A revamped Oakland lineup with newly acquired veterans such as Jason Giambi, Matt Holliday, Orlando Cabrera, and Nomar Garciaparra could not solve Andy Pettite over 7 innings last night. Pettitte scattered 9 hits and allowed just 2 runs. He has gone at least 7 innings in each of his three starts this season. He is the only Yankee starter to do so. Brett Gardner drove in two runs as did Johnny Damon, who hit the game’s only home run, which landed in the second deck in right (it was no cheapie). Mark Teixeira drove in the other Yankees run. Brian Bruney’s streak of 22 consecutive batters came to an end as he allowed a run on 2 hits in the 8th inning. Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera tied a record as Rivera saved a win for Pettitte for the 57th time. Wins and saves might not be the best way to quantify a pitcher’s effectiveness, but this record is a testament to the longevity and durability that both Pettitte and Rivera have displayed throughout their careers.
-CC Sabathia will start for the Yanks today, as they close out their first homestand. The A’s will counter with rookie lefty Brett Anderson. With a win the Yankees will go 4-2 on this homestand, not bad all things considered.
-Xavier Nady will not have to have season ending surgery after all. Instead he will rehab the strained ligament in his right elbow and should be back with the team for about a month or so.
-Chien Ming Wang, whose next start will be skipped, was sent down to Tampa to work on his mechanics as he tries to work out the kinks in his motion and delivery. The Yankees will also closely monitor his physical condition as Brian Cashman is not convinced that Wang is 100% healthy as the pitcher claims. The Yankees are 8-3 in games not started by Chien Ming Wang.
Showing posts with label Xavier Nady. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Xavier Nady. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Breaking Injury News
From Pete Abe:
"Nothing official yet, but the word is that Xavier Nady will need (elbow) surgery and miss the season."
[My Take: Bad break for Nady and the Yanks. The decision of how to get ABs for four guys (Swisher, Nady, Damon, Matsui) in three spots (LF, RF, DH) just got a little easier for Joe Girardi. Now the question of who will take Nady's roster spot comes into play. Could we see Shelley Duncan back in pinstripes? Imagine the fun Nick Swisher and Shelley Duncan would have together. However, if I had to put my money on it, I would guess it's probably going to be Angel Berroa who gets the call up.]
"Nothing official yet, but the word is that Xavier Nady will need (elbow) surgery and miss the season."
[My Take: Bad break for Nady and the Yanks. The decision of how to get ABs for four guys (Swisher, Nady, Damon, Matsui) in three spots (LF, RF, DH) just got a little easier for Joe Girardi. Now the question of who will take Nady's roster spot comes into play. Could we see Shelley Duncan back in pinstripes? Imagine the fun Nick Swisher and Shelley Duncan would have together. However, if I had to put my money on it, I would guess it's probably going to be Angel Berroa who gets the call up.]
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
NYY Position Battles
It seems that Joe Girardi has selected Xavier Nady as the starting rightfielder to start the season instead of Nick Swisher. Much to our chagrin as the stats just show that Swisher is the more prudent choice as documented in this previous article.
Joe Girardi has not yet announced his choice for starting centerfielder but Brett Gardner has to be in the lead if you take in his performance this spring compared to Melky Cabrera’s. Whoever ends up starting will only be keeping the position warm for Austin Jackson, as the youngster looks primed for a shot at the bigs this year or next.
All things being equal, Brett Tomko looks like the frontrunner in the race to fill the long man role out of the bullpen. Tomko has out performed Dan Geise and Alfredo Aceves his spring and as a result deserves the shot.
Cody Ransom has won the dubious honor of holding third base for Alex Rodriguez until the slugger returns from injury. Ransom didn’t really have to compete for the spot as the Yankees didn’t have many other options. As a result of Ransom being forced into a starting role Angel Berroa looks have won the utility role of the bench.
-Favad Ali
Joe Girardi has not yet announced his choice for starting centerfielder but Brett Gardner has to be in the lead if you take in his performance this spring compared to Melky Cabrera’s. Whoever ends up starting will only be keeping the position warm for Austin Jackson, as the youngster looks primed for a shot at the bigs this year or next.
All things being equal, Brett Tomko looks like the frontrunner in the race to fill the long man role out of the bullpen. Tomko has out performed Dan Geise and Alfredo Aceves his spring and as a result deserves the shot.
Cody Ransom has won the dubious honor of holding third base for Alex Rodriguez until the slugger returns from injury. Ransom didn’t really have to compete for the spot as the Yankees didn’t have many other options. As a result of Ransom being forced into a starting role Angel Berroa looks have won the utility role of the bench.
-Favad Ali
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Others Must Step Up in A-Rod's Absence
Everything that could have gone last year for the Yankees did go wrong. And this resulted in them missing out on the postseason. This season, the Yankees will have to overcome the loss of Alex Rodriguez if they wish to stay in the AL East race and everything will have to go right in order for them do so. The lineup will have to step up in a big way to cover for the loss of A-Rod. Love him, or hate him; Alex Rodriguez has been an offensive force for the Yankees since his arrival. His production will surely be missed. But they can win without him; if, and only if the many question marks up and down their lineup are answered.
Jorge Posada and Hideki Matsui both need to stay in the lineup and produce at their career levels. Whether this will happen or not is not a given by any stretch of the imagination. Posada is coming off of shoulder surgery which cost him most of the 2008 season. He has hit well thus far in the spring, although he has yet to catch this spring and has been a last minute scratch due to his shoulder once already. Hideki Matsui is trying to come back and play on two bad knees which will relegate him to playing exclusively as a DH this year. He also missed most of last year and will be counted on to come back healthy and productive this year.
Also, whoever emerges from the battle in CF between Brett Gardner and Melky Cabrera will have to step up their production significantly. Cabrera has been regressing the past two seasons while Gardner is still an unknown commodity at the Major League level. Robinson Cano also needs bounce back from a disappointing year last year. If his production after being benched late last year is any indication, expect him to bounce back close to his 2007 form.
The Yankees should get average to above average production from the remaining positions on the field (Teixeira at 1B, Jeter at SS, Swisher/Nady in RF, and Damon in LF). But this will not be enough; they need solid production from Posada (at the catcher position), Matsui, and Cano at the least. Anything they get out of the center field position would be a plus.
Things certainly did go terribly awry last year. Lightning may just strike twice again this year. Its up to everyone in the lineup to pick up the slack while A-Rod is gone. The one difference between this year and last is a vastly improved starting rotation. This should help the lineup cope with the loss of A-Rod, and keep them competetive until his return.
-Favad Ali
Jorge Posada and Hideki Matsui both need to stay in the lineup and produce at their career levels. Whether this will happen or not is not a given by any stretch of the imagination. Posada is coming off of shoulder surgery which cost him most of the 2008 season. He has hit well thus far in the spring, although he has yet to catch this spring and has been a last minute scratch due to his shoulder once already. Hideki Matsui is trying to come back and play on two bad knees which will relegate him to playing exclusively as a DH this year. He also missed most of last year and will be counted on to come back healthy and productive this year.
Also, whoever emerges from the battle in CF between Brett Gardner and Melky Cabrera will have to step up their production significantly. Cabrera has been regressing the past two seasons while Gardner is still an unknown commodity at the Major League level. Robinson Cano also needs bounce back from a disappointing year last year. If his production after being benched late last year is any indication, expect him to bounce back close to his 2007 form.
The Yankees should get average to above average production from the remaining positions on the field (Teixeira at 1B, Jeter at SS, Swisher/Nady in RF, and Damon in LF). But this will not be enough; they need solid production from Posada (at the catcher position), Matsui, and Cano at the least. Anything they get out of the center field position would be a plus.
Things certainly did go terribly awry last year. Lightning may just strike twice again this year. Its up to everyone in the lineup to pick up the slack while A-Rod is gone. The one difference between this year and last is a vastly improved starting rotation. This should help the lineup cope with the loss of A-Rod, and keep them competetive until his return.
-Favad Ali
Monday, February 16, 2009
Nady & Swish to Battle it Out
In Jerry Crasnick's ESPN.com article looking at the top 9 position battles to wacth out for this spring training, coming in at #4 were the battles in center field between Brett Gardner and Melky Cabrera and right field between Xavier Nady and Nick Swisher.
I wanted to delve into the right field battle between Nady and Swisher a little deeper.
Let's go to the tale of the tape...
He comes into this year with the following career totals:
BA: .280 OBP: .335 SLG: .458 OPS: .793
BA: .244 OBP: .354 SLG: .451 OPS: .805
While both men should see playing time in the outfield and at DH at times, to the naked eye it may seem that Nady should get the bulk of playing time when looking at the numbers and how the two fared last season. However, in my opinion it should be Swisher who should be given the starting nod over Nady. Why, might you ask? Swisher is the younger and more athletic of the two and can contribute to the team in more ways than Nady can, whether it be taking walks, stealing a base, or superior play in the field.
More so, Swisher’s lack of production last year can be attributed by a few factors. While he did rack up 497 AB’s last year with the White Sox, it was at 5 different positions while batting in every position in the lineup except for the number three spot. If he is given some consistent playing time at the same position in the field and in the lineup, his numbers should improve. Also, Swisher just might have been the unluckiest hitter in the Major’s last season.
JJ Stankevitz of Examiner.com, who also does an excellent job of covering the White Sox has this take: "Swisher's 2008 line drive rate of .204 was the highest of his career, but his BABIP (Batting Average of Balls put In Play)—which, if a player is neither lucky nor unlucky, should be .120 higher than his LD rate—was .251, just 0.47 points higher than his LD rate. That's not just unlucky—that's ridiculously unlucky."
All of these factors including the fact that Swisher has shown more consistent power numbers compared to Nady throughout their careers should make the choice easy for manager Joe Girardi. However, how the two players fare during spring training will weigh heavily on Girardi’s decision, no doubt. Which, in my opinion, is not the best way to judge how a player will perform during a long season, but I digress.
-Favad Ali
I wanted to delve into the right field battle between Nady and Swisher a little deeper.
Let's go to the tale of the tape...
He comes into this year with the following career totals:
BA: .280 OBP: .335 SLG: .458 OPS: .793
Swisher is 28 years of age. He is an even more versatile player, as he is able to play all three outfield positions as well as first base. He is also a better baserunner than Nady. He is coming off of an extremely disappointing year with the White Sox, in which he hit a putrid .219.
His career averages coming into this year are as follows:BA: .244 OBP: .354 SLG: .451 OPS: .805
While both men should see playing time in the outfield and at DH at times, to the naked eye it may seem that Nady should get the bulk of playing time when looking at the numbers and how the two fared last season. However, in my opinion it should be Swisher who should be given the starting nod over Nady. Why, might you ask? Swisher is the younger and more athletic of the two and can contribute to the team in more ways than Nady can, whether it be taking walks, stealing a base, or superior play in the field.
More so, Swisher’s lack of production last year can be attributed by a few factors. While he did rack up 497 AB’s last year with the White Sox, it was at 5 different positions while batting in every position in the lineup except for the number three spot. If he is given some consistent playing time at the same position in the field and in the lineup, his numbers should improve. Also, Swisher just might have been the unluckiest hitter in the Major’s last season.
JJ Stankevitz of Examiner.com, who also does an excellent job of covering the White Sox has this take: "Swisher's 2008 line drive rate of .204 was the highest of his career, but his BABIP (Batting Average of Balls put In Play)—which, if a player is neither lucky nor unlucky, should be .120 higher than his LD rate—was .251, just 0.47 points higher than his LD rate. That's not just unlucky—that's ridiculously unlucky."
All of these factors including the fact that Swisher has shown more consistent power numbers compared to Nady throughout their careers should make the choice easy for manager Joe Girardi. However, how the two players fare during spring training will weigh heavily on Girardi’s decision, no doubt. Which, in my opinion, is not the best way to judge how a player will perform during a long season, but I digress.
-Favad Ali
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