WHY OUR YANKEES FELL SHORT

The Yankees only have 3 hits last night and 1 of them was a home run by Jesus Montero. We can celebrate Montero's talent since being called up all we want, but the reality is, it's not as sweet if the Yankees don't win. Last night the evil Red Sox lost and being on the West Coast, they knew about it by the time they started. More incentive to push harder.
Jered Weaver pitched well, striking out 11, walking only 2 and allowing only 3 hits. We knew the Yankees were going to have a tough time. But we also knew Weaver was beatable, in his last 5 outings he struggled a bit. It was the right time for New York. Unfortunately, it didn't happen. We needed the Yankee pitching to do the same and they did for the most part. Bartolo Colon was awesome last night, as I suggested he needed to be. He only allowed 1 earned run.David Robertson, who may be the greatest set up man in Yankees history, pitched a perfect 8th inning. In the ninth, Aaron Laffey gave up a single and quickly Girardi's Binder went into panic mode. Quickly Laffey was replaced by Luis Ayala. Vernon Wells singled and the runner advanced the third. Ayala then hit Peter Bourjos by a pitch and that loaded the bases. Maicer Izturis hit a deep fly that scored the runner from third and that's the ball game, Angels win.

My own observation after tonight. I love extra lefties in the bullpen but I feel like Aaron Laffey is a poor man's Boone Logan. It's time to try out Raul Valdes. I feel as though Laffey gets into trouble too much. But what do I know, I'm a blogger.

Final Score: Angels 2 - Yankees 1.

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WHY IT’S COLON’S BIG NIGHT

Tonight will determine what happens next for Bartolo Colon. This is a guy that was considered the Yankees second ace for most of the season, but concerns about durability have risen and now we haven’t seen a win from Colon since July 30^th. Worried yet?

The Yankees are about to go against the Angels who are making a huge push to prove to the Texas Rangers that they have enough talent to take them over and it just may happen, considering Jered Weaver has been one of the most dominant pitchers in the American League all season. Currently Weaver is 16-7 with a 2.49 ERA.

There’s a great nugget I found in a MLB story by Jason Mastrodonato about Colon. I figured I’d bring it to you. Bartolo Colon as of late has not used his two seam fastball. Now, this is a pitch that’s brought him success in the past, but in recent outings, he really hasn’t used it. Meanwhile, this guy hasn’t had a win since July. So it's a simple fix right? Just go back to the two-seamer more. This is a mystery to me. If you were successful using it before and lately you haven’t been, isn’t it clear what the problem is? If I’m Girardi and Rothschild, I’m letting him know how important that pitch is in his arsenal, for his confidence and for the team. Read Mastrodonato's full piece HERE.

Look, looking at this game tonight it’s simple, The Yankees need to win. Clearly, but more importantly, they need to hit Weaver, that’s a big obstacle. The other side of this is Colon. If that nugget is correct about the two-seam and they lose, it's Colon to the pen. If he uses it and they win, like the Colon of this past May, Yankees will have solved their problem and have a huge shot tonight. Look, for a long time the Angels were the “rally” monkey on the Yankees back. In 2009, we killed that monkey. Now we know we’re superior and to me, it’s a no brainer, being patient at the plate and making Weaver work coupled with a solid Colon performance will bring wins. That's my take.

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WHY SEPTEMBER LOSSES TO DIVISION RIVALS STINKS

The Yankees lost today. That's 2 in a row to last place Baltimore, but more importantly, it was 2 losses to Buck Showalter who, at this point in the season has 1 mission; beat the Yankees. The season's over for the Orioles, there is nothing else to try and prove. All Showalter needs to do now is play each game against the Yankees and win it like it was Game 7 of the World Series. He did that today and he won.

Ivan Nova didn’t have great stuff today and look, it’s going to happen. Nova’s had a good run, but a combination of he, Boone Logan, Scott Proctor and Rafael Soriano contributed to the loss. People can blame only the bullpen today and yes they contributed, but it's not only on them. You can also solely blame Nova, but that’s only part of it too. Today was a classic "team loss", the pitching wasn’t great all around.

In the 11^th today, Proctor allowed Robert Andino to hit a ball to left to knock in the winning run. Before that, in the 8^th, Andino knocked in the tying run against Soriano. Hey, we can at least give Andino credit for having a great game. That's baseball.

Earlier in the game, Boone Logan, who’s the Yankees lefty reliever who's put into games to get lefty hitters out, couldn’t get a lefty hitter out, and so, Girardi took the his lefty reliever out after the lefty Orioles hitter, well, hit him. That gave the Orioles their 3^rd run of the game, but that run was Nova’s, not Boone's. Boone's sole job was to get out the lefty and not let the run score.

The Yankee offense consisted of Derek Jeter and Eric Chavez both contributing to 2 RBIs each. Jeter got a 2 run single in the second inning. Chavez had 2 hits today.

For me though, the biggest plays were defensive and both were made at home plate. Between the strong throws and Francisco Cervelli nailing the O’s at home, twice, there was nothing better. In the 7^th, Nick Markakis was trying to score from first base on a Vladmir Guerrero double and was nailed at the plate. In the 8^th inning, Mark Reynolds was trying to score on a Chris Brown single, the Yankees got him. It was well exceuted and well done. As Cervelli told ESPN, "[Home plate] is my house, so nobodies going to come inside."

Bottom line, you never want to lose to a division rival in September, and we did. Time to get serious Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s getting late early. We need to get as many wins as possible now, it's the only way to get to the playoffs.

Final Score: Orioles 5 – Yankees 4.

The Yanks are going back to Cali now for a series against the Angels starting tomorrow night.. Bartolo Colon is set to go against a very good Jered Weaver. Let me also say that Weaver is hitable and the Yankees have hit him in the past. This game is winnable. Colon needs to get back to his own self and pitch his heart out. Quite simply, if we can snipe a few runs off of Weaver and Colon can hold the Angels through 6, there’s no reason why we can’t win this game.

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PREDICTING THE MVP & CY YOUNG AWARDS

It’s hard to believe that it is already September, which means we are in the final sprint for post-season play and voting for the best of the best. There are a lot of deserving candidates out there, so there is no sure vote.

It’s no secret that good pitching is the key to winning games, and this is the year of the pitcher. Question is, which pitcher is going to be King of the mound this year?

NL Cy Young candidates

A: Cliff Lee: 16-7, 2.47 ERA, 204 strikeouts, 1.031 WHIP. Lee went 5-0 in August and had at least 10 strikeouts in eight games this year.B: Cole Hamels: 13-7, 2.63 ERA, 169 strikeouts, 0.97 WHIP. Hamels holds the best WHIP stats in the National league, would have more wins if his team gave him better run support.

C: Roy Halladay: 16-5, 2.49 ERA, 195 strikeouts, 1.06 WHIP. Halladay has 7 complete games this season and has walked only 25 batters this season. He also has the best strikeout to walk ration in the big leagues. Is there ever a year when this guy isn’t in the CY Young discussion?
D: Clayton Kershaw: 17-5, 2.45 ERA, 222 strikeouts, 1.02 WHIP. Kershaw trails only Halladay in complete games pitched; he also leads everyone in wins, innings pitched, and strikeouts. He is second in WHIP and ERA.

Cy Young prediction: Clayton Kershaw
Runner-up: Roy Halladay

AL Cy Young Candidates

A: Josh Beckett: 12-5, 2.49 ERA, 155 strikeouts, 0.98 WHIP. Beckett has bounced back nicely from 2010 but has a lower strikeout total than the other candidates. He has done well keeping runs scored to a minimum allowing no more than five in any game this season.

B: James Shields: 14-10, 2.77 ERA, 205 strikeouts, 1.02 WHIP. Shields has pitched 10 complete games this season for the Rays. He could become a free agent at the end of the season if they don’t pick up his club option, but I doubt this happens.C: CC Sabathia: 19-7, 2.97 ERA, 211 strikeouts, 1.17 WHIP. Sabathia should make 30 starts for the 10th time in his career. His strikeout ratio trails only Kershaw and Verlander and has the second most wins in the majors.

D: Jered Weaver: 16-7, 2.49 ERA, 176 strikeouts, 1.03 WHIP. Weaver is argued to be the second most consistent pitcher after Verlander this year. He also has the best ERA in the league.
E: Justin Verlander: 21-5, 2.34 ERA, 224 strikeouts, 0.91 WHIP. Verlander is first in wins, strikeouts, and WHIP in the league. He has also gone 18-2 since April and has a no-hitter this year.

Cy Young prediction: Justin Verlander
Runner-up: Jered Weaver

Pitching wins games, but you also need a good offense to give you the run support. Question is, who has been the most valuable player?

NL MVP Candidates

A: Joey Votto: .316BA, 26 HR, 90 RBI. Can he repeat? His home run, RBI and OPS totals will most likely fall short from last year. His team does not have a shot at repeating their division title, so this will probably cost him votes.B: Prince Fielder: .292BA, 31 HR, 108 RBI. Fielder is argued to be half of one of the better offensive duos in the majors, but a teammate has been more effective offensively and probably fairs better to win. He is a league leader in RBI’s.

C: Matt Kemp: .319BA, 32 HR, 107 RBI. His average, stolen bases (37), home runs and RBI’s look impressive, but his high strikeouts (137) will probably cost him. He also plays for the Dodgers, who have had a less than impressive season which will cost him some votes.
D: Ryan Braun: .333BA, 27 HR, 95 RBI. Braun has had an impressive year leading the league in OBP (.402) and slugging percentage (.590). He is also among league leaders in runs scored and batting average. He also is second with stolen bases (31).

MVP prediction: Ryan Braun
runner-up: Matt Kemp

AL MVP Candidates

A: Adrian Gonzalez: .342BA, 23 HR, 105 RBI. Gonzalez has the best batting average, and amongst leaders in OBP and SLG percentage; however….he is sure to split some votes between himself and another Red Sox candidate.

B: Jacoby Ellsbury: .312BA, 24 HR, 85 RBI. He has the second best batting average, and the most stolen bases; however he is sure to split some votes with Gonzalez .C: Jose Bautista: .304BA, 40 HR, 92 RBI. He’s having another great year, and can still come close to the same number of home runs as last year. The fact that his team is not in contention in a much more competitive AL East division than last year is sure to cost him votes.

D: Justin Verlander: Yes, the wins and ERA are impressive; however pitchers have their own award. He is worth a mention though.

E: Robinson Cano: .305BA, 24 HR, 105 RBI. Cano is quietly making a case for MVP again with his consistent hitting and offensive and defensive skills but will he split votes with another Yankee?
F: Curtis Granderson: .269BA, 38 HR, 109 RBI. His batting average is lower, however his consistency this year is amazing compared to last year. The changes he has made have helped the Yankees win, and the power numbers and RBI’s don’t hurt either. He also has more extra base hits.

MVP prediction: Curtis Granderson
runner-up: Adrian Gonzalez

Clearly we're Yankee fans, clearly we root. But as far as this post is concerned, I’m glad I get to predict who will win, rather than give the news when the voting is done. It will be interesting to see how far off these predictions are. But like they say, you can’t predict baseball…



--Jeana Bellezza --BYB Writer and Editor



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WHY HE'S C"CY YOUNG" SABATHIA

With CC Sabathia’s most recent 1-0 complete game shutout over the Rays, he moves to 13-4 and regains sole possession of the MLB lead in wins. He also drops his ERA to a phenomenal 2.72, leads the league in games started with 20, is 2nd in innings pitched (1st is Justin Verlander), and is currently on a career best 23.2 inning scoreless streak.

Those aren’t just ace numbers, those are Cy Young Award winning numbers. Sure, some guys have a lower ERA, notably Jered Weaver, but let’s ask ourselves: Do those guys pitch in the AL East? Weaver doesn’t, and if he did, his ERA would certainly balloon moving from the pitcher friendly AL West. Josh Beckett does, but as good as he’s been he’s nowhere close to being the workhorse CC is. Simply, CC is the best of the best because he works harder than anyone else and produces numbers that can be called elite.

But you already know that CC’s been a monster this season, and you surely already know that he is, as always, in the Cy Young Award race. I’m not writing to tell you that he has a chance; I’m writing this to tell you why he’s the front runner.

Don’t misinterpret what I’ve just said, if the season ended tomorrow, Justin Verlander would likely take home the award and Weaver would be a very close second. CC Monster wouldn’t do too badly for himself, he’d likely come in 3rd or 4th in the voting, but he wouldn’t win. What I’m saying is if CC’s performance for the rest of the season follows the typical CC Sabathia pattern, he’s got it in the bag.
Why? It’s simple: CC is, and always has been, a second half player. I know it’s hard to believe, going into the second half of this season his ERA was barely a hair over 3 and leading MLB in wins. Notice how he’s gotten even better as time has progressed. As I mentioned, CC has not allowed a run since the second half of the season began, and as a result his ERA has quickly gone from what one would call great, to what one would call phenomenal. This is no coincidence, he’s always been one to pick it up in the second half.For example, flashback to his pre-Yankee days. CC spent the first half of 2008 with the Cleveland Indians, and posted a respectable 3.83 ERA to go along with a 6-8 record. He was traded to the Brewers right before the second half of the season, and proceeded to go 11-2 with a downright godly 1.65 ERA. Even more impressive, a ridiculous 7 of his 17 starts with the Brewers were complete games.I use this season as an example because it’s easier to see the difference between the two halves because he was traded. However, such a sudden and sharp increase in dominance is nothing unusual for CC. Looking back on 2009 all we remember was CC coming 4th in Cy Young Award voting, winning the ALCS MVP, and leading the team to their 27th title. What we don’t remember is how in the first half of 2009, his ERA hovered around 4 and he barely recorded a .500 record. There’s no way to argue against it: CC is a second half of the season type of guy.

The point here is, his first half of this season is by far, the best he’s ever had. If his first half was that much better than he usually is in the first half, shouldn’t we expect the second half to be better than ever? If he follows his normal pattern, expect second half dominance, that's my opinion anyway.




--Grant Cederquist, BYB Staff Writer

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WHY IT WASN'T ENOUGH

“It’s really encouraging, He mixed his pitches better. I thought his command was better tonight. It’s unfortunate he gave up the two runs early because he seemed to settle down pretty well after that.”

--Joe Girardi talks about Ivan Nova

Bottom line, Ivan Nova was good, but Jered Weaver was great.

Yes, Nova had a few shaky innings, he always does, that's expected, but he kept the Yankees in it. Trouble was, Weaver was just better. Nova went into the seventh, he allow three runs, two of them earned and gave up 0 walks and 8 hits.

Mark Feinsand had this little nugget which I found interesting: "The last time the Yankees won their season-series with the Angels, Alex Rodriguez was playing for the Rangers and Ivan Nova was in high school." (New York Daily News)

(Photo: Getty)
A great moment came in the first inning, when Weaver needed 15 pitches to get out Derek Jeter. To me, what that means is, Jeter, while slow to get back into his "Jeter" form, is still using his head and skill on the field.

There was one nutty moment last night. Ivan Nova had no time to react when Torii Hunter hit a liner and it screamed at Nova's head. He threw up his glove for protection. The ball ended up hitting the heel before rolling away.
(Photo: AP)
Russell Martin had an RBI single in the second inning and gave the Yankees 1 run making it 2-1. Later on in the fourth inning, Posada doubled in a run and tied it up 2-2. But it wasn't enough, the Angels scored another run and the Yanks couldn't come back. I wasn't able to sit and watch the entire game, I was in and out of my TV room but one thing I noticed was the Angels were on base all night when Nova was pitching, that's never a good sign, but in the end, he worked out of those innings and didn't let the flood gates open and to me, that's a sign of better things to come. Tip your cap to Weaver, he pitched great last night.

Final Score: Angels 3 - Yankees 2. Game 2 of this series today. Come on Yankees, overcome this loss with a big win today.

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