The Hurt Locker: Pirates Get Back-to-Back Blast of the Bronx Bombers

Smitty was a 12 Bravo in the Army.  A combat engineer, so of course he is a big fan of  The Hurt Locker.  Although all of us trust Master Sergeant Sarver from West Virginia didn’t get shafted as he claims.   Like many things, we will find out soon enough we trust.  Also, congrats to Jeremy Renner for his nomination.

Now enough Oscar talk…on to baseball, the Pirates are split today with a game against the Yanks and another one tomorrow.

Keep an eye on Neil Walker the next 48 hours.

 Who said New Yorkers aren’t nice guys?  We asked questions about Yankee baseball with the expert Andrew Corselli from YanksGoYard.  He provided some great insight on the upcoming games versus the World Champions.

RUMBUNTER: What can you tell us about the starter today Alfredo Aceves?

As far as AlfredoAceves is concerned, his numbers last year were pretty good but it’s unclear as to where he’ll fit in the bullpen with the addition of Chan Ho Park. I hope he finds a home in there because he’s pretty solid and I think he can be a key contributor in the long-relief role.

As I’m sure you know, he retired all six batters he faced in that first Spring game against you guys (get his spot in the Hall of Fame ready!!! J/K).

But I think one of the most important things is that he came to camp looking a lot more slim and in shape, so he could be ready for a heavier workload this year. Also, I’ll always have a soft spot for him because he threw me a ball during batting practice at a game I went to last season!!!

Furthermore, check out this picture of Ace during the Yanks’ “team bonding” exercise the night before the first Spring Training game. I think it says all you need to know about him. He looks like the Terminator or some kind of bad-ass.

RUMBUNTER: CC Sabathia makes the start Tuesday, what makes him so dominate for the Yankees?

In CC’s case: he is just a beast, plain and simple. He eats innings and will pitch for as long as Girardi tells him to (thank God, for his sake, Torre’s not running the show anymore, his arm would have fallen off by now.)

But not only that, CC just wants to be one of the guys. He’s no prima donna and fits right in in the clubhouse. He doesn’t want or need any special treatment and only desires to take the ball every fifth day. Which is refreshing after following A-Rod and his shenanigans since 2004. In that sense it’s kind of bizarre seeing such a highly-paid superstar just want to be one of the guys. It’s like the difference between Joe D and Mickey Mantle.

Also look at how many innings CC has pitched over the last three seasons: 724 innings IN THE REGULAR SEASON ALONE!!!

That’s not counting this past postseason (let alone the prior two) when he was asked to go on short rest. However, his one downfall is that he usually starts off slow and has a bad April; but with the way he finishes it really doesn’t matter. Plus with the run support he’s now getting, it’s kind of a moot point. But regardless, he is a workhorse and takes on any challenge that comes his way.

RUMBUNTER: What did you think of the Yankees/Pirate trade that sent Ross Ohlendorf among others to the Bucs?

The Ohlendorf trade didn’t go as well as I thought it would. Xavier Nady was solid when healthy but got hurt.  Although Damaso Marte showed some promise, especially last postseason, I think you guys definitely got the larger end of the stick on that one, but who am I to complain after last season?…Not sure if you read it or not, but Chuck Finder wrote a pretty cool article about the four arms you guys got and how close they are. If you didn’t check it out, it’s a pretty good read. I suggest taking a look.

RUMBUNTER:  Any sleepers in Yankees camp?

The sleepers are probably catcher Jesus Montero. He’s young but that guy can hit. If this Nick Johnson injury is serious then I think the Yanks might bring him up to DH (but then again what do I know.)  Also, he might see some action if Frankie Cervelli’s concussion woes worsen. In the long run I think they might try switching Montero from behind the plate to another position because his defense is sub-par…but he’s definitely a guy to keep an eye on. Also Boone Logan has had a pretty good Spring and Mark Melancon could make some noise and increase on his 16.1 career innings in the big leagues. Either way, I just want baseball to start. I’m fiending it right now, especially after this brutal winter we just had to endure.

Pirate fans, normally I would delete this, but hell, that’s not fair.  Look at this guy…

Let me know if that’s not what you wanted, you want more from me, or if I didn’t touch on all the things you were wondering about. Thanks for letting me talk ball with you. Any time you need something like this (or anything else) from me DO NOT hesitate to ask. Take care and keep up the good work.

Let’s play ball already,
Andrew

PS: I love your stadium. I was out there a season or two ago and it is awesome. It’s a great place to watch a ballgame.

(Very soon he is going to like our ball team too.)