Larry Fleisher's Written Word

We've Relocated

2009-01-16T19:26:00.000-08:00

Like season ticket holders at the new Yankee Stadium, I've relocated. I am using a wordpress dashboard because I like the design and layout a little better. The first post is being worked on at the following address: http://lineone.wordpress.com/

Not a good year if you're a NY team that ends in ETS.....

2008-12-29T07:09:00.000-08:00

I've been meaning to update this thing but kind of neglected it, you know the way the Rangers neglect to shoot on the power play or the way the Knicks neglect to defend many times.

As I'm posting this, I'm watching the Jets news conference regarding the firing of Eric Mangini as their head coach. Not many coaches get fired after going 9-7 but when you're 8-3 and collapse against mostly inferior appearing teams, this is how it goes down.

I'm no Xs and Os guy, I fake my way through my football knowledge of cover 2s, west coast offense, so I know little of Mangini's technical coaching ability.

That being said, when a team shells out the bucks like the Jets did, brings in a quarterback like Brett Favre, gets rid of Chad Pennington, who wins the AFC East in the Meadowlands and is bad defensively despite being led by a defensive guy like Mangini, that can't be good.

This news also reminds you how fast it can crash down in sports. Just two years ago Mangini was 10-6 and making a small cameo in a Sopranos episode. In that episode, Artie Bucco referred to him as "Mangenius".

Now it seems a majority of Jet fans got what they wanted. And now the watch is on for the next coach of this franchise.

Knicks continue with the theme of change

2008-11-22T09:17:00.000-08:00

Recently, a presidential election that contained the theme of change and reform concluded. Now those things are being shifted over to the recent events with the basketball operation at Madison Square Garden.

It started with sending Isiah Thomas packing to a no-see, no-hear consultant job. It also began with Donnie Walsh proclaiming that he was here as a man of change and reform when it came to the financial mess he inherited.

One of those was Stephon Marbury, who is the symbol for dysfunction from the previous administration and is persona non grata with the new administration.

Walsh however had two pieces that were worth something and that was Jamal Crawford and Zach Randolph.

Crawford, the team's leading scorer and one of the nicest guys in the NBA, was traded to Golden State for Al Harrington. Randolph, who played one year here without off-court trouble was the team's leading rebounder and he was sent to the LA Clippers for Tim Thomas and Cuttino Mobley.

On the surface, and from a strictly basketball perspective, it's not good moves. But the Knicks are a business operating well over the economic structure that has been in place for over 20 years and they could no longer afford to stay over the cap in the long-term.

That would keep them on the sidelines for the great free agent chase of 2010 that would include LeBron James. If you read some of the papers, it seems a forgone conclusion he will here, but there's a lot to do before that can happen.

Granted one player can turn a 25-win team in a 55-win team, but is he the type to come here in 2010 if the Knicks are coming off such a season? Is New York still an attractive place to play? Players get fed questions about the history of the Garden and so on and while that is a factor, does it really hold much clout anymore?

Fans should trust Walsh, he's done it very well in Indiana for the last two decades. But considering the state of affairs with the Knicks before he got here, they have every right to be skeptical until he turns it around and brings back the standard set in the early 1990s.

As for Crawford, it's a business but when he is on and when the Knicks have won, he's usually played a part. Who can forget the 52 point game against Miami when he made 16 shots in a row or the various buzzer beaters?

While not a good defender and shaky at selecting shots, Crawford has always been a class act whether dealing with the media or his assorted charity work and his short-lived blog on Newsday. He was definitely one of the few highlights of the past four-plus seasons of Knick basketball and was someone that you'd want to have when things eventually became better.

You Could See This Coming - Rangers Get Nucked By Vancouver

2008-11-19T23:02:00.000-08:00

A trait of a good team is being able to start slowly and come back. A trait of a good team is to jump out early and keep adding.

The first scenario had happened in the last three Ranger home games and appeared to unfold against Wednesday. Just one problem, the pucks were turned over by players in blue jerseys a little much.

Vancouver's first four goals were the result of aggressive play that forced turnovers and bad defenders. The guilty parties were in order of appearance Michal Rozsival, Dmitri Kalinin, Wade Redden, Brandon Dubinsky and Lauri Korpikoski.

If you had watched recent games, you had seem some of the same stuff. The only difference Henrik Lundqvist was there to make the save. While he might have been able to stop the third, fourth and fifth goal, the odd-man rush are a tough one for anyone goalie no matter how good you are.

The Rangers are still on top of the Eastern Conference and still exciting, but there's an incomplete element to their game. They can look as good as they did in the second period a week ago in New Jersey, flat for two periods against Boston and Ottawa and awful against Vancouver, which is the type of team that likes to force those mistakes to happen.

Poor performances happen from time to time. Let those slow starts against Edmonton, Boston and Ottawa serve as a warning. If that's the lesson that was delivered Wednesday, we'll see if the Rangers were paying attention.

Have We Reached the Nexus of the Universe - The Knicks are good

2008-11-14T22:34:00.000-08:00

There's a scene in Seinfeld when Kramer calls Jerry from a payphone at East First Street and First Avenue in the Lower East Side and says he's at the Nexus of the Universe.

After years of losing and in the quagmire with no end in sight, we've sort of reached that point with the Knicks. We knew the Knicks would be better, how could they not be after last year, but open up with six wins in nine games, I don't think we saw that coming.

But that's where they are after Friday's 116-106 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Don't let the score fool you, it wasn't that close, they were up 30 and outscored 52-32 over the final 15 minutes or so.

Regardless of the near-collapse and the soft schedule, a win is a win. If the Knicks are jostling in the playoff race, a 10-point win counts as much as a 30-point rout.

The Knicks haven't opened up this well since 1999 - the last time they made the finals. They haven't sniffed three games over .500 since December 29, 2004 when Stephon Marbury scored 32 points against Minnesota following a pep talk from the former front office executive who shall not be named.

He is gone and Marbury's time as America's highest paid no-show worker seems to be ending sometime soon.

The Knicks have not been four games over .500 since the end of the 2000-01 season. They can get there by beating old "friend" Jason Kidd and giving him a real headache instead of the one he claimed to have last December.

Marbury vs. Madison. (Square Garden)

2008-11-03T10:01:00.000-08:00

Over 200 years ago, there was a famous case called Marbury vs. Madison involving a series of midnight appointees to fill as many government posts in the waning days of the John Adams administration right before Thomas Jefferson took over.

Fast forward to 2008 and there's a similar situation going on. The old administration (Isiah Thomas) brought in Stephon Marbury in January 2004 and the new administration (Donnie Walsh and Mike D'Antoni) wants him gone.

How much do they want him gone? They're diplomatic about it in their public comments but proof is that they have him sitting in street clothes the last two games. Marbury made that request (possibly to avoid injury risk in the event of a buyout or being waived).

The reason given by the Knicks for benching a man making 22 million is that they want the major minutes to go to others and see what happens. While it was decent in the season opener, Knick fans have seen the results in the last two games when the offense is not working as designed. The awful numbers have turned into a blowout at Philadelphia and a eight-point loss to Milwaukee that really wasn't that close.

Could Marbury have changed any of that? Maybe. But it appears that the new administration is not into instant gratification and considering Marbury's track record of feuding with coaches among other things, they don't feel like it's worth the effort.

And at some point, there will be a sitdown (not the Johnny Sack-Tony Soprano variety) but a meeting will ensue. What happens next could be waivers or even another buyout.

The Knicks lead the NBA in buyouts it seems but Walsh never did it in 22 years at Indiana. He doesn't believe in them but he also hasn't made the amount of mistakes the Knicks had in the eight years since trading Patrick Ewing.

If none of those conclusions are reached, then Marbury will be the most expensive insurance policy in the history of the NBA.

Avery Mania Sweeps NY

2008-10-20T23:10:00.000-07:00

If you saw the media crowd around Sean Avery's locker Monday night on the visiting side of MSG, you'd think he was Sidney Crosby or even a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Avery made his much-publicized return to the Garden Monday night and continues his NY tour in Newark and Long Island this week. It was in New York where Avery became most notable in his role as a pest, agitator.

The Rangers record with him in the lineup was 50-20-16 and 9-13-2 without him. It was a number that often got mentioned in the game notes, which is something I'd think Avery's agent would have had to use in contract extension talks.

It's a nice story, agitator scores some goals, says some funny things and the Rangers win. It was the case in 2007 when I asked him for a simple description of his two goals and he quipped: "I just didn't want the fans to keep yelling shoot".

If you're a Ranger fan, keeping him would be nice, but at the same time their record disparity kind of indicted others on the roster. You'd expect a losing record when Jaromir Jagr, Chris Drury, Scott Gomez, Brendan Shanahan are out of the lineup.

Sure his addition helped in 2007 but when he was hurt, the Rangers' struggles were not due to his absence. It was due to figuring out how to get Drury and Gomez acclimated.

Are the Rangers better without him? It's nice that he can score and agitate but plenty of teams have won with just playing hockey and using their talented players and his antics can get tiresome.

I'd think there was a segment of Ranger management that felt the same way, which would explain them offering four years, 12 million as opposed to the 15.5 million he got from Dallas.

While Avery's tenure here was interesting, the Rangers never made it past the second round. A makeover was needed and Avery leaving is not necessarily a bad thing, although we'll see how the Rangers do.

Their record is good and maybe the fatigue of playing seven games in 11 days has gotten to them in the last four games where they've scored just six times. (not counting the shootout vs. Toronto).

In their first five games, they didn't necessarily put together a full 60 minutes. They got the goals when needed.

Now that they haven't had the goals when needed, the lack of a full 60 minutes is exposed as it was Monday when they couldn't adjust against the Dallas Stars, who defended things the way hockey fans are accustomed to seeing.

As for Avery, his next stop is the Prudential Center with his two "friends" David Clarkson and Martin Brodeur, whom he "affectionately" referred to as a "minor league bonehead" and "fatso".

UPDATE - Besides the antics on the ice, Avery has his share off the ice, including this one with one of the MSG broadcasters.

Media confrontations happen from time to time but doesn't it seem like Avery intended to stir something up there?

There's something about 12:16 AM and October 17 when it comes to the Red Sox

2008-10-16T22:04:00.000-07:00

As October 16 became October 17 and the Red Sox were coming back in Game Five of the ALCS, I couldn't help thinking that it happened to be the fifth anniversary of Aaron Boone's home run off Tim Wakefield in the 10th inning of Game Seven at Yankee Stadium.

Not only was it the same day but at midnight you were only 16 minutes away from the anniversary of the home run. So just for the heck of it, I casually remarked that at 12:16 AM the Red Sox would win this game.

Once they got to 7-4 on David Ortiz's home run, you had to know even if you're not a Red Sox fan. How can you not have had an inkling, you've seen this before, 3-0 down
2004, 3-1 down in 2007.

Not only is the 12:16 a strange thing in the world of baseball karma (if there is such a thing), but it's a history-altering minute.

What if 12:16 in 2003 doesn't happen? What if the game ends earlier with Pedro Martinez coming out and the relievers getting those final five outs?

Maybe the Red Sox win the World Series after that, ending the 85 years of bad karma and curses. Maybe Grady Little comes back in 2004, the franchise gets complacent and content with finally winning just one that certain moves might not get made?

Would they have gone hard after Curt Schilling? What about Keith Foulke? Would they have pursued a closer after successfully winning via closer by committee?

Would they have traded Nomar Garciaparra? Would they have gone after Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell?

One misguided pitch changed history five years ago today. Another one kept the course of history ushered in by that deep drive alive for another day.

Whether it's a karmic sign that the Red Sox are due to repeat and win for the third time in five years remains to be seen.

One thing is for certain never underestimate the heart of a team like the Red Sox, whose comebacks in the Terry Francona are the most impressive in baseball postseason history.

Baseball teams are only as good as the peformers. They're determined by the pitches, hitting abilities and managerial decisions.

Sometimes they're minor decisions but one decision by Grady Little brought the Red Sox to 12:16 AM on October 17, 2003 and ultimately brought them to J.D. Drew's hit at 12:16 AM on October 17, 2008.

If that's not a baseball coincidence, then I don't know what is.

Voros in front of net equals goals and rousing start for the Rangers

2008-10-13T22:13:00.000-07:00

Roughly 90 minutes after the ice had been cleared the fans were gone, the vendor was wheeling his unsold t-shirts into the elevator and moving them into storage for the next night of hawking Rangers merchandise. The cart did not include any items containing the name Aaron Voros.

Chances are they might the next time. Especially if Voros continues to find his way in front of opposing goaltenders to deflect those big drives from the point.

Voros did just that Monday and the Rangers are 5-0-0 for the first time since 1983-84. If they win again Wednesday against Ryan Miller and the Sabres, that will be a franchise record.

So who is Aaron Voros? He's a guy who has the passion for standing in front of the net. He said so himself.

The initial comparision is Sean Avery, whose tactics prompted the league to name a rule after him. Tom Renney's better comparison is Thomas Holmstrom of Detroit, who has scored 176 times since 1996 by doing just that and so far Voros has caused this song to play three times by his actions.

His actions have along with those of Brandon Dubinsky - who is becoming a clutch player in the mode of Chris Drury - have prompted this song to be played five times in as many games so far.

Making matters even more impressive is that the top line of Scott Gomez, Markus Naslund and Chris Drury did not even register a point against the Devils.

Before the season started, the popular vote had the Rangers somewhere around sixth in the East because it was going to be a season of seeing how Jaromir Jagr could be replaced but the Rangers have done that by replacing his plodding style with a quick strike and speed game and that is what can win a lot of games these days.

That's not a knock at Jagr, it's just the reality of the league and the Rangers have embraced it to the tune of 10 points. It has not all been perfect, there have been stretches that would be nicely classified as "not so good", but it's a rousing start.

The latest win came after prospect Alexei Cherepanov passed away at the way too young age of 19 in Russia and while playing alongside Jagr. Jagr remained in contact with the Rangers and said he was good enough to play on a second line in the NHL.

The best way to honor something so tragic is to put forth these kind of efforts that lead to more wins than losses.

"Just stay humble. Work hard. Work harder than the other team every game, and work harder in practice. “Take nothing for granted, especially on a day like today. How could you? It’s a gift to be playing in this league. It’s a gift to walk the planet. So you know what, leave it on the ice every single night and let the results take care of themselves." - Tom Renney

The Knicks probably won't be very good but at least we'll have an idea of what's going on

2008-10-06T17:08:00.000-07:00

In case you've been scoring at home, the Knicks over the last seven years have been terrible. They've appeared in four playoff games and won none of them and their combined regular-season record is a sterling 218-356. They've also been stuck in the stone age when it comes to information but since Donnie Walsh has come aboard, those media policies have become a thing of the past.

Proof of that besides the obvious comes from Jamal Crawford blogging for Newsday, which happens to be owned by Cablevision. Perhaps the best evidence is today's episode of Real Training Camp on NBA-TV. If you've ever seen the show, it's an open practice coming into your living room with commentary and today the Knicks were the featured team.

Today's episode saw them do a lot of running which is what the system of new coach Mike D'Antoni is about. In Phoenix he liked to get the shot off in seven seconds or less, whether he can do that here is another story.

One thing that viewers saw is Eddy Curry practice for the first time after being stricken with a 104-degree fever last week. Viewers also saw Stephon Marbury look in the best shape of his career as he prepares for a possible role as a reserve.

The Knicks will probably not very good, maybe somewhere in the 30s in the win department. D'Antoni is throwing it against the wall and see what sticks but the fact that the organization is allowing fans to watch a practice on TV is a step into the modern era even if it's a little late.

Relief pitching sort of NY Mets style

2008-09-28T21:26:00.000-07:00

I have a number of friends that are Met fans, so obviously I feel bad for them. I also feel bad for the employees of the team (non-players), such as security guards, vendors and others who are able to help their income by seeing the Mets make deep runs into the playoffs.

Which brings us back to the point, every game counts. The reasons for the disappointing finish in Flushing are obvious, the bullpen, lack of clutch and situational hitting. That goes to show you that every game does count.

The Mets were charged with 29 blown saves - 16 after the All-Star break. If that number is 27 and they win those two, then they would be in the playoffs by now.

Of course it's not that simple, but it's a start when you want to dissect the team and since I like statistics, I will break things down.

Bullpen record
Weekly Mark Cumulative Team Record

Week 1 - 3/31/4/5 - 0-1, 4.10 ERA 0-1, 4.10 2-2
Week 2 - 4/6-4/12 - 1-1, 3.72 ERA 1-2, 3.89 5-5
Week 3 - 4/13-4/19 - 1-1, 2.10 2-3, 3.21 10-6
Week 4 - 4/20-4/26 - 0-1, 5.40 2-4, 3.78 12-11
Week 5 - 4/27-5/3 - 1-0, 3.22 3-4, 3.66 15-13
Week 6 - 5/4-5/10 - 1-0, 3.68 4-4, 3.66 18-16
Week 7 - 5/11-5/17 - 0-0, 3.55 4-4, 3.65 21-19
Week 8 - 5/18-5/24 - 0-1, 4.36 4-5, 3.76 23-24
Week 9 - 5/25-5/31 - 2-1, 2.70 6-6, 3.61 27-27
Week 10 - 6/1-6/7 - 0-2, 3.97 6-8, 3.65 30-31
Week 11 - 6/8-6/14 1-3, 9.00 7-11, 4.08 32-34
Week 12 - 6/15-6/21 1-0, 1.74 8-11, 3.87 36-37
Week 13 - 6/22-6/28 0-0, 4.36 8-11, 3.92 39-41
Week 14 - 6/29-7/5 1-2, 3.37 9-13, 3.88 43-44
Week 15 - 7/6-7/12 4-0, 2.76 13-13,3.78 50-44
Week 16 - 7/13-7/19 1-0, 6.09 14-13,3.86 52-46
Week 17 - 7/20-7/26 2-2, 6.38 16-15,4.00 56-47
Week 18 - 7/27-8/2 0-3, 8.47 16-18,4.10 58-52
Week 19 - 8/3-8/9 2-0, 4.39 18-18,4.11 62-54
Week 20 - 8/10-8/16 0-1, 5.49 18-19,4.18 68-56
Week 21 - 8/17-8/23 2-1, 3.46 20-20,4.16 72-58
Week 22 - 8/24-8/30 2-3, 4.34 22-23,4.17 75-61
Week 23 - 8/31-9/6 2-0, 0.00 24-23,4.00 79-60
Week 24 - 9/7-9/13 2-1, 3.72 26-24,3.99 83-62
Week 25 - 9/14-9/20 1-1, 6.75 27-25,4.08 86-68
Week 26 - 9/21-9/28 1-3 6.37 28-28,4.19 89-73

Mets terror level is at Red for possible collapse

2008-09-26T23:49:00.000-07:00

If the department of homeland security issued warnings for baseball teams, then the current state of the Mets would be Red - severe risk of collapse. Had they won, the alert might have been orange - high risk of collapse. Of course had they stayed in first place (just two weeks ago, they were 3 1/2 games up), it might have been blue - for guarded - general risk of a collapse.

Make no mistake about it, the panic level is high and the panic button has been pushed, especially after Friday's 6-1 loss. As bad as the score was, the boxscore is even worse.

It took eight pitchers to play nine innings, according to the Mets post-game notes, that ties a team record. It was the fifth time that happened and second time in nine days. (not sure if I'd publicize that fact).

Other than the obvious reason (the bullpen), I have no idea why it happens. I couldn't tell you why teams play well and then falter. If I had to guess, it's the pressure, the demons and ghosts of the infamous seven-game lead with 17 to go.

It has to be, especially since this started with 17 games remaining.

But maybe, just maybe, there's some frustration starting to appear. When reporters were lingering in the clubhouse afterwards, it appeared that a phone had been ripped from the wall out of frustration.

It didn't look like a normal dismantling of an appliance. It looked like someone got frustrated with this happening again and vented by ripping a phone out.

Is that enough? Will Johan Santana be able to get it done or look anything like he did Tuesday on three days rest and after throwing 125 pitches? All year, we've heard having Johan Santana is the intangible difference, but that comment was intended for a fully rested pitcher.

"It's sometimes difficult to figure us out, you know. We do one thing one night, have a bad loss and get off the deck. ... In the position we're in, it's the kind of stuff we like. But my God, it's tough on me." - Jerry Manuel

"I don't know anything about pitching, but I like Johan." - David Wright

The pitchers haven't been able to say, I don't know anything about hitting but I like David, Ryan or Jose.

That's because other than Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado offense has been spotty or inconsistent, meaning that when they're going 0-for-3 or 1-for-4, the others haven't stepped it up.

Reyes is hitting .247 this month and the team is
Wright is hitting .243 with runners in scoring position with just four home runs
Church is hitting .228 this month

Also, a lot of people are criticizing Met fans for not showing up and while 49,000 were there, it is an expensive proposition to go to a game at most ballparks these days. The cheapest ticket for this series is 25.00. If you want to eat and drink at the game, figure on spending close to 20 and even more if you want a beer. If you want to drive, it's 15 to park while using up gas that costs nearly 4.00 a gallon.

Maybe the 49,000 that show up have the means to spend the money for some of these, but there's a large segment that don't.

Yankee Stadium - In My Life

2008-09-23T00:28:00.000-07:00

The Stadium had an 85-year run, 50 in the first edition and 33 more in the remodeled one. That's the one that I know best. My lifetime in it is over the last 20 years and fittingly enough today is the 20th anniversary of the first time I stepped foot in the building. Might have also been the first time I went somewhere in the Bronx other than the Bronx Zoo.

The game between the Red Sox and the Yankees was my first in a 20-year run that saw me see 326 regular-season games. The Yankees won 41 of the 67 I went to this year and finished 197-129. Since I look like looking up stats and old boxscores, that's what this will be about my list of firsts in every imaginable thing I could think of.

First Batter - Wade Boggs 9/23/1988 BOS @ NYY
Last Batter - Brian Roberts 9/21/2008 BAL @ NYY

First Yankee hitter - Rickey Henderson
Last Yankee hitter - Derek Jeter

First flyout - Wade Boggs
Last flyout - Alex Rodriguez

First double - Marty Barrett
Last double - Kevin Millar

First Yankee double - Rickey Henderson
Last Yankee double - Bobby Abreu

First strikeout - Dwight Evans (Charles Hudson)
Last Strikeout - Aubrey Huff (Joba Chamberlain)

First Yankee struck out - Jack Clark (Bruce Hurst)
Last Yankee struck out - Derek Jeter

First single - Mike Greenwell
Last single - Jason Giambi

First RBI - Mike Greenwell
Last RBI - Robinson Cano

First run - Marty Barrett
Last run - Brett Gardner

First groundout - Rickey Henderson
Last groundout - Brian Roberts

First Yankee hit - Don Mattingly single off Roger Clemens
Last Yankee hit - Jason Giambi single off Jamie Walker

First walk - Gary Ward
Last walk - Johnny Damon

First lineout - Ed Romero
Last lineout - Jose Molina

First error - Dwight Evans
Last error - Brendan Fahey

First homer - Don Mattingly
Last homer - Jose Molina

First solo home run - Dwight Evans led off fourth vs. Hudson
Last solo home run - Paul Konerko led off ninth vs. Britton on 9/18/2008

First Yankee solo home run - Gary Ward led off sixth vs. Bruce Hurst
Last Yankee solo home run - Jose Molina 9/21/2008

First Yankee two-run home run - Mike Pagliarulo - one out in the sixth off Bruce Hurst
Last Yankee two-run home run - Bobby Abreu - one out in the first 9/18/2008 off Javier Vazquez

First Yankee three-run home run - Kevin Maas - 5/30/1993 off Jack McDowell
Last Yankee three-run home run - Johnny Damon 9/21/2008

First Yankee grand slam - Mike Stanley 8/9/1995 off Charles Nagy
Last Yankee grand slam - Alex Rodriguez off Edwin Jackson

First Yankee multi-home run game - Mike Stanley three home runs 8/9/1995 vs. Indians
Last Yankee multi-home run game - Bobby Abreu - 9/18/2008 vs. White Sox

First walk-off win in the ninth - 6/7/1991 vs. Texas - Don Mattingly RBI single off John Barfield
Last walk-off win in the ninth - 9/20/1991 vs. Baltimore - Robinson Cano RBI single off Jamie Walker

First visiting home run - Dwight Evans
Last visiting home run - Paul Konerko

First visiting two-run home run - John Valentin off Frank Tanana 9/18/1993 fifth inning vs. Boston
Last visiting two-run home run - Dewayne Wise off Alfredo Aceves 9/15/2008 fourth inning vs. Chicago

First visiting three-run home run - Tim Salmon second inning off Melido Perez 7/25/1993
Last visiting three-run home run - Fernando Perez off Carl Pavano 9/14/2008

First visiting grand slam - Brian Downing off Mike Witt vs. Texas 6/7/1991

First pitching change - Hipolito Pena replaced Charles Hudson with one out in the fifth
Last pitching change - Mariano Rivera replaced Joba Chamberlain for the ninth

First mid-inning pitching change - Neil Allen replaces Pena with the bases loaded
Last mid-inning pitching change - Rocky Cherry replaces Jamie Walker in the seventh

First double play - Dave Winfield (63) in the fifth
Last double play - Jason Giambi (63) in the fifth

First pinch hitter - Claudell Washington for Gary Ward with two outs in the sixth
Last pinch hitter - Oscar Salazar for Juan Castro with two outs in the sixth

First starting pitchers - Bruce Hurst vs. Charles Hudson
Last starting pitchers - Chris Waters vs. Andy Pettitte

First decisions - Dennis Lamp (W), Dale Mohorcic (L)
Last decisions - Pettitte (W), Waters (L)

First save - Lee Smith
Last save - Mariano Rivera

First Yankee save - Steve Farr 5/30/1993 vs. White Sox
Last Yankee save - Rivera - 9/20/2008 vs. Orioles

First visiting save - Smith 9/23/1988 Red Sox
Last visiting save - B.J. Ryan 8/30/2008 Toronto

First complete game - Jack McDowell 5/30/1993
Last complete game - Jon Lester 7/3/2008

First three-hour game - 9/23/1988 vs. Red Sox - 3 hours, 53 minutes
Last three-hour game - 9/21/1988 vs. Orioles - 3 hours, 5 minutes

First umpire crew - Greg Kosc - HP, Derryl Cousins 1B, Rocky Roe 2B, Larry Barrett 3B
Last umpire crew - Angel Hernandez - HP, Marty Foster 1B, Derryl Cousins 2B, Eric Cooper 3B

First one-run win - vs. Texas 5-4, 6/7/1991
Last one-run win - vs. Baltimore 1-0, 9/21/1991

First one-run loss vs. Cleveland, 10-9 8/9/1995
Last one-run loss - vs. Toronto 7-6, 8/30/2008

First home opener - 4/4/1994 vs. Texas, W 5-3
Last home opener - 4/1/2008 vs. Toronto W 3-2

First triple - 5/22/1994 Chris Sabo Baltimore
Last triple

First extra-inning win
First extra-inning loss - 5/22/1994 vs. BAL 6-5 (10)

First time saw Bernie Williams - 5/30/1993
Last time saw Bernie Williams - 10/1/2006

First time saw Andy Pettitte - 6/7/1995 vs. Oakland (seven IP, four hits, one run, first win)
Last time saw Andy Pettitte - 9/21/2008 vs. Baltimore

First time saw Derek Jeter - 6/7/1995 batted ninth and went 1-for-3
Last time saw Derek Jeter - 9/21/2008 batted second and was 0-for-5

First time saw Mariano Rivera - 8/9/1995 started allowed five runs, seven hits in 5 2/3 innings vs. Cleveland
Last time saw Mariano Rivera - 9/21/2008 - 1-2-3 ninth vs. Baltimore

First weekday afternoon game - 6/28/1995 vs. Detroit L 8-4
Last weekday afternoon game - 8/28/2008 vs. Boston W 3-2

Non Playoff Seasons Can Be Fun too

2008-09-18T22:55:00.000-07:00

This season has not been the most fun for the Yankees even if they're enjoying their final homestand at Yankee Stadium. They will miss the playoffs for the first time since 1993 and that was a season in which they won 88 times and finished seven games behind the Toronto Blue Jays, who were the two-time World Champions.

That was New York's first real shot at a division title in five years since Billy Martin five morphed into Lou Piniella part two. What followed from 1989-1992 was seasons of 88, 95, 91 and 86 losses. The first three of those years were extremely painful to watch although every now and then there were moments that you could feel the potential of Yankee Stadium with a winning team.

The 1992 version under Buck Showalter showed some promise, a 6-0 start, some money spent on free agents. By the time spring training started in 1993, Paul O'Neill was added along with Wade Boggs and Jimmy Key. Those moves meant that the Yankees were on their way to winning seasons.

The Yankees won but it was not quite enough. It was still fun. There was the time when they came back from eight runs down and beat the Angels, 9-8. There were those 18 agonizing days spent tied for first place in the old AL East.

It set the framework for the Joe Torre Yankees, the team that brought us the likes of Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Bernie Williams and the other grinders that formed the chemistry of those years.

Now the playoffs are expected but regardless of how much you spend it doesn't guarantee anything. Sure filling the ballpark is a good thing, but I'm sure there's a segment that would take a crowd of 25,000 watching the Blue Collar Yankees start it up again.

Of course losing a pennant race is difficult and frustrating, but watching a team scrap and claw its way back and then going on to bigger things is satisfying and that is what the 1993 Yankees started.

Just call him Derek Hustle

2008-09-18T08:27:00.000-07:00

They used to refer to Pete Rose as Charlie Hustle but I think it's time to change Mr. Hustle's first name to Derek in reference to Derek Jeter.

Jeter recently moved passed Lou Gehrig for the most hits ever at Yankee Stadium with 1,270 all-time. And just for the heck of it, I've been looking through all his hits at the Stadium since he made his major league debut in 1995 and there are quite a number of bunt singles and infield singles.

To me, that definitely means that Jeter is hustling or busting it no matter what the situation. He hasn't said it but he subscribes to that Joe DiMaggio reasoning of playing hard because "there might be someone that's never seen me play before". I've seen Jeter play in person in at least 300 games at Yankee Stadium and many more on TV and not once can I remember him not busting it out of the box.

I remember his 2,000th career hit was one of those hustle plays back in May 2006 and the fact that he consistently hustles was why he was rewarded with a hit on a play that could have been judged either way.

The hit was a nubber that Paul Bako got up the third base-line. Bako realized that Jeter always hustles which led him to rush his throw and send it over Doug Mientkiewicz's head.

Whether it's his first hit or his 2,000th, Jeter has always hustled and deserves any accolades that are sent his way. While the current stadium will be missed, there's no doubt Jeter will continuing hustling across East 161 Street.

Whether some of his current teammates do that (maybe they know who they are) is another story but the Yankees can be thankful they have Jeter and the Houston Astros did not listen to their advice of scout Hal Newhouser in 1992.

David Price - Hitters Get No Discount

2008-09-14T20:10:00.000-07:00

I've seen a number of major league firsts, major debuts and so on. You go to so many games, you're going to see so many that you lose track.

On a fairly sticky day in the Bronx, I saw another one. I saw David Price's first major league appearance. Thanks to Edwin Jackson not having much of anything and giving up six runs in two innings, Price was summoned out of the bullpen to start the third inning.

His first batter was Xavier Nady, who turned a 96 MPH fastball into a groundout to third. Robinson Cano also saw three at 96 and flied out. That was how Price got most of the first six outs combined with some of the sliders that seemed clocked in the high 80s.

He tried the same against faced Derek Jeter and it turned into a nine-pitch at-bat. The ninth pitch was a slider that went into the right-center field bleachers. That was about the only thing the Yankees got off Price, who seemed composed enough to move on after the home run.

The home run tied Lou Gehrig's team record for hits at Yankee Stadium at 1,269 and it was another cool milestone to see. Tying a team record against someone so highly regarded as Price.

Here's some of Price's comments:

"I think my first 20 pitches in the 'pen, I didn't throw a strike," Price said. "So I thought it was going to be a rough day after that. But I settled down pretty good -- started breathing better out there, but that first inning was rough.

"When I was warming up for my second inning, I felt good. I wasn't shaking anymore. I felt like I was about to fall off the mound in that first inning. But after that, I felt fine -- like I was pitching back at Vanderbilt, back at my high school. It felt good to be out there, I wasn't nervous anymore, and I felt like I belonged out there."

Like many other young players, they considered Jeter their favorite:

He used to be my favorite player," said Price with a chuckle. "I don't know anymore."

and Jeter being the veteran at the age of 34, said the following about Price:

"Everyone is well aware of how well he's pitched throughout the course of this season," Jeter said. "He throws 97, 98 with a good slider. You're interested, obviously, because you hear so much about him.

"But any time you're facing someone that's throwing 97 or 98 with a slider and changeup and has a pretty good idea of what he's doing out there, I don't think too many people are rushing to go hit against him. He threw the ball extremely well. I'm sure he was probably a little bit nervous, but it didn't show. He's got a very bright future."

And Joe Maddon talking about someone he feels will be a cornerstone for the future:

Obviously, he's going to be one of our starters in the future, and we feel he's one of our cornerstone pitchers. But for now, I think it's just wise to just evaluate what we saw today and know that it was positive -- see what you've got for the next week or so, knowing that you have this in your back pocket, and then see how you want to use [him]."

Yankee Stadium may be closing but Price is only starting and we could see a lot more of this across East 161 Street in following seasons.

Drop and give me 20 - that's baseball games

2008-09-13T08:37:00.001-07:00

According to the Elias Sports Bureau and they would know, today is the first time since August 4, 1974 that at least 20 major league games are being played.

Here's a look back at those games:

1 - Los Angeles 2, Houston 1 - Geoff Zahn allowed one and five hits with seven strikeouts over eight innings. Bill Russell had an RBI single in the first and scored on Jimmy Wynn's single in the fifth. Lee May had an RBI single and Robin Roberts took the loss, allowing two runs and six hits in six innings.

2 - Chicago 4, Pittsburgh 3 (Game 1) - Andre Thornton's two-run homer in the fifth inning was the difference in Chicago's victory. Bill Bonham allowed three runs and eight hits for the complete game and also had a two-run single in the fourth as the Cubs overcame a 3-0 deficit. Jim Rooker also went the distance, allowing four runs and nine hits.

3 - Pittsburgh 7, Chicago 1 (Game 2)- Dave Parker hit a three-run home run in the fifth inning and Bruce Kison pitched eight innings and allowed one run and five hits. Herb Huston lasted just 2 2/3 innings for the Cubs, who made three errors.

4 - Cincinnati 7, San Diego 2 (Game 1) - Pete Rose and Joe Morgan each went 2-for-5 for the Reds. Dick Baney pitched 4 2/3 scoreless innings for the win. Randy Jones fell to 7-15 after allowing five runs and seven hits in seven-plus innings.

5 - San Diego 1, Cincinnati 0 (Game 2) - Nate Colbert scored on Fred Kendall's sacrifice fly in the 14th inning as the Padres split a doubleheader. Catcher Johnny Bench and manager Sparky Anderson were both ejected for the Reds.

6 - Atlanta 4, San Francisco 2 (Game 1) - Johnny Lum hit a solo home run and Dusty Baker had a two-run shot in the ninth inning off John D'Acquisto. Gary Matthews and Chris Speier hit solo home runs off Ron Reed.

7 - San Francisco 5, Atlanta 2 - Dave Kingman homered off Joe Niekro as the Giants split their doubleheader. Don Caldwell held the Braves to two runs and four hits in 8 1/3 innings.

8 - Philadelphia 6, St. Louis 1 - Mike Schmidt homered twice and Ron Schueler fired a five-hitter.

9 - St. Louis 11, Philadelphia 0 - Joe Torre and Jose Cruz had two RBI apiece as the Cardinals split a doubleheader. John Curtis fired a five-hitter for the Cardinals. Dick Ruthven lasted just 2 2/3 innings for the Phillies.

10 - Chicago 6, Texas 3 - Dick Allen and Ken Henderson homered off David Clyde in the fourht inning. Bart Johnson improved to 4-0 by firing a nine-hitter. Toby Harrah drove in a run but also made two errors for Texas.

11 - Chicago 13, Texas 10 - Jorge Orta homered and drove in five runs for the White Sox, who had 18 hits. Orta and Lee May also collected four hits apiece. Jeff Burroughs homered twice and drove in four runs for Texas.

12 - Detroit 6, Baltimore 1 - Joe Coleman fired a two-hitter for the Tigers and Dick Sharon homered. Mike Cuellar fell to 13-8 after allowing six runs and eight hits in just 4 1/3 innings.

13 - Baltimore 9, Detroit 3 - Frank Robinson hit a three-run home run and drove in four runs for the Orioles. Dave McNally fired a seven-hitter for his 10th victory. Aurelio Rodriguez hit a pair of home runs for the Tigers.

14 - Kansas City 10, California 4 - Freddie Patek and John Mayberry drove in two runs apiece for the Royals, who had 13 hits. Steve Busby allowed four runs and seven hits in six innings for the victory. Dick Lange fell to 3-7 after allowing five runs and five hits in 5 1/3 innings.

15 - Kansas City 3, California 0 - Al Fitzmorris allowed five hits in 6 1/3 innings and catcher Fran Healy drove in two runs. Frank Tanana started for the Angels and allowed three runs and six hits in 6 1/3 innings.

16 - Cleveland 4, Milwaukee 3 - Luis Alvarado drove in two runs for the Indians and Dick Bosman improved to 5-0 after allowing two runs and six hits in 6 2/3 innings.
Don Money drove in two runs for the Brewers.

17 - Milwaukee 8, Cleveland 3 - Don Money homered and Ken Berry drove in three runs for the Brewers. Kevin Kobel allowed three runs and 10 hits over 8 1/3 innings. Gaylord Perry fell to 15-6 after allowing eight runs and eight hits in 5 1/3 innings.

18 - Oakland 10, Minnesota 4 - Catfish Hunter fired a nine-hitter and allowed four runs for Oakland.Angel Mangual and Joe Rudi homered for Oakland. Rod Carew had an RBI but also made two of Minnesota's four errors.

19 - Minnesota 2, Oakland 1 - Bill Butler fired a six-hitter and Jim Holt had a go-ahead RBI single in the sixth inning. Glenn Abbott went the distance for Oakland, allowing two runs and seven hits.

20 - Boston 7, New York 3 - Bill Miller homered and Rico Petrocelli drove in two runs as the Red Sox won at Shea Stadium. Luis Tiant went the distance for the Red Sox and allowed three runs and 10 hits. Doc Medich took the loss for the Yankees, allowing five runs and seven hits in seven innings.

While we wait - about the Rays

2008-09-12T16:38:00.000-07:00

Since we're not getting underway anytime soon or if not at all, here are some nice notes about the first-place Tampa Bay Rays. Earlier in the year, I had predicted they would clinch the AL East at Yankee Stadium but that proved wrong. But they will likely still be in the playoffs and to get you prepared for a Tampa Bay playoff run, here are some notes they put together:

- Tampa Bay can become the second team to make the playoffs a year after having the worst record in baseball. The other was the 1991 Braves.

-They will become the fifth major league team and first in the AL that lost 95 games the previous year and then made the playoffs.

-The 11th and second AL team to go from last to the posstseason

-The third team to make the playoffs after 10 or more consecutive losing seasons.

-Tampa Bay needs three more wins to become the sixth team to win 90-plus games after 10 or more consecutive losing seasons. The others are the 1914 Boston Braves, 2006 Detroit Tigers, 1912 Washington Senators, 1979 Montreal Expos, 1956 Cincinnati Reds.

Mets bullpen might be dicey but they have the advantage with guys named "Manuel" making decisions

2008-09-10T23:10:00.000-07:00

In the last month or so, I've watched a lot of NL East baseball as the Phillies and the Mets duke it out for divisional supremacy. Obviously, the bullpen is a major question mark for the Mets but that being said, it has performed well for the most part.

The Mets have been in sole possession of first place since wresting it from the Phillies on August 27 in a 6-3 win at Citizens Bank Ballpark. That victory came a night after blowing a seven-run lead.

Since the 13-inning loss, New York's bullpen has performed to a 2.38 ERA and that is inflated after they gave up five in Wednesday's 13-10 loss. As a team, the Mets have won nine of the 12 games since.

The Phillies have a closer in Brad Lidge, who has yet to have blow a save this season. They also have a 5.36 ERA from their bullpen in that same span and has lost eight of the 14 games.

Bullpens go through peaks and valleys over the season. During a marathon it's a cyclical thing but this has to be an alarming trend for the Phillies.

Back to the title of the post, I went down to Philadelphia firsthand to check out the Phillies in their own turf after seeing them win twice at Shea Stadium. What I saw was Charlie Manuel let Brett Myers go into the eighth well over 100 pitches. Myers also did that Friday but was dominating, he was not doing that today, just getting outs when he had to and catching some breaks.

Before the critical juncture in a 3-3 game, Myers had retired 10 in a row since giving up an RBI single to Ricky Nolasco with two outs in the fourth. That single was on his 68th pitch and the 18th batter he faced. So considering the way he had pitched since that point, you could kind of understand.

But Myers gave up a single to left to Luis Gonzalez and a one-out single to Mike Jacobs. All of this while lefthander J.C. Romero was warming up. Presumably it was for Jacobs but when Manuel finally came out it was to bring in Chad Durbin and his 4.55 second half ERA. Durbin gives up an RBI double and a leadoff single in the ninth and then Romero comes in and he gives up a two-run double to Dan Uggla on a 3-0 count.

By then it was too late and so did the Phillies fans. If the Phillies don't come back from their 3 1/2 game deficit, there will be a lot of reasons and scenarios like what I described fall into that category.

"We've had a lot of trouble here the last two weeks, at least, in the eighth inning," Manuel said. "I don't know exactly what the numbers are, but we've been giving up some runs in the eighth."

Now I will never count anyone out after seeing last year's Mets collapse and Phillies comeback but this type of managing is hardly a convincing case for a repeat performance.

Durbin is similar to Aaron Heilman and we haven't been seeing much of him in the eighth inning of late. Heilman hasn't made an appearance in the eighth or later in his last six appearances and probably won't unless it's well into extra innings and he hasn't come into a game yet.

Can the Mets pull this out? They certainly have better options. There's no Brian Lawrences and Orlando Hernandez of the world to trot out there and plus they have Johan Santana.

Let's Play Two --

2008-09-08T08:20:00.000-07:00

Hall of Famer Ernie Banks once expressed his joy for the game by saying "Let's Play Two'. I don't think he meant two sports in the same day at even two different venues.

That's what happened yesterday when the Mets played a day-night doubleheader (Not what Banks meant by the way) and the U.S. Open had to make up some things due to the rain on Saturday. The plan was originally to go to the tennis but the rain created a chance for the Met game.

The game started at 2:15 because the players didn't want to be sitting around for close to four hours since ESPN had the second game at 8:10. The Phillies started the game two behind the Mets following Brett Myers' 10 strikout showing on Friday and they were within one after Pedro Martinez had very little if anything.

A key lengthy at-bat by David Wright off Jamie Moyer resulted in the third baseman flying out to right. Wright is hitting under .250 with runners in scoring position and then in the fourth Greg Dobbs homered again, hitting a fastball over the right-center field wall. Dobbs has homered in his last three September games played at Shea.

Obviously the first two wins might have some thinking it was 2007 again but for Wright, the answer is an emphatic NO!

Well I'm going to agree with him for one reason, the rotation. Once you got past Glavine, Perez, Maine and Martinez last year, they were also trotting out the likes of Brian Lawrence, Orlando Hernandez and Phil Humber. Now they have what they hope what is a big-game pitcher with Johan Santana.

Santana delivered last night but by then I made my way through my shortcut from Shea to the U.S. Tennis Center for the Serena Williams-Jelena Jankovic final. The match was pretty good as Williams won in over two hours, which is almost as long as she took to get to her post-match press conference.

Williams also reclaimed the number one spot in the rankings for the first time in five years and it was obvious how excited she was. The Mets also held on to their top spot, although it would have nice for them to take two.

Some Random tidbits or whatever, this was the sixth two-sport doubleheader I attended. The others were Knick and Ranger game twinbills in the same building. I've considered doing that from Yankee games but Yankee games take too long more times than not.

The Yankees are in fourth place. When that last happened this late in the season it was 1992 and I was in the eighth grade and Joba Chamberlain just turned seven. They've been done since last month in Anaheim, where they are this week but I'm still looking forward to the final homestand there.

Before there was Gooden, Wells and Cone - there was Jim Abbott

2008-09-04T10:10:00.001-07:00

If you can stretch the way-back machine to before the Joe Torre era, you might remember the Buck Showalter era. And today is a significant date in those years. Today is th 15th anniversary of Jim Abbott's no-hitter.

It was a cloudy Saturday afternoon at Yankee Stadium. I only know that because I saw the tape. I wasn't there. I was upstate at a resort in the Catskills and heard about the no-hitter and watched the highlights.

Abbott was 25 years old and in the first two seasons with the Yankees. He was 20-22 in two seasons with the Yankees and had an ERA over four. But in further proof that sometimes you can't predict baseball, in the start before no-hitting the Indians, Abbott was awful, getting roughed up for 10 hits and seven runs in 3 2/3 innings.

The reason I bring this up, is that the Times baseball blog had a piece on it and wrote with more of an insider's perspective.

Thanks to the magic of the times archives here are some of the things he and his teammates had to say afterward:

Abbott - "I did not know how to act out there. I didn't know whether to be supremely confident or supremely thankful. I guess it's a little bit of both."

Randy Velarde - "Nobody in this clubhouse is more deserving of this than Jim is.We all have so much respect for him."

Randy Velarde - "Before that pitch, I looked over to Gags and Mattingly. "They were bouncing up and down, but my legs wouldn't move. I figured I'd better get moving. I've never been in a post-season game, but this must be the same feeling."

When you've won the first two or three games in a series - get the sweep

2008-09-03T20:52:00.000-07:00

That topic was the subject of a spirited discussion I had with someone earlier this season. It was when the Yankees won the first two games in Boston in July and then got blown out big time in the series finale.

I was disappointed in seeing them fall in the series finale based sorely on the concept that when you've won the first two game of a three-game series, you should always go for the kill or in this case the sweep.

Starting with that game, the Yankees are 17-19 .500 and the Red Sox are 21-12 Obviously the Red Sox talent is better and younger and so on, and it's possible that getting swept by the Yankees at home would have been inconsequential in the grand scheme of things.

The point of this is to address what the Mets did Wednesday in Milwaukee. Knowing full well that they had won the first two games on the strength of their bullpen as well as timely hitting and knowing that a blowout would give those guys essentially two days off before the big showdown with the Phillies, they didn't mess around. They went for the kill and did it early, scoring six runs in the first inning.

That's what good teams do. Obviously an ideal world would see a team win 9-2 every day but that's not reality. What is reality is being able to come out with a "let's not screw around" attitude when a sweep is nine innings away. That's what separates the elite from the pretenders.

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The Yankees have had eight chances to sweep a three or four-game series this year and had done so six of seven times before the Boston series. They have chance number nine Thursday in Tampa Bay.

The Mets have had nine chances and taken care of business six times.

The Red Sox have had 12 opportunities and done it nine times.

The Rays have had 16 chances and accomplished it nine times

The White Sox have had 10 shots and finished the job nine times.

The Twins have had 11 chances and done it seven times.

The Angels are an exception as they've been successful with six series sweeps in 13 opportunities. That is countered by a series record of 30-9-6.

The Phillies have split their eight opportunities. Three of those losses have been to Washington and Pittsburgh.

The Cubs have had 13 opportunities at the sweep and finished 10 times.

The Brewers have had 11 opportunities and taken care of business 10 times

The Diamondbacks are 2 for 6 with a chance at the sweep.

The Dodgers are 7 for 11 with the chance at the sweep.

Can I get a No-hitter??

2008-09-01T19:31:00.001-07:00

Today, September 1 is the first anniversary of the Clay Buchholz no-hitter for the Boston Red Sox and I have to say I'm jealous of anyone who's sat in a Boston pressbox in the last six years. They've seen three of those and all have been in Boston (Derek Lowe 2002 vs. Tampa Bay, Buchholz 2007 vs. Baltimore and Lester 2008 vs. Kansas City).

I've seen close to 500 games in both ballparks in New York and have never seen one. I've already caught three foul balls so I don't need anymore, I just want a no-hitter!

When I used to work at SportsTicker, no-hitters were rooted against. It created too much work. There used to be one guy who would claim that within 10 minutes of tuning into the game the no-hitter would break. There was that one time that a baseball recap that I got assigned by this same person and I thought for sure that I would be taken off it for a more experienced hitter but I stayed on the game.

That game was 5/18/2004, which also happens to be the most recent perfect game in baseball history when Randy Johnson did it against the Atlanta Braves

That's how close I got to a no-hitter, writing about it from watching it off TV.

But I've been fortunate to see some close calls over the years. The first one I remember was 1991 when the Mets played the San Diego Padres. A pitcher named Greg Harris took a no-hitter into the eighth and winds up with a one-hitter when Mackey Sasser breaks it up in with a ground-rule double.

I'm pretty sure I didn't see any close calls until I saw a couple in the 2005 season, which was my first of being a regular in the press box. Note - I consider a close call as having a no-hitter through five. Without further ado, here's the list

1 - 7/26/2005 - Randy Johnson's two years with the Yankees can be classified as disappointing but there were times when he was the "Big Unit" that dominated in Seattle and Arizona and this was one of them. After opening the game by hitting Shannon Stewart with a pitch, he retires 16 straight Twins and loses his no-hit bid with two outs in the sixth when Juan Castro singles up the middle. He allows two hits in eight innings and the Yankees win it 4-0.

2 - 9/20/2005 - I remember Cliff Floyd relaying the story of running into A.J. Burnett in the outfield during batting practice and the righthander saying the Mets were in trouble. Obviously it was friendly banter between former teammates but it turned out to be almost right. Burnett no-hits the Mets through six and the guy on the other end of the phone, tells me I've got to end it. I'm telling OK but I'm thinking "Dude, it's not like I can step in the batter's box,". Victor Diaz does it by ending the bid with a leadoff double that barely stays fair. The Mets wind up winning in the 12th on Mike Jacobs' single.

3 - 9/26/2006 - Daniel Cabrera is one of those pitchers that hits both extremes. You know the type, when they're on, they're really good and showing why the team even promoted him and when they're bad, they stink and you wonder what this guy is doing there. Cabrera falls into that description against the Yankees. In his six wins, he has a 2.16 ERA and on this night he nearly pulls it off. He takes a no-hitter into the ninth and loses it when Robinson Cano slaps a single to left field. The worst thing about this is that he gets a game-ending double play on the next pitch.

4 - 5/5/2007 - Chien-Ming Wang makes it through seven with perfection and then decides to throw his only changeup of the afternoon and it goes into the right-center field bleachers for a solo home run by Ben Broussard. The Yankees win 8-1 over the Mariners but the perfect game would have been nice.

5 - 8/28/2007 - This one by Wang was as close as the previous attempt but it still counts. The Yankees are attempting to close in on the Red Sox and Wang takes a no-hitter into the seventh inning before it gets broken up by a Mike Lowell single. The game features some other interesting stuff but the no-hitter is the part that's the most compelling.

6 - 5/15/2008 - No game seemed to epitomize the early-season poor play of this year's version of the Mets than this one. The Mets had never thrown a no-hitter and now Mike Pelfrey might be a candidate to do it at some point. At this time, he doesn't appear to be as he often labored through five innings and wound up losing. This time it's a different story as he takes a no-hitter into the seventh. It gets broken up by Aaron Boone. Met fans in the crowd that day might join in adding the expletive to his middle name. But in this one that should be devoted to Carlos Delgado and Carlos Beltran, who make key baserunning blunders and the Mets lose 1-0 to the Nationals. Then the fun starts, for some reason Billy Wagner is kind of talkative and he got pissed when he had to talk while others were gone

Basically the point of this post is that I want to see a no-hitter. Sorry if it creates extra work, I've never seen one and I want it to happen.

It always come down to A-Rod...

2008-08-31T10:03:00.000-07:00

Without fail, especially recently. It's been a rough week for the man who will probably break the all-time home run record at some point. But he always seems to be in the middle of things whether it's a rally or killing rally. Obviously, he's not going to get a clutch hit all the time, but with the exception of last season (which was sort of a contract year) considered he opted out, clutch hitting has been a problem (that's putting it nicely).

Regardless, it always comes down to him. Like yesterday's 7-6 loss to Toronto, you knew he would get up in the ninth and you knew the guys ahead of him would get on base to start a potential rally.

And at the moment he steps into the batter's box, it seems like all activity in New York pauses for a few minutes. Bartenders stop serving drinks to watch his at-bat, subway operators get radio calls from their dispatchers "Don't move, A-Rod's up". Example you could be on a Manhattan-bound 4 train and just after it leaves 167th Street, the conductor gets the call "A-Rod's up". Next thing you know you hear the following the announcement, "Due to A-Rod being up in the ninth, inning this train will be moving shortly, please be patient." After the at-bat ends (usually unsuccessfully recently), the train moves. That's probably an exaggeration but you get the idea.

Welcome to Stall Mode

2008-08-29T18:21:00.000-07:00

In case you haven't noticed in most ballgames, pitch counts seem to dictate how far a pitcher will go. Usually for a healthy pitcher without a limit, 100 seems to be the magic number. Before a pitcher reaches that point, a manager must be prepared so he dials line one (the bullpen phone) and gets that guy warmed up. This tends to happen when a pitcher usually hits 90 pitches.

That isn't always the case. If a pitcher is cruising, it might not happen. If the pitcher is cruising and then gives up a hit or two, almost on cue the pitching coach will come out to discuss things. It's at about this point, the reliever warms up quicker as the team has gone into full-blown stall mode. They are trying to buy more time for the next reliever and following the mound conference, if the pitcher gives up another hit, the manager will come out and slowly make the change, further stalling for time.

So the next time you happen to go to a game, pay close attention to when the pitcher hits the magic number of 90 and you will be witnessing "Stall Mode".

The Yankees are home and I'm home??

2008-08-29T07:20:00.000-07:00

Usually on a Friday night when the Yankees are home, I'm not sitting on my couch watching the proceedings. I've missed just one scheduled Friday game this season and have missed just 14 games all season. I went to the last 26 since July 1 and the Yankees won 17 of those games. As I'm posting this, the crowd is booing Alex Rodriguez after he grounded out. It's 2-1 in the sixth and Carl Pavano is working quickly and effectively.

Live from Fleisher Alley...

2008-08-28T23:43:00.000-07:00

It's New York Yankees baseball or maybe New York Rangers hockey or perhaps New York Knicks basketball or it's a guest appearance at New York Mets baseball. There a few things that are certainties in life and for me, if there's a Rangers or Knicks home game or a Yankee home game, that's likely where I'll be.

So let's play some catchup as I join the blog bandwagon late and attempt to keep up. The Yankees are six games out of the playoffs with 29 to go, 14 at the current Yankee Stadium. I'm not anticipating playoff games for a few reasons such as inconsistent performances with runners in scoring position, spotty pitching even from those with big-game track records. (Sorry Andy Pettitte, you're a nice guy but you just haven't gotten it done recently).

As for the Mets, they have one month to erase the ghost of Septembers past, mainly that putrid final two weeks of the 2007 season when anything did and often went wrong. I'll never forget watching that unfold and being the stands for their final win of the season when they won so decisively to make you believe that they were going to pull through. In the end it was not to be and it cost a classy guy like Willie Randolph his job, but if there's any consolation, it's that Jerry Manuel has a very good personality and is equally as classy.

I'll discuss the Rangers and Knicks at a later date. I'll also share some memories, especially with both ballparks closing their doors in a few weeks. Either way thanks for reading.