Game 66: Old Man

Andy Pettitte takes the mound tonight for the first time since last Friday and he finds himself a year older, having completed his thirty eighth revolution of the sun on Tuesday. Originally, Pettitte was to square off against Jamie Moyer tonight, but the Phillies decided to shuffle their rotation earlier in the week, starting Moyer last night and pushing Kyle Kendrick to tonight.

That of course robs us of a whole host of paint by number story lines for the game, as at some point since his return to the Bronx more than three years ago, the veteran Pettitte has officially graduated to crafty lefty status, and veteran lefties don't come any craftier than the 47 year old Moyer.

Tempting as the Pettitte-Moyer comparisons may be, in truth the two have little in common other than their handedness and their relatively advanced ages. Pettitte reached the Majors as a 23 year old and virtually immediately presented himself as a front of the rotation workhorse. Moyer debuted at the same age, but scuttled through six seasons, four organizations, and several stints as a minor leaguer (including the majority of 1991, the entirety of 1992, and the start of 1993), before finally establishing himself as a 30 year old number five starter on the 1993 Orioles. As a point of comparison, by age 30 Pettitte had logged nearly 1,500 Major League innings and appeared in five World Series.

But as two of the three oldest starting pitchers in Major League Baseball and two of the three with more 3000 career innings pitched, the comparisons are inevitable. And as Pettitte's late career renaissance produces his best season in at least five years and a likely All-Star appearance, it's tempting to look at Moyer and see a guy who made his only All-Star appearance and had arguably his best season at age 40 in 2003 and has won 101 games since.

Of course, Pettitte's pitching arsenal is a little flashier than Moyer's slow-slower-slowest fastball, cutter, change routine, but it's tempting to look at Pettitte's repeated Houdini acts in pitching himself into and out of jams over the past few years and wonder why he couldn't continue to pull it off for another five or eight years. But considering that he's seriously contemplated retirement in each of the previous four off-seasons, a Moyer-esque forties just doesn't seem to be in the cards for Pettitte.

Be that as it may, of far greater to concern to Pettitte and the Yankees tonight is the rubber game against the Phillies. After improbably knocking around Roy Halladay on Tuesday night, the combination of a clunker from A.J. Burnett and Moyer's best Gandalf the White routine last night left the series tied at one. It seems as if Pettitte finds himself in more than his share of these rubber games, but he hasn't pitched a true rubber game since the season's opening series. He tossed six innings of one run ball in Boston that night, but didn't factor in the decision as the Yanks won in extra innings. He last start before that came at Yankee Stadium, in Game Six of the World Series, when he closed out the Phillies. Here's hoping he can pitch a lot like Moyer last night, stymie the Phillie bats, and close out a successful series against them once again.

Old man look at my life
I'm a lot like you were
Old man look at my life
I'm a lot like you were

[Song Notes: From his 1972 album Harvest, Neil Young wrote "Old Man" as a tribute to the old rancher who take care of his Broken Arrow Ranch in northern California. The studio recording featured both James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt]

-Lineups-

Yankees:
Alex Rodriguez is in the lineup for the second straight night and remains the DH. After catching for just the second time in a month, Jorge Posada gets the night off.

Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez DH
Robinson Cano 2B
Nick Swisher RF
Brett Gardner LF
Francisco Cervelli C
Ramiro Pena 3B

LHP Andy Pettitte

Phillies:

Shane Victorino CF
Chase Utley 2B
Placido Polanco 3B
Ryan Howard 1B
Jayson Werth RF
Raul Ibanez LF
Ben Francisco DH
Carlos Ruiz C
Wilson Valdez SS

RHP Kyle Kendrick

Game 56: Come On Baby Let's Go Downtown

Despite the season being more than a third over, this weekend's series between the Yanks and Jays is only the first of six between the division rivals this year. As far the Yankees' schedule is concerned, the Blue Jays are a bird of a different feather when compared to their fellow division rivals the Orioles. Prior to the start of this weekend's series, the Yanks and O's wrapped their third series of the season, and as soon as this weekend trip to Toronto wraps, the Yanks will head to Baltimore for their fourth series against the O's.

But the Yankees' schedule isn't the only indicator of the stark contrast between the AL East's two avian franchises this year. Entering 2010, Baltimore was the trendy pick as a surprise team. Not necessarily one that could compete with the Yanks, Tampa Bay, and Boston, but one that could ride its good young talent in taking a big step forward this year. Instead, a third of the way through the season, Baltimore has the Major's worst record, a fired manager, and several promising young players who are struggling mightily.

Instead, Toronto has been the surprise club in the AL East, hanging virtually even with Boston and within striking distance of both New York and Tampa Bay. It's doubtful that they can make it hold up over the long haul. As noted above, they have 17 games left against the Yankees, and they just dropped two of three to the Rays. But still, the fifty six games they've played is a significant sample, and both losses to the Rays happened only after blowing commanding leads.

So how have the Jays done it thus far? Well for one thing, despite the loss of Roy Halladay, their pitching still has been pretty good. But the biggest reason is likely that Toronto has been swinging some heavy Canadian lumber. Toronto ended their series with Tampa Bay with 91 home runs on the season, easily the top total in the AL. Boston entered play Thursday with 71, and the twenty homer gap between the first and second place teams is as big as the gap between second place Boston and the AL average.

One third of the way through the season the Jays have three players - the rejuvenated Vernon Wells and the out-of-nowhere Alex Gonzalez and Jose Bautista - on pace for 30 home runs. They have five more - including 2009 30 HR guys Adam Lind and Aaron Hill - on pace for 20, and Travis Snider is on pace for just under 20. As a team, they also entered play Thursday leading the AL in slugging, total bases, isolated power, home run percentage, home run per flyball ratio - all of them by fairly healthy margins.

In short, Canada's team has been beating the hell out of the ball and living large on the big flies this year. It's unlikely that they'll be able to keep up that pace. But the longer they can, the longer they'll keep from turning around and sliding down the standings. To that end, Fack Youk's favorite Canadian implores his nation's last remaining Major League club to keep taking opposing pitchers downtown.

Come on baby let's go downtown
Let's go, let's go, let's go downtown
Come on baby let me turn you around
I'll turn you, turn you, turn you around

[Song Notes: While we're clearly riffing on Young's Canadian heritage in linking this tune up with the Jays, the star of this song is really Crazy Horse guitarist and Georgia native Danny Whitten. Whitten is credited as the co-writer of this tune, and it's actually him, not Neil heard on lead vocals here. Whitten was an excellent foil to Young, providing critical guitar and vocal parts to some of Young's greatest work: "Cinnamon Girl", "Down By the River", "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere", "Cowgirl in the Sand", etc.

Unfortunately, Whitten also fell victim to heroin addiction. Whitten's problems with the drug prompted Young to dismiss the entirety of Crazy Horse midway through the recording of After The Gold Rush and to pen the beautiful tune "The Needle and the Damage Done". Whitten's addiction cost him his life in November 1972.

Young lost his friend Bruce Berry to an overdose less than a year later, and the two deaths were the inspiration behind Young's 1975 album Tonight's the Night. It is on that album that song above appeared, though the actual performance took place at New York's Fillmore East in March 1970.

And just for the hell of it, outfielder "Hard Hittin'" Mark Whiten made his Major League debut for the Blue Jays in 1990 and later played briefly for the 1997 Yankees]

-Lineups-

Sorry Fackers, no lineups today. It's another phone-it-in weekend. You know where to find them. It'll be Andy Pettitte and Ricky Romero in an all southpaw pitching match up.

Comes A Thames

Good morning Fackers. Ok, so it's "Comes a Time" not "Comes a Thames", but it's the a sweet song nonetheless. And it's the best I got this morning; still a little tired from last night's game.

Give me awhile to shake out the cobwebs and I'll tell you some stories about last night. Meanwhile, in honor of last night's hero, enjoy this one from Fack Youk's favorite Canadian.

This Film Should Be Played Loud!

On Thanksgiving night thirty three years ago, the focus of the music world was on the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. Luminaries from throughout the industry - Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Neil Young, Muddy Waters, Dr. John, Van Morrison, and others - joined The Band as they gave their final concert - The Last Waltz. It was a diverse collection of friends, mentors, and influences assembled to give a great group a proper sendoff.

Earlier that year, The Band - or more specifically The Band's guitarist Robbie Robertson - decided it was time to leave the road. So they decided to give one final concert, and invite Robertson's new buddy Martin Scorsese to film the whole deal. The result is one of the most legendary concerts of all time, and a film that is all at once the gold standard of concert films, a lasting - if disturbing - monument to Robertson's massive ego, and insight perhaps into just why The Band broke up. After Leo the Lion roared, signaling the opening of the MGM film, the sentence "This Film Should Be Played Loud!" appears on the screen.

Watching the film at some point over the weekend and listening to the CDs on my Thanksgiving morning drive to New Jersey has become a personal Thanksgiving Day tradition. So, in the event that anyone is looking to kill time this Thanksgiving, here are some performances from the film:



"Up On Cripple Creek", the concert's opening performance and one of The Band's most recognizable tunes




"It Makes No Difference", a beautiful song featuring the vocals of the late Rick Danko




"The Weight", easily The Band's most well-known and most widely-covered song. The concert performance didn't make the cut for the film. But a post-production performance was cut on a soundstage shortly after the concert. It features the fabulous Staples Singers, and Pops and Mavis really steal the spotlight on this one.




"Mannish Boy", with the legendary Muddy Waters. Just prior to the start of the song Scorsese had ordered all his cameramen to change film. One cameraman, fed up with Scorsese's incessant instructions, had long since removed his headphones. His was the only camera rolling during the performance and is the reason why the entire performance is a single shot.




"Further On Up the Road", with Eric Clapton. The strap on Slowhand's Strat gives out during his opening solo. Robertson astutely swoops in to grab the lead and keep things moving.




"Helpless", with Neil Young, and Joni Mitchell providing background vocals off stage. Drummer Levon Helm was the only non-Canadian involved in this performance. I imagine he was wondering why they didn't hold the concert on Canadian Thanksgiving the month before. Legend has it that Young had a huge clump of coke hanging in his nostril during this performance and that it was edited out during post-production.




"The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down", my favorite Band song, written about the war that was taking place when President Lincoln issued the proclamation that began an annual observance of Thanksgiving. This is easily the most powerful performance of the song that I've heard.




"Forever Young", with Bob Dylan. "The Band" existed as a band before they linked up with Bob Dylan, but they didn't become "The Band" until they met Dylan. They were with him for his foray into electric music, and it was Dylan who brought them to the hamlet of Woodstock, where Danko lived until his death and Helm still calls home.




"Don't Do It", the opening performance of the film was in fact the final performance of the night, and the final performance of "The Band" consisting of this line up. It's a Marvin Gaye song that The Band often covered, and covered well.

He Came Dancing Across The Water

One of my favorite people in Yankee history is Billy Martin. He was serving his fourth stint as Yankee manager when I attended my first Major League game, and was in his fifth and final go-round when I began following the team in earnest. In between, I can recall watching the ceremony on WPIX when the club retired his number. A few years later, after Martin died in a 1989 Christmas Day drunk driving accident, I began devouring books about the Yankees. Three of my favorites were Number 1, Billyball, and The Last Yankee, all Martin biographies.

These days I might dismiss Martin the player as the over-heralded, "scrappy" underdog that David Eckstein is too often made out to be, or Martin the manager as an irrational martinet, too often trying to put his fingerprints on the game, much the same way that Tony LaRussa is often criticized elsewhere or Joe Girardi was here over the course of the season.

But to the twelve year old me, reading those books, Martin was a captivating character. He was the undersized overachiever who fulfilled his dream by playing for the Yankees, elevated his play to another level in the World Series, stopped at nothing to win, and never backed down from a fight. What characterized Martin above all though, and perhaps what most drew me to him, was that more than anything else, he wanted - he almost needed - to be a Yankee.

While that skill set left Martin with a middling career as a journeyman infielder, it primed him for a mangerial career that was as volatile as it was successful, and now has him under consideration for induction to the Hall of Fame as a manager. Despite his well-documented butting of heads with George Steinbrenner and with his own players, Martin's smarts, daring, and insatiable desire to win made him a continually desirable managerial candidate, even in light of his paranoid and perpetually self-destructive behavior. It's also what kept him coming back to the Yankees over and over and over and over and over again.

Steinbrenner was perhaps the only person who could understand - if not commiserate with - Martin's maniacal obsession with winning at all costs. And while Martin enjoyed successful managerial stints with four other clubs, Steinbrenner needed Martin as his manager just as much Martin needed to be a Yankee. It was a bad relationship, but it was also the reason that Martin and Steinbrenner, both intensely proud individuals, repeatedly forgot their past problems in hopes that, this time, it would work.

I bring all this up because The Hardball Times' Chris Jaffe has a book being released in December: Evaluating Baseball's Managers. THT is publishing excerpts over the next several weeks and yesterday they had a lengthy look at Martin: why he was unique, why he was successful, and why his managerial stints necessarily had short shelf lives. It's a highly worthwhile read on a fascinating and complicated subject:

The man most comparable to Billy Martin was not Herzog, but Hernan Cortes, the Spanish conquistador who defeated the Aztecs. In 1519, he landed in Mexico to face the hemisphere’s mightiest warrior nation with only 600 men. Upon arrival, he burnt his boats, giving his men no way to leave. That move was pure Billy Martin. Safe to say, that in the military science version of sabermetrics a general would be poorly regarded for intentionally destroying his communication lines, supply routes and exit strategy. It was possibly even worse than having two men steal home with Killebrew batting.

However, like Martin, Cortes had an underlying rationale. The act was not the important part. All that mattered was the message it sent the men: there was no going back—they needed to win. He cared only about coming out on top and ensured his warriors must think likewise. They might lose and die, but with God as their witness no failure would stem from lack of effort on anyone’s part. That was Billyball, 16th century style.

You could have given me a hundred years and I wouldn't have come up with that comparison. See you tomorrow.

My Back Pages

We say this every morning in the form of the typical greeting, but today truly is a good morning, Fackers. The Yankees clinched their first playoff berth under Joe Girardi. Sure it had been a virtual inevitability for a good month or so, but it feels a lot different now that it's locked up. It didn't hurt that they won a back and forth game against a potential postseason opponent to do their part of it, either.

The Yankees did it the right way, and didn't go for the over-the-top champagne celebration, or really any celebration at all, actually. Joe Girardi gathered the team and simply said "Congratulations, and let's keep it going". He acted like he had been there before, even though he hadn't as a manager. You've gotta respect that.

Make no mistake, the reason that this is even remotely satisfying as fans is because of last year. Had the Yankees just clinched their 15 consecutive postseason berth, no one would have batted an eyelash. In '08, I remember watching the odds of the Yankees qualifying the playoffs dwindle down to 10 and then 5 percent and trying to talk myself into believing that a miraculous late surge, coupled with a Rays' collapse was in store. Needless to say, it was not.

A lot of the post season magic and luster was lost in 2004, but it wasn't until last year that the Yanks truly hit rock bottom. Simply playing out the string last September and watching the Old Stadium close down was humbling in ways that I didn't expect.

I think before that, most Yankee fans, especially my age, thought of a playoff bid as something of a birthright. The last time they actually missed the playoffs before '08 was 1993 (they were the best team in the AL in 1994 before the strike hit). I was 9 years old at that point and obviously wasn't yet a Saturday Package holder and a daily reader of Yankee blogs.

This year, it seems like a new experience. The twenty four months that have passed since the Yanks lost the Bug Game and were unceremoniously bounced three nights later by the Indians is an eternity in baseball years. The Yanks might not want to stop to enjoy this moment, but we will, at least momentarily. There are bigger and better things in store for this team, but the significance of this moment is not lost around these parts.

Game 135: The Long Road

Baseball's regular season is a long road. With the completion of game 135 tonight exactly five sixths of that road will be in the Yankees' rearview mirror. Also in the Yankees' rearview mirror is the entirety of the American League. They hold a 10.5 game lead on a playoff spot, a 7.5 game lead in the AL East, and 7 game lead for home field.

As such, the Yankees have the luxury of not having to put the pedal to the floor heading down the stretch. They didn't have to panic and make a deal for a brand name fifth starter at either trade deadline. They don't have to rush Sergio Mitre back after he took a liner off his arm last Saturday. They don't have to trot Mariano Rivera out to the mound while his groin is bothering him. They don't have to bend their already flexible rules as it pertains to Joba Chamberlain's innings and push him because they need to win games.

All of those factors will be in play tonight. Chad Gaudin, the swingman pitcher the Yankees acquired in place of a bigger named starter, spot started in place of Mitre last night and required 5.1 innings of relief from the bullpen. Mitre will start Sunday, on seven days rest and having pitched six innings just once in seven starts this year. Rivera, who did not throw his scheduled bullpen today, will be unavailable for the third consecutive game. And Joba Chamberlain will make his second consecutive start on regular rest but with a strict pitch and inning limit.

Last Sunday, Chamberlain was on a 50 pitch or 3 inning limit. He got through three on just 35 pitches. I haven't seen it posted anywhere yet, but I'd imagine that he'd be capped at about 60 pitches or 4 innings today.

The fact the Yankees even considered that Joba would reach 50 pitches prior to completing three innings speaks to how poorly he's pitched of late. Since throwing eight shutout innings against Tampa Bay on July 29th, Joba has made five starts to the tune of an 8.22 ERA and 2.00 WHIP. Opponents are batting .323/.414./500 off him during that time and he's walking a Bruney-esque 5.87 per nine. He's averaged 18.78 pitches per IP during that stretch, so a three inning start tonight is a distinct possibility. Yet the delusionary Joba still insists he's pitching well (see the 5:50 update). I'm hopeful that tonight he'll turn in a performance that a more discerning observer would deem acceptable.

Either way, the Yankees will likely need four to six innings from the bullpen tonight. With Gaudin having started last night, Mitre going Sunday, and Alfredo Aceves having thrown 2.1 innings last night, they're without their usual long relief options. My guess is that Mark Melancon will follow Joba for two or three innings, then it's anyone guess from there. With Mo being day-to-day they'll likely not use Phil Hughes for more than an inning. Thankfully even with Mo and Alf presumably unavailable, they'll still have nine men in the bullpen due to September call-ups, and six of them didn't pitch last night. It should be enough to get them through the weekend.

As for the Blue Jays, they'll also send a struggling starter to the mound. Roy Halladay was one of the big name starters the Yankees were rumored to be pursuing at the deadline. The Jays ended up overplaying their hand and held on to Halladay. A Cy Young candidate at the deadline, Halladay has been horseshit since, going 2-4 with a 4.71 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP since, as opponents are OPSing .860 off him. One of those losses came against the Yanks on August 4th, his second straight poor start against the Yankees. They'll look to hang another "L" on him tonight.

Derek Jeter and Nick Swisher get the night off, replaced by Ramiro Pena and Eric Hinske respectively. Johnny Damon slides up to the leadoff spot, and Hinske, interestingly, bats second.

Heading into Memorial Day weekend, the Yankees had a nine game winning streak going. I wrote this preview, featuring "Once" from Pearl Jam. The Yankees lost that night.

Heading into Fourth of July weekend, the Yankees had a seven game winning streak going. I wrote this preview, featuring "State of Love and Trust" from Pearl Jam. The Yankees lost that night.

Now we're heading into Labor Day weekend (or Labour Day for the Jays fans) and the Yankees have a seven game winning streak going. In an effort to prove how non-superstitious I am (or how stubborn and stupid I am), I'm going to roll the dice again.

"The Long Road" was originally written for Mirror Ball, the 1995 album from Fack Youk's favorite Canadian, Neil Young. Pearl Jam was his backing band for the album. "The Long Road" was one of two Eddie Vedder tunes that didn't make the final cut for the album, and were later included on Pearl Jam's EP Merkin Ball, considered a companion piece to Mirror Ball.

With the Yankees in Canada this weekend, hopefully this song's connection to the Canadian Young will bring a little better luck. And hopefully tonight Joba will pitch well, even if he cannot stay around for long. Either way, tonight's another step on the season's long road.



And I wished for so long,
I cannot stay,
All the precious moments,
I cannot stay,
It's not like wings have fallen,
I cannot stay,
Without you something's missing,
I cannot stay.

Pete Abe's Stealing Our Schtick

Just kidding. Pete appears to be every bit the music enthusiast we are, but I have to admit, he came up with one today that I had never heard of.

The whole Brill Building / Tin Pan Alley type stuff is sort of a forgotten part of American music history, but it was really the primary source of popular music between the first wave of rock and roll in the early to mid 1950s and the British Invasion led by the Beatles and the Stones in 1964.

In their farewell concert, The Last Waltz, The Band tried to pay tribute to all periods of their career, and by extension all facets of post-1950 popular music, by inviting guests to represent these different stages and genres. So even though he sticks out like a sore thumb in a game of "one of these things is not the like the others", that's why Neil Diamond is included amongst the likes of Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Neil Young, Ronnie Hawkins, Dr. John, and Muddy Waters.

Sorry for yet another music-centric post. I'm out of ideas at the moment and counting the minutes until the weekend gets here.

Game 112: Don't Let It Bring You Down

The concept of a "letdown game" or a "trap game" is not specific to baseball. If you're skeptical of the conventional wisdom/pop psychology that is so wildly prevalent in sports, then you won't be surprised by the fact that research into this phenomenon has actually shown that in the past 10 years in the NFL at least, there is no such effect.

Anecdotally, you can point to the 2003 World Series and say the Yankees were burned out after going 7 games against the Red Sox, but you could just as easily have said that about the Sox in 2004 except they swept the Cardinals in the Fall Classic and made it look easy. The same was true in 2007 when the ALCS went 7 games and the World Series ended in a sweep as well. Looking back to the "Boston Massacre" of 2006, the Yanks went on to lose 4 of their next 5, so should we be concerned that the Yanks might hit a rough patch coming out of the Sox series this time around? Yes, but it has nothing to do with the concept of a "letdown game".

First and most importantly, the Yanks are trotting out Sergio Mitre to a team that saw him only 5 days ago. Luckily, the Yanks escaped with a victory, but Mitre was shaky at best, allowing 3 runs on 8 hits in 4 1/3 IP while throwing 92 pitches. That outing actually brought his ERA down to 7.50 and he still has yet to have a start this year where he contributed a positive WPA to the team's chances. With Chad Gaudin now waiting in the wings and likely to have a chance to audition in long relief today, Mitre may be on the verge of getting bounced out of the rotation if he can't come up with a decent performance.

The Yanks are going to get another crack at Marc Rzepczynski as well, but the lefty was significantly better against the Yanks than Mitre against the Jays, even if his final pitching line doesn't tell that story. rZep struck out 7 in six innings and allowed only 6 baserunners, although four of them came around to score and only 3 did when he was on the mound. The 23 year old has pitched 33 2/3 innings this year to a 3.74 ERA. He might be a rookie but he's not a pushover, and the Yanks are going to have to have a strong showing at the plate to get to him.

A-Rod is back at 3rd tonight, Posada will be DHing and Jerry Hairston will be spelling Johnny Damon in left, as Hairston has better numbers against lefties than Damon this year, to say nothing of the upgrade in the field. Defense will be a significant factor tonight as Mitre tends to allow a lot of balls to be put in play. The downside of this arrangement is that Nick Swisher moves in to the two hole and the bottom three in the order are Hairston, Melky and Molina.

Another game against the Blue Jays brings another tune by the best Canadian songwriter I can think of. The Yanks are 7-2 against the boys from Toronto this season, 31 of their last 41 overall, have won 7 in a row and are hopefully ready to weather a start by Sergio Mitre and run the winning streak up to 8.

Don't let it bring you down,
It's only castles burning,
Find someone who's turning,
And you will come around.

Game 103: After The Gold Rush

The trade deadline came and went for the Yankees without much action. They traded for Eric Hinkse a while back, Jason Hirsh a couple days ago and picked up Jerry Hairston, Jr. today. But I think most fans were holding out hope that they could snag a solid reliever or back end starter as 4:00 came and went. Alas, they did not and will have to see who passes through waivers before they made a deal.

The White Sox on the other hand, came up with what was easily the most surprising deal of the trade deadline. They once again dealt for Jake Peavy, but this time he approved it. He is currently on the DL, but as long as both teams are okay with that and he passes a physical, it's fair game. Peavy is rehabbing an ankle injury and apparently won't be back until August 15th at the very earliest.

It came at a fairly significant cost, however. Part of the package was tonight's starter for the Sox, Clayton Richard. The 25 year old lefty had a 5.14 ERA in 136 2/3 Big Leauge IP, but his minor league numbers are pretty solid. In addition, his last two starts were phenomenal, both consisting of 8 innings of one run ball. Perhaps the Padres were intrigued by his recent dominance and that's what sparked the negotiations?

Instead of Richard, D.J. Carrasco will go for the Sox. He's made 34 appearances this year, none of them starts, and the longest was 3 2/3 innings on July 19 against the Orioles in mop-up duty. He made 20 starts for the Royals in 2005 and pitched to an ERA slightly below league average (92 OPS+). The Sox are throwing him out there for lack of a better option and the fact he pitched three nights ago means that he's probably on a fairly limited pitch count. It would seem their underbelly is exposed and it would be a good time for the Yanks' bats to strike.

The Bombers send their own liability to the mound tonight. Sergio Mitre has been fairly serviceable so far in his two starts, lasting 5 2/3 and giving up 3R in his first, while following a 4 run first inning in his second outing with 4 scoreless ones. Both of those gamed ended up in the win column, so I guess that means he was good enough, right?

Barring the acquisition of a player who passes through waivers, this is the team that the Yankees are working with for the rest of the year. Mark Teixeira thinks that's good enough to win with. A lot of that hinges on Mitre's ability to put together respectable starts. If he can hold a spot in the rotation, it will greatly temper the need for the Yanks to start pulling their bullpen apart to patch up the rotation.

Here we are, Fackers, coming around the back stretch. The Yanks struck it rich in July, going 18-8 so far. Let's close out the best month of the season in style.

I was lying in a burned out basement,
With the full moon in my eyes.
I was hoping for replacement,
When the sun burst through the sky.

Game 48: Ohio

Tin soldiers and Nixon coming,
We're finally on our own,
This summer I hear the drummin',
Four dead in Ohio.

[Yankee related sidenote: This song is about the infamous Kent State Massacre back in 1970. KSU is the alma mater of both Stick Michael and Ohio native Thurman Munson and the baseball field there is named in Michael's honor.]

While the Yankees were down in Texas this week, the Indians did a commendable service to everyone in the A.L. East, save from the Rays, that is. Heading into the series with a record of 17-28, the Indians pulled off a four game sweep which included a 7 run, 9th inning comeback, a dominant outing by Carl Pavano, overcoming a 5 run first inning defecit, and a mix and match pitchers duel where 4 hurlers combined to hold the Rays to one run. 

As it stands now, the Rays are tied for last place in the AL East and have lost much of the preseason shimmer that had carried over from their World Series run last year. Their "ace" Scott Kazmir has a 7.69ERA in 9 starts and is currently on the 15 day DL along with closer Troy Percival who was also quite ineffective (6.35ERA). They've scored the most runs in the AL, and as a result, their Pythagorean W-L record says they should be 28-22 instead of the 23-27 they find themselves at as opposed to last year, when they outperformed their run differential by 5 games.

The Indians are also underperforming their Pythag of 24-25, but that is clearly inflated by the 10-2 and 22-4 wins against the Yankees in their first meeting of the year. They are at 11-11 against the AL East, which is pretty impressive considering they are 10-17 against the rest of the league and they haven't even faced the Orioles yet!

Tonight's pitching match-up squares off lefties Cliff Lee and Andy Pettitte. It is the third such southpaw showdown the Yanks have been a part of in the past six days. 

Lee, last year's Cy Young Award winner stumbled out of the gate but has seemingly righted the ship. In his last eight starts he is averaging over 7 1/3 innings pitched and has a 1.86ERA. During that stretch, he lowered his ERA from 6.75 to 3.04. Pettitte, on the other hand has exactly one quality start in his past five outings, but despite all of that has a record of 4-1 as opposed to Lee's 2-4. Lee has already lost more games than he did all of last year - 3.

The most significant note for the Yankees is that Jorge Posada has returned to the line up. Amazingly, since he went on the DL on May 5th, the Yankees have gone 14-7, but he will be a welcome addition to the batting order, nonetheless. As Matt suspected, Kevin Cash has been optioned to Scranton to make room.

Yesterday morning, Joel Sherman had this to say about Jorge behind the plate:

Posada's defense has regressed in recent years, and we are not just talking about his throwing after shoulder surgery. Pitchers do not generally enjoy pitching to him for a variety of reasons, including his inadequacy at framing pitches and his sketchy game calling.

But the general point here is that the Yankees are playing a cleaner, crisper game than they have over the past few years. It is probably not coincidence that it happened with Posada out with injury.

No, Joel, it probably is just a coincidence. Welcome back, Jorge. Let's go Yanks. 

Game 36: Out On The Weekend

Think I'll pack it in and buy a pick-up,
Take it down to L.A.,
Find a place to call my own, and try to fix up,
Start a brand new day.

See the lonely boy, out on the weekend,
Trying to make it pay.
Can't relate to joy, he tries to speak and,
Can't begin to say.