Brian McCann and Going Against the Shift

Second time today Brian McCann has gone the other way. Two base hits, each one a single to left field.

— Lohud Yankees Blog (@LoHudYankees) March 7, 2016

The shift is here to stay in Major League Baseball. Too many teams have found out how effective it is and the league is not going to ban it, how could they anyway? Some hitters have adopted this and started to try and beat the shift while others have simply seen their batting averages dip 60-70 points in lieu of extra power. The latter is referring to the Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira but the former may finally be referring to the Yankees catcher Brian McCann.

At times we raged at the fact that Teixeira absolutely refused to beat the shift and would rather hit for doubles and home runs instead (Too Many Damn Home Runs!) while McCann at least tried to beat the shift. If was visible in some at bats for McCann and he even attempted a bunt or two in order to beat the shift but he never truly looked comfortable doing it. Now I haven’t seen much spring training baseball this season as most of the games are played while I am at work but I have noticed a trend thus far with McCann, he’s trying to beat the shift again.

It seems like every at bat I’ve seen either live or via Sportscenter, MLB Network etc. has showcased McCann trying to go the other way. The power will be there for McCann when he needs it and he’s no longer trying to knock it over the short porch for the Yankees, it looks like he is making a legitimate choice to go the other way and turn what used to be a ground out into a single or a double. Even Chad Jennings of LoHud has mentioned it on Twitter as McCann went the other way in a Grapefruit League game not once but twice for singles so it’s not just me pulling something out of thin air.

If McCann can go the other way and not only have his 25 home runs and 90+ RBI power but if he can add even a .265 average to go with it we may be talking MVP considerations for the Yankees catcher. He won’t win the award with those stats but the Yankees could potentially win a whole lot more games as they get away from too many damn home runs and get back to seeing the ball, and hitting the ball… the other way.

Hit it where they ain’t McCann!

Yankees ST: New York Yankees @ Pittsburgh Pirates 3/17

The New York Yankees and the Pittsburgh Pirates will face off today inside McKenchie Field, home of the Pirates, in the latest game in their spring training schedules. These two teams will face off head-to-head for the first time this Grapefruit League season which should be a treat for all Yankees fans. Seeing the likes of Andrew McCutchen, Starling Marte and all the talent the Pirates have in their farm system should be entertaining for us all.

The game will be played at 1:05 pm ET and can be seen on MLB TV. Go Yankees!

Are the Yankees & Angels Now Trade Partners Again?

Just a quick hit and a little bit of me thinking out loud here. The New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim were thought to be potential trade partners for much of the winter with zero trades getting done when all the ink was dry. Are these two teams potentially trade partners again just a few weeks into their spring training schedules?

All winter long many of the fans wondered if the Angels would part with some of their young starting pitching to acquire the Yankees left fielder Brett Gardner. The Angels were looking for some outfield help to replace the traded Josh Hamilton and were able to find it elsewhere leaving Gardner back in the Bronx presumably for another season. Now the Yankees, who looked for starting pitching much of the winter, may have an extra starter or two on their hands while the Angels are stuck looking for at least one heading into the season.

The Angels have already lost a pair of starters this spring in Jered Weaver, who is dealing with chronic neck pain, and C.J. Wilson, who is struggling with his shoulder after injuring it last season. There is no word on when Weaver will continue throwing this spring but all signs point to Wilson being on the disabled list on Opening Day 2016 so is it time to make a deal?

The Yankees seem extremely impressed with what Luis Cessa has been able to do this spring and it almost seems like the ultimate “hype him up and sell him high” scenario that Brian Cashman is becoming known for. Would the Angels GM, and former Yankees assistant GM, Billy Eppler bite on Cessa or would he rather a commodity that he is already familiar with. A commodity like Ivan Nova or Bryan Mitchell perhaps?

I don’t pretend to know what the state of the Angels system is, their strengths and weaknesses, but if New York could turn Cessa into a nice prospect or two that would go a long way in making the Justin Wilson trade not hurt so bad. If the Yankees could sell even higher on Nova, who has also looked great this spring by the way, and fetch two or three starting prospects in his contract year then even better. If not then it may be another season without the postseason for the Angels and frankly, either would suit me just fine. 

Quick Hit: HOPE Week Returns for 8th Consecutive Season

Helping Others Persevere & Excel, better known as HOPE Week. Hope Week is the week that the New York Yankees organization gives back and showcases charities and organizations that are making a difference in the community and in the world. For the last seven seasons New York has honored these organizations at Yankee Stadium and abroad using a various number of methods and this season will be no different as HOPE Week returns for its eighth consecutive season in the Bronx. This season will also mark the sixth consecutive year that the organization will get a head start on things by honoring a Tampa area organization during Spring Training.

On March 18, also known as TODAY, the Yankees will announce HOPE Week officially with a pregame ceremony at George M. Steinbrenner Field before their 6:35 pm ET game with the Baltimore Orioles. At the ceremony the team will honor Tampa’s chapter of Ainsley’s Angels, a national running organization that builds awareness for America’s special needs community and its members through events that focus on their inclusion.

Ainsley’s Angels was founded in 2008 and the running enthusiasts raise funds by running and pushing along special needs riders in wheel chairs they call chariots. The organization has chapters in 25 different states and has seen several members run coast-to-coast with their riders to raise money and awareness for the organization.

HOPE Week will run from June 6 through June 10 at Yankee Stadium and all across New York in 2016. All of the minor league affiliates for the Yankees will also hold their own HOPE Weeks allowing the program to reach five additional cities and touch 25 more lives and hearts. Evil Empire though, right Boston?

This Day in New York Yankees History 3/17: Charlie Finley Selling Players

On this day in 1977 a federal court ruled in favor of Bowie Kuhn's decision to void the 1976 sale of Athletics’ players by Charlie O. Finley. The Oakland owner sued the commissioner for illegal restraint of a trade when his deals to send Joe Rudi and Rollie Fingers to the Red Sox for $2 million and Vida Blue to the Yankees for $1.5 million were invalidated "in the best interests of baseball." This is definitely an influential and precedent setting case in the history of American sports and the judicial system.


Also on this day in 1936 Joe DiMaggio made his Major League debut in a big time way collecting four hits, including a triple, in an 8-7 exhibition loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. Not bad for a 21 year old future Hall of Fame outfielder.

Yankees Spring Training Open Thread 3/16

So what happened today down at Yankees spring training camp? Let's get caught back up!

Brett Gardner made his spring debut today after missing the entire spring and Grapefruit League schedule with a lingering wrist problem.

In the game tonight, currently airing, Nathan Eovaldi makes his second start of the spring.

More when the game ends.

Puig Gets No Punishment

     I cannot believe that I am actually reporting this. But, Yasiel Puig  is not being punished at all by Major League Baseball for his alleged domestic violence incident, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Weeks after the Chapman suspension was handed down, you had to figure that Puig  was going to get at least the same punishment, right? If you look at the documents on both cases, both men were not charged officially with any crime, shot their  registered guns in their personally owned homes,  and neither woman pursued any charges being filed.  And yet, MLB saw fit to give Chapman 30 games and Puig nada.

     So, why does Rob Manfred feel like there needs to be an example made of Chapman and not one for the Dodgers outfielder? I wish I had the answer, but sadly, I don't. It would be one thing if Chapman  had other off the field incidents that would challenge his strength of character. Or,  even if Chapman was just a "bad guy" and MLB wanted to make an example out of him. But, he doesn't and he isn't.

     Now, it is not just because I am a Yankees fan that I am enraged at the decision. I fully expected there to be some sort of disciplinary action handed down to Chapman because that was the  General consensus. But, also.  I expected a punishment to be handed down to all three men, Jose Reyes included. If anything, Reyes should be the poster child for Major League Baseball's anti-domestic violence movement. But, as he is still under investigation, MLB cannot act on his case until it is finished in the court system.

    Either way, complete GARBAGE!!!  Hate to say it, Rob, you got this one completely wrong.

If Sabathia “Is on the Right Track” Then Color Me Worried!

I know it’s spring training and I know I’m overreacting. The fact that I know this separates me from a lot of other fans and maybe inches me closer to the “sane” side of the ballpark. Maybe not. I know that spring training stats are meaningless and it’s all about simply getting the work in and getting out alive and healthy but you still don’t get that fuzzy warm feeling in your stomach when you see a guy struggle. Plus, and I don’t know if this is just me, you don’t like to hear a guy say he’s “right on track” after struggling in the spring either.

Enter CC Sabathia. Sabathia struggled in his latest spring start and came out of it saying all the right things. He’s right on track but how can he say that? He’s throwing meatballs down the middle of the plate at 86 MPH, is this what we should expect from the big man this season? Look, he came out of it healthy and he got the work in. That’s all that matters and I realize this but that doesn’t make me confident going into next season at the same time. Not if he is going to struggle with his control and his velocity once again.

I’m the biggest CC supporter there is as a person, he’s a true inspiration, role model and leader, but as a player (and me as a fan first, blogger second) I am a bit worried. He has the stuff and the talent to be the best #5 starter in the league but if he lays an egg like he did this spring very often this season his win/loss record likely won’t look good once again at the end of the season. Sabathia is paid to win games, he’s the highest paid player on the team this season and one of the highest paid players in all of MLB this season so I don’t think it’s unfair to expect or want a little more.

I’m not screaming doom and gloom yet, just something about that comment rubbed me the wrong way. Velocity was down, command was down, pitches were up and so was the opposing team’s score. There is still plenty of time to get the work in and turn things around, trust me I’m far from worried, but a couple more starts like this and I may be.

The WPIX Channel 11 Yankees Broadcast Schedule for 2016

The New York Yankees are back on WPIX Channel 11 for their second straight season with their first game kicking off on April 30, 2016 against none other than the Boston Red Sox. WPIX 11 will broadcast 21 regular season Yankees games this season all in HD and will also showcase pregame specials for all the primetime 7:00 pm ET starts.

The YES Network’s Michael Kay, David Cone, John Flaherty, Al Leiter, Meredith Marakovits, Paul O’Neill and Ken Singleton will cover the games on WPIX with YES producing the telecasts this season. Here is the schedule for this upcoming season on WPIX:

Yankees on PIX11 2016 Schedule:

	Day	Date	Opponent	Time	Home/Away
1.	Saturday	April 30	Boston	7:00pm	Away
2.	Sunday	May 15	Chicago White Sox	1:00pm	Home
3.	Friday	May 27	Tampa	7:00pm	Away
4.	Saturday	May 28	Tampa	4:00pm	Away
5.	Sunday	May 29	Tampa	1:00pm	Away
6.	Tuesday	June 7	Angels	7:00pm	Home
7.	Friday	June 10	Detroit	7:00pm	Home
8.	Friday	June 17	Minnesota	8:00pm	Away
9.	Tuesday	June 21	Colorado	7:00pm	Home
10.	Saturday	June 25	Minnesota	1:00pm	Home
11.	Friday	July 15	Boston	7:00pm	Home
12.	Friday	July 22	San Francisco	7:00pm	Home
13.	Monday	July 25	Houston	8:00pm	Away
14.	Sunday	July 31	Tampa	1:00pm	Away
15.	Thursday	Aug 4	Mets	7:00pm	Home
16.	Saturday	Aug 20	Angels	9:00pm	Away
17.	Friday	Aug 26	Baltimore	7:00pm	Home
18.	Friday	Sept 16	Boston	7:00pm	Away
19.	Thursday	Sept 22	Tampa	7:00pm	Away
20.	Saturday	Sept 24	Toronto	1:00pm	Away
21.	Wednesday	Sept 28	Boston	7:00pm	Home

Yankees ST: New York Yankees vs. Toronto Blue Jays

Another day and another Grapefruit League game against their division rivals as the New York Yankees face off with the Toronto Blue Jays in their latest spring training game. For the first time this spring George M. Steinbrenner Field will showcase a Yankees spring game under the lights down in Tampa, Florida. The Yankees will send Nathan Eovaldi to the mound as the right-hander looks to keep "Eovolving."

The game will be played at 6:35 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. Go Yankees!