Baker’s Dozen: Justin Turner’s 13 pitch at-bat key to Dodgers NLDS win

KENDALL PARK, N.J.- Game 5 of the NLDS between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Nationals will be remembered as one of the greatest divisional round games since the inception of the Wild Card in 1995.  The win or go home game resulted in a 4-3 victory for the visiting Dodgers who will travel to Wrigley Field to take on the Chicago Cubs for Game 1 of the NLCS on Saturday night.

The game was micromanaged by both sides. Dodgers skipper Dave Roberts, praised for the way he manipulated 19 players to perfection, while Dusty Baker made 3 double switches en route to using 22 Nationals in their season’s final game. Nationals starter, Max Scherzer held the Dodgers scoreless through the first 6 innings and even had a no-hitter through the game’s first 5 innings.  Joc Pederson lead off the 66 minute 7th inning by belting a solo home run over the left field wall to even the score at 1.  Julio Urias became the youngest pitcher to appear; and win a postseason game in MLB history, at 20 years and 60 days old. Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen entered the game in the game in the 7th inning throwing a career high, 51 pitches while recording 7 outs.  The game went 4 hours and 32 minutes, becoming the longest postseason game in MLB history.  Oh yeah and the best pitcher on the planet, Clayton Kershaw came in for the game’s final 2 outs on just one day’s rest, getting a groundout and a strikeout to record his first career save.  At the conclusion of the game, FS1 broadcaster Tom Verducci noted that you would remember this game as “The Clayton Kershaw Game,” not so fast…

In all of this craziness there is one specific player or even just one at bat that didn’t even result in a run that is completely overshadowed by all of these other headlines.  After breezing through the first 3 innings on just 36 pitches, nine up nine down, Scherzer faced the top of the Dodgers lineup with a 1-0 lead to start the 4th.  Both Chase Utley and Corey Seager worked full counts before becoming strikeout victims; Utley swinging and Seager looking on a changeup that painted the black on the outside corner.  Justin Turner would then come to the plate with 2 outs in the 4th inning and have the most important at bat of the game.  

The 1st pitch, a called strike a slider on the inner half backed up by a 94 mph fastball on the plates outer half for another called strike, 0-2. Pitch number 3 a change up in the dirt, followed by an inside fastball fouled off over the first base side and a low and outside slider to even the count at two.  The 6th pitch a fastball on the outer half, fouled again over the Nationals dugout with the next pitch being another heater from Scherzer, fouled straight back.  After a heavy dose of fastballs, Scherzer’s next 3 offerings; inside changeup followed by back-to-back sliders were all laced foul down the third base line. The 11th pitch, a slider away to work the count full at 3-2.  The full count offering was again fouled off down the third base line before the 13th and final pitch of the at bat, a 97 mph fastball missed low according to Jeff Kellogg for ball 4.

Scherzer struck out the next batter, Adrian Gonzalez on just 4 pitches to end the frame, however his pitch count of 36 through of the game’s first 3 innings nearly doubled (30) to retire the Dodgers 1-4 batters in the 4th.  66 pitches through 4 innings, 13 of which came on a free pass to Justin Turner.

The Nationals were retired in order on just 12 pitches in the bottom of the 4th, quickly sending Scherzer back out to the mound.  After back-to-back singles by Josh Reddick and Joc Pederson to start the inning and a 1 out bloop single into right field by Andrew Toles to load the bases.  Pinch hitter Andre Ethier was retired on strikes and Utley grounded out to shortstop to end the inning with Scherzer’s pitch count at 78.

After an 11 pitch 6th inning, facing 4 Dodger hitters Scherzer’s pitch count 98, two shy of the mile mark of 100.  You have to send your ace back out there right?  6 shutout innings, a 1-0 lead in a win or go game it seems like a no brainer.  Scherzer’s 99th pitch, a 96 mph fastball was blasted over the left field wall by Joc Pederson to tie the score at 1.  The Nationals ace’s night over, one pitch too late. 

“How do you take out your — a guy in a 1-0 game?  And Max is capable of going 100-some-odd pitches.”  said Baker postgame. (Via Washington Post)

Scherzer’s outing however does not come down to the one pitch he made to Joc Pederson, however it is the thirteen pitches Justin Turner saw in the 4th inning that changed the game.  Excluding the 4th inning and his lone pitch in the 7th, Scherzer’s pitch count in the other 5 innings was 68, an average of 13.6 pitches per inning.  Essentially, Turner’s thirteen pitch epidemic shortened Scherzer’s outing by an inning.  That inning, the road half of the 7th saw his team use 6 different pitchers, serve up 4 hits, a walk and surrendered a devastating 4 runs.  The last pair of runs driven in on a wall scraping triple to dead centerfield by who else, Justin Turner.

 In his first 12 career postseason games Justin Turner is 16-36 with 8 extra base hits, 7 runs scored, 9 RBI, with a .545 on base percentage. 

 

 

American League Division Series Preview

WAYNE, N.J.-With the completion of both Wild Card games, the MLB postseason brackets are officially set.  In the American League the winner of Tuesday night’s Wild Card game, the Toronto Blue Jays will travel to Arlington, Texas to take on the team with the best record in the American League, the Texas Rangers.  The American League Central division champion, Cleveland Indians will have home field advantage in a best of 5 series with the American League East division champions, the Boston Red Sox.

Texas Rangers (95-67) vs. Toronto Blue Jays (89-73)

Game 1 Globe Life Park, Arlington, Texas- Thursday, October 6th 4:30 pm TBS

Game 2 Globe Life Park, Arlington, Texas- Friday, October 7th 1:00 pm TBS

Game 3 Rogers Centre, Toronto, Ontario- Sunday, October 9th 7:30 pm TBS

Game 4 (if necessary) Rogers Centre, Toronto, Ontario- Monday, October 10th TBD TBS

Game 5 (if necessary) Globe Life Park, Arlington, Texas- Wednesday, October 12th TBD TBS

Veteran sluggers, RF Jose Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays and 3B Adrian Beltre of the Texas Rangers are both seeking their first World Series Championship.

What everyone will be talking about is the “rematch” between Blue Jays outfielder, Jose Bautista and Rangers second baseman, Rougned Odor  who punched Bautista in the face resulting in a bench clearing incident between the two teams on May 15th.  Contrary to the popular opinion, I would rather speak about the postseason rematch between the two teams.  These teams met last season in the ALDS with the Blue Jays to advancing to the ALCS winning the series 3 game to 2.  The Rangers had a 2 games to none series before dropping the final 3 games.  In Game 5, the Rangers held a 3-1 lead over the Blue Jays needing 9 outs to punch their ticket to the ALCS.  In the 7th inning they fell apart making 3 consecutive errors before Jose Bautista hit a game winning 3-run home run with an exaggerated bat flip known as, “the bat flip heard ‘round the world.”

As I said in my AL Wild Card preview, I like how the Blue Jays starting rotation plays in a 5 game series with Marco Estrada starting Game 1 and 5 (if necessary), Cy Young Award candidate J.A. Happ Game 2, Aaron Sanchez Game 3 and Marcus Stroman who threw 6 strong innings in the Jays Wild Card game win would start game 4 if necessary.  Other than the Chicago Cubs, in my opinion the Toronto Blue Jays have the most complete starting rotation of the teams remaining in the postseason.  Jays closer Roberto Osuna was removed from the AL WIld Card game with an apparent injury.  If Osuna is unavailable it is likely 39 year old Jason Grilli will take over the duties.

The Rangers have not released a set rotation for the series but the only two names you need to know are Cole Hamels and Yu Darvish.  Hamels and Darvish make up one of the best 1-2 punches in all of baseball and combined for 20.8 strikeouts per nine innings, the most of any two starting pitchers in the postseason.  Hamels who will get the start in Game 1, has been a great postseason pitcher in his career with a 7-5 record with a 3.03 ERA in 15 starts while winning the NLCS and World Series MVP with the Phillies in 2008.  Hamels was a Cy Young Award front runner with a 2.67 ERA over his first 26 starts before fading over his final 6.  Rest might be the best thing for Hamels whose last start came on September 28th as he is 3-0 with a 2.00 ERA this season when he has 6 or more days rest.  Darvish was selected to the American League all-star team each of his first 3 seasons, but missed time over the last 2 seasons recovering from Tommy John surgery.  Game 2 on Friday will be Darvish’s second career postseason start.  An option to start Game 3 for the Rangers is veteran Colby Lewis.  Lewis, a member of Texas’ 2010 and 2011 pennant winning teams has 4 wins with a 2.38 ERA in 58 career postseason innings.  

Both teams can match each other with their potent offenses so this series is going to come down to which team can do the best job of limiting their opponents sluggers.  Last year in their 5 game postseason series the Jays outscored the Rangers 26-19.  In a 5 game series, Game 1 is pivotal and Texas will be at home with their ace, Cole Hamels on the mound, giving them the edge.  Home field advantage will play a huge role in this series.  This season, the Rangers had a 36-11 record in one run games, good for the best record in the modern era and a 53-28 mark at Globe Life Park this season good for the second best home record in Major League Baseball.  On the other hand, nearly 50,000 rowdy fans packed into the Rogers Centre for Toronto’s Wild Card Game Tuesday night and could play a factor in Game 3 and 4.

The pick: Texas Rangers 3 games to 2

With one of the best postseason pitchers of this generation in Cole Hamels and a strikeout machine in Yu Darvish the Rangers will have the pitching advantage in all 3 of their home games (1,2,5).  This is a great combination for a Texas team seeking their first World Series championship in franchise history.

Cleveland Indians (94-67) vs. Boston Red Sox (93-68)

Game 1 Progressive Field, Cleveland, Ohio- Thursday, October 6th 8:00 pm TBS

Game 2 Progressive Field, Cleveland, Ohio- Friday, October 7th 4:30 pm TBS

Game 3 Fenway Park, Boston, Massachusetts- Sunday, October 9th 4:00 TBS

Game 4 (if nessesary) Fenway Park, Boston, Massachusetts- Monday, October 10th TBD TBS

Game 5 (if nessesary) Progressive Field, Cleveland, Ohio- Wednesday, October 12th TBD TBS

Thunder vs. Lightning: The Red Sox scored the most runs in all of baseball this season while the Indians lead the AL in stolen bases.  Red Sox DH David Ortiz’ 127 RBI and Indians OF Rajai Davis’ 43 stolen bases lead the American League.

This series makes for an interesting story line as Indians manager Terry Francona will become the first manager in MLB history to manage against a team in the postseason that he had previously managed to multiple World Series titles (2004 and 2007).  The more obvious storyline comes from the opponent’s side however as Boston’s beloved designated hitter David Ortiz is making his final run at a World Series title as the 40 year old veteran is retiring at season’s end.  

In his final season, Big Papi had one of the greatest final seasons ever hitting .315 with 38 home runs while leading the league with 127 RBI and 48 doubles.  Ortiz is no stranger to the postseason as he has lead the Red Sox to three World Series championships in his fourteen year tenure with the team, the most prevalent being 2004 ending the Red Sox 86 year World Series drought.  Ortiz illustrious postseason career has seen him win the 2004 ALCS and 2013 World Series MVP as well as put him in the top ten all-time in plate appearances (9th, 357), runs scored (9th, 51), hits (10th, 87), total bases (5th, 163), doubles (4th, 21), home runs (7th, 17), RBI (5th, 60) and walks (7th, 57).  

The remainder of the supporting cast for the Sox form one of the most feared offenses in the league.  Rightfielder Mookie Betts has my vote for the American League MVP award totaling for over 200 runs (113 RBI/122 runs scored), while centerfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. had a breakout season that included a 29 game hit streak between April 24th and May 25h.  After a disastrous first year in beantown Hanley Ramirez made the transition from left field to first base and is a leading candidate for AL Comeback Player of the Year honors while the double play combo of Dustin Pedroia and Xander Bogaerts were among the league leaders in hits; Bogaerts with 192 and Pedroia with 201, the most since his MVP season of 2008.  This lineup is the best in baseball and will be overwhelming for any pitcher in this postseason to handle.

The Indians won their first Central division title since 2007 and will send 25 year old Trevor Bauer to the mound for Game 1.  Bauer has the stuff to be a frontline starter; an upper 90’s fastball and a devastating 12/6 curveball however his walk rate of 3.3 BB/9 is alarming.  In 2015, Bauer lead the AL in walks with 79 and was among league leaders again this season with 70.  Bauer’s style could be referred to as “effectively wild” however In a postseason game everything is magnified and even more so against a deep Red Sox lineup. Game 2 will feature the ace of the Indians staff, 2014 AL Cy Young Award winner Corey Kluber who nursing a mild quadriceps strain that he suffered in his final start of the regular season on September 26th.  Josh Tomlin will get the ball for Game 3 of the series and due to injuries to both Danny Salazar and Carlos Carrasco, it is likely Bauer will be back on 3 days rest for Game 4 (if necessary).  The mid-season acquisition of relief ace, Andrew Miller who is the lone left-hander in the Indians bullpen, will play huge dividends working multiple innings out of the bullpen in this series with the Indians starting rotation being short handed.

New Jersey native, Rick Porcello will get the ball for the Sox in Game 1.  Porcello had a career year going 22-4 with a 3.15 ERA.  David Price will seek to improve his poor postseason résumé in Game 2, while Clay Buchholz and southpaw Eduardo Rodriguez will round out Boston’s rotation.  Their toughest outs in the Indians lineup are 23 year old third baseman, Jose Ramirez and 22 year old shortstop, Francisco Lindor.  Ramirez hit .312 and was second in the AL with 46 doubles while stealing 22 bases.  Lindor is part of the next crop of great young shortstops hit 15 home runs and 30 doubles, while swiping 19 bags and hitting .301 respectively.  First baseman, Mike Napoli who was a member of the 2013 Red Sox World Series championship team paced the team in RBI with 101 and was tied for the lead in home runs with 34 along with designated hitter, Carlos Santana (87 RBI). Second baseman, Jason Kipnis hit .275 with 23 home runs and 82 RBI and rookie centerfielder Tyler Naquin hit .296 over 365 plate appearances.  The lone offensive advantage Cleveland has is their ability to steal bases.  Over the course of the regular season, the Tribe lead the AL in stolen bases with 137 while doing so at the highest success rate of 81.55%.

The pick: Boston Red Sox 3 games to 1

The Cleveland Indians took two huge losses late in the season with Carlos Carrasco breaking his pinkie finger after being struck by a line drive on September 17th and Danny Salazar who made his last start on September 9th before exiting early with a forearm strain.  Despite winning 94 regular season games I think the young Indians are overmatched by the veteran Red Sox in this series.

2016 National League Wild Card Game Preview

October 5, 2016 Citi Field, Flushing New York 8:00 pm ESPN

San Francisco Giants (87-75) @ New York Mets (87-75)

Madison Bumgarner (15-9 2.74) Noah Syndergaard (14-9 2.60)

WAYNE, N.J.-The New York Mets will play host for the 5th edition of the National League Wild Card game against the San Francisco Giants.  After making their first World Series appearance in 15 years last year, the 2016 Mets became just the second team in franchise history to make the postseason in consecutive years (the other being the 2000 team).  The Giants missed out on October baseball last season, however they are looking to win their 4th World Series championship in 7 years (2010, 2012, 2014, 2016?) and  keep their “even year streak”  in tact.  The game will be played at Citi Field as the Mets won the season series  4 games to the Giants 3.

How they got here, San Francisco Giants: After signing one of game’s most prized starting pitchers on the free agent market in Johnny Cueto, plus additional free agent signings of Jeff Samardzija and Denard Span the Giants seemed like a virtual lock for a postseason berth and a quest for their 4th World Series title in 7 years; after all, it is an even year! All was going as planned  at the All-Star break as the Giants had the best record in baseball at 57-33.  Once play resumed they finished the month of July 4-11 that included a 6 game losing streak to start the second half.  The final 2 months of the season saw the Giants limp to the finish with a 27-31 mark.  The Giants saved their season by finishing strong going 7-3 over their last 10 games, including a 3 game sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers over the season’s final weekend 3 to edge out the St. Louis Cardinals by 1 game.  

Johnny Cueto was the mid-season NL Cy Young as he had a 13-1 record with a 2.47 ERA and was selected to start the All-Star Game for the National League.  After being knocked around for 3 runs in the mid-summer classic, Cueto pitched to a 4.38 ERA in the month of August winning just 5 of his final 14 starts.  Madison Bumgarner had another Cy Young caliber season finishing with a 15-9 mark, a 2.74 ERA good for 4th in the NL among qualifiers and 251 strikeouts (3rd).  Jeff Samardzija had a bounce back year lowering his ERA by more than a run while compiling 12 wins in 32 starts in his return to the Senior Circuit.  Matt Moore, whom the Giants acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays on the MLB trading deadline turned in wins in 6 of his 12 starts including a stellar performance on the season’s final day to clinch the Giants postseason birth.  

From an offensive side of things, The Killer B’s Buster Posey, Brandon Belt and Brandon Crawford provided the majority of the Giants offensive production.  Posey, the team’s lone position player representative at the All-Star Game in San Diego (the others being Johnny Cueto and Madison Bumgarner) hit .288 with 14 home runs and 80 RBI.  Belt who is an underrated, well rounded first baseman hit .275 with 17 home runs, 82 RBI and over 100 walks.  Brandon Crawford lead the team in RBI with 84 and had 12 round trippers while hitting .275 and playing stellar defense at shortstop.  The heart and soul of the team; Hunter Pence spent a large amount of time on the DL limiting him to just over 100 games, but still contributed 13 home runs and 59 RBI.  

The undoubted achilles heel of the Giants has been their bullpen, especially their inability to secure the game’s final 3 outs.  The team began the season with Santiago Casilla as their closer but he saved just 31 of his 40 chances this season; his 9 blown saves leads all of Major League Baseball.  The closer from the 2012 World Champion team, Sergio Romo took over the duties in September collecting 4 saves over the final 2 weeks of the regular season. There have been a whopping NINE Giants relievers that have blown at least one save.  Their conversion rate of 59.7% (43/72) is by far the worst in all of Major League Baseball and is responsible for many of the Giant’s losses during their near second half collapse. 

The Giants 3 representatives at the All-Star Game this season were featured on the March 28th regional cover of the 2016 Sports Illustrated MLB preview.  From left to right: RHP Johnny Cueto, C Buster Posey, LHP Madison Bumgarner.

How they got here, New York Mets: Despite having just 3 less wins than last year’s team, this year’s team has had a completely different “feel” to it.  On August 19th with their record sitting 2 games under .500 at 60-62, the Mets were 5.5 out of the National League’s second wild card.  Over the final 40 games, they finished 27-13 taking care of business against subpar division foes to secure a consecutive postseason birth.

The 2015 Mets lived off a dominant pitching staff but had an offense that was near pathetic before midseason acquisition of Yoenis Cespedes *que Lion King theme song*.  I would not call the 2016 Mets a complete 360 of last years version, however this year it was not solely their pitching staff that lead them to October.  The ace of the staff, Matt Harvey struggled through just 18 starts with his last coming on July 4th. Jacob deGrom was having a typical season (7-8, 3.04 ERA) before suffering ulnar nerve damage to his elbow that required surgery, ending his season September 1st.  Steven Matz made 22 starts before his sophomore campaign was cut short in August due to a left shoulder impingement in addition to a bone spur in his left elbow that required surgery.  All-Stars, Noah Syndergaard and the ageless wonder Bartolo Colon lead the depleted staff with Syndergaard taking the ball a respectable 30 times and a full 33 start slate for Colon.  Syndergaard who will get the ball for the win or go home Wild Card game lead the team in ERA (2.60) and strikeouts (218) while finishing 3rd and 4th in those categories among National League qualifiers.  Bartolo Colon defied father time yet again pacing the club with 15 wins in his age forty-three season.  Rookies Seth Lugo 26, and Robert Gsellman 23, both pitched well down the stretch and will be a part of the postseason rotation should they advance.  The bullpen was lead by Jeurys Familia who in his second year in the closer’s role, lead the National League in saves with 51 in addition to breaking the Mets single season franchise record of 43 previously held by Armando Benitez and Familia himself who tied the record last season.  In his first full season with the team, Addison Reed carried an immense load working in 80 games to the tune of a 1.97 ERA, 10.55 K/9 and a league leading and franchise single season record breaking 40 holds.

The king of the offense was fan favorite Yoenis Cespedes who re-signed with the club in the offseason and in his first full season as a Met, paced the lineup in home runs (31), RBI (86) and OBP (.354) despite spending time on the DL for a quadricep injury.  Second baseman Neil Walker tied a career high in home runs with 23 was a great off-season addition to club via trade, before his season was cut short at the end of August with a herniated disk in his back. One of the more overlooked moves of the off-season was bringing in veteran shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera.  Cabrera did not disappoint in his first year in Flushing as he lead the team in hits with 146 and 23 home runs while playing solid defense at shortstop.  Shortly after captain, David Wright’s season ended prematurely because of a herniated disk in his neck Jose Reyes made his return to the Big Apple spending most of his time manning the hot corner, while provided an offensive spark.  Curtis Granderson added 30 home runs of his own, his most in a season since he clubbed 43 in 2012 with the Yankees.

On August 29, 2016 Yoenis Cespedes launched a walk-off solo home run in the bottom of the 10th inning to give the Mets a 2-1 victory over the Miami Marlins.  Coincidentally the fan who caught the ball was dressed in a Simba costume.

What to expect: Citi Field will be rocking with the visiting Giants being well represented.  Despite departing from New York more than a half century ago the team left behind its fair share of supporters in the Metropolitan area. The pitching matchup of “MadBum” versus “Thor” is the best matchup the National League Wild Card Game has seen in its 5 year existence.  Both teams will rely heavily on their starting pitcher, however if necessary; the Mets have the bullpen advantage.  An interesting element that may come into play is Syndergaard’s inability to hold runners on.  In 183 ⅓ innings this season, Syndergaard allowed a league leading 48 stolen bases and could be taken advantage of by the likes of veteran outfielders Angel Pagan (15 sb) and  Denard Span (12 sb).  If experience carries any weight in a one game playoff, the Giants have plenty of it.  Their roster is full of players that have won multiple World Series titles including  a Wild Card game win back in 2014 behind a dominant pitching performance by, guess who…The last time Madison Bumgarner pitched in a postseason game he threw 5 shutout innings in Game 7 of the 2014 World Series on 2 days rest, single handedly winning the Giants their 3rd World Series championship in 5 years.

X Factors

New York Mets: Jose Reyes

This is not 2006 however the same Jose Reyes who was the Mets offensive catalyst back then and won a batting title with the club in 2011 has made it full circle to help the 2016 version of club.  Despite playing in his 14th big league season, Reyes, is just in his age 33 season and in his second Mets tenure he has been the spark that the team needed.  Sure he is not the same player he once was but I like him in this matchup as a switch hitter (batting right handed) despite facing one of the game’s best left handed pitchers in Madison Bumgarner. Granted a small sample size, Reyes has success against Bumgarner in his career, collecting 3 hits in 9 at-bats.  Maybe it is on the basepaths where Reyes becomes the “X factor.”  Despite having just 9 stolen bases this year, Reyes has nearly 500 for his career.  He could make his mark swipe a key bag late alla Dave Roberts or even going first to third on a single to set up a big inning.

Mets infielders Jose Reyes (left) and Asdrubal Cabrera (right) were the first members of the team to bleach their hair blonde.  The “Slim Shady”  look has been the Mets rally cry during their postseason push.

San Francisco Giants: Bullpen

If I was going to pick one player to be the Giants “X factor” it would be Madison Bumgarner, who could single handedly win this game.  Bumgarner would be too obvious of a selection so I went for “X factor by committee.” As I mentioned earlier the Giants bullpen has been nothing short of awful in 2016.  This could be an interesting scenario in a one game playoff.  The Giants are hoping they don’t have to use their bullpen and their big lefty carries them one step closer to the promise land (as he did in the 2014 Wild Card game).  If that’s not the case, it becomes all hands on deck.  Is there a scenario where a starting pitcher makes an extended relief appearance?  Despite their poor season, the one thing the Giants relievers have in their favor is post-season experience.  Current closer Sergio Romo, Santiago Casilla and southpaw Javy Lopez were all members of the 2010, 2012 and 2014 World Series winning teams.  Fireballer, Hunter Strickland was a member of the 2014 championship team.  The earlier Mets hitters are able to work Madison Bumgarner’s pitch count over 100, the earlier the Giants bullpen has to come into the game, and the more opportunity there will be for a GIANT disaster.

The Pick: San Francisco Giants

In a win or go home game I don’t think pitch count will be much of a factor on both sides.  With that being said the San Francisco Giants will ride Madison Bumgarner yet again for another post-season victory.  If the Giants bullpen is forced to come into the game, maybe all the stars in the sky will align just for this one night.  Bumgarner will undoubtedly go down as one of, if not the single greatest post-season pitcher of all-time.  It’s tough to pick against that.

Madison Bumgarner celebrates with catcher Buster Posey  after pitching  the final 5 innings of Game 7 of the 2014 World Series against the Kansas City Royals.  Bumgarner was named World Series MVP and the win was the duo’s 3rd World Series championship in 5 years.

2016 American League Wild Card Game Preview

October 4, 2016 Rogers Centre, Toronto, Ontario 8:00 pm TBS

Baltimore Orioles (89-73) @ Toronto Blue Jays (89-73)

Chris Tillman (16-6 3.77) Marcus Stroman (9-10 4.37)

WAYNE, N.J.-The Baltimore Orioles will be getting their second taste of the American League Wild Card Game as they travel north of the border to take on American League East division foe, the Toronto Blue Jays.  The Orioles came away victorious in the inaugural Wild Card game in 2012 defeating the Texas Rangers before falling to the New York Yankees in the ALDS.  After ending their 21 year post-season drought by winning the AL East last season, the Blue Jays are playing October baseball for consecutive years for the first time since the 1992-1993 seasons when they won back-to-back World Series.  Despite both teams having identical records, the Toronto Blue Jays earned the right to host the game by winning the season series between the two teams, winning 10 games to Baltimore’s 9.

How they got here, Baltimore Orioles: The Orioles were in first place in AL East for the majority of the season and had possession (along with the Toronto Blue Jays) of the AL East lead as late as August 15th.  They finished the month of August sputtering, dropping 10 of 16 games before regaining form in the month of September going 17-12 and clinching a postseason berth on the season’s final day

Their offense was lead by a plethora of sluggers that launched a Major League leading 253 home runs.  This is familiar territory for the O’s as they have lead the league in long balls in 3 of the last 4 seasons.  This was also the 4th straight year that an Oriole lead the American League in home runs: Chris Davis did it twice with 53 in 2013 and 47 last season, Nelson Cruz crushed 40 in 2014, and this season newcomer Mark Trumbo clubbed 47 of his own.  Trumbo, who was selected as an all-star in 2016, came to Baltimore in an offseason trade with the Seattle Mariners and immediately found a home; both at Camden Yards and in the middle of the Orioles lineup with a team leading 108 RBI.  The undisputed leader of the birds offense, Manny Machado put his name in the AL MVP conversation by leading the club in batting average (.294), hits (188), runs scored (105) and doubles (40).  Machado added 37 long balls, 96 RBI and played stellar defense at both third base and shortstop as he seeks his 3rd consecutive Gold Glove award (4th overall).  Chris Davis was among the top 10 in the league in home runs with 38 joining Trumbo and Machado to become the first trio in Orioles history to hit 30+ home runs.  Other offensive contributions were made by centerfielder, Adam Jones (29 HR, 83 RBI, 87 R), second baseman Jonathan Schoop (25 HR, 82 RBI, 82 R), catcher Matt Wieters (17 HR, 66 RBI) and left-handed slugger Pedro Alvarez who hit 22 home runs in just 337 at-bats.

The Orioles relied heavily on their top two starters starters, Chris Tillman and Kevin Gausman who were the only pitchers on the staff to make 30 starts. Tillman (16-6 3.77 ERA) lead the team in wins with 16, and Gausman leading the team in innings pitched (179 ⅔), strikeouts (174) and ERA (3.61).  The remainder of the starts were contributed mainly by veterans Ubaldo Jimenez (25 starts, 8-12)  and Yovani Gallardo (23 starts, 6-8) and 23 year old Dylan Bundy (10-6 109 ⅔ innings) appeared in 36 games, starting 14 in his well anticipated rookie campaign.  

The recipe to the Orioles success was working the game backwards much like the 2-time defending American League champion, Kansas City Royals.  After an all-star 2015 season the Orioles re-signed “submarine” reliever Darren O’Day who contributed 31 innings (11 K/9) who combined with New Jersey native, Brad Brach and closer Zach Britton to form one of the best bullpens in baseball.  Brach was named to the all-star team as he lead all relievers in WAR at the break. For the season, Brach (24 holds) appeared in a team high 71 games, winning 10 decisions, while striking out 92 batters in 79 innings.  The real show stopper of the team however came in the form of the team’s closer, Zach Britton.  Britton, in his 3rd year as the Orioles closer went a perfect 47 for 47 in save opportunities and is looking to become the first closer to win the Cy Young Award since Eric Gagne who went a perfect 55 for 55 in save opportunities for the Dodgers in 2003.  Britton allowed just 4 earned runs (3 of which were in the month of April) in 67 innings this year resulting in an astonishing ERA of 0.54, the lowest in MLB history for a pitcher who has appeared in a minimum of 50 games.

Zach Britton could become the first relief pitcher to win the Cy Young Award since 2003.  With his 47 “perfect” saves he became the 4th pitcher ever to produce a 40 save season with no blown saves.

How they got here, Toronto Blue Jays: Like their opponent, the Blue Jays had possession of first place in the AL East late into the season (September 5th to be exact).  On September 5th the Jays were 77-60, 1 game ahead of the Boston Red Sox and 2 ahead of the Baltimore Orioles.  Over their final 25 games they went 12-13 as part of a 11-16 September, ultimately losing their division lead, and narrowly hanging on to their spot in the postseason.

Like the Orioles the Blue Jays are built around big name sluggers, the most prominent reigning American League MVP,  Josh Donaldson who failed to disappoint in his second year playing in “The Six.”  Donaldson turned in another MVP caliber season hitting a team high .284 with 37 home runs, 99 RBI and 122 runs scored, matching his total from last season.  Edwin Encarnacion was selected to his third career all-star game and proceeded to tie his career high with 42 home runs previously set in 2010, en route to leading the American League in RBI with 127.  Troy Tulowitzki was able to stay on the field for 131 games, his most since 2011 (143 with COL) and hit 24 long balls while driving in 79 runs, his most since 2013 (82).  Canadian backstop Russell Martin hit 20 home runs and drove in 74 runs in his second year playing in his home country and fellow Canadian Michael Saunders was a first time all-star while hitting a career high 24 home runs.  Despite two DL stints, fan favorite Jose Bautista still managed to make his presence felt by opposing team’s, hitting 22 home runs and drive in 69 runs in just 116 games.

Again like the Orioles the Blue Jays have a Cy Young candidate of their own in J.A. Happ.  After having success in the second half of last season as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Happ signed a 3 year/36 million dollar contract to rejoin the Blue Jays whom he pitched for from 2012-2014.  Happ was signed to be the rotation’s lone left handed starter as former ace, David Price was likely to sign elsewhere.  To the surprise of many Happ actually had a better season that Price did in his new home in Boston.  Happ made 32 starts as the leader of the Jays staff posting a win-loss record of 20-4 with a 3.18 ERA.  His right hand man, 24 year old Aaron Sanchez who started the season as the team’s 5th starter, made 30 starts going 15-2 and even won the American League ERA title on the final day of the season (3.00).  The unlikeliest of combinations; Happ whose previous career high in wins was 12 back in 2009 and even lost as many as 15 games in 2011 and Aaron Sanchez who had made just 11 big league starts before this season became the league’s best 1-2 punch.  The remainder of the rotation consisting of; veteran Marco Estrada (29 starts, 9-9, 3.48 ERA), former Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey (29 starts 10-15 4.46 ERA), and the team’s Opening Day starter Marcus Stroman (32 starts 9-10 4.37 ERA) lead the American League in quality starts (100), starters ERA (3.64), innings pitched (995 ⅓), WHIP (1.22) and were 4th in strikeouts with 842.  The team also acquired former all-star Francisco Liriano from the Pittsburgh Pirates who pitched to the tune of a 1.77 ERA over his final 6 starts and could have an impact should they advance.  Liriano owns a career 3.48 ERA in 4 postseason appearances (3 starts).  The bullpen was manned by second year closer, Roberto Osuna who converted on 36 of his 42 save opportunities in addition to rookie Joe Biagini (67 ⅔ innings 3.06 ERA), longest tenured Blue Jay, southpaw Brett Cecil (11.05 K/9) and midseason acquisition Jason Grilli (21 holds).

The Toronto Blue Jays had the best starting rotation in the American League this year in terms of: quality starts, innings pitched, ERA, WHIP and batting average against.  From left to right: RHP R.A. Dickey, RHP Aaron Sanchez, Pitching Coach Pete Walker, LHP Francisco Liriano, RHP Marcus Stroman, LHP J.A. Happ, RHP Marco Estrada.

What to expect: The game has the makeup to be a slugfest but being that it’s a postseason game I find that to be unlikely.  Unlike the National League Wild Card game that is featuring two of the best pitchers on the planet, this game has the potential to be a typical American League game where both teams, “sit around and wait for a 3-run homer.” I would say that the starting pitching matchup of Chris Tillman and Marcus Stroman is a push.  Both pitchers have had a taste of the postseason before; Tillman with the O’s in 2014 and Stroman last year.  Both pitchers have struggled versus each others teams: Stroman a 7.04 ERA in 4 starts against Baltimore this year and despite going 1-0 with a 3.63 ERA in 4 starts against the Blue Jays this season, Tillman has a career mark of 5-10 with a 5.44 ERA in 24 starts versus the Jays in his career.  I wouldn’t be shocked if we saw a scenario like Game 7 of the 2014 World Series where neither starter made it past the 4th inning.  Both pitchers are certainly capable of leading their teams to victory, however I see it more likely that the game is won on the traditional 3-run homer…

X Factors

Baltimore Orioles: Zach Britton

Not going in a completely sabermetric analysis direction of using Britton as a “relief ace”, however I do see using him in an “old school” fashion as a definite possibility.  Before the days of having a relief pitcher for seemingly every role, the best relievers were used for multiple innings at a time; in today’s game that is an “old school” strategy. I don’t see Chris Tillman pitching a complete game as he only has two in his career and has averaged roughly 5 ⅔ innings per start this season.  With that being said, do you want to truly consider Zach Britton’s 2016 season as the greatest of all time by a relief pitcher? Let’s see how he can adjust to pitching more than one inning at a time.  With an “old school” manager like Buck Showalter I would not be surprised if he hadn’t already spoken with Britton about this possibility.  We have seen things like this in the postseason plenty of times but it makes it more special that to this point Britton’s season is perfect.

Toronto Blue Jays: Kevin Pillar & Francisco Liriano?

I picked two here as I always find some way to bend the rules when I do things like this…but hey this is my world, you’re just reading it.  I’ll start with the Blue Jays starting center fielder, Kevin Pillar as I know he’ll at least be in the lineup to prove he has what it takes to be my X-Factor.  I didn’t previously mention Pillar among his other teammates but he’s not someone to overlook.  Pillar played in 146 games this year for the Jays hitting .266 with 7 home runs, 53 RBI, 59 run scored and a team high 14 stolen bases; not typical numbers for a centerfielder.  What is not to be overlooked by Pillar however is his outstanding play in centerfield.  Over the past two years, Kevin Kiermaier of the Tampa Bay Rays is the only player in all of Major League Baseball to have a higher DRS (defensive runs saved) and dWAR (defensive wins above replacement than Pillar.  Again, I’m not a big sabermetric guy but coming from someone who watches the game and doesn’t go purely of statistics, these sabermetric stats are no fluke.  With the way the Orioles can smack the ball around the yard, Pillar could be on his horse all night long.

The Blue Jays went with the 25 year old, electric Marcus Stroman over Francisco Liriano to start their win-or-go-home Wild Card game.  Liriano being an X-Factor obviously only applies if he gets in the game in some sort of relief role.  The obvious being that Liriano last pitched on September 28th so he would be fully rested for a long relief role if needed.  But let’s make things more interesting. Coincidentally, Liriano’s last start on September 28th was against the Orioles where he struck out 10 batters. One of the Orioles biggest sluggers Chris Davis, bats from the left side, along with Michael Bourn, Hyun Soo Kim (who hit a walk-off 2-run home run off Jays closer Roberto Osuna), Matt Wieters is a switch hitter who would be forced to bat from his “weak” side and Pedro Alvarez; a lefty power threat who will likely be coming off the bench.  6 of Liriano’s strikeouts in that game came against arguable Baltimore’s Quartet of sluggers if you will: Manny Machado; twice, Mark Trumbo; twice and Chris Davis and Matt Wieters one a piece.  Maybe Liriano comes into a big spot late in the game in a lefty-lefty matchup.  The only other left hander in the Jays bullpen is Brett Cecil so maybe, just maybe Liriano and his 9.3 K/9 ratio get to make an impact.

The pick: Toronto Blue Jays

Putting their recent struggles aside, I’m going with the Blue Jays on this one just because their team needs it more.  They are the home team and maybe the fans clapping when their pitchers get 2 strikes could be the difference maker…In all seriousness, this could be the last run with the current Blue Jays superstars.  Two of the team’s longest tenured players Edwin Encarnacion ‘09 who will be 34 next season and Jose Bautista ‘08 who is turning 36 later this month are set to become free agents at season’s end.  Bautista has already stated that he will not be giving the Jays any “hometown discount.” Other notable Blue Jays set to become free agents are RHP R.A. Dickey, LHP Brett Cecil, OF Michael Saunders and C Dioner Navarro among others. Not getting too far ahead, but the Blue Jays rotation would fit nicely into a 5 or 7 game series.  Plus a win would set up an intense ALDS rematch from a year ago and who wouldn’t want to see that?

“The bat flip heard ’round the world” Jose Bautista epically flips his bat after launching a 3-run home run against the Texas Rangers in Game 5 of the 2015 ALDS.  The home run gave the Blue Jays a 6-3 lead in the 7th inning and the bat flip became an iconic symbol of Toronto’s first taste of October baseball since 1993.

Baseball community mourns passing of Marlins Jose Fernandez

WAYNE, N.J.- It is with a heavy heart that I reflect my own thoughts on the tragic passing of Miami Marlins phenom Jose Fernandez.  Fernandez, 24 was killed in a boating accident in the waters off Miami Beach in the early hours of Sunday morning.  Fernandez pitched just parts of 4 major league seasons, but he left behind a career that myself and many baseball fans alike will definitely not forget.  

Jose Fernandez made his major league debut on April 7, 2013 cruising through 5 innings on just 80 pitches, while surrendering just 1 run on 3 hits, fanning 8.  This Sunday matinee start was just a the beginning of what was a magical debut campaign.  Through his first 18 starts, Fernandez was 5-5 with a 2.75 era and 103 strikeouts in 104 ⅔ innings.  Fernandez was selected as the Marlins lone representative for the 84th edition of the Midsummer’s Classic, becoming the youngest in franchise history to do so. After pitching 1-2-3 6th inning that included 2 strikeouts in the All-Star game, Fernandez’ career really took off.  Over his final 10 starts of the season, Fernandez went 7-1 surrendering just 10 earned runs and striking out 84 batters over 68 innings, finishing the season 12-6 with an astonishing 2.19 ERA and 187 strikeouts over 172 ⅔ innings.

That Summer is when Fernandez really caught my eye, as well as the rest of the baseball world.  I was intrigued by this 20 year old pitcher who baffled veteran hitters with his electric repertoire.  His bright orange glove, upper 90’s fastball and wicked sharp curveball that seemed like something out of a video game.  He was so fierce in competition and was truly a joy to watch.  As a young pitcher myself, I always made sure I watched his starts.  I bought a Miami Marlins hat and even got my haircut like him, a mohawk with the essential chinstrap beard, I was hooked.  It added to the fact that Matt Harvey of the New York Mets was just starting to burst on to the scene. Harvey had been selected to start the All-Star game (partially because the game was at Citi Field). Mets fans had overhyped Harvey calling him “The Dark Knight” and the days he started “Harvey Day.”  I couldn’t stand this so fittingly, Fernandez became my new guy.  Throughout the season I argued that he was a better pitcher than Harvey.  This argument proved true as not only did Fernandez edge out fellow Cuban defector Yasiel Puig for National League Rookie of the Year honors, but he finished 3rd in the National League Cy Young Award, ahead of Matt Harvey who finished 4th.

To add to Fernandez’ charisma on the field, he had a story of love and struggle that really made me want to root for him.  In 2007, Fernandez defected from Cuba (on his 4th attempt) at the age of 15.  Despite finally defecting from Cuba and settling in the Tampa Bay area, Fernandez left “the love of his life,” his Grandmother, who helped raise him, back in Cuba.  He had talked about going out and pitching for his Grandmother, and being willing to do anything to get her to the states.  After 6 plus years of separation, the Marlins arranged for Fernandez’ Grandmother to come to the United States.  His Grandmother saw him pitch for the first time on Opening Day in 2014 at Marlins Park, and she had been at every home start since.  I remember hearing about the story and thinking how I, like Fernandez, had been “separated” from my Grandmother who I was extremely close to.  To see Fernandez express the same love for his Grandmother really made me  gravitate further to him.

After missing parts of the 2014 and 2015 season recovering from Tommy John surgery, Fernandez was having his best statistical season in 2016.  In 29 starts, Fernandez was 16-8 with a 2.86 ERA and a league leading 253 strikeouts.  His final start, September 20th, was the best start of his career.  He blanked the Washington Nationals over 8 innings, scattering 3 hits, zero base on balls and 12 strikeouts in a 1-0 Marlins victory.

Jose Fernandez will surely be missed by all of Major League Baseball.  As a fan of the game, he was the type of pitcher you made sure you were home to watch pitch every fifth day.  Unfortunately, I never saw Fernandez pitch in person, however you could feel the emotion and passion he brought to the game right from your living room.  Jose Fernandez short burst of dominance in Major League Baseball makes him one of the biggest “what if” stories of this generation.  Being just 24 years old, and only making 76 big league starts makes it hard to accurately project the remainder of his career.  Despite this, there is no denying how much talent and endless potential he had to be all-time great. If these 76 starts were just a glimpse of what was to come, I believe he would have undoubtedly made the illustrious trip to Cooperstown.

Career Statistics and Accolades

Miami Marlins 2013-2016

76 games started, 38-17, 471 ⅓ innings pitched, 2.58 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 11.2 K/9

2013 National League Rookie of the Year

2013 Sporting News Rookie of the Year

2x National League All-Star (2013, 2016)

Finished 3rd in 2013 National League Cy Young Award Voting (1st in K/9, 2nd in ERA, 6th in K’s)

2x National League Rookie of the Month (July, August 2013)

National League Pitcher of the Month (April 2014)

4x National League Player of the Week

Marlins rookie record for most strikeouts in a game (14)

Won first his 17 home decisions (26 starts, June 1, 2013-September 25, 2015)

Overall 29-2 record at home (42 starts)

In 2014 he became the youngest Opening Day starting pitcher since Dwight Gooden in 1986

Fastest pitcher in MLB history to 500 K’s (400 ip) 3rd fastest in terms of batters faced (1,587)

Career ERA + of 150, best all-time in post World War II era among pitchers with 70+ career starts

Rest in Peace Jose D. Fernandez July 31, 1992-September 25, 2016

 

Our excuse is that we’re young? Baby Bombers to fall short on improbable postseason run

WAYNE, N.J.-After the “mutual agreement” to release Alex Rodriguez following one last home game against the Tampa Bay Rays on August 12th, the New York Yankees were looking to make a transition into unfamiliar territory, youth.  Once regarded as one of Major League Baseball’s oldest teams, it is now their youth that may have cost them any last strand of hope of a postseason berth for the 2016 campaign.  

Let’s back track first: to how the 2016 Yankees even had the word “postseason” cross their mind. The Yankees won Rodriguez’ final  game by a score of 6-3 improving their overall record to 59-56.  Despite the win they remained 6 games out of the American League East and 6.5 games behind the second Wild Card spot.  For the first time in recent memory the Yankees were sellers at the trade deadline as Carlos Beltran had been traded to the Texas Rangers, and Aroldis Chapman, Andrew Miller, and Ivan Nova had been shipped to the Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Indians, and Pittsburgh Pirates respectively.

The following day the Yankees called up two “Baby Bombers” if you will, 6’7” slugger Aaron Judge, and first baseman Tyler Austin.  Both players penciled in the lineup for the matinee matchup against Tampa Bay, Austin batting 7th, Judge 8th.  Both players homered in their first at-bat *back to back belly to belly* becoming the first players in MLB history to do so.  The Yanks went on to win the game 8-4, taking the first 2 games of the series.  At the time this move was about getting the young players experience, but that was before it was a thought that these young players would bring the excitement and energy the club would need to make a postseason run.

The Bombers turned in a 3-3 record on the homestand squandering the final game of the Rays series followed by dropping 2 of 3 to the Toronto Blue Jays.  The next stretch of games saw the Yanks win 4 straight series: taking 2 of 3 from the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Seattle Mariners, Baltimore Orioles, and Kansas City Royals.  During this stretch “Baby Bomber” back stop, Gary Sanchez lead the way smashing 6 home runs, becoming the fastest player in MLB history to hit 11 home runs doing so in just 23 games.  Sanchez was also named AL Rookie and Player of the month of August in addition to 2 player of the week selections for the weeks of 8/21 and 8/28. This stretch of moderate success made the postseason a thought again, as on August 31st the Yankees sat just 2.5 games out of the second AL Wild Card spot.

After dropping the first two games of September to the Orioles, the Yankees picked up the final game of the 3 game set before heading home to welcome the first place Toronto Blue Jays into town.  The Yanks swept the 3 game series with the Jays, headlined by a leaping catch at the warning track by Brett Gardner to secure the middle game of the series.  More importantly the division was within reach sitting just 4.5 games out and a measly 2.5 games out of the wild card, Fueled by a walk-off home run by “Baby Bomber” Tyler Austin in the opening game of the series, the bombers took the first 3 games of their series with the Rays.  On September 10th the new look Yankees sat 1 game out of the second wild card spot and just 3 games out of the division lead, who would have thought?

And that is where the fun ended, at least for 2016 that is.  After falling in the final game of the Tampa Bay series, the Yankees entertained an interleague matchup with the Los Angeles Dodgers who took advantage of the Yanks sloppy play in the first game winning by a score of 8-2.  The series was knotted up at a game apiece after a 3-0 Yankee win.  The final game will be remembered as the day the season was thrown away, literally. A tough matchup opposed the Yanks as Clayton Kershaw was the starter for the Dodgers, but a rain delay forced Kershaw out of the game after 6 near perfect innings, and the Bombers had a fighting chance heading into the 9th inning in a scoreless tie.  Dellin Betances entered the game only to have the innings leadoff batter Corey Seager reached base on an error, steal second and score the game’s first run on a double by Justin Turner.  After recording the first out of the inning allowing Turner to advance to third, the next batter Yasmani Grandal hit a dribbler back to the mound that Betances fielded and made an errant throw to the plate that was “just a bit outside” allowing for the second and final run to score.  The same way the Yankees season began, on an errant throw by Dellin Betances on April 5th against the Houston Astros is the same way the Yankees season came to its unofficial end.

The past weekend’s slate took the Yankees to Fenway Park to take on the rival Red Sox for one final stand.  After leading the series’ opening game 5-2 heading into the bottom of the 9th inning,  a second Betances meltdown in as many nights found the Red Sox walk-off winners by a score of 7-5 courtesy of a 3 run home run by Hanley Ramirez.  After dropping the second game of the series, the Yankees lead the third game 5-4 in the 7th inning before squandering yet another late lead. The final game saw C.C. Sabathia get within one out from throwing 5 scoreless innings before Hanley Ramirez blasted a 3-run home run over the Green Monster trimming the Yankees lead to 4-3. Ramirez would then go on to hit a solo shot in the 7th to give the Red Sox the lead for good and officially put the nail in the coffin for the 2016 season. (Ramirez would go a torrid 9-16 with 4 HR and 9 RBI in the series) The Yankees had not been swept in a 4 game series by the Red Sox in more than a quarter of a century, and more importantly sit 8 games out of the division and 4 games (behind 4 teams) for the second Wild Card spot.

Having meaningful baseball in September was fun while it lasted, an after thought for a team that traded its best hitter, two best relief pitchers, and were just 3 games over .500 on the 12th of August.  The “Baby Bombers” are getting the experience everyone wanted them to, and the farm system is completely rebuilt, and is set up to produce top big league talent for years to come.  Not only were they playing in the big leagues, but they were playing meaningful games in the middle of  a September pennant race.  This may have hurt the 2016 Yankees but the hope is that future Yankees teams featuring these young players will reap the benefits for years to come.

Next season the likes of Gary Sanchez who has belted 16 home runs, the most by a Yankee rookie since Hideki Matsui in ‘03 and has played his way into the AL Rookie of the Year conversation, Tyler Austin who has contributed some big hits thus far, Aaron Judge who despite struggling  in his short time with the club before landing on the DL has shown plenty of pop, and the versatile Rob Refsnyder will all have important roles.  From the pitching side Luis Cessa and Bryan Mitchell have started games with an October feel to them, and Luis Severino has been spectacular since coming back from AAA, being used exclusively out of the bullpen.  Despite missing the entire 2016 season with a torn labrum, Greg Bird should also have a big impact on the team next year taking over the first base position from the soon to be retired Mark Teixeira.  The future is bright in Yankee land, however with 13 games remaining the 2016 season has now officially become just about getting the young kids valuable experience.  How valuable may this experience be? Only time will tell.

 

A-Night to Remember: A-Rod’s “RET1R3MENT”

KENDALL PARK, N.J.-The summer of  2016 was an eventful one for me.  It was the first summer of my college experience, giving me an extra month of no school! I spent most of my time chasing my dream; playing the game I love, baseball.  I was also able to hang out with my friends from back home, and visit Yankee Stadium and Citi Field numerous times.  Most of my time from Monday through Friday was spent working 40 plus hours a week in a soon to be warehouse for an electrical union, and spending a week down the shore with my family.  However, one night of the in particular stands out above the rest, Friday, August 12th.

Backstory

By 4:00 pm on August 1st, otherwise known as the Major League Baseball trade deadline, the New York Yankees baseball’s most prolific franchise was on the outside looking in.  Through 105 games of the 162 game MLB season the Yanks sat at 53-52 sitting 5.5 games out of the American League’s second Wild Card.  To make the situation worse they had just traded their two best relief pitchers: Aroldis Chapman and Andrew Miller, as well as their best offensive threat, Carlos Beltran.  Granted these trades brought back a significant amount of young talent, however it appeared the dog days of summer were coming early this year.  The organization made it clear that they were ready to move on, dedicating themselves to selling for the first time in twenty plus years, and start a new generation of Yankee baseball.

The next revolving question was what would the Yankees do with their aging super-star number thirteen, Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez, better known as “A-Rod.”  A-Rod is not only one of the best hitters of this generation but is among the all-time greats of America’s pastime.  14 all-star appearances, 3 American League MVP Awards (2003, 2005, 2007), 10 Silver Slugger Awards, 2 Gold Glove Awards, a World Series Championship in 2009.  Rodriguez is also 20th on the all-time hits list with 3115, 3rd in rbi with 2086, 8th in runs scored with 2021, and 4th on the all-time home run list with 696.  These prolific numbers however are in Rodriguez’ distant past as he is in the final 2 years of a ten year two hundred seventy-five million dollar contact.  Rodriguez now 41 years old was struggling mightily this season, has battled numerous injuries in recent years, in addition to having to serve a season long suspension in 2014 for his role in the Biogenesis scandal involving performance enhancing drugs.

The 2015 season served as a “Cinderella” comeback season for A-Rod who hit .252, a team leading 33 home runs, and 86 rbi.  His 2016 season to this point had been a completely different story with Rodriguez struggling to keep his batting average above .200 while hitting just 9 home runs.  Rodriguez had also began to lose his at-bats to younger players as the organization remained dedicated towards building for the future.

The Press Conference

 On Sunday, August 7, 2016 Alex Rodriguez held a press conference at Yankee Stadium prior to the team’s game against the Cleveland Indians. Rodriguez’ message during the press conference was to announce that despite there being a year remaining on his contract, he and the organization had come to a mutual agreement that he would become a front office special advisor for the final year of the contract while collecting the remaining twenty-one million dollars. The two sides also agreed that A-Rod’s final game in a New York Yankee uniform would be the team’s next home game, Friday, August 12th against the Tampa Bay Rays at Yankee Stadium.  

Initial Reaction

When this breaking news was announced, I was at a baseball game of my own, playing in the final tournament of my 18U season.  The first thing that came to my mind was to buy tickets to what was sure to be a historic night at Yankee Stadium.  However, I was focused on winning my upcoming game as I was the starting pitcher of my team’s quarter-final game with our season on the line. Unfortunately, we came up short and our season was over however shortly after I shifted my attention to doing everything in my power to make sure I was in attendance for A-Rod’s last game in pinstripes.  

I ultimately ended up buying 5 tickets off StubHub, grandstand infield on the third base side,  section 426, row 14.  The tickets were for myself, my Dad, Grandfather, Uncle, and little cousin.  It was equally important to me to have my Dad and Grandfather with me at the game as I knew this would be a great night for 3 generations of Lombardi’s to spend together.  Way back on April 8, 2004 “The Lombardi Gang” were among the 55,000 fans packed into Old Yankee Stadium for A-Rod’s first home game in Yankee pinstripes.  This scenario made it even more special that my family and I were in attendance to welcome A-Rod to baseball donning Yankee pinstripes as well as wish him farewell; I guarantee most people cannot say the same.

Pre-Game

We all packed into one car and drove into the Stadium in the Bronx, getting there plenty early to soak up the energy of the big night.  I was even able to get an on air interview outside of the stadium with News 12 Bronx on my thoughts of the game.  Once in the Stadium we waited in anticipation for A-Rod’s pre-game farewell ceremony.  I was prepared with my Yankee game program, my personal scorebook, and my camera to record the final moments of a historic yet controversial career.  As we inched closer to game time, dark clouds and whipping winds began to take over the stadium and the surrounding burrows.  Ultimately the game was delayed but the pre-game ceremony was to go on as planned.  To say I was outraged was an understatement.  The rain began to fall just as the ceremony was starting, with the rain coming down harder and harder until it was torrential downpouring with overwhelming strikes of lighting taking over the Bronx Summer sky.  Alex was down on the field receiving gifts from the Yankees front office accompanied by his family; 2 daughters, mother, sister, brother, former teammate and Yankee legend Mariano Rivera.  The rain was coming down so hard that fans were running for cover  the ceremony had to be abruptly interrupted and was never resumed.

The Game

The tarp was removed shortly after the ceremonies abrupt ending (I still do not understand why they would delay the game and not the ceremony) and the stadium’s energy was electric in anticipation for A-Rod’s first at-bat of the night.  In Alex’s first at bat he worked the count to 2-2 before lacing the next Chris Archer offering into the right centerfield gap, hitting off the base of the wall driving in Brett Gardner to put the Yankees ahead 1-0.  The stadium erupted and all I could do was smile satisfied that I got my one last A-Rod moment. A-Rod went hitless for his remaining 3 at bats but he had one more signature moment as he started the 9th inning at 3rd base, his longtime position as a Yankee although his duties the past two seasons have come mainly as the DH.  He was removed from third base after the first out of the inning was recorded and the Yankee faithful of more than 47,000 in attendance could give him one last standing ovation where he gracefully tipped his cap and took a curtain call thanking the Yankee fans.  The Yankees were able to record the final two outs and secure a 6-3 victory.

One Last A-Bomb From A-Rod

I had thought I had seen all that A-Rod had to offer Yankee fans like everyone else in the stadium that night.  However, my final A-Rod experience was different than most.  My cousin and I were waiting outside of the players parking deck where all of the Yankee players driving out from inside the stadium.  The most important car; at least for the night, was a white SUV with tinted windows.  Obviously tinted windows made it tough to tell who was in the car, however I had heard some fans yell, “A-ROD!” So as the car made a left out of the stadium parking lot I started running down East 161st street until I flagged down the vehicle that was sitting in traffic.  I was frantically waving my arms screaming “A-ROD A-ROD A-ROD” and to my disbelief riding in the passenger seat was none other than A-Rod! He rolled down his window and he shook my hand and we both smiled at each other.  I remember saying thank you to Alex.  Thank you for being more than just a baseball player, but for being someone I have always idolized since I was a little kid, as well as providing countless memories that I will have forever.

The headlines were pouring down the next morning (literally).  The front cover of the New York Post headlining, “GOD HATES A-ROD” and the back cover headlining, “GOOD TO THE LAST DROP.” Both titles taking digs at not only the rain shortened ceremony but the controversial career of Alex Rodriguez.  I collected the August 13th edition of the New York Post and Daily News as I do after every big Yankee game.  I also have a collectible shirt that my Grandfather negotiated for at a stand on the street, a ticket stub from section 426 that my Dad found on the ground of the Stadium (a cool find because most tickets unfortunately are electronic these days), photos mostly taken by my Dad, videos with my commentary in the background, and most importantly memories that will last a lifetime with people I won’t forget.

Scooter’s Pinstripes

WAYNE, N.J.- Through the first 4 series of the young campaign the Yankees are sitting at 5-6 heading into the a series with the Oakland Athletics beginning on Tuesday.  After dropping the season opener against Houston, the Yanks were able to rebound with back to back wins out slugging the Astros a combined 24-11 in the final 2 games of the series.  The first road trip of the year took the Bombers to Detroit to face a stellar Jordan Zimmermann in his Tigers debut.  The second and final game of the series was headlined by a great first start by C.C. Sabathia who went yielded just 3 runs on 4 hits over 6 innings for the win.   Sunday night’s game had been postponed due to inclement weather.

 The following series took the Yanks North of the border to face off with division foe the Toronto Blue Jays.  The Yanks took the first game behind a solid but short outing from Masahiro Tanaka who left the game trailing 2-1 before a Brian McCann home run and a Jacoby Ellsbury RBI single gave the Yanks the lead for good.  The middle game of the series the Yanks were within striking distance trailing 3-2 in the 8th before Ivan Nova entered the game and yielded 4 runs on 5 hits, 3 of which for extra bases.  In the rubber game of the 3 game set, starter Nate Eovaldi was cruising through the first 4 innings before serving up a 3-run home run to the reigning American League MVP, Josh Donaldson in the 5th, and a solo home run to Troy Tulowitzki in the 6th.

The weekend series with Seattle was not kind to the Yanks either as the offense combined to score just 3 runs while going 0-24 with RISP over the first 2 games. The starting pitching was subpar starting with Luis Severino and company who combined to surrender 7 runs in the series opener.  Despite a promising first outing against the Tigers, in the middle game Sabathia failed to get through the 5th inning as he gave up 3 runs on 5 hits in the 5th inning alone.  For the final game of the series, the Yanks sent their ace Masahiro Tanaka to the mound to stop the 4 game losing skid.  Tanaka was just the man for the job.  While facing off against his fellow country man Hisashi Iwakuma,  Tanaka cruised through 7 solid innings, while striking out 6 for the win.  Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller closed out the win pitching the 8th and 9th respectively as they both struck out the 3 men they faced.

The good

Starlin Castro: The 26 year old, 3x all-star has seemed to adjust to the Bronx quite well hitting .333 with 2 HR, 9 RBI, 2 SB in his first 11 games with the club.  I can see Castro putting up similar numbers to Robinson Cano during his age 26 season in 2009 where he hit .320 with 25 HR and 85 RBI en route to a World Series title.

Carlos Beltran: The 38 year old right fielder is in the final year of his 3 year/45 million dollar contract is performing up to expectations.  After putting up solid numbers last season from May on, Beltran has picked up right where he left off hitting  .341 with 3 home runs and RBI on the young season.

Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller: Both guys have been putting up video game numbers.  Starting with Betances, he is yet to allow an earned run and of the 18 outs he has recorded so far this season 15 of them have been via the strikeout.  Miller has recorded 3 saves thus far, and like Betances has not allowed an earned run while recording 12 of the 15 outs he has recorded via the strikeout.  Not to mention fireballer Aroldis Chapman will return from his 30 game suspension on May 9th.

THE BAD

Jacoby Ellsbury: In the 3rd year of a 7 year 153 million dollar deal Ellsbury is struggling at the plate hitting just .213 with 3 extra base hits none of which have left the ballpark.  One positive for Ellsbury is his team leading 4 stolen bases; a key element to his game despite swiping just 21 bags a year ago

A-Rod: The 40 year old DH is struggling at the dish hitting .118 over his first 34 at-bats.  He broke an 0-19 slump with a 2-run home run today his second of the season.  It is still early and Alex is historically a slow starter but age will remain a looming question during the final 2 seasons of his contract.

Starting Pitching: With every starter making 2 starts and Masahiro Tanaka making 3 it is fair to say they have been less than stellar.  With the exception of Tanaka every other starting pitcher has an ERA north of 5.  Through 11 games the starting pitcher has gone more than 5 innings just 6 times, and more than 6 innings just once.

The Yanks will play host for a 3 game series with the Oakland Athletics beginning on Tuesday, before welcoming the Tampa Bay Rays for the weekend.

Meet The Mets: Staff Edition

WAYNE, N.J.- After 6 weeks of Spring Training the New York Mets are finally ready to head to their home in Flushing, New York before opening the season Sunday, April 3rd at Kauffman Stadium for a World Series rematch against the Kansas City Royals.  Similar to how I focused on the position players in the last edition, I will now be focusing on the undisputed strength of the club heading into the 2016 campaign; pitching.

Matt Harvey age 27 13-8/2.71 ERA/188 K’s

Arguably the face of the franchise, Matt Harvey will look to lead the young, powerful Mets staff in 2016.  Harvey is now 30 months removed from Tommy John surgery and is coming off a 2015 season in which he sets career highs in games started (29), wins (13), and innings pitched (189 ⅓).

Noah Syndergaard age 23 9-7/3.24 ERA/166 K’s

Entering his first full season where he will be pitching from “60 feet 6 inches” on a major league mound, Syndergaard will look to build off a successful rookie campaign that saw him finish 4th in the National League Rookie of the Year voting.  Just to clarify the distance between pitcher’s mound and home plate has not changed, and has been “60 feet 6 inches” since 1893.

Jacob deGrom age 27 14-8/2.54 ERA/205 K’s

A bit of a late bloomer in comparison to his fellow staff mates, deGrom has been the Mets best starter each of the past two seasons.  deGrom paced the staff a season ago in wins (14), ERA (2.54), strikeouts (205), WHIP (0.98), and batting average against; with opposing batters hitting just a  miniscule .215 against him.  In his two big league seasons, deGrom has been rewarded with a Rookie of the Year award in 2014, in addition to last year where he made an All-Star game appearance in Cincinnati where he struck out the side, to go with a 7th place finish in the National League Cy Young Award.

Steven Matz age 24 4-0/2.27 ERA/34 K’s

Steven Matz major league debut last June against the Cincinnati Reds was one for the ages.  Not only did he pitch brilliantly over 7 ⅔ innings fanning 6, while allowing just 2 men to score, but he added a perfect day at the plate going 3-3 with a double and 4 RBI.  After making just one more start however, Matz spent a month on the DL with a tear in his left lat muscle.  Matz made four starts during the final month of the regular season in addition to starting one game in each of the post-season rounds.

Bartolo Colon age 42 14-13/4.16 ERA/136 K’s

Although much of the attention Colon received in 2015 was in response his breakout year at the plate that saw him collect 8 base hits on his way to hitting an overwhelming .138, on the mound Colon managed to work both sides of the plate while changing speeds to enjoy continued success in his 18th season as a hurler.  Whatever fun you want to poke at Bartolo Colon whether it is his weight, appearance in the batter’s box and the basepaths, or the fact that he is the last remaining MLB player who played for the Montreal Expos,  just know that he is still pitching and doing it quite effectively.  Last season was Colon’s third consecutive where he made 30 starts and pitched over 190 innings.  After re-signing with the club this offseason, Colon will serve as a placeholder in the rotation until Zach Wheeler makes his return from Tommy John surgery that underwent in March 2015.

The bullpen will include closer Jeurys Familia who converted 43 of 48 save opportunities in his first year in the role a season ago.  Joining Familia at the backend will be set-up man Addison Reed who pitched well for the Mets after coming over from the Arizona Diamondbacks late last season.  Reed also has experience in the closer role where he saved 97 games from 2012-2014.  Other arms out of the ‘pen will include southpaws, Antonio Bastardo who signed as a free agent after spending last season with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Jerry Blevins, and Josh Edgin who is recovering from Tommy John Surgery.  The bullpen will be balanced with additional right-handed pitchers, Hansel Robles, and Jim Henderson who has not pitched in a major league game since 2014 but did compile 28 saves for the Milwaukee Brewers in 2013.

Meet The Mets: Position Players Edition

WAYNE, N.J.- With just two weeks until Opening Day clubs are fine tuning in anticipation of the long 162 game season ahead.  This edition I will be focusing on the position players of the team reporting out of Port St. Lucie, Florida,  the defending National League Champion New York Mets.

Catcher: Travis D’Arnaud age 27 .268/12 HR/41 RBI

After an injury plagued 2015 campaign the Mets backstop is heading into the prime of his career and is looking for a breakout year.  D’Arnaud only saw action in 68 games last season but still managed to drive in 41 runs, and set a career high in Slugging Percentage.

First Base: Lucas Duda age 30 .244/27 HR/73 RBI

Duda took a step backwards last season after having a career year in 2014 where he slashed .252/30 HR/92 RBI.  Known as a streaky hitter throughout his career, Duda struggled mightily during June and July where he hit under the “Mendoza line” in both months.  The Mets will need Lucas Duda to return to 2014 form and be a consistent run producer in the middle of the lineup.

Second Base: Neil Walker age 30 .269/16 HR/71 RBI (with Pittsburgh)

After playing for his hometown Pirates for the first 7 years of his career, Neil Walker was dealt to the Mets in exchange for left handed pitcher, Jon Niese.  Walker will be replacing Mets Post-Season hero (well almost) Daniel Murphy who signed a free agent deal with the Washington Nationals over the off-season.  Walker is a definite defensive upgrade over Murphy; a defensive liability and their career offensive numbers are very similar.

Third Base: David Wright age 33 .289/5 HR/17 RBI

Entering his 13th season with the Mets, team captain David Wright is nowhere near the super star player he once was, however his veteran presence will continue to have an impact on the club.  Wright saw action in just 38 games a year ago after being diagnosed with spinal stenosis; and injury that ended former Yankees captain Don Mattingly’s career after the 1995 season.  Wright has not hit 30 home runs since 2008 or driven in 100 runs since 2010 however he is still considered a veteran hitter whose presence will help the team when healthy.

Short Stop: Asdrubal Cabrera age 30 .265/15 HR/58 RBI (with Tampa Bay)

Cabrera signed a 2 year/18.5 million dollar contract with the Mets this offseason and should be a sure upgrade over the former Ruben Tejada and the now reserve infielder Wilmer Flores (age 23 .263/16 HR/59 RBI.)  Cabrera has shown to be a consistent player in his career possesses solid defensive skills in addition to being named to two American League All-Star teams.

Outfield:

Yoenis Cespedes age 30 .291/35 HR/105 RBI (with Detroit & New York)

After being dealt mid-season to the Mets last season from Detroit, Cespedes became the Mets main contributor to ending the club’s 8 year playoff drought.  Cespedes hit historically well after joining the Mets hitting 17 HR and driving in 44 runs in just 57 games.  After signing a 3 year/75 million dollar contract to return to the Mets, Cespedes will be looked to carry the torch and pace the offense.

Curtis Granderson age 35 .259/26 HR/70 RBI

Granderson struggled in 2014 his first year with the Mets after spending the previous 4 seasons with cross-town rival the New York Yankees.  In 2015 Granderson was reunited with his Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long and was able to return to form, and be the Mets most consistent hitter until Cespedes arrived.  Granderson is a veteran leader who still has some pop and plays solid corner outfield position.

Michael Conforto age 23 .270/9 HR/26 RBI

Conforto got his first taste of the big leagues last season after playing in 56 contests after debuting in late July.  He will be transitioning into an everyday role primarily playing left field against against right handed pitchers while being spelled by Gold Glove, speedster Juan Lagares (age 27 .259/6 HR/41 RBI) against southpaws.

Reserves: C Kevin Plawecki, INF Wilmer Flores, INF Eric Campbell, OF Alejandro De Aza