Friday, May 1, 2015

Alex Rodriguez Hits Home Run #660 All-Time


Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez has hit his 660th home run of his career to tie Willie Mays for fourth on the all-time home run list. Steroids or not this is a milestone and a hell of an accomplishment and I will give credit and congratulations where credit and congratulations is due. Congrats A Rod, you came back when no one said you should and you put together a great first month of the season when nobody said you could. You deserve this!

Now about that $6 million check....

Game Thread: New York Yankees @ Boston Red Sox 5/1


It is Friday night and it’s the rivalry renewed between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox. The last time these two teams faced off against each other on a Friday night they played two essentially as these two teams played in what quickly became a marathon. Hopefully for both team’s sake they don’t go for two plus games again tonight because I’m not sure either bullpen could handle it. Anyway, tonight we are being entertained with a Justin Masterson and CC Sabathia pitching matchup tonight in Fenway Park. The game will be played at 7:10 pm ET and can be seen on the YES Network and MLB TV.

If you’re in the Boston area then grab a pair of Yankees tickets for this weekend’s series in Fenway Park by clicking our Yankees Tickets link at the top of the blog. We can offer you cheap third hand seats without any fees or shipping costs associated with them through our partnership with Ticket Monster. If you’re a homebody like me or you’re just not in the Boston area then join us on Twitter (@GreedyStripes) or in the comments section to interact during the game.


Hopefully Sabathia gets his first win tonight in Fenway and we can get out of here with a victory. Go Yankees!

MLB All Star Game Voting Has Officially Begun!


Voting has opened for the 2015 MLB All Star Game that will be help in Cincinnati this season so it’s time to send your favorite New York Yankees player to the midsummer classic. Whether it be Jacoby Ellsbury in the outfield, Mark Teixeira in the infield or Alex Rodriguez finally displacing David Ortiz at the DH position (which won’t happen) we the fans needs to band together and send our boys to Cincinnati. You can vote for your All Stars, Yankees or not, RIGHT HERE or by going to Yankees.com. Time to represent ladies and gentleman so make sure you use all 10 of your votes, or 15 if you have an applicable account like I do, and send your favorite players. 

Game Preview: New York Yankees @ Boston Red Sox 5/1


The New York Yankees lost on Wednesday afternoon in 13 innings and had an off day to think about it and let it sting so hopefully the offense will be up to the task of taking it out on the Boston Red Sox tonight in Fenway. The Yankees head into the contest in first place in the American League East division and are the only team still with single digits in losses heading into the contest. The original pitching matchup for tonight was supposed to be Justin Masterson for the Red Sox and Michael Pineda for the Yankees but Pineda was used yesterday in place of the injured Masahiro Tanaka so in steps CC Sabathia. Sabathia is still searching for his first victory of the season, although he has pitched well enough to win at least two of those decisions this season. The game will be played at 7:10 pm ET and can be seen on the YES Network and MLB TV.

  • Sabathia is winless in his first four starts of the season posting a 0-4 record with an ugly 5.96 ERA. Sabathia has pitched better than his record and his ERA suggests but has not registered a victory since April 24, 2014 and is on a six start losing streak, the longest drought of his career. Hopefully Sabathia can snap that streak tonight in Fenway Park.


  • Masterson has not been especially sharp this season for Boston but is coming off a start where he allowed just three runs over seven innings to the Baltimore Orioles. This marked just the second time Masterson threw a quality start this season and has shown better control in each of his starts this season, something that hopefully takes a step back tonight in Boston.



This is going to be another tough series for New York against another great team so I fully expect the Yankees to bring their “A” game to Fenway Park tonight. Masterson has struggled this season, and don’t get me wrong so has Sabathia, so hopefully the Yankees can jump out early and often tonight and set the tone. Go Yankees!

Looking on the Bright Side For Masahiro Tanaka


Masahiro Tanaka has, at least temporarily, avoided Tommy John surgery after four doctors including Dr. James Andrews cleared him to rest and rehab his partially torn ulnar collateral ligament. This week we learned that Tanaka went into the Yankees complaining of a wrist injury that ended up being a “small” forearm strain that landed him on the 15 day DL and will keep him out of the Yankees rotation for at least a month. This much we do know and unlike the many on Twitter who went absolutely ape crap crazy on Tuesday night calling for the head of Brian Cashman because Tanaka did not get Tommy John surgery I am going to try, now that I am calm and had a night or two to sleep on it, to remain optimistic about the whole ordeal because there is plenty to be optimistic about. Keep reading and I’ll try to get there as quickly as I can. 

The Yankees are either going to survive this rest and rehab thing on his elbow or they aren’t and it’s looking more and more likely that it’s going to come to a head sometime during the 2015 season. This can be a good thing or a bad thing for New York when you consider his opt out clause that Tanaka has written into his contract that will allow him to opt out after the 2017 season. If Tanaka ends up going down with Tommy John surgery in 2015 he will miss likely the entire 2016 season due to rehab and will not be the same in 2017. Usually pitchers take a year off to rest and rehab and a year of getting back into the grind that is the Major League season before you see the true finished product two years removed from the surgery. Tanaka may be the exception to the rule, in either direction, but he would be unlikely to put up numbers similar to his first 18 starts in 2014 meaning the likelihood of him exercising the opt out clause has to be low.

If Tanaka can make it through the season without any further problems with the elbow and can make it through the 2017 season without a Tommy John surgery then he may opt out of his contract, and honestly that may be the best thing for the Yankees. Tanaka is signed through the 2020 season and all signs point to this rest and rehab just being a band-aid to his problem meaning that the Yankees simply delayed the inevitable with Tanaka’s elbow. If Tanaka opts out and walks away from the final three years of his contract it may be a blessing in disguise for New York, especially if he succumbs to the surgery in the final three years or beyond like Adam Wainwright eventually did in a similar situation.


There is a lot of “what-if’s” and moving parts in this theory, I know, but it has to be, or should be at least, in the back of the minds of the Yankees brass. It’s either going to work out or it’s not and in a pair of scenarios it could work out for the Yankees so don’t panic and let’s look on the bright side. Either the Yankees will have to pay Tanaka big money to rehab his elbow with a gaping hole in their rotation or it will be someone else’s problem but we cannot predict or prevent either outcome so let’s all take a step back and enjoy him while we have him, shall we?

TGP Daily Poll: Justin Masterson Chokes in Yankees/Red Sox Rivalry



I don’t know who will win the first game between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox, although I lean towards the hotter team in New York, but I know it won’t be Justin Masterson. He will not have a quality start in Fenway Park Friday night.


Vote in our prediction poll on Knoda.com 

Weekly Check In: Robert Refsnyder


It’s Friday morning, Happy Friday by the way, so it must be time to check in with possibly the second baseman of the future for the New York Yankees Mr. Robert Refsnyder. Since Stephen Drew has at least been hitting for power, four home runs, and has been driving in runs, 10 RBI, the drum beating for Refsnyder in the Bronx has at least slowed but it’s not gone completely. Let’s see what Drew’s average that currently sits below the Mendoza Line is up against:

YearLevGPARH2B3BHRRBIBBSOBAOBPSLGOPS
2015AAA19827206008513.263.309.342.651

Pirela To Continue MLB Rehab With RailRiders


The New York Yankees announced today that infielder Jose Pirela will continue his MLB rehab with the Scranton Wilkes-Barre RailRiders beginning Thursday, April 30 when the RailRiders take on the Charlotte Knights (Chicago White Sox) at 7:05pm.


Pirela went 1-for-10 in three games with the Thunder on his rehab assignment. He went 1-for-3 with a double and a walk in Wednesday night's defeat to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Blue Jays). Combined between Tampa and the Thunder, Pirela is 1-for-14 on his rehab from a concussion suffered while playing center field for the Yankees at the end of Spring Training.


From 2011-2013, Pirela was a significant contributor for the Thunder—particularly for the 2013 Eastern League championship team. Including his rehab, he has appeared in 337 games (T-3rd All-Time), recorded 331 hits (4th), 68 doubles (4th), 12 triples (T-2nd) and scored 178 runs (4th) in his Thunder career. In 2014, he was added to the Yankees active roster on September 16th and made his MLB debut on September 22nd. He went 8-for-24 (.333) in seven games with the Yankees.



Your Thunder return to ARM & HAMMER Park on Friday, May 1 at 7:00pm for a three-game series with the Akron Rubberducks (Cleveland Indians). Friday marks the beginning of Family Fun Weekend at ARM & HAMMER Park where the Kids Zone is completely free to all fans 12 and under. For more information on promotions and tickets for the upcoming homestand visit Trentonthunder.com/tickets.

This Day in New York Yankees History 5/1: Bernie Hits Six


On this day in 1996 Bernie Williams became only the second member of the New York Yankees to get six hits in one game. Bernie went 6-8 against the Baltimore Orioles joining Myril Hoag who accomplished the feat in 1934 against the Boston Red Sox.

Also on this day in 1953 Mickey Mantle hit his first home run of his career off White Sox pitcher Randy Gumpert. Mickey would go on to hit 535 more home runs in his Hall of Fame career.


Finally on this day in 1920 Babe Ruth hit his 50th career home run at the Polo Grounds. This would be his first home run as a member of the New York Yankees.