Yanks over Minnesota 6-to-5

Well, what do you know? Another win for Mike Mussina. Now if you have been reading my blog you know that I have been a strong advocate for the Moose. No, I don't think that he is an ace for the Bombers. He is not a "sure win" kind of pitcher. He comes with baggage. But, as he has shown so far this season, he has worked hard to work on his delivery, has begun to pitch to different zones, including inside, and is capable of setting the team up for a win. Last night's 6-to-5 victory over the Twins was no exception. The Moose struggled a bit in the first inning but then quickly regained control to go 6 complete innings with a notable 109 pitches (73 of them strikes).

Let's take a quick look at pitching records so far this season:

Mussina.... 8-4
Wang....... 6-2
Pettitte... 5-5
Rasner..... 3-1
Kennedy.... 0-3
Hughes..... 0-4

Rather interesting, I think. Of course a significant factor in the ability for a pitcher to secure a win is whether the team is hitting on any given night. Yesterday, the Yanks were hitting.

Abreu was the most impressive with 3 hits (2 of them triples!) and a walk. Bobby brought in four of the six runs for the team. Matsui and A-Rod continue to be successful at the plate, both of them going 3-for-4 from the box.

As well as some of the Yankees were hitting, some were not... Jeter was 0-for-5, and Duncan and Betemit continue to be a waste of space for the team. Nine runners were left on-base last night and that is unacceptable.

Fartsworth came in as the set-up man in the 8th inning (something that apparently he will supposedly do quite frequently now that Joba has left the bullpen) and it was not surprising to me that he allowed a home run. What Girardi is thinking by considering Fartsworth for this spot is beyond me.

The Yankees got the win and have now leveled themselves in the standings once again at .500 with a record of 27-and-27. Tonight's game two of the four game set will begin with first pitch at 7:10pm.

Musings

I don't know about you but I really like listening to sports commentators. My car radio is almost always tuned to ESPN radio. Sometimes a good determinant of whether I enjoy watching a baseball game on TV is who the particular color commentator is. One of the things I like most is the banter and discussion that takes place during this coverage.

Last night's game was a good example: When Joba came in to relieve Andy Pettitte in an effort to build up his pitch count, the commentary of course was directed to the decision by the Yankees to transition him to a starter. The plan was re-hashed, a clip of Girardi talking about Joba was played in which Joe stated that Joba would probably like to pitch every game, even if he had to do it under-hand, and there was speculation about whether Joba might get Kennedy's next start. Joba began his night on the mound a little shaky. He walked the first batter and, with only a one run lead at the time, was making everyone just a little bit anxious. Michael Kay then posed an interesting question: Who do you put in for Joba if he begins to get into trouble? Yes, the Yankees were trying to get him around 55 pitches last night but they needed the win more. At this juncture in the transition plan, would you ever want to bring Fartsworth in save Joba? A rather scary thought, I think. Of course, it never came to that. Joba straightened out and got the Yankees to the 9th in 28 pitches. I did wonder if Girardi considered keeping him in to finish the game and he probably would have if the Yankees didn't wind up leaving the bases loaded in the top of the ninth. Instead, Mo was brought in for the save... and did a fine job, despite A-Rod's error.

Speaking of errors... the Yankees have been making their share of them lately.

After the game, Kim Jones got a hold of Giambi (who has been showing promise lately and went 2-for-3 last night with a homer) and one of the things she asked about was his moustache. In case you haven't noticed, Jason began growing a little fuzz under his nose. My wife is adamantly against it and can't stand looking at him anymore (though I am not sure that she swooned over him before, either). Anyway, there is superstition everywhere and Jason said that the moustache is staying. Hey, if he continues hitting I bet the Steinbrenner's would let him grow a mullet and a mohawk too. What is funny to me is that there is an entire press release article on the Yankees website that discusses the moustache craze.

So here is my point, and I do recognize that this concept is probably one of those things that will always be much clearer in my mind than on paper... I enjoy the full baseball "experience" from April till October. When the Yankees are not doing well, I like listening to people talk about it. I get a certain comfort in that. When New York is at the top of the standings (and I sure hope they are sooner than later), I like listening to people talk about how they got there. The side stories surrounding the baseball season are almost as much fun.

That is why I decided to write a blog, even if it is only for the two people that read it semi-regularly (thanks Jed and Amy).

The Yankees won last night's game by a score of 4-to-2, avoiding the sweep in Baltimore. They will be off today and begin a four game series against the Twins on the road on Friday night at 8:10pm.

Yanks Lose Home Run Derby

This was a game that never should have been lost. Said a different way: these are the games that the Yankees need to win. I went to bed during the rain delay and I am so glad I did. No reason to lose sleep over this one.

First let's talk about the odd... 9 home runs in one game (according to the baseball almanac, the record is 10). Giambi, Damon, Abreu, and Rodriguez sent balls to the stands for the Yankees. Millar (2x), Herandez, Mora and Scott for the Orioles. A home run is exciting to watch, don't get me wrong... but last night's game almost pushed that limit for me. No doubt about it though, the Yanks hit well last night, especially Damon who went 4 for 5.

Now on to the bad... when are the Yankees going to realize that Ian Kennedy sucks? I have said it here many times, but let me say it again... the Yankees should get rid of him while other teams still might be fooled into thinking he is worth something. 4 runs in 3 short innings... a 7.41 ERA... we can do better. Kennedy hurt himself last night and will be added to the DL with a strained right lat muscle. Maybe Joba will be ready to take his place next week since he is scheduled to throw 50-55 pitches tonight to relieve Pettitte.

And to the awful... Latroy Hawkins. From the moment he joined this team he was trouble. He reminds me a lot of Fartsworth with his ability to screw up when he is needed most. I hope we are not going to have to pamper him now. Veras would have been the better choice last night.

Ohlendorf... yeah, you sucked last night too buddy; but I think you are a better pitcher than your performance in that game. Besides, if Kennedy would do his job, we wouldn't have to tax you so much. You get off easy, in this blog post anyway.

One last rant before I end this... Girardi was completely in the right for arguing to the officials about the rain coming down when Matsui was at bat in the top of the ninth. How convenient for them to wait until after the Yankees are retired before calling for the tarp.

Baltimore over New York by a score of 10-to-9 after 11 innings of play. It is back to 2 games below .500 and 6 games out, in that comfortable little spot in last place for the Yanks.

Rasner = Good, Bullpen = Bad

At least that was the story yesterday afternoon when the Yankees fell to the Orioles, losing by a score of 6-to-1. The first 5 innings were scoreless and Rasner pitched great. He left after 6 innings, having thrown 98 pitches (68 of them strikes), and was only responsible for one run. Then came LaTroy Hawkins... he only lasted .2 of an inning but managed to give up 2 hits and 3 runs. Veras didn't do much better with 2 hits and 2 runs.

Bullpens will give away games from time to time and although it bothers me, I can deal with that. What I don't understand is why Cashman hasn't done anything to put a lefty in the Yankees hand. They haven't had much luck in this area. Mike Meyers did little for the team last year and neither did Billy Traber. I would put this transaction on the top of my to-do list.

I was reading Greg Cohen's blog this morning and he posed an interesting question: why do we need both Duncan and Ensberg on the active roster? Neither of them are performing and it seemingly makes more sense to move one of them down to make room for someone else. Brett Gardner is the quick answer for a replacement. Clearly, the second thing on my list would be to strengthen the bench.

I am hoping that yesterday's game was just an anomaly and that New York can take the next two games against Baltimore to capture the series and stir some movement in the standings. Tonight's game starts at 7:05pm with Ian Kennedy on the mound. I am cautiously optimistic.

Yanks Sweep Mariners... again.

For the second time this month, the Yankees swept Seattle. Yesterday's 6-to-5 victory brought New York to the .500 mark and allowed them to jump over Baltimore in the standings. It was their 5th consecutive win but, more importantly, it was a win that was earned in the eighth inning when New York was down by 3 runs. The first win of the season that was achieved after the team had been down after the seventh inning.

"We got contributions from everyone, especially there in the last inning with walks and with timely hits," said shortstop Derek Jeter, who got the rally started by drawing a lead off walk. "We pretty much did a lot of things right."

Timely hits... it is what the team has been lacking and it is good to see the Yankees back on track.

They will begin a three game set against Baltimore today at 1:35pm.

Yankee Bats Come Alive

The Yankees secured their 4th consecutive win on Saturday when they beat the Mariners by a score of 12-to-6. This victory brings New York to a record of 24-25. The team still has an uphill climb in the standings but there seems to be a more positive feeling surrounding the club. Pitching has stabilized and the offense is clearly in a different place then they were just a week ago. The Yanks brought in 35 runs over the last 4 days and hitters that were previously struggling seemed to have found a way to connect with the bat. Cano going 4-for-4 and Giambi at 3-for-4 for the day are the most notable.

Joba Chamberlin began his transition to become a starter by pitching the 6th and 7th innings and a total of 40 pitches, 22 of them strikes. I purposely have not written anything about the official word that came this week regarding Joba's move out of the "set-up" spot but only because it has been covered so heavily in other areas. I do fully support this decision however and think the Yankees will be a better team because of it. My only hope is that Fartsworth does not become Joba's replacement... we can't afford to give up that many home runs.

Here are the standings as of today:

Were the M's Jet-lagged from Detroit?

I really wasn't surprised by last night's Yankees' win. After all, they were playing a last place team who had just gotten swept by a last place team. (Yeah, I know... the Bombers too are in last place, but that just makes it more special.) I was a little taken back however by the blowout of a score: 13-to-2.

Mariners' coach John McLaren tried to pull a Girardi-type tantrum in the 2nd inning by arguing balls and strikes. Perhaps he was trying to motivate his team too. But, unlike the Yankees who used Girardi's anger to inspire them to win their game the night before, the Mariners just seemed to lose their direction without their coach and the runs began to flow in the 4th and 5th innings.

We saw a three-run homer by Duncan, his first of the year and a much needed one for him if he is going to continue to live up to the reputation that he began to develop last year. We saw two respectable doubles from Giambi and Cano. But most impressively, we saw 2-out RBI's from Moeller, Abreu, Rodriguez, and Cano. The team seems to be learning how to get their base-runners home, something they have been struggling with early this year.

Pettitte pitched well going 6 innings and securing the win to make his record 4-5. He did get himself into a bit of trouble but he managed and dealt with it well.

The highlight of my evening spent at the stadium last night in Tier 11, Row B was the Jeter pop-up foul ball in the 3rd that bounced off my wife's lap and I recovered. I wish I could have written something more magnanimous like how I dived over three rows to catch it one-handed, but the truth is I was taking a sip of beer at the time and had to scramble when I saw it coming our way. Many balls have come towards me in the many years that I have been going to games. Some caught by guys next to me, some by those directly in back of me. This was the first time I was able to take one home in my pocket. Very cool.