With All Due Respect, The Boston Red Sox Don’t Scare Me

I started a trend last offseason with my “Why I am Not Afraid of the (fill in the blank team name)” posts and that is a trend that I will continue this postseason as well. I beat a dead horse telling you why the Oakland Athletics did not scare me as long as the Wild Card Game was played in the Bronx and now I am back to tell you why, with all due respect of course to a team that won 108 games this season, the Boston Red Sox don’t scare me either.

The Boston Red Sox are a great team, don’t get me wrong, but so are the New York Yankees. Both teams are young, hungry and aggressive, but there are a few distinct differences that should, and ultimately will in my opinion, decide the winner of this short, five-game series. Pitching, pitching, and pitching.

The Boston Red Sox have a terrible bullpen. Let’s call a spade a spade. Even Jared Carrabis, the biggest douche bag homer that covers the Red Sox would say so. The Yankees, nine times out of ten anyway, do not. In fact, the Yankees bullpen is a strength that can put up six-or-seven innings worth of zeroes on any given night when they are on. The Yankees offense can, and has for that matter, feast off that bullpen if given the chance. That’s not to say that Boston and their prolific offense couldn’t do the same against the Yankees, because they can, and they have, but (homer alert? Maybe?) I personally trust the Yankees bullpen a lot more than I would trust Boston’s, whether I was a Yankees fan or not.

But what about the starters? On paper and without looking at the stats I would imagine that Baseball Reference would tell you that Boston has a better starting staff. Good for them, and good for the paper (digital or otherwise) that it’s written on. 162 games for nothing. I said it before the postseason began and I will say it again. Throw those stats out the window, this is October. Chris Sale has not faired well in the postseason, albeit in two ALDS appearances that both resulted in a loss, and David Price has probably been playing Fortnite all night long hoping that his carpal tunnel would return so that he wouldn’t have to pitch against the Yankees on Saturday night. It goes beyond the stats at this point, it has to be mental by now. Especially for Price. The bright lights begin to shine, you try to do a little too much, you make one mistake and boom, the game is blown open. Rick Porcello inside Yankee Stadium doesn’t worry me and having JA Happ pitching twice in this series gives me all the confidence that I need. Happ may not walk away with two victories, but I guarantee he will give the Yankees two opportunities to win before it is all said and done. Masahiro Tanaka should keep the Yankees in the game and give them a shot to win and so should the savvy veteran, CC Sabathia, at home in the Bronx. Oh, and not to mention that the Yankees still have their ace in reserves for Game Four in the Bronx regardless of what happens in Boston.

Both teams have great offenses and both teams can pitch well, you don’t win 100+ games in a season if you don’t, but I truly, truly think that the Red Sox are going to play with everything to lose, while the Yankees will play with everything to gain. When you play loose, you tend to win. When you play timidly or cautious, you make mistakes. It’s a fact. Especially in October. The Yankees got their jitters out of the way on Wednesday night as Luke Voit, Giancarlo Stanton, and others got their first playoff games out of the way. Now they can go back to business as usual and continue on to their path of the franchise’s 28^th World Series Championship.

With all due respect to Boston, your Red Sox don’t scare me much. Yankees in five is my prediction, and I only say five games because the Red Sox clinched the division on Yankee Stadium turf, so I would love to end their season inside Fenway Park.

Yankees in five. Go Yankees!!

Notable August Trades in Major League Baseball History

The Yankees season is not over because the team did not make any notable acquisitions at the July 31st trading deadline last month. Earlier today I brought you my wish list for the August 31st trade deadline which included James Shields, Craig Kimbrel, Aroldis Chapman and Martin Prado and I almost immediately caught a ton of flack on Twitter about it. Apparently many fans don't think that big trades like this can happen in July so here are a few notable August trades in the history of the August 31st waiver wire trade deadline.


The Detroit Tigers acquired Doyle Alexander in August of 1987 in a trade with the Atlanta Braves. Who? Yeah, that is exactly what I said until I saw who the Braves got back in return for Alexander, a young right-handed starting pitcher by the name of John Smoltz. Smoltz at the time was just 20-years old and struggling in Double-A with a 5.68 ERA, but the rest, as they say, is history.


A similar situation happened in 1990 when the Houston Asteos traded relief pitcher Larry Andersen to the Boston Red Sox for a first baseman named Jeff Bagwell. Bagwell, then a 22-year old third baseman, quickly became a household name in Houston and eventually ended up in the Hall of Fame as a first basemen with Houston in 2017.

In 2003 the Pittsburgh Pirates sent one of their best players on the team, Brian Giles, to the San Diego Padres for a pair of prospects. You may recognize some of the names that were traded for Giles, Oliver Perez and Jason Bay.


On this day in 2008 the Toronto Blue Jays acquired a player who was not even on the Major League roster at the time. The most notable player at the tgime of the trade was the Pittsburgh Pirates newest player Robinson Diaz but the clear cut winner was Toronto who acquired some dude named Jose Bautista.


In 2000 the New York Yankees acquired a familiar face to complete their dynasty years, the team sent a prospect to the Pittsburgh Pirates for infielder Luis Sojo. Sojo was a big member of the 1996-1999 Yankees before leaving for Pittsburgh via free agency. Sojo was acquired for the playoff and World Series run and did just that with a four-hit game and the game winning hit to clinch the 2000 World Series over the New York Mets. This isn't exactly a notable trade as much as it was a stretch to include the Yankees on the post. We're a Yankees blog after-all.


And who could forget the mega-deal between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Boston Red Sox where over $250,000,000 in dollars changed hands overnight. The Dodgers sent James Loney, Allen Webster, Ivan De Jesus, Rubby De La Rosa and Jerry Sands to the Boston Red Sox for Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford and Josh Beckett.




The Houston Astros acquired Justin Verlander last year before the August 31st trading deadline and the veteran right-hander led the team to the American League Championship and a World Series title. Verlander pitched in 11 games for Houston during the regular season and postseason combined, with the Astros winning 10 of them. Verlander allowed 13 runs total and a minuscule 1.66 ERA along the way.

Recent, Notable & Yankees Related August Trades in MLB

Just because the July 31st trade deadline has come and gone does not mean that the trades are done around the league. Trades can still happen, in fact trades can happen until the very last day of the season, but they get a little more complicated from here on out. Players must now pass through revocable waivers and can be claimed, and ultimately pulled back, or they can pass through waivers and be traded to any team. It gets complicated but it's not impossible so here are some of the more recent and notable August trades in Major League Baseball history. I even included a Yankees-related trade just because we are The Greedy Pinstripes after all and we need to see trades happen no matter what the calendar says. Don’t judge us. Love us.


In 2003 the Pittsburgh Pirates sent one of their best players on the team, Brian Giles, to the San Diego Padres for a pair of prospects. You may recognize some of the names that were traded for Giles, Oliver Perez and Jason Bay.


On this day in 2008 the Toronto Blue Jays acquired a player who was not even on the Major League roster at the time. The most notable player at the time of the trade was the Pittsburgh Pirates newest player Robinson Diaz but the clear cut winner was Toronto who acquired some dude named Jose Bautista.


In 2000 the New York Yankees acquired a familiar face to complete their dynasty years, the team sent a prospect to the Pittsburgh Pirates for infielder Luis Sojo. Sojo was a big member of the 1996-1999 Yankees before leaving for Pittsburgh via free agency. Sojo was acquired for the playoff and World Series run and did just that with a four-hit game and the game winning hit to clinch the 2000 World Series over the New York Mets. This isn't exactly a notable trade as much as it was a stretch to include the Yankees on the post but it what it is. We're a Yankees blog after all.


And who could forget the mega-deal between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Boston Red Sox where over $250,000,000 in dollars changed hands overnight. The Dodgers sent James Loney, Allen Webster, Ivan De Jesus, Rubby De La Rosa and Jerry Sands to the Boston Red Sox for Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford and Josh Beckett.





Will there be any notable or Yankees related trades in August of 2017 to speak about next season? I guess you’ll just have to stay tuned.

Waking Up in First Place...

Photo Credit: NJ Advance Media for NJ.com (John Munson)

Yankees win latest series with Boston…

We have often heard it in recent days. On April 20^th, the Yankees were 7 ½ games behind the Boston Red Sox in the AL East after Boston’s blazing 17-2 start at the beginning of the year. The Yankees, then 9-9, were getting ready to embark on the most brutal stretch of their schedule, struggling to stay above .500, with multiple series ahead against division leaders and winning teams. 

Yet, here we are on May 10^th, and the Yankees lead the AL East by one game with the best record in Major League Baseball. I guess I was worried for nothing, thanks to the twenty-five men on the Yankees roster who have contributed to the legendary winning run the team is currently on. Well, make that twenty-four, reliever A.J. Cole has just been along for the ride.

First place, how sweet it is…

It is amazing the last Yankees team to win 17 of 18 games were the 1953 Yankees which included a young Baby Bomber named Mickey Mantle. That’s pretty good company for the 2018 Yankees. I wasn’t alive then but I hear the 1950’s Yankees were pretty good.

The Yankees are spoiling second baseman Gleyber Torres. He’s quickly learning losing is unacceptable in the Bronx, having experienced only one loss in his first seventeen games. The Yankees are supposed to win every day, right?

Last year, it seemed like the Yankees were consistently losing the close games. Yet, this year, no deficit (it seems) has been too much unless we’re playing the lowly Baltimore Orioles. When Red Sox manager Alex Cora brought his closer, Craig Kimbrel, into last night’s game with five outs to go, it did not feel as intimidating as it had in years past. When Brett Gardner laced the triple to recapture the lead for the Yankees, it wasn’t a surprise to me. It felt like this team was going to find a way to victory. The two run homer by Aaron Judge off Kimbrel was icing on the cake. Loved seeing Astros closer Ken Giles blow the recent game against the Yankees, but watching Kimbrel lose was better even if he didn’t slug himself coming off the mound.    

This run won’t last forever (will it?) but I am certainly enjoying it while it lasts. Back in early April, I felt we’d have a good litmus test on the Yankees by May 10^th. Well, I’d say they aced the exam and have proven they are among the very best in Major League Baseball. Win or lose today, the team’s accomplishments have far exceeded my expectations. 

Going into the Boston series, I had hoped the Yankees would win at least two of three so that they’d have at least a share of the AL East when the Red Sox headed for the airport. However, with two wins in the bag, let’s “Get Greedy” and go for the sweep! 

I am not going to get too high. It is only mid-May and there’s so much baseball yet to be played before anything is decided. Gleyber Torres, sadly, will one day learn it is indeed possible to lose two or three games (or…yikes!...more) in a row at the MLB level. I am not going to dismiss the Red Sox. They are a very good team that’s not going away. But then again, neither are we. It should be a great summer of baseball ahead. 

I did have to check out Boston newspapers today. The Boston Globe featured the Boston Celtics on their Sports page. The Celtics won their Eastern Conference semi-finals matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers and will advance to the Conference Finals against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. I suppose that’s big news in Boston but it is funny how the Red Sox became a secondary thought in the Globe.    

Credit to Giancarlo Stanton who had two homers in the first game of the Red Sox series and a two-run double yesterday. The best way to stop boos at Yankee Stadium is to show up in a big way against the dreaded Red Sox. Nice job, Giancarlo. This is what you were hired to do.

And for all of you who wanted to cut Neil Walker, ala Chris Carter style, I think he’s given his answer to you. On a team that has featured a different hero almost every night, Walker has been a key ingredient in many of the rallies. I think there’s a much better chance of Tyler Austin finding his way to Scranton, PA than Walker hitting the unemployment line. Sorry Tyler, it’s not you. Walker has simply appeared so graceful at first base even though he is out of position and now his bat is showing why he was an offensive force for the Pirates and Mets.  His veteran leadership meshes well with the team, and I am glad he’s here.

Hopefully CC Sabathia can close out the Red Sox this evening and send them out of town on a three-game losing streak. Since Rick Porcello had to move up his start by a day when Wednesday’s scheduled starter, David Price, returned to Boston for medical tests, Eduardo Rodriguez (3-0, 5.29 ERA) will take the mound later today for Boston.

The Yankees open a three-game set against the Oakland A’s on Friday night for their last home series before a road trip to Washington, Kansas City, and Dallas/Fort Worth. While it is cool Sonny Gray gets the start in the series opener against his former team, the player I will be watching most is former Yankee Dustin Fowler. The A’s called up Fowler yesterday.  I had wondered if he’d make his season debut and first official MLB at-bat against the Yankees, but a pinch-hit appearance yesterday against the Houston Astros gave Fowler the first Major League at-bat that eluded him last year in Chicago when he suffered the devastating knee injury. Pinch-hitting for Mark Canha in the 7^th inning (with Houston’s Will Harris on the mound), Fowler lined out to second. So, he’ll come to Yankee Stadium seeking his first Major League hit. While I don’t want the A’s to win (obviously), I hope Fowler gets that hit and draws a standing ovation from the Yankee Stadium crowd. He deserves it. A good man who deserves the very best life has to offer. He will always be one of my favorite ex-Yankees.

Photo Credit:  Getty Images 

Gotta admit that it is really fun to be a Yankees fan right now. I know, it’s always fun, but the World seems like a better place when the Greedy Pinstripes are winning.

Go Yankees!   

Comparing the Yankees and Red Sox Potential 2018 Pitching Staffs

We compared the starting lineups for the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox and we looked at which team had an edge both on the offensive and defensive sides of the game, so it is only fair that we look at the pitching as well, right? I mean, pitching does win championships, so they say, so let’s take a look at the respective pitching staffs for each club to see which team could potentially have the upper hand over the other for the upcoming 2018 season.

Much like when we took a look at and compared each team’s offense and positional players we have what is likely to be an incomplete list here for the pitchers. Each team will likely take one or two more pitchers up with them on Opening Day than are showcased here on this table, but that extra arm or two will likely not be a huge difference maker in the grand scheme of things. For the purpose of this post we have 11 pitchers listed for each team, and the New York Yankees have the “edge” with eight of them. Boston, on the other hand, has the advantage with three of their pitchers according to the table, which again is not only my opinion but is also based on recent stats, career stats and projections that were all provided by Baseball Reference. Craig Kimbrel and Aroldis Chapman could conceivably be a push, in my opinion, but I gave the edge to Kimbrel because he seems to be more consistent than Chapman, who sometimes struggles with command and control when he gets tired.

The Yankees and Red Sox look evenly matched at the starting pitching spots, maybe a slight edge goes to Boston admittedly once the likes of Steven Wright, Eduardo Rodriguez and Drew Pomeranz get healthy and back onto the field, but no one is touching that Yankees bullpen if healthy here in 2018. Not the Red Sox, not the Red Sox when Tyler Thornburg finally gets healthy, not the Baltimore Orioles, not the Houston Astros, nobody. Period. Just the way Brian Cashman imagined and planned.

IBWAA SELECTS JANSEN, KIMBREL IN RELIEF PITCHER AWARDS VOTE

IBWAA SELECTS JANSEN, KIMBREL IN RELIEF PITCHER AWARDS VOTE

 

Los Angeles – The Internet Baseball Writers Association of America (IBWAA) announced the winners in its relief pitcher category Sunday, with the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Kenley Jansen winning the 2017 IBWAA Hoyt Wilhelm National League Relief Pitcher of the Year Award for the second straight year, and Craig Kimbrel, of the Boston Red Sox, being selected as the 2017 IBWAA Rollie Fingers American League Relief Pitcher of the Year.

 

Jansen received 124 first-place votes (87.94%) and 656 points while being named on 138 of 141 ballots (93.88%). Others receiving first-place votes include Corey Knebel (9), Archie Bradley (4) and Greg Holland (2).

 

Kimbrel received 131 first-place votes (91.61%) and 679 points while being named on 141 of 143 ballots (95.92%). Others receiving first-place votes include Alex Colome (9), Andrew Miller (1) and Dellin Betances (1).

 

The relief pitcher awards were established in 2010.

 

Election results are as follows:

 

NL Reief Pitcher:

 

1^st Place:                  Kenley Jansen, Los Angeles Dodgers – 656 points
2^nd Place:                 Corey Knebel, Milwaukee Brewers – 320
3^rd Place :                  Archie Bradley, Arizona Diamondbakcs – 77

3^rd Place:                 Greg Holland, Colorado Rockies – 77

 

AL Relief Pitcher:

 

1^st Place:                  Craig Kimbrel, Boston Red Sox – 679 points
2^nd Place:                 Alex Colome, Tampa Bay Rays – 151 
3^rd Place:                  Andrew Miller, Cleveland Indians – 101

 

Ballot tabulations by Brian Wittig & Associates, using the Borda Method.

 

The IBWAA was established July 4, 2009 to organize and promote the growing online baseball media, and to serve as a digital alternative to the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA). Voting for full season awards takes place in September of each year, with selections being announced in November. The IBWAA also holds a Hall of Fame election in December of each year, with results being announced the following January.

 
Among others, IBWAA members include Tim Brown, Yahoo! Sports; Craig Calcaterra, NBC Sports Hardball Talk; Bill Chuck, GammonsDaily.com; Derrick Goold, St. Louis Post-Dispatch; Jon Heyman and Jesse Spector, Today’s Knuckleball; Danny Knobler, Bleacher Report; Kevin Kennedy; Kostya Kennedy, Sports Illustrated; Brian Kenny, MLBN; Will Leitch, Sports on Earth; Bruce Markusen, Hardball Times; Ross Newhan; Dayn Perry and Matt Snyder, CBSSports.com; Tom Hoffarth and J.P. Hoornstra Los Angeles Daily News; Pedro Moura, Los Angeles Times; Tracy Ringolsby, MLB.com; Ken Rosenthal, TheAthletic.com; Eno Sarris, FanGraphs; David Schoenfield of ESPN.com; Bill Bowden and Bill Arnold.

 

Association membership is open to any and all Internet baseball writers, with a $75 lifetime fee. Discounts for groups and scholarships are available. Members must be 18 years of age to apply.

For more information please visit www.ibwaa.com.

Contact:

 

Howard Cole
Founding Director, IBWAA
baseballsavvy@aol.com

Ranking the 2017 Postseason Bullpens

The postseason begins today with the American League and National League Wild Card Rounds set between the New York Yankees and Minnesota Twins representing the American League while the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Colorado Rockies will represent the National League. These four teams are both looking for one thing and one thing only, a victory. Even if that victory means that your team would then have to face the team with the best record in your respective league, it’s the playoffs and anything can happen. A starter can be less than effective, the offense could be lulled to sleep or the bullpen could just be completely and utterly dominant in every sense of the word meaning that anything can happen in a short series. Speaking of the bullpen let’s take a minute this morning to rank the 10 bullpens entering this postseason to see which team potentially has the edge this October.

The Cleveland Indians are the best team in Major League Baseball according to many, including myself, so it would only be fitting that the team has the best bullpen as well, right? You’re waiting for me to say “wrong” but I am not going to because it is the Indians that have the best bullpen in the playoffs in my opinion with closer Cody Allen and former Yankees Nick Goody and Andrew Miller. Bryan Shaw is the Indians answer to Dellin Betances as he leads the team in appearances while not many teams, including the Yankees, can get the ball in the air to hit home runs off Dan Otero. With the short series in the ALDS looming the Indians could also see Danny Salazar and Mike Clevinger join the bullpen in relief, which is borderline unfair for opposing batters if you ask me.

Prepare your rotten tomatoes to be thrown because I am about to do something unthinkable and say that the Boston Red Sox have a better bullpen then the New York Yankees. Yeah, they do. Craig Kimbrel has been the best reliever in all of Major League Baseball this season in my opinion, yes better than Kenley Jansen, while Matt Barnes, Heath Hembree, Joe Kelly and some dude named David Price have been lights out in the bullpen for Boston. Add in the fact that a couple of the Red Sox starters could be entering the bullpen as well and Boston could have one of the deepest bullpens in the playoffs here in 2017.

Slightly behind the Red Sox are finally your New York Yankees and their bullpen. Trust me, it hurt to put the Bronx Bombers behind the Red Sox but I just had to do it. New York doesn’t know what they can expect out of Adam Warren after returning for the final weekend after missing time with a back issue while Tommy Kahnle is inconsistent at best right now for New York. Dellin Betances has been better but the big right-hander has always had a knack for working himself into trouble and I find it hard to rely on him like I have in years past. Don’t get me wrong, I love this bullpen and if everyone is healthy and pitching to the back of their baseball cards then this bullpen can match with anyone in the league, especially the Red Sox and even the Cleveland Indians, but right now not even me being a massive “homer” can rank this bullpen any higher than third out of ten teams, which isn’t bad at all.

Finally a National League team, the Los Angeles Dodgers. Or should I say the Los Angeles Kenley Jansen’s because it has been the Jansen show for LA out in the bullpen this season. Jansen recorded 41 saves here in 2017 including 12 saves that were for more than one inning, something you don’t see a whole lot of here in the game lately. Kenta Maeda is in the bullpen and Alex Wood may be not far behind him for the NLDS as the Dodgers combo of Pedro Baez and Ross Stripling looked shaky down the stretch in September.  

The Arizona Diamondbacks may have the second best bullpen in the National League, who saw that coming when the season started back in April of 2017? Some may argue against having the Diamondbacks this high but what Fernando Rodney did after a slow start to the season, 33 saves in 37 chances with a 2.38 ERA along with a .200 batting average against, did enough to convince me that the Diamondbacks were for real here in 2017. Remember, the Arizona pitching staff is amazing so the Diamondbacks are unlikely to have to rely on their bullpen for four-to-five innings a night like some teams. The plan for Torey Lovullo and company has to be to get seven innings out of their starter before handing the ball to Archie Bradley and then Rodney in the 9^th. Bradley pitched to a 1.73 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP this season as the setup man and as a multi-inning arm for the Diamondbacks here in 2017 and will likely be used in the same capacity during this year’s postseason.

The Washington Nationals were thought to have one of the worst bullpens in all of the NL East Division when the season started as the team was without a lockdown closer or much middle relief, but then came the July 31^st trade deadline. Before the deadline the Nationals acquired Sean Doolittle, Ryan Madson and Brandon Kintzler in separate trades which completely transformed their bullpen into a dominating machine. Doolittle is the team’s closer now and converted 21 saves after being acquired by Washington allowing Dusty Baker to use arms like Matt Albers, Sammy Solis and Oliver Perez in early inning situations when needed.

The Chicago Cubs bullpen is a bullpen that I would describe as “good, but not great.” Good will win you games and may even win you a short series with some offensive help behind you but I truly think in a seven-game series a “good, but not great” bullpen will get exposed. Wade Davis is still amazing but it is everyone behind Davis that is suspect, even an emerging Carl Edwards Jr. Justin Wilson is a big strikeout guy while Mike Montgomery and Brian Duensing should be effective against Washington’s left-handed hitters but I don’t think it will matter at the end of the day unfortunately.

The Colorado Rockies are here only because of Greg Holland. The Rockies middle relief has been shaky all season long even after the acquisitions of Pat Neshek and Jake McGee and it will only garner more question marks when rookie starters Antonio Senzatela and Jeff Hoffman join the fold. If the Rockies can just get the ball to Holland though the team has a chance to win every time so that has to be the plan out in Colorado.

The Houston Astros are only in this position because the Minnesota Twins traded away their closer Brandon Kintzler before the July 31^st trade deadline. The Astros probably have the shakiest bullpen among all the postseason-bound teams here in 2017 which is evident by their staff ERA of 4.29, 18^th best in MLB among all 30 bullpens. Ken Giles was great this season converting 34 of 38 save opportunities but it was the middle relief that is the reason why Giles didn’t get many more saves than that, well that and that high-powered offense.

Finally we have the Minnesota Twins whose bullpen defied the odds after their closer was traded in late July. Matt Belisle is the new closer and has done well all things considered while rookies Trevor Hildenberger and Alan Busenitz have both exceeded expectations in their first years in the bigs respectively. Taylor Rogers has done well as a left-handed specialist for Paul Molitor’s bullpen while the team has been able to patch their way to the postseason without Kintzler. The team’s bullpen can’t be relied upon in my opinion but hey, you can’t predict baseball. Let’s just hope you can tonight in the Bronx.

Recent, Notable & Yankees Related August Trades in MLB

Just because the July 31st trade deadline has come and gone does not mean that the trades are done around the league. Trades can still happen, in fact trades can happen until the very last day of the season, but they get a little more complicated from here on out. Players must now pass through revocable waivers and can be claimed, and ultimately pulled back, or they can pass through waivers and be traded to any team. It gets complicated but it's not impossible so here are some of the more recent and notable August trades in Major League Baseball history. I even included a Yankees-related trade just because we are The Greedy Pinstripes after all and we need to see trades happen no matter what the calendar says. Don’t judge us. Love us.

In 2003 the Pittsburgh Pirates sent one of their best players on the team, Brian Giles, to the San Diego Padres for a pair of prospects. You may recognize some of the names that were traded for Giles, Oliver Perez and Jason Bay.

On this day in 2008 the Toronto Blue Jays acquired a player who was not even on the Major League roster at the time. The most notable player at the time of the trade was the Pittsburgh Pirates newest player Robinson Diaz but the clear cut winner was Toronto who acquired some dude named Jose Bautista.

In 2000 the New York Yankees acquired a familiar face to complete their dynasty years, the team sent a prospect to the Pittsburgh Pirates for infielder Luis Sojo. Sojo was a big member of the 1996-1999 Yankees before leaving for Pittsburgh via free agency. Sojo was acquired for the playoff and World Series run and did just that with a four-hit game and the game winning hit to clinch the 2000 World Series over the New York Mets. This isn't exactly a notable trade as much as it was a stretch to include the Yankees on the post but it what it is. We're a Yankees blog after all.

And who could forget the mega-deal between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Boston Red Sox where over $250,000,000 in dollars changed hands overnight. The Dodgers sent James Loney, Allen Webster, Ivan De Jesus, Rubby De La Rosa and Jerry Sands to the Boston Red Sox for Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford and Josh Beckett.

Will there be any notable or Yankees related trades in August of 2017 to speak about next season? I guess you’ll just have to stay tuned. 

Good Things Come To Those Who Wait...

Credit:  Rich Gagnon-Getty Images

Yankees 4, Red Sox 1…

What started out as a nice afternoon game in Boston turned out to be an extended night game as the Yankees outlasted the Red Sox.  Chris Sale, with a career ERA of 1.17 against the Yankees, was outstanding on Saturday which generally does not bode well for our guys.  Fortunately, Luis Severino was up to the task and kept the Yankees in the game, setting the stage for late inning heroics.  

Credit:  Associated Press

The Red Sox scored the first run in the 3rd inning.  With one out, Mookie Betts and Dustin Pedroia both walked to put runners at first and second.  Xander Bogaerts hit an infield roller to third that Chase Headley scooped up, looked to first and then turned around and threw too late to shortstop Ronald Torreyes, covering at third.  Everyone was safe.  Mitch Moreland then lofted a deep fly to left and Betts easily ran home for the game’s first run.  Hanley Ramirez could have done more damage but Severino got him on a line out to Chase Headley to end the threat.  

The Yankees only managed three hits off Chris Sale, which included two doubles, but they were unable to push any runs across the plate.  Sale went into the 8th inning, getting Ronald Torreyes to ground out before Brett Gardner singled to right.  Sale then got Gary Sanchez to go down swinging, but with 118 pitches thrown (and 13 strikeouts), the Sox made the call to closer Craig Kimbrel.  Aaron Judge flied out to right to end the top half of the inning.  

In the bottom of the 8th, the Yankees brought in Tyler Clippard (Yikes!) to replace Luis Severino.  Tzu-Wei Lin promptly singled to center and I had a sinking feeling of “here we go again”.  It didn’t help when the count rose to 3-0 on the next batter, Mookie Betts, but on a full count, Betts popped out to short.  Lin then got a great jump on a steal attempt and was sliding past second baseman Starlin Castro who stayed with the play and took the throw from Gary Sanchez to catch Lin on the foot before his hands reached second base.  The Red Sox challenged the play but the call on the field was upheld (rightfully so).  So good to have Castro back at second.  Dustin Pedroia lined out and Clippard was able to leave the field with his head held high.  

For his Red Sox career, Craig Kimbrel was 30-for-30 in save opportunities as he took the mound in the 9th.  A good point was made during the FOX TV telecast by A.J. Pierzynski with the four-out save attempt.  Aaron Judge, despite the fly out to end the top of the 8th, extended the at-bat which forced Kimbrel to throw 10 pitches.  It’s not often that he throws that many pitches before having to sit and come back out again.  It would be a foretelling comment as Matt Holliday greeted Kimbrel with a game-tying, save-blowing home run to left center over the Green Monster to open the inning. 

Credit:  John Wilcox-Boston Herald

Starlin Castro subsequently reached base when first baseman Mitch Moreland was pulled off the base on an errant throw from Xander Bogaerts and pinch-runner Jacoby Ellsbury stole second, just beating the tag by Bogaerts.  But Ellsbury was left stranded when Kimbrel proceeded to strike out the side.  The bottom of the 9th brought in Dellin Betances who seems to have left his control problems behind him.  He easily retired the three batters he faced and the game headed into extra innings.

The Red Sox looked like they were in position for the walk-off win in the bottom of the 10th.  Chasen Shreve had been brought in to replace Betances, and he gave up singles to Andrew Benintendi and Jackie Bradley, Jr to put a runner in scoring position with no outs.  It was a little surprising that Benintendi didn’t try to run for third on JBJ’s hit, but thankfully he did not.  Girardi wasted no time in giving Shreve the hook and brought in Adam Warren.  Warren, proving how much he means to this team, retired the three batters he faced, leaving Benintendi stranded at second.  Had Benintendi been on third, he most likely would have scored the winning run when Tzu-Wei Lin flied out to Aaron Judge for the second out against Warren.  

The 11th inning brought an unusual play that resulted in a game protest by Red Sox manager John Farrell.  Matt Holliday walked to open the inning.  Jacoby Ellsbury then hit a grounder to first, and Mitch Moreland threw the ball to Xander Bogaerts for the force out at second.  But Matt Holliday, as we later found out, mistakenly thought that Moreland had stepped on first to retire Ellsbury (he had not) and turned to dive back toward first base.  Bogaerts threw the ball back to Moreland but it glanced off Ellsbury’s leg since Holliday was in Moreland’s way, leaving Ellsbury safe at first.  Farrell argued unsuccessfully that it should have been called a double play due to interference. Despite the 4 minute, 50 second delay, it didn’t really matter as neither Chase Headley nor Didi Gregorius were able to advance Ellsbury from first.

Credit:  John Wilcox-Boston Herald

From there it was a battle of the bullpens until the top of the 16th inning with Boston’s Doug Fister pitching.  Jacoby Ellsbury doubled to left  and Chase Headley singled to center to put runners at the corners with no outs.  Didi Gregorius singled to center which scored Ellsbury with the go-ahead run.  Austin Romine followed with a single to center, scoring Headley while Gregorius took second.  Ronald Torreyes successfully laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners to second and third.  Gary Sanchez hit a sac fly to left, scoring Gregorius with an insurance run as the Yankees took a 4-1 lead. 

Credit:  John Wilcox-Boston Herald

Ben Heller (1-0), who had replaced Aroldis Chapman in the 15th inning, retired Dustin Pedroia, Xander Bogaerts, and Mitch Moreland to win the game for the Yankees.  

Credit:  Michael Dwyer-Associated Press

It was a very long game (5 hours and 50 minutes) but perseverance paid off as the Yankees eventually pulled out the win.  I can’t say enough about the tremendous performance by Luis Severino.  It was the key to the game, along with the dramatic home run by Matt Holliday in the 9th which gave Craig Kimbrel his first blown save at Fenway Park in a Red Sox uniform.  Considering today’s double-header, it is amazing to think the Yankees will have played at least 34 innings in 24 hours by the end of the day.  

The Yankees (46-42) remain in third place in the AL East standings but moved 3 1/2 games behind the Red Sox.  The Tampa Bay Rays beat the Los Angeles Angels again, 6-3, to move 2 1/2 games behind Boston.  

New Yankees first baseman Garrett Cooper had another unsuccessful day at the plate before he was lifted from the game.  He was 0-for-3, with two strikeouts.  Aaron Judge may have been 0-for-6 but I’d still go back to his extended at-bat against Craig Kimbrel in the bottom of the 8th as a key factor for Holliday’s 9th inning home run.

A long hard day but it’s so much better to walk off the field with a win.

Odds & Ends…

Michael Pineda will meet with Dr Timothy Kremchek, an orthopaedic surgeon, in Cincinnati, Ohio on Monday for a second opinion.  Dr Kremchek is the medical director for the Cincinnati Reds.  If Tommy John surgery is needed (as expected), the procedure could be performed as early as Tuesday.  

CC Sabathia will start Game 1 of today’s double-header in place of Bryan Mitchell.  In a flurry of roster moves today, the Yankees recalled RHP Domingo German and added LHP Caleb Smith to the 25-man roster.  Relievers Ben Heller and Jonathan Holder, both of whom would have been unavailable today after yesterday’s game, were optioned to Triple A.  Michael Pineda was moved to the 60-day DL with his right UCL injury and RHP Bryan Mitchell was added as the “26th man”.  

Prior to yesterday’s game, the Yankees activated Starlin Castro and optioned Tyler Wade to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.  

I am not sure why it took so long but Manager Joe Girardi has finally said that Tyler Clippard is no longer the “7th inning” guy.  Adam Warren and Chad Green will take over the duties of setting up Dellin Betances and Aroldis Chapman.  Good move.  Warren and Green have both been outstanding in recent weeks while the bullpen overall as struggled.  

Chance Adams had his latest start for the RailRiders yesterday.  While he did limit the Buffalo Bisons to two hits and one run in 4 2/3 innings, he walked four batters.  It is the command issues that are holding Adams back at this point (along with the development of his third pitch) so yesterday was not a positive outcome.  Adams did not factor into the decision as the RailRiders defeated the Bisons, 2-1.  Miguel Andujar was the hitting star.  He was 2-for-3 and provided the eventual margin of victory with a run-scoring single in the 7th inning.

Have a great Sunday!  In honor of the double-header, let’s have twice the fun!  Let’s Go Yankees!

Back to Work Friday!...

Aw shucks, do we really hafta?...

I have to admit the break was very nice.  I took full advantage of it and enjoyed every minute.  But alas, all good things must end.  Time to get back to baseball and hopefully what will be a very productive second half for the Pinstripers.  

I am glad the Chicago Cubs laid the Jose Quintana rumors to rest.  It was a serious overpay (in my opinion) and I don’t think the cost was worth the top prospects in the organization.  So, congratulations to GM Brian Cashman for his restraint.  There’s no doubt we need pitching but we’ll just have to find another well, and hopefully a less costly one.  The long term view is still the best view in the house.  I am sure teams will now move to other rumored trade targets, ramping up the cost for guys like Yu Darvish or Gerrit Cole (should they be placed on the market).  I’d rather see Chance Adams get a chance at some point rather than his inclusion in a trade for an older, more established pitcher.  

Credit:  Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

With less than three weeks to the trading deadline, Thursday should just be a slight preview of the days ahead as teams jockey for position.

I thought yesterday’s trade for first baseman Garrett Cooper was a chance worth taking.  Why not?…the Yankees do not have anything to lose.  By trading Tyler Webb, it was an indication that he didn’t fit into their long-term plans.  Plus, he tied up a valuable 40-man roster spot which will be a premium in the off-season when the Yankees have to decide whom to protect and whom to potentially expose to the Rule 5 Draft.  Every move made today has ramifications on the off-season so I am sure that Cashman is being both near- and far-sighted at the same time.  Ji-Man Choi has had a couple of nice home runs but I am not sold on him as a Major League first baseman.  If he falters, it is nice to know that Cooper is waiting in the wings.  He probably represents an upgrade over Mike Ford (currently on the DL for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre).  

Stay tuned as I am sure we’re in for a ride.

I honestly did not think Aaron Judge would win the Home Run Derby last Monday.  The win didn’t surprise me and I certainly loved watching the incredible show as much as anyone.  But there was so much hype about him going into the Derby, I felt the weight of expectations would be too much.  Between Judge and Gary Sanchez, I thought Sanchez would be the one to persevere.  So, my apologies to Aaron and congratulations on the tremendous win.  Now, in one of those bottom of the 9th at-bats when the Yankees are trailing and you represent the tying or winning run, please feel free to mix in a tape measure, Statcast-blowing blast instead of the usual strikeout.  I am not trying to be critical of Judge and I am very appreciative of his consistent contributions game by game...but...outside of Clint Frazier’s recent walk-off, the bottom of the 9th at Yankee Stadium has generally meant three outs in recent weeks.

No All-Star Game recap from me, but it was tough to see a “formerly” beloved ex-Yankee hit the home run to win the game and another “probably still” beloved ex-Yankee save the win.  Robinson Cano hurts more than Andrew Miller since the added measure (salt in the wound) was that Cano on the team as an injury replacement for current Yankee Starlin Castro.  The losses of Cano leaving via free agency and the trade of Miller (not his fault) still sting.  If Cano was still a Yankee, we’d probably be talking about the potential future retirement of his number.  Now, Gary Sanchez gets the honors and Cano has a career that you primarily only see through box scores unless you live in Seattle.

Next Up:  Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, Boston, MA…

The Yankees get a very quick and hard test to open the second half.  They’ll travel to Boston to play the first place Red Sox for four games in three days.  The break, outside of Chris Sale, gave the Sox the opportunity to reset their pitching rotation.  With Sale pitching Tuesday’s All-Star Game, he’ll take the mound on Saturday.  But we’ll see the top 4 pitchers in Boston’s rotation for this series.  So no fifth starters this go-around.  The Red Sox are starting to play like everyone expected although they did lose their most recent series when they were beaten by the Tampa Bay Rays, the team currently tied with the Yankees for second place in the AL East.  If Boston finds a solution for their third base problem and perhaps more arms for the pen, they’ll be a formidable team although at this point, I’d have to say the Houston Astros are the likely winners of the ALCS regardless of who they play.

By catching closer Craig Kimbrel in the All-Star Game, I am hopeful that Gary Sanchez picked up a thing or two to use during his at-bats.  I think he was surprised at the movement of Kimbrel’s pitches from the catcher’s point of view.  Very weird to see a Yankee catch a Red Sox pitcher.

The Red Sox can be beaten but not by the Yankees team we saw the last couple of weeks.  They’ll need to rise to the challenge.  I hope that Dellin Betances can right the ship once and for all.  The same goes for Masahiro Tanaka.  I only hope that we are not forced to use Tyler Clippard in a critical situation.

As of this post, the Yankees had not announced their scheduled starters.  Boston's starters will be:

FRIDAY:  Drew Pomeranz (9-4, 3.60 ERA)
SATURDAY:  Chris Sale (11-4, 2.75 ERA)
SUNDAY-GAME 1:  Rick Porcello (4-11, 4.75 ERA)
SUNDAY-GAME 2:  David Price (4-2, 3.91 ERA)

Final Notes…

As expected, the Yankees have sent Starlin Castro to Double-A Trenton on a rehab assignment.  They also released Chris Carter after he cleared waivers so there will be no Carter Experiment III.  

Have a great Friday!  Let’s start the second half off right with a win in Beantown!  Let’s Go Yankees!