Opening Day Part 2 was much more fun for me, and my team didn’t even play.
It was a day of excitement. It was a day of offense. And it was a day that has Yankees fans calling into MLB Network Radio frantically looking for answers.
The answer is the same as Opening Day Part 1.
Don’t overreact, just enjoy it.
Girardi in Midseason Form
First inning? Walking Sean Rodriguez?
To get to Carlos Pena, who, yeah, has just four hits against CC Sabathia, but two of those four hits were home runs.
It’s a move that baffles the mind. It’s a move that encapsulates Yankees manager Joe Girardi’s entire managing career.
With two runners on and two outs, why not have Sabathia pitch to Rodriguez? If you’re worried about Sabathia vs. righties in the first inning, then why are you not walking every right-hander who comes to the plate?
I’ll tell you why: Because that would be crazy — just as crazy as walking a guy, Rodriguez, who 99 percent of the time has to earn his walks.
So here you have it. The Yankees are sitting at 0-1 with a bunch of worried followers — not in our League, I’m sure Gina, Alex, Kyle, Steve and Justin are all logical — but they have to remember they’re still going to win 90-some games and make the playoffs.
Yesterday just shows why I like the Rays to finish first and the Yankees to finish second.
Adam Dunn’s Stick Returns
OK, I just talked about how one game doesn’t make a season, but Friday had to be nice for Adam Dunn.
After his horrific .159 season batting average last season, Dunn was 0-for-1 heading into the sixth inning and I was thinking about, “What if he goes 'oh-for' today?”
But he didn’t. One big swing and a huge home run. Now he’s on his way to my preseason prediction of 30-some home runs and 100-plus RBIs. It had to feel nice for Dunn, knowing that it looks like 2011 is behind him.
It was also nice for the Outs, who took him in the draft just before I could do it. The Outs are tied for the early-season lead in homers with four (Bombers, Otto Parts also have four).
Don’t be fooled, yet
Chad Billingsley was a stud Friday.
He was shutting down Padres left and right, pitching 8.1 scoreless innings and striking out 11. He got the win and the quality start, and perhaps, this means he has arrived. He's finally the No. 2 starter we all thought he could be.
The Kool-Aid is out there, but don’t drink it yet.
I want to see him duplicate this against a team not named the Padres or Astros.
He’s typically had great starts against the Padres, posting a 2.62 ERA in 140.2 innings. Even better is his 2.36 ERA in Petco Park.
So, let’s hold off just a second on Billingsley. This is promising, but I want to see it happen over the next couple starts before I anoint him the gem of the 2012 draft.
Hitless streak ends
Just a quick note because I’m sure you were all feverishly worrying about my fantasy team.
The awful hitless streak ended at 25 straight outs after A.J. Pierzynski singled to center to start the Slammers offense.
Well, that was the hope.
Only four more hits for the rest of the day gives me a 5-for-53 mark heading into Saturday. … Here’s to a full slate of Saturday games and hopefully offense.
It was a day of excitement. It was a day of offense. And it was a day that has Yankees fans calling into MLB Network Radio frantically looking for answers.
The answer is the same as Opening Day Part 1.
Don’t overreact, just enjoy it.
First inning? Walking Sean Rodriguez?
To get to Carlos Pena, who, yeah, has just four hits against CC Sabathia, but two of those four hits were home runs.
It’s a move that baffles the mind. It’s a move that encapsulates Yankees manager Joe Girardi’s entire managing career.
With two runners on and two outs, why not have Sabathia pitch to Rodriguez? If you’re worried about Sabathia vs. righties in the first inning, then why are you not walking every right-hander who comes to the plate?
I’ll tell you why: Because that would be crazy — just as crazy as walking a guy, Rodriguez, who 99 percent of the time has to earn his walks.
So here you have it. The Yankees are sitting at 0-1 with a bunch of worried followers — not in our League, I’m sure Gina, Alex, Kyle, Steve and Justin are all logical — but they have to remember they’re still going to win 90-some games and make the playoffs.
Yesterday just shows why I like the Rays to finish first and the Yankees to finish second.
Adam Dunn’s Stick Returns
OK, I just talked about how one game doesn’t make a season, but Friday had to be nice for Adam Dunn.
After his horrific .159 season batting average last season, Dunn was 0-for-1 heading into the sixth inning and I was thinking about, “What if he goes 'oh-for' today?”
But he didn’t. One big swing and a huge home run. Now he’s on his way to my preseason prediction of 30-some home runs and 100-plus RBIs. It had to feel nice for Dunn, knowing that it looks like 2011 is behind him.
It was also nice for the Outs, who took him in the draft just before I could do it. The Outs are tied for the early-season lead in homers with four (Bombers, Otto Parts also have four).
Don’t be fooled, yet
Chad Billingsley was a stud Friday.
He was shutting down Padres left and right, pitching 8.1 scoreless innings and striking out 11. He got the win and the quality start, and perhaps, this means he has arrived. He's finally the No. 2 starter we all thought he could be.
The Kool-Aid is out there, but don’t drink it yet.
I want to see him duplicate this against a team not named the Padres or Astros.
He’s typically had great starts against the Padres, posting a 2.62 ERA in 140.2 innings. Even better is his 2.36 ERA in Petco Park.
So, let’s hold off just a second on Billingsley. This is promising, but I want to see it happen over the next couple starts before I anoint him the gem of the 2012 draft.
Hitless streak ends
Just a quick note because I’m sure you were all feverishly worrying about my fantasy team.
The awful hitless streak ended at 25 straight outs after A.J. Pierzynski singled to center to start the Slammers offense.
Well, that was the hope.
Only four more hits for the rest of the day gives me a 5-for-53 mark heading into Saturday. … Here’s to a full slate of Saturday games and hopefully offense.
Comments