New Blog Site!!

Thank you to everyone who has followed "The Home Depo" through it's existence.

However, all things must change and I have started a new blog, "The Sky's the Limit". This new site will function as a more typical blog with posts from me on various topics.

I unveiled the blog yesterday, September 11, with a reflection of the tragic events that took place 10 years ago. (http://theskysthelimit-dan.blogspot.com/2011/09/reflection-september-11-2001.html)

I hope that you enjoy the new blog! Looking forward to exploring some new ideas.

A Blog Revamp

Despite my confidence that I would be able to consistently update this blog every few games during the baseball season, it is obvious that I have not been able to fulfill that goal.  Therefore, I will be revamping this blog to be more of a combination of weather and sports to be updated when I have time and have the inspiration to write a post.

Thanks to all who have read my past updates, I really enjoyed doing them but due to my the varied nature of hours in my new job, I haven't been able to settle into a routine of updating this blog. I hope that as my schedule gets to be more standard at AccuWeather that I can update more frequently as we head into fall.

Speaking of autumn, two big important events come to mind that will be relevant to this blog: the baseball postseason, and the beginning of the snow season.  If I had to choose between the two, I would have to pick snowstorms but the postseason is a close second.  In addition, who can forget about the beginning of college football season (and pro of course--thanks to the end of the lock out).  So to summarize, here is a list (non-inclusive) of topics I hope to cover in the revamped version of this blog starting in the next week or two:

• Weather Topics
• Tropical systems
• Winter outlook
• Weather Tidbits
• Weather 101 (a look at a commonly misunderstood weather concept)
• Baseball
• Yankees updates
• Postseason preview
• College Football
• Preseason thoughts
• Penn State game previews
• Pro Football
• Preseason thoughts
• Giants game previews
• Other
• Other newsworthy sporting events\
• Aviation topics
• Thoughts on world events
• Guest posts from other blog writers

Lastly, if you have any ideas or suggestions, please feel free to leave a comment.

Thanks for reading!

Yanks Take 2 of 3 From Oakland and Seattle

It was a 4-2 start to the homestand for New York took two of three from the inferior teams on the west coast. Unfortunately, the Yanks couldn't sweep the Mariners and hand them their 18th consecutive loss. Seattle, who was at .500 before their streak started, is now 14.5 games back of Texas. Let's break down the games.

vs. Athletics (Friday, July 22nd; Cahill vs. Hughes)  Yankees Win 17-7

Offense:  A+  Umm...is an explanation even necessary?  Between 17 hits, 10 walks, going 9-17 w/RISP and hitting 2 home runs, New York broke out of their offensive slumber.

Starting Pitching: C-  It was 100 degrees at game time so both starting pitchers didn't have ideal conditions for pitching. Fortunately for Hughes, he got more than enough run support because he allowed 7 runs in 4.1 innings. He also didn't pick up the win since he didn't make it through the 5th.

Bullpen:  A+  What a surprise, another outstanding bullpen outing. Noesi went 3.2 and Ayala went 1...all scoreless.

vs. Athletics (Saturday, July 23rd; Harden vs. Burnett)  Athletics Win 4-3

Offense:  C+  Despite 9 hits and 7 walks the Yanks could only put 3 runs on the board due to going 2-11 w/RISP.

Starting Pitching:  B  Burnett was serviceable, going 5.2 with 3 runs allowed. It's a shame that Burnett was saddled with the loss because Logan was technically the pitcher who allowed the go ahead run .

Bullpen:  C Not an awful performance but Logan couldn't hold the A's at 3 runs.

vs. Athletics (Sunday, July 24th; Gonzalez vs. Colon) Yankees Win 7-5

Offense:  A  A solid performance with nice contributions from the bottom of the line up. Martin, Jones, and Nunez had 2 hits each and Jeter had 2 walks. New York was 4-10 w/RISP.

Starting Pitching:  A  Bartolo Colon found his great stuff again lasting 7 innings and throwing just 99 pitches while allowing 2 runs on 8 hits.

Bullpen:  D+  Robertson and Rivera both had uncharacteristically poor outings. Houdini couldn't escape his jam in the 8th, allowing 2 runs on 3 hits and a walk. Mo came in to relieve Robertson and ended up giving up 4 hits and 1 run in 1.1 innings of work.  Luckily the Yanks had a comfortable lead.

vs. Mariners (Monday, July 25th; Vargas vs. Garcia)  Yankees Win 10-3

Offense:  A  The top of the line up generated 5 hits and 8 of the 10 RBI. Tex and Jeter both contributed with home runs.

Starting Pitching:  A- Garcia had another great outing. He lasted 7.2 innings while giving up 3 runs on 8 hits. He improved his record to 9-7.

Bullpen: A+  Only 1.1 innings pitched but Logan and Garrison were perfect.

vs. Mariners (Tuesday, July 26th; ) Yankees Win 4-1

Offense:  B  A decent outing by the offense. A home run by Grandy and Tex. Chavez had a key RBI single...good to see him back. He should be quite valuable down the stretch.

Starting Pitching: A+  Considering CC nearly was perfect, this grade is well-deserved. His best outing of the season. The only run he allowed came after the 2nd rain delay when he walked the bases loaded.  Sabathia had a career high 14 Ks and no walks until the 7th.

Bullpen:  A+  Robertson yet again was Houdini-like in the 8th, allowing just 1 run after inheriting a bases loaded, no one out, jam.  Mo nailed down his 26th save.

vs. Mariners (Wednesday, July 27th; ) Mariners Win 9-2

Offense:  D+  Having 6 hits and 4 walks but only scoring 1 run is not a good day. Especially when you go 1-10 w/RISP.

Starting Pitching:  B+  Hughes deserved a better fate. He only allowed 2 runs over 6 innings...his best start of the season.

Bullpen:  D+  In fairness to the bullpen, 4 of the 6 runs were unearned but Logan and Wade didn't have great outings. Ayala provided decent relief to end the game.

Yanks Split Rays Series but Bats Fall Silent at Trop

@ Rays (Monday, July 18th; Burnett vs. Cobb)  Yankees Win 5-4

Offense:  B-  Despite the victory, the New York offense was asleep throughout most of the game and only one it due to Tampa's ineffective bullpen pitching which had been taxed the previous night in the 16 inning loss to Boston.  New York finished 3-15 w/RISP and left 7 men on base with 2 outs.  They did however walk 9 times which saves them from getting a lower grade.  The Yanks were lucky to win this one.

Starting Pitching:  C+  It didn't start out well, but Burnett's outing improved after the 3 run 1st inning.  He allowed just one more run in 5.1 innings.  He struggled all night though, issuing 6 walks.  He kept the team in the game but more is expected of AJ.

Bullpen:  A+  Noesi gave up the only base runners in a total of 3.2 innings by the bullpen in what was another masterful performance.  Robertson and Mo nailed down the last two innings.

@ Rays (Tuesday, July 19th; Colon vs. Hellickson) Rays Win 3-2

Offense: C-  New York wasn't presented with many opportunities due to an outstanding performance by Rays starter Hellickson.  The only runs came on a 2-run shot by Cano in the 3rd inning.  This looked like it would hold up to give the Yanks the win but it didn't turn out to be.

Starting Pitching:  B+  Colon deserved a better fate who pitched exceptionally well through 6 innings.  In the 7th, Colon got Upton to strike out, then induced a ground ball to Jeter in the hole.  He unfortunately couldn't throw out Chirinos.  Sean Rodriquez then had a hard single.  Boone Logan relieved Colon and would have had the second out of the inning if Curtis Granderson hadn't lost the fly ball by Ruggiano in the lights.  A fielding error later, the Rays had tied the score and went ahead of Damon's sac fly.  Bad luck and a loss for Bartolo.

Bullpen:  A-  The relief pitching gets an A- because although Logan technically allowed the winning runs, he was not helped by his defense.

@ Rays (Wednesday, July 20th; Garcia vs. Price) Yankees Win 4-0

Offense:  B  Despite doing nothing offensively in innings 2-8, the Yanks book ended the game with 2 runs in the 1st and 9th.  Granderson got the scoring going with a 2-run HR against Price and Nunez had the other 2 RBI in the 9th.  Swisher contributed with 2 hits.

Starting Pitching:  A  Garcia tossed his best performance of the year.  He struck out 7 and walked none in 6.2 while only throwing 92 pitches.

Bullpen:  A+  Boone Logan continued his rebirth, striking out the only batter he faced.  Mo and Houdini (Robertson) struck out 2 batters each in the 8th and 9th.

@ Rays (Thursday, July 21st; Sabathia vs. Shields) Rays Win 2-1

Offense:  D  Nothing to write home about in this game offensively.  James Shields kept the Yanks off the board through 7 innings and only allowed a run in the 8th on a RBI by Cano.

Starting Pitching:  A-  CC deserved better in an outstanding outing.  He allowed 2 runs in a complete game but did walk 4 batters.  The offense couldn't bail him out.

Bullpen:  NA

Upcoming Posts

By the end of the week I hope to have a Yankees mid season  report online as well as a June summary.  In addition, I'll have the Rays series grades up by the weekend.

Thanks again for bearing with the lateness of my posts.  With any luck I'll be able to pick up the frequency soon.

Rays and Jays Grades (July 7-July 17)

Sorry for the lack of updates recently.  I have been busy starting a full time job at AccuWeather.  Therefore, I should probably be posting more about the weather...but it's always nice to take a break from the daily grind and talk sports.  So here are the grades for the Rays series before the All Star break and the Jays series that just ended.

vs. Rays (Thursday, July 7th; Niemann vs. Colon)  Rays Win 5-1

Offense:  D+  Going 0-8 w/RISP and leaving 9 on base won't win many games and the Yanks managed only 6 hits and 3 walks.

Starting Pitching:  C-  A poor outing from Colon who gave up 5 runs in 5.2 innings, giving up 10 hits and 4 walks!  It wasn't pretty and it looks like Colon may be favoring his hamstring since returning from the injury.

Bullpen:  A  Noesi did the job and was the bright spot in an otherwise forgettable game for New York.

vs. Rays (Saturday, July 8th; Price vs. Burnett)  Yankees Win 5-4

Offense: B+  A solid performance by New York who made Derek Jeter's historic day that much sweeter with a win.  Jeter went a phenomenal 5-5 and the Yanks amassed 10 hits and 5 walks while going 3-10 w/RISP

Starting Pitching:  B  Can't complain about Burnett's start other than the lack of length.  He went 5.2 IP and allowed only 3 hits but 3 runs.  If he had steered away from the long ball, Burnett's line would have been brilliant.

Bullpen:  A-  Another great performance with the exception of Robertson who allowed 2 hits and a run in the 8th and almost allowed the game to slip away.  Mo nailed down his 22nd save.

vs. Rays (Sunday, July 9th; Shields vs. Sabathia)  Yankees Win 1-0

Offense:  D  Due to the nature of the grading system, the grade for 1 run on 4 hits must be low but we must give credit to both starting pitchers who were phenomenal.  The only run of the game was unearned on an error by Shields.

Starting Pitching:  A+  Can't get much better than a complete game with 4 hits and no runs.

Bullpen:  NA

@ Blue Jays (Thursday, July 14th; Colon vs. Reyes)  Blue Jays Win 16-7

Offense:  A-  It was a good day for the offense, amassing 14 hits and 7 runs.

Starting Pitching:  D-  The only reason Colon does not get an F is because he 5 of the 8 runs he gave up were unearned.  Yes he couldn't get out of the first inning but 2 infield singles and an error led to an awful frame.  Nevertheless, another poor outing from Colon following a return from injury has to be concerning.

Bullpen:  F  The Yankees couldn't contain the damage with the bullpen which gave up 8 more runs, 4 by Mitre, who for some reason continues to pitch at the big league level...although only two were earned.

@ Blue Jays (Friday, July 15th; Garcia vs. Morrow)  Blue Jays Win 7-1

Offense:  D+  Nunez provided the lone RBI and the top of the order went hitless.

Starting Pitching:  C-  Another poor starting pitching performance from a New York pitcher.  Garcia did make it through the 5th but couldn't keep the Jays' bats at bay.  Toronto scored 6 runs on 7 hits and 4 walks off of Garcia.

Bullpen:  A-  3 innings worked by the 'pen, allowing 4 hits but only 1 run.  Wade struck out 4 in 2 innings of work.  He continues to be a dominant force out of the bullpen with a 1.54 ERA.

@ Blue Jays (Saturday, July 16th; Sabathia vs. Romero)  Yankees Win 4-1

Offense:  B  Despite banging out 10 hits, the Yanks went 2-14 w/RISP and left 6 runs in scoring position with 2 outs.  Jeter had 2 hits and an RBI while Gardner had 3 hits. 

Starting Pitching:  A  Sabathia gave the lately beleaguered Yanks pitching staff exactly what they needed.  8 innings of 1 run baseball and 8 strikeouts lifted CC to his 14th win of the season and further lowered his ERA to 2.64

Bullpen:  A-  Mo allowed 2 hits and made it interesting in the 9th but picked up his 23rd save.

@ Blue Jays (Sunday, July 17th; )  Yankees Win 7-2

Offense:  A+  A  well balanced Yankee attack allowed New York to split the 4 game series with Toronto.  Everyone but Posada had a hit and the team went 5-8 w/RISP, scoring 7 times on 11 hits.

Starting Pitching:  A  Hughes had a productive outing in his second start back from the DL.  Tossing 6 innings and allowing 2 runs on 4 hits and striking out 5 on an economical 80 pitches.  Hughes could have gone longer but the heat and recent return from the DL prevented that.

Bullpen:  A+  3 perfect innings from the bullpen.  Logan struck out the side in the 9th.

Derek Jeter's 3000th Hit: A Moment Bigger Than Baseball

I unfortunately do not remember in what year I started following the New York Yankees religiously but it was probably around 10 years ago.  This is not say that I didn't watch games before then because I do vaguely remember the teams of Brosious, Martinez, O'Neill, Cone, Wells, and El Duque.  "Back in the day" when I was just a wee-lad, an awkward, lanky, nerdy middle schooler, I loved the Yankees and remember watching games upstairs in our spare bedroom because my brother would have nothing to do with baseball (there is a story there for another time).  As a kid, I would watch the fervor, integrity, and reverence, with which Derek Jeter played the game.  At that age, I don't think I fully grasped how important Jeter is to America's greatest pasttime but I know that in the 10 years since then, I have come to learn the pivotal role Derek plays in the lives of young little leaguers as well as teammates making more money than he is.

Earlier this afternoon, Derek Jeter added to his Yankee legacy and baseball immortality when he connected on a 3-2 pitch from David Price, launching the ball into the left field seats for his 3rd HR on the season, and obviously more important, his 3,000th career hit, the first Yankee to ever accomplish the feat.  Of course personal milestones are never in the forefront for Derek, the consummate team player and the 5-4 win against the Rays was more important he'll say but this day will be remembered for him, not the team.

After a 3 minute ovation from his teammates, the crowd, and the Tampa Bay Rays, Jeter had cemented his ticked to the Hall of Fame as one of the most likeable players in sports who seems to be able to do no wrong despite the fact he plays for the "Evil Empire."  Even Boston Red Sox fans should applaud Derek for his accomplishment and the way he went about his business everyday. 

You couldn't have written a better script for Derek on this summer Saturday in the Bronx with the exception of a game winning 3,000th hit.  His home run in the 3rd inning tied the game and Derek ended the afternoon going 5-5 in a game where he could do no wrong and all his hit balls found holes.

The 48,103 people who watched today's game at the Stadium witnessed one of the most memorable moments in Yankee history.  Many of the fans today at the game today are probably just like I was 10 or 12 years ago, an awkward, lanky, nerdy kid who loves baseball.  Hopefully they recognize the significance of this historic day and instill the same admirable traits that Jeter portrays on their kids some day as I know I will. 

Derek Jeter's 3000th hit is more than a personal milestone and an historic baseball moment.  It is a moment where we recognize a role model for all the good he has done for the game of baseball and for the world.

Yanks Falter In Cleveland

For the first time in 8 series, the Yanks lost a set of 3.  The Indians took two of three from New York in Cleveland earlier this week with consistent pitching and a lack of timely hitting from the Yanks.  Derek Jeter inched closer to hit number 3,000 but that milestone would have to wait until Saturday.

@ Indians (Monday, July 4; Burnett vs. Tomlin)  Indians Win 6-3

Offense:  C  The Yanks were no hit for 6+ innings by Tomlin who improved to 10-4 (3.78).  New York could only muster 4 hits all night and 1 walk.  Granderson had a 2 run HR and Swisher continued his recent surge with 2 RBI.

Starting Pitching:  B  Burnett gave the Yanks length and went frame-for-frame with Tomlin before unraveling in the 7th after a series of miscues by the Yanks including a mis judged pop-up that would have ended the inning.  4 runs later, Burnett was on the losing side of the score, dropping to 8-7.  He still continues to pitch better than last year though.

Bullpen:   D  Wade didn't help matters, giving up 2 runs in the 8th inning and shutting the door on the Yanks' chances.

@ Indians (Tuesday, July 5; Sabathia vs. Carrasco)  Yankees Win 9-2

Offense:  A+  17 hits, 3 walks, 4-13 w/RISP, one HR by Grandy, and RBI from 6 players made it a successful offensive evening.  Jeter climbed closer to 3,000 with 2 hits and 2 RBI.

Starting Pitching:  A  CC was superb again (despite an All Star snub) lasting 7 innings and striking out 11 while allowing no runs and just 5 hits.

Bullpen:  C-  Lance Pendleton allowed 2 runs in 2 innings of work but it was empty relief due to the Yanks 9-0 lead when he entered.

@ Indians (Wednesday, July 6; Hughes vs. Masterson)  Indians Win 5-3

Offense:  D+  It was a dull day for the New York offense which could not get anything going against starting pitching Justin Masterson who was masterful through 8 innings, yielding just 3 hits and 2 walks.  New York was able to scratch three runs off of Cleveland relief in the 9th inning but couldn't complete the comeback.  The 2 runs allowed by Sergio Mitre in the 8th inning clearly loomed very large.

Starting Pitching:  C+  Phil Hughes made a successful comeback from the DL, throwing 87 pitches in 5 innings.  He did allow two runs in the first inning but seemed to settle into a rhythm moving forward.  A good start for Phil who, if nothing else, dropped his ERA to 10.57.  The single digits still elude him however.

Bullpen:  D+  Not much good can be said about the bullpen on this night as Ayala, Logan, and Mitre combined to toss 3 innings of 3 run baseball.  Sergio Mitre had his usual struggles and allowed two key runs in the 8th inning to make the score 5-0.  The Yanks scored 3 runs in the 9th and would have had a tie game if it wasn't for Mitre's poor showing.

June Yanks Summary Upcoming

The Yanks had a great month of June and I will recap it by the end of the weekend with any luck.  I'm in the process of moving back out to State College, PA to begin my full-time job with AccuWeather so I'll be busy but will hopefully find some time to blog about the month of June.

Yanks Meet the Mets (and take 2 of 3)

@ Mets (Friday, July 1st; Nova vs. Neise)  Yankees Win 5-1

Offense:  B+  11 hits and 5 runs for New York, led by 2 RBIs from Tex.  The middle of the line up had 5 hits and all 5 RBIs.

Starting Pitching:  B  Nova pitched only 5 innings because of offensive purposed due to a pinch hitter.  In those 5 innings, he gave up 1 run on 7 hits.  He didn't have his great stuff, but persisted and limited the damage.

Bullpen:  A It was a piece-meal job to say the least with 6 relievers for the last 4 innings but no runs were allowed by the pen and only 3 hits.

@ Mets (Saturday, July 2nd; Colon vs. Gee)  Yankees Win 5-2

Offense:  B  Another 5 run outing from the offense with home runs by Grandy and Nunez who went 3-4 but tweaked a hamstring.

Starting Pitching:  A-  Colon looked sharp in his return from the DL, tossing 6 shut out innings, allowing 5 hits, walking none and striking out 6.

Bullpen:  B-  Wade gave up 2 hits and Mitre, newly acquired from the Brewers gave up the only two runs of the game for the Mets in the 9th.

@ Mets (Sunday, July 3rd; Garcia vs. Dickey)  Mets Win 3-2

Offense:  C+  Despite 8 hits and 4 walks, the Yanks went 1-8 w/RISP and left 6 men on base with 2 outs and 11 total.

Starting Pitching:  A-  Garcia once again pitched well enough to win but failed to gain any run support.  He allowed just one run over 7 innings.  Freddie continues to pitch consistently and unfortunately doesn't have the record to show for it.

Bullpen:  B-  It was not a pretty day for the bullpen starting with Mariano who blew the save.  Despite the blown save, and later blown game by Hector Noesi, it is important to look at HOW the runs scored and developed.  The blown save by Mo was started by a walk and then a bloop single and a grounder.  Noesi blew the game by allowing a single to Bay in the 10th inning but wasn't helped by Pena who made an error earlier in the inning.

New York Dismantles Inferior Brewers

We knew the Yankees were a very good team.  We thought the Brewers were a good team as well due to their record in the NL Central and leading the division.  We now know that the Brewers (at least for 3 games in New York) are not as good as they look on paper.  Of course it's not good to judge a team over only 3 games, but the Yankees looked stronger in every aspect of the series.  You'll notice every grade below is in the "A" range for the Bombers and it is well deserved.  The offense capitalized on key opportunities despite not putting up spectacular RISP numbers and the pitching was lights out, allowing just 4 runs over the three games.


vs. Brewers (Tuesday, June 28th; Greinke vs. Garcia)  Yankees Win 12-2

Offense:  A  Despite amassing 10 hits and 12 runs, the Yanks were only 3-16 w/RISP.  They were extremely productive but their lack of hitting with RISP denies the offense an A+ rating.

Starting Pitching:  A-  6 serviceable innings by Garcia who allowed runs on 8 hits.  More of the usual from Freddie who continued to let hitters put the ball in play but beared down in the clutch..  Milwaukee went 2-11w/RISP.

Bullpen:  A  3 innings by Noesi and Wade combined, blanking the Brewers and allowing 3 hits.

vs. Brewers (Wednesday, June 29th; Marcum vs. Burnett)  Yankees Win 5-2

Offense:  A-  New York scored 5 runs on 6 hits with home runs from Martin and Posada.

Starting Pitching:  A  Burnett pitched a great game, walking just 2 and striking out 4 over 7 innings.  Allowed 2 runs on 7 hits.

Bullpen:  A+  Another great performance.

vs. Brewers (Thursday, June 30th; Wolf vs. Sabathia)  Yankees Win 5-0

Offense:  A  A very good performance with 5 runs and 8 hits. Teixiera hit his 300th career home run and Cano and Cervelli also contributed with 2 RBIs each.

Starting Pitching:  A+  CC was brilliant serving up just 6 hits and no runs over 7.2 innings while striking out a career high 13.

Bullpen:  A+  Can't find any fault with Logan and Ayala over 1.1 innings.

Quick Thoughts: Bombers Beatdown Brewers

Zack Greinke came into tonight's game against New York with his highest ERA against any team...and it only got worse. Lasting just two innings, Greinke gave up 7 runs, culminated by a three run shot by Swisher. Milwaukee continued to have their road issues this season, falling 11-2 to a New York team who out played them in every aspect of the game. Freddie Garcia pitched well once again and for once was the beneficiary of significant run support.

Next Up: Brewers to Bronx

The Milwaukee Brewers will take on the Yanks in a three game series starting on Tuesday with two games at 7:05 and a Thursday matinee at 1:05.  Milwaukee leads the NL Central by three games with a 44-35 record (.557) and have won their last 3 games.  However, they have fared much better at home (29-11) than on the road (15-24).  Zack Grienke, Shaun Marcum, and Randy Wolf will start for the Brewers and the Yanks have yet to set their starting rotation due to the off day tomorrow.

The weather looks great for Wednesday and Thursday but thunderstorms may dampen the game on Tuesday.

Yankees Win Another Interleague Series

It was a weekend of celebration in the Bronx as players and managers of years past returned to the Stadium with the annual Old Timers Day.  Bernie Williams, Tino Martinez, and Daryl Strawberry had RBIs in the yearly contest and Gene Monahan (long time Yanks trainer) was honored due to his retirement this year.  The current team of Yankees made the weekend memorable as well taking 2 of 3 from the Rockies, making them 4-0 in interleague series this season.


Despite losing the game on Friday night 4-2, New York rebounded with 8 runs and 15 hits on Saturday and 6 runs on Sunday.  A well rounded offensive attack was key to both wins over the weekend as Brett Gardner and Nick Swisher continued their recent hot-hitting.  Gardner also contributed 2 stolen bases and a perfect bunt single.

vs. Rockies (Friday, June 24th; Jimenez vs. Burnett)  Rockies Win 4-2

Offense:  C+  A bland offensive night who couldn't get anything after the first three innings.  New York wasted a key opportunity in the first inning when Cano hit a rocket to second which was caught and A-Rod was caught meandering too far off second base, allowing the double play.  Jimenez buckled down as the game progressed, lasting 7 innings and striking out 7.

Starting Pitching:  C+  6.1 innings pitched by Burnett giving up 4 runs.  He was wild with 5 walks but did strike out 5 as well.  Burnett struggled with his command all night and if the Yanks had won, it wouldn't have looked as poor.

Bullpen:  A  The bullpen continues to be a strength for New York.  Ayala and Logan each pitched an inning and a third, allowing no runs.

vs.  Rockies (Saturday, June 25th; Cook vs. Sabathia)  Yankees Win 8-3

Offense:  A  Posada was 3-4 with an RBI and Gardner had a perfect bunt single to lead off the game.  The offensive attack continued throughout the game with Teixiera capping it off with a 2 run HR in the 8th.

Starting Pitching:  A  8 IP, 7 hits, 1 ER and 9 Ks from CC who turned in another fantastic outing and was the first pitcher to 10 wins this season.

Bullpen:  D+  Buddy Carlyle allowed 2 runs the 9th.

vs. Rockies (Sunday, June 26th; Nicasio vs. Nova)  Yankees Win 6-4

Offense:  A-  Despite a perfect game through 4 innings, Nicasio couldn't hold the lead, giving up back to back runs to Swisher and Posada in the 5th.  The offense continued to press on in the later innings with Teixiera capping it off again with a solo home run in the 8th.

Starting Pitching:  B-  Nova was beat three times on solo home runs but pitched well otherwise.

Bullpen:  A+  Once again, the bullpen was phenomenal.

Next Up: Colorado Visits the Bronx

The Colorado Rockies (37-37) will visit the Bronx for a three game series starting tomorrow at 7pm.  The Rockies sit 3.5 games back in the "not-so-anemic-as-usual" NL West.  New York will send Burnett, Sabathia, and Nova to the mound.

Rain is in the forecast for Friday night's game and a delay or rainout is possible.  Despite the fan appeal of interleague play, poor weather throws a monkey-wrench in the plans since the teams will never see each other again in 2011 (except maybe for the World Series).  Therefore, doubleheaders, like the Yanks experienced on Wednesday are common.  Should tomorrow night's game against Colorado get rained out, the two teams would need to play a double header on Saturday or Sunday to make it up, or face trying to find a mutual time to make up the game at a later date.  The good news is that Saturday and Sunday's weather looks fantastic!

New York Continues Winning Ways in Interleague

The Yankees took two of three from the Reds early this week in Cincinnati due to stellar pitching performances in the first two games of the series from Nova and Garcia.  The offense was persistent throughout the three games but struggled against Cueto in the third (game 2 of the doubleheader).  The threat of rain washed out the second game of the series although no precipitation fell during game time leading to conspiracy theories that Johnny Cueto's tight neck had swayed the Reds into calling the game.  Instead, a twin-bill was played on Wednesday.

@ Reds (Monday, June 20th; Nova vs. Wood)  Yankees Win 5-3

Offense:  A-  New York doesn't receive an A due to the lack of production in the middle innings.  4 runs in the 1st and 1 in the 8th totaled the Yanks run scoring, going 3-6 w/RISP.  They combined to have 9 hits but only 2 walks.  Andruw Jones and Robbie Cano grounded into double plays.

Starting Pitching:  A  Nova was brilliant.  His best start of the season, allowing 1 run over 8 innings on just 4 hits and no walks while striking out 7 on 105 pitches. 

Bullpen:  C  Mariano Rivera had to clean up Ayala's and Logan's mess despite a 4 run lead heading into the 9th.  Rivera ended up with the save, his 18th.

@ Reds (Wednesday, June 22nd; Garcia vs. Leake)  Yankees Win 4-2

Offense: B+  There were not fireworks throughout the game but 4 runs on 6 hits did the trick.  Posada had the winning hit, a two-run HR in the top of the 6th to give the Yanks a 4-2 lead immediately after the Reds had tied the game in the bottom of the 5th.  Cano had a two-out RBI in the 3rd.

Starting Pitching:  A  Garcia threw 7 quality inning allowing 2 runs but none earned (giving him an A instead of an A-).  Ramiro Pena's inexperience allowed 2 runs to score in the 5th.

Bullpen:  A+  Another great outing with Robertson and Rivera combining for two innings of one hit baseball.

@ Reds (Wednesday, June 22nd; Gordon vs. Cueto)  Reds Win 10-2

Offense:  C  4 hits and 4 walks led to 2 runs off of Johnny Cueto who continued his dominant season.  The Yanks left 7 men on base and went 0-9 w/RISP.

Starting Pitching:  C  Gordon struggled through 5 innings, allowing 5 hits and 4 runs.  3 home runs didn't help matters.

Bullpen:  D+  Noesi had his first poor outing of the season.  6 runs allowed over 1.2 innings on 8 hits ballooned his ERA to 4.12!  It will be interesting to see how he responds in his next outing.

Yanks Take 2 of 3 at Wrigley

Despite a lethargic start on Friday afternoon, New York gained momentum and showed plenty of offensive firepower by the time the 3 game set with Chicago ended on Sunday night.  The Yankees continue to keep pace with Boston who has a 1.5 game lead in the AL East.  Let's break down the three games against the Cubs.

@ Cubs (Friday, June 17th; Garcia vs. Davis)  Cubs Win 3-1

Offense:  D+  It was an evening to forget for the offense who struggled mightily to get anything going against the usually pedestrian Doug Davis.  Scoring 1 run on 5 hits while going 1-6 w/RISP, New York once again failed to give Garcia any run support whose record is 5-6 despite a 3.63 ERA.

Starting Pitching:  B+  It started out rough for Garcia but he turned it around in the 4th inning and lasted through 7.  Too bad the offense couldn't score a few runs.

Bullpen:  A+  Only a 1 inning sample size but Ayala once again did an impressive job, striking out one.

@ Cubs (Saturday, June 18th; Burnett vs. Dempster)  Yankees Win 4-3

Offense:  B  Despite 10 walks and 11 hits, the Yankees could only muster 4 runs.  Going 4-13 w/RISP was decent but they should have scored more than just 4 runs.  The insurance run in the 9th proved key.

Starting Pitching:  B  Burnett only gave the Yanks 5.2 innings due to a high pitch count induced from 8 strikeouts and 3 walks but he kept the team in the game as he has in almost all of his starts this year, only allowing 2 runs.

Bullpen:  A  Despite the solo home run by Reed Johnson off of Rivera in the 9th, the bullpen was perfect.  Wade, Noesi, and Robertson did a fine job.

@ Cubs (Sunday, June 19th; Sabathia vs. Wells)  Yankees Win 10-4

Offense:  A+  6-12 w/RISP, amassing 13 hits and 10 runs.  It took until the 8th and 9th inning for the Yankees to come a live but they did a great job erasing a 4-1 deficit and winning decisively.

Starting Pitching:  B  CC had a mediocre outing but gave New York length, lasting 7 innings on only 89 pitches (he had thrown over 100 in 22 consecutive starts).

Bullpen:  A  No earned runs allowed and Robertson pitched well in the 8th despite allowing 2 walks.  Marquez allowed 2 hits in the 9th but the game was well out of reach at that point.

Yanks Offense Comes Alive in Sweep of Rangers

vs. Rangers (Wednesday, June 15th; Holland vs. Nova)  Yankees Win 12-4

Offense:  For the second consecutive night, the New York offense exploded for 12 runs.  Tonight's barrage leaned more on the home run than Tuesday night with 5 long balls including 2 by Teixiera from opposite sides of the plate.  Nunez and Pena also contributed home runs--on the same night, yes it can happen.

Starting Pitching:  B-  Nova bent but never broke, allowing 4 runs on 7 hits in 5.2 innings.  Despite Nova's success this season, he has failed to consistently deliver strong outings.

Bullpen:   A  Another strong performance from the completely rebuilt bullpen.  Ayala, Wade, and Marquez all contributed strong innings to shut down the Rangers who have struggled to score runs in this series.  All three pitchers were virtually unknown at the beginning of the year but may be key to a post season run due to the heavily injured bullpen.

vs. Rangers (Thursday, June 16th; Wilson vs. Gordon)  Yankees Win 3-2

Offense:  B-  After consistent offense in the past few games, New York struggled with men in scoring position (2-11) and squandered an opportunity to win the game in the 9th with the bases loaded and one out.  In the end though, Gardner came through with the game winning single, scoring Granderson in the 12th.  3 double plays didn't help.

Starting Pitching:  B  He didn't overpower anyone but Brian Gordon did a nice job in his first ever big league start.  He lasted 5.2 innings and only allowed 2 runs but did walk 3 despite great control at AAA.

Bullpen:  A+  Allowing 2 hits and 1 walk over 5.2 innings, the bullpen did a masterful job.

A Week's Worth of Grades

Since last Thursday, I have come to the conclusion that it rains when I attend Yankees games.  After not suffering a rain delay in at least several weeks, I journeyed to the Bronx on Thursday for the Boston series finale and endured a 3.5 hr rain delay.  I ventured back to the city on Saturday only to have it drizzle through the entire game with a temperature of 65 degrees.  Last night, hoping the third time would be the charm, went to see the Yanks play the Rangers and again sat through a 41 minute delay.  Fortunately, the outcome of both yesterday's and Saturday's games were in favor of the Yankees but apparently the "weather gods" have it out for me.

The last week of baseball can be summarized by stating that if the Yankees never played the Red Sox again this season, they would almost assuredly win the division.  Boston continues to hold New York in check at Yankee Stadium, having taking the first 6 games there this season.  Fortunately for Yankees fans, one series does not a season make and the team fared much better against the Indians over the weekend and last night against Texas.  On to the grades...

vs. Red Sox (Wednesday, June 8th;  Wakefield vs. Burnett)  Red Sox Win 11-6

Offense:  B+  6 runs on 9 hits will win you most games.

Starting Pitching:  Burnett's struggles against the Red Sox continued as he allowed 8 runs over 5.2 innings and walked 4.  He couldn't control his curveball so the hitters would just sit on his fastball.

Bullpen:  C  Boone Logan pitched well but Pendleton shut the door on the Yanks, allowing 3 runs late in the game.

vs. Red Sox (Thursday, June 9th; Beckett vs. Sabathia)  Red Sox Win 8-3

Offense:  C  Despite a 2 run HR by Granderson off Beckett in the first inning, the Yanks couldn't hold the momentum and failed to score again until the 9th inning.  By that point it was too late.

Starting Pitching:  C  Sabathia cruised through 6 innings but the wheels fell off in the 7th.  He ended up allowing 6 runs on 8 hits.

Bullpen:  D  Robertson couldn't control the damage in the 7th and Marquez allowed another run in the 9th.

vs. Indians (Friday, June 10th; Carmona vs. Nova)  Yankees Win 11-7

Offense:  A+ The Yanks rebounded nicely from their embarrassing series against Boston with 11 runs on 15 hits.  Every starter but Swisher had a hit and Teixiera contributed 3 RBIs.  New York stole 5 bases.  Posada and Gardner continue their hot hitting.

Starting Pitching:  A  Nova allowed 2 runs on 4 hits over 7 while striking out 6 but did walk 3.  The youngster continues to impress and has grown significantly throughout the season.

Bullpen:  C-  It wasn't a pretty last 2 innings as the Sanit got into trouble and Pendleton couldn't get out of it, allowing 4 runs to score.  What started as a sure victory turned into a 9th inning where Mariano Rivera had to be called in to make sure the game didn't get out of hand.  Simply unacceptable.

vs. Indians (Saturday, June 11th; Talbot vs. Colon)  Yankees Win 4-0

Offense:  B  The offense wasn't potent all day but 3 solo home runs did the job.

Starting Pitching:  A  Bartolo Colon seems to have found the Fountain of Youth despite injuring his hamstring in the 7th inning.  He pitched fantastically again allowing just 2 hits in 6.2 innings.

Bullpen:  A  Dave Robertson sure made it interesting and increased my blood pressure as I watched the game in weather that was more reminiscent of a New York Giants football game but he and Boone Logan closed out Colon's strong outing.


vs. Indians (Sunday, June 12th; Tomlin vs. Garcia)  Yankees Win 9-1

Offense:  A+  Another stellar afternoon by the offense who managed 18 hits and 9 runs while going 7-15 w/RISP.  Granderson continued his torrid season going 4-4 with 2 runs scored and 2 RBI.


Starting Pitching:  A  Garcia did a great job recovering from his poor showing against Boston, tossing 6.2 innings and yielding only 1 run while striking out 6.


Bullpen:  A  Ayala allowed a hit in the 8th and Whelan allowed a walk in the 9th.


vs. Indians (Monday, June 13th; Carrasco vs. Burnett)  Indians Win 1-0

Offense:  D+  Despite plentiful scoring opportunities in the first 3 innings, New York couldn't push a runner across the plate and Carrasco regained his control and cruised in the latter innings.  The Yanks went 0-7 w/RISP and did not have a hit after the 6th.


Starting Pitching:  A  Burnett deserved a better fate.  He pitched brilliantly over 7.2 innings, his only mistake being a triple to lead off the 4th.  Walking only one, while striking out 8 and allowing only 5 hits was a great way to rebound from the awful start vs. Boston---it's just too bad the offense couldn't support Burnett's sensational start.


Bullpen:  A+  Only a 1.1 inning sample size but Robertson continued his dominant season.


vs. Rangers (Tuesday, June 14th; Ogando vs. Sabathia)  Yankees Win 12-4

Offense:  A+  No complaints here.  Scored six runs in the second inning all without the home run and tacked on later with the long ball.  Knocked out the usually dominant Ogando after just 1.2 innings.  A strong performance.  Nunez provided key hit in the 2nd in Jeter's absence.


Starting Pitching:  A-  CC started strong but ended up giving up 4 runs.  Dominated the strike zone all night, walking none.


Bullpen:  A  Ayala pitched a perfect 8th and continues to be a consistent arm out of the pen.  Lance Pendleton struggled with his control and walked 2 in the 9th but did not allow a hit or run.

Sox Sweep Yanks; Full Update Coming Soon

Awful series against the Red Sox in which the Yankees were 100% outplayed.  After being embarrassed at home in the first two games of the series, the Yanks got off to the right start on Thursday night with a Granderson HR and a dominant first few inning from CC.  It all went down hill from there and Boston completed the sweep, winning 8-3.

I will have a full update with grades of all the games from this week later tomorrow night or Sunday as well as some discussion about the numerous Yankees being hit by a pitch in the past week.

Swisher and Posada's Contributions Not Enough to Overcome Garcia's Abysmal Outing

Commentary:


It's All About the Money (Yankees blog) has a great article on why Freddy Garcia's performance last night should not have been unexpected.  Read it here.

Speaking of Garcia, it couldn't have been much worse for the veteran righty last night.  He managed a meager 1.2 innings, gave up 4 runs on 4 hits and 3 walks.  That's 7 base runners in 1.2 innings...a WHIP of 4.19!  As the always informative Susan Waldman mentioned at least 3 times within 2 innings last night: Garcia just can't get by unless he's on.  No kidding Susan...I'm so glad I learn so much from listening to your "color commentary" on the radio.  On-air personality rantings aside, Freddy Garcia does not have the velocity to make location mistakes  and a veteran team like the Red Sox will not swing at pitches outside the zone.

Not all aspects of last nights game were negative however.  The bullpen performed very well including a 7 inning, 2 run outing by Hector Noesi who continues to shine despite limited use.  Luis Ayala continued his consistent season with 1.1 innings of scoreless baseball.  On the offensive side, embattled Jorge Posada (0-27 batting right handed this year) decides to break that streak by going 2-2 off of arguably the best lefty in the game, Jon Lester.  All of this coming after Mark Teixiera had to leave in the first inning after being plunked on the left knee by a Lester cutter.  Maybe Posada does indeed play better when he is playing the field as opposed to DH.  Nick Swisher had a productive night going 2-4 with a 2-run, 2-out double in the 5th which cut the Boston lead to 3.  That was it for the offense until the 9th when New York brought the tying run to the plate after Posada had an RBI single.  A-Rod struck out to end the game with Posada on first.

Grades:


Offense: C  Wasted several opportunities, especially in the middle innings when they continuously stranded the lead off runner at first.

Starting Pitching:  F  You can't do much worse....

Bullpen:  A  Bright spot for the night.

Grades from Angels Game (Sunday June 5)


Offense:  B

Starting Pitching:  B-  Colon struggled but kept his team in the game.

Bullpen: A  4 hits and a walk over 3.2 innings.

Noesi Effective but Garcia's Poor Outing Dooms Yanks

Despite a stellar 7.1innings by the bullpen, New York fell to Boston 6-4 due to Freddie Garcia's terrible start. I'll have a full update tomorrow but I Just wanted to point out two positives from tonight's game. The first being Noesi's great 7 innings, giving up just the two run HR to Ortiz. The second good thing was Posed going 3-3 with a walk and 2 of those hits coming right handed. 

Burnett opposes Wakefield tomorrow. Teixiera is day to day after being HBP.

Can Colon Continue Comeback?

Batolo Colon takes the mound in just a few minutes and will look to back-up his complete game shut out against the Athletics.  It's been a remarkable season for Colon who is 3-3 with a 3.26 ERA.  The former Angel will face off against Joel Pineiro who has pitched well this season (2-2; 3.52 ERA).  He is vying for his 100th career win.

Weather looks great again with a current temperature of 73 degrees and sunny.

The Yanks are off tomorrow as they head back home to play the Red Sox at the Stadium on Tuesday at 7pm.  I'll be attending two games next week (Thursday against the Sox and Saturday against the Indians) so I will be able to give a first hand account of the games.

Enjoy the end of the weekend!

Sabathia Dominant Again; Home Runs Propel Yanks to Victory

Commentary:

The headline story of the season was prevalent again on Saturday night as the Yankees scored all 3 of their runs with the benefit of the long ball.  Despite 5 other hits, New York failed to put together a consistent offensive attack against an oft-falling behind, but sneaky Ervin Santana.  Despite being in favorable counts most of the night, New York hitters couldn't capitalize on opportunities including a Derek Jeter double play in the 5th following a Posada walk and Gardner single.  Luckily, Cano and A-Rod decided to bail the Yanks out with a solo home run and 2-run shot, respectively.  Rodriguez's blast came in the 6th with Granderson on first via a walk which broke a 1-1 tie.  The team finished 0-5 w/RISP.

The Angels had less success a dominant CC Sabathia who picked up his 4th consecutive win despite giving up 8 hits and only striking out 3.  Sabathia continues to dominant by changing speeds and locating his changeup.  The only blemish on his line was in the 9th when Sabathia allowed back to back singles, scoring Peter Bourjos from second.  Mariano Rivera was called on to get the final out and induced a game ending pop up by Erick Aybar on one pitch.

Grades:

Offense:  B-

Starting Pitching:  A  Only 1 earned run for CC over 8.2 innings.  Another great start.

Bullpen:  NA  I can't justify a giving a grade for one pitch--even though it was thrown by Mo.

Another Great Night for Baseball

According to the Bigelow Tea sponsored weather on YES, the game time temp was 66 degrees and partly cloudy, just one degree warmer than forecast.

A quick first inning with one base runner for each team. Can CC continue his hot streak?

Next Up: Sabathia vs. Santana (not Johan)

CC Sabathia will take the hill tonight at 9:05 eastern time searching for his 4 consecutive win (he has a 1.80ERA over the last 3 games).  Ervin Santana will oppose the big left hander who is 3-4 with a 3.43 ERA.

Weather:

Expect increasing clouds throughout the game with a temperature of 65 at first pitch.  Luckily, the heavy rain affecting the San Francisco area (which broke its record June 4 rainfall today).  Although rain fall amounts have been less than 1.00" (which is nothing extraordinary), San Francisco does not experience much rain during the summer.  The winter is the wet season for the central and northern California coast.

Patient Approaches Vanishes in Late Innings of Yanks Loss

Commentary:

A game that began with a 15 pitch at-bat to Derek Jeter, ended with a 3-2 Yankees loss due to some bad luck and lack of offensive patience after the 5th inning.  Jared Weaver had thrown 60+ pitches through 3 innings and had been staked to a 1 run lead due to Ivan Nova's wildness and timely hitting by the Angels in the bottom of the first.  The Yankees scored an early run on an RBI single by Martin who knocked in A-Rod. 

As the game progressed, the New York offense struggled but was able to score in the 4th on a ground rule double by Posada who desperately needed to show some type of offensive life.  The bad luck of a ground rule double prevented Swisher from scoring on the play which would have given the Yanks a 3-2 lead.  Instead, Nova gave up the go ahead run in the bottom of the inning which would prove decisive in the 3-2 Los Angeles victory.

In the 6th inning, the Yankees had worked Weaver's pitch count to 100+ pitches.  After a 4 pitch strike out of A-Rod to lead off the frame, Weaver got the next two batters (Cano and Martin) out with only 2 pitches.  The 6 pitch inning allowed Weaver to stay in the game and continue to shut down the Yankees.  When the game was over, New York had mustered just 3 hits and struck out 11 times although they were .333 (2-6) w/RISP.

On the bright side, Nova pitched better, and gutted his way into the seventh inning allowing 3 runs on 8 hits.  Robertson and Ayala did a good job in the 7th and 8th although Logan was brought on at one point in the 8th and promptly allowed a hit.  He continues to perform poorly.

Grades:

Offense:  C-  What began with a bit of production early, ended with a free-swinging and poor approach after the 5th inning.

Starting Pitching:  B-  Nova definitely allowed the Yanks a chance to win but giving up the go ahead run in the 4th after the Yanks had tied it in the top of the frame makes this score a B- rather than a B in addition to the 8 hits, 2 walks, and wild pitch.

Bullpen:  A-  Robertson and Ayala were solid as usual but Logan continues to be useless.  Anyone remember Pedro Feliciano was supposed to be the lefty specialist?

Weather:

As I posted last night at game time, the temperature was 65 at first pitch with partly cloudy skies.  I nailed the weather conditions but was 5 degrees too warm on the temperature.

Grade:  B+

Game Time in LA

Derek Jeter is about to step into the batters box for the start of tonight game.  Will great pitching win it for the Yanks tonight as Ivan Nova takes the hill?

Temp is 65 which is 5 degrees cooler than forecast. Partly cloudy skies the rest of the night with light wind.

Yankees May Review: The Grandyman Can

**This is the second installment of the Yankees monthly review.  I'll summarize the previous month and give my grade averages for each category and starting pitcher for the month as well as the cumulative averages.  Grades are numerically calculated using a GPA type system where an A is a 4.0, A- is a 3.67, B+ is a 3.33 and so on.  The numbers are then averaged for each category.**

It's hard to believe that the baseball season is a third of the way done and if the current trends hold, it is going to be a wild last 4 months throughout the league, especially in the AL.  The AL East is separated by 4 games while the AL West is even tighter with just 4 games separating Texas from Oakland.  The only team seemingly out of the race is the Twins who have been abysmal (18-37).  But onto the Yanks in May...

Record: 15-14 (May)  29-23 (Overall)

**All stats are through May**

Offensive Stats:
Batting Average: .253 (8th in AL)  *Same avg as in April but dropped 2 spots*
Slugging Percentage: .445 (1st in AL)  *Dropped from .475 at the end of April*
Home Runs: 83 (1st in AL)  *Next closest team is the Rangers with 64...ridiculous amounts of longballs*
RBI: 275 (1st in AL)
Runs: 283 (1st in AL)
Hits: 463 (9th in AL)  *Improved from 13th to 9th but still behind in this category*
My Grade Average: 2.79 (~B) in May; 2.91 (~B) Overall



Thoughts:  Another decent month for the Yanks offense which finally showed they could score runs without the home run during the 2nd half of the month.  New York still has issues with runners in scoring position which was highlighted during their 6 game losing streak during the middle of the month.  The Bronx Bombers now lead the AL in the RBI and runs category which is an improvement from April.  The slugging percentage continues to be fantastic but they still need to be able to produce runs and continuously score during the course of the game.  The offense propelled by the red-hot Curtis Granderson who knocked 10 home runs and 26 RBIs during May.  He is second in home runs across the majors with 17, trailing only Jose Bautista with 20.

Pitching Stats:
ERA: 3.52 (4th in AL)  *Dropped 0.27 runs since April*
Hits Allowed: 461 (9th in AL)
Earned Runs Allowed: 193 (12th in AL)
Home Runs: 33 (11th in AL)
Walks: 178 (10th in AL)
Strikeouts: 381 (7th in AL)
My Starting Pitching Grade Average: 2.85 (~B) in May; 2.91 (~B) Overall
My Bullpen Grade Average: 3.45 (A) in May; 3.31 (~A-) Overall

Thoughts:  It was another superb month for Yanks pitchers who continue to be some of the best in the game despite mediocre pre-season expectations.  A few bullpen issues have been scattered about but in general every pitcher has been solid.  Burnett has had a few hiccups but Colon has been brilliant lately.  Nova is still learning but has been a valuable 5th starter.

The overall grade trend was down with the exception of the bullpen who had a nice solid May.  The starting pitching was mediocre early in the month, especially during a 3 games series to the Red Sox but has had a resurgence of late.  The offense still struggles to score without the home run but has become more well rounded although they struggled early in the month.  Overall, the Yanks played better as the month moved along.

Pitcher Breakdown (total # of starts):

Sabathia ():
Burnett ():
Nova ():
Garcia ():
Colon ():


Weather Forecast Accuracy:

Due to my absence in timely updates during May, I issued only a handful of forecasts and therefore it is not a large enough sample size to discuss.  Please see old posts for specific forecast verifications.    

Beautiful Night for Baseball

Looking for a great night for baseball tomorrow in Anaheim, CA as the Yanks take on the Angels.  Expect a temperature of 70 at game time with scattered clouds and light breeze.

Young right-hander Ivan Nova will take the hill for the Yanks while Jared Weaver starts for the Angles.  After a red-hot April and early May, Weaver has tapered recently but still sports a sub-3 ERA and has a 6-4 record.  Nova is looking to rebound from a shaky start in Seattle.

More Frequent Posts?

Since i just purchased a smartphone, i can now update using the blogger app. Could mean more frequent updates! :)

May summary upcoming as well as tomorrow's forecast.

Swisher's Long Ball Helps Yanks Sweep Oakland

Commentary:

For the third straight game, the Yanks offense came out firing early with an RBI double by A-Rod in the first inning that plated Derek Jeter.  The big blow came in the 4th inning when the embattled Nick Swisher hit a 3-run HR to left field.  Swisher is now hitting .215 but at least he continues to produce from the right side of the plate.  The rest of the game saw no New York scoring despite several opportunities in later innings.  Going 2-9 w/RISP didn't help matters later in the game but New York scored enough runs to win the game and supported winning pitcher AJ Burnett.

Burnett tossed 7 strong innings, allowing 2 runs on only 3 hits, walked 3 and struck out 5.  It didn't look good early for AJ who got 2 quick outs in the first before allowing a 2 run long ball to Willingham, giving up the 1-run lead A-Rod had staked him to in the top of the inning.  Burnett settled down from there, and cruised through the later innings.  Chamberlain pitched a scoreless 8th due in large part to a line drive double play following 2 hits.  Mariano Rivera picked up a much needed road save, his first save since May 21st and 14th of the year.

Grades:

Offense:  B

Starting Pitching:  A-

Bullpen:  A

Next Up:

The Yanks are off tomorrow in Anaheim and will play the Angels on Friday at 10:05pm.  I'll have the weather forecast tomorrow as well as the Yankees May Summary.

Have a good night!

On Fire: Granderson Drives in Four; Offense Produces 12 Hits in Rout

Commentary:

It took me almost a month but I am finally back on a normal schedule and here is commentary on last night's west coast battle to start off the next month of the Yankees season.

Coming off a dominant, 4 hit shut-out by Colon the day before, Freddy Garcia looked to continue the trend but the story last night was the persistent offense, scoring runs in 5 of 9 innings.  Granderson began the game with a 2-run HR, scoring Jeter who as a ~.480 on base percentage in the first inning of games this season.  The Grandyman would follow up his 2-run shot with a 2-run double in the 4th.  The rest of the offense also had a great afternoon, producing 12 hits.  The top 4 in the line up combined to go 9 for 17 with 7 RBIs.

Freddy Garcia gave the Yanks what they needed, allowing just 3 runs over over 7 innings and saving the Yanks bullpen which now has had a nice break after Freddy's performance and Colon's shut out.  Ayala and Pendleton close out the game in the 8th and 9th, allowing just 1 walk combined.

Grades:

Offense:  A+  A persistent attack highlighted by Granderson's hot-hitting.

Starting Pitching:  B+  3 runs over 7 innings and 5 strikeouts by Garcia.

Bullpen:  A  Only one walk allowed in two innings.

Today's series finale against the As is currently ongoing and I will have a blog post about that either later tonight or tomorrow.  In addition, I will have my May Review for the Yankees out tomorrow along with the first weather forecast in what seems like forever for the Friday game as the Yanks head to Anaheim to face the Angels.

2011 Atlantic Hurricane Season Preview

As the clock passes midnight, the calendar changes to June and the Atlantic Hurricane Season has begun.

A good friend of mine who has focused his research on hurricanes has written an informative preview/forecast of the upcoming season which can be found here.  The article is written by Michael Kozar and the views expressed in that forecast/preview do not necessarily reflect my thoughts.

Enjoy!!


 

While I Was Out: Game Grades May 21st - May 30th

Thanks for continuing to read despite the inconsistent blog posts. I plan on posting daily for at least the next month (similar to the frequency in April).  The game grades "while I was out" are below (the Yanks went 6-4 over these 10 games).

Tidbit:  The Yankees were part of three games that ended in a score of 7-3 (2 wins and 1 loss) during this 10 game stretch

vs. Mets (Friday, May 20th; Dickey vs. Garcia)  Mets Win 2-1

Offense:  C-  1-10 w/RISP and only 4 hits.  Another poor showing by the offense.

Starting Pitching:  B+  Garcia went 7 and gave up 2 runs.  Definitely enough to get a win but the offensive support was lacking.  2 walks and 2 strikeouts.  Garcia continues to be consistent--consistently losing due to poor run support.

Bullpen:  A  No runs over 2 innings with 4 Ks

vs. Mets (Saturday, May 21st; Capuano vs. Burnett)  Yankees Win 7-3

Offense:  B  Normally, a 7 run outburst would be enough to earn a grade of an A but the Yankees only managed 7 hits and all runs were scored off the home run.  New York went 0-1 w/RISP!  They also did not have a walk in the entire game.  Not a well rounded offensive game.

Starting Pitching:  B  6.1 IP, 3 runs, 3 walks, 4 strikeouts.  It's a quality start but not fantastic.

Bullpen:  A  Great job again with the exception of Logan giving up a hit in the 6th.  No other batters reached base after that.

vs. Mets (Sunday, May 22nd; Pelfrey vs. Nova)  Yankees Win 9-3

Offense:  A-  Despite a stagnant start to the game, the offense woke up in the 7th, scoring 8 runs in the frame and ending 5-10 w/RISP.

Starting Pitching:  B  Nova did a good job going 6.2 IP but gave up 11 hits while only allowing 3 runs.  He limited the damage and kept his team in the game.  He continues to mature as a pitcher.

Bullpen:  A+  Solid once again.  This time it was Ayala and Pendleton.

vs. Blue Jays (Monday, May 23rd; Villanueva vs. Colon)  Blue Jays Win 7-3

Offense:  C  When you go 2-15 w/RISP, you deserve to lose the game.  On the positive side, the Yanks scored their 3 runs without the home run.

Starting Pitching:  C-  Colon was doing alright until the 6th when he gave up 5 runs.

Bullpen:  B+  Noesi pitched 3 innings and allowed 2 hits and 1 run.

vs. Blue Jays (Tuesday, May 24th; Romero vs. Sabathia)  Yankees Win 5-4

Offense:  B+  A persistent attack paid off in the last 2 innings when the Yanks scored 4 runs and came back to win the game on Teixeira's RBI single with 2 outs in the 9th.  A nice battle by New York who went 4-10 w/RISP.

Starting Pitching:  B+  Sabathia went the distance but allowed 4 runs, striking out only 3 using 103 pitches. He hasn't been dominant all season but he has given the Yanks length and kept them in ball games.

Bullpen:  NA

vs. Blue Jays (Wednesday, May 25th; Reyes vs. Garcia)  Yankees Win 7-3

Offense:  A-  7 runs on 9 hits but 2-11 w/RISP.  Continued their attack throughout the entire game--consistent!

Starting Pitching:  B+  6.1 IP with 3 runs allowed.  Another consistent start for Garcia who finally received some run support and got the win.

Bullpen:  A  Solid again with 2 hits and a walk allowed over the final 2.2 innings.

@ Mariners (Friday, May 27th; Burnett vs. Pineda)  Mariners Win 4-3

Offense:  C+  3 runs but only 5 hits and 1-6 w/RISP.  The Yanks couldn't get anything going in the last 4 innings.

Starting Pitching:  B-  Burnett labored through 5 innings, walking 5 but only allowed 2 runs.  Gave the Yanks a good chance to win.

Bullpen:  C  Logan once again fails to do anything right and give up a hit to the only batter he faces in the 6th.  Ayala blows the lead later that inning and then gives up the winning run an inning later.

@ Mariners (Saturday, May 28th; Nova vs. Hernandez)  Mariners Win 5-4

Offense:  B-  Another poor showing w/RISP (1-9).  It's getting a bit painful to only watch runs be scored via the long ball.

Starting Pitching:  D  Nova struggled and lasted just 3.2 innings giving up 4 runs.

Bullpen:  B  The bullpen was rock solid after Nova exited until Mo blew the game in the 12th.  His struggles on the road continue.

@ Mariners (Sunday, May 29th; Sabathia vs. Vargas)  Yankees Win 7-1

Offense:  A  Well rounded attack with 4-11 RISP,  5 of the runs came with 2 outs.

Starting Pitching:  A  Sabathia pitched brilliantly over 8 innings.

Bullpen:  A  Pendleton was solid in the 9th.

@ Athletics (Monday, May 30th; Colon vs. Cahill)  Yankees Win 5-0

Offense:  A-  Despite a mid-game lull, the Yanks tacked on 2 runs in the 7th inning or later.

Starting Pitching:  A+  The only way the outing is any better is if Colon doesn't allow a hit.  A shut out from the veteran who continues to surprise the league this season.

Bullpen: NA

Game Grades: May 3rd - May 20th

 Once again, apologies for the delay.  My current plan is to resume regular posting the week of May 31st.  However, I have compiled grades of all games from May 3rd-May 20th.

Definitely the poorest stretch of the season so far for the Yankees who failed to have timely hits, struggled on defense, and played poor fundamental baseball.  Included in this time period was a sweep at the hands of the Red Sox in New York.  It seems as if the Yanks have turned it around since Tampa.  Let's hope my post will initiate more good play against the Mets starting tonight :)

@ Tigers (Tuesday, May 3rd; Sabathia vs. Penny)  Tigers Win 4-2

Offense:  C  Two DPs, 1-5 w/RISP.  1 solo home run and an RBI by Martin doesn't make this a memorable offensive performance

Starting Pitching:  C+  Yes he went 7 innings but Sabathia struggled and gave up 4 runs and 10 hits while walking 3.

Bullpen:  A  Nice 1 inning performance by Robertson

@ Tigers (Wednesday, May 4th; Garcia vs. Scherzer)  Tigers Win 4-0

Offense:  D  Mustering just 4 hits and no runs while striking out 11 times, the Yanks looked flat again offensively as Matt Scherzer shut them down over 8 dominant innings.

Starting Pitching:  C+  An almost identical line to CC from the night before, Garcia gave the Yanks a chance to win but the offense couldn't support him.

Bullpen:  A+  Buddy Carlyle struck out 2 and gave up no hits in 1 inning of work.



@ Tigers (Thursday, May 5th; Burnett vs. Porcello)  Tigers Win 6-3

Offense:  B-  10 hits but only 3 runs.  Chavez (who injured his foot), Garnder, and Nunez had RBIs although Nunez had a costly error.

Starting Pitching:  B  Burnett was solid only giving up 2 earned runs but allowed 3 unearned runners to cross the plate due to poor fielding by Nunez.  Burnett also had an error on a pick off throw.

Bullpen:  B-  Boone Logan had issues once again, pitching 1 inning but giving up a hit and a run on a home run.

@ Rangers (Friday, May 6th; Nova vs. Harrison)  Yankees Win 4-1

Offense:  C  3 of the 4 runs came off the bat of Granderson--all the home run.  Curtis continued to carry the team and the rest of the offense struggled.

Starting Pitching:  A  Nova's best career start.  Gave up only 1 run in 7.1 innings and only gave up 2 hits.  Brilliant.

Bullpen:  A  Apart from Soriano's one hit, no other blemishes on the bullpen.


@ Rangers (Saturday, May 7th; Colon vs. Holland)  Rangers Win 7-5

Offense:  B-  The bottom thrid of the lineup was awful but the Yanks did score 5 runs on only 6 hits.  They showed resilience early but mustered nothing late.

Starting Pitching:  C-  Colon's worse start as a Yankee giving up 5 runs in 4.1 innings.

Bullpen:  C+  Robertson and Logan allowed 2 more runs to cross the plate after Colon departed.

@ Rangers (Sunday, May 8th; Sabathia vs. Bush)  Yankees Win 12-5

Offense:  A  Every starter but Cano had a hit, 16 in total.  They struggled early with runners in scoring position however which prevents this grade from being an A+ (4-15 w/RISP)


Starting Pitching:  B-  Sabathia struggled through 6 innings but kept the Yanks in the game which was more than enough for the potent offense on Mother's Day.  He was also uncharacteristically wild, issuing 4 walks.

Bullpen:  A  No runs, 3 hits.  Solid.



vs. Royals (Tuesday, May 10th; Davies vs. Garcia)  Yankees Win 3-1

Offense:  B  A decent offensive outing.  Not much to complain about or praise here.


Starting Pitching:  A-  Another solid start by Garcia who worked 6 innings and gave up 1 run although he allowed 6 hits.

Bullpen:  A+  Once again Girardi went to the bullpen when his starter still had a low pitch count after 6 innings and they came through.

vs. Royals (Wednesday, May 11th; Mazzaro vs. Burnett)  Royals Win 4-3

Offense:  C-  A terrible performance with runners in scoring position (2-16) led to many missed opportunities.  The Royals should never have been close to winning this game but the Yanks could never get a big hit--the beginning of a disturbing trend for the next week.

Starting Pitching:  A-  A great start by Burnett who lasted 7 innings and gave up only 1 run.  The 5 walks knocks this grade to an A-

Bullpen:  B-  Robertson gave up the game tying hit in the 8th and Carlyle gave the lead to the Royals in the 10th before the Yanks tied it again.  Carlyle though would not be so lucky in the 11th when the Yanks couldn't get back the run that Buddy allowed.

vs. Royals (Thursday, May 12th; O'Sullivan vs. Nova)  Royals Win 11-5

Offense:  B-  Aside from a 4 run 5th inning.  Not much happened for the Yanks' offense.


Starting Pitching:  D-  Nova followed up his best of the season with his worst.  Lasting just 3 innings and giving up 8 runs, although only 4 were earned.

Bullpen:  C-  Sanit struggled in mop up work but gave New York 4.2 much needed innings.

vs. Red Sox (Friday, May 13th; Buchholz vs. Colon)  Red Sox Win 5-4

Offense:  B-  They showed some life at the end of the game but going 1-7 w/RISP is not the way to win a ballgame.


Starting Pitching:  B-  Colon was decent allowing 3 runs over 6 innings.

Bullpen:  C  Joba blew the game in the 7th, allowing 2 runs on a Youkilis HR.

vs. Red Sox (Saturday, May 14th; Beckett vs. Sabathia)  Red Sox Win 6-0

Offense:   D  Mustering 7 hits keeps this grade from being any lower.  New York went 0-10 w/RISP and scored no runs while striking out 13 times.


Starting Pitching:  Sabathia struggled again giving up all 6 Boston runs.

Bullpen:  A  Ayala looked good in 2 innings of work and continues to impress this season.

vs. Red Sox (Sunday, May 15th; Lester vs. Garcia)  Red Sox Win 7-5

Offense:  B  After jumping out to an early lead against Lester, the bats went quiet again.


Starting Pitching:  C  5.1 innings and 5 runs from Garcia.  He blew the Yankees early lead.

Bullpen:  C+  Chamberlain and Robertson each gave up runs that help seal the Boston win.

@ Rays (Monday, May 16th; Burnett vs. Price)  Rays Win 6-5

Offense:  B  After a great first 6 innings where the Yanks held the lead.  They fell completely flat in 7/8/9, as the Rays bullpen mowed them down.


Starting Pitching:  C  5 innings of solid worked ended ugly as Burnett gave up 5 runs in the 6th inning, allowing the Rays to come back and win.

Bullpen:  A

@ Rays (Tuesday, May 17th; Nova vs. Shields)  Yankees Win 6-2

Offense:  A-  12 hits and 4-8 w/RISP finally helped New York right the offensive ship.  A-Rod also broke out of his slump with 2 home runs.


Starting Pitching:  B  A nice rebound start by Nova.

Bullpen:  B+  One run given up by Sanit made Girardi put Mo in to save the game....not good.

@ Orioles (Wednesday, May 18th; Colon vs. Britton)  Yankees Win 4-1

Offense:  D+  In one of the most painful games to watch.  The Yanks struggled with RISP all night and had 1st and 3rd with no one out in extra innings but couldn't score.  Baltimore had similar struggles too, leaving the bases loaded in the 11th and 12th.

Starting Pitching:  A  Colon was brilliant.

Bullpen:  B  Rivera blew the save but the rest of the pen was great at holding the Os without runs although they surely made things interesting.  Hector Noesi made his major league debut with the game on the line, pitching 4 innings and taking the win.

@ Orioles (Thursday, May 19th;  Sabathia vs. Bergesen)  Yankees Win 13-2

Offense:  A+  Not much to argue with here.

Starting Pitching:  A  CC was brilliant over 8 innings.

Bullepn:  B-  Although the game was long over, Sanit gave up 2 runs in the 9th on 3 hits.

Return After Week Plus Hiatus

As a fresh college graduate as of last night, I have returned from my blog-break and will be posting as usual for the upcoming week through Friday.  I am hoping to have a post out tomorrow grading all the games I have missed to ensure continuity in grading this season (I keep track of all grades).

As for the meteorological end of things, it's going to be an unsettled week in New York but thankfully the Yanks will be on the road after Sunday as they head to Tampa and then Baltimore.  However, more pressure rides on my forecasts since I am an official meteorologist =)

Thanks again for reading and let's hope the Yankees can find a way to play better baseball starting tonight at 7pm against the Sox.

More posts to follow tonight/tomorrow.

What A Mess...11 Walks, 2-16 w/RISP, 12 hits, but only 3 runs

The headline of this post says it all.  Don't have time for a full update but the Yankees need to start figuring out how to score without the homerun because consistently failing with runners in scoring position is not going to win a World Series title.

I will be back to regular posting on Saturday or Sunday.  Thanks for reading!

Blog Break

Sorry for the lack of posts recently.  Between the semester wrapping up and traveling home yesterday, it's been quite hectic.  I should be able to post tonight or tomorrow but after that I'll need to take a hiatus until NEXT weekend when I should be able to post for a week before being gone for another week.

Thanks for reading despite the lack of posts recently...maybe the Yanks lose when I don't post ;)

Consistent Colon

Commentary:

Bartolo Colon continued to look like he has been reborn, embodying his 2005-self for the third game in a row.  The movement on his pitches was once again fantastic and he held the Tigers to 3 runs over 7 innings while striking out 7.  He allowed two solo HRs to Avila including a game-tying blast in the 7th.  Despite the late comeback by the Tigers to tie the game at 3, the Yanks came through in the top of the 9th with a hard single up the middle by Swisher that scored Teixiera from 2nd, just ahead of the throw.  New York picked up its 5th run on a wild pitch by Valverde later in the inning who threw 35 pitches to record 3 outs.

The bullpens made the difference in this game with Valverde shouldering the loss for the Tigers.  On the flip side, Joba and Mo pitched a scoreless 8th and 9th with Rivera picking up his 11th save and Chamberlain accumulating his 2nd win of the season (2-0).

The Yankee offense got on the board early against Tigers' starter Justin Verlander who struggled over 6 innings, throwing 127 pitches, allowing 8 hits, walking 4 but held New York to just runs.  Despite the win (5-3), the Yankees were 2-14 with RISP and left 11 on base.  The good news was that Posada had 2 hits after being mired in a terrible slump (something like 1 for his last 30).  Gardner had a good game once again with 2 walks and 1 hit as his average has climbed to .211.

As a side note, Phil Hughes had good news today regarding his possible thoratic outlet syndrome.  Not too many details have been revealed yet however.

Grades:

Offense: B  5 runs scored without the home run is  good but 2-14 with RISP is not.

Starting Pitching (Colon):  B  Gave the Yanks length but allowed 3 runs.  Another good start by the veteran.

Bullpen:  A+  Another great performance.

Weather for Tomorrow's Matchup (@ Tigers):

It's going to be a chilly game tomorrow night and feel more like March than the first week of April due a cold front that will pass through the area tonight.

Game Time Conditions (7:05pm):  Mostly cloudy with a temperature of 40.

Verification of Yesterday's Forecast:

Forecast Temp:55
Observed Temp: 57
Forecast Conditions:  Mostly cloudy.
Observed Conditions: A few high clouds.

Grade: A

Osama Bin Laden Killed in Pakistan!

Nearly 10 years after the September 11th terror attacks, Osama Bin Laden was killed tonight by US troops in Pakistan.  Below are two picture from downtown State College, PA tonight as Penn State students rallied patriotically at word of his death.

Courtesy of Brian Cassano and Jesse Schwakoff

Track Map for Alabama Tornadoes from April 27th, 2011

Take a look...just Alabama:


http://www.srh.noaa.gov/graphicast.php?site=bmx&gc=4

The Grandyman Can...Long Ball and Nova Combine for Yanks Win

Commentary:

Ivan Nova continues to look like he is successfully evolving into a big league pitcher, throwing his 2nd quality start in as many outings.  He pitched into the 7th, allowing 2 runs and striking out 5.  The one tarnish on his line was the 4 walks.  It may not be the quickest game when he pitches but he has been getting the job done and while the rest of the rotation has been magnificent, it's okay to have Nova learn about the big leagues in his 5th starter role...especially if he continues to pitch like he is currently.

Sporting a knee-buckling curveball, Nova kept the Jays off balance despite trouble locating his fastball.  Adam Lind connected on a solo home run on a flare down the left field line in the 2nd that bounced off the foul screen.  Dave Robertson relieved Nova in the 7th and got into some trouble before Logan came on to get the last out of the inning which entailed him making a backhand snare on a grounder back to the mound that caught him.  Soriano and Mo closed out the contest with Rafael Soriano allowing the seemingly required long flyballs to give Girardi and Yankee fans heart palpatations.

The Bronx Bombers once again did the majority of their scoring via the long ball on Saturday with a solo shot in the 1st by Tex and a momentum changing 3-run blast by Granderson ("The Grandyman"--John Sterling's nickname and Willy Wonka reference) in the 5th.  Francisco Cervelli, in his first game back from a DL stint added a RBI ground-out in the 5th.  The Yanks combined for 6 hits and were 3-6 with runners in scoring position (RISP).

Grades:

Offense:  B  Good home run productivity once again but back to back innings ended in double play groundouts which can't continue to happen.  Jeter continues to put the ball on the ground too often--68% to be specific which is the most in the majors.  Gardner is starting to hit...finally.

Starting Pitching (Nova): B  The number of walks is too high but he continues to be successful allowing only 2 runs in 6.1 IP

Bullpen:  A  No runs, no hits but 2 walks keeps this grade from being an A+.  Soriano thankfully didn't give up a run.

Weather for Tomorrow's Matchup (@ Tigers):

A cold front will sweep through the region tonight and tomorrow morning bringing a few showers which will clear by gametime tomorrow.  Clouds will remain for the game however with cooling temperatures.

Game Time Conditions (7:05pm):  Mostly cloudy with a temperature of 55 degrees.

Yankees April Review: A Solid Start

**This is the first installment of the Yankees monthly review.  I'll summarize the previous month and give my grade averages for each category and starting pitcher for the month as well as the cumulative averages.  Grades are numerically calculated using a GPA type system where an A is a 4.0, A- is a 3.67, B+ is a 3.33 and so on.  The numbers are then averaged for each category.**

As the first month of the baseball season comes to a close, let's take a look at how the Yankees fared over the first 25 games

Record: 16-9

Offensive Stats:
Batting Average: .253 (6th in AL)
Slugging Percentage: .475 (1st in AL)
Home Runs: 43 (1st in AL)
RBI: 133 (3rd in AL)
Runs: 134 (4th in AL)
Hits: 199 (13th in AL)
My Grade Average: 3.08 (~B)

Thoughts:  Definitely not lacking in power as New York leads the majors in slugging percentage but they are sorely lacking in hits with only 199 which is 2nd to last in the AL and 26th of 30 in all of baseball!  My grade of a B seems to fit nicely with the actually statistics.  Room for improvement in playing small ball and manufacturing runs but you can't be too upset with how this unit has performed so far.

Pitching Stats:
ERA: 3.79 (6th in AL)
Hits Allowed: 210 (12th in AL)
Earned Runs Allowed: 92 (12th in AL)
Home Runs: 18 (12th in AL)
Walks: 79 (13th in AL)
Strikeouts: 169 (9th in AL)
My Starting Pitching Grade Average: 3.00 (B)
My Bullpen Grade Average: 3.17 (>B)

Thoughts:  Another solid start in the pitching category with notable exceptional categories of walks and homeruns allowed.  The ERA is very nice as well.  My starting pitching grade would be higher had it not been for a few disastrous starts by Phil Hughes.  The bullpen in general has been solid with the usual Soriano implosion unfortunately.

Pitcher Breakdown (# of starts):

Sabathia (5): 3.27
Burnett (5): 3.20
Hughes (2): 0.67
Nova (4): 2.58
Garcia (3): 3.67
Colon (2): 4.00

Colon and Garcia have clearly been great surprises with Sabathia being his usual, consistent, dominating self.  Nova has recently gained confidence as the weather has warmed and is pitching much better.  His latest start (May 1st) doesn't get included in these grades but it was another quality outing.

Weather Forecast Accuracy:

Weather forecasts were very accurate overall with only one grade of a C or below.  This occurred on April 6th when I believed the game would be played but was rained out instead.  My overall average grade was 3.36 (A-)

Belated Yankee Grades From Past Week

It's been quite busy wrapping up my final semester at PSU :( but I have some time to update about the Yankees so the grades from the White Sox game on Tuesday (4/26) through yesterday's game against the Blue Jays (4/30).


vs. White Sox (Tuesday, April 26th; Floyd vs. Nova)  White Sox Win 3-2


Offense:  C-  For the second night in a row, the Yankees' bats were held silent with the exception of two solo HRs (Cano, Gardner).  Once again, a pitcher, this time Gavin Floyd mixed his speeds to keep New York off balance, striking out 10 and allowing only 4 hits over 8 innings.  To the Yanks' credit, they threatened in the bottom of the 9th but two spectacular run saving catches by back-up outfielder Brent Lillibridge saved the game for Chicago.

Starting Pitching (Nova):    A-  Nova had his best career start and had out pitched Floyd over 6.1 innings but Soriano once again blew an 8th inning lead with a two run HR to Konerko.

Bullpen:  D+  Logan, Roberston, and Carlyle each did an OK job but allowed a few hits and walks.  Soriano once again screwed up the game by allowing a 2 run HR to Konerko.  Let's hope his May is better than his April (which wouldn't be hard to do).

vs. White Sox (Wednesday, April 27th; Buehrle vs. Colon)  Yankees Win 3-1

Offense:  B-  Not too many hits (6) and they left 8 on base and only had 2 opportunities with RISP.  But they did enough to win the game with Cano's 3 run HR in the first inning.


Starting Pitching (Colon):  A  I don't know how much better Colon can get after looking vintage in this outing.  8 IP with 6 Ks while only throwing 99 pitches.  Thank god he went 8 innings so Girardi could skip Soriano and ensure that the game ended in a victory.

Bullpen:  A+  Not a big sample size by Mo was perfect in the 9th with 1 K

vs. White Sox (Thursday, April 28th; Jackson vs. Sabathia)  Yankees Win 12-3

Offense:  A+  Contributions from around the line up and only 2 home runs.  Great offense showing.

Starting Pitching (Sabathia):  A  7 IP and no earned runs although he allowed 3 runs in the 7th due to an error by Nunez at shortstop who took Jeter's place in the line up.

Bullpen:  A  Lance Pendleton pitched 2 innings in mop-up relief and allowed just 2 hits.

vs. Blue Jays (Friday, April 29th; Romero vs. Garcia)  Blue Jays Win 5-3

Offense:  C  Cano had 2 home runs and Martin had an RBI with 2outs in the 2nd but the Yanks went 0-8 with RISP and left 11 on base including not scoring with the bases loaded and no one out on the 5th.  A-Rod grounded into a double play.  New York couldn't capitalize on opportunities.

Starting Pitching (Garcia):  B-  A decent start but not as brilliant as his first 2.  He gave up 3 runs in 5 innings but threw 101 pitches.

Bullpen:  B-  Robertson gave up 2 runs in the 8th but the rest of the bullpen looked very good.

vs. Blue Jays (Saturday, April 30th; Drabek vs. Burnett)  Yankees Win 5-4

Offense:  A-  A nice showing with RBIs from 5 different players.  The team was 4-9 with RISP and was able to score all 5 runs without a home run.  Productive day.


Starting Pitching (Burnett):  B-  Not a brilliant start but he kept New York in the game over 6 innings while only throwing 82 pitches.  Didn't walk any which was a good sign.

Bullpen:  A  JoSoMo did the job allowing just 2 hits over the final 3 innings.

Tornadoes Wreak Havoc on South

One of the Most Deadly Outbreaks in US History Takes Over 315 Lives

By now, most people have seen news coverage of the utter devastation across the Southeast US.  Alabama was hit especially hard and saw the lionshare of the casualties (210+).  This most recent outbreak, April 25-28 (with the most damage and fatalities on the 27th), surpasses the "Super Outbreak" of April 3-4, 1974 as the one of the worst tornado outbreaks in US history.  What I find most horrifying about that statistic is that weather warnings have improved immensely in the past 30-40 years and yet we still lost the same amount of lives.  This shows the continued need for improvement of warning systems as well as just how destructive the 2011 outbreak really was.  One of the major factors in the high casualty rate was the propensity for EF-4/5 (Enhanced Fujita Scale) tornadoes on April 27th 2011 to hit populated areas.  No matter the warning time, some people's living situations are not conducive for tornado survival.

I could go on at length about the awful destruction and fatalities but instead will focus on what meteorological ingredients came together on Wednesday April 27th, 2011 to cause this record breaking tornado outbreak.  This really is a once or twice in a lifetime event and from a meteorological perspective, it is extremely fascinating.

Synoptic Weather Set-Up

The United State is one of the most conducive continents for tornadoes.  These localized destructive storms are actually very uncommon in other parts of the world.  The right ingredients must be present to spawn a twister and to see an outbreak such as this past week's, everything must come together perfectly.

Severe thunderstorms originate when there is a clashing of airmasses.  In the southern US, moisture rich, warm Gulf of Mexico air is transported northward.  Farther north across the Rockies and southern Canada, cooler, drier air moves southward.  During the spring, Canada is still fairly chilly and the Southeast is warming up as the Gulf of Mexico warms.  When these two air masses collide, strong thunderstorms can occur.

Above is a weather map from the 8am EDT on April 27th.  Note the temperatures (red) and dew points (green) across the Southeast.  Both are in the 60s which means it is very moist at the surface, great fuel for storms.  Notice the temperatures and dewpoints in the 30s and 40s across the Midwest (cooler, drier air).   Lastly, notice that winds are from the Southeast across much of the region.

This second map (above) shows what was happening around 1500m above the surface (again, 8am on the April 27th).  The key takeaway from this map is the strong winds (~50 knots) across the Southeast and the southerly wind direction over western Georgia and south-southwesterly wind direction farther west over Alabama, MS, and LA.  If you compare these wind direction and speeds with the surface map (1st chart) you can see that the winds at 1500m about 40 knots stronger and at least 45 degrees (in some cases 90 degrees) different than the surface winds.  This change in direction and strength is called shear.

If we look at ~5400m above the surface, the winds have shifted even more to the west over the Southeast and are ~60-70knots.  Again, more shear.  Also, temperatures are 8 degrees F over the Southeast which is ~60 degrees less than the surface temps.  Cold air on top of warm air creates instability which aids thunderstorms.

From the above charts, we can conclude that the temperature rapidly decreased with height across the Southeast which is an important ingredient for thunderstorms.  However, the ridiculous amount of shear throughout the region is the key for tornado-genesis because it allows the storms to rotate.  The combination of these basic ingredients, as well as a plethora of more complex factors came together to create a combustible situation that ended up yielding close to 100 tornadoes (we don't know yet how many will be confirmed).

I'm hunting for a track map but can't seem to find it right now...I'll post it when I come across it.   It is remarkable.  The tornado that ripped through Birmingham and Tuscaloosa began on the AL/MS border and ended in northern Georgia!