Not only that, what if Linus and Charlie Brown - two characters alive only in newsprint - suddenly were to achieve sentience? They realize that they are fictional entities, reliving a lost experience - night after night - because their creator has died, and the conduit of their existence - daily newspapers - are steadily disappearing. There shall be no new experiences, no revelations - only past non-events, infinitely relived in a dead, cold, pumpkin patch Hell, where nothing shall ever happen, and the world will never change...
Which brings me to Luis Severino.
We waited most of the last five years for Sevy to appear unto us on a cold October night and to save all earnest Yank fans from yet another season of despair. In the warmer light of last September, he had nearly thrown a no-hitter, and we knew he would not let us down in the post-season. And he couldn't go six.
So, here we are... once again, waiting on Sevy. But this time, it's not a flexor or hamstring - but his fastball, the reason for his existence - which seldom touches 95.
Of course, he went down in spring training: He always does. And five starts ago, he was supposed to bring solidity to the rotation. He was the reason not to fret over Nestor Cortez's shoulder problem. He was our new No. 2, and he would devour innings that otherwise would ruin our bullpen.
Seems like a long time ago, in Sevy Time, that is.
What now? Damned if I know. Over his last three starts, Severino has been effectively sliced open, scooped out and carved into a jack-o-lantern. Sixteen earned runs in 13.2 innings. Blown out in the first against LA. Three HRs by the White Sox. And last night, six runs in 4.2 innings, including a pair of balks that would embarrass Joe Shabotnik, or a Little Leaguer.
All this time, we waited and waited... and for what? It's interesting that Sevy's statistical doppelganger through age 28 is Noah Syndergaard, the patron saint of unwielded relevance.
Next winter, Severino becomes a free agent. Right now, there will be no human cry to re-sign him. Not a peep. He has three months to save whatever Yankee legacy he was once meant to have.
But I can tell you this: It's cold, sitting night after night in that pumpkin patch. We've waited long enough.
currently dogface domingo and sucky schmidt are the yankees no 2 and 3 pitchers!{no disrespect meant im just being a smartass)no 1 draft pick sheldon(no s t)sherlock. our bullpen is very good but rapidly becming exhausted
ReplyDeleteSevy's not an ace. Not close. Like a lot of MLB pitchers, he's OK. Inconsistent. Unreliable. Often injured, tantalizingly good once in a while. Send him out there, hope for the best and that the game's within reach after 5. A back end of rotation starter when healthy. Nothing special, but he's ours.
ReplyDeleteThey are not resigning him. Ca$hman gave Sevy and Hicks long-term contracts based on ONE good year. Not one of Brian's best moments...
ReplyDeleteWe must resign him or we will prove EBD's melatonin theorem.
ReplyDeleteMaybe we can call up Devi Garcia to maintain a color balance.
I heard Ca$hole has Joe Shabotnik stashed in Scranton, because, you know, he likes to stockpile washed up talent. It's a two-fer since he won't have to develop a young pitcher of his own.
ReplyDeleteYup, another Cashman misfire. Including this year’s option, we’ve given him 55M for very little in return. I suppose the Yanks have their fingers crossed that this is just some kind of extended dead-arm period. No worries, he’ll be back out there next week against the Mariners as we try to squeeze the last few drops from this desiccated grape. He will resurface somewhere next year ( maybe even here?) with a more realistic salary and tempered expectations, but it seems very unlikely he will ever reach the overblown heights once predicted for him.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteI am no expert, but it is unclear to me how this team can win in the near-term future with zero quality pitching and not-very-much hitting.
It has occurred that -- maybe -- the rest of Baseball is even worse than the NYYs.
- - -
Since Thursday, the NYYs have been involved in 4 one-run games, if my count is correct. There was twp others -- a 3-0 victory over the White Sox (DH game 2) and a 3-1 loss to the Red Sox.
Unfortunately the record in these 6 close games -- vs. crap teams -- is 3-and-3. You might come to think that the quality of the field manager could matter....
...or that the Yankees team really IS crapola.
I watched this game on PIX11, the Mets broadcast. Those guys did a real nice job. You can always count on Keith Hernandez to tell you what he really thinks.
ReplyDeleteLot's to talk about with this one.
Believe it or not, I thought Severino looked good. His first two fastballs were 95 mph, and the second got whacked by Brandon Nimmo. After that, he started throwing harder, 96 mph in the 1st inning. Later on, he was consistently at 97 and 98 mph. He did throw a couple of fastballs that were only 93, but the vast majority were 95 to 98. So, it did not look to me like he's hiding an injury.
Severino was not that sharp, true. He struggled in the first two innings, but he did keep the ceiling from collapsing. Then, in the 3rd, Gleyber Torres struck again with the botched double play ball. Then DJL backed up on a grounder to third that should have been a double play, but they only got one out. So that's SIX outs that Severino ended up getting in that 3rd inning. He got out of the 3rd, with just one run, so that was pretty impressive, that the ceiling didn't cave in there.
I would've taken him out either before he got to 100 pitches or just after. But Boone left him in there to try for the win, and he blew the W by allowing the tying run on another single.
Now, whether the few extra pitches caused another lat strain or shoulder strain, we'll see. This is a guy who gets hurt every three or four starts, and Boone is driving him over 100 pitchers. In just his fourth start back. Don't quite get that.
Brilliant, Duque. Just brilliant!
ReplyDelete"The pumpkin patch in hell..."
Sevvy had a good season-and-a-half before blowing out his arm late in a romp over the Red Sox—something the Yanks refused to acknowledge for the rest of 2018. So I say, good for him, getting the money. It's what he deserves from our criminally negligent training staff.
ReplyDeleteBut yes, I think he's done. My main fear? He'll sign with somebody else for nothing next year—and competent coaching and training will reconstruct him.
Mets broadcasters mentioned the book "How to Lie With Statistics". I got my copy more than thirty years ago. A small, thin paperback, but it tells you the basic ways that stats are mis-used.
ReplyDeleteI studied statistics in high school and college, but this book, which was never recommended by any of my instructors, is the gold standard.
I actually stopped watching a Yankees/Mets game with the score tied 6-6 in the late innings. Didn't care if they won. Didn't want to watch them lose.
ReplyDeleteDidn't want to read the comments inevitable descent into name calling either.
It's getting so a person can't even read the comments on the Weather Channel's website with out an argument breaking out. I guess some people like it. That's fine. To each his own. I hate reading it. That's on me.
I'm going to take a week or so off from posting. Clean the palate so to speak. Hey, maybe by the time I come back the Yankees will have rocketed into third place. :)
@ Hoss, Based on what I saw last night, there's nothing wrong with Sevvy that would prevent him from being a #2 or 3 starter somewhere else. On the Yanks, he'll always be injury prone and inconsistent.
ReplyDeleteI watched Volpe carefully in his at bats. He was the only batter in the game who was consistently flying open and pulling off. His second double was actually an error by Nimmo, ball should've been caught in right center. Volpe's last at bat, he hit a long fly ball, but it was caught. If he hadn't opened up his hip and pulled off on that one, he'd have hit it out. The contact was pretty good, but he still dragged his bat a little bit and that was the difference.
ReplyDeleteMets batters generally looked real good. They looked well coached. The only one who executed poorly with a bad swing was Francisco Lindor. On that 3-2 pitch from Clay Holmes, Lindor got a high sinker away. Instead of going the other way, he pulled off and swung right through it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Hammer, the channel 11 broadcast was pretty good. Such a refreshing relief from the barking Kay and goofball O'Neill.
ReplyDeleteRufus, I have to point out that with Joe Shabotnik in Scranton, he rejoins his good friend, Joe Bagadonuts. They played Little League together growing up in West Bumfuck.
@ JM, I like O'Neill. But I agree with you about the horseshit. They should concentrate more on the game. Stop talking about what they ate last night or what movie they saw. That's our job!
ReplyDeleteRon Darling and Keith Hernandez were all business. Yanks botched three double plays last night, by my count. The Gleyber Torres fuck up. One ball that Volpe waited on too long and didn't charge. Another ball that DJL backed up on. They said basically that Volpe misjudged the speed of that ball and was too passive. And on the DJL round the horn double play attempt, they asked why did DJ back up suddenly to play deep. If he had been up closer, that's an easy round the horn dp.
There was also another bad throw by Torres at some point. I'm not sure if it was on the DJL double play attempt. The throw hit the runner. But if it hadn't, it would've been in the dugout for another error.
Yanks only got credited with one error in this game, but their defense sucked. As did the Mets. You could see why they're both nine games out.
@Joe , that was my main rationale for the team making the playoffs this year - not that the Yankees are so good, just that most teams are even worse than we are. Steve Cohen has fallen into the tempting trap of trying to buy a championship; this season he went almost full George, lacking only the coaching/managerial firings. George Lite, tastes great, less winning.
ReplyDeleteAnd the Donaldson pinch hit. Is it my imagination or is Donaldson actually executing some professional at bats lately? A few days ago, he fouled off a pitch with an emergency swing. Unbelievable! The guy knows how to foul off a pitch with an emergency swing! Where did that come from? It couldn't have come from the Yankee hitting coaches.
ReplyDeleteLast night, Donaldson delivers with the rare specimen known to entomologists as a "sac fly". Very rare in Yankee land. Yankee hitters usually strike out in that situation. Donaldson with the game winning RBI. Sign of the apocalypse?
Apologies Doug - I poked the bear.
ReplyDeleteI too find it all a bit obnoxious and annoying.
At least it was fun for a while when it appeared that the Yankees scoring was tied directly into your disappearances.
*****
We don’t have a ton of pitching options. Assuming that Setback is physically sound, we need him to continue to go out there
and do the best that he can.
Going back to what Hammer said, I agree that Boone may have kept him in too long.
Damned if you do - Damned if you don’t
This will be an interesting week.
Hammer, I thought the same watching AV’s at bats. In a way, it’s reassuring that perhaps the issue is mechanics, which can be corrected, as opposed to a lack of talent.
ReplyDeleteHere’s a blast from SNY.TV:
“…Volpe did volunteer that he went home to New Jersey on Monday’s off day and ate chicken parm with an old teammate, Yankees catching prospect Austin Wells. While watching old game highlights and reminiscing, they discovered that Volpe’s swing mechanics had changed this year.
“It was so small, but we both kind of noticed it and started talking about it,” he said.
The change that Volpe described mirrored what a scout told me recently: As Volpe was loading up for his swing, his front hip was “leaking,” or turning slightly to his left. This pulled his bat back and made him vulnerable to whiffing on low-and-away pitches.
“I’ve never really had trouble covering that pitch,” Volpe said -- but suddenly, as he tried to establish himself as a big leaguer, he wasn’t connecting with it.
In Tuesday’s game he closed his stance. While he wasn’t tested by any low-and-away pitches -- both his hits came on pitches middle-in, as did the 97 mph flyout to deep left -- he felt better overall, more himself mechanically.”
Isn’t this something the coaches should be addressing? We have 3 hitting coaches fer chrissake, what are they going all day?
@ btr999 & JoeFOB, Even with all of the bad teams around, it looks to me like the Yanks will fall short of the wild card. They're not catching Tampa, obviously. But they're not catching the Orioles either. You know the ASS-stros will wake up and start winning. Texas is looking good. How many teams are going in, that leaves the Yanks as the odd man out, right?
ReplyDeleteHammer - depends on how quickly we can return to full strength.
ReplyDeleteThere’s still no timetable on “Big Toe AJ”
@ btr999, Yeah, I thought his stance looked a bit different last night but was not sure if it was because of the CF camera angle.
ReplyDeleteYou know, the FOX broadcasters saw it right away, that Volpe's hip was flying open.
I don't think it was flying open early in the season. But I'm going off just memory. It's pathetic that Volpe and Austin Wells have to go look at old video to solve problems. Pathetic of the Yankee coaching, I mean. That's their effing job. What do these coaches do all day?
Oh, one more thing, I've seen some of Austin Wells homers. That guy looks good.
Sorry for multiple comments, but can we please get away from the vitriolic name-calling and accusations of racism that have ricocheted through the comments the last few days? There are plenty of sites to vent your spleen if you are so inclined. Put on your waders and head on over to the cesspool called Twitter and have at it. ONE of the best things about this blog is that we can post here without the ad hominem attacks so prevalent elsewhere. I hope we can keep it that way.
ReplyDeleteGood day to EVERYONE.
BTR999 - was that SNY.TV interview with Volpe online or did you watch it while being broadcast?
ReplyDeleteDoug, great point. And please don't stay away long! We will miss you—even if you do help the Yankees win. Let us recommit to basic civility.
ReplyDeleteDon't worry, Rodon will come back and pitch like a Boss, Judge comes back and does his Thing. Maybe a couple of guys come up from the minors,the walking wounded heal, and The Brain pulls something off. With all the money invested in this team Hal can't afford to look RIDICULOUS. RIGHT! Right?
ReplyDeleteFear the existential dread...
In that vein, I do want to say that I want all of our guys to do well. I don't think they will be much bothered by us making comments on a blog they don't ever see, but just to restate: I'm not a player hater.
ReplyDeleteBut I do feel free to criticize the play—and the play only—of highly paid, sports professionals. And I want a good-faith effort out there.
I may be wrong, but I don't feel we get that from some of these guys, and particularly from Gleyber, a physically talented individual who too often seems to be unconscious out there. He has now made as many errors at second as he did all last year, his dWAR has dropped to 0.0, his combined WAR to 0.8, and his Defensive Runs Saved to -2.
He has become, in other words, a purely average ballplayer, when he seems to have the natural abilities to be much more. Used to be, guys like coaches and managers were around to cajole, encourage, bully, fine, threaten, or generally SOMEHOW get players like this to get up to their full potential.
Muggsy McGraw used to regularly pick fights with his players (almost all of which he lost). Phil Jackson apparently perfected the Zen mind meld. Ma Boone seems to think his job is to cluck sympathetically to the press.
Nonsense. SOMEBODY has got to have a word with Gleyber about what happened the other night—about what happens all too often when he's on the field.
@ AA -
ReplyDeleteOnline, here’s the link: https://www.sny.tv/articles/yankees-rewarded-avoiding-bobby-meacham-trap-anthony-volpe
BTR999 - Thank you
ReplyDeleteNo word on how the Chicken Parm was, though…
ReplyDeleteYes, a minor league prospect is a better hitting instructor than the addle brained Yankee staff.
ReplyDeleteBut hey, exit velo and launch angle.
There is nothing quite like a plate of great Chicken Parm . . .
ReplyDeleteRoofy - are you referencing the exit velo and launch angle of a great Chicken Parm?
ReplyDeleteAA,
ReplyDeleteYou get that from bad chicken parm. VERY bad chicken parm.
ReplyDeleteI am now going to continue reverse psychology after going to my bed in a hissy fit last night when we were getting beat and waking up to find we had won
I predict tonight we will play like a shower of bums and get beat
You said it, AA. Scottish, I'm finally on a large enough screen to see your avatar. I like it!
ReplyDeleteAnd just for laughs, maybe the hitting coaches can concentrate on helping hitters hit. Not launch angles, not velo, but bat meeting ball with a good, level swing. You know, basics.
When a guy can hit, and have even average power, balls will go out. Meanwhile, you get hits. No downside. Fewer strikeouts. More action.
You want to screw with launch angles and velo after that, fine. But it looks like guys just don't know how to hit, or have unlearned it. That has to come first.
Amen, JM!
ReplyDeleteAnd by the by, yes, the Mets have vastly superior announcers to our TV mumblebums. They are smart, articulate, engaged with the game...and funny.
Here's an idea.
ReplyDeleteHire Austin Wells as hitting instructor, reserve bullpen catcher and emergency 4th catcher.
Jettison the "non-hitting" instructors.
HAL saves money. Win-win.
Coney is the only guy worth listening to on Pravda. Errr.... I mean YES.
ReplyDeleteand amend that Dillon Lawson manta to:
ReplyDeleteHit that Chicken Parm, Hard!
@ AA & Rufus, Yeah, Coney is my homey!
ReplyDeleteWouldn't you love to have that guy over for your birthday party? What do you think he charges?
Hammer,
DeleteIn addition to the hookers and booze, he'd probably charge a nominal speaking fee.
Yes, I'd pay to see that.
The down side is he'd probably still hit on my wife.
DeleteDo you mean Luis Serverino?
ReplyDeleteI would like to trade Gleybar but I am afraid that whoever we trade him for would suddenly become crippled or blind. Or go off into previously unforeseen surgery. I would not want the blood on my hands of killing the career of some possible long term big leaguer.
ReplyDeleteAnd I repeat my observation of Gleybar. He always has his cap pulled all the way down over his forehead. He squints. At one time early in his career he wore glasses, and that time coincided with his best production as a major leaguer.
Can someone please check his eyesight. or at least play with the bottom of his cap not blocking his vision?
Great points, Daddy
ReplyDelete@ Horace....Phil Jackson's Zen routine was 50% BS and 50% PR. It's very easy to win when you have great players as he did with Chicago and LA. He can quote Robert Pirsig's book and invoke Native American incantations until the cows come home, but unless you have talent, none of that will get you too far. His tenure with the Knicks certainly proved that.
ReplyDelete"the patron saint of unwielded relevance."
ReplyDeleteLooks like someone should be heading for the correspondence course at the Famous Writers School.
"melatonin theory" LOL!
ReplyDeleteErm . . . that should be "melanin." Perhaps too much melatonin has dulled someone's synapses. That one tops "bate" in place of "bait" in the annals of blog solecisms.
Looks like someone should be heading back to the Hospital for Cognitive Disorders.
Racist homophobic Karen spewing more hate.
ReplyDeleteTo quote Lili von Schtupp:
How owdwinary.
Roofy - I thought for a moment that you were going to post “Unwavering Negativity”
ReplyDeleteMr Firefly - where is everyone?
ReplyDeleteOn earth. Mostly.
ReplyDeleteNo-No-One
ReplyDeleteGentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the War Room.
ReplyDeleteAt least we got All-Star Cole tonight…
ReplyDeleteJohn S is so funny. He asked Suzyn, “Do you think they’ll bunt?”
ReplyDeleteKevin, I've heard that one before.
ReplyDeleteRanger, what channel is that on?
Dillon Lawson needs to get fired…
ReplyDeleteESPN
ReplyDeleteReally
ReplyDeleteGetting a few breaks…
ReplyDeleteSTOLE HOME?
ReplyDeleteSTOLE HOME!!!
ReplyDeleteMaybe we should send McKinney down to SWB…oh
ReplyDeleteThe Yankee coaches will be fired after this game.
ReplyDeleteI can’t believe that IKF stole home.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone remember the Yankees stealing home under the Booooonedocks?
ReplyDeleteRufus, you'd better know that quote! "Dr. Strangelove...."
ReplyDeleteStealing home is such a great 'punch in the mouth' play. A team like the Yankees should use it more often. Along with the safety squeeze.
ReplyDeleteRoh row
ReplyDeleteI think we got another break…
ReplyDeletePer Elias Sports Bureau, The last New York Yankee to perform a straight steal of home plate was when Derek Jeter performed the maneuver on May 5th, 2001 against the Baltimore Orioles.
ReplyDeleteBTR999, THX for the research. I would have bet farm that it wouldn't have been so long ago!
ReplyDeleteIt's so annoying that the radio feed from mlb is one batter behind .
ReplyDeleteThis game reminds me of a Vincent Price movie, "Scream and Scream Again".
ReplyDeleteKevin, are you talking about the creature in the stands behind home plate?
ReplyDeleteLOL! No, I lost cable out of general disgust, I watch most baseball on mlb.com, so I got screwed out of the ESPN games. Actually, this year the most entertainment to be found at Yankee games is in the stands😱
ReplyDeleteI can't quit the Yankees, but I may have to put them down for awhile...
ReplyDeleteYou know, Maraschino has really sucked for a while now. Yet Boone keeps using him in crucial situations. Idiot.
ReplyDeleteAnother wasted opportunity.
ReplyDeleteSo IKF steals home, but he's replaced by a pinch hitter. Booooone must make moves he's been told to.
ReplyDeleteMan, their line-up is putrid right now. I almost would rather watch women's soccer.
ReplyDeleteFuck
ReplyDeleteNo you wouldn't.
ReplyDeleteJust remember, the racist Yankees just replaced a Spanish pitcher with another Spanish pitcher. They must be racist.
HAL sucks
ReplyDeleteThere were several missed opportunities to move runners to move runners along tonight, the most egregious of which was Volpe’s in the 10th. He MUST at least advance the runner however he does it. Could be time for more Chicken Parm.
ReplyDeleteThe Yankees lost tonight because of the well-known melatonin factor. They're just not getting enough sleep.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWow Kevin I was just showing my daughter an autographed picture of Vincent Price from Scream and Scream Again. What about this game reminded you of that movie?
ReplyDeleteChicken Parm! Don't poke the Bear!
ReplyDelete999, yes, this is the ridiculous part of refusing to have players learn how to bunt, or hit to the opposite field.
ReplyDeleteThere are many, many ways to win a baseball game that have nothing to do with exit velo or launch angle. Particularly now, in the days of the Manfred Man.
Also, why pitch to Nimmo there? Why not walk him and pitch to Marie? His run doesn't matter.
ReplyDeleteCarl J. Weitz, yes, you're right that Phil Jackson won primarily because he had great players. But outstanding players constantly come apart as a team (looking at you, Brooklyn Nets).
ReplyDeleteWas Jackson's approach mostly BS and PR? Probably. But it worked. Whatever works is good.
The Knick's problem was that they hired Jackson to be a GM. Only the Knicks would sign up one of the most successful coaches in NBA history...to be a GM. It's why the Knicks are the Knicks.
Meanwhile, the Jeter of the 21st Century did not even start today, though he did pinch-hit and get a walk.
ReplyDeleteHuh.
Late night, Horace? Impressed with your selective restraint.
ReplyDeleteHowever you didn't comment on the . . . . Chicken Parm!
Above Average, are you serious regarding the Price autograph?! I was looking at their lineup stats and watching the reality of those numbers. Watching the game is brutal! I was in HS when that movie came out. It made late night television in Miami in no time. Well, I ran into a friend and we started telling each other about this "far out movie" ,quickly realizing it was the same film. Five over the air channels in those days, and of course movie information was to be found in newspapers(gawd, I am old😎). If you haven't actually seen the movie it has this theme music with the refrain "scream and scream again" . To this day, whenever my friend and I get to talking about aggregating news we'll break out into the "scream and scream again" refrain. I had to lay that boring story on you to explain why I happened to make that post. But you figured that out awhile ago.😴 Still, it's crazy that of all his movies that you... FAR OUT!
ReplyDeleteTelling the truth about the photo - just tried to find it on the internets but I can't find the one I have - I've seen the movie twice :)
ReplyDeleteScream and Scream Again had some insane stuff in it :)
LOL! Yes it did :) I need to re-watch it, I own it. Which is pretty sick I admit freely!
ReplyDeleteStat boy is an ass.
ReplyDeleteAre you referring to Lusi Serverino?
ReplyDelete