Sometimes young pitchers make the game harder than it is
The second guesses are pouring in as to why we lost last night’s game, with many fans and pundits blaming the manager for every decision that didn’t work out. Let’s break them down one by one.
Why let Swisher bat in the 9th inning?-Ouch. Let’s dispose of this one immediately. Who did you want up instead of Nick Swisher? Francisco Cervelli or Jerry Hairston Jr? I don’t care if Nick Swisher is in the worst slump of his career, he’s still better than either of those two options. Think, people.
Why did AJ start the 7th inning?-Let’s address the manager’s decision to stick with Burnett. Here’s what he said after the game:
“We talked about it, but he was throwing the ball so well. He had put up five shutout innings and he had only thrown 80 pitches,” the Yankee skipper said.
AJ Burnett had retired 11 of the previous 13 batters he’d faced, so there was nothing that would lead you to believe he shouldn’t have come out for the 7th. Nothing. At 80 pitches, managers are typically more interested in how someone is throwing the ball at that point of the game, and all indications were his stuff was still good. If you thought at the time Girardi should have taken him out (as Joe Buck did) then please explain to me why. Personally, I would have done the exact same thing.
And who would he have pulled him for? That’s right, either Phil Hughes or Joba Chamberlain. Both of whom looked awful again last night. Those are your primary setup men, they have that designation because they are far more talented than any of your other options and have performed brilliantly in that role in the past. You won’t throw out a year of producing off of one recent bad outing by either of them. They would get the call, and should.
Bring in Dave Robertson in the 7th-I like D-Rob as much as anyone but lets slow down with him. He’s a nice pitcher who has done some good work for us this post season. But Phil Hughes was lights out for us as a reliever all year. Have we forgot so soon that Hughes posted a 1.40 ERA as a reliever with 65 Strikeouts in 51.1 innings? He’s also a better pitcher as a whole, with 3 effective pitches (Fastball/cutter/curve) wheras Robertson has two (Fastball/curve). That means that if one of Hughes’ pitches isn’t working, he has more weapons to go to. Hughes is the safer bet.
Bring in Coke for Kendry Morales-That’s a fair criticism, but very debatable. With 2 outs, hitters missing Hughes’ curveball by a foot, and Hughes being your primary setup man, I can’t go crazy about leaving him in for Morales. Hughes is a far better pitcher than Coke, and Morales is dangerous from both sides of the plate, although he is better batting left handed and has hit most of his HRs facing Righties. But Hughes gave up just 2 HRs all year in 51.1 IP as a reliever, so I’m not overly concerned about that. Phil Coke on the other hand, gave up 10 HR in 60 IP. So if anything, you’d be more worried about Coke giving up the long ball than Hughes. But you might have wanted to stem the tide and shake things up a bit with Hughes outing going badly, but I didn’t have a huge issue with it at the time. Hughes was throwing the ball well, I thought his biggest problem was pitch selection. The only pitch Phil missed badly on was the fastball to Vlad. Again, it’s debatable.
So to recap, the decisions made were all solid. The players simply didn’t perform. A manager can’t do much more than that. If anyone was over thinking things tonight, it was Phil Hughes. Angels hitters couldn’t touch his curve ball all night. If a single one of them made contact on his curve, I must have missed it. Most batters were missing his curve by a foot. During the Vladimir Guerrero at bat, Hughes threw Vlad a curveball and his missed badly. Fox broadcaster and ex-catcher Tim McCarver commented “you have to go right back to that pitch”. So then Hughes shakes off Posada twice, gets the pitch he wanted (which was a fastball) and Vlad smokes it into centerfield. That’s just trying too hard to be too cute.
I’ve heard some speculate that Hughes was pressing since he was pitching in such a big game near his boyhood hometown, growing up in nearby Mission Viejo, which is about 25 miles south down Route 5. I’m not sure I’m buying that. He pitched well in Game 3 in LAA, going an inning and 2/3 giving up only one hit and striking out a batter. I think he just tried a little too hard, which is common with young pitchers like him.
Photo courtesy of the NY Daily News
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I don’t blame Girardi for last night although he looked a indecisive by having Joba warming up 1st in the 7th and then Hughes and then getting Rivera up late in the 8th.
With Swisher stone cold, do you think Gardner finally gets a start?
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Ugh I’m just so tired of my fellow Yankee fans right now. Before the game all they could talk about was the Phillies and how we were walking into the World Series even though there is still one more game to win, and today all they can do is blame Girardi because they of course know better.
If Girardi pulls AJ and Joba chokes he’s overmanaging. If he does what he did he’s stupid according to some people and blew the game. Jesus just clam down, they lost because of numerous factors, it happens. This series was always going 6 (hopefully not 7) games anyways. Stop whining already (not talking to the writers at this site, just venting towards the second guessers I’ve talked too). Bet talk rardio will be a riot today lol.
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I guess I finally miss Nady. We defineitly needed a bat on the bench to pinch hit in that spot for Swisher. I mean we all love Swish and when he’s hot he’s great but he is as streaky of a player as they come. When he came up it reminded me of game 5 of the 1997 ALDS when O’Neil just missed tying the game with 2 outs and was the tying run on 2nd. Bernie stepped to the plate sporting a 1 for 17 (or some similar ugly stat) and I thought they should pinch hit (although they had noone who was nearly as good a hitter). When a player is mired in a deep slump and he is your last out you need someone who can step to the plate (think Ruben Sierra). Granted Cervelli was not the option there but maybe Hairston was. I can’t kill Joe on this one and the game clearly sits with the Pen (although I thought Marte did fine consdiering the spot he was in – a bunt and a ground out) but as I stated now I miss Nady.
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Steve – nice work. StandingO’neil is right too. People are moaning and Monday morning quarterbacking. Just a little weak in my opinion because I think Giardi managed a pretty good game. Hughes isn’t gong to be perfect all the time and I just think Phil choose a bad pitch and executed it poorly. He’s human. Let’s get their asses in game six.
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That’s right, it was a Hughes fault. If he throws that pitch anywhere but right down the middle the Yankees probably win. How hard is it to get that pitch up in that situation?
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On Hughes shaking off Posada to throw Vlad a fastball, I am reminded of the line in “Bull Durham” whan Crash Davis tells Nuke, “Don’t think. It can only hurt the ball club.”
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How can you not blame Girardi after he failed to pull Burnett prior to the 7th? The notion that he his “stuff was still good” seems far fetched since he wasn’t striking anyone out and had already given up 4 earned runs. Sure, Hughes coughed up the game by allowing the inherited runners to score, but why were they on base to begin with? That was Girardi’s fault.
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Moshe Mandel Reply:
October 23rd, 2009 at 12:34 pm
You keep saying this, and keep ignoring perfectly reasonable explanations. You said yourself that managers need to consider “recent context.” Well, AJ’s performance in the previous 5 innings said that leaving him in was the right move.
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Jon Reply:
October 23rd, 2009 at 1:34 pm
It also speaks to Girardi’s failing faith in the pen. Outside Riveria there is no absolute trust. Under the circumstances it was completely reasonable to have A.J. still in the game.
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StandingO'Neill Reply:
October 23rd, 2009 at 2:29 pm
Exactly, and who would have pitched the 7th? Probably Joba, who hasn’t looked all that sharp lately himself. AJ was the man in the spot he just came up short. Now lets put it behind us and move on to Game 6.
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Chris H. Reply:
October 24th, 2009 at 3:24 pm
Couldn’t Robertson have pitched the 7th? Roberton and Marte? I think Robertson could have retired Mathis and Aybar and then you could have brought in Coke or Marte to sit down Figgins. Then either pitcher would have started the 8th against Abreu and then Hughes comes in.
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Chris H. Reply:
October 24th, 2009 at 3:23 pm
“Recent context” also includes the first inning, when Burnett’s mechanics were out of whack and he gave up 4 ER without retiring a single batter. I think it’s better to be overly cautious than it is overly optimistic.
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Hughes simply had zero command of his fastball last night. It happens – very rarely for Phil who usually has pinpoint command, but it happens. There’s not much you can do about it. It’s too bad b/c his curve was filthy.
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Not only is it wrong to blame Hughes for last night, it is just unfair. AJ Burnett should have been given a hand shake and been told to hit the showers after the Yanks miraculously scored 6 runs in the top of the 7th. Instead Girardi goes back to him after he sat in the dugout for 25+ min as the Yanks came all the way back. The Yankees have a late inning formula. Joba in the 7th, Hughes in the 8th, and Mo in the 9th. But no, Girardi leaves in AJ and after a walk (surprise surprise) and a base hit, Girardi then asks a 22 year old Phil Hughes to save the game with guys on second and third and 1 out (after Figgins bunted). That’s dumb freaking baseball. What a dumb decision it was to let an erratic AJ Burnett come out for the 7th after it was a borderline miracle that he got through 6th without giving up a run in innings 2-6.
I know Hughes was missing his spots, but who the hell is calling the pitches? I know its not Hughes and whoever is (Eliand or Jorge) they should have known to go back to the curve instead of throwing Vlad a fastball. Did you see Vlad’s swing on the curve before!? Holy crap, go right back to it.
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Chris H. Reply:
October 24th, 2009 at 3:25 pm
Agreed, Peter.
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