Yanks Make The Look-A-Likes Look-A-Like Chumps

I was worried there for a little while. It was the bottom of the 6th and the Yanks were down 2-1 and only had 2 hits. It had the making of the typical Yankee game. Good pitching, little offense, and headed toward a 1-run win or loss. And then Bobby Abreu stepped to the plate and put the Yanks back on top with a 2-run HR. Next thing I know, the Yanks are sitting on a 6-run lead, the bullpen has the ball, game over.

I'm impressed that the Yankees offense again bounced back after the team fell behind. This is the 4th straight game where the Yankees tied the game or went ahead in the same inning where they lost the lead. Yesterday, the look-alikes knotted the game at 2 in the 2nd and the Yanks scored 4. On Sunday, the A's tied the game in the 6th and the Yanks scored the eventual winning run in the bottom of the inning. On Saturday, the A's scored a run in the 9th to take a 1-run lead and the Yanks tied it up in the bottom of the 9th. Heck, on Friday the A's scored in the 1st inning and the Yanks tied it right up. That's impressive.

Overall it was a pretty good night at the plate, with the exception of the bottom of the order. Melky Melky Melky. Horrible. Just horrible. Melky has really worn out his welcome in my book. I wouldn't mind seeing him dealt but right now his value is in the toilet. I've been suggesting they deal Melky for years now. Every time i bring him up he goes on a tear so maybe I'll have that effect on him again. It's very nice to have Johnny Damon back in the lineup. It makes it so much more formidable. He did a great job tonight of setting the table, picking up 2 walks and a single, scoring twice. Glad to have you back Johnny D. Cano still has the hottest bat in the lineup and it's about time Robbie is consistently stinging the ball. Robbie now has 5 straight multi-hit games and is 12-23 since coming back from the break. I don't think it's a coincidence that the team wins when Robbie hits. His average, up to .263, is now somewhat respectable. It's not quite what we Yankee fans have come to expect from Robbie but if he keeps this up, he'll be at .300 in no time. All in all, a good night at the dish.

Rasner pitched pretty well. Michael Kay called it his best outing of the season. Oh Michael Kay. You're such a tool. He was good, but not that good. He did allow 8 baserunners in 5.2 IPs. He did leave the game on the hook for the loss. His 1st 2 outings of the season were much better than tonight's effort, which again was solid, but not his best. D-Raz did do his job. He only gave up 2 runs, which is right up there with his counterparts in the rotation. Raz has been real shaky lately and his start tonight was encouraging. Let's chalk his success up to Chad Moeller. My research department (Pete Abraham's blog) tells me that opponents have a .675 OPS against D-Raz when Moeller is his battery mate. With Posada it's .933 and with Molina it's 1.014. I think it's safe to say that Chad Moeller needs to be Rasner's personal catcher. If the rotation can keep this going, it'll make Cashman's job a little easier come the trade deadline, and it's going to leave Yankee fans saying Johan who? I think they still need an arm because the roof is eventually going to cave in on Sidney Ponson. He can't keep this up by allowing all these baserunners. A hired gun would be nice, but again, it won't be as necessary if these guys throw like they're throwing.

Again, the bullpen was awesome. 3.1 IPs of 1 hit, 1 walk, 5 K ball. David Robertson picked up a huge out in the 6th, on 1 pitch, and earned his 2nd win of the season, on 1 pitch. Not a bad night's work. Robertson has been extremely impressive since his debut, and who wouldn't be shaky in their major league debut? Since his 1st outing, D-Rob has thrown 9.1 IPs, given up 3 hits, 1 run, 4 walks, and 13 Ks. Coming into tonight, including his 1st outing, opponents are only hitting .184 off him. Joba who? Kyle Farnsworth is no longer Farnsworthless. I'm still in amazement over how well he's thrown lately. K-Farns in his last 10 games, has thrown 9 innings and hasn't given up a hit! K-Farns has technically thrown a no-hitter. Color me dumbfounded. Again, Joba who?

The Rays have lost to the A's and the Yanks are now only 3.5 back of first. They've won 5 straight and they look good. They're pitching extremely well and they're hitting the ball. Imagine how we'd be if Chien-Ming Wang were around? My man Moose is on the hill tomorrow for an afternoon game. Ugh. I have meetings from 1-3 so I'm going to miss 2/3 of the game. I'll get to follow along with the Yahoo gamecast for the first hour but I'll totally miss the 2nd. It's Moose's turn to start this all over again. None of these guys want to be the starter that breaks the streak of solid outings. You can do it Moose. Make me and my fellow Mike Mussina Fan Club members proud.

Peace, love and Pinstripes,

J-Boogie