Writing the Pine

Maybe the Los Angels Angels of Anaheim have some secret voodoo curse on the New York Yankees.  Maybe the Yankees’ kryptonite are teams clad in red.  Who knows?  Or maybe the Yankees were just looking ahead to the All-Star break.   I know.  Clever.  I try.  Actually the more I try to move on and look ahead at the Post-All-Star break schedule, I can’t help but stew over the past weekend.  Shall we?

AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill

2 out of 3 would’ve been great but I would’ve settled for 1 out of 3 by Sunday.  But to have a lead in each of the three games and then blow it?  Frustrating.  Ken Singleton and John Flaherty were talking on Friday how the Yankees caught the Angels at “just the right time.”  They lost Vlad and Hunter to the disabled list.  Juan Rivera goes down in the first game.  Their SP has been a patchwork effort so far this season with their aces pitching average.  Their bullpen hasn’t been the anchor it has been in recent years.  Umm…yeah… about that…Talk about jinxing a team.  Not to mention all the praise that showered the Yankees bullpen in recent days.  Thanks a lot.

Credit goes to the following:

• Angels starting pitching staff might have gotten hit early but they buckled down and pitched deep into the games.  On the other hand, the Yanks refused to put the game out of the way the entire weekend, allowing the very persistent (and annoying) Angels to rally their monkeys.  (Do they still have their rally monkey?)
• Angels hitters took advantage of their opportunities, especially with runners in scoring position.  Anytime they threatened, they backed it up with key doubles into the gaps and down the lines and few home runs to boot.
• Angels baserunning. Announcers always talk about the “Angels way” and here’s what it comes down to:  They are very good on the bathpaths and put the pressure on the fielders to make the play or the perfect throw.  Those extra bases they take combined with their timely stolen bases, hit and runs, and bunts take away the inning and rally killing double plays the Yankees seemed to be accustomed to hitting into.


AP Photo/Chris Carlson

The Yankees SP staff was average at best this weekend.  Unable to escape the big inning, although their defense definitely didn’t help the cause.  Even the sure handed Captain misplayed a popup.  (And as expected took full responsibility for it after the game.  Class act. And no, I’m not being a homer.  Ok, just a little.) Didn’t get to see much of The Philthies and Mo this weekend.  That tends to happen when you’re behind in the late innings.  We did see lot of the secondary bullpen and it wasn’t pretty.  A decent performance by the bullpen on any of the days might have translated into a victory or two for the Bombers but alas, the Cards did not fall our way this weekend.  (In case you didn’t know, the Cards are hosting the All-Star game this year.)

AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill

As much as it sucks to go into the All-Star break getting swept by a top-tier team in the AL, the rest will help.  Everyone recharges their cells and gets their body feeling good.  Looks like Tex and Damon could use some time off (although how much rest can you get at the All-Star game, right Tex?)  The Yanks have a nice 10-game homestand coming up and yes I’ll be going to a few of the upcoming games for an up-close look.  They’ll reshuffle the rotation with A.J. leading it off and C.C. pitching on extra rest.  The real question lies in who will pitch Wang’s spot.  My original guess for last Thursday was Sergio Mitre, but the Yanks threw a curveball at me by throwing Ace* out there.  I’m going to stick with my original gut instinct and say Mitre’s coming up and Melancon’s going back down.

*Here’s the problem I had with the Aceves move from last week.  They tried to plug  a hole by taking away a strength from somewhere else and look what happened:  Another leak sprung up.  The bullpen which had been rock solid the past few weeks came up short this weekend.  Coincidence?  I think not.  By pitching Ace on Thursday, who only last 3 innings and change, the rest of the bullpen was asked to pitch more than 5 innings.  Then, they traveled immediately to the West Coast where they had Chamberlain and Pettitte pitching, both of whom aren’t workhorses at this stage in both of their careers.  That same bullpen which was asked to pitch 5.2 innings on Thursday, was then asked to 3.2 innings on Friday and 3.2 innings on Saturday without Aceves available.  As I stated in an earlier post, Alfredo Aceves is my first-half MVP of the team.  By taking him out of commission for the weekend, the bullpen was asked to get valuable outs with Tomko, Robertson, Melancon, and Bruney.  Let’s hope the Yankees can regain their bullpen mojo with a few days off and by LEAVING ACE IN THE ‘PEN.  Thank you.  And that is all I have to say about Vietnam.  (Name that movie!)

Remember to root for your Yankees, and unfortunately, the Red Sox selected to represent the American League as well.  We’re going to need that home-field advantage in the World Series.  =D

Go AL!

P.S. I like the Eric Hinkse trade.  It filled a need for some pop off the bench, gives Swish a day off here and there, and seems like a good clubhouse guy.  And less heralded trades seem to work out better with the lower expectations vs a high profile trade and there’s a lot lett pressure.  So far he’s shown he can play on a competing ballclub, especially with his many years in the AL East w/ the Red Sox, Rays, and Blue Jays.  He’s shown he can hit for power.  I can’t wait until he gets to play with the short porch in RF at Yankee Stadium.  And after surviving a beantown stint (and winning a WS) two years ago and leading the pennant winning Rays to the WS with 20 home runs last season, I can only hope this good luck charm can take us where A-Rod has yet to do – the Second Round of the Playoffs and Beyond!

Writer’s Note:  In the last edition of Section 203, FTP said the Yanks were 0-5 against the Red Sox.  Um…yeah…about that…  We’re actually 0-8.  That deserves a HOW DARE YOU SIR.  How dare me.   I guess denial isn’t just a river in Egypt.