If you have not had the chance yet, tune into a Yankee game when rookie pitcher Masahiro Tanaka is pitching. You will not be let down. Last night, he earned his 6th win while throwing 114 pitches in a complete game shutout against the Mets. The totals were 4 hits, 0 runs, 0 walks, 8 strikeouts. Pretty impressive stuff for a 25 year old import from Japan.
But he is so much more than the numbers. He evokes conversation from broadcasters about pitches and poise. His rumored "unhittable" splitter is truly that. Whether it starts out high and dives down for a strike or starts low for a swing-and-a-miss, Tanaka throws it with a speed and command most hitters have never seen before. Keep that in mind as you watch him throw all night. His repertoire is impressive: the slow but elegant curve he uses for 1st pitch strike, the cutter against lefties, the high fastball for moving eye levels around, and some sort of slider/slurve/breaking ball. If you were playing him in a video game, you could pretty much throw any pitch.
There is talk of him being the leading AL Cy Young candidate. Along with his superb 2.17 ERA, he has totaled 66 K's to 7 walks in 58 innings. Only David Price has a better K/BB ratio, but Price has been much more hittable than the $155 million import. He's top 5 in batting average against and number 1 in WHIP. Advanced stats such as FIP (2.81) and adjusted ERA (52) agree that he has been as good as expected.
But the very best part of watching Tanaka pitch is knowing that people like him won't come around very often. He is something special, and every five days, we are treated to a show of dancing baseballs and exasperated hitters. Catch him the next time around. I will.
Thursday, May 15, 2014
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Subway Series Game 1 Recap
Call them the Queens Bombers! The Mets hit four home runs to sink the Yankees last night, twice rallying from 3 down to finish 9-7.
The Yankees pitching did a great job at limiting David Wright to 1 hit and 1 RBI. Unfortunately, they didn't do as well with Eric Young, Jr. and Chris Young, who combined for 5 hits, 4 RBIs, and 3 runs. On the other side of the river, the best imports of the offseason, Beltran, McCann, and Ellsbury collected 1 hit (McCann), no walks, no RBIs, and an excruciating 9 left on base. Yikes! Gardner and Jeter did a great job of table setting for them, only to be stranded consistently.
On any other day, 7 runs would be more than enough to win a game. The Yankees offense was actually pretty good including the 0 fors mentioned above. Gardner cranked out his 2nd home run, a grand salami, to give the Yankees and early lead. Never nervous Yangervis keeps on hitting, collecting 3 hits and an RBI. Altogether, the Yankees matched the Mets with 14 hits each. The Mets, however, put more out of the park. And this is a testament to the sticky situation that is the Yankees pitching.
Kuroda gave up 4 runs over 6 innings, which is pretty much what we have seen over the last month. He's still missing with that slider/splitter, yet, gives the team an opportunity to win. In fact, facing the hefty lefty Colon, the Yankees put up 7 runs before chasing him in the bottom of the 6th. The game seemed in hand with a 3 run lead. In prior years, three established relievers would come in and secure the win. This year, without Mariano, the quality of bullpen pitchers has dropped off remarkably. An unremarkable Alfredo Aceves came in and quickly served up Eric Young, Jr.'s first home run of the year, a two run shot to left. Shawn Thornton followed Aceves and watched his ERA balloon to 5.40 after allowing a run in the 8th and seeing Preston Claiborne serve up another home run to Chris Young.
All that and the Yankees still had a chance to win. In the bottom of the 9th, Jeter walked, Ellsbury flied out to center to unnecessary excitement from the crowd, and Teixeira hit a line drive to right. With Teixeira's legs feeling "heavy" as he described it before the game, he was unable to make it to second. This set up 1st and 3rd with 1 out. In steps McCann with a chance to play the hero. One long drive out to right and Yankee fans everywhere would rejoice, patting each other on the back for signing such a great player. This was his opportunity to create his first Yankee moment: a walk off home run. Unfortunately, whether he was pressing or not, McCann hit a weak ground to first for a game ending double play.
Yes, the Mets won. And, yes, the Yankees blew it. But regardless, the Subway Series still stands as my favorite New York sports moment every year. Nearly the entire city gets involved, rooting for one team over the other. Everyone knows a fan from the other team and relishes the opportunity to rub in a home run, a blown lead, a loss. But that's what is so great about baseball. For 3 hours a night this week, the city is alive with passion, fandom, and cheering!
Let's go New York!
The Yankees pitching did a great job at limiting David Wright to 1 hit and 1 RBI. Unfortunately, they didn't do as well with Eric Young, Jr. and Chris Young, who combined for 5 hits, 4 RBIs, and 3 runs. On the other side of the river, the best imports of the offseason, Beltran, McCann, and Ellsbury collected 1 hit (McCann), no walks, no RBIs, and an excruciating 9 left on base. Yikes! Gardner and Jeter did a great job of table setting for them, only to be stranded consistently.
On any other day, 7 runs would be more than enough to win a game. The Yankees offense was actually pretty good including the 0 fors mentioned above. Gardner cranked out his 2nd home run, a grand salami, to give the Yankees and early lead. Never nervous Yangervis keeps on hitting, collecting 3 hits and an RBI. Altogether, the Yankees matched the Mets with 14 hits each. The Mets, however, put more out of the park. And this is a testament to the sticky situation that is the Yankees pitching.
Kuroda gave up 4 runs over 6 innings, which is pretty much what we have seen over the last month. He's still missing with that slider/splitter, yet, gives the team an opportunity to win. In fact, facing the hefty lefty Colon, the Yankees put up 7 runs before chasing him in the bottom of the 6th. The game seemed in hand with a 3 run lead. In prior years, three established relievers would come in and secure the win. This year, without Mariano, the quality of bullpen pitchers has dropped off remarkably. An unremarkable Alfredo Aceves came in and quickly served up Eric Young, Jr.'s first home run of the year, a two run shot to left. Shawn Thornton followed Aceves and watched his ERA balloon to 5.40 after allowing a run in the 8th and seeing Preston Claiborne serve up another home run to Chris Young.
All that and the Yankees still had a chance to win. In the bottom of the 9th, Jeter walked, Ellsbury flied out to center to unnecessary excitement from the crowd, and Teixeira hit a line drive to right. With Teixeira's legs feeling "heavy" as he described it before the game, he was unable to make it to second. This set up 1st and 3rd with 1 out. In steps McCann with a chance to play the hero. One long drive out to right and Yankee fans everywhere would rejoice, patting each other on the back for signing such a great player. This was his opportunity to create his first Yankee moment: a walk off home run. Unfortunately, whether he was pressing or not, McCann hit a weak ground to first for a game ending double play.
Yes, the Mets won. And, yes, the Yankees blew it. But regardless, the Subway Series still stands as my favorite New York sports moment every year. Nearly the entire city gets involved, rooting for one team over the other. Everyone knows a fan from the other team and relishes the opportunity to rub in a home run, a blown lead, a loss. But that's what is so great about baseball. For 3 hours a night this week, the city is alive with passion, fandom, and cheering!
Let's go New York!
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