Sunday, June 22, 2014

Tanaka Solid, But No Offense Hurts Yankees in Another Loss To Baltimore

While Yankees' ace Masahiro Tanaka is definitely a talented starting pitcher, he is by no means perfect.

The 25-year-old Japanese Rookie, 11-1 with a 1.99 ERA going into today, usually makes a couple of mistakes in each of his outings, something that hasn't really cost him yet.

Well, in this afternoon's rubber game against the Orioles it did, as Tanaka struggled to get big outs in a surprising, 8-0 loss.

For most of his performance, the possible future Cy Young did cruise, although a second inning homer from Johnathan Schoop and another pair of runs late ended up ruining his chance of winning, as the youngster surrendered 3 trips around the bases over a solid 7 frames.

During the outing, Tanaka struck out just 6, helping raise his still-good ERA to 2.11, now just the second best in the American League.

After his departure, despite his recent successes, Adam Warren allowed another 4 Baltimore runs, pretty much making the contest a blowout.

To make things even worse, Mark Teixeira left the ballgame in the bottom of the eighth after getting hit in the foot, although later on an X-Ray would come back negative, the only good thing that happened to the offense in the contest.

Yep, for the second day in a row the Yanks' bats fell silent to a less-than-amazing O's starter, collecting just 4 hits over 7 innings off Chris Tillman.

The performance of Tillman, who came into the outing with a 4.82 ERA, clinched for Baltimore another series win in the Bronx, their second already in 2014.

Interestingly, in both sets the Bombers actually took the opener, with them then being outscored 33-10 in the other four contests, a big reason why they are now just tied for second place in the AL East.

Teixeira Leaves Game w/ Foot Injury

Mark Teixeira has left the Yankees game this afternoon with the Baltimore Orioles after being hit on the foot with a pitch. Teix was angry throwing his helmet and shin guard like he knew the bone was broken after trying to walk to first. Brendan Ryan replaced Teix on the bases and switched to second base after the inning. Stay tuned after the game for the official bad news.

Should The Yankees Try To Trade For Martin Prado?

The first time I brought up the name "Martin Prado" was in January of last season, when I was responding to a comment about letting Robinson Cano walk after the 2013 season.

I pointed out that Prado consistently hits .300 with an OBP over .350, while also stealing a decent number of bases. Of course, Martin followed up those comments by batting below those expectations, although he was still a solid player for the Diamondbacks.

This morning Mark Polishuk of MLB Trade Rumors said that Arizona would be willing to deal any player other than Paul Goldschmidt, which means Martin Prado could be on the market. If so I think the Yankees should take a look. 

While Prado's batting line so far in 2014 is not impressive (.274/.318/.377, with only 1 SB in 2 attempts), he's hit pretty well this month (.307/.338/.427). Along with having a solid bat, Martin's versatility would work well in New York, since last season he played over 200 innings at both 2B and LF, while playing almost 900 innings at 3B.

Improving in the infield may not be the Yankees most pressing need, but Yangervis Solarte's fall from grace and Brian Roberts being... well... Brian Roberts, should make Brian Cashman take a hard look at Prado.

Game Thread: Yankees vs. Orioles 6/22


Welcome to the Old Timers Day, Goose Gossage Day, Masahiro Tanaka Day, New York Yankees game day open thread as the team hosts the Baltimore Orioles. The Yankees will send the aforementioned Tanaka to the mound to face off with Chris Tillman for the Orioles. The game will be played at 2:05 pm ET and can be seen on the YES Network, MLB TV, and can be heard on the radio with WFAN.

Get your Yankees tickets HERE before they head back out on the road to face off with our neighbors to the north. If you can't make it then find us on Twitter by following @GreedyStripes or search for The Greedy Pinstripes on Facebook to chat with us there. We leave the comments section open 24 hours a day 7 days a week so feel free to take full advantage of that as well.

Enjoy the game Yankees family and enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Remembering Yankees of the Past: Goose Gossage


Rich Michael Goose Gossage signed with the New York Yankees as a free agent before the 1978 season and immediately won a World Series with his new club under Billy Martin/Bob Lemon. Gossage led the American League in saves in 1978 with 27 and then again in 1980 with 33 saves. Gossage also recorded the save in the one game playoff against the Boston Red Sox for the AL East title, Gossage was the man that pioneered the closers position.

Gossage was on the mound for the Bucky "F'in" Dent home run in 1978 after entering with one out in the seventh inning of that playoff game. Gossage was also on the mound a mere five days later in 1978 to clinch the ALCS and the AL pennant over the Kansas City Royals after a four game sweep. Gossage was on the mound ten days later when the Yankees clinched the World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers for their second consecutive World Series title.

Gossage missed some time in 1979 after suffering a thumb injury he sustained in a locker room fight with teammate Cliff Johnson. While Gossage had his ups in a Yankees uniform he had his downs as well while giving up the series clinching home run to George Brett in 1979 after the Royals swept the Yankees out of the ALCS. Goose was also on the mound three years later, almost to the day, when the "Pine Tar Game" occured with Brett's home run that wasn't.

The Yankees were back in the playoffs in 1981 and Gossage was on the mound to save all three Yankees victories in the Division Series over the Milwaukee Brewers, not allowing a run in 6.2 innings. Gossage was on the mound when the Yankees clinched the 1981 AL pennant over the Oakland Athletics as well before losing in the World Series.

Gossage spent the 1983 season with the Yankees mostly fighting with the Yankees owner George Steinbrenner. He did find time to break Sparky Lyle's team record for saves with 141 saves, held the career record for ERA with 2.14, and had the fewest hits per nine innings with 6.59 H/9. Gossage was unhappy with "the fat man upstairs" after disapproving of the way manager Billy Martin handled Gossage. Gossage was a free agent after the 1983 season and vowed not to return to New York.

Gossage bounced around until 1989 when he was claimed off waivers by the Yankees in August before moving on after the 1989 season once again. Gossage was and is still a legend in New York and always will be. Congratulations to him on this well deserved achievement and honor.



6/22 Yankees Game Preview vs. Baltimore Orioles


The New York Yankees will host Old Timers Day, Goose Gossage to receive a monument in Monument Park, and the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium this afternoon for the finale of their three game set. The Yankees will send Masahiro Tanaka to the mound to face off with the Orioles Chris Tillman. The game will be played at 2:05 pm ET and can be seen on the YES Network, MLB TV, and can be heard on the radio with John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman on WFAN.

Tanaka allowed a home run on the first pitch of his last start and that's all the Blue Jays would get off the 25 year old righty. Tanaka scattered five hits over six innings striking out 10 batters and earning his 11th win of the season, the most in baseball.

Tillman has struggled this season but had a quality start last time out, something the Orioles hope Tillman can build on. Frankly, I hope he continues to struggle this afternoon and the Yankees can truly enjoy Old Timers Day with a victory.

Get your Old Timers Day tickets RIGHT HERE before it's too late. If you can't make it to the Bronx today keep us in mind for all Yankees games, home and away, as we offer tickets with no fees and free shipping every single day. 

Go Yankees!!


Goose Gossage Receives Monument Park Plaque Today


Yesterday we were all treated to Tino Martinez Day at Yankee Stadium and today's festivities are not just limited to Old Timers Day, we had another player honored in Monument Park. That player was Rich Goose Gossage.

Gossage was elected to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in 2008 after a stellar career that included seven years in Yankees pinstripes. Gossage won the World Series with the Yankees in 1978 after spending parts of the 1978-1983 and the 1989 season in the Bronx.

The New York Yankees Present Old Timers Day 2014


Welcome to Old Timers Day at Yankee Stadium, one of my favorite days of the entire season. 48 former Yankees will make the trip to Yankee Stadium to be honored this afternoon including three first timers in Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, and John Montefusco. Damon and Mastui were huge parts of the 2009 World Series Yankees team and Montefusco pitched with New York from 1983-1986.

Here is the complete list of players and widows in attendance today:

Jesse Barfield
Yogi Berra
Brian Boehringer
Scott Bradley
Dr. Bobby Brown
Maggie Coleman (Widow)
David Cone
Johnny Damon
Bucky Dent
Al Downing
Brian Doyle
John Flaherty
Whitey Ford
Jake Gibbs
Joe Girardi
Rich "Goose" Gossage
Ron Guidry
Charlie Hayes
Rickey Henderson
Orlando Hernandez
Arlene Howard (Widow)
Helen Hunter (Widow)
Reggie Jackson
Scott Kamieniecki
Pat Kelly
Don Larsen
Graeme Lloyd
Hector Lopez
Jill Martin (Widow)
Tino Martinez
Hideki Matsui
Lee Mazzilli
Stump Merrill
Gene Michael
Gene Monahan (Trainer)
John Montefusco
Diana Munson (Widow)
Kay Murcer (Widow)
Jeff Nelson
Paul O'Neill
Joe Pepitone
Andy Phillips
Willie Randolph
Bobby Richardson
Mickey Rivers
Joe Torre
David Wells
Roy White

Inflammation Found in Pineda's Shoulder Will Shut Him Down For a Week

Since going down in April with a shoulder injury, Yankees Pitcher Michael Pineda hasn't caught a break.

The 25-year-old right-hander, 2-2 with a 1.83 ERA in four starts this season, has already suffered setbacks extending his DL stint to August, something that doesn't seem like it can get any worse.

Apparently it can. 

Yesterday, Pineda was scheduled to play a simple game of catch, before inflammation was found in his shoulder. 

The swelling, ESPN New York's Danny Knobler reports, will require an extra week of rest, essentially adding seven days to however long Pineda will be unavailable.

The Yanks' second best hurler in April hasn't pitched in nearly two months, when pine tar was found on his neck early in a game in Boston.

Prior to that outing, Pineda tossed 6 shutout innings against the Cubs, his third consecutive quality start to begin the year.

Due to his being hurt, David Phelps was promoted to the rotation, where he's actually done pretty well, giving up just 2 earned runs over 13.2 frames in his last two appearances. 

Yes, you could still make the argument that Phelps isn't an upgrade, although the fact that he and the team are at least staying competitive is probably good enough, as Pineda should still be back before contests become too critical. 

This Day In New York Yankees History 6/22


On this day in 1941 the New York Yankees established a new major league record for consecutive games with a home run when Joe DiMaggio hit a historic home run in the sixth inning of a 5-4 victory over the Detroit Tigers. In the game the Yankees passed the Tigers old record, which was ironic, and Joe D also extended his own consecutive game hitting streak to 35 games.