Well, Joba really isn't that stretched considering he can't get through the fifth inning ever. And I think there's a good chance if he knows he's only good for three outs he empties the tank every time and blows people away, he seems to have problems when he has to go through the lineup a couple times. I know, ultimately he's got to be a starter, but right now, he's not the best man for the job.
It's a shame Kontos was shut down early for the season. I mean, he's most likely no better than Rasner/Karstens retreads, but it's always nice to see some ORG filler up. After a few more AAA starts one would imagine Nova would be the next person called up if Mitre is a completely shit show.
I don't think the issue is mental with him. I think it's mechanical (or, god forbid, an injury... but that doesn't seem likely as his offspeed pitches are coming in at normal velocity). He went from 97-100mph out of the pen to 95-97 starting last year. This year he's been around 91-93 for most starts. So I don't think you'd be looking at a dominant Joba out of the pen. That's not going to make up 6mph. We're looking at something else here. Never mind that he's not locating his pitches right now, and that's the biggest problem.
It's not mental, Dave Eiland is a genius who thinks he can get more out of young pitchers by fucking with their mechanics..ala 2008 Hughes and Kennedy.
Eh... I'm not entirely sure it's that, either. I mean, Eiland was their pitching coach in the minors before 2008. One of his supposed strengths was that he had worked with them and knew their mechanics. I don't think he is/was the sole reason their mechanics changed. If it's anything with Joba, I'd say it has something to do with a plan to develop a "healthier" pitching motion that places less stress on his knee and shoulder. That's just a guess, though, from watching the difference between last year and this year. It's obviously messing with his velocity, though, if that's that case.
Interestingly enough, on the postgame, Joba specifically said he and Eiland felt this was mechanically his best game all year. (Granted, I have little faith in Eiland, but Joba really doesn't have a reason to say his mechanics were on if they weren't.) While I realize Hughes isn't stretched out, I'm really pissed off that it won't be him getting Wang's spot. I don't think there are any plans at all to ever put him back in the rotation. Honestly, given the choice, I'd rather put Joba back in the pen and let Hughes return to his natural role. In the meantime, if Hughes isn't going to get his chance, Girardi needs to give the ball to Aceves. I've been telling everyone who will listen lately that Aceves is a future starter on this team, and yesterday goes a long way to prove that. He definitely still had gas in the tank too. That last pitch was nasty. As for the game, I'm really impressed. Suddenly the Yankees look like a completely different team. They're fighting back against a good team. Like NYJ2K09 said, they have to do this against Boston, but this is starting to look like a team that might actually be able to do just that. It's too bad it's exactly a month before the next time we face them. Lots can happen in a month. For now though, we're playing well, and one game out is pretty freaking nice heading into the break. Speaking of which, it's awesome that Jeter is the top vote-getter in the AL, but more awesome that Teixeira beat out Youkilis.
Tex beating Youk is a little seeter for me cuz I hate that ugly mother fucker more than anyone in baseball....but the Jeter thing is pretty nice....and VERY surprising
He might be talking about his "new" mechanics, not his old ones. He's definitely been having issues locating the ball in most of his starts. Maybe it's a coincidence, but the starts where his velocity was up around 94-96 this year are also the starts where he had better command. He only seems to be having issues when he's at 91-93. *shrugs* Um, what? What on earth could possibly give you this idea? They've gone to such lengths to stress that Joba is a starter, because they know starters are more valuable than relievers... and now you think that - because of three weeks of pitching well out of the pen - they're going to abandon that philosophy with their top pitching prospect? That's nuts. I think there's a possibility that they gave him four innings last night as a part of stretching him out. He threw 43 pitches yesterday. He'd probably be good for 65-70 or so on Thursday. I wouldn't be surprised if they brought up Mitre, and had a quick hook with him if he looks bad... then let Aceves throw the rest of the game, stretching him out enough to be a starter the next go round. I'm tellin' ya, man... the only thing that keeps changing round here is your attitude. :smile: Baseball seasons take a long time to play out.
I'd say I hate him more than any player but Varitek and Beckett, but yeah, that's exactly how I feel. I don't know what he was talking about, but the question came up about whether he felt his mechanics were a problem, and he went on to say that he and Eiland spoke and agreed it was his mechanically best game of the year. Take it for what it's worth really. I hope you're right, but Girardi has made a big deal about Hughes' "dominance" out of the pen. My fear is that Hughes is our Papelbon, destined for the closer role. I could deal with that. I'd still rather they handed him the ball to start the game and allowed him to show them how far he can go. Hahaha, Dierking warned you about me a while back. My mood is up and down like the weather. Anyway, I'm still not convinced this team is a World Series winner though. Yes, yes, I know what you mean about it being a toss-up in the short series, but you've got to be able to beat the best. Obviously this series shows them to be able to beat a legit team, and beating Halladay (even a battered one) is big. It's a long month ahead of us before the next Boston meeting, and that's the team we need to prove we can beat. It sucks because I think we could beat them well right now. ----------- On another note, I think Waldman reported on the pre-game that Molina is expected to rejoin the team on the next road trip. That's disappointing to me, because I really like Cervelli.
Hinskie getting the start in right today. Maybe a few days off for Swisher will get his head back on straight.
