Assorted News

The trading deadline end tomorrow at 4pm. It will be interesting to see if Halladay is traded. Any ideas if he will be, and if so to where?

It appears as if he will be staying put in Toronto, which will be to the delight of many Jays fans. If he does stay its too bad they had to go through all this nonsense for the past few weeks. You have to wonder if Halladay was looking forward to possibly switching teams, especially after some of the heartbreaking losses the team has been encountering as of late.

A few things to note:

• To anyone who has an iPhone or iPod Touch. Does anyone have the MLB AT Bat 2009 application? If not, I have to tell you, it is freaking amazing and probably the best 9.95 I ever spent. A few days ago the Jays game was featured as part of their TV games and I was able to watch the entire Blue Jays vs Mariners game. It was interesting watching it on such a small screen but I cant even tell you how clear the images were. It is amazing how far technology goes nowadays.

• Looks like the Yanks are going to be calling up a guy from AAA tomorrow. It looks to be either Austin Jackson or Shelley Duncan. I have a soft spot in my heart for Shelley so I hope its him, but if it turns out to be AJax, I guess I can accept that also. I will say though, if you don't appreciate Shelley because you feel he strikes out too often, look for similar results with Austin. I personally do not think hes ready for the major leagues, but I guess we may soon find that out.


• My husband, the great Mark Melancon, finally pitched in a game. About damn time Girardi. I still say the guy should be in the minors if he isnt going to get any work but what the hell do I know. I am just a girl who follows the game. The only experience I have is in complaining.


• Are the Jays really going to trade Scott Rolen?


• Aaron Hill and Adam Lind make me happy, really happy. At least someone on the team (along with Rolen) has decided to show up for the Jays


• Another day, another big player we find has used steroids. I guess at this point you can't be surprised. I think its one of those things where I would be disappointed if I found out someone like Girardi , Jeter, or Leiter used steroids back in the day. Hopefully that's not the case.


• Tough play by Coke. He almost had the ball which would have kept the game going. Instead the winning run scores and the Yanks lose. Oh well close call.

New Stadium-The Good the Bad, and the Ugly..

Since we are approaching game 101 of the season, I figured we have seen a good enough sample size to overview the positive and even negative aspects that exist with the new Yankee Stadium. I have been down there 3 times so far this year (2 regular season games and 1 preseason game against the Cubs) and there are things about the stadium that I enjoy and there are also things that I feel could be fixed. If anyone else has any opinions about this, please chime in.

Positives:

• The seats are larger and definitely more comfortable than those at the old stadium. I haven't sat in the upper level, so I am unsure if those are the same as the lower section. Regardless, more leg space is always a good thing and makes for a more enjoyable time.
  
• Larger array of food. I had a hard time putting this in the positive category, mostly because I don't go to a baseball game to eat sushi or gourmet food. All I need is a hot dog and I am good to go. For some though, this may be a positive so I figured I would throw it in this category.
  
• I have to say, I am impressed with the staff at the new Stadium. They are extremely friendly and if you need anything, there is always someone nearby to assist. They definitely have improved in that department.
  
• The screen is center field is amazing. I thought the Jays had a huge screen until I saw the one that the Yankees have. It is definitely incredible and one of a kind. I wonder how much that thing cost the taxpayers?
  
• I have heard the museums inside the stadium are nice. I have yet to see them as the lines are always tremendously long. I hope one day I will be able to.

Negatives:

• First and foremost, has to be the prices of the seats. The Yankees claim a majority of their seats are affordable to families, but I don't see that as being the case. The bleachers (12 dollars) are sold out and the cheapest you can typically find them on stub hub is for $40. I also find it comical that they have two entire sections that are obstructed from seeing half of the field. I walked past one of the sections, and I truly feel bad for people who have to sit in those seats, next to the restaurant. The view is horrendous and those 3 tiny flat screen TVs they put on the wall do not make up for it at all, especially when it is sunny out and there is a glare.


• The moat. I hate the moat with all of my heart. The Yankees wanted to keep the peons out of the rich section, and not only did they keep us out, but they also made the the stadium look like an embarrassment. The old stadium kept the people out, but they didn't have to build this huge concrete divider to keep them out. The blue railings worked fine. It has the feel of a class system, and I hate it. The people in the lower level Legends seats have the option of going inside their private restaurant while the game is going on. And there are also 3 other restaurants inside the stadium. I don't get it people. Are you coming to a game to watch baseball, or to sit and have fine dining? If I want to have a nice dinner, the last thing I am going to do is pay thousands of dollars at a baseball stadium.


• The out of town scoreboard is ridiculous. You can only see 4 games at a time which is something I don't understand. I also think the design of the boards is ridiculous. It is impossible to find the pitch count, speed and pitch thrown because there is so much going on. It was by far a more simpler design at the old stadium.


• I am adding food to this list actually. The prices are absurd and sometimes I wonder if I am at a baseball game or a amusement park. Do we really need all of this nonsense? This is one of the reasons I enjoy going to the Rogers Centre over Yankee Stadium.


• In addition, do we have to have those ridiculous people coming down the aisle every 2 minutes selling food? The new deal with the Yankees (at least for the lower level) is that they have these waitresses coming around with a hand-held device that takes down the food you want. They don't have the vendors guys who throw the drinks at you. Instead, these people come down during the game, sit in front of your face and take orders and carry a crap load of food in your vicinity for forever. For those of us who actually are going to watch the game, it gets old really fast. Just ask my friend. I was ready to trip these people because they obstructed my view on about 100 different occasions and they aren't quick about their job. They take their time.


• Monument Cave. I really don't need to go on and on about this. If you have been to the new stadium, you know what I am talking about. I think they forgot about it in their original designs and compensated by putting it wherever they could fit it. Clearly they didn't spend much time making this decisions because it looks absurd.

This picture was taken in the 4th inning. How sad does that look? I would die to have tickets that were that close to the field.

Farewell to Yankee Stadium

When I went to the game on Saturday, I parked in the parking garage on 153rd street. It is a further walk to the new stadium, but after getting lost in the middle of the Bronx on my last trip alone, I decided it was be smarter for me to just park at the nearest parking garage. That being said, because I parked so far away, I had to walk past the old stadium. I happened to notice a crack between the walls to which I could take a peek into the park. What a sad sight it was indeed (if you click on the picture you can see it larger).

I've been into Springsteen a lot as of late and Glory Days seems to be a fitting song for this and also my life in general.

Yankees vs. Athletics: July 25th, 2009

Back from the game yesterday in which the Yankees ended their 9 game winning streak, losing to the A's by a score of 6-4. It was a perfect day for baseball which left me with another lovely sunburn (not too bad thing time though). I have to say I was quite disappointed to hear that batting practice was cancelled. I know I shouldn't been shocked, as they typically cancel BP when they are playing a day game after a night game, but I was hoping that for some reason it was be on for Saturday. It was worth getting there 3 hours early though as I saw this lady I met in Tampa in March on the scoreboard and was able to catch up with her for a few minutes. I know I have said it before, but you seriously meet the best fans when you go to spring training.

Aside from that, I learned a few things yesterday that I figured would be cool to share.

• First of all, the security at Yankee Stadium is ridiculous. Upon entering the stadium, the lady made me take out my keys so that she could inspect them (don't ask me why. Does anyone have a clue?). After that, she made me take out my cell phone so she could check that. Then after checking my phone she wanted to see my camera. Then finally, she wanted to look throughout my entire bag. It was quite a process and it was something I have never experienced when going to a baseball game.

• Apparently the family section for the visiting team is located in the main box level. I for some reason thought the players got a discount on seats, but according to a certain player, the tickets cost 80 dollars a piece, which is the same price that they are listed on yankees.com. So not only do the players get seated in the second level (not bad seats, but also not great), but they are also charged the same amount that the fans are. Interesting.

• When I was watching BP, one of the clubhouse guys for the Yankees was talking about some of the things that the guys in the BP do to kill time. I guess they have a contest to see who can flick sunflower seeds into a cup that has been placed on the ground. He also was telling a story about how players would flick cups in the air and try to get them to land standing up. Apparently the guy on the team that was able to do this trick the best was the great Paul O'Neill. He raved about O'Neill's talent on mastering this skill.

• I am tired of the moat that the Yankees have around the rich seats. I was hoping to catch Leiter when he was on the field, but I was surrounded by the huge cement wall and couldn't get close enough. Him and Kay were signing balls for the rich fans that were lucky enough to be there. Let me note, that not many of the people sitting in the Legends seats arrive early for batting practice. Perhaps they are all inside enjoying the lovely array of food that is in the restaurant designated solely for these fans (not that I'm envious or anything, lol).

• The two guys behind me were quite annoying. I could overhear some of their conversations pertaining to baseball and I had all I could do to not intervene into it. I couldn't figure out where they were coming up with half of the stuff they were talking about. I wish I could remember more, but all that I can recall is the conversation they had about Phil Hughes and how he hasn't done a very good job in the bullpen and that Girardi uses him too much. He said something about Swisher too that made me just shake my head in disgust.
  

• Gotta love the bleacher creatures. Nick Swisher does this salute to them when they chant his name and it is so funny. Gardner shows his muscle to them and I can't remember what Cabrera does to them. Its pretty comical nonetheless.

• Apparently Michael Kay has a fan club. A group of four people sitting in section 334 had a sign for Kay what was shown on the jumbo-tron. It was funny and I hope Michael was able to see it. If not, here's a picture. The zoom on my camera is amazing I have to say.

• A Mark Melancon sighting, too bad he didn't actually get into the game. The man hasn't pitched in a game since July 10th. While I know he hasn't earned his way to pitch in close games, if you aren't going to use the guy, send him back to to AAA. He still has a lot of learning to do and its silly having him rot on the Yankee bench, practicing his skills on flicking a sunflower seed.
• I tried to write down the names of the songs that all the players come out to, but I could only recognize a few of them. This is what I got:

Nick Swisher: Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy
Mark Teixiera: I Want to Rock

Alex Rodriguez: Jay-Z: Public Service Announcement

Melky Cabrera: I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)

All in all, a good game. That is probably the last game I will be seeing at the stadium as the Yankees have priced me out. It was a fun time all around though, despite them losing to the dreadful A's. Can't win them all, folks!

Game Time!

Heading down to the stadium today to see Yanks vs. A's. This was a last minute decision but the way I look at it is life is short and baseball makes me happy, so why the hell not go? It is an expensive trip for me, thanks to the Yankees raising the tickets and the parking, but oh well, its just paper right?

Yesterday was a good day (sorta) for both the Halliday boys (Holliday, Halladay). Matt went 4/5 (2B, RBI, SB) last night for his new team and poor Halladay was snubbed of another win. What does the guy have to do to get a win? He pitched 9 stellar innings, giving up 1ER and 4 hits and 10K's. Could this have been the last time you see him wearing a Jays uniform? Will be a sad moment for the Jays if this is the case.

Well, time to hit the road. The long journey awaits me. Lets hope I can stay awake for the drive.

It's Offical.......

Matt Holliday has been traded to the Cardinals. In exchange for Holliday (and 1.5million dollars) the A's received three prospects: Brett Wallace (top offense player in their farm system), OF Shane Peterson, and RHP Clayton Mortensen. I am bummed to see him go as I wont be able to watch him play (unless I subject myself to watching a Mets game when they are playing the Cards).

To me, this is a great deal for the Cardinals. Although they did give up three prospects for a guy that is basically a half-year rental, this is an acquisition that could really help them towards the end of the season and into the playoffs. You never know how prospects are going to turn out, so at this point its hard to gauge whether or not they gave away too much for him. What do you guys think?

In regards to Holliday, i still here people talking about how hes not really that "great" of a hitter. They claim the only reason he put up good numbers was because he played at Coors. While his numbers are down this year, you have to take into account several different factors that would have very little to do with talent and more of circumstance. For one, he made the transition from the National League to the American League. He has had to adjust to different pitchers and also a different ballpark. We all know Oakland's Coliseum was made for pitchers, and it is something that would obviously have an effect on the number of HR's he has been able to hit at home.

All in all, just remember that Holliday was just as successful in Colorado when he played away from Coors. Check out a post I wrote a while ago that compared his home and away stats. He is a great player and you will see that based on the large salary he is going to be receiving next year. Whether the Yankees go for him or not remains to be seen, but nothing has ever stopped them before from signing a guy for a crap load of money. I know a lot of people want to stay away from him and his contract, but in the end I would rather see him out there than Johnny Damon. Can you imagine how many HR's he would hit at Yankee Stadium (aka Coors East)?

Perfecto!!!!!!

Mark Buehrle threw a perfect game today against the Rays. Congrats to him as this is an amazing and difficult accomplishment that only 17 others (in the modern era) have been able to attain. We can now say Randy Johnson is no longer the last to throw a no-no. I cant imagine being there today; that's a once in a lifetime experience being able to see a perfect game live.

On a different note, is anyone else shocked to see how bad of a year Kazmir is having?

Get the umps some glasses, or something

Did anyone see that horrific call the home plate umpire made against the Twins last night? Unbelievable. Are these umps getting worse as of late or what? Check this out: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=290720111

Halladay? Holliday? Halliday? Spare me

The more I hear and read about Roy Halladay, the more I find myself getting annoyed at the people who for some reason find it impossible to spell or pronounce the man's name correctly. I know this sounds silly but it is driving my crazy. Matt HOLLiday is the guy who plays on the A's while Roy HALLaday plays for the Jays. The letter A makes an AHHHH sound people. And to the 12 people who spell it Halliday, just don't talk about him if you cant spell it. Its not like he has a name like Mientkiewicz. Oh well, enough with me being anal.

Last night, Halladay had another stellar outing for the Jays, pitching his 4th complete game of the season in which he gave up 6 hits and only 1 earned run. Crazy that it was his first win since June 7th.

It's too bad the Jays have fallen out of it so fast. There are in 4th place in the AL East and are 10 games behind the Boston Red Sox. While they aren't technically out of it yet, the chance of coming back at this point in the year with the number of injuries they still have to their pitching staff is pretty much slim to none. They would probably have a better chance if they were move out of the American League into the National League East.

Anyhow, here are a few pictures of the bat I got at the AAA Scranton game. It is my most prized baseball artifact as I have been trying to get a black Louisville slugger for soo long! Thanks to Shelley, truly a good man!

Are the Jays destroying their youth?

The large number of young starters landing on the DL this year has really made me question the way the Blue Jays are handling the young pitchers within their organization. To me, it seems like the past few years have been filled with a large number of their young players either landing on the DL or having some sort of season-ending surgery. While I know all teams have their share of injuries, the number of injuries on this team has just been entirely too high.

A concept that you really have to think about in regard to the development of young pitchers is something known as the "Verducci Effect." Verducci has stated:

“Why can’t they throw 200 innings? Simply put, they’re not conditioned for it yet. It’s like training for a marathon. You need to build stamina incrementally. The unofficial industry standard is that no young pitcher should throw more than 30 more innings than he did the previous season. It’s a general rule of thumb, and one I’ve been tracking for about a decade. When teams violate the incremental safeguard, it’s amazing how often they pay for it.”

Lets look back at some of the players, going back to 2006:

Jesse Litsch: Drafted by the Jays in 2004 in which he made his first major league appearance in 2007. While in the minor leagues he threw 75.2 innings in 2005, 158.2 in 2006, 187.1 in 2007, and 196 in 2007. The jump in innings from 2005-2006 (73IP) is insane and it is no wonder that he had to have TJ surgery this year.

Gustavo Chacin: Was called up by the Jays in 2004 and had a stellar 2005 season in which he went 13-9 with a 3.72 ERA. In 2002 he threw 119.2 innings which was followed by him only throwing 69.1 innings in 2003. I am going to assume that he suffered some sort of injury that limited his innings during that year. It is important to note though that the following season (2004) he threw 167.1 innings; almost 100 more than the year before. He threw a record 203 innings in 2005 and on June 21st they threw him out there going on only 3 days rest. He spent over 3 months on the DL in 2006 with elbow and forearm problems and in 2007 he was also placed on the DL with left shoulder pain. How can you be surprised at the number of injuries he sustained during the 2006 and 2007 season, when you look at the way they abused him.

Shaun Marcum: Was first called up by the Jays at the end of the 2005 season in which he was placed in the bullpen. There wasn't a huge increase in the number of innings he pitched as he threw 148 innings in 2004, 157 innings in 2005, 137 innings in 2006, 159 innings in 2007, and 151.1 innings in 2008. He ended up having TJ surgery 9 months ago and has missed the entire 2009 season so far. I think they were careful in dealing with Marcum, as he was transitioning out of the bullpen during the 2007 season.

Dustin McGowan: Drafted by the Jays in 2000, making his first appearance in 2004. He threw 111.1 innings and 2006 and jumped to 162.7 in 2007, Had surgery in 2008 for a torn labrum and missed a majority of the 08 season and has yet to return to the team in 09.

I could go on and on. The number of injuries to these young guys is insane. I also think it's crazy to think that they have had 12 players so far this season called up to start a game (many of them being these young rookies). Some other pitchers that have suffered injuries and could be included in this list are:

• Casey Janssen
• Robert Ray
• Scott Richmond- debatable
• Brandon League

While I am uncertain if there is a correlation between the injuries the young guys are getting to the way they are handling the pitchers, it is something that needs to be explored further (if it isn't already). The Jays have developed some really good arms within their system and it is a shame to see so many of them going down and needing surgery at such a young age.

All Fixed!!!!!

Well 100 dollars later, the PC is finally fixed. So freaking amazing, though I am not thrilled with HP and their technical support. Between the 6 hours of their nonsense and being hit on by a 27 year old tech guy from HP named Eric from from the Philippines, I am just glad that the thing is alive and working.

So this week baseball has been pretty monotonous and filled the Roy Halladay trade talks, which are becoming quite tedious and annoying. Not sure what more I have to add to the debate except the Jays better make out with some amazing guys if this deal is done. The rebuilding stage will be hard for Jays fans but hopefully it will head them towards the right directions for the organization. I think keeping the young guys healthy should be a big thing for them to work on for the coming years. They have built up decent prospects but too many of them seem to be heading to the DL (I know injuries happen, but cant you say they have had way too many there the past few years that raise some sort of concern?).

Aside from that, I went to the minor league game on Sunday. Since the AAA Yankees field is a mess, they moved their game against the AAA Mets to Syracuse, which was actually a pretty good game. Sergio Mitre pitched fantastic and looks to have earned his way to being the number 5 starter. Shelley Duncan also gave me his baseball bat which was something I was beyond thrilled about. Anyone who knows me knows the obsession I had in getting a black Louisville slugger, which was also the model that Duncan uses in AAA.

Ivan Nova throwing a side session before the game

Angel Berroa: Back and better than ever

All Star Break

I have come to realize how much I am reliant on the computer. I can't wait til mine gets fixed.

Regardless, I have some great pictures from my trip to Syracuse over the weekend. I will post them once I have a working PC. Mitre looked absolutely great as he pitched 8 scoreless innings while striking out 5 and giving up only 6 hits. He induced 2 DP's on that sinker of his and would have had 3 had it not been for the 2B making a terrible play.

It is important to note though that while he has had 2 tremendous consecutive outings in the minor leagues, both of these wins have come against the Mets AAA team. They have a very weak farm system and it is evident from the names of the players they have developing in AAA. It will be interesting to see how his stats in the minor leagues translate to major league hitters. I would say I personally would be skeptical and hold out any regards about his pitching until you actually see him make a major league start.

I also see that my boy Roy Halladay has been the topic of many discussions as of late. While I would love be able to see him pitch more (which would happen if he was a Yankee), it kills me to see the Jays team lose a guy that they have depended on for so long. He has kept hope within the organization and I think losing him would be a huge blow for many of the Jays fans. To be frank, I am getting tired of the Yankee mantra of 'lose one game and commit suicide' approach. You cant win every single day and the spoiled approach is becoming tiring for me to read about. As it is they got 3 of the best free agents out there during the off season and now they want another one of the best pitchers in the league on the team. I can see why many people are tired of this organization.

Anyhow, I guess its going to be a wait and see approach type of thing. It will be interesting to see if Halladay does get traded before the deadline and also to see the different players the other team is going to have to give up in order to acquire him. It is going to be painful, that's for sure.

What did we do without computers?

No updates as of late because my computer decided to die on me the other day. I am not happy about this as my HP is a little over a year old, and my warranty just conveniently had to have recently expired. Conspiracy I tell you. Its also a conspiracy that the piece I need is out of stock and only one outside company makes it. Who knew a power supply was such a rare thing to have.

Regardless, I am heading to see AAA Yanks play the AAA Mets and I hear Angel Berroa has just joined the staff. What a joy. I actually am intrigued to see Mitre pitch as he is starting for Scranton tomorrow. Should be a nice day and fun all around. My mom cancelled on me so it appears I'm going to the game alone. Oh well,, works for me i guess.

Hopefully the computer will be fixed soon because I'm severely addicted.

Melancon Promoted

If you read my blog, you probably can tell I have a slight fascination with Mark Melancon. I think he has the potential to be great. While I thought he would be called up before September, I didn't think it was going to happen again this soon. He has been promoted as of a few hours ago and it looks as if he will be joining the team in Los Angeles tomorrow. This is a great opportunity for Mark and hopefully he will show some success this time at the major league level. I am not sure if he was ready as of yet for this but the team needs a reliever after using Aceves for 3+ innings so Melancon is the man.

Hopefully the fans will have patience with him. I am excited to see him back in the big leagues.

Enough is Enough

I am tired of hearing the Roy Halladay nonsense. It is VERY unlikely that Blue Jays are going to trade their best pitcher to the Yankees unless it is for a crap load of amazing guys. It is fascinating how some fans think you can trade a team 6 crappy guys and get a dominating guy in return. If the Jays do ship Halladay out, the other team is going to feel a lot of pain from it. They are going to have to give up some really good and talented guys.

I will be disappointed and angry if the do let him go. He is one of the few things the Jays actually have going for them. He is the one guy in the starting rotation that you can actually count on and he is the only guy in their rotation that actually has experience. It is that experience he has which lends its way to helping the younger starters as he is seen as a mentor within this organization. Just look at the kind words Burnett has given about Halladay and the help he provided him with.

I don't blame Roy though. A guy of his caliber should be on a winning team. The Jays need to start changing the way they handle their pitchers because there are far too many injuries towards their young guys. Whether it is just something that is naturally happening or if there is a problem within their organization in abusing thee young arms is something I am not quite sure of. But until Rios and Wells start to get it going or the Jays move out of the AL East, the hope of them making it into the playoffs is quite dim.

If they do make a trade, who would you want them to acquire?

Yanks vs Toronto- July 4th

Well, I sure picked a great day to head down to the Stadium. It was a beautiful, sunny day out and the Yankees won in dramatic fashion. It was the first regular season game I was at in which they won on a walk-off hit and it was almost as good as the All-Star game I was at last year. My seats were amazing too as I was in the front row right down the first base line. Gotta love stub-hub that's for sure. I'm not sure I understand the additional 20 dollars they charge, but it all worked out as the seats were great.

What looked to be a decent pitching match-up between Wang and Halladay turned into somewhat of a slug fest. I was surprised to see Roy struggle so much against the Yankees, and I wonder how much of it had to do with him pitching at the new stadium for the first time. It is hard to use the bandbox of Yankee Stadium as an excuse though because if you execute your pitches correctly, the ball isn't going to fly out of the park. From what I could see from my seat, he didn't have much of his curveball and had entirely too many 3-2 counts.

While Halladay struggled and gave up 5 ER's, he still managed to give the team length by going 7 innings. You could tell he was off his game as he only struck out 3 guys (He is averaging 7K's a game so far this season). Hard to put him down though as he is just coming back off the DL and has pitched so well for the team this year.

As for Wang, I was surprised to see him taken out in the 5th inning by the trainer. He has had such a rough year and hopefully he is able to come back healthy and be a part of the rotation at the end of the season. Does anyone have a clue how long this injury could keep him out for?

All in all, a great game. It wasn't the best pitched game (as 12 pitchers combined were used for both teams), but the offense really came through. I have to say that Adam Lind had turned out to be a great offensive guy. I can remember reading about all the potential he had when they first drafted him, and its great to see him really having a breakout year for the team-- especially since they are at a point where they need asmuch offense as they can get with Rios and Wells playing so poorly.
Burnett greeting his old teammates (Rios and Carlson) before the game. Raul Chavez was such a nice guy. Not only was he so kind to hand me a ball during BP, but this little boy next to me was hit with a foul ball on the arm. I felt terrible for him as he was hysterically crying and his father seemed to have little regard for it. Chavez noticed he was hit and came over to see how the boy was doing. He looked at his arm and then signed the baseball for him. Really nice gesture there by him.Yankees donated 25,000 to the 4ALS. Great move by Major League Baseball on raising money around the leagues for ALS. The amazing bleacher creatures during role call. Look how packed it is there. Jorge was pied while being interviewed. Im loving the reaction from Burnett and everyone around him.

Hello, Roy

Heading to the game tomorrow I am so excited to see Halladay pitch again against Wang. Should be a good game. I will have my itouch with me so I might be able to update from the game. Look for me though, ill be in the front row, in the lower level past the first base side..

Have a good 4th everybody! :)

PS Those fake umpires are back in NY. I want to assume that it will get old by tomorrows game, but who knows. The announcers seem to love them.

Nady and Hughes

Well the news is in- Nady is officially having Tommy John surgery next week and will miss over a year. That is the end of his career as a Yankee and it is too bad that it had to come during a time in which he is a free agent next year. I have to give the guy credit as he really tried to put off the surgery and come back to contribute to the team. I guess I officially saw his last game when I was in Syracuse last week. He was a nice guy too, I hope the best for him on the road back to recovery.
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As for Phil Hughes, what does everyone think of him being in the bullpen, for what looks to be an extended period of time? I think this is the same situation that you have with Joba. If you are against Joba being in the pen, I would think you have to be against Hughes in the pen also. I guess it is the short term solution that they will use for the remainder of the season, or until they get someone in the pen that they can trust?

Lets look at it this way. What if the Yankees either bring up Melancon at some point in the year or acquire a reliever before the trade deadline. If the guy is successful do you keep Hughes in the pen, or do you send him back to the minor leagues to build up his innings? I guess if there is an injury, you have an easier decision to bringing him back to start, but if that isn't the case, then what do you do?
Stats as a Reliever:
11IP
2ER
5 Hits
2 BB
2 Holds
16K's

Also, in his past 4 outings he hasn't given up a hit. While he's doing quite well in the pen, this can not be a long term solution. I am sure CC Sabathia and Burnett could be successful relievers as well.

Ricky Romero

The 2009 Blue Jays have been dealt with an array of injuries to their pitching staff. While Roy Halladay recently returned back to the team after being placed on the 15-day DL, there are still 6 other pitchers that are injured and unable to contribute to the team. With these injuries, it is surprising that the Jays have a record above .500. While the offense has stepped up their game (more specifcally Lind, Hill, Rolen, and Scutaro) it is important to note how much the young starters have filled in for the injured guys and have done relatively one.

While I have focused a portion of these posts on rookie Scott Richmond, I have to take the time to mention young lefty-handed pitcher named Ricky Romero who has been stellar during his first year pitching in the major leagues. Romero is a 24 year old who was drafted by the Jays back in 2005. He suffered injuries (shoulder and elbow) during the 2006-2007 year which shortened the amount of play he had in the minor leagues. While he has struggled within the minor leagues, he was able to make the major league roster out of spring training this year.

His first start in the majors came on April 9th, against the Detroit Tigers. It was an interesting match-up as he went against the Tigers rookie named Rick Porcello in which he was able to record his first win of his career. In his first 3 starts of the season, he went 2-0 with an area of 1.71. It was shortly after this in which he strained his oblique muscle and was placed on the 15-day DL.

After returning off the DL, Romero has gone 4-3 and with the exception of two subpar outing, he has done pretty well. He started today against the Rays, pitching 8 shutout innings; giving up 4 hits and 7K's. His ERA has dropped to 2.85 and he has a record of 6-3 for the season.
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Pitches:
Ricky Romero has a repertoire that consists of 4 pitches: fastball, change, slider, and curveball. The scouting report of Romero when he was drafted by the Jays in 2005 stated that:

"Romero has three solid, major league-ready pitches that he can throw for strikes almost at will, including a fastball that sits at 90-91 mph and touches 93-94. He also has an excellent curveball and a better feel for a changeup this year after he reduced his reliance on his curve. But Romero gets his highest grades for his makeup, temperament and competitive zeal. He is an excellent student of the game who understands the science of pitching, and is a master at controlling the tempo of a game"

While he had developed these 4 pitches, he strayed away from using them all during the four years in which he was in the minor leagues. After struggling in the minors, Brad Arnsberg finally convinced Romero during spring training to have confidence in all four of his pitches, which is something you can see has worked very well for him.