MoneyBall vs CashBall

I would have plenty to comment on the Yankees postseason moves...if there were any. Usually there are transactions and plenty of distractions, but this year there's mostly inaction.

Don't get me wrong I think the brain trust knows what it's doing, but this is just boring. They re-signed Hiroki Kuroda and Andy Pettitte to 1-year deals. And just now as I write, Kevin Youkilis has signed a 1-year deal to hold down third base for a bit. And all signs point to Ichiro re-signing for one year as well. There is Moneyball, and there is Brian Cashman-brand CashBall.

This is not a calm before the storm, but rather a method to the madness - as I mix metaphors. The Yankees' over-inflated payroll has cost the team a fortune in salary cap luxury tax. Now after seeing the exponentially diminished ROI on the A-Rod investment, they are being a lot more frugal to keep their payroll in line. As opposed to teams like the Dodgers.

The 1-year deals make sense, not just for the veteran pitchers, but for Youkilis as well. Alex Rodriguez still has multiple years left on his contract and will be set back by hip surgery to start the year. It would be difficult to see him playing anything other than DH when he returns. And if he can't hit, that would make for a very ineffective DH. Youkilis is a proven hitter (though not last year) and a strong defensive 3B.

There is still a fairly large hole at the catcher position, after Russell Martin signed a free agent deal with Pittsburgh. I don't have a problem with this as I see catcher as a defensive position first, and it's not like Martin set the world on fire with his bat (.211, 21 HR in 2012). For historical reference, the Yankees replaced Mike Stanley with Joe Girardi in the mid-90s, which coincided with a dynasty. Hmm.

But the Yankees now are down to three catchers on the 40-man roster: Chris Stewart, Francisco Cervelli, and Austin Romine. We don't expect much at the plate, but which of these perennial backups and career minor leaguers will handle a venerable pitching staff?

What you do see is an emphasis on speed: Brett Gardner, Chris Dickerson, Eduardo Nunez, and Ichiro Suzuki (if he's back) are all guys that can steal 30+. So what we see here is not only a re-shaping of the Yankees organizationally, but on the field as well.

The upcoming season promises to be interesting, even if the offseason hasn't been.

When It All Crumbled: The 2012 Tipping Point

It was shortly after Midnight, Sunday morning October 14th. A freak play in the 12th inning cost the Yankees their shortstop, leadoff hitter, and captain. More importantly they lost their rudder - and their soul.

The Yankees bats were barely alive before Derek Jeter went down, and flatlined after. Hiroki Kuroda pitched his ass off the next day, but he was playing alongside The Walking Dead, in a sneak preview of the season premiere later Sunday evening.

Joe Girardi didn't have any answers. All the magic moves he made all season suddenly collapsed. And where was the on-field leadership going to come from?

Robinson Cano? Too nonchalant.

Mark Teixeira? Too humble.

Ichiro Suzuki? Claims he doesn't speak English. And if he did...

Alex Rodriguez? Marginalized.

People talking without speaking. People hearing without listening... And no one dared disturb the sounds of silence.

Because they all took their silent cues from one man.

If Jeter had been lost like Mariano Rivera, in May, the team could have (and ultimately would have) found their way. Leaders would have been born after the shock wore off. But on October 14th the Yankees went into shock, and by October 18th they weren't yet out of it. Which of course meant they were out of it.

Do you think, do you really think the Alex Rodriguez circus would have taken off like this if Jeter was physically there to counsel Girardi in Detroit? No way.

And let's give some credit to the Tigers as well. There wasn't just a team that got swept away, there was an excellent team that did the sweeping.

Danger Starts With A Big "D"

Whatever you think of the revamped MLB Postseason format (and I don't know anyone who is 100% comfortable with it), it is what it is. And the Tigers are up 2-0 over the once-sizzling Athletics in the ALDS, hours before the Yankees and O's ever saw a first pitch.

Detroit slept-walked through the first half, just 44-42 at the All-Star Break. But they had a ton of experience in a weak division and it didn't hurt to take 8 of the last 9 from the White Sox, who had led the division practically the whole season.

The Cabrera-Fielder, 3-4, right-left combo in the middle of the order is one of the most fearsome in recent memory. Only Manny-Papi and Bonds-Kent come to mind.

Miguel Cabrera of course won the first Triple Crown in 45 years. And it's nice to have the protection of Prince Fielder, at .313, 30, 108, hitting behind you. Fielder hit .337 from August 1 when the Tigers needed him most. And the above photo really does symbolize their relationship and the attitude they radiate through the team. Baseball is a game, and their infectious enthusiasm for it makes every Tiger game fun to watch.

Cabrera has been knocked for his defense, but he moved from 1st to the much tougher 3rd Base to make way for Fielder's arrival. At 29 years old, he may have the maturity and leadership to carry Detroit to their first World Series since 1984.

And there's another 29 year-old that's quite possibly the best in the game as well.

After collecting a Cy Young and MVP award in 2011, Justin Verlander also finished huge in 2012 with a 5-1 September. He leads a strong young rotation, with a seasoned (albeit inconsistent) bullpen that has Manager Jim Leyland's enduring confidence.

And there's a certain mystique to Leyland. When Tony LaRussa or Buck Showalter, or even Joe Girardi micromanages a game, you want to throw things at the TV. But with Leyland it always seems like some old-school, home-spun wisdom.

As a Yankee fan, I might already be psyched out remembering 2006 and 2011 eliminations very clearly. But as a baseball fan I tend to get hunches about this sort of thing.

Just One To Go

It's a 162-game season, and sometimes they all count. In game #161, the Yankee bats struggled all night. Mark Teixeira went 0-for-6 and left 9 men on base, and the Yankees as a team left 14.

You'd have to think this was the Red Sox last stand of a woeful season, taking a 3-1 lead to the bottom of the 9th.

But in a game that's been indicative of their last 3 weeks (the Yanks have won 15 of last 20), they came through when it counted. And again it was Raul Ibanez launching another clutch last-gasp home run. Ibanez's production this year has been inconsistent but undeniable with 19 HR and 62 RBI as a part-time player. That's more HR & RBI than A-Rod in 79 fewer ABs.

And give Joe Girardi credit. He makes a lot of moves and makes the manager's presence way too visible, but this year he has made it work in probably his best managing job. He pinch-hit Ibanez for a hot-hitting Eduardo Nunez in the 9th, setting up the eventual win, and was clearly pleased enough to lighten up.

Girardi knew how crucial the game was. He went with closer Rafael Soriano for the 9th while trailing. Soriano's rescued the Yankees' season with 42 saves in place of the injured Mariano Rivera, and Girardi stuck with him after giving up a solo shot in the 9th, bringing him back for a scoreless 10th.

Ibanez then won the game in the 12th with an opposite-field single off a lefty, and you can't undersell what the game meant. It means that the Yanks can clinch the AL East on Wednesday night with Hiroki Kuroda on the mound. If they win or the Orioles lose in Tampa Bay, they'll be the outright division champs.

That would mean the Yankees would avoid the slippery slope of the Divisional Tiebreak Thursday, the possible one-game Wild Card Showdown Friday, and if they survive that, to play an ALDS game Sunday. They would just get to take 2 or 3 days off instead.

And due to the events just before 1 AM and the surging Oakland Athletics, the Yankees are set up for the top seed in the AL Playoffs as well.

AL EAST

New York Yankees        94-67
Baltimore Orioles       93-68

AL WEST

Oakland A's             93-68
Texas Rangers           93-68

The A's really came from nowhere, as much as 13 games back in the AL West. And last night Grant Balfour entered the 9th against Texas with the RF bleachers moshing to Metallica's "One." And when he closed Texas one-two-three, the A's were tied atop the division.

The A's and Rangers won't have to play a Tiebreak Game #163 on Thursday because their tiebreak is today, Game #162. And the A's go with 24-year old rookie sensation A.J. Griffin (7-1, 2.71) against Rangers veteran Ryan Dempster. That's at 3:30 ET.

And there are scenarios (baseball's tiebreakers are ridiculous by the way) whereby the A's could get the top seed in the AL as well, but would obviously need a Yankees loss.

In the NL, the St. Louis Cardinals secured the second wild card spot even though they lost to Washington, because the Dodgers lost at home to the Giants last night.

I can hear Vin Scully saying, "And you just know the Giants would walk over hot coals to keep the Dodgers out of the postseason..." And sure enough the Giants eliminated them behind Barry Zito (remember him?) who won his 15th last night!

While the top seed in the NL has yet to be determined (Washington or Cincinnati), the NL Wild Card Showdown is set for Friday with St. Louis at Atlanta - likely Kyle Lohse (16-3, 2.86) vs Kris Medlen (10-1, 1.57). It'll be on TBS with a start time TBD.

And a shout out to the Tigers' Miguel Cabrera who is looking at the first Triple Crown (.331, 44 HR, 139 RBI) in 45 years, unless the Rangers' Josh Hamilton does something heroic on the last day of the season. And if there's anything we've learned from the final day last year, if it's mathematically possible it can happen.

Yankees Arms Race To The Finish

Two-out-of-three in Boston. Just what the Yankees should have expected, and got. There are 19 games left in a nail-biting AL East race where they still can't seem to shake (or be shaken by) the upstart Orioles.

You can't get too high or too low with so much time left, just trust the man on the hill will do his job. And this year, Phil Hughes (15-12, 3.96) has done that. In a season which C.C. Sabathia, Andy Pettitte, and Ivan Nova have all spent time on the DL, and Mariano Rivera was lost for the year, Hughes has taken the ball every time out.

Yes he's given up a ton of Home Runs (33) but the key number (besides 15 wins) is 175 Innings Pitched. And after a rocky first two months, he's gone 6 innings or more in 14 of his 19 starts.

You can point all the way back to May 22nd when the Yankees were 21-21 and 5.5 games out of 1st place. They were still lost in the wilderness without Rivera and had no direction. Hughes (then 3-5, 5.23) threw 6 solid innings in a win vs KC which began a team run of starting pitching that had not been seen before, and may not be seen again.

It was a 24-game span in May and June that defined the Yankees season. The Yankees won 20 of 24 and their starting pitchers, with their rotation fully in tact, went 18-2. And maybe even more remarkably, those starters went 6 or more innings in 23 of those 24 games.

You could say that makes Joe Girardi's job a lot easier, but he had to have the trust in guys like Hughes and Hiroki Kuroda to work through their issues, and they flourished. On June 3, Hughes went the distance, out-dueling Justin Verlander. And Kuroda has arguably been the Yankees' ace - and is a start away from 200 innings.

Now Nova returns from the DL on Saturday, and Pettitte on Tuesday. The Yankees have held the fort down for the cavalry to return while the O's get a 6-game West Coast trip.

And just another reminder before any more games are played that Girardi is only the second-most tightly-wound manager in baseball.

When The Men In Blue Don't Have A Clue

Being a Major League umpire is a pretty thankless job - nobody disputes that. But there are occasions like Wednesday's Tigers/Yankees game, when Home Plate ump and crew chief Eric Cooper brought it upon himself.

Let's rewind for a second to Monday night, when the Tigers turned a dramatic game-ending DP to take the series opener at Yankee Stadium. The Tigers completed the play despite a vicious takeout slide by the Yankees Brett Gardner, that landed Tigers 2B Carlos Guillen on the disabled list.

Now I am a Yankee fan, but not a Yankee apologist. Gardner's slide, with the game on the line, was a bit overzealous (I refrain from using the "d" word). Yankee broadcaster Michael Kay called it a clean slide live, though you could hear him biting his tongue on the replays.

I recognized right away that with 3 more games in the series, that this situation wasn't resolved. I even tweeted as such at the time. The Tigers, managed by old-school Jim Leyland, sat out the situation on Tuesday as not to involve their ace starter Justin Verlander.

But on Wednesday with Brett Gardner leading off the bottom of the 1st, Tiger starter Jeremy Bonderman returned fire on the very first pitch of the game.

But Bonderman didn't put one in Gardner's ear. He went for the legs of a guy who makes his living with them (34 Stolen Bases), since Gardner injured Guillen's knee.

Gardner didn't charge the mound, he took his base. The Yankee dugout didn't empty. This was the type of baseball justice that's been going on since the game began. You could almost see Joe Girardi tipping his cap to Jim Leyland that the matter was resolved. Except Umpire Eric Cooper injected himself into the situation by warning both benches.

So now fast forward to the 8th inning, with the Yankees holding a 9-4 lead. AL MVP candidate Miguel Cabrera, who already homered twice in the game stepped in and was plunked in the back by Yankee reliever Chad Gaudin.

Whether Gaudin intended to hit Cabrera or not, the scenario plus the warning made it a no-brainer. Eric Cooper had to eject Chad Gaudin and his manager, Joe Girardi. But he did nothing.

Was Cooper intimidated by the pinstripes? Or the Yankees crowd? Either way, he proved to be a chump for not following through on his own warning. Jim Leyland rode Cooper relentlessly, until Cooper had no choice but to eject him. And Leyland was still pointing the finger, quite righteously, as he took his walk.

So the situation continued to take on a life of its own, and the umpires had lost control of the game. So in the bottom of the 8th, Tigers reliever Enrique Gonzalez threw behind Yankees captain Derek Jeter.

And the Yankees had to sit there and take it, just like the Tigers did in the previous frame. So despite an early warning, the umpires didn't follow through.

Now the Yankees and Tigers play for the final time in 2010 at 1 PM today. Has the bad blood continued to elevate, or is the matter put to bed? Either way, the umpires, the policemen of the game, were invisible as it played out.

Watching My Yankees Old School

It's rare in a life with kids and flights and work and general responsibilities, that I ever get to plant myself and watch an important Yankee playoff game from start to finish.

But I had a block of time and I dusted off my Bob Carpenter's Scorebook and decided to keep score. It's something I had done hundreds of times in my youth, and occasionally as a professional, but I did it tonight for fun and to take me inside the game.

After an 11-Inning thriller over the Twins, this becomes part of the archives of baseball history. Well at least my baseball history. I have a couple of framed scorecards in my office, that are mounted with my World Series ticket and New York newspaper headline.

Like when I watched Jim Leyritz tag Mark Wohlers in Game 4 of the 1996 World Series. Leyritz had replaced Joe Girardi at catcher, who had been 0-2. Rookie-of-the-Year Derek Jeter was 2-4 with 2 walks and 2 runs scored. I had FOX seats so I sat next to Jerry Glanville, but that's a story for another time.

The scorecard is a historical document. With a good scorecard you can reconstruct any baseball game, and thumb through the pages of history. The previous entry in my third BC Scorebook was from June 11, 2006. Oregon State defeated Stanford 15-0 in Super Regional Game 2 in Corvallis en route to the CWS and the first of two NCAA Championships. Catcher Mitch Canham drove in 5 runs and Pitcher Jonah Nickerson cruised.

So what was the inside dope on just another Yankee walk-off Home Run in the bottom of the 11th?

1) Joe Girardi is still manging very tightly.

Especially his handling of the bullpen. Joe, why on earth do you need 8 pitchers to get through 11 innings? He shouldn't have pulled Joba Chamberlain after getting only 2 outs in the 7th. He shouldn't have pulled Alfredo Aceves after a scoreless 10th. They weren't prepared to fight this out until the 15 or 16th inning. I was wondering at what point Game 1 winner CC Sabathia was going to start warming up.

2) The Yankees were very lucky in this game.

The Twins left 17 men on base, including at least one in all 11 innings. AJ Burnett walked 5 and hit 2 batters in a very erratic 6 innings. But he only gave up one run. The Twins made a brutal baserunning error in the 4th, costing them a run. And Joe Nathan was 3-0 to A-Rod in the 9th, but tried to get him out. Not too effective. It got A-Rod a curtain call and a seat in first class.

3) When the game is on the line, you want Mark Teixeira.

The Yankees' MVP had the leadoff single in the 9th, setting the stage for A-Rod's game-tying HR. Then he made two very strong defensive plays in the top of the 11th to help a very green David Robertson out of a bases-loaded, nobody-out jam. Then there was this:

And that was that. Close the book on that one.

Yankees Need To Think Outside The (Batter's) Box

If Jose Molina can crack a smile out of the Majors' tightest manager, maybe he can fix the Yankees' pitching woes.

Read Backtime's post on Pinstripe Alley.

UPDATE Molina started behind the plate in Phil Hughes' 2009 debut. Hughes worked 6 scoreless IP and the team posted a combined 11-0 shutout. Molina contributed with the bat as well, launching the Bombers' first Grand Slam of the season.