Super Nova returns but Yanks fall 1-0 to Red Sox

Ivan Nova knew that his last 2 starts weren’t great, but this time Nova emerged and pitched 4 shutout innings in a Yankees 1-0 loss to the Boston Red Sox. Nova’s fastball was working for as well as his secondary pitches, his line looking impressive. In 4 innings he gave up 2 hits, no runs, no earned runs, no walks and 3 strikeouts, all while lowering his ERA to 6.23 for the Spring.

When speaking to Jack Curry today, Nova said that he felt as if he was competing for a job even though he is slated to be either in the third, fourth or fifth spot in the rotation. Nova certainly helped his case tonight.

Mariano Rivera came in and pitched a shutout inning, Boone Logan pitched a shutout inning, David Phelps gave up an unearned run in the 9th inning (due to fielding issues by Zolio Almonte) and was charged with the loss and Clay Rapada was making his case as to why he should be the second lefty in the bullpen, retiring the only batter he faced.

Joe Girardi revealed that Rivera was going to make the trip to Miami to play the Marlins and he will wear gray pants. Girardi also plans on starting to make cuts to the team this weekend.

WHAT’S NEXT: The Opening Day lineup (minus Brett Gardner) will make the trip to Dunedin to face the Toronto Blue Jays. The game is on the radio at 1:05pm on MLB.com.

O/U: Alex Rodriguez and Robinson Cano

Player: Alex Rodriguez

Stat: Homeruns

O/U: 30

Report: The real O/U could be games played for A-Rod, but since that is hard to predict I decided to go with the 30 home runs. A-Rod being healthy ties into that anyways.

The last three years A-Rod has hit 30, 30 and 16 HR’s so he has no hit over 30 over the last 3 years. A-Rod had the longest HR drought of this career last year going April 24 to May 11 without hitting a HR. He went 85 AB’s without hitting a HR. A-Rod also was dealt with knee and thumb injuries that zapped his power.

Verdict: I will say A-Rod does barely hit over 30 HR’s this year. The special knee surgery he had inGermanyand the really positive effects it has had on Kobe Bryant this season has me feeling positive about A-Rod.  He has also been running a lot harder on the base paths this spring training than in others.  When you have a knee injury that effects the entire base of your swing and a thumb injury that effects your grip on the bat it is pretty hard to hit.

Player: Robinson Cano

Stat:  OPS

O/U: .900

Report: Cano has had an OPS over. 900 only once in his career. That was in 2010 when he hit for a .914 OPS.  In 2009 his OPS was .871 and in 2011 it .882. What has been holding Cano back in this area has been a lack of walks. That hurts his OBP which is half of OPS accounts for. The reason he got over. 900 in 2010 was because he had a .381 OBP, which was far beyond his career OBP of .347.  Hitting for over a .900 OPS means you are an elite hitter, which most consider Cano to be already but he can still improve his plate discipline.  It is also unprecedented for a 2B to hit for over a .900 OPS, which can put Cano in rare air as well.

Verdict: I will say Cano will fall just short yet again. I do not see him walking enough this year to get this year. Moving him to the 3^rd spot in the lineup means better protection behind him in Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira. Teams will be much more likely to challenge Cano than when Nick Swisher was behind him, which means less walks. Of course it could mean a higher slugging percentage if Cano can take advantage of the opportunities. As a side note I would like to see his 96 strikeouts from last year go down. That is not a bad number by any stretch, but for Cano it was a career high.

So what do you guys think? O/U 30 HR’s for A-Rod? O/U .900 OPS for Cano?

Spring Training: 3/13/12 Lineup

 

Lineup vs. Red Sox:

Brett Gardner, CF
Russell Martin, C
Alex Rodriguez, 3B
Mark Teixeira, 1B
Raul Ibanez, DH
Andruw Jones, RF
Doug Bernier, SS
Bill Hall, 2B
Jayson Nix, LF

Pitching:

RHP Ivan Nova

Pregame Notes:

— The lineup could change after batting practice if Eduardo Nunez is feeling pain in his wrist.

— Here is the Yankees travel roster to Dunedin vs. the Blue Jays tomorrow. Oh and Jeter has to go this time. It’s only fair!

HITTERS: Jeter, Granderson, Swisher, Cano, Rodriguez, Teixeira, Chavez, Ibanez,  Adams, Bernier, Joseph, Laird, Nix, Vazquez, Almonte, Curtis, Garner, Mesa, Wise

PITCHERS: Garcia, Banuelos, Cabral, Cedeno, Miller, Mitchell, O’Connor, Pope, Whelan, Whitley

— UPDATE (4:29pm ET): Eduardo Nunez has been scratched from the lineup.

— The game is at 7:05pm on YES Network, so tune in to watch the game!

Enjoy the game!

Spanning the Yankee Blogs: Granderson, $189, Banuelos, Logan

Good afternoon all and welcome to Spanning the Yankee Blogs.  I take a look around the blogs and link an article from each site.  Please read them all as everyone does a great job.  Enjoy.

* An A-blog for A-Rod has his take with the latest rankings.

* Bleeding Yankee Blue is talking about the dilemma with Cano and Granderson.

* It’s about the Money Stupid has something for all you Boone Logan haters.

* Lady Loves Pinstripes has a preview of the 2012 Tampa Bay Rays.

* New York Baseball Digest thinks the MLB schedule should be 154 games.

* Pinstripe Alley has an AL East Preview of the Blue Jays.

* River Ave Blues has A-Rod’s role in the $189 million plan.

* The Captain’s Blog writes about a contract extension for A-Rod? Why 714 is more important number than 2014.

* The Greedy Pinstripes ask if you believe that the Yankees will get to $189 million?

* The Yankee Analysts writes about Banuelos and the 5th spot in the rotation.

* Yanks Go Yard asks if Granderson’s 2011 season was a fluke.

Morning Bits: Girardi, Robertson, Nunez

Good Morning everyone.  First and foremost Today is our Blogs Fantasy Baseball Draft tonight. Please make sure if you are signed up to stop by and draft your team live.   Let’s get right to the links.

* Girardi has come to understand the demands of his job more.

* Robertson says he is ready to go for opening day.

* Nunez has beefed up for his future.

* ESPN has the 3 stars from yesterday’s game.