ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Yankees’ flight landed around 8:15 the night before, or just about the time the Tampa Bay Rays were beginning an epic game against the Boston Red Sox that stretched for 16 innings and nearly six hours. As the Yankees unwound, the Rays exhausted their bullpen, a development with significant repercussions Monday night.
Because of that overworked bullpen, the Rays were forced to bring in Alex Torres, who was called up Monday, to make his major league debut with the score tied in the top of the ninth. He issued three straight two-out walks, forcing in Curtis Granderson with the winning run. The Yankees erased an early three-run deficit to escape with a 5-4 victory in a game delayed for 18 minutes by a power outage.
After aiding in their eighth-inning comeback, Russell Martin worked a full count against Torres in the ninth before laying off a high changeup. “I just knew right away,” Martin said.
The victory rewarded a stellar effort by the Yankees’ bullpen, which worked three and two-thirds scoreless innings in relief of A. J. Burnett, and the headiness of Brett Gardner, whose forceful takeout slide in the eighth disrupted a potential double play, allowing Nick Swisher to score the tying run.
“You’ve got to do what you can to try to get that run across,” Gardner said, adding: “I’m definitely not trying to hurt anybody. That’s my job — to go in hard and make it difficult for him to turn it.”
The Yankees remained one and a half games behind Boston in the American League East while widening their advantage over third-place Tampa Bay, their closest competition in the wild-card race, to six and a half games. The teams’ last three games have been decided by one run, with the Yankees winning them all.
Even as Burnett sputtered early, allowing four runs in the first two innings, it could be argued that the Yankees held an advantage. The Rays needed eight relievers to work the final eight innings Sunday night, a day after using five relievers over the last three innings.
“When you get to their bullpen, they’re not going to have all their guys to use,” Martin said. “They can’t really match up like they normally would.”
Over 16 innings Sunday night and into Monday, the Rays managed three hits. They matched that total in four batters against Burnett, who allowed a walk, a single, a two-run double by Evan Longoria and another single, all within the first 11 pitches. Three runs wound up scoring, and another followed in the second. Not for lack of trying — he did, after all, put 14 runners on base — but Burnett did not give up another run, affording his teammates time to come back.
From the Rays’ factory of talented pitching prospects came Alex Cobb, a 23-year-old right-hander who arrived from Class AAA on Sunday night during the middle of the 1-0 loss to the Red Sox. That game ended at 1:54 a.m. Monday. Not 10 minutes later, Cobb was on the synthetic turf playing catch. Eighteen hours later, he was befuddling the Yankees.
His splitter and curve earned praise before the game from Yankees Manager Joe Girardi, and Cobb used those pitches to keep the Yankees off the base paths. He allowed one hit, on a first-inning bunt single by Granderson, until the fifth inning, when with two outs Mark Teixeira knocked in a run with an infield single. That accomplishment — only Teixeira’s second run batted in since July 2, a span of 58 plate appearances — might have been too much for the baseball gods to handle.
After the next hitter, Robinson Cano, took a 2-2 pitch for a ball with the tying runs on base, the lights flickered, knocking out a bank above first base. The theme song to “The Twilight Zone” blared over the loudspeakers as confused players and coaches gazed above.
A Rays spokesman said that a bolt of lightning had hit a branch line that goes into a substation feeding Tropicana Field. All service on that line experienced an interruption, affecting about 400 customers — not to mention the 22,471 paying customers awaiting a resolution to the Cobb-Cano clash. The crew chief Ed Rapuano asked Girardi if he wanted to continue playing, but he demurred.
“That was a big time in the game, and I want the lights all on in that situation,” Girardi said.
When power was restored, Cano grounded out on the first pitch, a microcosm of the Yankees’ late-inning struggles. Teixeira piled on in the seventh, striking out with two on, before the pivotal eighth. With two on and one out, Martin rapped a single off Kyle Farnsworth, loading the bases for Gardner, whose sharp grounder followed the same trail, scoring Cano.
A third straight ground ball, this one by Eduardo Nunez, went right to shortstop Elliot Johnson. He fired to second for the out, but Gardner came in hard, knocking Sean Rodriguez off balance and causing his throw to bounce wide, pulling Casey Kotchman off first. As Gardner jogged across the diamond, a throng of Yankee fans stood and cheered, welcoming him back.
“That’s what we teach,” Girardi said.
INSIDE PITCH
The Yankees lost some flexibility when Ramiro Pena was placed on the 15-day disabled list after undergoing an emergency appendectomy. His timetable for a return is unclear. To replace Pena, the Yankees promoted the 23-year-old third baseman Brandon Laird, who will back up Eduardo Nunez. Laird’s time might be short if Eric Chavez (fractured left foot) progresses smoothly in a minor league assignment, which is scheduled to begin Tuesday with Class A Tampa.
Via the New York Times
News and reviews of the Sporting World
Tuesday, 19 July 2011
Friday, 15 July 2011
Make A Stand, Change Football
Over the years football, the sport I love, has become a growing money pit, one that gets deeper by the transfer. Fans, once cherished, have become costumers. Football is no longer a game for the people, it is a game for the oil barrens and business tycoons of this world. How much more of this will fans take? How far can a billionaire go before someone stands up and tells them what they are doing is wrong? For me the FA cup is one of the most magical competitions in the world. The fact every team has chance to win the most famous cup in Europe just makes it special, but who won it last year? Manchester City. A club that I used to respect, but now? They are, in my opinion, an example of the shambles the modern game has become. Long story short, they bought the FA cup. What chance do teams like Wimbledon or Millwall have of a cup run now? Virtually none. And money took that way from us. How long can this charade continue before someone makes a stand? How long is it before UEFA take action against the financial elite who are slowly killing our game? What is the point of trying when you know for every million you spend someone else will spend ten million? Look at the mid-table clubs, they have no chance of winning silverware, because clubs like City spending crazy money on youngsters has caused unparalleled inflation in football. Three or so years ago eight million pounds was a perfectly acceptable fee to pay for a quality midfielder, now Chelsea are happy to offer tens of millions of pounds for Luka Modric. In honesty, I feel sorry for the fans of Manchester United, Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea. Because all it takes is for their rich owner to get bored and they could be facing administration, bankruptcy and liquidation. Something needs to be done. How many seasons can a club function without their fans? Zero. Let’s take action, write/email your FA and if you support one of the above mentioned clubs, threaten to go on strike as a supporter, and if they fail the meet the demands of supporters do not buy their products, do not go to games and see how long they last before they have to play fair financially. Stand up, be heard, change football!
I have set up an online Facebook petition which you can join using this link http://www.facebook.com/groups/122821101142462
BE HEARD
I have set up an online Facebook petition which you can join using this link http://www.facebook.com/groups/122821101142462
BE HEARD
Monday, 20 June 2011
Why England Succeed To Fail
Last night the England U21s crashed out of what appeared to be South Africa 2010 #2.
In the Euro U21s England showed we had failed to learn from England’s disastrous World Cup campaign last summer.
Many of the same problems we had in South Africa showed in our performances in Denmark. Previously people have blamed poor passing, poor close control, poor management and the list goes on. But what can really be to blame for almost 45 years without a competition win?
Most people reading this are probably thinking, “Poor coaching in grass roots football!” or “Bad passing!”. I think otherwise.
Let us look back at the 2006 World Cup for a second. Looking at our squad I think we had by far the best in the world. Frank Lampard was at his peak, Michael Owen was scoring goals and Joe Cole was actually fit, so why didn’t we win? We have had a team of individuals ever since we last won the World Cup.
In the 2006 F.A Cup final Steven Gerrard was superb, at the time it was probably one of the best performances by an individual ever. Soon after he travelled to join the England squad, and somehow he had hardly any impact on the World Cup whatsoever. That is just one example of England’s individuals.
The UEFA Champions League is often referred to as “the most prestigious club competition in the world”. I would even argue the quality of football in the Champions League surpasses that of the World Cup.
So why do the likes of Frank Lampard, John Terry and Peter Crouch succeed at the highest level and fail in the World Cup?
Most of England’s players are used to being their club’s star player, but unfortunately having a team of stars does not mean having a star team. In fact it means quite the opposite. While Spain have a team ethic that in most peoples’ opinion works, the Spanish players seem to have a belief that they are only as good as the player next to them. This results in passing football and everybody getting a chance to prove what they can do.
But England’s players tend to go it alone and the only way to win against the likes of Spain is team play. Arsenal proved this in their home leg vs. Barcelona in the Champions League last year.
So if England want to succeed they will have to rely on the Jack Wilshere’s of this world, in other words players who appreciate you only get from the team what you give to it.
Written by Thomas Munson
In the Euro U21s England showed we had failed to learn from England’s disastrous World Cup campaign last summer.
Many of the same problems we had in South Africa showed in our performances in Denmark. Previously people have blamed poor passing, poor close control, poor management and the list goes on. But what can really be to blame for almost 45 years without a competition win?
Most people reading this are probably thinking, “Poor coaching in grass roots football!” or “Bad passing!”. I think otherwise.
Let us look back at the 2006 World Cup for a second. Looking at our squad I think we had by far the best in the world. Frank Lampard was at his peak, Michael Owen was scoring goals and Joe Cole was actually fit, so why didn’t we win? We have had a team of individuals ever since we last won the World Cup.
In the 2006 F.A Cup final Steven Gerrard was superb, at the time it was probably one of the best performances by an individual ever. Soon after he travelled to join the England squad, and somehow he had hardly any impact on the World Cup whatsoever. That is just one example of England’s individuals.
The UEFA Champions League is often referred to as “the most prestigious club competition in the world”. I would even argue the quality of football in the Champions League surpasses that of the World Cup.
So why do the likes of Frank Lampard, John Terry and Peter Crouch succeed at the highest level and fail in the World Cup?
Most of England’s players are used to being their club’s star player, but unfortunately having a team of stars does not mean having a star team. In fact it means quite the opposite. While Spain have a team ethic that in most peoples’ opinion works, the Spanish players seem to have a belief that they are only as good as the player next to them. This results in passing football and everybody getting a chance to prove what they can do.
But England’s players tend to go it alone and the only way to win against the likes of Spain is team play. Arsenal proved this in their home leg vs. Barcelona in the Champions League last year.
So if England want to succeed they will have to rely on the Jack Wilshere’s of this world, in other words players who appreciate you only get from the team what you give to it.
Written by Thomas Munson
Thursday, 9 June 2011
Abramovich Managerial Headache
As Roman Abramovich’s search for a new manager continues, it might be worth taking a look at who the prime candidates are to take over the helm at the good ship Chelsea.
First and foremost is the current Turkey boss, Guus Hiddink. The fans love him, he has an established friendship with the owner, and he has already proven himself at the club.
In Hiddink’s brief caretaker role in 2009 he led them to an F.A Cup win and third place in the Premier League. In addition, his team were unlucky to miss out on an appearance in the Champions League final.
Clearly, in Hiddink’s six-month spell at Chelsea he showed that his knack for managerial success was as strong with the Blues as it has been pretty much everywhere else in his career.
Hiddink is so far and away the favourite that it would be pointless even considering anyone else for the position if it was not for the salient point that he is still under contract with Turkish F.A, who are unwilling to let him go.
However, noises made in recent weeks suggest that the Turkish F.A might be open to negotiations with the Stamford Bridge outfit, and could reluctantly part company with Hiddink should they receive fair compensation.
Should Chelsea miss out on nabbing their man, they could turn their gaze towards Spain. Despite winning the Copa Del Rey, Jose Mourinho has a fairly frosty relationship with the powers-that-be at Real Madrid.
There have been rumours, though nothing concrete, that the ‘Special One’ has a release clause in his contract in the region of €25m, whereby if another club paid the compensation he would be free to leave Real Madrid. This is just speculation, but if there is any club that could afford such an outlay it is Chelsea.
In Chelsea’s current situation, Abramovich might look to the man who brought the Blues their first title in 50 years, a man who would in all probability relish the chance to finish what he started by winning Champions League at the club.
Nonetheless, Mourinho is still an outside shot. His position at Real Madrid, though rocky over the course of the season, has been strengthened by the departure of director Jorge Valdano, and he will certainly have foremost in his mind the wrestling of the La Liga title away from the imperious Barcelona.
It would not be entirely surprising if he rejoined Chelsea, but it seems unlikely at this particular point in time.
Finally, the bargain basement option. Having recently quit as manager of Fulham, Mark Hughes is freely available and has experience of higher echelon management at Manchester City.
Should Chelsea fail in their attempts to drag Hiddink and/or Mourinho away from their current contracts, he may represent their only choice. There is absolutely no way that Abramovich will even consider letting his team start the season managerless, therefore it is possible, though incredibly unlikely, that he may opt for Mark Hughes as a sort of ‘interim’ coach while waiting for Hiddink/Mourinho to become available.
VERDICT: Hiddink. Absolutely nailed on. Turkey receive generous compensation, Chelsea get their man. Everybody wins.
Written by Sebastian Clare
First and foremost is the current Turkey boss, Guus Hiddink. The fans love him, he has an established friendship with the owner, and he has already proven himself at the club.
In Hiddink’s brief caretaker role in 2009 he led them to an F.A Cup win and third place in the Premier League. In addition, his team were unlucky to miss out on an appearance in the Champions League final.
Clearly, in Hiddink’s six-month spell at Chelsea he showed that his knack for managerial success was as strong with the Blues as it has been pretty much everywhere else in his career.
Hiddink is so far and away the favourite that it would be pointless even considering anyone else for the position if it was not for the salient point that he is still under contract with Turkish F.A, who are unwilling to let him go.
However, noises made in recent weeks suggest that the Turkish F.A might be open to negotiations with the Stamford Bridge outfit, and could reluctantly part company with Hiddink should they receive fair compensation.
Should Chelsea miss out on nabbing their man, they could turn their gaze towards Spain. Despite winning the Copa Del Rey, Jose Mourinho has a fairly frosty relationship with the powers-that-be at Real Madrid.
There have been rumours, though nothing concrete, that the ‘Special One’ has a release clause in his contract in the region of €25m, whereby if another club paid the compensation he would be free to leave Real Madrid. This is just speculation, but if there is any club that could afford such an outlay it is Chelsea.
In Chelsea’s current situation, Abramovich might look to the man who brought the Blues their first title in 50 years, a man who would in all probability relish the chance to finish what he started by winning Champions League at the club.
Nonetheless, Mourinho is still an outside shot. His position at Real Madrid, though rocky over the course of the season, has been strengthened by the departure of director Jorge Valdano, and he will certainly have foremost in his mind the wrestling of the La Liga title away from the imperious Barcelona.
It would not be entirely surprising if he rejoined Chelsea, but it seems unlikely at this particular point in time.
Finally, the bargain basement option. Having recently quit as manager of Fulham, Mark Hughes is freely available and has experience of higher echelon management at Manchester City.
Should Chelsea fail in their attempts to drag Hiddink and/or Mourinho away from their current contracts, he may represent their only choice. There is absolutely no way that Abramovich will even consider letting his team start the season managerless, therefore it is possible, though incredibly unlikely, that he may opt for Mark Hughes as a sort of ‘interim’ coach while waiting for Hiddink/Mourinho to become available.
VERDICT: Hiddink. Absolutely nailed on. Turkey receive generous compensation, Chelsea get their man. Everybody wins.
Written by Sebastian Clare
Monday, 23 May 2011
QPR Chase Relegation Stars
Neil Warnock’s Championship winning team, QPR, are looking to secure their Premier League safety next season by acquiring some star players from West Ham, Birmingham City and Blackpool.
QPR is surprisingly one of the richest clubs in English football and have £50m to spend this summer.
P.F.A player of the year, Scott Parker, and Charlie Adam, Mathew Upson and Ben Foster are believed to be on Warnock’s shortlist.
Even though QPR looked like a Premier League team in the Championship, such was their dominance, it is becoming harder and harder to stay in England’s top league, in fact West Ham would have stayed up last season with the amount of points they had this season despite finishing bottom.
It seems likely that QPR will take advantage of West Ham’s relegation and there financial predicament by chasing the Hammer’s key players.
West Ham might need to offload their star players as a result of relegation, in the 2012/2013 season the Hammers may be moving to the Olympic Stadium and spend money reconstructing parts of it.
The East London club could ask for up to £15m for the midfield general Scott Parker; while Scott Parker has not expressed a desire (yet) to leave West Ham it seems more than likely the Hammers will have to sell him in order to balance the books.
Championship player of the year, Adel Taarabt, will probably maintain his place in midfield. I am sure the Moroccan will be wanting Warnock to sign players of higher calibre for Taarabt to create chances for.
Birmingham’s star man, Zigic, who played a key role in Birmingham’s Carling Cup final success may also be moving to QPR in search of more Premier League football.
However I am sure QPR’s players and fans will enjoy the taste of a long awaited Premier League season.
Written by Thomas Munson
QPR is surprisingly one of the richest clubs in English football and have £50m to spend this summer.
P.F.A player of the year, Scott Parker, and Charlie Adam, Mathew Upson and Ben Foster are believed to be on Warnock’s shortlist.
Even though QPR looked like a Premier League team in the Championship, such was their dominance, it is becoming harder and harder to stay in England’s top league, in fact West Ham would have stayed up last season with the amount of points they had this season despite finishing bottom.
It seems likely that QPR will take advantage of West Ham’s relegation and there financial predicament by chasing the Hammer’s key players.
West Ham might need to offload their star players as a result of relegation, in the 2012/2013 season the Hammers may be moving to the Olympic Stadium and spend money reconstructing parts of it.
The East London club could ask for up to £15m for the midfield general Scott Parker; while Scott Parker has not expressed a desire (yet) to leave West Ham it seems more than likely the Hammers will have to sell him in order to balance the books.
Championship player of the year, Adel Taarabt, will probably maintain his place in midfield. I am sure the Moroccan will be wanting Warnock to sign players of higher calibre for Taarabt to create chances for.
Birmingham’s star man, Zigic, who played a key role in Birmingham’s Carling Cup final success may also be moving to QPR in search of more Premier League football.
However I am sure QPR’s players and fans will enjoy the taste of a long awaited Premier League season.
Written by Thomas Munson
Wednesday, 11 May 2011
Middlesbrough Set To Cut £7m From Wage Budget
Middlesbrough have tried everything to get back into the Premier League since being relegated in 2009, they have tried spending money, doing nothing and appointing new managers, however the Yorkshire club still occupy England’s second division.
With attendances getting lower by the year and parachute payments nearing their end Middlesbrough have decided to cut their wage bill. At the moment the club are spending approximately £17m per year on wages which is by far the highest in the Championship.
The Middlesbrough owner, Steve Gibson, has admitted he is disappointed with this season, especially when he invested a great deal of money into the club. In the summer of 2010 Middlesbrough signed Kris Boyd, Nick Bailey, Stephen McManus, Kevin Thomson, Tarmo Kink, Andrew Halliday, Scott McDonald and Maximillian Haas. The total of these transfers were around £6m, a big investment for a Championship club. In today’s market that is actually pretty cheap, however the signings have increased Middlesbrough’s annual wage bill by £4.5m.
One of the players who may have to leave as a result of Middlesbrough’s financial difficulties is the Scottish international, Kris Boyd. The ex-Rangers star moved on loan to Nottingham Forest in March and may move their permanently.
Middlesbrough’s financial state is unsustainable for a Championship club, their revenue has gone down dramatically since relegation but spending would appear to have increased.
BORO have this morning confirmed that Willo Flood and Maxi Haas will leave the club this summer, while Andrew Davies is expected to return to Stoke City after his loan spell at the Riverside. With the wage cuts taking place it has become clear that if Middlesbrough want another shot at Premier League football they will have to rely on up and coming youngsters rather than big money names.
Written by Thomas Munson
With attendances getting lower by the year and parachute payments nearing their end Middlesbrough have decided to cut their wage bill. At the moment the club are spending approximately £17m per year on wages which is by far the highest in the Championship.
The Middlesbrough owner, Steve Gibson, has admitted he is disappointed with this season, especially when he invested a great deal of money into the club. In the summer of 2010 Middlesbrough signed Kris Boyd, Nick Bailey, Stephen McManus, Kevin Thomson, Tarmo Kink, Andrew Halliday, Scott McDonald and Maximillian Haas. The total of these transfers were around £6m, a big investment for a Championship club. In today’s market that is actually pretty cheap, however the signings have increased Middlesbrough’s annual wage bill by £4.5m.
One of the players who may have to leave as a result of Middlesbrough’s financial difficulties is the Scottish international, Kris Boyd. The ex-Rangers star moved on loan to Nottingham Forest in March and may move their permanently.
Middlesbrough’s financial state is unsustainable for a Championship club, their revenue has gone down dramatically since relegation but spending would appear to have increased.
BORO have this morning confirmed that Willo Flood and Maxi Haas will leave the club this summer, while Andrew Davies is expected to return to Stoke City after his loan spell at the Riverside. With the wage cuts taking place it has become clear that if Middlesbrough want another shot at Premier League football they will have to rely on up and coming youngsters rather than big money names.
Written by Thomas Munson
Tuesday, 10 May 2011
Nottingham Forest Face Swansea In Play-Offs
On Thursday night, the first round of Championship play-offs get under way. Nottingham Forest will host Swansea.
Despite Forest’s poor performance against Blackpool in the play-offs last year the midlands team still look confident.
Forest manager, Billy Davies, has claimed that their defeat to Blackpool last year is not in their minds and that Forest are a different animal this year. “We all know what the play-offs are like- they are a lottery.” said Davies. “It is luck, it’s refereeing decisions and if you get the breaks you can get there. We won’t think about last year and take nothing away from Blackpool- they deserve an awful lot of credit for what they did and what they have done.”
When the press asked Brendan Rodgers, the Swansea manager, whether he will take a different approach to the play-offs he replied, “No, we will just continue with no pressure. Monday we will be back preparing.” he added “I just need to keep taking the pressure off the players because of how we play, trying to make 600, 700, 800 passes a game, you have to be confident and you have to want the ball. Thankfully I have players who do that. We play how we train and we’ll continue to train how we have been and focus on these two play-off games”
Swansea’s cool attitude may play in their favour as Nottingham Forest are bound to feel under pressure after their 6-4 play-off defeat last season.
Written by Thomas Munson
Despite Forest’s poor performance against Blackpool in the play-offs last year the midlands team still look confident.
Forest manager, Billy Davies, has claimed that their defeat to Blackpool last year is not in their minds and that Forest are a different animal this year. “We all know what the play-offs are like- they are a lottery.” said Davies. “It is luck, it’s refereeing decisions and if you get the breaks you can get there. We won’t think about last year and take nothing away from Blackpool- they deserve an awful lot of credit for what they did and what they have done.”
When the press asked Brendan Rodgers, the Swansea manager, whether he will take a different approach to the play-offs he replied, “No, we will just continue with no pressure. Monday we will be back preparing.” he added “I just need to keep taking the pressure off the players because of how we play, trying to make 600, 700, 800 passes a game, you have to be confident and you have to want the ball. Thankfully I have players who do that. We play how we train and we’ll continue to train how we have been and focus on these two play-off games”
Swansea’s cool attitude may play in their favour as Nottingham Forest are bound to feel under pressure after their 6-4 play-off defeat last season.
Written by Thomas Munson
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