I have to admit, I got a little scared during the 1st inning of this game. Pettitte getting out of that bases loaded jam was huge, and set him up to toss another gem. With this latest outing, Andy improves to 3-1 with a 2.79 ERA in 51.2 innings since the All Star Break. He looks as good as I’ve ever seem him lately and, with him pitching like this, it’s a no-brainer to pencil him in the 3rd spot of the playoff rotation.

As for the offense, they got the better of young Derek Holland roughing him up for 6 earned runs in 6 innings. The offense was pretty much running on all cylinders, with even Hairston getting in the mix with a solo jack. Speaking of Hairston, what a pick up for the Yanks huh? This guy has played almost every position on the field and has not embarassed the team with his bat. While with the Yanks so far this year, he has hit to the following slash rates :  .314/.415/.543. While it’s obvious that he won’t continue to hit at such a high level, he is, right now, exactly what the yankees want Ramiro Pena to become.

Lastly, did anyone else cringe when Posada’s glove hand got clipped with the foul tip? I was afraid that maybe he actually broke it this time.  Luckily, it’s relatively fine and the Yankees are in a position where they can give Jorge a few days off to let his finger heal a little bit.

When it’s all said and done, after a tough loss the Yankees came firing right back with a nice victory against a playoff caliber team. Is it just me, or does it feel like this team, this year, is playing out a Yankeeography?

- Posted By Corey

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Wow, that one got close in the 9th huh? I thought the Yanks were going to pull off the come back there for a minute. Regardless, there’s a lot of fight in this team day in and day out and they never seem to be completely out of it.

And now, for Joba. Last night featured the same old, same old from Joba. I think it’s time for Posada (if he has already, do it again) to sit Joba down and tell him that he’s going to throw whatever pitch Posada tells him to throw. Everytime Joba shakes off Posada, it makes his pitches become predictable. How many times with 2 strikes did Joba shake Posada off to throw the slider? At this point, I don’t think I want to see him get the ball in October. Line up CC, AJ, and Andy and let’s roll.

Lastly, another 2 hits and a walk for the captain. It tells you a lot about your season when it’s been 114 PA since your last walk and your OBP is still .390+. If he continues to hit and get on base at this clip, and steal bases like he has been, he may give Tex and Mauer a run for their money for that MVP award.

- Posted By Corey

To close the loop on Baseball America’s “Best Tools ’09″ feature, BA has released its list of MLB’s best in 21 separate categories, listing the top three for each.  You’ll recall that Steve has already weighed in on the MiLB version of the same report.  So without further ado, here’s how our faves ranked:

Best Power: Alex Rodriguez (2), Mark Teixeira (3)
Best Hit-and-Run Artist: Derek Jeter (3)
Best Curveball: A.J. Burnett (2)
Best Pickoff Move: Andy Pettitte (1)
Best Reliever: Mariano Rivera (1)
Best Defensive 1B: Mark Teixeira (1)
Best Defensive 2B: Robinson Cano (3)

Not too shabby, huh?

-Posted by MJ

Slade Heathcott made his yanks debut (albeit the Gulf Coast League Yankees) going 1-3 with his first professional base hit,  a single.

Here’s a link to the box score.

He batted lead off, and played center field…two things we could definitely use in the future. So here’s to you, Slade, we hope you have a very bright career in the Bronx.

- Posted By Corey

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Excellent scouting/strategy by the Yankees in this one…having a game plan to attack early in the count against Beckett. Even Terry Francona referenced it during the in-game interview on ESPN. Somebody on the New York coaching staff, and/or the scouting department, derserves a gold star for that one. And, two thumbs up to the players for executing it.

The A.L. East, while not carved in stone, is pretty much a done deal now with this Yankees victory. New York is up on Boston by 7 games in the loss column with 38 games left to play. Sure, yeah, I know about the 1969 Mets, the 1993 Braves, the 1995 Mariners, the 1978 Yankees and the 2007 Phillies. But, it ain’t happening for Boston this year – not with the condition of their starting pitchers. At this point, all the Yankees need to do from here out is win as much as they lose, avoid injuries to key players, not underestimate who they play in the ALDS, and figure out a way to beat the Angels (should they face them sometime in October). If New York can do that, there’s no reason why we can’t see the World Series come to the Bronx in October.

Watching the Yankees game against the Red Sox tonight got me thinking back to the 2003/2004 off-season and this story from February 3, 2004:

Shortly after the Super Bowl ended, we were quickly reminded that baseball season is just around the corner.

Major League Baseball ran an ad on CBS’s “Survivor: All-Stars” that featured Josh Beckett, along with Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez.

The “I Live for This” ad showed the three inside a plush house, with Beckett and Jeter jawing good-naturedly about the World Series. Only this time, Jeter got the last word against Beckett, the Series MVP for the Marlins.

Beckett tossed a Wiffle Ball to the Yankees shortstop, who blasted a shot off a wall in the house.

Two weeks later, A-Rod was traded to the Yankees and became Jeter’s teammate. And, less than two years later, Beckett was traded to the Red Sox. Now, tonight, all three are playing in the same game. Small world, huh?

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Eric Bruntlett just made the wait for tonight’s Yanks-Sox game a little bit easier…

Have you been watching the Little League World Series? Since I was born and lived on Staten Island, for 37 years, I’m somewhat interested in seeing what the S.I. team does in the Series. But, to be candid, I’ve only seen a little of one of the games so far on ESPN…

However, in the game that I did see, I saw that pitcher from Chula Vista Park View – Luke Ramirez. Have you seen him yet?

Luke Ramirez is 6-foot-2 and weighs 205 pounds. Man, that’s crazy!

How is a kid, 11- or 12-years old, supposed to step into a batter’s box, with Ramirez hulking on the mound, just 46 feet away?

Here’s a picture of Luke taking a throw at first, if you need a visual:

Photo via: Terry Pierson / The Press-Enterprise

Forget Chad Gaudin and Sergio Mitre…maybe the Yankees can pick up this Raimrez kid and let him help fill out their rotation between now and October?

How wild? Click here to see the answer.

John Harper and Bob Klapisch have the story. And, George King touched upon it the other day too.

A simple game of self-respect…
You flick a switch, and, the world goes off.
Nobody jumps as you expect…
I would have thought you would have had enough, by, now.

Hey, A.J., and, ‘Sado…O.K. Com’on guys…can we stop the Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe routine and just all get on the same page?

Via Newsday -

What school would have a course entitled BOSS? None other than Steinbrenner High School, where opening day is Tuesday in Lutz, Fla., near the home of Yankees patriarch George Steinbrenner.

The $60 million structure in Hillsborough County is fairly state of the art, and there are reports that some parents have been angling to stretch the boundaries to have their children included in the district. There are no empty seats to be had in this structure, where nearly 2,000 students will report.

To quickly clear up any misconceptions, Steinbrenner did not buy his way into naming rights, though his largely financial “good deeds” certainly earned him the honor.

“Over the years, Mr. Steinbrenner has been deeply involved in the community, particularly with the schools and the school system,” said Steven Ayers, director of community relations for Hillsborough County public schools. “He’s been very involved and very philanthropic. He’s probably donated in tens of millions over the length of time.”

Steinbrenner High will have the usual old school subjects of English, math and science, but will kick it up a notch with offerings for students preparing for a career in sports. Sports marketing, sports medicine and the business of sports (BOSS), including George’s specialty of entrepreneurship, will be available in grades 9-12. But the 79-year-old Steinbrenner will be the only senior associated this year with the school, which begins with grades 9-11. A picture of him will also be displayed in the school.

The athletic teams, called the Warriors (Yankees was considered) will wear navy and gold uniforms (no names, of course) and, perhaps owing to the marketing sense of its namesake, school T-shirts are in pre-order for $10. Try comparing that to any similar piece of apparel at Yankee Stadium. Lunch at Steinbrenner will cost $2.75. That wouldn’t buy a hot-dog bun in the Bronx.

Go check out the website for Steinbrenner High School – and dig that intro music. We didn’t have stuff like that when I was in High School. Then again, I didn’t see my first PC until I was out of High School for eight years…

Here’s some info on Big Stein High’s baseball coach – via TampaBay.com -

Hillsborough County’s all-time winningest baseball coach is returning to the dugout.

Former Jesuit coach John Crumbley, who won 575 games and three state titles at Jesuit, has been hired to start the baseball program at Steinbrenner High School, the school announced Monday.

“I’ve missed it from the day I walked away,” Crumbley said. “The opportunity to start a new program at a school named after George Steinbrenner is exciting. I’m grateful for the 25 years I spent at Jesuit. There was never a day when I got up and didn’t want to go do my job.”

Crumbley’s contract as athletic director ends in May. He will begin at Steinbrenner, where he will also teach algebra, in August.

I wonder if Crumbley will have to worry about having Billy Connors looking over his shoulder and spying on him?

Via ESPN -

Looking for a veteran bat to help their playoff push, the Colorado Rockies have agreed to a deal with Jason Giambi, according to multiple reports.

Giambi was released by the Oakland Athletics earlier this month after hitting just .193 with 11 home runs and 40 RBIs in 83 games. He reportedly will join Triple-A Colorado Springs to get at-bats and then report to the Rockies on Sept. 1 when rosters are expanded.

“Jason is 100 percent healthy and definitely plans to continue playing,” his agent Arn Tellem said in an e-mail to The Associated Press when Giambi was released. “He is confident he’ll be able to contribute to a team down the stretch.”

Giambi had been on the disabled list since July 20 with a strained right quadriceps muscle when he was released by Oakland.

The 38-year-old first baseman and designated hitter had returned to Oakland this season after seven pressure-packed years with the New York Yankees, agreeing in January to a one-year contract that guaranteed him $5.25 million.

In 2001, current Rockies 1B Todd Helton had 49 homers and Jason Giambi hit 38 homers that season. This year, Helton has 12 big flys and Giambi has 11 to his credit. Now, Helton was 27-years old in 2001 and Giambi was 30 back then in ’01. So, age has something to do with this power drop-off. But, I cannot help to think there’s some other stuff at work here…and think it’s kind of interesting that these two find themselves to be teammates now…

I’m a little late to the party on this one, but, I have to say:

Andrew, it’s pure genius. Now, for me, I would probably swap out drinks for push-ups (or some other form of exercise). But, again, that’s me…today. When I was 22-years old…maybe not so much.

And, I’m not 100% sure that Everyday Scottie would appreciate the connection these days.

But, your “Kaychés” are dead, solid, perfect. (Although, I also have to give props to others for hitting on these in the past.) In any event, to get Kay to take note on this thing as well…hey, like I said…genius.

Just don’t let me hear about the WasWatching.com Commas & Ellipses Drinking Game…well, because, you see…um, I’m already working on a draft for that. (And, no pun intended on “draft.”)

O.K, what do you see here?

Opp	W	L		Opp	W	L
CHW	1	3		BOS	5	9
FLA	1	2		CHW	1	3
PHI	1	2		FLA	1	2
WSN	1	2		LAA	2	4
ATL	2	1		PHI	1	2
KCR	2	1		WSN	1	2
	8	11			11	22

Opp	W	L		Opp	W	L
BOS	5	9		ATL	2	1
LAA	2	4		BAL	9	3
BAL	9	3		CLE	5	3
CLE	5	3		DET	5	1
DET	5	1		KCR	2	1
MIN	7	0		MIN	7	0
NYM	5	1		NYM	5	1
OAK	7	2		OAK	7	2
SEA	5	2		SEA	5	2
TBR	6	5		TBR	6	5
TEX	4	2		TEX	4	2
TOR	9	3		TOR	9	3
	69	35			66	24

TOTAL	77	46		TOTAL	77	46

And, don’t you dare say “A pretty butterfly.”

Me? I see that the Yankees are 31 games over .500 as of the close of buisness today. And, I see that the Yankees are 37-9, so far this season, when playing the Orioles, Twins, Mets, A’s and Blue Jays – which is 28 games over .500 (against those five teams). Twenty-eight and thirty-one are pretty close, no?

Via TSN on July 7, 2009 -

The New York Yankees are moving right-hander Alfredo Aceves from the bullpen for a spot start on Thursday against the Minnesota Twins.

Aceves will fill in for Chien-Ming Wang, who is on the disabled list with a shoulder injury. Manager Joe Girardi made the announcement before the Yankees opened a three-game series against the Twins on Tuesday. He said he also considered Sergio Mitre, but ultimately settled on Aceves because he “was the most stretched out right now.”

Aceves is 5-1 with a 2.03 ERA in 21 appearances this season, helping solidify the Yankees bullpen. He made four starts for the Yankees last season, one reason why Girardi said he felt comfortable with the move this time around.

“He’s a four-pitch guy. He’s done it before,” Girardi said. “We were comfortable going to him.”

Aceves will likely be limited to about 65 pitches, Girardi said.

Well, Aceves did start that game on July 9th and threw 65 pitches. But, he only went 3.3 IP in the contest – allowing 4 hits, a walk, and three earned runs. Afterwards, he returned to the bullpen – next appearing in a game 9 days later.

But, in his first four games, pitching in relief, after that start, from July 18th through July 25th, Aceves threw just 3.3 IP – allowing 4 hits, a walk, and three earned runs.

Then, four days later, it was announced that Alfredo Aceves had “fatigue” in his right shoulder. And, since that time, he’s pitched in seven games for the Yankees, going 16.6 IP – allowing 18 hits, 3 walks, and 14 earned runs.

In total, since that spot start in Minnesota, Alfredo Aceves has pitched in 11 games, all out of the pen, throwing 20 IP, allowing 22 hits, 4 walks, and 17 earned runs. (Hey, on the bright side, he’s not walking many, right?)

Clearly, since making that start against the Twins, due to the injury to Chien-Ming Wang, Alfredo Aceves has been toast. Why the Yankees keep running him out there, now, is beyond me?

Joe Girardi, after the game, when asked about A.J. Burnett’s performance today: “It’s not what we expected.” Gotta love ol’ General Joe, when it comes to commenting on his players, don’t cha? (For the record, when asked about Robbie Cano getting thrown out at second, by ten feet, in the second, Joe said “He got a bad read.” See what I mean?)

Burnett allowed a career high 9 runs in this one. In his career, A.J. has allowed 8 runs in a game just 6 times…with the last time being…hey…April 25th of this season in a game at Fenway Park. In fact, as a Yankee, Burnett has now pitched three games at Fenway Park, throwing 12.6 IP and allowing 20 earned runs. Yikes.

Here’s all you need to know about the game: The Red Sox scored 14 runs with 13 of them coming with two outs. And, the Yankees had 15 runners reach base, left at least one base runner on in each of their nine innings, and only scored one run on the day. In a nutshell, the Yankees allowed too many big hits and couldn’t get any big hits for themselves. You do that, and, most of the time, you’re going to get an “L” branded on your fanny…which is what New York got today in this one.

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Via Joel Sherman today -

I formed a seven- man committee comprised of one NL GM, one AL GM, and five assistants — three NL and two AL — and posed this question:

If you could have Robinson Cano or Dustin Pedroia for the next five years, who would you take and why?

The result surprised me. All seven executives picked Pedroia. He is the reigning MVP. But his 2009 season is down from last year while Cano has rebounded to have a positive campaign. Pedroia just turned 26, Cano turns 27 in October.

However, all seven respondents followed a basic theme: “Pedroia has better makeup and gives his all every day,” an NL exec said. “On natural ability, Cano tops the list. But Pedroia is a winner and a leader.”

Still, what became obvious from the respondents was that Cano has an image problem that lingers even as his overall game has improved this year. For if both second basemen took the field in workout garb for hitting, running, throwing and fielding drills, Cano likely would be the more impressive player. But the perception lingers that Cano does not concentrate well and floats through too many at-bats, while Pedroia treats every inning as a baseball holy war.

“I trust [Pedroia's] ability to grind and persevere more than Cano,” the NL GM said.

Me? Pedroia has to prove that 2008 wasn’t a fluke…because, if he’s not hitting 50+ doubles and 15+ homers in a season, then his game, despite the high batting average, plays out to be close to a league average performer. And, we know, sans last season, Cano can post a season with numbers close to 40 doubles, 20 homers, and a batting average over .300…which is very good for a second baseman.

What do you think, which player would you rather have as your second baseman?

Some interesting stats from last night’s game, via Rob Bradford -

• The 20 runs were the most the Red Sox had surrendered since Jun 19, 2000, when these same Yankees tortured Brian Rose, Bryce Florie, Rob Stanifer, and Tim Wakefield to the tune of 22 runs.
• No team had managed 23 hits against the Red Sox since Sept. 3, 1981, when the Seattle Mariners out-hit the Sox by one, totaling 24 against the group of Mike Torrez, Bill Campbell, Tom Burgmeier, Luis Aponte, Chuck Rainey, John Tudor and Bob Stanley.
• Red Sox starter Brad Penny became one of three Red Sox pitchers since 1954 to give up at least eight runs and 10 hits over four innings or fewer against the Yankees.
• Rookie Michael Bowden followed up Penny by letting the Yanks score seven runs in two innings, the most runs allowed by a Red Sox reliever since Frank Castillo took it on the chin to the tune of 10 runs against Texas, Aug. 1, 2002.
• New York’s Hideki Matsui finished with seven RBI, becoming the first opponent since Kansas City’s Freddie Patek to manage the feat against the Sox at Fenway Park, and the first Yankee to collect as many in a game at Fenway Park since Lou Gehrig’s eight-RBI performance, July 31, 1930.
• According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the last time the Yankees collected 23 or more hits against the Red Sox was June 6, 1934.

Who were those other two starting pitchers, that Penny joined? The answer: Tom Bolton on June 27, 1991 and Bill Lee on April 21, 1975.

Alex Johnson was the D.H. for the Yankees in that Bill Lee game. And, Bam-Bam Meulens was the D.H. for New York in that Tom Bolton game. This has nothing to do with the game last night, or the job that Hideki Matsui did as D.H. in it. Basically, if I can find any excuse to say “Bam-Bam Meulens,” I’m jumping on it…that’s all.

I’ve mentioned in the past that, as a kid, my first favorite Yankees player was Thurman Munson. And, recently reading Marty Appel’s new book on Munson, got me thinking more and more about how much I admired him as a player, back in the day.

Related, the other day, as I was looking back on Munson’s life and career, I discovered that his son, Michael Munson, opened a restaurant in Canton (Ohio) called Munson’s Home Plate Sports Pub back in January of 2008. From the reports that I’ve seen the place is decorated in baseball memorabilia and photographs from Thurman’s career.

Right away, when learning this, I thought “Sports Pub? They must have T-Shirts for sale there, or something? I have to find out if I can get one.” and I called up restaurant. And, I found out that they do have shirts for men and ladies – including tanks for ladies as well.

Here are the men’s shirts:

Click on thumbnail to enlarge the image.

And, here are the ladies shirts:

Click on thumbnail to enlarge the image.

Lastly, click here to see the ladies tank tops.

Knowing that there are many other Yankees fans who grew up being a fan of Thurman Munson and who may also have an interest in shirts like these, and also thinking that many Yankees fans in general, living outside of Canton, Ohio, may have an interest in a unique Yankees-related shirt, I figured I would share this discovery today.

Munson’s Home Plate Sports Pub can be reached by calling (330) 494-2800. When I called, I told the person answering the phone that I was calling from out-of-state and was interested in purchasing a shirt from the Pub. And, that’s all that it took – a simple phone call. If you’re interested in getting one of these shirts too, all you have to do is call them at (330) 494-2800 as well.

I cannot believe Nick Swisher dogging it…and costing the Yankees their 21st run in this game. (Yes, I’m kidding here.)

This one was two games – the first five innings and the last four innings.

New York killed Boston in that first game, 12-4. But, New York barely got by Boston in that second game, 8-7. In the end, when you combine the two, the Yanks won by nine – and, thank you, Terry Francona, for leaving Michael Bowden in this contest, for as long as you did, because the seven runs that he allowed (in 2 innings) was a huge part of the cushion in this overall blowout.

Speaking of thanks, how about “No thanks!” to Brian Bruney for making this one…um…interesting in the 6th and 7th innings? There were a couple of moments in those frames where I thought “Oh, no, a slam here and this thing is going to start and shift…” Happy to say, that never happened. Whew.

So, how about tomorrow?

Well, on September 26, 2008 the Yanks pounded the Sox, 19-8, at Fenway and then did not play the next day. And, of course, on October 16, 2004, in the ALCS, the Yanks pounded the Sox, 19-8, at Fenway and we all know what happened the next day. Also, on June 19, 2000 the Yanks pounded the Sox, 22-1, at Fenway and won the next day, 3-0.

So, that’s one day-after zero, one day-after loss, and one day-after win. That makes it 1-1-0, right? Let’s hope that tomorrow’s day-after result is another “W” and changes that day-after line to 2-1-0…

…because, if the Yankees win tomorrow, and can then sweep on Sunday, we will be able to shout out “Los calcetines rojos son muertos!” – for the first time since August of 2006.

One AL exec is speculating it, per Joel Sherman. Wagner and Papelbon in the same pen? They’re going to have to double up on that supply of flea and tick powder in the Boston bullpen john, if true…

Hey, John Henry, tweet this.

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Courtesy of ESPN.com:

Apparently Jim Rice isn’t a big fan of the Yanks, singling out A-Rod and Jeter in a message to Little Leaguers playing in the Little League World Series.

Speaking to players before the start of the Little League World Series, the new baseball Hall of Famer said today’s major leaguers are too focused on individual goals and getting big contracts.

“You see a Manny Ramirez, you see an A-Rod [Alex Rodriguez], you see [Derek] Jeter … Guys that I played against and with, these guys you’re talking about cannot compare,” Rice said to Little Leaguers gathered in the cafeteria.

A-Rod and Manny are fair game,  I suppose, since they both tested positive for PED’s, but why call out Jeter?  He’s never tested positive for PED’s and — my feelings about him notwithstanding — has a sterling reputation among his peers, his opponents, and just about everyone else.  I wonder why Jim Rice is calling out “Captain Intangibles?”

-Posted by MJ

Via George King -

Reliever Damaso Marte, out since April with an injured left shoulder, is expected to rejoin the Yankees bullpen tonight for the series opener with the Red Sox.

It’s possible the Yankees could go with 13 pitchers and send down a position player, who then would be recalled when rosters expand Sept. 1.

Marte, who signed a three-year, $12 million deal this offseason, has pitched in seven games with a 15.19 ERA.

Kei Igawa wants to know if this means the Yankees are instituting a “No Lefty Left Behind” program…