Friday, May 13, 2016

Sale Cruises, Severino Loses Sixth,7-1

     On a soggy night in New York, the Yankees hosted the AL Central leading Chicago White Sox in game one of a three game set. Looking for his first win of the campaign, Louise Severino took the ball for New York, and would once again struggle. A solid Severino outing was all the more necessary because New York was taking on an early contender for the Cy Young Award in the form of 6'6" Chris Sale. The fireballing lefty is undefeated this season, with seven wins and a sparkling 1.79 ERA. And those numbers would not lie tonight as he cruised to his eighth win of the season. 
     Severino struggled early, with "early" being an understatement as he drilled the leadoff hitter Adam eaten with the second pitch of the game. Although he would escape the inning unscored upon, thanks in large part to an unbelievable play by shortstop Ronald Torreyes, he would not fare so well in the top of the second. The rookie lead off the second by serving up a double to second baseman Brett Lawrie, who would come around to score two batters later when Alex Avila drilled a double of his own, giving the Sox a one run lead. Then, after walking the nine-hitter Austin Jackson, Severino allowed a weakly-hit infield single to Adam Eaton, loading the bases for Chicago. With two outs, which seems to be a prevailing theme with this team, Severino gave up a bullet-single to Jose Abreu, scoring both Jaxson and Avila, extending their lead to 3-0. All told, Severino faced nine batters and reached the 56-pitch mark, again, by just the end of the second inning. 
      Despite Chase Headley getting one run back in the bottom of the second off of a solo bomb to left, Severino found himself in even more trouble, this time in the top of the third. With two outs, Alex Avila singled and then moved to second on the second walk of Austin Jackson. Adam Eaton got to Severino again with another double, scoring two and extending their lead even farther to 5-1. The next batter, Jimmy Rollins, blasted a Severino fastball and to the right field seats, scoring eaten, 7-1, and forcing Severino to the showers. The Yankees trainer escorted Severino to the dugout, so there could possibly be an injury to report on, but, it was not a good night at all for the young right-hander.
     With this being just the first game of the three-game set, the Yankees did not want to abuse their bullpen,but unfortunately were not left with much choice. What they did not expect was the quality Audi Nick Goody gave to them in relief of the battered Severino. The rookie right-handed reliever would go on to give the Yankees 3.1 scoreless innings, only allowing one hit and striking out three. Chasen Shreve and Kirby Yates picked up right where Goody left off, combining to throw three scoreless innings, walking three and striking out two.
     Other than the Chase Headley homerun, Sale was utterly dominant tonight. Chris sailed to his complete game victory, allowing only the one run on six hits, fanning six Yankees in the process. One positive thing, however, to take away from tonight is that Chase Headley is finally starting to heat up. Since turning 32 on Monday, the gold glove third baseman has six hits with two of them leaving the yard. If the Yankees are going to compete this year, they are definitely going to need considerably more production from their third baseman.
    Let's hope for a much better outing from Ivan Nova tomorrow in game two, beginning at 1:05 PM ET. 
    

Luis Severino Exits Start w/ Possible Injury

Luis Severino exited tonight's start with the Chicago White Sox in the Top of the 3rd inning with a possible injury. I didn't see anything personally but he left off the mound with Yankees trainer Stevie Donahue which is never a good sign.

I'm just hoping this was a ploy to get their reliever plenty of time to warm up without falling farther behind because if the Yankees lose Severino that will not be ideal. 6.00+ ERA or not.

Stay tuned.

Game Thread: New York Yankees vs. Chicago White Sox 5/13


If you’ve been a fan of the Greedy Pinstripes you know that we have been running a Mega Prediction Game here on the blog basically since its inception. This weekend I predicted a sweep of the Chicago White Sox in this three game set but looking at the pitching matchup it could go the entirely different way. The Yankees could easily get swept this weekend by a great team in Chicago so the best bet for New York is to take it one game at a time with that first game coming tonight in the Bronx. In the pitching matchup tonight the Yankees will send Luis Severino to the mound looking for his first consistent start of the season while the White Sox counter with one of the best pitchers in the American League in Chris Sale. The game will be played at 7:05 pm ET inside Yankee Stadium and can be seen on the YES Network, MLB Network and MLB TV.

Two more games this weekend in the Bronx against this same team so if you want to see either of them live be sure to click the Yankees Tickets link at the top of the blog to visit Ticket Monster and snag a pair. Also be sure to give us a follow on Twitter by following @GreedyStripes where we live tweet and follow along with each and every Yankees game this season.


Luis Severino, pitch like you did last season. Go Yankees!

The Boston Red Sox and International Free Agent Exploits


The internet is a gift and a curse much like most everything on a long enough time line. You can easily sit down and write our 100 pros and 100’s cons for most anything on the internet. WebMD is great because it can save you hundreds of dollars in doctor bills only to find out the Mexican you ate for lunch gave you heartburn but at the same time it seems obligatory to put “cancer” down as a possible cause for each and every symptom on the site. This can be said about Twitter as well which I absolutely adore. I love the fact that you can talk to people around the world at any given time but at the same time, especially if you run a blog, you have lots of opinions and lots of differing opinions that you may not necessarily agree with. How you handle those opinions either makes you a nice guy, a troll or a jerk and there is usually no in between. I will reserve judgement on which one of these three I received this week when I discussed the MLB Trade Rumors article showcasing the fact that the league is now investigating the Boston Red Sox for possibly exploiting and cheating the international free agents market but it sure was a doozy.

If you missed what happened here is the Reader’s Digest version of it. The Red Sox signed a boat load of IFA’s including Yoan Moncada a year back and now face the same penalties as the Yankees do in the international market. Neither team can sign an IFA for more than $300K and while that has slowed down the Yankees pursuits of the top tiered talent in the league that has not stopped the Red Sox whatsoever. The league is investigating the Red Sox after the team signed a group of IFA’s that all share the same trainers for exactly $300K despite the fact that these men were expected to sign for much more this summer. The league thinks the Red Sox signed them all as a package deal which not officially breaking any written rule it is still an exploit.

Now me being me, a Yankees fan with a Yankees blog and a Yankees-centric passionate following, I posted something on twitter along the lines of “The Boston Red Sox are exploiting (AKA cheating) the IFA system and I wonder if ESPN will even cover it” and apparently some of my Red Sox readers took offense to that. This one follower in specific asked me things such as “did you read the details of what is being investigated? It’s laughable and not “cheating.” When I pushed back that MLB Trade Rumors ran the article, a credible news source, and that yes I was pretty well versed in what had been released to the public I got what I consider to be an immature “back against the wall” comment. The comment, word for word, was “show me the rule that is being broken. If you think that the IFA system is without its flaws you are mistaken.”

Now. I don’t remember saying the IFA system was perfect or that anything in this world other than my wife and children were without its flaws. All my work is very well documented either on Twitter or on my blog and I challenge anyone to show me where I said it was perfect or without flaws. Secondly we can argue semantics all day but those same semantics have to go both ways. Boston Red Sox fans, for the most part because you cannot lump them all together obviously, were up in arms when Alex Rodriguez took steroids and thought he should be suspended for it. If I threw out a hypothetical response along the lines of “show me a failed test” most Red Sox fans wouldn’t want to hear that. They would argue masking agents and all that hoopla. So no, there isn’t a specific rule written that says you can sign a small village to $300K deals each but when you get your money you have to give $200K of yours to this guy and you have to give $150K of yours to that guy but that doesn’t make it any less of an exploit. Exploits, semantics or not or no matter how you want to spin it, is cheating. If you disagree I respect that but I believe you’re wrong. That’s my opinion and you should respect that.

Look, I get it. You’re a homer. I understand because I’m a homer too. Maybe we can be friends, we have plenty of non-Yankees fans friends on our blog including some Red Sox fans. We’re respectful to those who are respectful to us despite their allegiances but when you come at us like this that changes this into a whole new ball game. And no, I won’t put their Twitter handle on this post or link to their site, who did it is not important. It’s the message. It’s the need for respect. We’re all fans here and if you’re just happy your team is doing whatever they need to do to win then just say it. I’ll respect you a whole lot more for it.

Be good everyone and Happy Friday!


WATCH: Documentary 56: The Streak


It seems like the older I get the less “fun” I like to have. Sure I still love to have fun but I think my idea of sun has changed since turning 30 and having children. No longer do I want to drink and stay up all night being rowdy and such since now my idea of fun is taking my son to a baseball game or popping some popcorn and watching a movie with my family. I said all that to say this, and no I’m not just rambling believe it or not, I know what I will be doing on Sunday, May 15th. It will be fun, at least in my opinion, because it’s Yankees related. I’ll be sitting on my couch watching a documentary surround Joe DiMaggio and his 56 game hitting streak.

This Sunday at 8:00 pm ET on MLB Network Ed Burns will narrate the latest documentary to be showcased on “MLB Network Presents” when he narrates “56: The Streak.” This day is important because it marks the 75th anniversary of the day that DiMaggio began the streak and record that may never be broken.

I’ll be watching and I thought many of my fellow Yankees fans would like to watch as well so I thought I’d pass along the news. Enjoy!


Game Preview: New York Yankees vs. Chicago White Sox 5/13


The New York Yankees were happy to come home this week after spending time out on the road in Camden Yard and Oriole Park and Fenway Park but they presumably couldn’t be too happy about their level of competition they were about to welcome into the Bronx. First New York faced off with the defending World Series champion Kansas City Royals for four games, which they did extremely well in FYI, and this weekend they welcome one of the hottest and best teams in the American League to town in the Chicago White Sox. Tonight inside Yankee Stadium we will watch as Luis Severino gets the task that no man wants in the league this year, or any year for that matter, of taking on Chris Sale for the White Sox head-to-head.

Severino is still trying to put it all together for an entire game this season as he continues to put together a mixed bag of results every time he takes the bump. Last time out against the Boston Red Sox Severino set a new career-high in strikeouts with nine but he also gave up three home runs including a monster shot from David Ortiz in a 5-1 loss. The Yankees offense is not helping Severino much but the right-hander needs to help himself as well and he has yet to do that this season.

Sale is easily one of the best pitchers in MLB this season which is evident by the lefty notching a victory in each of his first seven starts this season. Sale is giving the White Sox everything they need this season. Victories, innings pitched, strikeouts, heck he’s probably even cleaning up the clubhouse after every start. He does it all but he needs a night off, hopefully that night comes tonight in the Bronx.

The game will be played at 7:05 pm ET inside of Yankee Stadium and can be seen on the YES Network, MLB Network and MLB TV. If you pay attention to our weekly power ranking posts brought to you by the USA Today you will see that Chicago has been seen in the Top 5 all season long and has been hanging around with at the third position with only the Chicago Cubs and the Washington Nationals in front of them meaning the Yankees are welcoming the best from the American League to town tonight. The team was able to send a message, my opinion, this week against the Kansas City Royals but no bigger message would be sent then to play the White Sox well and win the series.


Send the message. Win the series. Go Yankees!

The Yankees, Contrary to Popular Belief & Friday the 13th


Today is Friday the 13th and for many than means bad omens, curses and generally just some bad luck throughout the day. I’m not a huge believer in coincidences, although I am a firm believer in karma, and I believe Friday the 13th to just be another day on the calendar that was dramatized by a Hollywood movie. It’s hard to deny though that some freaky things have happened on this day in history and some of the most superstitious people in America being baseball players really step up their games on this day. Let’s focus on a few of the more superstitious players in MLB history and some of the “contrary to popular belief” facts that come along with this day.

Contrary to popular belief a black cat can walk across your path and you’ll probably be okay. Unless you’re the Chicago Cubs or the Boston Red Sox. Then I may be worried. 

Contrary to popular belief on Friday the 13th it is NOT okay to refuse to change your underwear during a Tigers winning streak in 2011 like Jim Leyland did. 

Contrary to popular belief on Friday the 13th it IS okay to sleep with your bat while on a hot streak. Ask Richie Ashburn. 

Contrary to popular belief on Friday the 13th you HAVE to make right-handed turns. Kevin Rhomberg refused to make right-handed turns on a baseball field and he also had this weird obsession that if you touched him he had to touch you back. I’m serious, his nickname was “Touch Me, Touch Me.” If you don’t believe there is a story of Rick Sutcliffe once reaching under a bathroom stall to touch Rhomberg on the toe. Rhomberg didn’t know who touched him so he proceeded to go around the clubhouse and touch and each every player, coach and manager. 

Contrary to popular belief on Friday the 13th you CAN ask for a new ball after every hit. Mark Fidrych did it and this, along with his “Bird” routine on the mound, and no one really seemed to mind. They have plenty of baseball and Fidrych didn’t give up that many hits anyway. The mistrust of the ball probably stems back to him talking to the ball before the pitch, quite vividly sometimes, as a bond or friendship was obviously formed before being broken when hit for a single. 

Contrary to popular belief you can have WHATEVER you want to eat before and after a MLB game. Justin Verlander eats tacos before every start, Wade Boggs ate fried chicken and half of the Boston Red Sox pitching staff ate chicken and drank beer in the late 2000’s and early 2010’s. It’s baseball and we’re all adults. 


Contrary to popular belief the Yankees can beat Chris Sale on Friday the 13th… Let’s make it happen. 

Weekly Check In: Jorge Mateo


When we last check in with Jorge Mateo it was just days after him being removed from a game with a phantom injury. Speculation immediately began as to what happened and quickly rumors became truths as we learned that Mateo was removed from the game for not hustling. To hear that a guy that stole over 80 bases last season is not hustling is a huge shock to me but it may explain some things in my mind. Mateo is surprisingly a terrible base runner and a bad base stealer. He gets by in the lower depths of the minor leagues based strictly off his speed.

Mateo gets caught stealing far more than he should and he also gets picked off at a rate that is not nearly talked about enough. If Mateo isn’t hustling that would explain a lot to me because if he’s that disinterested that he won’t hustle it would lead me to believe that his head is not fully in the game. This is troubling and worrisome to me but I have a tendency to overreact so maybe I’m looking too much into this. Maybe I’m not though, remember similar acquisitions thrown Jesus Montero’s way?

Some players take a public humiliation and a benching for lack of hustle on the chin, they straighten up and they fly right. Some players take it to heart and carry a chip on their shoulder and some spitefulness in their gut. Spitefulness will ruin a career in the long term, hard work will make one flourish. Let’s hope for the latter and not the former in this case with Mateo or he could become trade bait before the rest of the league catches on.


YearAgeLevGPARH2B3BHRRBISBCSBBSOBAOBPSLGOPS
201621A+30134284245422981130.350.406.567.973

This Day in New York Yankees History 5/13: The Rays are Finally Good!




On this day in 2008 the Boston Red Sox lost and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Yankees 2-1 in 11 innings to put the Rays in sole possession of first place for the first time in their franchise's history. Tampa would be seven games over the .500 mark (23-16) which is also a mark that had never been accomplished in the 11 years of the Rays existence.


Also on this day in 1985 the New York Yankees rally to beat the Minnesota Twins 9-8 after trailing the Twins 8-0 in the bottom of the sixth inning. Don Mattingly hit a ninth inning three run walk off home run at Yankee Stadium with two outs to cap the victory.


Also on this day in 1955 for the first time in his career Mickey Mantle hit a home run from both sides of the plate in the same game. Mantle finished the game with three home runs total, two from the left side, and drove in all five runs in a 5-2 win over the Detroit Tigers.



Finally on this day in 1929 a game was played for the first time in major league history where both teams wore numbers on the back of their uniforms. The Indians hosted the New York Yankees in League Park in Cleveland and would mark numerals becoming a permanent fixture on the back of the uniforms.