Mo Moves Up

With his save today (against Chi Town), which was his 36th of the season, Mariano Rivera moved into second place on the career saves list (all-time). That Mo, he’s pretty good, huh? Mo has now passed Lee Smith with his 479th save and has Trevor Hoffman in his sights (although he’s still pitching and is farther away, with 552 saves).

Alfredo Aceves also looked pretty good in his second career start. He gave up 5 hits and 2 ER over 6 innings. Aceves has been great and you wonder what could have happened if the Yankees called him up sooner instead of throwing Darrell Rasner out there, over and over again. But, maybe Aceves is benefiting from the MLB’s lack of familiarity with him. A lot of people have been quick to put him in the rotation for next year, but I would caution you in your expectations (we did the same thing last year, so be careful). I think he has a leg up on Hughes and IPK in the experience department (and his ability to throw strikes), but you never know with these September outings.

Notably, Phil Coke also pitched another scoreless inning in today’s game. He has thrown 8 innings, struck out 6, and has allowed no runs. Again, September performances are fuzzy indicators of future performance, but Coke could get a look as a left-handed reliever, next year, if the team and Damaso Marte part ways.

Jorge Says Joba Should Stay In The ‘Pen

From ESPN:

“I think if you start him and he pitches 200 innings in one year, you’re going to lose him. He’s going to get hurt. I don’t see him as a starter,” Posada said Monday during a session of “CenterStage,” scheduled to air on the team’s YES Network starting Sept. 28.

Chamberlain, the hard-throwing righty who turns 23 next week, began the season in the Yankees bullpen and then moved to the rotation in June. The plan was to limit his innings early and then make him a full-time starter.

He was sidelined from Aug. 4 to Sept. 2 because of rotator cuff tendinitis and went back to the bullpen when he returned.

“A little tendinitis, it just tells you a lot,” Posada said after the TV interview.

Chamberlain was 3-1 with a 2.76 ERA in 12 starts, striking out 74 in 65 1/3 innings. He’s 1-2 with a 2.29 ERA in 24 relief appearances, fanning 34 in 28 2/3 innings.

“I see him as a reliever. I think his body is made up for a reliever,” Posada said.

Jorge, come on now. First, Joba Chamberlain will not throw anywhere near 200 innings next season. Jorge should know that. What’s truly surprising to me is that Jorge still thinks that Joba should remain in the ‘pen, as a reliever, even after showing how successful he could be as a starter. It’s time for the players to stop talking about what Joba should do, since the team has been pretty clear on what they intend to do with him. The only thing that should be debated, really, is exactly how Joba will continue to make the transition to being a full-time starter.

Joba’s Momma

The Journal Star, a Nebraska paper, has an interesting read on Joba Chamberlain’s mother (who we’ve hardly heard about). There’s a picture of her and Joba on there, together, and I must say, Joba looks exactly like his mother.

(Thanks to LoHud).

Appreciate The Name

Just a quick comment, here. The Twins will be opening a new ballpark in 2010. That ballpark’s name will be Target Field, as the Twins have inked a deal between their organization and Target (the retail giant). In light of this title, how great is Yankee Stadium? Even when our team is losing, Yankee fans still have plenty of reasons to feel spoiled.

Tazawa Controversy

From Peter Abraham (LoHud):

You’ve likely never heard of Junichi Tazawa. But along with CC Sabathia, Mark Teixeira and Ben Sheets, he is about to become one of the hottest – and most controversial – names of the winter.

Tazawa is a 22-year-old right-hander who pitches for Eneos Oil in the Japanese Industrial League. Scouts have said he touches 94 mph with his fastball, has control of two breaking pitches and isn’t afraid to pitch inside.

He’s a little small for a right-hander (5-foot-11, 177 pounds) but has pitched well in recent months since becoming a starter.

On Thursday, Tazawa wrote a polite letter to the 12 teams in the Central and Pacific Leagues of Japan asking that he not be selected in the amateur draft later this month.

Tazawa’s intent is to take the best offer he can get from a team in the major leagues, a move that could fracture decades of goodwill between the professional leagues of Japan and the United States.

Major League Baseball has long had an informal agreement with Nippon Professional Baseball regarding amateur players. In essence, MLB teams have agreed not to sign Japanese prospects. The only process to acquire Japanese players has been via free agency (granted after nine seasons in the NPL) or through the posting system.

That guarantees Japanese teams either the services of their best players or compensation for losing them. Without such a system, the future of the Japanese leagues would be endangered.

Several teams, including the Red Sox, Mets, Braves and Dodgers, have scouted Tazawa. Boston, which has become aggressive with Asian talent in recent years, reportedly had Pacific Rim coordinator Jon Deeble evaluating Tazawa as far back as March.

The NPL reacted swiftly to Tazawa’s request, calling an emergency meeting of its directors and issuing a press release.

“The initial rules for amateur player acquisition was created back in 1962 by the Commissioners from the Majors and the NPB,” the release said. “Since then, no amateur players have signed with MLB teams and it is this fact that indicates that this was more than just a gentleman’s agreement, but rather an implicit understanding that the Majors would do no such thing,” it said. “That a handful of clubs from the Majors is trying to break this gentlemen’s agreement is truly regrettable.”

The NPL has appealed to commissioner Bud Selig and is sending a delegation to meet with MLB officials this week.

This situation is a pretty big deal and could have tremendous repercussions for both sides. If Tazawa can skip the Japanese draft through this vague loophole, an American team could sign him without having to pay a posting fee. I’m sure the Japanese hate the thought of that idea since it would provide them with no form of compensation as they lose their young stars. PA also goes on to note that, if the gentleman’s agreement is broken, the Japanese could even muscle in on the talent in America and attempt to sign young players from college or high school. Tazawa’s future could jeopardize years of goodwill that have been cultivated between the two sides.

The Yankees, while probably interested in Tazawa, will apparently honor the agreement between the US and Japan. Brian Cashman informed PA that they will not try to sign him, however, the team’s philosophy could change down the road if Tazawa manages to arrive in the US for next season. It’ll be interesting to see what happens with Tazawa. Who knew that an unknown kid from Japan could actually be the most important free agent of the year?

I Disagree

Here’s something I just read over at the NY Post in a text by George Willis:

He doesn’t understand what it is to play hard on every play in every game because he thinks he does just that even though there have been far too many times this season when he hasn’t. Ground balls rolling under his glove, botched double plays and indifference on the base paths have come to be expected at least once or twice a game.

“Sometimes it doesn’t look like I’m playing hard, but that’s the way I play,” Cano said.

Cano’s crime yesterday came in the fourth inning when former Met Cliff Floyd hit a ground ball between first and second base. First baseman Jason Giambi lunged to his right, his glove deflecting the ball past Cano, who was charging toward first. But as the ball slowly rolled to the outfield, Cano elected not to give chase. He stopped and waited for Xavier Nady to run in from right-field to retrieve the ball. By then, a hustling Floyd was standing on second.

It didn’t cost the Yankees a run, but manager Joe Girardi pulled Cano between innings, a move he should have made weeks ago.

I won’t even discuss Willis’ blatant exaggeration about Cano making mistakes “at least once or twice a game” at the beginning of this passage. Instead, let’s focus on this question. Should Cano have been benched earlier in the season specifically for “not hustling”? It seems like a valid question considering his play this year, right? I don’t think I agree with that thought, though. Willis’ article is all about tearing down Cano (very original…) and his style of play, but I think we’ve established that Cano plays the game in a particular manner and it almost looks effortless. When he makes mistakes it looks like there’s no effort put in and when he makes great plays, he looks phenomenal but he makes those difficult plays look easy (maybe he makes them look too easy, and subsequently doesn’t get the credit he deserves). So, in this regard, for Joe Girardi it’s rather difficult for him to say, “Robbie wasn’t giving it his all today. He should hit the pine for a bit.” It always looks like he’s not giving it his all and the manager knows when there’s legitimate effort and when there’s not.

Think about it for a second.

Has there really been an explicit instance this year that had Cano looking like he wasn’t hustling at all (outside of today)? I mean, he’s had a few mental lapses (seemingly), but how much of that pertains to his youth and that he’s still learning how to play the game at this level? I’m also a firm believer in the notion that when it’s going bad, it all goes bad. If your offense is trending downwards, then you will likely bring that to the field when you’re on defense. Cano is having a poor year with the bat and maybe it’s effected him, at times, at second base. Believe it or not, sometimes, young players just have bad years. With this in mind, should Girardi really have benched Robbie earlier in the year? I don’t know. I do remember him getting a day off due to his offensive problems. Maybe he just needs to keep plugging him in there so that he’ll snap out of it and have a huge game?

Joe Girardi should have benched Cano today. That was an explicit situation where Cano wasn’t hustling. It was crystal clear. When Cano fails to execute on a double play, is that really the same exact thing as “not hustling”? I don’t necessarily think that they are. In George Willis’ mind, Cano should be benched for every error he makes, no matter how wrong that philosophy ultimately is for a young player. In the end, I really wouldn’t be surprised to see Cano come out tomorrow and have a 4-hit game (embarrassment sparks success), and then everyone will wonder why he wasn’t benched earlier. To that I ask, was there an explicit instance that warranted a benching (an actual, no effort sort of moment)?

Sanchez Promoted

Humberto Sanchez has finally made it the bigs. He’ll suit up with the Yankees after years of arm problems (including a TJ surgery). Sanchez hasn’t pitched much at all this year after rehabbing for quite some time and the team is trying to get him going. Letting him get some work in (now) is a good move (he’ll continue to pitch in the Arizona Fall League). Sanchez was on the Trenton Thunder, and the Thunder just won the Eastern League Championship (their second year in a row). Top prospect, Austin Jackson, was named the EL Playoffs MVP.