The Ticket Chest

CC Sensational; A-Rod Still Raking; Yankees Cruise Past Angels 10-1

Wednesday, October 21st, 2009 | A.J. Burnett, Alex Rodriguez, CC Sabathia, John Lackey, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, MLB, New York Yankees, Sports | No Comments

WOW – looks like this Yankees team is on a mission.  An offensive explosion and another solid starting pitching effort and the Yankees now lead the Angels 3 games to 1 in the 2009 ALCS.  Game over?  Most definitely.

CC Sabathia has been the man this post-season.  On Tuesday night, Sabathia needed just 101 pitches to throw 8 innings of 1 run ball.  The lone came around on a Kendry Morales solo HR and he gave up just 4 other hits and 2 walks during the outing.  Sabathia also had 5 K’s.  In MLB post-season history, when a pitcher pitching on 3-days’ rest faced a pitcher pitching on regular rest, the team with the regular rest pitcher had won 27 of the 34 games played.  CC erased that trend quickly and easily on Tuesday night with his dominating performance.  In 3 playoffs starts this October, Sabathia is 3-0 in 22 2/3 innings pitched and he has given up just 3 ER, 17 hits and 3 walks during those outings (1.19 ERA and a .200 batting average against).  Pretty amazing, especially for a pitcher who had not had the best post-season track record.

Now to A-Rod – got I hate this guy…  I guess my time to enjoy A-Rod’s post-season struggles has come to an end.  Since A-Rod had 3 HR’s and 8 RBI’s during the 2004 ALDS (against the Minnesota Twins) and ALCS (against the Boston Red Sox), A-Rod has been a major disappointment for the Yankees in October.  From 2005 through 2007 (13 games, 44 at-bats), A-Rod delivered a total of 7 hits, 4 runs and only 1 RBI on a solo home run.  A-Rod struck out 15 times and walked only 8 times.  Plain and simple – he was bad and he didn’t come through in the clutch.  But fast-forward to 2009 – A-Rod has been a big reason that the Yankees are where they are.  In just 7 games this post-season (17 at-bats), A-Rod has 11 hits (5 home runs), 9 runs scored and 11 RBI’s.  He has struck out only 4 times and he has an RBI in each game so far.  Last night, A-Rod scored the game’s 1st run after singling to lead off the 4th inning and then his 2-run HR to deep left field extended the Yankees lead to 5-0.  A-Rod kept raking in the 9th inning, leading off with a double and then scoring on Jorge Posada’s line out and subsequent error by Bobby Abreu to add insult to injury.

Sabathia and A-Rod have put the Yankees in a position to finish off the Angels in just 5 games.  A.J. Burnett will have a chance to win the clincher on Thursday night in Anaheim.  Unless the Angels John Lackey can throw a gem against Burnett, I don’t see this series returning to the Bronx for a Game 6…

5-4 Walk-Off Wins in Each League Championship Game on Monday

Tuesday, October 20th, 2009 | Alex Rodriguez, Alfredo Aceves, Andy Pettitte, Carlos Ruiz, Casey Blake, CC Sabathia, Chase Utley, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Derek Jeter, Howie Kendrick, Jeff Mathis, Jimmy Rollins, Joe Girardi, Johnny Damon, Jonathan Braxton, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Los Angeles Dodgers, Macier Izturis, Matt Stairs, MLB, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Raul Ibanez, Ryan Howard, Sports, Vladimir Geurrero | No Comments

MLB has gotta be loving this – two walk-off wins for the home team; two 5-4 scores; one series just about done and the other heating up.  I live for October baseball!

I am most excited about the Angels rallying to beat the Yankees 5-4 in 11 innings on Monday afternoon.  The Angels had struggled all game against Andy Pettitte as the Yankees built a 3-0 lead on solo homers from Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Johnny Damon.  Despite blowing some chances early, the Angels hung in there.  They cut the Yankees lead to 3-1 on Howie Kendrick’s HR in the 5th inning (that was the 1st home run given up by a Yankees pitcher in the playoffs this year) and then tied it up on Vladimir Guerrero’s 2-run bomb to left in the 6th inning.  And after Manager Joe Girardi pulled Pettitte with 1 out in the 7th inning, the Angels immediately capitalized with a triple by Kendrick and a run-scoring sacrifice fly by pinch-hitter Macier Izturis off Yankees reliever Joba Chamberlain.  Just like that the Angels had a 4-3 lead and needed only 6 outs to get the series back in their favor.  Jorge Posada’s solo home run to center field put a slight damper on the Angels’ celebration, but the Angels gutted it out in the bottom of the 11th inning.  Girardi’s “over-managing” could be called into question with his decision to pull David Robertson (who had recorded the 1st 2 outs of the inning) for Alfredo Aceves.  Kendrick came through in the clutch with a single to center field and Jeff Mathis ended the game with a walk-off, 2-out RBI double to deep left field that plated Kendrick with the winning-run.  Props go to Kendrick for winning the game for the Angels on Monday.  On his triple in the 7th inning, Kendrick hustled right out of the box to get all the way to 3rd base with only 1 out.  And in the 11th, even though there was 2 out, Kendrick’s speed enabled him to score all the way from 1st on Mathis’ double.

The win breathes new life into the Angels, and Girardi’s decision to go with a 3-man rotation in the ALCS will be in the spotlight tonight as CC Sabathia gets the nod in Game 4 on only 3 days rest.  Sabathia pitched well on 3 days rest for the Brewers in 2008 (2-1, 0.83 ERA), but if he has an off-night, look for the critics to hand Girardi out to dry post-game.  Scott Kazmir has had a lot of success against the Yankees (6-5 record and 2.66 ERA in 14 career starts), so it should be a great game to watch on Tuesday night.

The NLCS game was also a back and forth game – a 1st inning Ryan Howard home run gave the Phillies an early 2-0 lead.  But then the Dodgers answered with 4 runs during the 4th through 6th innings on RBI singles by James Loney, Russell Martin and Casey Blake and a solo home run by Matt Kemp.  After a Chase Utley RBI single cut the Dodgers lead to 4-3 in the 6th inning, it looked like the Dodgers would even the series as closer Jonathan Broxton entered the game in the 9th inning.  Broxton (who had converted 36 of 42 save chances with a 2.61 ERA and 0.96 WHIP, but struggled on the road with an 5.81 ERA) even got lead-off hitter Raul Ibanez out, but laid an egg by pitching around Matt Stairs (Stairs had homered off of Broxton in the NLCS in 2008) and allowing him to reach on a walk.  Broxton made matters worse by plunking Carlos Ruiz to give the Phillies 1st and 2nd with only 2 outs.  Broxton got Gregg Dobbs to line out to 3rd base, but Jimmy Rollins crushed a 99-MPh fastball to deep center field that plated both Eric Bruntlett (pinch-runner for Stairs) and Ruiz with the winning runs.  Just like that, the Phillies had a walk-off win to take a 3-1 series lead.  The Dodgers have a huge obstacle to overcome.  They face Cole Hamels on Wednesday in Game 5 and if they are luck enough to win that one, they will have to beat Cliff Lee in Game 6 in Los Angeles just to get to a Game 7.  It’s not looking good for the Dodgers…

Enjoy MLB playoffs action tonight!

I Hate Alex Rodriguez, Yankees Top Angels Again…

Monday, October 19th, 2009 | A.J. Burnett, Alex Rodriguez, Brian Fuentes, CC Sabathia, Joe Girardi, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Macier Izturis, Mariano Rivera, MLB, New York Yankees, Sports | 1 Comment

It’s plain and simple – I hate Alex Rodriguez.  I was so excited to watch Brian Fuentes close out the 3-2 Angels win on Saturday night.  Fuentes even had lead-off hitter Alex Rodriguez right where he wanted him – 0-2 count with a confused look on his face after he guessed wrong on the first 2 pitches.  Fuentes even had him off-balanced on the 3rd pitch, but A-Rod got just enough of the pitch to drive it a few feet over the right field wall to tie the game at 3.  I would have rather had any other Yankees player tie the game instead of A-Rod.  He annoys me show much – he is all show and he has not delivered in the clutch for the Yankees in his previous post-season at-bats.  But for whatever reason, A-Rod keeps on delivering in October 2009.  Please make it stop soon!

The rest of the game was moot.  You knew the Yankees would ultimately beat the Angels at some point to take a 2 games to none lead over the Angels in the ALCS.  The fact that it came on a Macier Izturis throwing error that allowed Jerry Hairston Jr. to score all the way from 2nd base made it even all the more frustrating.  Once again, the Angels defense allowed the game to get away from them, and they now go back to California with their backs against the wall.  Jered Weaver needs to show up big time against Andy Pettite in Game 3 this afternoon – there’s no way the Angels will be able to come back from a 3-0 deficit against the Yankees.

Two other notes – A.J. Burnett threw another solid game for the Yankees.  Burnett gave up just 2 ER on 3 hits and 2 walks in 6 1/3 innings pitched.  He struck out 4.  Sabathia and Burnett – 2 of the Yankees “Big 3″ free agent signings before the season – have really delivered in the clutch this season.

And how about Mariano Rivera – he conserved his pitches so well that he was able to give Manager Joe Girardi 2 1/3 innings from the bottom of the 8th inning through the 10th inning.  He allowed just 1 hit with 2 K’s and kept the game going for the Yankees to have a chance to pull off the win.

Game 3 starts today at 4:13PM EST in Anaheim.  The game will be televised on Fox…

Solid Yankees Pitching, Poor Fielding Doom Angels in ALCS Game 1 Loss

Saturday, October 17th, 2009 | A.J. Burnett, CC Sabathia, John Lackey, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Mariano Rivera, MLB, New York Yankees, Sports | No Comments

I must give CC Sabathia all the credit in the world.  After struggling with the Cleveland Indians (10.45 ERA v. Boston Red Sox in 2007 ALCS) and the Milwaukee Brewers (12.27 ERA v. Philadelphia Phillies in 2008 NLDS), Sabathia has played large (almost as large as his midriff) in the 2009 playoffs for the New York Yankees.  Last night in the Yankees 4-1 win over the Angels in Game 1 of the ALCS, he was simply outstanding.  Sabathia needed only 113 pitches to throw 8 spectacular innings of 1-run ball.  He gave up just 4 hits and walked only 1 batter, while striking out 7 Angels.  The key was his command and keeping the speedy Angels baserunners off the bases.  In the past, Sabathia has struggled with his control in the post-season.  Last night, he was on his game the entire night against a patient Angels team that draws a lot of walks.  Manager Joe Girardi could not have asked for a better outing from the ace of his staff.

The same could be said for Mariano Rivera. He is simply the closest thing to perfection when it comes to post-season performance.  Rivera has an ERA of .074 in over 80 post-season appearances and he did not disappoint last night, even after the home plate umpire handed Torii Hunter a lead-off walk in the 9th inning with several close calls that went the Angels’ way.  But it didn’t faze Rivera at all.  He struck out Vladmir Guerrero and got Juan Rivera and Kendry Morales to fly out weakly to the outfield, and just like that the Yankees had a 1-0 lead in the ALCS.  And just like that Rivera had another big post-season save – he has the coldest ice in his veins of any reliever that I’ve ever seen.

As for the Angels fielding – I know the conditions were not great, but 3 errors?  Come on – this is playoff baseball, from a team that tied a record for best team fielding percentage in franchise history (.986) during the course of the 2009 MLB schedule.  A team that committed 85 errors all season long commits 3 errors in 1 game?  It was so disappointing and painful to watch.  In addition to the 3 errors, Chone Figgins and Erick Aybar miscommunicated on an infield popup that allowed Johnny Damon to score the Yankees 2nd run in the 1st inning.  John Lackey wasn’t great – 9 hits, 3 walks and 2 ER (4 runs total) in 5 2/3 innings – but he deserved better fielding behind him.

The 2 teams won’t have much time to react to the Game 1 outcome as they battle again tonight in the Bronx.  Joe Saunders will pitch for the Angels while A.J. Burnett will toe the rubber for the Yankees.  Saunders was not needed in the ALDS series sweep of the Red Sox, so it will be interesting to see how he fares against the Yankees with 2 weeks in between starts…

ALCS Starts Tonight – Sabathia, Yankees v. Lackey, Angels

Friday, October 16th, 2009 | CC Sabathia, Joe Girardi, John Lackey, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Mike Scioscia, MLB, New York Yankees, Sports | No Comments

The New York Yankees will square off against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the 2009 ALCS that begins tonight at the New Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.  What a way to usher in a new era in a new stadium – with a potential October/November World Series run.

Angels Manager Mike Scioscia has decided to go with veteran starter John Lackey.  Lackey dominated the Red Sox in Game 1 of the ALDS, pitching 7 1/3 scoreless innings and leading the Angels to a convincing 5-0 victory that set the tone for the series.  In 12 career post-season games (10 starts), Lackey has gone 3-3 with a spectacular 3.02 ERA.  Lackey even won Game 7 of the 2002 World Series as a major league rookie.

Yankees Manager Joe Girardi has hinted that he might go with a 3-man rotation – CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettite.  Sabathia will start in Game 1 of the ALCS tonight.  After a rough final start to the season (9 runs on 8 hits in just 2 2/3 innings against the Rays), Sabathia looked like himself in Game 1 of the ALDS against the Minnesota Twins.  Sabathia gave up just 1 ER on 8 hits over 6 2/3 solid innings.  He struck out 8 as well.  The Yankees are hoping to get off to a quick start with Sabathia and Burnett pitching well at home.

Catch it all tonight at 7:57PM EST on Fox.

CC Sabathia & Adam Wainwright Denied 20th Wins

Saturday, October 3rd, 2009 | Adam Wainwright, CC Sabathia, MLB, New York Yankees, Sports, St. Louis Cardinals | No Comments

It was not a night meant for 20-game winners in the 2009 MLB schedule.  CC Sabathia of the New York Yankees and Adam Wainwright of the St. Louis Cardinals were both denied shots at winning their 20th games of the 2009 campaign.

The Rays hammered Sabathia scoring 9 runs (5 earned) of off him in just 2 2/3 innings of work.  Sabathia struggled with his control walking 5 and giving up 8 hits.  Not a good sign for Yankees fans – Sabathia tends to struggle in October, so could this be a sign of bad things to come for the Yankees in post-season play?

Adam Wainwright actually pitched OK in his start – giving up 3 ER on 5 hits and 2 walks over 6 innings.  Wainwright left with the Cardinals leading the Brewers 6-3, but the bullpen gave up 9 runs over the game’s final 3 innings, and Wainwright was denied the chance to win 20 games for the 1st time in his career.

Both Sabathia and Wainwright will be pitching in the post-season, so it will be interesting to see how each pitcher fares…