Sunday, September 06, 2009
Sunday Morning Coffee
(The Mid-Field Collision Edition)
Things remain status quo in the Wild Card races after yesterday's action. The Red Sox and Rangers both lost on the road; the Giants and Rockies both won behind excellent starting pitching performances. Matt Cain shutdown the Brewers for his 13th win of the season. Jose Contreras had enough gumption & guile to quiet the snakes' bats, in his first National League start.
We go again today: Boston up two on Texas, Colorado up one game on San Fran.
Yesterday goes on the calendar as one of the best dozen or so sports days of the year. Has to. The formula is pretty simple. You take a dose of crisp, late-summer weather as a backdrop and a holiday weekend to boot. And in that context you have the first full day of football (as in noon to midnight) since last winter, and meaningful baseball games. As I tend to, add some music to the proceedings and you have one of those decompression days that the routine of daily life and the work week make essential.
The kickoff of the college football season must've sharpened my sports antennae, because I found myself wrapped into the baseball more than I've been all week. Picked up the Sox game when they were already down 3-0 and getting perfectly blanked by Floyd. (The 2009 White Sox are going to be forgotten by history, but two perfect games in one season would've made them referenced forever.) Watched a good chunk of the Rockies-Arizona game while also keep my eyes on a very entertaining Virginia Tech-Alabama prime time game on ABC.
And so much for Nevada hanging with Notre Dame . . . read a lot of analysis that at least liked the dog to cover. It didn't even look like they belonged on the same field, as the Irish had their first shutout in seven years, and their QB kept his detractors at bay for at least one week with a flawless performance against an over-matched defense.
It sets up an interesting installment in the match-up of old war horses next week in Ann Arbor. Both teams coming off cakewalks against inferior competition; both coaches on extremely warm seats; the fates of both programs in somewhat of a purgatory right now, as both have been passed by more modern offenses and more talented rosters in recent years (USC, Florida, Ohio State, etc.). At one point I was much more into college football than I am today. As I got older and time constraints became tighter, there was no way I could justify doing do two full days of football viewing in the fall. And without a true connection to an alma mater or growing up weened on the gameday culture like kids in Alabama and Oklahoma, college football was the sport to go. I'm still tuned in enough to know the basics: head coaches; best teams; title favorites, etc. But if you're looking me to name the skill position players, let alone the offensive linemen, on USC or Florida, forget about it. I could name maybe half-a-dozen starting quarterbacks.
From the late 80's and through the 90's, my favorite college football game of the year was Michigan-Notre Dame, and some of those echoes still remain. It will be a centerpiece of next weekend.
---
The local daily runs a section every Sunday called "5 Things We Learned About the Red Sox (or Yankees) Last Week." #2 this week is: Billy Wagner, Daniel Bard and Papelbon could make for a six-inning game against the Red Sox down the road.
And I'm reminded about how transient success on the baseball diamond can be when it comes to October. The Yankees' meteoric rise to top of the baseball pyramid could be just wisps of a vapor trail if they lose that first game against Detroit. Boston's walking-wounded journey to the post-season, so grueling and ugly in nature right now, could be a forgotten trip of the past if Beckett & Lester are clicking and their bullpen is missing bats in the late innings.
The only thing that can stamp this season for the Yankees as a success and something memorable is a championship. Is it harsh to pull the historical rug out on a unit that will win 100+ games and have some of the most gaudy power numbers of all time? Not in the context of a cap-less league and a $208 million payroll. As a Yankee fan, that's what comes with the package when you sign on the dotted line. True enjoyment of success is always held at bay. It's always an extended October away.
---
Billy Wagner has been almost perfect in his three appearances with the Red Sox so far. Here's his situational usage so far:
083009: Pitched with the lead in top of the 8th in a 7-0 game at Fenway Park against Toronto. 1/1/0/0/0/3
090109: Pitched with the lead (6-2) in the bottom of 7th in an 8-4 game at Tampa. 1/0/0/0/0/2
090903: Pitched with the lead (6-3) in the bottom of the 7th in a 6-3 game at Tampa. 1/0/0/0/1/2
His total line: 3/1/0/0/1/7
Right now Boston's having a tough time just getting the ball to bullpen with the game in good shape. But once it's there, it's in good hands. Even Bard, who has struggled over the last month, still has some great peripheral numbers. Since the two-homer game in New York on August 9, Bard has thrown nine innings. His line in that time, almost a full month of work: 9/8/5/5/4/14. That's a crummy ERA, but the walk total isn't terrible and the strikeout number is excellent. He's only given up one home run in that time as well.
This is still a bullpen that misses bats as well as any in baseball. In the grind of post-season games, that is typically a weapon that is very difficult to counter.
---
Enjoy the rest of the holiday weekend.
(The Mid-Field Collision Edition)
Things remain status quo in the Wild Card races after yesterday's action. The Red Sox and Rangers both lost on the road; the Giants and Rockies both won behind excellent starting pitching performances. Matt Cain shutdown the Brewers for his 13th win of the season. Jose Contreras had enough gumption & guile to quiet the snakes' bats, in his first National League start.
We go again today: Boston up two on Texas, Colorado up one game on San Fran.
Yesterday goes on the calendar as one of the best dozen or so sports days of the year. Has to. The formula is pretty simple. You take a dose of crisp, late-summer weather as a backdrop and a holiday weekend to boot. And in that context you have the first full day of football (as in noon to midnight) since last winter, and meaningful baseball games. As I tend to, add some music to the proceedings and you have one of those decompression days that the routine of daily life and the work week make essential.
The kickoff of the college football season must've sharpened my sports antennae, because I found myself wrapped into the baseball more than I've been all week. Picked up the Sox game when they were already down 3-0 and getting perfectly blanked by Floyd. (The 2009 White Sox are going to be forgotten by history, but two perfect games in one season would've made them referenced forever.) Watched a good chunk of the Rockies-Arizona game while also keep my eyes on a very entertaining Virginia Tech-Alabama prime time game on ABC.
And so much for Nevada hanging with Notre Dame . . . read a lot of analysis that at least liked the dog to cover. It didn't even look like they belonged on the same field, as the Irish had their first shutout in seven years, and their QB kept his detractors at bay for at least one week with a flawless performance against an over-matched defense.
It sets up an interesting installment in the match-up of old war horses next week in Ann Arbor. Both teams coming off cakewalks against inferior competition; both coaches on extremely warm seats; the fates of both programs in somewhat of a purgatory right now, as both have been passed by more modern offenses and more talented rosters in recent years (USC, Florida, Ohio State, etc.). At one point I was much more into college football than I am today. As I got older and time constraints became tighter, there was no way I could justify doing do two full days of football viewing in the fall. And without a true connection to an alma mater or growing up weened on the gameday culture like kids in Alabama and Oklahoma, college football was the sport to go. I'm still tuned in enough to know the basics: head coaches; best teams; title favorites, etc. But if you're looking me to name the skill position players, let alone the offensive linemen, on USC or Florida, forget about it. I could name maybe half-a-dozen starting quarterbacks.
From the late 80's and through the 90's, my favorite college football game of the year was Michigan-Notre Dame, and some of those echoes still remain. It will be a centerpiece of next weekend.
---
The local daily runs a section every Sunday called "5 Things We Learned About the Red Sox (or Yankees) Last Week." #2 this week is: Billy Wagner, Daniel Bard and Papelbon could make for a six-inning game against the Red Sox down the road.
And I'm reminded about how transient success on the baseball diamond can be when it comes to October. The Yankees' meteoric rise to top of the baseball pyramid could be just wisps of a vapor trail if they lose that first game against Detroit. Boston's walking-wounded journey to the post-season, so grueling and ugly in nature right now, could be a forgotten trip of the past if Beckett & Lester are clicking and their bullpen is missing bats in the late innings.
The only thing that can stamp this season for the Yankees as a success and something memorable is a championship. Is it harsh to pull the historical rug out on a unit that will win 100+ games and have some of the most gaudy power numbers of all time? Not in the context of a cap-less league and a $208 million payroll. As a Yankee fan, that's what comes with the package when you sign on the dotted line. True enjoyment of success is always held at bay. It's always an extended October away.
---
Billy Wagner has been almost perfect in his three appearances with the Red Sox so far. Here's his situational usage so far:
083009: Pitched with the lead in top of the 8th in a 7-0 game at Fenway Park against Toronto. 1/1/0/0/0/3
090109: Pitched with the lead (6-2) in the bottom of 7th in an 8-4 game at Tampa. 1/0/0/0/0/2
090903: Pitched with the lead (6-3) in the bottom of the 7th in a 6-3 game at Tampa. 1/0/0/0/1/2
His total line: 3/1/0/0/1/7
Right now Boston's having a tough time just getting the ball to bullpen with the game in good shape. But once it's there, it's in good hands. Even Bard, who has struggled over the last month, still has some great peripheral numbers. Since the two-homer game in New York on August 9, Bard has thrown nine innings. His line in that time, almost a full month of work: 9/8/5/5/4/14. That's a crummy ERA, but the walk total isn't terrible and the strikeout number is excellent. He's only given up one home run in that time as well.
This is still a bullpen that misses bats as well as any in baseball. In the grind of post-season games, that is typically a weapon that is very difficult to counter.
---
Enjoy the rest of the holiday weekend.
