Walkoff Walk

• NOW that Bobby Valentine has left Japanese baseball behind, is it time for Dubya to pursue a managerial job in the NPB?
  
  
• DON'T you love it when small-market teams help each other out? Akinori Iwamura heads to the Pirates, possibly for some live arms in exchange.
  
  
• DID Brett Myers really confront Cole Hamels? I don't believe either pitcher or the Phillies press agent when they deny the story, nor does it matter either way.
  
  
• WHICH dated telecommunications reference did Drew use to disparage the Blue Jays' Cito Gaston extension? Ghostrunner on First: where metaphors happen.

I just realized that last night was my final liveglog of the 2009 season. I'll be back at the South Bronx Applebee's tomorrow for the big game so our pal Tuffy will bring in the noise, bring in the photoshops. As for Game Seven...well...we'll cross that bridge when it gets named after Derek Jeter.

Rest up tonight; the 2009 baseball season and Walkoff Walk's coverage of the creature as we know it may end after tomorrow. Same WoW channel.

(photo source)

Welcome to this week's edition of Kicking and Screaming, a Walkoff Walk introduction to Pitch F/x. Today we learn the importance of a favorable umpire.

Much is being made of the Yankees decision to pitch A.J. Burnett on three days rest. The somewhat-erratic starter was electric in Game 2 but putrid in Game 5. While starting Chad Gaudin might sound like a good idea (when you ignore his struggles to retire left-handed batters), many are suggesting that Burnett was either awful or squeezed by home plate umpire Dana DeMuth. Which was it?

Before I get to the nitty gritty, understand I one thing: I started writing this post with hopes of absolving Burnett. I'm hardly an apologist for the Girardenius, I thought starting Burnett was the right move. The Yankees, currently in the driver's seat to becoming World Series champions, don't have a fourth or a fifth starter. Burnett pitched well in lower-leveraged situations on similar rest. There was no noticeable difference in his velocity (average fastball was 94.17 on Sunday night, 93.14 in Game 2.) What happened? Let's look at his stuff first.

So we see A.J.'s movement in both games on one graph. Nothing really stands out. His curveball (in the bottom right) moved just as much as did his fastball (upper left. Four seamer above and two-seamer below). A few flatter curves last night but neither did any damage. One thing we can certainly see is far, far more curveballs during his 7 successful innings in game 2. How come? Find out after the jump!

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(via noted Orioles fan Chris Mottram)

A year after turning the world on its ear and earning the World Series MVP award, Cole Hamels is struggling to get through 2009. In fact, he's so tired of his own poor pitching performances this season that he told reporters, "I can't wait for it to end" after getting knocked around by the Yankees over the weekend. After his team won Game 5 to send the Series back to New York, Hamels seems to have changed his tune and wants to be able to pitch Game 7, if the Phillies make it that far.

"Who wouldn't want the ball in Game 7?" Hamels said after the Phillies kept their season alive with an 8-6 win over the Yankees on Monday night. "This is the ultimate dream to be able to pitch in the most competitive situation anybody could ever be in -- that would be to be in Game 7 of the World Series. Even though I might not have the best results leading up to it, I've always wanted it."

Kudos to Cole for flip-flopping at the right moment; after all, if Hamels doesn't pitch Thursday, who else would? Joe Blanton on three days' rest? Cliff Lee on two days rest? Steve Carlton on 24 years rest? Cole has a chance to be the ultimate redemption story, bringing his team back to the promised land after a miserable year that will be most remembered for terrible TV commercials, and what better place than a pitchers park like Yankee Stadium?

Teammate Brett Myers, however, doesn't have patience for folks who sometimes speak before thinking. Via Tim Brown at Yahoo, here's the post-game scene from the home team clubhouse:

As Myers walked past Hamels near Hamels' locker he said, mocking, "What are you doing here? I thought you quit."

Hamels, the witness said, responded with an expletive.

Before the situation escalated, Myers was guided away by a team official.

Funny, last time I checked, Brett Myers has contributed far less than Hamels this year for the team. Hamels was still a 4 WAR pitcher while Myers actually finished with a negative WAR. The postseason has been none too kind to Hamels so far, but really: the biggest game one pitches is always his most recent. Just ask A.J. Burnett.

Brett Myers may fancy himself a team leader, but a true leader is typically the kind of guy who says positive things no matter how ridiculous they are, like Jimmy Rollins with his wacky predictions.

It's Cliff Lee on full rest versus A.J. Burnett on three days' worth of rest in the bandbox park down in Philadelphia. Either both dudes will throw no-hitters or we're in for a night filled with too many tater tots.

In Yankees lineup nooze, typical center fielder Melky Cabrera is out for the rest of the Series with an ouchie hamstring and will be replaced in the lineup tonight by speedy Brett Gardner. The battery buddies Jose Molina and Burnett fill out the rest of the bottom of the lineup, making a terribly un-terrifying threesome for Lee to deal with. Ramiro Pena, who looks like he is 14 years old, replaces Melky on the 25 man roster.

This game is do-or-die for Phillies fans and the good people at Macy's. Yankees! Phillies! Livegloggery! I have a stomach bug so I might puke all over the laptop! You simply cannot lose! Unless for some reason you decide to watch football instead!

Looks like someone at the Philadelphia Inquirer used their jump-to-conclusions mat and ran this ad in today's newspaper. Click through to The 700 Level to see the full version of the poorly-timed ad.

Kudos to our pal Matt P. for posting this despite the tidy three games-to-one lead that the Yankees took last night. If the Phillies come back and win, this will be the single greatest post in the entire history of the Philadelphiablogosphere.

With the game tied at four and Phillies closer Brad Lidge on the mound with two outs in his back pocket, Johnny Damon's nine-pitch, ninth inning at bat seemed to be a turning point in the game. Fella fouled off a bunch of pitches and reached on a tidy single. That was a memorable play until Damon one-upped himself by stealing two bases on one Lidge pitch, thanks to the Phillies infield's shift towards the right side; those two stolen bases set up the winning run and granted Damon an entry on the all-time crazy World Series playlist, right behind the time Denny McLain did a line off the brim of Bill Freehan's helmet.

On the all-important stolen base play, three very important things happened. First, Damon used a nugget that he had in his back pocket for over a year. In 2008, Damon noticed how teams would shift when his former teammate Jason Giambi came to the dish and thought it'd be a good opportunity to swipe two bases in one fell swoop. Second, Brad Lidge failed to cover third base, leaving Pedro Feliz to chase hopelessly after Damon. Finally, with a runner on third, Brad Lidge could not throw his filthy breaking balls to Alex Rodriguez lest a wild pitch allowed Damon to score. A-Rod sat on a Lidge fastball and drove it to the wall, setting up the third Yankees win in a row.

Damon's play was smart, yes, but also risky. Had Damon been tagged out by Feliz or caught in a rundown, we'd be singing a different song today (besides "Poker Face", which I cannot get out of my head). Instead, the Yanks are now but one win away from a World Championship and Brad Lidge's 2008 mojo has been fully drained from his person.

Country Joe Blanton and the Phils look to even this Fall Classic at two games apiece while CC Sabathia and the Yanks want to keep their winning streak alive and well. Some chunderheads think it's high time the Phillies pitchers throw at the Yankees hitters, especially after the way Nick Swisher admired his solo tater tot off Jay Happ as if it were a Manet watercolor. What, Alex Rodriguez' record-setting two HBP in last night's game were mere accidents? Harrumph.

No, the Phillies will do their best to win this thing the old-fashioned way: by not letting maryboy Cole Hamels anywhere near the pitching mound for the rest of the year.

Yankees! Phillies! Walkoff Walk! Be back here at 8:15 promptly and we'll get the livegloggery underway.

In a game that was so unlike the first two in this series, let's look at who can really lay claim to being among the most important people.

• Andy Pettitte, the batter: While Pettitte's performance on the mound was certainly admirable (but obviously not spectacular) in helping his team claim a 2-1 series lead, it was the lefty's work at the dish that was noteworthy and hysterical. Pettitte came to bat in the 5th with Swisher standing on second base ,and wouldn't you know it, he slapped a looping single into center that scored his teammate to tie the game at 3-3. That's right, Andy Pettitte, he of the 6 ABs total in 2009, and a lifetime .134 batting average, got the Yankees to a point from which they would never look back. Psh, and who said the Yankees would miss having a DH? Oh right, that was me. I am ashamed.

• Alex Rodriguez and Nick Swisher: The two sleepiest bats on a team full of snoozy sticks woke up in grand fashion for Game 3. A-Rod hit a questionable homer that was righteously confirmed by instant replay, his first hit in the World Series after looking like a strikeout machine in Games 1 & 2. This homer off a camera in right field (conspiracy!) got the Yankees back into the game and shaved their deficit to only one run. From there, Swisher, the second member of the Redemption Squad, roped a double and was driven home by the aforementioned moment of Pettitte hilarity. Mr. Mohawk was not finished though, as he clubbed a homer to deep left in the 6th that put the Yankees up by a score of 6-3. I'm sure there are several Yankees fans hoping that these two keep hitting the way they do. At the very least, there are likely several artists hoping Alex Rodriguez would like to commemorate his first World Series homer with some new portraits.

• Cole Hamels: If Alex Rodriguez has experienced a quick reversal from "poor" playoff performance to greatness, Hamels has gone and done the exact opposite. The Advertising Baron started off the game in impressive fashion, making the Yankees hitters seem foolish with the dazzling movement on his pitches and causing people to reminisce about his glorious 2008 postseason. However, the visiting squad figured him out and they figured him out hard to the tune of 5ER and an early chasing from the game. Hamels 2009 postseason has been an absolute nightmare, and the start tonight did little to reverse that trend, causing some to wonder if he'll even be called on to start again in this World Series.

• Citizens Bank Park: If you thought the first two games were boring because of lack of offense, then the ballpark in Philly is good for what ails you. Six homers left the park from both teams en route to 13 total runs that easily dwarfed the combined total from Games 1 & 2. The loudest shot? This absolute bomb by Jayson Werth, his second of the night, as the fella continued his remarkable season/postseason. Using the term "bandbox" might be selling the joint a bit short at this point.

(Since tonight is both Game 3 of the 2009 World Series and the dreaded time change, Walkoff Walk has turned to the sole member of the liveglogging team that lives in a daylight savings-free zone to handle the game tonight. Therefore, Tuffy will be the one to bring FallBack.)

I'm bringing fall time back
Them other states just don't know how to act
You think you're saving, but you ain't got the knack
So turn out tonight and I'll pick up the slack.

Take 'em to the time change

Yankees/Phils
You see Game Three now
Baby, I'm your host
I'll let you chime in if your rap's the most
It's just that wombats ain't got time for boasts

Take 'em to the liveglog.