Rays fall again in the day game (Wednesday, 9/21/11)
Posted by John Autin on September 21, 2011
Yankees 4, Rays 2: We knew it wouldn't be easy for Tampa to catch Boston while playing 7 of their last 10 games against the Yankees. But this one really hurt them.
In the 8th inning, Robinson Cano waited calmly on a 3-1 curveball from lefty J.P. Howell -- LHPs haven't bothered Cano in about 5 years -- and ripped it to deep CF for a tie-breaking 2-run double. Then, Mariano Rivera did what a shut-down closer does, retiring the top of Tampa's order without a hitch for his 603rd save, as New York claimed the first 2 games of this 4-game set and secured the 16th postseason berth in the 17-year careers of Rivera, Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada.
Alex Rodriguez had put the Yanks on top in the 1st with a double off James Shields, but the Rays leapfrogged to a 2-1 edge in the 3rd, when Desmond Jennings cracked a 2-run shot (note the bat speed) off fill-in starter Hector Noesi. Eduardo Nunez built a Yankee threat all by himself in the 5th; with 1 away, he singled, then stole 2nd and 3rd in a span of 3 pitches with Austin Romine at bat. But with Evan Longoria playing fairly near the bag, Nunez got too aggressive; he took a large secondary lead, and had no chance to retreat in time when Longoria made a diving grab of Romine's liner. End of threat.
Nunez redeemed himself in his next at-bat. He opened the 8th by pulling an 0-1 pitch over the LF wall, just beyond the leaping Jennings and into the waiting glove of a young Cano fan, who made a stunned basket catch. (Turn the glove over next time, lad; a liner right at you usually has more carry than you think!) After a strikeout, Brett Gardner singled, then stole 2nd during a 4-pitch walk to Jeter that brought Shields's work day to a close. Enter Howell; and up stepped Cano, starting in the #3 spot for just the 8th time ever.
There was a little history between the two, nothing conclusive: Cano came in 5 for 17 off Howell, with a 3-run HR, a bases-loaded walk, 2 strikeouts, and 1 GDP. Howell was a key member of the Rays' bullpen in 2008-09, with impressive hit and strikeout numbers, and even served a stint as closer. But he missed all of last season after shoulder surgery, and has been used sparingly this year, with just 30 IP in 44 games. He lost one of the Baltimore games last week, serving a 2-run HR to Matt Wieters, and brought a 6.37 ERA into the game.
Howell threw 3 straight balls to Cano, who then took a strike. The next pitch was a slow curve, targeted low and away but winding up on a tee, down the middle and thigh-high. Cano hammered it toward the Stanley sign in CF; B.J. Upton, shaded to the pull side, never had a chance as the ball one-hopped the wall, and both runners scored.
The Rays had many scoring chances in the game, but the Jennings HR was their only hit in 10 ABs with RISP. Matt Joyce singled to start the 2nd, but was out trying to advance. Casey Kotchman led off the 5th with a double, but never advanced. Johnny Damon ended the 3rd and 5th by whiffing with 2 men aboard. Luis Ayala bailed out Boone Logan from a 2-on jam in the 8th with a pair of strikeouts, earning the win.
Shields came in on a 4-start win streak, allowing 3 runs in 34 IP, and had a 1.59 ERA in 3 starts against NY this year. He struck out 7, moving into 3rd in the AL with 221 Ks, but was charged with all 4 runs and fell to 15-12, 2.84.
The night shift will pit CC Sabathia (#2 in AL Ks), in his 3rd try at his 2nd 20-win season, against Jeremy Hellickson, a leading Rookie of the Year candidate with a 1.94 ERA in his last 6 games. He's faced the Yanks in 2 games, one good, one not. Sabathia has a 2.52 ERA in 25 IP against the Rays, but a 1-2 record.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:07 pm
Very nice. You've always done a great job analyzing the games. You and Johnny Twisto always have the most challenging questions. Pauley and Kahuna Tuna very careful analysts also. Lately, I've noticed Lawrence Azrins and Dvd Avins contributing. You all have keen, sharp baseball minds. Very much appreciated.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:25 pm
The Sox just lost to Baltimore 6-4, after having a 4-1 lead. It seems that Boston's pitching is going to be their downfall. They had Beckett on the
mound tonight and he left in the seventh after blowing that lead.
This was a huge loss for Boston. WIth Beckett on the mound, they really
needed this.
At this point, I would be shocked if Boston makes the playoffs.
Meanwhile, the Yankees have clinched their 50th playoff appearance
in franchise history. And with a win tonite, tied 2-2 in the 8th, the Yankees
will clinch their 17th AL East title, the 13th for the JA's aformentioned
triumvirate.
Thanks for the info John.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:30 pm
CC just left a tie game in the 8th with the bases loaded.
No number 20 for CC, not that it matters.
I wonder if he gets one more shot as the Yankees set their rotation.
BTW, as was discussed in the post about rookies winning 15 games,
I now believe that Ivan Novoa is the Yankees number 2 in the postseason.
Nobody would have thought that possible back in March.
David Robertson is awesome!!
In fact, I think the Yankee bullpen will make it a six inning game in the postseason, just like in the late 90's.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:42 pm
@3, Jason -- I think the 7th inning is still in play for a Yankee opponent. Rafael Soriano can be dominant, but he's had a choppy year, and his postseason debut last year left plenty of question marks.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:49 pm
Speaking of David Robertson (who got the Yankees out of a bases-loaded jam with a 1-pitch DP in the 8th) --
It was his 19th batter faced with the sacks full this year. The first time, he allowed a base-clearing double. Since then, no hits, no walks, no sac flies, 14 Ks, one GDP, and one run-scoring groundout.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:52 pm
@4, John- you are right. The 7th inning is definitely in play. I am hoping that Soriano is ready to step up and own the 7th inning this postseason, but you right. He is not Jeff Nelson or Mike Stanton yet.
The playoffs are going to be awesome in the AL.
The Tigers with Verlander are playing their best baseball of the season.
And Texas lately has reminded everyone that they are the defending AL champs.
If TB makes it, they will be a tough out.
Boston is toast. I would be shocked if they make a deep postseason run.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:57 pm
@5-John,
great info about Robertson, thanks for that.
If Soriano does not step up, I think Girardi will use only Robertson and Mo
in the 7th, 8th and 9th innings.
Mo's postseason record of saves over one inning is sure to continue.
Wow! Hip Hip Jorge!
A pinch hit 2 run single to give the Yankees a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the 8th!
Awesome??
Time for the Sandman to wrap up the AL East.
The baseball package is the best entertainment value in America.
September 21st, 2011 at 11:09 pm
No sandman since he pitched this afternoon.
But Soriano got it done instead.
AL East Champs.
September 21st, 2011 at 11:28 pm
1- I appreciate your contributions as well. 'Very careful analysts' makes me chuckle! I wonder if that's because I keep my most outrageous opinions to myself. I'm sure I could set off firestorms if I tried.
September 21st, 2011 at 11:32 pm
@5 JA
And the run-scoring grounder was in CC's 14K performance. It was a ball that Chavez (I think) booted a bit trying to turn the 5-3 DP.
September 21st, 2011 at 11:34 pm
with Evan Longoria playing fairly near the bag, Nunez got too aggressive; he took a large secondary lead, and had no chance to retreat in time when Longoria made a diving grab of Romine's liner. End of threat.
I was at the game and my dad and I were talking about this. After stealing the two bases, Nunez then came tearing down the third base line on a foul ball. My dad joked that Nunez was probably going to try scoring no matter what happened. I said I wouldn't be surprised, as he hasn't struck me as the smartest ballplayer this season (though I do like him and think he has some potential). Then he got doubled off on that liner. I'm not sure if he made a bad play on that though. The replay doesn't help. Longoria caught the ball right next to the bag. Even if Nun-E retreats as soon as he sees the ball on a line, I'm not sure he gets back in time.
My dad was also surprised TB was playing the infield in with a 2-1 lead in the 5th, with Shields pitching great and NY well into their pen. I'm not sure if that was the right move, but I think it paid off there. I'm not sure Longoria catches that ball if he's at normal depth.
Left out of JA's recap is that the Yankees used 8 pitchers. Hector Noesi started the game in place of Phil Hughes. Noesi has done a nice job as a long reliever this season, softening the impact of letting Alfredo Aceves go. We were initially shocked when Noesi got pulled in the 3rd inning. But I then realized that his 2.2 IP were his most in a month, and his 55 pitches were his most since early June. He wasn't going to pitch much longer anyway, and with a runner on and three lefties due up, why not make the change there.
Girardi kept making the changes, bringing in a new lefty in the 3rd, 5th, and 7th, each time with LHB Joyce (to be followed by lefties Damon and Kotchman) up with runners on. Raul Valdes also made a case for himself as a postseason lefty reliever, with 3 strikeouts of 6 batters faced. How did he look on TV?
I now believe that Ivan Novoa is the Yankees number 2 in the postseason.
I think you're probably right, though I'm not excited about it. My 2-4 SP are probably Nova, Garcia, and Colon, and I'd study the matchups to see what advantage can be gained by pitching them in a particular order.
I am hoping that Soriano is ready to step up and own the 7th inning this postseason, but you right. He is not Jeff Nelson or Mike Stanton yet.
I don't think Nelson and Stanton were as good as the Nelson and Stanton who fans seem to remember. I'll try to come back to this.
Not sure why Girardi used Soriano to close the second game, since Robertson had only thrown 1 pitch in the 8th. It worked out, of course.
September 21st, 2011 at 11:50 pm
@ 6
Don't forget about the Angels. They are making a late push for the wild card and right now are sitting 2 1/2 games behind the Red Sox. The Angels are playing well just when the Red sox are struggling. Also, I think that Weaver and Haren are far more reliable than any of the Red Sox starters.
September 21st, 2011 at 11:57 pm
@4,6,7
Since April 30th Soriano has held opponents to a .532 ops.
September 21st, 2011 at 11:59 pm
...that's not including tonight
September 22nd, 2011 at 12:32 am
Good point, Voomo. The moral, as usual -- I should never base a point on anecdotal memories.
No offense to my Yankee friends, but I hope those 3 aren't all on top of their game in October.
September 22nd, 2011 at 12:35 am
@11, JT -- Cool that you were there today!
And you may be right about Nunez not being at fault there. I have a kind of obsession with MLB runners getting doubled off on line drives -- there's a lot of fundamentally wrong baserunning out there -- but he might have been out even with a normal lead.
I still don't like the way he played that situation, though.
September 22nd, 2011 at 11:06 am
How are we supposed to notice Desmond Jennings' bat speed?
September 22nd, 2011 at 11:12 am
@17, Detroit Michael -- Right before that parenthetical statement about DJ's bat speed, the words "2-run shot" are linked to a MLB.com video clip of the HR. The link works for me; please let me know if it doesn't work for you.
September 22nd, 2011 at 12:33 pm
I would go CC, Nova, Colon, Garcia (might flip Colon/Garcia depending on match-ups), and put Hughes in pen going with a 6th inning of Hughes, Soriano 7th, Roberston 8th, Mo 9th.
Post season staff:
CC
Nova
Colon
Garcia
Mo
Robertson
Soriano
Hughes
Ayala
Wade
Logan
Valdes or Noesi depending on matchups
Burnett (at home watching games on TV)
Rest of roster:
Martin
Tex
Cano
Jeter
Arod
Swisher
Granderson
Gardner
Jones
Nunez
Romine or Cervelli (is Montero being considered for backup catcher in playoff? I doubt it)
Montero (Is Montero being considered for backup playoff catcher --probably NOT)
Posada or Chavez (I'd take Jorge, but can understand taking Chavez instead)
In recent years, Yanks have gone with 14 position players and 11 pitchers . Do they actually go with 12 pitchers because of their light starting rotation? I think I'd go with 12 pitchers and 13 position players. 24-25th guys comes down to Posada, Chavez, Noesi or Valdes (maybe Montero is in this mix as well, but I doubt it). I can see where they leave Posada off roster, but I can also see them adding Posada and just going with 11 pitchers listed above. If Hughes can't go first round b/c of back, then things obviously change some.
If Hughes can go my last 2 guys are: in first round for Red Sox series I'd go Valdes, and Posada. If not Red Sox, take Valdes out, and insert Noesi.
AGAIN, Burnett at home watching games on TV.