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iYankees has moved…

The site’s new layout is now fully functional and, from this point on, I’ll only be posting at www.i-yankees.com. I hope that you’ll meet me over there as the Yankees continue their postseason trek. Also, please, feel free to provide me with some feedback on the site via Twitter, Facebook, email or comment.

RIP THEBRONXZOO.WORDPRESS.COM (this site will remain as an archive).

Worth Every Penny

Yanks win Game 1 thanks to Sabathia’s 8 inning performance (4 H 1 ER 1 BB 7 K).

ALDS G3: Yankees @ Twins

Sorry for the lack of posts. I was in Montreal for much of the weekend.

Here are the lineups:

YANKEES
Jeter SS
Damon LF
Teixeira 1B
Rodriguez 3B
Matsui DH
Posada C
Cano 2B
Swisher RF
Cabrera CF

Pitching: LHP Andy Pettitte (14-8, 4.16 ERA regular season)

TWINS
Span CF
Cabrera SS
Mauer C
Cuddyer 1B
Kubel RF
Young LF
Harris 3B
Morales DH
Punto 2B

Pitching: RHP Carl Pavano (14-12, 5.10 ERA regular season)

Sweep, sweep, sweep…

Cashman: Joba needs to earn his spot

From Pete Caldera:

“He needs to declare himself,’’ Cashman said. “He’s no different than anyone else.’’With an ERA of 8.42 over his last eight starts, and coming off Sunday’s start – where he gave up seven runs in the first two innings at Seattle – Chamberlain should view Saturday’s game vs. Boston as a playoff audition.

“Everybody loves his tenacity,’’ Cashman said. “But we’re going to take the best 10 guys. There’s no assumptions there.’’

Good stuff from Brian Cashman. If the Yankees intend on taking “the best 10 guys,” it’ll be up to Joba to prove that he falls into that category. Right now, if the Yankees were to take the 10 best, that group includes, CC Sabthia, A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettitte, Phil Hughes, Mariano Rivera, and Alfredo Aceves. While Phil Coke’s numbers are fairly ugly, he’ll likely be in there, too. That makes for seven pitchers that have already locked up roster spots.

Piecing together the final three names is where Joba’s situation comes into play. Joe Girardi likes having two lefties in the bullpen, therefore, I would assume that Damaso Marte will also be one of the 10 guys (he has had one bad outing since his return from the DL). That makes eight. If Dave Robertson returns and is effective, meaning, he’s striking out a batters, then he’ll probably get a spot as well. The battle, then, is between Joba Chamberlain and Chad Gaudin. Girardi recently stated that Gaudin could make the postseason roster, so it is a possibility that Gaudin—with a strong performance tonight—could eek out a spot over Joba.

In yesterday’s poll, 69% of you believed that Gaudin should start in the playoffs over Joba Chamberlain. This is obviously a response to Joba’s string of awful, post All-Star break starts. If Gaudin can shutdown the Angels tonight, then you could very well get your wish. I’m hesitant to say that Joba shouldn’t be the third starter in the playoffs, but, if Gaudin can be effective tonight, I think you have to reward his consistency. Joba shouldn’t be entitled to a roster spot just because of who he is to the organization.

(props to RAB)

Sunday Bits: Recap, Jorge, Gardner…

I’m in Boston for the day—my weekends have become surprisingly busy—and will be back tomorrow afternoon. However, in case you missed them, here are a few noteworthy news items from the weekend, thus far.

• Sergio Mitre and Chad Gaudin actually one-hit the White Sox yesterday as the Yankee offense pounded Jose Contreras for 6 ER, leading to a 10-0 victory. Mitre was stellar going 6 1/3 giving up the only hit of the day to Jim Thome.
• Jorge Posada was still nursing a swollen ring finger on his catching hand during yesterday’s game, which paved the way for Jose Molina to catch another start in his absence (and an effective start it was). Jorge is playing in today’s game, though, so it appears as though he’ll be alright (apparently, he’ll wear a guard on his finger to allow him to catch without experiencing much discomfort).
• Brett Gardner, who fractured his left thumb in July, is healing well yet he still feels some “soreness” in the finger. Hopefully, he’ll be back soon—no more Melky, please—and won’t experience any lingering effects from the injury.
• In general MLB news, Scott Kazmir has been traded to the Angels. Many folks think it’ll make them a much better team and with their rotation woes, you can’t argue with that notion. However, Kazmir is a pitching enigma. He has good stuff—even that’s becoming a topic of debate—but he’s so erratic you never know what you’re going to see on a given day.
• Finally, Ben over at RAB has an interesting writeup out on New Era caps. I’m a huge hat lover/wearer, so I encourage you to check it out.

Back with an update late tonight…

Gone Fishing

Hey guys. I’m in Florida for the week on a mini-vacation (too bad for the hurricane). I’ll be posting sporadically until Sunday. I brought a laptop for posting purposes but I found out that it isn’t wireless capable. I apologize in advance for the lack of updates.

Thank you, bullpen

Dave Allen has a short writeup about the Yankees’ bullpen over at Fangraphs. In it, he recognizes the significant contribution by the bullpen, as the Yankees have built a 6 1/2 game lead in the AL East. The Yankees have had one of the better bullpens in baseball, especially recently. Allen points out the extra-inning affairs against the Red Sox, noting how well the ‘pen did in high leverage situations as evidence of the group’s effectiveness.

Over the last 30 days, the Yankee bullpen’s ERA of 3.83 is higher than the Red Sox’s 3.53. However, the Sox have been helped by a good defensive club (J.D. Drew, Pedroia, Youkilis, Kotchman, etc.), as their FIP of 4.36 is considerably higher than their ERA. The Yankees actually have a 3.50 FIP during that span, meaning that their defense could have done a bit more to help the team’s relievers (there’s not a huge disparity between the ERA and FIP, though). The Yankee bullpen also has a 9.62 K/9 while Boston’s K/9 is 8.04. Plus, our relievers are walking fewer batters—2.78 BB/9—when compared to the BoSox relief corps (4.08 BB/9). Much of this success can be attributed to Phil Hughes and the emerging David Robertson.

Verizon-FiOS adds in-market Yankees streaming

From Alex Weprin (B & C):

Customers of Verizon’s FiOS television service will be able to stream live New York Yankees games in market for an additional fee. Verizon is the second MSO to ink a deal with the Yankees’ YES Network and Major League Baseball Advanced Media, following an inaugural deal with Cablevision last month.

Customers that have both Verizon Internet and FiOS TV packages can purchase the ability to stream games live online for the rest of the regular season for $29.95, or a 30-day schedule between now and the end of the season for $19.95.

Is it just me or is this service somewhat expensive?

Quick Bits: Random Thoughts

Here are a few quick thoughts on the day:

1. The Yanks sent Anthony Claggett down and called up Ramiro Pena yesterday. However, after last night’s mess, they probably could have used another arm.

2. What was Girardi thinking having Damon bunt last night? Why not have Jeter steal second and then bunt so that a sac fly wins the game? Or, how about no bunting since Tazawa was givin up hits? Luckily, A-Rod erased Girardi’s mistake.

3. J.D. Drew is an underrated OF. How about that catch that robbed Eric Hinske?

4. CC needs to give the Yankees innings today. He knows it.

Open Thread: Big Win

Alex Rodriguez just hit a walk-off HR against the BoSox to put the Yankees up 4.5 games in the AL East. Huge win for the Bombers after a 15 inning marathon.

I’m in Boston until Tuesday but I’ll try to get some posts in.

Joba’s mom pleads not guilty

From KTIV:

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) – The mother of New York Yankees pitcher Joba Chamberlain has pleaded not guilty in a Nebraska court to a felony drug charge.

Forty-4-year-old Jackie Standley was arrested in May on suspicion of selling methamphetamine to an undercover officer earlier this year at her south Lincoln apartment.

Standley appeared in Lancaster County District Court on Wednesday, wearing a dog-tag chain around her neck. It had a photo of her son on one side in his Yankees uniform, fist-pumping during a game, and “In Joba We Trust” on the other.

She declined to comment following her arraignment.

If convicted, she faces up to 50 years in prison.

I apologize for posting this non-baseball item, but people read it, so it goes up. Sad stuff for Joba.

A good move

From B & C:

Regional sports programmer YES Network, cable operator Cablevision and MLB Advanced Media (MLBAM), the online arm of Major League Baseball, officially announced today a deal that will let Cablevision subscribers watch New York Yankees games online for a fee.

Increased access to viewing games is always a welcomed sight. Read more on the deal, here.

Why isn’t this guy suspended?

From the NY Post:

Talk about your sore losers!

Boston Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon took out his frustrations on Post photographer Anthony Causi Saturday night, hurling a towel at the lensman after blowing a save opportunity against the Mets.

Papelbon had just surrendered a two-run homer to backup catcher Omir Santos — leading to a 3-2 Amazin’ victory — when Causi had the audacity to do his job and photograph the closer as he sulked in the Sox dugout in the bottom of the ninth.

Papelbon screamed, “Don’t take my f- – -ing picture,” according to Causi, before throwing his towel at him

It should be noted: Papelbon missed Causi.

“I guess he missed with two pitches that night,” Causi cracked.

Papelbon then stormed off to a corner of the dugout, hiding from the lensmen working in the first-base photographers well.

Causi contrasted Papelbon’s behavior with that of Yankee closer Mariano Rivera. The fotog recalled taking a picture of Rivera last month at Fenway Park just after the ace reliever blew a save against Boston.

“He knew I was shooting him, and he didn’t say a word,” Causi said. “A true champion realizes you got to take the good with the bad.”

Great response by Causi, but, I also wonder why Jonathan Papelbon has not been reprimanded via fine or suspension for this incident. It seems, to me at least, that such an action is worthy of punishment. The MLB should get on that, pronto, as it is unacceptable to berate a guy the way Papelbon did. I am obviously biased, but I think if someone like Milton Bradley had done something similar he would be out for at least 2 games.

Yanks say no to McPherson

Dallas McPherson, a powerful yet problematic player (an injury case), was recently released by the Marlins and, from Ken Rosenthal, we learn that the Yankees have had internal discussions about signing him to play 3B. However, for whatever reason, they’re still content with Cody Ransom and seem willing to go with him until A-Rod returns. Nonetheless, if I were the richest team in baseball, I would probably sign every low-risk, high-reward player out there. A McPherson signing would be indicative of that philosophy. I put forth the Mike Lamb idea the other day, but Tripp — a regular reader — did mention McPherson as an option.

KR also notes that the Yankees have been bombarded with trade requests for Melky Cabrera but will likely hold on to him so as to protect the depth in CF (in case Gardner fails).

A-Rod on track

A-Rod is reportedly healing well as he increases his rehab regimen. The Yankees think he’ll be back mid-May — supposedly a conservative estimate — however, Alex seems determined to rejoin the team sooner than that (which wouldn’t surprise me).

Lesson Learned

From the AP:

Cano didn’t tell the Yankees about his shoulder problem before joining the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic. The Yankees told Cano that the next time he has any problem to let the training staff know.

“Next time, I tell them from the beginning,” Cano said. “Maybe it would be gone by this time.”

Since Robbie joined the team, we’ve always heard folks talk about him  ”growing up,” and they generally mean this in terms of his attitude and work ethic. This was one of the moments where Cano needed to show that he’s not a kid — he failed, but hopefully he has learned his lesson.

Montero hopes to make catching his career

Marc Carig (Star-Ledger) has a nice piece out on mega-prospect, Jesus Montero. Montero is well-known for his offensive capabilities, however, he has been working diligently on his defense — a part of his game that isn’t too far a long – as he tries to remain behind the plate. His ultimate goal is not to be a DH or a first baseman — that’s for sure.

“I’ve been doing really well, been learning a lot,” said Montero, who will start the season in the Florida State League with high Class-A Tampa. “I know more than last year. Last year was learning, learning, learning. This year, it’s more, more, more. I want to play there. I want to catch in the big leagues.”

Though many don’t think he’ll last back there (he is 6′4” and 225 lbs.), if he can become passable, defensively, then the Yankees won’t hesitate to keep him behind the plate. In fact, Brian Cashman was quick to support Montero and note the team’s commitment to him specifically as a catcher.

“Without question, he is significantly improved this year as opposed to last year,” Cashman said. “To the point that we don’t really doubt he’s going to be a catcher in the big leagues.”

The Yankees’ have also shown an implicit and unspoken commitment to Montero the catcher — not Montero the first baseman – by signing Mark Teixeira to a long-term deal. Basically, as I see it, Montero will catch when Jorge Posada is done. It’ll be similar to the Jorge Posada days, actually — all offense, poor defense. Montero is a valuable player, but the Yankees know that his value is inherently linked to how often he can sit behind the plate and receive pitches. As long as he doesn’t totally outgrow the position, it’s his.

Blaming Brian

From Tyler Kepner (Yankees):

Cashman said the Yankees discovered an irregularity in Rodriguez’s hip last May when he underwent a magnetic resonance imaging exam for a right quadriceps injury. By June or July, the hitting coach Kevin Long said he could notice subtle changes in Rodriguez’s hitting, notably in his right foot — the back one in his stance.

The foot was not pivoting fully, Long said, and as a result, Rodriguez could not completely turn his waist and clear his hips. This caused his bat to drag and prevented him from driving through the ball and generating maximum power.

“Speed-wise, to catch up to 95-, 96-mile-an-hour pitches, you’ve basically got to get your hips through,” Long said. “It affects bat speed, power, balance. From a technical standpoint, it affects quite a few things. But he’s so gifted and so talented that he made do with what he had.”

Rodriguez missed three weeks with the quadriceps injury, but the stiffness in his hip cost him no games and he hit .302 with 35 homers and 103 runs batted in. Still, when the problem persisted this spring, Long said, it made sense for the Yankees to investigate.

It is possible that if the Yankees had given Rodriguez a follow-up M.R.I. exam on his hip after the season, they might have found the cyst and the labrum tear in time for him to have surgery and be ready by opening day.

Cashman said Rodriguez had always had stiff hips, and there was no need to examine him after the season. The condition was so minor, Cashman said, that Rodriguez did not seek treatment from team trainers last season.

“That’s why I termed it as an incidental finding,” Cashman said. “If you took an M.R.I. right now of everybody in our clubhouse, you are going to find in many of them — 20 percent, 30 percent, 40 percent — the same finding. Just because they have it doesn’t mean it’s a problem. Just because you have it doesn’t mean you need surgery.

“So that’s why you put it in the file,” he said. “You treat the patient, not the symptom. You don’t treat the M.R.I. You treat the patient.”

This is all on the organization, as they have proven to be rather shoddy in dealing with injuries, especially over the past few years (Joge Posada and even Carl Pavano come to mind).

If you invest in Alex Rodriguez and pay him the most money in baseball, wouldn’t you treat every issue — whether it’s stiffness or soreness — as if it’s a serious one? Worst case scenarios always work, right? If you’re $275 million car is making a very slight humming noise, you’d probably still want to get it checked out, even if it’s a damn near inaudible. This is how you prevent major issues, obviously.

Either the Yankees have the wrong doctors in the clubhouse or they have the wrong GM, I don’t know. I’ve always been a Brian Cashman fan, but you would think he would be smart enough to encourage A-Rod to get checked out again after the season was over.

(props to WW)

EXG 6: Yanks VS. Astros

Yes, that’s Joba Chamberlain and CC Sabathia (who threw a simulated game today) on the Toy Story ride at Disney World (h/t to Yahoo!). Apparently, this weekend, they attended an ESPN event there — good stuff.

Anyway, here’s today’s lineup (via Kat O’Brien):

Johnny Damon LF
Melky Cabrera CF
Nick Swisher RF
Jorge Posada DH
Cody Ransom S
Jose Molina C
Juan Miranda 1B
Angel Berroa 2B
Doug Bernier 3B

It’s definitely not the star-studded lineup you would expect from the Yankees, but Derek Jeter, Robinson Cano and Alex Rodriguez have all left for WBC camps. At least Jorge is in there, as his shoulder seems to be steadily improving after some time off and some treatment.

The other big story on the day is the return of Chien-Ming Wang. Wang will be on the hill against Houston, which is interesting because the last time he faced the ‘Stros, he injured his foot. This is also his first game since the injury and, obviously, it’s a big step for him. He’ll be opposed by Carl Pavano Mike Hampton.

Here’s the live boxscore.