(REUTERS/Robert Sorbo)| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | ||
| NYY | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 0 | |
| SEA | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 0 |
WP - Felix Hernandez (16-5)
LP - Mariano Rivera (3-3)
I was out watching the game at a bar with a few friends tonight and boy did Mo and Joe ruin my night.
But first let's start with a positive, and A.J. Burnett's fine start. In 7 innings he allowed just one run on seven hits, walked three and struck out six. It was probably his best start since the 15-inning game against the Sox back on August 2nd. The lone run came in the came on a Jose Lopez bloop RBI single following a Franklin Gutirerrez double.
On the other side Felix Hernandez also pitched very well. He allowed went the whole way, allowing two runs - one earned - on eight hits, walked one and struck out three, and picked up his 16th win of the year.
The first Yankees run came in the first on an Alex Rodriguez sac-fly. Then in the sixth, with the score tied at one, the Yankees regained the lead on a Mark Teixeira sac-fly.
With the one run lead the Yankees sent Phil Hughes out for the eighth and he had no trouble retiring the Mariners 1-2-3 and got the ball to Mariano Rivera, but today would not end like most night's for Mo.
After striking out the first two batters he faced to reach 1000 strikeouts for his career, he allowed a double to Mike Sweeney. In stepped Ichiro Suzuki, who already had three hits on the night, and for some stupid reason Joe Girardi allowed Mo to pitch to him. I don't care how great Mo is, and I don't care that Ichiro was 2-for-10 against him heading into that at-bat. What matters is that Ichiro is a very dangerous hitter and one of the last I want to see up in a spot like that. As soon as he stepped into the box I turned to a friend of mine and said if they pitch to Ichiro they're in trouble, Ichiro is far too good a hitter to face in that spot. Now, I didn't think he was going to hit a homer, but I would have bet money that he at least would tie the game with a single. Sure enough Girardi decided to stick to the book, the one that says you never put the winning run on base, and Ichiro took the first cutter he saw and deposited it over the wall in right for a two-run walk-off homer. The other three times Mo has given up a walk-off homer I was surprised if not stunned, but not this time. I turned to my friend and said "See, that's why you don't pitch to him."
By the way, if you're wondering, Gutierrez, who was on deck, was just 1-for-6 against Mo.
Time and time again Girardi shows that he has a little too much faith in his players, and I fear that come October he's going to make a decision based on trust and not logic, and it will cost the Yankees dearly. I hope I'm wrong.
You can disagree all you want, but there is no reason why the best pure hitter in the land should have been given the chance to swing the bat. If Gutierrez beats you, fine. But you can't let their star beat you in that spot.
| AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | LOB | AVG | |
| Jeter, SS | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .329 |
| Damon, LF | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .286 |
| Gardner, CF | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .280 |
| Teixeira, 1B | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .285 |
| Rodriguez, A, 3B | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .287 |
| Matsui, H, DH | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .279 |
| Swisher, RF | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .256 |
| Cano, 2B | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | .319 |
| Cabrera, Me, CF-LF | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | .276 |
| Molina, J, C | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | .233 |
| Totals | 31 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 13 | |
BATTING 2B: Damon 2 (33, Hernandez, F, Hernandez, F), Swisher (33, Hernandez, F). TB: Jeter; Damon 5; Rodriguez, A; Matsui, H; Swisher 2; Cano. RBI: Rodriguez, A (85), Teixeira (113). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Matsui, H. SF: Rodriguez, A; Teixeira. GIDP: Cabrera, Me; Molina, J. Team RISP: 0-for-4. Team LOB: 5. FIELDING Pickoffs: Burnett, A 2 (Suzuki, I at 1st base, Suzuki, I at 1st base). | ||||||||
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | |
| Burnett, A | 7.0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 4.22 |
| Hughes, P (H, 17) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.10 |
| Rivera, Ma (BS, 2)(L, 3-3) | 0.2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1.94 |
Pitches-strikes: Burnett, A 104-66, Hughes, P 16-13, Rivera, Ma 14-11.
MARINERS STATS
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Ichiro Suzuki (two-run walk-off homer off Rivera in the 9th)
HONORABLE MENTION: A.J. Burnett
GOATS OF THE GAME: Joe Girardi and Mariano Rivera.
Tomorrow's Game
Yankees @ Mariners
Game Time: 10:10 p.m. TV/Radio: YES, WCBS
Yankees @ Mariners
Game Time: 10:10 p.m. TV/Radio: YES, WCBS
LHP CC Sabathia (17-7, 3.42) vs. RHP Doug Fister (2-2, 3.53)
16 Comments:
Here's the thing though. If Ichiro gets on, you put the winning run on base. A gapper scores the speedy Ichiro. Also, Ichiro's numbers arent that good against Mo. If you see the pitch he hit, it was a horrible pitch. No one expected a HR from Ichiro so even if Ichiro gets a hit, Sweeney is slow as fuck. And if he scores, you still put the game in Gutierrez', who isnt a bad hitter at all, hands. Also, since this game is basically meaningless, there's no need to get all fired up about. You have to move on. You're better than this Greg.
Sweeney had been pinch ran for by Saunders. And I don't care about the archaic rule that you don't put the winning run on base. With two out it doesn't matter. You don't want the best hitter in the game swinging the bat. If Gutierrez beats you, fine, but don't let Ichiro do it.
And what do you mean I "have to move on"? This is the first and last time I will write about this game. If I'm still talking about it on Monday or Tuesday then you can tell me to move on.
OK, my bad for saying that. I guess its just me because I really dont care for this loss. We have basically clinched the division and are good enough to keep winning. I dont think its right to blame the manager. Mariano Rivera is the best in the business for a reason. He had a 1.66 ERA coming into today. You have to trust one of the best pitchers and let him get out Ichiro, who was 2-10 against Mo.
Here's the bottom line to me: Who would you rather face with one out to get and the game on the line, Ichiro or Franklin Gutierrez?
That's what I mean about trust vs. logic. Sure, I trust Mo, but logic tells I'd rather have him face the worse hitter with one out to go.
Gutierrez of course. However, in a one run game with TWO outs and a runner on 2nd, I'd face Ichiro. Dont put a speedy guy like him on base.
Tough loss for the Bombers. At least we got CC going for us tonight, so we got a good chance to even the series.
And ya know what, just be happy Mo didn't blow saves when were still only a game or 2 up in the East back in July and early August. Now with a big enough lead, there's some wiggle room for him and the Yanks.
Hopefully they could get back on track tonight and lower that magic number.
Go Yanks!
You read my mind Greg, why pitch to the best hitter in baseball in that spot? Lets see, Guitierez or Ichiro? Swallow your pride and walk Ichiro. Simple
You dont put Ichiro on first he is the winning run. Anything in the hit in the gap he will score.
Mariano made a very bad pitch to him. He missed on his location.
The pitch was off the plate and in. It wasn't a bad pitch. Anyway, this idea about the winning run on first in ridiculous, especially with two out. You need to get one batter and you choose to face the best in the game. They deserved to lose.
I thought a manager's job was to decide which players on the opposing team would not beat him. For the Mariners that's Ichiro, a certain HoF'er. Especially when all the Mariners needed was a single. Put the best average hitter on first and go against anybody else. That's what should be done. When the playoffs start, don't expect Tex to see many good pitches unless A-Rod starts to hit in the postseason.
Our weak link contniues to be--Joe Girardi.
Mike
Sorry, Greg... But your logic in this one just doesn't make sense.
Ichiro isn't a power hitter. If he gets a hit, it's usually a single... So you're looking at it from the point where even if he beats Mo, the game is tied. Why put the speedy Ichiro on first and then a double wins the game?
It just doesn't make sense. Mo is the best closer of all time and struck out two batters in the inning. Let him do his thing. And Ichiro's numbers against Mo were garbage.
Gutierrez's numbers against Mo were worse. And I don't care if he's a power hitter or not, it obviously didn't matter. Either way, my concern was an RBI single, and Ichiro is the best pure hitter most of us have ever seen.
I'm not worried about anyone on base against Gutierrez because he wouldn't have hit the ball out of the infield. And if he did, fine, tip your cap. But at least they didn't let their best player beat them.
I think this is one where Girardi was going to get crap either way if they lost -- whether it be with an Ichiro hit or a Gutierrez hit. It was really a lose-lose decision of Girardi if the decision he made backfired.
I think he made the right call, though.
While that might be the case, the first words out of my (I promise) mouth when Sweeney got the double was "walk Ichiro." So my gut told me to stay away from the better hitter. I think if Girardi wasn't managing scared he'd have done the same.
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