Showing posts with label matt thornton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label matt thornton. Show all posts

Saturday, August 9, 2014

THAT'S NO WAY TO HONOR O'NEILL!


Now before you get crazy, let me state that the actual ceremony for Paul O'Neill was just plain awesome.  There is no better way to honor a Yankee great than at the stadium with 50,000 friends. 


We love Paulie here, and the Yankees did the right thing honoring him. All I'm saying is, I wish a win went along with it. 


The Yankees scored ZERO runs off Indians pitching today.  Brandon McCarthy got his first loss as a Yankee, but once again, he was strong and just in the zone. There is no way better to describe McCarthy.  The dude is a huge success in the Bronx, and I wish him a long tenure here.  I hope that can happen. 
McCarthy went 6.1 innings, giving up 7 hits and 2 runs. You can't kill the guy at all, he was great. The bottom line is this; if your team doesn't score runs, you can't win.


The other run was given up by Chase Whitley. Lefty Rich Hill appeared today as well.  Hill kind of makes me long for Matt Thornton... who makes me long for Boone Logan, or... something like that.  I'm not too sure how I feel about Hill yet. I do know this, I like Whitley in the starting role better. In fact, I would suggest they send him down and let him work in that capacity.   I don't feel like Whitley is comfortable in the relief role. It could be just me... but I feel like it's Joba and Hughes all over again.

The only other highlight besides Paulie's honoring today? Derek Jeter passed Honus Wagner today. Just plain awesome.

Final: Indians 3 - Yankees 0.

We were shut out. All can do is suck it up, go out and get a steak dinner, go to be bed early and come back tomorrow and win.

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Tuesday, August 5, 2014

THE YANKEES PART WITH JEFF FRANCIS

It was fun... for a moment, but I guess the experiment is over.


 The Yankees have officially released lefty Jeff Francis.  You can read about it HERE.

Of course, the reason why he was released was because the Yankees purchased the contract of Rich Hill from Scranton, all after they flipped Matt Thornton to the Nationals, because he was picked up off waivers from them.

OK... a lot to digest... did you get that?

In other words, they gave up a lefty to bring up another lefty and then get rid of another lefty.


As MLB Trade Rumors writes of Francis: "The veteran southpaw had been designated for assignment by the Bombers last week, with outfielder Zoilo Almonte taking his roster spot."

The Yankees are bettering themselves... you see the moves, you see the improvement... now let's see the wins!

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YANKEES ARE CUTTING THE FAT


It's good to see that the Yankees are learning from past mistakes.  All I mean by that is keeping guys around that really aren't contributing sucks. Fans get angry. It almost seems like the Yanks are listening. In the past, the Yanks have kept guys around and waiting too long to pull the trigger.  They did it with guys like Boone Logan, who, many of us weren't too fond of, but he kept coming back and kept giving up home runs and disappointing all of us.

Brian Roberts was NOT a fan favorite this season and didn't really do much in Yankeeland.  I'm sure he was a nice guy, I know he was a great teammate, but when the Yankees finally decided to release him (Read BRIAN ROBERTS GONZO), and acquired dudes like Martin Prado and Stephen Drew, it was clear, Yankee brass understood we were in the middle of the summer and we weren't in first place.

 (In Photo: Martin Prado)
Now they've cut more fat, and this report comes from CBSSports.com. They wrote:


 "The Nationals are acquiring reliever Matt Thornton after a waiver claim from the Yankees, sources said... it'll be a substantial savings for the Yankees. New York will more than $4M via this waiver claim. Thornton has a $3.5-million salary for next year per his existing contract."

So yeah... Yanks are cutting the fat.  It was either I used a picture of someone literally cutting fat off their steak like the one below...


Or Thornton's mug. Some would suggest it's the same thing.

Good luck Matt.

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Sunday, July 27, 2014

BULLPEN BATTLE ENDS IN A LOSS


Don't blame the Yankee pen for this one, even though they are responsible. I mean, do you realize just how good they've been all year?  It's a tough one to swallow, but we need to just get over it.  If the pen was consistently losing games after strong starts, I'd be pretty annoyed.  But between Dellin Betances, Matt Thornton and David Robertson, they've been pretty damn incredible.  Not today of course... but that's the game. That's why baseball is such an amazing sport... because, as John Sterling says... you never know what will happen next.


Shane Greene started today and did well.  I like this kid. 5.1 innings pitched, allowed 8 hits and only 3 runs.  Huff, Betances, Warren, and DRob followed.  It was in the ninth that former Yankee Dioner Navarro knocked in the go ahead run... and just like that, the Yankees couldn't tie in up in their part of the inning.

The Yankee runs went like this:


In the 5th, both Chase Headley and Francisco Cervelli homered... 2 solo shots.  In the 6th Brian McCann singled and knocked in Jacoby Ellsbury.  Don't look now, but McCann is actually being productive as of late.


In the bottom of the 8th, Carlos Beltran singled knocking in 1.  Those are the Yankees 4.  Unfortunately... the Jays scored 5.... and that's the final.

Final: Blue Jays 5 - Yankees 4

You forget this game and come back fresh for the next one... it's all you can do.

You've made BYB the fastest growing Yankees fan site in history. Now shop at the Bleeding Yankee Blue store!  Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and LIKE Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook! 

Saturday, July 26, 2014

YANKEES WASTE CAPUANO'S QUALITY START

Another day, another chance to play the Blue Jays, and another chance to gain some ground in the American League East. It was also a chance for the Yankees to put their latest starter acquisition on the mound and put him to the test.


Chris Capuano took the hill today in his first start as a Yankee, having joined the team just this past Thursday. The Red Sox, who used him as a middle reliever, released him earlier this month. The Colorado Rockies decided he was not worth a look, and sold his contract to the Yankees. You have to wonder why a team would use a career starter as a reliever, but that is their call. Either way, the Yankees may end up looking like geniuses, because Capuano had a very good start against the Toronto Blue Jays.


He gave up only two runs over 6 innings, giving up 5 hits, walking 4, and striking out 4. He kept batters off balance, throwing off-speed breaking balls in the mid 80's and a fastball topping out at 89 mph. The most impressive thing to me was how well he got out of trouble. He loaded the bases in the first and put men in scoring position in the second and sixth innings, but he got out without surrendering a run. He kept the run scoring limited to one inning. It was a quality start, and one the Yankees should have won.


Honorable mentions go to Derek Jeter for reaching base 3 times in 5 plate appearances, and to Chase Headley for bunting to an unmanned third base, to counter the shift, and getting a single in the process. (The picture above was taken from my seat, at the game, to show you how easy it was to do this). I noticed that the third baseman was covering his normal position the next time Headley came to the plate. I hope the Yankees noticed that too


Matt Thornton let the third run score on a bloop single that the infield should have caught. Nevertheless, the Yankees still kept it to a 1-run lead until the ninth. Dan Johnson, who had not hit a home run all season, hit a 3-run home run to give the Jays a 4-run lead. Being in the ballpark, I can tell you that the place became electric when Carlos Beltran hit a 2-run home run in the bottom of the ninth. However, talking to the others there, all we could think was that it would have been a walk-off had Chase Whitley and Jeff Francis kept the top of the ninth scoreless. When you are in a pennant race as we are, trying to make up ground, losing when your pitcher gives you a quality start comes at a high price.


Final: Blue Jays 6 - Yankees 4



--Ike Dimitriadis, BYB Senior Staff Writer
Twitter: @KingAgamemnon
My blog is: Shots from Murderer's Row



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Tuesday, July 22, 2014

WE CAN'T WIN THEM ALL... BUT WE SHOULD


Shane Greene looked good, but part of the problem with the Yankees offense is helping the pitching stay in the game.  Many times, only 4 runs against them still makes it impossible for us to win. That's exactly what happened last night.  We, for some strange reason are only looking at the fence, I guess for a home run or something. Or, maybe we fans were just over sold on the team we had going into 2014.  Yes, I'm being critical.  You realize why I am, right? We don't score runs!  We rarely score 5 a game and hell, we never score 6.  Papa John's was smart to hold that special of 6 runs and half-off your next order there... that's because the Yankees don't score 6... it seems like EVER.

2 runs for us last night. Just 5 hits.  OH... and 5 errors.  FIVE. This is the sign of a championship team? I think not.  We look miserable.


Greene went 5.2 innings last night and gave up 4 runs.  That was followed by the three stooges, and I say that affectionately, Matt Thornton, Adam Warren and David Huff.  Now they held the Rangers down which was great, but those 4 runs off Greene were enough.

The Yankees run scoring, or lack there of, went like this:


In the bottom of the first, Carlos Beltran sacrificed home Derek Jeter. In the 4th, Jacoby Ellsbury homered... a solo shot.

Blah, blah, blah.... Sorry, but as a fan, I want more!  We deserve more... these are the Yankees for Christ's sake.

Final: Rangers 4 - Yankees 2

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Saturday, July 19, 2014

FAMILY, FOOD & FIGHT IN THE BRONX!


There is something very relaxing about visiting Yankee Stadium when there is nothing else going on in your world for 4 hours.  It may be the most amazing place on earth.  It helps of course, when the Yankees win, and that is exactly what happened today.  But I'm getting ahead of myself...

I was asked if I could make the game today with family, and a few friends and the winner of the tickets for today's Yankees-Reds game.

(In Photo: Brian DiSalvo, Founder of the Jack DiSalvo Foundation second from left)

The winners of the tickets happened because of an auction we ran here on BYB with the help of the Jack DiSalvo Foundation to get money to help pay for medical expenses of Patrick O'Hagan, a 19 year old kid who got slammed in the head with a softball and, for a short time, was clinging to life.  You can read about him HERE.  The winners joined us for a great day, and the win was almost symbolic of the win of Patrick O'Hagan, who's now recovering well.


There was plenty of food, a ton of drinks and my son was loving every minute of it as he now is totally spoiled and probably will never want to sit in a regular seat at Yankee stadium again.  The Suite experience is like no other, and being with good friends during a Yankee win cannot be beat... that's the bottom line.


"Watch this," I told my son as Jeter was about to be announced, "It's about to be epic," and it was.  Jeter walked out to Bob Shepperd's voice and the place erupted. But not like it normally would during the first half of the season. No. This was massive and the crowd must read BYB or something because they, like me, felt as though this second half of the season is the biggest part of the"Farewell tour" for the Captain.


It was great, and it was a great day for Jeter as well, 1-3 with and RBI and our Cap's average is up to .275.

"He finishes batting .290 this season," I told the head of the Jack DiSalvo Foundation. Brian nodded, "Yup, I see that."


Brandon McCarthy looked awesome today.  For a guy that performs better in the second half than the first, he lived up to the hype going 6 innings, giving up 1 run and striking out 9.  I tweeted my happiness at one point. I couldn't contain myself:
The Yankees scored 7 runs today to the Reds 1... and it went like this:

In the bottom of the 3rd, Carlos Beltran cranked out a solo shot. My son's 2nd live home run. The first one was in Philadelphia when he saw John Mayberry Jr. do damage.


In the 3rd, Brian Roberts singled home Brett Gardner. In the 5th, Gardy sacrificed home Brian Roberts. Then Jeter knocked home Kelly Johnson. In the 6th Kelly Johnson singled home 2 and Brian McCann then knocked home Roberts.

The Reds only run was from Chris Heisey's bat, a solo shot and it was the only run off McCarthy today. Other than that, and other than the Pete Rose fan I enjoyed watching dance, not much more happened for them. God bless this guy... and God Bless Pete Rose... he should be in the Hall of Fame, but that's another post for another time...


Then, our pen, supplied with skill from Adam Warren, Shawn Kelley and Matt Thornton held the Reds down... a big win all around for the Yankees... and just another step closer to a winning streak!

Final: Yankees 7 - Reds 1

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Thursday, July 10, 2014

WE STILL FIGHT, EVEN WHEN WE'RE DOWN!

Yup... now our second ace is out.  The Yankees are in desperate need to re-group and we must, there is no question about it.  The pitching situation is less than brilliant right now. The hitting is not consistent. But as fans, we have 1 job... and it's an important one...  WE DON'T GIVE UP!


When you look at these guys, the troops who have been through the worst of it this season, but still dealing while their brothers are dropping like flies, I applaud them. They show up to the ballpark every day, ready to give it their all because their club has called on them. Well, as a fan, I am commanding you, no matter how bad or how hard it gets, we can't give up on this club.


David Phelps. Zoilo Almonte. Brett Gardner. Dellin Betances. Derek Jeter. Even newly called up Jim Miller... more on him in a second. The point is, these men want to win. They stand tall, they fight, and they are doing all they can, but sometimes, when your fellow soldier is down it ain't easy. For the Yankees, there are many soldiers down.  But here's the thing, the players we have don't stop showing up. They have a job to do and dammit, they're doing what they can. Sooner or later, I believe that confidence, that fight can help us.  Unfortunately, tonight was terrible, but it will change... I feel it.


David Phelps went hard tonight. I tip my cap, he's coming into his own.  6 innings, allowed 7 hits and 2 runs.  The wheels fell off for the bullpen after that, and I almost don't want to get down on the pen, because they've been great all year, but tonight, they shit the bed. They know it, and they also know they can't let it happen again.  Matt Thornton gave up 2 runs.  Jim Miller, God bless him, gave up 5.


I can't even get down on Miller, the guy's a gamer, and tonight, he just had a bad game. I don't fault him tonight... I refuse to, unless it continues.  Miller will turn it around. Unfortunately, we needed him strong tonight, but he just didn't have it.

The Yankees had 11 hits.  You'd expect more than 3 runs, but that didn't happen. Once again the hitting and run scoring was flat. We left 11 on base.  It's a problem... a major problem.


In the 4th, rookie Zelous Wheeler homered.  It's his second since he's been up. It was a 2 run shot.  In the 5th, Yangervis Solarte singled knocking in Francisco Cervelli.

Final: Indians 9 - Yankees 3

Finally, 3 things to think about;

1. As a fan, we need to stand with our club. I remember doing it in the 80's when we were terrible. But game after game, I rooted because I believed.  We shouldn't give up now, we can't. We're Yankee fans.


2. Why are the Yankees pitchers having so much trouble with injury? Is it the strength training? Is it lack of conditioning? Is it pitching coach Larry Rothschild? The Yankees don't have this much bad luck unless something is attached to it.  What is it?


3. The Yankees need a lesson in Money ball.  You can't leave men on base as much as we're doing.  We can't NOT knock runs home. Kevin Long needs to be re-evaluated.  Sure, big time hitters need to swing their own bats, but trainers see things that big time hitters DON'T see when they're in their same routine.  

There are people that get paid a helluva lot of money to problem solve a situation like hitting and pitching on a club. We need to find out who that is, fire them, and get someone in house to fix it.  That's my take anyway.

Stay strong Yankee fans... this is a rough patch, but we're in it together.

You've made BYB the fastest growing Yankees fan site in history. Now shop at the Bleeding Yankee Blue store!  Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and LIKE Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook! 

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

OFF DAY IN CLEVELAND

You can't win them all. Not even Masahiro Tanaka can.


Last night he had a rare, rough outing.  No biggie... don't let it happen again.

The Indians had 10 hits and scored 5 runs off of the Golden child, who just didn't seem right all night.  He went 6.2 innings, only had 5 strikeouts and was relieved by Matt Thornton and Shawn Kelley who did a pretty good job at least keeping the Yankees in the game. The problem though, and this has been a problem all along, was out offense coming back and winning.


The Yankees had 4 hits in Cleveland last night.  We started out like this... Mark Teixeira singled after the ball deflected off of Chris Dickerson's glove. Brett Gardner scored.  Then, Brian McCann struck out, but when there was a throwing error by Yan Gomes, Jacoby Ellsbury came around to score. In the second, Gardy grounded out, but Ichiro scored.


Then came the bottom of the 6th. It was that inning that Nick Swisher homered and put the Indians ahead 4-3.  They would score 1 more.  I like seeing Swish... but not like that.

Not a great game at all for the Yanks.

Final: Indians 5 - Yankees 3 

Whatever. Try to forget it and move on...

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Saturday, July 5, 2014

KILLING ME SOFTLY


How does a club make a nice run 2 days in a row... and then go back into their old ways of lack of run scoring and lack of confidence.  The Yankees are the most frustrating ball club of 2014, no question. Write that down...

Today, the Yankees scored 1 single run the whole game against the Twins.  I'm sorry if I thought they'd have more in the tank. I'm sorry if I thought for a second, the Yankees could sweep the Twins so far in this series.  Damn.


First off... David Phelps was strong and he appears stronger and more confident each time out there.  Today the Yankees needed to give him run support... and just couldn't.  It was sad actually.  Phelps went 7 innings, giving up only 3 hits and 1 run.


The other run was given up when Matt Thornton was on the mound.  There was a ridiculous throwing error by Francisco Cervelli.  Thornton got the loss after that. That's no way to lose a game.


The Yankees had 7 hits today. Respectable. But, the only run came when Cisco singled and knocked in Ichiro Suzuki.  It was then tied up 1-1 when the Twins scored in the 7th.  Then, in the 12th, that throwing error happened... the Twins scored on a walk off... and all was right in Minnesota. Not so much in Yankeeland.

I'm disappointed in my Yankees and I know you are too.  There appears to be no momentum.  We need to keep it consistent guys... and when I say consistency... I don't mean consistently losing.

Final: Twins 2 - Yankees 1

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Friday, June 13, 2014

THE CAPTAIN AWAKES


There's been alot said about Derek Jeter this season. Mostly negative or critical and mostly from the press that was respected by him for 20 years in the Bigs.  He never shied away from reporters and was always respectful to them.  But the reporters also knew Jeet was loyal to his team and rarely gave the press anything.  It was a positive give and take all these years, but now, there seems to be a need to write about him in the negative because Jeter isn't having the season of his life.  Well, he's retiring this year... I'm not sure many of us expected him to his .350 with 30 home runs.  We understand his limitations.  We get it.  And that's why you read BYB.  We give it to you from a fan perspective. Sure, we have our concerns, but we're fans.  Why blast a guy that's given us so much all these years?  We love him.  Unusual headlines have been all over the place.  Not exactly headlines respecting the Captain. Here are 2 headlines that I read and thought, "Um... ok."

Derek Jeter's Struggles Show He's Making the Right Call in Retirement- Bleacher Report

5 best Derek Jeter retirement signs — so far - The Star Ledger 

 
Look, this is the Captain's last season. We, as fans of the Yankees and writers of BYB have an obligation to the team and to the Captain, but if there is something we don't agree with... we WILL give it to you straight.  We're not haters, we're just about common sense here. I think that's why you read BYB.  Read THERE IS NO TOMORROW! It's a comprehensive, constructive piece on the Captain by Mike O'Hara.  We love Derek Jeter, we just want to see him succeed. Did you ever think that recently Jeet had Zimmer on his mind? Did you ever think that maybe it's tough to get back from an injury like he had back in October 2012? It takes time, Jeter's human, but yes, in the end, Jeter will succeed. He always has.  Last night the Yankees swept the Seattle Mariners, and most of it was because of Jeter. Trust me, he's coming around. 


Don't count Jeter out yet ladies and gentlemen.  Understand his struggles last season trying to get back.  Understand that sometimes it takes a bit longer to get rolling, especially with the injury he had.  I am hoping he's rolling now.  The Yankees sure are... 3 in a row IS a winning streak.  I like that.


Chase Whitley went 7.2 innings last night.  He only gave up 5 hits and 2 runs.  He looked great and I tip my cap to this guy.  He was asked to take the ball and fill in as a starter and he's done it... no pressure, just good pitching.  Read CHASE WHITLEY: KEEP CALM & PITCH ON.  Suzie nailed it.


The pen followed with Matt Thornton and Shawn Kelley and DRob got Save number 16.  I appreciate DRob there. He's filling his role wonderfully.


But back to the Yankees offense and Derek Jeter for a moment.  That was the story. Jeet was 3-4 last night. 2 RBIs, 2 runs scored.  But it all started with Jacoby Ellsbury in the 1st who cranked out a homer to get things going.  It was a 2 run shot. In the 3rd, Alfonso Soriano doubled knocking in 2. In the 4th, Jeter singled knocking in Brian Roberts and John Ryan Murphy.

Ultimately, we needed the Captain to wake up.  Ultimately, we needed the Yankees to sweep on the West Coast. It was very important and absolutely necessary.  Face it ladies and gentlemen... it's June 13th... we need to start winning.  This is a nice start... it really is...


Final: Yankees 6 - Mariners 3

Don't count the Captain out...

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