No Run Support For The Moose

Got to keep it short tonight. We're having problems connecting to the Internet at home so I'm at my in-laws throwing up a quick blog. That's the main reason why I didn't get a post up after yesterday's game. Moose pitched pretty well tonight. Definitely well enough to pick up his 11th win. Unfortunately for Moose, the offense just didn't come through with enough runs. It was a well pitched game by both sides. Didn't see that coming. I thought Moose definitely had the upper hand tonight. I thought for sure he'd keep the Rangers off the bases, which he pretty much did. I'm a little surprised that the Yanks couldn't get it going offensively. I thought they had a come back in 'em. I was wrong.

I'm bummed whenever Moose loses, especially when he pitches well. I would love nothing more than to see him reach the 300 win mark. They have to give him the run support. The offense is in a little bit of a funk right now. 1 run on 4 hits in each of their last 2 games. This offense should be able to score more than that, especially against a team like the Rangers. A head shaker indeed.

At least the Sox lost tonight. I'd love to see them get swept by the Rays. That would make me laugh. Sox fans are an extremely arrogant bunch right about now. They deserve to get knocked down a peg or two. It must be killing them to be referred to as the second place Boston Red Sox. That has a nice ring to it. The 3rd place Boston Red Sox sounds better though. A Rays sweep followed by a Yanks sweep would be mighty nice. The Yanks just need to take the next two from Texas. Let's get the bats in gear!!

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Just Checking In

I didn't see a lot of today's game. I dozed off right after it started. I woke up and it was 2-1. Not bad. I saw Cano make it 3-1 and then had to step out. I caught Wright's HR to make it 3-2, and then had to get my son ready for bed all by my lonesome b/c the missus was at her parent's house taking care of her 92 year old Grandmother while her folks went out. I finally got my son to sleep and made back to the game just in time to see Mo shut it down for the 1-2-3. Yankees win. Thuhhh Yankees win.

Andy Pettitte continued his dominant string of outings. Since getting bombed for 10 runs against the Royals he's been light out. Today was no different. He's now won 4 straight and has been impressive in each outing. To update his line over his last 4 starts: 4-0, 27 IP, 19 H, 7 BB, 23 K, 3 ER, 1.00 ERA. Talk about awesome. It seems that most of my Pettitte posts lately all say the same thing. Since that's the case, I'll reiterate my Pettitte-closing of choice. Andy always pitches better in the 2nd half. Looks like the 2nd half started early.

I didn't get to see last night's trouncing of the Mets. As I wrote earlier, I went to catch the Scranton Yankees take on the Buffalo Bisons. It was a real good game. Quite the pitcher's duel. Jeff Karstens threw for Scranton and he looked good. He left the game though on the losing end of a 1-0 game. The craziest part about the game was the fog. The field was pretty much fog covered the entire game. It was so bad that they actually suspended the game with 2 outs and 2 strikes on the batter in the bottom of the 9th. The Bisons took a 1-0 lead into the 9th and had the sky been clear they would have won easily. Two routine fly balls though fell beyond the left fielder and led to a tie game. It was kind of funny as the OF had no clue where the ball was. Even though it ended 1-1, all in all it was a good time. I may go back on Sunday for the finale but I doubt it.

I did follow along with the game on my XM radio. I had it on and would occasionally listen to the action. I thought for sure Ponson was done early. Bases loaded no outs in the 2nd and he works out of it? Wow. It's like I've been saying, Ponson is low risk, high reward. He comes at a cheap price and if he gives you anything, you're good. If he can continue to throw 6 shutout innings every time out there, we'll be real good. But don't get too excited. We all saw how Dan Giese fared in his 2nd start. But keep it up Sid, we're pulling for you.

So we're officially at the half way point, sitting at 44-37 and 5 games back of first and only 4 back in the loss column. Not bad considering how the year started and the injuries they've sustained. Last year after 81 games, the Yanks were 40-41 and 10.5 back of first. I'd say the positives this year have been the play of Johnny Damon, Mike Mussina, Mariano, Joba, A-Rod and the mustachioed one. While the disappointments have been Robbie Cano, Hughes and Kennedy, and 1/2 to 2/3 of the bullpen. But they're in a good position. Cano is starting to swing the bat. Jeter's OPS is up 39 points 6/17. Moose, Joba, and Andy are all pitching real well. The biggest questions right now are who are the 4th and 5th starters going to be, and will Matsui need surgery? Fingers crossed that he doesn't.

The Yankees sort of finish their interleague schedule tomorrow. D-Raz vs. Oliver Perez. 2 guys who have been incredibly inconsistent. Should be a fun one. I think I said the Yankees had to go 10-5 over this interleague stretch for it to be a success. I failed to take into account they had the DP today, so now that it's 16 games against NL teams below 500. Anything less than 11-5 is a failure. With 2 games to go the Yanks are 10-4. So far so good. The only negative about this stretch is that the Sox (8-6) and Rays (10-4) didn't fare so badly against they're tougher NL opponents. This now makes the upcoming games against the Sox and Rays a lot more important. The Yanks are playing good ball. They'll do well. If only we had the Wanger.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

A Friday Afternoon Spanking

I am so glad I'm not home right now watching what's supposed to be a baseball game. Ross Ohlendorf just gave up a 4-run bomb and pretty much put the game out of reach. It's now 11-4 Mets. Brutal pitching right from the get go. I think it's safe to say that Dan Giese has probably started his last game as a Yankee. The honeymoon is over. It was fun while it lasted. I'd be shocked if he gets another turn.

A-Rod just went yard to make it 11-5. The Yanks have had plenty of chances today. Normally, when the Yanks rack up 9 hits and 4 walks, they'll score more than 5 runs. They've had lots of chances so far today. Through 5 innings they've left 10 on base. Pitiful. Just pitiful.

This day night double-header is going to be interesting. At the rate this game is going, the 2nd game is going to start minutes after the 1st one ends. Considering they have to go to Shea, I can't imagine it'll start on time. If you play 3 innings in an hour, they're looking at finishing the 1st game at 6pm. I imagine the start time for the 2nd game is between 7-8. That gives them an hour or two to pack up and get to Shea. I wouldn't be surprised if the teams mail it in and finish this one up in 30 minutes or so.

Ponson starts his 2nd tour of duty with the Yanks tonight. Me thinks it'll be a short one. But we'll see. He's one of those low risk, high reward signings. I'm knocking on wood that it works out. Enjoy the game. I'll be checking out the Baby Bombers as they take on the hometown Buffalo Bisons. all I can say is go Scranton!

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Raining On My Parade

That was a colossal waste of time. Why does it take 2-plus hours to call a game? Ridiculous. Now granted I'm not in Pittsburgh, but every time they cut to shots of the field, it looked like there were plenty of people sitting in their seats. Sorry, but if it's a torrential downpour and a lightning storm, the last place I'm sitting is out in the open. Seeing that suggested to me it wasn't that bad. You'd think they could have fit in 5 innings. I passed the time watching the new "I Love The New Millennium" shows on VH1. Not a bad way to kill some time.

I have a problem with MLB allowing the home teams to schedule the start time for games. It screws the Yankees every time they have to travel. I understand that teams will make more cheddar by scheduling games against the Yanks at night. More people will obviously go at night. I get it. But it only causes issues. Had this been a day game, like it should have been, it would have gone off without a hitch. Ridiculous.

The game has been rescheduled of Thursday July 10th at 7:05pm. They just had to pick that day. The Yanks are in Toronto for a 3-game set starting the 11th. The 10th was a scheduled off-day which meant that the team would be in Toronto milling around the city. Being the autograph hound that I am, I had the intention of going up there that afternoon and getting in some extra cracks at them. There's a lot less people and it's more relaxed. Those plans are now out the window. Bummer. Dan, if you read this, and I know you likely will, this blows.

I am likely going to miss both games tomorrow. The day game I'll obviously miss because of work. I hope to listen to it on my XM. I'll probably miss the night game because the Scranton Yankees are in town and I'm going to go and check that out, and hopefully land myself an autograph or two while I'm there. It's weird looking at the scoreboard and seeing the name "Yankees" up there and looking out on the field and not seeing the big boppers. Anyway, I'll have my XM radio with me so I'll at least follow the action. Hopefully they hit like they did tonight. The start of the first inning when they rapped 3 doubles and a triple was nice. Carry it over to tomorrow and we'll all be happy.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Blog Update

I figured whenever I added something new to the blog, like features or links, I'd make a quick post letting people know. I added a new link to the "Awesome Yankees Blogs" section on the left. The blog name is Yankee Hottie and it's pretty funny. Light on the statistical stuff, high on the personal opinion, all of which is pretty funny. You'll enjoy it. So check it out.

J-Boogie

A Heaping Case Of The Heebie Jeebies

Due to Wednesday night softball, I missed most of the game last night. Jason from Heartland Pinstripes was again kind enough to hook me up with a post. Scroll way down to read it.

Our game ended early because we trounced them 16-4 and it was stopped due to the mercy rule, so I thought I'd get to catch some of the game. Unfortunately for me, my wife needed me to stop at one of the most vile, disgusting places known to man....Walmart. nothing grosses me out more than walking into a Walmart. I try to avoid it whenever possible, which is pretty much all the time. But my wife ordered some child gates from them and had them shipped to the store and I had to pick them up. Saying I was unhappy about it was an understatement. As soon as I pulled into the parking lot I was greeted by sheer stpuidity. I was driving down the aisle and a car was coming from the other direction. The idiot behind the wheel decided it was best to pass me on my right. My right's the passenger side! WTF??? How can someone be so stupid? Seriously. I don't know what it is about Walmart but the second I walk through the door I feel like I need a bath. I almost want to wear a surgical mask because I get the feeling I might catch some weird disease like SARS or something. Man it gives me the heebie jeebies. What's worse is you have to walk through the entire store to get to the pick-up area. So I get back there and of course there's no one there. So I push the little button (I so did not want to touch it) and waited.....and waited.....and waited....and waited some more. I pushed the button a total of 4 times and waited 11 minutes before someone finally showed. My skin was crawling. I couldn't get out of there fast enough. I don't know how people can shop there. I know their prices are occasionally cheaper, but to me it's just not worth it. I'd much prefer rolling into a Target and give them some extra cash just to avoid the skeeviness that is Walmart. I'll pay extra for the cleanliness. Besides, Target's employees are light years ahead of the vast majority of Walmart's in terms of personality and personal hygiene. They at least give off the appearance that they bathe on a regular basis. It's an added plus that they employ a lot of younger people and not old hags. No offense to you old hags out there, but I much prefer looking at cute chicks, and the occasional hot dude. Kidding about the hot dude. Or am I? I am.....long pause......not. No, I really am. Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox now.

After getting home from that suckhole, I immediately had to decontaminate myself with a long hot shower. After that, I spent some time trying to figure out if my wife's employer jipped us out of $2800 from when she was out on maternity leave. At first I thought they did, but then I realized they didn't and I was bummed. By the time i worked that all out in my head, the game was just ending. So I missed pretty much all of it. Sounded like a good one. 10-0. Joba's 1st win as a starter. Some offense! Good times. Here's Jason from the Heartland's post. Enjoy.

Joba was the stopper indeed, buzzing through 6 2/3 IP and shutting down the Pirates 10-0, quite a reversal from last night's drubbing. The offense scored early and often, blowing it open in the sixth on homers from Cano and Abreu. Joba earned his first win as a starter, throwing another gem.

The Yanks staked Joba to a 2-0 lead right away when Jeter doubled, Abreu singled, and A-Rod walked to load the bases. Giambi's forcing out A-Rod at second scored Jeter and Abreu on an error. Jeter singled in the third, and scored again on Giambi's RBI single, 3-0, and his two-out double in the fourth plated Christian, 4-0. The Yanks blew it open in the sixth, when Cano tattooed a 2-1 fastball from TJ Beam up, 5-0. Abreu later crushed a 1-0 fastball up that nearly reached the river, 8-0. Abreu's double in the eighth scored Betemit, 9-0, and Melky's RBI single plated Christian, 10-0. Nice to see them work over lefty Zach Duke and the Pirates bullpen.

Jeter was 3-3 with 3 runs and his 33rd RBI, batting .286 now. Abreu was 3-5 with 2 runs and 4 RBIs, his 50th to lead the team along with his 10th homer, and is hitting .279. Cano was 3-5 with his 5th homer, and is up to .241. Giambi was 1-4 with 2 driven in, at 44 RBIs now, hitting .266. Melky was 2-5 with his 32nd RBI, and is batting .254. Although the Yanks stranded 10, 5 in scoring position, they plated six two-out runs, a good ratio. With 16 hits and 6 walks, the Yanks were all over the bases.

But Joba's domination was the key tonight, never letting Pittsburgh get on track. He got some help from Abreu in the second. After retiring two after two singles to start the inning, Joba allowed a single to Wilson to right that Abreu got charging on the short hop, and easily gunned out Doumit at the plate by a good 15 feet. Joba worked a 1-2-3 third and fourth, avoided trouble in the fifth, skirted Doumit's two-out double in the sixth, and exited after back-to-back two-out singles in the seventh. The final line was very impressive: 6 2/3 scoreless IP, 6 H, 1 BB and 7 K's, with the slider especially nasty and Joba still throwing 97 and 98 in the seventh. Congrats to Joba for finally earning his first win as a starter. Ohlendorf fanned three in 1 1/3 IP, and Veras finished up.

The Yankees are up to six games over .500 at 42-36, and keep pace with victorious Boston and Tampa Bay, 5 1/2 games back. Win the series tomorrow, guys. Keep moving up.

Now That's Some Ugly Baseball

That was a tough game to watch. Right from the get-go I knew it would be one of those games. As soon as Jeter grounded into a double play after Melky's leadoff walk, I shook my head. Is it me, or does Jeter ground into a lot of double plays? That's #10 on the year for the Captain. Seems like a lot. Over the 1st 11 years of his career, Jeter averaged 13.6 GIDPs per season. He had a career high 21 last year and he's halfway to that total this year. That's not a good trend. He's got to be better than that, especially as the #2 hitter.

Rasner didn't do anyone any favors tonight. He was just awful, and quite frankly he has been for a while now. That's his 5th loss in his last 6 starts. Granted, he's been the victim of a lack of run support, but he's been inconsistent. Without Wang in the rotation, the Yankees can't really afford to have these poor outings from D-Raz. He's got to win his share of ball games. I'm not sure if D-Raz could have avoided it tonight. The Pittsburgh hitters were locked in. There wasn't much good happening on the mound tonight for the Yankees. LaTroy Hawkins was again beyond bad. He's another guy that needs to be more consistent. His last 5 outings were all on the plus side. Tonight, not so much. It was bad, just bad.

The Yanks definitely had their chances tonight. The only good thing was Robinson Cano. He's done this before though. He'll crank out a few multi-hit games and next thing you know he's oh-fer 10 or something. When Robbie cracks .250, I'll get excited.

Did anybody catch the hilarity that happened when Jeter lead off the 7th with a double? Jeter hits the ball over 1st base and the ball kicks over to the stands. You see this teenager in a red jersey reach over the rail and interfere with the ball. Automatic double for Jeter. Anyway, the ball goes in and out of the kid's glove and goes back out onto the field, where it's retrieved by the ball boy and he takes off with it. They show the kid in red calling for the ball as the ball boy runs away and when he realizes he's not getting the ball, you can clearly see him mouth the words, "you ***hole." I had to rewind it a few times just to make sure. I couldn't help myself. I bursted out laughing. Here's this teenager who 1)brings a glove to game, 2)interferes with a ball in play, 3)has the ball go in and out of his glove (which shouldn't happen when you have a glove), 4)doesn't get the ball and 5)calls the ball boy an a-hole for not giving him the ball. I don't know, but if you ask me, he's the a-hole, or better yet douchebag. I'm pretty sure I even said after I stopped laughing, "what a douchebag." Ken Singleton was kind of cracking on him to. I'm pretty sure he was hoping the kid would get bounced. I was too. Hopefully, he did.

After tonight's whooping, I can only hope tomorrow kicks off another slingshot. For those not familiar with the slingshot and want to know more, scroll up to the top of the page and in the Google search bar on the right, run a search for "slingshot." Make sure you click the button with the URL listed. For those of you that are lazy and don't want to search, here's a high level breakdown: get your butt kicked and then go on a nice winning streak. It's been known to happen. And it all starts tomorrow with Joba. Go get 'em Justin!

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Andy Pettitte Is The Streak Stopper

As I mentioned in my closing yesterday, no better guy you want tossing for the Yanks after a loss than Andy Pettitte. With today's W, Andy is now 75-37 when pitching after a Yankee loss. For those of you that are mathematically challenged, Andy basically wins 2 out of every 3 starts when pitching after a loss. I'll take those odds any day of the weak. Andy Pettitte is a streak stopper. No doubt about it. Andy was masterful today throwing 6 innings of shutout ball. Since getting bombed for 10 runs against the Royals, Andy has been lights out. Check out these numbers: 3 starts, 3-0, 21 IP, 14 H, 4 BB, 19 K, 1 ER = 0.43 ERA. Andy has always been a much better pitcher in the 2nd half of the season. Looks like the 2nd half has started a little early.

Edwar Ramirez pitched an impressive 7th inning. Edwar has surprised me this year. I didn't think in a million years he would have lasted this long on the big league roster. He's earned his spot in my book. I'm also of the opinion that he should be trusted by Girardi to pitch in close games, which I think is the case. He looks good.

As anyone surprised that of all the Yankee pitchers, it was Kyle Farnsworth that gave up the run. How does a pitcher with an ERA of 4.24, a WHIP of 1.47, and an opponents' batting average over .300 qualify as the set-up man? K-Farns is the last guy I want pitching in the 8th inning? In 33 games, he's now given up 10 HR and allowed runs in 12 games. Allowing runs in 36% of your games is not a characteristic I want from the 8th inning guy. I'm continually shocked when he gets trucked out their to pitch in the close games. Kyle has been brutal since he's donned the Pinstripes. Absolutely brutal. He's done nothing to earn that spot and it's going to end up costing us, I can feel it. I'm not sure what the extent of the injury he sustained today is but you won't hear me grumble if he misses some time.

The mustachioed marvel that is Jason Giambi busted out of his slump in a big way today. It's a good sign when Giambi hits to the opposite field. We haven't seen that from the Big G at all in recent years, but he's been picking it up this year. The Giambi of old is in the house. I love it.

The Yanks are off tomorrow and then it's off to Pittsburgh. The Yanks are 7-2 in this 15 game interleague stretch. Considering that the teams they're facing are below average, anything less than 10-5 is a letdown. They very easily could have swept the Reds. They ran into the NL's best pitcher and a guy they've never faced before. Point is, they're playing a lot better baseball than they were. No way you can count them out. Enjoy the off day.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Giese Fillis In Well For Wang But Yanks Drop 2nd Straight

Wow, 2 straight losses. I forgot what that felt like for a brief moment. Not much to really say about the game. It was a tough one. For a while it looked like one run would win it. The Yanks had their chances, but came up empty. They often do against pitchers they've never seen. They never seem to hit the ball well against guys making their major league debuts. The 2nd inning was their best chance and they failed miserably. Bases loaded no outs, no runs. Horrible. Posada did the worst thing you can do in that situation and that's fail to put the ball in play. Cano did the 2nd worst thing you can do and that's pop out. And Melky of course kills the rally with a whiff. Melky has been absolutely horrible lately. I wouldn't complain if the Yankees gave Brett Gardner a look. Doubt that'll happen though.

Dan Giese pitched a great game today. I'll take that outing every time. He was pitching beautifully until he made an errant throw to 2nd on a potential DP. The standing ovation he received from the Yankee Stadium crowd was well deserved. I found myself clapping along with them. He pitched well enough to win that game. Just took a bad beat. He definitely deserves another shot at starting. If he continues to pitch like that he'll have Yankee fans saying "Wang who?" Just kidding. No chance of that happening. Chien-Ming is the man.

Andy Pettitte on the hill tomorrow. No better guy you want pitching after a Yankee loss. On a sunnier note, Daisuke Matsuzaka in his return for the DL threw 1 inning, giving up 6 hits and 7 earned, walking 3. I love it. Love it, love it, love it.

Peace , love, and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Winning Streak Snapped At 7

Alas, all good things must come to an end. Tonight the Yanks had their 7 game winning snapped. Moose pitched real well. Unfortunately, Edison Volquez pitched better. No matter how good your offense is, great pitching will beat you most of the time. Volquez is arguably the best pitcher in the game right now. Moose had to be almost perfect tonight and he was good, real good, but not good enough.

As a Yankee fan, you have to be extremely pleased with Moose's outing. 8 strong innings. In my opinion, he pitched much better than his pitching line suggests. If not for a lost ball in the lights, this could be a totally different post. Moose didn't make many mistakes tonight. It only takes one. And I think that mistake was intentionally walking Jay Bruce. That move totally made no sense to me. I know Bruce is the next big thing, but with 2 outs, you've got to let Moose go after that. You know that call came from the bench too. Horrible call by Girardi. moose is on his way to the Hall Of Fame. Bruce may be a great hitter, but you've got to have confidence in Moose's ability to get him out. Ridiculous call by the bench. Moose deserved better than that.

Girardi made a few questionable calls tonight. I like the aggressive approach, especially against a guy like Volquez, but I hate seeing them run themselves out of scoring chances. I know nothing about Paul Bako. Perhaps the scouting report on him says you've got a good chance at stealing a base, I don't know? Whatever it says, it didn't work tonight. I wasn't a fan of Jeter's attempt in the 1st inning. With 2 outs, maybe. But in the 1st inning? I would've waited. Let Abreu take a swing.

Not a whole heck of a lot to talk about with the offense. Cano had 2 hits. It looks like he's coming out of his season long slump. He's shown signs of this before so I'm not too excited. Giambi seems to be in a mini-slump. I think he got hosed on a few strike calls but that's baseball. Know your umpire. Talk about a pitcher-friendly strike zone. Wow.

Dan Giese gets the start tomorrow in place of Chien-Ming Wang. I'm not sure what to expect. All I know is I wish the Wanger were pitching. I'll feel a little better about Wang being out so long if Giese shows up. My fingers are crossed.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

The Winning Doesn't Stop As Yanks Sweep Padres

Due to back-to-back meetings today, I didn't hear very much of today's game on my XM. I caught the first 3 innings when not much happened. I took my radio with me to the meetings so I could look at the score on the radio's screen. It was stuck on 1-0 Padres with 1 out in the 4th forever. I kept expecting to see the lead increase but it must have been some kind of lag. The 1st meeting ended a few minutes early. By the time I walked downstairs to my desk the Yanks had tied up the game. The 2nd meeting started and it ended at the same time the 8th inning ended. I did get to hear Mo K the side in the 9th for the save. That was all I needed to hear.

According to the box score, it looks like Joba pitched well, though wasn't overly economical with his pitches. I heard him dodge a huge bullet when the Padres loaded up the bases with no outs in the 2nd. I'm assuming that was one of the biggest spots in the game and he flew through it with flying colors. I'm pleased with his line. The only negative aspect is that he's still winless as a starter.

I like seeing how the Yankees manufactured that 1st run of the game. Walk - steal 2nd - steal 3rd - sac fly - tie game. I'm assuming that Girardi knew the team wasn't hitting the ball well and I like the aggressive approach to put Melky into scoring position. A little small ball doesn't hut every now and then.

The bullpen definitely came through today keeping the Padres off the board. I'm not sure though whether or not I want to give Farnsworth credit for pitching well or the Padres offense for being terrible. Considering how bad K-Farns is, I'll chalk it up to a poor Padres offense. Mariano continues to pitch lights out baseball. He threw in each game of the Padres series. 9 hitters faced, 3 Ks. He sent the side down on strikes twice. He's. Just. Awesome.

7 straight wins. 2 straight sweeps. Kickin' ass and taking names. Bring on the Reds!

J-Boogie

A Few Quickies

Again, many thanks to Jason from Heartland Pinstripes for filling in yesterday. we go back a ways to our MLBlogs days. Thank God they're over. Our blogs are much better now that they're in new homes. And again, if you're not checking out his blog, you should be. Quality stuff. He often opens up a "digital living room" where fans can go and comment on the game as it's happening good stuff. I need to stop in more often.

I was able to catch more of the game yesterday than I normally do due to the rain delay. I still missed a lot here and there because of other things I had to take care of. I caught the beginning of the game on the radio. I had the good fortune to hear Wilson Betemit butcher what sounded like an easy grounder. As I've discussed before, Wilson is a huge defensive liability, more so than Giambi. As you all probably know, I'm not a big Betemit guy. He had a decent night at the plate last night but my perception of WB is that those good nights are few and far between. I think the Yanks could field a better backup. I would not be sad to see Wilson go.

Rasner looked like he battled his way to that win yesterday. D-Raz hasn't exactly been the beacon of hope we thought he'd be after his 3-0 start. Don't get me wrong, he's filling in admirably. I just think his better outings are behind them. I'll take him as a 5th starter, but I'm not expecting big things from him.

The Yanks are winning and I think it has a lot to do with the fact that they've gotten back to their style of baseball. That style being, working counts, taking pitches, getting on base, etc, etc, etc. They chased the reigning NL Cy Young award winner last night after only 4 innings. In 4 IPs, Peavy threw 93 pitches. The Yanks weren't showing kind of plate discipline when they were struggling earlier in the year, swinging early and often, usually failing to deliver. They've gotten back to their game and we're now seeing them get on base, get timely hits, and most importantly score runs. I think it's safe to say that the offensive woes are over.

The National League again is demonstrating how inferior they are when matching up against the American League. They're just pathetic. The Yanks have benefited by being scheduled against the inferior of the inferior. So far, so good. 5 straight wins. 10 to go. This team isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

I think Yankee fans everywhere are wondering the same thing right now. Why Sidney Ponson? Good question. I think Cashman might be thinking Ponson is low risk and has potential for a high reward. If he blows, which he probably will, it doesn't cost much. If it works out, all the better. I think he's also stockpiling arms to take over that 5th spot in the rotation. I'm sure he has a list of candidates to fill in while Wang is out. If these guys fail to perform, I imagine there will be a quick hook and on to the next guy. Makes sense. But Ponson??

With today being an afternoon game, I'll likely miss a lot of the action. I have back-to-back meetings scheduled from 2-3 so I'm going to miss a bulk of the game. Joba gets the ball and his pitch limit is now over 100. He's basically good to go to throw a full outing. With the injury to Wang, his move to the rotation couldn't have come at a better time.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yanks Continue To Roll, Guest Blog From The Heartland

This entry comes courtesy of Jason from Heartland Pinstripes. He was kind enough to cover the action for me yesterday since I play softball on Wednesday nights and I miss a chunk of the game. If you're not checking out his blog, you should be. I'll try to throw in a quick post of my own sometime later this morning discussing the parts I saw. If anyone is interested in guest-blogging on Wednesday's let me know, then just type something into an e-mail, send it to me, I cut and paste and voila.

The Yanks are heading into the bottom of the fourth after a 1 hour, 18 minute rain delay before the start of the game. The Yanks scored in the first when JD singled, Jeter walked, and Abreu's potential 4-6-3 DP ball was thrown away, allowing JD to score. They made it 3-0 in the second when Cano ripped a double to left on a pitch low and away--good hitting-- and Betemit's bloop ground-rule double to left scored him. JD brought in Betemit with a single, 3-0. A-Rod crushed a big homer to deep left center in the fourth. The Yanks have done a great job working over Peavy, making him throw 28 pitches in the first, 26 in the second, and 22 more in the third.

This was good in its own right, but all the more important because, after cruising through the first two and fanning four, Rasner had to throw 41 pitches in the third, coughing up two runs and leaving the bases loaded. Rasner is at 81 pitches through 4 IP.

A-Rod is now batting .330, and his homer was his 14th this year and 532nd in his career, four shy of the great Jimmy Foxx. Four of the six Yankees' hits are extra-base hits. When the Yanks made it 3-0 in the second, they had run up 27 unanswered runs on the opposition over the last four games. That ended promptly in the top of the third. For having the least errors in the majors, the Padres look like dog crap in the field the first two games of this series.

As a side note, the Yankees signed Sidney Ponson to a minor-league deal. Sidney Stinking Ponson? Please. What’s the point? Give me Aceves over this never-was any day. Ponson reminds me of David Wells–overweight, loves the sauce, hates to work out, cantankerous–except for the great curve ball, talent, rings, perfect game, and long-term successful career. Why should the Yanks return to their own vomit?

How great is A-Rod? He made a great snag and throw at third to end the fourth and let Rasner escape. He crushed a homer, he drove in 2 (40 on the year) with a 3-4 night, batting a ridiculous .337. But to me, look no further than his at-bat and play in the bottom of the fifth for the answer to why he's so great. With one out, A-Rod laced a hard single to left. He then stole second, and it was the way he stole second that's the key. At first, he moved slowly off the bag, exhaled deeply as if he were playing possum, took a small step than shuffle-stepped his way into a big lead as Corey got into his set, then stole second easily. After Giambi's pop up, Jorge drove him in, 5-2--great run manufacturing, all built around A-Rod's all-around play. He's the epitome of a five-tool player.

Rasner wasn't great, but gave them 5 decent innings, allowing two runs on three hits, but with an uncharacteristic five walks on 96 pitches/55 strikes. Edwar was cruising through his second inning with a nasty change, but coughed up back-to-back homers to Giles and Gonzales, 5-4 Yanks. But the Yanks earned two back right away in the bottom of the seventh, a sure sign the offense is back. Jeter doubled sharply, Abreu's single scored him, 6-4, he stole second, and A-Rod's RBI single erased the Padres' homers, 7-4--all with no outs.

After Nuke LaFarnsworth surrendered a lead-off homer to Headley, the first of his career, the Yanks again responded right away. Betemit slapped a double to left, his third hit of a very good game, he moved to third on Melky's ground out, and JD's RBI single--also his third hit of the game and his ninth three-hit game this year--made it 8-5. Mariano worked around a double, and Adrian Gonzales's looping liner to Jeter caught his brother too far off second, and Jeter's unassisted DP ended the game.

A-Rod is at .337, belting his 14th homer this year and his 532nd of his career. He's unconscious right now, and I believe (going from memory) is 22 for his last 47 (.468). JD and Betemit each had three hits, and JD is now at .332, and his 2 RBIs give him 33 on the year. Betemit is now up to .254. Jorge was 1-3 with his 18th RBI and is batting .326. Abreu added his team-leading 44th RBI and is up to .282. Jeter doubled and scored a run, and is at .272--needing to pick it up a bit, Captain. Melky and Cano each added a double, and Cano scored. Only Giambi didn't have a hit tonight.

As good signs, the Yanks pounded out 14 hits and only stranded six runners, three in scoring position. They have now won six straight, have won the series, have won eleven of their last fourteen, and go for the sweep tomorrow afternoon with Joba (1-2, 2.48 ERA) taking the hill against righty Josh Banks (2-0, 1.29 ERA). A season-high six games over .500 and climbing, the Yankees keep pace with Boston and Tampa Bay. They're only four back in the loss column to Boston with three games in hand on the Red Sox. Onward and upward, with the chance for seven straight.

You can just feel it--the Yankees are hitting their stride, with the offense carrying the torch now. They positively wore out last year's Cy Young award winner, making him throw 93 pitches in four innings--not too shabby. Keep it rolling, Yanks!

Jason

http://heartlandpinstripes.wordpress.com/

Something Worth Checking Out

I'm a little late in getting to this but this is something every Yankee fan should check out. Fellow Yankee blogger Tony (from Bronx Liaison) recently had the chance to interview Dan Graziano of the Newark Star Ledger. Click here to check out the very well-done interview. Lots of good stuff about our boys.

J-Boogie

5 Straight And Feelin' Great, Yanks Roll Pods 8-0

4 games into interleague play. 4 wins. I said before this 15 game stretch againzt the NL started that this was the time for the Yanks to make a move. They've got 15 games against teams with losing records. Winning the first 4 is a great way to start. They whomped the Padres tonight. 8-zip. The pitching staff has thrown 2 straight shutouts. The Yankees have won 5 straight. Things are looking good. Real good. If only we had the Wanger.

Andy Pettitte was sharp again tonight. He's thrown 2 greats games back-to-back. Andy has always been a strong second half pitcher. It looks like he's getting a head start. In his last 2 outings Andy's thrown 15 innings, allowing 10 hits, 2 walks, has struck out 15, and allowed 1 earned run. That's pretty darn good. Andy started this 5 game winning streak. The Yankee pitching staff has allowed 6 runs in those 5 games, 4 coming in 1 game. The pitching staff is hot. The offense is hot. It's time to rock.

The boys broke out the lumber tonight. A-Rod went deep for the 3rd straight game. He's locked in with 8 multi-hit games in his last 11, going 18 for 39 (.462) in that stretch. He now leads the team with an average of .328. The Yanks now have 4 guys hitting in the 320s. Damon at .327. A-Rod at .328. Matsui at .321. Posada at .326. And then there's the mustachioed Jason Giambi. He'd likely be hitting over .300 if he didn't start out so poorly. He was hitting .191 on May 18th. Here we are a month later and he's tipping the scales at .268. Unreal. In that span of 24 games, the Big G is hitting .375 (30 for 800 with 9 HRs and 19 RBI. 2 bombs tonight. Oh yeah, he's back and he's here to stay. Don't ever shave dude. Don't ever shave.

The bullpen has been kicking it up a notch also. In the last 7 games, the pen has thrown a combined 19 innings, giving up only 2 runs on only 9 hits, and striking out 20 in the process. If only they could keep the walks down. They issued 11 free passes in that stretch. Mo was on today whiffing the side. Man he looks good. What's new right? He is after all the best there's ever been.

A 5 game winning streak. Winners in 6 of the last 7. 4 back in the loss column. Again though, it's all overshadowed by the loss of Chien-Ming Wang. Losing Wang until September is going to hurt. That's a long time to go without one of the best in the game. It's hard to make up for that. It sounds like Cashman is going to stand pat for the time being. At first, I didn't see how he could, but it makes sense. The Yanks are only going to need a 5th starter 4 times between now and July 24th (thanks Pete!). They can weather much of the stretch with Moose, Pettitte, Joba and Rasner. Speaking of Joba, how lucky are we that he's now in the rotation? That worked out well. Phew. If Cashman were to do something now, he'd be bent over and done like an inmate in Oz. The price goes down the longer he waits. It happened 2 years ago with Bobby Abreu/Cory Lidle. It'll happen this year too. They can weather this storm. They're firing on all cylinders right now. You can never count this team out.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Wang Out For A Long, Long Time

Our worst fears have been realized. Chien-Ming Wang is going to miss a significant chunk of time with a foot injury being described as a mid-foot sprain of the Lisfranic ligament. Pretty much the same injury that knocked out Brian Bruney.

Wang is going to be sidelined for at least 6 weeks while he wears a protective boot. After the boot comes off he can resume throwing activities, so tack on another 4-6 weeks. It looks like our ace is done for the rest of the year, with a September return possible, but unlikely. That. Frickin'. Sucks!

No two ways about it. This is a huge blow to the Yankees. I don't think it's possible to recover from a loss of this magnitude. Wang has the most wins of any pitcher in MLB over the last 3 years. You can't replace that. Just not possible. The Yanks are pretty much between a rock and a hard place. There isn't anyone they can promote internally that can rival Chien-Ming on the hill. Not even close. If the Yankees want to contend they either need to hit lightning in a bottle with an internal promotion or look outside the organization for someone. There's a lot of speculation that the Indians might deal CC Sabathia. The Indians aren't exactly out of it so I'm not sure that they would. Hard to say. It would take a lot to pry him away from the Tribe. Not sure if it's worth it considering they might be able to land him as a free agent come the offseason and not part with anything. If I'm a gambling man, I'm going to bet that the Indians do nothing with CC and the Yankees try to solve this problem internally. Gamblers lose more often that they win so I'm probably wrong.

It's never easy is it?

J-Boogie

Yanks Rolling, Up 13-0 In 8th, Put It On The Board

Quickly, Happy Father's Day to all you father's out there. I hope your day is as special as mine. Being the father of a 9.5 month old, this is my 1st Father's Day. Good times. It's currently the bottom of the 7th and the Yanks are rolling the Astros 11-0. I'm trying to get a jump on my post game entry before we head to the in-laws for a Father's Day BBQ. Assuming the lead holds up, and it better considering they have an 11 run lead, the Yankees are in the midst of a nice winning streak. They're doing exactly what they need to do and that's beat up on the inferior National League teams that they're playing. Everything is coming together right now. Great pitching. Solid defense. And they're hitting the ball. To quote the legendary Lou Brown, "It's starting to come together."

Chien-Ming Wang had another terrific outing. It's safe to say that he's worked out what ever mechanical issues he might have had. Unfortunately for the Wanger, and for Yankees' fans everywhere, Wang ran into a "foot injury" when he was rounding the bases. All we know right now is that it's a "foot injury." I'm sure we'll know more later and when we do, I'll certainly be back to blog about it. For now, we'll all have to hold our breath. I wouldn't think it would be a muscle-related injury, which is good. I'm guessing an ankle sprain of some varying degree. I've rolled an ankle before and also jammed it sliding into 2nd base during a softball game. It bruises, it swells, and in a few days it's fine. I'm hoping it's not too serious and that Wang doesn't miss his next start. With the off day tomorrow he can probably pick up another day's rest. My fingers are crossed.

The bats exploded today there in the 6th inning. I thought for sure the Yanks were going to end up with a goose egg that inning after Wang's failed sacrifice attempt. That would have been rough considering Posada and Cano roped two shots over the bag at third that kicked off the stands. Back-to-back doubles turned into 2 singles. But then Miguel Tejada dropped the flip to 2nd and the flood gates opened. It's now the top of the 8th and it's not getting any better for the Astros. It's now 13-0. Put it on the board. This one is over. Every starter had a hit today with the exception of Melky. You know you had a good day at the plate when 6 of your 8 starters have multi-hit games. A-Rod and Johnny D. continue to be hot. What's up with Damon's broken bat craze he's on? I read that eh switched to traditional ash bats. Funny how he still shatters bats even after switching away from maple.

Well, my son is up from his nap and I'm getting pressured by the missus to wrap this up so we can head out. This team is on a roll. 4 straight and 5 of 6 on the road. They're now a season high 4 games over .500. Everything seems to be clicking. Like I wrote above, it's starting to come together. Hopefully, the news on Chien-Ming is good and it's nothing serious. Stay tuned.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Moose Pitches Yanks To 3rd Straight Win

Moooooooooose! Chalk up another victory for Mike Mussina. That's # 10 on the year and career win #260. He's now won 10 or more games in 17 straight seasons, extending the American League record which he already owns. Talk about consistency. Only 3 guys in the history of baseball have had longer streaks. Cy Young, Greg Maddux and Steve Carlton. Just one of the many reasons why Moose should make a serious run at enshrinement in Cooperstown. He's also one of 8 pitchers in the history of the game that have won at least 260 games with a winning percentage of at least .630. For my money, he gets in. Definitely one of the best of our generation, if not all time.

Moose has been on a tear this year. 9-1 in his last 10 decisions. Throw out the 2 games against Boston and he's posting an ERA of 3.22 over 72.2 innings. I never would have expected this considering how Moose pitched last year. As a card carrying member of the Mike Mussina fan club, I'm super psyched he's doing so well. His success this year has been quite the surprise. I think Yankees fans everywhere should be more than pleased. I really think the Yanks should consider keeping Moose around for another year or two. The staff is going to be really young and in need of some veteran leadership. Who better than Moose to provide that? I really hope Hughes and Kennedy are taking notes. Moose is showing everyone how it's done. Moose threw first pitch strikes to 21 of the 23 hitters he faced. That's huge. Throwing strikes and pitching ahead in the counts always favors the pitcher. The result tonight was another Yankee victory. 3 in a row. 3 games above 500. Things are looking up.

Johnny Damon better get some serious consideration for an All-Star nod. He's playing on a whole other level right now. Johnny has been locked in, hitting .439 in June (25-57). When he does well, the team does well. A-Rod has been swinging a nice bat also. Alex is hitting .417 (20-48) in June. Tack on 10 walks and you've got a pretty good on base percentage. The biggest surprise tonight thought was Melky Cabrera having a perfect night at the dish, going 2 for 2 with a career high 3 walks. Considering Melky's recent offensive struggles, it's a pretty good sign. If Bobby and Derek can just get things going.....oooh weee.....watch out.

So we're off to a good start on this interleague stretch of the schedule. It's a pretty important 15 games and winning the 1st 2 is a huge step in the right direction. For the 1st time all season the Yankees are 3 games above 500. The pendulum is definitely swinging in a different direction. Chien-Ming Wang gets the start tomorrow and we need him to keep things moving in the right direction. Wang rebounded in his last start and his mechanical issues seem to be corrected. He's the ace. He's the #1. A 4 game winning streak? Me thinks so.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yanks Win Pitching Duel - THEY'RE FINALLY 2 GAMES ABOVE 500!!!

I'm a little giddy right now. Tonight's victory against the Astros is huge step in the right direction. The Yankees have finally made it over the hump. Well, maybe they're not over it yet, but they're closer than they've been in a long, long time. In my last entry, I wrote that this 15 game stretch against the National League could be make or break. They're not exactly taking on the toughest teams in the NL. They need to take advantage now. Tonight they did and it was all about the pitching.

Joba looked real good. There's no doubt in my mind that he's going to excel as a starter. I'd still prefer to see him in the 8th inning, but if he keeps pitching like he did tonight, I'll change my tune real quick. Especially if Jose Veras continues to dominate like he did tonight. This was definitely Joba's best outing to date. Granted the sample size is pretty small, but he looked real comfortable out there. He pitched 6 complete innings and likely would have gone a little longer had we been playing in an American League park. He was pretty efficient with his pitches, throwing only 88, 7 of which were intentional balls. In his next start, he won't be subject to a pitch count. The Yankees rotation just got a lot stronger.

Jose Veras was on tonight. I had really hoped that he pitched the 8th was a sign that Farnsworth was knocked down a peg in the pecking order, but those hopes were dashed when I saw K-Farns warming up to pitch the 9th. Veras has done pretty well this season. He's now thrown 7 straight scoreless innings. And there's your jinx. Don't worry. I'm knocking on wood. He pitched tonight in a huge spot, retiring the heart of the Astros order in the 8th. Right now, he's the guy I want to see pitch late in close games. Too bad I'm not running things.

Farnsworth finally (and thankfully) broke the recent pattern he's been in of pitching poorly after pitching alright. Not counting today, he's given up at least 1 run in every other outing going back to May 13th against the Rays. In short, this is the first back-to-back outings he's had in 12 games where he didn't give up a run. I thought for sure the Yanks were done for when he hit Ty Wiggington. Leadoff walks usually come back to bite you in the behind. K-Farns got a lot of help from the Astros. A failed sac bunt attempt and a caught stealing. Not a bad way to get hooked up if your a pitcher.

If you ask me, the Astros ran themselves out of that game. 3 caught stealings. Ouch. I'm not sure why they tried to steal 3rd with 1 down in the 6th. You'd also think a team that successfully steals 4 bases is going to score more than 1 run. Joba did a heck of a job making sure that didn't happen. Extra points for him.

Derek Jeter's HR in the 8th. In a word, clutch. There wasn't much offensive tonight, but it was enough. Cano is still struggling. Insert deep sigh of disappointment here. Enough already Robbie. It's getting to be beyond ridiculous. We need that bat. Especially in these NL parks because the team is forced to sit 1 of their 3 hottest hitters. The non-producers need to produce. No 2 ways about it. The pitching isn't going to be this sharp every night. A little run support would be nice.

My boy Moose goes tomorrow. Should be a good one. Enjoy.

J-Boogie

The Time Is Now For Yanks To Make A Move

If the Yankees want to make a serious run up the standings there is no better time to do that than right now. Interleague play is upon us and the Yankees have ended up drawing a string of pretty weak opponents. The Yankees have been stuck in a funk, consistently hovering at and around .500, and these next 15 games could prove to be the part of the schedule that makes or breaks the season.

The Yanks play Houston (33-34), San Diego (30-38), Cincinnati (32-36), Pittsburgh (33-34) and the Mets (31-34). None have a record above .500 and collectively those opponents are 159-176, a combined winning percentage of .475.

The Red Sox draw the Reds (32-36), Phillies (40-28), St. Louis (40-28), Arizona (36-31) and Houston (33-34). Those teams are a combined 181-157 (.536).

The Rays get to go against the Marlins twice (36-30), Cubs (43-24), Astros (33-34) and the Pirates (33-34). Those 4 teams are a combined 145-102 (.587).

Who would you rather be? My point exactly.

The Yanks have to make the most of this. None of this win, lose, win, lose BS that we're growing accustomed to. They're only 7 games out of 1st and 6 back in the loss column. Last year after 67 games the Yanks were 35-32, 8.5 back. They were a .500 team (43-43) at the all-star break last year, were 9.5 back, and still made their way into the postseason. There's lots of baseball left to play. They'be been in this position quite a bit in recent years and they're always playing October baseball.

I can't count them out until the final bells rings. Neither should anyone else.

J-Boogie

Matsui Birthday Slam Propels Yanks To 4-1 Win

I stayed up until up midnight last night. I went to bed right after the top half of the 7th. Yanks were winning 4-1 and that's the way it stayed. It was a nice surprise to wake up and see a victory when I checked online. It was also nice to see that I really didn't miss any action. I think the only thing that happened was a walk issued by Mariano. Last night's game was a great pitcher's duel. If not for the Matsui slam, we'd be looking at a 1-0 loss.

And Pettitte looked real good last night. That has to be a confidence booster for AP. What a way to bounce back from that shellacking he took last time out. Andy has been an enigma all year. He hasn't really been consistent. When he's good, he's real good. When he's bad, he's real bad. It was nice to see him shut things down. AP pretty much cruised after the 5th inning, retiring the last 12 hitters he faced. He's 5th inning strike out of Bobby Crosby was huge. Runners on 2nd and 3rd with 1 out...no better time than then for a whiff.

Hideki Matsui's GS was the only offensive highlight. Kenny Singleton kept talking about a slam on his birthday and sho nuff that's exactly what he did. Can't think of a better present to get than a fat meatball crushed for a Grand Salami.

A-Rod is now hitting .316. Is it me or has he done that very quietly this year? I know he hasn't been as locked in as he was last year, but I had no idea he was hitting .316. Nice surprise when you catch that.

Robbie Cano is now hitting .220. His slump has gone on for way too long. He's 2 for 20 over the last 5 games. 0 for 12 in his last 3. Robbie has always been a free swinger. I don't know what to think really. He's not really striking out that much,. which is good. But he's not really getting good wood on the ball, which is bad, real bad. He's having a real bad year. I'd almost like to see the Yankees send him down to AAA, but there really isn't a better option. I'll take a low-hitting Cano over Wilson Betemit every day.

I'm growing more and more tired of this win one lose one funk that this team has been in. It's a typical sign of an average team playing average baseball. The only bright spot is that they're spending more time on the plus side of 500. They used to drop a game or two below 500, and then win their way back to 500, only to go below again. At least now they're going a game above 500 and then falling back. I guess that's a silver lining.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yanks Fall Back To 500 (Again).

Why do I do this to myself? I'm running on fumes and I find myself awake at 1:00am, having watched the entire game. I wanted to go to bed after it was 6-1 but I couldn't make myself hit the sheets. What an ugly game. D-Raz struggled. He's now lost 4 straight. He hasn't exactly been given a lot of run support. Tonight was really no different. For all intents and purposes the Yanks have scored 1 run in each of Rasner's last 4 outings. I know they scored 4 tonight but it was way too little, way too late.

I guess the silver lining tonight is the performance of the bullpen. Too bad they don't pitch that well in close games. I loved Ohlendorf's 'stache. He didn't pull it off. Worth a shot though.

A-Rod stunk it up tonight. Giambi is a hitting machine. Never thought he'd stay hot. I love the 'stache.

So here we are again, back at .500, not able to get over that hump. What an average team. They just can't put it together. Kind of like me and blogging after being up all day and getting little sleep. I'm outta here.

J-Boogie

Wang Is Back! Yanks Win 3-1, Why Am I Awake Still?

How can I turn off the TV and go to bed when Chien-Ming Wang is throwing a good one? Simple answer: I can't. I told the wife I would go to bed after Wang finished. Little did I know he'd throw into the 8th and it would be such a tight game. And normally, I'd zip right to bed after the last out but how can I not blog about it now? I might make it short and sweet. We'll see.

Wang was great! Total 180 from how's he been lately. He didn't issue many freebies and he picked up 4 DPs. And he only threw 83 pitches!! Talk about economical. Seems like the sinker works to me. Vintage Wang. Welcome back. Missed ya kid. I wasn't sure why Girardi lifted him in the 8th for Jose Veras. You've got to have a lot of confidence to lift Chien-Ming for Veras in that spot. I never would have done it. Veras came close to blowing it. That wouldn't have been good.

Offense was so-so. Not good, not bad. Considering they had 7 hits and 6 walks they should have scored more than 3 runs. If not for Melky's insurance HR, it would have been only 2 runs. Not good. Lucky for them Wang took care of business.

Why does Melky continue to slide into first base? Can't someone get it through his head that it slows him down? Anyone?

And I know that the A's threw a lefty tonight, but Wilson Betemit should never be in the lineup in place of Hideki Matsui regardless of who's pitching.

Mariano finished off the 4th straight game. 4 games in 4 days. He's a gamer. I'm glad Joe went to him and not to anyone else. I'll take a tired Mo over anyone in the bullpen any day of the week.

It's part 1:30. Rise and shine at 6:30. I need to hit the wrapper.

J-Boogie

Legacy Of Greatness DVD

You may have seen the commercials on YES mentioning the 10-part Legacy Of Greatness DVD that the NY Daily News is releasing via it's newspaper. They gave away part 1 (The Catchers) at the Stadium yesterday. I was curious if anyone has any of the DVDs, and if there is anything in them that's not in the Yankeeography DVDs that makes them worth $4.99 per DVD. as I understand it, each DVD is 30 minutes and includes most of what's in the Yankeeography.

And fear not those of you outside of the NY metro area. You can still get the collection without having to pay the ridiculous prices on eBay. People are trying to sell individual DVDs for $10/each, and the set for $100 plus. They can be ordered from the Daily News for $49.90 (plus tax) plus shipping, which I think is $14.95. Considering you'd have to buy 10 newspapers to get the redeemable coupons, it's only like $9 more for the set. You can find more info about that here, or by calling 800-873-4172 to order (while supplies last).

But if anyone has any of the DVDs, let me know if it's worth it. I have the Yankeeography set and don't want to drop $70 for 10 minutes of new stuff.

J-Boogie

Yanks Drop Back To 500 And so The Dance Begins Again

Here we go again. They just can't turn the corner. Maybe it's time to call this team what they are: average. Until they show me otherwise, I have no reason to think otherwise. They're exhibiting all the signs of an average team. They just can't get over the hump.

I must apologize for taking the day off from my blogging duties yesterday. I just didn't feel like blogging. It happens.

I was so pulling for a Moose victory today. He definitely pitched well enough to earn his 10th win of the season. Moose has definitely reinvented himself as a pitcher. He pretty much cruised through his outing today. His lone mistake was the pitch he made to Miguel Olivo. Other than that he was pretty much flawless. I was exchanging e-mails with my buddy Dan during the game and we were impressed with how economical Moose is with his pitches. His final pitch count for 8 full innings was 89, 1 pitch over 11 per inning. I really hope Hughes, Joba, and Ian Kennedy paid close attention because that's how you do it. Moose is definitely a new man out there on the hill. If he keeps throwing the way he is I'd have to think the Yankees might take a 2nd look at bringing him back. I know it's a long shot but next year's rotation is shaping up to be a pretty young one (Hughes, Joba, Kennedy, Wang and ???). I think there'd be some value in having a guy like Moose in the clubhouse with these young kids. He definitely has a lot to offer.

The Royals had Mo's number this series. No reason to be concerned about Mo. He'll be fine. Jose Guillen absolutely owned the Yankees. I'm a little shocked Mo gave up 2 longballs in 3 games. I doubt it had anything to do with pitching 3 straight games. Like I said, he'll be fine.

The Yankees offense continues to puzzle me. They're better than they were a few short months ago but are still too inconsistent for my liking. I was really encouraged when they picked up Moose in the 7th. I really thought they were going to do the same for Mo, but they fell 90 feet short. I thought the Baseball Gods were on our side when Moeller got hit, but Melky quickly squashed that feeling. Too bad it wasn't Johnny Damon.

I'm not sure how many of you listen to games on the radio but it's a whole different experience hearing the action as opposed to seeing it. It definitely is a lot more suspenseful and it keeps you on the edge of your seat. When Melky grounded out to end the game I couldn't help but have a glimmer of hope that he'd beat it out and I'd doubt I'd have felt that way had I been watching it on TV. I'm not a big fan of John Sterling but he definitely does a good job of holding your attention. If you haven't listened to game in a while, I suggest you give it a try. It's a whole different experience.

The Yanks now head to Oakland squared up at 500. When the Yanks head out west, my blogging usually suffers b/c I can't stay up that late. I try, but usually head for bad after 6 innings. I get the feeling that they'll win two or lose two, and then win two or lose two in Houston, only to return home stuck at 500. It could be a lot worse. They are only 6 back in the loss column. We're 64 games into the season and the opening day lineup has played together 3 times I think. Considering how they're playing and all they've gone through, I'll take it.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie

Yanks Win A Wild One & I'm Still Waiting

It's approaching midnight. I've got the TV tuned to ESPN. The University of Miami is beating the University of Arizona 14-10 after 8 and a half innings. I've been waiting patiently to see the end of today's Yankees/Royals shootout. I watched the game today through 6 and a half. Jose Guillen had just drilled a grand slam putting the Royals up 4. We had to go out and run some errands and that seemed like a good time to go. Knowing that the Yanks were far from done, I set up the DVR to record the rest of the game and the postgame show. Upon completing our errands, we swung by the in-laws so our son Cooper could see his grandparents. I hopped on the Internet to see the final score and much to my surprise the Yankees roared back to win on a Johnny Damon walkoff single. My mood changed from happy to extremely giddy. I couldn't wait to get home and watch the climactic ending on DVR. And wouldn't you know it, the DVR stopped recording with a 2-1 count on Damon in the 9th. The game ran well over the allotted time and even ran over the hour I had set up to record the post game show. No problem though. I'll set up the DVR to tape the replay. I sit down to watch that after the wife goes to bed and that ends while the game is in the bottom of the 8th inning. Son of a monkey. I bring up the channel guide and see that Baseball Tonight is scheduled to start at 10:30. 15 minutes. I can wait. And hear I am almost an hour and a half later, waiting. Waiting for this college game to end. Who do they think they are? Yankees and the Red Sox?

And Pettitte got rocked today. He had a weird outing. Started out crappy, had 3 phenomenal innings in the middle, and had the worst possible ending possible. I haven't seen the movie but it sounds like a review I read for the new Indiana Jones flick. I'm not sure what's up with Andy. He' been pretty inconsistent all year. His outings have typically been about the same too. Good and bad all mixed into one. The Yanks need him to be more consistent if they want to make a serious run at the postseason.

How 'bout that Johnny Damon? I don't know if there's a hotter bat out there. He has been absolutely on fire. He was hitting .250 on May 20th. With today's' 6 for 6, yes that's right, 6 for 6 performance, JD is now hitting .326. He's raised his average 76 points in 16 games. Over that span he's hit 34 for 67 (.507) and had 10 multi-hit games. Talk about being in the zone.

Sports Center has been on for 10 minutes. Still waiting. It's all about Big Brown.

The 'stache comes through again! The Giambino picked up another long ball. It's hard to believe he's the same guy that was hitting .191 on the 18th of May. He's on the same kind of streak that Damon is on. In his last 15 games, Giambi is 21 for 49 (.429) and has raised his average 68 points. Tack on 5 HRs and 12 RBI and that's a good couple of weeks. Memo to Jason Giambi: don't shave ever again!

Today's game was a polar opposite of yesterday's where today we were treated to lots of offense and horrible pitching. The pitchers owe the hitters a big thank you. That's what I call slugging your way to a victory. You shouldn't have to do that against the Royals. KC is one of the worst offensive teams in the league. How can you give up 11 runs tot he Royals? Unreal.

I was shocked that Mariano got taken deep. I wasn't expecting that. But it fit with the way the game went today. I'm glad Jorge and Damon picked him up.

Still waiting for the highlight. They're paying homage to the legendary Jim McKay. May he rest in peace.

And we're off to a commercial break.

It's nice to have a healthy lineup isn't it? I think it's about time they yank Betemit from the lineup. Playing him results in a hot bat riding the pine. I know I ragged on him a few day ago for exhibiting a lack of power and just being all-around horrendous, and then he hit a few HRs. Even still. Who wants him playing in place of Giambi, Matsui or Damon? DFA him.

Sports Center is back and the focus is on the NBA Finals. Celtics v. Lakers. Yawn. Enough already. Give me my highlight.

Thumbs up to Jose Veras.

It's about time. Here comes the highlight. Nice, but I really wish my DVR had held in there for 5 more minutes. I'm ticked that I missed the post game celebration. I guess I have no choice but to DVR the morning replay (and the 3 shows that follow it) to see that. I knew ESPN wouldn't devote a lot of time to that. All that build up for nothing. Kind of like Joba's debut as a starter. Speaking of which......

Joba makes his 2nd start tomorrow. He should pitch a little deeper into the game than he did last time out. I don't see the Royals showing a lot of plate discipline and assuming their offense returns to form, Joba might have 5-6 innings in him. Can't wait.

Back to .500 again. Ugh. Here we goa again.

J-Boogie