WasWatching.com

Farns was the only Yankee that got Ortiz out last year (or so my memory tells me). But besides that, he's been a waste of time.

The problem is that the Yanks can't just unload him to the NL because they don't have anyone that can fill his role as backup closer to Mo. Proctor just can't hack it in the 9th (he was terrible the few times he tried to save games last year). So, for better or worse, I think we're stuck with Farns and the mediocrity he has become synonymous with.

People hated Farnsworth before he even got here. I don't understand the venom. He's not perfect, but how many setup men are? Sometimes he's dominant and sometimes, like last night, he blows up on the mound.

I don't really understand how you can compare him to a lefty specialist -- 35 innings vs. 70 innings. And most of those 70 innings are going to be important innings.

Abraham says some really stupid things at times, but saying walking the leadoff man means Farnsworth is not "championship material" may top the list. It wasn't about championship material -- it was about not having any command last night. His fastball had no velocity AND he couldn't put the ball anywhere near the target. That equals giving up a lot of runs, and it's happened to every pitcher in every league in every part of the world. Baseball players are not robots and they will have bad days.

I don't actually want to get rid of Farnsworth, but I would say that Bruney would do fine as a closer if Mo got hurt. Bruney has a slight control issue, but his strikeout ability more than makes up for it. But I don't think they should trade Farnsworth, because they need four (or five) guys behind Mo to keep Torre from blowing out one of the arms.

So let me get this straight, yesterday your gripe was about Torre's bullpen usage and "burnout" potential of some relievers. Here is Farnsworth, who has this security blanket (so to speak), where he can't pitch on consecutive days and only wants to pitch one inning. He's basically protecting himself from being burned out. Si o Yes?

Now, you are complaining about Farnsworth's work ethic and you are "implying" that he should be more available for "Clueless Joe's" nack of burning bullpen arms out - as you stated yesterday.

So what is it exactly, do you want all bullpen arms created equal and you want them all to have to have the ability to get burned out at an even and proportional rate?

~~~I don't really understand how you can compare him to a lefty specialist -- 35 innings vs. 70 innings. And most of those 70 innings are going to be important innings.~~~

I'm comparing them in the sense that there are limits as to what they can provide in a game - whereas someone like Proctor or BB or LV would go two, if needed.

Garcia - to me, there's a difference between a manager who likes to burnout pitchers and a pitcher who is not willing to give a little extra, in times where it is needed. I believe they are two separate discussions.

Farnsworth is nice to have - but if he's only good for 70 games and 70 innings in a season, he's just an amped up version of Mike Myers, in a way.
===============
Looking at reliever workloads during the "Torre era" I'm not quite sure I would agree with that.

Garcia - to me, there's a difference between a manager who likes to burnout pitchers and a pitcher who is not willing to give a little extra, in times where it is needed. I believe they are two separate discussions.
==============
There is also a difference between a pitcher who isn't willing, and isn't capable of giving extra.

I'm comparing them in the sense that there are limits as to what they can provide in a game - whereas someone like Proctor or BB or LV would go two, if needed.
-----

You called him an amped-up Mike Myers. I still don't think that comparison is fair or logical, because Farnsworth is often going to come into the game to protect a lead in the eighth inning. He may even have to face the heart of the lineup to do it. Myers may have to come it to face a tough lefty on occasion in a big spot, but I think Farnsworth's job is a lot harder. So if both guys do their job well -- even perfectly -- Farnsworth is more valuable.

I'm with you in not understanding why a guy as a strong as Farnsworth can't pitch two days in a row. Even if you accept he can't recover after throwing one day to pitch the next, how is it that he can't pitch a second inning? Does his body simply shut down and lock up whenever he doesn't pitch for a short time after having pitched? Farnsworth is supposedly a workout freak -- you would think that would translate to some stamina.

Ummmmm, others to get Ortiz out include Myers, Rivera, Proctor, RJ etc.

He said last year, and Farnsworth dominated Ortiz in '06: four at-bats, four strikeouts.

As for the others you mentioned:

He was 2-for-9 (1 walk) against Myers with a home run and three RBI.

He was 2-for-4 against Mo with a double and a home run.

He was 1-for-3 against Proctor with a double.

As for other bullpen guys, Beam and Bruney walked him in their only at-bats, and he was 2-for-4 (with 2 walks) against Villone with a home run and three RBI.

Randy Johnson did not face him in '06.

Sorry for the digression, but I really need to take this opportunity to say just how flat-out sick Joel Zumaya is. Wow. He just shut down Toronto in the 8th and 9th for a save, and made a few pretty good major league hitters look like little leaguers in the process.

Now, I'm a staunch critic of Torre and his enigmatic bullpen usage; but just imagine how irate we would all be if Jones and Zumaya were on the Yanks and Joe had Zumaya setting up Jones like Leyland does. Leyland gets a pass, though, admittedly, Joe would never hear the end of it.

Zumaya actually looks human this year.

And in that game today, he let both inherited runners score.

He can get away with all those walks because he strikes so many people out, but it still might hurt him.

I'm eager to see how the league responds to Zu this year, having seen so much of him now.

//I'm eager to see how the league responds to Zu this year, having seen so much of him now.//

As long as the Yankees are the only team to hit him, I hope he shuts every one else down. He's on 3 of my fantasy teams this year.

True, he let those runners score - on an opposite way bloop double by Overbay, who all but closed his eyes as he stuck his bat out in front of the plate. Rios, Wells, and Hurt looked utterly overmatched.

I'm not saying Zumaya isn't good. The guy throws a legit 100 mph fastball. He's good.

But...

He's allowed 7 base runners in 6.2 innings this year and already given up a home run.

So I'd be happy to have him on my team and I think he's going to be a good closer one day, but I'll wait before I compare him to Billy Wagner or Gagne (in his prime).

(Speaking of Gagne, you have to wonder if Zu will flame out the way he did. Zu "magically" gained seven miles an hour on his fastball over an off-season -- doing yoga with Barry Zito (yeah, yeah, likely). Gagne had a similar "magical" rise in velocity. I believe both were failed starters. Gagne's body eventually fell apart. Maybe his body was never meant to throw 100 mph. Maybe Zu's isn't either.)