In August of 1998, I moved to Manhattan. Within a week of my arrival, I attended a "Circle Line" cruise around the Hudson and East Rivers with my new NYU classmates. As we emerged from under the Brooklyn Bridge, my friend Dan motioned toward the Financial District and observed, "Just think of the unimaginable resources we're looking at right now."
Last night, as I was perusing the Yankee roster (and, for that matter, disabled list) on my desktop on Rivington Street, I was struck with an analogous feeling. What an insane collection of accumulated talent and experience!
Nevertheless, Joaquin Andujar's "youneverknow" axiom remains as true as ever for the Jays in their two-day whistle-stop to the Bronx. The Yankees appear to be the class of the American League, but they're not without their flaws. Their starters have underperformed and/or been injured; their lineup features superstars, yes, but some of these superstars are declining, aging, slumping or hurting -- read all about it in this edition of the Scout. Plus, they might be looking ahead to Boston this weekend...
On to the Advance Scout!
* Although their lead in the A.L. East remains comfortable, the Bombers have scuffled a bit coming off the break, splitting six games with Detroit and Tampa Bay ... The Yankees have a fearsome lineup, but one that's oddly dependent on the longball. They hit very few singles, doubles and triples ... New York will occasionally run, but they're much more likely to score with a walks-and-power attack than by accumulating base hits. Despite having the #3 offence and #3 OBP in the American League, the Yankees are 10th in batting average ... Meanwhile, Yankee pitchers have issued the fewest walks in the majors, despite collectively posting a mediocre 4.51 team ERA ... New York is more patient than their opponents, but they frankly also get the calls ...
* New York has nine hitters with 10 or more homers. Only Carlos and Vernon have done that for Toronto ... Derek Jeter would be leading the Jays by three homers ...
* The Yankees are getting what they paid for from Gary Sheffield ... He demolishes lefties at a .345/.452/.609 rate ... Even though Yankee Stadium's short porch is in right, he nevertheless rakes at home, hitting .322/.450/.597. He's not a rigid pull hitter, and that suits him well in the Bronx ... The violent-bat-waggler hasn't put up a sub-.400 on-base percentage since 1994 (.380). He's close as of today (.397) ... Sheffield is bothered by bursitis in his left shoulder, but continues to play every day. Sheffield: "[R]egardless of how I feel, I can go out there and help win a ballgame" ... Joe Torre: "I don't know if I remember anybody in recent years tougher than him" ... Brian Cashman was concerned to learn that Sheffield requested another cortisone shot. He received one in his shoulder on June 20, and general protocol is to limit cortisone injections to three over a six-month period ... Sheffield suspects that it's something more serious than bursitis: "If this was bursitis, it's supposed to leave and it hasn't left...It hurts so much sometimes that I can only carry my kids with my right hand" ... Sheffield underwent a test with Dr. Jobe before the All-Star Break, and hasn't heard back yet ... He's three homers shy of the 400 plateau ...
* Jason Giambi, on the other hand, is really slumping this season ... He's 0 for his last 16, 3 for his last 32 (.094) and has followed up a .167 June with a similarly dreadful July (.167/.288/.190) ... Never known for his agility, Giambi made a nice play to stab an Eric Munson line drive down the line to preserve a 4-3 lead on Sunday ... Torre: "Giambi's play was the game" ... Strangely, Yankee Stadium is unkind to him (.211/.345/.325) ... Can the man please stop receiving MVP votes? Please? ...
* Team captain Derek Jeter has silenced the what-have-you-done-for-me-lately boobirds in the Bronx with a sizzling .396 June (in which he scored 24 runs) and a more typical .304/.360/.464 July ... He's been successful on his last five steal attempts ... He was removed from yesterday's game after being hit in the right hand by a Victor Zambrano pitch, and both his swing and his throwing were affected. He was diagnosed with a bruised right wrist, and should play tonight ...
* Bernie Williams, who will incredibly turn 36 in September, has been slumping badly of late ... He's just 2 for his last 40 (.050) ... On the month, he's only put up .136/.292/.254 numbers ... He's always been better from the right side, but this year his lefthanded swing appears to be slowing down a bit (.238/.331/.368) ... His slump has been affecting his on-field demeanour. The ordinarily mild-mannered Bernie has been uncharacteristically jawing with umpires during his skid ...
* Like Bernie, the excellent swtich-hitter Jorge Posada has been better against lefties (.300/.418/.578) ... Posada simply never seems to have a bad at-bat, and he's gone deep 15 times against the Jays in his career ...
* Tonight's starter, ex-Expo Javier Vazquez, was on a bit of a roll (7-1, 3.20 over eleven starts) before he got tagged by the Tigers on Friday ... He was roughed up for eight runs on nine hits in just 4 1/3 innings, his shortest outing as a Yankee ... Joe Torre was concise: "Javy wasn't very good" ...
* One of the few players in big league history to create controversy by playing third base, Alex Rodriguez has hit in seven of his last eight games (.345) ... Forgive me for saying so, but his production against righthanded pitchers this year has been just, kinda, okay (.260/.345/.458) ... He's an excellent 18-for-20 on the basepaths, but he hasn't attempted a steal since July 1 ...
* Hideki Matsui has been more gecko than Godzilla of late. He's 1 for his last 16 (.063) ... He also badly miscommunicated with Kenny Lofton at a crucial time on Monday night. Robert Fick's routine fly to left dropped between them turned into a cheap two-run double, and New York lost 9-7 ... Matsui: "Those plays just happen sometimes" ... It was assumed that he'd flourish in lefty-friendly Yankee Stadium. But he's hit just .244 at home ...
* With his 5.05 ERA and the fact that he's yielded runs in ten of his twelve appearances as a Yankee, Tanyon Sturtze gives at least mild hope to the religious. If he had dominated in pinstripes, it would possibly constitute proof of no God ... He has, however, eaten innings in blowouts with reasonable effectiveness ... With the recent failures of Brad Halsey and Alex Graman, Sturtze is expected to get the start in Saturday's game against the Red Sox ...
* 38-year-old Ruben Sierra has homered in his last three games, which includes two starts and a pinch-hitting appearance ... As a pinch-hitter, he's 6-for-19 (.316) with two homers ... Eight of his eleven homers have come from the left side. As a righthanded hitter, he's only putting up .259/.276/.432 numbers ...
* Nasty veteran Tom Gordon had a tough interleague series at Shea Stadium earlier this month, blowing a save and losing another game. But he's been superb out of the pen ... He buzzes lefthanded hitters, who are limited to a .133 average and a 8/28 BB/K ratio ... He seldom makes it interesting: Sixteen times, he's recorded a perfect outing of one full inning pitched or longer ...
* Continuing the parade of the pricey veteran acquisitions, Lofton has been hot in July at .343/.425/.571 ... He's put up a .408 OBP with the bases empty this season ...
* Tony Clark appears to have resurrected his career in a spot-start role ... Yet another Yankee switch-hitter, there's a wide chasm in his left/right splits. As a lefty, he's put up a more-than-respectable .269/.374/.606 total, with ten homers. But against lefties, he's an underwhelming .185/.267/.259, with zero homers ...
* 27-year-old Puerto Rican Juan Padilla made his big league debut on Friday ... In his two outings with the Yankees, the righty reliever has pitched four scoreless innings without walking a man ...
* Among the more inexplicable components on a team with championship aspirations, Enrique Wilson is hitting just .189/.248/.324 from the left side. He's sort of decent as a righthanded hitter ... He's been a nonentity at home, putting up a .167/.220/.241 line with only three runs scored in 22 games ...
* Meanwhile, old friend Miguel Cairo has been rather productive in July, hitting at a .318/.362/.477 clip ... He's played every infield position thus far for Joe Torre ...
* Tomorrow's starter will be "El Duque," Orlando Hernandez, who sadly never pitched a regular-season inning with the Expos due to rotator cuff surgery ... Duque is 2-0 since his return to the Yankees, striking out eleven batters in his ten innings of work ... Hernandez on his inability to pitch into the sixth inning thus far: "I feel good, but I just need to keep working on my location so that I don't keep throwing 100 pitches in five innings" ... Hernandez takes the phrase "slow curve" rather literally. He hit a scorching 56 mph on the Comerica Park gun on one of his hooks last Saturday ...
* The incredible Mariano Rivera is breaking as many bats as ever ... He's an outstanding 34-for-35 in save opportunities -- and New York won the only game in which he didn't preserve the lead ... His worst month was May, when he was rocked for a 1.32 ERA and .231 opposition batting average ...
* Old friend (and Port Hope resident) Paul Quantrill has already been used 50 times by Joe Torre ... His trademark only-one-pitch-but-plenty-of-movement approach remains the same, as does his stingy control. He's walked one batter in his last 19 outings ...
* Mike Mussina is still at least three weeks away as he battles tightness in his pitching elbow ... Kevin Brown, who had been suffering from a lower back injury and the much-ballyhooed intestinal parasite, pitched five innings for the Columbus Clippers last night and should be ready in about a week ...
* Sources say that no concrete trade proposals have been made by other side regarding Randy Johnson ... New York Post columnist Joel Sherman on a possible prospects-for-Unit swap: "[It] would turn the Yankee system from poor to atrocious" ...
Probable Batting Orders
vs. LH
8 Williams
6 Jeter
9 Sheffield
5 Rodriguez
DH Sierra
3 Clark/Giambi
7 Matsui
2 Posada/Flaherty
4 Cairo
vs. RH
DH Williams/Sierra
6 Jeter
9 Sheffield
5 Rodriguez
3 Giambi
2 Posada
7 Matsui
4 Wilson
8 Lofton
Pitching Probables
Wednesday: RH Vazquez vs. Hentgen
Thursday: RH Hernandez vs. Lilly
Bullpen Usage
Long: Padilla R, Sturtze R
Short: Heredia L, Proctor R
Setup: Gordon R, Quantrill R
Closer: Rivera R
Last night, as I was perusing the Yankee roster (and, for that matter, disabled list) on my desktop on Rivington Street, I was struck with an analogous feeling. What an insane collection of accumulated talent and experience!
Nevertheless, Joaquin Andujar's "youneverknow" axiom remains as true as ever for the Jays in their two-day whistle-stop to the Bronx. The Yankees appear to be the class of the American League, but they're not without their flaws. Their starters have underperformed and/or been injured; their lineup features superstars, yes, but some of these superstars are declining, aging, slumping or hurting -- read all about it in this edition of the Scout. Plus, they might be looking ahead to Boston this weekend...
On to the Advance Scout!
* Although their lead in the A.L. East remains comfortable, the Bombers have scuffled a bit coming off the break, splitting six games with Detroit and Tampa Bay ... The Yankees have a fearsome lineup, but one that's oddly dependent on the longball. They hit very few singles, doubles and triples ... New York will occasionally run, but they're much more likely to score with a walks-and-power attack than by accumulating base hits. Despite having the #3 offence and #3 OBP in the American League, the Yankees are 10th in batting average ... Meanwhile, Yankee pitchers have issued the fewest walks in the majors, despite collectively posting a mediocre 4.51 team ERA ... New York is more patient than their opponents, but they frankly also get the calls ...
* New York has nine hitters with 10 or more homers. Only Carlos and Vernon have done that for Toronto ... Derek Jeter would be leading the Jays by three homers ...
* The Yankees are getting what they paid for from Gary Sheffield ... He demolishes lefties at a .345/.452/.609 rate ... Even though Yankee Stadium's short porch is in right, he nevertheless rakes at home, hitting .322/.450/.597. He's not a rigid pull hitter, and that suits him well in the Bronx ... The violent-bat-waggler hasn't put up a sub-.400 on-base percentage since 1994 (.380). He's close as of today (.397) ... Sheffield is bothered by bursitis in his left shoulder, but continues to play every day. Sheffield: "[R]egardless of how I feel, I can go out there and help win a ballgame" ... Joe Torre: "I don't know if I remember anybody in recent years tougher than him" ... Brian Cashman was concerned to learn that Sheffield requested another cortisone shot. He received one in his shoulder on June 20, and general protocol is to limit cortisone injections to three over a six-month period ... Sheffield suspects that it's something more serious than bursitis: "If this was bursitis, it's supposed to leave and it hasn't left...It hurts so much sometimes that I can only carry my kids with my right hand" ... Sheffield underwent a test with Dr. Jobe before the All-Star Break, and hasn't heard back yet ... He's three homers shy of the 400 plateau ...
* Jason Giambi, on the other hand, is really slumping this season ... He's 0 for his last 16, 3 for his last 32 (.094) and has followed up a .167 June with a similarly dreadful July (.167/.288/.190) ... Never known for his agility, Giambi made a nice play to stab an Eric Munson line drive down the line to preserve a 4-3 lead on Sunday ... Torre: "Giambi's play was the game" ... Strangely, Yankee Stadium is unkind to him (.211/.345/.325) ... Can the man please stop receiving MVP votes? Please? ...
* Team captain Derek Jeter has silenced the what-have-you-done-for-me-lately boobirds in the Bronx with a sizzling .396 June (in which he scored 24 runs) and a more typical .304/.360/.464 July ... He's been successful on his last five steal attempts ... He was removed from yesterday's game after being hit in the right hand by a Victor Zambrano pitch, and both his swing and his throwing were affected. He was diagnosed with a bruised right wrist, and should play tonight ...
* Bernie Williams, who will incredibly turn 36 in September, has been slumping badly of late ... He's just 2 for his last 40 (.050) ... On the month, he's only put up .136/.292/.254 numbers ... He's always been better from the right side, but this year his lefthanded swing appears to be slowing down a bit (.238/.331/.368) ... His slump has been affecting his on-field demeanour. The ordinarily mild-mannered Bernie has been uncharacteristically jawing with umpires during his skid ...
* Like Bernie, the excellent swtich-hitter Jorge Posada has been better against lefties (.300/.418/.578) ... Posada simply never seems to have a bad at-bat, and he's gone deep 15 times against the Jays in his career ...
* Tonight's starter, ex-Expo Javier Vazquez, was on a bit of a roll (7-1, 3.20 over eleven starts) before he got tagged by the Tigers on Friday ... He was roughed up for eight runs on nine hits in just 4 1/3 innings, his shortest outing as a Yankee ... Joe Torre was concise: "Javy wasn't very good" ...
* One of the few players in big league history to create controversy by playing third base, Alex Rodriguez has hit in seven of his last eight games (.345) ... Forgive me for saying so, but his production against righthanded pitchers this year has been just, kinda, okay (.260/.345/.458) ... He's an excellent 18-for-20 on the basepaths, but he hasn't attempted a steal since July 1 ...
* Hideki Matsui has been more gecko than Godzilla of late. He's 1 for his last 16 (.063) ... He also badly miscommunicated with Kenny Lofton at a crucial time on Monday night. Robert Fick's routine fly to left dropped between them turned into a cheap two-run double, and New York lost 9-7 ... Matsui: "Those plays just happen sometimes" ... It was assumed that he'd flourish in lefty-friendly Yankee Stadium. But he's hit just .244 at home ...
* With his 5.05 ERA and the fact that he's yielded runs in ten of his twelve appearances as a Yankee, Tanyon Sturtze gives at least mild hope to the religious. If he had dominated in pinstripes, it would possibly constitute proof of no God ... He has, however, eaten innings in blowouts with reasonable effectiveness ... With the recent failures of Brad Halsey and Alex Graman, Sturtze is expected to get the start in Saturday's game against the Red Sox ...
* 38-year-old Ruben Sierra has homered in his last three games, which includes two starts and a pinch-hitting appearance ... As a pinch-hitter, he's 6-for-19 (.316) with two homers ... Eight of his eleven homers have come from the left side. As a righthanded hitter, he's only putting up .259/.276/.432 numbers ...
* Nasty veteran Tom Gordon had a tough interleague series at Shea Stadium earlier this month, blowing a save and losing another game. But he's been superb out of the pen ... He buzzes lefthanded hitters, who are limited to a .133 average and a 8/28 BB/K ratio ... He seldom makes it interesting: Sixteen times, he's recorded a perfect outing of one full inning pitched or longer ...
* Continuing the parade of the pricey veteran acquisitions, Lofton has been hot in July at .343/.425/.571 ... He's put up a .408 OBP with the bases empty this season ...
* Tony Clark appears to have resurrected his career in a spot-start role ... Yet another Yankee switch-hitter, there's a wide chasm in his left/right splits. As a lefty, he's put up a more-than-respectable .269/.374/.606 total, with ten homers. But against lefties, he's an underwhelming .185/.267/.259, with zero homers ...
* 27-year-old Puerto Rican Juan Padilla made his big league debut on Friday ... In his two outings with the Yankees, the righty reliever has pitched four scoreless innings without walking a man ...
* Among the more inexplicable components on a team with championship aspirations, Enrique Wilson is hitting just .189/.248/.324 from the left side. He's sort of decent as a righthanded hitter ... He's been a nonentity at home, putting up a .167/.220/.241 line with only three runs scored in 22 games ...
* Meanwhile, old friend Miguel Cairo has been rather productive in July, hitting at a .318/.362/.477 clip ... He's played every infield position thus far for Joe Torre ...
* Tomorrow's starter will be "El Duque," Orlando Hernandez, who sadly never pitched a regular-season inning with the Expos due to rotator cuff surgery ... Duque is 2-0 since his return to the Yankees, striking out eleven batters in his ten innings of work ... Hernandez on his inability to pitch into the sixth inning thus far: "I feel good, but I just need to keep working on my location so that I don't keep throwing 100 pitches in five innings" ... Hernandez takes the phrase "slow curve" rather literally. He hit a scorching 56 mph on the Comerica Park gun on one of his hooks last Saturday ...
* The incredible Mariano Rivera is breaking as many bats as ever ... He's an outstanding 34-for-35 in save opportunities -- and New York won the only game in which he didn't preserve the lead ... His worst month was May, when he was rocked for a 1.32 ERA and .231 opposition batting average ...
* Old friend (and Port Hope resident) Paul Quantrill has already been used 50 times by Joe Torre ... His trademark only-one-pitch-but-plenty-of-movement approach remains the same, as does his stingy control. He's walked one batter in his last 19 outings ...
* Mike Mussina is still at least three weeks away as he battles tightness in his pitching elbow ... Kevin Brown, who had been suffering from a lower back injury and the much-ballyhooed intestinal parasite, pitched five innings for the Columbus Clippers last night and should be ready in about a week ...
* Sources say that no concrete trade proposals have been made by other side regarding Randy Johnson ... New York Post columnist Joel Sherman on a possible prospects-for-Unit swap: "[It] would turn the Yankee system from poor to atrocious" ...
Probable Batting Orders
vs. LH
8 Williams
6 Jeter
9 Sheffield
5 Rodriguez
DH Sierra
3 Clark/Giambi
7 Matsui
2 Posada/Flaherty
4 Cairo
vs. RH
DH Williams/Sierra
6 Jeter
9 Sheffield
5 Rodriguez
3 Giambi
2 Posada
7 Matsui
4 Wilson
8 Lofton
Pitching Probables
Wednesday: RH Vazquez vs. Hentgen
Thursday: RH Hernandez vs. Lilly
Bullpen Usage
Long: Padilla R, Sturtze R
Short: Heredia L, Proctor R
Setup: Gordon R, Quantrill R
Closer: Rivera R
