New York Yankees News: Throwing Darts

by Lord Duggan on Apr 27, 2011 6:00 AM EDT in New York Yankees News

No one is quite sure what the deal is with Phil Hughes and the reason for his noodle-arm, but that hasn't stopped the New York Yankees from performing a battery of tests. Our bunt-loving binder-toting manager had the following to say:

"I think that's why we talk about why we're careful. Everybody is unique, and everybody is going to respond differently to different workloads. I mean, no one can say that two bodies are alike. So what is going on with Phil, we may not see here for the next 20 years. We don't know why he's having his issues, but we're trying to find out."

All that we seem to know is that Hughes threw a lot more innings in 2010 than in 2009, and that he showed up in 2011 without a major league arm. As to the true nature of the underlying problem, there doesn't seem to be much progress. While I'm still quite optimistic about his career and think that he can still revive his season, at this point, the outlook for 2011 appears bleak.

In other news, after another poor outing from Rafael Soriano, Johnette Howard of ESPN New York is wondering if he has what it takes to pitch in New York ^TM, citing relevant things like "on-mound demeanor." I'm shocked, SHOCKED, that they would go for this angle.

The contract that was given to Soriano and the reasoning that went into his acquisition were extremely poor, and I have been very critical of that from the start. However, throughout his career, he has been a much better pitcher than he has shown, and I think we can reasonably expect him to right the ship.

In the same way that it makes sense to give Brett Gardner more than a few weeks before putting him under the bus, I'm still willing to give Soriano the benefit of the doubt, even though he has been extremely frustrating to watch, has acted like a diva, and put the Yankees brass over a barrel in the off-season. But if he stopped throwing belt-high middle-in fastballs, I don't think any of us would be sad about it.

Tweet Comment 39 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

ooooo not looking that good for the Bronx Bombers they have the offense but,

C.C A.J garcia nova and colon is a scary staring five.

by Jt Malley on Apr 27, 2011 7:39 AM EDT reply actions

The Blue Jays rotation

will be great in 2014.
But come back in September and let me know how 2011 went when you have 4 starters with BB/9 over 4, and one of Cecil, Reyes and Drabek is just back from a visit with Dr. Andrews.

Pitching is fragile. That’s what makes it valuable. And if you can’t have high value pitchers in your rotation, you should aim to have fungible pitchers and play the hot hand.

"Have faith in the Yankees, my son. Think of the great DiMaggio."
@jscape2000

by jscape2000 on Apr 27, 2011 9:58 AM EDT up reply actions

i know our arms aint that strong .

i know we are not that deep either ahaha. just saying u guys usually have a great starting 5 and without Huges on his gam,e it dosent look so scary? didnt mean to insult

by Jt Malley on Apr 27, 2011 12:43 PM EDT up reply actions

i really didnt mean to be mean ahahah you guys have an amazing offense , your pitching just isnt as scary as usuall,

u still got C.C who is a top 5 pitcher in the whole league in my opinion witch i great to have. A.J can be a good second man i seen him and his stuff can be Amazing whens he is on his game and to me Colon will be good for you guys to he is a proven winner and knows how to pich. Just Garcia and Nova seems iffy Garcia can pitch most nights but nova sometimes can get hit hard, pitched well last night though.

by Jt Malley on Apr 27, 2011 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions

I’m not mad at you.
And I’m not worried about the Yankees’ rotation. The team will go as far as the players can take them- it’s up to Cashman to give Girardi decent options and up to Girardi to use them right.

"Have faith in the Yankees, my son. Think of the great DiMaggio."
@jscape2000

by jscape2000 on Apr 27, 2011 1:39 PM EDT up reply actions

scary for who?

CC is an ace in every sense of the word.

AJ is a big time ?, but so far so good (tho he’s done this before)

Garcia seems like he’ll give you a quality start every time out, dude knows how to pitch

Colon ditto. His fastball is somewhere in between his Cy Young days and his fell off the earth days, but that’s not a bad thing. Similar to Garcia, he knows how to pitch.

And Nova showed his potential last night. Not expecting that from him every time out (or ever again….) but he can pitch.

Not scared at all.

And considering we lost both of these past 2 games cuz the offense was shut down….yea, go enjoy Canada.

Last night, a comedian died in New York. Somebody knows why. Somebody knows

by Rorschach44 on Apr 27, 2011 10:26 AM EDT up reply actions

Congrats on going back to back. Yeah, you're still relevant

I love how people come here and make noise because their team sucks. How many Yankee fans come over there?

by jetanumba2 on Apr 27, 2011 10:49 AM EDT up reply actions

You claim to be a Blue Jays fan… yet were banned from Bluebird Banter?

"Nature never intended for you to survive here. But this fall, nature isn't the only thing to fear." September 10, 2011. Alabama vs. Penn State. White House.

by Chris McKeown on Apr 27, 2011 11:10 AM EDT up reply actions

yeaa they are actually to strick over there

any F bombs or the any sort of swear word and they boot you. Dont even give warnings it sucks.

by Jt Malley on Apr 27, 2011 12:48 PM EDT up reply actions

How do you get banned without making a comment?

by Yankees10 on Apr 27, 2011 12:49 PM EDT up reply actions

Didn't you hear?

They’re “strick”. Good thing for some, we’re not so strict.

I bet it's good to be playing again, huh?

by david d on Apr 27, 2011 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions

yea i really like you guys ahaha

plus u guys know alot about baseball. I enjoy all baseball and i hate the red sox sooooo i fit in i guess.

by Jt Malley on Apr 27, 2011 12:52 PM EDT up reply actions

is there a way to get unbanned?

by Jt Malley on Apr 27, 2011 12:53 PM EDT up reply actions

You would probably have to email the mods and convince them you won't do it again

by Yankees10 on Apr 27, 2011 12:56 PM EDT up reply actions

lol i would but to me

you should be allowed to say the word shit once or twice ahah man there stricks

by Jt Malley on Apr 27, 2011 12:59 PM EDT up reply actions

I apologize that they are “stricks,” but complaining here won’t help.

Follow me on twitter @nyybrandonc

"Blame is just a lazy person's way of making sense of chaos."

"No matter what I talk about, I always get back to baseball."

by Brandon C. on Apr 27, 2011 4:23 PM EDT up reply actions

i made a new account trying to get back in but they wouldnt let me for some reason? it sucks man

is there a way of getting back in once banned?

by Jt Malley on Apr 27, 2011 12:51 PM EDT up reply actions

Freaking Canada!

"WHO WOULD LEAD?! THE CLOWN?!"

by I'mGivingYouARaise on Apr 27, 2011 2:39 PM EDT up reply actions

The Red Canadian MENACE!

"Son, Nobody is half as good as Mickey Mantle"

by ntrokel on Apr 27, 2011 3:37 PM EDT up reply actions

No.

Follow me on twitter @nyybrandonc

"Blame is just a lazy person's way of making sense of chaos."

"No matter what I talk about, I always get back to baseball."

by Brandon C. on Apr 27, 2011 4:29 PM EDT up reply actions

Yeah… no.

"Nature never intended for you to survive here. But this fall, nature isn't the only thing to fear." September 10, 2011. Alabama vs. Penn State. White House.

by Chris McKeown on Apr 27, 2011 11:47 PM EDT up reply actions

Just a fair warning here, the barnhammer is not a fan of trolling.

Follow me on twitter @nyybrandonc

"Blame is just a lazy person's way of making sense of chaos."

"No matter what I talk about, I always get back to baseball."

by Brandon C. on Apr 27, 2011 4:23 PM EDT up reply actions

It's not pretty on paper but...

Hey it’s working, i ain’t complaining
CC went 8 inning 3 ER
Garcia 6 innings 0 ER
Colon 6.2 innings 2ER
AJ 8 innings 1 ER
Nova 6.1 innings 1 ER

by lololol on Apr 27, 2011 12:31 PM EDT up reply actions

Yes,

I don’t understand his comment. Our starters have been performing well, while the pen has been letting us down and the offense lately hasn’t exactly been lighting it up.

I bet it's good to be playing again, huh?

by david d on Apr 27, 2011 12:42 PM EDT up reply actions

your offense is still nasty when you guys make a batting order from 1 to 9 are great hitters.

by Jt Malley on Apr 27, 2011 12:45 PM EDT up reply actions

Yeah

I certainly hope the Yankees make a batting order 1 to 9.

Follow me on twitter @nyybrandonc

"Blame is just a lazy person's way of making sense of chaos."

"No matter what I talk about, I always get back to baseball."

by Brandon C. on Apr 27, 2011 4:30 PM EDT up reply actions

i didnt mean to hate just saying from last year its less scary or years past

still on of the better in the league ahahah. You guys have a great team and will get into the playoffs with this rotation.

by Jt Malley on Apr 27, 2011 1:09 PM EDT up reply actions

so far, so good

would u not agree?

by sing_or_die_1818 on Apr 27, 2011 10:42 PM EDT up reply actions

No heart, not a True Yankee, can't handle the 8th. also good ways of describing Soriano

honestly, I don’t like him. I never did. Where as I remember him being fiery and dangerous with the Rays, he’s been somber and actually kind of sad looking with us. I still don’t believe he wants to be here, but the almighty paycheck he was promised in the off season never really turned up anywhere else. I doubt he really wants to learn from Mo, he wants to replace Mo. Best case scenario is that he improves and becomes lights out from here and then opts out, but he’s not getting a better deal than this so it’s going to be a long 3 years.

by jetanumba2 on Apr 27, 2011 8:21 AM EDT reply actions

True Yankee(tm)

"Son, Nobody is half as good as Mickey Mantle"

by ntrokel on Apr 27, 2011 8:44 AM EDT up reply actions

My sentiments exactly

I felt this way from the get-go.

I bet it's good to be playing again, huh?

by david d on Apr 27, 2011 11:45 AM EDT up reply actions

Citing “on field demeanor” makes me believe that Jonette Howard wears a helmet to eat soup.

Soriano yesterday looked better then he has all season. The fastball was back to the mid-90s. But like AJ Burnett will tell you, those just go farther when you throw them down the middle of the plate.

Soriano will be fine.

Last night, a comedian died in New York. Somebody knows why. Somebody knows

by Rorschach44 on Apr 27, 2011 8:43 AM EDT reply actions

Soriano may or may not be fine, but he seems to be learning the hard way.

He has been acting like he just got to the major leagues.
First, he didn’t want to pitch exhibition games against Division opponents.
Then he made himself scarce after blowing a game, leaving Nick Swisher to deal with the press.
Monday he couldn’t be bothered to catch a popud that fell ten feet from him.
Last night he was practically in tears on the mound when he thought he was being squeezed.

One might have thought that he knew better than to do any of these things before he got here.

by designatedquitter on Apr 27, 2011 10:24 AM EDT reply actions

Phil Hughes better get it together soon because at the Steinbrenners request,

Dr. Jack Kevorkian is hanging around the training room looking for any dead arms to put out of their misery.

by Putnan Prince on Apr 27, 2011 10:58 AM EDT reply actions

What you did in the picture caption there?

I saw it.

It's like being a huge fan of winning, which we do, relentlessly.

by WhatwouldJeterdo on Apr 27, 2011 1:04 PM EDT reply actions

Soriano doesn't want to pitch in the 8th. Period.

His quote about how great it was to pitch in the 9th last week, and that Girardi told him whenever Mo’s not available, he’s the 9th inning guy, makes me wonder if he’s not putting rocks under Mo’s mattress at night, or an Ortiz jersey.

by luckiBelle on Apr 27, 2011 1:49 PM EDT via mobile reply actions

Soriano can learn a thing or two from Mo

As I was noting during the game last night Soriano appears to want to pitch the 9th. He needs to check his ego and in addition keep his shirt on.
I’ve always had the opinion that pitchers with all the animations and extroverted demeanor have a very short life of success in the majors. Remember when Joba would jump all over like an idiot look at AJ if he keeps his head in check he’s as good a money, then note Mo he is always in composure and the best of all time

by tfp0827 on Apr 27, 2011 2:13 PM EDT up reply actions