Game Thread: New York Yankees @ Seattle Mariners 8/24

Here we go ladies and gentleman, afternoon baseball in Seattle as the New York Yankees face off with the Seattle Mariners one last time this week inside Safeco Field. In the finale of this three game set of two teams chasing the second Wild Card playoff spot in the American League we will be treated to a little bit of international flare as the Yankees send Masahiro Tanaka to the mound to face off with fellow Japanese-born right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma. The game will be played at 3:40 pm ET inside Safeco Field and can be seen on the YES Network and MLB TV.

The Yankees are off tomorrow before beginning a series with the Baltimore Orioles this weekend so if you want to be there live to see Gary Sanchez hit another 14 home runs or so click the Yankees Tickets link at the top of the blog. Also be sure to give our Twitter account @GreedyStripes a follow or like us on Facebook to interact with us during each and every Yankees game left this season.

Tanaka vs. Iwakuma with the entire country of Japan watching. No pressure. Go Yankees!

Game Preview: New York Yankees @ Seattle Mariners 8/24

The New York Yankees and the Seattle Mariners one last time. One last time for these two clubs inside Safeco Field and one last time for the Yankees to be so far away from home on the east coast. In the finale of the three-game set this afternoon the New York Yankees will send Masahiro Tanaka to the mound, Happy Tanaka Day Yankees family, to square off with country mate Hisashi iwakuma for the Mariners. Japan should be watching.

Tanaka threw an absolute gem last time out against the Angels throwing 7.2 innings of shutout baseball while striking out nine without walking a batter. Tanaka’s K numbers are up lately and if he can keep them up the Yankees can keep rewarding him with victories in his starts.

Iwakuma has given the Mariners length and stability lately as the team chases the 2^nd Wild Card spot in the American League. Iwakuma will make his 26^th start of the season this afternoon and has gone seven innings or more in three of his last four starts while posting an 8-2 record in his last 10 starts.

The game will be played at 3:40 pm ET inside Safeco Field and can be seen on the YES Network and MLB TV. If I go get my kids pretty quick, don’t hit traffic and do about 95 MPH on the way home I should get home by the 5^th inning. I’m seriously contemplating it because I miss my Yankees. Between being sick and all these west coast games I have been severely slacking on my watching and my tweeting so if you see someone coming up behind you pretty quickly, it’s me. Please move. Go Yankees!

Yankees Rotation, You’re Killing Me Smalls

To borrow a now famous line from a now famous movie, The Sandlot, “you’re killing me Smalls!” In case you’ve lived under a rock for the past 20-or-so years Smalls was one of the main characters in the movie and a new member to the group of kids who played baseball in their sandlot. Smalls didn’t know much about the game but he knew he wanted to be accepted, remember he thought Babe Ruth was a female and not that big of a deal, and this frustrated the other boys. This quickly caught on and whenever someone was making something you deemed simple more trouble than it was worth you always threw out a “you’re killing me Smalls” as a joke and for emphasis. Well you know what? The Yankees starting rotation, you’re killing me Smalls!

Sure there have been encouraging moments this season to speak of and I am the last one to conveniently mis-remember them. Luis Severino has looked much better than his 0-2 start would suggest and it’s okay if he hasn’t because he’s only set to make his 14^th career MLB start tomorrow in the series finale with Oakland. Masahiro Tanaka had the best start of the season for the Yankees staff on Sunday out-dueling former teammate Hisashi Iwakuma and Michael Pineda has seen starts where his control has been impeccable walking none. The good is far being out shadowed by the bad though right now and that needs to change.

Heading into yesterday’s series opener the Yankees ranked dead last, or more commonly known as 15^th place, in the American League in innings pitched out of their starting rotation after the starters had thrown just 61.2 innings pitched. That looks more impressive after Tanaka’s seven inning performance on Sunday and it made the average start last 5.2 innings for the team and the team starting ERA drop to 5.25, also the worst in the American League.

There is some encouraging news though for the Bombers. Severino is not going to give up twice as many hits as he has innings pitched for the entire season like he has thus far and I can’t see Nathan Eovaldi allowing a home run every three innings pitched like he has thus far this year. Bryan Mitchell should be back eventually and Ivan Nova can always slide into the rotation if need be at some point this season. Tanaka should be better and Michael Pineda should be a hell of a lot better. The Yankees staff will be better, until then though they are killing me. Smalls. 

Recap: Yankees 4, Mariners 3

Sometimes it's hard to lose.

That was the lesson the Yankees learned on Sunday, when another ugly performance by the club's offense somehow translated to a win.

The Yankees went just 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position and left seven on base, but found a way to scrape together a 4-3 victory over the Mariners in the series finale at Yankee Stadium.

For the third straight contest, the Yankees probably should have scored a lot more -- only this time they came out on top.

The Yankees grabbed a 2-1 edge in the bottom of the second on a two-run shot by Alex Rodriguez, snapping an 0-for-19 skid for the veteran. 

They added to their advantage with Brett Gardner's ground-rule double an inning later, plating Jacoby Ellsbury after the latter had stolen second.

At that point, the game seemed to be in hand -- but misplays by the Yankees' defense helped Seattle come back.

First, a rocket off the bat of Kyle Seager snuck through Mark Teixeira's legs in the fourth, resulting in a two-base error and eventually setting up Steve Clevenger for an RBI single.

Then, a poorly-judged dive by Ellsbury extended a Norichika Aoki hit to a triple in the fifth, allowing Seth Smith to even the score with a knock of his own.

But Yankees starter Masahiro Tanaka hung in there, lasting a full seven innings and yielding just two earned runs on six hits. He walked none while striking out six, besting his fellow countryman Hisashi Iwakuma.

After his team tied it at three, Iwakuma surrendered back-to-back singles in the fifth to Gardner and Carlos Beltran -- putting men on the corners for the dangerous Teixeira. But it wasn't the Yankees' first baseman who re-took the lead for New York; rather, it was Gardner and his hustle home on a wild pitch.

And once they were back ahead, the Yankees had no problem closing it out.

After spotless sixth and seventh innings from Tanaka, Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller fanned each of the six hitters they faced in relief. It was the second consecutive day both have struck out the side, and the duo's ERA on the young season remains perfect.

WHAT IT MEANS: The Yankees finally snapped their four-game losing streak. They are now 5-6 on the year, third in the AL East.

NEXT UP: The Yankees will stay in the Bronx to begin a three-game set with the A's on Tuesday night. Michael Pineda (1-1, 6.55 ERA) and Eric Surkamp (0-1, 4.00 ERA) are slated to be your starters, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m. ET.

Game Thread: New York Yankees vs. Seattle Mariners 4/17

The New York Yankees and the Seattle Mariners are ready to face off for the third and final time this weekend inside Yankee Stadium with a pitching match-up that comes attached with a little international flair. Today the Yankees will send their ace pitching stud Masahiro Tanaka to the mound to face off a fellow Japanese-born right-hander in Hisashi Iwakuma. The game will be played at 1:05 pm ET inside Yankee Stadium and can be seen on the YES Network and MLB TV.

The Yankees stay home after this start to play host to the Oakland Athletics for a series in the Bronx so to see any of these games live click the Yankees Tickets link at the top of the blog to grab a pair of tickets for yourself. If you can't make it to the Bronx then at least head over to Twitter and give @GreedyStripes a follow to interact with us during each and every Yankees game this season.

Robbie Cano, let him know. Go Yankees!

Game Preview: New York Yankees vs. Seattle Mariners 4/17

The New York Yankees and the Seattle Mariners will finish off their three-game weekend series this afternoon in the Bronx. This pitching match-up should be an interesting game not only here in the states but around the world as a pair of Japanese-born pitchers face off head-to-head inside Yankee Stadium. The Yankees will send their ace Masahiro Tanaka to the mound this afternoon to face off with the veteran Hisashi Iwakuma in the rubber match of the series.

Tanaka will make his first start on regular rest this afternoon in the Bronx this afternoon after having at least five days of rest in his first two starts of the young season. Tanaka seemed to start slow in both starts this year but get stronger as the game went on which is encouraging for the Yankees as the season goes longer. 

Iwakuma has made his first two starts of the season against the Texas Rangers this season and will make his third start today in the Bronx. Iwakuma heads into the start with a 0-1 record with a 4.09 ERA that he looks to improve upon as her also looks to improve upon a career 2-2 record with a 3.50 ERA against the Yankees. 

The game will be played at 1:05 pm ET inside Yankee Stadium and can be seen on the YES Network and MLB TV. The Yankees welcome home the Oakland Athletics to the Bronx tomorrow night but one game at a time and you can't look ahead, especially against a good pitcher like Iwakuma. Go Yankees!

Kenta Maeda and Fantasy Baseball

It’s never too early to start thinking about next season, just ask a Chicago Cubs fans, and it’s especially never too early to start thinking about your next season’s fantasy baseball league. Last season I tried to bring as much fantasy baseball discussion and advice as I could to the blog and based on the view count and interactions it seemed to go over well. Have no fear because we’re bringing it all back again this offseason and we start things off with the newest face to join Major League Baseball and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Mr. Kenta Maeda.

Maeda will turn 28-years old in April and pitched for the Hiroshima Carp of the Nippon Professional Baseball League in Japan last season. While pitching alongside former Yankees and Dodgers right-hander Hiroki Kuroda with the Carp Maeda posted a 15-8 record with a 2.09 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 175 strikeouts in 206.1 innings pitched. How that will translate into Major League Baseball is anyone’s guess but we’ve seen enough Japanese-born pitchers come over to the states to take a pretty educated guess if I don’t say so myself.

Maeda is a smaller guy standing just 6’0” and 165 lbs. and he’s not the overpowering bringer of heat like many. Maeda’s fastball sits at about 90-93 MPH which allows him to throw more changeups and curveballs keeping hitters off balance. Maeda is not a huge strikeout guy and relies more on his command and his control while pitching more to contact than anything. The closest comparison you have for Maeda is Philadelphia Phillies rookie Aaron Nola who pitched 77.2 innings in the Majors last season. They have similar builds, velocities and they both pound the strike zone. Neither are huge strikeout guys and rely more on ground balls and fly balls to get their jobs done.

Maeda will be helped by Dodgers Stadium and he should be helped by the fact that he faces the pitchers spot three or four times a night but rest assured he will not be the next Yu Darish or Masahiro Tanaka. His scouting report does sound a lot like Hiroki Kuroda’s and Hisashi Iwakuma’s though so there is some upside associated with him. I wouldn’t take him necessarily early but by around Round 10-15 he should be available and prime for the picking. 

Hal Shows He’s Still Calling the Shots… Unfortunately

The Winter Meetings are almost wrapped up and the New York Yankees once again have been relatively quiet. Many fans are screaming for the head of Brian Cashman, once again, and once again Cashman is getting stoned for the King’s work. It’s not King George anymore though, this time around it’s King Hal Steinbrenner that’s still calling the shots… unfortunately.

When the news broke that the San Francisco Giants had signed right-hander Jeff Samardzija to a five-year deal worth $90 million many Yankees fans erupted. Samardzija had been linked to the Yankees all offseason long and when the dust settled the Yankees didn’t even make an offer. The same can be said for the Los Angeles Dodgers signing of right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma. Another perfect fit for the Yankees, another pitcher with a ton of rumors and supposed interest by New York and another non-offer. Why? Hal Steinbrenner. Hal Steinbrenner is not allowing Cashman to make any significant signings or expenditures this offseason since very little to no money is coming off the books.

Cashman once again gets the short end of the stick and the brunt of the hate. Cashman did not sign many of the contracts that are hampering the team and their budget right now. It wasn’t Cashman who wanted Carlos Beltran, Brian McCann or Jacoby Ellsbury. It was Hal. Cashman did not want to re-sign Alex Rodriguez once he opted out, hell Cashman didn’t want A-Rod to begin with, both were George Steinbrenner influenced signings. Cashman is merely the guy being handed chopsticks to eat with after the organization has cut his hands off. He’s starving!

I know this probably goes on at many organizations and none of them are as public, or maybe I just don’t pay attention close enough to other teams, as the Yankees but this is getting out of hand. Let the general manager, in name only apparently, do his job and simply write the checks Hal. If you don’t have trust in your people, and obviously you don’t, then fire them and start over with people you do trust. Something has got to change though because this has proven time and time again that this is not working. Not even close. 

The Hisashi Iwakuma vs. Hiroki Kuroda Comparison That Could Help the Yankees in 2016

The Major League Baseball postseason is still in full motion as we sprint towards the World Series in a classic “hurry up and wait” type situation. I say that because the ALCS and NLCS series look unlikely to go deep into the month of October with seven game series looking less and less likely. We’re all in a hurry to get to the World Series so we can sit by our window looking out it with sadness across our faces while we wait for Spring Training 2016. The good news for the MLB fan, and especially for the Yankees fans until recently, is you have the Hot Stove and free agency markets to keep you busy and occupied until then. New York has never shied away from reloading and retooling via free agency, although the team is trying to be smarter about it these days, and that mindset may lead them to a man that reminds me a lot of a former Yankee Hiroki Kuroda, Hisashi Iwakuma.

The comparisons only begin at the fact that both are Japanese-born players that have made their way over to the United States to play in the Major Leagues. Both are veteran right-handed starting pitchers that have expressed an interest in staying out on the West Coast to stay closer to their native Japan, could both be lured East for significant salary on a one-year or two-year deal? If you’re looking at the stats and the current status of the Yankees starting rotation you would certainly hope so.

Here are Iwakuma’s stats thus far in the Major Leagues with the Seattle Mariners:

Year	W	L	ERA	G	CG	SHO	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA+	FIP	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9
2012	9	5	3.16	30	0	0	125.1	117	49	44	17	43	101	121	4.35	1.277	8.4	1.2	3.1	7.3
2013 ★	14	6	2.66	33	0	0	219.2	179	69	65	25	42	185	138	3.44	1.006	7.3	1.0	1.7	7.6
2014	15	9	3.52	28	0	0	179.0	167	70	70	20	21	154	103	3.25	1.050	8.4	1.0	1.1	7.7
2015	9	5	3.54	20	1	1	129.2	117	53	51	18	21	111	107	3.74	1.064	8.1	1.2	1.5	7.7

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

And here are Kuroda’s stats, specifically with the Yankees:

Year	W	L	ERA	G	CG	SHO	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA+	FIP	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9
2012	16	11	3.32	33	3	2	219.2	205	86	81	25	51	167	127	3.86	1.165	8.4	1.0	2.1	6.8
2013	11	13	3.31	32	1	1	201.1	191	79	74	20	43	150	121	3.56	1.162	8.5	0.9	1.9	6.7
2014	11	9	3.71	32	0	0	199.0	191	91	82	20	35	146	104	3.60	1.136	8.6	0.9	1.6	6.6

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

Iwakuma would give the Yankees another top of the rotation type starter, maybe not an ace but definitely a solid #2 or great #3, adding to Masahiro Tanaka, Michael Pineda, Nathan Eovaldi and Luis Severino. Iwakuma would likely come attached to a qualifying offer and draft pick compensation but many of the great starters, besides David Price and Johnny Cueto who were traded mid-season and are ineligible, will be this winter so it’s six of one and a half dozen of the other. Iwakuma gives the Yankees a substantial upgrade in the starting rotation without sacrificing the future in long-term contracts and in potential trades on the trade market.

Iwakuma makes perfect sense for the Yankees, will Brian Cashman once again get his man?

Cano Thankful He Got to Play With Jeter

From 2005-2013, Mariners Second Basemen Robinson Cano grew up alongside Derek Jeter.

The $240 million infielder, currently in his first season outside of the Bronx, started off as a prospect with the Yankees, slowly becoming a star before his nine year stint (2009 World Series win included) was up.

Prior to last's night game, Cano revealed to the New York Post's Kevin Kernan how much Jeter's leadership meant to him during that time, stating that the future HOF always answered his questions and was a big help to the team's youngsters.

“Every time I had a question, he was the guy I would ask," Cano said. "I really appreciated that. He was a superstar and he helped all the young players."

Before the contest, which the Yanks won 3-2 over M's ace Hisashi Iwakuma in thrilling fashion, Cano actually gave Jeter a $34,000 watch, inscribed with the phrase "Thanks for showing me how to be a leader."

That gift, along with a seat from the old KingDome (where Jeter made his MLB Debut back in 1995) and a charitable donation, made up the night of thanks to #2, who will play his last regular season game in Seattle tomorrow.

Expensive RBIs; Trio of Offseason Signees Lead Yankees to 3-2 Win over Mariners

So far this season, you could make the argument that Carlos Beltran, Brian McCann, and Jacoby Ellsbury have underachieved.

The offseason signees, whose contracts total $283 million, have hit just .226, .225, and .286, a big reason why the Yankees have struggled the way they have.

Fortunately, that unwanted trend didn't continue tonight, with the expensive trio each collecting RBIs in a 3-2 win over the Mariners.

They, along with the rest of the offense, weren't exactly consistent, although they did do enough.

To start things off, Beltran doubled a man home with two outs in the top of the first, followed immediately by an RBI infield single from McCann.

That early 2-0 lead wasn't anything huge, but it did hold up thanks to the heroics of Vidal Nuno, who escaped multiple jams during his 5.2-inning, one-run start.

Upon leaving, Nuno (4 Hits, Walk, 2 Strikeouts) was up for the win, something he definitely deserved.

Unfortunately, he wouldn't end up getting it, as the struggling Dellin Betances gave up that slim 2-1 advantage in the bottom of the seventh. 

Facing Dustin Ackley with a man on second and two outs, Betances allowed a single to right, scoring Mike Zunino.

At that point, #68 was in line for the W, despite having blown the lead.

Shortly afterwards in the top of the eighth, the Yanks would retake the advantage off of Hisashi Iwakuma (7.1 IP, 3 ER), rallying with one out when Derek Jeter ground-rule doubled and Ellsbury singled him in.

On that double, Jeter actually missed first base, although he did later go back to touch it, possibly saving the rally.

After a pair of scorless frames from Adam Warren and David Robertson (16th save in 18 opportunities), the Bombers would officially collect the victory, improving their record to 32-31 and bringing them to just 1.5 games out of the wild card. They're still not quite where they need to be, although they're definitely improving. I guess that's good enough for now.