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Thursday, November 05, 2009


27 


The difference:

1. Yankees 和 Phillies 最大的差距在 bullpen。雖然 Yankees 的 middle relievers 在 ALDS 和 ALCS 表現沒有球季中來的好,特別是 setup Phil Hughes 引起不少人的質疑,但是整體來說還是較 Phillies 為優。特別是在 closer 的部份,Lidge 甚至在第五場九局上半三分領先的情況下被跳過。當然我們可以說 Manuel 因為他在前一天投了 30 球所以不讓他連續出賽,可是 Lidge 事實上在第五戰九局情況緊張的時候起來熱身了。更何況 Lidge 在那之前整個 World Series 只在第四戰投了一局而已,與其說體力問題不如說第四戰丟的那三分讓 Manuel 不敢用他。當 Madson 也在領先三分的情況下投出 .600 的 OBP,若非 Jeter 的雙殺打恐怕不容易下莊的情況下,Manuel 幾乎無將可用。第六戰賽前我認為 Yankees 有投手優勢的原因就在於現在的 Pedro Martinez 再怎麼打不到也撐不久,Yankees 只要前半段沒有落後的太離譜就有機會取勝。

2. Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino 的 OBP 被壓低,使得 Chase Utley 的全壘打打點不多。Ryan Howard 的火力被左投給壓制住,一方面感謝 C.C. Sabathia 和 Andy Pettitte 這兩個左投先發了四場,Damaso Marte 也有很大的貢獻。Yankees 這邊的打線比較深,不過 A-Rod 在 WS 裡面被很謹慎的對付,寧願投觸身球也要努力執行內角 fastball, 外角 breaking ball 這樣的策略來對付他。他的表現比起前兩輪來遜色不少,不過他仍然有不少上壘機會,讓他後面的打者發揮。真正打得糟糕的是 Teixeira,這個沒有什麼藉口好說,他一整個季後賽打得都不太好,幸好最後贏球,而且他還有幾支關鍵的全壘打和安打。雖然 Teixeira 是去年冬天最重要的 FA 之一,但是他畢竟薪水拿的沒有 A-Rod 那麼多,也不像 A-Rod 那麼容易招惹小報攻擊,算是全身而退。Swisher 是今年 regular season 表現的太好了,遠超過他的身價,使得他在季後賽裡的期望也高了些。一般情況下,我們是不會去挑剔最後三棒打得好還是不好的。

What They Did Right

1. Girardi 的 3-man rotation 和 Manuel 的 4-man rotation 都是正確的抉擇。第四戰 C.C. Sabathia 和 Joe Blanton 的 game score 都是 51,Yankees 如果派出 Gaudin 來大概不會有這種成績,Lee 在第五戰的 game score 也不過是 53,讓他在三日休息下先發未必會比 Blanton 好到哪裡去。這是事後的看法。從事前觀點來看,Yankees 的選擇不需要質疑,因為三日休息的 Sabathia 幾乎肯定比 Gaudin 要好。在 Phillies 這邊,季後賽才來試驗 Lee 到底能不能在只休息三天的情況下先發可能太晚,他們的先發投手人數夠,也沒有必要做這樣的實驗。

2. Girardi 正確的認知 Marte 和 Coke 的價值以及使用順序,這一點必須給他應得的讚賞。在比賽之前,許多 statheads 是把 Coke 排在 Marte 之前的。另外在 WS 裡面 Girardi 無法信任他的 bullpen,不過反應在調度上反而讓他換投換的沒有 ALCS 那樣頻繁,而且更加仰仗 Mariano Rivera。對自己 bullpen 的不信任反而讓他的調度更能極大化 bullpen 的價值,這是非常有意思的結果。Rivera 也能回應 Girardi 的信任,充分展現出他的名人堂實力。

What They Did Wrong

1. 在 World Series 裡面真正的調度錯誤不多,有很多錯誤是在球季中就一路延續下來的。manager 跟任何平常人一樣,都會相信 "If it ain't broken, don't fix it." 打了 162 場的勝利方程式,又過關斬將過了 LDS 和 LCS 之後,沒有人會輕易改變,或者想改變也沒有適當的人選。以 Phillies 為例,他們的 leadoff Jimmy Rollins 完全不是個合格的開路先鋒,早就應該把他的棒次往後丟了。他的生涯 OBP 只有 .329,今年更低到 .296,去年生涯最高也只有 .349。Yankees 先發九棒今年的 OBP 最低的是 Melky Cabrera 的 .336,其餘所有人的 OBP 都比 Rollins 的去年生涯高點還要高。Rollins 的 OBP 在 WS 也沒有好轉,這使得 Chase Utley 的全壘打沒有打回夠多的打點回來,有許多都是在壘上無人時打出。如果 Phillies 讓 Victorino 打第一棒,然後 Utley, Howard, Werth, Ibanez 接 2-5 棒,大概會比目前這種情況好一些。

2. Girardi 在季後賽必須使用 3-man rotation 的原因是他雖然在建構 bullpen 方面功力甚強,Torre 都還比不上他,但是他把自己的 rotation 徹底搞砸了。球季中他給了 Mitre 太多機會,同時太堅持讓 Hughes 和 Ace 待在 bullpen 而沒有試著把他們拉上來先發,Chamberlain 的局數限制實驗又失敗,最後搞到季後賽只有三個先發投手可以用。幸好 Sabathia 非常耐操,同時 Yankees 的戰績使得他們在前兩輪只需要三個投手就可以過關。

Umpires

不完美,但是錯誤比起 LDS 和 LCS 來要少的多。幾次出錯應該都不至於影響比賽結果。

Conclusion

今年的 World Series 是近幾年來比較好看的 WS,而且時間上也掌握的很好。六場比賽耗用時間分別是 3:27, 3:25, 3:25, 3:25, 3:26, 3:52。比起去年的 WS 是長了些,但是總比往年幾次 Yankees vs. Red Sox 的 ALCS 比賽在時間掌握上要好的多。FOX 的季後賽收視率也比起往年要好,今年甚至可以跟 NFL 的比賽來拼,是近年來少見的情況。

在這個 series 裡面,我們看到了 Cliff Lee 的 WS 第一戰傑作,他那場的 game score 有 83,可以在史上留名了。Chase Utley 讓我們想到 Bobby Richardson 以及他的 1960 WS MVP (那年 Yankees 敗戰可是拿到 MVP)。在 Yankees 這邊我們看到 Yankees 花大錢簽下來的 A.J. Burnett,以及其他球隊不敢花大錢簽他的原因。Burnett 兩次先發的 game score 分別是 72 (Yankees 先發投手中最高) 以及 22 (整個 WS 裡面最低的先發表現)。我們看到了 Matsui 可能是最後一次穿著 pinstripes 打球的精彩表現,簡直就是 2009 的 Reggie Jackson,也看到了永遠不變的 Mo。

冬天正式開始,下次再有棒球可看就是春天的事情了。

Comments:
恭喜洋基
 
Very Good series! not a Yankee fan or Phillies fan but enjoy these games very much!
 
嗨, 請問你對這篇文章感想如何:
http://tinyurl.com/yauz45g
 
I'd rather not to criticize another blogger's opinion in my place. Facts, I can discuss and give my take here, not opinions. I'll say one thing though. Paul O'Neill was my favorite active Yankee when he was still playing, but the length of tenures aside, I don't see him or Moose was more of a Yankee than C.C., A.J. or Teixeira is.

I enjoyed this World Series and championship as much as the previous ones, probably more so than ever. I was a big baseball fan but not a real Yankee fan before I went to New York to pursue my Ph.D., that was 1998. If I went to another university, I might end up rooting for another team. Since I got to New York, I took my side with the Yankees for their rich history and I'd say I'm blessed for making that choice.

It had been a while that going to the World Series was like the Yankees' birthright and fans took that for granted too. After the heartbreaking loss in 2003 WS and 2004 ALCS, we've known better.

Just as people cherish the 1996 WS championship more than the 1998-2000 ones, this one has its special place in my heart. It's a season that they started up great on paper but fell short of expectation quickly out of the gate, then the hell broke loose after A-Rod returned for good. Wang was shelved but ironically the rotation was settled since his season got cut short. I thought this team was not going to win anything in May, but I am so happy to admit that I was totally wrong.

There were dramas and there was so much fun. Those players were like a band of brothers, and that's what you usually see from a winning team (not always, please see 1977 and 78 Yankees). There were so many memories you can relive during the winter. Again, you only want to do that when the team had won it all otherwise you will eventually bump into a loss or two you do not want to see again in your life. In 2004, those were four games a Yankee fan didn't want to play ever on a TV or a computer monitor.

We are lucky to root for this team, indeed. Nine years can get an elementary school kid to college and we think that's long, but some fans probably had gone over 2 or even 3 afterlives and their team still didn't win.

I don't think a Yankee fan should brag about the team's success to fans of other teams though. Sports teams in the Gotham city do get their advantage over others from the huge resources they have. However, that doesn't mean we shouldn't be happy or excited. A championship is a championship. If winning is not a certainty, then you have something to celebrate.
 
In sports, there are always teams that have overwhelmingly resource. For example, Chelsea and Real Madrid. However rich doesn't mean winning championships is easy.

In other sports(NFL, Premier league, tennis...etc), it's not uncommon for someone or some team to win .800. In MLB, despite how rich Yankees is, they only win .636.

Also, there is always an issue of fairness. Let's say if Yankees is forbidden from bidding for FAs after it reached 100 mil payroll. How is fair for players? They are likely no longer receive highest salary possible.

Finally, being in city of large population, there are more entertainment alternatives. Broadways, concerts, NFL, NHL, NBA, restaurants, clubs ...etc. The list goes on and on. People are exposed to those alternatives and baseball is not the only option.

On a more sentimental perspective, I think CC, A.J. or Teixeira are not are people you would love to hate. CC is a fighter, a clubhouse leader and takes care of his teammate. He might be careless to base runners, but he is willing to play with 3 day rest anytime you ask him. A.J. is a great teammate as well. As of Mark Teixeira, although he is really corporate like and always say the right thing, he didn't create any drama in the clubhouse either. They are not selfish players nor have big egos.
 
i was lucky in NY from 1998-2000 and saw their great success at that time. Esp. when Andy, Mo, Posada and even Giradi were Yankees' players 10yr ago and they can work in the same team this year and finally earned another ring for themselves, i was really happy for this team.

On the other hand, i was sorry for Phillies bcoz they deserve their credit and once a while i did believe they could have their chance to win the title back-to-back.

Just let's enjoy the games.
 
Hi, do you think the yankees spend their money a little bit too well this off-season?
 
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