Gamesmanship and Poor Sportsmanship

When Alex Rodriguez slapped the baseball out of Bronson Arroyo's glove during the 2004 ALCS, he was ridiculed in every way imaginable. You've seen the Photoshop of him carrying a purse on the play, you've heard the derisive name calling, etc..

The first baseman on that play was A-Rod's old high school teammate Doug Mientkiewicz. Yesterday Mientkiewicz, now a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates, was on first base when a ground ball was hit to Cardinals second baseman Aaron Miles. To turn a quick double play, Miles attempted to tag Mientkiewicz on his way to second base. Mientkiewicz, in turn, slapped the ball out of Miles glove and reached base safely.

While Miles and his manager Tony LaRussa argued with all four umpires, who either didn't see the play or let it stand anyway, the Pirates' announcers exhorted the play as good gamesmanship (they also couldn't believe Mientkiewicz got away with it).

This continues to prove that A-Rod and the rest of major league baseball are treated differently. A-Rod makes most of his own drama, but in fairness, there is a double standard when he is involved in a play as compared to another player.

But wait, back to the Cards-Pirates game. Things got even better on the next play when Mientkiewicz was doubled off on a line drive to Miles. The two exchanged words and the benches emptied. Mientkiewicz's former Yankees teammate Ron Villone had to be held back by three teammates after Mientkiewicz said something to tick him off.

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Yankees vs. Pirates - June 24

The Yankees start a 3-game series in Pittsburgh tonight and we can guarantee you that you will NOT see Billy Crystal in the lineup. Justin Christian will be though. LoHud's Peter Abraham reported that Christian has been recalled from Scranton and will be starting in left field tonight. With Hideki Matsui (knee) and Johnny Damon (foot) a bit banged up and with the need for more bodies in an NL park, the Yankees apparently wanted to get someone with more mobility out there. Of course the big question is, "why not Brett Gardner?" That remains to be seen. For now, Billy Traber has been set down to make room on the 25-man roster. The 40-man roster is currently at 39 so there's no problem adding Christian.

Pitching Probables for the series:

Friday: Darrell Rasner (4-4, 3.64) vs. Tom Gorzelanny (5-6, 6.59)
Saturday: Joba Chamberlain (1-2, 2.36) vs. Zach Duke (4-4, 3.91)
Sunday: Mike Mussina (10-5, 3.93) vs. Paul Maholm (5-5, 4.41)


Tonight's Lineup

Cabrera CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Rodriguez 3B
Giambi 1B
Posada C
Cabo 2B
Christian LF
Rasner RHP


News and Notes

One former Yankee, Doug Mientkiewicz, will be glad to see his old friends tonight.

The Star Ledger has an interesting piece, albeit with some inaccuracies, on Dan Giese.

The NY Post has a comical report on Carl Pavano may be back before Phil Hughes.

Mike Vaccaro has more on that painful 1960 post-season.

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Red Sox Want Their Baseball. Again!

This gave me a good laugh. Right after the WS ended, Jason Varitek said he would give the baseball, which was in his mitt after Jon Papelbon struck out Seth Smith for the final out, to the team to avoid the controversy of 2004. Somewhere along the line, Varitek changed his mind.

"I already gave it to Pap," Varitek said. "It's out of my hands."

Neither Larry Lucchino nor Red Sox spokesmen immediately returned calls or e-mails seeking comment Wednesday.

Source

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Mientkiewicz Hurt, but Will Play

Update 7 pm - Turns out it was a YES cameraman that tumbled on Mientky. The old King George would have fired him before the 1st inning.

In a scene reminiscient of the tarp attacking Vince Coleman back in the day, Doug Mientkiewicz was injured earlier today by a Cleveland cameraman.

This from Mark Feinsand of the Daily News:

The details aren’t completely clear, but Doug Mientkiewicz was apparently run over by a Cleveland cameraman as he got off the team bus at Jacobs Field.

Mientkiewicz was taken to the Yankees clubhouse on a cart, according to one witness, where he was examined by team trainers. After having his left ankle taped up, he went to the field to test it out under the watchful eye of Joe Torre and Don Mattingly.

I just spoke with someone who knew about the situation and they said Mientkiewicz should be fine to play tonight. Looks like the Yankees got lucky with this one. Having the Big G at first base would have been a potential disaster.

UPDATE: The cameraman tripped and fell on the back of Mientkiewicz's foot, rolling the Yankee first baseman's ankle.

"I was walking up the ramp and he was backpedaling while filming. He tripped into me; my left foot was up and he landed on the back of it and rolled it," Mientkiewicz said. "It's going to deter me from stealing 15 bases this series, that's it."

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Moose Big Trouble for Orioles

It couldn't possibly happen. Mike Mussina pitch 2 good games in a row? No way! But that's what happened at Yankee Stadium last night as Moose tossed 7 scoreless innings in the Yankees 12-0 drubbing of the Baltimore Orioles. The win moved the Yankees 2.5 (2 in the loss column) games back of the Red Sox in the AL East, thanks to another TNT outing from Eric Gagne. The Detroit Tigers also blew another lead to the Cleveland Indians, reducing the Yankees magic number to clinch the Wild Card down to 7.

Mussina walked Brian Roberts to start the game, and we started to unwrap the latest from Netflix, but Mussina turned a 1-6-3 double play and ended up retiring 20 of 23 hitters. And the offense made sure that Mussina wouldn't have to sweat it.

Doug Mientkiewicz, making his 3rd straight start, drove in 4 runs for the 1st time in 2 years. It included a 3-run HR that gave the Yankees a 6-0 lead after 4 innings. It also drove Orioles starter Jon Leicester (2-2) from the game.

The much maligned Orioles bullpen lived up to their reputation, completely putting the game out of reach. Hideki Matsui, who homered on Monday for the 1st time in over a month, drove in 3 runs as did Melky Cabrera. Robinson Cano and Derek Jeter each had 3 hits, with Cano driving in 2 runs.

But this night belonged to Moose. The right-hander won his 249th career game and solidly put himself back in the playoff rotation mix. He allowed 3 hits over 7 innings, issuing only that 1 walk, and struck out 6. He had his command and was in total command. Mussina also extended his record streak of 16 consecutive seasons with double figure wins as he evened his record at 10-10.


photos courtesy of AP

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Roster Moves

With rosters expanding to 40 players, the Yankees have activated Doug Mientkiewicz and Jose Veras from the DL, and added shortstop Alberto Gonzalez. Outfielder Kevin Thompson was designated for assignment to make room on the the 40-man roster.

Pitcher Jim Brower, who had a brief stint with the big club, opted for free agency after the team DFA'ed him 10 days ago.

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DeSalvo to Replace Clemens

The Journals News' Peter Abraham is reporting that Matt DeSalvo will be recalled to take Roger Clemens' start on Monday versus the White Sox. DeSalvo had been sent down prior to the weekend series with Boston, but can be recalled because he's replacing a DL'ed player, Doug Mientkiewicz. If tonight's game is rained out then DeSalvo will remain in the minors.

Speaking of Mientkiewicz, we've been real tough on him at My Pinstripes, but that was a tough blow he took Saturday and we hope he gets well soon. He's likely out 6-8 weeks with his fractured wrist.

The hits just keep on coming.

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Yankees Stunned by Sox

Saturday, June 2 - a day the Yankees would quickly like to forget. They lost a game, their 1st baseman, and their future hall of fame pitcher, all by 7:30 pm.

The Yankees blew 3 leads and dropped the 2nd game of the weekend series with Boston, 11-6. A Derek Jeter home run off of Joel Pineiro in the top of the 7th had given the good guys a 6-5, but a sub-par defensive effort would help sink them in the home half of the inning.

About the same time it was made official that Roger Clemens would not be making his scheduled start on Monday against the White Sox. Clemens had tweaked his right groin during his start for Scranton last week and now had what he described as a fatigued groin (A-Rod probably has one from that stripper too). But now back to the game.

Bobby Abreu turned a David Ortiz fly out into an inning opening double. Scott Proctor intentionally walked Manny Ramirez and then gave up an unintentional free pass to Kevin Youkillis. Mike Lowell hit a potential double play ball to Robinson Cano that could have easily crushed the Red Sox rally. But the whole game turned on a dime.

Cano made a poor throw to Jeter at 2nd, and in his haste to turn two, Jeter bounced his throw to 1st. In his attempt to come up with a scoop, Doug Mientkiewicz was left in a vulnerable position along the 1st base line. Lowell crashed into Mientkiewicz, his hip or thigh smacking the back of Mientkiewicz head, snapping it forward. As another run scored, Mientkiewicz lay face down in the dirt until Yankees' trainer Gene Monahan could get to him.

Though he never lost consciousness, Mientkiewicz was clearly dazed. Monahan used smelling salts to try to snap the fog, but he needed to be carted off the field. As it turned out, he'll be on the 15 day DL with a fracture bone in his wrist and a concussion.

A 2nd Jeter error on another potential DP ball helped lead to the final 3 runs of the inning.

~~~

Both starting pitchers stunk out the joint, especially after a 28 minute rain delay. For the 3rd time this season, the Yankees smacked around Curt Schilling, but for the 2nd time, he got off the hook. His ERA is over 7.00 in 3 starts against the Bombers and 2.95 vs. the rest of the AL.

Mike Mussina didn't fare any better, blowing 1-0, 3-1, and 5-3 leads. He was knocked out of the game when he allowed back to back HRs to Lowell and Jason Varitek in the 6th.

~~~

Cano and Lowell had a big time collision on the base paths. Cano fielded a DP ball and went to tag Lowell, who was running off of first. Lowell played fullback, knocking Cano over, but somehow Cano still bounced a throw to first to complete the twin killing.

After the game, Cano complained that Lowell threw an elbow and couldn't understand why a bigger deal wasn't made of it, in light of the much ballyhooed Pedroia-A-Rod incident.

"Of course (this was worse). He stopped and he threw an elbow."

In typical Joe Torre fashion he defended the opponent rather than his own player.

"You're in the (base) line, you're fair game. It was hard baseball. There was nothing dirty." In effect Torre threw A-Rod under the bus again.

~~~

Kevin Youkillis' 23 game hitting streak came to end, as he went 0-2 with 3 walks.

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M-I-E-N-K-LMNOP

or however it's spelled.

Joe Torre finally shakes up the lineup and Doug Mientkiewicz finally swings the bat like a major leaguer. Must have been a full moon last night. And the topper - the bullpen didn't blow Andy Pettitte's lead.

The Yankees took advantage of some shoddy play by Ranger's centerfielder Jerry Hairston Jr., and Alex Rodriguez homered for the first time in 47 at-bats. The Yankees are beginning to salivate when they see the Rangers on the schedule, having now taken 18 of the last 22 meetings.

With the game tied 1-1 in the 3rd, Hairston dropped Hideki Matsui's fly ball, allowing Derek Jeter and A-Rod to score on the play. Jeter's 2nd RBI hit in the 4th increased the lead to 4-1, before the Bombers broke it open with 4 in the 5th. A-Rod's 15th HR, a blast to straight away center, ended a 12 game homerless streak.

Andy Pettitte brought his 'A' game and with the big lead, there was little chance he wouldn't get a 'W' at the end of the night. He scattered 7 hits over 7 innings, walked 2 and struck out 4. Pettitte's ERA now stands at a team best 2.72.

Mientkiewicz had 2 hits on the night plus a sac fly ribbie. He's put together a modest 7 game hitting streak that has seen his average rise to .230. In the 5th inning he showed why the Yankees brought him in, making two spectacular stops at 1st base.

Another Yankee swinging a good bat last night was Robinson Cano. Cano came in just 6 for his last 43, but had a pair of hits, and showed a little more patience at the plate.

Jorge Posada's 2 hits raised his average to .354. You would be hard pressed to find the last time Posada's average was that high in early May.

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Time to Right the Ship

Luckily for Joe Torre, there is no mutiny on his bounty, or something like that. Derek Jeter was the most prominent of players to come to Torre's defense after the Yankees lost to the Red Sox for the 5th time in 6 games. Jeter emphasized that Torre isn't the one out there pitching, hitting, or fielding. One has to wonder how Jeter would react if Torre was fired. He's the only manager that Jeter has ever played for in the bigs. Jason Giambi also pointed out that a lot of players come to the Yankees because they want to play for Torre.

So what can be done to get things moving in the right direction? Here are some things that couldn't hurt.

1. Change the Batting Order

There's nothing like a team slump to occur when the pitching stinks. It really emphasizes just how badly you need pitching.

Bobby Abreu is completely lost at the plate right now. Twice in the Sox series he tried to bunt (on his own) with 2 runners on and none out. Abreu is the #3 hitter, he's not there to be Miguel Cairo. Drop him down to 7th in the order until he gets his swing back.

Move Jason Giambi up to the 3 spot. He'll clog the bases some, but he'll still get on base and provide more RBI opps for A-Rod.

Move Jorge Posada and Hideki Matsui up to the 5 and 6 spots. Posada had a great April and as long as he stays hot, he'll be good protection behind A-Rod.

2. Kick Doug Mientkiewicz to the Curb

The guy is putrid. I take no pride in saying I told you so, but I told you so. I knew this was a giant mistake before Cashman officially signed him. There's no question that he's got a slick glove, no one is debating that. But he is simply over matched at the plate. Robinson Cano is in a bad slump right now and part of the reason is because Mientkiewicz bats behind him. As long as he does, Cano won't see good pitches.

Not that I am at all convinced that Josh Phelps is the answer, but for now he needs to get significant playing time no matter who is pitching.

3. Get Clemens Here

I don't like the self serving SOB, but there's no question that the Yankees need him. I don't care if they need to cater to his whims to get him here. Putting Clemens in the rotation will have a huge impact, especially if he can impart some wisdom on Phil Hughes.

If no Clemens, then you have to seriously pursue Carlos Zambrano. Zambrano looked like he was close to signing a long term deal with the Cubs, but then The Trib decided to sell the team. All contracts and possible trades are off limits for the time being. The Yankees have to pounce if the new owners decide to let him go.

4. Use Kyle Farnsworth or Trade Him

It's understandable that Joe Torre has to have trust in a guy to use him, but it can't be at the expense of the rest of the arms in the bullpen. You're only making a short bullpen even shorter. Either use this headcase or ship him out. I can't take looking at Scott Proctor every single day of the season.

5. Get Another Bat

You heard that correctly. Everyone talks about how great the lineup is. It really showed against the Tigers in last year's playoffs didn't it? The reason for another bat is simple, this is an aging beat up offense. Johnny Damon is having serious back issues. Jason Giambi is good for a debilitating injury every year. I'm not talking a guy who is going to hit .350. What the Yankees need is a Jeff Conine type. A guy who can play the outfield and 1st Base and contribute offensively.

Now get it done before I have to release a statement through Howard Rubenstein.

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