Via Steve Politi today -

You think this episode with Posada was ugly? Flash forward to 2014 when Girardi — if he is still managing this team then — might have to deal with:

• Derek Jeter, who if he exercises the player’s option in his new contract (and why wouldn’t he?) would be a 40-year-old likely former shortstop no longer capable of batting leadoff.

• CC Sabathia, who hasn’t looked anything like an ace this season and whose contract runs through 2015 if he doesn’t exercise his opt-out clause after this season (and why would he?)

• Alex Rodriguez, who is already showing signs of decline and would still have three years left on that albatross of a deal he coaxed out of Hank Steinbrenner.

That list doesn’t even include Mark Teixeira, who has six years left on his $180 million deal. This franchise will face one land mine after another with its aging core, and it’ll be up to Girardi to find a way to keep this team from stepping on them.

“I knew in taking this job there would come a time if I managed long enough that we would see some great Yankees retire,” he said. “And that wasn’t necessarily going to be easy.”

Not shocking stuff here. In fact, back on December 26th, 2009, I wrote:

The 2009 Yankees were World Champions. And, the 2010 Yankees have to be considered as contenders for the ring as well. But, come 2012, due to the age of some of their stars (like A-Rod and Jeter) and the needs that the Yankees will have at catcher, the outfield, and pitching, we could be looking at a team that is not as pretty as the one we have now in Yankeeland. And, 2012 is just 27 months away…

Brian Cashman and company will have their work cut out for them over the next couple of seasons…building that team for 2012. Because, right now, it’s got issues and holes out the ying yang…and the ’12 season starts just about two years from now…

Of course, the question here is: Anyone and everyone saw what was coming down the pipe for the Yankees with their aging and high-priced players. So, why didn’t the Yanks front office plan ahead and try and avoid where we are now with this team?

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In the big picture, in terms of Sunday’s game, this play really didn’t mean anything – most likely. But, when you consider how bad the Yankees have played over their last 12 games, how the heck do you miss a ground ball like that one? To me, it says your heads not in the game. A seven year old could have stopped that grounder – if he was paying attention and applying himself.

The details, via Bryan Hoch -

Alex Rodriguez winced as he paced near third base, staring into his glove with an expression of disbelief, as though he might suddenly find a huge hole about the size of a baseball.

In a week filled with team lowlights, an easy ground ball shooting between Rodriguez’s legs was the capper. The Yankees wrapped up an awful homestand with a 7-5 loss to the Red Sox, their season-high fifth straight.

“Not good,” Rodriguez said. “We can talk about it over and over again; the bottom line is, we’ve got to play better. We’ve got to play winning baseball.”

Rodriguez evoked memories of Bill Buckner’s iconic miscue in the 1986 World Series with his misplay of a Kevin Youkilis grounder that gave the Red Sox an all-important seventh-inning insurance run.

“It seems like when things are going bad, they’re going bad,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “It’s going to turn around.”

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Jorgie makes like Ms. Lee. 

Now, the question is:  Does this mean Brenda Lee “I’m Sorry” or Peggy Lee “Is That All There Is“?

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Kevin Kernan lets loose on the Yankees -

There has been a sense of selfishness around the Yankees for quite some, and it’s not just Jorge Posada’s frustration about his .165 average and the fact that manager Joe Girardi dropped him to ninth in the lineup last night.

The bottom line is that the Yankees are nothing special right now and haven’t been for quite some time. These Yankees need to get it in gear in so many ways, not just because Posada has had a problem with being “disrespected.” And not just because he removed himself from the lineup an hour before the 6-0 loss to the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium, saying he “couldn’t play” and needed time to “clear my head.”

For too long the Yankees have been a privileged team. After the humiliating loss to the Royals on Thursday, I wrote that Yankees pride had left the building, along with Mystique and Aura. The Yankees lost their season-high fourth straight last night with their ace CC Sabathia on the mound.

The Yankees need to find a way to get on the team page. Perhaps they need to do what they did in 2005, when they brought up Robinson Cano. They can bring up Jesus Montero. Perhaps that day is coming because of the way it went down with Posada last night.

Hitters are trying to do too much across the board, and once again the Yankees were dreadful with runners in scoring position (0-for-10). No one was worse than Mark Teixeira, who struck out his first two times up with runners in scoring position. Alex Rodriguez was missing in action as well.

This is not a temporary slump. Consider the Yankees were 29-30 from Aug. 1 to the end of the regular season last season and you begin to understand that these 2011 Yankees, with a home-heavy schedule so far, are in trouble.

They have looked old, sloppy and even disinterested. And last night it really got ugly.

The Mets have gotten all the heat in this town, and deservedly so, but the Yankees are underwhelming and have shown no signs of breaking out. They are 16th in the majors in batting average with a .250 mark, and they are 12th overall in pitching with a 3.78 ERA.

They are middle of the pack millionaires in so many ways.

For too long, Girardi has used the excuse that it is too early to be overly concerned with the Yankees’ poor play. They have played like a group of individuals, concerned about their own personal performance more so than the big picture of really understanding how to play to win. They have been a ragged team for quite some time.

I cannot say if Kernan is dead-on here. I suspect that he may be on to something. But, then again, the Yankees could run off a long winning streak in June and/or July and then all of this looks silly.

I do know this: Other than D.H. and maybe one of the corner outfield position, there’s little the Yankees can do in terms of changing their everyday starting eight. So, WYSIWYG there, no doubt. If something is going to happen on offense, it’s up to the incumbents.

On the pitching front, Rafael Soriano has been a bust to date. But, the only place you can move him to now would be the disabled list. And, even if the Yankees could upgrade on Bartolo Colon, Freddy Garcia and/or Ivan Nova, that’s not going to matter if this team doesn’t produce offensively.

Perhaps the bigger issue here is going to be next year – when Jeter and A-Rod are yet another year old and Sabathia opts out of his contract? At that point, the Yankees are really going to have to find some starting pitching and a bat for the outfield and/or D.H. (unless they move A-Rod to mostly D.H. and get a shortstop and then have Jeter used like the Rangers are using Michael Young this season). Plus, Teixiera, Cano and Granderson are really going to have to do the heavy lifting on offense. And, while I think they’re good, they’re not the type of batters who can carry a team the way that David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez, or Ryan Howard and Chase Utley, or Ken Griffey Jr. and Edgar Martinez carried their teams at times.

This season may just be a slice of what next season may look like…and, how’s that for bad news?

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We have the Posada thing.  And, we have the team losing 8 of their last 11.  And, they’re set up to be swept by Boston at home.  And, we have so many players on the team not playing up to their reps and/or salary – albeit that not all are sucking and are playing semi-decent.  (See: Teixeira, Mark – who should be hitting more like Votto or Adrian Gonzalez than he is now.)  There’s a lot of things that are just flat-out messed up in Yankeeland right now.  You could say that they seem less organized than a dung fight at the monkey cage in the zoo.

When was the last time, during the regular season, that we saw this much out of control with the Yankees?  Yes, the 2006 ALDS was a low-point.  But, that was October.  When was the last time we saw this outside of the post-season spot-light?  1989 or 1990?  It does seem like a long time…unless I’m just forgetting something more recent.

Who is to blame for all this?  Cashman?  Girardi?  Both?  Neither?  What do you think?

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Look at the stats below. The Yankees score a lot of runs because they hit a lot of homeruns. But, in terms of batting average, New York is just league average. And, it does seem like Jeter, Teixeira, Swisher, A-Rod and others are not hitting for average like they should be this season. So, why do we only talk about how great Kevin Long is when Curtis Granderson hits a homerun or doesn’t whiff against a lefty; but, we never talk about how he’s doing nothing with all these Yankees stars under-performing?

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GM Brian Cashman revealed that Jorge Posada removed himself from the Yankees’ lineup Saturday night. Posada told manager Joe Girardi he was “insulted” about hitting ninth and “threw a hissy fit,” according to Jack Curry of YES Network.

Oh, Jorgie…

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I got to see the phenom, in person, in Lakewood this evening. Here’s my reaction, some pictures, and a story.

(more…)

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Via Wally Matthews today -

There are more directions in which to point the finger of blame for the latest New York Yankees defeat than there is movement on Bartolo Colon’s fastball.

You can start with the offense, which boasts two certain Hall of Famers, one borderline Hall of Famer and at least one potential Hall of Famer, and yet has been unable to come up with a timely hit in seven of the past 10 games.

You could point to the defense, which boasts a Gold Glover at every position but could not turn a crucial double play at the key moment of a ballgame against the Boston Red Sox on Friday night.

You could point to the bullpen, Joba Chamberlain in particular on this night, who got ahead of Kevin Youkilis only to serve up a home run pitch that cost the Yankees the game.

Or you could point at the manager — some people always do, regardless of circumstance and heedless of common sense — for pulling his starter, Colon, at a point in the game when he still appeared to be strong and effective.

Every one of them has its attributes and its drawbacks, and as Billy Martin once did in a beer commercial, you could argue very strongly in all directions.

But there is one point that is indisputable: Right now, the New York Yankees are not a very good baseball team, and not in any aspect of the game.

The fans knew it before anyone else, because as soon as Nick Swisher fanned and Jorge Posada grounded out to strand runners at second and third in the eighth, half the crowd of 48,254 — only the second sellout of the year at Yankee Stadium — made a dash for the exits, seemingly leaving only Red Sox fans behind.

It was a sorry spectacle all around. After the game, Girardi was argumentative and snappish, at a loss for answers to his team’s woes and with little patience for being questioned about it.

Asked about the decision to throw Youkilis a fastball after he had shown a decided vulnerability to the slider, Girardi said, “If I was to question it, I wouldn’t tell anyone in this room. Scouting reports are something that are near and dear to our hearts, and we don’t share them with the public.”

And asked whether he thought his drooping hitters were “gripping the bats a little too tight,” a common baseball euphemism for trying too hard, Girardi said, peevishly, “Well, it would be really hard for me to see them gripping the bat tighter from where I’m standing.”

Clearly, the one gripping the tightest was the manager.

Of course, a gem from CC Sabathia today can turn all this talk around and get General Joe’s post-game snorty laugh on for those in the media to enjoy.

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(H/T Mike Ashmore)

His time in AA might’ve been helpful but it certainly didn’t take away any of his rage.

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It was close tonight. But, in the end, Nucky Thompholz, Beavis Gonzalez, The Greek God of Macrocephaly and Sphincter Lips Papelbon were too much for the boys in Yankeeland this evening. Sad part is: Now we have to sit on this for nearly a full day until the next game. Wonderful.

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To fans my age Harmon Killebrew was an opposition slugger of great concern.  I saw him launch many a baseball into the night air at the old stadium.  As I watched him round the bags yet again, someplace down deep within the anger that comes with being a fan, his class always came through.  Whenever I heard him being interviewed or when Jim Kaat use to speak of him you could tell he was everything you would want in a baseball hero.  He was elected into the Hall of Fame in 1984.  He hit 573 lifetime homers winning an MVP award and finishing in the top 10 in MVP voting 6 other times.

He has decided to end his battle against esophageal cancer and enter a hospice showing guts and class any of us can only hope to have when our time comes.  His wife is at his side, still very involved with the Twins the players have requested the team wear the 1961 retro jerseys for all home games to honor the great slugger.  His #3 jersey will be on display in the Twins dugout for the remainder of the season.

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No, we’re not talking Trenton here.  Great article today on how Slade Heathcott got control of his life once the Yankees sent him to AA.

(H/T Mike Ashmore.)

I usually don’t clip the whole thing – but, this one warranted seeing the entire story.

(more…)

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Great stuff today from Johnette Howard:

[Yesterday's] mistake-filled defeat not only dropped the Yankees a game behind first-place Tampa Bay in the AL East — it also left them with the same number of wins (20) as the Royals, long one of baseball’s perennial doormats and a team with a payroll only one-fifth of what the Yankees shell out.

The Yankees like to say that having a 20-15 record and hovering around first place in the AL East aren’t bad places to be sitting. But it’s also true that games like the Yankees’ past two (or eight or 10 … ) make you think at some point the Yankees are going to have to drop their nonchalance about how they’re winning and quit acting like worrying about style points are beneath them.

The sight of Boston coming to town is always a natural time to take a little inventory of where the Yankees are. With just 35 games gone in this season, it’s still hard to know what sort of team the Yankees want to be — let alone what they’re going to be.

Are the Yankees content to be a slugging team, or can they push themselves to be something more complete? So far things have felt backward: their patchwork starting pitching staff and deep bullpen have unexpectedly carried them more than their hot-and-cold bats.

Nobody with any pretensions of contending wants to strand 2-of-16 runners, as the Yankees did Wednesday, or throw the ball all around the yard before finally snapping to attention in the fifth inning as they did Thursday. That was too late.

When you’re a team with World Series ambitions, it’s not too much to insist daily on playing smart, or playing good situational baseball, or buckling down when someone else in the lineup makes mistakes — something the Yankees’ young starter, Ivan Nova, wasn’t able to do in the game-deciding second when one blown play followed another.

There’s a fine line between that old cliché of not getting too high or too low and being so cocksure you’re going to pull out of it, you don’t do the little or self-sacrificing things like hitting a ball to the right side to move a runner over. There’s a danger in always telling yourself victory is always just a three-run homer away rather than scratching and cobbling together runs. As the Yankees have already seen, some nights the long ball never comes. And even when it does, it still may not be enough when you don’t do the other things that win games.

The best teams can usually beat you any way they need to. The Yankees still haven’t shown us their best yet. Just flashes of it. The hitters who aren’t tearing it up — Alex Rodriguez, Posada, Mark Teixeira, Nick Swisher Brett Gardner and, to a lessening degree, Jeter — easily outnumber the regulars who are hitting.

“Maybe we need the Red Sox to come in now, and that way everything gets turned up,” Girardi said.

There’s another option, you know, and Girardi conceded as much while admitting style matters. The Yankees could — and should — turn up the heat on themselves.

I think the next 13 games are going to tell us a lot about this Yankees team. There’s no reason why they shouldn’t win 9 of their next 13 games – if they’re a good team. But, if they only win 5 or 6 of their next 13, with some high profile games in there against the Sox, Rays and Mets, then it will be open season on the character of this team – and rightfully so, in my humble opinion.

And, after those 13 games, it doesn’t get any easier – a nine-game west coast trip followed by series against the Red Sox, Indians and Rangers. It will be very interesting to see where this Yankees team sits on Father’s Day.

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Tip your caps to the Royals, Yankeeland. The boys from K.C. gave the Yanks a run for their money. Heck, with a little luck, the Royals could have swept New York, at the Stadium, in these three games.

And, now, here come the Red Sox.

Over the last month, Boston has been just about a .500 team. However, after the Sox started the season with an 0-6 start, they then took two out of three from the Yankees in Fenway. So, you know they can rise up for these games.

The Yankees have lost 6 of their last 9 games. Can they play better against Boston?

They better – or be ready to feel the heat. With two of these three games being prime-time national coverage events, many eyes will be on them.

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Dude looks like the love child of Louie Tiant and Tom Gordon.

And, if he’s 5′ 8″ then Andy Stankiewicz is six feet tall.

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In his last 19 games, Alex Rodriguez has 3 extra base hits – two doubles and a homer – over his last 81 Plate Appearances.  His BA/OBA/SLG line over this period is: .183/.272/.254

Now, personally, I know that A-Rod is going to hit 15 homeruns during the month of September and that will offset his power being MIA at this time.

But, what about you? Are you concerned that A-Rod’s pop has gone south – way down south – over the last month or so?

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Well, this is interesting news.

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Via the Yankees –

The New York Yankees announced today that Head Athletic Trainer Gene Monahan, who is the longest-tenured employee in the Yankees organization, will retire at the conclusion of the 2011 season after 49 years of continuous service.

Monahan is the longest-tenured Head Athletic Trainer in the Major Leagues, having worked in that capacity for the last 39 years. In December, he was honored along with longtime Assistant Athletic Trainer Steve Donohue as the “Best Athletic Trainers” in Major League Baseball in 2010 by the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainer Society (PBATS). Other recent commendations include the 2009 “Distinguished Athletic Trainer” Award from the National Athletic Trainers Association and induction into the New York State Athletic Trainers’ Association Hall of Fame in 2007. Monahan and Donohue were also honored with Major League Baseball’s “Athletic Training Staff of the Year” Award in 1990.

“Gene Monahan embodies all the very best virtues that this organization strives to uphold,” said New York Yankees Managing General Partner Hal Steinbrenner. “His devotion to his craft, passion for the game of baseball and tireless work ethic are only a few of the qualities that have made him a bedrock within this franchise for nearly 50 years. Gene has made a lifetime’s worth of sacrifices and contributions in order to best serve the Yankees, and our entire organization will always be grateful.”

It would be great to honor Monahan with a day at the Stadium and/or something during Old-Timer’s Day. And, hopefully, they’ll give him a plaque inside the Trainer’s Room. He deserves it.

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Via TV Squad -

It’s that time of year again, the upfronts, when TV networks decide which shows live and which shows die. This year Fox has become the first network to announce which shows are being culled, and it’s bad news for Christian Slater. Again…

Fox announced that it’s cancelling five of its live action shows: ‘Human Target,’ Lie to Me,’ ‘The Chicago Code,’ ‘Traffic Light’ and ‘Breaking In.’ It also dropped the ax on some of its drama pilots, including the much talked-about ‘Locke & Key’ and ‘Exit Strategy.’

Angry fans turned to Twitter to vent as the news broke late Tuesday, with ‘Human Target’ fans being among the most vocal. In fact, according to THR, they tweeted so vociferously that the show became a Top 10 trending topic.

After a promising start in its debut season ‘Human Target’ faltered, and it had seemed ripe for cancellation last year. However, it was instead given a radical overhaul with the addition of new central characters, together with a new showrunner and a change of direction. It wasn’t enough: Season 2 never really caught fire and it steadily shed viewers as it progressed.

Similarly, procedural drama ‘Lie to Me’ was also in danger last year but limped on. Its cancellation has been a double whammy for its former showrunner, Shawn ‘The Shield’ Ryan, who left in 2010 to work on ‘Terriers’ (cancelled after one season) before moving on to helm ‘The Chicago Code.’ Which has now also been cancelled after one season …

I’m a big fan of Human Target and a fan of Lie to Me. So, I’m pissed over this news. Heck, I’m still annoyed about them pulling the plug on Sarah Connor.

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Via Conor Orr -

Just as Rafael Soriano was ready to leave the clubhouse last night, he felt a horde of cameras and microphones crowding around him.

“What did I do tonight?” he said. “I didn’t even pitch.”

That was the point.

When the eighth inning came last night, Soriano — the pitcher manager Joe Girardi adamantly touts as the Yankees’ set-up man — was nowhere to be found as Joba Chamberlain made his way out of the pen.

With soreness in his throwing elbow, Soriano took the game off and will have a precautionary MRI exam on Wednesday to make sure there is nothing to the pain that started a week ago in Detroit.

“I told (Girardi) I wanted to take off before the game,” Soriano said. “I want to make sure everything’s fine. Maybe one or two days and I’ll be back.”

Soriano had surgery on the same elbow in 2008 as a member of the Atlanta Braves for an ulnar nerve transposition and to have a bone spur removed. He also had Tommy John surgery on his elbow in 2004.

The perspective he took from those injuries was enough to motivate him to request the night off.

“He came in today and said he was a little bit sore, so I knew I didn’t have him tonight,” Girardi said. “He saw (team physician) Dr. Ahmad (Christopher), he gets here at 6, 6:30. I knew I didn’t have him. He’s going to get a precautionary MRI. He just said he didn’t feel good today.”

How soon until Soriano rear ends a garbage truck while getting a hummer?

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RIP Bill.

“General von Steingrabber” will always be a classic. And, to this day, I still have “No Game Today” from August 3, 1979 which read “Naw, Yuchie – I just don’t feel like playin’ ball today…” hanging in my office at home.

Make some room fellas…

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Since 1919, how many Yankees batters had 15+ games within the team’s first 35 games of the season where they had at least 3 PA in the contest with no hits?

Here’s the list -

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Jorge Posada still has a shot at setting “the record” here.  The Yankees have only played 33 games so far this season.

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Looking at the first 118 responses to our recent reader survey, I’m able to tally the following:

• 65% of those who responded like me, and/or this blog, and find what I offer here to be enjoyable or useful
• 30% of those who responded dislike or hate me, and/or this blog, and find what I have to offer here to be annoying and of little use
• 5% of those who responded really don’t have an opinion on the matter

I’m not surprised to see that the majority, close to two-thirds, like what I am doing at WasWatching.com. After all, most who responded saw the survey because they read and enjoy this blog. (And, my thanks to those who had nice things to say about me via their votes and comments in that survey.)

However, the fact that close to one-third of those who responded – and perhaps one-third of those who read this blog – dislike or hate me and/or this blog is bothersome to me.

There’s too much hate and displeasure in the world, period, as it is today. And, I don’t want to be the cause to add to any of that bad stuff.

So, I have a favor to ask.

Actually, strike that. And, make it “I have a plea to beg.”

If you are someone who doesn’t like me, or what I do at this blog, please stop reading it (and what I write here). Please put an end to exposing yourself to what I write – if what I have to say and share leads to you being upset and having ugly thoughts towards me and/or this blog. There’s no need for you to read this blog. Take it – and me – off your radar.

I’ll be honest. There are some other bloggers (and the like) out there who I think are F.O.S Asshats. Related, I stopped reading their blogs/sites and never went back to them. There’s enough on the internet that there’s no need for me to go out and read stuff that I don’t enjoy or find useful. It’s a waste of time to be concerned with things that you’re better off avoiding.

Again, please consider my request – one that’s made with all sincerity and good intentions. If you don’t like me, or what I am doing at this blog, please do yourself some good and stop visiting this site – now and forever.

Regardless of how you feel about me and my work here, I do not want to be the source of any irritation in your life. And, you have the power to put an end to any displeasure I may be causing you. This is why I ask you: Please stop visiting and reading this blog.

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Jon Heyman shares this on the Yankees two top prospects –

Manuel Banuelos, Yankees lefthanded pitcher. He looked superb this spring, when he had three above average major-league pitches working (fastball, changeup and curveball) but lately scouts say only the fastball, which goes around 90-94, has been a plus pitch. He was hampered early by blisters so he hasn’t pitched much, going 0-0 with a 2.57 ERA at Double-A Trenton. He’s been likened to Johan Santana. With the Yankees pitching questions, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him up with them sometime this season.

Jesus Montero, Yankees catcher. He blew his chance to start the year with the Yankees, when some club officials believe he tensed up after Francisco Cervelli’s toe injury left a door open for him. He didn’t hit a home run all spring, then hit two the day he got to minor league camp, bolstering that belief. While he hasn’t shown the power expected so far at Triple-A Scranton, he is batting .354 (with one home run). “A great hitter,” one scout said. The NL exec likened him to Edgar Martinez, high praise indeed. However scouts are split about whether he can become a major-league catcher. The Mariners took Justin Smoak for Cliff Lee instead of Montero because they didn’t think he’d be a catcher. One AL scout said, “He’s no catcher.” And the NL exec agreed, saying, “We don’t think he can catch.” That exec said they didn’t think Montero could play the outfield, either, and would have to choose between first base and DH. Fortunately for him, scouts believe he will hit for an extremely high average, making him a definite DH candidate. While he has enough of an arm to catch, his footwork hinders his ability to throw runners out.

In the back of my mind, I hear Gabe Paul screaming that Scott McGregor and Otto Velez are the Yankees “crown jewels.”

Now, this is no joke. McGregor and Velez had talent and some success at the big league level (albeit not for the Yankees).

It will be interesting to see how the future unfolds for Banuelos and Montero…and if that happens in New York, or not.

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I heard John Flaherty interviewed on WFAN this morning and he said that “Nick Swisher needs to get going” and that Rafael Soriano (in other words) needs to stop making excuses and pitch this season like he did last season.

It was interesting to hear such frank statements from Flash. Do you agree with him?

Should both Swisher and Soriano be called out? Or, just one of them? Which one? Or, should neither player be called on the carpet just yet?

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Via the AP –

Waiters who serve the higher-priced seats at Yankee Stadium claim in a lawsuit that their tips are being withheld.

The suit names Volume Services America, which ran food services in the old stadium, and Legends Hospitality, which runs them in the new stadium. It was filed in Manhattan federal court on Monday. It seeks unpaid wages and other damages.

Menus in the seats’ cup holders say “a 20 percent service charge will be added to the listed prices. Additional gratuity is at your discretion.”

The lawsuit says the workers did not receive any of the 20 percent service charges.

A spokeswoman for the Yankees told the New York Daily News it hasn’t seen the lawsuit but that all its employees are paid in strict accordance with their union contract.

Thirty years ago, a somewhat demented old man once told me: You want a good tip? Buy twin beds. You’ll never get screwed.

Looks like the Yankee Stadium wait staff is not getting a good tip and getting screwed at the same time. Go figure.

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Rebecca Glass rocks it today with these three items -

Wallace Matthews writes about the slumping Alex Rodriguez. Rodriguez hasn’t hit a home run since April 23rd, and is batting just .170/.241/.189 in that span.

Rodriguez’s recent slump has gone somewhat unnoticed given the struggles of Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada this season, but as Rodriguez is the Yankees’ cleanup hitter, there is perhaps far more expected of him. Before an oblique injury, Rodriguez had been hitting at a .385/.500/.821 pace, so one hopes that as Rodriguez gets healthy, he will start to hit again.

Joel Sherman writes that Curtis Granderson’s offensive turnaround with the Yankees parallels that of Paul O’Neill. O’Neill worked with then-hitting coach Rick Down, and improved enough to win a batting title, while Granderson’s work with Kevin Long has been well documented; since August 12th of last season, Granderson’s 25 home runs are second only to Jose Bautista.

Granderson’s numbers against lefties this season are especially encouraging; his batting average is almost identical versus lefty or right and he is slugging over .800 versus southpaws.

Chris Herring writes that the Yankees’ offense has been extremely inconsistent. The Yankees have, through 32 games, scored 10 or more runs in four of them, but they have also already been shut out three times.

Although the Yankees don’t seem to be hitting at all when they’re not hitting home runs, using batting average alone to judge a team’s offense can be misleading — the Kansas City Royals — were second in team batting average in 2010, and they finished the season with a 67-95 record.

Anyone want to scream “sample size” at these three points, or, are we cool with shouting them from the roof tops?

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Via WFAN -

“It’s not that we’re closing our eyes to the risk. We knew the risk,” [Brian] Cashman said. “But if you’re asking me the question, ‘Hey are you worried about how he was used over there?’ Yeah, I was. Yeah, he was abused over there.”

But back to Jeter. The Yankees’ captain isn’t getting younger and Mets shortstop Jose Reyes will likely hit the free agency market after this season. Do the Yankees have any interest?

“Jeter’s our guy,” said Cashman. “Listen, if I have $100 million to spend, allegedly … I’m not running toward position players right now. I need pitching. I need pitching. I need pitching, pitching, pitching, pitching.”

No beef here – the Yankees do need pitching. But, what about all those young arms in the Yankees system? I guess they’re not near being ready…

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