Results tagged ‘ Mark Buehlre ’

Move Over Lance, There’s A New Cyclist In Town

The Yankees got a well needed win Sunday afternoon, not only to protect themselves getting swept in a 4 game set against the White Sox, but to protect their real estate atop the AL East, which they hold today by half a game. And with a little help from latest Tour De France participant, Melky Cabrera lifted the Yankees 8-5 


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But before we commemorate the offense, I figured I’d begin the blog discussing the starting pitching. Here’s what I have to say: Will the real Mark Buehrle please stand up? I’m not exactly sure what happened Sunday afternoon, but it was certainly not the Mark Buehrle that’s dominated for the past two weeks. The man got his own freaking HOLIDAY in Illinois, “Mark Buehrle Day!” His game: 4 1/3 IP, 12 H, 7 R. His command was off, and the Yankees after not hitting for a few days really seemed to take advantage of it 

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But the game was far from a blowout, since CC had almost as much trouble as Buehrle. His game: 7 IP, 10 H, 5 R. The main difference was that CC was able to come back from a few shaky at bats and give the Yankees length, unlike the White Sox, who’s bullpen entered in the 5th. CC also didn’t seem to have very good command of his fastball

Besides Melky, the Yankees offense wasn’t exactly electric, but they were able to get the job done and get the run support CC needed. Jerry Hairston Jr. especially has really been a star over his past couple of starts, both defensively and offensively. In 6 AB he has 3 hits and 2 RBIs

And last but not least, THE MELK MAN DELIVERS
A little walk through of the at bats leading up to the first cycle for the Yankees in 14 years would be appropriate, no?

1st at bat: with Cano on first and Swisher on second, Melky hits the first pitch he sees from Buehrle, an 80 MPH hanging changeup for a 3 run homer, giving the Yankees an early 3-0 lead

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2nd at bat: Leading off the inning, Melky takes a fastball on the outside corner for a strike, then he laced a curveball for a double

3rd at bat: With A-Rod on second and Swisher on first, Melky has his toughest at bat and his last against Buehrle. He quickly falls 0-2 swinging on two fastballs, one high and one middle of the plate. He fouls off the next two fastballs, and on the 5th pitch Buehrle tries a changeup which ended up being outside, but no matter. Melky gets a single 

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4th at bat: Melky is sad to see Buehrle go. Melky sees all fastballs against Williams, the count at 1-2 before he grounds out. Still a triple away from the cycle
5th at bat: Melky sees all fastballs except a changeup for a ball in the second pitch of the AB. Melky jumps ahead 2-0, but fouls off pitch after pitch. Finally, 3-2 count, 7th pitch of the at bat, (are you on the edge of your seat?) Melky goes after a low 94 MPH fastball and hits a line drive to right field. Dye somewhat misplays it, and Melky charges into third

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Well there you have it, Melky for the cycle and the Yankees for the win. If only every day could be like that…

As for tomorrow, we face the most popular man in baseball…in a blue jay uniform. Can’t wait!

Signing off for now
-Inside the Thought Bubble

Captivating Curves

Not much to talk about in a positive light in the game against the Rays this evening. Sloppy defense, a great outing by Kazmir, earning his first win since may 9th and pitching a season high 7+ innings (why he had to pick tonight to have arguably his best outing of the year just stiffles me) and lack of offense left the Yankees on the unfamiliar losing end. 6-2 was the final.

 

On a much more eventful note was White Sox pitcher Mark Buehlre making his first start since his perfect game against the Rays. Remarkably, he remained perfect through 5 and I was honestly beginning to believe that I was going to witness (via espn gamecast) the unthinkable: two perfect games in a row. Unfortunately it never got to that: he gave up a walk, followed by the single two outs into the 6th. But he still has something to cheer about, setting the all time major league record by retiring 45 straight batters. Many congratulations to Buehlre, you’re still a god in my eyes even without the two perfect games. Also, I bet a lot more people can now finally spell your name, so thats pretty nice, huh?

 

 

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In the spirit of dominant pitching, I figured I’d blog tonight about an article that I came across a few weeks ago analyzing the curveball.

 

It is identified that when the batters initially see the pitch, it looks like its going straight, but then as it gets closer it looks like it changes direction, the deception making it hard to hit. Psychologist Andrew Shapiro offers insight into why that is. According to him and an animation he created, when you look at a ball head on with spin on it thats moving straight down, it appears to do just that. But to those viewing the ball from the corner of the eye, the ball appears to be moving downards at an angle. The conclusion can be made that when we use our peripheral vision the overall direction as well as motion of the spin are taken into account, causing the ball to appear to be spinning downwards towards one side. While the ball starts out in the center of the batters eye when first released from the pitchers hand, it moves into our peripheral system as it approaches the batter, causing the allusion of the ball moving to one side.

 

I know thats a handful to grasp, but this animation will clear things up and be more comprehensible than my explanation, I promise.

 

Click Here for the Animation 

Click Here for the Full Article

 

Signing off for now

-Inside the Thought Bubble

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