May 6, 2002
What's Wrong With the Yank-K-K-K-K-K-K-ees?
LONG-TERM OUTLOOK ... Okay, so the Yankees can't beat the
Mariners at home during the regular season (1-11 since last
year); fortunately, their next meeting in the Bronx won't come
until October ... At 18-14, the Yanks are one game off last
year's pace, but 2002 is beginning to look like one of those
years the Red Sox parlay Fenway magic into a season-long
phenomenon. The AL Wild Card is likely to come from the East
or West -- that is, the loser of the Boston/New York or
Seattle/Oakland races -- which is good long-term news for
fantasy GMs relying on Yankees; no September sit-downs in the
Jeter/Giambi/Mussina ranks.
Tearing it Up
BALANCING THE LOAD ... The team RBI lead is one swing away
from belonging to any one of six players, as Jorge Posada
(21), Alfonso Soriano (20), Derek Jeter (19), Robin Ventura
(19), Jason Giambi (18) and Rondell White (17) are all on pace
to knock in between 85 and 105. Cleanup hitter Bernie Williams
will be there, too ... Since bottoming out at .195 on April
16, spurring a "benching" announcement from Joe Torre, fan
favorite Shane Spencer is 15-for-32 (.469) with all eight of
his season total RBI ... Ted Lilly is climbing the ESPN Most
Added list (+30% this week), but is still available in 65% of
MLB leagues.
Slumping
BERN RATE ... The ol' e-mail bag continues to be stuffed with
Bernie questions. Over his last eight games, Williams has hit
.290 (nine-for-31) with an OBP of .405, has a 6:4 BB/K ratio,
has scored seven runs and Sunday showed a hint of returning
power with two homers. Again, go find someone obsessing about
his overall average (still just .250) and two steals, and
trade for Williams cheap ... White is falling down the ESPN
Most Dropped list (-25% this week), due to his 1-for-20 slide;
Nick Johnson has been bumped from 15% of MLB rosters, but Joe
Torre assured the media that the rook will stay in the lineup.
At the Plate
GET A WHIFF ... The idea that plate discipline is "catching"
when an organization stresses the practice is gaining some
credibility with the recent turnaround of the Montreal Expos
-- but is the reverse also true? The Yankees are on pace for
1,245 K, which would obliterate the 1967 team record of 1,043.
And as well as Soriano has been swinging the bat, the tone is
set at the top of the order, where the young 2B is hurtling
towards Bobby Bonds' all-time single-season record of 189. In
fact, every single regular except Jorge Posada is on pace to
strike out more than 100 times.
Probable Starters
May 6: Off Day
May 7: Mussina @TB (Wilson)
May 8: Clemens @TB (Kennedy)
May 9: Lilly @TB (Rupe)
May 10: Hernandez @MIN (Milton)
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From the Rubber
TOUGH WEEKEND ... David Wells (4-1, 4.80) finally lost a game
Sunday, surrendering 6 ER in 6 IP ... Orlando Hernandez (3-1,
2.30) couldn't hold a five-run lead Saturday, but continues to
outperform Wells ... Ted Lilly (0-3, 2.84) had his first
less-than-stellar outing Friday, and remains the best winless
pitcher in the majors ... Mike Stanton is pitching like an
All-Star ... Worried about Mariano Rivera? Here's Yankees.com
columnist Steven Goldman: "I wish I were struggling like he's
struggling ... Opposing hitters are batting .179 against him.
His two blown saves and occasional wildness this season have
been a fluke."
On the Mend
MAY-BE NOT ... One of the all-time great sports page puns in
New York Post history confirmed what was predicted here last
week: "Andy Dis-Mayed" headlined the story indicating veteran
lefty Andy Pettitte will not return to the Yankee rotation
until early June ... Sterling Hitchcock allowed six runs and
nine hits in 2.1 IP in a rehab start at Columbus; Lilly
shouldn't be worried about his rotation slot ... Johson missed
Sunday's game with a bone bruise on his right knee and is
day-to-day, which could end up being good downtime for him to
get his head straight.
Recent Call-ups
THAT'S "KARIM" WITH A "K" ... Karim Garcia continues to hit in
Columbus (.310/2/13) but also continues to display the
Soriano-esque plate discipline which has kept him out of major
league lineups ... Chris Widger (.275/5/14) is playing well
and would likely leapfrog current Yankee backup backstop
Alberto Castillo if anything happened to Posada ... Drew
Henson: 33K in 104 AB ... John Dillinger, a late spring
training cut, has a 7.89 ERA in nine appearances ... These
columns, updated weekly or as breaking news warrants, are
archived at http://dellepro.dellhost.com/doherty/sports/ESPN/
... send questions to RotoYanks@yahoo.com.
