The Bronx View

Random observations about a somewhat unexpected pitchers duel:

◊  I like AJ Burnett a little bit more today. That’s easy to say after the man gave up one run over seven innings in a must win World Series game.  Burnett threw a first pitch strike to 18 of 26 batters last night.  The three batters that made contact on the first pitch all made outs.  All of that combined for 4 hits, 2 walks, and 9 strikeouts in 7 innings.

Or more simply, AJ was filthy in the strike zone. That’s pretty tough to hit.

He had a few uh-oh moments but got through them with relative ease.  The double in the second inning was a nicely placed pop fly that Johnny Damon simply couldn’t reach.

AJ’s boldest move came in challenging left-handed Ryan Howard in the third after pitching around Chase Utley.  Burnett got Howard to flail at a 2-2 pitch and gave up only two hits over the next four innings.

I’ll be the first to tell you that I wasn’t thrilled with the Burnett signing.  I like him as a pitcher.  I just didn’t like him as a pitcher getting a five year deal at $16 million a pop.

We’ve all seen why throughout this season.  Burnett can go Jekyll and Hyde not only within a ballgame but within an inning.  There seems to be little rhyme or reason as to why.

We saw flashes of Hyde during game two, but in short spurts.  I haven’t been a big fan of Molina being behind the plate in this series, but Jose made some stops with runners on base that I seriously doubt Posada would have made, plus a pickoff at first in the fourth inning.

◊  Pedro Martinez was almost as good, mixing a tremendous amount of off-speed pitches to keep the Yankees off-balance.  Pedro threw 34 fastballs and 5 cutters, both in the 88 to 90 MPH range.  It was his change-up that received the most work, a staggering 44 pitches, complimented by 11 sliders and 13 curves.

Pedro is really interesting to watch right now.  While he used to be known as a power pitcher in his hey day, it was his change-up that made him devastating because of his deception and change in speed.  The fastball is gone now, but the deception and ability to change speeds are still there.  He threw 72 of his 107 pitches for strikes and ranged his pitches from an 89 MPH fastball to an 81 MPH change-up and a 71 MPH curveball that buckled a few knees.

Yankee fans will remember the re-imagining of Mike Mussina last year, his fastball depleted and forcing Moose to slow down his curve to keep hitters off balance.  David Cone faced a similar issue and started varying looks on his slider to confuse hitters.

Pedro has found himself in the same boat, only now he’s just adjusting what he was already great at: deception, location, and change of speed.  He may still have a few years left in him.

◊  Mark Teixeira woke up last night and the timing couldn’t have been better.  Tex only went 1 for 3, but the one was a big home run in the fourth to tie the game and give the Yankees a much needed jolt.  Tex hasn’t looked great at the plate, but he certainly isn’t alone.

◊  Hideki Matsui was the only Yankee with two hits and reached base three times. One of those hits, a bomb to right field off Pedro in the sixth, got the “Who’s Your Daddy?” chants flying once again.

It was good to see Matsui pull a pitch after topping three outside pitches to the right side in game one.  Usually those toppers are a sign of a Godzilla out of sorts but Matsui rebounded nicely.  Too bad he’s going to be relegated to pinch hitter status in Philly.

There’s a better than good chance that Matsui could be taking his last turns in pinstripes.  Even with his inability to play the outfield this season, it’s hard to complain about what he’s contributed to this team.  Before the Yankees decide that DH by committee is a good idea for 2010, they might want to consider the production Matsui gave them in that spot.  Losing his bat means that an average to below average hitter will likely be either DHing or in the field almost daily so that Posada, Tex, or ARod can get a rest.  That’s a significant downgrade from what Matsui has contributed at the plate and weakens the Yankees lineup.  Posada has been durable this season coming off shoulder surgery and his arm has looked much stronger than the beginning of the season.  There’s no reason to coddle him until it’s absolutely necessary.

◊  Mariano Rivera came in for two full innings last night, further reaffirming that Joe Girardi has completely lost faith in his bullpen.  Rivera gave up a walk and a single in the eighth before inducing a rare double play to get out of the inning.  Strangely, the runner at first was safe, the second blown call in as many innings.

I understand Girardi’s trepidation in using his bullpen but he’s painting himself into a corner here.  Rivera is getting over-worked and this series plays three games in a row in Philly.  How many innings does Girardi think Mo can throw in a three day span?  Five?  Six?

The bigger issue is that the rest of the bullpen is simply not throwing because Girardi is afraid to use them.  I can’t tell you what is best to get a pitcher out of a funk.  In Hughes case, if he’s tired, a little extra rest may be the best help.  But for guys like Robertson and Marte who missed time down the stretch, I would imagine extra rest may not be the best thing.

If Girardi is able to get seven plus innings out of Pettitte on Saturday, you can be sure he’ll bring Rivera out again as soon as possible.  I hope he’ll show some restraint and let the rest of the pen get a chance in a close game.  He has enough arms to mix and match and at least keep Rivera available for the next day.

◊  The umpiring, as usual, was as arrogant as it was clumsy. First base umpire Brian Gorman screwed up a call against Chase Utley on a double play that ended the top of the eighth.  Only half an inning before, Gorman ruled that Ryan Howard had caught a ball on the fly that was actually a short hop.  Howard threw wide to second base, thinking he needed a force because he didn’t actually catch the ball and Posada was tagged out.  Replays showed clearly that the ball was short hopped and the Yankees lost two outs to a bad call in a key situation in the seventh inning.

Gorman refused to consult with the rest of the umpires on the field, despite the fact that he was behind Howard and couldn’t see the ball go into the glove. Gorman didn’t have the proper view of the play, yet refused to get help and ended the inning on a double play that didn’t happen.

Gorman’s decision was strange given that a similar play happened in game one where Rollins made a similar play and actually caught the ball and doubled Matsui off of first.  The umps convened to make sure Rollins had indeed caught the ball and not trapped it.  Why last night’s play didn’t receive similar treatment can only be chalked up to arrogance and stupidity.

For a union that doesn’t want accountability, the umps are doing themselves a terrible disservice in their performance this postseason.  They’re better off conferring with each other on questionable calls than letting bad calls stand.  All that will do is hasten the outcry for more instant replay.

◊  The chats continue and fun has been had by all. If you haven’t yet, stop by and join us on Saturday.  We’ve even had some Philly and Red Sox fans come in.

Random thoughts on a game that doesn’t need much explanation:

◊  Last night’s game pretty much begins and ends with Cliff Lee. Sure, Chase Utley deserves props for hitting not one but two home runs against fellow lefty CC Sabathia.  Lee was downright filthy.  Lee threw 122 pitches across his complete game, 80 of which were strikes.  He gave up six hits, one run and zero walks.

The walk count is the most telling.  Not only was Lee in or around the strike zone all night, freezing the Yankees with change-ups he seemed to spot at will.

Take a look at Lee’s pitches versus strikes breakdown:

Thirteen of Lee’s twenty-one change-ups were non-swinging strikes.  Twelve of sixteen curveballs were strikes.  Lee had every pitch working for him last night, evidenced by the fact that only two batters made it to a full count.

Thankfully, Lee threw 122 pitches and has never pitched on three days rest before.  Charlie Manual probably won’t consider using him on short rest.

◊  It wasn’t a great night for CC Sabathia but, considering how it started, it was still pretty good. CC’s only mistakes were the solo home runs to Chase Utley who inexplicably got the same fastball over the middle of the plate on both swings.  The second one was preceded by Posada trying to get CC to go outside with Sabathia refusing.  The result was a souvenir for an unhappy fan.

Sabathia gave up 3 home runs to lefties this season across 216 plate appearances.  Utley did it twice in one game.

◊  Jimmy Rollins started off the game with a bunt down the first baseline for an out. It was a silly play by the outspoken Rollins, who probably thought the element of surprise was more important than seeing what CC was throwing that evening.  Rollins wasted an out in what was eventually a bases loaded situation that CC narrowly escaped from.

So what does Johnny Damon do in the bottom of the first with one out after Jeter struck out on three pitches?  Bunt, of course.

Did the Yankee bench sit and marvel at Rollins’ bunt attempt in the first, their heads filling with grandiose thoughts of wasted outs?

◊  Phil Hughes couldn’t find the plate last night, starting the eighth inning by walking two batters that eventually scored.  As Hughes left the mound, he barked at Gerry Davis, the home plate umpire.  Phil’s location chart doesn’t support Phil’s frustration.

Hughes pitched in plenty of high leverage situations this season, making it difficult to understand why he’s struggled lately.  It could be a tired arm or the just a bad patch of games at an inopportune time.

Hughes fastball has been right inline with his regular season performance in regards to speed and break.  His slider has actually gotten a little bit faster which may eliminate the tired arm explanation.

The most curious thing about Hughes last night was he didn’t feature his cutter, which has been very effective for him.  Why he would drop his cutter at this stage is a bit puzzling but considering he couldn’t get his fastball over the plate, he probably wouldn’t have gotten the cutter either.

◊ I had high hopes that the addition of Brian Bruney meant better use of David Robertson. We saw the start of that last night, with Robertson coming in during the eighth inning while Joba sat in the pen wearing a sweatshirt.  Robertson walked Werth on four pitches, then gave up a seeing-eye grounder to Ibanez that plated two runs.  He ended the inning by getting Francisco to ground out.  Not a bad performance by Robertson as the ground ball was mostly bad luck.

I didn’t expect to see Brian Bruney come out and pitch the ninth.  At that point, even the most confident of fan must have been doubtful that the Yankees could come back from four runs down, which may have been in the back of Girardi’s mind.  Four runs is easier than six, though, and Bruney’s ineffectiveness left him with two earned runs in a third of an inning.

Bruney hasn’t pitched in a game since the end of the regular season.  If Girardi wants to put him in to get him going, he needs to keep the leash a little bit shorter.

◊  Pedro Martinez starts for the Phillies tonight. It’s amazing how a few good starts can make people believe in Pedro again.  His fastball has been averaging about 89 miles per hour, which isn’t very good.  It’s his change-up, which sits around 79-80 that can be Pedro’s damage pitch just like his old days.  He needs to throw it for strikes which is something he did only half the time against the Dodgers.

In Pedro’s 130 pitch marathon against the Mets in September, Martinez featured three kinds of fastballs, a change-up, curveball, slider and a cutter.  Everything but the kitchen sink.  The hapless Mets bailed Pedro out a bit as none of his pitches were overly effective.

Pedro is certainly capable of pitching a good game, especially if the Yankees are impatient with him.  But realistically, Pedro hasn’t performed against an offense of the Yankees caliber yet, making me doubtful that the Phillies can expect more than a mediocre performance.

◊  Burnett gets the ball tonight and Jose Molina likely will be behind the plate. It’s a waste of a bat, but whatever.  Girardi has to stick to his guns at this point.  Putting Posada behind the plate now would be an admission that Molina didn’t have to be there in Burnett’s other three starts.  I can’t see Girardi doing that, not even if AJ pitches game five in Philly.

◊  We’re chatting again tonight for game 2.  Come on by and join us.

Questions abound a day away from game one of the World Series.

Rob Neyer, responding to Dan Rosenheck the NY Times, who suggests Girardi keep his options open:

… I wonder if any manager in the history of ever has gone into a World Series with such flexibility.

No, I’m sure that many of them have. Just not in the last few decades. My guess is that Girardi will announce, any moment now, that 1) Sabathia will start Games 1, 4 and (if necessary) 7, and that both A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettitte will make their second Series starts on short rest. Like this:

10/28 — Sabathia
10/29 — Burnett
10/30 — off
10/31 — Pettitte
11/ 1 — Sabathia
11/ 2 — Burnett
11/ 3 — off
11/ 4 — Pettitte
11/ 5 — Sabathia

Which would be, though not as radical as holding Sabathia in reserve, still pretty radical. I don’t know how often managers enter a World Series figuring on four short-rest starts, but I don’t believe it’s happened much lately.

The only real alternative — assuming Sabathia’s going to start three times — would be Chad Gaudin in Game 5, but does Girardi believe that Gaudin on roughly a month’s rest is better than Pettitte on three days?

That’s a pretty brutal pitching schedule if the series actually goes seven games.  And, as usual, weather is a concern as game one looks iffy.  Remove that off day on the 30th and this plan gets all blowns up.

Put a rain day into the calendar and suddenly the rotation looks like this:

10/28 — rain
10/29 — Sabathia
10/30 — Burnett
10/31 — Pettitte
11/ 1 — Gaudin
11/ 2 — Sabathia
11/ 3 — off
11/ 4 — Burnett
11/ 5 — Pettitte

Pettitte pitching game seven wouldn’t be the worst scenario in the world.  Having Sabathia pitch it would obviously be better.

There’s two key points here that Girardi has to consider when making this decision as Neyer points out:

1. Can Pettitte and Burnett handle three days rest effectively?
2. Can Chad Gaudin be effective after having pitched one inning since the end of the season?

Chad Gaudin has thrown 13 pitches in a game since October 3rd.  I can’t tell you what he’s done on the sidelines during those 24 days but I will assume it isn’t as effective as facing live batters.  Chad’s a big boy and I’m pretty sure he would remember what it’s like to throw to people pretty quickly.  I just don’t think a right-handed back of the rotation starter on 24 days rest has much business trying to pitch to a strong left-handed lineup like the Phillies.

Surprisingly, though, the Phillies have actually fared a little bit better against left-handed pitching:

The split isn’t nearly as wide as I expected.  The Phillies left-handed hitters have hit right-handed pitching pretty well, but they’ve done pretty good against left-handed pitchers, too.

Consider also Ryan Howard’s career platoon splits:

His 2009 splits are even wider apart than that (1.086 vs .653 OPS).  Considering the effect Howard’s extremes have on the team’s numbers, once you get past him in the lineup, the Phillies hit lefties okay.

So, what should Girardi do regarding his rotation?  We’ve covered Sabathia’s history on short rest. Here’s Pettitte’s and Burnett’s numbers on three days rest as compared to four:

Burnett only has 27 innings to judge on, which isn’t a lot.  It is encouraging, however, that he didn’t implode in those 27 innings.  His strike out and walk numbers stayed close to average but he gave up a few less hits (which could just be the luck of the small sample).

Pettitte has fared not quite as well.  His strike out rate is better but his walk rate is elevated.  Again, it’s only 86.2 innings so it’s difficult to make concrete judgments.  We’re looking for extreme abnormalities more than subtle differences.

I wouldn’t be adverse to Girardi going with Neyer’s proposed schedule, assuming rain does not get in the way.  If Pettitte pitches on three days rest, he has to be on a short leash.  When Andy doesn’t have it, he very rarely reclaims it.  I would keep Chad Gaudin ready to fill in for long relief.

Burnett is a tough read because just when you think he’s done for the day, he finds his control and starts pitching effectively (see ALCS game 5).  He’s more than capable of giving innings and has been surprisingly healthy this year.

I can’t say there should be no concern about Sabathia doing two starts back to back on short rest.  Of course there should be concern.  Despite the lauding of the press, he isn’t Superman and, at some point, he will tire.

What needs to be balanced here is the difference in expected performance between Chad Gaudin in game four and Sabathia/Burnett/Pettitte combining for four possible starts on three days rest.  Are the gains that much greater by having Gaudin replaced by Sabathia on short rest that it justifies altering the rest of the rotations schedule as well?

That’s almost impossible to say.  I don’t know what Gaudin is right now.  He’s a pitcher with little workload lately.  What happens in these games will go a long way toward determining how well this short rest schedule will work.  Girardi will need to lean on his pen earlier in some of these games whenever possible.  There is no reason for any of these pitchers to be throwing late into a game if they have a comfortable lead.  If he is going to throw guys off their normal routines, he needs to at least try and protect them in their first starts.

There has been some suggestion that the Yankees should play it by ear.  What does that mean in a seven game series, exactly?  If the Yankees are up 3-0, they can afford to give up a game?  What if they’re up 2-1?  Down 2-1?  Down 3-0?

The only scenario where it makes even the slightest bit of sense to not throw your best available pitcher out there is if the Yankees are up 3-0.  Even then, do you really want to enter a World Series game, one of seven, where you’re not fielding the best team you can?

I say go on the short rest.

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There is absolutely no reason for the Yankees to carry Freddy Guzman on the World Series roster.  In fact, there was little reason for him to be on the ALCS roster except to give Girardi options to use incorrectly.

Eric Hinske needs to be added for the games in Philadelphia.  Matsui will also be on the bench since there will be no DH, giving the Yankees two very good power bats for the late innings in a tiny ballpark.  It’s silly that Hinske hasn’t had any at-bats since October 4th since he would have made a better pinch hitting option than Francisco Cervelli, but those are the breaks when you’re team carries two pinch runners and three catchers.

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Speaking of which, the Yankees should only carry two catchers this round.  Cervelli never actually caught and was only used as a pinch hitter.  Get him out of there.  It might be smart to carry an extra reliever in Cervelli’s spot to cover a possible three days rest rotation.  More options earlier in games could be helpful.

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Need more reasons to drop Cervelli from the roster?

AJ Burnett could be pitching game five in Philadelphia.  If Jose Molina catches him, that means the eighth and ninth hitters that day will be… Jose Molina and AJ Burnett.

I think we learned in game five of the ALCS something that we already knew: AJ Burnett’s control problems are not caused by his catcher.  Burnett had his worst run of the season that game, giving up four runs in the first before even recording an out.  Behind the plate calling the shots was Jose Molina.

If Girardi wants to start Molina for Burnett in game two, I’m not going to argue because, frankly, I’ve had it with the argument.  However, as bad as Posada has been at the plate, there’s no reason why he shouldn’t be behind it in Philadelphia when Burnett pitches.  At-bats are at a premium and game five could be a pivotal game.  Posada’s bat needs to be in that lineup.

Conversely, if Molina does start in Philadelphia and he’s pinch hit for, it’s going to be by Posada.  Where does Cervelli fit in this roster?  He has absolutely no reason to be on this squad except as an injury backup when a second catcher has entered the game.

That, my friends, is a waste of a roster spot.  You’re backup catcher is your injury backup, not your third string AA catcher.

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Let’s not overreact about Phil Hughes performance in game five of the ALCS.  He’s been a bit up and down in the playoffs.  It happens.  The guy was lights out for most of the season.

I’ve speculated that he could be a bit tired.  That could certainly be the case.  That doesn’t mean that every starter needs to go 7.1 innings and hand it off to Rivera.  Even Rivera is going to give up a run here and there.  Abuse him and he’ll give up more.

Hughes will be fine.  Let’s not suddenly pretend that the guy hasn’t been a great pitcher for four months because of a rough outing or two.

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In completely unrelated baseball news, Mark McGwire is returning to the St. Louis Cardinals as a hitting coach.

This strikes me as a silly move for the Cardinals.  Teams often have to balance on the field performance with the personalities and controversies that come along with certain players (think Milton Bradley, Gary Sheffield, the still unemployed Barry Bonds).  What is the sense in a team as successful and as heralded as the Cardinals to invite such controversy into their clubhouse for a hitting coach?

The positive or negative effect a hitting coach has on a squad is difficult to quantify but, on the whole, it’s usually considered minimal.  So, what’s the benefit of having a controversy magnet like McGwire around your clubhouse, especially with little experience coaching in a team environment?

I’m sure McGwire gets a home town discount when it comes to pessimism about his career.  After awhile, though, seeing his scrawny unpumped up frame on television on a regular basis is going to have people asking the same questions over and over.  Any guesses as to which network will show a side by side of playing McGwire versus coaching McGwire?

If you’re the Cardinals and you’re going to invite this nonsense into your house, you had better be smart about it.  The Cardinals should demand as part of the deal that McGwire lay it all out in a press conference on the first day of spring training and move on.

He won’t, though.  If he wasn’t going to talk to Congress, he’s not going to talk to the press.  And McGwire will spend the rest of his life insisting he doesn’t want to talk about the past.  The man who was part of a dynamic duo that electrified the sport in 1998 and heralded as an ambassador for the game will continue to hide, convincing all of us more and more that he used PEDs.

Get it over with, Mark.  You’re career is already tainted.  Own up to your mistakes and give us a chance to like you again.

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We’ll be chatting again during the World Series.  Thankfully, I think my kids will be done trick or treating by the start of game three (bravo once more, FOX…).  We’ve had a great turnout and lots of fun so if you haven’t joined us already, come on by.

Reflections on an evening I spent singing the Theme to New York, New York over and over while alone in my kitchen:

◊ Great game pitched by Andy Pettitte last night. It’s rare that you see Pettitte let out a yell or a fist pump but clearly, Andy was dialed in and on a mission.

It’s funny thing to look over Pettitte’s postseason history.  He’s always referred to as a “big game” pitcher, a rep that surely started sometime after game 5 of the 1996 World Series when he threw 8.1 shutout innings against the Braves, capping an improbable three straight wins in Atlanta and bringing the Yankees a win away from winning the Series.

Andy’s had some stinkers (game 2 of the 1997 ALDS, game one of the 1996 World Series, game 6 of the 2001 World Series, game 3 of the 1998 ALCS), and he’s pitched some gems (the 1996 game 5 in the World Series, 1998 game 4 of the World Series, 2000 game 5 of the World Series).

Thankfully, in the final tally the good games outweigh the bad, and Pettitte has been a lot more consistent in the postseason since 2003. Not surprisingly, Pettitte’s postseason ERA of 3.83 is just a hair under his career mark of 3.91 with his walk and strikeout rates following similar trends.  Pitch enough innings and it usually evens out.

◊ Joba came in during the seventh last night and a nation of fans held their breath. He got the job done, though, retiring two batters on ground balls with only seven pitches, four of which were strikes.  The confusion continues.

The one thing I think we have learned about Joba over the last two months is that it doesn’t matter what role he is in if he isn’t pitching well.  I am firmly in the Joba as a starter camp and nothing that has happened this season has changed my mind.

Joba hasn’t come out of the pen during the postseason and blown people’s doors off like he did in 2007.  He’s a kid who hasn’t pitched nearly as long as some other guys his age.  He’s learning his craft on the major league level and, because of that, he’s going to have many ups and downs.

That’s learning.  It’s rare that the Yankees let a guy learn on the big club, but Joba is getting that chance.  If he stays healthy and isn’t too pigheaded to learn a thing or two, it will likely pay dividends for the Yankees rotation for years to come.

◊ Nick Swisher got a hit and scored a run! He also reached on some shoddy Angels defense that basically ended their season.

I am not a big fan of the sacrifice bunt.  Late in games when you need a run, okay, sometimes I can live with it.

However, I think it’s a bad move when you’re asking a guy like Nick Swisher who, in 3189 plate appearances, has sacrifice bunted 8 times.  Chances are, he’s not very good at it.  Once Swish found himself on first base (aided by the fundamentally unsound Angels defense), Girardi replaced Nick with pinch runner Brett Gardner.

Well, Joe… If you didn’t mind losing Swish for Gardner, and Swish is going to square before the ball even leaves the pitcher’s hand, why not just pinch hit Gardner and let HIM bunt?  If the bunt is THAT important, put up a guy who can bunt and stands a better chance of beating out the play at first.

Joe was hedging his bet.  If the bunt failed, Joe didn’t want Gardner’s bat at the plate with two strikes.  It’s that kind of half-hearted approach that continues to make Girardi a confusing manager to follow.  He’ll pinch run for Alex Rodriguez on the 4% chance that Freddy Guzman’s speed will help tie a game, but in willingly giving up and out, he will play it half way.  Doesn’t make sense.

◊ Swisher’s bunt left runners on first and second for the red hot Melky Cabrera who, of course, bunted.  Never mind that Melky is 9-23 with 3 walks and two doubles in the ALCS.  The important thing was to get the runners over.

This is called managing scared.  There was a runner in scoring position already in the person of Robbie Cano.  Not the fastest set of wheels on the track but certainly able to score from second.  Instead, Girardi decides to try and give up an out again to avoid a double play.

Do you know what the average number of double plays per game was in 2009 for the AL?  .80.  Less than one.

Do you know how many double plays there were in this game?  4.

I’m not going to say that the law of averages means that there wouldn’t have been another double play.  Averages are comprised of extremes and on occasion those extremes need to happen.

I just can’t get my head around the concept of giving up an out because there’s a 2% chance of giving up two outs.  You only have three outs, guys.  You shouldn’t go wasting them.

Naturally, there’s little reason for many to second guess because again the Angels season crumbled with errors abound, giving Mariano Rivera insurance runs that turned out not to be necessary.  Maybe if the Yankees swung away like they’ve been doing in late innings most of the year, they would have scored four runs instead of two.

If you play for one run, you’re usually lucky to get one run.  You’ll rarely get more.

◊ Damon and Teixeira continued to emerge from their postseason slumber, each going 2-4 with 3 RBI between them.  Damon added a walk while Tex hit a long sac fly that many (including John Sterling) thought was going to leave the park.  It would be nice if this streak continues into the World Series as, you know, that’s a pretty good time for an offense to get hot.

◊ You know that Hideki Matsui is not doing well when he hits three ground balls to the right side.  Matsui is notorious for trying to pull outside pitches when he’s not going well, the result usually being weak toppers to the right side.  Hideki did that three times last night before finally taking one the other way for a flyout in the seventh.  The World Series could be a little rough on Matsui as he’ll be on the bench for games three, four and five without the DH and relegated to pinch hitting duties.  I hope his bat can stay lukewarm at least.

◊ Some people questioned CC Sabathia getting the ALCS MVP award over ARod.

First off, who cares?

Secondly, CC almost single-handedly won the Yankees two games.  He threw 16 innings, gave up two runs, nine hits, three walks and struck out twelve.  The Angels really didn’t stand a chance against him.  Two victories are squarely on his back.

ARod has been fantastic.  There’s no arguing it.  I think CC gets the nod, if you care about such things.

◊ Speaking of ARod… Does the new found respect for ARod go completely in the can if he has a less than great World Series?  I certainly hope not.  I think ARod has stepped up and proven what we all hoped he would.  If ARod is merely average during the World Series, it doesn’t negate what he has done to this point.

◊ Mariano Rivera… I didn’t think Girardi should have started the eighth inning with Rivera.  I thought Girardi could have mixed and matched a little bit and kept Rivera warming in the pen.  Yeah, yeah, it’s the playoffs, all hands on deck, blah blah blah.

The Yankees record when leading in the eighth inning this year was 79-4.

79-4.  Think about that.

That means one of two things: either the closers role is an over-hyped waste of time, or the Yankees have a pretty good bullpen.

The answer probably lies somewhere in the middle.  Having a great closer is certainly a nice thing to have but sometimes that closer can be wasted when  locked down to the ninth inning (Thanks, save statistic!).  Girardi was smart in his use of Rivera in this series, twice throwing him into high leverage situations with runners on base and Rivera delivered.

The point is, the Yankees should have the arms to at least start the eighth inning.  If Rivera needs to come in early, so be it, but I didn’t see enough of a reason to completely ignore the rest of the pen in that situation.  Girardi managed the eighth inning like a man who didn’t want to be second guessed anymore.  Just stick Rivera out there and, if he blows it, well what am I supposed to do?  He’s Mariano Rivera!

Is that adequate or even smart managing?  It seemed like a man who didn’t want to be second guessed, even if it meant throwing Rivera out for more pitches than he’s thrown in an outing all year.

These past three days have been torture.  No question.  For those of us that live and die with each Yankee victory or defeat, a crushing postseason loss followed by an off-day followed by a rainout followed by another day of waiting can seem cruel and unusual.  I’ve found myself constantly plagued by harrowing visions of another early October exit, imagining all the ways this season that looked so promising on Tuesday night could be quickly and violently ended with two more losses.

When CC Sabathia finished his utter domination of the Angels on Tuesday night, the Yankees held firmly to a 3-1 series lead and the banter officially began between Yankees and Phillies fans, supporters of the two teams that seemed destined to collide on baseball’s biggest stage.

Then Thursday night happened.

Trailing 4-0 in the 7th inning to a heretofore dominant John Lackey, the Yankees loaded the bases with 2 outs.  Mike Scioscia improbably and inadvisedly went to his bullpen and the Yanks responded by putting 6 two-out runs on the board.  The fans went silent.  The Angels looked defeated.  They weren’t.

They went to work in the bottom half of the inning against AJ Burnett, who remained in the game for reasons that continue to defy logic, and eventually against Damaso Marte and Phil Hughes, scoring 3 runs and taking a 7-6 lead they would not relinquish despite another shaky 9th inning from their closer in name only, Brian Fuentes.

Now, this is where we stand: a 3-2 series lead, with games 6 and 7 to be played at home, and our two most reliable starters, Andy Pettitte and CC Sabathia, rested and ready to take the ball.

So why doesn’t this feel like it should?  Why are the silver linings so hard to find?  We, as Yankees fans, find ourselves in a position that fans of 14 other American League teams would love to be in.  Can you imagine the elation of a Kansas City Royals fan, waking as if from a long and disturbing nightmare to find his team one win away from competing in the World Series?  They lost 98 games in Baltimore and there’s no end in sight – you think those long-suffering fans wouldn’t kill for the opportunity to be up 3 to 2 in the ALCS, with 2 games upcoming in Camden Yards?

Still, it’s different for the Yankees.  It’s different for their fans.  When people make this claim, it often comes across as self-centered, arrogant, obnoxious entitlement.  Of course it’s different, those that delight in Yankee pain will counter – you root for a team that spends $200 million on the best and the brightest and goes into each season with high hopes of running another pennant atop their brand new, $1.5 billion, state-of-the-art facility.  That is different.

It’s different in other ways, too.

I don’t expect any non-Yankee fans to quite understand this, but because of the burden of expectation, because of the media scrutiny, because of the money and the notoriety and the recent history of crushing, abject pain and misery, the Yankees are often quite miserable to watch.  Because victory is not a possibility but an expected outcome, it often lacks joy.  When the Yankees roll into Cleveland in mid-August and take 3 straight games, it’s because that’s what they should have done.  If they take 2 of 3, they’ve missed an opportunity.  If they lose 2 of 3, they’re struggling and changes should be made.  If they lose all three, it’s a miserable failure on par with taking a shotgun to a barrel and managing to miss the fish.

Does that sound fun?

It can be.  It can be a ton of fun when they’re winning every series, beating the teams they need to, getting solid starting pitching and timely hitting, and winning 103 games.  That’s what this 2009 season was in a nutshell – a ton of fun.  With a few brief and minor exceptions, the Yankees played well all season and had their division essentially locked up in August.  Winning is fun.

I can compare this to my experience with rooting for one truly awful team: the New York Islanders.  I’ve been a lifelong fan – not with the fervor and the passion that I follow the Yankees, but close enough that I attend several games a year, I watch the games on television all winter, and I’m always (painfully) aware of where they stand in the league.

Once upon a time, the Islanders were a model franchise.  They had a crazy passionate fanbase, sellouts, star players, a dynasty that won 4 consecutive Stanley Cups.  Then I was born.  One year after the Islanders won their 4th, I wandered into this world.  Ever since then, it’s been a seemingly endless series of pratfalls, historically bad teams, logos that look like advertisements for fish sticks, and comically unprepared players.  Yet, I continue to watch because I love hockey and I love the Islanders.  It’s as simple as that.  Once in a while comes the rare season where, despite a lack of knock-you-down talent, the Islanders put together a thrilling season and find themselves in the playoffs (usually as the 8th seed).  The sheer joy I get from those seasons is almost unmatched.  I watch those series, in which they are usually saddled with the joyless task of taking on the top seed, with a sort of pleased detachment.  It’s surreal for me to see the Islanders in nationally televised games, to see the Coliseum packed to the rafters and loud as hell instead of empty, ugly, dreary, depressing.

It’s because the Islanders do not bear the burden of expectation.

If anything, they’re expected to lose every game.  That’s the attitude I assume from October to April, so when I turn on an Isles/Penguins tilt on a lazy Sunday afternoon and my hometown team takes it to the defending champions, for one day I feel like we’ve won a Stanley Cup.

Not so much for the Yankees.  They have hurt me deeply.  The 2004 season is one that I will never forget.  Any mention of it stings, and stings deep.  That season brought me to tears, made me violently unhappy, caused a deep depression that lasted for over a year and in many ways is still there.  When FOX runs that Dave Roberts stolen base, as they are wont to do on seemingly every telecast, I leave the room.  If I come across an article referencing that season, I skip ahead or move on.  My Red Sox fan friends, of which I have many, are generally respectful enough not to mention it to me.   I’ve never actually written anything about it, and doing so now is a deeply uncomfortable experience.

Which brings us to 2009, a different, much happier time.  We are back where we want to be – one victory away from the World Series, dominant starting pitching from our ace putting us on the brink.  So why is it so difficult for me to embrace this team at this moment?  It’s akin to walking into an animal shelter; you tell yourself over and over, “I will not get emotionally attached to these animals.”  Their impending death is too much to think about.  Don’t fall in love.  You’ll only get hurt.

I think about the hurt I felt in 2004 and I never want to be in that place again.  But finally, I feel different.  Maybe the rain-out gave me an extra, needed day away from the nerves and the sick-to-my-stomach feeling.  But I have had so much fun watching this team all season, writing about them, podcasting about them with a friend as passionate as I am.  Everything that failed them in previous seasons worked with an astounding level of success this year.  Big money free agent stars earned their paychecks and then some.  Wild cards like Nick Swisher played above and beyond expectation, the Gardner/Cabrera tandem was a moderate success, Phil Hughes moved to the bullpen and dominated.  Everything clicked.  They did stuff like this, this, and this.  They were a lovable bunch.

So why not now?  This is a wonderful baseball team.  It may have taken me until now to realize it, but that’s what they are – a wonderful team of talented players, competing in 2 crucial games with their best starters on the mound and in front of an adoring home crowd at a stadium in which they went an ML best 57-24.  If they fail – which they may – it won’t be because they aren’t great, and it won’t diminish their myriad accomplishments in 2009.  This is still a team to be proud of, a team to have fun watching.  I’m gonna give that a shot tonight.

I’m going to stop pinning my hopes for personal happiness on the Yankees pursuit of a world championship.  Maybe this will be a burden off their shoulders as they take the field tonight.

Now let’s see if this feeling carries over to 8:20 pm EST.  Until then, Stay Positive, Yankees fans.

Thoughts about the game while I try to stop my head from sadly shaking:

◊ Last night once again encapsulated AJ Burnett as a pitcher. Burnett came out in the bottom of the first and stunk up the joint, allowing four runs before an out was recorded.  A long flyout and double play later, AJ gets out of the inning and puts up zeros for the next five.  Burnett gave up five hits and two walks over that scoreless five innings, complimented by a wild pitch.  When Yankee fans talk about mystique and aura, they may be referring to Burnett’s control.

◊ Despite that five inning stretch and 80 pitch count, the bullpen should have been humming when AJ took the mound in the bottom of the seventh.  Instead, Girardi waited for Burnett to give up a single and a walk before bringing in Marte.  I can understand letting AJ start the seventh, although I probably wouldn’t have done it.  It was a minor miracle that AJ made it that far with the lead.  There was little reason for Girardi not to mix and match his bullpen to try and maintain the lead.

This is where Girardi is at his most confusing.  In a tie game, such as game three, Girardi will mix and match his bullpen until he finds a reliever that can stabilize the game.  In game two, it happened to be Hughes after Joba, Marte, and Coke all got a shot.

In game five, the bullpen wasn’t prepared for a reliever, or even Burnett, to fail.  Hughes was left out there for the entirety of the inning without a good fastball, appearing to shake Posada off three times before surrendering a game tying single to Vlad on… a fastball.

The formula, or at least our understanding of the formula, was to get to the seventh inning and have the bullpen shut the door.  You can’t judge the moves in this inning by what happened.  It’s easy to say now that it’s a good thing Joba didn’t come in because he was ineffective in the eighth.  That’s applying results to a probability question.

Girardi would have been better off with Joba or Hughes starting the inning with Marte or Coke and another right-hander in the pen.  If you’re willing to mix and match in the midst of en extra inning tie game, there’s little reason not to do it with a two run lead in the seventh.  If the pitcher that starts the inning is effective, you can sit the guys in the pen.  Otherwise, you’re at least ready to mix and match and try to put out some fires.

Instead, they started the inning with two runners on quickly, both of whom scored, and Hughes was left out there with less than his best stuff to give up the lead.  Mariano could have gone more than an inning, so all you had to do was get through the seventh with the lead in tact.

And, considering David Robertson’s success in high leverage situations these playoffs (and Joba’s lack of success), why wasn’t he anywhere near the seventh or eighth innings?  Girardi likes to call it a bullpen by committee, but those are just words.  The pitchers were supposed to fill their roles last night, whether effective or not, and it didn’t work.

◊ It’s pretty easy to jump on Nick Swisher at this point. The guy has looked like a lost puppy at the plate.  I will give Girardi credit for this quote after the game about Swish:

“Guys are going to struggle during the course of the season and you just don’t give up on a guy if he is struggling because the flip side of that is they are due to get hot.  We feel good about Swish.”

That’s a reasonable approach.  Nobody has been calling for Teixeira’s head and he went 2 for 5 with 3 RBI last night.  Swisher ain’t Teixeira but he’s also not batting third.  If he gets his walks like he’s capable of and a few hits, he’ll be fine.  The alternative is Brett Gardner who has trouble getting the ball out of the infield.

(H/T to Rob Neyer for the quote)

◊ Pinch running for ARod in the bottom of the ninth was almost as laughable as pulling Damon in the bottom of the 10th in game three and losing the DH.  Girardi was hedging a bet that Guzman’s possible extra little bit of speed would be the difference if Matsui hit a ball in the gap.

Of course, Matsui didn’t hit a ball into the gap.  He walked, pushing Guzman to second.  Then Cano was plunked, pushing Guzman to third.  And suddenly, with two outs, speed wasn’t an issue.  If Swisher had actually walked and the game continued into extra innings (again), the Yankee lineup would have looked pretty fearsome with Jerry Hairston, Jr. batting cleanup.

Girardi’s reasoning is that you do everything you can to tie the game at that point.  And I agree with that logic when applied properly.  You should also do everything you can to win a game in late innings but that hasn’t had much of an effect on Girardi’s illogical bullpen decisions.

The difference in speed between Guzman and ARod is probably negligible at this point.  ARod seems to be pretty healthy on his hip, to the point where the proposed followup surgery may not be necessary anymore.  He’s certainly done his share of running at this stage.

Matsui had 21 doubles and 1 triple in 526 plate appearances this year.  That means there was a 4% chance of Matsui hitting a double or triple into the gap (for his career it is a 5.4 % chance.)  Matsui also has 28 home runs this year which obviously outnumber his doubles and triples.

◊ Melky Cabrera is actually heating up a bit and Robinson Cano got a rare two out hit with runners in scoring position.  It goes without saying that when the bottom of the order is hitting well, it’s a lot easier to win games.

◊ There was some debate on Twitter last night after the game about CC’s next start.  The forecast calls for rain on Saturday in New York, which could possibly push game six back to Sunday.  That would mean Sabathia, currently scheduled for a possible game 7, could pitch game six on full rest.

I doesn’t make any sense, however.  Pettitte is capable of pitching an effective game 6 and if the Yankees win, CC would be available for game one of the World Series.  If CC were to lose game 6, Pettitte would still be needed for game 7.  Either way, one of those two guys has to step up.  I think we all can agree that if it comes down to one game to continue the season, CC Sabathia should be on the mound.

◊ Both Hughes and Joba are struggling in the postseason. With Joba, it’s somewhat expected at this point.  He’s looked decent at times, as has Hughes, but for the most part Joba is the same confusing pitcher he has been for most of the season.

Hughes, though, has been somewhat of a mystery.  He was averaging almost 96 MPH on his fastball last night, which is about what he was throwing in game three.  The pitch wasn’t breaking, though, much less than game three and the Angels were sitting on it.  His curve remained sharp, but for some reason he and Posada didn’t throw it again to Vlad despite how bad Guerrero looked on the pitch.

One has to wonder if the workload of this season has caught up to Hughes.  He isn’t grossly past his previous totals but he is coming off a shortened 2008 season.  Hughes has never worked in a relief role before which usually means throwing harder over less innings than a starting pitcher.  Relief pitching is a volatile trade, evidenced by the lack of consistency most relievers experience from season to season.  It may be that the extra exertion Hughes has applied coming out of the pen has started to wear him down a bit.

Girardi might be better off keeping Hughes to one inning outings through the rest of the playoffs.  When Girardi replaced Marte with Coke in the bottom of the eighth in game three, his reasoning was that he didn’t want Marte warming up twice given his injury over the summer.  In that same game, Hughes warmed up three times.  Should that be a big deal?  Probably not as his workload hasn’t been that tough over the last week.

When you see his fastball flatten out like it did last night, you start to wonder, though.  Hughes faced eight batters across three innings in game three.  Since Hughes became a reliever at the beginning of June, he has averaged 4.4 batters per appearance and only once did it extend over more than two innings.  That was June 10th against the Red Sox, when Hughes was still stretched out to be a starter.

It’s the playoffs and all hands are on deck.  That’s fine as long as Girardi is paying attention.  He’s shifted the workload for his second most valuable reliever and the results may not be the same.

◊ Finally, if you haven’t stopped by our live chats during the game, come on by. It’s been a lot of fun.  Last night, ESPN’s Rob Neyer graciously stopped in to take a few questions from the crowd during the game.  We’ll be doing it (hopefully) every game the Yankees play in the postseason and are hoping to get a few more guests.

Tempting as it was, I resisted the urge to scrawl a profanity-laden diatribe against Micro Joe Girardi following last night’s 5-4 loss to the Los Angeles California Angels of Anaheim California.  My reasoning? One shouldn’t make rash decisions in the heat of battle.

If only Micro Joe had followed that line of thinking.

There’s many reasons the Yankees lost last night’s ALCS game 3; lack of hitting (or even sacrifice flying) with runners in scoring position is a start.  Despite holding a 5-1 record in the playoffs so far, the Yankee offense has spent the last two weeks on the golf course.  If not for the pitching, this would be a very frustrating harvest season for the Bombers.

You expect offenses to be a little slower in the postseason.  The level of pitching is usually a bit better because you’re facing the best teams in the league.  The tension level is raised because you’re on baseball’s biggest stage.  Every run has greater meaning.

Even with all that, it’s still not what lost the game last night.

No, last night, the blame falls squarely on Micro Joe Girardi.

I’ve been complaining about Girardi’s use of the bullpen for most of the year.  This summer, when the Yankees started to pull away from the pack in the AL East, the media began to gush over what an incredible job Girardi had done.  It was really quite frightening to see so many people rally for a manager who:

1. Refused to carry a long reliever despite Chien-Ming Wang blowing up every five days at the start of the season.
2. Treated Alfredo Aceves like a short reliever despite beginning the season as a starter.
3. Started Aceves four days after throwing 43 pitches in four innings, allowing him to struggle through 3.1 innings and 65 pitches.  Shortly after, Aceves complained of a tired arm.  (duh)
4. Kept Phil Hughes inning count so low that it was impossible to keep him in the sixth starter role, a hole eventually filled by Sergio Mitre and Chad Gaudin.
5. Didn’t limit Joba’s innings in the beginning of the season. Girardi was less than careful because of a depleted bullpen (long reliever…  anyone?) and because of his negligence, was forced to alter the Joba Rules three times from July through September, all for the purpose of preparing Joba for the postseason… as a reliever.
6. Was excluded from a Yankee brass conference call to discuss the prescribed rest needed by Alex Rodriguez, who was coming off of hip surgery.  ARod was supposed to get a day off every couple of weeks but only missed three games from May 8th through August 12th, a span of 85 games.

Let’s just say I’m not surprised at the level of ineptitude Girardi reached last night.

First, let’s discuss what Girardi did right:

1. Joe let Hughes pitch across three innings, entering in the bottom of the eighth to strike out Hunter and force Vlad to ground out.  Phil then pitched a perfect ninth before giving up a double to Mathis to lead off the 10th.
2. At that point, Girardi’s other good move happened when he brought in Mariano Rivera.  It seems like a simple decision, but Girardi could have brought in Rivera to start the inning or worse, to start the bottom of the ninth where Hughes had set down three in a row.  Girardi wisely held on to Rivera until he was needed and Rivera came through, working through three outs with runners in scoring position without surrendering the winning run.

That’s it.  Those were Girardi’s good moves.  Here comes the bad.  You might want to get a drink or hit the head before you tackle this list because we’re going to be here for awhile…

1. The first bad decision came before the series started, when Girardi decided to carry a third catcher and two pinch runners.  It’s becoming obvious that Brett Gardner only roles on this team are pinch runner and late inning defense since Joe hasn’t started him in the outfield once.  That makes the presence of Freddy Guzman on this roster all the more confusing.  Guzman brings nothing to the table except the ability to run, while Cervelli brings nothing to the table except the ability to catch.  Between the two of them, at least one roster spot has been wasted, a fact made all the more obvious when Girardi was forced to pinch hit Cervelli last night instead of a player who can actually hit, like maybe Eric Hinske, who was left off the postseason roster.  This became relevant because-
2. Girardi gave up the DH in the bottom of the 10th.  With the game tied, Torii Hunter came to the plate with one out and the bases loaded to face Mariano Rivera.  And thus was born one of the greatest panic moves in baseball history.  Fearing a sacrifice fly to the weak armed Johnny Damon in left, Girardi pulled Damon from the field mid-inning and replaced him with… the DH Jerry Hairston, Jr, thereby losing the DH.  Hairston isn’t exactly chopped liver in the outfield, although I doubt many would confuse his throwing arm for Vlad Guerrero’s.  The bigger issue centered on the fact that the DH was due up for the Yankees in the top of the 11th should they get out of the inning.  Rivera did get out of the inning and when Rivera’s spot in the lineup came up with two outs and nobody on, rather than let Rivera stare at three fastballs, grab his mitt and pitch another inning, Girardi pulled his best pitcher from an extra inning game after one inning to pinch hit a weak hitting backup catcher with 106 major league plate appearances.
3. The problems started even earlier than that.  In the bottom of the sixth, Pettitte’s pitch count started getting into the high 80s and Girardi began to warm Joba Chamberlain in the pen.  Pettitte had given up a home run the previous inning to Kendrick and was facing Vlad Guerrero with two outs and Bobby Abreu at first.  Pettitte had pitched well but wasn’t fooling many batters and spent most of the game in battle with the Angels running game.  It was obvious that Pettitte wouldn’t be pitching much longer, leaving little reason to keep the left-handed Pettitte in against the right-handed Guerrero, especially with Joba warming in the pen.  Well, Joba stayed in the pen, Pettitte stayed in the game, and Guerrero left the park, tying the game at 3-3.
4. Pettitte started the 7th to get the left-handed Kendry Morales and then was lifted for Joba.  Joba promptly gave up a triple and a sac fly to give the Angels the lead, followed by a double by Aybar.  Fine.  Bad pitching but not Girardi’s fault.  Girardi then pulls Joba to bring in lefty Damaso Marte to force Chone Figgins to bat from the right side and gets the fly-out to end the inning.  When the Angels come to bat in the bottom of the 8th, Girardi inexplicably pulls lefty Marte for lefty Phil Coke to face left-handed Bobby Abreu. Why?  Who knows?  It was a waste of a pitcher as Coke only faced Abreu, who laced a double to center and stupidly got caught between second and third, saving the Yankees bacon.  At this point, Phil Hughes came in and the events of numbers 1 and 2 transpired.
5. Let’s go to the bottom of the 11th, shall we?  Rivera has been pulled from the game so that a AA catcher can pinch hit with two outs, so Girardi is forced to go to the bullpen.  He brings in David Robertson, the hero of game 2 of the ALDS.  In that game, Robertson entered the top of the 11th with runners on first and second and no one out.  Four batters later, he had escaped the inning without allowing a run and Mark Teixeira won it with a walk-off homer in the bottom of the inning.  Robertson started the bottom of the 11th of this game by getting Juan Rivera to ground out weakly to short and Kendy Morales to pop out to left field.  So far, so good… until Girardi removes the right-handed Robertson, so effective to this point, for the right-handed Aceves.  Why?  Who knows?  Matchups?  Kendrick singles, Mathis doubles to deep center, ball game over.

Let’s tally up the pitchers innings here, shall we?

A Pettitte                     6.1
J Chamberlain                  0.1
D Marte                        0.1
P Coke                         0.1
P Hughes                       1.2
M Rivera                       1
D Robertson                    0.2
A Aceves, L (0-1)              0

Joba was ineffective so we’ll give Joe a pass on that. Otherwise, Marte, Coke, Rivera and Robertson combined for a total of 2.1 innings, less than 2 outs per pitcher. Two of those pitchers, Rivera and Robertson, have been Girardi’s most effective relievers so far in the postseason, yet he limited their innings and removed them for nonsensical reasons.

In Rivera’s case, it was so a terrible hitter could try and extend an inning with two outs.  Granted, Teixeira and ARod were batting behind Cervelli, but the likelihood of Cervelli getting on-base compared to the value of Rivera keeping the game tied the next inning is not close to equal.

All of the DH mechanizations came into play because Girardi has insisted on pinch running for Hideki Matsui in late innings.  Matsui can’t run for squat so it’s difficult to argue with the logic.  However, in this game as it also happened in game two of the ALDS and of the ALCS, the pinch runners didn’t score, leaving the Yankees with a bad hitter in the number five position of the batting order.  That wouldn’t be such a big deal if Eric Hinske was available to pinch hit the next time up for the DH because, at the very least, he can hit the ball hard on occasion.  Instead, we have a third string catcher, a utility player, and Freddy Guzman on the bench, all ready, willing, and unable to bat effectively behind Alex Rodriguez.  The heart of the Yankee order quickly falls apart when you have Hairston, Posada, Swisher, and Melky lined up.  Or, as in game two of the ALCS, Hairston, Gardner, Cano, and Melky.  It’s a miracle the Yankees won game two with all the shuffling pieces.

Pete Abe predicted it and a few others as well: eventually, Joe Girardi’s micromanaging would cost the Yankees a postseason game.  One would hope it would have been just one move that backfired.  In this case, it’s probably the sum total of many moves dating back to the building of this postseason roster that brought about the loss of this game.

I went into game three expecting a fight, unsure of what Pettitte was going to bring and which Jered Weaver would show up.  Pettitte kept the Yankees close enough to win which is all you can ask when they visit Anaheim.  Unfortunately, the Yankee manager did everything he could to try and outthink the game of baseball.

It made for a frustrating evening, watching a manager that’s too arrogant to be smart, ruin a winnable game.  Welcome to Micro Joe Baseball.  It ain’t Billy Ball, that’s for sure.

Here we are, only October 16th, and already the weather is playing a significant factor in baseball’s playoffs schedule.

If you’re in the Tri-State/New England area and haven’t peeked out your window yet, go take a look. Then ask yourself, would I want to play baseball in this? Would I want to watch baseball in this?

Probably not. But weather, decent playing conditions, fans comfort, these are of little concern to The Commish Bud Selig and the people at FOX Sports.

FOX has created an ironclad schedule that maneuvers around their football schedule like Leon Washington. That makes sense for FOX since they have taken on two major sporting commitments that happen to take place in the same month.

The problem lies in the scheduling conflict it creates for baseball. Baseball has no flexibility to adapt to what’s happening weather-wise or within their own series.

The Yankees and the Angels both wrapped up their Division Series sweeps on Sunday. Five days later and their ALCS hasn’t started yet. Five days. The earliest the World Series could end is November 1st and we have two teams waiting five days to start a series?

The Dodgers finished last Saturday, the Phillies on Monday. It still took until Thursday to start their series.

There are some benefits to the teams with this schedule. It allows both teams to setup their pitching the way they want, with their aces having plenty of off-days to start game one on full rest. That’s a nice by-product of the process but it’s not the reason the schedule was setup this way. We know this because there are only three days between the end of the NLCS and the World Series and two days between the ALCS and the World Series.

If the Yankees and Angels go to a game 7 and CC Sabathia is pitching as Joe Girardi seems to be planning, he would not be available for game 1 of the World Series and could only start game two on three days rest.

Would it be fair to both teams to start the ALCS and NLCS two days after the final Division Series games? Why not? It can’t be any less fair than determining home field advantage for the World Series in a July exhibition game. If a team manages to end their Division Series early, they deserve to have their pitching lined up better. To the victor’s go the spoils. It would also allow Major League Baseball to keep the travel days as off-days, rather than using the travel day to makeup a rainout.

What doesn’t make sense is determining these things based on a network like FOX that is more concerned about their football commitments than they are about postseason baseball.

Consider November 1st, scheduled to be game four of the World Series. Before the Phillies and Dodgers even started the NLCS, the NFL (and by association, FOX Television) announced that the Eagles-Giants game scheduled for 4PM in Philadelphia that day had been moved up to 1PM to accommodate a possible World Series game in Philly that evening.

Apparently, the football stadium and the baseball stadium share parking facilities, although most people from Philly will tell you that concerts and sporting events have coincided without much issue. It also stands to reason that the money-makers who created the new ballpark were not going to lock themselves out of revenue by not having parking available.

Here’s the rub, though: by pushing the Giants and Eagles back to 1PM and right up against the Jets-Dolphins game, FOX has four games scheduled in the 1PM time slot nationally. To make room for the Eagles, the NFL moved the Viking-Packers game to 4PM on FOX, where only one other national game is scheduled.

Why is that significant? Brett Favre has been a ratings king this season:

Brett Favre last night became the first NFL quarterback to vanquish each of the league’s 32 teams, but it was ESPN’s ratings performance that had advertisers buzzing.

The Oct. 5 installment of Monday Night Football now stands as the most-watched telecast in cable TV history, drawing 21.8 million total viewers, per Nielsen live-plus-same-day ratings estimates. Demo deliveries are pending.

The 39-year-old Favre led the Minnesota Vikings to a 30-23 victory over the Green Bay Packers, establishing bragging rights over the NFC North and knocking off the previous all-time cable ratings record. ESPN set the high-water mark a year ago, when 18.6 million fans tuned in for its presentation of the Sept. 15 Eagles-Cowboys showdown.

Since the season began, ESPN’s Monday Night Football coverage is averaging 15.6 million total viewers.

What do you think the ratings will be the second time Favre plays the Packers? In Green Bay, no less?

By moving the Packers to 4PM, FOX eliminated two regional games from their national coverage, meaning the Packers-Vikings will be reaching an audience possibly three times the size of the 1PM games. That means more money for advertising time. Not only do New Yorkers once again have to pick between the Giants and the Jets at 1PM as they did in week 3, but the NFL gets an excuse to move a game based on a World Series who’s participants haven’t even been determined yet!

Oh, and that game four of the World Series won’t start until 8:20 PM rather than the usual 7:57 PM to accommodate Brett Favre’s homecoming ratings bonanza. Enjoy, kiddies who have school the next day!

MLB is as much to blame for these scenarios. They rightfully have chased the highest dollar they can get from the networks to broadcast their typically low-rated postseason series. One can’t help but wonder, though, how much better the ratings might be if the games didn’t end at midnight on a Sunday. Maybe MLB should look into getting a little bit more control of their own schedule and doing what’s right for baseball instead of a media monolith like FOX. Maybe ABC/ESPN could be a little more accommodating between their two networks.

Either way, once again, it’s the fans who come last. At least we’ll get lots of nice star sightings and previews for FOX’s prime time series. We’ll have that going for us. Which is nice…