Sabathia "Red Sox Weak"

jayhoz

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The Yankees really enjoyed Nunez as a teammate but he was often treated like a dunce in the class while in pinstripes. Some of that came from being one of the first SS prospects who could fill in for the aging Jeter. Nunez is a talented athlete but not really an instinctive baseball player. He makes errors, runs into outs on the bases because of his aggressive tendencies. I think CC was just pressing an old familiar button last night by trying to throw Nunez off his game. Did it work? Yes. Will it work again tonight? Who knows? Nuney is very talented and he has matured since leaving the Yankees. It's a bit of fake news, as EE hinted above. Important to fans, not so much to the players.
What worked?
 

bankshot1

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The Yankees really enjoyed Nunez as a teammate but he was often treated like a dunce in the class while in pinstripes. Some of that came from being one of the first SS prospects who could fill in for the aging Jeter. Nunez is a talented athlete but not really an instinctive baseball player. He makes errors, runs into outs on the bases because of his aggressive tendencies. I think CC was just pressing an old familiar button last night by trying to throw Nunez off his game. Did it work? Yes. Will it work again tonight? Who knows? Nuney is very talented and he has matured since leaving the Yankees. It's a bit of fake news, as EE hinted above. Important to fans, not so much to the players.
Fake News? CC actually took issue with it, and lets not forget he blew the play.There was an E-1 on it.

And my comment was mostly TIC.

Mostly.
 

Lose Remerswaal

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I agree with the prior post that when this worked for Nunez the SOX SHOULD HAVE KEPT DOING IT!. Jeez, Farrell. When something works and it gets under the skin of the other SP, DO IT AGAIN.

It's also as if the Yankees never stepped out repeatedly against Pedro Martinez.
 

Al Zarilla

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Yep--Yankees should have bunted on Schilling to see how he reacted.

I've never seen this complaint in another sport--DB has bit of a hammy problem, you target him, etc.
Danny Amendola comes back to the huddle and says the right CB is limping. Tom: All right, we go there until they take him out.
 

joe dokes

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I agree with the prior post that when this worked for Nunez the SOX SHOULD HAVE KEPT DOING IT!. Jeez, Farrell. When something works and it gets under the skin of the other SP, DO IT AGAIN.

It's also as if the Yankees never stepped out repeatedly against Pedro Martinez.
There is the fact that many of the Sox absolutely suck at bunting.
Anyone can step out of the box.
 

Sox and Rocks

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The Yankees really enjoyed Nunez as a teammate but he was often treated like a dunce in the class while in pinstripes. Some of that came from being one of the first SS prospects who could fill in for the aging Jeter. Nunez is a talented athlete but not really an instinctive baseball player. He makes errors, runs into outs on the bases because of his aggressive tendencies. I think CC was just pressing an old familiar button last night by trying to throw Nunez off his game. Did it work? Yes. Will it work again tonight? Who knows? Nuney is very talented and he has matured since leaving the Yankees. It's a bit of fake news, as EE hinted above. Important to fans, not so much to the players.
CC complaining to the press after the game worked during the game by throwing "Nunez off his game?"

Huh?

If anyone was "thrown off their game" last night, it was CC in the first after the bunt, though obviously the Sox let him off the hook (and, to be fair, he made quality pitches when he had to). If anything, CC's performance immediately after the bunt supports the idea that the Sox should have done it more.
 

jon abbey

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CC has complained about this before, it's absolutely ridiculous as everyone above has noted. For years, he didn't even bother trying to cover first base and allowed more than a few hits because of this, field your fucking position or find a different job.
 

JohntheBaptist

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It's such a weird story because these are the words of the CC Sabathia that followed the likely path of breaking down and sucking this (and last) year. Instead he's been a great, steadying force for NYY's rotation, and they WON THE GAME LAST NIGHT! Why is he mad? Like, if you were him wouldn't you take a mocking tone at the least?

Needless to say, really embarrassing. Reminds me a bit too of Schilling and Brenly getting all indignant over the Padres bunting on him late in a no-hitter. They have no hits, dude, they're trying *not* to make history tonight. edit--some context; it was actually a perfect game bid
 

cannonball 1729

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For years, he didn't even bother trying to cover first base and allowed more than a few hits because of this, field your fucking position or find a different job.
Yeah - remember when he was on the Brewers and lost a no-hitter because he let up an infield single by botching a weak dribbler, and then manager Ned Yost spent the press conference after the game complaining that it should have been an E-1 and Sabathia should have had a no-hitter? And then the near-no hitter and the bizarre manager reaction became a major sports story and the Brewers went into a two-week tailspin? This isn't new ground for CC.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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Sabathia not backing down today. His reaction to Jim Rice's comments: "I just hope when I'm that age, I'm not that bitter."



And Eduardo Nunez has chimed in about the whole thing: "It's a joke. Play in. If you play back, I'll bunt."

 

soxhop411

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“@ByChrisMason: Joe Girardi says CC’s comments are because he’s a competitor. Called it old-school mentality that Gibson, Clemens or Nolan Ryan would have.”

*cough* BULLSHIT *cough*
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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“@ByChrisMason: Joe Girardi says CC’s comments are because he’s a competitor. Called it old-school mentality that Gibson, Clemens or Nolan Ryan would have.”

*cough* BULLSHIT *cough*
Wouldn't "old school mentality" include fielding one's position as expected without saying a word?

Or at the very least an "old school" pitcher, upset by the actions of an opposing hitter, would put one in his ribs the next time he came to the plate. Sabathia prefers to run his mouth...a decidedly "new school" thing to do.
 

ypioca

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This is like if Wily Mo Peña complained about the pitcher throwing curveballs. Whining about the other team going after the obvious hole in your game is pretty much the definition of "weak".
 

mauidano

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CC has complained about this before, it's absolutely ridiculous as everyone above has noted. For years, he didn't even bother trying to cover first base and allowed more than a few hits because of this, field your fucking position or find a different job.
Absolutely.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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They are 4.5 back and this is their last chance to play the Sox heads up. If the status quo adheres, and the Sox take a game or two in the next couple of nights, the Yankees will more likely than not have to play a one-game playoff.

Whether intentionally or not, I think this is smart by C.C. A 4-game sweep and everything is in play. Why not give it a shot? It's the Sox who want low drama, nothing to see here baseball for the next three nights. It's the Yankees who could use a little maelstrom and distraction right now. Maybe it backfires. Maybe it's irrelevant. But what's to lose? Give it a shot, stoke up some emotions, get people worked up, and see what happens. The Sox are presently in the driver's seat -- see if you can't upset the apple cart.

Weird shit and drama happens with these teams. Emotions seems to actually matter. It may well be that C.C. isn't all that calculating and is just embarrassed, but even if unintentional, I don't see how this hurts the Yankees at the moment.
 

curly2

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I heard the start of Michael Kay's show today. Even he was killing CC about this (earlier he had praised him for how well he's pitched, especially against the Sox). Kay said telling hitters not to bunt was like hitters saying to CC, Don't throw any sliders or changeups or try to hit corners, just challenge me with fastballs down the middle and see if I can hit them.
 
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bankshot1

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Joe and Evan (filling in for Francesa on WFAN) were killing CC, as were the vast majority of the callers.

This is not "old-school" its more like pre-school.
 

Soxy

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I'm surprised nobody has quoted the moneyshot from the CBS Sports article that was linked in the OP:
Just to show you how silly this all is: Indians ace Corey Kluber was reportedly upset Nunez took too aggressive of a swing last week, and hit him with a pitch. So, in the span of a week, Nunez angered pitchers by taking a big hack and by laying down a bunt. Baseball can be so stupid sometimes.
Yeah. It really can. I mean, I love baseball but the "old school" and "unwritten rules" bullshit needs to go. SJH is right. Baseball players can really be the worst babies in the world sometimes.

What makes this all the more hilariously stupid is that the Yankees were (rightfully) ridiculed for not bunting at all during Game 6 of the 2004 ALCS, to test Schilling's bad ankle. I remember quite a few analysts scratching their heads over that one. I must have missed the trophy ceremony and parade for the '04 Yankees, "Playing the Game the Right Way" champions.
 

Jim Ed Rice in HOF

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Jim Abbott had no problem with guys bunting on him.
Yup.
"If they think that`s a weakness, they will try to use it,`` Abbott said. ``I look at it as a fairly easy out.``
As stupid as the argument is from CC maybe the upside is that it adds a bit of spice back into the rivalry which has been rather tepid for a while. It's always more entertaining when the two teams dislike each other.
 

Sprowl

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Thank you, Charles Carsten, for inspiring our weaklings.
 

djhb20

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I'm sure he gave a Headley a mouthful after that bunt in the 7th.
 

lexrageorge

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The idea of "not bunting" just because the pitcher has difficulty fielding is total BS. Most "unwritten rules" are not even rules at all; they are just created on the fly and invoked when someone gets their feelings hurt. I'm reminded of all the crying after Theo Epstein signed Kevin Millar after he was cut by the Marlins.

Now, if CC is trying to fire up his team in a the middle of a key series at the heat of a pennant race, fine, let him rant and look dumb. But he cannot seem to let it go, so screw him.

As to why Farrell didn't have every batter do it, there are good reasons. Bunting is harder than it looks, and a bad bunt is still likely to be an automatic out. Even the best bunters pop one up from time to time. And at some point, the lineup has to score some runs; bunt-out-bunt-out-bunt-out is not going to score anything.
 

SawxSince67

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NY Daily News dropping snark even this morning.

If only Boston had bunted.

The Yankee bats were mostly silent after that, however, with Jacoby Ellsbury hitting a single in the second, and Chase Headley successfully bunting — take that again, CC — in the seventh.
 

Sampo Gida

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CC is just a troll. Don't feed the trolls especially one who needs to diet. He jumped in on the Adam Jones thing as well. Just ignore him. Kudos to Jim Rice for nailing it seeing as he had no choice but to talk about it
 

jayhoz

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I eagerly await Mr. Sabthia's response to the Twins bunting for base hits twice in the first inning.
 

jon abbey

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The second was an attempted sacrifice that Frazier couldn’t make the play on, and then I’m not sure they tried it again all game (?).

I’m surprised there aren’t at least a handful of tries every game, besides being a terrible fielder, he gives up really weak contact usually and his stuff looks relatively easy to bunt.
 

Murderer's Crow

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The second was an attempted sacrifice that Frazier couldn’t make the play on, and then I’m not sure they tried it again all game (?).

I’m surprised there aren’t at least a handful of tries every game, besides being a terrible fielder, he gives up really weak contact usually and his stuff looks relatively easy to bunt.
I agree on the surprise. I couldn’t tell if it was gamesmanship or their expectation that the infield would make a defensive adjustment and allow more grounders to get through.
 

joyofsox

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I eagerly await Mr. Sabthia's response to the Twins bunting for base hits twice in the first inning.
He smiled as he left the mound at the end of the inning. I took a quick look at the Daily News and Post and did not see any specific quote from CC about it.

 

jon abbey

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He smiled as he left the mound at the end of the inning.
Yeah, that's pretty misleading, he smiled because he got the third out on a comebacker and made a kind of hilariously bad throw to first but still got the out. That was where the smile came from.