Javy Vazquez was good today. And, the Yankees still lost. That’s three in a row, now. Called it.
With this loss, the Yankees are now 11-9 on the road this season – and 10-2 when playing at home.
So, thank goodness for Yankee Stadium and the way the O’s and Rangers played there so far this season…
..or else the Yankees overall record would not look as pretty as it does (at 21-11).
Via George King –
Alfredo Aceves is headed for the disabled list with a lower back problem he says is a bulging disc, which could cripple the Yankees’ bullpen.
Aceves felt discomfort throwing Monday at Comerica Park and will be put on the shelf today, when the Yankees and Tigers play a day/night twinbill after last night’s action was rained out.
“Probably 15 days at least,” Aceves said when asked how long he expects to be idle.
Losing Aceves is a big deal not only because of his success (3-0 with a 3.00 ERA in 10 games) but because of his versatility. He can provide length or go an inning anywhere in the game.
I have to agree that this could be bad news. Aceves was a huge part of the Yankees “magic” last season. And, he is probably the most trusted member of the Yankees pen, this season, after Mo and Joba. If he’s out for a long time and/or is hampered upon his return, who will pick up the slack?
Sort of reminds me of all the pitching troubles in Yankeeland once Ramiro Mendoza was gone from the scene…
Via Chad Jennings -
Despite on-going speculation that Juan Miranda was on his way to Detroit, it was Greg Golson who walked through the clubhouse doors this morning. He’s here for Alfredo Aceves, who went on the disabled list.
“We’ve been short on outfielders,” Joe Girardi said. “And we felt we were covered pitching-wise.”
That doesn’t mean Miranda has been ruled out. For now the Yankees want the expanded depth, not the lefty designated hitter, but Girardi hinted that another move could be in the works in the coming days.
“Eventually we’ll probably, possibly, make a move,” he said.
Short on outfielders? I guess that means Joe is not sold on Ramiro Pena taking fly balls during BP…
It’s what everyone seems to be talking about…
Tigers closer Jose Valverde means no harm with antics.
Detroit Tigers closer Jose Valverde fist pumps way to victory, New York Yankees don’t mind.
What do you think?
Looks like Juan Miranda is coming up.
No knock on Juan. But, I would have liked to see Kevin Russo get a longer look. Bummer.
In truth, this was never a game I expected to win and, sure enough, the Yanks dropped the game 5-4 to the Detroit Tigers. The loss was a total team effort, as I’ll highlight below.
The Good:
The Bad:
The Yanks are 21-10 and still only 0.5 games behind Tampa in the division (thanks to Anaheim for beating the Rays last night). Unfortunately, today’s game should be no sweet relief as Javier Vazquez’s bloated ERA takes the mound. Hopefully Yankee bats tee off against the equally disappointing Rick Porcello (2-3, 7.50 ERA, 1.87 WHIP).
…looks like strikeouts are here to stay…
Via Bob Klapisch:
In April alone, hitters were whiffing at a rate of 7.1 times per nine innings, which would be the highest rate in history for a season. As Sports Illustrated’s Tom Verducci recently noted, between walks and strikeouts, 28 percent of all plate appearances are ending without contact, another all-time high.
So what gives? Hitters are bigger and stronger than ever; no one disputes the game’s athleticism is at an all-time high. The stars should be squaring up at will, right?
Not exactly. Today’s hitters are taking bigger hacks, but taking fewer of them. The game now emphasizes on-base percentage as never before, which means a base on balls ranks right up there with a sharp single.
So the quest for success means waiting – getting to that perfect moment of leverage when the count is 2-0 or 3-1. Only a generation ago, hitters took a he-man’s approach to strikes; they considered themselves so tough, they could hit anything, close to the zone or not.
Now, it’s probability that drives a hitter’s thinking. One of the most revealing nuggets of Michael Lewis’ bestseller “Moneyball” is Paul DePodesta’s explanation of why patience pays.
“The difference between 1-2 and 2-1 is terms of expected outcomes is just enormous. It’s the largest variance of expected outcomes of any one pitch,” said the then-Dodgers’ general manager. “On 2-1 most average major-league hitters become All-Stars, yet on 1-2 they become anemic nine-hole hitters. People talk about first-pitch strikes. But it’s usually the first two out of three.”
The other factor that might explain [the Mets David] Wright’s low contact ratio is the missing stigma: Striking out is no longer considered a sign of weakness or defeat.
“It’s an acceptable risk,” says the Yankees’ Mark Teixeira. “You don’t go up there thinking you’re going to get punched out, but if you do, you don’t dwell on it.”
And via Sheldon Ocker:
Strikeouts don’t matter. We hear it all the time from baseball computer geeks.
There are complex graphs showing that strikeouts don’t affect the number of runs scored one way or another. It’s true, but it doesn’t have to be.
Yes, the way the game is played today, the weapon of choice is the home run. Power hitters swing hard. Consequently, you have to accept their gargantuan strikeout totals to reap the benefits of the home runs.
In other words, those charts merely reveal what we already know: That’s how modern baseball has evolved, mostly because owners pay more for home runs than anything else. But that’s not necessarily the way the game should be played.
Is swinging hard in case you hit it the best way to attack a pitcher? We all know that it’s not. Nor is there anything productive about striking out. Moreover, most home run hitters don’t have to swing as hard as they can to drive balls over the fence. With a more controlled swing, their home run totals might even increase.
Yet an inordinate number of strikeouts are becoming accepted by the baseball establishment. They don’t like it, but it’s not really such a bad thing. How many times have I heard a bright and presumably sane baseball executive say, ”Would you rather see the guy strike out or hit into a double play?”
So, it looks like my nightmare will continue for a while. And, new hopes will have to wait…
Via Murray Chass -
A story was circulating last week that the Yankees traded Austin Jackson to the Tigers for Curtis Granderson because they had soured on the minor league outfielder. Mike Francessa, the WFAN all-everything expert, probably gave the story its widest circulation.
Brian Cashman, the Yankees’ general manager, said he had heard the story. Cashman also said it’s not true.
“How can you sour on a guy who’s progressing each year?” Cashman said. “No Yankees people are saying that. I told Jim Leyland in spring training that this guy is going to hit. We just don’t know about his power.”
“We projected him as an everyday player in the big leagues,” Cashman said, “We projected him to be a right-handed bat and an above average hitter. We didn’t project power. He’s an above average defender and he can steal bases.”
Jackson was selected by the Yankees out of a Texas high school in the eighth round of the 2005 draft. He made progress in each of four subsequent seasons in the minors, but he became expendable, like so many minor leaguers before him, when the Yankees decided they needed a left-handed hitting center fielder. That would be Granderson.
“Two young outfielders, one right-handed’ one left-handed, one with power, one with undetermined power,” Cashman said of Jackson, 23, and Granderson, 29. “We prefer the left-handed power.”
The Yankees, though, would have preferred not trading Jackson.
Was he reluctant to give the Tigers Jackson? “Of course,” Cashman said.
Did he have to give Jackson to get Granderson? “Yes. They were trying to find a cheaper replacement. The Red Sox were interested in Granderson, but they didn’t have a center fielder to give as we did.”
…Two young outfielders, one right-handed, one left-handed, one with power, one with undetermined power. We prefer the left-handed power…
So, there you have it: Cashman on record as saying he would rather have Curtis Granderson over Austin Jackson. Now, I just wonder if the Yankees realized there’s a trick to Granderson’s “power”?
Via Donnie Collins:
Ivan Nova, whose regular turn in the rotation would have been yesterday, has been called to New York, where he’ll undoubtedly serve as the long reliever for a few days. A move was expected after Romulo Sanchez went several innings last night. Tonight’s starter, Sergio Mitre, is on a 65-75 pitch count. Tomorrow’s, Javier Vazquez, has been ineffective all season. Sanchez would have been unavailable tonight, and probably tomorrow, too.
I’m sure there’s a Nova “No Go” Recall joke in here somewhere…if you want to look for it. Here are Ivan Nova’s minor league career numbers to date:
| Year | Age | Tm | Lg | Lev | Aff | W | L | ERA | G | GS | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | BF | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 19 | Yankees | GULF | Rk | NYY | 3 | 0 | 2.72 | 10 | 5 | 43.0 | 36 | 13 | 7 | 36 | 167 | 1.000 |
| 2007 | 20 | Charleston | SALL | A | NYY | 6 | 8 | 4.98 | 21 | 21 | 99.1 | 121 | 55 | 31 | 54 | 440 | 1.530 |
| 2008 | 21 | Tampa | FLOR | A+ | NYY | 8 | 13 | 4.36 | 26 | 24 | 148.2 | 168 | 72 | 46 | 109 | 637 | 1.439 |
| 2009 | 22 | 2 Teams | 2 Lgs | AA-AAA | NYY | 6 | 8 | 3.68 | 24 | 24 | 139.1 | 137 | 57 | 59 | 90 | 597 | 1.407 |
| 2010 | 23 | Scranton/Wilkes-Barre | IL | AAA | NYY | 2 | 0 | 2.43 | 6 | 6 | 37.0 | 35 | 10 | 12 | 32 | 153 | 1.270 |
| 5 Seasons | 25 | 29 | 3.99 | 87 | 80 | 467.1 | 497 | 207 | 155 | 321 | 1994 | 1.395 | |||||
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For what it’s worth, most of the reports on Nova that I’ve seen say “low 90′s fastball, makings of a plus curveball, and also thows a change – good attitude, needs command to be successful.”
Think “Jorge De Paula.”
The numbers on this one speak for themselves.
So, what do you say Yankeeland? Anyone worried about A-Rod’s lack of taters to start this season?
Remember T.J. Beam? He was signed by the Yankees out of the 2003 amateur draft. Back in the day, some thought that Beam could be a useful part of the Yankees bullpen at some point. It didn’t happen. But, he’s still trying. Here’s the latest news on this former Yankees prospect:
Via Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic:
If the Diamondbacks do consider shaking up their bullpen, which sports the league’s worst ERA at 6.95, here are four candidates in the minors who might be called upon:
RHP T.J. Beam: A 6-foot-7 right-hander, Beam has a 4.50 ERA in 16 innings for Reno. Signed in the off-season as a minor league free agent, he has thrown 63 2/3 innings in the majors in his career, posting a 5.37 ERA. He had a 4.14 ERA in 45 2/3 innings for the Pirates in 2008. Scouts say he throws an average fastball around 90 mph with a slider and an occasional splitter.
And, via Chris Gabel of The Reno Gazette-Journal –
What does every Triple-A player have to do to show he can succeed at the major league level?
Show consistency.
Unfortunately for the Aces, the most inconsistent and — at times consistently bad group — this young season has been the team’s bullpen.
The Aces relievers have the worst bullpen ERA in the Pacific Coast League and had blown a league-high nine save opportunities through Wednesday’s game, which is when the wheels completely came off.
With the relatively small number of innings relievers pitch, especially at this point in the season, one ugly appearance can quickly spoil the statistics. Only Jason Urquidez (1.96), Carlos Rosa (3.14) and Jordan Norberto (3.86) had respectable ERAs through Thursday — though Rosa had appeared in just one game for Reno since he was acquired in a trade. T.J. Beam has converted 4-of-5 save opportunities and was victim of one bad outing that bloated is ERA to 5.02.
Joe Girardi has now been tossed seven times since becoming the Yankees manager in 2008. That’s an average of, about, once every 50 games.
O.K., it’s not up there with the rate of ejections for Bobby Cox. But, still, I love the fact that General Joe, while bing a true gentle man in everyday life, is not afraid to get tossed in defending his players.
Via Chad Jennings yesterday -
Back in December, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman made three trades in a span of 15 days that altered his outfield, bullpen, rotation and minor-league depth.
A little more than four months later, he has so far come out on the losing end of each deal.
“They’re either going to work or not,” Cashman said. “I think you evaluate the process all the time. The process was good and strong. Whether it pays dividends the way you want remains to be seen.”
Here’s a look at the trades, starting with the last of the three.
Dec. 22: two-for-three deal with Atlanta
Yankees added: RHP Javier Vazquez and LHP Boone Logan
Yankees gave up: OF Melky Cabrera, LHP Mike Dunn and RHP Arodys Vizcaino
Dec. 9: three-team deal with Detroit and Arizona
Yankees added: OF Curtis Granderson
Yankees gave up: OF Austin Jackson, LHP Phil Coke and RHP Ian Kennedy
Dec. 7: player-to-be-named trade with Washington
Yankees added: OF Jamie Hoffmann
Yankees lost: RHP Brian Bruney
Throw in the Nick Johnson, Randy Winn and Chan Ho Park signings to this as well…and, hey, it was not the greatest off-season ever for Brian Cashman, was it? At least…not so far…
Hey Mr. Hyde, long time no see. What can I say about this one? Really, they’ve been winning so much, I feel it’s better to say hey we won a series against the Sox than lament over this game. Can’t win ‘em all.
Hopefully, Mitre can keep us in it tonight against the Tigers.
Only twice this season, so far, have the Yankees lost back-to-back games:
Related, you could say that April 22nd through April 27th was the Yankees only rough patch to date this season – where they lost 4 out of 5 games. Take that run out of their record and New York is 20-5 (in their other games).
But, the Yankees lost yesterday and have Sergio Mitre and Javy Vazquez starting in their next two games.
All things considered, if New York is going to lose three games in a row this season, I can’t imagine a time where the pump would be better primed for that than this set-up.
Also puts a little pressure on Phil Hughes too – if this comes true – because it may be up to him to stop the Yankees first losing streak of the season when he makes his next turn.
Well, it’s been an interesting last 18 days in the big league career of Dallas Braden, hasn’t it?
Back in 1985, I worked with a guy named Scott who was really cheap and a major league skirt chaser. That combo was always getting him into trouble.
I’ll always remember the day that Scott was very excited because he got a greeting card in the mail at the office. It was unexpected – but obviously from a girl as the hand-writing on the envelope was a giveaway. Scott was bragging about getting the card and opened the envelope in front of me and some other guys in the office.
He read the cover of the card, out-loud, as he first looked at it. “You’ll never get hemorrhoids” he said, getting confused and uncertain as the printed words became sounds coming out of his mouth. And, then, all the blood in his body seemed to rush to his face as he next read what the inside of the card said. “You’re the perfect asshole.”
The young lady in question also taped a penny into the inside of the card – as a symbolic token of Scott’s frugal handling of their recent date.
Think A-Rod would like to send a card like that, now, to Braden? Then again, if he does, perhaps Braden would return the favor by sending Alex a baggy full of dirt from the mound via which he pitched his perfect game.
Betcha, somehow, A-Rod and Braden end up turning this whole thing into some sort of money-maker now…like a beer commerical or something. It’s just the way things tend to work out these days…
Here’s the list, with Mark Teixeira joining the club yesterday -
| Rk | Player | Date | Tm | Opp | Rslt | PA | R | H | HR | RBI | BOP | Pos. Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mark Teixeira | 2010-05-08 | NYY | BOS | W 14-3 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 1B |
| 2 | Alex Rodriguez | 2005-04-26 | NYY | LAA | W 12-4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 10 | 5 | 3B |
| 3 | Tony Clark | 2004-08-28 | NYY | TOR | W 18-6 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 1B |
| 4 | Tino Martinez | 1997-04-02 | NYY | SEA | W 16-2 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 1B |
| 5 | Darryl Strawberry | 1996-08-06 | NYY | CHW | W 9-2 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 7 | LF |
| 6 | Paul O’Neill | 1995-08-31 | NYY | CAL | W 11-6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 3 | RF |
| 7 | Mike Stanley | 1995-08-10 (1) | NYY | CLE | L 9-10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 7 | C |
| 8 | Cliff Johnson | 1977-06-30 | NYY | TOR | W 11-5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | DH |
| 9 | Bobby Murcer | 1973-07-13 | NYY | KCR | W 5-0 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 4 | CF |
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There’s a trivia question for you: Who are the only Yankees switch-hitters to have three-homer games since CBS sold the team? The answer: Tony Clark and Mark Teixeira.
Via Andrew Marchand -
The Yankees win on Saturday makes them 21-8.
Every Yankees team that has won 21 of its first 30 games (they play No. 30 on Sunday Night Baseball) has made it to the World Series.
This is be the 16th time that the Yankees will have won at least 21 of their first 30 games.
Of the previous 15 instances, they made the World Series every time, and won it 12 times.
For the record, here are the last 6 Yankees teams to win at least 21 of their first 30 games:
| Rk | Tm | Year 6 | #Matching | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NYY | 2010 | 21 | Ind. Games |
| 2 | NYY | 2003 | 23 | Ind. Games |
| 3 | NYY | 2000 | 21 | Ind. Games |
| 4 | NYY | 1998 | 23 | Ind. Games |
| 5 | NYY | 1958 | 24 | Ind. Games |
| 6 | NYY | 1953 | 21 | Ind. Games |
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I was just looking at Alex Rodriguez’ career stats.
Assuming he stays healthly, somewhere around the middle of 2012, A-Rod would have played in more games for the Yankees than he did for the Mariners and Rangers – combined. (Alex has already played more games for New York than he did in Seattle or Texas.)
So, in terms of linking a legacy team identity to the player, what do you think – should the first and main franchise that any baseball fan thinks of, when they hear “Alex Rodriquez,” be “Yankees” now? Or, do we have to wait until 2012 to establish, free and clear, that “A-Rod” is a “Yankee” – without any other team having a somewhat legitimate, albeit partial at best, claim to Alex being “theirs”?
Wayne Coffey in the Daily News, today, shares “In 48th season with New York Yankees, Gene Monahan faces lonely battle.” It’s a Yankeeland must read. Check it out!
This is now just the second time since the Steinbrenner Family has owned the Yankees that New York has beaten Boston 4 times within the team’s first 29 games of the season. See the following chart which list Yankees wins, since 1973, within their first 29 games of the season, which came against the Red Sox:
| Rk | Tm | Year | #Matching | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NYY | 1995 | 4 | Ind. Games |
| 2 | NYY | 2010 | 4 | Ind. Games |
| 3 | NYY | 2005 | 3 | Ind. Games |
| 4 | NYY | 1994 | 3 | Ind. Games |
| 5 | NYY | 2001 | 3 | Ind. Games |
| 6 | NYY | 1992 | 2 | Ind. Games |
| 7 | NYY | 1974 | 2 | Ind. Games |
| 8 | NYY | 2008 | 2 | Ind. Games |
| 9 | NYY | 1975 | 2 | Ind. Games |
| 10 | NYY | 2004 | 1 | Ind. Games |
| 11 | NYY | 1973 | 1 | Ind. Games |
| 12 | NYY | 2007 | 1 | Ind. Games |
| 13 | NYY | 2002 | 1 | Ind. Games |
| 14 | NYY | 1985 | 1 | Ind. Games |
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Of course, there’s a scheduling component to all of this…
Nontheless, it’s not everyday in Yankeeland that New York takes a whooping stick to Boston so early in the season. These are good and special times for the Yankees now, indeed.
Yesterday afternoon, we took the kids to go see the Lakewood BlueClaws play. After five and a half innings, we decided to leave our seats and go for a walk around the ballpark. While we were behind the outfield, we saw a staffer retrieving “homerun” baseballs from a garden area behind the outfield fence. And, he gave us two balls for the kids – who are six and eight. Of course, we have no idea if these balls are “BP” homers or ones hit in an actual game. But, it doesn’t matter. The kids treasure them and we think it was extremely cool of this First Engery Park staffer to be so kind.
Timing is everything, huh? If we would have been five minutes sooner or later, we would not have spotted him going to get these baseballs. What a nice and unexpected treat. Here they are – click on the image to enlarge it:
“Happy Mother’s Day!” to all the Moms out there today.
Holy cow! Where would we be without Mom?
From my understanding of the rules, if a pitcher is unable to complete 5 innings of work it is then up the official scorers to decide which pitcher deserves the win. Is it in the rule book that they can’t still give it to the starter? CC deserved this one, and it wasn’t his fault he couldn’t complete the 5th. If it’s not against the rules to give the starter the win in this situation, then I think the scorers did a bad job.
Speaking of doing a bad job, FOX (aside from employing the ever terrible Joe Buck and Tim McCarver) screwed me out of an inning of baseball yesterday. While I was waiting for the rain delay to finish I started flipping around on my TV. I had read that they were going to aim to resume play at 6:20, so when that time came around i started flipping back and forth between FOX and whatever else I was watching. Well I must have missed them telling you to go to FX for the end of the game, and I sat there waiting for quite a bit of time before I went back online to check on the game’s status. They really should have had something in the lower corner saying turn to FX or something.
By the time I got to the game, Boone Logan had just finished his warm ups. Apparently I missed Aceves come out of the game with some sort of back injury. I’m assuming he re-aggravated the injury he had at the beginning of the year, but I’m not certain thanks to FOX.
The offense exploded after the rain delay, with Nick Swisher and Fransisco “King of the Bloop Single” Cervelli getting big hits with runners in scoring position. Mr. May Mark Teixeira also hit 2 of his 3 homers after the delay. Teixeira is now hitting .400/.471/.767 with 3 homers and 11 ribbies in the month of May, and .288/.400/.559 since April 22.
With 2 balls and 2 strikes and 2 outs in the bottom of the 5th, the game was just sent to rain delay. If I was CC, I would have quickly tried to throw a strike. After a lengthy rain delay, Girardi will likely take him out 1 out shy of a potential win.
I guess in the end it’s meaningless, but I just want the guy to get a win.
From Donnie Collins recap of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees’ game yesterday -
Catcher Jesus Montero left the game in the bottom of the third inning, replaced by Chad Moeller. Montero grounded out in the second and caught in the bottom of the second before being removed.
There’s some speculation that Montero was pulled from the game for dogging it.
It would be sad to see Montero turn into another Jose Tabata case for the Yankees. If true, I don’t think Jesus will be joining Starlin and Hayward any time soon…
There are some numbers to suggest this may be true.
Then again, maybe it’s just the Yankees defense playing well behind them?
Man, I absolutely can’t stand Josh Beckett. You think A-Rod is selfish? Beckett, for some reason, would not take the Yankees stepping out of the box lightly in this game and it might have cost the Red Sox the game. In his first two at bats, Cano stepped out after Beckett took forever to deliver the pitch. So what does Beckett do during the third at bat? He takes Cano out of the game drilling him in the back knee.
Then there’s Cervelli. During Cervelli’s second at bat, Cervelli also stepped out of the box when Beckett would stand on the mound trying to disrupt a runner’s timing (He was literally waiting like 20-30 seconds from the set position on the mound). So what did Beckett do? He threw a pitch that almost hit Cervelli in the face. Then, in the 6th with the bases loaded and 3-2 count, Beckett again takes forever to deliver the ball. Cervelli called time just like in his last plate appearance. And, just like his last plate appearance, Beckett almost hits him in the face with pretty much the same idential pitch and location, walking in a run in the process. Cervelli went to first shaking his head, knowing what had happened.
Then, after a Winn single, Beckett throws the first ball and slams Jeter in the back. (This last one is the only one I will say that might not have been on purpose.) You may want to argue with me that the pitches couldn’t have been intentional because he was walking and hitting runs home. I disagree. Beckett was not that wild last night, especially if you consider how dominant he was up until Swisher’s bomb in the 4th. He was that selfish, though.
Changing topics, Hughes was great again last night. The big difference between Hughes the starter in ’10 and Hughes the starter in ’07-’09 is his fastball and cutter. Prior to last year, Hughes pretty much sat 89-92 with his fastball and 86-88 with his cutter. Now his cutter is 88-90, and his fastball is 93-95, touching 96. This is the Hughes that had the power fastball that the scouts used to rave about, and I’m glad he’s finally shown up.
The bottom of the order is really coming through for this team. Cervelli’s hitting so good right now, you don’t even really notice Posada isn’t in the lineup. Swisher is also hitting great and since April 20 is hitting .350/.391/.683 with 5 homers and 16 RBI.
But really, the story of this game is Beckett. If you ask me, Sunday is prime time for a Burnett fastball in between the red 2 and 0.
Via Chad Jennings –
Now [Nick] Johnson is heading to the DL with a sore right wrist, the same wrist that was injured in 2008 and cost him nearly the entire season. He said he felt it on a swing during his first at-bat. “I just didn’t get my strength back for the next pitch,” he said.
Joe Girardi said Johnson will go for tests in New York tomorrow. The Yankees will make a move to call-up an infielder — almost certainly either Eduardo Nunez or Kevin Russo — to help them get through a day or two without Cano, who was hit by a pitch on inside of his left knee. Girardi said he doesn’t expect Cano to play tomorrow.
Memo to Cashman: Next time there’s a brittle dough-boy on the free agent market, just say no.
