Daily Tribe News/Playoffs Thread: October 3, 2011

Seriously. Are people really going to let Valverde’s perceived brashness (he may have been kidding anyway) supersede powerful loathing towards the Jackasses? Preposterous.

Yes. Absolutely.

I see Peralta finally got to him.

Yes, CC is not the “Big-Game” pitcher he’s cracked up to be – he can’t seem to handle the pressure.

That’s why he’s not beaten Beckett ever, why he lost to Price this year (and I’m not sure he’s beaten Price either), why he faltered in 2007 (and even his start against the Yankees that year was hardly stellar, especially as compared to Carmona’s start against the Yankees, and Carmona was a rookie in 2007), why he was only “okay” for the Yankees in 2009 (decent, solid performance, but hardly ace-like), and decent at best (really, not what you were expecting from your “ace,” even on 3 days’ rest, especially when Sabathia has pitched on 3 days’ rest before and Verlander never had before tonight).

Sabathia was bailed out by his offense, so it doesn’t look quite as damaging as it actually was, much like Sabathia was bailed out in Game 5 of the 2007 ALCS – his line looked okay, even solid, against Beckett, but there were a few nice defensive plays that saved Sabathia from giving up more runs in that game, including a nice catch by Sizemore (Boston was hitting the ball all over the place that game, whereas the Indians were hitting very little hard off of Beckett the whole night).

That’s why CC was fortunate to win his 2009 WS ring with the Yankees – if it comes down to him pitching a meaningful game in the postseason, his track record suggests he’ll falter more often than not. I’m sure Yankee fans aren’t too thrilled right now, since Game 3 was quite critical. The only saving grace is if somehow, Burnett can deliver the series back to NY, where Fister and Nova lock horns again.

One other observation: Jeter has really fallen – it’s one thing to make an out, but he had a couple of poor at-bats tonight in terms of plate discipline. In fact, the Yankee offense as a whole really did not make Verlander work, and I really didn’t think Verlander had great command tonight – he had several bouts of wildness, including when the Yankees came back to tie the game at 4 thanks to the “new Mr. Jeter,” Brett Gardner, who is probably one of the better Yankee clutch hitters now – has been doing some damage this entire series, much like Jeter used to.

Well, the only question is, will there be a repeat of 2006 and the Tigers take them out in 4, or do the Yankees get this thing back to NY for a Game 5?

And, in the other AL series, will a repeat of 2010 occur again regarding the Rangers and Rays, with the Rangers advancing again on the Rays’ home turf after defeating Price again (last year, Price lost Game 5; this year, Price loses a pivotal game 3)?

We shall see…

One version has it that a Diamondbacks radio guy guy called him “Papa Grande” on air thinking it meant Big Daddy or a more Spanish version of Big Papi during his rookie year.

And apparently you’re correct that the name “Big Potato” is commonly used to refer to Valverde as many have pointed out the misintended, yet more fitting, moniker years ago while he was still back in Phoenix.

The nickmane traveled to Detroit and I guess they call him Papa Grande when he gets a save and Big Potato when he gets fried.

I hope he hates it when people call him Big Potato.

Added bonus: once you start working on the choreography, those violent urges just melt away.

It is baseball’s restraint that makes the occasional, justifiable outbursts that much more dramatic. That was the heart of Dellucci’s famous quote, “It’s May baseball.” You don’t dance like you won the Super Bowl after every single touchdown, and the fact that NFL players do are to that sport’s detriment. They look ridiculous and self-aggrandizing — to just about everyone — not “passionate.”