Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Pineda Stinks Again, Yanks Lose 7-3

     On an absolutely beautiful night in the Bronx, New York look for their third consecutive victory as they faced Kansas City in game three of the four games set. Unfortunately, with Teixeira, ARod, and Elsbury still out of the lineup, the Yankees trotted out what looked more like a spring training lineup than a middle-of-May lineup. To make matters worse, they also sent Michael Pineda to the hill to oppose Kansas City. Pineda has been absolutely miserable this season, with only one win and an ERA of 5.67, which would definitely be going north after tonight. He has been bad enough that when I found out that he was starting tonight, I almost didn't want to watch. And, as he has done all season long, stunk up the joint.
     Pineda's first inning ERA is over 13, where as his ERA after the first inning is under three, and the first frame is where the trouble for the big right-hander began tonight. Pineda served up a leadoff single too Alcedes Escobar, who was thrown out at second base attempting to steal. Then, he drilled Lorenzo Cain, who advanced to third on a Eric Hosmer single, and walked Kendrys Morales. The scoring was open when the next batter Alex Gordon hit a sacrifice fly to center, 1-0 Royals. The big blow came off the bat of the following hitter, when Salvador Perez launched a ball into the left-field bleachers, pushing the Royal lead to 4-0.
     The Yankees would try to dig themselves out of the hole left by Pineda, beginning when Carlos Beltran hit a solo homerun in the bottom of the second, 4-1. Later in the inning, after Aaron Hicks singled, Chase Headley drove in the second run of the night on an RBI single to left, 4-2. The following two hitters reached base via the walk, but, with the Yankees being 28th in all of baseball in batting average with runners in scoring position (.218), New York was again unable to come up with a big hit and potentialy tie the game. And it happened again in the bottom of the fifth when Brett Gardner led off the frame with a single and advanced to third on a Starlin Castro double. Brian McCann followed up with an RBI ground out, 4-3, but the tying run Castro was left stranded at third base.
     In the top of the sixth, Pineda would be lifted with two outs after walking Christian Colon who then advanced to third on a Jarrod Dyson base hit. Pineda's replacement, Nick Goody, immediately plunked the next batter Escobar, loading the bases. Lorenzo Cain drove both Dyson and Colon in on a single up the middle, 6-3 Kansas City. Being responsible for both runners that scored, Pineda's final line was 5.2 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 4 BB and 7 K's. The Royals would go on to add one more run in the top of the seventh when Kendrys Morales hit a solo homerun off of left-handed reliever Phil Coke.
     The Yankees will send Nathan Eovaldi to the mound tomorrow in the fourth and final game, beginning at  7:05 PM ET.

Live Game Updates: Royals at Yankees - 5/11

8:20 p.m., Mid 4th: It's 4-2 Royals after three and a half. Pineda got rocked in the first but has since shown improvement. 

8:43 p.m., Mid 5th: Pineda puts up another zero. Top of the Yankees' lineup coming up in the fifth.

8:51 p.m., End 5th: Yankees get a run off Ventura. It's now 4-3.

9:29 p.m., End 6th: Royals tack on two in the sixth with the help of a very questionable decision by Girardi. With two on and two out, Joe puts in Nick Goody of all people, and Lorenzo Cain predictably rips a two-run single to center. When will this guy learn that minor-league call-ups are not to be used in big situations?

Game Thread: New York Yankees vs. Kansas City Royals 5/11


Game Three between the New York Yankees and the Kansas City Royals is about to go down but honestly I don’t know how much of it I’ll be able to watch. After watching the Lookouts last night and staying out far past my bedtime this game better be good if it’s going to catch my attention for long. Donned with the task of keeping me up tonight for the Yankees is Michael Pineda who will be looking for some consistency this season against another young right-hander searching for similar consistency in Yordano Ventura. The game will be played at 7:05 pm ET inside of Yankee Stadium and can be seen on the YES Network, ESPN’s Wednesday Night Baseball and of course MLB TV.

There’s only one more game after tonight in this series so you’re running out of time to see the Yankees live and in person in the Bronx. Click the Yankees tickets link at the top of the blog now to reserve your spot for the finale between these two American League teams and still have a few dollars in your pocket to eat on thanks to Ticket Monster. If you can’t make it live then you can always follow along and root for the home team from afar on Twitter by giving @GreedyStripes a shout. We are always around and try and live tweet each and every game, won’t you join us?


Pineda is ready and so are the Royals so let’s get to it. Go Yankees!

Chapman Feels Latino Players are “Easy Targets” in Domestic Violence Cases…. RANT!


Yes I realize this “news” is a couple days late by now but the more I read this and the more I thought about it the more it just made me angry. Aroldis Chapman returned to Major League Baseball on Monday after serving a 30 game suspension brought down by Commissioner Rob Manfred using the league’s new Domestic Violence Policy. Now we ranted and raved all winter long about insufficient evidence, making an example out of people and trying to save face so I’ll save you those arguments here and instead focus on an exact quote from Chapman himself suggesting that Latino players are “easy targets” in domestic violence cases. What?

Four players were under league investigation and faced a possible suspension this winter after being part of some sort of domestic violence accusation or incident and yes all four were Latino born players. Aroldis Chapman, then of the Cincinnati Reds, was one and the other three were Jose Reyes, Yasiel Puig and the Braves Hector Olivera but I struggle to see what being Latino has to do with anything here. Are they easy targets because they are Latino or are they targets because they are dumb asses, my opinion, who made themselves targets when they hit their wives, shoved their sisters and/or a bouncer or shot a registered firearm in an unattached garage that he legally owned?

Chapman went on to say “we make a lot of money, everyone wants a piece of it, and we end up looking bad.” Interesting because if you look at the top paid salaries in MLB right now, regardless of race, they aren’t going to court over domestic violence accusations. Alex Rodriguez isn’t beating women. Miguel Cabrera isn’t shooting guns into his garage. Neither is Giancarlo Stanton, Albert Pujols, Robinson Cano, Felix Hernandez or any of the other top paid players in the game. Weird, huh?


Charleston Riverdogs Press Release: Forrest Run 5K

RiverDogs to Host 13th Annual Run Forrest Run 5K Race on May 21
Race to benefit Singleton Memorial Fund


CHARLESTON, SC - Fans of the Charleston RiverDogs can lace up their running shoes and head to Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park for the 13thAnnual Run Forrest Run 5K Race presented by Fleet Feet Sports on Saturday, May 21 at 4 pm before the RiverDogs game against the Columbia Fireflies.

The rain or shine race benefits the Singleton Memorial Fund which is in memory of Chris Singleton’s mother, Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, who was one of the nine victims of the June 17, 2015 at the Mother Emanuel AME Church. Chris is a sophomore at Charleston Southern University and a member of the Buccaneer baseball team. Funds will be used to meet Chris’s educational expenses at CSU, and it is Chris’s wish that any remaining funds be applied to the planned CSU Baseball enrichment center in memory of Ms. Singleton.

The race features split times at each mile marker with chip timing for quick and accurate results.

“This race is fun for all ages and caters to every type of participant,” said RiverDogs Vice President of Special Events Melissa Azevedo. "Our 5K race begins in front of The Joe and finishes at home plate where runners are greeted by RiverDogs players and coaches."

Pre-registration by May 18 cost for the race is $30, and includes a race packet, T-shirt, one ticket to that evening’s RiverDogs game against the Columbia Fireflies (6:05 pm first pitch), an awards ceremony and a post-race party with dinner and beer garden. Late registration and walk-up after May 18 is $35. T-shirts will be available while supplies last.

Additional game tickets are $8 each and can be purchased online with your race registration or in person at packet pick-up.

Race packets may be picked up on Friday, May 20 at Fleet Feet Sports in Mt. Pleasant from 12 noon until 6 pm. On-site registration and packet pick-up on race day is 2 pm until 3:45 pm at The Joe prior to the 4 pm race start.

Registration forms are available online at RileyParkEvents.com or GoRaceProductions.com. For more information, please contact Kristen Wolfe at 843-577-DOGS (3647).

Game Preview: New York Yankees vs. Kansas City Royals 5/11


The New York Yankees and the Kansas City Royals will square off head-to-head for the third time this week tonight inside of Yankee Stadium. In this four game set we have been entertained by a few great pitching matchups on paper and the pitching matchup tonight hopefully won’t disappoint as well as the Yankees send Michael Pineda to the mound to face off with Yordano Ventura for the Royals. Ventura reminds me a lot of Luis Severino in a way, live arm but hasn’t quite put it all together yet, so this will be an interesting watch tonight in the Bronx.

Pineda pitched better in his last start against the Boston Red Sox and was extended farther than he had been all season but it still wasn’t enough to turn things around just yet. Pineda allowed two runs and eight hits in 106 pitches but opponents are still batting a staggering .307 against the Yankees right-hander this season.

Ventura has also looked less than stellar in his last few starts, especially his last two, which is not a great sign for the royals. Ventura has walked 11 batters in his last two starts and gave up six hits and five runs in his most recent start against the Cleveland Indians. If Pineda weren’t on the mound this would be the easiest win of the series for the Yankees on paper. We don’t play the games on paper though unfortunately.

The game will be played at 7:05 pm ET inside of Yankee Stadium and can be seen on the YES Network, ESPN’s Wednesday Night Baseball and of course MLB TV. It’s not very often that the Yankees get to flex a little bit against the defending World Series champions and it’s always fun to beat up on them so let’s have a little fun after a hard start to the 2016 season. Shall we?

Go Yankees!


If Starlin Castro’s Oblique Goes From “No Big Deal” to a “Big Deal”


Starlin Castro had Yankees fans around the world holding their collective breath as he exited Sunday night’s game against the Boston Red Sox in the Bronx. As the injury bug continues to pile up for the Yankees the team can ill afford to lose another player period, let alone one of their best hitters in Castro. The Yankees downplayed the injury like they always do after taking Castro out citing that there wasn’t a need in worsening the injury while the team was down by four runs but what if the injury is serious? Oblique injuries can be nagging injuries and some of them have some staying power, what if Castro’s oblique goes from “not a big deal” and “we’re just going to give him a day” to “the New York Yankees have added Starlin Castro to the 15-day DL?”

Could the Yankees survive? Well yeah, I guess that they could but the offense is already stagnant as it is and Castro is one of the few bright spots in the order. New York would presumably call up Robert Refsnyder to fill in Castro’s shoes at second base and in the order but who would it surprise to see someone like Pete Kozma called up instead because he’s a veteran? Certainly wouldn‘t surprise me. This is one of the few bats the Yankees can ill afford to lose though no matter who they are replacing Castro with internally.

One man does not make or break an offense. Just like Castro’s hot hitting did little to affect the Yankees in the grand scheme of things early on this season the absence of Castro would have a similar effect in my opinion. The Yankees are struggling to score consistently with Castro and I’d venture to guess that the team would struggle to score consistently without him as well.

So if Castro’s oblique injury goes from no big deal to a big deal frankly I’m not sure if the Yankees would notice. I know you were expecting a doom and gloom type post but frankly this season has been nothing but doom and gloom thus far. The team is already close to fielding a payroll as high as the Atlanta Braves on the disabled list, what’s a little more.


I’m trying hard to stay into this and stay positive this season but when everything is working against you it’s hard to. You know?

Weekly Prospects Check In: Gary Sanchez


El Gary Sanchez, or so he likes to be called, is still toiling in the minor leagues just waiting for another call up to the show. As weird as this sounds when you’re talking about a company worth over $3.4 billion but it seems like the Yankees are taking their time with Sanchez’s development and it may all come down to money. The Yankees can delay his arbitration and his free agency by a year if they wait about three more weeks, the date changes every season and I don’t know the exact date admittedly but I know it’s usually around the 20th-25th of May, and that may be the plan right now.

Sure Sanchez struggled a bit in spring training and sure Austin Romine hasn’t done anything in the Bronx to warrant the Yankees sending him down but Sanchez has long been thought of as the future in the Bronx. It was Sanchez who allowed Brian Cashman to trade then top catching prospect Jesus Montero for Michael Pineda and it was Sanchez and Luis Torrens who have carried the Yankees heavy catching depth in the minor leagues.


Sanchez is everything the Yankees need. He’s young, he’s right-handed, he has some pop and he’s improving each and every day. He’s a shot in the arm and just what the doctor ordered and he may be one more doctor’s order away from a call up. Stay tuned. 

Year Age Lg G PA R H 2B HR RBI SB BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+
2016 23 AAA 24 107 13 28 11 5 20 2 7 16 .283 .336 .566 .902

This Day In New York Yankees History 5/11: Hidek Matsui is Human


On this day in 2006 Hideki Matsui's streak of playing in every game since starting his MLB career with the Yankees ends at 518 games. Matsui broke his wrist attempting to make a diving catch out in left field. The 31 year old All Star from Japan established the major league record for the most consecutive games played to start a career surpassing Ernie Banks' mark of 424 games.

Also on this day in 1946 the New York Yankees and Tiny Bonham end the Boston Red Sox 15 game winning streak with a 2-0 victory in Yankee Stadium. Before the loss Boston was 21-3 to start the 1946 season and would easily win the American League pennant that season.