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Today's game wasn't on TV, so I pursued the boxscore and something caught my eye- Jorge Vazquez played third today. Obviously, this is an attempt by the Yankees to see if he could cover both corners in the infield. If he could, you would think he has a real chance to stick with the club when they go north.

It's not a crazy idea, but the odds would seem to be against it. Vazquez made two errors in 20 chances at third last year and hasn't really played there regularly since 2003. Today the only play that he had in his three innings there was on an infield single. (Note, impossible to tell if it really was an infield single or if this was a case of the hometown scorer giving his player a hit) It's definitely worth keeping an eye on Vazquez and his positioning as spring goes on.

A few other notes from the game-

Manny Banuelos pitched a scoreless inning with 2 K's. The three hitters he faced (Martinez, Inge and Perralta) are all established major leaguers.

Mark Prior also pitched a scoreless frame striking out one while allowing two fly balls.

Russell Martin drew two walks.

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 04:40 PM | Permalink

In what has turned out to be a bit of a circus, the Bobby Jenks vs. Ozzie Guillen fued is hopefully over. At least publicly.

In recent weeks and months, Jenks has found the need to talk about the Chicago White Sox manager and the White Sox organization as a whole. Guillen, never one to stop talking, has returned serve on each occassion.

This has to be a major distraction for Terry Francona. It seems he took Jenks aside and told him to knock it off and focus on pitching for the Red Sox in 2011. The fact Francona had to step in tells you a bit about how Bobby Jenks operates. He clearly is acting in an immature fashion and apparently doesn't realize his jabbing distracts his manager, teammates and organization as a whole.

Jenks doesn't arrive here is with a stellar reputation as far as off-field behavior and this affair is providing a glimpse into how he operates. Hopefully Francona has managed to turn off the spigit on this particular issue and hopefully Jenks will learn from this and consider the ramifications of his words before he speaks them. I'm not holding my breath.

Posted by Andy (Red Sox) at 10:43 AM | Permalink

Didn't catch the whole game, but I saw a couple of things in today's game.

Ivan Nova looked very good, striking out two and keeping the ball on the ground (4 groundouts 0 flyouts) but the story of the day had to be Dellin Betances. I have to keep reminding myself that this was one inning against the Phillies, but wow. He hit 97 on at least two pitches and showed a really nice curveball. He's 6'8", so he looks imposing too. We will have to see what happens and we know he is ticketed for AA, but if he keeps this up, he can definitely help this club in 2011.

I said it yesterday and I will say it again, Jorge Vazquez can help this team now. He hit another homer today, not as impressive a shot as yesterday, but a home run nonetheless. If only he could play a position other than first.

One last note. Jesus Montero looked pretty good behind the plate in the few innings I saw. He also had a great first at bat, fouling off pitch after pitch before being retired on a sharp liner to third.

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 04:35 PM | Permalink

Wasn't it great to see baseball again? Are you as excited as I am to see boxscores again? Well, I watched most of the game today, though I will admit that I flipped to the St. John's-Nova game a bunch too, and here are my observations.

Bartolo Colon looked enormous. While he wasn't awful, that stuff would be killed in the AL East. Granted, it's only start 1, but he needs to do a lot more to make me feel confdent.

Joba Chamberlain looked enormous. However, he pitched incredibly well. I saw 94 on the gun and a filthy slider.

David Phelps did not pitch very well, but Hector Noesi did. I hope, hope, hope both of them get a legitimate shot at the rotation.

Eduardo Nunez made a really nice play at short. Looked pretty good at the plate too.

Jorge Vazquez unleashed a bomb of a homer. I'm not sure how he would fit on this team, but he could be a very nice bat to have on call in AAA.

Francisco Cervelli looked a lot slimmer and didn't have his "famous" batting helmet.

Anyway, onto game 2!

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 12:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Lost in the hysteria over the Yankees rotation or lack there of, is the fact that they are still a pretty good team. Baseball Prospectus confirmed that today with the initial release of their playoff odds.

The odds show the Red Sox as favorites for the AL East with an average of 93.5 wins and an 82% of qualifying for the playoffs. Right on their heels are the Yankees at 91.4 and 70.8%. The only team in baseball with a better chance of making the playoffs are the Phillies at 71%.

Now, we can't see the inner workings of their projections and they are based on assumptions about playing time, but there is a useful example that the folks at BP give us. Yesterday the Cardinals were projected to win the NL Central 51.1% of the time. Today, with the loss of Adam Wainwright, those odds have dropped to 37.9%.

Injuries will happen, rookies will rise, veterans will fail. The projections we see today will certainly change by April and then be refined as the season moves along. But, despite all the obvious warts, the Yankees look pretty good on paper.

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 07:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)

A lot will change in the next month, but Joe Girardi's announcement of starting pitchers for the first six games says a lot. Bartolo Colon gets the opener, followed by Nova, CC, AJ, Hughes and Garcia.

Starting Sabathia on Monday puts him on course to open the season on the 31st and AJ and Hughes are right in line after him for games #2 and #3. We can safely assume that Garcia is the early favorite for the #4 spot since he would be in line for that start. Furthermore, we can probably assume that for now the 5th spot in the rotation is a battle between Colon and Nova.

I think the Yankees are making a HUGE mistake if they don't let guys like Phelps and Noesi get in the competition as well. I imagine they will get a start or two and Sergio Mitre will as well. But for now it's a three-horse race. I can't wait to see some boxscores!

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 12:03 AM | Permalink

Baseball Prospectus posted its evaluation of the Yankees' farm system today and it was a good one. They listed four players (Montero, Sanchez, Banuelos and Betances) as "five-star" prospects. For the sake of comparison that equals the total number of five-star prospects the Yankees had from 2008-2010 using their system. (Montero last year, Montero and Jackson in 2009 and Joba in 2008). There are the standard concerns about Montero's catching ability and Sanchez's too, but both are considered high impact bats. Banuelos and Betances project as front-line starters though they caution that Betances could be a bust.

One interesting feature is the ranking of the top-10 players in the organization born after 4/1/85. On that list Montero is still first, but Hughes is second and Joba sixth. David Robertson is mentioned as someone who just missed the cut.

Most encouraging is the summary they provide of the system: The Yankees system had plenty of talent that can help soon, plenty of talent to dream on at the lower levels, and plenty of pitching that will serve them well in the trade market. This is easily one of the better farm systems in the game.

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 11:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

No shocker, but the Daily News is reporting that Betances and Banuelos will open the season in Trenton. Between the two of them they have combined for only 29 innings at AA so sending them back there is completely the correct move.

What the story does clarify is the competition for the back of the rotation. Specifically it names Nova, Brackman, Warren, Phelps and Noesi as in contention along with Mitre, Garcia and Colon. I have a hard time believing Warren and Brackman are ready to make the jump from AA to the majors without some more seasoning at AAA and while Noesi has 20 innings at AAA, he hasn't made it to camp yet because of visa issues.

That leaves Nova and Phelps as the two candidates from the minors with the best chance. Nova "should" be a lock for the rotation considering the ability he showed last year, but he also needs to have a good camp. Unfortunately, I think the Yankees will be too tempted to round out the rotation with a "name" rather than give Phelps much of a chance, but he could certainly open some eyes in camp. I bet Garcia and Nova get the call. What I hope beyond hope is that the Yankees don't bring Kevin Millwood into camp, two recycled veterans are enough.

And I should probably mention that I was the guy who said there was no way Joba doesn't win the 5th spot last February!

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 01:12 PM | Permalink

Thankfully, we only have ten more days until the Yankees play some games. Now we can only wish that stories about opting out and Joba's weight will go away. For now, please indulge me a minute or two on each of them and then lets talk about Pujols.

In regards to Sabathia opting out, my question is why wouldn't he? CC has been wonderful since he came to New York, pitching as well as anyone could have expected him to. He also just saw the Yankees offer a guy two years older than him a seven-year/$150 million deal. While the four remaining years on his deal are nothing to sneeze at, I am sure Sabathia realizes he can get more. Even if the Yankees weren't interested in bidding, some team would probably give him at least another year and $20 million more than he is currently set to earn. (4 years/$24 million per). And remember, the Yankees were the team that gave A-Rod a ten-year deal at the age of 32. His agents have to be telling him the Yankees will not only bid, but they will bid aggressively for him if he opts out.

When he does, you have to hope as a Yankees' fan that they don't need him desperately enough to offer a "Cliff Lee" size deal. Unfortunately, I don't think that will be the case, but the Yankees would be smart to push their young pitchers this season to get an idea if they can avoid a $150 million commitment next offseason.

As for Joba, I have two things to say. First, most sportswriters are not exactly physical fitness professionals in their own right. Second, think about CC Sabathia for a minute and realize his listed weight was 290 pounds last year- 60 more than Joba! Now Sabathia is five inches taller, but before we condemn Joba to certain failure could we at least see him pitch against some real hitters? I'm not advocating obesity for anyone, but Babe Ruth certainly proved that a slim waist is not a requirement for a successful baseball career. To use a very New York example, let's not make him Eddy Curry- yet.

Finally, I wanted to touch on the Pujols situation. I don't understand why Albert, by all accounts a great guy, dictated things this way, but so be it. I think the Cardinals are backed into a corner now and there are a lot of ugly ways this can end. One way it shouldn't end from a New York standpoint is in a trade of Teixeira for Pujols. Yes, Pujols is a better player, but Teixeria has "only" six more years on his deal. Albert is going to require at least eight and probably ten. As great as he is, I wouldn't want to make that commitment and I can't blame St. Louis for saying no either. Now, if the Cards called up and said what about an A-Rod for Pujols swap....well that's a different topic entirely.

Did I mention how badly I wanted to see some boxscores?

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 06:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Little darling, it's been a long cold lonely winter
Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here

The great poet, George Harrison, wrote those lines with some help from Eric Clapton, to celebrate the return of baseball from its annual hibernation. Ok, maybe that wasn't the inspiration, but doesn't it seem fitting? From Don Henley's "The Boys of Summer" to John Fogerty's "Centerfield" the renewal of the baseball season has always been a reason to celebrate.

And so the winter of our discontent ends. Tomorrow we will have stories about pitchers and catchers and within two weeks boxscores will resurface in our morning paper. The glorious summer cannot be far behind.

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 07:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

Well, I'm not sure they are the best all-time, but apparently they are the best Red Sox, or Yankees, team in the last 90 years. Ted Williams must be spinning in his grave...er...cylinder...er...cylinders.

In a stunning, Cinderella-story, the 1946 Red Sox, who in real life lost to the St Louis Cardinals, have won the inaugural YRRS.

Game 5 - Box Score

Whilst not a defensive effort, game 5 proved to be a thrilling 9-8 Red Sox victory. The 1961 Yankees Mickey Mantle broke out of his slump and went 3-3 with 2 BB, 2 R, 1 HR and 4 RBI. But the Red Sox ability to contain Roger Maris, 1-4, and Yogi Berra, 0-5, afforded enough defense to get Red Sox starter Mickey Harris to the bullpen. From there, the Red Sox pen pitcheda...mediocre game, allowing 2 ER in 4 IP. Thankfully, the Yankees Art Ditmar imploded allowing a 3-run HR to Wally Moses. Moses's HR was the penultimate at-bat, giving the 1946 Red Sox the "all-time best" team status.

1946 Red Sox Final Stats:

Offense

Pitching

1961 Yankees Final Stats:

Offense

Pitching

Important Note: You need to select "Playoff" in the "Select Split" drop down menu.

Big thanks to blmeanie. He conceived of, managed and produced the entire YRRS. Please visit his blog at http://blmeanieblog.blogspot.com/.

bl has been a fantastic contributor to www.yankeesredsox.com and both Peter and myself appreciate his efforts in this simulation and his contribution to our site. Thanks bl.

We hope you enjoyed this and also hope you are all ready for Spring Training which is just around the corner. Isn't baseball great?

Posted by Andy (Red Sox) at 11:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Well, the Yankees proved they aren't done by knocking around Red Sox ace Tex Hughson 7 ER in 5.1 IP. Yankees starter Bill Stafford wasn't much better allowing 5 ER in 5.2 IP, but he was good enough to keep the Yankees in a slug-fest.

Game 4 - Box Score

Aside from a shaky relief appearance by Danny McDevett, the Yankees bullpen shut down the Red Sox over the last 2.2 Innings.

Game 5 at Yankees Stadium tonight.

Game Recap:

In a game the Yankees had to have they looked to Bill Stafford to show the way. In the top of the first he delivered a nice 1-2-3 inning. In the bottom of the first the Yankees provided a rare lead in this series. A leadoff off double by Bobby Richardson and a sac fly put a runner on third with one out. Roger Maris struck out swinging before Mickey Mantle singled home the game's first run. Stafford set them down in order again in the second and the Yankees came up empty as well in the bottom frame. In the top of the third, the RedSox tied the game, a one out single by Hal Wagner, a two out walk to Wally Moses and a line drive single to right by Johnny Pesky brought in the run. In the top of the fourth the Sox went ahead when Bobby Doerr singled in Ted Williams who had reached on an error and been singled to third by Rudy York. It would stay 2-1 until the bottom of the 5th when Elston Howard smacked a leadoff double and went to third on a infield groundout. Johnny Blanchard singled him home to even the score. In the top of the sixth, the floodgates opened up and the Sox scored four times. Dom Dimaggio singled and stole second. Ted Williams was walked intentionally after the count had gone to 2-0. Rudy York doubled to center scoring Dimaggio. Doerr was walked to load the bases, still nobody out. Higgins grounded out on a slow roller to first advancing the runners and scoring Williams. After a popout by Wagner for the second out Leon Culberson singled York home for the fourth run of the inning, the Sox now led 6-2.

With their backs up against the wall the Yankees found something, finally a big inning striking back with six in the bottom of the sixth. After Maris led off with a flyout, Mantle singled, Yogi Berra singled and Bud Skowron singled Mantle in and Berra to third. Elston Howard grounded a full count pitch to left for another single bringing Berra in. After a wild pitch by Hughson put the runners on second and third, Clete Boyer laced a double to the leftfield corner scoring both. Blanchard was walked intentionally and Mace Brown was called in from the pen. Bobby Richardson tried to bunt and the lead runner was thrown out at third. Tony Kubek doubled to the gap in left scoring both Blanchard and Richardson. Yankees now had the lead back 8-6 through six.

Danny McDevitt came on in relief and got Pesky to fly out to start the seventh. Dimaggio singled to left bringing up the ever dangerous Ted Williams. Williams hit a 1-0 breaking ball deep to right for a two run homer to tie the game at eight. Sensing the urgency of the game, McDevitt's night was over as Rollie Sheldon was brought in to get out of the inning without further damage. In the bottom of the seventh, Bill Skowron started things with a single over second. After Howard and Boyer made outs pinch runner Lee Thomas was at second for Blanchard. Blanchard drove a 3-1 pitch to left that brought in Thomas for a 9-8 lead. The score held and the Yankees had stayed alive and showed some life in the batters box with sixteen total hits.

Game 5 : Mickey Harris (3-0) vs. Bud Daley (1-1)

Posted by Andy (Red Sox) at 10:10 AM | Permalink

In a brief depature from the YRSS, some information on real life Red Sox news.

In what is one of the more interesting signings I have heard of in recent memory, the Red Sox have signed New Zealand softball player Te Wera Bishop to a deal. Bishop, 17, will report to extended spring training next month.

Who knows if he'll be able to make the transition or not. Lest you think this is a publicity stunt, Bishop did try out in front of other MLB teams last month. It still might be a publicity stunt I suppose, but I doubt it given the serious nature of Theo Epstein and the baseball operations team.

Also, the Red Sox signed Dennys Reyes to a minor league deal that would be worth $900k if he makes the team. Reyes, a lefty, struggled against LHB last season but has a good track record overall against lefties. I view this as a depth signing should Hideki Okajima struggle out of the gate.

Lastly, the Red Sox truck is officially on route to Fort Myers (or at least it will be today). Pitchers and catchers report this Sunday. Spring Training is just around the corner.

Posted by Andy (Red Sox) at 01:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Another sterling performance by a Red Sox starter brought the 1946 Red Sox one win away from a World Championship.

Game 3 - Box Score

Joe Dobson pitched a 4 hit, 1 bb, 1 er, complete game for the win. Again, Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle were held in check. The Red Sox had major offensive contributions from Johnny Pesky, Dom DiMaggio and Ted Williams (combined 8-14, 5 runs and 3 RBI).

An interesting pinch hitting decision yielded much success as the Red Sox # 5 hitter, Rudy York, was pinch hit for by Catfish Metkovich who ended up 2-2 with 2 runs and 4 RBI. You normally don't pinch hit for your # 5 hitter in the top of the 7th with a lead. Regardless, it worked.

Game 4 tonight with the Red Sox staff ace Tex Hughson against Bill Stafford of the 1961 Yankees.

Game Recap:

With his team down two games to none, Ralph Terry found himself in a must win situation. In the top of the first a leadoff walk to Wally Moses and a single by Johnny Pesky set the table. Dom Dimaggio was next and hit the first pitch to the warning track in center allowing Moses to tag and go to third. Ted Williams lofted a single to right scoring Moses for the early 1-0 lead. In the bottom frame, the 1961 Yankees fought back to tie the game. Bobby Richardson singled to start it and went to second on a slow roller to first. Big hitting Roger Maris rolled over the top of one and Bobby Doerr made the play to first for the second out with Richardson going to third. With Richardson leading off third, Joe Dobson balked and Richardson scored the run to tie the game. The score stayed 1-1 until the fifth when Pesky hit a one out single, Dimaggio singled him to third and Ted Williams brought both in with a double into the corner in right. In the top of the sixth the Sox added one more with Hal Wagner singling, moving to second on a walk to Culberson and scoring on a single up the middle by Moses providing the RedSox with a 4-1 lead. With Ralph Terry again getting the ball in the top of the 7th, the RedSox put the game out of reach. Leadoff batter Johnny Pesky singled and went to third on a double to right by Dom Dimaggio. Ted Williams was walked intentionally to load the bases for Rudy York. York was called back in favor of pinch hitter Catfish Metkovich. With an 0-2 count, Metkovich doubled to deep center clearing the bases and taking third on the throw home. That was the end of the night for Terry, perhaps a few batters too long. Hal Wagner hit a sac fly to bring Metkovich in for the fourth run of the inning and eigth overall for the RedSox. In the top of the ninth, Metkovich added a solo homerun to right for the final score of 9-1. Joe Dobson pitched the complete game allowing four hits and lowered his YRRS ERA to 2.73 to go with his 2-0 record.

Posted by Andy (Red Sox) at 09:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Got to give it to those old-timey pitchers. Boo Ferriss pitched a 125 pitch, 4 hit, 1 BB shutout to earn a 10-0 win in game two of the YRRS World Series giving the 1946 Red Sox a 2-0 lead over the 1961 Yankees.

Game 2 - Box Score

For those interested, here some stat links:

1946 Red Sox YRRS Stats (for all playoff games) - Important Note: You need to select "Playoff" in the "Select Split" drop down menu.

Offense

Pitching

Fielding

1961 Yankees YRRS Stats (for all playoff games) - Important Note: You need to select "Playoff" in the "Select Split" drop down menu.

Offense

Pitching

Fielding

Wally Moses drove in 4 with only 1 hit that wasn't a home run. He had a bases clearing triple and a sac fly. Rudy York drove in 1 with a solo shot and scored 3 runs and Lee Culberson went 3-3 driving in 1 and scoring 2. Hal Wagner also chipped in 2 rbi.

All in all a very good game for the 1946 Red Sox. They again kept Roger Maris under wraps and also contained Mickey Mantle who is only hitting .253 in this simulation. The '61 Yankees got a disappointing and very uncharacteristic outing from Whitey Ford who allowed 6 ER in 6.2 IP. His simulation ERA is 9.11. Yikes.

Game 3 will feature Burrhead Dobson for the Red Sox vs. Ralph Terry for the Yankees at Yankee Stadium.

Game Recap:

Game 2 in the books
YRRS Rivalry Championship Series Game 2:

Whitey Ford (2-3) vs. Boo Ferriss (2-1)

Both pitchers kept the opposition scoreless through four innings without any real scoring chances. The Yankees through four innings had 3 singles and the RedSox had only 1 hit, also a single. After the Yankees were put out 1-2-3 in the top of the 5th the Sox broke the ice in the bottom half with a leadoff solo homerun by Rudy York, his 2nd of the YRRS.

In the bottom of the sixth, the Sox added another run when Leon Culberson singled stole second, went to third on a wild pitch and scored on a sac fly by Wally Moses. With the score at 2-0 through six, both teams felt the game was theirs for the taking. Unfortunately for the visiting Yankees, the bottom of the seventh proved to be the back breaker as the RedSox scored four times. With two outs and runners on the corners Hal Wagner bounced a single into left scoring York and sending Bobby Doerr to second. Leon Culberson followed with another single scoring Doerr. Wally Moses smashed a triple that scored both Wagner and Culberson, the lead was at 6-0 through seven.

With the game out of hand, the Sox added insult to injury in the bottom of the eigth with four more runs with reliever Tex Clevenger issueing 4 walks and a wild pitch in the inning. Boo Ferriss went the distance allowing four hits and striking out three in the shutout.

The Red Sox head to New York leading the series 2-0 after a 10-0 shellacking.

Next up: Joe Dobson (1-0) vs. Ralph Terry (1-3)

Ferriss Stops 3) New York 61
Dave Ferriss of the 6) Boston 46 Red Sox 46 just toyed with the 3) New York 61 Yankees 61 today, blanking them 10-0. He was almost untouchable, baffling them on a 4-hit shutout with 3 strikeouts and 1 walk.

"I'm sweating now because it's hot in here," Ferriss said in the clubhouse after the game. "But it didn't even feel like I was sweating out there."

One of his teammates said it was easy to play behind him today. "It was like he's just playing with the hitters and doing whatever he wanted to do."

Posted by Andy (Red Sox) at 10:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

The Yankees continue to stockpile All-Stars from the early 00's. Yesterday they added Ronnie Belliard and Eric Chavez. Now they just need to create a time machine and head back to 2002 with a team of Chavez, Belliard, Colon, Prior and Garcia!

In all seriousness, these moves fall into the "why not" category. We all know what Ramiro Pena can do (field) and cannot do (hit). The Yankees gave him 167 plate appearances last year and he amassed a line of .227/.258/.247. They need to find a way to upgrade that and while I seriously doubt Belliard or Chavez is the answer, at least the Yankees are still looking for one.

It also reinforces my belief that Eduardo Nunez is going to spend the first part of the year in AAA. I don't think the Yankees know exactly what Nunez is yet. Is he a major-league caliber shortstop or another Ramiro Pena with a better bat? More time at AAA will help them figure that out.

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 11:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

In 2004 in a fit of pique "someone" and by that I mean George Steinbrenner, decided to give #46 to Donovan Osborne. It was classic George, Pettitte had signed elsewhere and there was no point in acting sentimentally over his number. The number bounced to Darrell May, Alan Embree, Scott Erickson and Aaron Guiel before returning to Pettitte in 2007.

Clearly, that mistake won't be repeated again. The question is, what will the Yankees do with Pettitte's number? There will be drumbeats to retire it with people pointing out that Pettitte has the 2nd-most wins in franchise history and won five championships, better numbers than Ron Guidry and his retired #49 put up.

I tackled this issue before in the wake of the LaTroy Hawkins number controversy. In that piece I talked about "great, but not great enough" Yankees and I think Pettitte falls into that category. Yes, he won a lot of ballgames for him, but 203-122 with a 3.98 ERA doesn't put him in the retired number category in my mind. Throw in the HGH, which I will get to later, and I think Pettitte's 46 stays in circulation.

But, I think they should honor him with another idea from that article, they should take #46 out of circulation for the next 13 seasons. I wrote then:

How should the Yankees handle the "great, but not great enough" players' numbers? I would propose pulling the number out of circulation for a time period equal to the time the player was a Yankee. So, Paul O'Neill played nine years in New York and retired after the 2001 season. Therefore, his number should remain out of circulation until after the 2010 season.

By that system, Pettitte's number would show up again in 2024 which gives us the chance to let history put his career in context and I think that is important. Perhaps over the next 13 seasons the Yankees will develop another homegrown starter, making Pettitte less of an anomaly. (Think about it, over the last 40 years, the Yankees have really developed two good starters- Guidry and Pettitte) Second, they might win a few more titles, making the five Pettitte won seem less important. After all, Lefty Gomez also won five World Series, 189 games for the Yankees and got into the Hall of Fame, but his number 11 is still active. (That's not a complaint)

We will see what happens.
*****
As for the HGH stuff, I kept asking myself one question during the press conference today, why do we give Pettitte a "pass" on his use, but vilify guys like Palmerio, McGwire, Bonds and Clemens? Now, obviously a HUGE part of it is personality. You really have to be a miserable person to dislike Andy Pettitte. The guy is humble and personable. He always seemed willing to answer any question and it always felt like you could relate to him.

But, he initially lied about his use of HGH, in that aspect how is he different from McGwire? I keep hearing people say that he used HGH because he didn't want to let the team down, but is that really a justification? It seems to me that we should look at Andy Pettitte as a generally good man who made a big mistake. Minimizing or attempting to justify that mistake doesn't do any of us any favors.

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 07:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Well, the 1946 Red Sox got off to a good start winning game one 4-2 behind another strong start from Mickey Harris (7 IP, 3 H, 1 BB, 2 ER, 5 K). Most imporantly, the Red Sox pitching staff kept Roger Maris hitless in 4 plate appearences.

The Red Sox bullpen worked 2 IP of scoreless, hitless relief.

The offensive catalysts were Wally Moses, Johnny Pesky, Dom DiMaggio (again, the best of the DiMaggio brother as evidenced by him being the last DiMaggio standing. Apologies to Vince who really wasn't eligible in this contest) and Bobby Doerr.

Game 2 features Whitey Ford against Boo Ferris.

Game One Box Score

Posted by Andy (Red Sox) at 10:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Michael Kay announced that Andy Pettitte is deciding to retire. According to Jack Curry, he is going to meet with team officials today and make it formal. Ken Rosenthal says that a formal announcement will come Friday. Obviously, this is not a shock at this point, Pettitte has been sending signals that he didn't want to pitch in 2011 for most of the offseason.

It's a blow to the 2011 Yankees, but not as big as some people think. Pettitte was held to only 21 starts in 2010 and while they were very good starts, his ERA was the lowest it had been since 2005 when he was with Houston. Considering his age (39) and track record, it seems probable that Pettitte would have probably given them around 150 innings with an ERA over 4.

But, his retirement leaves a very big question mark in the rotation. The Yankees have plenty of candidates who could fill his spot, but no one they can count on to produce the 150 innings with an ERA around 4 that Pettitte would have. Perhaps a Brackman, Banuelos or Phelps steps up, but we won't know the answer to that for awhile. The key for the Yankees is to stay in contention until July, they can then make adjustments from there.

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 12:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

I had the 1946 team as the 6th seed in the Red Sox bracket. Fairly surprised they won and are moving on to the big Red Sox v. Yankees Final.

Game 7 - Box Score

No surprise Ted Williams lead the 1946 offensive attack. Dave Ferris (2-1, 2.03 ERA), Tex Hughson (2-0, 2.48 ERA) and Mickey Harris (2-0, 1.38 ERA) all pitched excellently as did 4th starter Joe Dobson (1-0, 3.38 ERA). They will have their work cut out as they now face Roger Maris and his 12 home runs in 19 games. Hope he is due for a cool down.

Posted by Andy (Red Sox) at 11:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The '61 Yankees have overcome a 3-0 deficit to advance to the finals.

Apparently, I should never try to predict simulation baseball again.

Now the 1946 Red Sox and Ted Williams are up next- it should be a treat.

Full results are available at http://greenmonsta.webby.com

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 09:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The 1946 Red Sox have a 3-2 lead in the Red Sox. The gem of the series so far is Tim Wakefield's no-hitter in game 4. If it weren't a simulation, it would have been the 3rd playoff no-hitter in MLB history.

Now back to chipping ice off my roof.

Game Recaps:

Game 3 - Pedro Martinez (1-2) vs. Mickey Harris (1-0)

With the 1946 Sox leading 2-0 and going home Mickey Harris took the ball and threw a gem. Harris gave up five hits over nine innings and shutout the 2004 Sox 5-0. Ted Williams hit a homer in the sixth but Harris was the story today. Pedro Martinez took his third loss of the YRRS and the offense sputtered again leaving the '04 Sox at the brink of elimination.

Game 4 - Tim Wakefield (1-1) vs. Dave Ferris (2-0)

When knuckleballer Tim Wakefield pitches you never know what you will get. Today Wakefield issued six walks, but zero hits! A no-hitter! Wakefield had quite the active knuckleball today and finally the '04 Sox bats seemed to wake up. Bill Mueller had 3 RBI and Johnny Damon added two more in the 6-0 win. Just what 2004 needed.

Game 5 - Derek Lowe (2-0) vs. Joe Dobson (1-0)

Leading three games to two, the 1946 Sox scored first in the bottom of the second on a two out single by Bobby Doerr and a run scoring double by Pinky Higgins. They added another run an inning later when Johnny Pesky set the table with a double, Ted Williams walked, and Rudy York walked to load the bases for Doerr. Doerr also walked, bringing in Pesky. Lowe avoided further damage by getting Higgins to fly out to end the inning. Down two to nothing the '04 Sox broke through in the top of the fifth. Varitek led off with a walk, went to second on a single by Bellhorn, both advanced when Damon walked loading them up for Orlando Cabrera. Cabrera hit a grounder to third that handcuffed Higgins so much that his only play was to first, scoring Varitek. The next pitch to Manny Ramirez was a wild pitch scoring Bellhorn. After a called strike, Dobson's 1-1 pitch to Manny was yanked out over the green monster in left for a 4-2 lead. In the bottom of the 6th, 1946 bounced back to tie the game at 4-4. The key hit was a two run double by Johnny Pesky. With the season hanging in the balance and a 4-4 game in the top of the 9th, the 2004 Sox came to bat against Catfish Metkovich. Jason Varitek bounced out to short leading off. Mark Bellhorn singled past third and Dave Roberts walked moving Bellhorn to second. Orlando Cabrera pushed the count to 3-2 before earning a walk to load the bases with one out for Manny Ramirez. On a 2-1 pitch, Manny popped out to short left. David Ortiz picked up his teammate with a 1-1 blast to right center into the home team's bullpen for a grand slam! 2004 Sox stayed alive with a 8-4 win

1946 RedSox 3 games to 2 lead on the 2004 RedSox

Thursday, April 24th, 2008: Wakefield King of Fling with No-Hitter

The 1) Boston 04 Red Sox 04 relied on no-hit stuff from Tim Wakefield to defeat the 6) Boston 46 Red Sox 46 6-0 at Fenway Park.

"It's quite a thrill," a candid Wakefield told the media afterward, "This is a top-notch league. A no-hitter against any team in the league is something special. I can't believe I did it."

To get his name logged in the records, he stopped 6) Boston 46 cold, with no hits, surrendering 6 walks and fanning 1 batters, facing only 32 batters.

Wakefield said in a postgame interview, "Games like this are something special. They don't come around very often, if ever. I knew from the fifth inning that I had a no-hitter working. I just tried to get it out of my mind, but you just can't. They have too many scoreboards in the park. They are everywhere you look."

In a jovial mood, his manager kiddingly told the reporters, "He definitely made it easy for me today. I didn't have any great decisions to make like I usually have to do. Didn't even have to come up with a pinch hitter. I love it when my pitchers pitch a no-hitter."

Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008: Harris Twirls Red Sox 46 to Shutout Victory

It was not a good day at the plate for Red Sox 04 hitters. Most of them came up empty against Mickey Harris of the 6) Boston 46 Red Sox 46. He held them to 5 hits and blanked 1) Boston 04 5-0. Harris also chalked up 4 strikeouts and no walks in the game at Fenway Park.

Posted by Andy (Red Sox) at 06:38 PM | Permalink

Excuse the lateness of this post, but something happened to my entry from last night.

Anyway, the 1961 Yankees are still alive, having rallied from a 3-0 deficit to make it 3-2. They still have a lot of work to do, but with Maris hitting 12 homers in 17 games, you have to think he might carry them into the finals by himself.

Check out the details here and check back tonight for a report on the finals.

Posted by Peter (Yankees) at 10:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

1946 Red Sox vs. the 2004 Red Sox:

Game 1 - Box Score

Faulty relief from close Keith Foulke, led to a late came comeback by the 1946 Red Sox. Foulke came into the top of the 9th with a 5-4 lead and gave up a walk and then home run to Bobby Doerr. blmeanie aptly noticed that the Red Sox put in Dave Roberts as a pinch runner and who scored the 2004 Red Sox 5th (and final) run.

Game 2 - Box Score

A stellar outing by Curt Schilling wasn't enough to overcome his offense's lack of production. With Manny Ramirez hitting just .259 in the playoffs, they just aren't scoring enough. Interestingly, Ted Williams went 0-5 with a walk. Bet he didn't do that much in his career.

The 1946 team's Tex Hughson pitched 8 strong innings and Bob Klingler and Earl Johnson pitched 4 innings of no-run ball in this 12-inning game.

Bullpen woes again undid the 2004 Red Sox as Keith Foulke allowed 3 hits, 1 bb and 1 ER in 2 IP. Alan Embree posted the same line ultimately surrendering the go-ahead run. Foulke registered his 3 blown save of the playoffs and has a 7.94 ERA.

So, no surprise, the 2004 Red Sox find themselves in a 0-2 hole. Familiar territory. The 1946 Red Sox have been grinding out wins and will be home for the next 2 games (same home I know...).

Posted by Andy (Red Sox) at 10:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)