Tuesday, April 24, 2018

Game Thread: New York Yankees vs. Minnesota Twins 4/24



And just like that Yankees fans we are back in the Bronx as New York and Yankee Stadium get ready to play host to the Minnesota Twins in the second of a four-game set this week. In the start tonight the Yankees will send CC Sabathia to the mound to face off with Jose Berrios for the Twins. The game will be played at 6:35 pm ET inside Yankee Stadium and can be seen on the YES Network and MLB Network. You can also follow along with the game on MLB TV, with the MLB At-Bat app or by tuning into the Yankes radio broadcast with John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman on WFAN.

Follow us on Twitter, @GreedyStripes, and “Like” us on Facebook, The Greedy Pinstripes, to keep up with us and the Yankees all season long. Enjoy the game, continue the beatdown on the Twins, and go Yankees!!

What it Means to Be a Yankees Fan: Ken Hans



Over the weekend I asked many fans what it meant to them to be a Yankees fan. What prompted this was not only my own thought process, but my post under the same name that went live on Friday. I explained what being a Yankees fan meant to me on Friday while Bryan Van Dusen did the same on Saturday, now it is time to hear from a fan that isn’t a writer here on The Greedy Pinstripes. His name is Ken Hans and he has been commenting on our posts as a part of the TGP family for the better part of a year or two now, and today we all get to meet him and find out what being a Yankees fan means to him. Remember, to have your Yankees fandom showcased on the blog like Ken Hans be sure to answer these four questions below and email them to me at danielburch1102 at yahoo dot com.

Thank you to Ken Hans for taking the time to do this for us. I hope you all enjoyed reading his words as much as I did.


What makes you a fan of the New York Yankees?

Well my path as a Yankee fan was really bestowed upon me by my father. I started following the Yanks in the mid-sixties as Mantle’s career was starting to wind down. Mickey Mantle was my favorite player growing up. I went through the lean years in the sixties and I actually started to follow the Mets when they won the World Series in ‘69. I’m a baseball junkie at heart. I am a former college player that can just sit and dissect the game apart. Anyway, back to the Yankees. I have lived through many lean years and the days of seeing Celerino Sanchez, Horace Clark and Jerry Kenny were just painful. I loved players like Joe Pepitone and guys like Sparky Lyle. I guess you can say my father’s influence really pushed me towards the Yankees. I do enjoy the history of the team and all that it stands for. I don’t like the current ownership as I do think Hal is a Coupon Clipper and I enjoyed his dad from the standpoint that he reinvested in the team. Hal only cares about his wallet.


What is your earliest memory of the New York Yankees?

My earliest moments as a young boy around six-or-seven were when my dad would take me to the Yankee game on my birthday every year. First game I remember was against the Washington Senators and seeing big Frank Howard at first base. I also remember watching the games on channel 11 and listening to Frank Messer, Phil Rizzuto and Bill White. I loved that broadcast team. I also loved when they went away from the bullpen golf cart to the Toyota cars, but that was later on.


What is your fondest memory of the New York Yankees?

God that’s a hard one as I have so many. I remember the Bucky Dent HR against the Red SUX lol and the three HR game by Reggie Jackson. Loved Goose Gossage with the three inning saves and the Bronx Zoo team was my favorite. I would have to say my overall fondest memory was the Boston Massacre and just ripping them to shreds.



What do you think of when you see the interlocking NY of the Yankees?


When I see the interlocking NY I think greatness, history and overall a class organization that is the crème of the crop in all of sports history. No other sports franchise can claim all the championships we possess.


Yankees Dominate Twins in Series Opener...

Photo Credit: New York Post (Charles Wenzelberg)
Solid Hitting, Pitching and Defense…ü

The World always seems to be a better place the day after a Yankees win. Even better when the Yankees’ vaunted offense goes ‘Postal’ on the Minnesota Twins en route to the convincing 14-1 win. So much for Minnesota’s plans for the revenge game following their loss in last year’s Wild Card game to the Yankees. As a Vikings fan, I generally have a soft spot for Twins fans since we share a common alliance in football but all bets are off when they play the Yankees.

Photo Credit: Pioneer Press (Richard Marshall)

Miguel Andujar continued his consecutive game streak with extra-base hits to rub shoulders with none other than Mickey Mantle and Joltin’ Joe DiMaggio. The trio of two Hall of Famers and a rookie are the only Yankees under the age of 24 to have an extra-base hit in at least seven consecutive games. When the Yankees acquired Brandon Drury to be their third baseman during Spring Training, I was solidly in Camp Drury. But when Drury returns from the DL, there’s no way the Yankees can sit Andujar. With no offense to Todd Frazier (a player I loved as a Yankee), third base is in better hands with Andujar and Drury than it was Frazier and Chase Headley. The dilemma for Manager Aaron Boone will be how to make room on the roster for guys like Drury, Jacoby Ellsbury, Clint Frazier and Greg Bird when they are healthy. Actually, it’s GM Brian Cashman’s job but still, there are some difficult decisions awaiting the team on down the road.



The first major league hit is in the books for young future star Gleyber Torres. His single in the bottom of the eighth inning off Twins reliever Tyler Kinley halted an 0-for-7 skid to start his Major League career. Now that the first one is out of the way, Torres can settle in and play the game his way. I don’t know what was more exciting…Gleyber getting his first hit or Giancarlo Stanton’s 4-for-4 night with a home run, three runs scored and two RBI’s. Or the grand salami courtesy of The Shredder’s non-Top Ten shortstop, Didi Gregorius who continues to elevate his game to heights previously unimaginable. 

Tyler Austin, Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, Brett Gardner, Aaron Hicks…so many Yankees that contributed to last night’s big win. And, oh by the way, Masahiro Tanaka did not suck. He held the Twins to three hits and a single run over 6 2/3 innings and 91 pitches. He struck out five Twinkies while walking only two. Not bad for a day’s work. Chad Green and David Hale finished off the game, keeping the Twins from adding any further runs.

Photo Credit: USA TODAY Sports (Brad Penner)

The Yankees are now 12-9 and have pushed themselves back to five games behind the division leading Boston Red Sox. They trail the second place Toronto Blue Jays by just a game. A few consecutive wins and everything looks rosy again. Of course, if they lose tonight against the Twins, it will be doom and gloom all over again. But for now, I am enjoying the win streak and hope it continues for the foreseeable future. I’ve always been a huge fan of ten-game winning streaks and there’s no time like the present to achieve one. 

After holding the Twins scoreless over the final two innings last night despite allowing three hits, David Hale found himself in DFA limbo after the game. His roster spot was taken by former Washington Nationals right-hander A.J. Cole whom the Yankees acquired for cash considerations. All winter I wanted Brian Cashman to acquire RHP Cole. I guess I should have been more specific. Cole, 26, a former fourth-round pick, has been an occasional spot starter for the Nats and was scheduled to be their fifth starter this year until his performance forced the Nationals to replace him with veteran starter Jeremy Hellickson. His season line is horrific. He has given up 16 hits and 15 runs (including six homers) over 10 1/3 innings. He has walked six while striking out ten. It’s kind of funny. In his last appearance for the Triple A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, Hale gave up 12 hits and 6 runs. It earned him a promotion to the Bronx, where he gets his walking papers after pitching two scoreless innings. He is replaced by a guy who has been arguably worse. I guess the Yankees want Sonny Gray to feel like he isn’t the worst pitcher on the staff. To Cole’s defense, he has greater upside than Hale so I don’t necessarily have a problem with the move. But I hope pitching coach Larry Rothschild can fix whatever ails Cole’s pitches. At this point, he looks like a worse version of Bryan Mitchell, but who knows, maybe the Yankees see something in Cole that is not outwardly visible to the rest of us. Or maybe he’s just the next DFA candidate. I’d like to see Cole succeed. He’s still young enough to figure this thing out.

Photo Credit: Associated Press (Matt Slocum)

Tonight’s game features the Twins’ very talented young righty Jose Berrios (2-1, 1.63 ERA) pitching against crafty veteran CC Sabathia (0-0, 2.70 ERA).  In his last start, Berrios held the Cleveland Indians scoreless with seven innings of work, allowing only three hits. In fact, he’s held three of his four opponents to three hits and no runs. The only blemish was an April 7th start against the Seattle Mariners when he was roughed up for five runs in 4 2/3 innings. It will be a tough game for the Yankees hitters but conversely it’s not going to be an easy one for Berrios.

Go Yankees! 

Game Preview: New York Yankees vs. Minnesota Twins 4/24



The New York Yankees and the Minnesota Twins will be back at it again tonight in the Bronx, and back to that weird start time, with the second game of their four-game set this week inside Yankee Stadium. Last night was Tanaka time and tonight the Yankees watch as the veteran CC Sabathia heads out to the mound to face off with Jose Berrios for the Twins. CC looked good in his first start since coming off the disabled list, but the Yankees will need a little more length out of the veteran southpaw before he is truly relied upon here in 2018.

Sabathia will make his fourth start of the 2018 campaign tonight here in the Bronx and will be looking to pitch past the fifth inning for the first time in this young season. Sabathia has been effective tossing a 2.70 ERA and is fresh off a start against the Toronto Blue Jays where he allowed just two unearned runs I 4.1 innings pitched but will need to provide some length tonight against the Twins if at all possible.


Berrios had a breakout season for Minnesota in 2017 posting a 14-8 record with a 3.89 ERA and will look to improve on that here in 2018. Berrios is off to a good start this year with a 2-1 record and a 1.63 ERA and will look to improve on his career numbers against the Yankees which currently sit at 1-1 with a 3.62 ERA. However, Berrios is 0-1 with an 8.10 ERA in his only trip to Yankee Stadium in his career, where he makes his return to tonight.

The game will be played at 6:35 pm ET inside Yankee Stadium and can be seen on the YES Network locally and MLB Network outside of the Yankees market. You can also follow along with the game on MLB TV, with the MLB At-Bat app and by tuning into the Yankees radio broadcast on WFAN with John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman.

Enjoy the game, the Yankees are the Twins daddies, and go Yankees!!

Hello… Don’t Look Now but the Yankees Are Hot!



Good morning everyone and a Happy Tuesday to you all. Don’t look now Yankees fans, and “Yankees fans” who want everyone fired and everyone traded, and everyone sent down to Triple-A without knowing the rules of MLB…. Like seriously I saw one guy suggest that we send down Giancarlo Stanton to “clear his head” in Triple-A. There’s such thing as MLB service time and minor league options… you cannot simply send someone down because they had a bad week in a game where failing seven out of ten times makes you legendary. Idiots.

Anyway, I digress. The New York Yankees are starting to warm up as the thermometer outside Yankee Stadium does so the rest of the league better watch out. Gleyber Torres is up, Miguel Andujar is hot, Brandon Drury is close and so is Clint Frazier. Greg Bird could be too but excuse me for being a bit reluctant at this point. The pitching will be better, and the hitting will too. This team was built to win, and that they will do.

And Kari, my love, we were built to win. So, win we will. I love you. Enjoy your day.

This Day in New York Yankees History 4/24: David Ortiz Yankee Stadium Jersey Sold!


On this day in 2008 the jersey that was hidden in the cement during construction at the new Yankee Stadium was auctioned off to help the Jimmy Fund charity and fetched $175,100. The winning bidder out of 282 bidders was Kevin Meehan a Mendon, Mass. resident and owner of imperialcars.com.


Also on this day in 1987 Rickey Henderson became the first batter to ever hit a home run off of two 300 game winners in the same game. Henderson hit a solo home run in the 8th inning off Phil Niekro and would hit a two run home run in the ninth inning off Steve Carlton to help the Yankees beat the Indians 6-5.


Also on this day in 1923 President Warren G. Harding witnessed the first shutout ever thrown at Yankee Stadium. The avid baseball fan and chain smoking president saw Babe Ruth hit a home run in the contest but was ultimately disappointed when his Washington Senators lost 4-0.


Finally on this day in 1917 Yankee pitcher George Mogridge throws a no hitter against the Boston Red Sox in Fenway Park. This is the first no hitter in Yankees franchise history and the first ever thrown at Fenway Park.