Yankees – Page 162 – Keefe To The City

Jun 15, 2016

Yankees Have a Major Middle Relief Problem

The Yankees haven’t been able to trust a reliever not named Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller or Aroldis Chapman all season and it’s costing them rest and wins.

That wasn’t exactly how you want to start the most important 11-game stretch in 23 seasons. After scoring six runs in three games against the Tigers over the weekend, the Yankees scored 10 runs for just the fourth time all season and lost. But that’s not even the worst part. The worst part is that in five innings against Jorge De La Rosa, they didn’t score once. If you’re not aware, he was De La Rosa’s line entering the game: 31.2 IP, 42 H, 32 R, 31 ER, 15 BB, 39 K, 8 HR, 8.81 ERA, 1.800 WHIP. The Yankees couldn’t score against a pitcher who gives up one run per inning.

The good news is the loss was just one game on a five-game road trip in which the Yankees have to win at least three games, but preferably four. The bad news is they have little room for error for the next four games after Nathan Eovaldi reminded us all for the third straight start why the Dodgers and Marlins didn’t mind giving up on a young, cost-controlled starting pitching who throws 100 mph. But in talking about the big picture for the season, the Yankees are in trouble if they are unable to not only beat Jorge De La Rosa, but even score against the 35-year-old lefty.

After 64 games, we know what to expect from the Yankees’ offense: not much. When they score 10 runs, they should win. Any team should win with that much offense. But for as bad as Eovaldi was and he was bad, anyone not named Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller or Aroldis Chapman who comes out of the Yankees’ bullpen is a problem. Tuesday night was just the latest in a long line of middle relief failures.

Nick Goody can have a pass for last night since he was the only Yankees pitcher to not give up a run. He actually hasn’t given up a run in last three appearances (3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K), but before that, he had given up runs in back-to-back appearances (0.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 1 HR) and in six of his last eight appearances (7.2 IP, 9 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 3 BB, 5 K, 2 HR). He hasn’t been great, but he’s been about what you expect out of a middle reliever and he has basically become Joe Girardi’s must trusted bullpen arm outside of the Big Three.

Kirby Yates has been awful in June and between his weird delivery and the fact that he wasn’t good for Tampa Bay last year, there’s not much to like about him. After an impressive May, he has become 2016’s version of David Carpenter, who dominated for a month last year before getting rocked in May and and designated for assignment in June. Yates has now allowed four earned runs in his last two appearances (1.1 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 1 K) and his numbers in six June appearances are get-sent-back-to-Scranton worthy: 4.1 IP, 8 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 4 BB, 5 K).

Richard Bleier came in for fifth career appearance, and after pitching 3 2/3 scoreless inning in his first four appearances, here’s how his night went in Colorado: single (allowed an inherited runner to score), single (allowed an inherited runner to score), groundout, single, double, triple (two runs scored), groundout, lineout (one run scored), groundout. Bleier has yet to strike out a hitter and the only reason he’s in the bullpen is for Girardi to have a left-handed option that isn’t Miller or Chapman since Girardi has to have a lefty to go to the way he had to have Clay Rapada and Billy Traber and Rich Hill (before he figured out how to pitch) and David Huff.

Those two were only the problem last night, but the problem has been season-long. Chasen Shreve started the year with 5 1/3 scoreless innings before giving up 11 earned runs and seven(!) home runs in his next 13 2/3 innings and he landed on the disabled list with a shoulder injury. Johnny Barbato looked like he might be the next big thing when he started the season with nine strikeouts in six scoreless innings, but he gave up eight runs in his next seven innings and got sent down. Phil Coke returned for a second go-around in the Bronx, pitched as badly as he had the first time seven years ago, and got designated for assignment. Branden Pinder made one appearance, it went about as well as his late-season appearances last year, and now he’s out with Tommy John surgery. Tyler Olson appeared in one game, sucked, got released and now he’s in the Royals organization. Anthony Swarzak is still on the 25-man roster, has made three appearances, and hasn’t been good, so it’s only a matter of time until he’s back in Scranton.

Outside of Shreve, all of those pitchers are right-handed and none of them are good (including Shreve half the time). The same way Preston Claiborne, Caleb Cotham, Nick Rumbelow and Danny Burawa couldn’t get the job done when they were with the Yankees, neither can anyone on the team now (aside from Goody sometimes) that isn’t Betances, Miller or Chapman.

Games in which the Yankees are hoping to hold a deficit for a chance to come back are blown open and games in which the Yankees have such a big enough lead that they can rest the Big Three suddenly result in one or more of them warming up in the bullpen. The only time the Yankees’ middle relief can be trusted is when the game is out of hand one way or the other. The Yankees can’t go through an entire season without any reliable middle relief if they want to contend for a playoff spot. But unless they find a way to beat the Rockies or Twins over the next two weeks it won’t matter anyway.

Podcasts • Yankees

May 25, 2016

Podcast: Andrew Rotondi

The Bronx Pinstripes blogger joined me to talk about the Yankees’ run, Hal’s comments and Girardi’s decisions.

The Yankees are the hottest team in baseball. No, really. After a 9-17 start to the season, the Yankees are 12-5 over their last 17 games and are riding a five-game winning streak as they return home for three games before heading back on the road for 10. The season and summer has been saved for the time being.

Andrew Rotondi of Bronx Pinstripes joined me to talk about the Yankees’ recent hot run, Hal Steinbrenner’s public comments, Joe Girardi’s management at the back end of the bullpen, if the Yankees will ever give Rob Refsnyder a chance, the problem with the Yankees having two designated hitters and how Michael Pineda has become A.J. Burnett.

Blogs • Yankees

May 20, 2016

Joe Girardi’s Urgency Has Me Happy

For the first time as Yankees manager, Joe Girardi is showing urgency early in the season when it comes to going for wins.

If I’m not the biggest Joe Girardi critic, I’m definitely in the conversation for the title. But in a season in which the Yankees are currently 18-22, even I have no problem with how he has managed so far this season for the most part. And I definitely don’t have have a problem with how he managed the bullpen the last two nights.

The decision to take Nathan Eovaldi out after 85 pitches with a 3-1 lead in the seventh inning against the Diamondbacks wasn’t the right decision, it was the only one. The decision to take Ivan Nova out after 62 pitches with 2-1 lead in the seventh inning wasn’t the right decision, it was the only one.

I don’t care that Eovaldi had allowed just one hit or that Nova had retired seven in a row. I wouldn’t have cared if they both were throwing a n0-hitter in their respective start. They are still Nathan Eovaldi and Ivan Nova and a few good innings doesn’t change that.

It’s not just Eovaldi and Nova either even though I have as little trust in them as I did for A.J. Burnett and Phil Hughes. This line of thinking goes for the entire Yankees rotation. Even though Girardi would have left Masahiro Tanaka 2.0 (post-elbow tear) in in both situations, I would have pulled him. There are only a handful of pitchers in the league that would veto a decision to go to Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman in a close games and none of them are on the Yankees.

Somehow Girardi’s decision is being questioned. Apparently there are people that would rather roll the dice with the inconsistent and untrustworthy Eovaldi and Nova than go the closest thing to a sure-thing for the last nine outs of a game in the history of baseball. Are the Yankees not four games under .500? Are they not 6.5 games back? For one of the few times in Joe Girardi’s Yankees tenure he’s managing with urgency if the regular season and people are upset. Once again, he took out Nathan Eovaldi and Ivan Nova for Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman.

There’s this idea that Girardi is abusing the Big Three. Prior to Wednesday’s game, none of them had pitched in three days. In Wednesday’s game, Betances threw 15 pitches, Miller threw 13 and Chapman threw 13. That means in four days, Betances had thrown 15 pitches, Miller had thrown 13 and Chapman had thrown 13. But because of Girardi’s bullpen rules about not using relievers three days in a row, there are those that are worried about what would happen on Saturday with all three technically unavailable. The answer to that is that it doesn’t matter. You can’t manage one game because you’re worried about what might happen in the next game. The Yankees could blow out or get blown out on Friday and it won’t matter. Or maybe Girardi does need to use one of two or three of them again and breaks his own rule, which he should. The Yankees have to win the games that are there for them to win and so far this season there haven’t been many of them.

And if you’re worried about overusing the Big Three in May, why? What are you saving them for? Meaningless games in the summer because you gave away games early in the season because you were too worried about overuse? Are you saving Chapman’s arm, so you can trade him at the deadline to go be used when needed by a team in contention? Or are you saving his arm to hit free agency, so he can close out games for another team next year?

The one thing I have learned with Girardi over his now eight-plus seasons as Yankees manager is that there are plenty of times to be upset with his decisions. Get upset when he gives players unnecessary days off or when he bats Jacoby Ellsbury and Brett Gardner first and second against a right-handed pitcher even if they both have been cold for a month. Get upset when he plays station-to-station baseball waiting for a home run from Mark Teixeira that never comes or when he asks players to bunt that don’t know how to or have no business doing so. Get upset when he plays his “B” team in the final game of a three-game series if the Yankees have won the first two games of the series or when he bats Chase Headley anywhere but ninth in the order. Get upset about all of these things, but don’t get upset when he takes the ball from a pitcher with a career 1.382 WHIP and from a pitcher with a 5.15 ERA over his last 145 innings in favor of the best bullpen ever created.

The idea that “it’s early” or “it’s not even the All-Star break” always makes me laugh. Opening Day is as important as Game 39 and games in April count just as much as games in July. If you fuck around in April and May, there won’t be anything left to play for in August and September. And for the first time in a long time, Girardi isn’t fucking around in the regular season, and with Betances, Miller and Chapman, he shouldn’t be.

Podcasts • Yankees

May 13, 2016

Podcast: White Sox Dave

The Barstool Sports blogger joined me to talk about the White Sox’ overachieving start and Chris Sale’s dominance.

The Yankees have won two series in a row. I thought it would never happen, but after winning two of three against Boston and three of four against Kansas City, the Yankees have won five of seven, and the only thing standing between them and the 7-3 homestand I thought they needed is the best team in the American League: the White Sox. And not only are the Yankees playing the White Sox, they’re going to see left-handers Chris Sale and Jose Quintana in the first two games of the series.

White Sox Dave of Barstool Sports Chicago joined me to talk about the White Sox’ overachieving start to the season, the dominance of AL Cy Young favorite Chris Sale, how the White Sox offense is succeeding, the second year of David Robertson as the team’s closer and what it’s like to be a White Sox fan living in Chicago during the Cubs’ resurgence.

Blogs • Email Exchanges • Yankees

May 9, 2016

Royals’ Roster Features Familiar Faces for Yankees

The Yankees will see some old faces in Chien-Ming Wang and Ian Kennedy with the Royals coming to the Bronx to continue a tough 10-game homestand.

The Yankees got a much-needed series win against the Red Sox over the weekend for just their third series win of the season. But things on this 10-game homestand don’t get any easier with the next seven games against the defending champions in the Royals and the team with the best record in the American League in the White Sox coming to the Bronx.

With the World Series champion Royals in town for a four-game series, Max Rieper of Royals Review joined me to talk about the Royals’ championship season, having former Yankees on the Royals, once again having a vaunted bullpen like the Yankees, Luke Hochevar’s career and expectations for this season following a championship.

Keefe: I would first like to thank you, the 2015 Royals and all Royals fans from preventing the Mets from winning the World Series. I have always said my biggest fear as a sports fan is a Red Sox-Mets World Series because someone would have to win and luckily I was just over a month old when that did happen in 1986 and wasn’t worried about it. The 2015 Royals will always have a special place in my heart.

After losing the 2014 World Series in Game 7, the Royals returned to the World Series to beat the Mets in five games. And the Royals didn’t just beat them, they absolutely devastated them with late-game comebacks and heart-breaking losses. It was beautiful.

My World Series drought is now six seasons and it’s looking like seven if the Yankees don’t turn it around quickly to even contend for a playoff spot this season. No Royals fan wants to hear about that though after a 30-year championship drought in Kansas City.

What was it like to finally win the World Series again? How did you celebrate?

Rieper: It was interesting, the way the Royals lost the 2014 World Series with the game-tying run just 90 feet away and Madison Bumgarner on the mound in relief on short rest, it might have been devastating for some fan

bases. But I think we were all so thrilled just to be in the post-season, it didn’t sink in how achingly close we came to winning it all until the next spring.

In 2015, the fans and the team were set on winning a championship from day one. And the Royals really had a magical season, the kind where all the breaks go your way. They got off to a hot start and pretty much coasted to the Central division title. Things looked a bit bleak in the ALDS against Houston when they trailed by four runs in Game Four, but with the way this team has battled back before, it wasn’t that big of a surprise when they stormed back. From the on, it seemed like the Royals were a team of destiny, and the Blue Jays and Mets were just speed bumps along the way.

The championship was just a great validation for sticking with the team for all these years. I have been a fan since the late 80s, so I witnessed two decades of absolutely terrible baseball. The championship was like an absolution, like the baseball world was welcoming us back to the club of having a regular baseball team, not a god awful embarrassment you were ashamed of.

Keefe: The Royals now have former Yankees Chien-Ming Wang and Ian Kennedy on their team. Wang, a two-time 19-game winner for the Yankees was the ace of the staff from 2005/2006 (depending who you ask) through 2008. Kennedy, was a top prospect, who had a weird parts of three seasons with the Yankees from 2007-2009 before bouncing around the league.

Now Wang is in the Royals bullpen at age 36 and Kennedy has been the Royals’ best starter this season.

What are your thoughts on the two former Yankees?

Rieper: I have been a fan of Ian Kennedy for a few years now, and the Royals have been linked to him several times, so it was no surprise when they signed him. However, even I was surprised by how much they spent on a guy with pretty underwhelming numbers the last few years in San Diego. Some of that is attributable to his flyball tendencies and Petco Park getting reconfigured so that it was actually a bit of a home run park last year. Moving to Kauffman Stadium should help depress those home run numbers quite a bit. He also played in front of an atrocious defensive outfield last year, so I’m sure he’s already glad to be playing in front of Alex Gordon, Lorenzo Cain, and Jarrod Dyson, perhaps the best defensive outfield in baseball.

Chien-Ming Wang seemed like a joke of a signing when the Royals inked him to a minor league deal last year. After all, he hasn’t been in the big leagues since 2013, was terrible last year in Triple-A, and is 36 years old. But apparently he went to pitching guru Ron Wolforth last year, and was able to increase his velocity into the low- to mid-90s. Dayton Moore has had a pretty good track record finding reclamation projects for the bullpen, and Wang could be another feather in that cap.

Keefe: The Yankees and Royals have had similar pitching problems to begin the season: the starting pitching has been inconsistent and the bullpen has been dominant. The Yankees and Royals easily have the top two bullpens in the game with Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller, and now Aroldis Chapman, who is back on Monday, and Kelvin Herrera and Wade Davis.

It seems like every team that wins the World Series becomes the formula for success and everyone wants to copy them. The Yankees always had a dominant bullpen in their late-90s/early-2000s dynasty and the Royals have boasted one the last two years in their World Series appearances.

I have been spoiled by the Mariano Rivera era ending and going right into this era, so it’s hard for me to know what it’s like for a fan base to be worried about protecting the lead. Are you ever worried with the back end of your bullpen?

Rieper: Royals fans were put in an unfamiliar situation to begin this season when Joakim Soria, who was anointed the eighth-inning guy, struggled mightily, which cost them some games. However, with the depth they have, they were able to reshuffle the order to give Kelvin Herrera the eighth, and go with Soria and Luke Hochevar in the seventh, and since then the pen has looked much better.

To have a great pen gives fans a feeling of invincibility, that if the Royals can just get to the seventh inning with a lead, the game is over. It also helps facilitate late-inning comebacks, which the Royals have been great at the last few years. However, the fan base does tend to get spoiled. Whenever any reliever gives up a run, some fans panic and think something has gone terribly wrong. You also have to wonder how long the invincibility can last. We know relievers can be volatile, and not even Wade Davis can be this obscenely good for this long. Can he?

Keefe: I used to love when the Yankees were playing the Royals and Luke Hochevar was starting because it meant about as close to a sure-thing for a win in baseball as you can have. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2006 draft spent six seasons as a starter for the Royals, pitching to an ERA over 5 and I could never understand why the Royals kept giving him chance after chance after chance.

In 2013, he became a reliever, pitched to a 1.92 ERA and struck out 82 in 70 1/3 innings. He had gone from failed starter to dominant reliever like so many had before him and it only makes you wonder why the Royals didn’t make this move earlier.

What has been like to watch Hochevar turn his career and change the narrative as a failed No. 1 overall pick?

Rieper: The evolution of Luke Hochevar is actually not that dissimilar to the evolution of Wade Davis. Davis was a throw-in to the James Shields trade, and expected to be a mid-rotation starter. He was god awful as a starter in 2013, and at the end of the year, the Royals asked him to work on relieving. He had some success in Tampa Bay as a reliever, but the Royals had no idea they had the nastiest, most dominating reliever in the game waiting in the wings.

Luke Hochevar started so many years mostly out of necessity, since the other options were has-beens like Sidney Ponson and never-weres like Sean O’Sullivan. Once they acquired James Shields and Wade Davis, they felt like they had a full rotation and Hochevar had run out of chances. It soon became apparent that in shorter stints, he could amp up his fastball and rely more on his bending curveball. Like many dominant relievers — including Andrew Miller — Davis and Hochevar had to first struggle as lousy starting pitchers.

Keefe: Last year at this same time, you told me about the 2015 Royals, “It’s still a team that worries me to due to its lack of depth among hitters, and the starting pitching woes, but the hot start has convinced me they could be in the mix all season and give us another exciting run.” Well, looks like you were right.

After the first championship in 30 years and back-to-back World Series appearances, the Royals are once again the defending AL champions. They successfully handled having a target on their back all last season and now have to play the same way again this season.

What are your expectations for this season coming off a World Series win?

Rieper: My expectation was that the Royals would be in the mix again, especially with no American League team seemingly pulling away from the rest during the offseason. The AL seems to be filled with mediocrity this year, especially with several teams I expected to contend — the Yankees, Astros, and Blue Jays — all off to slow starts. The Royals have been in a bad slump lately, but still find themselves around .500, with plenty of time to get back to their winning ways.

There are some red flags however. The areas where they were so dominant last year — the bullpen and defense — are still good, but not as dominating as they once were. The starting pitching has looked lousy other than Ian Kennedy. Their strikeout rate, while still low in the league, is much higher than it was last year. Lorenzo Cain was off to a terrible start until recently. Alex Gordon has a ridiculously high strikeout rate. Kendrys Morales has looked lost at the plate. Alcides Escobar is doing his best to prove he is not a leadoff hitter. Omar Infante looks just about cooked. They just don’t seem to be doing the little things they did last year to win games at a terrific clip. It is too early to panic, but it would not surprise anyone to see the Royals have some post-championship hangover in 2016.