The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

The Good: Game 5

WP: CC Sabathia (1-1)
LP: Horacio Ramirez (0-1)

CC Sabathia took the mound Saturday afternoon looking to rebound from a rough Opening Day outing in Baltimore. Any panic over Sabathia's first start was quickly abated, as CC pitched 7 2/3 shutout innings, racking up 6 strikeouts and dominating the Royals. Nick Swisher had another big day, scoring 3 runs and driving in 3 with the help of a triple and a long 5th inning homerun. Jorge Posada drove in 3 runs thanks to two consecutive doubles and Xavier Nady also had a multi-hit ballgame to propel the Yankees to a 6-1 win.

The Bad: Game 6

WP: Juan Cruz (1-0)
LP: Phil Coke (0-1)
S: Joakim Soria (3)

Joba Chamberlain made his first start of the season in the series finale at the revamped Kauffman Stadium. Despite a rough 4th inning (made rougher by a Nick Swisher fielding error), Joba showed flashes of dominance and ended up striking out 5 over 6 innings while allowing only one earned run. Chamberlain left the game with the Yankees trailing, but the offense came back against Gil Meche in the 7th thanks to an RBI double by Nady and a Mike Jacobs error. The Yankees were winning 4-3 with no one on and two outs in the 8th when Joe Girardi pulled Damaso Marte in favor of Jose Veras. Veras came in and promptly walked one batter before yielding to Phil Coke. Coke then allowed three consecutive base hits and the Yankees found themselves trailing once again. Joakim Soria came in to pitch the 9th and dominated, striking out the side and securing a 6-4 Royals victory.

The Ugly: Game 7

WP: Scott Kazmir (2-0)
LP: Chien-Ming Wang (0-2)


Chien-Ming Wang allowed 8 earned runs and could not get an out in the 2nd. Jonathan Albaladejo entered with the bases loaded and allowed all of Wang's baserunners to score on a Carlos Pena grand slam. Tampa Bay scored 15 runs off the combination of Wang, Albaladejo, Edwar Ramirez, and Phil Coke. Just to further exemplify how ugly this game was, the most successful Yankee pitcher Monday night started the game as the first baseman and hit a solo homerun in the 4th- Nick Swisher.


Swisher, who apparently can do everything, pitched a scoreless 8th, even striking out Tanyon Sturtze's best friend, former Red Sox Gabe Kapler. Swisher kept the ball from his first (and hopefully last) Major League strikeout. It was obvious that Tampa Bay's season opener at Tropicana Field would not go the Yankees way right from the start. Trailing 4-0 in the top of the 2nd, Xavier Nady smoked a ball 400+ feet to dead center that B.J. Upton effortlessly tracked down at the wall with an over-the-shoulder basket catch that would make Willie Mays proud. On the night they raised their very first American League Championship banner, the Tampa Bay Rays crushed the Yankees, 15-5.

Debate: The Overcrowded Outfield

Damon, Swisher, and Nady- Newest Rockettes?


The Yankees have three outfield spots available for five everyday outfielders.

Joe Girardi recently stated that Hideki Matsui would be a full-time DH, at least until Interleague play starts up this summer.


But that still leaves four outfielders vying for playing time.


Johnny Damon's days as a center fielder are long over, but he provides more than enough offense and still possesses enough speed in the field to warrant a guaranteed spot in left.


Brett Gardner beat out Melky Cabrera (a sixth player to consider in the OF, if you are so inclinded) for the center field job thanks to a power-filled Spring Training. Gardner does absolutely nothing for me except provide speed, but of the players being considered, he is the best option for center.

Nice guy, Brett Gardner. Liked him in person. Not so much in centerfield. Where are you, Austin Jackson?


So that leaves Xavier Nady and Nick Swisher. Girardi said during the Yankees' time in Tampa that the two would battle it out for the right field position and just before camp broke, it was announced that Nady had won the starting job.


Four games into the regular season, Matsui looks lost at the plate and Swisher has driven in 6 runs in the last two games alone. Nady is clearly the superior defender in right, but it's hard to justify sitting Swisher. As much as I hate to say it, perhaps it's time to thank Matsui for the memories and move on, with Nady in right and Swisher as the full-time DH.


How will Joe Girardi shuffle his outfield? It should be fascinating to watch the ongoing saga of the overcrowded outfield.

Into the Win Column With A.J. and Andy

Game 3- New York Yankees vs. Baltimore Orioles

WP: A.J. Burnett (1-0)
LP: Alfredo Simon (0-1)

A.J. Burnett made his Yankees debut during the series finale at Camden Yards, going 5 1/3 innings, allowing two runs, and striking out 6. While Sabathia and Wang hadn't managed a strikeout between them in the first two games, it took A.J. all of two batters to break that streak. Burnett got into trouble in the 3rd and 4th innings but had his offspeed pitches working well enough to earn the victory. Phil Coke, Jose Veras, Brian Bruney, and Mariano Rivera combined for 3+ innings of scoreless relief.


Nick Swisher, starting in place of Hideki Matsui, was the star at the plate, driving in 5 runs with a homerun and a double. Mark Teixeira also had a multi-hit ballgame and launched his first homerun as a Yankee, finally quieting the boos of the scorned Baltimore fans. Robinson Cano went 3-4 with his first homer of the season and scored 4 runs. The Yankees won the ballgame 11-2 despite the absence of Matsui and Jorge Posada and a combined 0-8 afternoon from tablesetters Derek Jeter and Johnny Damon.



Game 4- New York Yankees vs. Kansas City Royals

WP: Andy Pettitte (1-0)
LP: Sidney Ponson (0-1)
Save: Mariano Rivera (1)

Number 4 starter Andy Pettitte pitched absolutely beautifully in the series opener against Kansas City. Pettitte breezed through 7 innings, striking out 6 and allowing only 1 run (although it really ought to have been a shutout, as Nick Swisher misplayed a ball in right that led to the one run). The late afternoon start in Kansas City had a lot to do with the success of the pitchers as the game went on, as shadows crept across the field and made seeing the ball nearly impossible. Ex-Yankee Sidney Ponson pitched fairly well for the Royals, and another familiar face, Kyle Farnsworth, came in to pitch the 7th and struck out the side. Mariano Rivera came on in the 9th and was his usual dominant self, striking out 2 and earning his first save.

Offensively, Yankee bats were quiet with the exception of Jorge Posada, who delivered a 2-run single in the first, and Robinson Cano, whose hot hitting and newly acquired plate discipline continues. Derek Jeter and Nick Swisher delivered the other 2 RBI. Swisher started in right field for the first time this season, spelling Xavier Nady.

The Yankees are now 2-2 on the season. CC Sabathia gets another chance at his first Yankees win Saturday night in Kansas City.