Week Eight
(May 23rd – May 29th)
“Birthdays, My Bachelor Party,
A Christening and Baseball”
Before the Subway
The long week started off with rain all over the country and questionable weather. The Mets only played one against Florida on Monday and two against the Nationals on Wednesday & Thursday. The pitching was looking real effective as they lost Monday night in 11 innings 2-1. Mike Pelfrey pitched 7 strong innings, but Florida used seven pitchers to defeat the banged up Flushing crew. After a rainout on Tuesday the Mets pitching lead the way with two shutouts against the Nationals. Rain was falling continuously and Jon Niese won his third game of the season pitching 7 innings with a season high 7 K’s. Izzy-“old man”-ringhausen picked up his 10th hold and lowered his ERA under 2.00 to 1.93 on the season. Then the Mets and the now quietly unmentioned or talked about Frankie Rodriguez closed out another game on Thursday night. It was another shutout for the Mets at 1-0 and one more save for K-Rod. Remember him? Number 14 on the year and get this…his ERA…0.79. I haven’t seen that since he was bought by the Mets in 2009. The lineup was banged up with no D. Wright or Ike Davis, but the pitching was doing the job as they moved closer to the Bronx for a wild three game series. Their closer hasn’t given up a run in May and is secretly putting together his best season since the year of his 62 saves.
The Yankees didn’t have to deal with the rain when they went down to split a two game series in Tampa Bay. A.J. was looking real good again on Monday night as the battle for 1st place began. Granderson helped the Yankees jump out towards a 5-0 lead by the 5th inning with his 1st of three HRs this week. The little Grandyman seems to have the most power right now on a big Yankee squad. Mr. Burnett finally imploded in the 6th inning and Joe Girardi waited way too long to pull him out. So after the Yankees got a nice cushion on David Price before you knew it those scrappy “devil” Rays were victorious by the end of the night. This loss made it six in a row for the Yankees and you felt worry in the air. Boston was now gaining ground and Tampa Bay took over first place outright. What was going on and how can this be? It was as if the Yankees were drifting down a rolling river the wrong way and everyone on the boat was just sitting around letting the vessel sink. The bats needed to wake up! 23-5 in the next three games will turn this around and that’s how they solve despair in the die-hard fans eyes. Ivan Nova pitches a gem on Tuesday while he got support by the one-time struggling Alex Rodriguez as he blasted 2 solo HR’s to get out of his funk. As the traveled into Baltimore (Yankee Stadium “South”) the team wanted to play extra innings. It took them 15 innings in an extremely long night to win 4-1. The game took just under 5 hours and should have been over and done with in the ninth, but Mariano Rivera blew his 3rd save of the season and 2nd against the Orioles this year. A-Rod went 4-7 putting the long three week slump behind him. The following day the Orioles had nothing in the tank and lost for 2nd time this year to C.C. as he pitched 8 innings of shutout ball and the Yankees began to stir the ship in the right direction moving into the Subway Series.
The Past (week seven):
My brother came in from Indiana this week to celebrate my sister’s 40th (which was actually in March) and my Bachelor Party on Saturday. To add fuel to the fire my good friend had his first child’s Christening on Sunday afternoon all while the Mets and Yankees lock in and do the first of their two battles, this time in the Bronx. I’ll be straight up honest with you and have you understand this weekend was like back in the day. When I saw some innings on TV it was at a bar or a party or a restaurant and the sound was off as the crowds and rowdiness passed by in the background. The best part about it was that everyone talked about updates of the games. What the score was on the bus ride home from Belmont Park on Saturday with thirty drunken friends. Some would chant “Let’s Go Mets!” and the Yankee fans would just snarl. The games were a part of the weekend no matter where I was or how much money I was spending, if I looked up the game was there. If I asked a friend, the update was being search on his phone. It was a great weekend, but my memory is jumbled…
GAME ONE:
The night started off easy, calm, relaxed. Descent restaurant in Babylon and the first order of drinks were in. The game was about to being and the first pitch would be missed. R.A. Dickey needed to pitch a gem against Freddy Garcia. It was a game I know could’ve went either was with it being an offensive show or for some reason a tight pitching duel if both pitchers brought their stuff. Dinner lasted 5 innings as the good times ensued and birthday songs were sung. The game was stuck at 1-1 in the 5th and I was pleasantly surprised. I thought the series was going to be a runaway with all the injuries on the Mets side, but they hung and clung on to do battle. In front of 47,874 people R.A. continued to pitch his way out of trouble and gave the Mets 6 innings of one run baseball. When I saw the game for the first time I was surprised that the stadium actually looked full. The seats behind home plate had heads in them and the spirit of the game really took off.
It was time to move on to the next place. A better bar, the kind where you know the bartender, but in my case still don’t really want to be there with people stepping on my feet and bumping into my chest as I walk through the place. We get to the spot and hear that Daniel Murphy just hit a homerun giving the Mets their first lead of the series. The place was about to switch over from a band in the bar to a deejay making it a dance club. We went outside on the first nice comfortable night in over a week and proceeded to drink, laugh and glance at the Mets hold on to a 2-1 lead for the rest of the night. I’ll admit it was shocking for me to see. I thought the Mets had no chance this weekend, but in front of a packed house Frankie Rodriguez kept his scoreless month of May streak alive and well. Save number 15 and win number one.
GAME TWO:
I was waking up early for a trip to Belmont racetrack in the morning. This was no ordinary relaxing trip to the park on a beautiful spring day with a couple of buddies. This was the beginning of my bachelor party and I found myself with a beer in my hand at 10:30am. Mmmmm breakfast. My brother rounded up 30 or so friends and the school bus was to arrive soon to experience the Preakness Stakes at Belmont. Sounds odd, but if you enjoy betting it was the most gorgeous day of the weekend by far. The Mets and Yankees were on later that night, but I was going to win money first and get drunk second. By the time it was to take the bus ride home I switched that theory quickly. Get drunk and losing money. As the Preakness approached at 6pm with rumors of the end of the world and a giant storm looked to begin I decided to spend all the money on my betting voucher on every horse but the winner I bowed my head in disgust. God Damn Shackleford kicked my ass like the rest of the Belmont card that afternoon. However, the beers never disappointed and the brownies are always considered a special treat.
The day was fantastic and the bus ride home was just as funny as the crazy bus ride there. My bald Met fan friend (who was wasted by 5pm easy) started a Met chant as he realized they took a 2-0 lead in the first inning. I remember being shocked, and saying “Holy Shit, the Yankees need to pull it together.” Bald Bobby replied with a simple “No they don’t” and the loudness and drunkenness continued. The big yellow school bus packed with drunken fools finally made it home alive in time for a group dinner where they serve pitchers of beers out of boots (das-boot) and the wait staff pours shots for a bachelor like it’s their job to put you down for the night. The Mets were down 4-3 when we got there and from every cigarette break in between shots off Kettle One, Wild Turkey, Jagermister a pitcher of beer and a delicious medium rare steak it seemed the further and further the Mets would be of shocking New York and taking the first two. I saw Curtis Granderson and Alex Rodriguez’s HRs in the 6th as the Yankees were pulling away. The Yankees hit four big ones off of Capuano that night and that was enough for A.J. to cling to. Jose Reyes continued to hit the ball and get on base and with amazement to my eyes I realized he had 17 SB’s already this year after such a slow start. He really is one of the best lead-off hitters in the game and it makes me laugh that some fans want him gone. There is no other guy in a farm team anywhere that will do what he does, especially in Citi Field where he is a triples machine. He’s batting .318 and continues to embark havoc on opposing team’s pitchers. All in all I ended up completely trashed and barely with a memory as my friends treated me right and I thankfully woke up the next morning in bed and happy to not be in a pile of puke.
GAME THREE:
My head was pounding a bit and my mouth felt like sand paper. I don’t think a non-alcoholic beverage touched my lips in over 30 some odd hours and I had a little baby boy’s christening to go to in about an hour. Same time the Mets and the Yankees were starting the last game of the series. This was the game I would have loved to just sit on the couch with my wonderfully understanding fiancé and just relaxed. No dice my constant reader…no dice. While waiting for my lady to get dressed I watched the Mets pull out early again. Pelfrey looked good and Nova looked shaky, but both of these would change as I stood outside in the cold blowing smoke out of my mouth late May. Once again I was getting updates through people’s phones around me. I kept on hearing 3-1 Mets. It’s still 3-1 Mets. Yeah, Pelfrey is still in…its 3-1 Mets. Another shocker for me as I stood by a clean sweep from the Yankees that was already put to rest on Friday night. Then came the fateful 7th inning stretch when the Yankees woke up and the Mets became too relaxed. Granderson already hit his team leading 16th HR in the first, but the bats woke up and took charge scoring 8 runs in the inning and putting to rest Pelfrey and the Mets for good. A-Rod went 4-5 while Jeter, Gardner and Dickerson added two hits each on the day. The final score was 9-3, and it really was a great series until that inning. The one inning my brother Kris from Indiana saw. He watched a half of an inning all weekend and it was of course the inning the Mets turned into bums. Mike palfrey pitched 6 strong innings and erased it all by the 7th. Tim Byrdak and Pedro Beato couldn’t get outs and Pat Misch had to finish off the weekend by doing some scrub work. The Mets fought hard most of the time this weekend but the Yankees are better on paper right now and in reality. Hopefully the Mets find a way to even things out a bit and get Ike and Wright back for the rematch on the first weekend of July.
Player(s) of the Week
YANKEES – Curtis Granderson & Alex Rodriguez both had real good weeks. A-Rod found his way out of a slump going 13 for 31 with 3 HRs and 4 RBI’s. Curtis the New York Yankee powerhouse, for some reason only had six hits on the week, but 3 of those were homeruns.
METS – Francisco Rodriguez didn’t get as much work as Met fans would’ve liked but he did keep his May scoreless streak alive by picking up 3 more saves in 4 appearances this week. His ERA is way down to 0.76 and he is 15 for 16 in save opportunities this year. Boy oh boy what a punch to a father-in-law’s face can do for your career.
New York Mets
(22 - 24)
4th place/6 GB
Tuesday – Thursday
Mets @ Cubs
8pm, 8pm, 2:20pm
The Cubbies are five games under .500 and the Mets can’t fall too far behind without the stars in their lineup. If Jon Niese can find his groove and continue his play the way he looked last week he should be turning that all important corner. The problem with the Mets is that you never know who taking the mound. The confidence is something that needs to be consistent and the Mets have none of that. The positive is that the Cubs are just as inconsistent as the Mets are and the classic battle in Wrigley Field will be fun to watch. Those Cub fans are strong believers in a losing franchise and they are filled with a team of young and old. Mets must take two and hopefully a bright spot can be seen with Dillon Gee trying to stay undefeated on Wednesday night.
Friday – Sunday
Phillies @ Mets
7:10pm, 7:10pm, 1:10pm
It’s been a bit lop-sided between these two teams so far this year. The Mets are 2-4 against the Phillies but the last two games these two teams have played were both 2-1 games with both teams taking a win. The Mets are a very scrappy team and I’ll say it every week until they wave the white flag and give the season up, but for right now with all the injuries and bruised egos this team is still not dead in the water. No team is in this league for that matter.
EXTRA NEWS: Angel Pagan should be back shortly as they were hoping sometime last week. David Wright will see a back specialist in California because I guess there are none in New York and Ike Davis has not started running or swinging a bat yet. Wonderful.
(A “weak” long prediction 2 - 4)
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New York Yankees
(25- 20)
1st place (tied with Tampa Bay)
Monday – Wednesday
Blue Jays @ Yankees
7:05pm, 7:05pm, 1:05pm
I’m so tired of the Yankees playing Toronto…no I’m not. Division games are the best to watch and this matchup is no different. The Yankees are 3-2 against the blue jays this season. Jose Bautista is leading the Majors with 18 HRs this season with a slugging percentage of .816, a fact I refuse to comprehend. Bartolo Colon goes twice this week so we can really get a good idea on how long this Colon train will really last. If he can give two straight-up solid performances this over-weighted love story might stick around for a while.
Friday – Sunday
Yankees @ Mariners
10:10pm, 10:10pm, 4:10pm
First trip out West might always be though and the Mariners pitching have been lights-out over the past nine games with the resurgence of Erik Bedard. Seattle’s starters have a 0.77 ERA over the past 9 games and still only won 6 of 9 games. Their offense is horrendous and the Yankees need to keep it that way. This will be the beginning of a nine game west coast swing, so it’s late night baseball for fans with no jobs.
EXTRA NEWS: Being cleared to throw a baseball is great, but there is still no timetable on Phil Hughes.
(A “weak” long prediction 3 - 3)
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Living in a Fantasy 1-2-3:
- Who Killed It? – 1. Milwaukee went out and bought up some pitching this off season. Shawn Marcum showed his value this week by winning two games pitching 15 innings and only giving up 2 runs. He struck out 12 batters and gave up only 9 hits. 2. Boston red Sox are waking up here in May and pulling close to the top of the AL East partly in thanks to the week Kevin Youkilis has had. He went 10 for 20 with 4 doubles 1 HR and 7 RBI’s. The team has a lineup; they just have to use it. 3. Texas has had some pretty surprising pitching the past two years and Colby Lewis has been one of the factors. He put together a solid two-start week pitching a CG shutout against the White Sox earlier in the week and pitched 6 innings against the Phillies on Saturday suffering a pitching duel loss. He struck out 6 Phillies and only gave up two runs but the ranger offense was quiet.
- Who Thrilled It? – 1. I can’t understand it myself, but who ever drafted James “Big Game” Shields…nice job smarty-pants. The Tampa Bay pitcher continues to mow down opposing batters as he struck out 22 batters in 16 innings and pitched another CG shutout this year on Sunday against Florida. I’m shocked! 2. Have you ever heard of Asdrubal Cabrera from the Cleveland Indians? Not until yesterday…when the little SS went 5 for 5 with 2 HRs and 5 RBI’s. A day like that is thrilling no matter who’s the one swinging the bat. 3. King Felix Hernandez did what he always has done this weekend pitch 8 innings of goose egg baseball and striking out 13 against San Diego on Sunday. He also pitched 8 innings on Tuesday night giving up only 2 runs while striking out 9 Twins, but lost that game because of Seattle’s terrible offense.
- Who’s on Deck? – 1. With his first real good start of the season I don’t want you to just forget about Ervin Santana. The kid is only 28 years-old and I know he’s been hit or miss I tend to like his stuff. Four starts back he had a no hitter after 4 innings in Boston get washed out and Friday against Atlanta he pitched a CG shutout. 2. Hey, who’s closing games for the Phillies nowadays? Ryan Madson again? Well the kid had a good week in the fact of 3 saves. The positive was he only gave up one hit in each of the three appearances, struck out four and walked only one. Dicey, put the job could be his till the All-Star break. 3. Asdrubal Cabrera can possibly be a quiet SS on a surging Indians team that keeps winning. After an unbelievable Sunday performance his average is up over .300 on the season.
Adam Hammer’s Loose Lips
- The Yankees suffered a six game losing streak this week despite solid starting pitching. Luckily Major League Baseball has integrated Triple-A teams into the schedule and the Yankees went 4-1 against the Orioles and Mets.
- The Red Sox won the Battle of 1918 by winning the first and last games of the series. Since the last meeting between the two teams in Boston 93 years ago, the teams have combined for 2 championship and 182 excuses.
- The one Yankee loss was in the Friday night game against the Mets, who improved to .500 with the win. The Yankees were kind enough to supply champagne and goggles to the Mets who celebrated for hours after the game.
HAMMER’S SIDE NOTE FACT: No one threw a no-hitter this week and no players were arrested for DUI's!
Best Series You Missed – Chicago Cubs @ Boston Red Sox
Any time four players get hit by a pitcher and one gets hit right in the face breaking many bones and possibly ending a man’s career you have yourself a serious series. The series was won in the end by the surging Red Sox 2-1 but the tempers were high and the only two teams with the oldest ballparks left had three great games in Boston over the weekend.
Best Series for you to Catch –
SERIES 1: Reds (25-22) @ Phillies (28-18) – Last year in the NLDS Roy Halladay pitched a no hitter against the Reds to put a damper on the dreams of youngsters in Cincinnati. This week the Reds look to get revenge and on Wednesday the doctor is back in.
And now for your reading pleasure…
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The Future; According to the Late-Great George Carlin
“At birth, religions will charge people an initial fee of $50,000 and then pretty much leave them alone.”
Last Quip by Doctor KAS – “The end of the world never came and that bastard has now predicted nothing at least twice. My goal is to somehow have him involve me in his next PR campaign and I’ll steal his advertizing money while I call him an asshole one last time.”
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