It was pretty damn impressive last year when A-Rod hit homers 29 and 30 (a 3-run blast and a grand salami) in the same inning of game 162 to continue his 30 hr/100 RBI streak for a 13th year. A homer and a sac fly today put Alex back at the 100 RBI mark for the 14th time. That’s the most 100 RBI seasons of anyone…ever. More than Ruth or Mantle or Maris or Honus Wagner or Sammy Sosa or anyone. Pretty big deal. Yes; ribbies aren’t like batting average or OBP or homers, in that there’s a lot of factors (ie the guy hitting before you) that play into the stat. Alex has been rather lucky in terms of lineup-mates, but nonetheless the RBI streak is a big deal. The real question now is: will he get a 14th 30-hr season? After his shot today, he sits at 22. The Yanks have 24 games left….so Alex would have to homer once every 3 games to make it. That’s not impossible, but sort of unlikely. Then again, he could have two 3-homer games, and a couple solo shots, and be set. Who knows? I mean…who thought he’d get 7 RBIs on 2 HR with only 3 innings left in the regular season last year? I don’t know why, but I have a funny feeling that Alex will hit that 30 hr plateau. It’s a prediction that isn’t based in much other than I think he really wants it…also with 5 games against Baltimore pitching, 3 in Arlington’s bandbox, and a .326/.400/.535 line against the Red Sox (6 games) I can see it happening. The 7 games against the Rays…and 3 v. Toronto will be more difficult, but I’ve got faith in the guy with the A-Bomb.

Good news: Andy Pettitte and Alex Rodriguez are close to returning. A-Rod might be back tomorrow (!) and Pettitte could be back around September 13th. The return of Pettitte is a big deal, although I’m not quite sure what happens to the rotation when he returns. CC and Andy obviously keep spots, but AJ’s been…insert a not-so-mean word here because I’m a nice guy and am hoping his last start is the new norm. Hughsie has been one of the Yanks best arms this year, but that innings limit is ever-approaching. Then there’s Ivan Nova; who is talented but hasn’t gone very deep into the games he’s started thus far; plus Javy Vazquez is back in the rotation (although the 5 earned runs he allowed in not even as many innings certainly isn’t helping his cause). I think the most likely scenario is Javy moving to the bullpen, but in the words of John Sterling “That’s the thing about baseball; you really just can’t predict it.”

As for Mr. 600, obviously it’ll be nice to have him in the lineup as opposed to the likes of Eduardo Nunez and Ramiro Pena (although Pena does seem to always have meaningful hit sand I like Nunez and his .308/.341/.410 line since the call-up).

Nick Swisher is sitting again today with a sore knee. It looks like he just needs to rest it a few days, and he might be back in the lineup with Alex tomorrow.

Despite the list of injuries longer than any that Santa’s ever had to check, the Yanks have won 7 straight and are 3 outs away from number 8 now.

The Yanks are tied for first in the game and first in the east as I write at 80-50 (ie 32 games to go). Pretty good. Lucky for them, there’s even more talent on the way. Not only will Sept. call-ups likely cue the beginning of the Jesus Montero era, but there’s a few names you might know on track back to the Bronx:

Lance Berkman is rehabbing in Trenton; should be back this week.

A-Rod will be back on the 5th.

Andy Pettitte is two weeks from returning.

Alf Aceves hasn’t pitched well in rehab, but he’s a name to look for.

Damaso Marte might not return, but if he does, it’ll be late September.

Just thinking about Rodriguez and Pettitte instead of Pena (I like Nunez) and Moseley is enticing. Not sure which Lance will return to the club, but hopefully he’s at least a shadow of the hitter he was in his Houston days. Also, I don’t know who he’ll replace…sorry. As for Ace and Marte…I kindof like the non-Gaudin parts of the bullpen, but no one can complain about having them as options too.

Injuries are part of the game, as are recoveries. These recoveries, specifically, could be huge. So, stay tuned to your favorite club as they attempt to clobber their Tampa Bay counterparts over the next month.

Dearest flustered readers,

Con and I have sortof been pre-occupied with the whole college orientation/registration/meet-n-greet/classes/yada/yada/yada that greets freshman as they enter the big, bad world of upper-level education. So, as we’ve tried to live up to the demands of our new communities we’ve been a bit lacking in the 6P8OBJ department. Hell, I didn’t even know Ivan Nova was in the rotation until I got back from my 3-day wilderness (no tech) trip. So, we’ll try to write as often as we can from here on out, but if the posts aren’t as plentiful as you’d like…well, bummer.

On the Nova front, hot damn. 5.2 quality innings of 1 run ball yesterday with just 6 baserunners. Not bad. Not to mention the 7 K’s. His other start wasn’t shabby either. The Nova-nator isn’t going deep into games (or his two to date), but at least the innings he does pitch are solid. With K-Wood, 6P8OBJ, D-Rob, and company in the ‘pen, the Yanks don’t necessarily need the 23-year-old to be Mr. Longevity. Not that it wouldn’t be nice, but it’s just not essential or anything.

I might be alone on this (but, I don’t think I am), it seems like this rotation isn’t as intimidating as it was when 3 starters made the all-star game in July. Even with Nova’s two quality starts, the rotation is currently meh…

Dustin Moseley has been about what was expected: 4.63 ERA/1.457 WHIP/ 4.6 k/9 ratio. Nothing special, but tolerable.

Javy Vazquez is in the bullpen, which will hopefully put his feet under him as the same stunt did earlier this year. Maybe that’s what should happen with AJ “inconsistency” Burnett. His last two starts were root-canal + ’04 ALCS painful. Dominant AJ is hiding somewhere…ollie, ollie, oxen-free. Come out, come out wherever you are.

The Yanks have to rely on their expensive ace, CC, who despite allowing 5 ER his last time out has a 3.06 ERA in his last ten starts and a 3.14 ERA on the year. The young arm of Phil Hughes (also bad in his last start), is the other rock that needs to stay strong for this ballclub. Hughes isn’t exactly fatigued, but he’s not the pitcher he was through May. Sitting at 144.1 innings, with rumors of a 175 IP limit, Hughes can’t be pitching complete games. I expect, like Nova, he’ll have to go just 5 or 6 innings per start.

Andy Pettitte is still sidelined, but he should be back in two weeks. Again, though, he won’t be going deep into games upon his return. Seems to be a theme, eh?

With a limited rotation like this, the Yanks will be relying on that bullpen of theirs. Javy’s there to give multiple innings, as can Sergio Mitre. Chad Gaudin is still on the team, despite my protests. I can say he’s been better as of late…but really, he couldn’t have gotten any worse. The late inning guys have been dominant recently. In their past ten appearances: Joba 2.89 ERA/ Kerry Wood 0.77 ERA/ David Robertson 3.38 ERA/ Mariano 2.00 ERA. The Strong-Rotation-Weak-Bullpen mentality early in the year has definitely done a little flip-flop. And, September’s right around the corner, so we could see some 40-man additions that could add to that bullpen depth (Jon Albaladejo and Royce Ring come to mind).

Weird, to see this much pitching-change so late in the season. The fact that the Yanks can make these maneuvers is a testament to the depth that B-Cashman has worked so hard to provide. Okay folks, that’s all for now from me for this post. Yanks lead Oakland 4-3 in the 3rd, let’s look for a W.

Looks like the Rays are picking up life-long Rockie Brad Hawpe. Hawpe’s got an average or slightly-above-average bat at best. His glove might just be the worst in the game in right. I’ve watched the guy live for as long as he’s been a pro and here’s what I know: his defense is miserable; he always looks terrible when he swings-and-misses, but seems to put up decent stats nonetheless, his batting stance is just weird. TB has Crawford/Upton/Zobrist/Joyce in terms of outfielders pre-Hawpe, and to be honest, if you put Hawpe in the field, he just about undoes most of whatever he brings to the plate (which hasn’t been much this year). As a DH, he has some value, but this isn’t exactly a high-impact move in my opinion. Hawpe is as nice a guy, and as good of a teammate as you could ask for, though. So, that’s not something the Rays will have to worry about.

For the Yanks, it’s not exactly thrilling to see the other division leader pick up a former all-star bat, but there’s a difference between picking up Manny Ramirez and picking up Brad Hawpe. He’ll have a small impact, or a tiny dent, I guess, but he’s not going to change this race.

Hey All,

Sorry for the lack of posts recently. Kevin and I have both started college in the last week, so as you can probably imagine, we’ve been busy.

Anyway, AJ Burnett is starting tonight. AJ has been wildly inconsistent again this year, but unfortunately his inconsistency has resulted in worse stats. Last year, he was 13-9 with a 4.04 ERA, a 1.40 WHIP, and 195 Ks. This season, Burnett has a 9-11 record, a 4.80 ERA, a 1.47 WHIP, and 110 Ks. So his numbers are down a bit, but hopefully he’ll have a good stretch to get them back down. Just to again prove his inconsistency, check out his last 4 starts against the 5before them. In his last 4 starts he’s given up 8, 3, 1 and 6 ER respectively. In the 6 ER start, he gave up 12 hits…. And walked 2… In the 5 starts before that, he gave up 0, 2, 4, 0, and 0 ER, respectively. Ridiculous.

So, my hope is that Burnett can figure out how to be consistently good, and I hope that this change starts tonight!

I doubt the Yanks will bring him up to the big league club until September 1st, when rosters expand, but can we just look quickly at how good Jesus Montero has been?

In July he hit .342/.441/.632 with 5 homers in 76 at-bats. Through 55 August at-bats, he’s at .364/.429/.655 with 4 homers.

Meanwhile, in the bigs, Frankie Cervelli hit .214/.267/.238 in 42 July ABs and is at .111/.158/.111 in 18 August ABs. We all know that Frankie is a better defensive catcher/game-caller/etc, but with Jorge only catching 3 of every 5 games, A-Rod dealing with his calf, and Lance on the DL, you have to imagine what the offense might do with Jesus taking Cervelli’s spot. Not saying its likely, or being considered, or anything like that. Still, though, that bat could have a huge impact if Jesus stays hot. We’ll look for him in September, but if he isn’t in the bigs until then, the Yanks would have to look for a loophole if they wanted him to be playoff-eligible.

A-Rod’s dealing with a strained calf. Andy Pettitte won’t  be back ’till September, and possibly not ’till mid-September. Plus, now Lance Berkman is going to the DL with his ankle issue (retroactively to Aug. 16).

Not that Lance was exactly a huge part of the offense since his Yankee debut, but still, they paid a lot of money for him, and he has a track record, yada, yada, yada. Lance’s injury isn’t that serious, and it sounds like the Yanks just didn’t want to keep playing games with no infielders available off the bench, hence the call-up of Eduardo Nunez. He was rocking a .289/.340/.381 line in Scranton…so he can hit a little bit, just not for power (4 homers on the year). He has speed (23 steals in 28 tries). Nunez basically provides the Yanks with a bat that’s more tolerable than Ramiro Pena’s to put in A-Rod’s place while he rests a little bit. You might remember Nunez as the guy the Mariners’ asked for in place of David Phelps in a Cliff Lee deal, to which Brian Cashman said, “No.” Note: he didn’t say no thanks, because he was really, really, rather upset with Jack Z. in Seattle for saying they had a deal, then ending his sentence with “not,” and sending Lee to Texas.

In other injury-related news, Alfredo Aceves is with the team today, but not on the roster. He’ll probably make one more rehab start before taking Chad Gaudin’s roster spot. Gaudin, of course, came in to pitch in the 8th last night and did this: Hit Miguel Cabrera, gave up a Johnny Damon single, walked Jhonny Peralta, was replaced by D-Rob. I just don’t understand why he is still on this roster. I guess the Yanks wanted to keep him until Aceves is back, but calling up Jon Albaladejo or Ivan Nova (both of whom have played on the big league club this year, rendering the “options” argument useless) just would’ve been better for the bullpen over the past couple of months. Even 30-year-old Royce Ring’s 1.64 ERA and 1.12 WHIP  could’ve been upgrades over Chad’s marks. Looks like we’ll just have to wait for Alf, though.

The Yanks’ 72-46 record is the best in baseball. Unfortunately, the only other team with as good of a record happens to be in the American League too. Actually, they happen to be in the American League East. The gosh darn Red Sox! No, wait, sorry….the Rays.

Yep, Tampa Bay also has a 72-46 record. Today, the Yanks will send their ace (some 300 pound jolly fella who always wears his hat just off center) to match up against Detroit’s Ace (Hint: Same first name as a certain Timberlake). As the Yanks try and beat Miguel Cabrera and Team MoTown, Joe Maddon and his boys are hosting the Rangers in St. Pete. They’ll put Matt Garza on the mound to counter Tommy Hunter. As the Rays play the AL West leader, it is a perfect opportunity for the Yanks to gain some ground and step in front as they play the injury-rattled Tigers.

On a sidenote: how cool was it that the Yanks’ fans gave Johnny Damon a standing ovation in his return to the Bronx? That was classy.

Sure, Mariano took the loss in Texas the other day, but A. He’s Mariano Freakin’ Rivera, B. He has a 1.06 ERA/0.71 WHIP. C. Do you really need a 3rd point, let alone any point besides point A?

Let’s be real: Mo’s been the rock in a shaky bullpen this year. He’s really of no concern to anyone aside from opposing teams’ hitters. From a Yankee viewpoint, the issues surrounding the great Rivera have been with the guys in charge of getting him the ball. At least, that’s how it seemed. As of late, the ‘pen is looking stronger.

Kerry Wood has allowed just one earned run in his 7 innings in pinstripes on 6 hits and 4 walks. Two of those walks came his first night as a Yank, and don’t forget that the only teams he’s faced since the trade have been: Tampa, Toronto, Boston, Texas, and two-thirds of an inning v. Kansas City. Those first four all have pretty good offenses to have kept ‘em at just one earned run over that span.

David Robertson’s overall stats are marred by a 10.80 ERA in April and a 5.73 ERA in May. Since June 1st, though, he has a 1.77 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. Did I mention that he hasn’t allowed an earned run since his horrendous July 2nd outing (4 ER over an inning and a third). That’s 15 straight scoreless innings.

Our Lord the Savior, 6 Pound 8 Ounce Baby Joba lost his role as set-up man/exclusive 8th inning guy in late July after struggling throughout the middle of the month. Since then (ie starting June 28th), he hasn’t allowed an earned run on two hits, three walks, and 6 K’s over 7.2 innings. Not too shabby.

Then there’s Boone “The LOOGY” Logan, who’s been more dominant than you’d expect from a  guy who was just supposed to fill that LOOGY role. Since being recalled in mid-June, Boone has allowed just one earned run (and it came that first  night back against Tampa Bay). So in ten innings (including that night), Boone has a 0.90 ERA, a 0.4 WHIP (no walks or hits in his last six appearances), and 11 Ks. He’s making a pretty good case that he can’t just be shuttled back to Scranton when Damaso Marte returns.

Sergio Mitre was looking great in the bullpen before he hit the DL, but when he came back the Yanks needed a spot starter, and he was pushed to the mound his first day back. There he let in 5 earned runs on 7 hits and a walk in just 4 and third innings. If you take out that start, he’s been a fine reliever in his 6 innings out of the ‘pen since returning. Stats don’t mean much in such a small sample size, but he has made 4 relief appearances since his return. 3 of them were scoreless appearances of over an inning (2, 1.1, 1.2 IP), but on August 3rd he let in two runs in just an inning of work because of a Jose Bautista two-run blast. One homer to the league leader in homers isn’t enough to discredit Mitre, with his other outings, I’d say he’s been all the Yanks could ask for since his DL return.

Yes, there’s one reliever left. Anyone who has read this blog knows my feelings about Chad Gaudin. I don’t like his 4.45 ERA since returning to the Bronx. I don’t like his 1.38 WHIP in pinstripes, or his 4.12 BB/9 rate. I didn’t like his 4.97 ERA in June. Or his 5.00 ERA in May. I don’t like that for the course of the whole year (including his Oakland days) he has a 6.11 ERA/5.62 FIP/4.72 xFIP. I’ll give him this though: Chad Gaudin hasn’t allowed a run in his last 3 outings. I could mention that in his three outings prior to these last three he let in 5 earned runs on 10 hits and 3 walks over 8 innings. But, I won’t. So Chad’s had three good outings in a row since his three bad ones. Yippee-I-ay. He’s still Chad Gaudin.Of course, as I wrote this article I was excited to rag on Chad and suggest (yet again) that Jon Albaladejo be given a shot in the bigs. Then I pulled up Alby’s page to see he’s coming off his worst 3-game streak of the year. 4 IP, 7 hits, 2 walks, 4 earned runs. Not a great help for my argument. Of course, Jon still has a 1.43 ERA on the year to go along with his 72 Ks in 56.2 innings. Not to mention his absurd 0.90 WHIP. Sure, Chad had three good outings; and conversely, Jon had three bad ones. Still, he should’ve been in the bullpen instead of Gaudin since July began. Now though, he’s pretty much a lock to not get another shot until the 40-man call-up period. Why, you ask.

Alfredo Aceves. He’s probably going to stay in Scranton for five or six more days, then he’ll rejoin the club. That will spell the end of Chad Gaudin (at last), and the Yanks will have one of their most reliable pitchers over the past couple years back on the bullpen bench. Also, don’t forget that Andy Pettitte’s return to the rotation, whenever it is, will push Dustin Moseley out of a rotation spot. I don’t think Moseley is more valuable out of the ‘pen  than any of the guys I just mentioned, so it might also spell the end of his time at the MLB level this year. Still, you never know with injuries…

What’s interesting to think about is how the Yanks will handle the bullpen/rotation come October. At most, they’ll only need 4 postseason starters (if that). One will be CC. One will be Andy Pettitte. One will be AJ Burnett. (Even with Burnett’s struggles, when he’s on his game he is on his game. I’ve discussed before how it’s all or nothing with AJ, and the Yanks will just hope they see the “all” come October.) There’s been chatter that Phil Hughes would go back to the bullpen in the postseason, but with Javy Vazquez’s notable post-season struggles (see 2004) and his not-so-great stats over his past few outings, the Yanks might prefer to see Hughes start than Javy. Hughes, of course, struggled in late June/ early July, but he’s looked better his past few times out. As Hughes struggled, Javy pitched well, but now he’s in a “dead-arm” period, and hasn’t looked good his past few times on the hill. One will be the 4th starter, the other will go to the ‘pen…it’s just not a foregone conclusion which will do which (If you’re thinking innings limits on Hughes, the Yanks reset the clock, so to speak, come October. There, it’s about winning. Inning is just the last 6 letters of winning, not a limitation. If one of those fellas goes out to the ‘pen, and the Yanks don’t experience another injury, someone will get kicked out of the ‘pen, and it won’t be an easy decision for Joe G. when he has to pick who. Also, don’t forget that Damaso Marte will be back at some point. The Yanks have the advantageous position of too many arms for too few spots in the ‘pen, which will give them the opportunity to dominate the end-game from now until the end of the season, and throughout October.