HOW ABOUT HITTERS HIT 'WHERE THEY AIN'T'

I like Tom Verducci.  I think he's a great writer and a good guy.  We shook hands at the Jorge Posada honoring at the Joe Torre Gala last November. He had no idea who I was and I really don't care. The point is, it's nice to see these guys once in a while.

He wrote a piece about the shift in baseball in good old Sports Illustrated.  You know, that annoying move of defense that prepares the opponent so there are literally 3 guys on the right side of 2nd base and 1 shortstop, who's actually the 3rd baseman, and literally no one on the left side of the infield.  Sometimes even the outfield shifts too.

Teams do it to maximize their chances to get big hitters out who normally hit to the right side, like, all the time. Tom writes:

"I recently asked a veteran major league hitting coach what can be done to inject more offense back in the game. His first response was to address the new defensive positioning.

'The shifts,' he said. 'Get rid of them. You need to come up with a definition of illegal defense. I know you’ll say, ‘Well, you’re a hitting coach. Of course you would [say that].’ But it’s something that has really changed the game.'

Support of an 'illegal defense' rule – or at least the consideration of it – is gaining some traction in baseball. Such a rule might stipulate, for instance, that you cannot have three infielders on one side of second base. A shortstop would be able to shift as far as directly behind second base on a lefthanded hitter, but no farther."

But I need to ask... why are we thinking about this? This is baseball, not lacrosse.  I mean, sure, I like great defense like most people, but this is a terrific strategy in baseball.  Here's an idea, how about we actually get hitters to spray the field? How in the world can teams or batters complain about something that they can easily fix themselves?

When I was in my teens, and no where near Major League caliber mind you, I would go to the cages for hours with my dad and he would teach me to spray the field.

"Hit down the 3rd base line!"

"Now up the middle."

"I want a hard liner over second base."

We'd do it for quite a while, and over time, it became my signature in high school.  I'd single through third and short regularly as a lefty. I'd put it up the middle if the field seemed crowded. And when I couldn't do much of anything, I'd bunt down the line and run my ass off.  You find a way to get on base in High School... and by the way, I did it for free.  But now, Verducci and others in baseball are suggesting there needs to be some kind of a rule for 'illegal defense'?  Why? So it's easier for hitters?  This is Major League Baseball, right? These guys get paid millions of dollars to get on base. So... do it!

If the shift comes into play, adjust. Like when you were in Little League, the coach would joke, but say, "Look at those gaps... hit it there!"  These days, I see pictures of a frustrated, cranky David Ortiz throwing his bat down because he couldn't get on base because of "the darn shift." Well, that's your problem, Papi.

I saw Brian McCann ground out 2 times on Tuesday night because the shift killed him.
My wife said, "Why are there 2 right fielders?"

I said, "That's the second baseman."
"I don't get it," she said.
"Strategy," I said... and that's the last we spoke of it.  That's because it is.

It's a game of wits and smarts and strategy and the idea of putting an "illegal defense" rule into effect seems absolutely silly when these players are seasoned for years on how to play the game and hit the ball correctly.  Teach batters to spray the field and be confident doing it, and we wouldn't be talking about this!

I leave you with this quote:  "Keep your eye clear, and hit 'em where they ain't." That's old school and that's from Willie Keeler. That's baseball, ladies and gentlemen, and "they" means the fielders.

There is nothing easy about baseball.  Strategy vs. Strategy. Team vs. Team.  Now... get out there, see the field, and figure it out.

Play on...

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DAVID PRICE BASHES "NON-PLAYER" ANALYSTS... AND I LOVE IT!

I've been saying this for years... there is nothing worse than a baseball analyst blasting a player's performance and they never played the game themselves.  What gives them the right to criticize anyone, you know what I mean?  David Price of the Rays got fed up, and he went after Tom Verducci pretty hard on Twitter... and I love it.

You see, David Price had a rough outing last night.  He gave up 7 runs in 7 innings. No one knows that he had a rough night more than him!  Obviously, the vultures circled Price and stated the obvious... he didn't do well.  As a former player, but never on the major league level... there is nothing more annoying, which is why I know there are a ton of players that don't read about themselves.  Well, Price did and went on the attack... and I applaud him:

Dirk Hayhurst...COULDNT hack it...Tom Verducci wasn't even a water boy in high school...but yet they can still bash a player...SAVE IT NERDS
— David Price (@DAVIDprice14) October 6, 2013

Now look, People may think I'm just jumping on the bandwagon and bashing only Verducci.  Price bashed Dirk Hayhurst too.   I just figured it was a given that Hayhurst was a hack... but Price went for the throat. That's why guys like Pete Caldera are geniuses in their craft.  They don't criticize, they report and not only that, they report nuggets.  Pete and guys like Pete do their job well. 

I never liked the TBS analysis anyway.  The set itself is horrible this season as well as the analysis and their choice in personnel.  It's a sausage party surrounding a small table and that huge lard Keith Olbermann is sitting there like he's taking a shit.  Are you going to sit there and tell me that this is the best TBS can do? They're a TV network... get it together.

I am a fan of Craig Sager because anyone who wears outfits like him has to have bigger balls than me, but back to Price... he's correct.  Critics shouldn't criticize unless they've done the heavy lifting.  Do you think Jon Heyman picked up a baseball bat in his life? I mean sure, he does in his CBSSports.com press photo... but that's for show.

David Price got it right and while he was frustrated from his performance last night, he shouldn't apologize.  I'd be curious how the critics feel about being criticized for what they do... or lack there of... not too good I bet.

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VERDUCCI JUST DRAGGED JETER INTO THE AROD MESS

"Rodriguez brought his fraudulency to the Yankees next, and with it came the discomfort caused by being teammates with Jeter. People speculated that their friction stemmed from a 2001 Esquire article in which Rodriguez took an unsolicited shot at Jeter, saying, 'Jeter's been blessed with talent around him. He never had to lead. He can just go play and have fun. And he hits second -- that's totally different than third or fourth in a lineup. You go into New York, you wanna stop Bernie [Williams] and [Paul] O'Neill. You never say, 'Don't let Derek beat you.' He's never your concern.'"

The article didn't help, especially for a guy like Jeter, who demands cold-blooded loyalty. But associates of Jeter knew what also bothered Jeter was Rodriguez's PED use, a whispered secret among players. It wasn't so much the popular comparison among the AL shortstops -- Jeter, Rodriguez, Miguel Tejada and Nomar Garciaparra -- in which people (including Rodriguez himself) degraded Jeter for his relative lack of power, his price for playing the game clean. It was that Jeter knew the two of them were wired so differently, with Rodriguez choosing the deceit of steroids to play the game."

That quote is from Tom Verducci in his SI piece HERE,  and my only question is... are you seriously bringing Derek Jeter into this? Why make it worse?

I have told you here at Bleeding Yankee Blue that the whole PEDs thing is icky to me. The media starts to call the users villains, (They're not, they're cheaters, there's a difference), and with players being fingered and some accepting their suspension and ARod not, yet, not admitting to NOT using. Meanwhile, the ones who accept are now considered guilty and some of them even previously denied any use. It's a circus and a mess.  One thing I won't stand for though is acting like a victim, like Alex did in his press conference.  The second thing I won't do is stand for people like Tom Verducci, whom I respect, dragging our Captain into it.  All this does is allow people to look at what  he wrote and suggest, "Well, Jeter knew Alex Rodriguez was using, could he be an accomplice?"  Jeter is sacred to Yankee fans, to baseball and it's wrong.  You know how people are, this PEDs story has legs and Verducci just added a few legs to it, putting Jeter and PEDs in the same sentence.

Look at that fool Skip Bayless last season when he "didn't say" Jeter was using but was basically saying there is no way he could be "that good" without dabbling.  Read SHAME ON SKIP BAYLESS for context on that.   Now, I'm not comparing Verducci with Bayless. They are on different levels, but Verducci was trying to be provocative here and I don't appreciate it. This time being provocative at the Captain's expense was wrong.   I would assume that Jeter doesn't like it either and you know what? You shouldn't either.

There are certain players that were and are good for the game of baseball.  Cal Ripken Jr... Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter and of course... in generations before me, there were several too.  Jackie Robinson for example.  Look, I'm not going to keep naming names, you get the idea.  I just didn't appreciate the tone of Verducci's piece is all and wanted to point it out.

Did Tom mean anything by it? Probably not, unless you consider "clicks" a crime, but throwing Jeter into the PEDs mess... it's' not needed... trust me, we have enough to talk about. Keep the Captain out of it!

What do you think? Comment.

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NOT SO FAST MICHAEL PINEDA

Marc Carig of the Star Ledger tweets some disturbing news out of Michael Pineda's extended Spring Training.  There is weakness in his shoulder.  Read that HERE. Next stop according to Carig is to be examined by the Yankees team doctor.  This is not good for the kid, although as far as the Yankees rotation is concerned, it eliminates the headache of moving around starters for other starters, it eliminated Pineda for now.  That being said, you really have to feel bad for this kid.  To think that Michael Pineda was pushing himself...competing for a rotation spot this Spring and got tendinitis... and now, he is suffering shoulder weakness, it's just a shame.  Yes, he will come back at some point, but for now, he's shut down.

I did write earlier this spring WHY THE INNINGS LOAD FOR PINEDA & NOVA WORRIES ME in which I stated:  "Tom Verducci is pretty good when it comes to this stuff and he's the one who came up with the the Verducci effect, and I started to wonder how it pertains to Michael Pineda and Ivan Nova . How will they respond this season, after 2011 showed us all a clear increase of innings compared to the previous season? It’s a tough call and everyone is different, but there is no denying, an increase of work load affects everyone. You have to believe it’s going to sneak into the equation when Pineda and Nova take the mound."

I then wrote: "Michael Pineda is 23 years old... think about that for a second. He pitched his first year in the majors last season. He pitched 171 innings. Before that, in AA West Tenn and in AAA Tacoma combined, he pitched 139.1 innings and had an 11-4 record with a 3.36 ERA. Don’t forget that Pineda came out of the gate as a powerful pitcher but by the All-Star break, he stalled and just hit a wall. After the All-star break his record was 1-4 with a 5.12 ERA. Many, including me suggested, the fatigue is normal for a kid this age, after all, over time he will gain strength, age and last longer in the season, but there is no question it is a concern jumping from the minors and pitching 139 innings to the majors going 171 innings."

You have to wonder if there is a connection between the innings load of Pineda and the now sore shoulder.  Stay tuned as we'll have more on this story soon.

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WHY THE PEN IS WHERE HUGHES BELONGS

(Photo: Getty)
Mark Feinsand has the story first HERE, and I suggested it a few weeks ago in WHY I'D MOVE HUGHES TO THE PEN. It makes sense to put Phil Hughes in the bullpen. No, this isn't a long term decision according to the Yankees, but it is for this Yankees / Red Sox series at least. Then, they'll re-evaluate. To be quite honest, this is a good test, especially if Hughes gets work out of the pen this weekend.

Phil Hughes gets mixed reviews by Yankee fans. Many are frustrated and don't believe the hype, others love the Golden Boy and just want him to succeed no matter what. Me? I just feel as though you can't just force the kid to be a starter if he's not. Now, don't misunderstand me; Hughes was huge for us in 2010, winning 18 games, but as many predicted, like Tom Verducci (Read HERE), there would definitely be work load issues for Phil Hughes in 2011. He was right and "dead arm" occurred. Couple that theory with the former Yankee player and manager Bill Masse who thought they babied Phil Hughes when he was down in the minors and we may be onto something. (In Photo: Bill Masse)
Read WAS BILL MASSE RIGHT ABOUT HUGHES? In it, Masse said this about the treatment of Hughes in the minors:

“We get so ridiculous with this dumb pitch count stuff… Somebody came up with a pitch count thing (like) this is going to decide if a kid’s arm is going to be healthy or not. It’s like predicting the weather sometimes. ‘If he throws 66 pitches, he will be fine, but if he throws 81, he is going to get hurt.’ No one can predict that.

The only negative you run into is that he never learns how to pitch when he is tired. He never learns how to pitch when he is a little bit fatigued. I think you run into those problems because he is always fresh. Also, he is never in trouble. He needs to learn how to pitch out of his second or third jam in the seventh inning with two outs and he’s throwing 90 mph instead of 94.”

Look, I don't take myself too seriously, there are plenty of people out there that have their own theories about Phil Hughes, This is mine. Use Phil as you need him, especially this season. Get him back to full strength. Maybe he will be back as a starter. maybe he's a reliever like he's proven for the Yankees in 2009. But what do I know, I'm just a blogger.

Clearly one of the main reasons the Yankees may move Hughes to the pen is because of the 6 man rotation they currently have. CC Sabathia has 16 wins, Freddy Garcia and Ivan Nova have 10 wins each, AJ Burnett has 8 wins, Bartolo Colon has 8 as well. Phil Hughes was out half the season nursing a "Dead arm" issue and has a record of 2-3 with a 6.93 ERA. To me, I say, let him work his way back, build his arm strength and see how he does out of the pen. Why take the others out of the rotation for someone who hasn't earned it.

Look, for all I know in 3 days Girardi may decide to move Nova back down to Scranton after the weekend, but to me, Nova earned his spot, he's done everything asked of the Yankees this year and he's proving himself. Hughes hasn't base it on a mystery illness, bad starts or whatever, bottom line, it's August. And think about this... Feinsand points out if after this weekend. Hughes comes out of the bullpen, Nova could then be put IN the bullpen and then there will be question marks on what to do next with AJ Burnett in his next start. To be honest, we don't need this in my opinion, we need stability in our rotation, it helps with confidence in pitchers. We used to laugh at Mike Mussina because he needed a schedule. He needed to pitch when he was supposed to pitch so he could concentrate on his ritual on throwing days. Maybe he was onto something. In my opinion, right now we need consistency and rhythm, not uncertainty. That's all I'm saying.

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WHY IT ISN'T OVER FOR TEIXEIRA

Why can't the Yankees just play baseball? Why can't Yankee fans just enjoy their players? I'll tell you why, because columnists and baseball know-it-alls like Peter Gammons and Tom Verducci need to rain on our parade, always. The latest? "Oh No, Mark Teixeira's on the decline"... brought to you by our friend Tom Verducci.

Look, As a fan from the outside looking in, when you think about Mark Teixeira, you think he starts slow and finishes hot. That's a fact. For years, this guy always had horrendous Aprils and slowly but surely was red hot by July. So what's the problem? That's the way his body and mind work. Does it stink? Alittle. Sure all Yankee fans want Tex to kick some ass early and stay that way... after all, we're paying him an awful lot of money. But let's face it, that's the reality we're in, and no one is terribly upset it. We just keep it in the back of our minds and when Tex's hot streak comes, we forget about it again until the next year's spring training. The solution? Kevin Long. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Let's take a look at 2009. Mark started off slow, but ended with great numbers, so great, you didn't even notice the slow start. He batted .292, had 39 home runs and 122 RBI's. To me, that looks terrific.

In 2010, Mark struggled. OK, fair enough, players struggle sometimes. It's baseball. It's life. Even sports writer's struggle sometimes, like this article from Tom Verducci, it's terrible. My point? You get back up and do it again, and better yourself next time.

But back to my point, In 2010, Mark batted .256 AVG, 32 home runs, and 108 RBI's. For an average player, the batting average isn't great, but those home run and RBI's are nice.

Now, one thing IS important. Strikeout total. Mark's striking out a lot more. Early in his career, he struck out over 100 times the first 5 seasons of his career, that dropped by to under 100 in 2008 and then it rose again when he joined the Yankees, 114 in 2009, 122 in 2010. That tells me he's either not seeing the ball great, and/or mechanics are an issue, but that's where Kevin Long comes in, like I said earlier. That's why Kevin's there Tom. You don't just tell a veteran he needs to change his swing one day and make a drastic change. You need to watch him consistently, take notes on the bad, and approach and fix the problem. Guess what, that's what Kevin Long is about to do.

Look, every player has a bad season, Jeter, A-Rod... it happens, but Mark Teixeira is not on the decline. The dude is 31 years old. Is this what we're doing now? A bad season equals a decline? Verducci's a smart guy, but I don't buy it.

Verducci recently spoke with Kevin Long about Teixeira. Kevin Long said he'll be working with Tex on his mechanics and slow starts. OK, Tom, again, that's obvious, a hitting coach will usually work with a player who sucks the year before, even Jeter's doing that. The fear, according to Mr. Verducci, is that if Teixeira fails to make these adjustments there is a real danger that his age will catch up with him and he’ll become the next Jason Giambi. OMG. Mark Teixeira is not going to end up another Jason Giambi. We are comparing to totally different players.

• Jason Giambi was a terrible first baseman and was signed strictly to hit home runs. Mark Teixeira is a Gold Glove winner and athletic. He not only hits home runs, he hits singles and doubles and knocks in runs regularly.
  
• Jason Giambi was an Oakland Athletics big shot who dabbled in performance enhancing drugs and probably damaged his body doing it, and broke down like a Pinto on I-95... fast. Mark Teixeira is a clean cut ball player who prides himself on never touching the stuff. The dude is all man and no bullshit.

Tom Verducci writes an article with a provocative headline and never mentions those 2 important pieces of information, Yet, he's connecting Tex and Giambi on going down the same path of decline? That's ridiculous.

My point to all this? It's not to slam Verducci believe it or not, it's to tell the Yankees fans, don't worry. Buy your tickets, buy your number 25 pinstripe jersey and keep rooting for Mark Teixeira. Nothings wrong with him. Nothing. It's only a bump in the road.

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