NYY vs BAL Series Recap
The Yankees played their opening series against the Orioles this week. It was a real roller coaster ride for fans as at some points the team looked pretty good and at others they looked pretty horrible. I am going to breeze through the recap to get to some important news and takeaways from the series.
Game 1: NYY 6 BAL 5
Game 1 was a real shocker. In typical Yankee fashion, the team gave up a one run lead in the 2nd to come back and tie it in the 4th. Then, unsurprisingly, again the team gave the lead back allowing two runs to score in the 6th to make it a 4-2 Baltimore lead. The surprising part is that in the bottom of the seventh, the team actually had a good approach with runners on which eventually led to a Stephen Drew grand slam (say what?) to take the lead. Dellin Betances came in and tried his hardest to give the game back, walking two forcing Girardi to turn to Miller for a five out save which he nailed beautifully to seal a Yankee win. Chris Young, Mark Teixeira, and Stephen Drew all homered. Michael Pineda turned in a gutsy performance with 6.1 IP, 5 ER and 9 Ks. His FIP is now 1.83, Clayton Kershaw's is 3.21.
Game 2: NYY 3 BAL 4
CC Sabathia took the mound in game 2 and allowed a run in three of the first four innings. Overall his night wasn't that bad actually as he went 7 IP with 4 ER and 7 Ks. His FIP is now 1.86 (remember Clayton Kershaw's is a lot higher). The issue here is the offense went quiet against really average right hander Miguel Gonzalez (NYY has struggled against him in recent years). Teixeira and Beltran each collected RBIs in the late innings and each also had a double in the game. Teixeira should have had two, as he ripped a ball the other way into left that bounced of the glove of Alejandro De Aza in fully sprint. It was ridiculously ruled an error. Look it up. Ken Singleton took quite a bit of airtime to discuss why it was a bad scoring decision and I commend him for that.
Game 3: NYY 5 BAL 7
More of the same.The Yankees siezed a 3-2 lead early on to back a wildly effective Nathan Eovaldi. He was once again blasted as he allowed 8 hits and 3 walks in only 5.0 IP, but collected 9 Ks while allowing only two earned runs. David Carpenter and Justin Wilson each pitched in the 6th and gave up five runs between them to give the O's a 7-3 lead. A sac fly and a wild pitch allowed the Yankees to score two in the 8th, but alas the team ultimately lost 7-5. Alex Rodriguez hit his second home run of the year this game.
Series Thoughts
The Yankees still haven't won a series and are now 3-6 on the year. Friday they head to Tampa to play the Rays who are 5-4. I didn't have overwhelming expectations for the team this year, but I certainly would've thought the Yankees would have a better record than the rays at this point.
The general thought is that at least these games are close. Yeah that's nice, but you've gotta come out on top in games where it's close and you have a chance to win. Every win is going to count this year and the Yankees can't afford to go 1-2 the next few series like they have so far.
There are several contributing issues. The pitching and hitting are never on the same page. Nights the offense comes to life the pitchers give up oodles of runs. On the contrary, when good pitching performances are turned in, the bats are silent. They just haven't looked inspired or motivated in the least bit. Not to mention the defense which has been pretty consistently bad. That has got to change if the team wants to compete. Michael Pineda has a 5.11 ERA and 1.83 FIP whereas CC is at 5.86 and 1.86. That should tell you a lot about the Yankee defense.
That said Pineda and Sabathia should be exciting Yankee fans with their performance this series. They did what they needed to put the team in a position to win the game. We all know I've been critical of Nathan Eovaldi, but from a purely results standpoint, his start last night could've been worse. If he can find a put away pitch for two strike counts he might be alright. But he's has got to stop giving up so many hits, that's going to kill him in the AL East where the Orioles, Red Sox, and Blue Jays are all major home run threats. He's also needs to be more efficient, as his pitch count was so high he had to be lifted after just five innings.
Offensively, Alex Rodriguez has got some kind of chip on his shoulder. He's hitting for both average and power (!!!) and is leading the squad in RBIs at seven. This is huge for the Yankees. Even if things do start getting better, I'm not so sure this team is a contender and a slugging Rodriguez could push them over that hump.
Teixeira continued to mash this series with a home run and a few doubles. He has now hit in eight straight and leads the team in OPS at 1.016 (181 OPS+). A healthy Teixeira is the team's best offensive weapon and if can continue to stay on the field, look for more big numbers from #25.
Chris Young and Carlos Beltran (finally) showed signs of life with each collecting a few doubles and RBIs in the series. Young slugged a homer as well. Beltran really needs to get going, but if Young can become a consistent run producer, the Yankee lineup can be scary.
Didi Gregorius is disappointing many and continued to hit poorly, field poorly, and run the bases poorly this series collecting only two hits and making an error. We are only nine games in and replacing Derek Jeter in NYC is a daunting task no doubt, but one can only wonder how long a leash they'll give him to continue playing this way. In fact, this brings us to our first Yankee trade rumor of the year!
Yankees Interested In Braves Top Prospect Jose Peraza
Talk about a really strange trade rumor. I guess it makes sense. The Yankee middle infield has been an inconsistent mess. George King of the New York Post reports that the Yankees have informed the Braves they're interested and have been scouting hi at AAA this year.
Talk about being blatant. It's a pretty damning statement for Didi Gregorius, Rob Refsnyder, and Jose Pirela as Peraza plays SS and 2B and would have to take one of the spots in the future.
Peraza had a pretty good year hitting .339 avg. with 60 SB last year between A/AA last year. That's not too shabby. However, at 6' 165 lbs. Peraza is limited to excelling at pretty much those two things: Contact hitting and stealing bases.
I think Rob Refsnyder and Jose Pirela have the ability to do the same in addition to hitting with some power. I'm not necessarily opposed trading for Peraza, but come on, give these two guys a shot first. I was pretty skeptical of Refsynder in the offseason, but what I saw in spring training is the real deal.
If the trade for Peraza were to have him play shortstop, I'm all for it. I have been quite vocal that what we've seen from Gregorius is who he is as a player. I think Peraza could really be what the team thought Gregorius would be and would be on board to have him replace Sir Didi. This likely wouldn't anytime soon if it did happen though.
The article by King suggests a package with Gary Sanchez for Peraza. I would be just fine with that, if there's one Yankee prospect I'm fine parting with it's Sanchez.
It seems like the Yankees want him and it's only a matter of working out a deal to acquire him. Stay posted as we all wait to find out in the coming weeks, perhaps he can inject some life into this team.
By: Nick Scott
Game 1 was a real shocker. In typical Yankee fashion, the team gave up a one run lead in the 2nd to come back and tie it in the 4th. Then, unsurprisingly, again the team gave the lead back allowing two runs to score in the 6th to make it a 4-2 Baltimore lead. The surprising part is that in the bottom of the seventh, the team actually had a good approach with runners on which eventually led to a Stephen Drew grand slam (say what?) to take the lead. Dellin Betances came in and tried his hardest to give the game back, walking two forcing Girardi to turn to Miller for a five out save which he nailed beautifully to seal a Yankee win. Chris Young, Mark Teixeira, and Stephen Drew all homered. Michael Pineda turned in a gutsy performance with 6.1 IP, 5 ER and 9 Ks. His FIP is now 1.83, Clayton Kershaw's is 3.21.
Game 2: NYY 3 BAL 4
CC Sabathia took the mound in game 2 and allowed a run in three of the first four innings. Overall his night wasn't that bad actually as he went 7 IP with 4 ER and 7 Ks. His FIP is now 1.86 (remember Clayton Kershaw's is a lot higher). The issue here is the offense went quiet against really average right hander Miguel Gonzalez (NYY has struggled against him in recent years). Teixeira and Beltran each collected RBIs in the late innings and each also had a double in the game. Teixeira should have had two, as he ripped a ball the other way into left that bounced of the glove of Alejandro De Aza in fully sprint. It was ridiculously ruled an error. Look it up. Ken Singleton took quite a bit of airtime to discuss why it was a bad scoring decision and I commend him for that.
Game 3: NYY 5 BAL 7
More of the same.The Yankees siezed a 3-2 lead early on to back a wildly effective Nathan Eovaldi. He was once again blasted as he allowed 8 hits and 3 walks in only 5.0 IP, but collected 9 Ks while allowing only two earned runs. David Carpenter and Justin Wilson each pitched in the 6th and gave up five runs between them to give the O's a 7-3 lead. A sac fly and a wild pitch allowed the Yankees to score two in the 8th, but alas the team ultimately lost 7-5. Alex Rodriguez hit his second home run of the year this game.
Series Thoughts
The Yankees still haven't won a series and are now 3-6 on the year. Friday they head to Tampa to play the Rays who are 5-4. I didn't have overwhelming expectations for the team this year, but I certainly would've thought the Yankees would have a better record than the rays at this point.
The general thought is that at least these games are close. Yeah that's nice, but you've gotta come out on top in games where it's close and you have a chance to win. Every win is going to count this year and the Yankees can't afford to go 1-2 the next few series like they have so far.
There are several contributing issues. The pitching and hitting are never on the same page. Nights the offense comes to life the pitchers give up oodles of runs. On the contrary, when good pitching performances are turned in, the bats are silent. They just haven't looked inspired or motivated in the least bit. Not to mention the defense which has been pretty consistently bad. That has got to change if the team wants to compete. Michael Pineda has a 5.11 ERA and 1.83 FIP whereas CC is at 5.86 and 1.86. That should tell you a lot about the Yankee defense.
That said Pineda and Sabathia should be exciting Yankee fans with their performance this series. They did what they needed to put the team in a position to win the game. We all know I've been critical of Nathan Eovaldi, but from a purely results standpoint, his start last night could've been worse. If he can find a put away pitch for two strike counts he might be alright. But he's has got to stop giving up so many hits, that's going to kill him in the AL East where the Orioles, Red Sox, and Blue Jays are all major home run threats. He's also needs to be more efficient, as his pitch count was so high he had to be lifted after just five innings.
Offensively, Alex Rodriguez has got some kind of chip on his shoulder. He's hitting for both average and power (!!!) and is leading the squad in RBIs at seven. This is huge for the Yankees. Even if things do start getting better, I'm not so sure this team is a contender and a slugging Rodriguez could push them over that hump.
Teixeira continued to mash this series with a home run and a few doubles. He has now hit in eight straight and leads the team in OPS at 1.016 (181 OPS+). A healthy Teixeira is the team's best offensive weapon and if can continue to stay on the field, look for more big numbers from #25.
Chris Young and Carlos Beltran (finally) showed signs of life with each collecting a few doubles and RBIs in the series. Young slugged a homer as well. Beltran really needs to get going, but if Young can become a consistent run producer, the Yankee lineup can be scary.
Didi Gregorius is disappointing many and continued to hit poorly, field poorly, and run the bases poorly this series collecting only two hits and making an error. We are only nine games in and replacing Derek Jeter in NYC is a daunting task no doubt, but one can only wonder how long a leash they'll give him to continue playing this way. In fact, this brings us to our first Yankee trade rumor of the year!
Yankees Interested In Braves Top Prospect Jose Peraza
Talk about a really strange trade rumor. I guess it makes sense. The Yankee middle infield has been an inconsistent mess. George King of the New York Post reports that the Yankees have informed the Braves they're interested and have been scouting hi at AAA this year.
Talk about being blatant. It's a pretty damning statement for Didi Gregorius, Rob Refsnyder, and Jose Pirela as Peraza plays SS and 2B and would have to take one of the spots in the future.
Peraza had a pretty good year hitting .339 avg. with 60 SB last year between A/AA last year. That's not too shabby. However, at 6' 165 lbs. Peraza is limited to excelling at pretty much those two things: Contact hitting and stealing bases.
I think Rob Refsnyder and Jose Pirela have the ability to do the same in addition to hitting with some power. I'm not necessarily opposed trading for Peraza, but come on, give these two guys a shot first. I was pretty skeptical of Refsynder in the offseason, but what I saw in spring training is the real deal.
If the trade for Peraza were to have him play shortstop, I'm all for it. I have been quite vocal that what we've seen from Gregorius is who he is as a player. I think Peraza could really be what the team thought Gregorius would be and would be on board to have him replace Sir Didi. This likely wouldn't anytime soon if it did happen though.
The article by King suggests a package with Gary Sanchez for Peraza. I would be just fine with that, if there's one Yankee prospect I'm fine parting with it's Sanchez.
It seems like the Yankees want him and it's only a matter of working out a deal to acquire him. Stay posted as we all wait to find out in the coming weeks, perhaps he can inject some life into this team.
By: Nick Scott
Take 2: I have such a hard time critiquing these guys because I just want to believe it will all fall into place. I know that realistically there has to be constructive analysis and that it isn't a negative thing in fact just the opposite so its super cool to be able to read these articles because it makes me think about everything in a new light. I'm also missing Mo, Jeter, Posada and Cano - So I need the perspective you bring to my new guys.
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