Sunday, March 26, 2006
Wright headed in wrong direction
03/13/2006
BRADENTON, Fla. -- Jaret Wright hasn't been spending much time worrying about the competition for the final two spots in the Yankees' starting rotation, but after Monday's outing against the Pirates, that may soon change.
Wright allowed eight runs on 11 hits in just three innings, as the Pirates battered him with one hard-hit ball after another.
"It was just a dead day," Wright said. "I didn't have anything and I got beat up pretty good. You just have to keep throwing, try to stay composed when things are going bad. You just pitch until they come get you."
"He just didn't locate," said manager Joe Torre. "It didn't look like he could throw anything for a strike other than a fastball, and he was up with a number of pitches. It was just a bad day."
Wright is battling Shawn Chacon and Chien-Ming Wang for the final two spots in the rotation, though with Carl Pavano expected to miss the first few weeks of April, all five of them could start until Pavano is ready to return.
The Yankees won't need a fifth starter until the third week of the month, though, so one of the five healthy arms will be in the bullpen to open the season.
Wright said that he tries not to think about the rotation competition, though human nature makes it nearly impossible to forget about it all together.
"It's one thing you think about," Wright said. "You want to pitch well -- you're competing for a spot, so if you don't pitch well, it's frustrating. ... I'm trying to take care of what I need to take care of. Today, I'm sure, doesn't help that out."
"I don't think they can do two things at once," said catcher Jorge Posada. "You've got to go out there and pitch, make sure that you're healthy and just go out and compete. If you put that extra pressure on yourself, you're not going to have a good spring."
Wright is now 0-1 with a 12.91 ERA, placing him behind Chacon (0-0, 0.00 ERA) and Wang (1-0, 5.40) through three starts.
"He's an adult -- he knows what's going on here," Torre said. "I'm sure he's disappointed with this outing, because he couldn't do with the ball what he wanted to. He's a mentally tough young guy, so that part I'm not worried about."
Both Wright and Torre say that the pitcher has no physical problems, so his problems on Monday were more about mechanics and feel than anything else.
"It was real tough," Wright said. "Just about everything [went wrong]. The ball was up, the sinker was kind of flat, the curveball wasn't doing what it was supposed to. It seemed like everything I was throwing was at hitting speed today. It was up and right in the zone, and they weren't missing it at all."
Wright knows that his future could include a stint in the bullpen, but for now, he's not thinking that far ahead.
"When it comes down to that, if that's the way it plays out toward the end, I'll definitely do anything to play," Wright said. "Right now, I'm throwing in five days and still trying to start."
"Certainly, you'd rather have him pitch great, but it doesn't count yet," Torre said. "He has to be sharp when we start the season."
Source: http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/
BRADENTON, Fla. -- Jaret Wright hasn't been spending much time worrying about the competition for the final two spots in the Yankees' starting rotation, but after Monday's outing against the Pirates, that may soon change.
Wright allowed eight runs on 11 hits in just three innings, as the Pirates battered him with one hard-hit ball after another.
"It was just a dead day," Wright said. "I didn't have anything and I got beat up pretty good. You just have to keep throwing, try to stay composed when things are going bad. You just pitch until they come get you."
"He just didn't locate," said manager Joe Torre. "It didn't look like he could throw anything for a strike other than a fastball, and he was up with a number of pitches. It was just a bad day."
Wright is battling Shawn Chacon and Chien-Ming Wang for the final two spots in the rotation, though with Carl Pavano expected to miss the first few weeks of April, all five of them could start until Pavano is ready to return.
The Yankees won't need a fifth starter until the third week of the month, though, so one of the five healthy arms will be in the bullpen to open the season.
Wright said that he tries not to think about the rotation competition, though human nature makes it nearly impossible to forget about it all together.
"It's one thing you think about," Wright said. "You want to pitch well -- you're competing for a spot, so if you don't pitch well, it's frustrating. ... I'm trying to take care of what I need to take care of. Today, I'm sure, doesn't help that out."
"I don't think they can do two things at once," said catcher Jorge Posada. "You've got to go out there and pitch, make sure that you're healthy and just go out and compete. If you put that extra pressure on yourself, you're not going to have a good spring."
Wright is now 0-1 with a 12.91 ERA, placing him behind Chacon (0-0, 0.00 ERA) and Wang (1-0, 5.40) through three starts.
"He's an adult -- he knows what's going on here," Torre said. "I'm sure he's disappointed with this outing, because he couldn't do with the ball what he wanted to. He's a mentally tough young guy, so that part I'm not worried about."
Both Wright and Torre say that the pitcher has no physical problems, so his problems on Monday were more about mechanics and feel than anything else.
"It was real tough," Wright said. "Just about everything [went wrong]. The ball was up, the sinker was kind of flat, the curveball wasn't doing what it was supposed to. It seemed like everything I was throwing was at hitting speed today. It was up and right in the zone, and they weren't missing it at all."
Wright knows that his future could include a stint in the bullpen, but for now, he's not thinking that far ahead.
"When it comes down to that, if that's the way it plays out toward the end, I'll definitely do anything to play," Wright said. "Right now, I'm throwing in five days and still trying to start."
"Certainly, you'd rather have him pitch great, but it doesn't count yet," Torre said. "He has to be sharp when we start the season."
Source: http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/
