The New York Yankees welcomed in the Detroit Tigers to town tonight, facing off in game one of the three-game weekend set. C.C. Sabathia took the ball for New York, sporting a 3-4 record and a phenomenal 2.58 ERA. Mike Pelfrey and his 4.76 ERA were given the task of trying to slow down the Yankee offense. With a .328 opponents batting average against, which is the highest in the AL, Pelfrey allows the other team to really put the ball in play. And tonight, Sabathia put in his best start of the year and the Yankee offense stayed hot as they made it five straight.
The Yankees put the pressure on Pelfrey from the word go, loading the bases against the right-hander in the bottom of the first. Pelfrey allowed back to back singles to Brett Gardner and Carlos Beltran, walked Alex Rodriguez and then put the Yankees on the scoreboard when he walked Brian McCann with the bases-loaded, 1-0 New York. After getting Castro out on strikes, the right-hander served up a double to Didi Gregorius that scored Rodriguez and Beltran, 3-0. But, the relay throw from Upton gunned McCann down at home plate, ending the frame. Then in the third, after walking Gardner, Detroit catcher James McCann tried to pick off Brett at first but launched the ball into right field, advancing gardener to third. White-hot Carlos Beltran then singled Gardner in, extending the Yankee lead to four.
Carsten Charles Sabathia was absolutely brilliant tonight, working to the best start of hisseason. Despite a 12 pitch at-bat to lead off the ballgame by Ian Kinsler, C.C. kept hitters off-balance all night long, and actually touched 93 mph with his fastball. The big lefty departed with a final line of seven tremendous shut out innings, while allowing just five hits and striking out four. In fact, with the seven shut out innings tonight, his ERA dropped to 2.28, fourth in the American League and the lowest it has ever been through 10 starts in his illustrious career.
Delin Betances and Anthony Swarzak combined to pitch the final two innings, matching Sabathia's shut out efforts in route to their fifth consecutive victory. Look for the Bomber bats to stay hot against Justin Verlander and the Tigers tomorrow night, with first pitch scheduled for 7:15 PM ET.
Friday, June 10, 2016
Live Game Updates: Tigers at Yankees - 6/10
7:37 p.m., End 1st: Yankees jump on top with three in their first plate appearance. After McCann draws a bases-loaded walk, Didi hits a two-run double the other way, giving the Yankees a quick 3-0 lead against Mike Pelfrey.
7:53 p.m., Mid 2nd: Tigers waste a couple of singles in the second. Still, they have made CC throw 45 pitches already.
8:08 p.m., Mid 3rd: CC strands another man in scoring position after a lead-off single. Yankees still lead 3-0.
8:16 p.m., End 3rd: With the help of a throwing error by Detroit catcher James McCann, the Yankees add another run in the third. Beltran gets the RBI with a single to center, and the Yanks are starting to run away with this one.
8:29 p.m., Mid 4th: For the second straight start, CC has been an expert at escaping jams. He leaves two on base again in the fourth, despite a hefty pitch count of 78.
8:52 p.m., Mid 5th: Tigers put men on the corners in the fifth, but they fail to score after Miguel Cabrera grounds into an inning-ending double play. Halfway through the game, the Yankees still lead 4-0.
9:06 p.m., Mid 6th: CC retires the Tigers in order in the sixth. With him at 98 pitches, I'd imagine the Yankees will send him back out for a batter-by-batter situation in the seventh.
9:21 p.m., Mid 7th: CC continues his gem of an outing with a clean seventh. This is probably the end of his night, and if it is, let it be known that his ERA on the season has fallen to a very impressive 2.28. Definitely better than anyone expected in spring training.
9:35 p.m., End 7th: Pelfrey's done after 6 2/3 innings. Blaine Hardy comes on and gets the final out of the seventh, as the Tigers prepare to face Dellin Betances in the top of the eighth.
9:42 p.m., Mid 8th: Betances seems to be on the road back to his unhittable days. He strikes out two in a perfect eighth, extending his streak of consecutive retired hitters to nine.
9:50 p.m., End 8th: Looks like Anthony Swarzak will work the ninth inning for the Yankees. The middle of the Tigers' order is due up.
10:00 p.m., Mid 9th: That's your ballgame. Swarzak puts up a zero in the ninth and the Yankees beat the Tigers 4-0.
Game Thread: New York Yankees vs. Detroit Tigers 6/10
Friday night baseball in the Bronx and it should be a good
one as the New York Yankees stay home this weekend to play host to Miguel
Cabrera and the Detroit Tigers. These two teams have had some bitter battles
over the past few seasons and the Yankees have always played the Tigers tough
even when on paper and in the standings Detroit was the better team. I expect
no less out of the boys tonight as they send CC Sabathia to the mound to face
off with Mike Pelfrey. The game will be played at 7:05 pm ET inside Yankee
Stadium and can be seen on WPIX Channel 11 and MLB TV.
Three more games this weekend in the Bronx before an off day
on Monday and a trip to Colorado to face off with the Rockies early next week.
Click the Yankees Tickets link at the top of the blog to see any of these games
live this weekend including Tanaka Day tomorrow evening. Also be sure to give us
a follow on your favorite social media site whether it be Facebook, search The
Greedy Pinstripes, or Twitter, @GreedyStripes.
CC going for five consecutive strong starts, let’s watch. Go
Yankees!
The Very Unlikely Yordano Ventura to the Yankees Rumor
Depending on what news site you get your information from
and depending on what jersey you wear when you go out to your favorite ballpark
to watch your favorite team the Kansas City Royals may or may not have made
young right-hander Yordano Ventura available. Ventura has been troubled to say
the least in his young major league career and he has caught attention for many
on-the-field instances including the 99 MPH fastball that found Mann Machado’s
midsection earlier in the week that caused a brawl between the two clubs. Now,
again depending on what you read and what you believe, Ventura may be on the
trading block. Should the Yankees be interested? Better yet, will they be?
If you look at stats alone you will be left scratching your
head wondering why I would even suggest that the Yankees acquire him. In 12
starts this season Ventura has posted a Michael Pineda like 5.32 ERA and is
also tied for the AL lead in walks allowed with 35. His stats are not
encouraging and he has a temper that has led to enough altercations that the
Royals want to trade the 25-year old, why would anyone want him? Because he’s
talented and his projections are through the roof, that’s why. Remember, and
I’m not comparing the two, the last troubled right-hander that could throw in
the triple digits but struggled with command and effectiveness? His name was
Nathan Eovaldi and this sounds like a similar situation as far as pitching
alone goes.
In the last two years Ventura has won a combined 27 regular
season games for the Royals while posting a meager 3.61 ERA which does not
include his 10 valuable appearances in the postseason and World Series for the
Royals over the past two seasons. This kid is the real deal and he’s battled
tested but with all these altercations his trade value and price is at an
all-time low, which is also known as a Brian Cashman special around these
parts. While the deal makes a lot of sense on paper that is exactly why I think
Cashman and the Yankees won’t pull it off, it makes too much sense. It gets the
team younger, cheaper, better and ready for the long run rather than the short
haul, the ultimate plan in the Bronx, and yet I can’t see the Yankees GM
pulling the trigger.
Call me pessimistic but I am using a bit of common sense
with a recent history and sample size to come to my conclusion here. Cashman
doesn’t like to give up top-tiered prospects and it would take that to land
Ventura. He also doesn’t tend to make the blockbuster deal anymore and whoever
acquires Ventura is going to receive a blockbuster of talent in return. I just
can’t see that talent coming to the Bronx any time soon unfortunately.
Should MLB Scrap the Draft? My Take
First and foremost I want to thank everyone who participated
in our Twitter Poll this morning. We thoroughly enjoy doing those and we don’t
do them nearly enough and for that I apologize. In the Twitter Poll I asked the
fans and our followers on Twitter if they thought it would make Major League
Baseball better or worse if they scrapped the draft entirely and went to a
program much like the international free agent market. Instead of assigning
slots and caps for each player in the draft why not put the power back into the
player’s hands and let them sign where they want, right? You guys had your say
now here is my take on the matter.
Before I get too far into this I can definitely see both
sides of the spectrum on this topic. I know the draft was designed to bring
parity to the game and I fully realize that without the draft teams like the
Tampa Bay Rays, Washington Nationals, Pittsburgh Pirates and Baltimore Orioles
to name a few would not have achieved the recent strings of success that they
all enjoy today but my argument is and will always be that these teams could
sign comparable talent in a new system designed like the international market.
I am real big on players being in New York who want to be in
New York. You can tell the difference on the field and by the way these players
carry themselves outside the ball park. Carlos Beltran always wanted to be a
Yankee, Jason Giambi wanted to be a Yankee, Nick Swisher wanted to be a Yankee,
etc. What I don’t necessarily like or prefer is players who you know don’t want
to be here but have to put on their stone face and their “PC” smile for the
cameras. Ian Clarkin is an example of this as he was quite vocal about not
wanting to ever play for the Yankees just days before the team drafted him with
one of their first round picks. Why make Clarkin suffer if he doesn’t want to
be here if there is a reasonable and suitable alternative?
I see no problem with giving the players the choice on what
team they want to spend the next six-plus seasons with. I see no problem
letting a player chose which bumpy dirt road he wants to ride down on and what
bus he wants to sweat for hours in all summer long. I see no problem with a
lifelong Yankees fan signing with the Yankees if he wants to but can’t just
because he is a top tiered talent and the Yankees did well the season before.
What’s the harm? Add slots and a cap and hurt the teams for going over it like
they do in the international market. Some teams will abuse it but I highly
doubt prep school arms and college bats wouldn’t want to go to the Rays, Nats,
Pirates, Diamondbacks, etc.
I wouldn’t go as far as to say I am necessarily for it but I
am struggling to come up with ways that it would make MLB worse also.
Game Preview: New York Yankees vs. Detroit Tigers 6/10
The New York Yankees and the Detroit Tigers will kick off a
three game weekend set tonight in the Bronx just in time for the organization
to wrap up their annual HOPE Week festivities. I have thoroughly enjoyed
reading all these great stories and great signs of charity and hope this week
and I truly wish every week could be HOPE Week. Anyway, before I get too far
off topic like I tend to be able to do, the Yankees will kick start their
series tonight in the Bronx by sending CC Sabathia to the mound to face off
with the Tigers starter and former New York Mets product Mike Pelfrey.
Sabathia will make his fifth start tonight since coming off the disabled list with a left groin strain and will look to continue his recent stretch of dominance in those starts. In that period Sabathia has posted a meager 1.13 ERA and has now allowed more than two runs in any of the four games, a trend that needs to continue tonight against a tough Detroit offense.
Pelfrey heads into this start fresh off earning his first victory as a member of the Tigers last time out against the Chicago White Sox. In that start Pelfrey lasted six innings allowing just two runs inside Comerica Park for the Tigers. Pelfrey has not pitched well throughout his career inside Yankee Stadium and will look to improve on his 0-2 record in three career starts.
The game will be played at 7:05 pm ET inside Yankee Stadium
and can be seen on WPIX Channel 11 and MLB TV. Another weekend series in the
Bronx and another great weekend of pitching matchups on deck for the fans.
Justin Verlander comes to the Bronx this weekend and Happy Tanaka Day happens
once again on Saturday. Hoping for a good weekend and a good victory tonight
for the boys. Go Yankees!
Twitter Poll: Should MLB Scrap the Draft?
Twitter Poll: Should MLB ditch the draft and make all amateur players free agents like in the international market? Why or why not?— Greedy Pinstripes (@GreedyStripes) June 9, 2016
Just one day after the MLB Draft is over and done with for
another year leave it to me to beg the question whether Major League Baseball
should scrap the whole idea or not. That’s me though, always asking the
questions that most bloggers and paid writers refuse to ask because it’s not
click worthy. So I beg the question, should Major League Baseball abandon the
draft altogether and adapt a policy much like the international free agency
market giving all the power of choice back to the players and not the teams? If
yes, why? If no, why not?
@GreedyStripes better for us Yankee fans, worse for most of the league— Zachary Wormann (@Swaggy___Z) June 9, 2016
@GreedyStripes Worse, depending on who you're a team of. The way it works now, good teams come in waves.— Sean Manning (@SeanManning_DP) June 9, 2016
@GreedyStripes yes, would benefit Yanks thats all I care about— S. C. (@Shane_Corey) June 9, 2016
@GreedyStripes Of course. It would bring immediate money to the best highschool and college athletes, making MLB more appealing to talent— Alvaro Molina (@a_molinam) June 9, 2016
To be involved in our next Twitter Poll be sure to head over
and give @GreedyStripes a follow. Then be on the lookout for our next Twitter
Poll tweet which I promise will not be months from now like the last one. We
need to get you guys, the readers and the fans, involved more and I’ve been
slacking at that due to frustration with the team this year. That ends today.
Weekly Check In: Jorge Mateo
Good morning Yankees family and Happy Friday! To kick start a weekend that is surely to be a weekend mostly dedicated to the newest Yankees players it only seems right and fitting to kick off the day by checking in with the Yankees top prospect, Jorge Mateo. I truly think a call up to Double-A Trenton is at least being discussed or has already been discussed for some time later this month or early next month. Mateo is making quick work of the lower levels of the minor leagues and you can tell by watching and by the box scores that he has outgrown these levels completely.
Mateo is ready for the call up and the Yankees have been
aggressive with their call ups as of late which is a great sign for the future
of Mateo. The closer Mateo gets to the majors the closer a big decision is
looming for the Yankees though. You only have two positions to play, assuming
one doesn’t learn first base or third base, and three players to fill them.
What do you do with Mateo, Didi Gregorius and Starlin Castro?
Stay tuned.
This Day in New York Yankees History 6/10: Babe Ruth, the Contract and the Curse
Also on this day in 2002 the Yankees Marcus Thames hit a home run on the first pitch he saw in his Major League career, off Randy Johnson in his prime no less. Thames would be the 17th player in history to hit a home run on the first pitch he saw in his career. John Miller in 1966 was the only other Yankee to achieve the feat.
Finally on this day in 1921 the Yankees Babe Ruth became the All-Time Home Run record holder in the Major Leagues with 120 home runs. The historic home run would come off the Indians Jim Bagby. Ruth would hold the record until Hank Aaron hit his 715th home run in 1974.
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