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The New York Yankees lost to the Texas Rangers by the score of 7-2, as the Rangers took the series 2 out of 3. A.J. Burnett received the loss dropping his season record to 10-8, but pitched a great game as he worked 6 innings, and struck out season high 12 batters.
I want to first start off by saying Bob Lorenz of the Yankees post game show is an absolute idiot.He started off the post game by implying that A.J. Burnett had a bad start. Burnett walked two guys in the 4th, and threw one bad pitch. It feels like he was saying Burnett has to throw a shutout every game in order to call it a good start.
If you are looking to pin this game on A.J. Burnett then you have no idea about the game of baseball.
Clueless Joe Girardi cost the Yankees the game by one decision. A.J. Burnett had given up 3 earned runs on 2 hits through 6 innings, and Girardi yanked him for Phil Coke.
Joe Girardi blew the game by using Phil Coke in a big spot. Phil Coke should never come in the 7th inning down 3-2 against a good team. This is a game that came down to a terrible managerial move that completely things up the game. Burnett could have easily started the 7th inning; I don't understand why pitchers are pulled once they reach the 100 pitch mark.
A.J. has a rubber arm that can stick around all day; he doesn't need to be treated like a high school pitcher. When a player has reached this level of baseball winning should always come first.
Burnett threw awesome on the mound all game it is a shame that his start was ruined by Girardi's lack of a brain. Why wouldn't you throw Phil Hughes for two innings there? Girardi really is not a good manager if you really think about it.
There is a reason guys like Brian Bruney will show signs of struggling in big situations. You cannot yank your pitcher whenever he gets into trouble. The thing that makes baseball great is believing in your players to reach back, and come through in big spots.
Look at Phil Hughes, and how he has dominated as a reliever. Girardi has shown signs of having no confidence in him. I've seen Hughes pulled up 4-1 in the bottom of the 8th with two out and one runner on. What makes teams bullpens better is having more than one arm you can rely on.
As good as Mariano Rivera is one man cannot carry an entire bullpen. At the end of the day Rivera is one person, and he can only do so much to carry the team.
Late in the game I'd much rather have Eric Hinske up than Nick Swisher.
You don't have to worry about Jose Molina getting on the same page with his pitchers. Molina is such a good catcher that he makes a pitcher of Burnett's caliber a better pitcher. Molina seems to call a great game always keeping the hitter off balance.
Molina will get calls that the average catcher doesn't get because of the way that he frames pitches. Jose has such a good glove that he doesn't even need to block the ball with his body.
A.J. is the type of pitcher that likes to rely on his curve ball and Jose has no problems calling for off speed pitches with men on base. Burnett will walk a lot of guys because he gets a lot of movement on his pitches.
The 3rd inning was a tough one for A.J. as he walked two straight batters with 2 outs that would be followed by a 3 run home run. You cannot put guys on base and not expect to pay the price. This inning is on Burnett as he needs to throw more strikes.
To think about it Burnett gave up one hit through the first 3 innings, but walking batters will run up the score. He is a great pitcher, but you would think that he would work on his command more. The home run he gave up was on a meatball he laid right over the plate.
The problem when you struggle with control is that you will eventually have to lay that one pitch in there.
Although Burnett had trouble in the top of the 3rd inning he looked a lot more comfortable on the mound today. After the 3 run home run he allowed he seemed to find his groove back. Ian Kinsler had his fastball timed as he was the one who blasted the homer, but A.J. would get him back the next time.
What makes Molina so smart behind the plate was his pitch calling had Kinsler looking ridiculous, after he had Burnett's timing down the previous at bat. Jose called for nothing but breaking balls causing Kinsler to look jelly legged the entire at bat.
The fact Burnett gave up two hits through the first 6 innings doesn't stand out like it normally would. A.J. made one huge mistake all game other than that, he was dominating Texas Rangers hitters all day.
The problem with past starts for A.J. was that he was having problems keeping his emotions down out there. You could see it last game the body language of A.J. Burnett looked like he was disgusted by the game calling of starting catcher Jorge Posada.
Then again you really cannot blame him when your catcher is a constant distraction.
At least Jorge is trying to work with Burnett I guess, but I know that has to be frustrating for any pitcher.
What makes Posada so valuable is the consistent offensive numbers that he has put up as a Yankee. When you think about it what a lineup this could be if curtain players had to play new positions.
What kills players like Molina will always be the saying by most fans where they want to see home runs. I personally think in the playoffs pitching and defense will be what wins it for you. The way the Yankee bats have been this year, do you really think that will hold up against some of the best pitchers in the league?
The bad news is Posada's x-ray was negative so chances are more than likely you will have to watch his terrible excuse for catching again tomorrow. Get use to watching a million balls go the backstop again, look for your starting pitcher to go back to looking frustrated. Don't expect any pitches to be framed, and don't expect any snap throws to first.
Just look up and hope that Jorge continues hitting because that is his only chance of doing anything good for the team.
The Yankees lost their starting right fielder Xavier Nady for the season, and still had Nick Swisher who has 21 home runs so far this year. Their outfield has come through this year to the best of their abilities.
They probably have some of the worst defensive outfielders in baseball, but the bats have made up for the gloves. However it is a matter of time before those factors can hurt you down the stretch of a season.
Once Brett Gardner got hurt you saw how weak the corner outfield spots are. When
It should be big for the Yankees the moment
You have to pray that the Yankees can find someone who can catch a fly ball, or throw someone out. The Yankee organization doesn't seem to be concerned that their best outfielder is Melky Cabrera right now.
Girardi tries to pretend he is this tough guy, but he plays favorites. Robinson Cano is not a #7 hitter the guy is on the verge of becoming great start building up his confidence.
As much as I like Nick Swisher the man has no business ever batting in any of the first 6 lineup slots. Swisher is a terrible hitter who occasionally makes up for it with a home run. I cannot believe the Yankees wasted 5 million on a player who cannot hit or field.
I am sick of hearing oh he gets on base, but when he gets up in big spots he never gets a hit. Swisher kills so many rallies that lead you to believe is Girardi saying Swisher is a better hitter than Robinson Cano? After a season of watching Swisher he has a tired act. Nick goes around being Mr. Go lucky all the time, but in reality he should be a bench player.
Everyone wondered why Swisher couldn't lay down a bunt. Nothing shocked me about Swishers lack of baseball skills, the guy has been killing them all year. Any play that Nick does make in right he makes it look incredibly hard.
Yankees will look on to play the Chicago White Sox tomorrow at 7:05 pm eastern time at Yankee Stadium. The White Sox will throw left hander Mark Buehrle who is 11-7 with a 3.92 ERA this season. The New York Yankees will counter with left handed hurler CC Sabathia who has gone 15-7 with a 3.59 ERA his first season in New York.
Look for a pitchers duel tomorrow as both teams will throw two of the toughest left handers in the game today. Look for the game to come down to the bullpen unless the Yankee bats can get it going.
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