New York Yankees Baseball

Just Some Second Guessing

October 7th, 2007

Well, 2 games into the playoffs and I can’t begin to wrap my head around what Joe Torre has been thinking. Honestly, lately he looks more like Willie Randolph - just sitting there, watching the game from the best seat in the house, unaware that he is supposed to be orchestrating the strategy but rather just waiting for someone to get a hit, or an out (poor Willie is still waiting for that).

Why didn’t Derek Jeter bunt in the 5th inning of game 1 with 0 out and men on 1st and 2nd?

And, no "Derek is too good a hitter" crap here - a "good" hitter hits .333 or so for the season, which means he makes an out 2 out of every 3 times. (and also, part of that average is hitting against and feasting on some pretty bad pitchers on bad teams throughout the season - not playoff teams.)

Since the most likely outcome of the at-bat is an out, the best play is to use it productively and advance the runners - then, the next batter (Bobby Abreu) comes up with 1 out and men on 2nd and 3rd, a better situation for a batter and more pressure on the pitcher (especially with A-Rod on deck).

Why was Jorge Posada swinging 3-0 when Sabathia hadn’t thrown 2 consecutive strikes all game?

Remember when we played patiently, using small-ball to manufacture offense and punctuated it with timely homeruns (usually from unexpected sources). It is clear that then Yankees are not as disciplined a team as they have been in the past, that is the fault of the coaching staff and management.

Why did we surrender and put in Ohlendorf, and if we surrendered then - why did Hughes pitch later on in a blowout?

This is the time for Vizcaino, if he holds it together and we mount a comeback then great - if not, then use Ohlendorf - but to waste Phil Hughes in a meaningless moment will come back to haunt you…

What was Vizcaino doing pitching in a tie game in the 11th inning, why not Hughes or Mussina or even Clemens?

When you put in Mo in a tied game, there are only a few things that can happen - we score, hold them and win, they win, or Mariano pitches 2 innings and then needs to be replaced. Knowing this, why not get Mussina up and throwing (Hughes was wasted the night before, but would also have fit well here).

Why is Rocket (Roger Clemens) starting game 3?

No disrespect, but Roger is finished and is more suited as a long or stop-gap reliever at this point, he just doesn’t have the "stuff". This should be Moose’s start, or maybe even one for the "Bottle Rocket" (Phil Hughes). I also have concerns about starting Jason Giambi at 1st from a defense perspective, but I will admit his numbers against Clevelend (and particularly Westbrook) are pretty decent - perhaps a worthwhile gamble, until a ball goes by Giambi at a critical juncture…

These are just some of the things that have likely lead George to tell Joe Torre: Win or Go Home.

Entry Filed under: The Boss, Joe Torre, Playoffs