Sunday, September 20, 2015

FULL PANIC MODE

I don't see how you can win a World Series when you only have two guys in the bullpen. Yes, yes, I know there are 13 bodies out there but Girardi only trusts two of them - Betances and Miller. He doesn't trust his starters either, except for Masahiro Tanaka.
Yesterday, with a 5-0 lead in the sixth inning, he  pulled an extremely effective Michael Pineda after Pineda gave up two straight hits. Why? Well, according to Girardi, He didn't like the way Pineda looked facing Daniel Murphy. Up to that point, Murphy had hit a harmless grounder to third and a weak grounder to second (actually Gregorious in a shift position) but Didi failed to make a good throw. The hometown scorer called it a hit, but it really wasn't. So here comes Caleb Cotham, a rookie. One of the major problems with bringing in relievers, you never know if they're on their game or not. Cotham wasn't perfect . He walked the first man he faced and Pineda did not look pleased in the dugout.Meantime, I'm discussing Girardi's parentage from my chair.
Then Girardi felt the need to bring Betances in with that same 5-run lead to pitch the eighth. In the ninth, it was Pazos for one hitter, that he retired, then came Martin, who got the next batter and then gave up piddly little infield hits. Girardi all but vaulted the dugout fence and ran out to the mound to get Miller in there to get the last out. He couldn't wait for one more hitter? Sure, the game was important, but the ones in October will be more so and the Yankee bullpen will be exhausted. Even the Fox announcers thought it was a terrible move and they aren't the sharpest pencils in the box.
Girardi is managing like all he cares about is his job. He's overworking everyone out there. If the bullpen blows leads in the playoffs, Girardi shouldn't have a job next year - unless he's willing to work the beer concession. I'll need the beer now.

Assuming the Yankees have one Wild Card spot sewed up, there is a hell of a fight going on for the second spot.  The Astros, Angels and the Twins are all within two and a half games. The Astros have three games left against the Angels, while the Twins have six games left against the dangerous Indians. Should be fun.

The Sports Reporters, Israel Gutierrez, Bob Ryan and Mike Lupica, think the Dodgers may have a tough time in the playoffs. In spite of the fact that they have the highest payroll in baseball (approx. $300 million), there are four teams in the NL that may be stronger. Three Central Division teams all have better records, and the way the Mets are hitting, they pose a real threat. LA has two great pitchers, Greinke and Kershaw, but their offense has disappeared. As Bob Ryan says, "You have to wonder where all that money went." But, they still have to play the game. As Charley Brown said to Lucy, "Tell your statistics to shut up!"

This time of the year, things get a little testy when the contenders play each other. You hit my guy, I'll hit two of yours. The Cardinals are noted for doing this, but now the Cubs have Joe Madden who wouldn't back down from Ghengis Kahn and his horde. He's vowed to go all out against St. Louis, stealing bases even with a big lead,  bunting against shifts and going after any pitcher who hits his batters. He's even growing a beard to make himself look more fierce. Unfortunately, because it's white, he just looks old and homeless. 

Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul has admitted that he also injured his middle finger during that firecracker accident. This assures that he'll never play in Philadelphia.  

***THEY SAID IT***
"Last week, Oklahoma’s Hatari Byrd gave the finger to the Tennessee crowd. It was a headline writer’s dream to put down on paper: “Byrd Flips Bird."  -- Brad Dickson
"Las Vegas bookmakers told ESPN that Americans will bet $95 billion on NFL games this year.
“Give you 2-to-1 they won’t,” said Pete Rose."  -- Dwight Perry
"Reuters reports U.S. scientists have designed an “invisibility cloak” and have had success making things disappear. Who have they been testing it on, the Nationals?"  -- RJ Currie

"Headline you didn’t expect to see- “Ohio State holds off Northern Illinois, 20-13.” Sounds like the Buckeyes’ players took this game about as seriously as they take their classes."  -- Janice Hough
"A skydiver uploaded a video of himself yesterday jumping out of a plane and solving a Rubik’s cube during free fall. And to prove that he actually solved it, the funeral was open casket."  -- Seth Meyers
"In a Pennsylvania high school football game, it was Meadville 107, DuBois 90. Students were getting Advanced Placement Mathematics credit for adding up the score."  -- Brad Dickson
"It’s possible for one player to cover Pats TE Rob Gronkowski but  he’d have to look like King Kong."  -- Bills coach Rex Ryan
"NFL week 2 injury report for the New York Giants: QB Eli Manning, brain cramp - possible."  -- TC Chong
" Marshawn Lynch filmed an entire Pepsi ad without speaking. Out of habit Roger Goodell fined him."  -- Janice Hough
"In honor of the DeflateGate Patriots playing in Buffalo on Sunday, the Bills’ merchandise shop at Ralph Wilson Stadium has a special kiosk of air pumps for sale. So what’ll they do the next time the Giants come to town — put up a fireworks stand?"  -- Dwight Perry
"South Park” featured a Deflategate dream sequence with an animated Bill Belichick. This is the first time “Belichick” and “animated” have appeared in the same sentence."  -- Brad Dickson
" Satellite-based imaging shows the retreating Jakobshavn glacier in Greenland moves at a speed of 12 feet per hour. Or slightly faster than David Ortiz."  -- RJ Currie

CP-


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