all, the same organization that gave rotation spots to IPK and Hughes last season. What's more, you can't get around the fact that Hughes has an innings limit (as does Joba), so he can't be a full-time starter anyway. The bottom line is that if he is used properly, he can still develop in the bullpen, and the Yankees can win while that process takes place.

[284] Johan is the poster boy for the hybrid starter/reliever role (and there are many others). I hope/expect Hughes and Joba will both see time in both roles and reach a comforable 140-150 innings doing it. Of course, to achieve this, one inning relief stints will need to be more the exception than the norm.

[289] i think you nailed it. good work!

[289] That makes sense intuitively. Basically, when a hitter walks there's a good chance that he is (a) ahead in the count; and/or (b) facing a lesser quality pitcher. In both instances, I'd imagine a hitter would hitter above his normal average if eschewed the walk and expanded the strike zone. While that would result in a higher BA, the trade off would be a lower OBP.

[290] yup, '87. same year he had his highest RBI total (89) and the only time he reached a 4-digit OPS.

[281] I haven't given up on him as a starter, either. But I don't understand why CMW's stamina can't be built up in the pen--rather than potentially sacrificing a few starts as essentially rehab/experimentation. meanwhile, right now Hughes is a better starter than CMW, but he got bumped to the pen. And using Hughes for one inning today was simply perverse.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/awards/awards_1987.shtml
How did Boggs only finish 9th? What is up with the voters?

Just got back from the game ..... those left field seats behind the aux. scoreboard are quite nice!

I'm now 2-0 in the new Stadium .... though I was nearly apoplectic when Hughes didn't start the 8th, and went a little nutty when Mo got the call for the third game in a row. But it all worked out!

Tomorrow, Johnny Depp and I share the exact same birthday .... life is good!

[295] I'm not sure how you can build up stamina in the bullpen. The Yankee 5-man rotation has the real potential to give you 6+ every night. So, unless you are going to gerrymander one game every 5 days to get Wang 4 innings, then you run the risk of never having a real opportunity to use him for length.

As for Hughes, if the starter gives you 7 and Mo is ready for the 9th, I could live with the occassional one inning stint in the 8th, but I definitely agree that tonight's game was a chance to get him 2 and even three innings (which could have saved Mo for the Boston series).

[297] Johnny Deep? Is that Damon's new nickname?

Diane, happy birthday!