Upon CC as a Playoff Ace

During a discussion regarding a potential first-round matchup with the Tigers, someone mentioned that CC Sabathia had bad playoff numbers. ESPN’s Peter Gammons tackled this subject today, in an interesting article which should calm some nerves in Yankee-land. The article can be found below:

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/notebook?page=bbtn

Upon a Sweep, and a Win

Yesterday, the Yankees clinched both the AL East Divisional Championship, and the best record in the AL. The former entitles them to a non-wildcard trip to the playoffs, the latter homefield throughout the playoffs, however far they make it.

I predicted 99 wins for the Yankees this season, and I am very happy to have been wrong about that. Their 100th win is good for most in all of baseball, and their 55th home win also leads the big leagues. 

The Yankees famously started  0-8 against the Red Sox, and had many thinking that Boston had their number. Yesterday’s victory upped the Yankees record against Boston to 9-9 for the season, as they have won the last 9 of 10, including 7 straight at home.

I  admit that it is early, and that the playoffs are a different animal, but this regular season was just about as good as it could have been. In 2008, the Yankees missed the playoffs for the first time in 13 years. To come back the next year, while opening a new ballpark ,with the best team in baseball is exactly what every team would hope for.  The naysayers can cite the Yankees’ ability to spend…etc, but the financial state of a team does not guarantee success. This argument does not have an easy answer, but if money bought championships the Yankees, Knicks, Rangers and Redskins would rule sports. Not the case. Salary may give a team a better chance to sign high-priced players, and recover from bad deals, but the signings still have to be right.

As I sit here, in the middle of a 1.5 hour rain delay for a game against Kansas City, I have to say this season was great. It may sound a bit absurd, but 1991-2007 was a great run. The team continued to get better and better, and even when the championships stopped, they were a playoff team every year. This year represented a drastic makeover to the team; as they had progressed from a team on the skids, to a team on the rise, to a team on the brink, to at the top, to a team in the mix, to a team out of the playoffs. The top of the rotation was totally changed. The Yankees were no longer seeing the Giambi at they end of his contract that they paid for at the beginning, and brought Mark Teixeira in to be another superstar.  They didn’t bring in that “big money outfielder”, and used Gardner and Cabrera in center. They didn’t sell low on Cano, and will be very grateful. Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui, if not making themselves one more big contract in free agency, have possibly hit their way back onto the Yankees with resurgent offensive seasons. Derek Jeter has responded to the reports of his demise as a top-flight player with an amazing season. Alex Rodriguez’s PED admission and subsequent injury and recovery have returned him to the game as a more, can we say, sympathetic figure? I firmly believe he is one huge playoffs away from shedding a lot of his demons. Since his return, he has been on a underrated role, and his effect on the team has been perceptable.  

 I am ready for the playoffs, especially with the lineup of Gardner, Melky, Cano, Posada, Hinske  Duncan, Miranda, Cervelli, Pena that is being trotted out tonight to back Chad Gaudin. Though I do believe that this team beats the Mets in a best of 5 tomorrow. A great regular season for the Yankees, and the comfort of pouring over the minutae of the playoff matchups with several games to go in the regular season.

Upon the MVP Darkhorse

So the consensus among most baseball people is that Joe Mauer is the AL MVP.  Hard to put up a huge fuss with that.

Mauer is batting an amazing .371, with 28 HR, 89 RBI, and an OPS of 1.04. Huge numbers for a catcher. He missed April with an injury, but has come on like crazy since then. And the below stat is also interesting.

Joe Mauer — PA: 552	RBI: 89
ML Avg. Player with PA: 552	RBI: 63

But here is my counter- Alex Rodriguez. A Rod missed time at the beginning of the season with an injury as well. He is batting .283 with 27 HR,  89 RBI, and a .921 OPS. Here are his numbers compared to the average player.

Alex Rodriguez — PA: 508	RBI: 89
ML Avg. Player with PA: 508	RBI: 58

Now lets look at the teams’ records with each in the lineup:

Yankees with A-Rod: 77-40

Twins with Mauer: 66-61

So, couldn’t the case be made that A-rod is as valuable to the Yankees as Mauer is to the Twins? His team is 37 games over .500 with him in the lineup. The Twins are 5 games over with Mauer.

Mark Teixeira, an MVP candidate in his own right, was batting .200 in April 3 HR 10 RBI,  without A-Rod protecting him.  Since A-Rod’s return, he is hitting  .305 with 34 HR and 108 RBI.

So A-Rod has nearly the exact RBI and HR production of Mauer, in 50 fewer AB. His team is 32 games better than Mauer’s with each in the lineup. He has a much lower average, and a lower OPS, true.  And his clutch stats are not on par with Mauer.

Still, for someone that has received no attention for MVP, he has interesting numbers production-wise relative to the favorite, and his team has by far the best record in baseball since his return. If Mauer misses the playoffs on an 81-win team, while Rodriguez heads to the playoffs on a 100+ win team with the best record in all of baseball, what then? Do gaudy average and OPS numbers outweigh production, winning, and effect on teammates? If your team as a whole is only slightly better in terms of wins and losses with you in the lineup, shouldn’t a player whose team is significantly better in the same situation be deemed more valuable?

Upon Eli over Brady

Is Eli the new Tom Brady?

With time running out in the fourth quarter on Sunday, and their teams trailing, both Eli Manning and Tom Brady were given the football deep in their own territory and asked to lead a game-winning drive.

In February of 2008, both men were given a similar task on the biggest of stages; the Super Bowl. Eli Manning pulled magic out of his hat and marched the Giants down the field, in the process creating an indellible moment in Super Bowl history with the Tyree catch. Tom Brady, who had won three rings with late drives leading to game-winning field goals, appeared poised to create one more miracle finish. However, the Giants’ defense was not willing to cooperate and be on the bad end of history.

Flash forward to last week. Tom Brady and the Patriots did it again, coming from behind to beat the Buffalo Bills. After an injury stopped his 2008 season almost before it began, it appeared that Brady was back to his old ways.  If you give him the ball with time on the clock, watch out.

Now onto Sunday. In the 1:00 contest, the Jets and Patriots linked up  in a highly anticipated divisional contest. The Jets were clinging to a slim 16-9 lead, and Brady got the ball with just under 2 minutes on his own 10 yard line. The Pats had 5 plays for 18 yards, and lost the game. Credit should certainly be given to the Jets’ defense, who played almost the opposite of the prevent. Also, the Pats were missing Wes Welker, a Brady favorite who has been key in improvising offense. Still, Brady has come back countless times against some very tough defenses, and has done it with many receivers.

 Later last night, the Giants matched up with the Cowboys in another divisonal contest. After a back-and-forth game for the first 57 minutes, the Giants got the ball with 3:40 left, trailing 31-30. A holding call on Rich Seubert negated a good first down completion pushed the Giants back to their own 15, and set up a first and 20 with 3:24 left. Here is what followed:

• 2 yard pass to Bradshaw; 12 yard pass to David Hagan on a scramble; 2:00 minute warning.
• 11 yard pass to Steve Smith; no-huddle incompletion to Mario Manningham; 13-yard pass to Kevin Boss; 6 yard pass to Steve Smith; incomplete pass to Smith. 39 seconds left. Timeout Dallas.
• 8 yard completion on a tipped pass to Manningham (great concentration by the wideout); 12 yard completion to Smith. Timeout Giants with 13 seconds.
• Eli Manning sneak for 2 yards; timeout Giants. Kicker freeze timeout Cowboys. 37 yard field goal Tynes. Ballgame.

With a very Brady-esque drive, Eli Manning led the Giants down the field, managed the clock, and put his kicker in position to win the game. The weird thing is, Giants fans expected it to go this way. Smith and Manningham may have broken out in the same game, and Manning found them and Boss when he needed to. He didn’t panic, hurried but didn’t rush, and seemed in control the entire time.

So, with apologies to Brady and Rothelesberger, Eli Manning may just be the QB that fans would want with the ball in his hands and the game on the line.

 (PS- Tuck injury is worrysome, and the trip that caused it was BS; the defense got gashed by the running game of Dallas; the Giants running game needs to get going; I am glad I picked up Manningham week 1)

Upon NY Football 2009

The 2009 NFL season kicked off on Thursday of last week, and a rare Monday Night Football double header concluded week one last night. Both the New York football teams secured wins, and gave fans their first positive signs for the upcoming year.

The Giants- The Giants began their defense of the NFC East title with an important divisional victory against the Washington Redskins.  Dominant defense and solid kicking led the G-men to a 23-17 win.

Offense- The Giants began the season with a solid, if not spectacular, ofeensive game. Eli Manning threw for 256 yards, with one TD and one interception. He hooked up with second-year receiver Mario Manningham on a nifty catch and run, with Manningham tight-roping the  sideline for a 30-yard score. Steve Smith was his favorite target in this game, catching 6 balls for 80 yards. First-round pick Hakeem Nicks was injured in the game, and had to leave with a sprained foot.  Overall, it seems that Manning still has to establish a repore with all his receivers, but the emergence of Boss and Smith as solid options when a completion is needed was nice to see.

On the ground, the Giants were not able to muster much, and the team also suffered to loss of third RB Danny Ware. Ware injured his elbow on the opening kickoff, and was not able to play for the rest of the game. Ahmad Bradshaw ran 12 times for 60 yards, and Brandon Jacobs had 16 carries for 46 yards. The Redskins huge offseason acquisition was Albert Haynesworth, and he always clogs up the middle on defense.

Lawrence Tynes, who has recleimed the starting kicker job he lost last season after injuring himself, was perfect on three field goals and two extra points. Two of his kicks bent nicely through the uprights after starting wide-right, suggesting that Tynes has a good handle on the often tricky winds at Giants Stadium. 

Ovwerall, this was a decent effort on opening day, against a Redskins team with a solid defense. Look for the Giants to continue to grow in sync as the games progress.

 Defense- On defense, the Giants showed what could be a formidable 11-man squad. Osi Umenyiora announced his return as a dominant defensive player with a bullrush from the edge, strip of Skins QB Jason Campbell, fumble recovery, and 37-yard runback for a TD. Osi missed last season with an injury, but showed signs of returning to his All-pro form with 3 tackles, a sack, and the aforementioned fumble-touchdown. While Umenyiora was out in 2008, Justin Tuck emerged as a star, and he showed no signs of slowing. He had four tackles and 1.5 sacks, combining with Osi to cause havoc from the edge. Corey Webster, who got involved in a pushing/wrestling match with Santana Moss, picked off Campbell and looked good in coverage. 

The giants added several weapons for new defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan, who replaces the departed Steve Spagnuolo. The variety of looks which the Giants can throw at an opposing offense, combined with the rotation of highly-skilled players, allows them to have fresh players coming at the opposing QB from all angles throughout the game.  The Redskins only offensive score came on a fake field goal from Washington punter Hunter Smith.

The Giants limited the Redskins to 272 yards of total offense, and  the game was not as close as the final score would indicate.

Overall- The Giants should be pleased with their effort in the first game out, but there are still areas to clean up. The running game needs to establish itself, and the team needs to take care of the ball better. Eli fumbled twice, and was picked off. The Giants will head into Dallas next week, and will need their offense to handle some of the load, as the Cowboys offense looked good against Tampa. However,  I was happy to hear Brandon Jacobs stoking the fires for this rivalry, when he was heard on the radio saying “the Cowboys receivers looked good, especially when they were wide open.”

I’m ready for a good game next week.

Upon an Uncertain Future

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&page=rumblings090903

In the above article, ESPN’s Jason Stark looks at the Mets and their prospects in seasons beyond the nightmare 2009 campaign. Some interesting notes:

On Help from the Minors- 

As big a nightmare as the big league season may have been, life wasn’t exactly nirvana down below, either. The Mets’ Triple-A and Double-A teams are a combined 60 games under .500. Not one full-season Mets affiliate has a winning record. And we haven’t even gotten into the whole Tony Bernazard affair.

“That system is a mess,” said one NL executive. “They’re going to have to have a complete organizational, philosophical direction change.”

“That’s not a good system,” said an AL exec. “The good prospects they do have are a long ways away. They don’t have depth in their system or on their roster.”

While I am sure that Stark and the unnamed execs with whom he spoke don’t have the baseball IQ that some would require to make these proclamations, its not a rosy outlook.

On the Rotation-

“What are they going to do for a rotation behind Johan [Santana]?” asked one scout. “Oliver Perez has turned into their Adam Eaton. [John] Maine has reverted back to a Triple-A pitcher. [Jonathon] Niese is a rookie. Bobby Parnell is Aaron Heilman all over again. [Mike] Pelfrey is just a [No.] 4 or 5 [starter]. So they have to go out and get at least two, and probably three, starters.

Again, we can take this one scout’s word as gospel, as I am sure there are plenty of lousy scouts in baseball. However, I tend to agree with his assessment of the arms the Mets could potentially be throwing out there.

On the Outlook for Reshaping the Team:

And if they don’t make some kind of significant change to a mix of players their fans have lost faith in, can they possibly sell the 2010 Mets to a town where Yankees caps now seem to outnumber Mets caps by about 1,000 to 1?

The guys they could trade, they can’t bring themselves to trade. The guys they’d be happy to trade are guys nobody wants. And there aren’t nearly enough dollars in the old Wilpon checking account to solve this conundrum with money alone.

“So which way do they go?” asked one exec. “They don’t have any real good options. And that’s trouble.”

There is more in this article, and while I will not vouch for everything that is written there, it does reemphasize some of the points I have been making re: the Mets on this blog and in the comments.  I don’t think the Mets have a team, healthy or not, to compete with the NL East. They have $30 million coming off the books, but they will have to spend it prudently. The bullpen needs which helped doom them in 2007 and 2008 have been addressed, but now other gaping holes loom.