Keeping The Slow March Towards The Weekend Moving

Well folks, after an off day and before a West Coast game, as the season starts to wind down and the playoff picture becomes increasingly clear, there simply isn't as much to write about, either for us or the beat writers. The minor league season is over, so now we get to hear about how C.C. Sabathia is happy that, unlike last year, he isn't being ridden like a rented mule. We also discover that Mark Melancon is here to "get outs and throw strikes". Riveting stuff.

We can't really complain because neither Matt nor I have any more original ideas to shape into posts that don't involve making fun of Brett Tomko (more on that below), so we are left to cobble together another afternoon link aggregation. It's a slow day and we're try to do our part to help move it along. Here we go:

Bernie Williams is a better player than Omar Sosa! No, Richard Dreyfuss didn't hijack my keyboard, they both are nominated for a Latin Grammy for "Best Instrumental Album", an award roughly as prestigious as being named the Best Lefthanded Middle Reliever in the Pacific Coast League.

Turns out the Yanks/Blue Jays brawl was a laughing matter.

Did you read about Brett Tomko's last start, a complete game shutout against the Rangers, and think it was too good to be true? Well, it was. He threw 114 pitches that night and couldn't move his arm the next morning. He's been shut down for the season. (h/t RAB)

As expected, there are some juicy tidbits in wife-swapper Fritz Peterson's possibly ironically-titled upcoming book "Mickey Mantle Is Going To Heaven", namely that the Yankee Clipper was "arrogant" and the Chairman of the Board doctored the ball. (h/t CTB)

The Yankees are being sued for age discrimination by waiters from ages 66 to 80 that worked at the Old Stadium but were turned away from jobs in the new one. From my experiences with the cocktail waitresses at Harrahs in Las Vegas, I'm going to have to side with the Yankees on this one.

Another breakdown of Andrew Brackman's season, this time from FanGraphs.

Maybe the Yankees won't be starting next year at Fenway after all.

After blowing the Red Sox vs. Angels game on Wednesday, the umps involved have filed a grievance against the Angels coaches, because, you know, they were the ones who being "unprofessional" not the umps who completely blew the call.

The Mets have to be better next year, right? RIGHT?

Recycling A Thirty-Six Year Old Bad Idea

Except this one somehow worked out...

Something referred to as "Brett Tomko" allegedly threw a complete game, 5 hit shutout last night. Against the Rangers. In Texas, knocking the Rangers 4.5 behind the Red Sox in the Wild Card. Multiple sources have confirmed this outlandish tale, however I remain skeptical and will be reviewing the game via MLB.tv shortly for anything suspicious.

Since picked up by the A's, The Artist has gone 4-1 with a 2.95 ERA in 6 starts with only one poor outing, striking out 22 while walking 6. I guess he had a right to be all bitchy about not being "given a fair shot".

It was his 100th career win, which might be somewhat impressive if he didn't have 102 losses.

Just to review, Tomko gave up 12 earned runs in 20.2 innings (5.23 ERA) with the Yankees, mostly in relief, which is theoretically easier than starting and had a tiny BABIP of .230. But since moving to Oakland and pitching solely in the rotation, 36 year old Brett Tomko, owner of a 92 career ERA+ has also given up 12 runs, but in 36.2 IP for an ERA two and a quarter runs lower. He's won 4 games for a team that has gone 13-13 over that time. Damn you Billy Beane!

If I was John Sterling, I'd say "I'll tell you what, that's why you just can't predict baseball!!11!" but instead I'll just pose the rhetorical question, "What the fuck?".

Hey Joe

Good morning Fackers. Well, at least as good of a morning as you can have after losing to Brett Tomko. Hey Joe: see if you can't wake the bats up for tonight's game.

Forty years ago, on the morning of August 18, 1969, the Woodstock Music & Art Fair finally came to an end. Traffic and weather delays had caused the festival to run long over schedule. The sun had already come up on Monday morning when Jimi Hendrix, who had wanted to be the event's final act, finally took the stage with his newly formed and short-lived Gypsy Sun and Rainbows.

The crowd had dwindled to less than half of its peak size, but those who remained were treated to one of the most historic performances in rock and roll history. Hendrix launched one of the longest sets of his career. The band was somewhat unpolished due to their short time together, forcing Hendrix to play the virtuoso moreso than usual. He didn't disapoint, drawing an appropriately impressive and memorable conclusion to the historic event.

Twice previously we've featured Hendrix performances from Woodstock, including once already this weekend. But as we conclude Woodstock Weekend at Fack Youk, it's only appropriate that we do so with the artist and the performance that closed the festival. Enjoy. We'll be back with far less pleasant music news shortly.

Quick But Not Painless

[Photos]

After Sunday afternoon's game, Matt chose to eat a little crow for what he wrote in the preview, and tonight it's my turn. I spent my post making fun of Brett Tomko for whining about he lack of opportunities with the Yankees this season and for tonight at least, he had the last laugh.

Tomko threw just 78 pitches in his start because he wasn't fully stretched out, but used them efficiently and pitched to contact over his 5 innings of work. He struck out one and walked one, getting the other 13 outs with the help of his defense; five on the ground and nine in the air.

The most influential play, by more than 10% in WPA, came in the third inning when Tomko faced his only real jam of the game. Ramiro Pena and Derek Jeter led of the inning with back to back singles, Johnny Damon flew out to right and Mark Teixeira loaded the bases with a walk. With only one out, A-Rod came to the plate in an extremely favorable RBI situation but instead grounded into an inning-end 1-2-3 double play. A-Rod let Tomko off the hook and the Yankees never got another man to third base.

A.J. Burnett took a complete game loss, his first CG of the year and the Yankees' second after CC Sabathia's outing in Detroit back in April. All of the damage the A's did came in the bottom of the fourth inning. Rajai Davis doubled, stole third and was singled home by Kurt Suzuki to break the scoreless tie. Jerry Hairston, Jr.'s brother Scott followed that with another single and those two were moved over by a groundout courtesy of Mike Sweeney. With two outs, Burnett started his delivery home but stopped in the middle of his delivery and held onto the ball. The runners advanced and Mark Ellis doubled into the gap to make it 3-0 A's.

Aside from the 4th inning, Burnett was one of he lone bright spots in a frustrating game for the Yanks. Over his 8 innings, he gave up six hits and two walks while striking out 5. It only took him 99 pitches and combined with the Yanks absence at the plate allowed the game to wrap up in a tidy 2:15. Jeter went 3-4 and Posada picked up a hit on his birthday.

There isn't a whole lot more to say about this one. A solid pitching performance was wasted by a non-existent offense one. The Yanks have been rolling along so well that it's easy to forget that a lot of the time, things don't go according to plan. The Yanks were supposed to beat up on Brett Tomko, but instead he made people momentarily forget that he's 36 years old and has had one year since 1997 in which he was above league average. Congrats, buddy. Go paint a fucking picture about it.

Game 119: Tears Of Rage

The Yankees' West Coast road trip continues tonight, with the first of three 10PM starts. Three of the games in the last series in Seattle had late starts as well, which kind of sucks for us back here on the East Coast, but apparently not for the team, as those were the three games the Yankees won against the Mariners.

After dropping Sunday's matinee with Joba Chamberlain on the hill, the Yanks look to reload with A.J. Burnett taking the ball this evening. Burnett's last start against the Blue Jays, which Matt and I witnessed from the upper deck, was technically a quality start, but only by the slimmest of margins. He went six innings and allowed three runs, but was lucky to do so as the Jays tallied up 10 hits and two walks while Burnett was charged with three (albeit questionable) wild pitches. He ultimately coughed up the lead in his last inning and received a no-decision.

Opposing the Yankees will be an artist with a vendetta. When the Yankees DFA'd Brett Tomko earlier this year, he voiced his displeasure with not being given enough opportunities to succeed with the Big League club:

I don't think I got a fair shot. I pitched great in spring training and didn't make the team. I pitched great in the minors, got called up and didn't get much of a chance. I understand other guys are pitching great. But it could have been different. I can't see the point in coming back.

This is amusing because Tomko had a 5.23 ERA in 20 2/3 MLB innings this year, tallied a K/BB ratio of less than 2:1 and gave up 5 HRs. Sure, his numbers in 14 innings at AAA were very good, but that should be expected from a 36 year old journeyman who has years if not a decade of experience on his competition at that level. The A's picked him up off the scrapheap for whatever reason and are trotting him out tonight even after his three appearances in Sacramento for them consisted of 5 2/3 IP, 9 hits and 5 earned runs.

The Yankees have a chance to prove Tomko is not deserving of a starting pitching gig in the Major Leagues when they face him tonight. Hopefully they give him something to really cry about.

We pointed you the way to go,
And scratched your name in sand,
Though you just thought it was nothing more,
Than a place for you to stand.

I want you to know that while we watched,
You discovered no one would be true,
And I myself was among,
The ones who thought,
It was just a childish thing to do.

Game 111: Built To Last

The Yanks look to put a cherry on top of this weekend's ice cream sundae, and not even the inane idiocy of Joe Morgan on tonight's ESPN telecast will spoil the collective high of the Yankee fan base right now.

Andy Pettitte gets the ball for the Yanks, and he's been on fire since the All-Star break: 2.36 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 29:7 K:BB, in 26.2 IP. He's 16-9 with a 3.76 ERA in 196.2 career IP against the Sox, but is 0-1 this year and has a bit of a score to settle with them. Pettitte outdueled the AL's best pitcher last time out, and his draw doesn't get much easier this time.

Jon Lester will try to salvage the series finale for the reeling Red Sox. Along with Josh Beckett, Lester is one of only two reliable starters the Sox have right now. After squandering Beckett's masterful performance Friday night, the Sox really need to capitalize on having Lester go tonight. He's 3-0 with a 3.43 ERA in six career starts against the Yankees, with one of those victories coming on April 24th this year. I look at those numbers and prefer to think that he's due for a loss rather than think that he dominates the Yanks.

In roster news, as expected, Josh Towers has been DFA'd to make room on the 40 and 25 man rosters for Chad Gaudin. Unlike douche bag Brett Tomko, Towers is handling his exit gracefully, saying he's happy the Yanks chose to call him up and that he's eager to get back to Scranton.

For the second time in three days, I'm choosing to go with the Grateful Dead. As I mentioned earlier in the week, last Saturday would have been Jerry Garcia's birthday. Today marks the 14th anniversary of his death. As such, it's been Jerry Week on Sirius XM's Grateful Dead Channel, and seeing as I've already logged close to a thousand miles behind the wheel this week, I've been listening to a lot of Dead.

The Yankees are playing with house money tonight. They've already won the series. They have a 5.5 game lead in the AL East, the largest lead they've had since the end of the 2006 season. They will wake up tomorrow morning up at least 4.5 games up with more than two thirds of the season in their rear view mirror. Things are looking a bit dire for the Sox right now, but only a foolish heart would be booking flights and hotels for October just yet. The tables sure have turned from when these teams last met in early June. The Yankees carried a one game lead into that series before getting swept. Things are looking much better right now. I just hope that this lead is built to last.



Don't waste your breath to save your face
When you have done your best
And even more is asked of you
Fate will decide the rest

All the stars are gone but one
Morning breaks here comes the sun
Cross the sky now sinking fast
Show me something built to last

A Few Pitching Moves

The excitement is building as we head towards the first pitch of Yanks-Sox Round 4. Jay will be back in a bit with the preview, meanwhile I'll be hitting the road momentarily so I can watch tonight's action in person.

In the meantime, here are few notes regarding the pitching situation:

The Yanks signed Russ Ortiz to a minor league contract yesterday (I'd link to Tyler Kepner's original Tweet on this, but apparently Twitter is being destroyed by cyber terrorists as we speak). I'm hopeful that this move is only to provide some depth for the beleaguered Scranton rotation. Ortiz was once a good pitcher, but hasn't been for quite some time now. Over the last five seasons, he's posted an ERA+ of 67 over 312.2 innings, almost all of which were spent in the weaker hitting National League. I'm no fan of Sergio Mitre, but if this is the alternative, I say keep running Sergio out there.

In another move yesterday, Paul Byrd, who we pegged as a target Tuesday morning, signed a minor league deal with the Red Sox yesterday. Byrd finished last season with them and Ken Rosenthal has indicated Byrd could be Big League ready by September 1. Knowing Rosenthal, that probably means September 1st of 2010.

Old friend Brett Tomko, who I jokingly identified as a 5th starter candidate Tuesday, signed a minor league deal with Oakland. I'm sure Billy Beane and Bob Geren will treat him far, far better than then mean old Yankees.

And just for the hell of it since I forgot to mention them Tuesday- Tom Glavine and El Duque are both available. Neither has thrown a Major League pitch this year (El Duque hasn't since 2007), but these are two guys I've thoroughly enjoyed watching through the years. Unfortunately either would get lit up like a Christmas tree pitching in the AL East.

Slim Pickings

Good morning Fackers. The Sergio Mitre Show doesn't take to the hill again until tomorrow night, but I'm plum out of ideas for this morning, so we're gonna get after it a day early. It's only been three starts, but it's looking increasingly obvious that Mitre isn't the answer for the fifth starter spot. That the Yankees used yesterday's off day to shuffle their rotation and keep Mitre from facing Boston speaks volumes as to just how tenuous his grasp on the job is.

Brian Cashman has until August 31st to pick up another starter through a waiver deal, but as Joe at RAB has pointed out, there might not be a lot available that way.

So what are the options amongst the currently unemployed? As you might imagine, they're not too appealing. These guys are the unemployed - or as Homer Simpson called them in Mr. Plow episode, the unemployable - for a reason. (Unfortunately I can only find the clip here, and it's in Spanish - jump to the 8:10 mark - and for the record Fack Youk does not condone copyright infringement, even if it is a crappy overdubbed video.) Here's what's out there:

• Paul Byrd: In semi-retirement, the former porn addict and HGH enthusiast has not pitched all year. Probably not a good idea. But, he was with the Red Sox last year, so maybe he knows their signs. If nothing else, maybe he could help Godzilla overcome his addiction.


• Sir Sidney Ponson: By now I'm sure you've heard that the Round Mound of Throwdown has been DFA'd by the Royals. Look, if you can't pitch for the Royals, then you can't pitch (I'm looking at you Tomko). This would be Ponson's third stint with the Yankees. That would be like a Hollywood studio making one really shitty movie, then making another really shitty sequel to it, then inexplicably making a third movie in that series. In an unrelated story, Fast and Furious was released on DVD last Tuesday. I bet Jared Remy is totally jacked up about that.


• Daniel Cabrera: Nevermind. The D-backs signed him yesterday. Probably a good thing it was them and not the Yanks. Although, he would probably knock A.J. Burnett out of the AL lead for BBs. That reminds me, Victor Zambrano is also out there, and there have been rumors that TB was shopping Scott Kazmir. Maybe lightning will strike twice.


• Elmer Dessens: He's not really a starter anymore. The Mets DFA'd him last week. Much like the Royals, if you're getting DFA'd by the Mets, you may want to consider another line of work.


• Brett Tomko: Oh if only poor Brett wasn't treated so badly during his two and a half months of drawing a Major League paycheck from the Yankees in exchange for pitching like garbage. If only. He could easily fill this fifth starter void, but there's no way he'll come back after the indignities he suffered. Who's laughing now Yankees? Maybe you'll be nicer to the next mediocre journeyman pitcher on your roster. At the very least it might have gotten you in good with Mrs. Tomko.


• Julian Tavarez: DFA's by the Nats. Ugh. Worse than KC, worse than the Mets. Would significantly increase the crazy quotient in the clubhouse though.

I sure hope something halfway decent creeps across the waiver wire.

Link Lineup

Here are a couple of links to help move you towards gametime in an orderly manner:

Tim Marchman identifies that Joba Chamberlain is actually a better pitcher when he is inducing more flyballs. He wonders if the Yankees could try to teach him to pitch that way, but I don't think that would be the wisest move for a right hander pitching in the New Yankee Stadium.

Is Yogi Berra a "Black Swan" of baseball? (h/t BBTF)

You probably already knew that Tony Bernarzard was batshit insane, but this really takes the cake...

The Binghamton Mets clubhouse nearly turned into a scene out of WWE Raw recently, when VP for player development Tony Bernazard removed his shirt and challenged the Double-A players to a fight during a postgame tirade, multiples sources told the Daily News.

Cliff from Bronx Banter told you "the Serg might work".

Brett Tomko is upset by his demotion:

"I don't think I got a fair shot," he said. "I pitched great in spring training and didn't make the team. I pitched great in the minors, got called up and didn't get much of a chance. I understand other guys are pitching great. But it could have been different. I can't see the point in coming back."

Obviously, Matt was not.

Ever wonder what the differences between John Dewan's +/- system and UZR are? Get it from (one of) the horse's mouths.

The Shyster wonders about the potential ramifications of DNA testing in the Dominican are, and once you read a couple of them, it might make rethink whether or not it's such a good idea.

It's "probably unliklely that Roy Halladay will be dealt"? Shocker. Thanks for nothing, Rosensquirrel.

"A-Rod"... "Clutch"... in the SAME HEADLINE?!??1!?

More details on the epic 1926 tilt between the Hebrews and the Klan.

"Pro Surf Championship to be held in Hal Streinbrenners hair in 2010"

A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Mop-Up Man

Good morning Fackers. We have much to be thankful for this AM: another day on planet Earth, the wonder that is Mo, a one game lead in the AL East, a five game winning streak, a victory in a game started by Sergio Mitre, daytime baseball on the horizon to carry you through the afternoon, and a potential second consecutive series sweep.

But here's what I'm most jazzed up about today: to make room for Mitre on both the 40 and 25 man rosters, Brett Tomko was designated for the assignment. Not only am I happy about this because it was best move for the team, but also because it's a progressive move. Though both David Robertson and Mark Melancon have options, the organization rightly decided they both offer a better chance to win than Tomko. That may not seem like such a revelation, but it didn't appear that decisions were being made like that earlier in the year. For the most part, the dead weight that cluttered the roster at the end of May is now gone.

The question remains though, how did Brett Tomko, he of a career ERA+ of 92, manage to last on the New York Yankees roster for two and a half months? Some have suggested a conspiracy theory: does Brett Tomko have compromising pictures of someone in the front office?

Well we at the Fack Youk Action News Investigative Reporting Team have been trying to crack this case for weeks and now, just as Tomko is leaving town, we have a major breakthrough.

Tomko's skills as an artist have been well documented. Earlier this season, Phil Hughes commissioned him to paint an action portrait of him. Last week, loyal reader and commenter A-Train suggested that either Brian Cashman or Joe Girardi may be a fan of Tomko's art work. Turns out the A-Train was on to something.

Fack Youk has learned that a member of the Yankees front office employed Tomko to paint an erotic portrait of him as an anniversary gift for his spouse. The employee ensured that Tomko remained in the Yankees' employ until the work was finished. Now that it is complete, Tomko has been let go, becoming the second artist to be evicted from Yankee Stadium in the last week.

Interestingly enough, this is not the first time that high ranking Yankee front office member has been ensnared in such a scandal.

I can only hope such a photo surfaces of Mrs. Tomko. I'll miss her far more than Brett.

News And Notes

While Jay and I were busy enjoying the weekend, there were some noteworthy tidbits coming out of Yankeeland.

First and foremost, Sergio Mitre will get the start against the O's tomorrow night. In nine minor league starts this year, Mitre is 4-1 with a 2.32 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP as he rehabs from Tommy John surgery. That's that good news. The bad news is that in 310.2 MLB innings since 2003, Mitre has a 5.23 ERA in the NL (81 ERA+) and a 1.55 WHIP. This is not a long term solution to the fifth starter spot.

To make room on the 40 man roster, Xavier Nady will likely be moved to the 60 day DL. Candidates to be moved off the MLB roster would have to be Mark Melancon and David Robertson, who both have options, or Brett Tomko who is on a Berroa-like streak of bullet-dodging.

Meanwhile, Alf Aceves and Phil Hughes, both superior hurlers to Mitre, remain in the pen where they continue to mow down opposing batters (or is that "Mo down opposing batters"?). Apparently the team has figured it better to play Russian Roulette for five innings every five days rather than for one or two innings each time through the rotation. At this point I've resigned myself to Hughes being in the pen for the remainder of 2009.

On a semi-related note, Brian Cashman is sending strong indications that the Yankees will not be a player for Roy Halladay as the deadline approaches. I support this position, though admittedly it could be tactical posturing on Cash's part. If the Yankees aren't going to pursue Halladay, that's one less option to sure up the rotation. Unfortunately, I don't think Mitre nor Chien-Ming Wang - who begins a throwing program today - is the answer for this year.

Damaso Marte is continuing his rehab with the GCL Yankees. He made his second appearance Saturday, this time throwing a perfect inning and striking out two batters.

HOPE Week begins for the Yankees today. The organization seems to have been more heavily involved than usual in charities and community outreach this year, and that's a great thing.

Jay will be back with tonight's preview shortly.

Morning News and Notes

Good morning Fackers, and Happy Friday to you. Not only is the work week nearly over, but our extended All-Star Break sabbatical has finally reached its end. Yankee baseball returns tonight; time to get back to business around here. Here are a few news items to start you off this morning:

Missing Man Damaso Marte has officially begun his rehab assignment. He started for the Gulf Coast League Yankees last night, allowing two hits and an earned run in his inning of work. Not exactly what you'd want to see from a Major League veteran facing Rookie League competition, but right now it's about Marte getting his work in, not necessarily the results. His rehab clock is officially ticking now. Barring further injury, which is a never a sure thing with Marte, he'll be back within 30 days. Mr. Tomko, please prepare to pack your bags.

Via Rob Neyer, Jeremy Sandler of The National Post reports that Dick Scott, Blue Jays' Director of Player Development, was scouting the Tampa Yankees this week. Sandler then proceeds to pull out his jump to conclusions mat and state the the Jays are likely scouting the Yanks' prospects for a potential Roy Halladay deal:

One Tampa Yankee prospect Toronto might look at is catcher Jesus Montero, New York's second-best prospect according to Baseball America. The 19-year-old is hitting .356 with eight home runs and 37 RBIs in 48 games at Single-A this season.

Well that's great Mr. Sandler, they should scout Montero, except he's been with AA Trenton for more than a month now. I thought that silly things like "checking your facts" was what "real journalists" were taught in school.

George Steinbrenner made an appearance at the Yankees Minor League Complex yesterday. The article doesn't contain any direct quotes, but implies that he did address the media in some way. To my knowledge, this was Steinbrenner's first public appearance of the year. I'm actually a little surprised by it.

The Yankees' contract with international free agent The Artist Formerly Known as Damian Arredondo has been voided because the player in question is not in fact "Damian Arredondo" nor is he 16 as believed. This is just further evidence as to how seedy and corrupt the Latin American free agent process is.

Back with more later on.

Bullpen Help Coming

As we noted in yesterday's recap, Joe Girardi burned through five of his seven relievers yesterday - but boy, he sure matched up well in doing so. Trotting out a spot starter with a 65 pitch limit is a recipe for a long day for the bullpen, but needing five pitchers to cover 5.2 innings seems a bit much to me.

Regardless, the Yanks head to Anaheim tonight and send Joba Chamberlain to the hill. Chamberlain has averaged less than five and a third innings over his last six starts and has needed an unmanageable 17.3 pitches per IP this year. So this isn't exactly the best night to be carrying a fatigued bullpen, particularly when the only rested pitchers in the pen are a struggling Brian Bruney and a Brett Tomko-like Brett Tomko. I didn't think it was possible to be short on arms with a seven man pen, but apparently it is.

To that end, Girardi hinted during yesterday's post-game that an arm might be on the way. Last night, indespensible Scranton beat writer Chad Jennings reported that Mark Melancon will rejoin the Yankees today (h/t RAB).

Melancon was up briefly earlier this year, making four appearances covering 3.1 IP. He wasn't good, allowing two hits, five walks, and two earned runs. In his final outing he walked all three batters he faced. That said, this move is long overdue. Melancon has been dominating the International League, with a 2.50 ERA and 0.86 WHIP in 39.2 IP. His K/9 is 9.5 while his BB/9 is just 2.0.

Unfortunately the pitcher who should go is one of the few fresh arms in today's pen, so Tomko gets yet another stay of execution. Jonathan Albaladejo and David Robertson both have options, so they would seem likely candidates for demotion.

However, between his 43 pitches Sunday and his 65 yesterday, Alfredo Aceves is spent until after the All-Star break. He too has options. While his performance certainly warrants continued presence on the Major League roster, he may be the best choice to farm out at present. Whoever is optioned out will have to stay down for at least ten days. Aceves is spent for the next three, then comes the three day All-Star break, followed by an off day next Thursday. Sending Aceves down will really only cost the Yankees his presence for three games while keeping the bullpen at full strength for this weekend's series. Plus, it looks increasingly likely that Aceves will be the new fifth starter. Sending him down today will allow him to make another minor league start or two to build endurance before the Yankees need him on the 21st.

We'll update on you the official move once it happens, which likely won't be until just before game time.

Twin Killing

In tonight's game preview, we detailed the Yanks four game sweep of the Twins in May. Despite the four game sweep, the Yanks run differential for the series was only +5 and they required three walk-off wins. Tonight, they continued beating the Twinkies, and this time did so far more handily.

The Yanks scored early and often, scoring in three of the first four innings to take a 5-1 lead, and tacking on five more in the sixth to put the game far out of reach. Derek Jeter led off the game with a single and was later plated on a Hideki Matsui single. In the second, Robinson Cano led off with a double, moved to third on a Brett Gardner infield single, and scored on a Frankie Cervelli sac fly. They then added another run as Gardner scored on a Mark Teixeria base hit.

CC Sabathia gave a run back in the bottom of the inning on a Michael Cuddyer solo shot. But the Yankees chased Scott Baker in the fourth, adding two more runs. Carlos Gomez robbed Alex Rodriguez of a grand slam hauling in a drive that was ticketed to land over the fence. A-Rod had to settle for a sac fly, and a bases loaded walk from Nick Swisher forced in the Yankees' fifth run.

In the sixth, the Yanks ended the game for all intents and purposes, and all the damage was done with two outs. Robinson Cano finally broke his twenty-plus RISP oh fer, dropping a broken bat single into centerfield to score Teix and A-Rod. Brett Gardner followed with a two run triple scoring Swisher and Cano, then Cervelli ripped a double off the leftfield fence, to plate Gardner and close out the scoring.

The entire Yankee offense was great. Every starter had at least one hit, Cano and Cervelli had two each, Gardner three, and Teix four. Five of the starters drew walks, including two each from Matsui and Swisher. With the big lead, Damon, Jeter, and A-Rod all got the late innings off, saving them from the turf.

The Cuddyer homer was the only blip on the radar screen for Sabathia, as he rebounded from last Thursday's poor start. He needed 100 pitches, 68 of them strikes, to get through 7 innings. He allowed just three hits and a walk, and struck out three. He didn't allow more than a single baserunner in any inning. The big lead made it safe for Brett Tomko to close out the last two innings, but not before allowing the second Twins run in the eighth.

Posada Gets The Pie

The Yanks added another walk-off win today, as Jorge Posada's 12th inning base hit plated A-Rod to end the long afternoon. Joba Chamberlain and A.J. Burnett tag-teamed the traditional pie in the face as Kim Jones interviewed Posada. He probably choked them both out with his urine soaked hands following the interview.

CMW was sharp through five, ran into trouble in the sixth, and then left with a shoulder issue. He was sent for an MRI. Pete Abe reports Wang is headed for the DL and will be out about a month. This could be a blessing in disguise. Another DL stint could allow Wang a full rehab assignment this time, provided the organization doesn't screw it up again, and hopefully allow him to work out the kinks against minor league comptetion. Abe further speculates the neither Aceves nor Hughes will take Wang's turn on Thursday. Nady can be moved to the 60 day DL to open a 40 man spot for someone (Sergio Mitre?) to start.

The bullpen, outside of David Robertson, was great today, with Brian Bruney, Phil Hughes, Mo, Phil Coke, and even Brett Tomko combining for 6 innings of scoreless work.

Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, and Posada all homered. Robbie Cano had another brutal day, going 0 for 6, running his RISP hitless streak to 20 at bats, and missing a sign in the twelfth leading to an ill-advised bunt attempt on a 3-0 pitch.

If you're watching the tube tonight, YES will be airing both the Lou Gehrig Yankeeography and Dave Righetti's 7/4/83 no-hitter.

I've been in Jersey all day with family, watching the game and playing whiffle ball. Good times. We're not quite in Asbury Park, but it's the Fourth of July, and it's close enough.

Say Goodbye It's Independence Day

Good morning Fackers. Today is a day for celebration, and not just because the Yanks notched a needed win last night. Our long national nightmare is over. Sixty days after he was added to the roster, and nearly seven weeks after he'd outlived whatever usefulness he offered, Angel Berroa was finally designated for assignment last night when Cody Ransom was activated.

Berroa made it into 21 games in his Yankee career, amassing 24 plate appearances and hitting .136/.174/.182, good for an OPS+ of -6. That's negative six. He is now .228/.270/.318, 52 OPS+ over his last 796 Major League PAs.

In the field he was ostensibly A-Rod's back-up at third, even though A-Rod has started all but five games there since his return. Berroa logged 63 innings at third, or 62 and 2/3 more than his career total entering the season. In his time there, he made 3 errors, good for a fielding percentage of 0.880 and a UZR/150 of -34.5. Once again, that's negative thirty-four point five.

From May 5th until spelling A-Rod this past weekend, he played in just 11 games, had only 5 PAs, and played just 18 innings in the field. Yet the team considered him more valuable than any of the other options at their disposal.

How and why he lasted that long is beyond me. It confounds me to even ponder why. Boggles the mind. Stupifies. Befuddles. Flabbergasts. The best I can come up with is the following list of National Independence Days:

June 12 - Philipines
June 17 - Iceland
June 26 - Madagascar
June 29 - Seychelles
June 30 - Democratic Republic of the Congo
July 1 - Canada, Burundi, Rwanda
July 3 - Belarus
July 4 - USA
July 5 - Algeria, Cape Verde Islands, Venezuela
July 6 - Malawi

There it is. Within two weeks in either direction of Berroa's release fourteen different nations celebrate their independence. Caught up in the spirit, the Yankees wanted to give us fans a holiday of our own in that time. So thank you Yankees. Thank you for thinking of us, and potentially sacrificing victory over the past several weeks so that we can now observe Angel Berroa DFA Day every June 24th, celebrating our independence from Berroa's tyranny of epic suckitude and worthlessness.

Four weeks ago I went on a diatribe about what I felt was the dead weight on the Yankee roster. Of the five players I highlighted in that post, Wang is moving back towards respectability and three are now off the roster. You're next Tomko.

The Yankees have ten days to waive, trade, or release Berroa. If they were able to move Jose Veras for cash considerations, what can they get for Berroa? Loose change?

Another Series Lost

Last year on Father's Day, Yankees ace Chien-Ming Wang suffered a lis franc injury in an interleague game against the Houston Astros. He was lost for the season, and in some ways he is still lost. This year on Father's Day, CC Sabathia struggled through his first inning of work. Two batters into the second inning, Sabathia was removed with tightness in his left bicep. At present, it doesn't appear to be serious and CC says he'll make his next scheduled start on Frday. However, with the Yankees in a two week skid, the last thing they need is an injury to their best starting pitcher. Sabathia's early exit is at least cause for some concern.

The Yankees needed to get six and two thirds innings out of their bullpen today, and did so with mixed results. Easing the pain a bit is that everyone will get a day of rest with tomorrow's off day. But with Wang scheduled to start on Tuesday, the Yankee bullpen may need to be on early stand by again.

Alfredo Aceves relieved Sabathia, and Alf continued his impressive 2009 campaign, turning in 2.2 IP of one hit ball, with 2 Ks. He was relieved by Brett Tomko, who offered no relief at all. Entering the game with a two run lead, Tomko gave up a two out home run in both of his innings pitch, In the fifth, Hanley Ramirez launched a long two run shot to left to tie the game. Then in the sixth, Cody Ross blasted an ever deeper shot to left to give the Fish a lead they wouldn't relinquish.

Phil Coke and David Robertson combined to pitch the seventh. Coke retired the leadoff batter, then gave up a base hit as the top of the order came around. D-Rob came in and promptly recorded the second out. Following a walk to Hanley Ramirez, the Marlins struck for two out runs in the third consecutive inning. Robertson hung a 1-2 curveball that Jorge Cantu laced for base hit to leftfield. A great throw from Melky Cabrera could have ended the inning at the plate. Instead he uncorked a bad one that tailed far enough up the third base line that it eluded both Jorge Posada and David Robertson, allowing the sixth and final Marlin run to score. It would prove to be decisive.

On the offensive side, the Yankees had another listless afternoon. They plated three runs in the third with a two out rally, to take an early 3-1 lead. Derek Jeter beat an infield single that was followed by a Nick Swisher walk. Mark Teixeira drove Jeter in with a double, then A-Rod broke his 0 for 16 slump by driving both Swish and Teix in.

The Yankees managed only one more hit until the ninth. Once again, the action came with two outs. Jorge Posada singled on a liner to rightfield, then moved to third on a seeing-eye single from Melky Cabrera. Brett Gardner then drove a triple deep to right center, cutting the deficit to a single run. Johnny Damon pinch hit for Robertson and worked a walk to put the go-ahead run on base, but Derek Jeter grounded the first pitch he saw to shortstop to end the game.

It was a frustrating loss, which has become a theme over the last two weeks. I'm not about to lose my head over a rough stretch in June. But, I hope the team isn't falling back into the funk they were in for much of the early part of the season. Things happen; sometimes a team will drop a series to a team it should beat. But, losing back-to-back series to the Nats and Marlins is not good. Here's hoping the off day tomorrow will give the team a chance to recharge their batteries and start fresh against the Braves on Tuesday.

Back on Track

The Yankees got back on track last night, momentarily at least. When you get RBI doubles from Angel Berroa and Andy Pettitte it's hard not to win.

More encouraging than his batting though was Pettitte's pitching. Since his back locked up on him in Cleveland on May 29th, Pettitte had turned in three consecutive lackluster starts in which he seemed to battle himself constantly. Last night, Pettitte pitched smooth and easy. While Joe Girardi and trainer Steve Donahue did visit the mound early on, Pettitte showed no ill effects: 7 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER ,0 BB, 7K and throwing 66 of his 108 pitches for strikes. Pettitte was followed by perfect innings from both Brian Bruney and Brett Tomko.

The offense also got it going after several listless performances. Every starter registered at least one hit, with the top four hitters in the order. Derek Jeter, Johnny Damon, Mark Teixeira, and Jorge Posada, all collecting two each. Melky Cabrera hit a rare righthanded home run, just the seventh of his career.

Starter Sean West lasted only 4 innings, giving up 5 ER on 10 H. He entered the game with too few K/9, too many BB/9 and unsustainably low BABIP against. The correction for which I thought he was due came to pass, and for once at least, the Yankees were able to touch up a previously unseen rookie starter. For one night everything seemed back the way it should be for the Yanks. They'll look to build on it tonight.

A Frustrating Afternoon

In yesterday's game preview, I theorized that Saturday's game couldn't possibly be sloppier than Friday's. It may not have been worse, but it was just as ugly. And to make matters worse, this time there was no deus ex machina to deliver the Yankees a last minute win.

Andy Pettitte struggled again. Following Joba Chamberlain's lead from the night before, he needed 104 pitches to get through just five innings, including 23 in the first and 31 in the second when Pettitte reportedly had trouble breathing. He exited having surrendered 12 hits and 5 ER.

Equally as frustrating, the offense was unable to get anything going against Fernando Nieve, further fueling the theory that the Yankees struggle against unknown pitchers. True or not, Nieve cruised through 6.2 innings, allowing only six base runners and surrendering just two runs.

Perhaps the only silver lining was Jose Veras' two scoreless innings of mop-up work. He struck out two and even managed not to walk anyone. You have to figure either Veras or Tomko will be DFA'd when Bruney is activated within the next few days. Based on their most recent performances as well as past history, I think Veras should have a leg up.

In the end, it was a bad Saturday. What I thought would be a nice day featured a steady and consistent rain. What I hoped would be a bounce back start for Pettitte turned into the latest in a string of bad ones. What I thought should have been an easily winnable game turned into an exercise in frustration.

We'll back later as the Yankees try for two the hard way in attempting to take the series against Johan Santana.

A Win Is A Win

(Castillo picture from NY Daily News, all others via AP)

Well it wasn't pretty. It wasn't even something you're likely to see again. But a win is a win. And coming off three stomach punch losses against the Sox, an ugly loss to the Mets would have been far worse than a cheap win. The lasting memory of this game will be Luis Castillo dropping A-Rod's would-be game ending pop up. But there was far more to the story than that.

Joba Chamberlain turned in a bad start, no two ways about it. He needed just 31 pitches to get through the first two innings, allowing just one base runner. But, only 16 of those pitches were for strikes. It would foreshadow problems to come.

Chamberlain allowed two runs in the third without allowing a hit: BB, FC, BB, HBP, BB, K, HBP. He threw 43 pitches for the inning, just 23 strikes. In the fourth Chamberlain retired the first two batters, walked the next two, then managed to get out of it. But it cost him 26 more pitches, only half of them strikes. He was done.

Chamberlain has had problems getting deep into games this year, and on a night when the team could have used some length from their starter, he burned through 100 pitches in four innings, just 52 of them for strikes. Not quite Burnett-esque, but certainly not acceptable. After seemingly make a leap forward against Cleveland nearly two weeks ago, this marks two mediocre starts in a row. All that, coupled with the poor bullpen performance the last two nights will only provide ammunition to those who want Chamberlain back in the pen. I can't wait for the impending assault on common sense.

What's worse, Joba's early exit made way for Brett Tomko. Despite his craptasic track record, Tomko entered the game having been fairly effective in 2009. His carriage turned back into a pumpkin tonight. Another major fielding miscue by Nick Swisher, which inexplicably wasn't scored an error, didn't help Tomko, but it certainly wasn't the main cause of his demise. His final line: 0.2 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, highlighted by a mammoth Gary Sheffield home run just inside the left field foul pole. Suddenly Tomko's 2.53 ERA is 5.56. By the time Girardi sent David Robertson in to relieve him, the Yanks were down 6-3.

As often happens at Yankee Stadium, the long ball kept the Yankees in the game. The first four Yankee runs came on a second inning solo shot from Robinson Cano, a two run homer from Mark Teixeira in the third, and a fifth inning solo shot from Derek Jeter. Then in the sixth, Hideki Matsui welcomed just-recalled Jon Switzer back to the Majors by launching his third pitch into the right field mezzanine to give the Yankees a 7-6 lead. Matsui hit a game winning grand slam on his 34th birthday, but the three run shot on his 35th was just as big.

In the seventh, the Yankees conceded the tying run in exchange for a double play. The score was still tied with two outs in the eighth, when Girardi summoned Mariano Rivera to face the formidable duo of Carlos Beltran and David Wright. Rivera issued just his third walk of the season to Beltran, who then scored the go-ahead run on a Wright double.

I don't particularly have a problem with bringing Rivera in here. Given his age and off-season surgery he should be handled carefully, but on principle I have no issue with using him to get one out in the eighth inning when the Mets have their two best hitters coming up. What I do question however is what made Friday's game more important than Thursday's? I can appreciate not wanting to tax Rivera for six outs on Thursday. However, from a leverage standpoint, there was far more on the line Thursday, in a division game, with a one run lead, the bases loaded, no one out, and the number three hitter due. I'd rather use my best reliever in that spot (and have a lesser pitcher go in the ninth if necessary) than in a tied interleague game with the bases empty and two outs. Maybe it's second guessing on my part, but it appears to me to be inconsistent decision making.

Regardless, the score remained tied into the Yankees trailed by one in the bottom of the ninth. Brett Gardner, the number nine hitter led off, leading me to believe that Johnny Damon's assorted ailments would leave him on the bench for the remainder of the night. Gardner popped out, and as Jeter stepped into the box, Damon entered the on-deck circle to hit for Nick Swisher.

This one makes even less sense to me. You're down to three outs and you let the worst hitter in your line-up lead off the inning, then use your pinch hitter on a guy who's OPSing at .930?!?! Look, I know Swisher has made some terrible mistakes both in the field and on the bases the past few days. But if you're going to send him a message, sit him down from the first pitch, don't start when the game is on the line. Michael Kay suggested Swisher's 1 for 11 career numbers against K-Rod, but an 11 at bat sample size shouldn't dictate such a decision. If so, Damon should have been saved for A-Rod, who after the E4 is now 1 for 15 against K-Rod.

In the end, right or wrong, it worked. The Yankees won, and that's a very good thing. Another deflating loss would have been very tough to bear. I certainly didn't want to start my weekend that way. It's nice to be back in the win column. And after getting shut down by MLB's second most obnoxious closer the last two nights, it was nice touch up the reigning champion tonight. Unfortunately for K-Rod, blown saves can't be tagged on a second baseman.