Saturday, May 17, 2014

5 home runs, solid start from Phelps help Yankees blowout Pirates

It wasn't pretty, but I'm sure David Phelps'll take it.

The young right hander, coming off a rough start last Sunday in Milwaukee in which he gave up 4 earned runs in 5+ frames, threw 100 pitches through 5 shutout innings today, as the Yankees beat up the visiting Pirates by a dominant score of 7-1.

During those five at-bats, Phelps actually let 9 of the 22 hitters he faced reach base, yet didn't allow a run due to a solid 5 strikeouts.

After his departure, Relievers Dellin Betances (ER, 2 innings), Adam Warren (0 R, 1 inning), and Matt Daley (0 R, 1 inning) combined to get the last nine outs, and, thanks to five home runs from 1B Mark Teixeira (2-run), LF Zoilo Almonte, CF Brett Gardner, RF Alfonso Soriano, and Catcher Brian McCann (also a 2-run) the Yanks emerged victorious. 

That shot from Teixeira, his 9th of the year, was interestingly the 350th of his career, putting the Yanks up 2-0.

In the end, that would be all the Pinstripes would need, but still, the rest were definitely cool.

In particular, Almonte's brought a rush of excitement to those watching, as it easily cleared the first section of the right-center field stands.

Game Thread: Yankees vs. Pirates 5/17


The New York Yankees and the Pittsburgh Pirates will start a three game weekend series this afternoon in the Bronx as Yankee Stadium plays host to the Pirates. The Yankees will send David Phelps to the mound to face off with Edinson Volquez for the Pirates. The game will be played at 4:05 pm ET and can be seen on the YES Network, Fox Sports 1, MLB TV, and can be heard on the radio with John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman on WFAN.

Get your tickets to see Andrew McCutchen and former Yankees like Russell Martin right here on the blog through TiqIQ. Also remember to follow @GreedyStripes on Twitter to chat Yankees baseball during the game. You can always chat it up with us as well by leaving us a comment in the comments section of the site.

Enjoy the game Yankees family and I hope everyone has a good weekend.

Almonte to make first 2014 start today

Yankees OF Prospect Zoilo Almonte will make his first 2014 start today, Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal reports.

Almonte, who was called up to the majors from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre earlier this week, will replace everyday CF Jacoby Ellsbury in the lineup, as #22 has come down with an apparent illness. 

Almonte will not be playing Center, however, as it will be occupied by Brett Gardner with the youngster playing Left.

So far this season, Zoilo has hit pretty well with the Railriders, collecting a solid .273 average with 6 home runs and 24 RBI.

In the Bombers 1-0 win over the Mets Thursday night, Almonte pinch hit to lead off the top of the eighth, striking out on a 3-2 pitch. Besides that, #24 also appeared in 34 big league games last year, hitting a decent .274 in 106 at-bats.

To go along with those numbers, the guy also had a homer and four stolen bases, meaning that he does have a lot of different qualities. 

Now overall, he doesn't seem to be amazing at one particular aspect, but since he does bring a little bit of everything to the table I think calling him up was a good decision. Bringing in some more pitching instead wouldn't have hurt, but considering that offense is still half the game I guess it really wasn't that big of a deal.

Andrew McCutchen or Two Chains... Meme


I never really thought about it but this is cool...

Preview: New York Yankees vs. Pittsburgh Pirates 5/17


The New York Yankees will play host to Andrew McCutchen and the Pittsburgh Pirates for a three game weekend set at Yankee Stadium starting tonight in the Bronx. The Yankees will send David Phelps to the mound to face off with Edinson Volquez for the Pirates. The game will be played at 4:05 pm ET and can be seen on the YES Network, Fox Sports 1, MLB TV, and can be heard on the radio with WFAN.

David Phelps is still making starts for the injured Michael Pineda and looks to keep the Yankees in games and give them some distance for the bullpen. Phelps has pitched well all things considered with being skipped due to weather and not being stretched out and looks to continue his consistent ways tonight in the Bronx.

Volquez, someone I pushed the Yankees to sign this offseason, had a good start against the St. Louis Cardinals his last time out retiring nine of the first ten batters he faced before running into some trouble in the fifth inning. Volquez did not get a decision in his last start but pitched well so let's hope the Yankees offense can get to him tonight.

Go Yankees!!

Can't Predict Baseball: Giving "Blackouts" A New Name


On this day in 1903 due to Sunday restrictions in Cleveland a major league game is played in Columbus, Ohio. The "hometown" Indians defeated the New York Highlanders 9-2.

On this day in 2012 the Blue Jays Yan Gomes becomes the first Brazilian to play in a major league game in history. Gomes with with the Indians now and instead of playing third base, like he did in this game in the Torono 4-1 victory over New York, he is a catcher now. Gomes goes 2-3 in his big league debut at age 24.


Trenton Thunder Game Recap 5/16

Pitching Strong in 2-0 Loss to Sea Dogs


PORTLAND, ME - Two runs in the bottom of the second inning were all the Portland Sea Dogs needed in their series-opening 2-0 win over the Trenton Thunder Friday night.
Before 6,712 fans on a misty fireworks night, the Sea Dogs got to Thunder starting pitcher Caleb Cotham for a pair of runs. Following walks to Blake Swihart and Carlos Rivero, Henry Ramos grounded into a fielder's choice putout at second base to place runners at first and third with one out.
The next Portland batter was lefty Peter Hissey who slapped a double up the right-centerfield gap. Slade Heathcott tracked it down and relayed to third base in time to record the out on Hissey trying to extend to a triple, but it still went for a two-run double for the only runs of the game.
Cotham- who dropped to 0-1 with his first Double-A loss of the season- allowed two runs over 4.2 innings, before being relieved by Jairo Heredia. Heredia (2.1 IP) and Pat Venditte (1.0 IP) combined for hitless, shutout relief in back of the starter.
In his second game of the season, Slade Heathcott doubled twice and reached on a catcher's interference to finish 2-for-3. Trenton managed five hits in the game, plus just four hits in seven innings off starting pitcher Keith Couch who improves to 5-0 on the season and lowered his ERA to 2.56.

The other Thunder hits came from Rob Refsnyder, Ali Castillo and Dan Fiorito.

The loss was a season-worst fourth in a row for the Thunder dating to Tuesday's loss against Erie.
The Thunder continue their series with Portland in Game 2 of the three-game series Saturday at Hadlock Field. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. with a 12:45 pre-game show that can be found streaming on the TuneIn Radio app and on www.trentonthunder.com

Being posted with permission from the Trenton Thunder. The original article can be seen HERE

Charleston Riverdogs Game Recap 5/16


Lail's Fifth Straight Win Opens Doubleheader Split
Brady Lail claims twin bill opener before Hickory wins finale and series

CHARLESTON, SC - Brady Lail won his fifth consecutive start to tie a Charleston RiverDogs record while recording a career-high 11 strikeouts in a 4-2 RiverDogs win over the Hickory Crawdads in game one of a doubleheader at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park. Hickory won game two 3-0 to close the twin bill, which was played in front of 5,608 fans in South Atlantic League action.
The RiverDogs have a 21-19 record as the Crawdads win this three-game series and are now 18-22. Lail joins Rafael De Paula and current Minnesota Twin Phil Hughes as the only RiverDogs pitchers to win five straight appearances since Charleston became a New York Yankees affiliate in 2005. He also has six wins overall, tied with Hagerstown's Nick Pivetta for the league lead. Charleston's Mike Ford reached safely in both games for a team-best 13-game on-base streak.
Charleston and Hickory each traded a run before the RiverDogs took the lead for good with a three-run rally in the second inning. Brandon Thomas hit a first-pitch home run, matching a similar leadoff solo shot by Jose Rosario in the first. Rosario added another run with a run-scoring single and Michael O'Neill's groundout to shortstop gave the RiverDogs a 4-1 lead.
Hickory's Evan Van Hoosier cut the difference to 4-2 on a triple and an error before Lail shut down the Crawdads. Lail retired his final 12 batters in a row, striking out the side during the fourth and sixth innings. Chris Smith relieved Lail and pitched a scoreless seventh inning that wrapped up the Charleston victory in the doubleheader opener
Lail is 6-1 after his fifth straight win. Frank Lopez slides to 3-2 after a complete game loss. Smith's save was his first of the season in just his second appearance in affiliated baseball.
Game two of the doubleheader was a pitchers' duel between Charleston's Caleb Smith and Hickory's Tyler Smith. Caleb Smith faced in minimum in five of his six innings pitched while Tyler Smith carried a perfect game into the fifth inning. Caleb's eight strikeouts led the nightcap of the doubleheader while Tyler's seven strikeouts led the Crawdads.
Hickory scored in the third and seventh innings of a shutout. Kevin Torres doubled and reached third base after a passed ball. Michael De Leon hit into a force out to bring in Torres for a 1-0 Crawdads lead. A two-run homer by Travis Demeritte in the seventh capped the scoring. Charleston was scoreless even though seven runners reached safely over the final three frames.
Tyler Smith is 1-0 with a victory in his first start of the season. Caleb Smith's record is 3-3 following a loss, but he currently leads the SAL with a 0.70 ERA with one unearned run allowed in a quality start. Josh McElwee finished the game for his first save of 2014.
BALLPARK FUN: Titus the Bat Dog showed off his bat boy skills by retrieving bats from RiverDogs hitters. Logan Haymaker was about to deliver a ceremonial first pitch before Friday's doubleheader when his brother, Specialist Lance Haymaker, made a surprise return home from Kandahar, Afghanistan. The doubleheader and the homestand finished with a postgame fireworks display over the scenic Ashley River.
COMING UP: Charleston will embark on an eight-game road stretch starting on Saturday at Savannah at 6:05pm. RiverDogs RHP Jaron Long (2-1, 2.59 ERA) opens up against Sand Gnats RHP Robert Gsellman (2-2, 1.48 ERA). The RiverDogs will follow this road stretch with an eight-game homestand. Re-Opening Night is scheduled for a May 27 doubleheader with the Greenville Drive while "Bark for Your Brew" on June 1 precedes the homestand finale against the Asheville Tourists. Tickets may be purchased at the Riley Park Box Office, (843) 577-DOGS (3647) or on-line at www.riverdogs.com. If fans cannot make it to the ballpark, they are encouraged to tune in to all the action this year both home and away worldwide on www.riverdogs.com and locally on 1250 WTMA, the new radio home for RiverDogs baseball.
Box Score - Game One: http://atmilb.com/1oYgaFe
Box Score - Game Two: http://atmilb.com/1lwT3y0

Being posted with permission from the Charleston Riverdogs. The original post can be seen HERE

Quick Hit: Another Much Needed Day Off


Yesterday was another much needed day off for the Yankees, thank you Mother Nature. With the rain out and the off day on Monday Dellin Betances should be available for at least two of the three games this weekend with the Pirates and so should the rest of the Yankee bullpen. The legs of Derek Jeter could use all the days off he can get at this point and so could the Yankees, i.e. Ichiro Suzuki, nursing injuries right now.

Yesterday was another much needed day off and hopefully the Yankees have their legs under them and we can sweep these Pittsburgh Pirates this weekend. I know I needed the day off last night so maybe it's just me.

This Day In New York Yankees History 5/17


On this day in 1961 Roger Maris hits the first home run of his season at Yankee Stadium en route to his record breaking 61 home runs. This is Maris' fourth home run of the season but the Senators still win the game 8-7.


On this day in 1998 almost 50,000 fans flocked to Yankee Stadium for Beanie Baby Day at Yankee Stadium and got to witness a piece of history. David Wells retires all 27 batters he faced, and rumor has it still drunk from the night before, while beating the Minnesota Twins 4-0. This was only the 13th perfect game in modern day major league history.


On this day in 2002 Jason Giambi finally earned a stripe and became a "true Yankee." The Twins would score three times in the top of the 14th inning at Yankee Stadium and would take a 13-10 lead. Jason Giambi would hit a one out grand slam the next half of the inning off reliever Mike Trombley to give the Yankees the victory. In Giambi's first year after replacing the very popular Tino Martinez this helped the fans warm up to the slugger.