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Friday, April 13, 2018

It's early, but the Sonny Gray story is starting to look familiar

Current Wild Card standings
There are multiple reasons why the Yankees looked naked, knock-kneed and negligent this week in Boston - (bad fielding and hitting come to mind) - but the Redsock line scores say it all: 14, 7 and 6. The Yankees had to score 10 runs to win their one game. That's no bus route to the Canyon of Heroes.

None of our "Big 3" lasted through the sixth. Each surrendered five or more runs, and last night, Sonny Gray added his personal golden shower to the shit cake with a three-inning barf. You could argue that it was a cold, miserable night in Boston, but the rain sure didn't bother Mr. Porcello, aside from interrupting his possible no-hitter. Worst of all, Gray is starting to resemble another lost cause in Cooperstown Cashman's greatest career blind spot: His relentless quest for the Holy Grail, the young "power arm" for which he constantly empties the Yankee farm.

Over the years, Cashman's biggest bugaboo has been his Gollum-like pursuit of under-achieving starters from small market teams, whose front offices always vow to never trade their "ace" - until they do. Rumors about a Sonny Gray deal began in 2016, and somehow, the A's always managed to keep Cashman calling back, like a girl who regularly texts a nude selfie when she senses her boyfriend starting to stray. When the trade deadline came, they answered the call.

We must give Cooperstown credit for finding underappreciated position players, such as Nick Swisher, Curtis Granderson, Starlin Castro and - of course - Sir Didi. But front line pitching is another story. Cashman's attempts to secure an ace - from Jeff Weaver, Javier Vazquez, Nathan Eovaldi, Jared Wright, Randy Johnson, Kevin Brown, Michael Pineda and let's throw in Carl Pavano and Kei Igawa - have generally fizzled. Which leads to the latest clown car in this hell train of disappointment, Mr. Sonny. 

In three starts, Gray has yet to throw 90 pitches. His 6.92 ERA is second only to Jonathan Holder's amazing 20.25. Last night, the YES info-wars crew opined that the Son Ra was missing his "personal" catcher, Austin Romine, as if he's worthy of such treatment. The truth squad blamed woeful fielding - the Yanks are tied for the most errors in the AL, and that's not counting the unspeakable horror show of Giancarlo Stanton in left field, turning a wind-blown fly into a "double." They ignored the growing whispers - now fully-inked speculation - that Gray has a Boston problem. (In seven career starts, he's 1-5 with an ERA near 6.) 

If there was hope last night, it came from Domingo German, who looked like the pitcher Gray was once touted to be. But don't expect German to replace him soon. The iron rule of Cashman's Cuties is that they always get a lonnnng audition period before the front office accepts its mulligan. 

Of course, Gray does warrant several more starts, at least through May. He's hardly a lost cause - not yet - and the Yankees sit only 2 games behind in the AL Wild Card race, (with only 149 to play!) But right now, if we have a "Big 3" at all - an increasingly relevant question - Sonny Gray certainly is not a part of it. And without solid starters, every bullpen is doomed. No, let me rephrase: Every team is doomed.

10 comments:

JM said...

Yes, Sonny is the latest in a long line of failed "Bachelorette" contestants, and last night he showed why he isn't getting a rose anytime soon. (Does the bachelorette give out roses, or is that just the bachelor?)

But, in his defense...a pivotal moment came on a fly ball to left. Sure, it was rainy, and sure, the Fenway air currents might have something to do with it. But the amazingly bad misplay of our very own super-slugger Clank sealed the deal for the Sox.

How many games are going to be imperiled or simply lost thanks to the stellar fielding abilities of Mr. Stanton?

On the bright side: it will definitely be fewer than the times he strikes out and/or kills a rally.

KD said...

It's really difficult to be optimistic about this team with its terrible pitching, especially after the redsocks series. Yes, it is early but now we know definitely where we stand: we are playing for the wild card and probably not the "real" wild card either. Our post season will be short. It isn't our year. My RAB assessment on our chances just went down to a "3".

at least the redsock series brought forth our Mustang. we missed you, dude!

Joe Formerlyof Brooklyn said...


I am not ready to give up on the season.

I am ready to give up, forever, on Sonny Gray. Last night was the ultimate "test" of the guy's quality....could he deliver what was needed, at the exact time it was needed, in the quantity (7 innings, no runs) needed?

A clutch start would have been SO clutch. But.....

No.

Send him to anyone, for anything. A ham sanwich, whatever.

THEN: Bring up one (or more) of the kids.

I don't think it's "too soon" to judge the guy. There were 11 starts in 2017 (65 innings hurled, total) -- and now, this.

Baaaah.

HoraceClarke66 said...

Brilliant insight on Cashman's quest for the young pitchers, Duque. You're absolutely right, and I hadn't realized there were so many of them.

Whereas the man who SHOULD go to the HOF, and who SHOULD have been running the team for the last 20 years—Gene Michael—seemed to figure this out, as he did so much else in his time.

While a few, key arms were developed in-house—The Great One, Pettitte, Mendoza—by and large, Michael consistently acquired veteran starters who had already been through their arm-trouble years: Cone, Wells, Clemens, Gooden etc. Had he been even more successful in inking guys he went after hard—Maddux and Clemens the first time, specifically—the Yanks' success would've been staggering.

Cashman refuses to ever learn this lesson. He also refuses to learn any lessons about the role of character.

Sonny Gray always looks scared to death on the mound. But this is very much in the tradition of Coops rushing to trade a gutsy overachiever—Theodore Roosevelt Lilly (love that name)— for an immature jerk in Jeff Weaver, and running to sign up a chronic complainer and big-game blower in Mike Mussina. Not to mention so many of the names you note that I never, ever want to hear again.

Cashman is like some mythological character, doomed to make the same mistakes, over and over again. Unfortunately, we are doomed with him.

HoraceClarke66 said...

By the by, while Kaprielian is still rehabbing, Mateo and Fowler are off to poky but decent starts in AAA. Fowler already has three stolen bases, which implies his permanently crippled leg has healed already.

Anonymous said...

HC66--Thanks, Sir Idiot of the Tiny Sample, for that compelling analysis of statistically meaningless noise.

Local Bargain Jerk said...


HC66--Thanks, Sir Idiot of the Tiny Sample, for that compelling analysis of statistically meaningless noise.

Prithee, sir, casteth not stones. By your favor, enlighten us with your own compelling analysis so that we might all be enlightened and edified.

Truly.

Yankee Shamus said...

Wow - that’s how you sum up Mussina’s time in pinstripes?

HoraceClarke66 said...

I know, I know. I was always harder on Mussina than others. And he did have SOME good, big games.

But in general, I found that for the most part, he spit the bit unless nothing was expected of him—usually against Boston.

As a Yankee, he was 5-7 in the postseason, and continually let us down when we needed him most.

2001: opening game against Arizona, when we were really hurting and desperately needed to stay close...he was clocked almost immediately. A better second start, but he still left behind.

2002: a big lead against the Angels in the ALDS, and he leaves with a leg pull, or something. We lose game and series.

2003: maybe his best postseason effort, with an excellent relief effort against Boston—again, with the pressure all off him—and a terrific Series outing. But there was also an ALDS loss to Minnesota, and two ALCS losses to Boston.

2004: another loss to the Twins, though not a bad game. He looked like he might pitch a no-hitter against the Red Sox...then collapsing so completely he couldn't get through the seventh, even with an 8-0 lead, something that really hurt our overtaxed bullpen. Game 5, he pitched well again—but he could only go 6 innings.

2005: 1-1, 5.40 ERA against the Angels.

2006: he slowly gave away a 3-1 lead against Tigers, in a game that tied the ALDS.

2007: an ineffective relief appearance against the Indians.

Not an impressive record.

Everybody talks about what bad luck Moose had not winning 20 games before his last season. Well, he pitched nearly his entire career for great hitting teams. Maybe it had something to do with him?

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