Scout Chris Sale

The White Sox might have a secret weapon called Chris Sale this pennant race.

He was in college earlier this year and shot right through their farm system.

Now he is in the big leagues and the White Sox are hoping that batters who have never faced him before will whiff and teams will not have scouted him and have no game plan against him these last 2 months.

Basically they are hoping he could be the White Sox's answer to Francisco Rodriguez in 2002 when he threw just a handful of innings before exploding onto the post season stage... or maybe like David Price who came out of the pen to shut down the Sox in the 2008 ALCS with less than 10 innings of big league experience.

Here's a tip for the other 29 teams... SCOUT HIM!

Have a game plan.

Figure out where to hit him.

I don't know why I am telling you this because, as I said before, I like the White Sox and am rooting for them in the AL Central.

But there's no reason for you to be caught with your pants down. You've got scouts. Send them to the Chicago game.

Chop chop.

Scout Chris Sale

The White Sox might have a secret weapon called Chris Sale this pennant race.

He was in college earlier this year and shot right through their farm system.

Now he is in the big leagues and the White Sox are hoping that batters who have never faced him before will whiff and teams will not have scouted him and have no game plan against him these last 2 months.

Basically they are hoping he could be the White Sox's answer to Francisco Rodriguez in 2002 when he threw just a handful of innings before exploding onto the post season stage... or maybe like David Price who came out of the pen to shut down the Sox in the 2008 ALCS with less than 10 innings of big league experience.

Here's a tip for the other 29 teams... SCOUT HIM!

Have a game plan.

Figure out where to hit him.

I don't know why I am telling you this because, as I said before, I like the White Sox and am rooting for them in the AL Central.

But there's no reason for you to be caught with your pants down. You've got scouts. Send them to the Chicago game.

Chop chop.

Tommy Hanson joins a not exactly exclusive club

Another day and another pitcher the Yankees have never seen shuts them down.

This is getting ridiculous. 

Yeah yeah yeah I know... he's a top prospect. But at what point do the Yankees not whither at the sight of a young pitcher?

This is the underbelly of their schedule. These are the teams they are supposed to pummel and build up their lead. Remember 2 weeks ago the Yankees were up a game on the Red Sox and were firing on all cylinders?

They've dropped 6 games in the standings in 2 weeks to mediocre teams throwing inexperienced pitchers.

Fernando Nieve, Shairon Martis, John Lannon, Craig Stammen, Josh Johnson, Chris Volstad and now Tommy Hanson.

Now granted, Johnson is a true rising star and Volstad and Hanson are talented... but aren't these the supposed big bad Yankees?

I mean does EVERY team just get up for the Yankees?

And a week from today it will be July. 

It's not THAT early.

Today the Yankees face the talent Kenshin Kawakami.

This is the first time they have ever faced him.

Gee Whiz, I wonder how this will turn out.

..

Shairon Martis... IMMORTAL

This last Thursday I declared there was no way the Yankees could have advance scouts because every time they faced a pitcher they hadn't seen (even one with lousy stats) that new pitcher would shut the Yankees down.

I lumped Shairon Martis of the historically horrible Washington Nationals (or Natinals) onto that list.

He entered Yankee Stadium with a 5.04 ERA and threw 6 innings letting up 1 earned run.

I got a post from someone claiming his 5-1 record made him more formidable and that my postings were half assed.

I also got a few private e mails from readers. One said "Shows you what you know. Martis is a rising star and you just don't know it because you are a typical Red Sox fan."

Ah yes... the typical Red Sox fan who writes tons of posts about the Marlins and Pirates.

Well today future Hall of Famer Shairon Martis took the mound in his first game since shutting down the Yankees.

He let up 6 runs in 5 innings, giving up 8 hits and striking out only 1.

His ERA is now 5.13.

Man, what was I thinking implying he was anything less than an ace???

This was the first time the Yankees faced Josh Johnson...

I have a hard time lumping in Josh Johnson with the other pitchers the Yankees hadn't seen before as I accuse them of having no advance scouts.

I mean Johnson is probably going to the All Star Game this year. He's hardly a scrub.

But isn't it odd that ANOTHER pitcher they haven't faced before simply shut the team down?

What kind of pitchers can they club?

Besides Johan Santana?

Craig Stammen... IMMORTAL!

It’s getting silly.

The other day I wrote that Craig Stammen, he of the 0-2 record and 5.86 in 5 career big league games, would come into Yankee Stadium and throw a perfect game because the Yankees bats turn to jelly when they face a new pitcher.

It wasn’t a perfect game… but 6 1/3 innings of shutout ball with no walks and his first career victory is nothing to sneeze at.

Holding A-Rod to zero hits in three at bats is pretty impressive although these days not such a rare occurance. (A Rod would finish 0-4.)

So once again… the existence of an advance scout for the Yankees can not be believed and a team that could rank as one of the worst in the history of baseball came into Yankee Stadium, took 2 of 3 and had three virtually unknown starters shut the Yankees down.

And despite my critics implication that Sharion Martis shouldn’t be included among the unknown and the lousy, I will disagree.

He was unknown in Yankee Stadium and his ERA would have been a decent credit score. A top line up in a band box ballpark should get more than 1 earned run in 6 innings off of him.

And before I am accused of not doing my homework… yes I know Craig Stammen, the pride of Versailles Ohio, put up good numbers in A and AA ball in 2008 and looked solid in Syracuse at the beginning of the year. But he was a struggling rookie in search of his first win.

A pitcher like that should get his first win pitching in a pitchers park like Petco against a lame hitting team like the Padres… not shut down the supposedly powerful Yankees.

Tonight the Yankees face Sean West… a rookie who has pitched 5 games in the bigs.

How could the Yankees POSSIBLY beat him?

It's Official! There are NO advanced scouts for the Yankees!

How can they have an advance scouting department?

It is impossible!

3 of their last 4 games they have been stymied by pitchers they have never seen.

The immortal Fernando Nieve… the guy who couldn’t keep a spot on the last place Houston Astros… making his first start since 2006… throws 6 2/3 innings of 4 hit ball in Yankee Stadium for the win.

The legendary Shairon Martis of the historically terrible Washington Nationals… who entered Yankee Stadium with a 5.04 ERA… throws 6 solid innings letting up 1 earned run.

And now future Hall of Famer John Lannan… who came into Yankee Stadium with a 1-5 road record in 2009 with a 6.30 ERA… and pitched into the 9th inning, finishing with 8 1/3 innings, 4 hits, 1 walks and 2 earned runs for the win.

If the rain lets up today, someone named Craig Stammen will pitch against the Yankees this afternoon.

He is currently 0-2 with a 5.86 ERA in 5 career games.

He'll probably throw a perfect game.

Seriously, nobody can look me in the eye and say “Yes there are advanced scouts doing their job for the Yankees.”

There might be guys with expense accounts going to the games, but I they aren’t paying attention.

How do I get that job?

I’d love to be paid to fly to games and then do nothing to help the Yankees!

Do the Yankees have a scouting department?

Someone named Fernando Nieve came into the wind tunnel home run machine known as new Yankee Stadium yesterday afternoon.

He had never faced the Yankees before... therefore he stymied them.

Doesn't that happen a lot to the Yankees?
Some pitcher you have never heard of shuts down the Yankee offense.

And in between talking about Broadway musicals, Suzyn (sic) Waldman and John Sterling will marvel about how terrific this young kid is... only to see the same pitcher get hammered in his next outing.

Don't the Yankees have scouts?
I mean the same organization that paid a total of $46 + million for Kei Igawa could throw around some scratch to have a guy or two sit in the stands and try to figure out a plan of attack against an unknown pitcher.

Just a thought.

If you are an opposing team facing the Yankees and you don't happen to have an ace (a la Roy Halladay) in your rotation... just go to your AAA affiliate and bring up a kid they've never heard of before.

You'll win 2 out of 3 games.