Friday, June 17, 2005
Giambi turns a corner
NEW YORK -- The last time Jason Giambi hit a walk-off home run for the Yankees, he earned his pinstripes and went on to a spectacular season in the Bronx. Joe Torre is hoping that Wednesday night's game-winner can have the same impact on the struggling slugger.
Giambi, who entered Thursday's action hitting .243 with five homers and 19 RBIs, is batting .296 in June, and his three extra-base hits are already one more than he had in all of May, a sign that things may be turning around for him at the plate.
"I've been getting hits, but it hasn't been really clicking," Giambi said. "The power is there; that hasn't been a question. It's just squaring up the ball at the right time. That's why hitting home runs is tough. It's probably the single hardest thing to do."
Giambi has been playing just about every day, mostly at first base. Torre has said repeatedly that he wants to get Giambi at-bats in order to get him going, and his plan may finally be paying off.
"It's a move in the right direction," Torre said of Wednesday's home run. "[The power was] the only thing that was missing, because there were singles and walks, but with the double off the wall the other night and the game-winning home run last night, that's what Jason provides and hasn't been able to. Hopefully this is the start of something."
Giambi's teammates have been supportive, encouraging him throughout the season both in the clubhouse and on the bench. Following his game-winner, the entire team welcomed him at home plate, celebrating the victory together.
"You saw the reaction at home plate, everybody welcoming him with no hesitation in hugging that big bear," Torre said. "You look in his eyes, and you know he's hurting at times -- not physically -- with everything he's gone through. Sometimes, we forget that these players have blood running through their veins. I know the players are all pulling for him."
"They've been supportive since Day 1," Giambi said. "Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Bernie [Williams], Joe, all of them. It's nice to see the results after all of the hard work."
Brown on hold: Kevin Brown, who left Wednesday's game in the fifth inning with back spasms, is doubtful for his next start on Monday against the Devil Rays.
"He's not any better today, so it's going to be doubtful for him for his next start," Torre said after Thursday's game. "We'll have to figure it out."
Brown did not speak with reporters on Thursday, instead issuing a statement through team spokesperson Jason Zillo.
"It's tight and it's stiff," Brown said in the statement. "I don't have a crystal ball. I'm getting treatment on it every day, and we'll see where we are tomorrow."
Brown received several forms of treatment on Thursday, including warm-water massages, moist-heat applications and several stretching exercises.
Torre said that if Brown is unable to go, the team would call up a starter from Triple-A Columbus instead of using Tanyon Sturtze, who has been very valuable pitching out of the bullpen for New York.
The leading candidate to fill in for Brown would be Sean Henn, who is 4-2 with a 3.20 ERA in seven starts for Columbus this season. Henn made his big-league debut on May 4 at Tampa Bay, allowing six runs over 2 1/3 innings against the Devil Rays.
Getting personal: John Flaherty was behind the plate on Thursday night for Randy Johnson's start, the second consecutive outing that Flaherty has caught the Big Unit.
Johnson tossed seven shutout innings against the Cardinals last weekend, his best start of the season. The pitcher and catcher seemed to work well together, so Torre decided to give the battery another try on Thursday.
"The result was good," Torre said. "It could just be one of those things. I'm not sure that Flash [Flaherty] did anything different than what Jorge [Posada] does; it was just a matter of things coming together."
Torre said that the pairing could continue if the manager likes what he sees.
"I'm easy," Torre said. "When it comes to managing, if you see something that works, don't try to mess with it."
On deck: The Yankees and Cubs kick off a three-game weekend series on Friday night, the first meeting between the two teams at Yankee Stadium since the 1938 World Series.
Carl Pavano looks to even his record at 5-5, while Carlos Zambrano takes the mound for the Cubs, also seeking his fifth victory.
Source: http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/
Giambi, who entered Thursday's action hitting .243 with five homers and 19 RBIs, is batting .296 in June, and his three extra-base hits are already one more than he had in all of May, a sign that things may be turning around for him at the plate.
"I've been getting hits, but it hasn't been really clicking," Giambi said. "The power is there; that hasn't been a question. It's just squaring up the ball at the right time. That's why hitting home runs is tough. It's probably the single hardest thing to do."
Giambi has been playing just about every day, mostly at first base. Torre has said repeatedly that he wants to get Giambi at-bats in order to get him going, and his plan may finally be paying off.
"It's a move in the right direction," Torre said of Wednesday's home run. "[The power was] the only thing that was missing, because there were singles and walks, but with the double off the wall the other night and the game-winning home run last night, that's what Jason provides and hasn't been able to. Hopefully this is the start of something."
Giambi's teammates have been supportive, encouraging him throughout the season both in the clubhouse and on the bench. Following his game-winner, the entire team welcomed him at home plate, celebrating the victory together.
"You saw the reaction at home plate, everybody welcoming him with no hesitation in hugging that big bear," Torre said. "You look in his eyes, and you know he's hurting at times -- not physically -- with everything he's gone through. Sometimes, we forget that these players have blood running through their veins. I know the players are all pulling for him."
"They've been supportive since Day 1," Giambi said. "Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Bernie [Williams], Joe, all of them. It's nice to see the results after all of the hard work."
Brown on hold: Kevin Brown, who left Wednesday's game in the fifth inning with back spasms, is doubtful for his next start on Monday against the Devil Rays.
"He's not any better today, so it's going to be doubtful for him for his next start," Torre said after Thursday's game. "We'll have to figure it out."
Brown did not speak with reporters on Thursday, instead issuing a statement through team spokesperson Jason Zillo.
"It's tight and it's stiff," Brown said in the statement. "I don't have a crystal ball. I'm getting treatment on it every day, and we'll see where we are tomorrow."
Brown received several forms of treatment on Thursday, including warm-water massages, moist-heat applications and several stretching exercises.
Torre said that if Brown is unable to go, the team would call up a starter from Triple-A Columbus instead of using Tanyon Sturtze, who has been very valuable pitching out of the bullpen for New York.
The leading candidate to fill in for Brown would be Sean Henn, who is 4-2 with a 3.20 ERA in seven starts for Columbus this season. Henn made his big-league debut on May 4 at Tampa Bay, allowing six runs over 2 1/3 innings against the Devil Rays.
Getting personal: John Flaherty was behind the plate on Thursday night for Randy Johnson's start, the second consecutive outing that Flaherty has caught the Big Unit.
Johnson tossed seven shutout innings against the Cardinals last weekend, his best start of the season. The pitcher and catcher seemed to work well together, so Torre decided to give the battery another try on Thursday.
"The result was good," Torre said. "It could just be one of those things. I'm not sure that Flash [Flaherty] did anything different than what Jorge [Posada] does; it was just a matter of things coming together."
Torre said that the pairing could continue if the manager likes what he sees.
"I'm easy," Torre said. "When it comes to managing, if you see something that works, don't try to mess with it."
On deck: The Yankees and Cubs kick off a three-game weekend series on Friday night, the first meeting between the two teams at Yankee Stadium since the 1938 World Series.
Carl Pavano looks to even his record at 5-5, while Carlos Zambrano takes the mound for the Cubs, also seeking his fifth victory.
Source: http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/
