Tagged: Chad Gaudin
The Pulse of New York
Every Tuesday, YES Blog takes the pulse of New York on the hottest
topics being talked about right now in the world of sports. What’s your
take on the below issues?
Who would you feel most comfortable with starting a game in the post season?(surveys)
Who would you like to see as the Yankees’ starting right fielder in 2010?(polling)
Who is the American League MVP?(online surveys)
Where will Brett Gardner be most valuable in the post season?(survey software)
Which American League team would you most fear facing in the post season?(survey software)
Pettitte being skipped
By Jon Lane
Word has come down from Yankee Stadium that Andy Pettitte will miss his scheduled start tomorrow and be skipped until Monday due to shoulder fatigue. Chad Gaudin will pitch in his place.
Joe Girardi isn’t worried and believes the extended rest will “knock it out.” This can be a case of the Yankees using the luxury of being extra cautious, but Pettitte was shut down last season after the team was eliminated from postseason contention due to shoulder soreness. An MRI revealed no major damage, but this is something to keep an eye on nonetheless.
Washed out?
By Jon Lane
This via the AP:
Tigers left-hander Jarrod Washburn will miss his next start because of a sore left knee.
Washburn was scheduled to start Saturday in Tampa Bay. He said on Thursday that he will be replaced by Armando Galarraga. Washburn missed a start in May with Seattle for the same reason.
Washburn has an ERA 6.81 while winning one of six starts since joining the Tigers at the trading deadline. He is expected to make his next start on Sept. 10 against Kansas City.
Like last season, Washburn was a hot name on the Yankees’ radar before July 31 and many Yankees fans screamed over how they were beaten out by the Tigers and that fact that Brian Cashman’s only acquisition was Jerry Hairston Jr. Last I looked, Hairston has been a useful bench player batting .273 with two homers and 10 RBIs in 26 games. And that other ‘non-sexy’ name, Eric Hinske, has seven homers and 12 RBIs in 23 games. Cashman acquired him and $400,000 for two Minor Leaguers.
Jonah Keri today offered insight on what’s happened to Washburn since he became a Detroit Tiger.
Moral of the story: Remember Shawn Chacon and Aaron Small in 2005. The right role players blended with superstars make for the best recipe, yet a lot of these guys slip through the cracks.
One of the other Yankee no-names, Chad Gaudin, starts tonight in Toronto (YES HD, 7 p.m.). At this point, either Gaudin or Sergio Mitre will make the postseason roster as a long man.
Phil Hughes as temporary Yankees closer will be interesting to watch, for the Yankees can afford the luxury of being extra careful with Mariano Rivera (groin stiffness). No further explanations about Hughes’ breakthrough season are necessary. But, and I quote Kimberly Jones, will there be Hughes Rules next season?
If not Mitre, then who?
By Jon Lane
Most teams would love to have the Yankees’ biggest problem at the moment: the need for someone to emerge as the fifth starter. The job description is simple, provide at least five quality, at-worst average innings while keeping the team in the game. In the Yankees’ case, they have Joba Chamberlain’s innings limit to manage and with a big enough division lead would like to provide CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettitte extra days off any way they can.
Joe Girardi, partly out of loyalty to what he saw from Sergio Mitre in Florday and fairness since Mitre is not far removed from Tommy John surgery, is giving the embattled right-hander one more opportunity to hold onto his spot tonight when he starts against the Blue Jays (YES HD, 7 p.m.). Mitre’s ERA is an ungodly 7.50 and he’s allowed 32 hits over 18 innings; it was no coincidence that Girardi rearranged his rotation so that Mitre did not face the Red Sox.
If Mitre bombs again tonight – or even if he simply does not pitch well – he may lose his spot to new Yankee Chad Gaudin. Once a Rays top prospect, Gaudin has played for four other teams and is 32-35 with a 4.58 ERA for his career. At times he’s been really, really good, or good and terrible.
If Gaudin is a bust, there are Bargain Bin options available at Triple-A.
? Russ Ortiz was signed last week and threw six scoreless innings on Thursday, but he’s 35 and was 3-6 with a 5.57 ERA for the Astros. In 12 seasons playing for six teams, Ortiz is 113-88 with a 4.88 ERA. He underwent Tommy John surgery and missed the entire 2008 season. His best year came in 2003 (21-7, 3.81 ERA).
? Jason Hirsh was acquired from Colorado last month for a player to be named later. He’s last appeared in a Major League game in September 2008.
? Then there’s Josh Towers, another veteran who was called up on Saturday to fortify a depleted bullpen and designated for assignment the next day to make room for Gaudin. He’s hoping to clear waivers to return to Scranton and get another shot with the Yankees.
This shows you how far down the pecking order Kei Igawa has fallen, doesn’t it?
Final CompuBox numbers
By Jon Lane
A wrap on Game 1 with stats compiled by the Yankees while borrowing a boxing phrase:
? The Yankees scored eight runs in the fourth inning, sending 13 batters to the plate (four singles, two doubles, two home runs, and two walks).
? The Yankees plated the most runs in a single inning against Boston since a nine-run eighth on June 19, 2000 at Fenway Park in a 22-1 Yankees win. It was also the Yankees’ largest inning since a nine-run fourth June 14 against the Mets.
? Every Yankees starter had at least one hit.
? Yankees pitchers allowed 12 walks, their highest single-game total since issuing 12 in a 17-4 loss June 18, 2000 against the White Sox. Those 12 walks were the most in a win against any team. Joba Chamberlain improved to 8-2 despite waling a career-high seven. This was a shade of gray on a nice silver lining.
“We walked too many people and we got away from some situations, and we can’t continue to do that against this lineup because they’re going to hurt you,” Girardi said. “It’s frustrating because you can’t give an offense like theirs free passes.”
? Chad Gaudin will join the team on Sunday, reports The Journal News‘ Peter Abraham, who added that Brian Cashman told him that Sergio Mitre will remain in the rotation. Joe Girardi sees Gaudin as someone who can work out of the bullpen or spot start. His last start was Wednesday, when the Braves tagged him for six runs on nine hits in 3 1/3 innings.
Nick Swisher was Gaudin’s roommate for two years in Oakland. He sent him a text message welcoming him to the club.
“He’s going to fit in here real nice,” Swisher said. “When we were in Oakland he had a good run. He’s a good dude, he’s a competitor and he’s going to go out and give it his all every day.”
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